US20070214842A1 - Fast fringe - Google Patents

Abstract

The ‘Fast Fringe’ is an invention intended to ease and expedite the process of making fringe for accents to crocheted blankets, scarves, etc. The idea for the Fast Fringe came to its inventor (Linda Lozar) when she was using a less practical, homemade method of fringe making using an old matchbook. She knew there had to be a fast, easy to use, inexpensive and fun way to produce this necessary garnishment to crocheting, and began to design her vision and build prototypes.

Description

• The invention is to be made of an extremely hard plastic such as the material household kitchen cutting boards are made of.
• The invention will be one solid piece of material with no seaming, welds, solders, or other forms of fusion. There will be no moving parts.
• The invention can be manufactured using injection molding or stamped and milled out of a solid piece of material.
• The Invention shall not exceed 10 ounces in weight, and shall be easily held in one hand for extended periods of time.
DRAWINGS
• FIG. 1—FIG. 1 demonstrates the front and back views of the Fast Fringe. The Fast Fringe is 6¾″ long×3¾″ at it's widest point between the edge of the handle and the opposite side. The Fast Fringe has 6 sets of grooves along the top side and the bottom side, evenly spaced at 3/16″.
• FIG. 2—FIG. 2 demonstrates either side view of the Fast Fringe. The Fast Fringe is 7/16″ thick throughout its entirety. Each end of the Fast Fringe will have a 1″ deep groove cut into it from the very end into its center, allowing the blade from a scissor to pass through it to cut yarn. The ‘teeth’ between each set of grooves will be 3/16″ square.
USE OF THE ‘FAST FRINGE’
• The directions for use of the invention shall read as follows:
• Step 1. Begin by placing the end of a bolt of yarn in the top notch of the Fast Fringe closest to the handle.
• Step 2. While keeping the yarn taut, extend it down the front of the Fast Fringe and loop it through the bottom notch closest to the handle and back up to the beginning top notch.
• Step 3. Continue this process 4 to 6 times per set of notches.
• Step 4. After desired number of loops are made per set of notches, simply move the yarn over to the next set of notches and repeat the process until all notch sets are filled.
• Step 5. Hold the finishing end of the yarn taut and snip off the remaining bolt with a scissor.
• Step 6. Clinch the full width of the Fast Fringe between your thumb and index finger. Insert the scissor into the top cutting channel and cut yarn all the way across. Repeat the process in the bottom-cutting channel.
• Congratulations! You've just created about 60 pieces of fringe.
DISTINCTION OF THE ‘FAST FRINGE’
• While researching for similar products that have already been produced or are being produced, none were found that are for the same use as the invention described. The closest inventions found were for making pom-poms or floor mops and had little or no similarity to the invention described. However, for comparison reasons, the items listed below show the distinctive characteristics of the Fast Fringe.
• • 1. The invention is made of a single piece of lightweight material as opposed to the complex wood and metal construction of past weaving inventions.
  • 2. The invention is easily and quickly produced mechanically with little or no human intervention. Past inventions had to be made by hand and took tremendous amounts of time to produce.
  • 3. The invention is easily held in a single hand. Past inventions were “table top” machines or had to sit on the floor do to there large sizes.
  • 4. The invention can be cheaply manufactured. Past inventions were more expensive because of the materials used and the man-hours to construct.
  • 5. The invention is easy to use by children as young as 7 or 8. Past inventions were only designed for adults with extensive training and skill.
  • 6. The invention is modern. Past inventions similar to this invention were designed and manufactured over 60 years ago. There is no product on the market now or in the past that does what the Fast Fringe does.
  • 7. The invention produces absolutely no waste. Past inventions produced unusable scrap ends.

Claims (9)

1. The Fast Fringe claims to be a single piece, lightweight, inexpensive, easy to use tool used in the making of crocheted afghans, scarves, etc.

2. The Fast Fringe claims to be the only tool of its kind and function available now or that has ever been available in the past.

3. The Fast Fringe claims to expedite the process of making fringe by using a tool that can produce multiple pieces of yarn at determined equal length at one time rather than the traditional method of measuring out and cutting a single piece at a time.

4. The Fast Fringe claims to have no moving parts,

5. The Fast Fringe claims to be practically unbreakable during normal use due to its one piece design and rigid construction.

6. The Fast Fringe claims to be able to produce up to 120 pieces of fringed yarn of equal length in one use.

7. The Fast Fringe claims that it can be held easily in one hand for extended periods of time during use by both adults and children of at least 6 years of age.

8. The Fast Fringe claims to be safe for use by children as it has no sharp edges or points.

9. The Fast Fringe claims to weigh no less than 6 and no more than 10 ounces.

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