US2054256A - Tag fastener - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 15, 1-936. R W. HOWELL TAG FASTENER Filed oct.` 21, 1935' Patented Sept. 15, 1936 UNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE TAG FASTENER Application October 21, 1935, Serial No. 45,974

5 Claims.

This invention relates to fasteners and more particularly to fasteners adapted for use in attaching tags or other identifying media t articles or material.

Various forms of tag fastenershave been made which require grasping the fastener itself in order to attach it to an article and it has been customary to make the fasteners of such size as may be conveniently held with the fingers while it is being attached or detached. For this reason, the fasteners are usually made larger than would be required if it were not necessary to hold them in such amanner. It is therefore one object of this invention to provide a tag fastener, which is 15 anchored to a tag in such a manner that the tag may serve as a handle for the fastener, whereby attachment to an article or material can be made by grasping t'he tag in the hand near the region of the fastener to direct the fastener prong into fastening engagement with said article or material. This construction permits using a minimum length of wire, which results in greater economy of manufacture.

Another object of this invention 'is to provide a tag fastener which may be formed of a single length of wire and which will have means for holding a tag at one end, a prong or hook at the opposite end for engaging an article or material, and a tongue member cooperating with the end of the prong to prevent disengagement of the fastener after it has been attached.

It has been customary to shape fasteners of this class in various irregular shapes, and the line of pull extending between the ticket-engaging bend and the material-engaging bend is Off to one. side of the connecting portion of the fastener to such a degree that a pull tends to straighten out this portion and thereby deforms the shape of the fastener and renders it insecure.

It is one object of this invention to provide a tag fastener in which the back or connecting portion is made straight and the centers of the tagreceiving bend and the material-receiving bend are positioned close to this straight back.

The invention may be embodied in two Slightly dilerent forms, according to the nature of the goods to which the tag is to be attached. In one of these forms the terminal portion of the 50 prong is bent back upon itself so that the prong terminates in a sharply rounded end adapted to enter easily a loose-meshed fabric, but free from points or edges which might cause harm.

In the other form, the end of the prong is 55 sharpened to a point so as to be capable of penetrating a substantially continuous fabric such as paper, closely Woven cloth or the like.

Various advantages which will be apparent to those skilled in the art are included in this invention and disclosed in the accompanying drawing 5 and specification.

Figure 1 is a.l perspective view of the preferred tag fastener attached to a tag.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of said fastener with the tag shown in section. 10

Figure 3 is a rear elevation of'I said fastener and tag.

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing said tag and fastener being attached to an article.

Figure 5 is a side elevation of a modified form 15 of fastener with the tag shown in section.

Figure 6 is a side elevation showing this modified fastener attached to material.

Referring to Figure 1, a preferred form of tag fastener A is shown attached to a tag B. gg The tag is of the usual construction, having an opening l and preferably having reenforcing patches 2 adhesively secured to its sides in the region of said opening.

The fastener is preferably formed of a length 25 of round spring Wire, with a back portion 3, connecting together a prong 4 and a tongue 5.

A U bend 6 at the lower end of back 3 engages the tag through the opening I and a V bend l is provided at the top end of back 3 to 30 engage an article or material to which the fastener is to be attached. The prong is adapted to pierce the material when attaching, while the tongue serves as a locking device to prevent the fastener from becoming disengaged therefrom. 35 The fastener is normally in the form of a closed loop C, but the tongue 5 and the prong 4 can be sprung apart to open the loop for receiving an article or material to be tagged. Preferably, the bend 'l is relatively sharp and the prong 4 40 extends out at an acute angle to the back. The end portion of the prong is preferably inclinedr toward the back as shown by the bend 9, to assist in directing the end 8 out of the material after the prong has been inserted therein, so 45 as to leave the end of the prong outside with a portion of ythe material disposed Within the loop C as shown in Figure 4. While we have shown the prong as extending in a substantially straight line and at an acute angle with the back, it could be made slightly curved or any shape which would act upon the material to draw it into the material-receiving bend 'I when a pull is `exerted on the fastener. A portion of the tongue 5 near the bend B is bowed in, as at I0, 55

toward the back 3 so as to pinch and grip the tag tightly, as indicated in Figure 2. This tends to hold the fastener in a definite position relative to the tag, the plane of the f-astener loop being maintained substantially perpendicular to the plane of the tag and the back member of the fastener being maintained substantially in the plane of the tag.

The tongue 5 extends outwardly from the reentrant bend I in a general direction forming an acute angle with the back 3. Thus, when the tag is attached to an object so that a portion of the object extends through the loop C, a pull on the tag tends to crowd such portion of the object into the angle 1, that is, close to the axis of the back 3, minimizing the tendency of the prong 4 to swing away from the back 3 under the stress of the pull.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figures 1 to 4, the end portion of the prong 4 is bent back on itself as at 8, forming a smoothly rounded end which cannot prick the user or injure the object to which the fastener is attached. Preferably the end portion of said tongue is given a slight inward bend as shown at Il, while the extreme end terminates close to or yieldingly abuts an inner portion of the prong 4.

A modified form of fastener is shown in Figures 5 and 6 in which the end of the prong I4 is not bent back upon itself but is cut off, and, if desired, sharpened to a fine point. As illustrated in Figure 5, the prong I4 extends straight from the bend 1 to the tip I8, but it is understood that if preferredthe terminal portion can be bent inwardly in the manner shown at 9 in Figure 2. Furthermore the end of the tongue I5 may be sharpened as indicated in Figure 5, or may be left blunt as in the form of fastener shown in Figure 1.

It will be seen that the fastener is firmly anchored to the tag so that, when attaching to an article or material, the hand may grasp the tag at a point close to the fastener and direct the insertion of the fastener without the necessity of grasping the fastener itself. Consequently, the fastener may be made of small dimensions and considerable economy of manufacture effected.

It will also be noted that the preferred fastener has a prong provided with a. smooth round end formed by bending the end of the wire back upon itself, said end being capable of piercing some fabrics but blunt enough to prevent injury to persons or material coming in contact therewith. It will also be seen that the bent back end of the wire cooperates with the Yend of the tongue to prevent accidental detachment of the fastener when attached.

The modified form of fastener shown in Figures 5 and 6 is more advantageously used on those types of material which require a sharp point for penetration and which have sufficient' body to retain the portion of the prong embedded therein, such as meat, cork, rubber, closely woven fabrics, etc.

It should be understood that the foregoing disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:-

1. A tag fastener comprising a single piece of spring wire in the form of a closed loop, said wire having a straight intermediate portion serving as the back of the fastener, an end portion bent to make an acute angle.V with said back and to serve as a prong, and another end portion bent to form a tongue making an acute angle with said back and engaging said prong, a portion of said tongue adjacent to its junction with the back having a reentrant bend toward said back.

2. A tag fastener comprising a single piece of spring wire in the form of a closed loop, said fastener consisting of a back, a prong and a locking tongue, said back being straight throughout, said prong being disposed at an acute angle to the back, said tongue engaging the prong adjacent to thel end thereof and forming with the lower portion of the back tag-pinching jaws whereby the plane of the fastener is maintained perpendicular to the plane of the tag attached thereto.

3. A tag fastener comprising a single piece of spring wire in the form of a closed loop, said fastener having a straight back, a prong extending from the upper end of said back and making an acute angle therewith, the free end of said prong being bent back sharply upon itself to form a smooth blunt extremity, and a locking tongue extending from the lower end of the back to engage the Aprong near the extremity thereof, said back and tongue having closely spaced portions adapted to pinch a tag therebetween.

4. In combination with a tag, a tag fastener composed of a single piece of spring wire, said fastener having a straight back portion disposed substantially in the plane of the tag and said `fastener having a prong portion extending from the upper end of said back and making an acute angle therewith, said fastener also having a tongue portion extending from the lower end of said back through the tag at the junction of the back portion and the tongue, to engage said prong near the extremity thereof, said tongue and back having a. pinching engagement with said tag to maintain the fastener in a plane substantially `perpendicular to the plane of the tag.

5. In combination with a tag, a tag fastener secured to said tag and composed of a single piece of spring wire bent into a closed loop with a. straight back member, a prong and tongue extending at acute angles from the respective ends of the back member to meet each other, said back member and tongue having portions cooperating to maintain said back member substantially in the plane of the tag and the plane of said loop perpendicular to the plane of the tag.

RICHARD W. HOWELL.

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