US2799281A - Curl clip - Google Patents

Description

July 16, 1957 LEON CURL CLIP Filed Aug. 50, 1955 Z11 I] 1/ J wj lvpmmm BY of 7 ATTORNEY United States Patent CURL CLIP Louis Leon, Massapetlua, N. Y. Application August30, 1955, Serial No. 531,479

3 Claims. (Cl. 132-46) Two-piece curl clips of the prior art, such as the type I disclosed in U. S. Patent No. 2,638,908, issued May 19, 195-3, for example, rely for their clamping action on a spring tongue lanced from one of the members thereof.

The spring tongue tends to keep the hair clamping parts of the clip together and the tongue is flexed when the clip is opened. Since the springtongues must be relatively short to prevent them fromcatching or tangling with the hair when in use, and. because the tongues must flex a considerable amount in relation to their length when the clip is used, they often break and/or are flexed. beyond their elastic limit. A broken spring-tongue renders the clip useless, and one whose tongue is flexed beyond its elastic limit will not close or close tightly enough to stay clamped on the hair curl and must be discarded.

In view of the above, another object of the present invention is to provide a two-piece hair curl clipof the above general type wherein the clamping action between the two pieces is effected by two spring tongues, one from each of the two pieces thereof working against each other. By this arrangement it is necessary for each spring tongue to flex, other things being equal, only onehalf as much as when a single spring tongue is employed. This also provides a tighter closing clip and one wherein the spring tongues thereof can not be flexed beyond their elastic limits.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a hair curl clip of the above type wherein the spring tongues of the clip are located between the handle or finger gripping portions of the clip, and are therefore much less likely to catch or tangle with the hair when being placed on or removed from a hair curl.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a two-piece hair curl clip wherein the two pieces are locked together independently of the spring tongues of the two pieces.

The foregoing and further objects and features of the present invention will be more apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment thereof,

wherein reference is made to the accompanying drawings, in the latter of which:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a hair curl clip constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a side view of the hair curl clip of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the lower or bottom piece of the two-piece hair curl clip of the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a plan View of the upper or top piece of the two-piece clip;

Fig. 5 is a side view partly in section showing the clip in an open position; and

scribed spring tongues thereof.

2,799,281 Patented July 16, 1957 or piece, indicated generally by reference numerals 11 and 12, respectively. The two pieces are preferably made of sheet metal of suitable thickness and capable of being tempered or otherwise conditioned to give the desired resiliency thereto and particularly the hereinafter de- The two pieces are of substantially the same length, width and thickness and are-adapted to be fabricated by stamping operations.

As shown best in Figs. 2 and 4, the lower piece 12 comprises a flat intermediate section 13 from which extends in a leftwardly or forwardly direction a pair of spaced apart jaw fingers 14. The fingers l4 may have openings such as 16 spaced therea'long to improve the gripping action of the clip, and the-ends may be rounded to facilitate the insertion thereof in a hair curl. Extending toward the rear orthe right as shown in Fig. 4 is a finger gripping o-r handle section 17.

n Formed fromthecentral right-hand section of the bottom part 12, as by lacing for example, is a spring tongue 18., The tongue 18-ha's the free end thereof extending toward the right and, as best shown in Figs. 2 and 5, be.-

fore assembling with the top part 11 the tongue is slightly bent in an upward direction so that the major portion thereof lies ina plane above the plane of the remainder ofthepart ll. i t

' Also formed from the-lower part 11 adjacent the'intermediate section thereof is apair of upwardly extending oppositely positioned, tabs '19. "The "tabs 19 are for-medby pending upwardly small partly cut sections of the lower part illiaf the edges offth e opening for' med by-the tongue "182' I The tab-s-19 arebentatsubstantialiy-riglit angles w the intermediate section 13 and are undercut, or so formed, as best shown in Fig. 6, to provide notches 21 on the outer edges thereof with overlying projections 22 thereabove. Preferably the upper ends of the tabs 19 slope outwardly, which facilitates assembly of the lower part 11 with the upper part 12, as will be explained hereinafter.

The upper part 11 of the curl clip is substantially the same length and width as the lower part and comprises an intermediate section 23 from which extends, toward the left, a pair of jaw fingers 24. The fingers 24 are joined by a cross-member 26 adjacent the free ends and have open slots 27 along the length thereof.

The intermediate section 23 of the upper part 11 has a gradual transverse bend 29 therein of approximately so as to form a rounded rocking area at the center of the intermediate section. The right-hand end of the part 11 is bent slightly downward to form a finger grip portion 31, and the jaw fingers 24 are bent in a slightly downward direction at the left-hand termination of the intermediate section 23.

Formed also as by lacing, for example, from the upper part 11 is a spring tongue 32 generally similar to the tongue 18 of the lower part 12. The tongue 32 extends toward the right and, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 5, the lefthand part thereof is above the bend 29 and the righthand part extends through the opening made in the upper part in forming the tongue to a position somewhat below the finger grip portion 3 1. The tip end 33 of the tongue 32 is bent downwardly to engage the end of the other tongue 18 adjacent its free end, 1

In the center of the intermediate section 23 of the upper part 11 and extending outwardly from the opening formed by the tongue 32 are a pair of slots or openings 34. The distance from the bottom of one of the slots 34 to the bottom of the other is somewhat less than the distance between the outside surfaces of the tabs 19 on the lower part 12 so that when the tabs 19 are inserted in the slots 34, the notches 21 will lock the two pieces together.

In, assembling the two parts 11 and 12 on the clip together, the upper part 11 is placed over the lower part 12 and the two are pressed together. As tabs 19 enter the slots 34, they are forced inwardly due to the sloping surfaces at their upper ends, and when the bent section 29 of the upper part engages the intermediate section of the lower part, the notches 21 of the tabs permit them to spring outwardly to lock the two pieces together. The

tongues 18 and 32 are so formed that they are tensioned when the two parts are assembled and the resiliency thereof keeps the ends of the two sets of jaw fingers together. Since there are two spring tongues to the clip acting .against each other and each of substantially the same resiliency, each tongue only has to flex one-half as much as a single tongue would be required to flex in opening the clip a given amount. Thus the tongues of the present clip will be much less likely to break or be flexed beyond their elastic limits than clips employing but a single tongue.

While the invention has been shown and described and having an intermediate section upon which said upper part is arranged to pivot and from which extends a forward jaw section and a rear handle section, a spring tongue lanced from said intermediate section with the free end thereof extending thereabove and toward said mediate section and extending upwardly therefrom at substantially right angles to said lower part, said tabs having sidewise and outwardly extending projections adjacent the free ends thereof, the upper part of said clip having an intermediate section bent transversely of the length thereof to form a rearwardly and upwardly extending handle section and a forwardly and an adjacent upwardly extending jaw section with said jaw section also having a transverse intermediate bend in an opposite direction to said intermediate section bend whereby the remainder of said jaw section extend downwardly, a spring tongue lanced from said intermediate section of said upper part with the free end thereof extending toward the handle section thereof, said tongue being bent to have the section adjacent the fixed end thereof above said intermediate bend in said upper part and the remainder of said tongue extending through the cut out opening in the upper part produced by lancing said tongue'therefrom to a position below said handle section thereof, a pair of slots in said upper piece engaging said tabs of said lower piece to lock said two pieces together with the spring tongue of said upper piece engaging the spring tongue of said lower piece between the handle sections of said two parts to resiliently press the free ends of said jaw sections together. I

2. A hair clip according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said spring tongues has an arcuate bend therein whereby the ends of said tongues remain engaged during handle section, a pair of tabs formed from said intermovement of the handle sections toward one another.

3. A hair clip according to claim 1, wherein the pressing of said handle sections together causes flexing of both of said spring tongues in opposite directions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,687,737 Schildt Aug. 31, 1954

Images