US2937798A

US2937798A - Flexible metallic wrist-watch band

Info

Publication number: US2937798A
Application number: US771141A
Authority: US
Inventors: Morf Ernest
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1957-12-03
Filing date: 1958-10-31
Publication date: 1960-05-24
Anticipated expiration: 1977-05-24

Description

May 24, 1960 E. MORF 2,937,798

FLEXIBLE METALLIC WRIST-WATCH BAND Filed Oct. 51, 1958 United States Patent FLEXIBLE lVIETALLIC WRIST-WATCH BAND Ernest Morf, Beauregard 15, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Neuchatel, Switzerland Filed Oct. 31, 1958, Ser. No. 771,141

Claims priority, application Switzerland Dec. 3, 1957 Claims. (Cl. 224-4) This invention releates to flexible metallic wrist-watch bands.

Wrist-watch bands constituted by two attaching members for connecting the band to the lugs of a watchcase and by a metal strip having its ends fixed to said attaching members are already known in the art. In these known bands the flexibility and the elasticity are due to rectilinear transversal identical and equidistant slots provided alternately from either side of said metal strip and extending from one edge of said strip to a distance from the opposite edge, which is approximately equal to the distance between two consecutive slots.

If wrist-watch bands of this type have a satisfactory resiliency and flexibility, the bands known have, however, the drawback that their length can only be adjusted by a skilled person.

,It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a flexible slotted metal band of the type indicated above, which is arranged so that the length of the band may be adjusted very easily by anybody when desired without requiring any particular tool.

A further object of the invention resides in the fact that the flexible metallic wrist-watch band comprises in combination a pair of metal strips slotted as indicated above and link means to connect said metal strips with one another, said link means comprising at least a member portion simultaneously engaged in a slot of either metal strip.

Still further objects of the invention will appear in the course of the following description.

One embodiment of the invention and a variant are represented diagrammatically and by way of example in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a. side view of said embodiment,

Fig. 2 is a perspective view to a larger scale of a part of the band represented in Fig. 1, a link member being detached from the band, and

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a variant of the link members.

The wrist-watch band represented in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises two attaching members 1, 2, forming each a hook 1a,'2a which can be engaged into a lug (not shown) of a. watchcase. Once the hook 1a has been set in place it is closed for instance by means of pincers so that the member 1 is definitely fixed to its lug. On the contrary the hook 2a remains opened so that the member 2 can be detached at, will from its lug and can be attached thereto again, so as to open or to close the band for retiring the watch from or setting it on to the wrist.

Two metal strips 3, 4, arcuated as shown in Fig. 1 in order to have the form of the wrist, are fixed to the attaching members 1, 2, respectively. Rectilinear transversal equidistant and

identical slots

3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, are provided in the strips 3, 4. The slots 3a, 4a, extend from one edge of the strips 3,, 4, whereas the

slots

3b and 4b extend from the other edge of said strips. The slots 3a,

- member 5 is then introduced into the slot 4a (and of.

Patented May 24, 1960 2 3b, and 4a, 4b are alternately provided from either strip edge. The remaining portions of the strips 3, 4 are thus sinuous and accordingly resilient and flexible. As shown in Fig. 2 the

slots

3a, 3b, 4a, 4b extend from one strip edge to a distance of the opposite strip edge which is approximately equal to the distance between two consecutive slots. The

slots

3a, 3b, 4a, 4b form thus transversal elements 30, 4c and longitudinal element's 3d, 3e and 4d, 4e extending alternately on either side of the strips 3, 4, the transversely and the longitudinally extending strip elements having substantially the same width.

- The ends of the strips 3 and 4 opposite those which are fixed to the members 1, 2, are superposed and removably fixed to each other by a pair of identical link members 5, 6. As shown in Fig. 2 the members 5 and 6 are made out of a cylindrical rod in which diametrically opposite and axially extending grooves 7 have been provided. The members 5 and 6have thus an I section with a middle or web portion 8 and end flanges 9. The length 4b. In this case the

longitudinal elements

3d and 4d, on

the one hand, and 3e and 4e, on the other hand, are also-coinciding. In other words there must always be an even number of transversal elements 3c superposed to a corresponding number of transversal elements 40. In the embodiment of Fig. 2 eight transversal elements 30 are superposed to eight transversal elements 4c. The.

course also into the corresponding slot3a) which is provided between the two last transversal elements 4c of the strip 4 and the member 6 is similarly engaged into the.

slot 3a (and also into the corresponding slot 4a) which.

is provided between the two last transversal elements 3c of the strip 3. To enable that operation, the thickness'of the middle portion 8 of members 5, 6, is some-;

what smaller than the width of the slots 3a, 4a, and the distance between the end flanges 9 (i.e. the width of grooves 7) is somewhat larger than the sum of the thicknesses of the strips 3, 4. In order that the members 5 v and 6a're held in place the last transversal elements; (30, 4c) of the strips 3, 4 are somewhat bent out of the,

engage said plane of their strip so as to frictionally members.

Once the members 5 and 6 have been set in place, thestrips'3, 4 are rigidly fixed to one another and it cannot. be noticed at all that the band is made in two'pieces. T he members 5 and 6 do neither perturb the esthetical eifect of the band nor injure the wrist of the watch car-.

rier. These members can be set in place and removed without requiring particular tools, since it sufiices to push them in either direction transversely with respect to the strips 3 and 4.

Tests made with these bands have shown that one may superpose two to ten transversal elements 30, 4c of each strip. To avoid superposing a greater number of these transversal elements, which could be disadvantageous because of the initial bending of the strips 3, 4, it sufiices to make strips 3, 4 of two different lengths. In combining then two long strips, a long and a short strip or two short strips together, it is possible to adapt the band described practically to every wrist.

Instead of members 5, 6 which extend only across a center portion of the band, one could also use link mem:

3 hers having a length equal to the width of the strips 3, 4. Such a link member is represented in the variant of Fig. 3. Its form is similar to that of members 5, 6, with the exception that the middle portion 11 of this member 10, comprised between the end flanges 12, is cut out at one end so as to form a free space 13 adapted to receive the

logitudinal elements

3e and 42 of the strips 3 and 4.

Although I have described in detail one embodiment and a variant of my invention it should be understood that various changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts could be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims without departing from or sacrificing the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A flexible metallic wrist-watch band comprising, in combination, a pair of members arranged each for attachment to a watchcase lug, a pair of metal strips provided each with identical rectilinear transversal and equidistant slots, and link means to connect said metal strips to one another, said slots being provided alternately from either side of said strips and extending from one edge of said strips to a distance from the opposite edge thereof approximately equal to the distance between two consecutive slots, said metal strips each having one end portion connected to one of said members and an opposite end portion, said opposite end portions of said strips being superimposed so that at least one slot of one strip coincides with one slot of the other strip, and said link means comprising a link member I-shaped in cross section with a middle portion and two flanges, said middle portion being engaged in a pair of coinciding slots and said flanges maintaining said metal strips closely in contact with each other.

2. In the flexible metallic wrist-watch band of claim 1, said link member consisting of a cylindrical rod provided with two diametrically opposed and axially extending grooves.

3. A flexible metallic wrist-watch band comprising, in combination, a pair of members arranged each for attachment to a watchcase lug, a pair of metal strips provided each with identical rectilinear transversal and equidistant slots, and link means to connect said metal strips to one another, said slots being provided alternately from either side of said strips and extending from one edge of said strips to a distance from the opposite edge thereof approximately equal to the distance between two consecutive slots, said metal strips each having one end portion connected to one of said members and an opposite end portion, said opposite end portions of said strips being superimposed so that the slots provided in one of said end portions from one side edge thereof coincide with the slots provided in the other end portion and extending from the same edge thereof, and said link means comprising a pair of identical link members each I-shaped in cross section with a middle portion and two flanges, the middle portions of said link members being engaged each in the last slot of one of said end portions and in the slot of the other end portion coinciding with said last slot, said flanges maintaining said metal strips closely in contact with each other.

4. A flexible metallic wrist-watch band comprising, in combination, a pair of members arranged each for attachment to a watchcase lug, a pair of metal strips provided each with identical rectilinear transversal and equidistant slots forming transversal strip portions, and link means to connect said metal strips to one another, said slots being provided alternately from either side of said strips and extending from one edge of said strips to a distance from the opposite edge thereof approximately equal to the width of said transversal strip portions, said metal strips each having one end portion connected .to one of said members and an opposite end portion having a last transversal strip portion, said opposite end portions of said strips being superimposed so that the slots provided in one of said end portions from one side edge thereof coincide with the slots provided in the other end portion and extending from the same edge thereof, and said link means comprising a pair of identical link members each I-shaped in cross section with a middle portion and two flanges, the middle portions of said link members being engaged each in the last slot of one of said end portions and in the slot of the other end portion coinciding with said last slot, the last transversal strip portion being bent out of the plane of said strip to engage frictionally one of said link member flanges, said flanges thus maintaining said metal strips in contact with each other.

5. A flexible metallic wrist-watch band comprising, in combination, a pair of attaching members adapted to be attached, respectively, to a pair of lugs of a watchcase; a pair of flexible metal strips fixed to and extending from said attaching members, respectively, said metal strips respectively having distant from said attaching members elongated free end portions which overlap each other and at said free end portions said strips having respectively a pair of side edges which extend alongside of each other, said overlapping portions of said strips being respectively formed with a pair of coextensive slots extending respectively from said side edges transversely across said strips but terminating short of the side edges thereof opposite from said first-mentioned side edges, and said overlapping end portions of said strips respectively having inner faces engaging each other and outer faces directed away from each other; and an elongated channel member forming a link for interconnecting said strips, said channel member having a web whose thickness corresponds approximately to the width of said slots and said channel member having a pair of flanges extending from said web and spaced from each other by a distance approximately equal to the total thickness of said strips, said channel member being located with said web thereof in said coextensive slots and with said flanges overlapping said outer faces of said strips so that v the latter are held together by said channel member.

References Cited in the file of this patent FOREIGN PATENTS 213,052 Great Britain Mar. 27, 1924 452,762 Great Britain Aug. 28, 1936 1,001,346 France Oct. 24, 1951