US3121272A

US3121272A - Buckle

Info

Publication number: US3121272A
Application number: US223049A
Authority: US
Inventors: Thomas A Matthews; Moses A Hicks
Original assignee: B T CRUMP CO Inc
Current assignee: B T CRUMP CO Inc
Priority date: 1962-09-12
Filing date: 1962-09-12
Publication date: 1964-02-18
Anticipated expiration: 1981-02-18

Description

1964 T. A. MATTHEWS ETAL 3, 1,272

BUCKLE Filed Sept. 12, 1962 & J/osesA.Hieks BY mfi M M ATTORNEY 6' 3,121,272 BUCKLE Thomas A. ll iatthews and Moses A. Hicks, Richmond, Va, assignors to B. 'l. Qrump Company, Inc., llicln mend, Va, a corporation of Virginia Filed dept. 12, 1962, gar. No. 223,049 1 Claim. (Q1. 24-19d) The present invention relates to a buckle and more particularly to a buckle for use with an adjustable web belt.

in the training of horses for harness racing, a training device is employed to teach the horse proper footwork. The training device comprises two leather or plastic loops interconnected by a web belt and a buckle to enable the spacing of the loops to be fitted to individual horses. The training procedure consists of fitting one of the loops around a front leg of the horse and the other loop around the corresponding rear leg of the horse. Since the loops are connected together, the training device will make the horse work his front leg and corresponding rear leg in unison.

in training devices of this nature, some difficulty has een experienced because the web belt is bent out of line as it passes through the buckle, hence, the forces transmitted through the *buckle, between attached portions of the web belt, have followed a tortuous path. As a consequence of this diffioulty, it is believed that training programs using this device have not progressed as quickly or as satisfactorily as they should. The present invention was conceived to obviate this difliculty.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a buckle for use with an adjustable web belt so that the belt may be readily released from the buckle in order to adjust the length of the web belt.

it is another object of the present invention to provide a buckle in which one end of the web belt is permanently fastened to the buckle While the other end of the web belt is detachably connected to the buckle so that it may be readily released therefrom or so that it may be loosened suiliciently while still remaining attached to the buckle for changing the length of the web belt by adjusting it.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a buckle having slidable means theron which rigidly secure one end of a detachable web of the belt to the buckle at one time while permitting the detachable web portion of the belt to be sufiiciently loosened in order to have the length of the belt adjusted to another size or length, and thereafter again rigidly secured to the buckle.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a buckle for attachment to an adjustable web belt in which force transmitted through the buckle and the belt passes through in a common plane.

it is another object of the present invention to provide a buckle for use with an adjustable belt having a sliding Wedge member that co-acts with another member of the buckle so that the adjustable web belt portion is wedged between these two members and the wedging force is transmitted in the same plane in which the attached belt portions lie.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a buckle having a sliding member for binding the detachable end of a Web belt and in which the opposite ends of the web belt and buckle are disposed in alignment with one another at all times, including the time when the detachable end of the belt is rigidly bound or fastened to the buckle.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a buckle for use with an adjustable web belt provided with a slidable member for rigidly securing the adjustable portion of the web belt to the buckle in which the atet sliding member is provided with a planar surface that is coplanar with a stationary member of the buckle between which coplanar surfaces the adjustable portion of the web belt is wedged and in which the wedging force lies in the same plane as the main belt axis.

Various other objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing forming a part thereof and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of the buckle embodied in the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a section taken along the lines 2-2 of FIG- URE 1.

Referring to the drawing, the reference numeral ill generally designates a buckle provided with two parallel slide rods 11 spaced from each other by spacing end rods 12, at right angles thereto. The slide rods 11 have their opposite ends disposed in the end rods 12 in holes 13 provided in opposite ends of the rods 12 and are fixed thereto by pins 14.

The spacing end rods 1 in cross section, as best seen in FIGURE 2, have parallel flat side faces 15 and a flat or planar innerface 16 with an arcuate or curved outerface 17.

Slidably mounted on parallel slide rods ll, between spacing end rods 12, are

rods

18 and 19. The rods it and 19 are provided with holes 26 and 21, respectively, near their ends, through which pass the parallel slide rods 11.

The spacing end rods 12 are also provided with longitudinal, axial, rectangular slots or holes 24 through which the opposing ends of a web belt 27 are passed. The sta tionary end of the belt is on the left hand side as seen in the drawing and is formed by passing the end 23 of the belt through the slot as of the left end rod 12, thence around the circumference of slidable rod 13 and then back through the same slot 24 so that it is doubled back upon itself to overlap the portion 22 and is sewn as indicated by 2-5 to fix permanently the stationary portion of the Web belt to the buckle.

The other member 12 is provided with an identical slot 24 extending completely therethrough. The slots 2d are substantially rectangular in cross section and are sli htly wider than the width of the web belt. The slots 24 are also disposed in alignment with a plane passing through the axes of slide rods 11 and

rods

13 and 19 so that all of these members are coplanar. The slots 24, of course, are disposed between the holes 13 of the spacing rods 12.

Spring biasing members 3d are mounted on each rod I-ll between the slidable rods 13' and l9 to urge normally the

rods

18 and 19 in a direction toward the adjacent spacing rod 12.

The slidable rod 1-9 is further provided with knurling as indicated at 31 adjacent the major portion of its periphery. The outerface 32 of the rod dd which is disposed opposite the innerface 16 of the adjacent rod 12. is flat and parallel with face 16 of the spacing rod 12 to provide a co-acting wedging action with the respective face 16 of rod 12, as hereinafter described.

The free end portion 34 of the web belt has its outer extremity or end 35 threaded through the slot 24 in the respective adjacent rod 12 and t1 ereafter x i-rapped around the knurled circumference of the slidable rod 19 after which the end 35' is then threaded back through the slot 24 to overlap the portion 34 of the adjustable web portion of the belt, as best seen in FIGURE 2.

The slidable rod 19, by virtue of the spring 36" normally urging it in a direction toward its respective adjacent spacing end rod 12, causes the face 32 to wedge against the adjacent portions of the adjustable web portion of the belt and to wedge these portions against the innerface 16 of the respective adjacent rod 12. Hence, the belt is bound therebetween and the web belt is rigidly secured to the buckle.

The slidable rod 19 may be pushed back on the members l1 and away from its respective adjacent member 12 by applying a force thereto greater than the force in spring 36 in order to permit the adjustable portion 34 of the belt to be lengthened or shortened to the desired length. It is lengthened by decreasing the amount of overlap between 34 and 35, and shortened by increasing the overlap.

Since the slots 24 are in alignment with the entire assembly or frame of the buckle, and the sliding rod 19 and both the wedging face 32 and the respective co-acting face 16 of adjacent rod 12 are planar and parallel to each other and within the confines of the buckle frame, the forces transmitted between web portions 2-2 and 34 of the belt and through the buckle are transmitted in a common plane. Also, the operation of the faces 16 and 32, to bind the belt therebetween to connect fixedly the adjustable portion of the Web belt, does not impart any knife edge or biting action to the belt so that it will not break or develop a weak point here.

Although the invention has been shown in terms of a preferred embodiment, nevertheless, changes and modifications will occur to those skilled in the art, which changes do not depart in principal from the inventive concepts herein taught. Such changes and modifications are deemed to come within the purview of the spirit and scope of'the invention.

What is claimed is:

A belt buckle comprising two horizontal rod members, two vertical slotted end members having their opposite ends fixedly connected to the opposite ends of said rod members, a vertical cylindrical member fixedly carried on said rod members, said cylindrical member being spaced adjacent one of said end members for wrapping a portion of a web. belt threaded through said adjacent end member therearo-und, a vertical slidable' member having spaced apertures therein slidably disposed on said rod members adjacent another of said end members, a spring member disposed on each of said rod members between said cylindrical and slidable member for urging said slidable member toward its respective adjacent end member, the longitudinal axis of said rod members and end members cylindrical and slidable members and the slots in said end members being coplanar, said slidable member having an arouate knurled periphery with a planar face on one side thereof, said respective adjacent end member having a planar face opposite the planar face of said slidable member, said faces being parallel, where-- by an adjustable belt portion passing between said faces is detachabiy wedged between said faces.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 610,105 Thayer Aug. 30, 1898 1,519,708 Tapp et al. Dec. 16, 1924 2,166,457 Berndt July 18, 1939 2,238,789 Castro Apr. 15, 1941