US3588967A

US3588967A - Slide fastener

Info

Publication number: US3588967A
Application number: US861133A
Authority: US
Inventors: Erhard Speck
Original assignee: NAEGELE FEINMASCHINENBAU
Current assignee: DR KARL F NAGELE FEINMASCHINENBAU; NAEGELE FEINMASCHINENBAU
Priority date: 1968-09-25
Filing date: 1969-09-25
Publication date: 1971-06-29
Anticipated expiration: 1988-06-29
Also published as: ES371878A1; DE1785446B1; FR2018834A1; NL6914561A; BR6912719D0; GB1283400A; BE739390A

Abstract

THE ELEMENTS OF A SLIDE FASTENER STRINGER MADE FROM A CONTINUOUS MEANDER-SHAPED PLASTIC WIRE HAVE EACH A LONGER LEG AND A SHORTER LEG, A HEAD CONNECTING THE TWO LEGS, AND INTERMEDIATE PARTS CONNECTING EACH LEG TO AN ADJACENTLY JUXTAPOSED ELEMENT. THE LEGS AND HEAD OF EACH ELEMENT ARE ARRANGED IN A COMMON PLANE APPROXIMATELY PERPENDICULAR TO THE DIRECTION OF ELONGATION OF THE ROW FORMED BY THE ELEMENTS AND TO THE SUPPORTING FACE OF THE TAPE OR OTHER CARRIER ON WHICH THE ELEMENTS ARE MOUNTED. EACH LONGER LEG IS INTERPOSED BETWEEN A SHORTER LEG AND THE SUPPORTING TAPE FACE, AND THE INTERMEDIATE PARTS CONNECTING TWO OUTWARDLY PROJECTING SHORTER LEGS ARE PARTLY DEPRESSED INTO THE SPACE BETWEEN CORRESPONDING LONGER LEGS SO AS TO TOUCH THE CARRIER FACE. THE STITCHES WHICH FASTEN THE ELEMENTS TO THE CARRIER PASS OVER AT LEAST ONE OF THE INTERMEDIATE PARTS OF EACH ELEMENT WELL BELOW THE LEVEL OF THE TOP FACES ON THE SHORTER LEGS, AND ARE THUS WELL PROTECTED AGAINST ABRASION BY A SLIDER DURING NORMAL USE OF THE FASTENER.

Description

E. SPECK SLIDE FASTENER June 29, 1971 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 25, 1969 N l N VI'IN'I )k t *QroL glee ck [WT Kw ow MM AGE/v75 E. SPECK SLIDE FASTENER June 29, 1971 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 25, 1969 FIGS la m C Slog cl Hem 7S United States Patent US. Cl. 24-205.]. Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The elements of a slide fastener stringer made from a continuous meander-shaped plastic wire have each a longer leg and a shorter leg, a head connecting the two legs, and intermediate parts connecting each leg to an adjacently juxtaposed element. The legs and head of each element are arranged in a common plane approximately perpendicular to the direction of elongation of the row formed by the elements and to the supporting face of the tape or other carrier on which the elements are mounted. Each longer leg is interposed between a shorter leg and the supporting tape face, and the intermediate parts connecting two outwardly projecting shorter legs are partly depressed into the space between corresponding longer legs so as to touch the carrier face. The stitches Which fasten the elements to the carrier pass over at least one of the intermediate parts of each element well below the level of the top faces on the shorter legs, and are thus well protected against abrasion by a slider during normal use of the fastener.

This invention relates to slide fasteners, and particularly to an improvement in a slide fastener stringer whose interlocking or fastening elements consist of a single length of suitably shaped plastic wire.

In a fastener type which has found wide practical application, the head and legs of each fastening element extend in a common plane perpendicular to the direction of elongation of the row of fastening elements in each stringer, and are mounted on the same supporting surface of a carrier member such as a tape or a wider piece of fabric. The sewing stitches which fasten each element to the carrier member extend over the exposed surface of the element and are subject to wear by a moving slider during normal use of the slide fastener.

The primary object of the invention is the provision of an improved slide fastener of the afore-described general type in which the sewing stitches are protected against wear. In its more specific aspects, the invention aims at shaping the fastening elements in such a manner that the relatively weak sewing threads are protected from the slider by projecting parts of the relatively strong plastic wire.

According to the instant invention, the two intermediate parts of each fastening element which connect the two leg parts thereof to respective adjacent fastening elements are arranged in a common plane parallel to the supporting face of the carrier on which the elements are mounted, and are contiguously adjacent the face. The stitches which fasten the row of fastening elements to the supporting face pass over at least one of the two intermediate parts of each element and through the carrier. They are thereby protected against snagging or wear by that leg part of the element which is farther from the carrier.

The exact nature of this invention as well as other objects and advantages thereof will be readily apparent from consideration of the following specification relating to the annexed drawing in which:

FIG. 1 shows a closed slide fastener of the invention in fragmentary plan view without sewing stitches;

FIG. 2 shows the fastener of FIG. 1 in section on the line 11-11;

FIG. 3 illustrates the fastener of FIG. 1 in elevational view taken in the direction of the arrow III in FIG. 1; and

FIGS. 4 to 7 show the device of FIG. 1 in corresponding views on a smaller scale and equipped with respective patterns of sewing stitches.

Referring initially to FIG. 1, there is shown only as much of a slide fastener as is necessary for an understanding of the invention, the slider, top and bottom stops having been omitted since they may be entirely conventional. The drawing thus shows only portions of two identical, pulled-up stringers, and the following description will be mainly directed to one of the stringers.

The stringer consists of a row of fastening elements made from a continuous length of plastic wire and attached to one major face of a carrier tape 4 or 4a of textile material by sewing threads omitted from FIG. 1.

Each element has two legs 1, 2 integrally connected by an enlarged interlocking head 5 defining lateral pockets 6 (FIG. 2) for engagement with an interlocking head on the other stringer. The legs 1, 2 and the head 5 of each element are arranged in a plane perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 1, to the supporting face of the associated carrier tape 4, 4a, and to the direction of elongation of the row of fastener elements. The two legs are of different length, the longer leg 2 being interposed between the face of the tape 4 and the shorter leg 1. As is best seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, the shorter legs 1 are spaced from the tape face by one thickness of the round, plastic wire from which the fastener elements were shaped, as will be described below.

The legs 1, 2 of each fastening element are integrally connected with corresponding legs of the two oppositely adjacent fastening elements by intermediate parts of the length of plastic wire which, for the purpose of this description, will be assumed to belong partly to each of the two connected elements. Thus, intermediate parts 3 connect the longer leg 2 of each element to the longer leg 2 of a following element, and intermediate parts 3 connect the shorter leg 1 to the shorter leg 1 of the preceding element, each pair of connected legs and the associated intermediate parts forming an approximate U-shape, as is best seen in FIG. 1.

The U-shape constituted by the longer legs 2 and the associated intermediate parts 3 is flat and is directly superimposed on the supporting face of the carrier tape 4. The shorter legs 1 are superimposed on the associated longer legs and the intermediate parts 3 which connect the legs 1 dip between two longer legs 2 to the surface of the tape 4, as is best seen in FIG. 3. They touch or almost touch the supporting surface of the tape and extend in a common plane parallel to the suporting surface with the intermediate parts 3 which connect the longer legs 2. The shorter legs 1 thus project beyond the common level of the legs 2 and of the intermediate parts 3, 3' away from the tape 4.

As is evident from FIGS. 4 to 7, the row of fastening elements may readily be sewn to the tape 4 or 4a in such a manner that the sewing threads are protected by the projecting short legs 1 against snagging and against wear by the slider. FIG. 4 illustrates a row of zig-zag stitches 7 which pass through the tape in the bight of each of the U-shapes mentioned above. Each stitch passes from the bight partly formed by the longer legs 2' over the intermediate parts 3 connecting the shorter legs where the intermediate parts are well below the level of the shorter legs 1.

The fastener illustrated in FIG. is assembled by means of T-stitches *8 having each a stem portion and a cross bar portion extending from one end of the stem portion in two opposite directions. The several cross bar portions are longitudinally aligned and pass over the intermediate portions connecting the longer legs 2. They pass through the tape between the 'U-shapes formed by the longer legs 2 and the intermediate parts 3'. The stem portions extend at right angles to the length of the row of fastener elements across the most depressed portion of the joined intermediate parts 3.

The fastener shown in FIG. 6 differs from that described above with reference to FIG. 5 in that cross bar portions of T-stitches 9 also pass through the tape in the bights of the U-shapes formed by the longer legs 2 and the intermediate parts 3'.

A straight row of chain stitches 10 passes over the intermediate parts 2 only in the fastener shown in FIG. 7. In order to hold the shorter legs 1 in the desired position, welds or adhesive bonds, not capable of pictorial representation on the scale of .FIG. 7, are provided between the touching surfaces of the superimposed legs 1, 2, and a fixedly fastened connection between the legs of each fastener element may also be resorted to with the sewing patterns illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5 and 6.

The illustrated fastening elements are prepared in a manner partly well known, and partly evident from the shape of the finished elements. Round wire of thermoplastic material, such as nylon, is first bent into a fiat meander shape. The meander is then passed between heated rolls which flatten the wire along 'a line parallel to but offset from the longitudinal plane of symmetry of the meander, and the two unequal portions of the meander on the two sides of the flattening line are folded on each other, and the intermediate portions 3 are depressed by a heated die, so as to produce the shape seen in the drawing in which the several fastening elements are constituted by consecutive portions of a single continuous length of the nylon wire, respective longitudinal sections of each portion constituting the two legs, the head, and the two intermediate parts of the element. The shaped wire is sewn to the tape in the manner seen in FIGS. 4 to 7.

Other methods for making the fastening elements shown in the drawing will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art. The plastic wire employed may be square in cross section or of any other non-circular shape, and it need not be uniform in cross section at the time it is bent into the meander shape, if so desired.

The basic features of the invention are also applicable to slide fasteners whose fastening elements are made from deformed wire spirals, and the necessary modifications in the illustrated fastener and in the afore-described method of preparing the same are evident so as not to require more detailed description.

What is claimed is:

1. In a slide fastener stringer including a carrier memher having a supporting face; an elongated row of juxtaposed fastening elements respectively constituted by consecutive portions of a single continuous length of plastic wire, respective longitudinal sections of each portion constituting two leg parts, a head part, and two intermediate parts of the element, the intermediate parts respectively connecting the two leg parts of each element to the two adjacently juxtaposed elements in said row, the two leg parts and the head part of each element extending in 'a common plane substantially perpendicular to said row and to said face; and stitches securing said row of fastening elements to said face of the carrier member in superposed relationship, the improvement which comprises:

(a) said two intermediate parts of each element being laterally spaced from each other and extending in a common plane parallel to said face and being contiguously adjacent said face; and

(b) said stitches passing over at least one of said two intermediate parts of each element and through said carrier.

2. In a stringer as set forth in claim 1, said two intermediate parts touching said face.

3. In a stringer as set forth in claim 2, one of said two leg parts being interposed in said substantially perpendicular common plane between said face and the other leg part, said leg parts having respective first terminal portions connected by said head part and respective second terminal portions integral with respective intermediate parts, the length of said one leg part between said terminal portions being greater than the corresponding length of said other leg part.

4. In a stringer as set forth in claim 3, said two leg parts touching each other.

5. In a stringer as set forth in claim 3, the shorter leg part of each element being connected by associated intermediate parts to the shorter leg part of one juxtaposed element, and the longer leg part of each element being connected by associated intermediate parts to the longer leg part of the other juxtaposed element, whereby the connected leg parts form U-shapes, the intermediate parts connecting said shorter leg parts of each pair of juxtaposed elements being partly interposed between the longer leg parts of said pair in said parallel common plane.

6. In a stringer as set forth in claim 5, said stitches being zig-zag stitches sequentially passing over the intermediate parts connecting the shorter leg parts of said elements.

7. In a stringer as set forth in claim 5', each stitch being T-shaped and having a stern portion and a cross bar portion extending from one end of the stem portion, said cross bar portions of the stitches being longitudinally aligned and passing over the U-shapes formed by the connected longer leg parts, and the stem portions passing over respective intermediate parts connecting two shorter leg parts.

8. In a stringer as set forth in claim 5, said stitches jointly constituting a row of chain stitches passing over the intermediate parts connecting said longer leg parts.

9. In a stringer as set forth in claim 8, fastening means fixedly fastening the two leg parts of each element to each other against relative movement in said substantially perpendicular common plane.

10. In a stringer as set forth in claim 1, fastening means fixedly fastening the two leg parts of each element to each other against relative movement in said substantially perpendicular common plane.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,412,438 11/1968 Sim 24205.16CUX 3,484,906 12/1969 Yoshida 24205.1CUX

FOREIGN PATENTS 222,149 6/1959 Australia 24205.l3C

BERNARD A. GELAK, Primary Examiner U.S. C1. X.R. 24205.l3, 205.16