US593748A - Twin snap-hook - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.)

W. R. LAPSLEY 8v W. SALLEE.

TWIN SNAP HOOK.

10.59.3348. PatentedN0v.-16,1897g l 'la .UNIT-ED STATES PATENT OFFICE.v

wILLiAM R. LAPsLEY AND WALTER sALLEE, or MCAFEE, KENTUCKY.

TWINv SNAP-HOOK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 593,748, date-d November 16, 1897. Application filed December 28, 1896. Serial No. 617,226. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WILLIAM R. LAPsLEY and WALTER` SALLEE, citizens of the United States, residing at McAfee, inthe county of Mercer and State of Kentueky,have invented a new and useful Snap-Hook, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to harness strap hooks, and particularly to that class known as safety or snap hooks; and the object in view is to provide a simple and inexpensive hook of sheet metal adapted to be struck from a single blank, whereby the only subsequent manipulation necessary to prepare the article for the market is the folding of the members of the hook upon each other and? securing them in that position against accidental displacement.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will appear in the following description, and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a perspective view of a safety-hook constructed in accordance with our invention. Fig. 2 is a side view of the same. Fig. 3 is an edge view. Fig. 4 is a plan view of the blank.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the draw-- ings.

In constructing the hook forming the subject-matter of our invention we preferably employ a single-piece blank of sheet metal, which should be of spring-steel or equivalent yielding and elastic material. This blank is so constructed that its members at opposite sides of a central transverse line are coextensive and correspond in construction, whereby when the members are folded to occupy parallel planes the resulting hook, which is shown at 1, consists of a reinforced strapeye 2 and terminal laterally-open oppositely-facing hooks 4, connected with the eye by means of yielding arms 3, said hooks being adapted to be separated to facilitate the engagement therewith of a ring 11 or an equivalent device by flexing said arms. In order to facilitate the separation of the hooks 14, we preferably iiare or deflect the outer extremities thereof, as shown at 9, thus providing for the separation of the hooks by the forcible introduction between said iiared portions of a ring 1l or its equivalent. Y

In order to providethe construction above indicated, we employ a single-'piece blank having central and terminal enlargements connected by the reduced portions forming the arms 3, as clearly shown in Fig. 4, and in this Vcentral enlargement, upon opposite sides of the central transverse line a: are formed openings 5, which when the blank is folded upon said line a: register to form the strap-eye. The openings 8, which are formed in the terminal enlargements of the blank, have throat portions 12 at respectively opposite sides, whereby when the blank is folded, as shown in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, the throat of one hook is opposite the closed side of the other hook, and hence an object, such as a ring, in order t0 be engaged with the alined hooks must first be introduced between the hooks in a plane parallel therewith and` subsequently turned when the inner side of said ring has been introduced sufficiently to lie in the transverse plane of said throats. The resulting hook is provided with a reinforced eye 2 and also with a reinforced hook or engaging portion, each of the hook-shaped terminals forming a closure for the other; but a ring may be readily detached from a hook constructed as above described by moving it inwardly from the position shown in Figs. 1. and 2 until its inner side .is arranged in the plane of the throats 12 and then twisting it to cause it to pass through said throat portion and bear against the closed sides of the hook members. By this means the hook members maybe separated to allow the ring to be drawn out in a plane between the hooks.

In order to maintain the arms of the snaphook in their proper relative positions, we preferably employ a rivet 7, engaging the blank contiguous to the outer sides of the openings 5, and hence at the bases of the arms 3, and in practice we also prefer to twist the arms 3, after arranging them in contact, to dispose the arms and the hooks 4 in a plane perpendicular to the eye 2. This provides for flexing the arms without straining the rivet,and hence adds to the durability of the article. In the drawings a strap 6 is shown in engagement with the eye 2 in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive.

IOO

Having described our invention, what We claim isl. The herein-described sheet-metal snaphook having a reinforced eye portion, laterally-yielding eoextensive arms projecting respectively from the members of said eye portion, and terminating in hooks having respectively opposite throat portions and provided with outwardly flared or deiiectcd extremities, said arms being connected contiguous to their bases by a transverse rivet and being intertwisted to dispose said hooks perpendicular to the plane of the eye, substantially as specified.

2. As a new article of manufacture, the herein described sheet metal snap hook blank, having a central enlargement, and terminal enlargements connected with the central enlargement by reduced arm s, the cen 'W'ILLIAM R. LAPSLEY.

lVALTER SALLEE.

XVitliesses:

JOHN McVANARsDELL, OLYDE WILLIAMSON.

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