GB2094391A - Snap-action clip - Google Patents

Abstract

The snap-action clip comprises a circular resilient plate 14, an embracing portion having a pair of semicircular retaining members 15a, 15b inwardly opposed to each other, thin-wall hinges 18a, 18b for connecting the resilient plate to the pair of retaining members, and a dovetail-like projection 13 formed in the resilient plate and a base plate 2 having a dovetail groove which includes a notch to receive a stopper 20 on the projection 13. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Synthetic resin snap-action clip Background of the Invention This invention relates to synthetic resin snapaction clips used as stops or catches for doors or the like and as holders for kitchen utensils. More specifically, the invention relates to a snap-action clip wherein a resilient plate formed into a circular configuration is internally provided with a pair of reversible retaining members which are connected by means of a thin-wall hinge so that the retaining members may open and close, and the retaining members can be opened and closed by making use of a resilient force of the resilient plate.

The clip of the type as described includes two type, one of which is integrally formed with a seat or base plate for mounting a clip body on the inner surface of a door or the like or a cabinet, and the other of which has a base plate separately formed into which is fitted a foot or a projection of the clip body.

In the former in which the base plate is integrally formed, the construction of molds used becomes complicated and the product is costly.

For this reason, in most clips, the base plate is separately formed. This type of clip poses a disadvantage in that when the clip is mounted on the vertical surface, the direction of insertion of the clip body with respect to the base plate need be taken into consideration, that is, if an insertion opening is directed downwardly, the clip body is naturally disengaged due to vibrations or the like during use.

Also, mere insertion of the clip body into the base plate causes a play in an inserted portion due to the repetition of opening and closing, resulting in a loose. If this occurs, the thin-wall hinge is likely damaged, and the clip is inferior in durability to the clip which is integrally formed with the base plate. However, if the inserted portion is adhered so as not to produce a loose, the damage of the thin-wall hinge is advantageously reduced to increase the durability.

Summary of the Invention It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to eliminate or mitigate those disadvantages noted above with respect to prior arts.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved synthetic resin snap-action clip comprising a clip body and a base plate. In this clip, even if the clip body and the base plate are separately formed, both are tightly connected. A complete connection therebetween may be obtained merely by inserting a projection of the clip body into a groove formed in the upper surface of the base plate in a manner similar to prior art construction. Even if the retaining members are repeatedly open and closed, there occurs no loose or slip-out, thus removing the drawbacks encountered in prior arts.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a synthetic resin snap-action clip comprises a clip body in which a resilient plate formed into a circular configuration and an openable embracing portion having a pair of retaining members inwardly opposed to each other are connected at opposite sides of the resilient plate by means of a thin-wall hinge and the resilient plate is integrally formed in its lower surface with a dovetail-like inserting portion, and a base plate formed in its upper surface with a dovetail groove, said inserting portion having a stopper projected therefrom, said dovetail groove having a stopper locking means provided on the bottom surface thereof.In the state where the clip body is mounted on the base plate, the clip body is prevented from disengagement by connection between the stopper and the bottom surface of the dovetail groove, and therefore, even if the clip is secured to the vertical surface, the direction of the base plate so that the dovetail groove is directed upwardly need not be taken into consideration particularly at the time of mounting.

In addition, since the clip body is firmly locked to the base plate by the stopper, the clip body is not disengaged even by being subjected to repetitious vibrations, and the clip body and the base plate are more tightly connected and thus no loose occurs at the opening and closing and the thinwall hinge portion is less damaged that the case where a stopper is not provided, thus increasing the durability also.

Brief Description of the Drawings These and further objects and features of the present invention will be apparent from the ensuing description, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional plan view showing a state wherein a clip body and a base plate are integrally connected; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional side view of the same; Fig. 3 is a front view of a base plate; Fig. 4 is a front view of a base plate in another embodiment; Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing a clip stick when used as a door catcher; Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing a clip and a stick in a further embodiment; and Fig. 7 is a schematic longitudinal sectional side view when a cabinet door is catched in the embodiment shown in Fig. 6.

Description of the Preferred Embodiments The preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail in connection with the accompanying drawings.

Reference numeral 1 designates a clip body and 2 designates a base plate, which are formed of synthetic resins such as polypropylene, polyester or the like.

The clip body 1 comprises a circular resilient plate 14 having thick-wall portions 12 at both sides of the lower surface thereof and a foot or projection 13 formed into a dovetail at the central portion of the lower surface thereof, and an embracing portion 17 having a pair of semicircular retaining members 15a and 15b along the inside of the resilient plate 14 inwardly opposed to each other with inner ends connected by means of a thin-wall hinge 16 while outer ends opposed so that they may open and close.The portion connected by the thin-wall hinge 1 6 is positioned in the middle of the resilient plate 14 and the retaining members 15a and 15a are respectively connected to both ends of the resilient plate 14 by means of thin-wall hinge 1 8a and 1 8b so that the retaining members 15a and 15b are not open unless a force greater than the resilient force of the resilient plate 14 is applied to the retaining member 15a on the side of a finger engaging portion 19.

While the illustrated embracing portion 17 is in the form of a circle, it should be noted that an ellipsoid or rectangle could also be used and thus the shape of the embracing portion 1 7 is not particularly limited to the circle.

The base plate 2 has a dovetail groove 21 in that central portion of the upper surface thereof so that the projection is inserted into the dovetail groove 21 and the clip body 1 can be adhered to or fixed with screws to a suitable position through the base plate 2.

The projection 13 has a stopper 20 projected therefrom, and a notch 22 is provided in the middle of the dovetail groove 21 of the base plate 2 so that the stopper 20 is brought into engagement with shoulders 23 formed on both sides of the notch 22 to prevent the clip body 1 from being disengaged from the base plate 2.

To bring the stopper 20 into engagement, the notch 22 is formed to have the width which is converged inwardly, an inner end 24 is conversely formed to be wide which is equal to a planar sectional shape of the stopper 24, and a boundary between the inner end 24 and both sides of the notch is formed to have a shoulder 23, as shown in Fig. 3, so that the stopper 20 is forced therein.

Alternatively, as shown in Fig. 4, a receiving portion 25 for the stopper 20 is formed halfway of the notch 22 which is narrower than the stopper so that the stopper 20 is forcibly forced into the receiving portion 25. In this manner, the stopper 20 may be brought into engagement.

The number of the stopper 20 and the notch 22 is not limited to one but the plural number may be employed as shown in Fig. 4. Further, as a means to prevent formation of a gap between the projection 13 and the dovetail groove 21, a plurality of inverted tapered ribs 26 are preferably formed in the bottom surface of the dovetail groove, which ribs are diverged and increase in height towards the inner portion. Reference numeral 27 denotes tapped boles.

In the above-described clip, since the resilient plate 14 and the retaining members 15a and 15b are integrally connected externally by the thin-wall hinges 18a and 18b, when a force is applied internally to the finger engaging portion 19 or the other retaining member 15a provided with the finger engaging portion to urge the member outwardly, the retaining member 15a tends to rotate about the end of the plate 14. However, since one end of the retaining member 1 5a is connected to the other retaining member 1 sub, a stress is concentrated on the end of said plate connected through the thin-wall hinge 18a to produce a flexture in the resilient plate 14.The connected portion in the central portion of the retaining plate by the thin-wall hinge 16 is raised by the action of a lever, and as a result, the retaining member 15b rotates while biasing the end of the plate connected by the thin-wall hinge 18b, as a consequence of which the resilient plate 14 is wholly flexed and the connected portion of both the retaining members 15a and 15b is pushed out. Then, when the connected portion is reversed outwardly from a position which ties the end of the plate, the direction of the external force with respect to the end of the plate is varied resulting in a no-load and conversely the resilient plate 14 is returned to its original state by the resilient force due to the flexture to strongly push out the connected portion between the retaining members 15a and 15b to open the embracing portion 17.

In case of open state, when the connected portion by the thin-wall hinge 1 6 is forced, the plate 14 and both the retaining members 15a and 1 5b act to close the embracing portion 17 conversely to the former case. Accordingly, when opening, one retaining member 15a may be pushed open while when closing, the connected portion between both the retaining members 15a and 15b may be forced.

Fig. 5 shows an embodiment in which the device is used as a door catcher. A base plate 2 is fixed with screws to a lower corner of the door 30, and a clip body 1 is inserted and locked at the base plate 2. In this case, preferably, the notch 22 is set to be positioned upwardly so that the clip body 1 may not slip out.

A stick 32 is mounted on the wall 31 which comes close to the door 30 when the door 30 is open. This stick 32 can be designed so that one end thereof is secured to and projected from the floor. However, in order to firmly lock the door 30 in its open state, the stick is preferably designed so that both ends may be secured to the wall 31 as shown.

Moreover, the position of the stick 32 must be the position such that the stick 32 comes to contact with the connected portion between the pair of retaining members 1 5a and 1 5b by the thin-wall hinge 16, that is, in the central portion of the clip body 1. If the stick 32 is in the position deviated from the central portion of the clip body, even if the stick 32 should enter between the pair of open retaining members 15a and 1 5b by the access of the door 30, the thin-wall hinge 1 6 would be urged by the stick by movement of the door 30 to make it impossible to close the pair of the retaining members 15a and 15b. Another reason is that when the retaining members 15a and 1 5b are closed, it becomes difficult for the stick to be received into the embracing portion 17 formed by said both members, as a result of which the stick 32 may not be catched positively by the clip body 1.

In an embodiment shown in Fig. 6, the base plate 2 has one end extended at a right angle to form an extended plate 2b which is bored with tapped holes 27 so that the base plate may be mounted, for example, internally of a ceiling plate 33a of a cabinet 33.

In this case, the clip body 1 is inserted into the base plate from the side so that the retaining members 15a and 15b may be opened and closed vertically, and the stick 32 is horizontally mounted internally of the door 33b.

It should be also appreciated that the clip of the present invention can be used as holders for kitchen utensils such as a bubble maker, a cap opener or the like other than stops or catches for doors, and is therefore not particularly limited to the stops for doors.

Claims (5)

1. A synthetic resin snap-action clip comprising a resilient plate formed into a circular configuration; an embracing portion wherein a pair of semi-circular retaining members along the inside of said resilient plate are inwardly opposed to each other, both said retaining members having inner ends integrally connected by means of a thin-wall hinge and having outer ends opposed: thin-wall hinges for connecting both ends of said resilient plate to outer sides of the pair of retaining members; a dovetail-like projection formed in a central portion of underside of the resilient plate; a clip body of synthetic resin integrally formed with a stopper projected from the lower surface of said projection; and a base plate of synthetic resin having a dovetail groove, which is fitted in the projection of said clip body, formed in an upper surface thereof, said dovetail groove having its bottom surface provided with a notch for guiding the stopper projected from said projection from exterior to interior, said notch being provided with engaging means for the stopper at locations as required.

2. A synthetic resin snap-action clip according to Claim 1 wherein said engaging means for the stopper comprises a notch which is converged inwardly with an inner end thereof conversely formed wide equal to a planar sectional shape of the stopper, and a shoulder formed in a boundary between said notch and said inner end formed wide.

3. A synthetic resin snap-action clip according to Claim 1 wherein said engaging means for the stopper comprises a notch having a width capable forcibly inserting the stopper and a stopper receiving portion formed halfway of said notch.

4. A synthetic resin snap-action clip according to Claim 1 wherein the base plate has one end extended at a right angle to form an extended plate, said extended plate being provided with tapped holes.

5. Any novel feature or combination of features described herein.