NZ560833A - Fastener for bungy cord, typically as cleat, with two apertures in body and cord securing channel parallel to an aperture - Google Patents

Abstract

A fastener has a body having two elongate holes each configured to receive a fastening line. A channel is positioned on the body exterior surface and adjacent to one of the holes and has a longitudinal axis extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the adjacent hole.

Description

Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 PATENTS FORM NO. 5 Fee No. 4: $250.00 James & Wells ref: 233251/53 PATENTS ACT 1953 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION After Provisional No: 560833 Dated: 22 August 2007 NOVEL FASTENER We Furniture Components New Zealand Limited, a New Zealand company of 42 Aintree Avenue, Airport Oaks, Auckland, NEW ZEALAND hereby declare the invention for which We pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed to be particularly described in and by the following statement: Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 James & Wells Intellectual Property Ref: 233251/53 Statement of Corresponding Applications This application is based on the Provisional specification filed in relation to New Zealand Patent Application Number 560833, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Technical Field The present invention relates to a novel fastener. In particular the present invention relates to a novel fastener for securing a fastening means.

Background Art Fastening means such as elasticised "shock" cords ("bungee" cords) with attached hooks to secure an object to a support surface are commonly used due to their ease of use for a variety of applications.

However the main disadvantage with use of such "shock" cords is the risk of injury to a user or damage to the object to be secured by the cords becoming detached under tension.

Fasteners to secure a fastening means and prevent its slippage are known in relation to mobile devices for rope tensioning. Such a device is disclosed in New Zealand Patent Application No. 515723 which makes use of a cam-lock mechanism with a wedge with two edges at an acute angle to lock a rope in place.

The disadvantage with such a device is that the moving parts in the cam-lock mechanism can be difficult to use and cause excessive wear on the fastening means. Further as the device is not fixed to a support surface it can be lost in applications such as securing luggage to a roof rack or bicycles to a carrying rack on a towing vehicle. 2 Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 James & Wells Intellectual Property Ref: 233251/53 It would therefore be an advantage to provide a fastener fixed to a support surface and combining the advantages of ease of use to lock a fastening means such as a cord in place once secured around an object without moving parts and without causing excessive wear on the fastening means.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a fastener to address the foregoing problems or at least to provide the public with a useful choice.

Further aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the ensuing description which is given by way of example only.

It is acknowledged that the term 'comprise' may, under varying jurisdictions, be attributed with either an exclusive or an inclusive meaning. For the purpose of this specification, and unless otherwise noted, the term 'comprise' shall have an inclusive meaning - i.e. that it will be taken to mean an inclusion of not only the listed components it directly references, but also other non-specified components or elements. This rationale will also be used when the term 'comprised' or 'comprising" is used in relation to one or more steps in a method or process.

Disclosure of Invention According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a fastener comprising: • a body; • at least one passage within the said body; • at least one channel, and • at least one fixing point for a fixing means 3 Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 James & Wells Intellectual Property Ref: 233251/53 wherein the passage is adapted to receive a fastening means through the fastener and the at least one channel to secure the said fastening means.

In preferred embodiments the fastener may be a cleat.

In preferred embodiments there may be two passages.

In preferred embodiments the passage to thread a fastening means may have chamfered edges. In this way the chamfered edges may act as a guide for the fastening means and reduce damage to same.

In preferred embodiments the passage may have an internal restriction to prevent a portion of the fastening means passing through the said passage. Alternatively it is envisaged the fastening means may be fixed to the carrying rack to prevent loss of the fastening means when the carrying rack is not in use.

In preferred embodiments the channel to secure a fastening means may be one v-shaped channel. It is envisaged the adjacent edges of the channel may be at an acute angle in relation to one another and have a surface with a profiled edge to provide a grip with a fastening means to prevent slippage of same. In preferred embodiments the adjacent edges of the v-shaped channel may be at a substantially 45° angle in relation to one another.

In preferred embodiments the at least one fixing point for a fixing means may be two apertures.

In preferred embodiments the fixing means may be a screw, rivet, nail, bolt or the like.

It is envisaged the fastener may have a profiled under-surface so that it may be stably fitted to a flat or curved support surface. 4 Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 James & Wells Intellectual Property Ref: 233251/53 In preferred embodiments the fastening means may be elongate. In preferred embodiments the fastening means may be a rope, elasticised cord, non-elasticised cord, chain or the like. In more preferred embodiments the fastening means may be an elasticised cord. it is envisaged the fastening means may be made of a material which is suitable for outdoor and indoor use and therefore have sufficient strength to withstand large loads, be weather resistant and UV radiation resistant. In preferred embodiments the fastening means may be made of a material selected from the group: glass composite plastic, carbon fibre, nylon, metal. in another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of securing a fastening means to the present invention, including the steps: • threading a fastening means through one passage of the fastener; • wrapping the said fastening means around said object to be carried; • threading the said fastening means through a further passage of the said fastener, and • locking the said fastening means in the channel of the said fastener.

Thus, preferred embodiments of the present invention may have a number of advantages over the prior art which can include: • ease of use to lock and release a fastening means; • reduce the risk of Injury resulting from release of elasticised cords under tension; • secure a fastening means without excessive wear on same, and Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 James & Wells Intellectual Property Ref: 233251/53 • compatible with a range of support surfaces and fastening means.

Brief Description of Drawings Further aspects of the present invention will become apparent from the fotiowing description which is given by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 shows an upper perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the fastener of the present invention; Figure 2 shows a lower perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 shows a schematic view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention shown in Figure 1; Figure 4 shows a side view of a fastening means for securing an object to a support surface via the fastener of the present invention shown in Figure 1, and Figures 5A-C shows sectional views of a fastening means for securing objects to support surfaces via the fastener of the present invention shown in Figure 1.

Best Modes for Carrying out the Invention The invention is now described in relation to one preferred embodiment of the present invention as shown in Figures 1 to 5C. It should be appreciated that the invention may be varied from the Figures without departing from the scope of the invention. 6 Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 James & Wells Intellectual Property Ref: 233251/53 Referring to figures 1 to 5C a fastener in the form of a cleat Is generally indicated by arrow 1. The cleat 1 has two passages 2A and 2B to thread a fastening means in the form a cord 100. A v-shaped channel 3 to secure a cord 100 is integral with passage 2B, The two sides 3A and 3B of the v-shaped channel 3 form an acute 45° angle to provide a sufficient restriction to wedge a cord 100 which has been threaded through passage 2B. In addition, the sides 3A and 3B have profiled edges each to provide a grip to a cord 100 to prevent slippage of the cord 100 from the v-shaped channel 3.

The cleat 1 has two fixing points in the form of passages 4A and 4B for a fixing means in the form of screws 5 to fix the cleat 1 to a support surface 6.

The passage 2A has chamfered edges 7 which may act as a guide for the cord 100 and reduce damage to same when it is tensioned under load.

The lower surface 8 of the cleat 1 is profiled with three separate surfaces to facilitate stable fixing to a variety of circular or flat support surfaces 6.

Referring to Figure 4, in use a cord 100 is threaded through the first internal passage 2A, wrapped around an object 200 to be secured, threaded back through the second internal passage 2B and pulled into the v-shaped channel 3 for locking into place.

The internal aperture 2A has a restriction which acts as a stop to prevent a cord 100 being pulled through the cleat 1 under tension.

Alternatively a cord 100 is permanently fixed to a support surface 6 in the vicinity of a cleat 1 at one end to prevent said cord 100 being pulled from the cleat 1 when under tension or being lost when the cord 100 is not fastened to the cleat 1.

Referring to Figures 5A to 5C, the cleat 1 may be fixed to a variety of support surfaces such as a circular cross-section tube of large diameter 6A (Figure 5A), circular cross- Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 James & Wells Intellectual Property Ref; 233251/53 section tube of small diameter 6B (Figure 5B) and a rectangular cross-section bar 6C (Figure 5C).

Aspects of the present invention have been described by way of example only and it should be appreciated that modifications and additions may be made thereto without departing from the scope thereof as defined in the appended claims. 8

Claims (11)

Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 James & Wells Intellectual Property Ref: 233251/53 WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. A fastener comprising: • a body; • at least two elongate holes through the body each hole configured to receive a fastening line; and • at least one channel configured to secure the fastening line to the body wherein the channel is positioned on an exterior surface of the body and substantially adjacent one of the elongate holes and with a longitudinal axis of the channel extending substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the adjacent hole.

2. A fastener as claimed in claim 1 wherein the fastener is a cleat.

3. A fastener as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein at least one of the elongate holes has chamfered edges configured to act as a guide for the fastening line in relation to the hole.

4. A fastener as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein at least one of the elongate holes has an internal restriction to prevent a portion of the fastening line passing through the hole.

5. A fastener as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein the at least one channel is substantially v-shaped.

6. A fastener as claimed in claim 5 wherein the adjacent edges of the v-shaped channel are at a substantially 45° angle in relation to one another. 9 Received by IPONZ 8 June 2010 560833 James & Wells Intellectual Property Ref: 233251/53

7. A fastener as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6 wherein the fastener also comprises at least one fixing point for a fixing means.

8. A fastener as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7 wherein the fastening line is an elasticised cord

9. A fastener as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein the fastener is made of nylon.

10. A method of securing a fastening line to a fastener, including the steps: • threading a fastening line through an elongate hole in a body of the fastener; • wrapping the fastening line around the object to be carried; • threading the fastening line through a further elongate hole of the fastener; and • securing the fastening line in at least one channel of the fastener wherein the channel is positioned on an exterior surface of the body and substantially adjacent one of the elongate holes and with a longitudinal axis of the channel extending substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the adjacent hole.

11. A fastener substantially as herein described with reference to any one of the accompanying Figures 1 to 5C, Furniture Components New Zealand Limited by its authorised agents James & Wells Intellectual Property 10