US3431605A - Closure assembly - Google Patents

Description

March 11, 1969 R. HASSLINGER CLOSURE AS 5 EMBLY Filed April :5. 1967 FIG. 3

illlllilf INVENTOR RUSSELL HASSLINGER ATTORNEYS pwmisz, (Y/marvels, Motion,

I III! J 90220 oimojoz H United States Patent C 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A closure assembly for releasably joining and separating strips of tape provided with hook type hooking elements and loop type hooking elements including a closure member having guide portions for the tapes, means for joining the tapes and means for separating the tapes.

Background of the invention This invention relates to a closure assembly for releasably joining and separating a pair of sheet members. More particularly, this invention relates to an assembly for aligning and joining hook and loop fasteners which are secured to the sheet members in a special manner and for separating the fasteners. This invention further relates to a closure member to be employed in the present closure assembly.

Hook and loop fasteners such as those described in US. Patents Nos. 2,717,437 and 3,009,235 include separable members each comprising a base having raised hooking elements in generally loop form wherein the hooking elements of one tape member are cut at their outer extremities to form hooks but the hooking elements of the other tape member remain uncut loops. It is also contemplated that a given member may comprise both hooks and loops. It is characteristic of this type fastener that when the two members of the fastener are pressed together in face-toface relationship, there is substantial engagement of hook threads with loop threads and a considerable effort must be applied to separate the members unless they are peeled apart. By peeling, however, the members may be separated quite easily.

Although these hook and loop fasteners have an unlimited variety of applications some difliculty has been experienced in joining and separating long lengths of hook and loop fasteners where the members to be joined are not supported firmly or where the seam is in a relatively inaccessible area. This is mainly due to the problem of aligning long lengths of hook and loop fastener tape and then applying a compressive force normal to the interfacial plane of engagement in order to join the fastening elements.

With the present invention it is now possible to employ longer lengths of hook and loop fasteners in joining tent flaps, boat sails, large tarpaulins and many other structures Where similar problems exist.

Summary of the invention The closure assembly of the present invention comprises a first tape member having a surface defined by a plurality V of upstanding hooking elements of flexible resilient matea second sheet member. A closure member includes a first guide for retaining the first tape member, the first guide having a longitudinal opening in its outwardly facing surface to receive the first sheet member; a second guide for retaining the second tape member in alignment with but separated from the first tape member is secured to the first guide, the second guide having a longitudinal opening in its outwardly facing surface to receive the second sheet member. Means surrounding and forcing the tape members into face-to-face engagement When the closure member is traversed in the closing direction is spaced axially from the guides.

Brief description of the drawings FIG. 1 is a view of the complete closure assembly;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the closure member;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the closure member taken substantially along line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the closure member taken substantially along line 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the closure assembly taken substantially along line 5-5 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the closure assembly taken substantially along line 6-6 of FIG. 5.

Description of the preferred embodiment Referring initially to FIGS. 1 and 5, the closure assembly 10 comprises first and second sheet members 11, 12 which are to be secured together. The sheet members 11, 12 may be flaps of a tent, tarpaulins or similar structures. As best shown in FIGS. 5 and '6, fastening tape members 13, 14 are secured at their outer marginal edges 15, 16 to the marginal edges 17, 18 of sheet members 11, 12 respectively. The fastening tape members 13, 14 may be secured to the sheet members 11, 12 by stitching 21, 22 along the central portion of the tape members 13, 14 as shown in FIG. 6 or by other suitable means. If stitching is used, it may be desirable to include a second stitch 23, 24 along the outer marginal portion of the tape members 13, 14. However, it is important that at least the inner marginal edges 25, 26 of the tape members 13 ,14 be free of the sheet members 11, 12 for reasons to be explained hereafter.

Fastening tape 13 has a surface defined by a plurality of upstanding hooking elements 31 which are raised loop threads of synthetic material such as super polyamide. The hooking elements 31 may be cut at their outer extremities to form hooks as shown in the present embodiment or they may be closed loops. Fastening tape 14 has a surface defined by a plurality of complementary hooking elements 32 which also are raised loop threads of synthetic material such as super polyamide. The complementary hooking elements 32 may be closed loops as shown in the present embodiment or they may be cut at their outer extremities to form hooks. While hook type hooking elements 31 have been provided on fastening tape 13 and loop type hooking elements 32 have been provided on fastening tape 14, it is intended that they may be interchanged and thus hooks provided on tape 14 and loops on tape 13. In fact, it is contemplated that a given tape surface could comprise both hook type and loop type hooking elements. When tapes 13 and 14 are brought firmly into face-to-face engagement, a large number of hooking elements 31 of tape 13 engage a large number of complementary hooking 32 of tape 14. The elements 31, 32

so engaged, resist separation but may be separated readily by a peeling force applied substantially normal to the interfacial plane of engagement.

A closure member 40 includes a first longitudinal guide channel 41 which retains the first tape member 13 as shown best in FIGS. and 6. The first guide channel 41 has a base portion 42 and a first edge portion 43 folded over parallel to the base portion 42 but spaced therefrom by a distance not less than the thickness of tape 13. A second edge portion 44 is also folded over parallel to the base portion 42 outwardly of the first edge portion 43. The separation between the first and second edge portions 43, 44 defines a longitudinal opening 45 through which the sheet member 11 is received. The orientation of edge portions 43 and 44 is determined by the direction in which sheet member 11 extends. The first edge portion 43 always extends substantially over the inner marginal edge portion of tape 13 which is not secured to sheet member 11. The second edge portion 44 overlaps the first edge portion 43 and thus both constrains the sheet member 11 in a proper orientation and prevents the tape member 13 from being pulled out of the guide 41.

A second longitudinal guide channel 46 retains the second tape member 14 in alignment with and separated from the first tape member 13. The second guide channel 46 is similar to the first guide channel 41 in that it has a base portion 47 and a first edge portion 48 folded over parallel to the base portion 47 but spaced therefrom at a distance not less than the thickness of tape 14. A second edge portion 49 is also folded over parallel to the base portion 47 outwardly of and overlapping the first edge portion 48. The separation between the first and second edge portions 48, 49 defines a longitudinal opening 50 through which sheet member 12 is received. End portions 51, 52 of second edge portion 49 are oriented in planes substantially perpendicular to the plane of base portion 47 forming a means by which the closure member 40 may be gripped to slide it along the interface between the tape members 13, 14. As in the case of the first guide 41, the first edge portion 48 of second guide 46 extends substantially over that portion of tape 14 which is not secured to sheet member 12. The second edge portion 49 overlaps the first edge portion 48 both to constrain the sheet member 12 in its proper orientation and to prevent tape member 14 from being pulled out of guide 46.

In the present embodiment, the guide channels 41, 46 are separate members mounted back-to-back and their respective base portions 42, 47 together constitute a separator 53. It is contemplated, however, that the closure member 40 may be of unitary construction. In this alternate embodiment, the separator 53 is a single piece, surface 42 serving as the base for guide channel 41 and surface 47 serving as the base for guide channel 46.

As best shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, a closure means 54 which is axially spaced from the separator 53, surrounds and forces tape members 13, 14 into face-to-face engagement causing a large number of hooking elements 31 to engage a large number of complementary hooking elements 32. The closure means includes base portions 55, 56 which are integral with the first edge portion 43 and second edge portion 44 respectively of the first guide 41. Edge portions 57, 58 are folded over parallel to the base portions 55, 56 but spaced therefrom at a distance less than the combined thickness of the tape members 13, 14.

As shown in FIG. 5, when the closure member 40 is traversed in the closing direction along the interface between the tape members 13, 14, the guides 41, 46 maintain tape alignment and the closure means 54 exerts an inwardly normal force along those portions of tape members 13, 14 which pass therewithin which is sufficient to cause the engagement of a large number of book type hooking elements 31 with a large number of loop type hooking elements 32 thus firmly joining tape member 13 to tape member 14. When the closure member 40 is traversed in the opening direction, the separator 53 exerts an outwardly normal force along the interface between the joined tape members 13, 14 which tends to peel them apart thereby disengaging the hook type hooking elements 31 from the loop type hooking elements 32.

I claim:

1. A closure assembly for releasably joining sheet members comprising a first tape member having a surface defined by a plurality of upstanding hooking elements of flexible resilient material secured to a first sheet member; a second tape member having a surface defined by a plurality of upstanding of complementary hooking elements of flexible resilient material secured to a second sheet member; a closure member including a first guide for retaining the first tape member and a second guide secured to the first guide for retaining the second tape member in alignment with but separated from the first tape member, each guide including a base portion, a first edge portion folded over parallel to the base portion but spaced therefrom and a second edge portion folded over parallel to the base portion outwardly of and overlapping the first edge portion, the separations between the respective first and second edge portions defining longitudinal openings for receiving the respective sheet members; and means surrounding and forcing the tape members into face-to-face engagement spaced axially from the guides for causing a large number of hooking elements on the first tape to engage a large number of complementary hooking elements on the second tape when the closure member is traversed in a closing direction thereby constituting a bond which resists separation but which is readily separable by peeling forces applied substantially normal to the interfacial plane of engagement.

2. A closure assembly according to claim 1 including a separator integral with the guides for separating the tape members by applying a peeling force substantially normal to the interfacial plane of engagement when the closure member is traversed in an opening direction.

3. A closure assembly according to claim 1 wherein the means surrounding and forcing the tape members into face-to-face engagement comprises first and second base portions and first and second edge portions folded over parallel to the base portions and spaced therefrom at a distance less than the combined thickness of the tape members.

4. A slidable closure member for releasably fastening first and second tape members to each other wherein the surface of the first tape member is defined by a plurality of upstanding hooking elements of flexible resilient material and the surface of the second tape member is defined by a plurality of upstanding complementary hooking elements of flexible resilient material characterized in that pressing the surface defined by the hooking elements into face-to-face engagement with the surface defined by the complementary hooking elements will result in a large number of hooking elements engaging in large number of complementary hooking elements which resist separation but which are readily separable by peeling forces applied substantially normal to the interfacial plane of engagement comprising first and second guides for retaining the first and second tape members in alignment but out of engagement with each other, the guides being secured to one another and each guide including a base portion, a first edge portion folded over parallel to the base portion but spaced therefrom and a second edge portion folded over parallel to the base portion outwardly of and overlapping the first edge portion, the separations between the respective first and second edge portions defining longitudinal openings; and means surrounding and forcing the tape members into face-to-face engagement spaced axially from the guides for causing a large number of hooking elements on the first tape to engage a large number of complementary hooking elements on the second tape when the closure member is traversed in closing direction.

5. A closure member according to claim 4 including a separator integral with the guides for separating the tape members by applying a peeling force substantially normal to the interfacial plane of engagement when the closure member is traversed in an opening direction.

6. A closure member according to claim 4 wherein the means surrounding and forcing the tape members into face-to-face engagement comprises first and second base portions and first and second edge portions folded over parallel to the base portions and spaced therefrom at a distance less than the combined thickness of the tape members.

6 References Cited 11/ 1960 Australia.

1/ 1950 France. 9/1951 Great Britain.

10 BERNARD A. GELAK, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R.

Images