US3911536A

US3911536A - Slide fasteners having a separable end connection

Info

Publication number: US3911536A
Application number: US449196A
Authority: US
Inventors: Eizo Shimotani; Tadashi Sumiyoshi
Original assignee: Yoshida Kogyo KK
Current assignee: YKK Corp
Priority date: 1973-03-20
Filing date: 1974-03-07
Publication date: 1975-10-14
Anticipated expiration: 1992-10-14
Also published as: ES201532U; DE2413467B2; JPS49136404U; FR2222036A1; BE812126A; NL7403276A; CA1015541A; IT1011605B; JPS5625524Y2; ES201532Y; AU6632174A; DE2413467A1; FR2222036B1; GB1414936A; DE7409756U

Abstract

A slide fastener is provided with a separating means disposed over and around the opposed beaded edges of a pair of stringer tapes at the lower end thereof, to provide a separable end connection. The tape ends constituting this connection are reinforced by a suitable plastic material in a manner such that there are provided stiff and soft surface regions alternating in location substantially over the entire surfaces of said tape ends.

Description

United States Patent [191 Shimotani et al.

[ Oct. 14, 1975 SLIDE FASTENERS HAVING A SEPARABLE END CONNECTION [75] Inventors: Eizo Shimotani; Tadashi Sumiyoshi,

both of Uozu, Japan [73] Assignee: Yoshida Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha,

Tokyo, Japan [22] Filed: Mar. 7, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 449,196

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Mar. 20, 1973 Japan 48-34175 52 us. Cl. 24/205.11 F [51] Int. Cl. A44B 19/36 [58] Field of Search 24/205.1l F, 205.16 L

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,438,615 3/1948 3,030,684 4/ 1 962 3,377,668 4/1968 Carlile 24/205.l

3,435,489 4/1969 Morin 3,488,239 1/1970 l-leimberger..... 3,616,939 11/1971 Potin 3,663,996 5/1972 Heimberger 24/2051 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,183,194 3/1970 United Kingdom 24/205.1l F

87,313 6/1966 France 24/205.ll F 7,102,225 8/1971 Netherlands 24/205.11 F

Primary Examiner-Bernard A. Gelak Attorney, Agent, or FirmBucknam and Archer [57] ABSTRACT 2 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures US. Patent 0a. 14, 1975 FIG.1

MNNN WNW H L w SLIDE FASTENERS HAVING A SEPARABLE END CONNECTION BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to slide fasteners having a separable end connection and more particularly to means for finishing and reinforcing such an end connection.

Slide fasteners of the type described are usually provided with a separating instrument commonly known as pin and box" members attached to opposed beaded edges of a pair of stringer tapes along the lower end portions thereof. In order to provide suitable tape ends for attachment of the pin and box members and at the same time to prevent fraying of such tape ends, a reinforcing strip such as of a plastic film or tape is applied with heat and pressure to each tape end so as to strengthen and stiffen that tape end. However, according to the conventional practice, the reinforcing strip is united to a tape end portion with uniform adhesive strength over its entire contiguous area, so that the resulting tape end portion is often rendered too stiff. While moderate stiffness is desired for the purpose of facilitating the manipulation of the pin and box members, too stiff a tape end is liable to tear or crack particularly in the vicinity of the pin and box in repeated use. In addition to being stiff or rigid, the conventional reinforced tape end is flat and slippery so that it is apt to slip objectionably relative to a garment or other article to which the slide fastener is applied, retarding the operation of the pin and box and further that stresses arising from manipulating the pin and box tend to act collectively upon and around and tear the sewing threads that secure the tape end to the garment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide improvements in the construction of reinforced tape ends whereby the above noted various disadvantages of the prior art will be eliminated; namely, the tape ends are rendered strong and rigid to a moderate extent to prohibit the tendency thereof to get torn cracked, the tape ends can be secured to an article with increased stability and without undue stresses tending to damage the sewing threads, and manipulation of the pin and box members is improved.

These objects together with other features of the invention will appear more clear in the course of the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate by way of example a preferred form of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a plan view of the lower end of a slide fastener showing the tape end portion as finished and reinforced in accordance with the invention; and

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view taken along the line II-II of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS With reference now to FIG. 1 of the drawings, there is shown a slide fastener F which comprises a pair of opposed stringer tapes T ,T each having a beaded longitudinal edge 16 along which a series of interlocking fastener elements E is attached. These series of fastener elements E are brought into and out of interlocking engagement by means of a slider (not shown) to close and open the fastener F in a manner well known.

Designated at the reference numeral 10 is a separator provided at and separably connecting the lower or bottom end 14 of the fastener F. It consists of a pin-like member 11 clamped to the beaded edge 16 of one of the stringer tapes and a pin-receiving socket or box 12 including a similar pin-like member 13 clamped to the beaded edge 16 of the other stringer tape, the socket or box 12 releasably receiving the pin 11 in a manner well known. The separator 10 is adapted to completely separate the fastener stringers at that end to provide a separable end connection conveniently used as in jackets, coats, bags and similar articles.

In accordance with the invention, the lower or bottom end portion 14 which extends beyond the endmost fastener element on each stringer tape T ,(T is reinforced by a reinforcing strip 15 of such plastic material that can be readily secured to the stringer tape with heat and pressure. The strip 15 is folded over and around the beaded edge 16 and tape end portion 14 of each stringer tape and adhesively united to both faces of that tape portion. It will be understood of course that the separator 10 is secured to the beaded edges 16 after the latter have been thus finished and reinforced.

According to an important aspect of the invention, the reinforced tape end portion 14 is provided with alternate stiff surface regions 17 and soft surface regions 18, the former representing a relatively strong bondage between the strip 15 and the tape T ,(T and the latter representing a relatively weak bondage. The two different regions appear cross-sectionally to be alternate deflations 17 and inflations 18' as shown in FIG. 2. For the purpose of illustration, the soft surface regions 18 are shown to be circular in FIG. 1 but this configuration may of course be variable. The alternate stiff and

soft surface regions

17,18 characteristic of the invention may be provided by varying the amount of pressure upon one region relative to the other region when applying the strip 15 to the tape end 14. The provision of the reinforced separable tape end 14 thus constructed is believed to best accomplish the afore-stated objects of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a slide fastener comprising a pair of opposed stringer tapes each carrying along one longitudinal edge a series of interlocking fastener elements, a separable end connection extending beyond the endmost fastener elements on the tapes and including a reinforcing strip adhesively applied and bonded to an end portion of each tape at alternate stiff surface bonding regions and soft surface bonding regions, said stiff bonding region being more strongly bonded to each tape than said soft bonding regions, and a separator secured to said edges of the tapes at said end portion, said stiff and soft surface bonding regions being each of limited area and disposed in spaced-apart relation to one another in generally all directions.

2. A separable end connection as defined in claim 1 wherein said stiff surface regions and said soft surface regions appear cross-sectionally to be deflations and inflations, respectively.