US2569298A - Slider for slide fasteners - Google Patents

Description

H. ERDMANN SLIDER FOR SLIDE FASTENERS Sept. 25 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 10, 1948 FIG-.2

FIG.

FIG. 6

30 Inventor:

HANS ERDMA'N N,

Attorney p 25, 1951 H. ERDMANN. 2,569,298

SLIDER FOR sum: FASTENERS Filed May 10, l948 1 2 sheets-sheet 2 FIG. 5

I5 '8 I I ![H: IIL MAII V I I 2 5 ll o Inventor:

HANS ERDMANN At rorney Patented Sept. 25, 1951 I UNI-TED PATENT v I a V 2,569,298

' sLInER FOR 'sLmnnAsrrEnEns Hans Erdm'arm, Maplewood, N. J., assi'gnor t0 Waldes KnhinodaJnc, Long Island Gitm'hfl 3Y1, acorpuration 'ofT N-ew York Appucanonimiy 1o, 194s, s riarNo.-26;na

which it is formed integral, into the space'betweentwo'of the fastener'elements of the chain contained in the sliderbody-pand is liftedto an inoperative or non-locking position upon "actuation'oi'th'e' pulltab in either fastener opening orcl'osin'g direction. Usually, the spring means takesthe form of a spring leafarranged-in'the eye or "opening between the outer "face of the front'sli'd'er' wing and the inner edge of th'e'bail by'whichthe pull tabis hingedly connected to the slider, the spring leaf being shaped to: provide inclined surfaces against which the hinge "of the pull tab engages when the latter is pulled in either opening or closing direction, thereby to lift the locking pin out of' its normal engagement with the fastener elements 'as required for the free actuation of the: slider.

Difficulties have been encountered with-automatic slidersusin'g'a spring 'as a lockingmeans ini'mak'in'g the springisufiiciently strongto withstand therequi'red considerable opening (pulling) forcelworking against the lock, without reducing thefiexibility of the spring; 'The spring when subjected to a pulling, force is likely to'jbreak, bender become'dis'torted'a'nd a slider with such an impairedspringwo'uld' not be usable again after the pulling force had been applied only once. "Moreover, it is important that the free'end of the spring have afi'xed' locking position within the eye, therebymaintainin'gi constant the critical distance that. the-locking pin projects into the 'Slider bodyiit being obvious that if this distance is too smallthe locking pin is ineffective while, if' too great, the locking pinhas locking action when such is'not desired. The desirable'fixed Ioek'ingpositionof theispring permits the spring and its locking pin to be designed to relatively close tolerances, afeature not possible of attaini'nent' heretofore with loosely mounted and/ or located' springs. Furthermore, it is important to so shape thespring that" the forces destined" to lift it from its normal locking'position when the "pull tab is actuated work in a direction substaneemmsi (o1.24-205.14)

2 tially normal to theplane of the upper W-ir-iggbecause longitudinal deformation of the"spring is best-avoided by causing it 'tolift in a direction substantially perpendicular to thisplane and its middlelength 'portionto assume a positi'err substantially parallel-to -such plane. V

Accordingly, a principal object of the invention is the'provision of an automatic lock slider for slidefasteners characterized as above which will withstand a suifici'en-t pulling forcemany; times without. breakdown, bending or distortion-"of any ofits component parts, and without causing any damage -to the elements of the -'fastener-' chain on which the slider is'mountedl I A further object of thein-vention is-the'provision of an automatic lock slider as above-wherein the spring'is mounted in such manner that the length of the spring which protrudes-into the slider and engages the chain in "lockins'iaction maybe held to closetolerances, for the-purpose of obtaining springswhich will be uniform with respect to withstanding the pulling iorcefon the 1 chain of 'fastenerelements and which slip or release the chain without damaging it when a predetermined force has been reached, this being achievedby' providing a stop forthe free ,end of the spring limiting-the amount of protrusion of its pin end through the slider' front wingto" a definite amount.

A further abject-of the invention is'thepro- ViSiOIl'Of' anautoma-tic lock slider as above, which operates smoothly --and- --wi-th a minimum *o'f' scratching when the spring lock is lifted anddi sengaged by the action ofthepulltab, this-being achieved by constructing and -mounting the springso that" the pin-endof the spring during lifting moves in a substantially straightl-ine' path which is perpendicular to the planeof the. slider wings; and by locating the anchored endof'the spring flat against the outer face of the front wingpwith*the'result that the flexing point or hinge of the spring lies-practically in'the plane of the front wing, that is'to-say, at the lowest possible point relative to -the locking pin extending from the free end-of thespring. 'This'has the 'effeetthat the element surface engaged inthe ing'forcesotherwise required to bend thelocking 'pin'backward'i-n order to get it out of engagement.'

'Stilla furtherobjectof the invention is the provision of arr-automatic lock "slidertof the specified character, wherein the locking pin is suitably reinforced so as to enable it to withstand the bending forces exerted on it by the chain to be locked. This is preferably achieved by forming the locking pin with a reinforcing rib contained within the overall width of the spring which is preferably constant from its anchored to its looking pin end, thereby t simplify and facilitate the assembl-y'of the spring and to obtain consistency in the operation thereof.

The above and other objects and features of advantage will be apparent from the following detailed description of the invention, taken with the accompanying drawing, inwhich- Fig. 1 is a plan view of the improved automatic lock slider according to the invention;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section taken along line 2-2 of Fig. 1, illustrating the spring in its normal locking position;

Fig. 3 is a transverse section taken along line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section similar to Fig. 2 but showing the slider locked to the slide fastener chain;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4 butillustrating the locking pin in its raised (Jr-inoperative positon;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the automatic lock slider as shown in Fig. 1, but with the bail, pull tab and spring cut away at the plane of the outer face of the front slider wing; and

Fig. 7 is a perspective view illustrating the constructional details of the spring and integral locking pin according tothe invention.

Referring to the drawings, the illustrated slider is of more or less conventional construction and comprises a front wing I and a rear wing I I, the side edges of which are bent to form flanges I2, I3 defining a Y-shaped slider channel and functioning also to guide the fastener elements in their movement through the channel as the slider is actuated in either direction. The wings II] and I I are connected by a neck I4 and by a rivet I5, the head of which is extended downwardly over the outer face of the front wing" 'IO', and the rear end of which is secured to the rear wing II by bending its prong-like shank terminals I6, 'I I tightly against the outer face thereof. The middle Or shank portion of the rivet I is formed as a wedge-like divider I8 functionin to effect disengagement of the fastener elements moving through the slider channel upon downward movement of the slider relative thereto, as is well known. The head part of the rivet is specially formed to provide a generally U-shaped bail l9 which secures a pull tab 29 to the slidenbyvirtue of the hinge pin 2| of the tab extending through t e bail eye 22. p I

As seen in Fig. 2 the bail eye is elongatedbeing defined by the plane outer face of the front wing II) and the inner edges 23a, 23b, 23a of the bail,of which the short-length edge 23a slants outwardly from said outer face by a substantial angle, the longer edge 23b similarly slants outwardly but by a lesser angle so that it is inclined b only a slight angle out of parallelism with-said outer face, and the edge 230 extends substantiallynormal to said outer face. Disposedin said eye is a leaf spring 25 which is so anchored at its upper end :as to properly secure and locate as well as to provide the lowest possible flexing point for its free or locking end. To effect these desirable objectives, the upper end of the spring is formed with right-angularly disposed portions, of which a slot or opening 26 formed in the front slider wing, and the portion 21a engages flat against the outer face of the front slider wing I0. As best seen in Fig. 6, the slot 26 may be formed as a continuation of the front wing opening for the shank rivet I5, the terminal portion 21 extending the full width and depth of the slot. In its portion-adjacent theshank, the rivet head is formed with a short-length edge portion I5a which extends parallel to and is slightly spaced from the front wing outer surface so as to bear with pressure on the spring end portion 21a. The described arrangement is therefore such that the right-angular terminal 2! and the immediately adjacent end portion 21a of the spring are firmly and securely held with substantial pressure against the bottom and side edges of the wing slot 26 and against the outer face of the front wing adjacent said opening by the rivet itself, no extraneous spring fastening or securing means being required.

By reference to Figs. 3 and 4, the spring. 25 extends downwardly from its anchored upper end, having a short-length portion which is slanted outwardly from the outer face of the front wing as at 21b by an inclination corresponding to that of the bail under-edge portion 23a, an elongated portion which is oppositely slanted to extend somewhat inwardly or away from the corresponding bail under-edge portion 23b and to incline to: wards the outer face of the front wing by a small angle as indicated at 21c, and terminating at its free end in a rearwardly bent end 28. Said end functions as a lockin pin and accordingly is .of length to project through a pin-opening 29 provided in the slider front wing Ill near the lower end of the bail eye 22 and to enter the space between two adjacentfastener elements 33 (Fig. 4) Preferably, the locking pin 28 is bent relative to the spring leaf proper so thatin the normal p031 tion of the sprin the locking pin is disposed normal to the plane of the front wing, it being here noted that ends 21, 28 of the spring are disposed in substantially parallel relationship.

As seen in Figs. 6 and 7,'one side edge'of the locking pin 28 is bent at right angles thereto, so as to form a reinforcing rib or flange 30, the bend line between locking pin proper and rib being on the line of the pin side edge, so that the width'of the spring is maintained constant throughout substantially its entire length, a feature which facilitates spring assembly and provides consistent spring performance. If desired, the terminal edge of the locking pin 28 may be indented as shown to form a depending corner locking point as indicated at 3i.

According to a further feature of the invention, the front wing I0 adjacent the upper edge of its pin-receiving opening 29 isprovided with a protruding cam portion or hump 32 which is preferably formed by coining the upper edge of said opening to the shape illustrated. The hump provides an inclined surface 32a terminating in a knife edge against which the spring is adapted to abut at about the line of junction of its, in.- clined length portion 210 and the rearwardly extending locking pin 28. By dimensioning the height of the hump 32 and hence thev distance that its terminating knife edge is disposed forwardly of the outer face of the front wing, it. acts normally to maintain the spring under a certain tension when the end portion 21a thereof, is pressed flat againstsaid front wing face. This pre-tensioning of the spring must necessarily be the terminal portion 21 extends rearwardly into 7; overcome before the locking pin 2!} can be moved out of its locking position by any force acting on it. Hence, the locking pin is securely locked with the chain, as in Fig. 4, against accidental forces tending to dislocate it, and at the same time the critical distance that the locking pin extends into the slider body can be held to close tolerances.

With pull tab secured to the slider by its hinge pin 2| extending through the eye of the bail l9 intermediate the slider front wing and the spring as illustrated, a pull exerted on pull tab 20 in a direction to move the slider downwardly results in the hinge pin riding up the inclined face 32a of hump 32, thus lifting the spring and raising the locking pin 28 out.

of the path of the fastener elements 33, as seen in Fig. 5. Due to the special shaping of the spring body and the camming action of the hump 32, the force exerted on the spring by the pull tab hinge acts mainly in a direction as to effect substantially vertical lifting movement of the locking pin 22 out of the path of the fastener elements. Also, the middle part 210 of the spring tends to assume a position nearly parallel to the inner edge portion 23b of the bail and the outer face of the slider front wing as well. When the pull tab is pulled upwardly, its hinge pin 21 engages against the inclined portion 21b of the spring, exerting sufficient force thereon as to similarly effect lifting of the locking pin 28 in vertical direction out of the path of the fastener elements 33. Under both conditions of pull tab actuation, excessive lifting of the spring by the hinge pin is prevented by the inner edges of the bail. It will also be appreciated that upon release of the pull tab following actuation thereof in either direction, the spring returns to its normal pre-tensioned locking position.

Without further analysis, it will be observed that the locking spring as described is firmly and securely anchored at its one end and so that its other end may operate in highly effective manner both in looking and unlocking the slider. Due to the provision of the hump 32 and its function of imparting a pre-tension on the spring when its locking end is in its normal locking position, the length of the locking pin may be determined exactly, with assurance that it always extends into the space between adjacent fastener elements the critical distance required for sure and certain operation of the slider. The described features provide the advantage not only of effective but also consistent locking action for the life of the slider.

As many changes can be made in carrying out the above construction Without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

1. An automatic lock slider for slide fasteners comprisingfront and rear wings, a rivet connecting said wings and having a head shaped to provide a bail cooperating with the outer plane face of the front wing to form an elongated eye defined by said outer plane face and the under edge of the bail, said under edge having a shortlength portion adjacent the rivet which is slanted outwardly from said outer plane face by a substantial angle, an intermediate longer portion which is slanted outwardly from said outer plane face by a lesser angle and a lower end portion which extends substantially normal to said outer plane face, a leaf spring operatively disposed in said eye, said leaf spring having an upper end portion which is anchored flat against said outer plane face by the bail whereby its flexing point is disposed substantially in the plane of said outer face and upper and lower inclined portions of which the upper portion disposed adjacent the anchored end has length and is slanted outwardly from said outer plane face by an inclination corresponding substantially to that of the short-length under edge portion of the bail and the lower portion has greater length than and is oppositely slanted with respect to said upper portion so as to incline away from the elongated under-edge portion of the bail by a substantial angle and towards said outer plane face by a small angle, said oppositely slanted portion terminating at its free end in a rearwardly extending locking pin which is disposed substantially perpendicularly to said outer plane face and projects through an opening provided therefor in the front wing into locking engagement with fastener elements disposed in the slider, a pull tab having its hinge pin extending transversely through the bail eye and disposed rearwardly of the leaf spring, and a hump protruding from the outer plane face of the front wing immediately above said opening and terminating in a raised knife edge on which the free end of the leaf spring normally bears with spring pressure, said hump providing a cam surface for said hinge pin Which is slanted outwardly from said outer plane face by an angle such that the hinge pin in riding up said cam surface is adapted to flex the leaf spring to a position in which its oppositely slanted portion is disposed substantially parallel to said outer plane face, thereby to effect substantially vertical lifting movement of the looking pin out of the path of the fastener elements.

2. An automatic lock slider as set forth in claim 1, wherein the locking-pin is provided with a reinforcing rib disposed at right angles to its plane and the width of the leaf spring from its upper to its locking-pin end is substantially uniform throughout.

HANS ERDMAN N.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,222,988 Poux Nov. 26, 1940 2,345,348 Marinsky Mar. 28, 1944 2,373,523 Winterhalter Apr. 10, 1945

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