US1752420A - Button - Google Patents

Description

April 1, 1930. M CLARK ET AL 1,752,420

BUTTON Filed Sept. 50, 1929 l. rlllU17 li "y Patented Apr. 1, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE'.y

JOHN M. CLARK, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN7 AND'IRA D. FORD, OF ROSELAND, ONTARIO, CANADA, ASSIGNORS TO UNIVERSAL BUTTON FASTENING & BUTTON COMPANY., OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATION OF MICHIGAN BUTTON Application led September 3(7), 1929. Serial No. 396,061.

This invention relates to buttons for workmens clothing and the like and aims to provide an inexpensive but durable button which may be made at low labor and other manufac turing costs.

The invention may be readily understood b reference to one form of button embodying t e invention and illustra-ted in the accompanying drawing.

In said drawing:

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of a button attached to the fabric by a double pronged fastener and employed in conjunction with an overall suspender loop shown engaging the neck or shank of the button.

Fig. 2 is a sectional plan view of the under face of the construct-ion shown in Fig. 1, the section being taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an elevation partly in section of a button attached by a single pronged fastener.

Fig. 4 is a lan view of the fastener engaging element or the single pronged fastener.

The illustrative button has a solid metal body comprising a head 10 and a shank or neck 11, the latter provided with fastener engaging means by which the button is attached.

The button body is advantageously made of soft steel or other metal in the form of rod or similar stock (which is quite inexpensive as compared with sheet metal stock customarily used in the manufacture of metal buttons) and is brought into the illustrative shape by one or more die pressing operations upon a blank or slug cut from the rod stock. The button head may advantageously be imroved in appearance as well as protected by being provided with a superficial covering of enamel, metal plating, or the like.

The shank 11 of the button being in this case an integral part of the button body, is made in a much smaller dia-meter or thickness and with greater strength, than a hollow shank button made of more expensive sheet metal. Its smaller diameter permits it to be buttoned through buttonholes without buckling the cloth as frequently happens with buttons whose necks or collets are larger than the buttonholes provided for their reception. The aforesaid die pressing operations may advantageously include the formation of a recess 12 in the end of the shank, the curved bottom 13 of which serves to upset the athxing fastener for purposes of attachment. The inner wall of the recess is also provided with a shoulder 14 (in this case circular in form and extending around the recess inside the rim 15) which is provided to serve as a seat for the fastener engaging element 16. The fastener engaging element whether in disc or other form embodies a transverse bar 17 for a double pronged fastener, and a prong penetrable member 18 for a single pronged fastener. The fastener engaging element is held in position against the shoulder 14 by crimping or turning over the relatively thin rim 19 at the extremity of the shank into firm engagement with the element 16.

The bar form of fastener engaging element provides a space on each side of the bar through which the fastener prongs straddling the bar may enter recess 12 and operatively engage the curved surface 13. The latter serves to curl or bend the prongs from opposite sides, tightly over the bar. The bar is here shown in the form of a straight piece of vwire whose ends are held in position against the shoulder 14 by the crimped over rim 19. The fastener penetrable member 18 for the single prong fastener is here shown as a disc having a perforation 20 therein which is slightly smaller than that portion of the fastener prong which `is alined therewith upon attachment, so that the prong is required slightly to enlarge the openingthereby producing a tight fit around the fastener prong. In this case the bottom of the recess 12 serves to upset the extremity of the fastener prong as at 21 against the inner face of the disc and to enlarge it so that it cannot be withdrawn through the disc. Thus, whether the button be attached by a single or double pronged fastener, it is held tightly against the cloth wit-h no opportunity for play which might result in concentrating strain on the cloth. In this connection, the 'but-ton base may be provided with a knurled or other appropriately roughened surface 22 to provide small teeth to increase the grip against the cloth.

After formation of the button body as aforesaid, Vand preferably after the fastener engaging element is seated and crimped therein, the button is given a cleansing treatment (principally to remove the oil which may have been placed on the blank to lubricate the forming dies) and thereafter plated, enameled, or otherwise finished to improve the appearance particularly of the outer face of the button head. If the button head is finished by a separate shell 23, the latter may be applied before the aforesaid cleansing operation. Said shell is composed of thin sheet metal and is either itself rust proof or plated to render it rust proof. When thus finished the under face of the head is rabbeted or recessed as at 24 to receive the turned over flange 25 of the shell in order to provide a flush surface for the under side of the head.

The illustrative button is not only inexpensive because it is made of relatively inexpensive elements but because of elimination of Waste. In the manufacture of the ordinary button from sheet metal there is a Waste of from ten to thirty-three and onethird percent (10% to S31/3%) of this more expensive material. Moreover', cost of manufacturing operations is less because its construction is such as to lend itself Well to economic manufacture, requiring little or no handling. For example, the button body may be formed by a series of mechanical operations which involve no intervening manual handling. lVhile the button is advantageously adapted for automatic manufacture, its production is obviously not limited to full automatic manufacture, or indeed to manufacture according to any definite sequence of operations.

The button is further constructed and arranged for use with button attaching machines now on the market, that is, its exterior contourvadapts it to attachment by machines employed for attaching the ordinary hollow sheet metal button.

Obviously the invention is not limited to the precise details of the illustrative button since these may be variously modified.

Having described our invention, we claim:

l. A button of the character described comprising in combination, a solid metal body having a head and a shank of relatively small diameter, the latter recessed at its extremity to provide a. surface for upsetting an attaching fastener, said recess being shaped with a shoulder, and a fastener engaging element seated against said shoulder.

2. A button of the character described comprising in combination, a solid metal body having a head and a shank of relatively small diameter, the latter recessed at its extremity and provided With a shoulder` and a fastener engaging element seated against said shoulder.

3. A button of the character described comprising in combination., a solid metal body having a head and a shank of relatively small diameter, the latter recessed at its extremity and provided with a shoulder, and a fastener engaging element seated against said shoulder, the edge of said recessed extremity being crimped over said element to hold the same in place.

el. A button of the character dcffacribefl comprising in combination, a solid metal body having a head and a shank of relatively small diameter, the latter recessed its extremity to provide a surface for upsetting an attaching fastener, said recess being shaped with a shoulder, and a fastener engaging element seated against said shoulder, the edge of said recessed extremity being crimped over said element to hold the same in place.

A button of the character described comprising in combination, a. solid metal body having a head and a shank, said shank being recessed at its extremity to provide a surface for upsetting an attaching fastener, and a fastener engaging element located adjacent the mouth of said recess, the edge of said extremity being crimped over to hold said fastener engaging element in place.

6. A button of the character described comprising in combination, a solid metal body having a head and a shank, said shank beingr recessed at its extremity to provide a concave curved surface for upsetting an attaching fastener, a fastener engaging element seated across said recess, and means in said recess to provide a seat for said element, said shank being upset at its extremity to engage said element to hold the latter in place.

7. A button of the character described com prising in combination, a solid metal body having a head and a shank, said shank being recessed at its extremity to provide a concave curved surface for upsetting an attaching fastener, a. fastener engaging element providing a bar seated across said recess, said barbeing positioned relative to said surface to have a pronged fastener bent around it by said surface, said shank being upset at its extremity to engage said element to hold the latter in place.

S. A button of the character described comprising in combination, a metal body formed to provide a head and a shank, said shank being recessed to receive the extremity of an attaching fastener, and said shank being,r provided at its base with a roughened cloth engaging surface, and means associated with said recess for engaging the attaching fastener to hold said base firmly against the cloth.

9. A button of the character described comprising in combination, a solid metal body having a head and a shank, said shank being recessed at its extremity to provide a concave curved surface for upsetting an atta ching fastener, a fastener engaging element seated across said recess, and means in said recess to provide a seat for said element, said sha-nk being upset at its extremity to engage said elenient to hold the latter in place and having its cloth engaging surface provided with small gipping teeth to cooperate in preventing movement of the button on the cloth.

In testimony whereof, We have signed our names to this specification.

JOHN M. CLARK. IRA D. FORD.

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