US973148A - Clasp. - Google Patents

Description

A. T. VAN ALSTYN.

CLASP.

APPLIOATIUN FILED MASI 27,1909.

Patented Oct, 18,1910.

INVENTOR WITNESSE:

l yq @Mr jaa ATTORNEY tintin ALBERT T. VAN ALSTYN, Ol? STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT.

CLASP.

T o all whom it may concern.'

Vle it known that l, ALBERT T. VAN AL- s'rrN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Stamford, county of Fairfield, State. of Connecticut, have invented an lmprovement in Clasps, of which the following is a specilication.

This invention has for its object to provide a garment clasp for use upon stockings, drawers and other supporters which shall be simple and inexpensive to produce, flat and smooth upon the under side and free from projections that can bruise the wearer or hurt the hand in use, one member of which shall be provided with an elongated holding bleek to receive a fold of stocking or other garment to be held, and the other member shall be provided with a relatively large oiening to receive the holdingl block (D L, L

and fold of stocking and with quick-acting holding means which shall grip the holding block and the fold of garment thereon firmly and securely so as to prevent danger of detachment and without danger of injury to the finest stockings. lilith these and other objects in view l have devised the simple and novel clasp which l will now describe, referring to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, in which similar' reference characters indicate like parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a plan view of my novel clasp in the engaging position, but without a fold of garment over the holding block, the oper ating' lever being partly broken away; Fig. 2 a section on the line 2 2 in Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 3 a similar view showing the clasp in the open position; Fig. 4 an inverted plan view of the upper member in the closed or engaging position; Fig. 5 a section on the line 5 5 in Fig. 2, looking` in the direction of the arrows: f a plan view of the lower l Fig'. ii member; Fig. 7 a view corresponding with Fig. 3, illustrating variations in the details of construction; and Fig. S is a plan view corresponding with Fig. 7.

The upper member comprises a frame, a holding plate 18 and an operating lever 14. The frame is blanked out and formed from sheet metal and comprises end pieces 15 and 1G, which are preferably strengthened by doubling the metal upon itself and to form smooth engaging surfaces for said end pieces especially for end piece 16, side pieces 17 the upper and lower edges of which are Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 2'?, 1909.

Patented Get. 1S, 1910.

serial No. 498,604.

turned inward to form flanges indicated respectively by 1S and 19 (see Fig. 5 in connection with Figs. 2 and 3), and a cross piece 33 extending between the side pieces which strengthens the member and retains the side pieces rigidly in position. y The holding plate doubled upon itself giving a smooth edge 20 for a gripping surface and forming a spring 26 which is wider than the holding plate and the ends of which bear upon the flanges 19, as will be more fully explained. The operating lever is provided with an angle arm 21. rThis arm of the operating lever and the rear end of the holding plate are hinged to each other and to a swinging plate 22 at 23; that is to say, hinge 23 connects holding plate 18, arm 21 of the operating lever and swinging plate 22 to each other. The other edge of the swinging plate is hinged to the side pieces by trunnions which engage holes in the side plates, turning freely therein. The arm 21 of the operating lever is provided near its connection with lever 14 with lugs 25 which engage and ride upon the upper flanges 18 of the side pieces which are suitably curved to permit movement of the lever and to retain the parts against loose movement.

When the operating lever is swung to the engaging position, the spring will be forced against flanges 19 and toward the holding plate, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. The action of the spring is to retain the parts against any looseness of movement, and especially to hold the operating lever firmly in place when in the engaging position by foreing lugs 25 upon arin 21 upward against flange 18.

The lower member, in the form illustrated in Figs. 1 to 6, inclusive, comprises a plate 27 having slots 28 and a holding blgek 29 rigidly secured thereto. This holdingl block may be made of metal. but is preferably made of rubber and is provided on opposite sides with grooves 30, leaving a neck 31 between them. 82 denotes the web which is secured to the frame in any suitable manner as by being passed about end-piece 15 and stitched, and which extends forward and carries the holding block, the end of the web being shown as passed through the slot in plate 27 and stitched to place.

Vrlhe form illustrated in Figs. 7 and 8 differs from the form already described in that cross piece 33 is provided with slots 34e which are engaged by lugs 35 extending from a plate 36. This plate is provided with a slot through which the web extends and is stitched on. The holding block 29 is shown as carried by an integral rubber strip 3S through which lugs 35 pass, said lugs acting to connect strip 38 to plate 3G and to form a hinge connection between plate 3G and the frame.

The operation is as follows: Supposing the lever to be thrown backward as in Figs. 3 and 7, a fold of the stocking or other garment to b e held is placed over the holding block and then the frame is pressed down over the holding block and the fold of garment which pass through the frame between end-piece 16 and the forward end of the holding plate. The lever is then swung forward from the position shown in Figs. 3 and 7 to the position shown in Figs. l and 2. This movement of the operating lever oscillates the swinging plate and carries hinge 23 which connects the holding plate, arm 2l of t-he operating lever and the swinging plate forward and downward and carries the holding plate forward into the contiguous groove in the holding block, carrying the holding block forward also and grip- -ping said block and the fold of garment thereon between the forward edge of the holding plate and end-piece 16 of the frame, the forward edge of the holding' plate and the end-piece lying in the grooves in the lholding block and gripping the block and the fold of garment thereon firmly and preventing detachment of the garment, but without danger of tearing it. To release the garment it is simply necessary to swing the operating lever from the position shown in Figs. l and 2 to the position shown in l Figs. 3 and 7, which permits the holding block with the fold of garment thereon to drop out from between the holding plate and end-piece 1G.

I-Iaving thus described my invention I claim:

l. A clasp consisting of armember comprising a frame having flanges, a swinging plate hinged to the frame, a holding plate, an operating lever having an arm engaging the flang'es and a hinge connection between said arm, the swinging plate and the holding plate, and a member having a holding block adapted to receive a fold of garment and to pass through the frame.

2. A clasp member comprising a frame having flanges, a swinging plate hinged' to the frame, a holding plate, an operating lever having an arm engaging the flanges and a hinge connection between said arm, the swinging plate and the holding plate.

3. A clasp member comprising a frame having end pieces, and side pieces with upper and lower inwardly-turned flanges, a swinging plate hinged to the side pieces, a holding plate, a spring formed integral therewith whose ends engage the lower flanges, an operating lever having an angle arm provided with lugs engaging the upper flanges and a hinge connection between said arm, the swinging' plate and the holding plate, the spring acting to retain the operating lever in the engaging position.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ALBERT T. VAN ALSTYN. lVit'nesses A. M. WoosTER, S. WV. ATHERTON.

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