Break-away buckle

Details Break-away buckle Break-away buckle

2000-01-21

2002-03-26

Sakran, Victor N. (Department: 3626)

Buckles, buttons, clasps, etc.

Article holder attachable to apparel or body

Neck supported holder

C024S11500R, C024S2650WS, C024S602000, C024S616000, C024S598700, C119S865000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06360404

ABSTRACT:

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
Not Applicable
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not Applicable
REFERENCE TO A MICROFICHE APPENDIX
Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a break-away buckle designed primarily for pet collars and large animal halters. The break-away buckle has a safety release and also force free engagement and disengagement. Other uses are also contemplated for the break-away buckle.
Every animal that wears a conventional neck collar or head collar, as in the case of horses, is at risk of injury or death because of the danger of ensnarement on fixed protrusions such as tree branches or fence posts. Thoughtful owners often remove collars or halters on free running animals in order to prevent a tragedy. In the case of horses, often it is difficult to catch a horse unless the horse is wearing a halter. In the case of an untrained horse it is desirable to leave the halter on despite the obvious danger. In the case of dogs the danger is even greater as dogs are often required by law to wear a collar with rabies tags. Visible owner identification worn on a pet collar is also of significant importance. In any case the owners need a means of leaving collars and halters on without risk of death or injury caused by ensnarement. A collar or halter, releasable when subjected to sufficient tension is the means by which responsible owners can do this.
Many inventions have been made through the years to address this means. One common problem is one of insufficient adjustment for release based on the animals weight or strength or combination thereof. What would work for a cat would be unnecessarily weak for a large dog or horse. If the break-away strength of the collar or halter is too weak the animal could conceivably train itself to remove it. If the break-away strength of the collar or halter is too strong, the purpose of the break-away collar or halter is defeated.
Another problem is that many break-away mechanisms must be forced together in order to become disengaged. This is a problem when extreme physical force is necessary as in the case of a large dog or horse.
Some break-away devices are designed to separate properly under tension, but do not allow for release should the break-away device twist on its longitudinal axis or bend. In testing for this situation, there is always tension in addition to any torsion or any bending. A break-away device designed to pull straight apart, when subjected to bending or torsion often finds in it own geometry to require increased tension in order to separate.
Examples of break-away devices include:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,988,927 Pfarr (Nov. 23, 1999) at the abstract discloses “A breakaway system (10) for detachably connecting a tension transmitting belt (12) to a pin (20) includes a connector (24) having a pair of jaws (34a, 34b) that clamp against the sides of the pin to preload the connector to the pin thereby preventing relative motion between the jaws and the pin. When the tension load acting between the belt and pin exceeds a threshold level, the jaws of the connector spread sufficiently the allow the pin (20) to pass through an exit gap (42) at the ends of the jaws, which gap is of a nominal width that is smaller than the width of the pin.”
U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,131 Anscher (Oct. 15, 1996) at the abstract discloses, “A buckle which includes a first member having a nipple around which a second member can rotate in the plane of the buckle. The buckle can advantageously be used to couple a back supporting belt to a shoulder strap of a pair of suspenders or the like. The rotational movement of one buckle member with respect to the other buckle member in the plane of the buckle facilitates adjustment of the shoulder straps to accommodate the various shoulder width of different wearers. The first and second members are adapted to break-away or decouple when the buckle is subjected to a load or force greater than a predetermined level.” Like Pfarr above the nipple passes through an exit gap at the end of the jaws.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,994,265 Banks (Oct. 30, 1976) at the abstract discloses, “A safety collar for cats having an adjustable neck encircling band including a pressure releasable fastener. The fastener includes a socket type keeper member on one end of the band receiving a bolt member on the other end of the band. The keeper member has a restricted circular entrance including a radial slot opening into an internal cavity. The bolt member on one end has a ball larger than the circular entrance with a pin radially disposed in the ball and adapted to be received through the slot when the ball is forced through the entrance. The bolt at its other end is pivotably mounted in the band for aligning the pin with the slot for entry into the cavity and for release therefrom should the collar catch on some object, and for rotating the pin approximately normal to the slot for uses as a conventional leash.” The above patent is representative of a large number of patents that disclose a break-away by pulling an object through a restricted opening.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,297 Mudge (Aug. 11, 1998) discloses at Column 3, lines 34 through 42, “Various sized break-away clips having various break-away tension can be designed for various sized dogs and other animals, such as cats. It is preferable that the break-away clip be separable upon the application of tension equal to of from 25% to 75% of the weight of the pet. The tension can be generated by torque on the base of one of the posts in the case of a twisting force causing the collar to act as a tourniquet.”
Buckles and fasteners which involve inserting an elongated male member in a corresponding elongated opening in a female member and turning the male member so that it no longer registers with the opening in the female member include the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,196 Panach et al (Jun. 4, 1991) discloses at the abstract, “- - - a ninety degree fastener composed of two parts made of resistant material—the male part—there protrudes a round nucleous measuring the same as the width of the opening in the female part—when turning through 90 degrees in order to fasten.”
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a break-away buckle that can be modified from strong to weak break-away force to suit the individual animal or situation. The break-away buckle is designed for use in safety collars and halters for pets and livestock, primarily but not limited to cats, dogs, horses, cows, llamas, donkeys and mules. The break-away buckle of the present invention can also replace buckles on articles of clothing and helmet straps. This will allow the article of clothing to be torn free in case of ensnarement by machinery, or ensnarement of a helmet in a motorcycle, equestrian, bicycle, industrial, or off the road vehicle accidents or any other helmet related accident.
The present invention is also directed to a break-away buckle that can swivel on the plane of its longitudinal axis to eliminate the bending problem and with mechanical means to keep the two halves aligned torsionally, tension can proceed to separate the two halves, thus providing a solution to the break-away problem. The break-away buckle of the present invention also eliminates the needs for force to engage the break-away buckle.
The break-away buckle consists of two halves designed to be connected or disconnected using non-interference inter-fitting geometric means which will maintain the connection while in use unless excessive tension causes the two halves to separate in accordance with the safety feature in the design for the safety of the animal. The combination of two major features, geometric non-interference engagement and twisting disengagement and/or tensional disengagement is a major advantage over the prior art. Also the ability of the two halves to swivel in the plane of the break-away buckle and still separate with tension or twisting force enables the break-away buckle to serve its safety related purpose in the event of a torsional or

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