Buckles – buttons – clasps – etc. – Including readily dissociable fastener having numerous,... – Combined with diverse fastener
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-30
2001-07-03
Brittain, James R. (Department: 3626)
Buckles, buttons, clasps, etc.
Including readily dissociable fastener having numerous,...
Combined with diverse fastener
C024S697200
Reexamination Certificate
active
06253424
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a closure for securement to an article of apparel, such as a brassiere, bathing suit top, girdle, skirt, etc. and for use by a person having limited use of their fingers.
BACKGROUND ART
In my U.S. Pat. No. 4,917,651 granted on Apr. 17, 1990 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,032,104 granted on Jul. 16, 1991, I disclose a brassiere for use by a handicapped person and which is attachable and detachable at the front central portion thereof between the cups. Opposed sides of the cups in this central portion are each provided with attaching portions and with these attaching portions having loops projecting substantially horizontally from the attaching portions. These loops are engaged by the fingers of the handicapped person to permit manipulation of the attaching portions. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,032,104 there are three loops in each attachment portion and accordingly the user person would thread three fingers of a hand through the three loops of one of the attaching portions and three fingers of the other hand in the three loops of the other attaching portion and then bring these attaching portions in overlapping juxtaposed relationship whereby to position the fastening hooks provided on the back face of one of the attachment portions into corresponding eyes secured on the outer surface of the front face of the back attaching portion. Usually, it would initially take several attempts for a user person to be able to engage these loops but after time this procedure becomes less difficult to the handicapped user person.
Although the brassieres as disclosed in my previous patents have found satisfactory utility on the marketplace, they still provide some inconveniences and disadvantages and particularly to persons who have serious limited use of their fingers. Also, certain persons with arthritis conditions may be affected more in one hand than the other hand and consequently may have extreme difficulty in manipulating at least one of the closure portions of the brassiere. I have also found that by providing all of these many loops makes it more difficult to use the brassiere and these affect the aesthetic appearance of the brassiere.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
It is a feature of the present invention to provide a closure for securement to an article of apparel and for use by a person having limited use of her fingers and which substantially overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art.
Another feature of the present invention is to provide a closure for securement to an article of apparel for use by a person having limited use of her fingers and wherein the closure comprises a pair of fastener support members which utilize a single loop which is easily engageable by a person having handicapped hands.
Another feature of the present invention is to provide a closure for securement to an article of apparel for use by a person having limited use of her fingers and wherein such closure comprises two fastener support members which may be secured to the article of apparel for ease of engagement by the right hand or the left hand.
Another feature of the present invention is to provide a closure for securement to an article of apparel for use by a person having limited use of her fingers and wherein such closure member may be secured to a brassiere, a swimsuit top, a girdle, a skirt, and other articles of apparel for securing the article of apparel by a person having handicapped hands.
Another feature of the present invention is to provide a closure member for securement to an article of apparel for use by a person having limited use of her fingers and wherein the closure member comprises two fastener support members with one of these fastener support members having a loop secured in an outer wall in a top portion thereof and the other member having a depending loop which depends from a lower edge thereof for ease of grasping and securement by a single finger or finger portion of a person having handicapped hands and wherein the closure is easy to secure and unsecure.
According to the above features, from a broad aspect, the present invention provides a closure for securement to an article of apparel and for use by a person having limited use of her fingers. The closure comprises a first fastener support member having first fastener means secured thereto. A second fastener support member has a second fastener means secured thereto. The first and second fastener support members are adapted for securement to articles of apparel. The first and second fastener means are removably interconnectable with one another to retain the first and second fastener support members in overlapping relationship. A first fabric loop is provided in a front face of one of the fastener support members. A second fabric loop is secured to a lower portion of the other of the fastener support members. The loops are of predetermined size and disposed for engagement by handicapped hands for attaching and detaching the fastener means with one another with the said one of the fastener support members overlapped on top of the other of the fastener support member.
According to a further broad aspect of the present invention the closure may not be provided with loops if a person with handicapped hands is capable of engaging the first and second fastener means together. However, contact fastening means are secured adjacent the first and second fastener means for interconnecting attachment with one another when in pressure contact when the first and second fastener means are interconnected by handicapped hands capable of overlapping the fastener support member to interconnect the fastener means together. The contact fastener means are disposed in horizontal alignment with the first and second fastener means. The first fastener means is constituted by one or more rigid hook fastener members which are secured at predetermined locations on a rear face of the first fastener support member. The second fastener means is constituted by one or more rigid eye fastener members secured at predetermined locations to a front face of the second fastener support member and dimensioned to be engaged by associated ones of the one or more rigid hook fastener members.
In a preferred embodiment the fastener support members are incorporated in a brassiere.
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Brittain James R.
Houle Guy
Swabey Ogilvy Renault
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