Buckles – buttons – clasps – etc. – Plural fasteners having intermediate flaccid connector
Reexamination Certificate
1998-09-21
2001-03-13
Brittain, James R. (Department: 3626)
Buckles, buttons, clasps, etc.
Plural fasteners having intermediate flaccid connector
Reexamination Certificate
active
06199246
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an integrated tie for fastening the upholstery of a vehicle seat cushion and/or seatback, and to a method of fabricating such an integrated tie.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In upholstery, and particularly for securing upholstery to vehicle seats, ties are used which are fitted to the seat structure and which provide for holding the upholstery firmly against the seat padding on the structure. The upholstery of cushions defining the seat portion of vehicle seats is fastened using ties comprising a portion of wire of a predetermined length and fitted at opposite ends with two heads adjustably connectable to each other; the wire is inserted manually inside a tubular sleeve defined by a folded stitched edge of the upholstery material, and the two heads are connected to each other so as to tension the tie and stretch the upholstery material firmly onto the padding.
Manually inserting the wire inside the tubular sleeve defining the wire seat on the upholstery material is obviously a painstaking, time-consuming job, which also affects the health of assembly workers (that is, such operations, can result in cramps tendonitis, and the like). One solution proposed to eliminate this drawback is to use a tie integrated directly in the upholstery material, which is defined by the wire complete with the two heads, and which is stitched directly to the edge of the cushion and/or seatback upholstery material by a special stitching process enabling subsequent tensioning of the tie. However, besides being extremely expensive, such a solution also involves the use of bulky special-purpose equipment.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks by providing an integrated tie for fastening upholstery to vehicle seat cushions, which is quick and easy to assemble and involves no special-purpose equipment or tiring manual work. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of fabricating such a tie, which may be implemented cheaply and rapidly, in particular, automatically in one stamping cycle, using relatively straightforward, compact equipment.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, there is provided an integrated tie for fastening the upholstery of a vehicle seat cushion and/or seatback, of the type comprising a portion of wire, of predetermined length, fitted integrally at opposite ends with respective mutually connectable heads; characterized by also comprising a portion of tape shorter than the portion of wire and folded longitudinally about the portion of wire, between the heads, so as to enclose the portion of wire inside a tubular sleeve defined by a U-folded intermediate longitudinal portion of the portion of tape and closed by a flat connecting strip defined by superimposed mutually fixed opposite longitudinal lateral portions of the portion of tape; the connecting strip being stitchable to the upholstery in a conventional manner.
According to the present invention, there is also provided a method of fabricating an integrated tie for fastening the upholstery of a vehicle seat cushion and/or seatback, comprising the steps of:
molding onto a first portion of wire, maintained taut between respective half-molds of an injection press, a pair of mutually connectable heads adjacent to and oriented head-to-tail with respect to each other;
drawing the wire to unwind, between the half-molds, a second portion of wire from a reel; and
cutting the wire between the adjacent heads, while a first head is gripped so as to maintain the second portion of wire taut, so as to separate the first portion of wire from the second portion of wire;
characterized by also comprising the steps of:
gripping a second head by means of a supporting device for maintaining the first portion of wire taut and rotating the first portion of wire onto a precut portion of tape parallel to an assembly surface;
raising the edges of the portion of tape with respect to the assembly surface so as to fold an intermediate longitudinal portion of the portion of tape into a U about the wire and so form a tubular sleeve housing the wire and closed by a flat connecting strip defined by opposite longitudinal lateral portions, adjacent to the edges, of the portion of tape; and
securing the edges to each other by lap welding the lateral portions.
The wire of the tie is thus enclosed inside the tape with no stitching required, and is free to slide inside the tubular sleeve defined by the tape. By virtue of the lap welded lateral portions, the tape may then be stitched directly to the edge of the upholstery in the usual way, and therefore cheaply, quickly and with no need for special machinery. In actual use, the upholstery is fitted to the cushion and/or seatback, and the fitter simply pulls the ends of the tie fitted with the two heads, after first connecting the heads hanging outside the tape, to tension the tie and fasten the upholstery effortlessly and/or with no movements or operations capable of causing physical discomfort, such as cramps or tendonitis.
REFERENCES:
patent: 1778955 (1930-10-01), Morrill
patent: 3548906 (1970-12-01), Murphy
patent: 4391063 (1983-07-01), Gill, III
patent: 4769875 (1988-09-01), Hartman
patent: 5619776 (1997-04-01), Oddenino
patent: 5890381 (1999-04-01), Leeke et al.
Cibin Silvano
Oddenino Manrico
Brittain James R.
ITW Fastex-Italia S.p.A.
Schwartz & Weinrieb
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