1. A Field of Invention
The invention relates to ratchet buckles and more particularly to such a ratchet buckle having a strap slidably looped around a strut proximate a front opening of a housing, a spring-biased, lever-like ratchet adapted to engage with one transverse tooth of a rack of teeth on an upper surface of the strap, and two opposite arms such that pressing the arms will adjust the buckle in discrete increments to tighten the strap.
2. Description of Related Art
Ratchet buckles are widely used for securing together two objects by cooperating with a strap. One advantageous benefit of the ratchet buckle is its tension adjustability Therefore, ratchet buckles can be found in many applications including masks, swim goggles, etc.
One type of conventional ratchet buckle includes a housing having two opposite pivotal arms extending outside thereof the arm having a latched end, and a strap having a rack of teeth on its upper surface. An individual may press and pivot the arms to unfasten the strap prior to adjusting the tension of the strap. However the well known adjustable ratchet buckle is not precise in tension adjustment. Further, components are subject to damage after a short period of time of operation. Thus, it is desirable to provide a novel adjustable ratchet buckle in order to overcome the inadequacies of the prior art.
It is therefore one object of the invention to provide an adjustable ratchet buckle comprising a strap slidably looped around a strut proximate a front opening of a housing, a spring-biased, lever-like ratchet having front and rear sections and a front engagement tooth adapted to lockingly engage with one tooth of a rack of teeth on an upper surface of the strap, and two opposite arms such that pressing the arms will lift the front section to disengage the engagement tooth from the rack tooth, thereby adjusting the buckle in discrete increments to tighten the strap.
It is another object of the invention to provide an adjustable ratchet buckle having two opposite arms exposed at both sides of a housing, and a ratchet within the housing. Both the arms and the ratchet are durable and can be manipulated precisely, thereby effecting a precise tension adjustment of strap.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken with the accompanying drawings.
Referring to
A housing is composed of the cover 10 and the base 20. The ratchet 40 is provided in the housing. A front opening 11 is formed in the cover 10 for permitting the strap 60 to insert thereinto. Two openings 12 are formed on opposite sides of the cover 10 for permitting the arms 30 to dispose therein. The rear end of the cover 10 is secured to an object such as mask, goggles, etc.
The cover 10 is somewhat curve in shape. Two holes 13 are provided on both sides of the front opening 11. A strut 61 is secured between the holes 13. A first stub 14 is formed on the bottom of the top surface of the cover 10. A plurality of through apertures 15 are formed in the cover 10.
The base 20 comprises a plate member 22, two opposite ears 23 proximate both sides of the plate member 22, the ear 23 having a through hole 23a, two pins 24 besides the ears 23 for pivotably mounting the arms 30 thereon, and a plurality of front and rear projections 21.
The arm 30 comprises a toothed trigger 31 on an outer surface, a rear protrusion 33 on an inner surface, the protrusion 33 having an inclined bottom plane 33a, and a front protuberance 32 on the inner surface, the protuberance 32 having a longitudinal hole 32a rotatably put on the pin 24. Hence, the arms 30 are adapted to pivot about the pins 24. The rear end of the trigger 31 will be stopped by the rear end of the side opening 12 when the arms 30 pivot outwardly (i.e., releasing the arms 30). Hence, the arms 30 are allowed to pivot in a limited angle as detailed later
The ratchet 40 is somewhat curve at both ends. The ratchet 40 is provided in the housing consisting of the cover 10 and the base 20. The ratchet 40 comprises two pins 41 in the midpoints of both sides, the pins 41 being rotatably inserted into the through holes 23a (i.e., the pins 41 being served as fulcrum), a front section 42, an engagement tooth 44 on the front end of the front section 42, the engagement tooth 44 having an inclined plane (or a curved plane in other embodiments) 44a, a rear section 43 having two rounded top corners (or inclined planes in other embodiments) 43a on both sides, and a second stub 45 on the top of the engagement tooth 42 aligned with the first stub 14. The spring 50 has both ends put on the stubs 14, 45. That is, the spring 50 is biased between the ratchet 40 and the bottom of the top of the cover 10.
After mounting the ratchet 40 in the cover 10 by assembling with the base 20, and mounting the arms 30 on the pins 24, the projections 21 are matingly inserted into the through apertures 15 for assemble the cover 10 and the base 20 as a complete housing. Note that the fastening of the cover 10 and the base 20 may be implemented in a fashion different from the one described above. Hence, a lever-like ratchet 40 is mounted. Note that the engagement tooth 44 may be replaced by a detent member having the same function as the engagement tooth 44 as detailed later.
Referring to
As shown in
The spring 50 will immediately release its stored energy to push the front section 42 downward after releasing the arms 30 after adjusting strap tension. As a result, the buckle returns to its inoperative position as shown in
As shown in
In brief, pressing the arms 30 will unfasten the strap 60 for adjusting strap tension. Releasing the arms 30 will fasten the strap 60 in its tightened, locked position. Moreover, the lever-like ratchet 40 makes the strap tension adjustment operation more precise and reliable.
While the invention herein disclosed has been described by means of specific embodiments, numerous modifications and variations could be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention set forth in the claims.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
215956 | Miller | May 1879 | A |
4607398 | Faulconer | Aug 1986 | A |
4727630 | Alan | Mar 1988 | A |
5611644 | Lutz | Mar 1997 | A |
6185794 | Maggi | Feb 2001 | B1 |
6350030 | Fujima | Feb 2002 | B2 |
6691377 | Pan | Feb 2004 | B2 |
6766540 | Kawashima | Jul 2004 | B2 |
6832394 | Chiang | Dec 2004 | B1 |
6859947 | Lee | Mar 2005 | B2 |
6871386 | Chen-Lieh | Mar 2005 | B2 |
6966102 | Shiue | Nov 2005 | B2 |
7134149 | Sato | Nov 2006 | B2 |
7162778 | Pan | Jan 2007 | B2 |
7275536 | Godoy | Oct 2007 | B2 |
7458134 | Shiue | Dec 2008 | B2 |
7571520 | Shiue | Aug 2009 | B2 |
7640633 | Chou | Jan 2010 | B2 |
7665190 | Weng | Feb 2010 | B2 |
7810175 | Chiang | Oct 2010 | B2 |
7836561 | Vaccaro et al. | Nov 2010 | B2 |
20060032027 | Shiue | Feb 2006 | A1 |
20070256283 | Chiang | Nov 2007 | A1 |
20080244875 | Chou | Oct 2008 | A1 |
20080289160 | Chou | Nov 2008 | A1 |
20090100645 | Weng | Apr 2009 | A1 |
20090205114 | Chiang | Aug 2009 | A1 |
20090229086 | Chiang | Sep 2009 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20090300888 A1 | Dec 2009 | US |