DECORATIVE TIE WHICH CAN BE JOINED TO A SHIRT COLLAR

Abstract

A tie for joining to a shirt collar includes a linearly extending strip which is arranged between a shaped clasp cover-piece having a vertical cavity and a clasp shaped as an overturned U and able to be contained partly inside the cavity so as to fix inside it the top end of the strip between the clasp and the cavity. The clasp body is substantially cylindrical and has, emerging from it perpendicularly, two or more studs which pass through a corresponding number of holes formed on the top end of the strip. The studs project from the holes so as to penetrate into a corresponding number of openings formed on a clip-like sleeve which is open on one side and shaped so as to contain in a complementary manner the clasp supporting thereon the top end of the strip.

Description

The present invention relates to the sector of ties which can be joined to a shirt collar so as to perform a desired decorative function.

More particularly, the invention relates to that particular type of tie which is described in numerous documents according to the state of the art, including for example the PCT patent application published under number WO 99/09849, where the tie is composed of a linearly extending strip suitable for the desired decorative function and fixed by means of its arrangement in between a hook-type clasp to be fitted to the shirt collar and a clasp cover-piece which is shaped in varying manners, for example as a tie knot, and is fixed thereon.

The aim of this particular type of tie is that of being able to join together strips and clasp cover-pieces of different types so as to be able to vary the desired aesthetic and decorative effects by means of operations which can be performed rapidly and as easily as possible.

The examples of the present state of the art, including that cited above, have serious drawbacks which adversely affect the decorative function and limit the duration of the component parts.

For example, since the said linearly extending strip is fixed by gripping its top end between the said knot-like member and the associated clasp, the fabric or in any case the material from which it is made is subject to high stresses which crease it and produce folds which, in the long run, adversely affect the functionality and aesthetic appearance thereof.

This material, moreover, must have an absolutely constant thickness along the part which is gripped as described above, otherwise engagement between the parts is defective, and achieving this, in addition to not always being possible, in any case results in increased costs.

Moreover, since the surfaces of the clasp and the abovementioned member between which the top end of the said strip is arranged have a practically flat profile, the part of the strip which emerges from the knot is also substantially flat and not curved as is the case with ties which are made entirely of fabric. This feature diminishes the overall effect of a tie of the type described, such that it is clearly recognisable at a first glance and the aesthetic/decorative appearance of the tie is negatively affected to a certain degree.

A further drawback also consists in the fact that the said strip of a tie of the type described may easily rotate about a vertical axis, with obvious negative effects on the aesthetic appearance of the said assembly. The various components of a tie according to the present state of the art, moreover, when they are made of plastic, are subject to wear over time and lose their functional capacity.

The inventor of the present invention has devised a tie of the type considered hitherto, in which all the drawbacks and the problems mentioned above have been overcome.

In the tie according to the invention, the linearly extending decorative strip is fixed to the body of the said clasp by means of the action of two or more studs which, projecting perpendicularly from the latter, pass through a corresponding number of openings formed on its said top end and penetrate at least partially into a corresponding number of holes formed on a sleeve-like clip which is open on one side and the internal surface of which adheres in a complementary manner to the strip/clasp assembly when it is mounted and locked thereon and fixed there as a result of its flexural elasticity. The said body of the clasp is formed with an essentially cylindrical shape such that the strip which adheres to it emerges from the assembly curved in a semicylindrical manner, as occurs in ties which are made entirely of fabric.

The linearly extending strip moreover does not need to be gripped in a forced manner, since it is fixed by the studs described above and by the said clip-on sleeve, and therefore is not subject to damage.

The clasp cover-piece, moreover, has along its edges two coplanar or diverging flanges which, once the tie is assembled, rest on the user's body, preventing the abovementioned unaesthetic rotational movements of the said tie.

The clasp cover-piece, finally, may be applied using simple known methods, applying its cylindrical cavity onto the clip-on sleeve and fixing it on the latter by exerting a pressure thereon so as to produce elastic gripping between the two parts.

All the advantageous results listed hitherto are achieved by means of the subject of the present invention which therefore consists of a decorative tie able to be joined to a shirt collar, as described in the accompanying Claim 1.

There now follows a more detailed description of a preferred example of embodiment of a tie according to the invention, chosen from among the numerous embodiments which can be achieved by a person skilled in the art who implements the teachings of the abovementioned Claim 1.

In the said description, reference will also be made to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows an exploded, partial, perspective view of the said example of embodiment of a tie according to the invention;

FIG. 2 shows a longitudinal section through the clasp/strip/clip-on sleeve assembly of a tie of the type shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows a front view of the tie according to FIGS. 1 and 2.

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, in them it can be seen how, in the tie 1 according to the invention, a clasp 5 of the type known per se is formed with a substantially cylindrical body 5c and with two studs 5p which project from it perpendicularly and pass through a corresponding number of holes 2f formed on the top end of a linearly extending strip 2 performing a decorative function and made of fabric, synthetic resins, leather or other materials.

The strip 2 therefore remains fixed to the body 5c of the clasp 5 owing to the action of the studs described above, independently of any variations in its thickness, and it is prevented from becoming separated from them by means of a clip-on sleeve 6 which is open on one side so that it can flex elastically and be mounted on the said clasp 5 by means of simple pressure. Obviously the internal surface of the sleeve 6 is formed so that it complements the assembly formed by the body 5c of the clasp 5 and the linearly extending strip 2.

Advantageously, in order to prevent relative rotation of the said sleeve 6 and the clasp 5, the inventor has envisaged forming the said studs 5p with a length sufficient for them to project from the top end 2s of the strip 2, after passing through it, and penetrate at least partially, as shown more clearly in FIG. 2, into a corresponding number of recesses 6f formed on the sleeve 6. These recesses may consist of lateral incisions, as shown in the drawings, or also through-holes (example not shown).

In this way the assembly is stably fixed, without having to wrinkle the top end 2s of the strip 2, and the latter emerges from it curved with the same radius of curvature as the cylindrical body 5c of the clasp 5, achieving the desired result already described.

A clasp cover-piece 3, for example in the form of a tie-knot, as shown in the drawings, may be applied onto the assembly by performing a simple elastic gripping action on the sleeve 6, as already illustrated above, so as to impart to the tie 1 the desired aesthetic effect which is conceptually entirely similar (see FIG. 3) to that of a tie of the conventional type.

It must also be pointed out, as already mentioned above, that the inventor has envisaged forming the clasp cover-piece 3 with the two lateral edges delimiting it folded outwards so as to form two flanges 3t which are coplanar or diverging from each other as shown in FIG. 1.

These flanges, resting in the vicinity of the zone of the fastening button of a shirt collar, prevent rotation of any part of the tie 1, and therefore the tie 1 as a whole, about a vertical axis, providing the tie according to the invention with the desired stability.

Claims

1. Decorative tie (1) able to be joined to a shirt collar and composed of a linearly extending strip (2) which is suitable for the desired decorative function and arranged between a shaped clasp cover-piece (3) provided with a vertical cavity (4) coupled to a clip-like sleeve (6) of flexurally elastic material shaped in the manner of an overturned U and able to be contained partly inside said cavity (4) so as to fix the top end (2s) of the said strip (2) between itself and the said clasp (5), characterized in that the body (5c) of the clasp (5) is substantially cylindrical and has, emerging from it perpendicularly, two or more studs (5p) which pass through a corresponding number of holes (2f) formed on the said top end (2s) of the strip (2), said studs (5p) projecting further from the said holes (2f) so as to penetrate at least partly into a corresponding number of openings (6f) formed on the said clip-like sleeve (6), which is open on one side and shaped so as to contain in a complementary manner the said clasp (5) supporting thereon the abovementioned top end (2s) of the strip (2) passed through by the studs (5p) , adhering thereto elastically, and so as to be contained in a complementary manner, remaining fixed there, inside the said cavity (4) of the clasp cover-piece (3).

2. Decorative tie according to claim 1, in which the said cavity (4) of the clasp cover-piece (3) is substantially semicylindrical and is complementary with respect to the external surface of the closed side of the said clip-on sleeve (6) which is contained inside it.

3. Tie according to claim 1, in which the lateral edges of the said clasp cover- piece (3) are folded so as to create two flat flanges (3t) which are coplanar or diverging with respect to each other.