Safety pin attachment

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6324734
  • Patent Number
    6,324,734
  • Date Filed
    Wednesday, May 17, 2000
    24 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, December 4, 2001
    23 years ago
  • Inventors
  • Examiners
    • Browne; Lynne H.
    • Rodriguez; Ruth C.
    Agents
    • Hoyte, Jr.; Alfred F.
Abstract
A safety pin attachment has a contoured longitudinal center channel and at least three retainer members. The contour of the center channel allows for insertion of a wide range of safety pins therein. Once positioned within the center channel, the retainer members may be urged together about the stationary wire of the safety pin, and an adhesive may be used to permanently secure the attachment to the safety pin. The attachment provides a gripping mass for the safety pin thereby facilitating handling of the safety pin. The attachment may have identifying indicia such as letters or numbers, or may have indicia having a tactile characteristic such as braille or a series of raised portions.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




The present invention relates to fasteners. More particularly, it relates to an attachment for a safety pin.




STATEMENT OF THE PRIOR ART




A typical conventional safety pin has first and second wire limbs, the first wire limb having a cap at one end and the second wire limb having a pointed free end, and a coiled portion opposite the cap end of the first wire limb which provides a connection for the first and second wire limbs. The cap has a recess opening towards the first wire limb which is adapted to engage the free end of the second wire limb which is movable between an engaged and a non-engaged position. The problem with the conventional safety pin is that it is difficult to grasp due to the small diameter of the first and second wire limbs. For persons suffering from arthritis or other afflictions which limit manual dexterity, the problem is especially acute. Various attempts have been made to solve the problem.




U.S. Pat. No. 3,806,997 issued to Niwa discloses a safety pin having a non-slip plastic body. Niwa solves the aforementioned problem by providing a gripping mass which allows for easier handling of the safety pin. The safety pin designed by Niwa suffers from the drawback in that it cannot be used with a conventional safety pin. Niwa discloses attaching the gripping mass to an unconventional wire pin arrangement having a free arm with a pointed end and a mounting arm embedded in the gripping mass. Thus Niwa does not disclose an attachment for-a conventional safety pin but instead discloses a redesigned safety pin. U.S. Pat. No. 4,030,166 (Betters), U.S. Pat. No. 3,883,930 (Bagnasco), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,071,927 (Bagnasco) all disclose redesigned safety pins which have a larger gripping area than the conventional safety pin.




U.S. Pat. No. 5,412,851 issued to Joseph discloses a safety pin attachment which can be used with a conventional safety pin. Insertion of the safety pin into the attachment is facilitated by forming the attachment in two halves connected by a living hinge. The safety pin is then secured within the attachment by folding the halves about the first wire limb until the two halves “snap” together. While this arrangement is generally satisfactory for its intended purpose, it suffers from the drawback in that it cannot accommodate a wide range of safety pin sizes. In order to accommodate pins having a wide range of sizes, the attachment of the present invention has a single longitudinal center channel formed within a main body of unitary construction. A pair of transverse notches allow a needle nose pliers or other similar tool to be used to snap the safety pin into position. The contour of the inner surface of the single longitudinal channel allows for accommodation of safety pins having a wide range of sizes. At least one pair of upstanding, mutually opposing retainer members formed on opposite sides of the channel may be urged together in order to retain the first wire limb of the safety pin once it is placed in the channel. An adhesive may be used to permanently secure the attachment.




None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The present invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art by providing a safety pin attachment having a contoured longitudinal center channel and at least three retainer members. The contour of the center channel allows for insertion of a wide range of safety pins therein. Once positioned within the center channel, the retainer members may be urged together about the stationary wire of the safety pin, and an adhesive may be used to permanently secure the attachment to the safety pin. The attachment provides a gripping mass for the safety pin thereby facilitating handling of the safety pin. The attachment may have identifying indicia such as letters or numbers, or may have indicia having a tactile characteristic such as braille or a series of raised portions.




Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide an improved attachment for a safety pin.




It is an object of this invention to provide an attachment for a safety pin which can be provided with identifying indicia to identify characteristics associated with items to which it is attached.




It is also an object of this invention to provide an attachment for a conventional safety pin which facilitates easier gripping and control thereof.




It is also an object of this invention to provide an attachment for a safety pin which can be used with different sized safety pins.




It is a further object of this invention to provide an attachment for a safety pin which minimizes rotation or undesirable instability of the safety pin while fastening and unfastening the safety pin.




It is another object of the invention to provide an attachment for a safety pin which can be brought into locking engagement about the safety pin.




Finally, it is a general object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.




These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




Various other objects, features, and attendant advantages of the present invention will become more fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein:





FIG. 1

shows a perspective view of the attachment of the invention illustrating use of the attachment with a safety pin.





FIG. 2

shows a side sectional view of the attachment of the invention.





FIG. 3

shows a plan view of the attachment of the invention.





FIG. 4

shows a side view of the attachment of the invention.





FIG. 5

shows a front view of the attachment of the invention.





FIG. 6

shows a cross section of the attachment taken at line


2


-


2


″.





FIG. 7

shows a perspective view of an attachment having identifying indicia.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION




Referring now to

FIGS. 1-7

, an attachment made in accordance with the concept of the present invention, and generally indicated by the numeral


10


, is shown. Referring particularly now to

FIG. 1

a side view of the attachment


10


of the present invention locked around a conventional safety pin


12


is shown.




The conventional safety pin


12


has first and second wire limbs


20


and


22


respectively. A coiled portion or hinge


24


connects limbs


20


and


22


and allows for movement of limb


22


relative to limb


20


, with limb


22


biased so that the safety pin is open, unless it is latched closed, as is well known. Cap


26


at the end of limb


20


has an opening


27


opposite limb


20


which allows free end


28


of limb


22


to be secured within the cap


26


. The spring loaded hinge


24


ensures locking engagement of the free end


28


of limb


22


within the cap


26


.




The elongated main body


30


of the attachment


10


has a longitudinally extending contoured center channel


32


within which the limb


20


of the safety pin may be seated. The width of the center channel


32


is selected to stably secure a range of sizes of safety pins. Standard sizes of safety pins start at size 0 (about ⅞ inch in length), and increase in size incrementally (e.g. size 1, size 2, etc. each having correspondingly larger dimensions) and proportionately. Each attachment


10


of the present invention is designed to accommodate safety pins in a range of at least three sizes. It should be noted here that safety pins having the same overall length may not have the same diameter wire limbs


20


,


22


. In particular, brass safety pins tend to have thicker diameter wire limbs


20


,


22


than steel safety pins. Thus, the center channel


32


must be contoured to accommodate safety pins having different wire diameters. To facilitate the placement of safety pins having a variety of wire diameters within the channel


32


, the vertical walls of the primary retainer section


34


, as well as the interior surfaces of the first pair of opposing retainer elements


36


each have a plurality of features.




Primary retainer section


34


retains the coiled portion


24


of the safety pin


12


. As has been previously mentioned, safety pins are available in a wide range of wire diameters. Accordingly, the center channel


32


, particularly in the region of the retainer section


34


must be designed to ensure snug engagement regardless of wire diameter. If the safety pin


12


is situated too loosely within the center channel


32


it will tend to rotate relative to the attachment


10


thereby making the safety pin difficult for the user to manipulate. Among the features allowing for stably supporting the pin


12


is the raised portion


40


of interior wall


42


of the retainer section


34


. This raised portion


40


allows for snug engagement with a safety pin having a diameter approximately equal to the width W of the center channel


32


. For pins


12


having a width wider than W, raised portion


40


is compressed by wire limb


20


, the wire limb then urging both the raised portion


40


and the interior wall


42


outward without causing a substantial deformation of the retainer section


34


. It can be readily appreciated that the attachment


10


must be made of a material sufficiently compressible in order for the raised portion


40


to function properly, while still maintaining its overall shape with repeated use. In the preferred embodiment, the attachment


10


is made of high impact styrene A transverse arcuate shaped recess


44


extends across the top of the retainer section


34


. The recess


44


allows for placement of a tool such as a needle nosed pliers in order to position the safety pin


12


within the retainer section


34


as will be discussed in more detail later.




The first intermediate retainer section


48


extends from retainer section


34


and has a pair of opposing retainer members


50


with sloping exterior walls


52


. Mutually opposed arcuate sections


54


immediately adjacent transverse exterior wall


53


of retainer section


34


cooperate to form a substantially circular recess or space. This space serves to ease positioning of the pin


12


within the channel


32


by reducing the surface area of the interior walls


56


of retainer members


50


, thereby reducing the resistance encountered when attempting to push the wire limb


20


down into channel


32


. Insertion of limb


20


into channel


32


is further facilitated by chamfered top edges


58


. Retention of the wire limb within the center channel


32


is enhanced by inwardly sloping interior walls


60


. The second intermediate retainer section


64


has a substantially identical profile to retainer section


48


as can be seen in FIG.


6


. The fourth retainer section


68


includes a pair of opposing retainer members


70


spaced apart at a width slightly greater than width W. The slightly greater width allows for placement of the cap


26


within the center channel


32


. The interior walls


72


are vertical. To facilitate positioning the pin


12


within the channel


32


the spaces


76


,


78


between retainer section


68


feature sidewalls


80


,


82


having a reduced height.




Pin


12


is further secured within attachment


10


by pushing the wire limb


20


down into the center channel


32


with needle nose pliers or similar implement, utilizing spaces


76


,


78


between members


48


,


64


.


70


. It should be noted space


76


has a lower elevation than


78


. This lower elevation is essential when installing a #1 steel or brass safety pin as the head


26


of the #1 safety pin has a mass that must be below the center line W so that safety pin limb


20


can be correctly seated into retainer


64


. If elevation of space


76


was the same as that of space


78


the head


26


of pin


12


keeps pin limb


20


from being pushed down into channel


32


completely and thereby not seating in between retainer walls of retainer


64


.




In operation, a safety pin is secured within the attachment by first placing the coiled end


24


of the pin


12


in retainer section


34


, utilizing a needle nose pliers or similar implement to push the coil end down into the retainer section


34


and channel


32


. Depression


44


facilitates proper insertion of the coiled end


24


as has been previously mentioned. The pin


12


is further secured within the attachment


10


by using the needle nose pliers to push wire limb


20


down into the center channel


32


, utilizing spaces


76


,


78


between retainer members


70


,


64


, and


48


. Ease of insertion is facilitated by chamfered top edges


58


as has been previously mentioned. Once the wire limb


20


is firmly seated within the center channel


32


, the needle nose pliers may be used to urge intermediate retainer members


48


,


64


together. It should be noted that retention of the wire limb


20


is primarily accomplished by the sloping interior walls of retainer members


64


and


48


, in cooperation with retainer section


34


. If necessary, the pin


12


may be secured within the channel by use of an adhesive. It should be further recognized that since the attachment is designed to hold the safety pin by merely engaging wire


20


by the design of section


34


and sloping members


60


of intermediate members


48


and


64


, the attachment


10


allows the safety pin


12


to be removed at anytime.




With particular reference to

FIG. 7

an attachment


100


having identifying indicia is shown. Projections


110


which are used as identifying indicia may have a generally rectangular base


112


and extend outwardly with a pronounced taper. The projections


110


may be molded at the time the attachment


100


is made so that a unitary construction is obtained. Of course, if desired the projections can be formed or attached by any other feasible means. Also, any other identifying indicia can be applied including, but not limited to braille, raised lettering or the like. The projections


110


can correspond to a characteristic of an item such as color or size. Any scheme can be used to identify the characteristics of the item, for instance the projections


110


can have different profiles or may vary in number. The attachment


100


is identical to the attachment


10


with the exception of the identifying indicia and thus functions in the manner described above.




From the foregoing description, one skilled in the art can easily ascertain the essential characteristics of this invention and, without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, can make various changes and modifications of the invention to adapt it to various usages and conditions.




It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the sole embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims:



Claims
  • 1. A safety pin attachment for attachment to a conventional safety pin having a coiled end, a cap end, a stationary wire limb and a movable wire limb comprising:a substantially rectangular main body having a longitudinally extending center channel formed therein and sized to contain said stationary wire limb, and having a first end for retaining said coiled end of said safety pin and having a second opposing end for retaining said cap end of said safety pin; said first end having opposing interior walls on opposite sides of said channel, one of said opposing interior walls having a raised portion formed therein; whereby said raised portion allows for insertion of stationary wire limbs within said center channel having differing diameters.
  • 2. The attachment of claim 1 including first and second intermediate retaining sections each having opposing retaining members, said opposing retaining members having sloped interior walls.
  • 3. The attachment of claim 2 wherein said opposing retaining members may be urged together to secure said stationary wire limb within said channel.
  • 4. The attachment of claim 2 wherein said opposing retaining members have a chamfered top edge.
  • 5. The attachment of claim 2 wherein said center channel cooperates with said retaining sections to accomodate a range of sizes of safety pins.
US Referenced Citations (12)
Number Name Date Kind
559169 Farmer Apr 1896
1354159 Benoit Sep 1920
1589705 King Jun 1926
1753570 King Apr 1930
1999786 Rosenblum Apr 1935
2257787 Cohen Oct 1941
3806997 Niwa Apr 1974
4597206 Benson Jul 1986
4852220 Berardi Aug 1989
5404624 Joseph Apr 1995
5412851 Joseph May 1995
5732451 Mars Mar 1998