Patent Application
20110016676
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of clips, and more specifically, to a strap clip device for securing an object that is tied down with a strap.
2. Description of the Related Art
Objects are often secured for transportation or storage purposes using tie-down straps. These straps are typically fastened to a surface on one side of the object at roughly the same level as the bottom of the object, run over the top of the object, and then pulled tight and fastened to a surface on the other side of the object at roughly the same level as the bottom of the object. In this manner, the tie-down strap approximates an inverted “U” shape over the object to be secured.
The problem with using tie-down straps without any other securing device is that there is nothing preventing the object from sliding or moving laterally (i.e., from one side of the strap to the other) while underneath the strap. Thus, large objects such as pianos and appliances may move during transport and cause property damage or even bodily injury. The sheer weight of these objects against the strap is enough to cause them to slide when, for example, a moving van takes a sharp turn. In an extreme case, the object may slide out from underneath the strap. Having an unsecured large object inside a vehicle while traveling is a potential hazard.
There are some examples in the prior art of inventions that attempted to solve similar problems, but none of these inventions possesses the same structure as the present invention. Examples of these inventions are discussed below.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,341,742 (Rosenthal, 2002) discloses a line tightening device that is comprised of a single piece of bent metal plate. The plate comprises two holes through which a rope or line is inserted. The plate has a raised section on one end and a downwardly bent section on the other end. The rope is threaded through the two holes in the plate, and then the device is rotated in either direction one or more times to wrap the rope around itself, thereby taking up the slack in the rope. This device could not be used with a tie-down strap because the holes in the device are not large enough and also because there is no way to slide the strap on and off the device.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,858,279 (Brattstrom, 1975) describes a device for tightening and securing two ends of strapping. Unlike the present invention, this device is not used to secure an object underneath a single strap. The Brattstrom device is comprised of a single piece of material with two longitudinal side members linked together by four cross-members and a reinforcing member. On one end of the device two projections form a gap. One end of the strapping is coiled around two of the cross-members, and the other end of the strapping is formed into a loop and slid sideways over an arm adjacent to the two cross-members around which the first end of the strapping is coiled. The strapping is tightened by moving the opposite end of the device (that is, the end without the two cross-members and the arm) in a semi-circular arc and then passing the end of the strapping that was slid over the arm through the gap between the two projections.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,128,106 (Zinkel, Jr., 1964) provides a tie-down assembly for securing vehicle-mounted loads that may shift laterally when the vehicle turns a curve or corner. Thus, this invention attempts to address the same problem as the present invention; however, the two solutions are structurally very different. The Zinkel assembly comprises a tie-down corner member, which is positioned around the top corner of the object to be secured. The tie-down corner member comprises a horizontal wall that lies flat against the top surface of the object and a vertical wall that is roughly perpendicular to the horizontal wall and that extends downward adjacent to the outside surface of the object (e.g., plywood) being secured. In this manner, the corner member forms an “L” shape around the top corner of the object. The corner member further comprises an extension that is connected to but vertically offset from the horizontal wall. The strap passes through an inverted U-shaped guide situated on top of the horizontal wall and through slots in the extension.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,663,923 (Mattingly, 1953) discloses a strap sealing device for use with flat metal strap. The device comprises a seal plate with two side flanges that extend from the front to the rear of the plate and two transverse slots, one at the front end of the plate and one at the rear end of the plate. Neither of the two slots is open to either side of the plate; thus, the device cannot be installed onto a strap that is already secured on an object. Rather, one end of the strap has to be threaded through each of the slots in the device.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. D163,469 (Moody, 1951) depicts a strap fastener and hook comprising a single piece of material that is formed into a hook on one end and that comprises two transverse slots on the other end. Presumably, a strap would be threaded through the two slots, and the hook would wrap around a rod or similar object.
The present invention is a strap clip device comprising a top plate with a front end and a rear end, a side flange that is perpendicular to the top plate and that runs longitudinally from the front end of the top plate to the rear end of the top plate, and a front bracket that extends downward from the front end of the top plate and is curved inward to form a convex shape; wherein the top plate and front bracket each has a width, and the width of the top plate equals the width of the front bracket; wherein the top plate and side flange each has a length, and the length of the top plate equals the length of the side flange; wherein the top plate comprises two lateral channels that form a tooth that is disposed roughly centrally on the top plate; wherein the tooth has an outer edge, and the outer edge of the tooth comprises a first lip that extends downward from the outer edge of the tooth and is parallel to the side flange; wherein the front bracket curves under and below the side flange; and wherein the strap clip device is comprised of a single piece of material.
In a preferred embodiment, the side flange extends downward from the top plate for a distance, the first lip extends downward from the outer edge of the tooth for a distance, and the distance by which the side flange extends downward from the top plate is greater than the distance by which the first lip extends downward from the outer edge of the tooth. Preferably, the front bracket comprises a distal end that is enveloped by a bumper, the bumper is comprised of rubber or plastic, and the strap clip device is comprised of a single piece of material with the exception of the bumper.
In a preferred embodiment, the front bracket comprises two side edges, the top plate comprises a second lip with a front end that is situated directly behind one of the two side edges of the front bracket, the second lip is parallel to the side flange, the side flange comprises a front end, the front end of the side flange is situated directly behind the other of the two side edges of the front bracket, the front end of the second lip is welded to the side edge of the front bracket behind which it is situated, and the front end of the side flange is welded to the side edge of the front bracket behind which it is situated. Preferably, the front bracket curves under and below the second lip.
1 Top plate
2 Side flange
3 Front end (of top plate)
4 Rear end (of top plate)
5 Front bracket
6 Edge (between top plate and side flange)
7 Channel
8 Gap
9 Bottom of channel
10 Tooth
11 Lip (of tooth)
12 Lip (of top plate)
13 Distal end (of front bracket)
14 Bumper
15 Strap
16 Cut-out
17 Bottom edge (of side flange)
18 Object being secured
In a preferred embodiment, the width of the top plate 1 is approximately 1.5 (1½) inches, the length of each channel 7 (that is, from the open end of the U-shaped channel to the bottom end 9 of the channel 7) is approximately 1.3125 (1 5/16) inches, and the width of the gap 8 (from the bottom 9 of the channel 7 to the edge 6) is approximately 0.1875 ( 3/16) inch (see
The two channels 7 in the top plate 1 form a tooth 10 that is positioned between both channels 7 and that extends from one side of the top plate 1 to the other. In a preferred embodiment, the tooth 10 is approximately 0.75 (¾) inch wide (that is, from one side of the tooth 10 adjacent to one channel 7 to the other side of the tooth 10 adjacent to the other channel 7). The tooth 10 is preferably roughly centrally situated on the top plate 1, that is, roughly half-way between the front end 3 of the top plate 1 and the rear end 3 of the top plate 1. Each channel is roughly 0.3125 ( 5/16) inch wide (that is, from one side of the channel 7 to the other).
As shown in
In operation, the strap clip device of the present invention may be inserted onto a strap that is already fastened down on both ends. To insert the present invention, simply place the strap clip device directly underneath the strap 15 and slide a portion of the strap underneath the tooth 10. Next, slide the strap clip device upward on the strap until the front bracket 5 (or rubber bumper 14) comes into contact with the object to be secured 18, as shown in
Unlike prior art devices, the present invention does not fit over or around a top corner of the object, and it can be installed on a strap without either end of the strap being free (unfastened). Any device that must fit over or around a top corner of the object can only be used on objects with perpendicular top corners. The present invention is not so limited. Thus, a major advantage of the present invention is ease of use, and another advantage of the present invention is flexibility of use (it can be used in connection with any type of object and does not require that the object being secured have a flat edge or perpendicular corner). Yet another major advantage of the present invention is ease of manufacture. As shown in
In a preferred embodiment, the front end of the side flange 2 is welded to the front bracket 5, and the front end of the lip 12 at the front end 3 of the top plate I is also welded to the front bracket 5, thereby providing further support to the front bracket 5 and preventing it from collapsing inward (or folding backward) when pressure is applied to the front bracket 5. The front end of the side flange 2 is preferably situated directly behind a side edge of the front bracket 5, as is the lip 12 on the other side of the front bracket 5. The top plate 1 optionally comprises one or more cut-outs 16 to reduce the weight of the device.
In a preferred embodiment the height of the side flange 2 (that is, from the top edge 6 of the side flange 2 to the bottom edge 17 of the side flange) is approximately 0.75 (¾) inch. The side flange 2 is preferably taller than the lips 11, 12 (though not as tall as the front bracket 5) to provide as much support to the front bracket 5 as possible. The lips 11, 12 are preferably shorter than the side flange 2 to make it easier to install the strap 15 on the device and/or to reduce the overall weight of the device.
In a preferred embodiment, as shown in
The thickness of the material-preferably metal-shown in
Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many changes and modifications may be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects. The appended claims are therefore intended to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.
