GB2096233A - Fastening device - Google Patents

Abstract

A one-piece fastening device to join sheet materials is disclosed. The device is composed of three flat elements 20, 21, 22 connected by integrally molded hinges. There are ports or openings on the outer elements which will engage openings or posts on the center element. Sheet materials can be fastened together by placing the materials between the elements and engaging the posts through the openings. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Fastening device Background of the Invention The present invention relates to a fastening device which is useful for joining together sheet materials such as woven or non-woven fabric, plastic film, or other thin sheet materials including paper. The fastening device may be used to secure sheet materials when the sheet materials have overlapped edges, butted edges or superimposed edges.

The device is particularly useful as a fastener to close surgical gowns or smocks with back openings. Back opening gowns or smocks are widely preferred for use in operating rooms because the opening in the gown is on the back of the doctor or nurse and away from the patient.

The back opening gown is believed to be more suitable to prevent contamination from the doctor or nurse to the patient or from the patient to the doctor or nurse. The gowns are normally secured in a closed position by a fastening device at the neck and by a belt which is attached to the gown and secures the gown closed at the waist of the wearer. Such gowns have previously been closed with string ties, such as that shown in U.S. Patent 3,868,728, or with metal or plastic snaps, such as that shown in U.S. Patent 3,988,781. Other devices used to secure the neck openings of operating room gowns are stud devices such as disclosed in U.S. Patent 3,689,939.

The use of the stud devices or snaps limit the flexibility in obtaining a tight fit at the neck of the gown. There are only a limited number of possible adjustment areas using such studs or snaps, and positioning of the snaps or studs is not always suitable to provide the proper fit for the particular wearer of a gown.

Summary of the Invention The present invention reiates to a fastening device which may be used to join together sheet materials or to attach other devices to sheet materials. The device is particularly useful for a neck closure for a surgical gown or smock. The device can be easily attached to the gown, is inexpensive and provides a closure for the gown which may be easily adjusted to provide a proper fit for a wide range of sizes. In addition to the advantages of obtaining the proper fit in a gown, the present fastening device can be directly secured to the gown without the usual sewing techniques or adhesives.

In addition to use as a closure for an operating room gown or smock, the present device may also be used to secure the belts on such gown in a closed position and may be used for the closure of other garments such as patient gowns. The fastening device may also be used to secure tubing, cautery wire or towels to surgical drapes or for fastening surgical drapes to other surgical drapes or to other equipment in an operating room.

The present fastening device is composed of at least three flat sections which are connected to each other by one or more integrally molded hinges. On each section there are snap elements which are either integrally formed posts or an opening into which a post may be locked. The flat sections of the fastening device may be arranged to provide fastening when the sheet materials are overlapped, superimposed or when the sheet materials are in an edge-to-edge relationship. One of the three sections of the fastening device is a central section, and the two outside sections are capable of rotating around the integrally formed hinges into face-to-face relationship with the central section.One edge of the material to be fastened is placed between one of the outside sections and the central section, and the other edge of the material to be fastened is placed between the other outside section and the central section. The posts on the sections are then engaged into the corresponding openings in the other sections, locking the material to be fastened together.

Brief Description of the Drawings In the drawings, Fig. 1 shows an isometric view of one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 shows the embodiment of Fig. 1 in a flat form as it would be taken from a mold.

Fig. 3 shows a side view of the device of Fig. 2 with the various sections separated; Fig. 4 shows the closure of Fig. 1 attached to a garment.

Fig. 5 is a cross-section taken along lines 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a cross-section taken along lines 6-6 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 7 shows another embodiment of the present invention with the posts on the central element.

Fig. 8 shows a top view of yet another embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 shows a cross-section of Fig. 8 taken along lines 9-9.

Fig. 10 shows a cross-section of the device of Fig. 8 taken along lines 10-10.

Fig. 11 shows a cross-section of the device of Fig. 8 taken along lines 11-11.

Fig. 1 2 shows an expanded view of the matching elements which secure the locking of the present device.

Figs. 13, 14, 1 5 and 16 show alternate configurations of the openings of the device of the present invention.

Fig. 1 7 shows another embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 1 8 shows the embodiment of Fig. 1 7 attached to a garment.

Fig. 1 9 is a cross-sectional view of Fig. 1 8 taken along lines 1 9-19.

Fig. 20 is another embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 21 is another embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 22 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of Fig. 21 attached to a garment.

Detailed Description of the Invention Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1 shows an isometric view of the fastening device showing the various elements in an open position, ready to be attached to a sheet material. The fastener has a center section 20 and two outer sections 21 and 22 which are capable of rotating in opposite directions around a hinge 23. The center section has a number of snap elements in the form of openings 24 which will align with snap elements in the form of locking posts 25 on the outer sections when the fastener is closed. When the outer sections are rotated about the hinge line 23, the posts interlock with the openings 24 to secure the device in a closed position. The term "snap element", when used in the present specification or claims, refers to either the post 25 or the opening hole 24.

The fastener can be integrally molded as a single piece in an injection molding machine. The fastener as taken out of such a mold is shown in Fig. 2. The openings 24 are shown in the first or central section of the device 20. The outer sections 21 and 22 are integrally molded with section 20 through a so-called "living hinge" 23.

Posts 25 are molded into outer elements 21 and 22.

As shown in Fig. 3, the outer sections 21 and 22 are capable of rotating around the living hinge 23 in opposite directions to enable overlapping portions of sheet material to be locked between the sections. Fig. 4 shows the fastening device positioned on overlapping portions of the sheet material to be fastened. The sheet material is shown as 26 and 27 in Fig. 4, Fig. 5 and Fig. 6.

Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 show a cross-sectional view of Fig. 4 showing the sheet materials 26 and 27 held between the outer sections 21 and 22 and the inner section 20.

The clearance between the circumference of the openings 24 and the posts 25 may be varied depending on the intended use of the fastener. If the material to be fastened can be perforated, the clearance may be small. If, however, it is not desirable to perforate the material, the clearance should be increased. This will allow the material to be forced through the openings by the posts 25 without penetration of the material. For example, the penetration of the material is avoided when the fastener is used on normal wearing apparel.

Penetration of the fabric is also avoided when the fastener is used as an operating gown closure to prevent the possibility of contamination in the operating room by particles of tissue escaping from the skin of the wearer of the gown. The posts will push the fabric through the openings and secure the closure device to the fabric without penetrating the fabric. The gown may be unfastened by removing the posts from the openings in a reverse direction.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 1 through 6, the posts 25 are located on the outer sections 21 and 22 and directed inwardly toward the center section when the outer elements are rotated around the hinge 23 to a closed position. It is also possible to mold the posts into the center section of the device as shown in Figure 7. The device will operate in the same manner as described above to fasten sheet material.

In the embodiment of the present invention shown in Figs. 1-7, one of the outer sections extends beyond the second outer section. This configuration is produced by molding the elements in a fashion in which one flap is Ushaped and the other flap is made from the center of the "U". In this configuration, there is a single hinge about which the outer sections rotate.

The embodiment of the device shown in Figures 8 through 11 has a first or center section 30, a second section 31 capable of rotating around a hinge 33 in one direction and two portions of a third section 34 which are capable of rotating around the hinge in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation of section 31. In all other respects, the function of the closure shown in Figs. 8-T 1 is identical to that shown in Figs. 1-7.

As previously indicated, the relationship of the posts 25 and the openings 24 may be designed to provide an excess space in the openings so that when the posts push the material to be fastened through the openings there is sufficient room between the sides of the opening and the posts to allow the material to be locked into the opening without tearing the material. Figs. 11 and 1 5 show a preferred embodiment of the post and hole. The post has a truncated, conical base 62 which merges into a bead 63 which can be larger or smaller in diameter than the effective diameter of the corresponding hole. The hole has beveled sides 35 and an undercut 36 in the plastic on the reverse side of the beveled opening.The bevel and undercut result in a flexible opening which allows the bead of the post to be readily engaged in the hole to fasten and to be readily disengaged to unfasten. As shown in Fig. 12, the post has a cylindrical hole 37 in the interior of the post to allow flexibility of the posts, greater ease in engaging the posts in the holes and greater ease in removing the device from the mold.

Other configurations of the openings to engage the posts are shown in Figs. 13--16. In Fig. 13, there is a small hole 38 and four radially extending slits leading from the hole. The plastic material between the slits will deform to allow the post through the hole. Fig. 14 is similar to Fig. 13 with only three radially extending slits. Fig. 1 5 has only slits through the plastic, and the post will deform the plastic and engage the pie-shaped segments of the plastic to affect the closure. Fig. 1 6 is a top view of the beveled opening shown in Fig. 12 and is the preferred configuration of the opening.

In the embodiment of Fig. 17, the center section 40 is attached through hinges 41 and 42 to outer sections 43 and 44 which are on opposite ends of the center section. This embodiment can be used to fasten sheet materials in an edge-toedge relationship with some minimum overlapping of the sheet materials as shown in Fig.18, for example, a shirt front. As best shown in Fig. 1 9, one edge of the sheet material would be positioned between outer section 43 and the center section 40, and the posts 25 would be locked into the openings 24 to secure the sheet material. A second edge of sheet material would be placed between outer section 44 and center section 40 and locked in position.

Fig. 20 shows another embodiment of the present invention which is used to fasten sheet materials in an overlapping edge-to-edge relationship. This embodiment employs a center section 50 which has four openings 24. Attached to one end of the center section, through integrally molded hinge 51, are two outer sections 53, each of which has a post 25. Attached to the opposite end of the center section, through an integral hinge 52, is an outer section 54 which contains two posts. The device functions in the same manner as described in relation to the device shown in Fig. 1 7. The fastener shown in Fig. 20 will hold the materials more secureiy because of the increased number of interlocking posts and holes.

The fastener shown in Fig. 21 and Fig. 22 is similar to the fastener shown in Fig. 1 7 but can be smaller in overall length than the fastener of Fig. 1 7. To compensate for the reduction in length, there are circular cutouts or openings 60 and 61 which provide space for the posts to project after the posts have engaged the sheet material to be fastened. The openings 6U and 61 are aligned with the snap element openings 24 in the center or first section to allow the post to extend through the openings 24 and into or through the openings 60 and 61 to provide a tight closure. This is best shown in Fig. 22.

As shown in Figs. 17, 20, 21 and 22, there may be a tab 56 integrally molded in one of the flat sections to provide an additional area to be grasped to open the fastener for removal.

The fastener may be molded from a suitably flexible thermoplastic material such as polyethylene or polypropylene, which has sufficient flexibility to allow the posts to penetrate into the opening without tearing the fabric. The portion of the fastener which surrounds the opening may be thinner than the remainder of the flat sections to allow greater flexibility in pushing the material through the opening. This is shown in Fig. 12. These thinned out portions can be integrally molded into the device by appropriate cutting of the mold, or the thinned areas can be removed from the finished fastener by grinding or cutting.

The number of posts which may be present can be varied. There must be at least one post on each of the outer elements in the embodiments shown in Figs. 1-6 and 8-11 1 and two posts in the center element in the embodiment shown in Fig. 7. It is preferable to have at least two posts securing each layer of material to be fastened.

The presence of multiple posts through each layer of material to be fastened gives greater stability to the fastening device in use.

Although the present fastening device has been discussed herein as a surgical gown fastener, it may be used for many other purposes. For example, it may be used as a fastener for disposable or reusable diapers. The present device may also be used to secure sheet materials to wire, rope or cylindrical supports. In such applications, the length of the hinge is elongated to a closed width approximately equal to the diameter of the wire, rope or cylindrical support to which the sheet material is to be fastened.

Claims (13)

1. A one-piece fastening device comprising a first section having at least two snap elements affixed thereto, a second generally rectangular section attached to the first section through an integral formed hinge and having at least one snap element affixed thereto, a third section attached to the first section through an integrally formed hinge and having at least one snap element affixed thereto, said second and third sections being capable of rotating around their respective hinges to engage the snap elements of said second and third sections with the snap elements of said first section.

2. The device of Claim 1 in which the second and third sections are hinged on the same end of said first section.

3. The device of Claim 1 in which the second and third sections are hinged on opposing ends of said first section.

4. The device of Claim 1 in which the snap elements on the first section comprise at least two openings which extend through the thickness of said first section and in which the snap elements of the second and third sections comprise at least one post on each section adapted to engage with the openings of said first section.

5. The device of Claim 1 in which the snap elements of the first section comprise at least one post on opposite sides of said first section and in which the snap elements of said second and third sections comprise openings which extend through the thickness of said second and third elements and which are adapted to engage with the posts of said first section.

6. The device of Claim 1 in which the posts have a bore extending throughout the major portion of their length to provide flexibility to the posts.

7. The device of Claim 3 in which the snap element on the second and third section is a post and in which there is an opening in the second and third sections to provide a space to allow the posts of the opposite section to protrude when the device is closed.

8. A one-piece fastening device comprising a first section having at least two snap elements affixed thereto, a second section affixed along the first portion of one edge as said first element through an integral hinge and having at least one snap element affixed thereto, a third section affixed along a second portion of the same edge of the first element as the second portion is affixed through an integral hinge and having at least one snap element affixed thereto, said second section being manually rotatable around said hinge to engage the snap element of said second section with a snap element of said first section, said third section being manuaily rotatable around said hinge in a direction or rotation opposite the rotation of the second section to engage the snap elements of said third section with snap element of said first section.

9. The device of Claim 1 in which the second section comprises two independently hinged portions and the third section is hinged between the two portions of the second section.

10. The device of Claim 9 in which the snap elements of said first section comprise four openings, and the snap elements on each portion of the second section comprise a single post, and the snap elements on the third section comprise two posts.

11. The device of Claim 10 in which each of said openings has a beveled surface on that side of the opening which first engages a post and which has an undercut surface on the opposite side of the opening.

12. The device of Claim 11 in which each post has a truncated conical base and a bead on the end of the post.

13. The device of Claim 1 or 8, substantially as described with reference to Figs. 1-6, Fig. 7, Figs. 8-11, Figs. 17-19, Fig. 20, Figs. 21-22, or any of Figs. 12-1 6, of the accompanying drawings.