US723234A - Corset-fastening. - Google Patents

Description

PATENTBD MAR. .9.4,` 1903 E. s.V BOWKER.- CORSET FASTENING. v APPLIoATfoN'rILBD MAR. 1o, 1902.

N0.v72s,234.

N0 MODEL. v

UNITED: STATES ATENT OFFICE.

ERNEST` S.. BOWKER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

j CORSET-FASTENING.

l SPECIFICATION forming Vpart of Letters Patent No. 723,234, dated March 24,1903.

. Applicant inea March 1o, `19,02. serai No. 97,542. on metti.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that LERNEsT S. BOWKER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chi-A cagocounty of Cook, vState of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Corset-Fastenings; Aand I` declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilledin the art to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which forma part of this specification.

My invention relates generally to fastening devices, and more particularly to devices for positively fastening together the steels in the front of corsets. 1

Considerable annoyance is often experienced in the use of corsets provided with the usual form of clasps for connecting the steels, owing to the accidental unfastening of the clasps, due to the movement of the body of the user when stooping or bending-as, for instance, in picking up an article from the floor.

The object of myinventiongis to provide a clasp to be secured to one of 'the steels of a corset, which may be readily-'engaged with and disengaged from the usualK stud on the other corset-steel, bnt'which will not be accidentallyunfastened by the movement of the body of the wearer of the corset.

A further objectof my invention is to provide a corset-fastener which ,will be simple in construction, inexpensive in manufacture, and efficient in use.

Myinvention, briey described, consists in a clasp adapted to be secured to one of the steels of a corset and provided with an aperture to receive a stud on the other corsetsteel of less width than the diameterof the head of the stud, part of the aperture being formed in a resilient tongue extending across Figure lis an elevational view showing the front steels of acorset provided with my improved clasp; Fig.,2, an enlarged plan view of the clasp detached from the corset-steel; f

and Figs. 8, 4, and 5 sectional views taken on line 3 3, Fig. l, showing the stud being inserted-in, removed from, and in normal position in the clasp, respectively.

The same reference'characters are used to indicate the same parts in the several figures of the drawings.

Reference -letters A and B indicate the steels which are provided at the front of corsets and to which the fastening devices are ordinarily secured. A The steel B is provided with a series of studs b, secured thereto in any suitable manner and located at predetermined intervals apart. The studs b are such as are usually employed to engage clasps secured to the other corset-steel.

c ct indicate fastening devices-of common construction secured to the corset-steel A in any suitable manner, as by means of rivets, and provided with apertures to receive, the heads of the studs b b. The apertures in the clasps a are usually of keyhole shape, the larger portion of the aperture being slightly larger in diameter than the heads of the studs, while the restricted slots communieating with the enlarged portions of the apertures areof a width slightly greater than the necks of the studs, but of less diameter than the heads of the studs. `When the corsetsteels are moved toward each other, the heads of the studs at once pass through the enlarged portions of the apertures in the clasps and permit the steels to separate at the point of unfastening. It is consequently desirable to provide one or more clasps which will prevent -the accidental passage of the head of the stud through the aperture in the clasp.

c indicates a clasp embodying my improvement, which consists in a resilient tongue C', preferably formed integral with the clasp and projecting within the opening in the clasp, which results from the formation of the resilient tongue. The detached end of the resilient tongue is provided with a slot c', extending to the edge of the tongue and of a width less than the diameter of the head of the coperating stud. A slot c -is formed in the clasp of a width corresponding to the IOO stud is being disengaged from the clasp. The

flexibility of the entire length of the tongue C is thereby utilized in disengaging the stud from the clasp as well as in inserting the same in the clasp.

The clasp C may be secured to the corsetsteel in anysuitable manneras,for instance, by rivets-and one or more of such clasps maybe secured to the corset-steel in addition to one or more clasps aof ordinary construction. In Fig. 1 l have shown two clasps C,

secured to the top and bottom of the steel A,

but it is obvious that the number and position of such clasps may be varied, as experience may prove desirable.

The operation of my improved corset-fastener is as follows: The stud at the point opposite the clasp is pressed against the resilient tongueC', thereby lifting the same, as indicated in Fig. 3, to such a position that the neck of the stud may slide into the slot c, thereby permitting the head of the stud to pass laterally out of the path of movement of the tongue, which then returns to its normal position. The stud may be disengaged from the clasp by relatively moving the corset-steels toward each other, so that the neck of the stud engages the slot c' in the resilient tongue. The latter may then be depressed,as shown in Fig'. 4, so that the head of the stud is slightly below the plane of the clasp C, and may be therefore disengaged therefrom.

It will be observed that in order to disengage a stud from my improved clasp it is necessary that the corset-steels should first be moved toward each other, then relatively in planes transverse thereto, and then away from each other, and consequently there is Vlittle liability of the accidental disengagement of the stud from the clasp. The resiliency of the tongue C', which may be determined by its length, is such as to permit the ready engagement and disengagement of the stud. from the clasp, but is suicient to prevent the necessary movement of the tongue 'to disengage the stud from the clasp by the force which would ordinarily be exerted by the movement of the body of the wearer.

While I have described more or less precisely the details of construction,I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself thereto,

The

as I contemplate changes in form, the proportion of parts, and the substitution of equivalents, as circumstances may suggest or render expedient, without departing from the spirit of my invention. v

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a corset-fastening, the combination with a metal clasp, of a resilient tongue having an offset between its end and its point of connection with the clasp and comprising a portion between the oiset and its end located in the same plane as the clasp and a portion between the olset and point of connection with the clasp lying in a plane above that of the plane of the clasp, but adapted to bend into contact with the steel to permit the entire resiliency of the tongue to be utilized in the removal as well as the insertion of the stud, said clasp and tongue having alined slots therein.

2. The combination with a corset-steel, of a clasp secured to and extending across the corset-steel and projecting beyond an edge thereof, a resilient tongue located in the open center of and secured to said clasp and extendingabove but normally out of contact with the corset-steel substantially the entire width of the corset-steel, but adapted to bend into contact with the steel to permit the entire resiliency of the tongue to be utilized in the removal as well as the insertion of the stud, said tongue and clasp having alined slots therein.

3. The combination with a pair of corsetsteels, of a stud secured to one steel, a clasp secured to and projecting beyond the edge of the other steel, a resilient tongue located in the open center of and secured to said clasp and comprising an end portion in the same plane as the clasp, an offset located above the edge of the steel and a portion between the olset and the point of connection with the clasp normally lying above the corset-steel, but adapted to bend into contact with the steel to permit the entire resiliency of the tongue to be utilized in the removal as well as the insertion of the stud, said tongue having a slot extending to its outer end in alinement with a slot formed in the clasp.

Intestimony whereof I sign this specification in the presence of two witnesses.

ERNEST S. BOWKER.

IOO

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