Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
a) Field of the invention
The pxesent invention is concerned with
a pretied necktie of the type comprising a semirigid knot
support, a front tie member fixed to and wrapped around the
knot support and a rear tie member having a loop-shapedl neck
encircling upper end which can be inserted and adjusted around
the neck of a wearer by means of a zip fastener forming part
of it.
More particularly, the present invention
is concerned with a pretied necktie of the above mentioned
type, which is improved in that the semirigid knot support
and the slider of the zip fasteners are provided with a set
of cooperating snap fastening means that make them very easy
to connect and thereby make the necktie very easy to manufac-
ture and assemble.
b) Brief description of the prior art
Pretied neckties of the above mentioned
type are already known and some of them ~ven are commercially
available. In this connect:Lon, reerence can be made, by
way of exclmple, to U.S. patent n 3,89~,698 to BY~U et al.
or to Unlted States patent n 4,513,~53 to C~IEN et al.
Reference can also be made to copending Canadian patent
applicatlon n ~,3g5 filed on Novembe.r 1st, 1~85 to -the
name of the pres.ent Lnventor, Mr. Martln LANDE.
If all the e~is-tincJ pret:Led necktles of
the above menti.oned type have numerous advantages, they also
have a common known drawback, namely the fact that they are
difficult to assemble. Indeed, the structure of all these
known pretled neckties makes it compulsory to connect
together, in one single step, the front tie member, the knot
~Z~95~
support and the gripping tab of the slider oE the zip
~astener, such a connection being usually carried out by
means of a rivet. In addition of requesting some skill,
this method of connecting the various elements of the
neckties requires the use of a riveting machine,-thereby
substantially increasing the cost o~ the neckties.
Moreover, all the existing pretied ne,ckties
of the above mentioned ties have another common known
drawback, namely the fact that they all tend to loosen
during use, thereb~ requiring -the wearer to readjust
permanently the knot of the tie about his neck. Indeed, a
problem with these known neckties is that the zip fastener
used for varying the size of the neck encircling loop is
never hard enough to prevent it Erom loosening during use.
To overcome this well known drawback,
different solutions have been proposed up to now.
In U.S. patent n ~,513,~53, it is suggested
to insert a M-shaped clamp as plug into the vertical hole o~
the knot support in order to lock the rear tie member in
position. In copending Canadian patent application n
494,395, it is suggested to use a stopper made of compres-
sible foam. rrhis stopper is slldably engac3ed into the
vertical hole of the knot support Ln such a manner to engage
the strings and lock the same. :Ct ls also sucJgested as an
ZS alternative ln this copending Cana~ictn patent application, to
use strips of V~CI~:astener f:Lxed -to suitable parts o the
:Eront and rcar t:Le members to lock them together once the
neck encircling Loop has been adjtlsted.
These proposed solut:Lons are eEEicient in
3() use. However, thcy requ;Lre either clamps or stoppers that
are not rig:Ldly connected to the knot support and -thus can
be lost, or str:Lps of VEI,CR~ that must stitched and thus
increase the amount of time and labour required in order
to assemble the tie.
. ~!,
~26~52
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to
provide an improved pretied necktie of the above mentioned
S type, whose structural elements are designed to ~e assembled
in a very simple yet efficient manner, without requiring
particular skill from those in charge of this assem~ly, nor
requiring the use of a riveting or similar machine.
In accordance with the invention,this object
is achieved by using snap fastening means for connecting the
slider of the zip fastener with the rear side of the front
wall of the knot support. The male element of these snap
fastening means are connected to, or integral with,the slider
whereas the female element is connected to, or integral with
the rear side of the front wall of the knot support. Thus,
it becomes very easy to connect the slider of the zip
fastener to which the rear tie member is mounted , onto the
knot support. It ~ecomes also very easy to detach the rear
tie member from the knot support whenever necessary.
. Another object of the present is to provide
an improved pretied necktie oE the above mentioned type,
which is urther providecl with very efficient yet simple means
for braking or even completely preventing the movement of
the rear tie member relative to the knot supportin such manner
as to retain the knot of the tie in position aEter the neck
encircling loop has been adjusted around the wearer's neck.
The pretied necktie according to the lnvention
has, as any conventional tie, a front tie portion, a knot
portlon, a neck enc:lrcling portion and a rear tie portion. It
basically comprises a knot support having vertical front wall
provided wlth front and rear sides. This knot support is made
of a semir:lgid material, such as polye-thylene plastic. The
necktie also comprises a front tie member having an upper
end fixed to the fronk side of -the front wall of the knot
support. This front tie member is wrapped around the knot
~26i4~95~
support in such a manner as to form both the knot and front
tie portions o~ the tie. In addition, the pretied necktie
according to the invention comprises a rear tie member having
an upper end formed as a loop. This rear tie member forms
both the neck encircling and rear tie portions of the tie.
A zip fastener is provided for enlarging or
reducing of the siæe of the loop and thus allowing insertion
and adjustment of the necktie around the neck of a wearer.
The zip fastener comprises two continuous strings of
interlockable elements symmetrically stitched onto opposite
portions of the loop. The zip fastener also comprises a
slider in which the interlockable elements of the two strings
pass and are cammed in, or uncammed from interlocked position.
The slider is fixed to the rear side of the front wall of the
knot support, whereby relative movement of the upper end of
the rear tie member with respect to the knot support to which
the slider is connected, causes the loop of this rear tie
member to be increasecd or reduced in size.
In accordance with the invention, the struc-
ture of the above mentioned pretied necktie is improved inthat it further comprises snap fastening means for connecting
the slider of the zip ~astener to the rear side of the front
wall of the knot support. ~hese snap fastening means comprise
male and fernale elements that are detachably connectable to
each other, the male element beLnc3 rlgidly connectecl to or
lntecJral wlth the slider, the ~emale element belng rlgldly
connected or lntegral w:lth the front wall of the kno-t support.
Prov:Lded that the sl~der of the zip fas-tener
:Ls of conventional structure and comprises a small elongated
hooklng member integrally projecting from one of its sicles
Eor plvotably holdlng a yrlpplncJ -tab, use can be made of
; this small elongated hooking member as male element a~ter
having removed the gripping tab therefrom. In such a case,
the female element of the snap fastening means may consist
of a small slot provlded in the front wall of the knot support,
9~
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this slot being shaped and sized to receive and snap on the
small elongated hooking member of the slider.
In accordance with another embodiment of the
invention, the male element of the snap fastening means may
consist of small hooking pin fixed to and projecting from
one side of the slider. In such a case, the female element
of the snap fastening means may consist of a standard
snapping eye sized to receive the hooking pin.
In both cases, the knot support is preferably
a hollow body having a kidney-shaped, vertical through~hole
and a downwardly extending tongue forming part of its vertical
front wall. Then, the small slot or snapping eye defining
the female element of the snap fastening means are provided
onto -this tongue.
In both of these cases, the upper end of the
front tie member can also be fixed in a very simple manner
by a staple -to the vertical front wall of -the knot support
just above the snap fastening means. This obviously makes
the necktie according to -the invention very easy to assemble,
without any complicated machine.
~ n order -to brake or even stop the movement
of the rear tie member relative to the knot support and -thus
to reta:Ln the knot portion Oe thc -l::Le ln posit:Lon after the
encircl:lng portion has been adjuste~ thc around wearer's
neck, the slider of the ~ip fastener with the strings passing
there through, can be hammerecl ~own prior to being connected
to the fronl: wal.l oE a knot support. Such a hammerLng
:Lncreac;es the pitchincJ act:Lon oE the slider onto the
interlockable elementc; oE the stri.ngs and thus achieve the
re~uired braking, ln a very simple and inexpensive manner~
~ lternatlvely, -the rear side of the tongue
of the knot support may be shaped so as to be in direct
contact with, and to bear against the rear tie member on
both sides of the slider when the same is snapped on, such
a contact causing the tongue to act as a Eriction pad to
95~
~ 6
retain the knot of the tie in position.
To lock the knot portion, use can also be
made Or a slider of the type comprising a locking pin pressed
by a spring to normally engage the interlockable elements and
lock the strings inside the slider, wuch a pin being mechan-
ically connected to an operating tab. In such a case, the
operating tab is mounted on and extends from the other side
of the slider which is opposite the male element of the
snap fastening means. Moreover, the operating tab is
positioned in such a manner as to extend inside the vertical
through-hole of the knot support and to bear against the rear
wall of this knot support, whereby a mere pressure excited
onto the rear wall of the knot support causes the operating
tab to withdraw the locking pin and release the strings, such
a release in turn allowing the neck encircling portion to be
increased or reduced in size.
In accordance with a further preferred
embodiment of the invention, the two continuous strings of
interlockable elements consists o two different portions of
a sincJle zip fastener string of interlockable elements of
symmetrical construction, stitched along the full lengh-t of
the loop-formed upper end of the rear tie member. Once again,
this eature makes the necktie according to the invention very
easy to assemble.
~3~r ~r5r~ r I I c~ ~Y '.r~lE_w_ GS
Some embodiments of the inv~ntion wlll now
be describecl in greater detall, w:Lth reference to the
accOmpan~inCJ drawincJs in whlch~
~ fl~ure 1 is a Eron-t view of a pretied necktie
accor~incJ to the inventlon, illustratin~ the wrapping of the
front tie member around the knot support to form the knot
port iOII;
3S - figure 2 ls an exploded perspective view
~695i'~
-- 7
of a first embodiment of a knot support and slider assembly
for use in the pretied necktie shown in figure l;
- figure 3 is a side elevational, cross-
section view of the knot support and slider assem~ly sho~
in figure 2;
- ~ic~re 4 isa bottom rear perspective view o~
a second embodiment of a knot support and slider asser~ly,
showing the slider in detached position;
- figure 5 is a side elevational, cross-
section view of the knot support and slider assembly shownin figure 4, with the knot support and slider in detached
position;
- figure 6 is a rear perspective view of a
variant of the assembly shown in figure 2;
- figure 7 is a side elevational, cross-
section view of the variant shown in figure 6;
- figure 8 is a top, cross-sectional vlew
of the variant shown in figuxes 6 and 7; and
- figures 9 and 10 are side elevational,
cross-section views of another variant of the assembly shown
in figure 2, with the slider provided wi-th a locking pin and
an operatiny tag.
DBSCRIPTION OF SEVERAL PREFERRED EMBODIMENrr9
rrhe pretLed neck-tie according to the invention
as shown in the acCompany:incJ drawings, has, as any conventlonal
t:Le, a front tie port:Lon 1, a knot por-tion 3, a neak encircllng
portion 5 and a rear t:Le port:Lon 7.
~s better shown in figures 1, 2, 4 and 6, the
pretled necktie basically comprlses a knot support 9 made of
semiriyid material, such as plastic. The knot support 9
advantageously comprises a hollow body having a vertical front
wall 10, a vertical rear wall l?, a kidney-shaped, vertical
through-hole 11 in between the walls 10 and 12, and a down-
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, .
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~L26~9
-- 8 --
wardly extending tongue 13 forming part of the vertical ~ront
wall 10.
The pretied necktie also comprises a front
tie member 15 having an upper end 17 fixed onto the ~ront
side of the front wall 10 of the knot support 9. This front
tie member 15 is wrapped around the knot support 9 in such
a manner as to form both the knot and front tie portions 3
and 1 of the necktie.
The pretied necktie further comprises a rear
tie member consisting of a band of fabric 21 having one edge
along the full length of which a single zip fastener string
23 of interlockable elements of symmetrical construction is
stitched. This band 21 of fabric with its ed~ing string 23
of interlockable elements is folded and manipulated in such
a manner as to have both of its ends 25 and 25' passed
simultaneously inside a zip fastener slider 27 which is itsel~
connected to the rear wall of the tonyue 13, just under the
through-hole 11 of the knot support 9. In this slider 27,
the opposite interlockable elements of symmetrical construction
are cammed in interlocked position. The lower portion of the
folded band 21, whose ends 25~ 25' are joined under the slider
27, defines the rear tie portion 7 of the tie whereas the
upper portion of the band 21 which forrns a large loop, defines
the neck encircling portion 5 of the tie.
OE course, relative movement of the upper end
oE the rear tie member w:L-th respect to the knot support ~ to
which the slider 27 is connected, causes -the neck encircling
portion 5 deflned by the loop formed by rear t:le member to be
lncre~sed or reduced in sl~e.
As explained in ~he preamble oE the present
speci~ication, -this basic structure Ls already known per se
and disclosed, by way oE example, in copending Canadian
patent n 494,39S filed on November lst, 1985. By way of
mere reference, it can be indicated that use can be made of
the strinc~ sold by Y.K.K. CANADA INC. under the trademark 25
:
;';' :
9~
g
CF ZIPLON, as zip fastener string 23. Indeed, the
interlockable elements of ~his particular string have proved
to have the symmetrical construction which is necessary to
make the rear tie member operable as disclosed hereinabove.
In accordance with the present invention,
snap fastening means are provided for connecting the slider
27 of the zip fastener to the rear side of the front wall of
the knot support 9.
In accordance with a first embodiment of the
invention shown in figures 2 and 3, these snap fastening
means comprise a male element 29 which is integral to the
slider 27, and a female element 31 which is integral to the
front wall o~ -the knot suppor-t 9, these male and female
elements 29 and 31 being detachably connectable -to each other.
In greater de-tails, the male element 29 of the
snap fastening means consists of a small elongated hooking
member integrally projecting from one side of the slider 27.
Such a hooking member 29 exists in most of the commercially
available sliders, for use in pivotably mounting a gri.pping
tab (not shown) for operating the zip fastener. Therefore,
one can see that it is not necessary to modify in any way
the sll.der 27 o:E the above mentioned type oE zip fastener
used in accordance with the pres0nt invent:Lon, to make this
slider useEul and operable. ~s a mcltter o:E :Eact, the only
~5 step to bc taken -to adapt a standard z.ippcr to the present
:Lnven~:Lon :Ls to remove ttle g:r:;pp:itlg tab frolrl ~he hook:ing
rnemb~:r 29.
~l'he ecmale eLaman~ 31 Oe the snap Eas~enincJ
mearls advantageously consists o~ a :mal:L slot provided in the
ront wall o~ the knot support 9. ~s clearly shown in the
accompanyinCJ :E:icJures, the slot 31 :Ls shaped and sized to
receive, and snap on, the stnall elongated hooking member 2
of the sl.Lder 27.
Usually, the elongated hooking member 29 of
the sli.der 27 is provided with a transversal, slot-shaped
~7` .~.
'~
. .
695~
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through-hole 33 in which the gripping tab is pivotably mounted.
In such a case, the sma].l slot 31 provided in the front wall
of the knot support 9 can be so shaped as to define a pair of
opposite tongues 35 (see figure 2) sized to engage and snap
in both sides of the through-hole 33 of the hooking member,
when the same is inserted and pressed into the slot 31. Such
an arrangement makes the connection of the male and female
elements of the snap fastening means very reliable.
As clearly shown in -the drawings, the slot 31
acting as female element of the snap :Eastening means, is
advantageously provided in the tongue 13 which downwardly
extends the vertical front wall 10 of the knot support 9.
This particular positioning advantageously permits the upper
end 17 of the front ti.e member 15 to be ~ixed onto the upper
surface of vertical front wall 10 of the knot support 9,
above the tongue 13. As shown in figure 1, such a fixation
can be easily achieved by means oE a s-taple 37. Once agaln,
one can see that the various structural elements of the pretied
necktie according -to the invention are very easy to assemble
even by an unskilled person, without any costly equipment.
~ndeed, the rear tie member 7 and the slider 27 can
be merely snapped onto the rear side oE the tongue 13 of a
knot swpport 9. While the E:ront t:i.e member can be simply
s~apled onto the knot s~lpport 9, ~herohy mak:ing the whole
neckt.ie ve:ry easy to asst)m~le.
:Cn accordance w:ith anothcr embod:iment oE the inven-
t:ion shown:Lrl E:i.cJures ~ ancl 5, l:he mal.e elernent oE the snap
Eastenin~ mcclns cc)ns:isks of a small. hookincJ p.in 29' fi.xed to
and protect:iny Erom one .si.de Oe the sL:ider 27. .In such a
case, the :eema:Le e:Lement Oe the snap fasten.ing means consists
oE a snapping eye 31' si~ed to :receive the hooking pin 29'.
'l'he hooking p:in 29' and snapping eye 31' can be made of metal
or plastic and can have any shape such as round as shown in
figure 4, or scluare (to make them non-rotatable with respect
~3
, .i.;
~.2~ 35~
- lOa -
to each other). These elements 29' and 31' can be welded
fi~ed or punched in any standard way onto the slider 27 and
knot support 9, respectively. However, these pin 29' and
eye 31' can also be
...~_
~266~5~
-- 11 --
made integral to the slider 27 and knot support 9. sy way
of example, when both of the knot support 9 and slider 27
are made of plastic material, the pin 29' and snapping eye
31' can be integrally molded therein.
As shown in figures 4 and 5, the snapping
eye 31' is preferably positioned onto the tongue 13 of the
knot support 9. Once again, the upper end 17 of the front
tie member can be fixed by a stample to the front wall 10
of the knot support, just above the snapping eye 31'.
To make the pretied necktie accordi.ng to the
invent.ion very effi.cient in use, means can be provided for
braking or even stopping the movement of the rear tie member
relative to the kno-t support 9 in SUC}I a manner as to retain
the knot support por-tion 3 of the tie in posi-tion aiter the
neck-encircling por-tion 5 has been adjusted around the
wearer's neck.
In accordance with the invention, such a
braking can be achieved by merely hammering down the slider
27 of the zip fastener after having passed the strings 23
there-through. Such a hammering can be made prior to
connectiny the slider 27 to the knot support 9, in order to
increase -the pltchlng act:ion oE the slider onto the
interlockable elements of the strings and thereby make the
slid:LncJ mo~ion o~ thcse s~rincJs .lns:Lclc the slicler more
d:L~E:I.cult. This, O:e course al:l.ows the knot o the t:Le to
stay in po~it:Lon aEter the neck enc-ircli.ng portion has becr
adjusted arouncl the wearer's ncGk.
:Cn accordance wlth khe var:Lant o the inven-
tion as shown in EicJure~ 6 to ~, brak:Lng o the rear tie
member can also be achieved by shaplncJ the rear s:Lde of the
ton~ue 13 o the knot support 9 in such a manner that i-t is
in direct contact and hears onto the rear tie member 7 on
both sides o the slider 29 when the same is snapped on in
the srnall hole 3L :in -the tongue 13. To achieve such a
contact and friction, the rear side of the tongue 13 can be
6~9S~
- 12 -
prc)vided with a small rec~ss 37 whose depth is substantially
equal to the khickness of the corresponding side of the
slider 27. The recess 37 which e~ends all around the slot
31 can be sized to allow full insertion therein of the
slider 27, as shown in the drawings; This in turn allows
the rear side of the tongue 13 to come into contact with
the band of fabric 21 forming the rear tie member 7 (see
figure 8) and to act as a friction pad to retain the knot
of a ti.e in position after the neck encircling portion 5
has been adjusted around the wearer's neck.
According to another variant shown in figures
9 and 10, use can also be made of a slider 27 which, on one
side, cornprises a small elongated hooking member 29 and, on
the other side, a locking pin 41 pressed by a spring 43 to
normally engage the interlockable elements and thereby lock
the strings inside the slider (see figure 9). The locking
pin 41 and its spring 43 are both mounted inside another
small elongated member 45 projecting from the other side of
the slider 27. ~n operating tab 47 is pivotably mounted
onto the member 45 and mechanically connected to the locking
pin 41 either directly or via the spring 43 to raise -the pin
41 and thereby release the strings whenever desired.
It .is wor-th noting that this pa.rticular
cornblnati.on of a locking p:ln with an operat:in~ tab to lock
2S the strlngs of :Lnterlockable elemt3nts oE a zlp fastener is
very standarcl and manuEacturecd by most of khe zlp fastener
manuE~Icturt.l;r.c;. Ii .iCJ al.so :i.ntereG;tlng tt.~ note thak sl.idt-rc;
prov:idecI w:i.th cJr:ipp.in(J or opc~rc.It::i.rlcl tcabs on both .q:i.des a:re
a:I..so ve:ry comrnorI and usetl~ by way o: example, :in tht! rnanu-
~actu.re o.~ the cJa:rments Icnown ag ":rt)versi.ble". However,to the appl.:icanl'.c; knowledge, the:rt-~ :is no slider presently
ava:il.able, hav.iny a mere~ grlppincJ tab on one side and a
combined locking~p.in-operating tab assembly on the o-ther
s:ide as discl.osed hereinabove in the reEerence to figures
9 and lO.
,~
S~
- 12a -
As shown in figures 9 and 10, the operating tab 47
in mechanical connection with the locking pin 41 is mounted
and positioned in such a manner as to extend vertically in-
side the vertical through-hole 11 of the knot support 9 and
bear against the rear wall
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~6~9~
- 13 -
support. As can be seen, mere pressure exerted by a f.inger
onto the rear wall 12 of the knot support which, as aforesaid,
is made of semirigid plastic material, causes the operating
tab 47 to withdraw the locking pin 41 from the interlockable
elements of the strings and thereby to release these strings,
such a release in turn allowing the tie encircling loop to be
increased or reduced in size.
It is worth noting tha-t the latter variant is
particularly interesti.ng since it is the only one which
allows positive fixation and locking of the rear tie member
with respect to the knot suppGrt.
~ . .
