Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
3,300~
SEWING NEEDLE WITII
EASY-THREADING FILAMENT LOOP
Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a sewing needle
having a filament loop at its trailin~ end so that the
needle may be easily threaded.
und of the Invention
Because of ~he well-known difficulty of
threading conventional ~anual sewing needles having
narrow eyes formed at their traiiill~ er.ds, a form of
n2edl~ has been proposed i.-corpoLa~ing a c1osed 1cop of
a thin fiiament secured to the rear end of ~he needle.
Thread to be used with tne needle may be easily passed
through the loop, which is ~ubstantiaily laryer than the
needle eye, and in use the loop is pu~led ~hrough the
fabeic, behind the needle, carrying the thread through
the fabric.
One form of such needle is disclo~ed in U.S.
~Patent 1,293,660. The loops disclosed in this patent
are secured to the needles by passing them through a
conventional eye formed on the rear of the needle body.
Another form of looped needle, di~closed ln
U.S. Patent No. 4,182,341, is intended primarily for
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surgical purpose~ The needle body is formed with a
truncated end having a cfntral, de~d-ended cavlty
opening at the end. The free ends of the filament
forming the loop are secured within this cavity and the
loop pro jects Prom the rear of ~he cavi~y. This
arrangement necessitates that the needle hody ha~e a
thickness many times the diameter of the fil~ment and
can only be employed with very thick needles or with
filaments that are so thin as to be practically
invisible~
The deficlencie~ of these previous designs for
needles with following loo~ have apparently prevenced
such needles from making any substantial market
penetration against conventional needleq, despite the
obvious advantages of the loo~ed needle.
SummarY of the Inventlon
The present inventlon ls accordingly directed
toward a looped needle of a ur.ique design which
; preserves the advantages of looped needles while
~overcoming the defic.iencies of the prior art.
A preferred embodiment of the present
in~ention utilizes a loop formed of a ilament of thin
spring steel wire, a plastic, or a similar material
which is readily deformable under slig~t prescures but
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is highly resilient so as to immediately rPturn to its
normal con~iguration when the deforming forces are
terminated and which will not assume any permanent
deformation undeL the range of ~or~es normal]y
encountered in use. The Ei'ament is forlned into a loop
having a norrnal position, wlthout the imposition of any
external forces, lying in a single plane. The 100D
prefesably has a generally diamond sha~e w th two acute
angles at opposed ends and two obtuse angles
intermediate these ends. The sides of the loop adjacent
the needle are preferably shcrter than the loop sides
remote from the needle so that the adja~nn~ sides are
more resistant to closure than the remote sides and so
that the angle at the free, rer.lote end of the loop is
more acute than the angle at the adjacenr end to
facilitate the ability of the free end to grasp the
thread. The loop is secured to the trailing end of the
needle body at one of the acute angles so that the loop
lies in a plane including the axis of the needle and, in
the absence of any deforming forces, the free acute
angle of the loop projects away from the needle body.
The sides of the loop adjacent the needle are preferably
shorter than the loop side~- remote froln the needle so
that the adjacent sides are more resistant to closure
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than t},e remote sides and 80 that the angle at the free
remote end is more acute than the angle at the adjacerlt
end to facilitate the abil~ty of the free end to grasp
the thread.
In one embodiment of the lnvention, the
trailing end of the needle body is preferably formed
with a pa~r o~ concave depressions extending axially on
diametrically opposed sides of the body. These
depressions may be connected by a slit forming an eye in
the manner of most conventional loopless needles Ol
alterrlatively, the trailing end of the needle may be
formed ~lthout an eye with just a pair of depressions on
diametrically opposed sides. Ir. attaching tha filamer,t
to the needle the free ends of the filament lengths are
laid in the two depressions and are secured to the
needle body, preferably by crimping or swaging the sides
over the filament ends so that the loop projects behind
thq needle.
In another embodiment of the invention, the
needle body and loop are formed from a single piece of
material. This May be accomplished, for example, by
fabricating the needle body and loop, such as by
injection or compression molding, from a plastic having
the d~sired propertie~ of hardnes6 and resilien~e. ~his
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one-piece may then be coated or ~flashed" with chrome or
other metallic coa~ing, if desired.
In yet another embodimen~ of the invention, an
open 1GOP of spring steel wire, shaped generally in the
form of a diamond as described above, is provided ~or
attachment to conventional sewing needles~ In its
normal unstressed configuration, the open ends of the
filament abut each other, forminq one of the acute
angles of the diamond. This attachment i& secured to an
esisting conventional sewing needle by inserting the
free ends of the filament into the needle eye and
securing the abutting ends to each other and,
preferably, to a portlon of the inner surface of the
needle eye by spo~ welding or with a dry adhesive.
lS In all of the embodiments, the loop of the
needle presents a wide target for attachment of the
thread because of its normal diamond shaped
configuration. The acute angle at the following end of
the loop engages the thread to prevent the thread from
slipping, allowing single thread sewing. Because of the
~rigid position of the loop relative to the needle body,
no difficulty is encountered in positioning the eye for
threading.
The loop material n~ay be distinc~ively
colored, by anodizing or the like, to increase the
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visibility of the loop and different size needles may be
provided with loops of different colors to assist in
distinguishing one size from another. further, the loop
may be formed of a material which glows in response to
receipt of light energy as to assist the user in clearly
visually distinguishing the outline of the loop.
Brief Description of the Drawina
Other objectives, advantages and applications of
the present invention will be made apparent by the
following detailed description of preferred and alternative
embodiments of the invention. The description makes
reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a first embodiment of
a looped needle formed in accordance with the present
invention;
FIGURE 2 is a side view of the needle of FIGURE
l;
FIGURE 3 is a sectional view through the needle
of FIGURE 1 taken along lines 3-3 of FIGURE 2;
FIGURE 4 is a plan view of an alternative
embodiment of the invention constructed using a needle
having a conventional eye;
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FIGUR~ 5 i~ a sectional view of ~he needle of
FIGURE 4 taken alony line 5-5 ot FIGU~F 4;
~IGUhE 6 ls a par~peetive vlew of 2 Sil~gle-
piece embodiment of the needle of the present lnventior.
~ormed from injection m~lded pla~ic;
FIGURE ~ is a plan ~iew of an attachmeJlt clip
formed in accordance with the present invention; and
~IGURE 8 iQ a partial view of the clip of
FIGURE 7 installad on a conventional sewing needle.
~etailed Description of the Invention
In the embodiment of the invention illustrated
in Figures 1-3, a stainles~ steel needle body 10, of
appropriate diameter and length foe hand sewing, has a
forward pointed end 1~. The rear end of the needle is
truncated at 14 and doe~ not incorporate the eye found
in conventional needles. A thread 16 to be used with
the needle is attached to the needle by passing it
~ through a trailing filament loop, generally indicated at
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20- The loop 18 is formed of a filament which is
small in diameter in comparison to the needle body 1~,
preferably havinq a diameter no great.er than one-third
of that of ~he needle body 10. ".`he filament is
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preferably metal wire such as spring steel. The wire is
resilient and readily deformable.
The wlre fllament 18 has a palr of free ends
20 whlch are secured ~o the trailing end of the needle
body 10 by viLtue of bein~ cri~ped, aq by a swagin~
operation, within concave depressions 22 formed axially
along the needle body for some distance from its
trailing truncated end 1~ and opening onto the truncated
end. Alternatively, the filamellt ends could be welded,
soldered or otherwise secured within ~he depressions 22.
The concave depressions have a diameter preferably less
than about 20% of the diameter of the needle body, so
that they do not substantially weaken the needle body.
Loop 18 is formed with a generally diamond
shape. The two free ends 20, in their uns~ressed
condition, extend outwardly, away fro~ one another, ir
t~.e same plane, in sections 26, each of which preferably
makes an acJte an~le with respect to the central axis of
~he needle. The SectiOnR 26 termlnate in obtuse angles
at bends 28 which define the limits of the widest
separation of the loop. Thifi se~aration ~etween the
bends 28 is preferably several times the diameter of the
needle bodi~, providln~ 3 ~ide taryet for easy threading.
The trailin~ end of the loop 18 is formed by a
pair of filament ~ec~ions 30 which extend from the
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obtuse angie bends 28 to an acut~ anqle rear bend 3~
where they join one anothPr. 1he sides 30 oE the loop
preferably form a more acute arlgle relative to the
central a~is of the loop than do the sides 26, so ~ha~
the end of the loop ~o the rear of the hend. 28 i~
substantially longer ~han the section of the lcop
forward of the bends. This configura~ion assures that
~he relatively short loop ~ec~ions 26 will be relatively
stiff compared to the relatlvely long loop sections 30,
maintaining the loop, which lies in a single plane with
the lengthwise axis of the needle body 10, in an ope
configuration when unstressed. It also increases the
aculty of the rear angle bend 32 ~o that bend readily
grips the thread 16 This grip allows a single needle
threading which be may he aided by passing the threa;l
through the loop more than once.
The needle may thus be easily threaded and
maintains a positlve grip on the sewing thread, and the
resilient loop collapses and passes through the fabric
beins sewn following passage of the needle through the
~fabric without substantial distortion of the fabric
beyond that imposed by the needle and thereafter expands
to rea-;sume its unstressed configuration Eollowing its
passage through the fabric. The loop has sufficient
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rigld~ty ~uch that it remains ln the single comrnon
plane with the needle axis as it co11apse upon pas~age
through tbe fabric and as it expands to it5 Un~tre8Gf~d
configurativn following 8uch passage.
In the emhodiment illustrated in Figures 4 and
5, the needle is conYentional and includes a pointed end
40 and a trailing end 42 formed with a conventional eye
44 with a pair of concave depressions q6 defined on
opposite sides of ~he éye. The free ends 48 of a
filament loop, generally indicated at 50, are swaged
within these depressions. The free ends 48 of the
filament loop 50 may a1so be secnred to the conventional
needle by applying sufficient heat to the end portinn of
the needle body 38 near the eye 44 in order to increase
its malleability, inser~ing ~he free end~ 48 of the
filament loop lnto or through ~he eye ~4, and then
.~ollapsin~ the needle body 38 surrounding the eye by
using m~chanical pressure or otherwise securing the
filament ends therebetwc2n. The loop 50 lies in a
single plane and preferably has the sa~e diamond-like
configuratlon as the loop la used with the embodiment of
Figures 1-3.
Those skilled in the ar~ will appreciate ~hat
at~achment techniques such as swaging or crimping or
otherwise embedding the free ends 20 of the filament
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loop into the needle 10 are mos~ effective when
performed during the manufacture of the needle, be~ore
the needle body 10 has been hardened. It should be
noted that any of the a~ove-described e~bodiments can be
utilized to produce a finished product using a
relatively malleable needle body. However, when a
filament loop 1~ $s being secured to a conventional
sewing needle or a needle body that has already
undergone some hardening, the portion of the needle body
to which the ends of the filament loop are being
attached should be exposed to suficient heat to
increase the malleability of the needle body before any
crimping or swaging operation. As an alternati-ve,
adhesion means, such as a dry adhesive, welding or
~oldering may be utilized to afflx the filament ends 20
to an already hardened needle body.
The invention embodiment illustrated in
Figure 6 includes an easy-threading needle 110
comprising a ~hin elongate needle body 112 with a point
113 at one end and a thread-receiving section formed as
a closed loop 114 extending from the opposite end.
~eedle body 112 and loop 114 are formed from a single
plece of material, such as pla6tic or spring steel.
Whes~ forming the needle body 112 and loop 114 from a
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single piece of plastic, conventional injection and/or
compression molding techniques may be employed. The
needle 110 may then be coated, such as by flashing with
chrome or other metallic coating, to achieve the desired
appearance.
Constructing the needle body and loop as a single
unitary member, as shown in Figure 6, provides an easy
threading needle with a securely affixed loop without many
of the manufacturing problems and coats associated with
similar prior art devices.
In the embodiment of the invention seen in
Figures 7 and 8, a resilient metallic diamond-shaped open
filament loop or clip 62 is provided for a quick attachment
to conventional sewing needles. In its normal relaxed
condition, the open ends 68 abut each other forming an
acute angle at one end of the diamond-shaped loop 62. The
clip may be attached to a conventional needle 64 by
inserting the abutting ends 68 to each other. The clip 62
may then be adhesively secured within the eye 66 of the
needle 64, preferably along the inner end face 70 of
the eye 66. The clip may also be adhesively
secured to the depressions 72 formed on opposite
sides of the eye to obtain a more secure attachment to the
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needle. It sho~ld be noted that the clip 82 can be
fvrmed as an open loop with the ends nearest ~he acute
angle at the trailing end 67 of the loop 62 initially
unflttached. After insertion of the loop 62 ~hrough the
eye of a conventional needle 64, the trailing ends may
then be secured to form the acute angle by butt welding
or spot welding.
In any of the d1sclosed embodiments, the loop
- or, in the unitary embodiment of Figure 6, the entire
needle assembly, may be formed from a material which
glows in response to recelpt of light energy 80 as to
asslRt the user in clearly vi~u~lly distinguishing ~l~e
outline of the loop to facilitate passage of the thread
through the loop. For ex~mple, the loop may be formed
of ~ material incorporating a flourescen. dye.
Specifically, the loop may be formed of a DAY-GL0
material of the type disclosed in U.S. Patent No.
3,915,884.
Although the present inv~ntion has been
de~cribed in connection with its use as a conventional
hand sewlng needle, the easy threading features of the
pre~ent invention are equally advantageous in other
sewing application~, such as with surgical needles or
darning needles. The diamond shape of the filanlent
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provldes for a quick and substantial flattenlng of the
opposing sldes of the loop under relatively low ten~ion
to ensure that the hole formed by the needle i8 not
enlarged by the filament.
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