ANIMAL COLLAR WITH MAGNETIC FASTENER

• US 3,589,341 A
• Filed: 09/24/1969
• Issued: 06/29/1971
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Jacob Krebs
• Original Assignee: Jacob Krebs
• Inventors: Krebs, Jacob
• Application Number:
  US04/860,679
• Time in Patent Office: 643 Days
• US Class Current: 119/865
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 27/005 Quick-couplings, safety-couplings or shock-absorbing devices between leash and collar
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 24/32 having magnetic fastener

Abstract

An animal collar particularly adaptable to cats has a permanent magnet fastener which is smooth and free of projections when coupled. The fastener embodies interfitting sections which are easy to engage and separate by a simple pushing and pulling operations. Conventional buckle hardware is completely eliminated. The collar will open under a predetermined load in the event that the animal becomes hung or caught on a tree, fence post, or the like.

Claims

1. A fastener for an animal collar or the like comprising a pair of interfitting fastener sections, one fastener section having a pair of longitudinally projecting tapering tongues and a longitudinally shorter and relatively thicker lug which extends above and below the tongues for substantially the full thickness of such section, said lug tapering in a plane at right angles to the plane of taper of said tongues, said tongues disposed on opposite sides of said lug, the second of said fastener sections having side tapering slots receiving said tongues and having a tapering recess centrally between the slots extending entirely therethrough from top to bottom and receiving said lug, said second section having elongated fingers defined by the slots which engage above and below the tongues, whereby the two fastener sections when moved longitudinally into engagement are mechanically locked against movement in every direction except the direction which will separate them longitudinally, and permanent magnets on the fastener sections in opposing attractive relationship to firmly secure the two sections in engaged relationship.

2. The structure of claim 1, and a relatively thin pad secured to the bottom face of one fastener section and projecting under the bottom face of the other fastener section when the two sections are coupled to prevent hair or the like from entering between the opposing faces of the two fastener sections.

3. The structure of claim 1, and said permanent magnets are a pair of small pinlike magnets embedded centrally in the two fastener sections in axial alignment with their opposing tips disposed near the base of said recess and the tip of said lug, respectively.

4. The structure of claim 1, and a flexible strap element forming the body portion of a collar having its opposite ends secured one each to said fastener sections.

5. The structure of claim 1, and each fastener section being smoothly rounded on its outer and interior use surfaces and each fastener section tapering toward its outer end and being free of external projections.

6. The structure of claim 1, and said fastener sections molded from plastic and having said permanent magnets molded therein and substantially fully enclosed.

7. A fastener for an animal collar or the like comprising an interfitting pair of smooth surfaced projection-free fastener sections adapted to have corresponding ends secured to a flexible collar body portion, one fastener section having a socket recess in its leading end tapering in two directions and the other fastener section having a complementally tapered tongue for entry into said recess and substantially filling the recess so that the two sectioNs are mechanically interlocked against relative movement, and a pair of opposing permanent magnets embedded in the two sections with opposing attractive poles in close proximity when said tongue is fully seated within said recess and thereby holding said sections of the fastener engaged until a specified tension force is applied thereto to separate them.

8. The structure of claim 7, and said magnets are thin platelike permanent magnets with one magnet embedded in said tongue and the other magnet embedded in the opposing fastener section adjacent the bottom of said recess.