Keylockable buckle

• US 5,117,663 A
• Filed: 04/22/1991
• Issued: 06/02/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/1990
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: YKK Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yoshida Kogyo K.K.
• Inventors: Ida, Kazuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Gall, Lloyd A.
• Application Number:
  US07/688,476
• Time in Patent Office: 407 Days
• Field of Search: 70/13, 70/75, 70/69-71, 70/64-67, 24/614, 24/615, 24/167, 24/665, 24/671, 24/672, 292/19, 292/86, 292/254, 292/DIG. 37
• US Class Current: 70/64
• CPC Class Codes: A44B 11/263 with a push-button acting perpendicularly to the main plane of the buckle
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 292/18 Free-end-engaging means
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 70/5035 Bag
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 70/5062 Projecting fixed or movable lug type
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 70/5066 Bolt type

Abstract

A keylockable buckle comprises a plug having first engaging structure, a socket having second engaging structure engageable with the first engaging structure for releasably coupling the plug and the socket together and a mechanism mounted on the socket for locking the plug and the socket in coupled disposition by the help of a separate key for the purpose of security.

Claims

1. A keylockable buckle which can be locked in coupled disposition by a separate key comprising:

(a) a plug including a plug proper having first engaging means;

(b) a socket adapted to be releasably coupled with the plug, the socket including a socket body including a pair of spaced upper and lower walls, a pair of side walls joining the upper and lower walls on their respective sides and a rear wall provided on the rear end of the socket body to thus define a guide chamber open forward, the lower wall having a cantilevered resilient engaging flap projecting from its inner surface toward the rear wall and including second engaging means engageable with the first engaging means for coupling the plug and the socket together when the plug proper is thrusted into the guide chamber, the upper wall having a cantilevered resilient presser flap overhanging the engaging flap and being yieldable downwardly to depress the engaging flap to bring the second engaging means out of engagement with the first engaging means for uncoupling the plug from the socket, the presser flap having a substantially elliptical recess in its upper surface;

(c) a rotor including a cam disk and an eccentric circular axle provided on the upper surface of and eccentrically of the cam disk and having a first key hole therein; and

(d) a locking slide plate having a circular blind bore in its lower surface and a second key hole formed through the bottom of the blind bore, the locking slide plate being mounted on the upper surface of the presser flap slidably adjacent the side walls with the eccentric axle rotatably fitted in the blind bore and with the cam disk rotatably received in the recess, so that rotation of the eccentric axle by the separate key inserted through the second key hole into the first key hole causes the locking slide plate to slide reciprocally between a locking position where the locking slide plate comes into abutting engagement with the rear wall to thus lock the plug and the socket in coupled disposition and an uncoupling position where the locking slide plate comes out of abutting engagement with the rear wall.

2. A keylockable buckle according to claim 1, the plug proper comprising a base bar and a pair of engaging arms formed integrally with and protruding perpendicularly from the base bar, the first engaging means comprising engaging hooks provided on its lower surfaces at the front ends of the engaging arms, the second engaging means comprising an engaging tapered end provided at the front end of the resilient engaging flap.

3. A keylockable buckle according to claim 2, the presser flap having on the lower surface at the middle on the front edge a releasing lug which, when the presser flap is depressed, passes through a gap between the opposed front ends of the engaging arms and comes into depressing engagement with the engaging tapered end of the resilient engaging flap.

4. A keylockable buckle according to claim 3, the plug proper further including a resilient tongue formed integrally with the base bar and extending between and parallel with the pair of engaging arms but terminating short of the front ends of the engaging arms;

the presser flap further having rearwardly of and contiguously to the releasing lug a presser lug which is less in height than the releasing lug and which, when the presser flap is depressed, depresses the resilient tongue against its resiliency so that the plug snaps out of the socket under resiliency of the resilient tongue the moment the engaging tapered end of the engaging flap comes out of engagement with the engaging hooks of the engaging arms.

5. A keylockable buckle according to claim 1, the presser flap having on its upper surface a pair of opposed resilient fingers one on each side of the elliptical recess which resilient fingers extend parallel to the side walls from the distal end toward the proximal end of the presser flap and are disposed symmetrically with each other across the recess so that the fingers are resilient substantially perpendicularly to the side walls, the resilient fingers having at their distal ends respective prongs directed toward each other and intruding into the elliptical recess;

the cam disk having a pair of notches formed in its peripheral edge in diametrically opposed relation to each other and adapted for snapping engagement with the prongs when the locking slide plate assumes either the locking position or the uncoupling position.

6. A keylockable buckle according to claim 5, the presser flap further including a pair of parallel spaced engaging slots disposed outwardly of the respective resilient fingers and extending parallel therewith;

the locking slide plate being in the form of a rectangular flat plate and further having a pair of engaging legs one adjacent each side edge of and on the lower surface of the slide plate, which engaging legs have at their ends respective hooks directed remote from each other, the hooks of the engaging legs coming into snapping engagement with the slots in the presser flap so that the locking slide plate is slidably mounted on the presser flap.

7. A keylockable buckle according to claim 1, the locking plate having on its lower surface at its front edge an abutting projection;

the presser flap having an indentation in a distal edge;

the abutting projection being adapted to come into abutting engagement with the rear wall when the locking slide plate assumes the locking position and to come into interfitting engagement with the indentation when the locking slide plate assumes the uncoupling position.