Rope securement clip for forming a break-away connection

• US 5,987,710 A
• Filed: 06/04/1998
• Issued: 11/23/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Q-Mingo, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Vision2, Inc.
• Inventors: Jones, Nelson, Paul, Dan
• Primary Examiner(s): Carone, Michael J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ark, Darren W.
• Application Number:
  US09/090,630
• Time in Patent Office: 537 Days
• Field of Search: 43/43.1, 43/43.12, 43/100, 43/44.87, 43/44.9, 43/44.91, 24/130, 24/129 R, 24/129 A, 24/115 H, 403/391, 403/399, 403/397
• US Class Current: 24/130
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 69/00 Stationary catching devices
• CPC Class Codes: F16G 11/103 deforming the cable by bending it around or inserting it into the fastener
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 24/3918 Wedge slot

Abstract

A clip for securing lobster trapping equipment to a buoy. The clip has an elongate tubular body through which a rope attached to a lobster trap is threaded. The rope is then threaded through a buoy loop and clipped to the outer wall of the elongate tubular body by a pair of hooks. The clipped rope extends through a slot formed between the pair of hooks. The slot has oppositely facing sets of teeth which grab the rope and prevent its release under normal rope tensions, ie rope tensions caused by the motion of the sea. However, under certain extreme rope tensions, such as a whale entangled in the rope, the teeth are specifically designed to be unable to hold the rope under the extreme tension and will allow the rope to slip back through the teeth, slot and hooks to become disengaged with the outer wall of the clip and from the buoy.

Claims

1. A clip for use in securing a rope extending from a lobster trap to a buoy, comprising:

an elongate tubular body having an outer wall and a bore extending longitudinally therethrough for receiving a free end of the rope therethrough;

a pair of spaced-apart hooks extending peripherally outwardly from said outer wall for clipping the rope lengthwise adjacent said outer wall; and

a pair of substantially parallel walls projecting outwardly from said outer wall of said elongate tubular body defining a slot therebetween which extends lengthwise along said outer wall, said parallel walls being located between said hooks so that the rope clipped to said outer wall of said elongate tubular body extends through said slot;

each of said parallel walls having a set of tapered engagement teeth which extend into said slot for engaging and securing said rope in said slot up to a predetermined rope tension threshold;

whereby the free end of the rope inserted through said bore is extended through a buoy loop and is clipped to said hooks and engaged by said tapered engagement teeth in said slot along said outer wall of said elongate tubular body to connect the lobster trap to the buoy.