Buckle Assembly

Abstract

The buckle assembly (1) is formed of a male part (10), a female part (20), and a rotor (30). The male part has a base body (11) and at least one locking leg (13, 14) having a first latching element (15). The female part has a base body (21) with an internal cavity (23) and at least one guide slot. The rotor seats in the internal cavity and has an actuating surface (33), a second latching element (36) for engaging the first latching element, and an actuating mechanism for orienting the rotor to a locked position in the rest state of the buckle assembly. The male part is locked to the female part by inserting the locking leg into the guide slot until the first latching element engages the second latching element. The male part is released from the female part by pressing the actuating surface to rotate the rotor until the latching elements disengage from one another.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a two-piece buckle that uses a rotor cylinder to lock the two pieces together. In particular, the present invention relates to a buckle in which the rotor cylinder is attached to one of the pieces and is biased into a locked position, but can be rotated under pressure to an unlocked position to release the buckle. [Background technology]

[0002] A typical side release buckle is realized by setting a load-bearing buckling point on the bendable locking leg of the male buckle, and manually pressing the locking leg to switch the position of the load-bearing buckling point before and after bending, thereby achieving the purpose of buckling or unbuckling.

[0003] These products have many advantages, such as simple structure, low cost, and easy operation, but because the load is transmitted through the locking legs, the locking legs are easily deformed, leading to separation and breakage.

[0004] From the pressure test values, large variations between upper and lower limits can be observed. The pressing force (feel) required for buckling release is often proportional to the final load-bearing capacity of the product. This frequently forces the designer to make a trade-off between the ease of use and strength of the buckle. If the feeling of pressing is light, the support is low. Conversely, if the feeling of pressing is hard, the support is improved but the buckle is difficult to operate. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] It is desirable to construct a buckle where the load is not applied to the locking legs, but to a rigid body without the risk of deformation and breakage. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The object is achieved by a buckle assembly formed by a male part, a female part, and a rotor. The male part includes a base body and at least one locking leg extending from the base body in an insertion direction. The locking leg has a first latching element extending from the locking leg. The female part includes a base body having an internal cavity and at least one guide slot corresponding to the locking leg of the male part. The rotor is formed by a cylindrical element configured to seat in the internal cavity of the female part. The rotor has an actuation surface configured to be accessed by a user through an opening in the female part, at least one second latching element configured to engage with the first latching element of the at least one locking leg of the male part, and an actuation mechanism for orienting the rotor in a locked position in a rest state of the buckle assembly. The male part is locked to the female part by inserting the at least one locking leg into the at least one guide slot until the first latching element of the at least one locking leg engages with the at least one second latching element of the rotor. During insertion, the first latching element presses against the second latching element, rotating the rotor until the first latching element passes the second latching element, at which point the rotor returns to its stationary and locked state, and the actuation surface presses against the rotor, rotating the rotor until the second latching element disengages from the first latching element, at which point the male portion can be pulled away from the female portion, thereby releasing it from the female portion.

[0007] Preferably, the male part has at least two locking legs, each of which has one first latching element, and the rotor has two second latching elements, which engage with the two first latching elements when the male part is locked to the female part. The locking legs are preferably arranged on opposite sides of the body of the male part and extend parallel to each other, and the latching elements are arranged on the inner surface of the locking legs such that the first latching elements face each other. The two second latching elements are located on opposite lateral parts of the rotor, facing outwards. The engagement of the first and second latching elements does not require any bending of the locking legs, since the movement of the latching elements relative to each other occurs only due to the rotation of the rotor. In this way, the locking legs can be made very strong and unbending. Nevertheless, because the locking legs are not deformed inwardly to lock the buckle, the locking legs can be made of any desired material or degree of curvature without compromising the strength of the buckle connection.

[0008] Buckle assemblies are commonly used to connect two pieces of webbing together, in that the male and female parts each have a strap attachment bar connected to a respective base body.

[0009] In a preferred embodiment, the first latching element comprises a protrusion having an engagement surface extending perpendicular to the insertion direction, and the second latching element comprises a wall segment that abuts the engagement surface in the locked position to prevent disengagement of the male part from the female part. The wall segment extends outwardly from the rotor substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of the rotor and faces the engagement surface of the first latching element when the buckle is in the locked position. When the male part is inserted into the guide slot and the protrusion passes the wall segment, the rotor rotates back to its rest position under pressure from the actuation mechanism, with the wall segment blocking any rearward movement of the male part.

[0010] Preferably, the first latching element has a ramped surface extending in the insertion direction, such that upon insertion of the male part into the female part, the ramped surface slides along the second latching element of the rotor, rotating the rotor until the engagement surface passes the wall segment, at which point the rotor moves to the locked position. In this manner, no further effort is required by the user to lock the two buckle parts together.

[0011] The actuation mechanism can be formed in several different ways and may even be a combination of different mechanisms. In one embodiment, the actuation mechanism comprises a magnet located on the rotor and a mating magnet located on the male part, which has maximum overlap and attraction in the locked position, and when a force is applied to the rotor by the male part or by pressing on the actuation surface to rotate the rotor out of the locked position, the magnet returns the rotor to the locked position when the force is released. The magnet may be used alone or in combination with a spring that biases the rotor to the locked position. The advantage of using a magnet is that the attraction of the magnet also helps to couple the male and female parts together and also helps to align the two buckle parts in the proper position.

[0012] Alternatively, the spring may be used alone without the magnet. The spring may be any suitable type of spring, such as a coil spring or a leaf spring. The spring may be located under the working surface of the rotor, so that pressing down on the working surface compresses the spring, and releasing the working surface allows the spring to return to its rest position. In one embodiment, the female part includes a shell that surrounds the rear of the rotor, whereby the rotor is connected to the female part by fitting a flange into the shell. This shell may also include an actuation mechanism, and thus be in the form of a flat spring, whereby when a force is applied to the rotor by pressing the working surface or inserting the male part, the rotor rotates, so that the shell is bent downwards, and by releasing the force, the shell returns to its rest state and the rotor returns to the locked position. In an alternative embodiment, the actuation mechanism may be formed by a spring, but the magnets are located on the male part and the rotor or the female part such that the magnets repel each other. In this way, when the actuation mechanism is pressed to disengage the latch mechanism, the male and female buckle parts are moved away from each other by the repulsive force of the magnets.

[0013] According to the buckle assembly of the present invention, the required functions are divided into different structural parts, so that the buckle can be easily unbuckled with only a small amount of force required, and yet the buckle maintains an excellent and stable load-bearing capacity.

[0014] Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, it being understood that the drawings are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a buckle assembly according to the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the buckle assembly with the rotor assembled to the female part. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 shows the buckle assembly in an assembled state. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a top view of the buckle assembly. [Diagram 5] 5 is a side cross-sectional view of the buckle assembly taken along line 5-5 in FIG. 4. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the female part and rotor, with the guide slots of the female part omitted for ease of illustration. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a simplified schematic diagram of a rotor engaged with a male portion using a spring as the actuation mechanism. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 illustrates the embodiment of FIG. 7 in the process of unlocking. [Figure 9] FIG. 13 is a simplified schematic diagram of a rotor engaged with a male part using a magnet as the actuation mechanism. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 illustrates the embodiment of FIG. 9 in the process of unlocking. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, like reference numerals represent like elements throughout the several views. FIGS. 1-4 show a buckle assembly 1 according to the present invention. The buckle assembly 1 is formed of a male part 10, a female part 20, and a rotor 30. The male part 10 is formed by a base body 11, a strap attachment bar 12 connected to one end of the base body 11, and two locking legs 13, 14 extending parallel to each other from the other end of the base body 11. The locking legs 13, 14 each have a first latching element 15 extending from an inner surface of the locking legs 13, 14, as shown in FIG. 4. A magnet casing 16 extends from the base body 11 and holds a magnet 40.

[0017] The first latching element 15 has an engagement surface 17 and an inclined sliding surface 18, such that the first latching element 15 widens and increases in height toward the rear of the male buckle portion 10 as it approaches the engagement surface 17 (see Figures 7 to 10).

[0018] 1-4, the female part 20 includes a base body 21 connected to a strap retaining bar 22. The female part 20 has an internal cavity 23, a top opening 24 that communicates with the internal cavity 23, and a front opening 25 that also communicates with the internal cavity 23.

[0019] The rotor 30 has a cylindrical body 31 with an opening 32, a cavity for holding a magnet 50, and an actuation face 33. On each opposing side portion 34, 35 of the rotor 30 is a second latching element 36 which extends outwardly from the side portions 34, 35 and defines a wall 37 which extends generally parallel to the axis of rotation R of the rotor 30.

[0020] The rotor 30 is inserted into the cavity 23 of the female part 20 by inserting the rotor 30 through a side opening until the working surface 33 extends through the top opening 24, as seen in Figure 2. The rotor 30 is retained in the cavity 23 by a cylindrical shell portion 28, as shown in cross section in Figure 5. The shell portion 28 can be constructed to be flexible such that the rotor 30 can snap into the shell portion 28 and retain it in the female part 20.

[0021] The magnets 40, 50 can be positioned to attract each other when the male portion 10 is brought into close proximity with the female portion 20. In this manner, the magnets can act to align and properly position the buckle portions during locking, and also to maintain the rotor in the locked position when not subjected to external forces.

[0022] Figure 6 is a simplified diagram of the connection system between the female part 20 and the rotor 30. The rotor 30 is held in place by a cylindrical shell portion 28, which flexes to allow for insertion of the rotor 30, but rests firmly on the rotor 30 once it is inserted. As can be seen in Figure 6, the rotor 30 has a flat rear center surface 38 and side portions 39. The shell portion 28 fits between and extends beyond the side portions 39 to prevent the rotor 30 from slipping out of the female part 20.

[0023] The locking and unlocking of the male part 10 and the rotor 30 (which is in fact attached to the female part 20) is shown diagrammatically in two different embodiments in Figures 7 to 10. In these figures, the buckle parts and the rotor are shown in a simplified manner to show more clearly the interaction of the latching elements during locking and unlocking, but can take the form of corresponding elements with the same reference numbers in Figures 1 to 4. For example, in these figures, parts of the locking legs 13, 14 have been removed so that the interaction between the first latching element 15 and the second latching element 36 can be clearly seen.

[0024] In the embodiment of Figures 7 and 8, a spring 45 is disposed under the actuation surface 33 to provide a restoring force to hold the rotor 30 in the locked position. As can be seen in Figure 7, the engagement surface 17 of the first latching element 15 abuts the wall 37 of the second latching element 36 in the locked position of the buckle assembly 1. This prevents the male part 10 from slipping out of the female part 20 when the rotor 30 is locked in the female part 20 as shown in Figures 1-4. To release the male part 10, the user presses down on the actuation surface 33 of the rotor 30 as shown in Figure 8. This compresses the spring 45 and rotates the rotor 30 until the wall 37 clears the engagement surface 17, releasing the second latching element 36 from the first latching element 15. This allows the user to pull the male part away from the rotor 30 (and the female part 20 to which it is connected). The connection of the male part 10 to the rotor 30 can be performed without pressing down on the engagement surface 30. This is because during the connection process the second latching element 36 slides along the sliding surface 18 of the first latching element 15, allowing the wall 37 to pass over the engagement surface 17 before snapping into place in the locked position. The rotor 38 also has a complementary ramped portion 38 which slides along the sliding surface 18 during insertion, minimizing frictional resistance during the connection process.

[0025] Instead of the coil spring shown, the shell part 28 as shown in Figures 5 and 6 may also act as a spring to keep the rotor 30 in a stationary, locked position. Pressing the actuating surface 33 downwards causes the rotor 30 to rotate, pushing the shell part 28 downwards and releasing the buckle assembly. The rotor 30, having a flat rear central surface 38, cannot rotate inside the shell part 28, so that as the rotor 30 moves, the shell part 28 moves with it. As soon as the actuating surface 33 is released, the shell part 28 snaps back into its stationary position, so that the rotor 30 also returns to its locked stationary position.

[0026] The embodiment of Figures 7 and 8 can also incorporate the use of magnets 40, 50, or magnets 40, 50 can be used without springs, as shown in the embodiment of Figures 9 and 10. Here, the attractive force of the magnets 40, 50 holds the rotor 30 in the locked position, and pressure on the engagement surface 33 of the rotor 30 rotates the rotor 30 out of the locked position against the attractive force of the magnets 40, 50. The magnets 40, 50 also serve to properly align the male part 10 and the female part 20 to which the rotor 30 is attached prior to locking. By releasing the engagement surface 33, the attractive force of the magnets 40, 50 can move the rotor 30 back to the locked position shown in Figure 9. Because the connection between the male part 10 and the rotor 30 is strong and secure once in the locked position, it does not require a large force to move the rotor, and as a result, the buckle remains very stable while being easily releasable. The release action is in a different direction (i.e., via rotation) than the lateral pressure on the buckle. As a result, the two mechanisms, one for releasing and one for holding the two parts together under pressure from the straps, can be constructed separately and each requiring different levels of force.

[0027] In further embodiments that may be envisaged using the embodiment of Figures 7 and 8, magnets may be arranged on the male part 10 and rotor 30, respectively, in the same manner as shown in Figures 9 and 10, so that both the spring and the magnet may be used to lock and unlock the buckle assembly 1. Here, pressing on the engagement surface 33 must overcome both the attractive force of the magnets 40, 50 and the spring force of the spring 45 in order to unlock the buckle assembly 1. In further embodiments, the magnets may be arranged to have a repulsive force against each other. In this way, when the latching elements 15, 36 are pressed against the engagement surface 33 and then separated from each other, the buckle parts are separated from each other by the repulsive force of the magnets. In this case, the user must apply additional force to overcome the repulsive force of the magnets in order to connect the buckle parts to each other.

[0028] While only certain embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be apparent that many changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. 1. A buckle assembly comprising: a male part including a base body and at least one locking leg extending from the base body in an insertion direction, the at least one locking leg having a first latching element thereon; a female part including a base body having an internal cavity, the base body having at least one guide slot; a rotor configured to seat in the internal cavity of the female part, the rotor having an actuation surface configured to be accessed through the female part, at least one second latching element configured to engage the first latching element of the male part, and an actuation mechanism for orienting the rotor in a locked position with the buckle assembly at rest; a buckle assembly, wherein the male part is locked to the female part by inserting the at least one locking leg into the at least one guide slot until the first latching element of the at least one locking leg engages with the second latching element of the rotor, and the male part is released from the female part by pressing the actuation surface to rotate the rotor until the second latching element disengages from the first latching element.

2. 2. The buckle assembly of claim 1, wherein the at least one locking leg includes two locking legs, each one of the locking legs having one first latching element, and the rotor has two second latching elements that engage the two first latching elements when the male portion is locked to the female portion.

3. The buckle assembly of claim 1 , wherein the male portion and the female portion each have a strap attachment bar connected to the respective base body.

4. 2. The buckle assembly of claim 1, wherein the first latching element comprises a protrusion having an engagement surface extending perpendicular to the insertion direction, and the at least one second latching element comprises a wall segment that abuts the engagement surface in the locked position to prevent disengagement of the male portion from the female portion.

5. 5. The buckle assembly of claim 4, wherein the first latching element has an inclined surface extending in the insertion direction such that, upon insertion of the male portion into the female portion, the inclined surface slides along the second latching element of the rotor, rotating the rotor until the engagement surface clears the wall segment, at which point the rotor moves to the locked position.

6. the actuation mechanism includes a magnet disposed on the rotor and a mating magnet disposed on the male portion; 2. The buckle assembly of claim 1, wherein the magnet and the mating magnet have maximum overlap and attraction to each other in the locked position, and when a force is applied to the rotor by the male portion or by pressing on the actuation surface to rotate the rotor from the locked position, the magnet and the mating magnet move the rotor back to the locked position when the force is released.

7. 2. The buckle assembly of claim 1, wherein the actuation mechanism comprises a spring connected to the rotor, the spring configured to move the rotor to the locked position and to maintain the rotor in the locked position when no force is applied to the actuation surface.

8. The buckle assembly of claim 1 , wherein the female portion includes a shell extending into the interior cavity, and the rotor is connected to the female portion by sliding the rotor into the shell.

9. 9. The buckle assembly of claim 8, wherein the shell also comprises the actuation mechanism, and wherein applying a force to the rotor by pressing the actuation surface or inserting the male portion causes the rotor to rotate and the shell to bend downward, and releasing the force causes the shell to return to a resting state and place the rotor in the locked position.

10. 3. The buckle assembly of claim 2, wherein the locking legs are disposed on opposite sides of the body of the male portion and extend parallel to each other, the first latching elements face each other, and the two second latching elements are disposed on opposing side portions of the rotor.

11. 8. The buckle assembly of claim 7, wherein the actuation mechanism further comprises a magnet disposed on the rotor and a mating magnet disposed on the male portion, the magnet and the mating magnet having maximum overlap and attraction to each other in the locked position, and when a force is applied to the rotor by the male portion or by pressing on the actuation surface to rotate the rotor from the locked position, the magnet and the mating magnet move the rotor back to the locked position when the force is released.

12. 8. The buckle assembly of claim 7, further comprising a magnet disposed on the rotor and a magnet disposed on the male portion, the magnets oriented to repel each other when the male portion is in proximity to the rotor, and the magnets move the male portion away from the rotor when the actuation surface is pressed to release the first latching element from the second latching element.

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