Button Fastener With Integrated Closing Member
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing button fasteners and eyelets often leave cloth pieces inside the post or reveal a swaged distal part, affecting appearance and requiring additional steps or materials, increasing costs.
Innovation Solution
A button fastener and eyelet design featuring a cylindrical post with a closing member that contacts and presses the inner surface, utilizing a stepped inner surface to secure the closing member, allowing the fastener to be formed from a single metal plate without additional materials, ensuring complete cloth separation and hiding the swaged part.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a button fastener is formed by drawing one metal plate with an open post, then the manufacturing process is simple and cost-effective, but cloth pieces remain visible through the bottom opening and require additional ejection work
Solution Approach 1:
The post is divided into two functional sections: an upper open section that allows cloth passage and a lower closed section that prevents visibility of cloth pieces from the back side. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by maintaining manufacturing simplicity while improving appearance quality.
2Device complexity
If a separate closing member is attached to the bottom opening of the post, then the appearance is improved by preventing cloth visibility, but the product cost increases and assembly steps are added
Solution Approach 1:
The closing function is merged into the post structure itself by creating a closed lower section during the drawing process. This eliminates the need for separate closing members and additional assembly steps, resolving the contradiction between appearance quality and manufacturing cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The post structure provides its own closing function through the closed lower section, eliminating the need for external closing members. This self-service approach resolves the contradiction by improving appearance while maintaining cost-effectiveness.
3Device complexity
If the post is completely closed at the proximal end, then cloth pieces cannot be seen from the back side, but additional assembling steps are required and product cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The closed lower section of the post is formed in advance during the drawing process, before final assembly. This preliminary action resolves the contradiction by achieving the closing function without requiring additional assembly steps, thereby maintaining production efficiency.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution prevents cloth pieces from being seen through the bottom opening, enhances appearance, and reduces production costs by eliminating the need for separate closing members and additional assembly steps.
Implementation Method 1
the closing member is fixed in the post by the outer surface of the closing member contacting and pressing the inner surface of the post
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
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AI summary
Disclosed is a button fastener (10, 60) made of metal for fastening a button (40, 50) such as a male snap button or a decorative button to a cloth (1, 2), comprising a plate-like base (11, 61) and a cylindrical post (12, 62) projecting from a center area of the base (11, 61). The upper end face of the post (12, 62) is open as a top opening (13), and the lower end face of the post (12, 62) is open in the center area of the base (11, 61) as a bottom opening (14, 61). To the button fastener (10, 60), a closing member (20, 70) which closes the inside of the post (12, 62) at a proximal side thereof is provided. Therefore, a cloth piece (1', 2'), which can stay within the post (12, 62) after being separated completely or incompletely from the cloth (1, 2) as the button (40, 50) is fastened to the cloth (1, 2), or a swaged distal part of the post (12, 62) cannot be seen from the back side of the button fastener (10, 60) through the bottom opening (14, 61). The closing member (20, 70) is a closing part (20', 70') which has been cut out, by a punch (30), of an unfinished post (12', 62') of a semifinished product (10', 60') which is fabricated to the button fastener (10, 60) and then displaced by the punch (30) through the inside of the unfinished post (12', 62') toward the lower end. The closing part (20', 70') before being cut out closes the upper end face of the unfinished post (12', 62').