Soft Resin Ring in Metal Snap Button for Quiet Operation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Snap buttons made of metal generate loud attaching and detaching sounds, which can be disruptive in quiet activities like hunting or bird watching.
Innovation Solution
A snap button system comprising a metal male snap button and a female snap button with a soft resin ring member that defines the engagement space, where the metal engaging protuberance contacts only the soft resin, preventing contact with the metal female snap body, thus minimizing sound.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If both the male and female snap buttons are made of metal, then the strength and durability of the snap button are improved, but the attaching/detaching sound becomes relatively loud
Solution Approach 1:
A ring member made of soft resin is introduced as an intermediary component between the metal male snap button and the metal female snap button. The ring member accommodates the engaging protuberance and provides a cushioning interface that absorbs impact during attachment and detachment, preventing direct metal-to-metal contact while maintaining the structural strength of metal components
Solution Approach 2:
The female snap button is constructed as a composite structure combining metal (for strength and durability) and soft resin (for noise reduction and cushioning). The metal female snap button body provides structural integrity while the soft resin ring member embedded within it provides noise-damping properties, creating a composite component that simultaneously achieves both strength and noise reduction
2Object-generated harmful factors
If a soft resin ring member is introduced to reduce sound, then the attaching/detaching sound is eliminated or reduced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The ring member made of soft resin is merged with the female snap button structure, where the ring member is accommodated within the metal female snap button body. This integration allows the noise-reducing function to be combined with the structural function in a single unified component rather than separate parts, simplifying the overall assembly
Solution Approach 2:
The soft resin ring member serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as a cushioning element to reduce noise during attachment/detachment, provides an engagement space for the male snap button's protuberance, and reinforces the female snap button structure. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional separate components
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 effectively eliminates or significantly reduces the attaching and detaching sound, ensuring quiet operation.
Implementation Method 1
a ring member made of soft resin defining an engagement space which detachably accepts the engaging protuberance
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a snap button including a male snap button (30) made of metal and a female snap button (10). The male snap button (30) includes a base portion (31) and an engaging protuberance (32) which projects from the base portion (31). The female snap button (10) includes: a ring member (20, 120) made of soft resin, defining an engagement space (20a) which detachably accepts the engaging protuberance (32); and a female snap body (11) made of metal, accommodating the ring member (20, 120). The ring member (20, 120) is provided with a protruding portion (24) which projects further out to one side than an end (12a), on said one side, of the female snap body (11) facing the male snap button (30) in an axial direction, and which is provided in circumferential direction.