Stretchable belt loop retention device
A stretchable or elastic, removable and reversible elongated strip or closed loop of material forms a belt loop retention device. This belt loop retention device releasably secures and/or retains a free or dangling end portion of a conventional belt. In one preferred embodiment a closed loop of material having at least one loop-fastening member securted to either loop end to lockingly receive the other loop end to form a belt loop about the free or dangling end of the conventional belt. In another preferred embodiment the strip of material having at least a pair of loop fastening members secured at opposite ends or locations thereon to lockingly receive one another to form a belt loop about the free or dangling end of the conventional belt. Optionally, a decorative brooch or garment-enhancing securing element adapted to be used in combination with the strip or closed loop of material to form the belt retention device. The decorative brooch or garment-enhancing securing element having at least one fastening member disposed thereon for removably locking with at least one fastening members disposed on the strip or closed loop of material to form the belt loop.
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of belt accessories in general and in particular to a device or securing and retaining the dangling loose end of a belt against the main body portion of the belt in an attractive manner.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Over the years, many have attempted to address the problem of securing the free end of a belt that hangs loosely below the waist of an individual, thereby producing a sloppy and unattractive appearance. Many of these devices were not stretchable or flexible, easily removable and decorative to accommodate belts of many sizes while embellishing the appearance.
Various devices have been utilized for securing and retaining the free dangling end of a belt. Such devices can be seen by reference in the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,414,048; 1,495,925; 2,686,920; 2,863,196; 3,866,276; 4,280,254; 4,619,020; 4,627,132; 4,819,303; 5,077,867; 5,251,361 and 5,920,964. These patents show many different types of clasps or fasteners forming belt loop retention devices for supporting and retaining a free dangling end portion of a belt. Of these prior patents, U.S. Pat. No. 5,920,964 is the most pertinent prior art to the claimed invention. Note that this patent clearly teaches a flexible and easily removable belt loop device made out of a strip of flexible material with a pair of fastening members to accommodate different belt sizes and their free loose ends.
As a result of this patent, a more improved flexible and easily removable belt loop retention device has been constructed. The provision of such a construction is a stated objective of the present invention.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn view of the foregoing background prior art, it is an object of the instant invention to provide a preferred embodiment of a much improved belt loop retention device for securing or retaining a free or dangling end of a conventional belt. The belt loop retention device is an improved elastic, easily removable and reversible elongated closed loop of material. The closed loop of material comprises: a) inner and outer surfaces or faces; b) a securing member, the securing member is fastened about the outer surfaces, placing the inner surfaces in an abutting and overlapping engagement with one another or in a crossing relationship, thereby forming a pair of loops at opposites sides of the securing member; c) at least one loop fastener disposed at the top center of either one of the loops; and d) the loop fastener having a first receiving portion to receive one of the loops and a second receiving portion for receiving the other loop for lockingly securing the belt loop device about the free end of the belt to thereby form a belt loop to prevent the free end of the belt from dangling.
In multiple forms of the preferred embodiments of the present invention, the securing member is a block-like element that can be pressed, clamped, crimped and/or molded about the outer faces of the closed loop of material, where the inner surfaces or faces overlap and abut one another. In an alternate preferred embodiment, the block-like element can be received or clipped about an inner and outer surface or face of the closed loop of material at any location thereon. Note that the securing member can be decorative or colorful in order to embellish the appearance of the belt or a piece of clothing. In the preferred embodiments, the securing member further includes a snap recess in the middle or center thereof for receiving a complimentary fastener in the middle or center of the backside of a decorative or brooch-like element to further embellish the appearance of the belt or a piece clothing. The snap recess comprises a spring-like element therein and the complimentary fastener is a stem-like member with an enlarged head for lockingly receiving one another.
In another preferred embodiment of the invention, it is the object of the instant invention to provide a much improved belt loop retention device for releasably securing a free end of a belt to the body thereof, the belt retention device improvement comprising: a) a stretchable, removable and reversible strip of material; b) a pair of unitary fistening members disposed on opposite ends of the strip of material, the opposite ends having a rolled shape defining a through opening, said fastening members having a section with a spring-like portion disposed through the opening; c) a decorative and removable securing and garment-enhancing element, the securing and garment-enhancing element including a pair of complimentary fastening members disposed at opposite ends thereon, the complimentary fastening members having a pair of recesses disposed at said opposite locations or ends; and d) the spring-like portion being a pair of spring actuated pins that are removably received within the recesses to form the belt loop retention device about the free or loose end of the belt to prevent the free or loose end from dangling.
In another alternative preferred embodiment of the invention, it is the object of the instant invention to provide a much improved belt loop retention device for releasably securing a free end of a belt to the body thereof the belt retention device improvement comprising: a) a stretchable, removable and reversible strip of material; b) a pair of unitary loop-like fastening members disposed on opposite ends of the strip of material, said loop-like fastening members having a section with a spring-like portion disposed thereon; c) a decorative and removable brooch or garment-enhancing element, the brooch or garment-enhancing element including a pair of complimentary fastening members disposed at opposite locations thereon, the complimentary fastening members having protruding stem-like elements with one end fixedly secured to said opposite locations, with the other end having an enlarged head portion; and d) the spring-like elements are forced apart by said head portion, with the head portion passing through the spring-like elements from one side to the other side, once the head portion is positioned on the other side, the head portion is seated against the other side of the spring-like elements to retain the belt retention device about the free end of the belt, until the head portion is forcibly retracted through the space and externally to the one side. The spring-like elements of the loop fasteners are illustrated in two different embodiments, which will be discussed in greater detail below.
In one specific embodiment of the decorative securing block-like element includes a) a pair of block sections, one of the sections having a front face with a snap recess for receiving a decorative element and a pair of elongated raised chamfered or beaded snap elements disposed on a back side face adjacent the ends thereof; b) the other section having a pair of elongated complimentary snap channels on a front side face adjacent the ends thereof; c) the closed loop of material inner surfaces or faces are overlapped or in a crossing relationship as recited above, with the outer faces being placed within a cavity in each block section positioned between the elongated raised chamfered or beaded snap elements and the elongated complimentary snap channels; and d) the pair of elongated raised chamfered or beaded snap elements is lockingly snapped into the elongated complimentary snap channels or vice-versa thereby retaining the overlapped surfaces or faces securely within the cavities in the block-like sections, while maintaining the pair of loops in their desired positions.
Alternately, the block-like element could be a single block with a slit opening disposed on one side thereof with the other side being closed and acting like a hinge member. The single block-like element can be molded from plastic material with a flexibility that allows the slit to open or closed to receive the overlapped portion of the closed loop of material. A pair of recesses is disposed on the inside faces of the single block-like element to receive the overlapped portion therein. The hinge member allows the two sections on opposite sides of the slit to be opened to receive the overlapped portion within the recesses and clamped therein when the two sections closes the slit or come together.
In another specific embodiment of the decorative securing block-like element is a clamp-like device that includes a) a front face with a snap recess for receiving a decorative element; b) the back side face is spring-like clamp portion with a varying cavity for receiving different dimensions and/or sizes of the elongated strip of material; and c) the spring-like clamp is moved back and forth to removably insert the elongated strip of material within the varying cavity.
The above securing block-like element can utilize a cover or shield member that is sized to cover the entire face of the securing block-like element in order to cover the snap recess in the middle or center thereof, if desired. This cover or shield can be solid in color or can be decorative to embellish the appearance of the belt or a piece of clothing. Also, the cover or shield can be used when one wants to dress down rather than dressing up by utilizing a more dressy type of brooch or garment-enhancing element inserted into the snap recess. Furthermore, the cover or shield member can be made of the same type of material as the securing member or the cover or shield can be made of different types of material from the securing member, if desired.
The loop fastening members, the securing block-like element, and the cover can be made of metals from the group consisting of silver, gold bronze or copper, or can be made from different types of plastic materials that are rigid with flexible capabilities.
The closed loop and/or elongated strip of material can be either a single color or different colors to match a single garment or belt or to match different color garments or belts.
Other objects and features of advantage will become apparent as the specification progresses, and from the claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Turning now in detail to
As illustrated in
The securing block-like element 4 includes a) a pair of block sections, the first block-like section having a front face 10 with the snap recess 13 for receiving a decorative member and a pair of elongated raised chamfered or beaded snap elements 7 are disposed on a back side face adjacent the ends thereof; b) the second block-like section having a pair of elongated complimentary snap channels 9 disposed on a front face adjacent the ends thereof; c) the closed loop of material inner surfaces 11a and 11b are overlapped with one another as recited above, with the outer surfaces 12a and 12b being placed within a cavity 7a in the first block-like section and a cavity 9a in the second block-like section. Cavity 7a is positioned between the elongated raised chamfered or beaded snap elements and cavity 9a is positioned between the elongated complimentary snap channels 9; and d) the pair of elongated raised chamfered or beaded snap elements 7 are lockingly snapped into the elongated complimentary snap channels 9 or vice-versa thereby retaining the overlapped surfaces securely within the cavities in the block-like sections, while maintaining the pair of loops in their desired positions.
A loop fastener device 15, illustrated in
In another preferred embodiment as depicted in
Another preferred embodiment of the instant invention is illustrated in
Now the belt loop retention device can easily be formed for retaining a free and/or loosely dangling end of a belt. This is achieved by first placing one of the spring ends 38a into a first set of receiving apertures 32 at one end of the elongated elastic strip of material 36. Then the elongated elastic strip of material 36 is looped around a conventional belt 1 as shown in
Alternate embodiments are depicted in
Alternately, the front face 50 could have a snap recess and the display element 52 could have a stem with spherical head portion in the same manner as discussed above in the previous embodiments. As shown in
In
The uniqueness of fastening members 58 is that, it is made of spring-like or flexible material. This means that the fastening members can be made from the many types of metals and plastic material as mentioned earlier. Note that the wall sections 58b and nipple portion 59 is originally flexed inwardly, such that when the male fastenings 51 is inserted within the nipple portion 59 the wall sections are able to be flexed outwardly. Once the male fastenings 51 has been inserted into the nipple portion 59, then the wall sections 58b will collapse about the male fastening members 51 to lockingly fasten the strip of material 54 to the securing member 49. When the strip of material 54 is to be released from the securing member 49, one only needs to pull on the fastening members 58 slightly and the wall sections will spread slightly outwardly just enough to enable the fastening members 51 to be released with ease from the nipple portion 59.
It is readily apparent that
The face of the brooches will be manufactured in many different shapes, sizes, dimensions, and materials, such as star shape, to fit various size belts. Also, the face of the brooches may be created in diamonds, rhinestones, different color gems, sterling silver, gold, etc.
Since the preferred use is a belt loop retention device primarily for women, there are many other alternate uses for the claimed invention. These alternate uses are 1) a ponytail holder, 2) a necklace pendant, 3) a toe ring, 4) a garment closure, 5) a sandal (shoe) brooch, 7) a scarf pendant, 8) a cloth napkin holder (ring), 9) a towel ring and 10) curtain holder (all house type curtains, shower curtains, etc).
Having thereby described the subject matter of the present invention, it should be apparent that many substitutions, modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in view of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that the invention as taught and-described herein is only limited to the extent of the breadth and scope of the appended claims.
Claims
1. A belt loop retention device, the belt loop retention device improvement comprising:
- a closed loop of stretchable material, the closed loop of stretchable material having inner and outer surfaces;
- a securing element, the securing element is secured about the outer surfaces of the stretchable material, with the inner surfaces overlapping one another in an abutting engagement therein, thereby forming a pair of loops at opposites sides of the securing block;
- a unitary loop fastener having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion being selectively secured to a center portion of either one of the loops, the fastener having a second portion for receiving the center portion of the other loop; and,
- wherein the first and second portions lockingly receiving the pair of loops defining a belt loop for securing and retaining the free end of a belt to prevent the free end of the belt from dangling.
2. The belt loop retention device of claim 1 wherein the securing element having a pair of block sections.
3. The belt loop retention device of claim 3 wherein the block sections have a first block member and a second block member.
4. The belt loop retention device of claim 3 wherein the first block member has a front surface with a snap recess in the center thereof, and a back portion with a pair of snap protruding ribs or beads with a first cavity disposed there between.
5. The belt loop retention device of claim 3 wherein the second block member has a front surface with a pair of complimentary snap protruding rib or bead channels with a second cavity disposed there between, with the first and second cavities being in alignment with one another.
6. The belt loop retention device of claim 1 wherein the securing block is adapted to receive a cover within the snap recess to embellish the appearance of the securing block.
7. The belt loop retention device of claim 6 wherein the cover can be made of many different colors to match different colors and styles of belts and garments.
8. The belt loop retention device of claim 6 wherein the cover has a stem portion with a spherical head portion at the end thereof, wherein the spherical head portion is adapted to be pressed into the snap recess for securing the cover to the securing block.
9. The belt loop retention device of claim 4 wherein the snap recess being adapted to receive a locking element of an ornamental device, such as a brooch, to enhance the appearance of the belt or a piece of clothing.
10. The belt loop retention device of claim 9 wherein the ornamental device has a stem portion with a spherical head portion at the end thereof, wherein the spherical head portion is adapted to be pressed into the snap recess for securing the ornamental device to the securing block.
11. The belt loop retention device of claim 6 wherein the cover and the securing element can be made from different types of material selected from the group consisting of metals and plastics.
12. The belt loop device of claim 1 wherein the loop fastener is made from different types of material selected from the group consisting of metals and plastics.
13. The belt loop device of claim 1 wherein the stretchable material is made of polyester and rubber materials.
14. The belt loop device of claim 1 wherein the stretchable material is made of at least 51% polyester and at least 49% rubber.
15. The belt loop device of claim 9 wherein the ornamental device having a face that can be made up of diamonds, rhinestones or different color gems.
16. The belt loop device of claim 9 wherein the ornamental device can be made of different types of materials, such as sterling silver, gold, brass, bronze, plastics, etc.
17. The belt loop device of claim 1 wherein the unitary loop fastener is molded or bent into a double S-shape configuration with one side longer than the other, the shorter side having an intermediate indented portion with an upper portion being formed as a lip or a slightly curved end and a first lower curved end, the longer side having an intermediate slanted or inclined portion an upper hook-like portion and a second lower curved end, the joining of the curved ends, the inclined portion and the indented portion create a receiving cavity there between, whereby, one is able to catch the lip or the slightly curved end to enable the indented portion to be moved slightly way from the inclined portion to allow one of the loops to be received within the receiving cavity, while the other loop is secured within the upper hook-like portion to form the belt loop.
18. The belt loop device of claim 1 wherein the snap recess includes a releasable spring member therein.
19. The belt loop device of claim 1 wherein the spring member include a pair of spring elements, the spring elements have a first pair of arcuate or semi-circular indentations on a front surface and a second pair of arcuate or semi-circular indentations on a rear surface, each of the arcuate or semi-circular indentations having a semi-circular groove or channel extending there between, whereby the engagement of the head portion against the first semi-circular indentations allows for easy movement of the spring elements away from one another so that the spherical or head portion can pass along the semi-circular groove or channel to the exterior of the second semi-circular indentations and lockingly seating there against with the stem portion seating within the semi-circular groove or channel.
20. A belt loop retention device for releasably securing a free end of a belt to the body thereof the belt retention device improvement comprising:
- a stretchable, removable and reversible strip of material;
- a pair of fastening members disposed at both ends of the strip of material, the fastening members having a spring section disposed thereon;
- a securing member, the securing member includes a pair of complimentary fastening members disposed at opposite locations at each end thereon, the spring section having a pair of complimentary engaging portions thereon; and,
- wherein, each pair of the complimentary engaging portions at both ends of the strip of material releasably receive the complimentary fastening members of the securing member at each end thereon to form a belt loop member for securing and retaining the free end of a belt to prevent the free end of the belt from dangling.
21. The belt retention device of claim 20 wherein the complimentary fastening members of the securing member are receiving apertures.
22. The belt retention device of claim 20 wherein the spring section includes a pair of spring members having complimentary protruding stem elements extending there from, the spring members having a housing element with a spring element housed between the pair of protruding stem elements that extend through each end of the housing element.
23. The belt retention device of claim 20 wherein the strip of material is rolled at each end to form an opening for receiving and enclosing at least a major portion of the spring members therein.
24. The belt retention device of claim 20 wherein the securing fastening members can be made from different types of material selected from the group consisting of metals and plastics.
25. The belt retention device of claim 20 wherein the strip of material is made of polyester and rubber materials.
26. The belt retention device of claim 20 wherein the strip of material is made of at least 56% polyester and at least 44% rubber.
27. The belt retention device of claim 20 wherein the securing member can be made from different types of material selected from the group consisting of plastics and metals.
28. The belt loop retention device of claim 20 wherein the securing member has a snap recess on a front surface thereof and being adapted to selectively receive either one of a cover or an ornamental device, such as a brooch therein to enhance the appearance of the securing member.
29. The belt loop retention device of claim 20 wherein the cover can be made of many different colors to match different colors and styles of belts and garments.
30. The belt loop retention device of claim 28 wherein each of the cover and the ornamental device has a stem portion with a spherical head portion at the end thereof, wherein the spherical head portion is adapted to be pressed into the snap recess for selectively securing each of the cover and the ornamental device to the securing member to enhance the appearance of the belt or a piece of clothing.
31. The belt loop retention device of claim 28 wherein the cover can be made from different types of material selected from the group consisting of metals and plastics.
32. A belt loop retention device, the belt loop retention device improvement comprising:
- a closed loop of elastic or stretchable material, the closed loop of elastic or stretchable material having inner and outer surfaces;
- a securing member, the securing member is secured about a selected portion of the inner and outer surfaces of the elastic or stretchable material, the securing member having a front side and a rear side;
- a unitary closed loop fastener having at least a first portion and a second portion, the first portion being fixedly secured to the rear side of the securing member, the second portion being flexed in one direction to expand a space with the rear side for slidably receiving selected portions of the inner and outer surfaces of the elastic or stretchable material; and,
- wherein the second portion is flexed in another direction for contracting the space to lockingly retain the securing member about the selected portions of the inner and outer surfaces of the elastic or stretchable material, thereby creating a belt loop for securing and retaining the free end of a belt to prevent the free end of the belt from dangling.
33. The belt loop retention device of claim 32 wherein the securing member is a clamp.
34. The belt loop retention device of claim 32 wherein the securing member has a snap recess on a front surface thereof and being adapted to selectively receive either one of a cover or ornamental device, such as a brooch therein to enhance the appearance of the securing member, the belt or a piece of clothing.
35. The belt loop retention device of claim 34 wherein the cover can be made of many different colors to match different colors and styles of belts and garments.
36. The belt loop retention device of claim 34 wherein each one of the cover and ornamental device has a stem portion with a spherical head portion at the end thereof, wherein the spherical head portion is adapted to be pressed into the snap recess for selectively securing the cover and the ornamental device to the securing member.
Type: Application
Filed: Aug 1, 2005
Publication Date: Feb 1, 2007
Inventor: Joyce Christanio (Lees Summit, MO)
Application Number: 11/193,506
International Classification: A44B 11/00 (20060101);