Strap adjustment system

Abstract

A strap adjustment system has a base body having a bottom wall, two side walls and a strap retaining bar extending between the two side walls, the bottom wall having an aperture therethrough with screw threads extending around an inside surface, and a screw disc having a central protrusion and screw threads extending around the central protrusion. The central protrusion fits through the aperture in the base body by rotating the screw disc so that the threads in the screw disc mate with the threads in the aperture, such that a height of the protrusion above the bottom wall of the base body is adjustable by turning the screw disc. In situations where a high degree of friction is required, the protrusion can be positioned at a maximum height through the aperture, and in situations where a low degree of friction is desired, the protrusion can be positioned lower.

Claims

1. A strap adjusted system comprising: a base body having a bottom wall with a top surface and a bottom surface, two side walls and a strap retaining bar extending between the two side walls, the bottom wall having an aperture there through, said aperture having screw threads extending around an inside surface thereof; a screw disc having a central protrusion and screw threads extending around the central protrusion, the central protrusion being adapted to fit through the aperture in the base body and extend above the top surface of the bottom wall by rotating the screw disc so that the threads in the screw disc mate with the threads in the aperture, such that a height of the protrusion above the top surface of the bottom wall of the base body is adjustable by turning the screw disc, a strap extending through the base body in between the side walls, the strap having an upper surface and a lower surface, wherein the central protrusion presses against the lower surface of the strap, causing friction to prevent the strap from sliding through the base body, and wherein the amount of friction is based on the height of the protrusion so that the amount of friction on the strap is adjustable by turning the screw disc, and a cam lid pivotally connected to the two side walls and being disposed above an upper surface of the strap, the cam lid having a top surface and a bottom surface, the bottom surface containing friction-creating elements configured for gripping the upper surface of the strap when the cam lid is lowered.

2. The strap adjustment system according to claim 1, wherein the cam lid is held in a lowered position by a torsion spring.

3. The strap adjustment system according to claim 1, wherein the function-creating elements are teeth.

4. The strap adjustment system according to claim 1, wherein the cam lid is connected to the side walls via a pivot rod extending through apertures in the side walls and cam lid.

5. The strap adjustment system according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion has a rounded top surface with a circumferential ridges for creating friction against a strap when the strap extends through the base body.

6. The strap adjustment system according to claim 1, wherein the base body further comprises a male buckle portion having locking legs, and further comprising a female portion, wherein the locking legs are adapted to snap into side openings of the female portion.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are designed as an illustration only and not as a definition of the limits of the invention.

(2) In the drawings, wherein similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views:

(3) FIGS. 1A and 1B show cross sectional views of a prior art cam locking device;

(4) FIG. 2 shows a top view of the strap adjustment device according to the invention;

(5) FIG. 3 shows an exploded view of the device of FIG. 2;

(6) FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view along lines IV-IV of FIG. 2;

(7) FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of the device of FIG. 4 in a raised position of the cam lid with the protrusion in a lowered position;

(8) FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional view of the device of FIG. 4 with the protrusion in a fully raised position;

(9) FIG. 7 shows an alternative embodiment of the strap adjustment system according to the invention; and

(10) FIG. 8 shows another alternative embodiment of the strap adjustment system according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

(11) Referring now in detail to the drawings, FIGS. 1A and 1B show a prior art cam lock system 1 having a base 2 and a cam lid 3 with teeth 4 that clamp down on a strap 20 that is fed through base 2. However, as shown in FIG. 2, once cam lid 3 is raised, there is too much clearance above strap 20, and strap 20 can now slide freely with very little friction.

(12) The strap adjustment system 10 according to the present invention is shown in FIGS. 2-6. Here, the system 10 consists of a base body 30, a cam lid 40 and a screw disc 50. Base body 30 has a bottom wall 31, two side walls 32, 33 and a strap retaining bar 34 disposed between side walls 32, 33. An aperture 35 is disposed in the bottom wall. Aperture 35 is equipped with screw threads 36 around the interior of aperture 35. Holes 37 are disposed in side walls 32, 33 for receiving a bar 43 which is put through holes 42 on cam lid 40, to attach cam lid 40 to base body 30. A torsion spring 44 biases cam lid 40 in a lowered position as shown in FIG. 2. Cam lid 40 is equipped with teeth 41 on an underside to grip a strap 20 when cam lid 40 is in the lowered position. Screw disc 50 has a central protrusion 51 with a rounded top surface that is equipped with ridges 52 or grooves. Protrusion 51 has screw threads 53 surrounding protrusion 51 at least on a lower portion thereof. These screw threads 53 mate with screw threads 36 in aperture 35 in base body 30 to attach screw disc 50 to base body 30. Rotating screw disc 50 a desired amount causes protrusion 51 to be raised and lowered with respect to base body 30. A stop 54 prevents over-turning of screw disc 50 when it is mounted to base body 30.

(13) Strap adjustment system 10 is shown in use in FIGS. 5 and 6, where here, a strap 20 is placed through base body 30 underneath strap retaining bar 34. In FIG. 5, screw disc 50 is rotated so that protrusion 51 is at a lower point, providing only minor additional friction to keep strap 20 in place, as can be seen by the only minor deformation of the strap 20 as it is pressed toward bar 34. In FIG. 6, screw disc 50 is rotated in such a way that protrusion 51 is raised to a higher level, providing additional friction to strap 20, as can be seen by the greater deformation of strap 20 as it presses against bar 34. The user can position protrusion 51 at any desired height to provide the optimal sliding of strap 20 within base body 30.

(14) FIGS. 7 and 8 show additional embodiments of the strap adjustment system according to the invention. In FIG. 7, the cam lid is not used, and a strap is tensioned around bars 71, 72 of base body 70. Screw disc 50 extends through aperture 74 equipped with screw threads (not shown). Screw disc 50 operates the same way as described above with respect to FIGS. 5 and 6.

(15) In FIG. 8, the base body is in the form of a male buckle portion 80 that is connected to a female buckle portion 90. Male buckle portion 80 has a pair of locking legs 81 that extend into a cavity of female buckle portion 90 and snap into locking slots 92 of female buckle portion 90. Male buckle portion 80 has a strap retaining bar 84 against which a strap is pressed by protrusion 51 of screw disc 50, which extends through aperture 86 in bottom wall 83 of male portion 80. This aperture 86 is equipped with internal screw threads (not shown). The height of protrusion 51 can be adjusted in the same manner as described above with respect to FIGS. 5 and 6.

(16) Accordingly, while only a few embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it is obvious that many changes and modifications may be made thereunto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.