INTERCHANGEABLE BUCKLE DEVICE

Abstract

An interchangeable buckle device including a buckle including a bar around which a tongue is articulated, the device including an insert provided with a channel arranged to receive the bar, and a lever arranged to cooperate with the insert so as to hold the bar in the channel, the lever being pivotally assembled relative to the insert and arranged to move from a locked position in which the bar is held in the channel to an open position in which the bar is free to leave the channel, the device including means for holding the lever in the locked position.

Claims

1. An interchangeable buckle device comprising a buckle comprising a bar around which a tongue is articulated, the device comprising an insert provided with a channel arranged to receive the bar, and a lever arranged to cooperate with the insert so as to hold the bar in the channel, the lever being pivotally assembled relative to the insert and arranged to move from a locked position in which the bar is held in the channel to an open position in which the bar is free to leave the channel, the device comprising means for holding the lever in the locked position.

2. The interchangeable buckle device according to claim 1, wherein the insert comprises a recess arranged to receive the lever in the locked position.

3. The interchangeable buckle device according to claim 1, wherein the recess comprises, on inner side walls of the insert, a first pair of blind holes arranged to co-operate with pivot catches integral with the lever, the co-operation forming a pivot axis for the lever.

4. The interchangeable buckle device according to claim 1, wherein the channel comprises a passage for the tongue.

5. The interchangeable buckle device according to claim 1, wherein the lever comprises a holding member arranged to hold the bar in the channel, the holding member having a passage for the tongue.

6. The interchangeable buckle device according to claim 1, wherein the lever holding means comprise a pair of ball catches.

7. The interchangeable buckle device according to claim 1, wherein the insert has a second pair of blind holes arranged to receive the ball catches, the first and second pairs of blind holes being coplanar.

8. The interchangeable buckle device according to claim 1, wherein the lever comprises a handling tab for moving the lever from the locked position to the open position.

9. The interchangeable buckle device according to claim 1, wherein the insert has a shoulder forming a space for handling the tongue, the tongue resting partially in the recess when the lever is in the locked position.

10. A watch comprising an interchangeable buckle device according to claim 1.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0024] Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, which is given by way of example and is by no means limiting, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

[0025] FIG. 1 shows an exploded perspective view of an interchangeable buckle device according to the invention;

[0026] FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of an interchangeable buckle device according to the invention in the closed position;

[0027] FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of an interchangeable buckle device according to the invention in the open position;

[0028] FIGS. 4a and 4b illustrate a cross-section of an interchangeable buckle device according to the invention in the closed position and in the open position respectively;

[0029] FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of an interchangeable buckle device according to the invention with the buckle released from the device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0030] FIG. 1 illustrates an interchangeable buckle device according to the invention.

[0031] The interchangeable buckle device 1 is intended to attach and detach the end of a first bracelet strand to a watch buckle 3 fitted with a tongue 4 for attachment to a second bracelet strand.

[0032] Although only the example of a tongue buckle is described, such a device is also adaptable to stud buckles. A stud buckle is a buckle which resembles a tongue buckle but has no tongue, in which case a stud is used to secure the strand with which the tongue typically interacts.

[0033] The bracelet is fastened to the buckle by means of an interchangeable fastening device comprising a buckle 2 and a bar 3 around which a tongue 4 is articulated, the device comprising an insert 5 provided with a channel 50 arranged to receive the bar 3 by guiding it in the direction of its own axis (X). The axis of the bar is understood to refer to its own axis (X) of revolution or, if the body is not a perfect axisymmetric body, the axis along which the bar extends.

[0034] The device further comprises a lever 6 arranged to cooperate with the insert 5 so as to close off the channel 50. The lever 6 is arranged to pivot, relative to the insert 5, from a locked position in which the bar 3 is held in the channel 50 to an open position in which the bar 3 is free to leave the channel.

[0035] The latch 6 is held in its locked position by a pair of ball catches 66 integral with the lever 6, each ball catch 66 co-operating with a blind hole 56 formed in the recess 51 of the insert 5, the co-operation forming a pivot axis for the lever 6.

[0036] As can be seen in FIG. 1, the channel 50 has a passage 55 for passing the tongue 4, an arrangement which allows the tongue 4 to pivot with the bar 3 when the device is in the locked position. Thus, when the buckle system is assembled on a bracelet strand, the bar 3 is inserted into the channel 50 of the insert 5.

[0037] The insert 5 comprises a recess 51 arranged to receive the lever 6, the lever pivoting from the locked position to the open position in the recess 51. The recess 51 is substantially parallelepipedic in shape and has two inner side walls 52, 53, a rear wall and a back.

[0038] The recess 51 also opens into the channel 50 so that the lever 6 can hold the bar 3 in the channel 50 when the device is in the locked position.

[0039] The rear wall has a shoulder 57 so as to create a difference in height relative to the bottom of the recess 51 and thus form a space so that the wearer can grasp the end of the lever 6, referred to as the handling tab 62, to move the lever 6 from the locked position to the open position.

[0040] As can be seen in FIGS. 2 and 4a, the length of the lever 6 is less than the length of the recess 51. This arrangement makes it possible to create an empty space in the recess, at the shoulder 57, for easy access to the handling tab 62 and to operate the lever 6.

[0041] The lever 6 has a first end comprising a holding member 60 arranged to hold the bar 3 in the channel 50, and a second end formed by the handling tab 62. Advantageously, the holding member 60 has the shape of a concave beak so as to facilitate passage of the bar 3, and comprises a passage 61 for the tongue 4 so that it can pivot when the device is in the locked position.

[0042] When the device is in the locked position, i.e. a position in which the bar 3 rests in the channel 50 and is held in the channel 50 by means of the lever 6, the bar 3 is held by the holding member 60 of the lever as illustrated in FIG. 4a, in order to hold the bar in position and prevent it from moving into a free position, the bar however being free to pivot about its axis X.

[0043] When moving to the open position, the lever 6 is moved and pivots to its open position as shown in FIG. 4b. When the lever pivots, the concave-shaped holding member 60 comes to rest at the bottom of the channel 50, leaving the channel 50 open to allow the bar 3 to move from the locked position to a free position at a later time. To unlock the lever 6, sufficient force must be applied to the lever 6 to dislodge the ball catches 65, 66 from the blind holes 56.

[0044] Once the channel 50 is open, or free, the bar 3 can be unhooked from the device as shown in FIG. 5, and the user can change bracelets and keep the buckle.

[0045] In the embodiment described above, the device is described for a so-called flexible bracelet made of leather, synthetic fabric or an elastomer material.

[0046] Thanks to these various aspects of the invention, a safe, interchangeable buckle device is obtained, which device allows bracelets to be changed easily and quickly without the need for tools.

[0047] It goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the example illustrated and that various alternative embodiments and modifications which will become apparent to those skilled in the art may also be conceived.