Slide fastener, method for manufacturing stop, and mold device

Abstract

Slide fastener ( 1 ) includes a pair of fastener stringers ( 2 ), at least one slider ( 5 ) for opening and closing the pair of fastener stringers ( 2 ), and a stop member ( 6,7 ) attached to a side-edge ( 32 ) of a fastener tape ( 3 ) at a position adjacent to the series of fastener elements. The stop member ( 6,7 ) has at least one thinned portion ( 61,71 ) having a thickness lesser than a thickness of the fastener element ( 4 ) and/or at least one through-hole ( 68 ) extending through the stop member ( 6,7 ) in an up-down direction. The thinned portion ( 61,71 ) and/or the through-hole ( 68 ) is configured to allow the stop member ( 6,7 ) to be produced by remolding one or more fastener elements ( 4 ). Alternative conditions are also disclosed.

1 . A slide fastener comprising:
 a pair of fastener stringers each of which includes a fastener tape and a series of fastener elements arranged with interspaces along a side-edge of the fastener tape;
 at least one slider for opening and closing the pair of fastener stringers; and 
 a stop member attached to the side-edges of the fastener tapes at a position adjacent to the series of fastener elements, wherein 
 at least one of the following conditions (i)-(iii) are satisfied: 
   (i) the stop member has at least one thinned portion having a thickness less than a thickness of the fastener element and/or at least one through-hole extending through the stop member in an up-down direction, the thinned portion and/or the through-hole being configured to allow the stop member to be produced through remolding of one or more fastener elements;   (ii) the stop member has at least one thinned portion having a thickness less than a thickness of the fastener element and/or at least one through-hole extending through the stop member in an up-down direction, the stop member having a mass in accordance with a mass of one fastener element or a total mass of two or more fastener elements;   (iii) the stop member has at least one thinned portion having a thickness less than a thickness of the fastener element and/or at least one through-hole extending through the stop member in an up-down direction, an area of the thinned portion and/or the through-hole in an upper or lower surface of the stop member is equal to or greater than one quarter of an entire area of the upper or lower surface of the stop member.   
     
     
         2 . The slide fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the stop member has a thick portion at least partially enclosing the thinned portion or the through-hole. 
     
     
         3 . The slide fastener of  claim 2 , wherein the thick portion includes or configures an outer peripheral wall of the stop member. 
     
     
         4 . The slide fastener of  claim 1  in which the stop member comprises the thinned portion, wherein the stop member further comprises an upper and/or lower recess formed in accordance with the thinned portion. 
     
     
         5 . The slide fastener of  claim 4  in which the stop member comprises the upper and lower recesses, wherein a depth of the upper recess is equal to a depth of the lower recess. 
     
     
         6 . The slide fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the stop member is made of a same material as the fastener elements and has a same color as the fastener elements. 
     
     
         7 . The slide fastener of  claim 1  in which the stop member comprises the thinned portion, wherein a minimum thickness (TH 61 ,TH 71 ) of the thinned portion is equal to or less than ¾ of a thickness (TH 4 ) of the fastener element. 
     
     
         8 . The slide fastener of  claim 7 , wherein the minimum thickness (TH 61 ,TH 71 ) of the thinned portion is equal to or less than half of the thickness (TH 4 ) of the fastener element. 
     
     
         9 . The slide fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the stop member includes a quasi-element portion partially shaped like the fastener element. 
     
     
         10 . The slide fastener of  claim 9 , wherein the quasi-element portion has a groove ( 675 , 775 ) that extends in a front-rear direction that is a same direction as a movement direction of the slider. 
     
     
         11 . The slide fastener of  claim 9 , wherein the quasi-element portion includes a portion shaped like a front-half of the fastener element provided that the fastener element is partitioned into front and rear halves arranged along a front-rear direction that is a same direction as a movement direction of the slider. 
     
     
         12 . A method of producing a stop member for a slide fastener, the method comprising:
 providing adjacently-arranged two or more fastener elements of a plurality of fastener elements between upper and lower molds, the plurality of fastener elements being arranged with interspaces along a side-edge of a fastener tape in at least one fastener stringer;   softening or melting said two or more fastener elements provided between the upper and lower molds by heat transmitted from the upper mold and/or the lower mold;   cooling softened or melted material inside a cavity defined by the upper and lower molds to obtain a stop member shaped in accordance with the cavity.   
     
     
         13 . The method of producing a stop member of  claim 12 , wherein the cavity is shaped to form at least one thinned portion and/or at least one through-hole at said two or more fastener elements such that the interspace between the fastener elements is filled by the softened or melted material. 
     
     
         14 . A mold device for producing a stop member of a slide fastener, the device comprising:
 top and lower molds to form a cavity configured to reshape adjacently-arranged two or more fastener elements of a plurality of fastener elements arranged with interspaces along a side-edge of a fastener tape in at least one fastener stringer, wherein   said cavity is shaped to form at least one thinned portion and/or at least one through-hole at said two or more fastener elements and to fill the interspace between said two or more fastener elements with softened or melted material thereof.