Ultra-slim fastener

Abstract

An ultra-slim fastener for a garment includes male and female parts engagable by inclining the male part while inserting a foot into a cavity of the female part, and pivoting the parts to a co-planar orientation. The female has a roof thickness, and the foot may be offset by at least the roof thickness. The male part may include a weld joint including alternating welded regions and non-welded regions. The male and female may include a plurality of protrusions distributed throughout a weld region for welding the parts to a garment piece. Features of the fastener improve tensile strength, increase flexibility, and improve comfort.

We claim: 
     
         1 . An ultra-slim fastener for securing a first piece and a second piece of a garment together, the fastener comprising:
 a male part configured to be mounted on the first piece and a female part configured to be mounted on the second piece;   the male part comprising a substantially planar body having an outermost body end, a downwardly depending leg disposed at the outermost body end and terminating in an outwardly projecting foot extending substantially parallel to a plane of the body, the foot having a heel portion oriented away from the outermost body end, and the body being sandwiched between an upper component and a lower component;   the female part comprising a substantially planar frame having a top, an outermost frame end, an innermost frame end, and defining a cavity for reception and retention of the foot, the cavity being partially roofed in towards the innermost frame end and having a roof and a bottom, thereby defining an open mouth towards the outermost frame end;   the foot, the cavity, and the open mouth being dimensioned so that insertion of the foot into the cavity must be realized by inclining the body of the male part relative to the frame of the female part before bringing the male part and the female part together, retention of the foot in the cavity is realized by pivoting the inserted male part from an inclined orientation to a co-planar orientation with respect to the female part using the roof of the cavity as a fulcrum, and release of the foot from the cavity is realized by pivoting the inserted male part from the co-planar orientation back to the inclined orientation using the roof of the cavity as a fulcrum before moving the male part and the female part apart;   a fabric strip and an overlay, the overlay having an aperture, the frame of the female part sandwiched between the fabric strip and the overlay such that the aperture corresponds with the open mouth, the fabric strip forms a backing for the frame, and the bottom of the cavity is closed off by the fabric strip;   the body of the male part and the frame of the female part each having a weld region including a plurality of protrusions distributed throughout the weld region in a protrusion pattern; and   the upper component of the male part being welded to the lower component of the male part along a weld joint adjacent the body, such that the weld joint has a weld pattern including alternating welded regions and non-welded regions.   
     
     
         2 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the weld pattern extends along a top edge and a bottom edge of the male part, substantially parallel to the body. 
     
     
         3 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the weld pattern extends outwardly substantially parallel to at least a portion of the outermost body end. 
     
     
         4 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the lower component includes an open section located inwardly of and substantially surrounding the heel portion. 
     
     
         5 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , further including:
 an air cushion located between the weld joint and the outermost body end.   
     
     
         6 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the weld pattern includes between 40% to 60% welded regions. 
     
     
         7 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1  wherein the weld pattern includes about 50% welded regions. 
     
     
         8 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the weld pattern has an interstitial spacing of between 1 mm and 5 mm separating each of the welded regions. 
     
     
         9 . The ultra slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the weld joint has a thickness and the welded regions each have a depth of not more than 50% of the thickness of the weld joint. 
     
     
         10 . The ultra slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the welded regions are substantially circular, and each welded region has a diameter of between about 0.2 mm and about 6 mm. 
     
     
         11 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein a top edge and a bottom edge of the male part are tapered inwardly such that an inner height of the male part is larger than an outer height of the male part. 
     
     
         12 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the weld pattern extends substantially parallel to at least a portion of the outermost body end, and the weld pattern is sandwiched between the upper component and the lower component. 
     
     
         13 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of protrusions has a height of between 0.3 mm and 2.0 mm. 
     
     
         14 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of protrusions has one of a conical shape, a cylindrical shape, or a cuboid shape. 
     
     
         15 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the pattern has an interstitial spacing of between 1 mm and 5 mm separating each of the plurality of protrusions. 
     
     
         16 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of protrusions covers between 40% to 60% of each weld region. 
     
     
         17 . The ultra-slim fastener of  claim 1 , wherein the body of the male part includes two longitudinal channels positioned on opposing sides of the foot. 
     
     
         18 . A garment having an ultra-slim fastener according to  claim 1 .