TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to a fastener arrangement and a garment arranged with such a fastener arrangement. BACKGROUND

Garments or other objects arranged with fastener devices such as zip fasteners, hook- and-loop fasteners or button fasteners may allow water to pass through the object on which they are arranged, which is undesired. Garments may include e.g. jackets, trousers, gloves, shoes, etc., but other objects such as for instance bags and backpacks may also be arranged with fasteners.

As an example, high-legged shoes or boots are to their nature tight around the leg shaft and ankle and are therefore provided with a zipper along the shaft such that the opening of the boot can be widened. When wearing shoes or boots with zippers in damp weather, moisture may enter the zipper. This has as an unwanted effect that a wearer of the boot will have his or her legs moist by water permeating the zipper.

Especially in countries with damp climatic conditions in the form of rain or snow, this is a problem. This is even more evident in connection to outdoor sports and activities such as fishing, horse riding, motor cycle driving, trekking, etc.

SUMMARY

An object of this present invention is to solve or at least mitigate this problem.

This object is achieved by a fastener arrangement according to claim 1.

Thus, to this end, there is provided a fastener arrangement, which comprises a fastener device, an outlet arranged at a lower end of the fastener device, and a fluid-guiding portion arranged to guide fluid having entered through the fastener device such that the fluid travels towards the lower end and is discharged via said outlet.

The fastener device may be embodied in the form of e.g. a zip fastener, a hook-and- loop fastener or a button fastener. Further, the fastener may be arranged on a number of different garments such as for instance jackets, trousers, gloves, shoes, etc., or even bag and backpacks.

In the following, in order to elaborate on the advantages of different embodiments of the present invention, the fastener device is exemplified in the form of a zip fastener and the garment on which the fastener arrangement is arranged is exemplified in the form of a shoe.

Advantageously, the fluid-guiding portion prevents fluid, typically in the form of water, which possibly permeates the zip fastener, from entering a shoe on which the zip fastener arrangement is arranged. Further, gravitation will act on such fluid such that it subsequently is discharged via the outlet arranged at the lower end of the zip fastener. Thus, further advantageously, water permeating the zip fastener will be discharged further facilitating a wearer of the shoe to stay dry-shod.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the fluid-guiding portion is arranged at the inside of the zip fastener and fastened to a respective one of two sections to be joined together when the zip fastener is in a zipped (i.e. closed) mode. In a further

embodiment, the fluid-guiding portion is arranged to extend towards the lower end of the zip fastener and form part of the outlet.

In yet an embodiment of the present invention, the fluid-guiding portion is a bellow fastened at the inside of the zip fastener and arranged to be selectively extendable and collapsible in a transversal direction of the zip fastener. Advantageously, when a wearer of a shoe on which the zip fastener arrangement is arranged unzips the zip fastener in order to put the shoe on, the two sections of the shoe in between which the zip fastener is mounted will separate and result in an opening along the shaft of the shoe which assumes a V-shape. Thus, the circular or oval opening into which the wearer inserts her foot into the shoe will widen such that the user is given more room to enter the foot and leg into the shoe before zipping the zip fastener such that the two edges of said section of the shoe is joined.

In yet a further embodiment of the present invention, the zip fastener arrangement comprises a covering section arranged at the outside of the zip fastener and extending along the length of the zip fastener, at least partly covering fastener means - i.e. teeth - of the zip fastener and allowing a slider of the zip fastener to slide between its two end positions. Advantageously, the covering section protects the zip fastener from fluid and thus renders it more difficult for fluid to permeate the zip fastener.

In case of using a zip fastener, fastener means are embodied in the form of zipper teeth as in the above, whereas in case of using a hook-and-loop fastener, tiny hooks and loops are used and when the two are pressed together, the hooks catch in the loops and fasten the two sections to be joined together when the hook-and-loop fastener is in a closed mode. In case a button fastener is used, the fastener means in simply embodied in the form of buttons and holes.

The invention has mainly been described above with reference to a few embodiments. However, as is readily appreciated by a person skilled in the art, other embodiments than the ones disclosed above are equally possible within the scope of the invention, as defined by the appended patent claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention is now described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a fastener arrangement according to an embodiment of the present invention,

Figures 2a and 2b show a fastener arrangement according to another embodiment of the present invention, where Figure 2a shows the zipper in a fully open mode while Figure 2b shows the zipper in semi-closed mode,

Figure 3 shows a fastener arrangement according to a further embodiment of the present invention, and

Figure 4 shows a fastener arrangement according to an embodiment of the present invention mounted on a boot. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which certain embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout the description. Throughout the description, the term "zipper" will alternately be used as an equivalent for "zip fastener".

Figure 1 shows a zip fastener arrangement according to an embodiment of the present invention. The zip fastener arrangement comprises a zip fastener 101 and a fluid-guiding portion 102 arranged at the inside of the zip fastener for preventing fluid in the form of e.g. water from finding its way through the arrangement. The fluid-guiding portion is further fastened to a respective one of two sections 103, 104 to be joined together when the zip fastener is in a zipped mode (or separated when the zip fastener is in an unzipped mode). In Figure 1, the two sections 103, 104 constitute the fabric or plastic on which zipper teeth 105 are arranged, and to which sections the fluid guiding portion e.g. may be sewn or glued. At the lower end of the zipper, in between the zipper and the fluid-guiding portion, an outlet 106 is arranged to discharge fluid that impinges on the fluid-guiding portion through the zipper. In Figure 1, the fluid-guiding portion 102 is arranged to extend towards the lower end of the zipper 101 and form part of said outlet together with the zipper.

Figures 2a and 2b show a zip fastener arrangement according to another embodiment of the present invention. The zip fastener arrangement comprises a zip fastener 101 and a fluid-guiding portion 102 arranged at the inside of the zip fastener for preventing fluid from finding its way through the arrangement. In this embodiment, the fluid-guiding portion is embodied in the form of a flexible bellow being selectively extendable and collapsible in a transversal direction 107 of the zip fastener. Thus, when a wearer unzips the zip fastener to create more room for entering her foot in e.g. a shoe (not shown) on which the zip fastener arrangement can be mounted, the opening created by the zipper along the shaft of the shoe will assume a V-shape, the width of which is controlled by the bellow, see Figure 2a. Since the fluid-guiding portion is fastened to the respective one of two sections 103, 104 to be separated when the zip fastener is in an unzipped mode, the length of the bellow determines how much the two sections can pulled apart in the transversal direction of the zip fastener. When the bellow has been fully extended in the transversal direction, the V-shape of the opening along the shaft of the shoe has reached its maximum width. As can be seen, the bellow 102 is continuous and extends between the two sections 103, 104 such that fluid permeating the zipper will not reach the wearer of a shoe on which the zipper arrangement will be mounted.

With reference to Figure 2b, after having entered her foot in the shoe, the wearer will zip the zip fastener whereby the bellow collapses in the transversal direction. It should be noted that the fluid -guiding portion 102 of Figure 1 could be embodied in the form of a flexible bellow as shown in Figures 2a and b, but could alternatively be formed by means of a more rigid material in which case it will not be extendable and collapsible in the transversal direction of the zipper.

Figure 3 shows a zip fastener arrangement according to a further embodiment of the present invention. In this particular embodiment, the zip fastener arrangement comprises a zip fastener 101, a fluid -guiding portion 102 and further a covering section 108 arranged at the outside of the zip fastener and extending along the length of the zip fastener, at least partly covering the teeth 105 of the zipper and allowing a slider 109 of the zipper to slide between its two end positions. Advantageously, the covering section protects the zipper from fluid and thus renders it more difficult for fluid to permeate the zipper.

Figures 1 -3 shows different embodiments of the zip fastener arrangement of the present invention, all of which could be mounted to a shoe, a boot or some other appropriate object. In Figures 1-3, the fluid-guiding portion 102 is arranged to be fastened to a respective one of two sections 103, 104 to be joined together when the zip fastener is in a zipped mode or separated when the zip fastener is in an unzipped mode, i.e. to a respective zipper strip on which the zipper teeth 105 are arranged.

Figure 4 shows a zip fastener arrangement according to still a further embodiment of the present invention, in this case mounted to a boot 110. In this embodiment, the fluid-guiding portion 102 (being a flexible bellow as described hereinabove) is arranged to be fastened at one of its ends to an object on which the zip fastener arrangement is to be mounted, i.e. the boot, and at another one of its ends to a zip fastener strip 104 on which zip fastener teeth 105 are arranged. Thus, the fluid-guiding portion is again fastened to the two sections 103, 104 to be joined together when the zip fastener is in a zipped mode (or separated when the zip fastener is in an unzipped mode). However, in this particular embodiment, one of the two the sections consists of the boot itself, while the other consists of the zip fastener strip 104. The strip to which the fluid -guiding portion is fastened is the zipper strip being located furthest away from line of attachment 111 of the fluid-guiding portion to the boot.

It should be noted that the fluid -guiding portion 102 of Figure 4 as an alternative to being fastened at said another one of its ends to the zip fastener strip 104 could be fastened to the actual boot (i.e. similar to the fastening of said one of its ends on the other side of the zipper). As is clearly understood, it is also possible that the fluid- guiding portion 102 is fastened to zip fastener strips 103, 104 and that zip fastener strips are mounted to the boot 110.

The skilled person in the art realizes that the present invention by no means is limited to the examples described hereinabove. On the contrary, many modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the appended claims.