DESCRIPTION

Technical field The present invention concerns a zipper.

In particular, the present invention concerns a zipper comprising two opposite edges made of flexible material, for closing an open portion of a garment or clothing accessory, defined by two opposite flaps.

Background art Zippers to be used to close an open portion of garments or clothing accessories such as articles of clothing, footwear, bags, pouches or the like, said open portion being delimited by two opposite flaps, are known in the art.

More specifically, said prior art zippers comprise two opposite edges, made of flexible material (e.g., fabric), and each provided with a plurality of retaining means complementary relative to those of the other edge (e.g., comprising a plurality of teeth, configured to engage with corresponding teeth, complementary thereto and provided on the opposite edge), and a slider that, made to slide in a direction along said opposite edges, determines the mutual engagement of said retaining means, in this way producing mutual closing between said edges, and in the opposite direction determines the opening thereof.

Each of said opposite edges is fixed relative to a respective of said flaps of the opening of said garment or clothing accessory.

In order to improve the appearance of the garment or clothing accessor/, it is known for said flaps to extend to cover said edges of the zipper, so that these edges are not visible when said garment or clothing accessory is worn or otherwise used by the user. Although a solution of this kind is suitable to make said garment or clothing accessory aesthetically pleasing, it nonetheless has some problems.

In particular, it is found that, when the slider is made to slide along the two opposite edges in the direction of closing, part of said flaps, extending to cover said edges, interferes with said retaining means during the step of mutual engagement determined by sliding of the slider in the direction of closing, with problems in terms of risk of damage to the garment or clothing accessory, or the zipper itself, and, more generally, inconvenience for the user. The documents US 2 866 245 A, DE 20 2007 006570 Ul, US 2007/186392 A1 and US 3 973 300 A disclose a zipper having the features of the preamble of claim 1.

Technical problem

Starting from the notion of the aforesaid problems of the prior art, the present invention aims to remedy them.

In greater detail, the present invention aims to provide a zipper capable of significantly preventing the risk of damage to parts of a garment or clothing accessory relative to which it is affixed, and to the zipper itself.

Moreover, another object of the present invention is to provide a zipper as specified, which can be easily operated by the user.

Furthermore, the present invention also intends to provide a garment or clothing accessory comprising the aforesaid zipper.

Solution of the problem

As a solution to the problems of the prior art set forth above, the present invention provides a zipper according to the characterizing portion of claim 1.

Further advantageous features of the invention are described in the dependent claims.

Brief description of the Drawings

The features and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the detailed description of an example of embodiment, provided hereunder with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

- Fig. 1 is a schematic top plan view of a zipper according to an example of embodiment of the present invention, applied relative to two opposite opening flaps of a garment or clothing accessory, in an open condition of the zipper;

- Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1, but in which said zipper is illustrated during closing;

- Fig. 3 is a sectional view along the line III-III of Fig. 2;

- Fig. 4 is a top plan view of a slider according to a first variant of the example of embodiment of the present invention;

- Fig. 5 is a view in the direction of the arrow V of Fig. 4;

- Fig. 6 a top plan view of a slider according to a second variant of the example of embodiment of the present invention;

- Fig. 7 is a sectional view along the line VII-VII of Fig. 6.

Description of an example of embodiment of the invention The detailed description of a zipper according to an example of embodiment of the present invention is provided below. Said zipper is identified, as a whole, with 1.

The zipper 1 comprises, in a known manner, two opposite edges 2 made of flexible material (e.g. fabric), each provided with a plurality of retaining means 2.1 complementary relative to those of the other edge 2 (e.g. a plurality of plastic or metal teeth configured to engage with corresponding teeth provided along the opposite edge 2 and complementary thereto), and a slider 3, 3', 3" that, made to slide along said edges 2, determines the mutual engagement of said retaining means 2.1, producing mutual closing between said edges 2 (Figs. 1-2).

As illustrated in Fig. 1, said slider 3, 3', 3" is provided, on the top part thereof, with a pull tab 8, connected so that it can slide relative to said slider 3, 3', 3", and configured to be gripped by the user in order to determine sliding of said slider 3, 3', 3" along the opposite edges 2, for example, in a direction of closing of the zipper 1.

Each edge 2 is fixed at one side of an opening AP of a garment or clothing accessory A (for example, an article of clothing, bag, pouch or footwear), said opening AP having two opposite flaps B extending to cover said edges 2 of said zipper 1 (Figs. 1-2).

In particular, said slider 3, 3', 3" comprises, in a front portion in the direction of closing, spreader means 4, 4', 4" configured to space said two opposite flaps B of said opening AP from each other, during closing.

In this way, when said slider 3, 3', 3" is made to slide in the direction of closing along said opposite edges 2 by the user holding said pull tab 8, the flaps B do not interfere relative to the retaining means 2.1 of the zipper 1 during the step of mutual engagement determined by the sliding of said slider 3, 3', 3" in the direction of closing.

More specifically, said spreader means 4, 4', 4" advantageously comprise a pair of raised protrusions 4.1, 4. , 4.1", up to at least the level of said two opposite flaps B of said opening AP, and integral relative to said front portion of the slider 3, 3', 3" (in particular, see Figs. 1-2, 4 and 6).

In an embodiment, said raised protrusions 4.1 are configured as vertical wings 4.1, mutually convergent in the direction of closing of said slider 3 (Figs. 1-3).

According to this configuration, when the slider 3 is made to slide in the direction of closing by the user holding the pull tab 8, said vertical wings 4.1 prevent interference between said flaps B and retaining means 2.1 of the zipper 1, spreading said flaps B apart as illustrated in Fig. 2.

In this way, sliding of the slider 3 in the direction of closing by the user is much easier. Furthermore, by preventing interference of portions of said flaps B relative to retaining means 2.1 when the slider 3 is made to slide in the direction of closing, the risk of damage to said flaps B and/or said zipper 1 is greatly reduced.

Figs. 4-5 illustrate a detail of the slider 3' according to a first embodiment of the zipper according to the present invention.

The zipper according to the present variant has similar structural features relative to the zipper 1 described above, which therefore shall not be described in further detail.

More specifically, the zipper according to the present variant differs from the zipper 1 in the fact that the raised protrusions 4. are configured in the fashion of pins 4. projecting vertically relative to an ideal plane containing said mutually closed closing means 2.1, and have at least a part of curvilinear surface 4.11' in contact each with a respective of said opposite flaps B.

The operation of the zipper according to the present variant, and the advantageous technical effects achieved thereby, essentially correspond to what was indicated above with reference to the zipper 1, but with a further decrease in friction between the parts. Figs. 6-7 illustrate a detail of the slider 3' according to a second embodiment of the zipper according to the present invention.

The zipper according to the present variant has structural features similar relative to the zipper 1 described above, which consequently shall not be described in further detail. More specifically, the zipper according to the present variant differs from the zipper 1 in the fact that said raised protrusions 4.1" are in the fashion of pins 4.1" projecting vertically relative to an ideal plane containing said mutually closed closing means 2.1, and having curvilinear lateral surfaces 4.11". In particular, each of said pins 4.1" is mounted rotating relative to said slider 3", about an essentially vertical axis L. Advantageously, according to the present variant, said slider 3" has a pair of blind holes 5 with a vertical axis, open at the top and having an internal groove, while each pin 4.1" has an end 6 provided with a groove in which there is engaged an elastic ring 7, which snap engages with said groove of a respective blind hole 5 of said slider 3", with the possibility of rotation of said pin 4.1" relative to said blind hole 5.

In this way, sliding of the slider 3" along said opposite edges 2 when made to slide in the direction of closing is made even easier due to the possibility of rotation of the pin in said blind hole 5, and the risk of interference of the flaps B relative to the retaining means 2.1 during the step of mutual engagement is even more effectively prevented. The present invention further relates to a garment or clothing accessory A comprising a zipper 1 according to the first, or to the second, embodiment of the present invention. As is apparent from the above, with the zipper 1 according to the present invention it is possible to greatly prevent the risk of damage to parts of a garment or clothing accessory relative to which it is affixed, and to the zipper itself.

Furthermore, said zipper 1 can be very easily operated by the user. Therefore, the present invention allows the objects set forth in the introduction to be achieved in a simple and advantageous manner.