Patent Publication Number: US-2005115034-A1

Title: Embeddingly installed-type fastener

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention relates to a fastener that is installed integrally to an article by means of an embedding section provided on a back surface of a strip-shaped base.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      In an article like a seat on a vehicle, an office chair, a home chair, or a mattress, etc. there are used a core member having a cushion core member made of a molded product like a foamed resin material, and a flexible covering member made of cloth or leather for covering the surface of the core member. In such an article, it has been known that an inter-engagement type fastener (what is called a plane fastener) having a plurality of engaging elements disposed on one plane of a base, that is, on a major surface, is used for fixing the covering member to the core member. Particularly, users expect a high level of comfort from the articles like seats and chairs. In order to meet such user&#39;s needs, there has been an increasing trend that a flexible strip-shaped fastener that can be disposed in a slender groove recessed on the surface of the core member along the seam of the covering member is used as fixing means for fixing the covering member to the core member (as disclosed, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 11-127915). In such a form of application, the strip-shaped fastener fixes the covering member to the core member with the engaging elements being detachably engaged with its counterpart, that is, engaging elements such as fiber loops provided on the covering member.  
      In order to fixedly install the strip-shaped fastener at a desired position of the surface of the core member with the engaging elements exposed, an insert-molding method can be applied advantageously. This is a method in which the fastener is disposed within a mold of the core member as the molded body and is fixed to the core member simultaneously with molding of the core member. According to this insert-molding method, an elongated rail-shaped guide for holding the fastener in a predetermined posture is provided within the mold of the molded body. The guide usually has an elongated groove capable of accommodating the base of the fastener and the engaging elements. The fastener is installed on the guide by inserting the engaging elements and the base into the groove in a state that a back surface (the surface opposite to a major surface) of the base is exposed.  
      An embedding section which is to be fixedly embedded into the molded body by means of the insert-molding process, is provided on the back surface of the base of the fastener. Thus, the fastener is integrally installed to the molded body using the embedding section. Conventionally, the embedding section has been composed so as to comprise a plurality of posts erected upright to the back surface of the base and thin plate-shaped anchors formed at the end of each post and extending generally parallel to the back surface. Each anchor has an elliptical profile of koban-like shape that does not project out in the width direction on the back surface of the base. The molded body is formed adjacent to the back surface of the base so as to surround the plurality of posts and anchors. Each anchor is thus bound as if it bites into the molded body, whereby the fastener is securely fixed to the molded body.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      In the conventional strip-shaped fastener as described above, it is necessary not only to ensure that the engaging elements exhibit desired level of adhering force for adhering to the counterpart engaging elements, but also to ensure that sufficient strength be obtained in the installation of the fastener to the article (or the molded body) via the embedding section. Especially, when the manner in which the fastener is used in the above-described seats or chairs as fixing means for fixing the covering member to the core member is taken into account, it is required that the strength of the installation exhibited by the embedding section should be larger than the adhering force exhibited by the engaging elements, in order to prevent the destruction of the interconnection between the fastener and the core member, when, for example, tension is intermittently applied to the covering member by frequent and rapid movement of the center of gravity of the seated person, or when the covering member is intentionally separated from the core member for the purpose of replacement or the like. From this view-point, it is required in the conventional strip-shaped fastener to improve the installation strength for installing it to an article via the embedding section as much as possible without impairing the inherent flexibility of such a construction.  
      One object of the present invention can be to provide a fastener which is integrally installed to an article by means of an embedding section provided on a back surface of a strip-shaped base, and which is capable of improving the strength of installation to the article by means of the embedding section as much as possible without impairing the inherent flexibility of such a construction.  
      In one aspect of the present invention, a fastener is provided that comprises a strip-shaped base having a major surface and a back surface opposite to the major surface, an engaging section provided on the major surface of the base, and an embedding section provided on the back surface of the base, being adapted to be integrally installed to an article via the embedding section, characterized in that the embedding section comprises a plurality of projecting elements which are discretely arranged spaced apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the base, and each of which extends outward from the base substantially in the width direction of the base.  
      The projecting elements can be formed integrally with the base. The projecting elements can be provided detachably on the base. The plurality of projecting elements can be arranged at regular intervals in the longitudinal direction of the base, and the projecting elements project symmetrically on both lateral sides of the base. Each of the projecting elements can have generally flat outer surface extending in parallel to the back surface of the base on the side away from the back surface of the base. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1 . An enlarged perspective view showing a portion of a fastener according to a first embodiment of the present embodiment.  
       FIG. 2 . A plan view showing a portion of the fastener of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 3 . A bottom plan view showing a portion of the fastener of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 4 . A schematic perspective view showing a guide for installing the fastener of  FIG. 1  together with the fastener.  
       FIG. 5 . A view showing an article equipped with the fastener of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 6 . A cross-sectional view showing the fastener installing portion of the article of  FIG. 5  when the fastener is inoperative.  
       FIG. 7 . A cross-sectional view showing the fastener installing portion of the article of  FIG. 5  when the fastener is operative.  
       FIG. 8 . ( a ) a plan view, and ( b ) a side view, of a good example of the projecting elements of the fastener of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 9 . ( a ) a plan view, and ( b ) a side view, of a modification of the projecting elements of the fastener of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 10 . ( a ) a plan view, and ( b ) a side view, of another modification of the projecting elements of the fastener of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 11 . ( a ) a plan view, and ( b ) a side view, of still another modification of the projecting elements of the fastener of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 12 . An enlarged, partially cut-out plan view showing a portion of a fastener according to a second embodiment of the present invention.  
       FIG. 13 . ( a ) a plan view, and ( b ) a front view, of an anchor member having projecting elements of the fastener of  FIG. 12 .  
       FIG. 14 . ( a ) a plan view, and ( b ) a front view, of a modification of the anchor member having projecting elements of the fastener of  FIG. 12 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
      Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings. In the drawings, identical or similar constituent elements will be denoted by common reference symbols.  
      FIGS.  1  to  4  are views showing a fastener  10  according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The fastener  10  is an inter-engagement type fastener having flexibility in multiple directions, and is comprised of a strip-shaped base  16  having a major surface  12  and a back surface  14  opposite to the major surface  12 , an engaging section  18  provided on the major surface  12  of the base  16 , and an embedding section  20  provided on the back surface  14  of the base  16 .  
      The base  16  is constructed of a plurality of box-shaped parts  22  arranged in spaced-apart relationship with each other in the longitudinal direction, and a plurality of connecting parts  24  for mutually connecting the box-shaped parts  22  into one unit. Each of the box-shaped parts  22  has a substantially hollow structure consisting of a plane upper plate  26  and a plane lower plate  28  extending approximately in parallel, a pair of side plates  30  for connecting between the upper and lower plates  26  and  28 , and a partition plate  32  extending in the longitudinal direction between the plates  26 ,  28 , and  30 . The major surface  12  of the base  16  is constructed of the upper plates  26  of the plurality of the box-shaped parts  22 , and the back surface  14  of the base  16  is constructed of the lower plates  28  of the plurality of the box-shaped parts  22  in cooperation with the plurality of the connecting parts  24 .  
      The engaging section  18  comprises a plurality of engaging elements  34  erected at regular spacing on the major surface  12  of the base  16 . Those engaging elements  34  are provided on each upper plate  26  of the plurality of box-shaped parts  22  forming the base  16 , in the same number (seven in the Figures) and in the same layout. Each engaging element  34  comprises a leg  36  stretching generally upright from the upper plate  26  of each box-shaped part  22 , and a plurality of (four in the Figures) engaging pieces  38  projecting sideways near the front end of the leg  36 . The fastener  10  is detachably fixed to other article by having the plurality of engaging elements  34  of the engaging section  18  frictionally engaged by means of the respective engaging pieces  38  with corresponding engaging section provided on the other article. The engaging elements  34  may be omitted on desired box-shaped parts  22  (at both ends in the longitudinal direction in the Figures).  
      The lower plate  28  of each box-shaped part  22  has a slit  40  formed so as to extend in a crossing direction at approximately the center in the longitudinal direction of the box-shaped part  22 . Further, the lower plate  28  has one rib  42  extending in the longitudinal direction crossing the slit  40  provided to project on the back surface  14  along the whole length of the base  16 . The rib  42  has two posts  44  for each box-shaped part  22  extending in the shape of thin plate along the rib  42 , provided perpendicularly to the back surface  14 . An anchor  46  in the shape of a thin plate extending generally in parallel with the back surface  14  is formed on the front end of each post  44 . Each anchor  46  has a profile of koban-like shape which does not bulge out in the width direction on the back surface  14  of the base  16 . These plurality of posts  44  and anchors  46  serve as an embedding section  20  for fixedly installing the fastener  10  to a desired article.  
      In the fastener  10  having above-described construction, owing to the stress dispersion effect at each box-shaped part  22  having the hollow structure, the base  16  can be bent as a whole relatively easily in a horizontal direction, that is, in a direction generally parallel to the major surface  12  and the back surface  14 . Further, owing to the hinge effect of each thin connecting part  24 , the base  16  can be bent relatively easily also in a vertical direction, that is, in a direction generally orthogonal to the major surface  12  and the back surface  14 . Since the fastener  10  has the base  16  that can be easily bent both in horizontal and in vertical directions, it is possible to install the base  16  on any desired surface portion of an article having a variety of three-dimensional surface by accurately following the surface three-dimensionally. Preferably, the fastener  10  is integrally formed with a resin material like nylon, polypropylene, etc.  
      As a specific feature of the construction of the fastener  10  according to the present invention, the embedding section  20  further comprises a plurality of projecting elements  48  arranged discretely so as to be spaced apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the base  16 . In the embodiment shown in the Figures, each of the projecting elements  48  has a bar-shaped form and is integrally connected at one longitudinal end thereof to a periphery of the anchor  46  provided on the back surface  14  of the base  16 , so as to extend generally in parallel with the back surface  14  substantially in the width direction of the base  16 . Each projecting element  48  has, at the free end area thereof, a dimension projecting over a specified length laterally from the base  16 .  
      In the embodiment as shown in FIGS.  1  to  3 , the plurality of projecting elements  48  are formed with two elements being connected to each of the plurality of anchors  46  provided at generally equal spacing in the longitudinal direction on the back surface  14  of the base  16  so as to project from both side edges of the anchor  46  laterally on both sides of the base  16 . As a result, these projecting elements  48  are arranged at equal spacing in the longitudinal direction of the base  16 , and symmetrically with each other on both sides of the base  16 . With this construction, when the fastener  10  is installed to an article by means of the embedding section  20  as described later, the plurality of projecting elements  48  exhibit an installation strength uniformly in equilibrium over the entire length of the fastener  10 .  
      Alternatively, as shown in  FIG. 4 , the projecting elements may be provided only on desired anchors  46  among the plurality of anchors  46  provided on the back surface  14  of the base  16 . In such a case, the installation strength of the base  16  to an article exhibited by the embedding section  20  can be locally increased at the position corresponding to the anchors  46  at which the projecting elements  48  are formed. Only one projecting element  48  may be formed for each anchor  46 , provided that the equilibrium of the installation strength in the width direction of the base  16  is not significantly impaired.  
      The fastener  10  is, by means of an insert-molding process using a guide  50  as shown in  FIG. 4  to be described later, integrally installed to a molded body of desired shape.  
      The guide  50  is a rail-shaped block unit for supporting the fastener  10  over a desired length, and is comprised of a bottom wall  52 , and a pair of side walls  54  integrally erected from the bottom wall  52  along both edges of the bottom wall  52  extending in the longitudinal direction. The bottom wall  52  and the pair of side walls  54  form one stream of a groove  56  capable of accommodating the base  16  of the fastener  10  and the plurality of engaging elements  34  along the whole length of the guide  50 . Both side walls  54  have inner surfaces  54   a  respectively facing each other with a uniform spacing therebetween over the entire length of the guide  50 . The bottom wall  52  has a pair of sealing surfaces  52   a  orthogonal to the inner surfaces  54   a  of both side walls  54  at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the guide  50 , and a pair of auxiliary supporting surfaces  52   b  extensively provided in the longitudinal direction of the guide  50  adjacent to the inner surface  54   a  of each side wall  54 . The groove  56  is divided into two parts in function; a first part  56   a  capable of accommodating the base  16  of the fastener  10  between the inner surfaces  54   a  of both side walls  54  above the sealing surface  52   a  and the auxiliary supporting surface  52   b;  and a second part  56   b  capable of accommodating the plurality of engaging elements  34  of the fastener  10  below the sealing surface  52   a  and the auxiliary supporting surface  52   b.    
      The spacing between the inner surfaces  54   a  of both side walls  54  is made to have a size approximately identical to the size of the base  16  of the fastener  10  in the width direction as an object to be supported. Therefore, when the fastener  10  is properly accommodated into the groove  56  of the guide  50 , the inner surfaces  54   a  of the side walls  54  are brought into close contact with the side edges extending in the longitudinal direction of the base  16  of the fastener  10  accommodated in the first part  56   a  of the groove  56 . The pair of sealing surfaces  52   a  of the bottom wall  52  are brought into close contact with major surface  12  of the box-shaped part  22  (having no engaging elements  34 ) on both ends in the longitudinal direction of the fastener  10 .  
      In this way, the guide  50  can hold the fastener  10  in a predetermined posture with frictional force in a state that the base  16  of the fastener  10  is embedded into the first part  56   a  of the groove  56  while the engaging elements  34  of the engaging section  18  of the fastener  10  are accommodated in the second part  56   b  of the groove  56 . As a result, it is possible to prevent liquid material from penetrating into the second part  56   b  of the groove  56  when forming the molded body in a state that the fastener  10  is supported by the guide  50 . In a state that the fastener  10  is properly held in the guide  50 , the plurality of projecting elements  48  of the engaging section  20  project at the free end region thereof outwards from both side walls  54  of the guide  50 . The guide  50  can be integrally manufactured by cutting from a metal bar-shaped material like aluminum, aluminum alloy, iron, etc.  
       FIG. 5  exemplifies an article  60  having the fastener  10  integrally installed on a molded body  58  by the insert-molding process using the guide  50 . In the example shown in the drawing, the article  60  is a seat for a vehicle, and the molded body  58  constitutes a core member made of a foamed resin material like polyurethane. In this construction, a plurality of fastener  10  function as fixing means for fixing a covering member  62  made of cloth or leather to the molded body  58 . Each fastener  10  is fixedly disposed in a slender recess  64  provided on the surface of the molded body  58  at a desired position along a seam  62   a  of the covering member  62 .  
      In the insert-molding process, the guides  50  in a number corresponding to the number of fasteners  10  to be installed to the article  60  are disposed within a mold (not shown) of the molded body  58 , in a layout corresponding to the layout of the fasteners  10  on the surface of the molded body  58 . Each guide  50  is fixed on the formed surface of the mold by fixing means like putty, bolts, magnets or the like, with the groove  56  ( FIG. 4 ) facing to the hollow part of the mold. Each fastener  10  is installed on the corresponding guide  50 , with the plurality of engaging elements  34  of the engaging section  18  inserted into the second part  56   b  of the groove  56  of the guide  50 , and with the plurality of box-shaped parts  22  of the base  16  fit into the first part  56   a  of the groove  56  of the guide  50 . Thus, the back surface  14  of the base  16  of each fastener  10 , and the rib  42  and the embedding section  20  (the plurality of posts  44 , anchors  46  and projecting elements  48 ) projectingly provided on the back surface  14 , are disposed in an exposed state in the hollow part of the mold.  
      In this state, a liquid foam resin material of the molded body  58  is supplied to the hollow part of the mold. As described before, the base  16  of the fastener  10  is brought into close contact with the pair of inner surfaces  54   a,  the sealing surface  52   a  and the auxiliary supporting surface  52   b  of the guide  50 , thereby to prevent the liquid resin material from penetrating into the second part  56   b  of the groove  56  of the guide  50 . Thereafter, when the liquid resin material is foamed and solidified to form the molded body  58 , each recess  64  is formed on the surface of the molded body  58  at a position corresponding to the space occupied by each guide  50  within the hollow part of the mold.  
      As shown in an enlarged view in  FIG. 6 , in each recess  64 , the fastener  10  is fixed to the molded body  58  with the base  16  (except the major surface  12 ) and the embedding section (the plurality of posts  44 , anchors  46  and projecting elements  48 ) embedded in the molded body  58 , and thereby with the plurality of engaging elements  34  of the engaging section  18  exposed in the inner space of each recess  64 . In this state, each fastener  10  has its plurality of engaging elements  34  exposed in each recess so that these engaging elements  34  may be detachably engaged with corresponding engaging elements  66  such as fiber loops formed on the back surface of the seam  62   a  of the covering member  62 , thereby fixing the covering member  62  to the surface of the molded body  58  (see  FIG. 7 ).  
      After the insert-molding process as described above, the molded body  58  is formed in such a shape that it substantially surrounds the plurality of posts  44 , anchor  46  and projecting elements  48  which together constitute the embedding section  20  of the fastener  10 . At this point, the plurality of projecting elements  48  projecting sideways on both sides of the base  16  of the fastener  10  are in a state that they bite into the molded part further outside of the recess  64  of the molded body  58  (see  FIGS. 6 and 7 ). As a result, compared to a conventional fastener that only has the koban-shaped anchors which do not project out of the base as an embedding section, the fastener  10  according to the present invention is fixed to the molded body  58  under sufficiently larger installation strength. Therefore, by means of the fastener  10  according to the invention, destruction of the interconnecting portion between the fastener  10  and the molded body  58  (the portion of molded material surrounding the embedding section  20 ) can be reliably prevented when the fastener  10  is used, for example, in a seat for a vehicle as described above, under a tension unintentionally exerted to the covering member  62  due to frequent and rapid movement of the center of gravity of a seated person, or under a tension intentionally exerted for the purpose of replacement or the like, thereby permitting the covering member  62  to be detached accurately and stably from the fastener  10 . Also, when the molded body  58  is removed from the mold after the insert-molding process is completed, the fastener  10  is smoothly detached from the guide  50 , which advantageously facilitates the removing operation of the molded body  58 .  
      In the fastener  10 , the plurality of projecting elements  48  are discretely disposed by being spaced apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the base  16  so that presence of the projecting elements  48  does not impair the three-dimensional flexibility of the base  16  as described before. Since individual projecting element  48  enlarges the size in the width direction of the embedding section  20  disposed on the back surface  14  of the base  16 , even when the fastener  10  is applied to a case where presence of the fastener  10  can be recognized by the feeling of touch by a user as in the above-described application to a seat for a vehicle, installation strength of the fastener can be increased as much as possible by means of the embedding section  20  without impairing the feeling of touch. Further, since the plurality of projecting elements  48  can be formed integrally with the base  16 , for example, by an injection molding process, increase of the number of parts can be avoided.  
      The projecting element provided on the embedding section of the fastener according to the present invention may be formed in various forms, provided that the required installation strength as described above can be ensured. In particular, the construction as shown in  FIG. 8  in which projecting elements  48  in the shape of round bar (circular or elliptic cylinder) are connected to an anchor  44  having a koban-shaped profile, and in which the anchor itself has a generally flat outer surface  44   a  extending in parallel to the back surface  14  on the side away from the back surface  14  of the base  16 , has following advantageous effect in the mounting of the fastener on the above-described guide  50 . That is, when an operator mounts the fastener  10  manually on the above-described guide  50 , the fastener  10  can be smoothly slid on the surface  44   a  of the plurality of anchors  44  arranged adjoiningly in the longitudinal direction of the fastener  10  with a finger or jig abutted to it. By such a smooth sliding operation, the base  16  of the fastener  10  can be pushed into the groove  56  of the guide  50  quickly and progressively.  
      As shown in  FIG. 9 , the koban-shaped anchor  44  may be omitted, and the whole anchoring function may be composed of a bar-shaped projecting element  68 . Or, as shown in  FIG. 10 , a projecting element  70  of a generally rectangular shape may be adopted. Or, as shown in  FIG. 11 , a plate-like projecting element  72  of a generally diamond shape may be adopted.  
      In the above-described embodiment, the size relation between the base  16  and the projecting element  48  for ensuring the required installation strength can be chosen as follows. For example, the size relation between the base  16  and the projecting element  48  in the longitudinal direction of the fastener  10  is such that, when expressed with the longitudinal dimension A of a box-shaped part  22  of the base  16  and the width B of an individual projecting element  48  ( FIG. 2 ), B/A is preferably within the range 0.1≦B/A≦0.4. Also, the size relation between the base  16  and the projecting element  48  in the width direction of the fastener  10  is preferably such that, when expressed with the width dimension C and the distance D between both ends of a pair of projecting elements  48  ( FIG. 3 ), D/C is chosen to be within the range 1≦D/C≦6.  
      In the above-described construction, the plurality of projecting elements of the fastener according to the present invention are formed integrally with the base. However, the present invention is not limited to the above construction, and the projecting elements may be detachably provided on the base.  FIG. 12  is a view showing a fastener  78  according to a second embodiment of the present invention which comprises an anchor member  76  having such projecting elements  74 . Since the fastener  78  has substantially the same construction as the above-described fastener  10  except for the construction of the projecting element  74 , corresponding constituent elements are denoted by common reference symbols, and explanation thereof is omitted.  
      As shown in  FIG. 13 , the anchor member  76  is comprised integrally of a pair of plate-shaped projecting elements  74  having a profile of generally equilateral triangle, a square-bar shaped beam  80  interconnecting the two projecting elements in a symmetric layout with the vertices facing opposite to each other, and a plate-shaped mounting portion  82  formed between the two projecting elements  74  approximately at the longitudinal center of the beam  80 . Two sets of anchoring elements  84 ,  86  projecting sideways on both sides of the beam  80  are formed on the mounting portion  82 . One set of anchoring elements  84 ,  86  are composed of a small-sized anchoring element  84  having a profile of generally right-angled triangle and a large-sized anchoring element  86  having a profile of generally rectangular shape. The two anchoring elements  84 ,  86  are disposed such that an oblique side of the small-sized anchoring element  84  is situated away from the large-sized anchoring element  86 , and that a gap slightly larger than the thickness of the post  44  provided on the back surface  14  of the base  16  of the fastener  78 , is formed between the two anchoring elements  84  and  86 . The two sets of anchoring elements  84 ,  86  are disposed symmetrically to each other with respect to the beam  80  as a centerline.  
      The anchor member  76  is detachably mounted to the back surface  14  of the fastener  78  in a relative positioning with the beam  80  facing in a direction approximately orthogonal to the rib  42  provided on the base back surface  14  of the fastener  78 . Thus, the beam  80  of the anchor member  76  is inserted between a pair of adjoining koban-shaped anchors  46  provided on the base back surface  14  of the fastener  78 , and the mounting portion  82  formed at approximately the longitudinal center of the beam  80  is anchored to a pair of posts  44  supporting the anchors  46  ( FIG. 12 ). Here, with the oblique side of the pair of small-sized anchoring elements  84  abutted first to the two posts  44 , the mounting portion  82  is inserted between the posts  44  under a pressing force. Thereby, with accompanying elastic deformation of the two posts  44 , corresponding post  42  is fit in a snap style into the gap between the anchoring elements  84 ,  86  of the respective set. When the anchor member  76  is properly mounted to the base back surface  14  of the fastener  78 , a pair of projecting elements  74  are disposed as a whole so as to project on both sides in the width direction of the base  16 .  
      The fastener  78  having the above-described construction is, by means of the insert molding process as described before, integrally installed to the molded body  58  ( FIG. 6 ). In this state, the plurality of posts  44  and anchors  46  of the fastener  78  are embedded into the molded body  58 , and the anchor members  76  mounted on the adjoining pair of posts  44 , especially two projecting elements  74 , bite deeply into the molded body  58 , in the same manner as the projecting elements  48  shown in  FIG. 6 . As a result, compared to a conventional fastener that only has the koban-shaped anchors which do not project out of the base as an embedding section, the fastener  78  is fixed to the molded body  58  under sufficiently larger installation strength. It will be appreciated that, in this manner, the same operative effect can be obtained with the fastener  78  as with the above-described fastener  10 .  
      Further, the fastener  78  has the advantage in that it permits desired number of anchor members  76  to be selectively mounted at desired positions in the longitudinal direction, on the fastener base having conventional construction. With this construction, even if the required fastener installation strength varies depending on the installation position, when installing the fastener to the molded body of an article to which the fastener is applied, the optimal fastener installation strength can be easily achieved.  
      The projecting elements of the anchor member mounted on the embedding section of the fastener according to the present invention may take various forms provided that the required installation strength as described above can be ensured. For example, as shown in  FIG. 14 , an anchor member  94  comprising integrally a plate-shaped projecting element  88  having a generally rectangular profile, a square-bar shaped beam  90  extending over the entire length in the longitudinal direction of the projecting element  88 , or a mounting portion  92  formed approximately at the longitudinal center of the projecting element  88 , may be adopted. Two sets of anchoring elements  84 ,  86  projecting laterally on both sides of the projecting element  88 , are formed on the mounting portion of the anchor member  94 , and in the same manner as in the anchor member  76 , these anchoring elements  84 ,  86  are anchored to a pair of posts  44  of the fastener  78 . When the anchor member  94  is properly mounted on the base back surface  14  of the fastener  78 , the projecting elements  88  are disposed so as to project laterally on both sides in the width direction of the base  16 .  
     EXAMPLE  
      In order to determine the improvement effect on the installation strength of the fastener according to the present invention, a separation test was performed on the fastener  10  shown in  FIG. 1 , as installed to the molded body. Specifically, a fastener  10  was prepared with total length of the base  16  of 250 mm, total width of the base  16  of 8.5 mm, and distance D between both ends of a pair of projecting elements  48  ( FIG. 3 ) of 30 mm, and by means of an insert-molding process, was installed to the molded body  58  (or a sitting part of a vehicle seat) shown in  FIG. 5 . (see  FIG. 6 ). In this state, a stretching force was applied at one longitudinal end of the base  16  of the fastener  10 , in a direction perpendicular to the bottom surface of the recess  64  of the molded body  58 , and the force at the moment when the embedding section  20  was separated from the molded body  58  was measured as the installation strength. The measured installation strength was about 40 N.  
      As a comparative example, same separation test was performed on a conventional fastener having koban-shaped anchors which do not project out of the base. The conventional fastener had identical construction as the above-mentioned tested fastener  10 , except that the projecting elements  48  were not provided. The installation strength measured with the conventional fastener was about 20 N.  
      As is evident from the foregoing explanation, in accordance with the present invention, with the fastener integrally installed to an article by means of an embedding section provided on the back surface of the strip-shaped base, the installation strength for installing to an article by means of the embedding section can be improved as much as possible without impairing the flexibility inherent in the fastener.