Improvements in Hooks and Eyes.
Year: 1895

page_text: Improvem
པལ་་་
I, LOUISA OUSEY, of Belle Vue Villa, South Wimbledon in the County of
Surrey, England do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
To make hooks and eyes in such a manner that:
-
1st. At no part of either the hook or the eye, or of their combination when
engaged, there is a greater vertical thickness than two diameters of the wire or
other material.
2nd. The tendency to disengage, when pressed towards each other in the same
plane, is met by a positive resistance, either in the eye alone, or in the hook alone,
or else in both the hook and eye.
3rd. The tendency to disengage, when pressed towards each other at an angle, is
resisted by the tension on the garment, and also by what rigidity there may be in
the material of the same, both between the points at which the hook is attached to
the garment and the point or beginning of the eye, and between the points at
which the eye is attached to the garment and the head or beginning of the hook.
These objects are attained by making the hook in the form of a T and by making
the eye in the form of a key-hole slot; and the shaft of the T may be straight,
whilst the head or cross-piece rests in a seat formed by bending the slot shaped
portion of the eye;-or the eye may be straight whilst the end or point of the slot
rests in a seat formed by bending the shaft of the T;-or both the shaft of the T
and the slot shaped portion of the eye may be bent, in such a manner as to form a
seat in each for the beginning (head or point, as the case may be) of the other.
Dated this 9th day of April A.D. 1895.
LOUISA OUSEY.,
Improvements in Hooks and Eyes.
1, Mrs. LOUISA OUSEY of Belle Vue Villa, South Wimbledon in the County
of Surrey, England do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement :-
To make hooks and eyes in such a manner that :-
1st. At no part of either the hook or the eye, or of their combination when
engaged, there is a greater vertical thickness than two diameters of the wire of.
which they are made.
2nd. The tendency to disengage, when pressed towards each other in the same
plane, or at any angle above that plane, is met by a positive resistance, either in the
eye alone, or in the hook alone, or else in both the hook and the eye.
3rd. The tendency to disengage, when pressed towards each other at an angle
below the plane, is resisted by the tension on the garment, and also by what rigidity
there may be in the material of the same, both between the points at which the

page_text: hook is attached to the garment and the point or beginning of the eye, and between
the points at which the eye is attached to the garment and the head or beginning
of the hook.
Various devices have been practised for giving security to hooks and eyes-for
the most part, by bending one or both of the wires of the shaft, or of the bill,
of the hook, to form a spring which narrows, the passage for the
eye; and
the eye has to press back the spring in order to pass; but such, even the
slightest, resistance is decidedly objectionable. And an excess of thickness at the
turn of the hook, amounting to three diameters of wire, appears to be the common
fault of all hooks and eyes at present in use--this detracts from the neatness of
this species of fastening, and the prominence of the hook causes stains when the
garment is brushed-in this new device, however, the excess is only one diameter,
the effect is neater, and the prominence not sufficiently perceptible to cause such
brush marks.
These objects are attained by making the hook in the form of a T, and by
making the eye in the form of a key-hole-slot; and the shaft of the T may be
straight, whilst the head or cross-piece rests in a seat formed by bending the slot
shaped portion of the eye; or the eye may be straight, whilst the end or point of
the slot rests in a seat formed by bending the shaft of the T; or both the shaft of
the T and the slot shaped portion of the eye may be bent, in such a manner as to
form a seat in each for the beginning (head or point, as the case may be) of
the other.
The head of the hook admits of various modifications-
No. 1, shews it like the head of the letter T, flat across the top, and its seat is
entirely within the length of the narrow portion of the keyhole slot of the eye.
No. 2, shews it in the form of an oval, and its seat is nearer the open or wide.
portion of the keyhole slot.
No. 3, shews it round, and encroaching still more upon the open or wide portion.
of the eye.
In the details :-
(i) shews the eye bent to form a seat for the head of the hook or T.
(ii) shews the shaft of the T bent to form a seat for the point of the eye.
(iii) shews the shaft of the T, and also the eye, both of them bent, so that each
forms a seat for the other.
In the detail (i) h is the hook, e the eye, a the point of the eye, 6 the seat of
the head of the T, c presents resistance to the head of the T.
No. 4 shews a soldier's belt clasp-at a a and b 6 there is a spreading and
thinning of the metal, to effect the combination by overlapping.
It will be observed that the form of the T given in Drawing No. 2, viz., with an
oval head, will have little tendency to catch in the hair, or in laces or open fabrics;
and that the form given in Drawing No. 3, viz., with a round head, presents almost
absolute immunity from this annoyance.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A hook and eye having at no point in their combination a greater vertical
thickness than two diameters of the wire of which they are made, and their.
combination effected without thinning or spreading the wire.
2. The formation of the hook with the head of a T.
3. The modification of the T head, into an oval or round, to avoid catching open-
fabrics.
4. The formation of the eve as a keyhole slot.

page_text: 5. The bending of either the hook or the eye to form a seat, one for the other,
and the bending of each to form a seat for the other, for the purpose of offering a
positive resistance to accidental disunion, substantially as described.
Dated this 22nd day of January A.D. 1896.
LOUISA OUSEY.