Maternity brassiere closure

Abstract

A maternity brassiere closure has a hook element with an oval central member provided with a rounded hook with thick base whose rounded bottom portion engages a tongue between the eyelet element with a noticeable click upper engagement and disengagement.

1 . A maternity brassiere closure comprising: 
 an injection-molded generally bilobate plastic hook element formed in one piece with an upper, downwardly concave slot adapted to receive a loop of a brassiere shoulder strap, a lower, upwardly concave slot connectable to a body of the brassiere and coplanar with the upper slot, a generally oval central member between said slots, a hook projecting perpendicularly to a plane of said slots and said central member and having an upwardly extending finger parallel to said plane and spaced from said central member, and an opening having generally the shape of said finger formed in said central member in alignment with said finger; and    an injection-molded plastic one-piece eyelet element of generally trapezoidal shape having a relatively short upper limb, a relatively long lower limb and a pair of lateral limbs inclined to the upper and lower limbs, an arcuate slot formed in said eyelet element along said lower limb and connectable to a breast-covering flap of said brassiere, a substantially rectangular window formed in said eyelet element below said upper limb whereby upon said upper limb engaging said hook, said hook is receivable in said window, and a generally rectangular tongue extending upwardly from a bottom of said window and resiliently deflectable by a base of said hook upon passage of said hook into said window.    
     
     
         2 . The maternity brassiere closure designed in  claim 1  wherein said hook is rounded along said base, along a perimeter of said finger and in transverse cross section.  
     
     
         3 . The maternity brassiere closure defined in  claim 2  wherein said central member is offset with respect to a plane of said upper and lower slots of said hook element.  
     
     
         4 . The maternity brassiere closure defined in  claim 3  wherein the entire perimeter of said hook element is rounded.  
     
     
         5 . The maternity brassiere closure defined in  claim 4  wherein said hook element has upper and lower limbs delimiting said upper and lower slots outwardly and of outwardly tapering cross section.  
     
     
         6 . The maternity brassiere closure defined in  claim 5  wherein said eyelet element is rounded along all sides and corners.  
     
     
         7 . The maternity brassiere closure defined in  claim 6  wherein said base is thicker than said finger and said central member.  
     
     
         8 . The maternity brassiere closure defined in  claim 7  wherein said lower limb has a cross section tapered away from said upper limb.  
     
     
         9 . The maternity brassiere closure defined in  claim 1  wherein said eyelet element is rounded along all sides and corners.  
     
     
         10 . The maternity brassiere closure defined in  claim 9  wherein said base is thicker than said finger and said central member.  
     
     
         11 . The maternity brassiere closure defined in  claim 10  wherein said lower limb has a cross section tapered away from said upper limb.