Keeper for load carrying equipment

Claim 1

A keeper for detachably securing load carrying means to a service belt designed to be worn about the waist of a military person which comprises: (a) a first elongated segment of resilient metallic wire of sufficient diameter and strength to resist being permanently bent out of its normal physical shape during the normal use of said keeper, said first segment of metallic wire being forcefully bent by means of a wire-bending tool to form therein a base leg extending approximately equidistantly a suitable distance on both sides of a point equidistant from the two free ends of said first segment of metallic wire, two substantially parallel, spaced apart, upwardly extending arms perpendicular to said base leg, two substantially parallel spaced apart loops to fit over the top of said service belt, said loops being formed as continuations of said upwardly extending arms, two substantially parallel, spaced apart, downwardly extending arms formed as continuations of said two spaced apart loops, each of said downwardly extending arms having a horizontal leg formed therein, said horizontal legs being substantially parallel to each other and spaced equidistantly above said base leg, each of said horizontal legs forming an offset of the lower portion of one of said downwardly extending arms extending generally in the direction of said upwardly extending arms, the lower portions of said downwardly extending arms being bent to form an ear at each of the two ends of said first elongated segment of metallic wire, each of said ears being located at a height above said base leg and being of a diameter and oriented in a direction such as to permit it to pass between said two upwardly extending arms when said downwardly extending arm on which it is formed is flexed inwardly with respect to said upwardly extending arms, whereby when each of said ears has passed between said upwardly extending arms, and when said downwardly extending arm is released, said keeper becomes locked; and (b) a latching means for maintaining said downwardly extending arms in their locked positions, said latching means being formed from a second segment of resilient metallic wire, each of the two ends of said second segment of metallic wire having an eye formed therein, the metallic wire forming each of said eyes surrounding the wire of the horizontally formed legs and the downwardly extending arms, said latching means being freely slidable along said horizontally formed legs, said downwardly extending arms, and said loops to latch or to unlatch said keeper when said ears are in their locking positions.