ALEXANDRIA, Va., Nov. 11 -- United States Patent no. 12,465,117, issued on Nov. 11.
"Belt buckle" was invented by Scott V. Evans (Jacksonville, N.C.) and Nicholas R. Tomczak (Richlands, N.C.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A buckle according to the present invention has two opposing ends that are removably attached to each other using a locking system. On one end of the buckle, the locking system includes two opposing locking pins coupled to a spring that is fully enclosed and protected from external elements. On the other end, corresponding rivets or pin casings with plungers are operable to receive the locking pins and lock the two ends together or push the pins out of the casings to release...