GB2242112A

GB2242112A - Expandable ring or bracelet

Info

Publication number: GB2242112A
Application number: GB9105849A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Susan Newman
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1990-03-20
Filing date: 1991-03-20
Publication date: 1991-09-25
Also published as: GB9105849D0; GB9006204D0

Abstract

An expandable ring or bracelet has hollow hinged parts 12, 14. A spring element 18 is secured in one of the hinged parts at 20 and slides within the other as the article is expanded or closed. A notch 26 in the spring element engages one or more pins 28 in the appropriate part so as to provide a snap action coupling to hold the ring or bracelet in a closed position. <IMAGE>

Description

EXPANDABLE ARTICLE OF JEWELLERY This invention relates to expandable articles of jewellery and, in the most important examples, to expandable bracelets and rings.

It is well known that with the provision of one or more hinge points, a close fitting bracelet or ring can be expanded to enable passage over the hand or knuckle as the case may be. For security reasons, it is desirable that the jewellery item forms a closed loop, even in the expanded position.

Safety chains are sometimes used for this purpose but are not suitable for rings and are generally not acceptable in the more expensive jewellery pieces.

One existing solution to the problem (see for example GB 1 423 521) empioys a spring element which slides within hollow parts of the ring or bracelet and bridges the opening between those parts in the expanded position. It is desirable that the article should be held securely in the closed position and it is also desirable for a degree of resistance to be applied to the opening movement so as to give the correct "feel". Using known designs, these desiderata can be achieved only at the expense of relatively high manufacturing costs.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved expandable article of jewellery which is of straightforward mechanical construction yet which functions as well or better than known designs and enables jewellery articles to be produced which, aesthetically, are comparable with articles not having the expansion capability.

It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved expandable article of jewellery which can be produced at relatively small additional costs as compared with the non-expandable article.

Accordingly, the present invention consists in an expandable article of jewellery comprising a first hollow, arcuate part interconnected through at least one hinge with a second arcuate part, the free ends of the two arcuate parts abutting in a closed position of the article; and an elongate spring element having one end carried in the second arcuate part and the other end slidably movable within the first arcuate part, a radial reaction between the spring element and the first arcuate part serving to resist said movement, there being provided a snap action fastener having complementary parts on the spring element and the first arcuate part, to hold the article securely in the closed position.

Advantageously, the snap action fastener comprises a recess in the spring element and a complementarily shaped projection within the first arcuate part.

Preferably, the spring element is formed with a series of like recesses, enabling the article to be held in any of a plurality of intermediate positions.

The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIGURE 1 is a sketch view of a bracelet according to this invention, shown in an open position; FIGURE 2 is a part sectional view, to an enlarged scale, of the bracelet shown in Figure 1, in a closed position; FIGURE 3 is a view corresponding to Figure 1, showing a modification; FIGURE 4 is a sketch view of a ring according to a further embodiment of this invention; and FIGURE 5 is a sketch view illustrating a modification Referring initially to Figure 1, a bracelet 10 comprises first and second semi-circular parts 12, 14 interconnected through hinge 16. This hinge may take a variety of conventional forms and further description is not necessary. The semi-circular parts 12, 14 are hollow and are formed in this example of 9 carat white gold of medium hardness.A spring element 18 bridges the opening between the two semi-circular parts. The spring element is formed of 9 carat hard white gold and has external dimensions similar to the internal dimensions of the semi-circular parts 12, 14. With this similarity in dimension and virtually identical surface appearance, the impression of a continuous gold bracelet is created, even in the open position.

As shown in more detail in Figure 2, the spring element 18 is anchored within the semi-circular part 14, close to the free end thereof, by means of a radially directed pin 20 passing through an aperture 22 formed close to the end of the element 18. As will be well appreciated, the pin 20 is invisible to the eye after finishing and polishing of the bracelet. The length of the spring element 18 is dictated by the degree to which the bracelet is required to open. At its free end, the element 18 is pointed at 24 and adjacent this pointed end, there is provided a recess 26. An axially directed pin 28 is secured in the part 12 at a location corresponding to the position of the recess 26, in the closed bracelet.

Inwardly of the recess 26, the spring element 18 carries a further pin or projection 30. This is dimensioned to interfere with a lip 32 provided at the free end of the semi-circuiar part 1 2.

The manner of operation of the described bracelet can now be understood.

In the position shown in Figure 2, engagement between the recess 26 and pin 28 holds the bracelet securely in the closed position. Resilience in the spring element 18, tending to move the end 24 radially outwards, ensures close engagement between the recess 26 and the pin 28. If a sufficient force is applied to the free ends of the semi-circular parts 1 2 and 14, the spring end 24 is forced radially inward, freeing the spring element from engagement with the pin 26. The bracelet can then be moved to the open position with the radial reaction of the spring element upon the semi-circular part 12 resisting this movement and providing a smooth "feel". This reaction will enabie the bracelet to be held reasonably firmly in a range of intermediate positions, although it is not recommended that the bracelet be worn otherwise than in the closed position.

Complete withdrawal of the spring element from the semi-circular part 1 2 is prevented by engagement of pin 30 with the inturned lip 32.

It will be recognised that with a straightforward mechanical construction requiring essentially the positioning of three anchor pins and the shaping at one end of the spring element, an expandable bracelet is provided having the desired qualities of a pleasing appearance in both open and closed positions, a secure locking action in the closed position and a degree of resistance to movement towards the open position providing a satisfactory "feel".

Whilst it may be convenient to form the two semi-circular parts 12, 14 in similar fashion, the part 14 does not require to be hollow. The described arrangement of a fixed anchorage pin and one or more recesses in the spring element forms a conveniently simple snap action fastener but a wide range of alternatives will occur to the skilled man.

In a modification illustrated in Figure 3, a bracelet is produced having arcuate parts 50 and 52 connected through respective hinges 54 and 56 with opposite ends of a bridge piece 58. The free ends of arcuate pieces 50 and 52 are bridged in the open position of the bracelet by a spring element 60, the location and engagement of this spring element 60 being analagous to the previously'described embodiment.

The three bracelet parts 50, 52 and 58 may be shaped as to form a circle or lozenge in the closed position of the bracelet. The use of two hinges may provide a greater degree of expandability.

This invention can be employed also with rings and reference is now directed to Figure 4 which shows an expandable ring according to the invention.

Bridge part 70 carries a gem setting 72 of the desired form. At the opposite ends of the bridge piece 70, there are provided hinges 74 and 76 connecting arcuate ring parts 78 and 80, respectively. It will be noted that arcuate part 80 is considerably longer than part 78. A spring element 82, similar to that described above, is anchored within part 78 and slides within part 80.

The functioning of this ring is analagous to that of the previously described embodiment. The fact that the arcuate part 80 is longer than part 78, enables a spring element to be used which is longer than half thearcuate distance between the hinges 74 and 76. A greater degree of opening is therefore possible than would be the case if parts 78 and 80 were of equal size. This invention does however encompass arrangements in which the parts are of equal size.

In a modification shown in Figure 5, the pin 28 is provided close to the free end of semi-circular part 80. In addition to the recess 26 located in the spring element 82 so as to engage the pin 28 in the closed position of the ring, there are formed a number of further recesses 34 spaced over the remaining length of the spring element 82. With this modification, it will be recognised that the ring can be held securely in an intermediate position as well as in the closed and opened positions.

Figure 5 iliustrates a further modification in that a pin such as pin 30 is no longer needed to prevent complete separation of the spring from the part 80. Instead, the head 24 of the spring is dimensioned so as to interfere with the pin 28 and then prevent separation.

A similar modification can be made to the bracelet as shown for example in Figures 1 and 2.

Whilst this invention has been specifically described in relation to the fine jewellery, it will also find useful application in fashion jewellery and, particularly, in fashion rings. The ability to provide a single line of rings which is expandable to fit a range of finger sizes will enable retail stocks to be reduced. This should provide significant savings in distribution and stock holding. Because this invention offers an aesthetically and mechanically acceptable expandability option at relatively low cost, those savings should considerably exceed the additional costs of manufacture.

In fashion jewellery, gold may be replaced by brass for the hinged elements and an appropriate steel for the spring.

This invention has been described by way of examples only and a wide variety of further modifications are possible without departing from its scope.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. An expandable article of jewellery comprising a first hollow, arcuate part interconnected through at least one hinge with a second arcuate part, the free ends of the two arcuate parts abutting in a closed position of the article; and an elongate spring element having one end carried in the second arcuate part and the other end slidably movable within the first arcuate part, a radial reaction between the spring element and the first arcuate part serving to resist said movement, there being provided a snap action fastener having complementary parts on the spring element and the first arcuate part, to hold the article securely in the closed position.

2. An article according to Claim 1, wherein the snap action fastener comprises a recess in the spring element and a complementarily shaped projection within the first arcuate part.

3. An article according to Claim 2, wherein the spring element is formed with a series of like recesses, enabling the article to be held in any of a plurality of intermediate positions.

4. An article according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein each projection comprises a pin extending through the first arcuate part.

5. An article according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said one end of the spring element is fixedly secured to the second arcuate part.

6. An article according to any one of the preceding claims wherein at least that region of this spring element which is exposed in the expanded position of the article is fashioned to have an appearance similar to that of said arcuate parts.