GB2412359A

GB2412359A - Holder for spectacle sidepieces

Info

Publication number: GB2412359A
Application number: GB0406715A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Mei-Fan Cheung
Original assignee: GARBO OPTICAL OVERSEAS Ltd
Current assignee: GARBO OPTICAL OVERSEAS Ltd
Priority date: 2004-03-25
Filing date: 2004-03-25
Publication date: 2005-09-28
Also published as: GB0406715D0; ITTO20050190A1

Abstract

A spectacle sidepiece holder used to maintain the alignment of the spectacle sidepieces 32 (arms, temples) during transport or storage comprises an elongate tubular collar 15 which can be positioned around the sidepieces 32 when the pair of spectacles are folded or closed. The elongate collar 15 includes a closure 41, which can either be a reusable self sealing closure, a non-reusable self sealing closure or a non-self sealing closure. The size of the collar 15 may be varied by providing a plurality of closures 41 and the collar is preferably made from a sheet of flexible material, or resiliently deformable material. Tabs 14 are provided to assist the user in making ad/or breaking the seal formed by the closure 41.

Description

HOLDER FOR SPECTACLE SIDEPIECES

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to spectacle sidepieces and specifically to a device for retaining spectacle sidepieces in a closed position. ..

lo. Review of the Art known to the Applicant 20 :e Although patents exist which relate to means for retaining spectacle sidepieces in the : .. appropriate position during use as described in US patent number 2559098 and means are known for maintaining spectacles around a user's neck whilst not being worn as described in patent US4761068, means for retaining spectacle sidepieces in a closed position during transit are not known. Additional patents also exist which describe means of protecting the glass sections of spectacles during transport as in Japanese patent number 10081368 and Japanese patent number 53102183.

Prior to shipment the sidepieces of spectacles are balanced relative to each other and relative to the frame which holds the spectacle lenses in place. Typically this balancing operation is carried out immediately prior to the spectacles being placed in a box for shipment from the production facility. During transit it is therefore a common problem that one set of spectacles, of which the sidepieces (also known as side-arms or 'temples') are closed, may become inserted between the sidepieces and frame of a second pair of spectacles. Not only can this cause damage to the lenses of both sets of spectacles, it can also cause the balance of the sidepieces relative to the main frame to become maladjusted.

A means is therefore required to prevent this situation arising.

Summary of the Invention

According to the present invention there is provided a spectacle sidepiece holder to maintain the alignment of the spectacle sidepieces when folded for transport; characterized by the feature that the device comprises a reusable self sealing elongate tubular collar which when sealed around the overlaid sidepieces of a pair of spectacles maintains the alignment of the sidepieces during transport and/or storage.

In another aspect the invention provides a spectacle sidepiece holder to maintain the alignment of the spectacle sidepieces when folded for transport; :. ë

. . characterized by the feature that the device comprises a nonreusable self sealing elongate tubular collar which when sealed around the overlaid sidepieces of a pair of spectacles maintains the alignment of the sidepieces during transport and/or storage. :.

. Preferably the collar is formed from a sheet of flexible material. .. .

Preferably a plurality of reusable self sealing means are provided to enable the size of the collar to be varied.

Preferably the self sealing elongate tubular collar utilises a ziplocking mechanism.

More preferably a plurality of zip-locking lips and/or folds are provided to enable the size so of the collar to be varied.

Preferably the device incorporates at least one tab attached at, or formed by the end(s) of the sheet which assists a user in making and/or breaking the seal formed by the self sealing mechanism.

Also preferable is a self sealing elongate collar which utilises a series of adhesive strips to maintain the collar in a sealed position.

According to a yet further aspect of the invention there is provided a spectacle sidepiece holder to maintain the alignment of the spectacle sidepieces when folded for transport; characterized by the feature that the device comprises a non-self sealing elongate collar which when used to encompass the overlaid sidepieces of a pair of spectacles maintains the alignment of the sidepieces during transport and/or storage.

t5 Preferably the collar comprises a preformed component. :. -

free More preferably the collar is formed from a resiliently deformable material.

A

: Included within the scope of the invention are spectacle sidepiece holders substantially as . 20 described herein with reference to and as illustrated by any appropriate combination of the accompanying drawings. . .

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure I is a schematic plan view of an opened spectacle sidepiece holding device.

Figure 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the device of Figure 1, along the line X-X.

Figure 3 is schematic view showing potential differences between the use of ditberent means for retaining spectacle sidepieces.

Figure 4 is a schematic perspective view showing the device of Figure 1 when used to hold a pair of spectacle sidepieces in a closed position.

Figures 5 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of the present invention which comprises a non-self sealing collar.

Description of the Preferred Embodiment

The use of the word spectacle is intended to include spectacles used for sight correction as to well as sunglasses and other similar devices which incorporate a frame for holding one or more lenses and a pair of sidepieces.

Figure I shows a schematic plan view of the spectacle sidepiece holder device, the device being generally indicated by (10). The current device described herein utilises a locking t5 mechanism (as a self sealing mechanism) which is commonly referred to as a zip locking mechanism, which comprises a male and female portion. The zip locking mechanism ë utilises an elongate male portion (13, a lip) which inserts into an elongate female portion ..' (11, a fold) by the application of pressure. The male portion (13) and female portion (11) I. are appropriately sized to ensure a tight, but reversible, engagement between them. The at. go male and female portions are attached to a sheet of plastic type material of the type commonly used to make clear plastic bags for the storage of food etc. The shape of the . male and female portions can be more clearly seen by reference to Figure 2 which is a Id schematic cross-sectional view of the device shown in Figure 1 along the line X-X. The female portion (I 1) is attached towards one end of the plastic sheet and the male portion is attached to towards the opposite end. It is preferable that more than one male portion and/or female portions are attached adjacent to each other. In the diagram a number of male portions (13) are shown attached adjacent to each other. A section of the plastic sheet (12) separates the male and female portions.

so The device also incorporates two tabs (14), these are short sections of the plastic sheet which extend beyond the male (13) or female (11) portion which is furthermost from the centre ofthe plastic sheet.

In use, the plastic sheet is passed around the overlaid (folded) pair of sidepieces of a pair of spectacles such that the section of the plastic sheet ( 12) is proximate to the main frame of the spectacles. One of the male portions (13) is then inserted into the female portion (] 1) thus resulting in the device forming a tubular collar around the sidepieces of a pair of spectacles. The choice of male section (13) which is inserted into the female section (11) is normally that which results in the collar thus formed (15) being a tight fit around the spectacle sidepieces. The collar thus maintains the spectacle sidepieces in a closed position during transport. Additionally, the device also prevents other spectacles stored loosely in the same container from becoming inserted between the sidepieces and the to main frame of the spectacles which is known to unbalance the sidepieces relative to the main frame.

In order to release the spectacle sidepieces encircled by the collar, a user grasps the two tabs and then pulls them apart, such that the male (13) and female (11) portions disengage from each other.

The use of the self sealing mechanism described herein means that the device is re-usable.

* - . *em. More than one male or female portion is provided as this enables the size of the collar * . 20 ( 15) formed by a single closed device to be varied according to the width of the spectacle side pieces around which the collar (15) is to be formed. This ensures the size ofthe collar (15) formed by the spectacle sidepiece holder can be varied and thus a single device can be used with spectacles having various widths of sidepieces, but the device will still form a tight fining collar around the sidepieces.

The positioning ofthe male (13) and female (11) portions on the plastic sheet (12) can be adjusted as appropriate in order to ensure that the size ofthe various collars formed by the device is of a size suitable to the sidepieces which are to be enclosed by the device. This ensures that the collar thus formed by the device fits as tightly as possible around the so sidepieces, thus ensuring that the spectacle sidepieces remain in a tightly closed position (i.e. overlaid) during any subsequent transport. This means that the sidepieces remain balanced relative to each other and relevant to the main spectacle frame during transportation if they are balanced beforehand.

The width of the plastic sheet and the length of the male (13) and female (11) portions may be varied according to the length of the sidepieces with which the device is to be used. When using the device, with adult spectacles, a wider piece of plastic sheeting with longer male (13) and female (11) portions may be used than when the device is used with children's spectacles. In this way the length of the collar formed can be varied as appropriate to the size of the spectacle sidepieces. Reference is now made to Figures 3a and 3b of the diagrams, which illustrates the benefits of the current invention over alternative means.

The advantage of the use of a collar (15) of the type formed by the device described herein over the use of an item such as an elastic band wrapped around the spectacle sidepieces is; s when an elastic band (31 as shown in figure 3a), or similar means, is used to retain the sidepieces (32, as shown on figure 3a), the sidepieces can partially slide through the . elastic band and thus be forced into a partially open position, as shown by figure 3a. ë

. However, by using a collar (IS, as illustrated in figure 3b) of the type formed by the device described herein, the collar (15) fits tightly around and along the sidepieces (32) . so and thus prevents any opening of the sidepieces, as the sidepieces cannot slide through the .e collar (as illustrated in figure 3b) due to the length of the collar. The points at which the sidepieces are attached to the spectacle frames are indicated by (33), the actual main .

frame of the spectacles are not shown for ease of viewing. The width of the sheet (12) used and hence the length of the collar (15) formed should be such that the spectacle 2s sidepieces cannot slide through the collar once it is sealed around the sidepieces.

Reference will now be made to Figure 4 of the diagrams which shows a schematic perspective view of the device of Figure I when used to hold a pair of spectacle sidepieces in a closed position. It can be seen on figure 4 that the device described herein Jo forms a collar (15, or tube like retaining means) which is used to encircle the spectacle sidepieces (32) by the engagement of the male (13) and female (11) portions to form a locking mechanism indicated by (41). The tabs (14) which are used to open the engaged mechanism can also be seen on figure 4 as well as an unused male portion (13). The spectacle sidepieces (32) retained within the device are shown as dotted lines with respect to the sections contained within the device.

In an alternative embodiment, a series of patches (or strips) of suitable adhesive could be used wherein the adhesive is applied in strips and/or patches across the width of a sheet of plastic or paper, the adhesive strips possibly being initially covered by a number of strips wax proof paper (or similar material). Such that when the sheet of plastic or paper sheet has been passed around the spectacle sidepieces, the collar is sealed by the use of the to appropriate strip of adhesive (possibly by first removing a relevant strip of wax proof paper to expose the strip of adhesive below). The strip of adhesive is then pressed against the face of the plastic or paper sheet at the other end of the sheet of plastic or paper thus forming a tight fitting collar around the spectacle sidepieces. An appropriate adhesive could be used to enable the adhesive strip to be separated from the face of the sheet of plastic or paper such that the device can be re-used. Alternatively, a permanent adhesive may be used so that the collar must be torn or cut in order to remove it, such that the ë..

: collar cannot be re-used. A. e.-

A further embodiment of the present invention comprises a non-self sealing collar 20 wherein the collar is formed from a resiliently deformable material, such as plastics material. Reference is now made to Figures 5 of the drawings which shows a perspective view of a second embodiment of the present invention as generally indicated by (50) This . second embodiment comprises an elongate body (5 I) with an opening (52) which runs the length of the body (51). This embodiment further incorporates two lips (53) which project along the length ofthe opening (52) in the elongate body (51).

In use opening (52) is widened by the application of pressure in the appropriate direction to the lips (53) such that the overlaid sidepieces of a pair of spectacle can be inserted into the collar via the opening (52). The lips (53) are then released which results in the Jo opening (52) closing and the overlaid spectacle sidepieces being retained in their overlaid position during any subsequent transport. This means that the sidepieces remain balanced relative to each other and relevant to the main spectacle frame during transportation.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made to the invention described herein without departing from the scope thereof. For instance, one of the examples previously described utilises a zip-locking mechanism as the means of self sealing the elongate tubular collar. Alternative means could be used such as a number of small press studs fitted a various points across the width of the plastic sheet in place of the male and female portions of the zip-locking mechanism or the use of adhesive patches (or strips) as means of closing the collar. ëe. ë.. -.. .e- . . : . .. ë

Claims

1. A spectacle sidepiece holder to maintain the alignment of the spectacle sidepieces when folded for transport; characterized by the feature that the device comprises a reusable self sealing elongate tubular collar which when sealed around the overlaid sidepieces of a pair of spectacles maintains the alignment of the sidepieces during transport and/or storage.

to

2. A spectacle sidepiece holder to maintain the alignment of the spectacle sidepieces when folded for transport; characterized by the feature that the device comprises a non-reusable self sealing elongate tubular collar which when sealed around the overlaid sidepieces of a pair of spectacles maintains the alignment of the sidepieces during transport and/or storage. ë

.

3. A device as claimed in either of claim I or claim 2 wherein the collar is formed from a a...

. sheet of flexible material. ë.e

20

4. A device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein a plurality of reusable self sealing .

means are provided to enable the size of the collar to be varied. I.

5. A device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the self sealing elongate tubular ë collar utilises a zip-locking mechanism.

6. A device as claimed in claim 4 wherein a plurality of zip-locking lips and/or folds are provided to enable the size of the collar to be varied.

7. A device as claimed in any preceding claim which incorporates at least one tab attached at, or fonned by the end(s) of the sheet which assists a user in making and/or breaking the seal formed by the self sealing mechanism.

8. A device as claimed in any of claims l to 4 or claim 7 wherein the self sealing elongate collar utilises a series of adhesive strips to maintain the collar in a sealed position.

9. A spectacle sidepiece holder to maintain the alignment of the spectacle sidepieces when folded for transport, characterized by the feature that the device comprises a non-self sealing elongate collar which when used to encompass the overlaid sidepieces of a pair of spectacles maintains the alignment of the sidepieces during transport and/or storage.

IO. A device as claimed in claim 9 wherein the collar comprises a preformed component.

I I A device as claimed in either of claim 9 or claim 10 wherein the collar is formed from a resiliently deformable material.

12. The spectacle sidepiece holders substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated by an appropriate combination of the accompanying drawings. .e ..- . .e : . ë ë ë