US20080083247A1

US20080083247A1 - Earring easing pain of earlobe and hard to slip off from earlobe

Info

Publication number: US20080083247A1
Application number: US11/905,929
Authority: US
Inventors: Yukihito Tsuruta
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2006-10-10
Filing date: 2007-10-05
Publication date: 2008-04-10
Also published as: JP2008093373A

Abstract

There is provided an earring comprising: a decorative body including an earlobe supporting portion; and an attaching body provided with a screw-shaped fixture and connected to the decorative body, wherein: the screw-shaped fixture is composed of a screw shank, a spherical pressing portion, and a finger grip; the earlobe supporting portion directed to the screw-shaped fixture comprises an axial portion fixed to the back surface of the decorative body, and a spherical supporting portion provided at the tip end of the axial portion; the screw-shaped fixture and the earlobe supporting portion are arranged so as to position on the same shaft line; and the spherical pressing portion and the spherical supporting portion press and support earlobes so as to form deep concavity at both sides of the earlobes.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to earrings which can ease pain of earlobes when worn and which can also fit to the earlobes without being slipped off easily therefrom.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general earrings can be categorized into two types: a pierced earring worn into an earring hole formed in a wearer's earlobe; and a pinch-typed earring pressing both sides of the wearer's earlobe. In the pinch-typed earring there are also two kinds: a clipping-style earring and a screw-style earring. As regards the clipping-style earring, a clip is attached to a decorative body, and by using elasticity of the clip wearer's earlobes are pinched between the clip and the decorative body. On the other hand, in the screw-style earring an attaching body provided with a screw-shaped fixture is connected to a decorative body, and wearer's earlobes are clipped between the screw-shaped fixture and the decorative body.
As to the pierced earring, a stopper is fixed to the tip of an attaching shaft passed through earlobe holes of the wearer. The wearer thus does not recognize pain while wearing, or the pierced earring can be stably held in the earlobe holes so that there are least chances that the pierced earring is slipped off from the earlobes.
To the contrary, as to the clipping-style earring, since the earring is worn in the earlobes of the wearer with elasticity of the clip, it is not easy for the wearer to adjust pressure of the clip. Further, in case that the earlobes of the wearer are thick, it is possible for the wearer to hurt his or her earlobes. On the other hand, in case of thin earlobes, the earring might be slipped off easily from the earlobes.
As regards the screw-style earring, by rotating a screw shank of the screw-shaped fixture provided with the attaching body, the earlobes of the wearer can be clipped between a surficial area of a pressing portion provided with the screw shank and the back surface of the decorative body, which enables the wearer to adjust pressure applied by the pressing portion. However, in case of intensifying the pressing force on the pressing portion for preventing the earring from being slipped off from the earlobes, the wearer might experience sharp pain on his or her earlobes, which thus can be concluded that the type of the earring is not suitable for a long-time wearing.
In order to solve the problems as regards the screw-style earring hereinabove described, Registered Japanese Utility Model No. 3097078 has proposed the following featured earring. In the earring a hemispherical supporting portion is provided at the back surface of a decorative body while a hemispherical pressing portion is provided at the tip of a screw shank of a screw-shaped fixture. Earlobes of wearers can be thus clipped by means of the hemispherical pressing portion of the screw-shaped fixture and the hemispherical supporting portion of the decorative body.
However, the earring disclosed in the above registered Japanese utility model has the hemispherical supporting portion provided directly at the back surface of the decorative portion, so that the wearers are incapable of pressing the hemispherical supporting portion deep against the earlobes of the wearers due to the existence of the back surface of the decorative body as being resistant. Accordingly, this type of the earring might be easily slipped off from the earlobes of the wearers while wearing it.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been made in light of the above problem, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an earring that can ease pain of earlobes of wearers and that also can surely prevent from being slipped off from the earlobes of the wearers while wearing it.
In order to achieve the object described above, there is provided an earring comprising: a decorative body including an earlobe supporting portion; and an attaching body provided with a screw-shaped fixture and connected to the decorative body, wherein: the screw-shaped fixture is composed of a screw shank that is screwed and passed through into the attaching body, a spherical pressing portion provided at one end of the screw shank where facing to the decorative body, and a finger grip provided at the other end of the screw shank relative to the spherical pressing portion; the earlobe supporting portion directed to the screw-shaped fixture comprises an axial portion fixed to the back surface of the decorative body, and a spherical supporting portion provided at the tip of the axial portion; the screw-shaped fixture and the earlobe supporting portion are arranged so as to position on the same shaft line; and the spherical pressing portion and the spherical supporting portion press and support earlobes so as to form deep concavity at both sides of the earlobes.
With the earring structured as above, since the spherical pressing portion provided with the screw-shaped fixture and the spherical supporting portion provided at the decorative body can press and support the earlobes of wearers so as to form deep concavity at both sides of the earlobes, it can ease pain of the earlobes while wearing the earring and also can prevent the earring from being slipped off from the earlobes.
The preferred embodiments of the present invention are as follows:
In the first embodiment, the spherical pressing portion of the screw-shaped fixture and the spherical supporting portion of the earlobe supporting portion are both fabricated into a sphere substantially identical in diameter. The earring can thus press the both sides of the earlobes of wearers by approximately identical pressing force.
In the second embodiment, the spherical pressing portion of the screw-shaped fixture and the spherical supporting portion of the earlobe supporting portion are a spherical body having an external diameter of 2.5 mm or less, preferably 1.6 mm to 1.8 mm. The earring can thus hold the earlobes of the wearers in a point contact, which greatly contributes to easiness of pain of the earlobes while wearing the earring.
In the third embodiment, the screw shank of the screw-shaped fixture and the axial portion of the earlobe supporting portion are arranged so as to position on the same shaft line. With the earring structured as above, the pressing (pinching) force acting between the screw-shaped fixture and the earlobe supporting portion works in a facing direction so as to surely prevent the earring from being slipped off from the earlobes.
In the fourth embodiment, the minimum length of approach distance between the spherical pressing portion of the screw-shaped fixture and the spherical supporting portion of the earlobe supporting portion is set approximately 1 mm. With this structure, pain of the earlobes can be eased. Further, it can prevent the earring from being slipped off from the earlobes.
In the fifth embodiment, the decorative body is detachable from the axial portion of the earlobe supporting portion. Since the decorative body is detachable, the wearer (manufacturer) can select a variety of decorative bodies according to his or her taste.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side view of an earring according to the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is the earring of the present invention in use.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Referring to FIG. 1, an earring 1 according to the present invention is composed of an attaching body 3 provided with a screw-shaped fixture 2, and a decorative body 5 connected with the attaching body 3 so as to form an earlobe holding space 4. The screw-shaped fixture 2 provided with the attaching body 3 is composed of a screw shank 6 fixed by being screwed into a screw hole formed in an end portion 3 a of the attaching body 3, a spherical pressing portion 7 integrally formed in the one end portion (nearest portion to the decorative body) of the screw shank 6, and a finger grip 8 fixed to the other end (relative to the one end portion provided with the spherical pressing portion 7) of the screw shank 6. The spherical pressing portion 7 is formed into a sphere an external diameter of which is slightly larger than the diameter of the screw shank 6, for example, 2.5 mm or less, more preferably 1.6 mm to 1.8 mm.
Next, the decorative body 5 will be discussed. The decorative body 5 has an earlobe supporting portion 9 at the back surface 5 a thereof; the earlobe supporting portion 9 is arranged so as to face the screw-shaped fixture 2 provided with the attaching body 3. The earlobe supporting portion 9 is composed of an axial portion 10 one end of which is fixed to the back surface 5 a of the decorative body 5 and a spherical supporting member 11 provided at the other tip end of the axial portion 10. The axial portion 10 as well as the spherical supporting portion 11 of the earlobe supporting portion 9 and the screw shank 6 as well as the spherical pressing portion 7 of the screw-shaped fixture 2 are arranged so as to position on the same shaft line. The spherical supporting portion 11 of the earlobe supporting portion 9 is formed into a sphere an external diameter of which is slightly larger than the diameter of the axial portion 10, for example, 2.5 mm or less, more preferably 1.6 mm to 1.8 mm. With the spherical supporting portion 11 specifically set the external diameter thereof to be within the above range, earlobe 12 can be deformed so as to form a deep concavity. See FIG. 2.
In case that the spherical pressing portion 7 is made to approach to the spherical supporting portion 11 by having the finger grip 8 rotated, the minimum length of approach distance therebetween is set approximately 1 mm.
Further, in another embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to fix the axial portion 10 provided with the spherical supporting portion 11 to the attaching body 3 forming the earlobe holding space 4, so that the decorative body 5 can be detachable relative to the axial portion 10. With this structure the wearer can freely replace the decorative body 5 according to his or her taste.
Next, the application of the earring 1 will be discussed. The preparation of wearing earring 1 is made by: rotating counterclockwise the finger grip 8 of the screw-shaped fixture 2; shifting the screw shank 6 fixed to the finger grip 8 in a right direction by moving the screw shank 6 along a screwed runner provided at the end portion 3 a of the attaching body 3; and shifting the spherical pressing portion 7 provided with the screw shank 6 in the direction that the spherical pressing portion 7 moves away from the spherical supporting portion 11 provided at the back surface 5 a of the decorative body 5 via the axial portion 10. If the space between the spherical pressing portion 7 of the screw-shaped fixture 2 and the spherical supporting portion 11 of the earlobe supporting portion 9 becomes larger than the thickness of the earlobe 12, the preparation of wearing the earring 1 is completed.
Next, the earring 1 is placed right beneath the earlobe 12 in such a manner that the earlobe holding space 4 of the earring 1 faces the earlobe 12. The earring 1 is then moved upward so as to insert the earlobe 12 into the earlobe holding space 4.
Thereafter, the finger grip 8 is rotated clockwise; the screw shank 6 fixed to the finger grip 8 is shifted in a left direction along the screwed runner provided at the end portion 3 a of the attaching body 3; the spherical pressing portion 7 provided with the screw shank 6 is shifted in the direction that the spherical pressing portion 7 moves toward the spherical supporting portion 11 provided at the back surface 5 a of the decorative body 5 via the axial portion 10. Accordingly, the earlobe 12 is pinched and held by the spherical pressing portion 7 provided at the screw-shaped fixture 2 and the spherical supporting portion 11 provided at the earlobe supporting portion 9. The pressing (pinching) pressure applied toward the earlobe 12 is adjusted so as to form a deep concavity at the both sides of the earlobe 12 by means of the spherical pressing portion 7 and the spherical supporting portion 11.
Accordingly, by pinching and holding the earlobe 12 with the spherical pressing portion 7 of the screw-shaped fixture 2 and the spherical supporting portion 11 of the decorative body 5, pain on the earlobe 12 while the earring 1 is worn can be considerably reduced. Furthermore, with the specific structure feature hereinabove discussed, it surely enables the earring 1 not to be easily slipped off from the earlobe 12 by external force applied to the earring 1.

Claims

1. An earring comprising:

a decorative body including an earlobe supporting portion; and

an attaching body provided with a screw-shaped fixture and connected to the decorative body, wherein:

the screw-shaped fixture is composed of a screw shank that is screwed and passed through into the attaching body, a spherical pressing portion provided at one end of the screw shank where facing to the decorative body, and a finger grip provided at the other end of the screw shank relative to the spherical pressing portion;

the earlobe supporting portion directed to the screw-shaped fixture comprises an axial portion fixed to the back surface of the decorative body, and a spherical supporting portion provided at the tip end of the axial portion;

the screw-shaped fixture and the earlobe supporting portion are arranged so as to position on the same shaft line; and

the spherical pressing portion and the spherical supporting portion press and support earlobes so as to form deep concavity at both sides of the earlobes.

2. The earring according to claim 1, wherein the spherical pressing portion of the screw-shaped fixture and the spherical supporting portion of the earlobe supporting portion are both fabricated into a sphere substantially identical in diameter.

3. The earring according to claim 1, wherein the spherical pressing portion of the screw-shaped fixture and the spherical supporting portion of the earlobe supporting portion are a spherical body having an external diameter of 2.5 mm or less, preferably 1.6 mm to 1.8 mm.

4. The earring according to claim 1, wherein the screw shank of the screw-shaped fixture and the axial portion of the earlobe supporting portion are arranged so as to position on the same shaft line

5. The earring according to claim 1, wherein the minimum length of approach distance between the spherical pressing portion of the screw-shaped fixture and the spherical supporting portion of the earlobe supporting portion is set approximately 1 mm.

6. The earring according to claim 1, the decorative body is detachable from the axial portion of the earlobe supporting portion.