US20090119888A1

US20090119888A1 - Leash device for wireless cellular phone ear pieces

Info

Publication number: US20090119888A1
Application number: US11/938,592
Authority: US
Inventors: Karen E. Carter
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2007-11-12
Filing date: 2007-11-12
Publication date: 2009-05-14

Abstract

A leash device for wireless cellular phone earpieces. There is a first tubular member, composed of a substantially compliant material; a first intermediate coupling member, fixably attached to an exterior surface of the first tubular member; a leash member, coupled to an end of the first intermediate coupling member; a second intermediate coupling member, fixably attached to an end of the leash member, and oppositely disposed from the first intermediate coupling member; and a first coupling member, fixably attached to an end of the second intermediate clasp member, and configured to fasten the device to itself, a users apparel or eyewear. Further, the compliant material of the first tubular member is elastic. The leash member is composed of a flexible material. The first coupling member is configured in a question-mark-like shape, and is composed of a resilient material.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to leash devices, specifically to leash devices for wireless cellular phone earpieces.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the related art, there has been used use various leash devices. People use leashes or other retention devices to maintain control of their eye glasses, keys, and/or other incidentals. People often use wireless cellular phone earpieces. Such earpieces are often perched about and/or fitted to an ear of a user. Even though a relatively secure fit to the ear may be achieved by the wireless earpiece it is possible for the earpiece to fall off the ear. If a wireless earpiece falls off of the users ear it may be damaged due to impact with the ground and/or contact with water. It can be expensive to replace wireless earpieces as well as inconvenient deal with a damaged wireless earpiece. There is a need to safely, securely, and conveniently retain wireless earpieces to undue damage to the earpiece. Some improvements have been made in the field. Examples include but are not limited to the references described below, which references are incorporated by reference herein:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,938,137, issued to Poulson, discloses a leash attached to the cell phone case and including a spring retractable leash cord in a housing pivotally attached to the belt will prevent dropping and damage to a cell phone in a case clipped to the belt. The leash housing is pivotally attached to a locking belt hook that cannot easily be accidentally removed.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,533,413, issued to Wright et al., discloses a neck leash device for retaining eye wear with a resilient leash portion approximately thirty four inches long, a pair of adjustment beads, one for adjusting the leash around the users neck and the other for adjusting the leash around the users head, a leash to eyeglass attachment, the attachment comprised of a length of resilient tubing terminating at one end in a first plastic fastener, the opposite end capable of retaining the earpiece of a pair of glasses, and a mating second plastic fastener that attaches to each end of said leash portion, said mating first and second fasteners comprised of resilient plastic material so that they can snap together and detach from each other in an emergency. A preferred embodiment includes wherein said leash portion is constructed of a lycra covered neoprene strip where said strip is folded over and sewn so that said leash has a hollow portion traveling its entire length. The user is provided with a plurality of first fasteners, each with a different diameter resilient tubing, so that the user can choose a fastener that will snuggly fit to the earpieces of said eye glasses.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No.: 20020043545, by Tang, discloses a holder for a portable electronic device such as a mobile phone comprising a carrier with a neck strap connected thereto. A microphone and an earphone and are electrically connectable to a mobile phone or other portable electronic device by means of an electrical connector provided on a connector at the base of a pocket in which the phone is located. The pocket has a strap extending therefrom with a clip at one end with male connectors thereon which cooperate with female connectors on the connector part to retain the phone in the pocket.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No.: 20020080985, by Ho, discloses an earphone and a microphone for a mobile phone includes a microphone contained in a housing, a plug fixed on an upper end of the housing and an earphone combined together. The microphone has a housing, a plug fixed to extend out from the housing for inserting in a socket of a mobile phone, and an flexible antenna to transmit signal to the earphone, a power socket fixed on a side of the housing, a microphone fixed inside for receiving a user's voice. The earphone has a separate case, a clip fixed on a rear of the case to hold the case in a pocket, a wire extending from the case to an earphone body, a power socket on a sidewall of the case, a switch and an indicating lamp on a front side of the case. Then a user does not need to hold the mobile phone for talking.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No.: 200401692119, by Jeong, discloses a wireless earset phone. The phone includes a phone base and an earset. The earset has an earset body and a projected part. The earset body has on a front surface thereof a button part. An ear speaker projects from one side on a rear surface of the earset body. An accommodating space is defined at a center portion on the rear surface of the earset body to accommodate electronic components therein. A switch is provided on a rear surface of and adjacent to one end of the projected part. A transmitter is provided on the rear surface of and adjacent to the other end of the projected part. A ring is provided below the transmitter so that an accessory collar can be connected to the ring to allow the earset to be put around the neck of the user.
U.S. Design Pat. No.: 368,758, issued to May, discloses the ornamental design for a floating cord.
U.S. Design Pat. No.: 371,154, issued to Kalbach, discloses the ornamental design for retainers for eyeglasses.
The inventions heretofore known suffer from a number of disadvantages which may include being complex, limited in adaptability, inconvenient and/or may otherwise fail to easily, comfortably, safely, and/or effectively secure and/or retain a wireless earpiece to prevent damage resulting from falling off a users ear.
What is needed is a leash device that solves one or more of the problems described herein and/or one or more problems that may come to the attention of one skilled in the art upon becoming familiar with this specification.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been developed in response to the present state of the art, and in particular, in response to the problems and needs in the art that have not yet been fully solved by currently available leash devices. Accordingly, the present invention has been developed to provide a leash device for wireless cellular phone earpieces.
In one embodiment, there is a leash device for wireless cellular phone earpieces. There may be a first tubular member, which may be composed of a substantially compliant material; there may be a first intermediate coupling member, which may be fixably attached to an exterior surface of the first tubular member, and configured to intermediately secure the first tubular member with another part of the device; there may be a leash member, which may be coupled to an end of the first intermediate coupling member; there may be a second intermediate coupling member, which may be fixably attached to an end of the leash member, which may be oppositely disposed from the first intermediate coupling member, and configured to intermediately secure the leash member with another part of the device; and/or a first coupling member, which may be fixably attached to an end of the second intermediate clasp member, and configured to fasten the device to itself, a users apparel and/or eyewear.
Additionally, the compliant material of the first tubular member may be elastic. The leash member may be composed of a flexible material. The first coupling member may be configured in a question-mark-like shape, and may be composed of a resilient material.
Reference throughout this specification to features, advantages, or similar language does not imply that all of the features and advantages that may be realized with the present invention should be or are in any single embodiment of the invention. Rather, language referring to the features and advantages is understood to mean that a specific feature, advantage, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, discussion of the features and advantages, and similar language, throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, refer to the same embodiment.
Furthermore, the described features, advantages, and characteristics of the invention may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize that the invention can be practiced without one or more of the specific features or advantages of a particular embodiment. In other instances, additional features and advantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not be present in all embodiments of the invention.
These features and advantages of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, or may be learned by the practice of the invention as set forth hereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order for the advantages of the invention to be readily understood, a more particular description of the invention briefly described above will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments that are illustrated in the appended drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are not therefore to be considered to be limiting of its scope, the invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings, in which:

The FIGURE illustrates a side isometric view of a leash device for wireless cellular phone earpieces, according to one embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to the exemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawings, and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended. Any alterations and further modifications of the inventive features illustrated herein, and any additional applications of the principles of the invention as illustrated herein, which would occur to one skilled in the relevant art and having possession of this disclosure, are to be considered within the scope of the invention.
Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrases “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment, different embodiments, or component parts of the same or different illustrated invention. Additionally, reference to the wording “an embodiment,” or the like, for two or more features, elements, etc. does not mean that the features are related, dissimilar, the same, etc. The use of the term “an embodiment,” or similar wording, is merely a convenient phrase to indicate optional features, which may or may not be part of the invention as claimed.
Each statement of an embodiment is to be considered independent of any other statement of an embodiment despite any use of similar or identical language characterizing each embodiment. Therefore, where one embodiment is identified as “another embodiment,” the identified embodiment is independent of any other embodiments characterized by the language “another embodiment.” The independent embodiments are considered to be able to be combined in whole or in part one with another as the claims and/or art may direct, either directly or indirectly, implicitly or explicitly.
Finally, the fact that the wording “an embodiment,” or the like, does not appear at the beginning of every sentence in the specification, such as is the practice of some practitioners, is merely a convenience for the reader's clarity. However, it is the intention of this application to incorporate by reference the phrasing “an embodiment,” and the like, at the beginning of every sentence herein where logically possible and appropriate.
As used herein, “comprising,” “including,” “containing,” “is, are,” “characterized by,” and grammatical equivalents thereof are inclusive or open-ended terms that do not exclude additional unrecited elements or method steps. “Comprising” is to be interpreted as including the more restrictive terms “consisting of” and “consisting essentially of.”
The FIGURE illustrates a side isometric view of a leash device 10 for wireless cellular phone earpieces, according to one embodiment. As shown, the leash device 10 includes a first tubular member 12 which is disposed around a portion of a wireless cellular phone ear piece 22. The first tubular member 12 is slidably attached to a portion of a wireless cellular phone earpiece 22. The first tubular member 12 is composed of a substantially complaint material so as to stretch around and conform to a portion of a wireless cellular phone earpiece 22.
As shown in the FIGURE, there is a leash member 16 coupled to the first tubular member 12 by a first intermediate coupling member 14. In one embodiment, an end portion of the first intermediate coupling member 14 is pivotably attached to a portion of the first tubular member 12 while an oppositely disposed end portion is fixably attached to an end portion of the leash member 16. The first intermediate coupling member 14 is composed of a rigid material and has a cylindrical shape. The leash member 16 is composed of a flexible material and, according to one embodiment, is shaped like a chain. The chain shape of the leash member 16 is a plurality of rings interconnected in a series arrangement.
As shown in the FIGURE, the leash member 16 is coupled to a first coupling member 20 by a second intermediate coupling member 18. In the illustrated embodiment, the first coupling member 20 is a clasp. It is envisioned that the first coupling member 20 may be an elastic band that loops about the eyewear 24 (similar to the tubular member 12), and/or may be a snap, buckle, tie, clip, etc. In one embodiment, an end portion of the second intermediate coupling member 18 is fixably attached to an end portion of the leash member 16 while and oppositely disposed end portion is fixably attached to an end portion of the first coupling member 20. The second intermediate coupling member 18 is composed of a rigid material and has a cylindrical shape. The second intermediate coupling member 18 is coupled with the first coupling member 20 such that the longitudinal axis of the second intermediate coupling member 18 is aligned with the longitudinal axis of the end portion of the first coupling member 20.
The first coupling member 20 is configured in a question-mark-like shape, and is composed of resilient material. From the point of coupling with the second intermediate coupling member 18, the first coupling member 20 extends in like a question-mark where after forming a loop it nearly meets back with itself then extends from itself. According to one embodiment, the first coupling member 20 is slidably attached to a portion of a users eyewear 24.
In operation, a user may take a wireless cellular phone earpiece 22 in one hand and with another hand slidably attach the first tubular member 12 onto a portion of a wireless cellular phone earpiece 22 that it intended to fit around a back portion of a user's ear. A user may place wireless cellular phone earpiece 22 upon an ear and slidably attach the first tubular member 12 onto a portion thereof. A user may slidably adjust the position of the first tubular member 12 on the wireless cellular phone earpiece 22 according to what may be desired for comfort and/or ease of use.
In operation, a user may slidably clip the first coupling member 20 over a portion of a users eyewear 24 while the eyewear 24 is worn or alternatively while the eyewear 24 is removed from upon the user. A user may translate the first coupling member 20 back and forth on a portion of a user's eyewear 24 according to a position that be desired for comfort and/or ease of use.
In operation, a user may slidably clip the first coupling member 20 over the first intermediate coupling member 14, such that the intermediate coupling member 14 is disposed within the loop shaped portion of the first coupling member 20. When the first coupling member 20 is coupled to the first intermediate coupling member 14, such that the leash device 10 is in a loop shape, a user may have the device looped around their neck. In operation a user may slidably couple the first coupling member 20 to a collar of a shirt, a button hole or onto a portion of a hat.
It is understood that the above-described embodiments are only illustrative of the application of the principles of the present invention. The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The described embodiment is to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicated by the appended claim rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.
For example, although the leash member 16 is described to be a flexible chain it is envisioned that the leash member 16 may be a cord composed of nearly any flexible material. Additionally, the length and width of the leash member 16 may vary according to what may be needed to fulfill the essence of the invention.
Additionally, although the FIGURE illustrates the first coupling member 20 coupled to a portion of eyewear, it is envision that the clasp member may be coupled to many different portions of a users apparel. It is envisioned that the shape and size of the first coupling member 20 may be varied so as to allow it to be coupled to various portions of a user's apparel and eyewear. Further, the first coupling member may be composed of any resilient material.
Finally, the components of the device may be constructed of a variety of materials which may include: plastics such as polypropylene, polyester, polyethylene, nylon, silicone plastics, nitrile and/or various synthetic and/or natural rubbers, metals including spring steel and/or other steels, aluminum, titanium, nickel, tin, silver, gold, and/or platinum, organic materials such as hemp, cotton and/or wool, and composite materials such as carbon fiber and/or fiberglass.
Thus, while the present invention has been fully described above with particularity and detail in connection with what is presently deemed to be the most practical and preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that numerous modifications, including, but not limited to, variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use may be made, without departing from the principles and concepts of the invention as set forth in the claims.

Claims

1. A leash device for wireless cellular phone earpieces comprising:

a) a first tubular member, composed of a substantially compliant material;

b) a first intermediate coupling member, fixably attached to an exterior surface of the first tubular member, and configured to intermediately secure the first tubular member with another part of the device;

c) a leash member, coupled to an end of the first intermediate coupling member;

d) a second intermediate coupling member, fixably attached to an end of the leash member, oppositely disposed from the first intermediate coupling member, and configured to intermediately secure the leash member with another part of the device; and

e) a first coupling member, fixably attached to an end of the second intermediate clasp member, and configured to fasten the device to itself, a users apparel or eyewear.

2. The leash device of claim 1, wherein the compliant material of the first tubular member is elastic.

3. The leash device of claim 1, wherein the leash member is composed of a flexible material.

4. The leash device of claim 1, wherein the first coupling member is configured in a question-mark-like shape, and is composed of a resilient material.

5. A leash device for wireless cellular phone earpieces, consisting essentially of:

a) a first tubular member, composed of a substantially compliant material;

c) a leash member, coupled to an end of the first intermediate coupling member;

6. The leash device of claim 5, wherein the compliant material of the first tubular member is elastic.

7. The leash device of claim 5, wherein the leash member is composed of a flexible material.

8. The leash device of claim 5, wherein the first coupling member is configured in a question-mark-like shape, and is composed of a resilient material.