US20130055489A1

US20130055489A1 - Swimming/diving goggle structure

Info

Publication number: US20130055489A1
Application number: US13/494,675
Authority: US
Inventors: Chih-Cheng Shiue
Original assignee: QBAS Co Ltd
Current assignee: QBAS Co Ltd
Priority date: 2011-09-02
Filing date: 2012-06-12
Publication date: 2013-03-07
Also published as: TW201311312A

Abstract

A swimming/diving goggle structure is disclosed, which comprises a spectacle frame, a mask, two connecting elements and an elastic strap. At least one skirt portion of the mask surrounds at least one edge of the spectacle frame. The connecting elements are disposed on two sides of the spectacle frame respectively. Each of two ends of the elastic strap has a connecting portion. One of each connecting element and each connecting portion has at least one protrusion; the other has at least one hole for the at least one protrusion to pass therethrough and thereby, the connecting element and the connecting portion are connected.

Description

This application claims priority to Taiwan Patent Application No. 100131632 filed on Sep. 2, 2011, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a swimming/diving goggle structure, and more particularly, to a swimming/diving goggle structure which allows for the easy adjustment of the length of a head strap during water sports.
2. Descriptions of the Related Art
Swimming, snorkeling and diving are all popular water sports. During these water sports, a swimming/diving goggle is usually worn to protect the user's eyes from being exposed to seawater or other foreign matters and to maintain a clear vision in the water. With improvement of the quality of life, requirements on swimming/diving goggles in terms of convenience in use and comfortableness become ever heightened, so innovative technologies that are related to various swimming/diving goggles have been gradually developing.
However, due to inexperience or use as rentals, most users have to adjust the length of a head strap before wearing a swimming/diving goggle in a water sport. The adjustment of the conventional head strap is difficult and complex, and because of the elastic nature of the head strap, the user often applies a great force to the head strap unintentionally over tightening; or for the purpose of sealing the user's face against entry of the water, the user often subconsciously presses the goggle towards the face and displaces the goggle laterally in expectation of a tight sealing effect like what is provided by a suction cup. However, this may cause the user to gradually feel uncomfortable during the sport. Furthermore, when the user feels uncomfortable during the sport (e.g., in the water), the adjustment of the goggle in the water will become inconvenient and may lead to dangers.
Accordingly, it is important to provide a swimming/diving goggle structure that can be adjusted easily according to the different head sizes of different users.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To solve the aforesaid problem, an objective of the present invention is to provide a swimming/diving goggle structure, which allows for the easy adjustment to the length of the head strap so that the goggle structure can be worn by the user with the desired length, thus overcoming the problem that the user would gradually feel uncomfortable during a water sport.
The present invention provides a swimming/diving goggle structure, which comprises a spectacle frame, a mask, two connecting elements and an elastic strap. The spectacle frame has at least one edge and two sides. The mask has at least one skirt portion surrounding the at least one edge. The two connecting elements are respectively disposed on the two sides. The elastic strap has a connecting portion at each end of the elastic strap respectively, and each of the connecting portions connects to each of the connecting elements. Each of the connecting elements has at least one protrusion, and each of the connecting portions has at least one hole through which the at least one protrusion fits.
The present invention further provides a swimming/diving goggle structure, which comprises a spectacle frame, a mask and an elastic strap. The spectacle frame has at least one edge and two sides, and each of the sides has a hole. The mask has at least one skirt portion surrounding the at least one edge. The elastic strap has at least one protrusion at each end of the elastic strap respectively, and the at least one protrusion fits through each of the holes.
The detailed technology and preferred embodiments implemented for the subject invention are described in the following paragraphs accompanying the appended drawings for people skilled in this field to well appreciate the features of the claimed invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a swimming/diving goggle structure according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a partial enlarged view of the swimming/diving goggle structure according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3A is a partial enlarged view of a swimming/diving goggle structure according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3B is a schematic exploded view of connecting elements of the swimming/diving goggle structure according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3C is a schematic view of the connecting elements of the swimming/diving goggle structure according to the second embodiment of the present invention when being combined together;

FIG. 3D is a schematic view illustrating the connecting elements embedded to sides of a spectacle frame according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a swimming/diving goggle structure according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a partial enlarged view of the swimming/diving goggle structure according to the third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a swimming/diving goggle structure according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of a swimming/diving goggle structure according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In the following descriptions, the present invention will be explained with reference to embodiments thereof. However, the description of these embodiments is only for the purpose of illustration rather than to limit the present invention. It shall be appreciated that in the following embodiments and the attached drawings, elements not directly related to the present invention are omitted from depiction. The dimensional and positional relationships among the individual elements in the attached drawings are illustrated only for the ease of understanding but not to limit the actual scale and sizes.
A first embodiment of the present invention is a swimming/diving goggle structure 1. A perspective schematic view of the overall swimming/diving goggle structure 1 is shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 1. The swimming/diving goggle structure 1 comprises a spectacle frame 11, a mask 13, two connecting elements 15 and an elastic strap 17.
The spectacle frame 11 has an edge 111, two sides 113, and two lenses 115 that are disposed within the spectacle frame. The mask 13 has a skirt portion 131 and a nasal mask portion 133. The skirt portion 131 surrounds the edge 111 of the spectacle frame 11, while the nasal mask portion 133 extends downward from a central region of the skirt portion 131 to form a projecting space for accommodating a nose.
As shown, the two connecting elements 15 are disposed on the two sides 113 of the spectacle frame 11 respectively. In this embodiment, the spectacle frame 11 and the two connecting elements 15 are integrally formed. Each of the connecting elements 15 has a plurality of protrusions 151.
The elastic strap 17 has a connecting portion 171 at each end 170 of the elastic strap 17 respectively, and each of the connecting portions 171 connects to one of the connecting elements 15. In this embodiment, the connecting portions 171 of the elastic strap 17 have a hole 172 formed at the two ends 170 respectively for one of the protrusions 151 to fit therethrough so that the two ends 170 of the elastic strap 17 are fixed to the two sides 113 of the spectacle frame 11 respectively. Users can select one of the protrusions 151 to mate with one of the holes 172 of the connecting portions 171 according to their head sizes. Specifically, for a user with a smaller head size, each of the holes 172 may be mated with one of the protrusions 151 that is disposed closer to the front end of the corresponding connecting element 15; and for a user with a larger head size, each of the holes 172 may be mated with one of the protrusions 151 that is disposed further from the front end of the corresponding connecting element 15. Furthermore, although both sides can be adjusted, users may also adjust only one of the sides as needed.
To ensure that the holes 172 of the elastic strap 17 are securely mated with the protrusions 151, some of the protrusions 151 (i.e., the last four protrusions 151 as shown) are formed as hooks bending forwards while the protrusion 151 in the forefront is formed as a hook bending backwards to prevent the elastic strap 17 from sliding off in this embodiment. Other implementations of the protrusions may also be devised by people skilled in the art to securely mate the holes of the elastic strap with the protrusions.
The mask of the swimming/diving goggle structure of the present invention is made of a flexible material such as thermoplastic rubber (TPR), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), silicone rubber, natural rubber, rubber or combinations thereof. The aforesaid materials may be replaced with other materials by those of ordinary skill in the art, and the present invention has no limitations thereon. The spectacle frame of the swimming/diving goggle structure of the present invention is made of a material such as polycarbonate (PC), paraformaldehyde, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) or polypropylene.
A second embodiment of the present invention is also a swimming/diving goggle structure 3, which is partially shown in FIG. 3A. The swimming/diving goggle structure 3 of the second embodiment also comprises a spectacle frame 31, a mask 33, two connecting elements 35 and an elastic strap 37. Most of the technical features of the second embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment of the present invention, and thus, will not be further described herein. However, it shall be particularly appreciated that the second embodiment differs from the first embodiment mainly in the structure of the connecting elements 35, as well as the connectional relationships between the connecting elements 35 and the spectacle frame 31.
FIG. 3B is a schematic exploded view of the connecting elements 35 of this embodiment, and FIG. 3C is a schematic view of the connecting elements 35 when being combined together. As shown in the two figures, each of the connecting elements 35 has a first side part 35 a and a second side part 35 b with structures that can be snap-fitted with each other. In other implementations of the present invention, the first side part and the second side part may be combined in other ways, and each of the connecting elements may not necessarily be divided into a first side part and a second side part but may also be integrally formed.
A status in which the first side parts 35 a and the second side parts 35 b are combined into the connecting elements 35 is as shown in FIG. 3D. Each of two sides 313 of the spectacle frame 31 has a chute 317, and each of the connecting elements 35 has a slide 353 at the bottom thereof. Each of the slides 353 is slidably engaged with one of the chutes 317 so that the two connecting elements 35 are disposed on the two sides 313 respectively.
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3A, the elastic strap 37 of this embodiment further has slot holes dispersed therein to enhance extensibility of the elastic strap 37 in a particular direction, thereby, improving the users' comfortableness.
A third embodiment of the present invention is also a swimming/diving goggle structure. FIG. 4 illustrates an overall perspective schematic view of a swimming/diving goggle structure 4. FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 4. The swimming/diving goggle structure 4 of the third embodiment also comprises a spectacle frame 41, a mask 43, two connecting elements 45 and an elastic strap 47. Most of the technical feature of the third embodiment are the same as those of the aforesaid embodiments, and thus, will not be further described herein. However, it shall be particularly appreciated that the third embodiment differs from the first embodiment and the second embodiment in the following ways: as shown, two ends 470 of the elastic strap 47 are each provided with a rigid ring 473 (equivalent to the holes described in the aforesaid embodiments) so that one of a plurality of protrusions 451 of the corresponding connecting element 45 fits through the rigid ring 473.
The rigid ring 473 of this embodiment is a rectangular form; however, in other implementations, other forms may also be readily devised by people skilled in the art such as a circular shape, an elliptic shape or a polygonal shape, although the form and the structure of the rigid ring 473 are not limited thereto. Furthermore, the rigid ring may be made of any rigid material, for example, a metal material or a rigid plastic material such as polycarbonate (PC) or acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS).
A fourth embodiment of the present invention is also a swimming/diving goggle structure. FIG. 6 illustrates the swimming/diving goggle structure 6 of the fourth embodiment, which also comprises a spectacle frame 61, a mask 63, two connecting elements 65 and an elastic strap 67. Most of the technical features of the fourth embodiment are the same as those of the aforesaid embodiments, and thus, will not be further described herein. However, it shall be particularly appreciated that the fourth embodiment differs from the aforesaid embodiments in the following way: in all of the aforesaid embodiments, a single hole is formed at each end of the elastic strap to selectively mate with one of the plurality of protrusions of the corresponding connecting element on the spectacle frame. However, as shown in FIG. 6, each connecting element 65 of this embodiment has only a single protrusion 651, and connecting portions 671 at two ends 670 of the elastic strap 67 are each formed with a plurality of holes 672.
A fifth embodiment of the present invention is also a swimming/diving goggle structure 7; an overall perspective schematic view of which is shown in FIG. 7. The swimming/diving goggle structure 7 comprises a spectacle frame 71, a mask 73 and an elastic strap 77.
The spectacle frame 71 has an edge 711, two sides 713, and two lenses 715 that are disposed within the spectacle frame 71. Each of the sides 713 has a hole 719. The mask 73 has a skirt portion 731 and a nasal mask portion 733. The skirt portion 731 surrounds the edge 711 of the spectacle frame 71, while the nasal mask portion 733 extends downward from a central region of the skirt portion 731 to form a projecting space for accommodating a nose.
In this embodiment, the elastic strap 77 has a plurality of protrusions 775 at each end 770 thereof respectively so that the user can choose one of the protrusions 775 to fit through the hole 719.
The aforesaid embodiments all relate to a swimming/diving goggle structure for use in diving or snorkeling; however, the swimming/diving goggle structure is not merely limited to use in diving or snorkeling, but is applicable to any cases where waterproofing is desired. Furthermore, the nasal mask portion may also be optionally omitted from the swimming/diving goggle structure so that the swimming/diving goggle structure can apply in cases where waterproofing is unnecessary for the user's nose, for example in the case of a common swimming goggle. For example, apart from the elimination of the nasal mask portion, the goggle structure of a swimming goggle also differs from the aforesaid embodiments in that the spectacle frame of such a goggle structure has two edges, and the mask has two skirt portions which surround the two edges respectively. Other technical features are mostly the same as those of the aforesaid embodiments, and thus, will not be further described herein.
According to the aforesaid embodiments, other implementations may be readily devised by people skilled in the art. For example, the elastic strap or the sides of the spectacle frame may be fixed through the cooperation of a protrusion(s) and a hole(s). Neither the positions nor the numbers of the protrusion(s) and the hole(s) is limited to what is described in the aforesaid embodiments. Because the length of the head strap is adjusted through the adjustment of the position(s) where the protrusion(s) fits through the hole(s), the present invention not only allows for the easy adjustment but also reduces the number of members for fixing the head strap of the goggle structure, thereby, reducing the manufacturing cost and increasing the competitive power of the product. Moreover, because the head strap of the present invention is fixed in a different way compared to the prior art, the head strap can be made of a material that is easily extendable and elastic, as well as have a large thickness to enhance the user's comfort.
The above disclosure is related to the detailed technical contents and inventive features thereof. People skilled in this field may proceed with a variety of modifications and replacements based on the disclosures and suggestions of the invention as described without departing from the characteristics thereof. Nevertheless, although such modifications and replacements are not fully disclosed in the above descriptions, they have substantially been covered in the following claims as appended.

Claims

1. A swimming/diving goggle structure, comprising:

a spectacle frame, having at least one edge and two sides;

a mask, having at least one skirt portion surrounding the at least one edge;

two connecting elements, being respectively disposed on the two sides; and

an elastic strap, having a connecting portion at each end of the elastic strap respectively, and each of the connecting portions connecting to one of the connecting elements;

wherein each of the connecting elements has at least one protrusion, and each of the connecting portions has at least one hole through which the at least one protrusion fits.

2. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 1, wherein the at least one protrusion includes a plurality of protrusions, the at least one hole includes one hole, and one of the protrusions fits through the hole.

3. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 1, wherein the at least one protrusion includes one protrusion, the at least one hole includes a plurality of holes, and the protrusion fits through one of the holes.

4. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 1, wherein the mask further has a nasal mask portion extending downwardly from the at least one skirt portion.

5. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 1, wherein the spectacle frame and the two connecting elements are integrally formed.

6. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 1, wherein each of the two sides has a chute, each of the two connecting elements has a slide, each of the slides is engaged with the chute, and thereby the two connecting elements are disposed on the two sides respectively.

7. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 1, wherein a material of the elastic strap comprises one of thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), thermoplastic rubber (TPR), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), silicone rubber and natural rubber.

8. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 1, wherein each of the connecting portions has a rigid ring disposed at each of the ends of the elastic strap.

9. A swimming/diving goggle structure, comprising:

a spectacle frame, having at least one edge and two sides, and each of the sides having a hole;

a mask, having at least one skirt portion surrounding the at least one edge; and

an elastic strap, having at least one protrusion at each end of the elastic strap respectively, and the at least one protrusion fitting through each of the holes.

10. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 9, wherein the at least one protrusion includes a plurality of protrusions, and one of the protrusions fits through each of the holes.

11. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 9, wherein the mask further has a nasal mask portion extending downwardly from the at least one skirt portion.

12. The swimming/diving goggle structure of claim 9, wherein a material of the elastic strap comprises one of thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), thermoplastic rubber (TPR), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), silicone rubber and natural rubber.