Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A45—HAND OR TRAVELLING ARTICLES
  • A45D—HAIRDRESSING OR SHAVING EQUIPMENT; EQUIPMENT FOR COSMETICS OR COSMETIC TREATMENTS, e.g. FOR MANICURING OR PEDICURING
  • A45D31/00—Artificial nails

Definitions

• the present invention relates to human nail decorations, and more specifically the invention pertains to structure and methods for placement of preformed artificial nails and tips for adherence to human nails.
• Such nails are readily available to a wide range of users through drug and department stores.
• Such preformed artificial nails may be clear or opaque, and/or prepolished and/or decorated to provide the desired appearance.
• Artificial nails are commonly made from molded thermoplastic and are available in a wide range of lengths and styles.
• One broad category of an artificial nail style is the full nail form.
• the full nail form simulates the entire human fingernail and includes a proximate edge intended to overlay substantially the entire nail bed and a distal free edge which is intended to extend beyond the fingertip of the wearer.
• the proximate edge is shaped to be disposed substantially adjacent or abut against the cuticle of the finger.
• the distal free edge may have any of various lengths and shapes, such as oval, square, or flared, depending upon the desired look.
• the artificial nail is sufficiently durable and rigid to withstand the hazards inherent in its use.
• nail tips do not simulate the complete nail, but, rather, only the free edge and, typically, a small extended portion to cover only a portion of the nail bed in order to facilitate attachment to the nail.
• nail tips are secured to the edge of the nail bed adjacent the free edge and the tip only. Tips are often utilized with the construction of acrylic nails or gel nails.
• Manufacturers typically provide users with a range of nail sizes, e.g., identified by size numbers 0-9, to accommodate most nail sizes.
• artificial nails are packaged together in sets including a range of different sizes so that the purchaser receives differently artificial nails for their different fingers.
• the package may also include liquid adhesive, peel- off adhesive pads, and/or preplaced tacky adhesive for bonding the artificial nails to the purchaser's natural fingernails.
• Artificial nails are provided in a variety of lengths ranging from relatively long nails having either a straight profile or arched profile, to relatively short nails, which more closely simulate well groomed natural nails.
• the adhesive is typically applied either directly to the user's natural nail bed or to the nail bed portion of the artificial nail.
• the artificial nail is then placed on the user's natural nail bed with the proximal end of the artificial nail disposed at or near the user's cuticle, and pressure is applied to ensure the desired adhesion of the artificial nail to the user's natural nail.
• the adhesive used in placing artificial nails is generally tacky, it is difficult to make adjustments to the position of the artificial nail on the natural nail once initial placement is made.
• One such tool is comprises an elongated rod with a tacky adhesive pad or tape at the end of the tool to grip the artificial nail, such as the tools shown in U.S. Patent 6,220,250 to Park and the tool marketed by Sally Hansen®.
• This tacky, adhesive pad has proven unreliable in use, however, inasmuch as the retaining force exerted by the adhesive on the artificial nail typically deteriorates over time such that it does not exert a consistent retaining force on the artificial nail.
• the adhesive pad become contaminated with dust or the like, it becomes generally useless in that it does not exhibit adequate force to retain a series of nails for placement.
• Another such tool is shaped like a concave shovel with a shorter opposing lip that is disposed parallel to the shovel such that a small slot or gap is formed between the inside surface of the shovel and the lip, as shown in U.S. Patent D441,134 to Manzione and marketed by Uptown Nails, LLC.
• the outer, arched surface of the artificial nail is disposed against the inside surface of the shovel with the free edge of the artificial nail disposed in the gap between the lip and the shovel.
• This tool likewise exhibits deficiencies. While the "shovel" tool does not deteriorate with use, it is cumbersome to utilize.
• the user will typically be required to exert an external downward, retaining force on the artificial nail when it is placed against the natural nail in order to facilitate release of the artificial nail by the tool.
• the user's free hand grasps the tool, the user must typically use a different fmger from the placement hand to exert a retaining force the placed artificial nail to facilitate release of artificial nail from the tool.
• the tool may allow artificial nail to move within the gap, making accurate placement of the artificial nail against the natural nail significantly more difficult.
• the assignee of the present invention has proposed a tool that utilizes a small suction cup disposed at the distal end of an elongated rod.
• a small suction cup disposed at the distal end of an elongated rod.
• the user places the suction cup on the upper surface of the artificial nail and expels any air trapped between the cup and the nail.
• the user then utilizes the tool to position the artificial nail on the natural nail.
• the suction cup provides sufficient force to retain the nail during placement, yet that force is overcome by the tackiness of the adhesive or the adhesive bond between the artificial nail and the natural nail once properly placed.
• the tool is disclosed in greater detail in PCT Publication WO06/062963A.
• the invention provides a nail application tab that extends generally from the distal end of the nail, the body of the application tab being disposed at an angle to a plane including the top or bottom surface of the artificial nail.
• the application tab is disposed at approximately a normal angle to a plane containing the top surface of the artificial nail when taken along the centerline, although the tab may be disposed at an alternate angle, preferably greater than 30°.
• the application tab may extend from one or more of any of the distal edge, or top or bottom surface of the nail.
• the application may be severed by any appropriate means. Separation may be facilitated by a weakened area provided by, for example, a perforation, an area of reduced thickness, a score line, or a reduced cross-sectional area.
• the extension of the tab or other gating feature used in the molding of the artificial nail may be particularly advantageous in de-gating or separating the nail from the tab, tree or other molding structure.
• the user may grasp the generally vertically extending tab with the thumb and middle finger of the applying hand to apply the artificial nail to the natural nail of the receiving hand or a foot. Once the nail is placed, while continuing to hold the application tab, the user uses the index finger of the applying hand to lightly press the artificial nail into a final secured position on the receiving natural nail until such time as the adhesive secures the artificial nail in place. The user may then sever the application tab from the artificial nail by any appropriate means, such as snapping, tearing, or cutting. In this way, the artificial nail with tab provides ergonomic arrangement that facilitates nail placement with one hand.
• the kit may further include an adhesive, a towelette including a cleaner, a roughening surface, a stick, and/or a placement tool.
• Figure 1 is a perspective view of a kit having exemplary contents, including an artificial nail according to teachings of the invention.
• FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an artificial nail with application tab constructed in accordance with teachings of the invention.
• FIG. 3 is top plan view of the artificial nail of FIG. 2.
• FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the artificial nail of FIGS. 2 and 3.
• FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of an artificial nail with application tab constructed in accordance with teachings of the invention.
• FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the artificial nail of FIG. 5.
• FIG. 7 is a side view of the artificial nail of FIGS. 5 and 6.
• FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional view of the artificial nail of FIGS. 5-7.
• FIG. 8 is a top plan view of another alternate embodiment of an artificial nail with application tab constructed in accordance with teachings of the invention.
• FIG. 9 is a side cross-sectional view of the artificial nail of FIG. 8.
• FIG. 1OA and 1OB are perspective views of the artificial nail of FIGS. 2-4 during placement on a natural nail.
• FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an artificial nail arrangement of the prior art during placement on a natural nail.
• FIG. 12A is a partial cross-sectional view of an artificial nail and gating arrangement.
• FIG. 12B is a cross-sectional view of another embodiment of an artificial nail and gating arrangement.
• FIG. 1 a nail kit 18 comprising a package 20 containing a plurality of preformed artificial nail assemblies.
• Each nail assembly comprises an artificial nail 22 which has a proximal end 30, adapted to be placed generally adjacent the user's cuticle, and a distal end 32 that is generally disposed at or beyond the end of the user's natural nail when properly placed.
• the areas between the proximal and distal ends 30, 32 of the artificial nail 22 generally define the nail bed portion 34 and the free end 36, the nail bed portion 34 being adapted to be placed adjacent the user's natural nail bed and the free end portion 36 being adapted to extend beyond the end of the user's finger.
• the artificial nails 22 further include right and left side edges 37, 38 with the nail 22 having a generally arched contour between the side edges 37, 38 and a generally less arched contour between the proximal and distal edges 31, 33.
• the nail kit package 20 typically includes an outer covering 40, here in the form of a box, having at least one transparent portion 41 for viewing the contents of the package 20.
• the package 20 further includes an inner support housing 42 that generally retains the contents of the package 20 in position within the package 20.
• the inner support housing is typically formed of a polymeric material.
• the inner support housing 42 generally includes a plurality of recessed areas 44, and additional contents of the package 20 may be retained in a rear open portion of the inner support housing 42.
• the artificial nail assembly includes an application tab arrangement 50 to ergonomically facilitate placement of the artificial nail 22 on a natural nail.
• the tab arrangement 50 includes a body 52 for the user to grasp during placement, and a neck 54 that extends between the body 52 and the nail 22.
• at least a portion of the body 52 is disposed at an angle to a plane containing the upper or lower surface 39 of the nail 22 generally along its centerline 23.
• the portion of the body 52 disposed at an angle to the plane must be sufficiently large to be grasped by a user during placement of the nail 22.
• the neck 54 attaches the body 52 to the nail 22 at its distal end 32. While the neck 54 may extend from the distal edge 33, as shown in FIGS. 2-4, it may alternately extend from the upper or lower surface 39 of the artificial nail 22 or a combination of the distal edge 33 and one or both of the upper or lower surfaces 39. As shown in FIGS. 5-7, for example, the neck 60 may extend from the lower surface 39. It will be appreciated by those of skill in the art that when the neck 60 is separated from the nail 64, the neck 60 will not leave any sharp edges or points protruding from the distal edge 66 of the nail 64. In this embodiment, the neck 60 extends from the lower surface 39 proximate to the distal edge 66, while in the embodiment of FIGS. 8-9, the neck 70 is spaced back slightly from the distal edge 72 of the nail 86.
• the gating structure may include any structure known in the art, such as a nail tree, for example, and the nails and gating structure may be molded by any appropriate molding techniques, including those presently known in the art or developed in the future.
• a mold cavity for molding the gating structure provides fluid communication to the mold cavities for forming the lower surface such that the resulting molded gating structure extends from the lower surface of the molded nail.
• the tab arrangement 50 may be separated from the nail 22 by any appropriate mechanism.
• the neck 54 of the tab arrangement 50 may include a weakened area, such as, for example, a thinned section 80 substantially adjacent the distal edge 33 of the nail 22, similar to the arrangement shown in FIGS. 2-4, a perforation 82, as shown, for example, in FIG. 7 A, a relatively small cross-section 84 at the location where the neck 70 meets the nail 86, such as is as shown, for example in FIG. 9, a score line, or any combination of such structures. While less desirable, those of skill in the art will appreciate that the tab arrangement 50 could alternately be severed from the nail 22 by a tool, such as scissors or a blade.
• a user may easily apply the artificial nail 22 to a natural nail 100 in a coordinated and ergonomic manner. More specifically, when applying the artificial nail 22 to a natural nail 100, the user may grasps the body 52 of the tab arrangement 50 between the thumb 102 and middle finger 104 of the applying hand 106 to position the artificial nail 22 on the natural nail 100 of the receiving hand 108, as shown in FIG. 1OA. Once the user has placed artificial nail 22 on the natural nail 100, while continuing to hold the body 52 of the tab arrangement 50, the user may then utilize the index finger 110 of the applying hand 106 to place a retaining force on the upper surface of the situated artificial nail 22, as shown in FIG.
• the user may further use the thumb 102 and middle finger 104 of the applying hand 106 to separate the tab arrangement 50 from the artificial nail 22, should the arrangement 50 include a weakened area as the mechanism for facilitating separation. In this way, the user may easily and quickly apply a plurality of artificial nails to respective natural nails to obtain a polished, manicured appearance.
• the disposition of the body 52 at an angle to the upper or lower surfaces of the artificial nail 22 provides an ergonomic arrangement that is easily utilized to place the nail.
• the angled disposition is as opposed to a tab in a generally continuous plane with the nail, as provided, for example, in U.S. Patent 6,892,736 to Chinn et al. or U.S. Patent 5,005,595 to Aylott.
• the angle must be sufficient to allow the user to comfortably grasp the body 52 and place the nail 22.
• an angle of at least 30° to either the top or bottom surface of the nail 22 will typically be adequate to facilitate grasping and placing the nail 22.
• the tab 50 may be sufficiently wide to display information for the user.
• the tab 50 may include indicia 112 such as, for example, the size number of the accompanying nail, the name of the manufacturer, a trademark or tradename, the nail color or instructions.
• the indicia 112 may provided on the tab arrangement 50 by any appropriate mechanism, such as, for example, molding the indicia into the arrangement, or printing the indicia thereupon. In this way, such indicia 112 may facilitate the user's choice of nail for application.
• the preformed artificial nails 22 utilized in the nail kit 18 may be of any appropriate design.
• the invention may likewise be utilized in connection with a nail tip, as opposed to a full nail, as illustrated in the figures.
• the term "nail” will be used to correspond to both a full nail and a nail tip.
• the nail tip is essentially the same as a full nail with the exception that the nail tip includes only a portion that is adapted to cover only a distal portion of the natural nail.
• the nail kit may include additional items, such as, by way of example only, an appropriate adhesive, such as is shown in FIG.
• a rough or emery type surface for buffing the natural nail prior to placement of the artificial nail a towelette including an acetone or other substance to clean the nail prior to placement, a rosewood stick and/or an application tool for assistance during installation of the artificial nail onto the natural nail surface.

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• Orthopedics, Nursing, And Contraception (AREA)
• Prostheses (AREA)
• Cosmetics (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=40026274

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (9)

Cited By (1)

Families Citing this family (7)

Citations (3)

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• 2008
  • 2008-04-24 MX MX2009011488A patent/MX2009011488A/es active IP Right Grant
  • 2008-04-24 CN CN2008800137280A patent/CN101686747B/zh not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2008-04-24 HU HUE08825945A patent/HUE043619T2/hu unknown
  • 2008-04-24 JP JP2010506495A patent/JP5386711B2/ja not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2008-04-24 US US12/108,896 patent/US20080283076A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2008-04-24 CA CA2684961A patent/CA2684961C/en active Active
  • 2008-04-24 DK DK08825945.2T patent/DK2142032T3/da active
  • 2008-04-24 WO PCT/US2008/061442 patent/WO2008156916A2/en active Search and Examination
  • 2008-04-24 CN CN2012104033147A patent/CN102894634A/zh active Pending
  • 2008-04-24 EP EP08825945.2A patent/EP2142032B1/de not_active Not-in-force

Patent Citations (3)

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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