Clothing protective device

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6182335
  • Patent Number
    6,182,335
  • Date Filed
    Tuesday, January 5, 1999
    25 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, February 6, 2001
    23 years ago
Abstract
A clothing protective device which is particularly adapted to be worn by a person, such as a man, woman or child, and which in particular will assist in the protection of clothing while dining. In essence, the device is essentially in the form of a so-called napkin holder which can be readily transported in a clothing pocket or a purse and which is imparted a large number of uses in addition to being merely a clothing protective device.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of the Invention




The present invention relates to a clothing protective device which is particularly adapted to be worn by a person, such as a man, woman or child, and which in particular will assist in the protection of clothing while dining. In essence, the device is essentially in the form of a so-called napkin holder which can be readily transported in a clothing pocket or a purse and which is imparted a large number of uses in addition to being merely a clothing protective device.




In essence, various types of clothing protective devices, especially in the form of napkin holders which may be worn about the neck of the user during dining are currently known and in widespread use. Among such devices, of a rather primitive nature are the so-called napkins or bibs which are adapted to be tied about the neck of a wearer during dining and which are relatively unsightly when worn in public locations or more sophisticated dining establishments.




Currently a number of clothing protective devices of this nature; in essence, which are adapted to be worn about the neck of a wearer during desired periods of time; for example, such as when dining or the like, are known in the art.




2. Discussion of the Prior Art




Among the devices adapted to protect clothing during dining or similar instances are the napkin clip of Basseches et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,425,680. In that instance, a clip which may be attached to an upper clothing portion below the chin of a wearer has clamping structures which are adapted to engage a napkin corner which is passed through a slot so as to be clipped to the clothing. This, however only protects a narrow front portion of the clothing of the wearer and, in essence, does not provide for any adjustability with regard to the different types of clothing, or the size of the wearer; for example, that of a man compared to woman or a child. Consequently, Basseches at el. discloses a napkin clip which is only of relatively limited applicability.




Lokken U.S. Pat. No. 5,191,681 discloses a napkin or drape holder which is in the form of a spring-like first plastic member and a spring-like second plastic member of collinear proportion adapted to be engaged so as to wedge a hinge structure therebetween, the latter of which may be attached to a napkin or a drape. When attached to a napkin, the ring-like element may be positioned about the neck of wearer during dining. This however, presents, a complex and uncomfortable structure which is not suspectable of large scale utilization in view of its lack of adjustability to the neck of a child or woman where it may create problems as to sensitivity and discomfort.




Similarly, Kaderabek U.S. Pat. No. 4,587,692 discloses a universal napkin support in the form of two elastic circular arm bands which are adapted to be position about the neck of a wearer, and wherein clip members at side portions thereof are adapted to engage a clothing or napkin article so as to be suspended from the neck of the wearer. Again, as in the previously discussed patent to Lokken, this would provide a large degree of discomfort and lack of adjustability for the neck of a woman or child of tender years.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




Accordingly, in order to clearly and advantageously distinguish over the foregoing, pursuant to the present invention a clothing protective device includes a small case, generally in the form of a cylindrical element, constituted of two separable halves attached by an extendable and subsequently retractable string, and incorporates elements for the attachment of a clothing protective article to the device, such as a napkin or the like.




The item aids in the protection of clothing while dining, the small casing assembly allows the user to keep a variety of items which are helpful before, during and after meals in one convenient case. The outer case can be made of any type of material, i.e. wood, plastic, metal, glass and is easily transported in a clothing pocket or purse. The two halves of the symmetric container split apart to expose an individual clip on the innermost planar surface of each half. The clips hold a user supplied napkin in place during a meal or while engaging in activities which would normally stain clothing. The two halves of the case are connected by means of a retractable string which is draped around the neck of the user, who attaches each clip to one side of a napkin which can then be easily adjusted to vary the napkin position. When finished dining the two halves are simply unclipped by the user from the napkin, and by applying a slight pressure to a release button, located on an internal planar surface of the bottom half, retracts the string into that half of the casing. The remaining few inches of string, which is left outside of the container, are automatically retracted and concealed when the two halves are placed together. Furthermore, the user need not press the release button to retract the string, but by merely bringing the two halves of the case together and closing them, causes an internal retraction mechanism to roll up the string and conceal it within the reassembled halves of the case. A pair of steel locating pins is adapted to keep the assembly consisting of the case halves together, oriented and magnetically attached until pulled apart again.




In addition to constituting a basic clothing protective device, the entire unit consisting of the case and the attended napkin engaging structure and mechanism is also adapted for other diverse application, all of which enhance the usefulness and aesthetic value thereof.




The unit may also be worn as a necklace by removing the internally stored decorative chain and clipping it to the outside of the unit in the spaced provided. The internal components that make up the mechanical sub-assembly are designed into the bottom half and in a fashion that can be easily inserted into a variety of external cases that can be both entertaining as well as decorative. The variety of material that can be used in manufacturing can vary how it is sold and help to classify it as either as a novelty, toy or jewelry either expensive or costume in structure. Components which do not relate to the function of the string retraction sub-assembly mechanism but make up the rest of the unit as a whole may comprise, selectively, a toothpick, mirror and recessed photograph or engraving. The top half of the container, which does not house the string retraction mechanism, is used for storage of a toothpick and necklace. The extreme outer spherical surface of both halves, of this particular design, are flat and parallel to each internal surface and can provide a smooth face for engraving in the event a recess for the picture or mirror is not desired for other models. The toothpick, concealed in a recess on the circumference of the outermost spherical portion of the top half, can be easily removed by inserting a finger tip into the concave indentation and pulled outward.




Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel clothing protective device comprising a casing including separable halves interconnected by an extendable and retractable string which includes clip structure for engaging a napkin or similar clothing protective article.




Another object of the present invention is to provide a casing consisting of mating casing halves which are adapted to be carried in a clothing pocket or a purse, and which may be readily removed therefrom and placed about the neck of the wearer by being separated while attached by an extendable string so as to engage a clothing protective article, such as a napkin, while the user is dining.




Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a clothing protective device of the type described herein which includes retraction mechanism subsequent to use thereof when worn about the neck of a wearer so as to be able to reassemble the casing halves with the string retracted therein.




A still further object to present invention is to provide a clothing protective device as described herein wherein the device is adapted to selectively incorporate further features, such as the incorporation of a toothpick, mirror, neck chain and other elements in enhancing the usefulness and aesthetic properties thereof.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




Reference may now be had to the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings; in which:





FIG. 1

illustrates an exploded perspective view of the clothing protective device pursuant to the invention, illustrating all of the internal constituents thereof;





FIGS. 2



a


and


2




b


illustrate, respectively, a front and top view and a rear and bottom view in a perspective representation of the assembled clothing protective device, shown on an enlarged scale;





FIGS. 3



a


through


3




d


illustrate, respectively, top, bottom, front and rear views of the assembled casing halves forming the clothing protective device pursuant to the invention;





FIGS. 4

illustrates, on an enlarged scale, a transverse central sectional view of the device of

FIG. 3



a


; and





FIG. 5

illustrates the casing halves of the device shown in various operative positions thereof.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS




Reference may now be had to

FIG. 1

of the drawing which illustrates a perspective exploded view of the clothing protective device


10


with essentially all of the internal components, including optional components, being shown in the order in which they would be installed within the clothing protective device


10


.




Referring specifically to the detail of components, the clothing protective device


10


includes a first hollow cup member forming a lower case half


12


. This cup-shaped component houses the string retraction mechanism


14


, consisting essentially of a spool


16


, a coil spring


18


, a connecting string


20


(shown in FIG.


5


), a trip latch


22


, a trip latch pivot pin


24


, a pair of steel locating pins


26


, and a spool retainer


28


.




As illustrated, the mating case half


30


also is essentially hollowed cup-shaped and is adapted to house a toothpick


32


, a mirror


34


, and is provided with a hollow or recess on an opposite side, which is adapted for storage of a necklace chain or other small items (not shown) which may adapt the entire device to be worn as a decorative pendant or the like. As is indicated, the spool


16


is adapted to retain the string


20


, the latter of which may by formed of Kevlar™ or the like to impart strength thereto and resistance to tearing, while stored in the cup-shaped casing half


12


. The coil spring


18


is a coiled taut spring which is adapted to supply the force needed to retract and wind the string


30


when the casing halves are placed together onto the spool


16


. The spring also supplies the force which is required to lock the trip latch


22


.




A spool retainer


38


forms a protective barrier between the spool


16


and a napkin clip


40


for the casing half


12


. The spool retainer


38


also serves as a spacer in order to retain the spool


16


, thereby restricting the vertical movement thereof relative to the case.




As illustrated, two napkin clips


40


and


42


are provided to serve as fasteners for the inserted napkin (not shown). The steel locating pins


26


are employed as a guide structure during the matings or placing together of the cup halves


12


and


30


, when the latter are in the closed positions as shown in

FIGS. 2



a


and


2




b


, and

FIG. 4

of the drawings. In order to maintain the mating case halves


12


and


30


together, suitable magnets


44


are provided as illustrated in

FIG. 1

of the drawing. The trip latch


22


provides for the locking mechanism for the string


20


, whereas the pivot pin


24


for the trip latch provides a pivot point during the locking and releasing of string


20


.




Further provided may be a suitable toothpick


46


which is adapted to slide into a recess


48


formed in the casing half


30


.




The casing half


30


may have the outer service provided with a circular recess


50


for receiving a mirror


52


; whereas similarly, the bottom of the casing half


12


may have a circular picture or metal engraving structure


54


inserted therein and fastened thereto through a suitable adhesive. Further provided is a napkin plug


56


which engages adjacent the casing half


30


, and which may provide a so-called “squeeze point” for the napkin which is to be held by the device


10


and the napkin clip


40


.




An optional component which may be incorporated into the unit may be a suitable circuit board or digital display for additional function, in future models, as described hereinbelow.




In

FIGS. 2



a


and


2




b


there are illustrated two enlarged perspective views of the complete device


10


. The rear and bottom view in

FIG. 2



b


shows the picture recess


60


in case half


12


, the inserted toothpick


46


and the access slot


62


for the napkin fastener. The cup-like case half


12


contains all of the mechanical components which are described in specific detail with reference to

FIG. 4

, and as shown in FIG.


1


. The case half


3


contains toothpick


46


, a storage compartment and one-half of the slot


62


. This slot allows for access to the napkin clip


40


so that a user can bend the clip outwardly with one finger and allow for the insertion of the napkin. A match line


64


represents the mating halves of the two major case components


12


and


30


when the assembly of the device is complete. The front and top view,

FIG. 2



a


, shows the mirror recess


50


in case half


30


, a recessed string slot


66


, the case half


12


and the assembly match line


64


.





FIGS. 3



a


through


3




d


illustrate four views of the complete assembled device


10


. A frontal view


70


depicts the string slot/recess


66


which is provided for easier retraction of the string


20


upon closure of the device. Side view


72


diagrammatically displays the complete internal workings of the device


10


, which view


74


shows the external and internal features of the bottom case half


12


only so as not to confuse them with the mating upper case


30


shown by view


76


. The coil spring


18


(in

FIG. 1

) is not shown for purposes of clarity, but is contained within spool


16


. The lower half, view


74


displays the recess


60


for a picture or engraving


54


which could be added for decorative purposes. The upper view


76


, shows the external and internal features of the top half case only so as not to confuse them with the mating lower half case, whereas view


76


displays the recess


50


for a mirror


52


and the channel


48


for recessing the toothpick


40


, but not the necklace storage compartment.





FIG. 4

shown an enlarged transverse center section viewed from the left front side. Shown are the lower (bottom) and upper case halves


12


,


30


of the protective clothing device assembly, respectively. Identified by reference numeral


40


are the napkin clips, preferably of polypropylene, which fold outwardly to allow for the insertion of one half of a napkin. When released, the clip


40


squeezes the napkin material between itself and the vertical pin


56


. Also shown is the mirror recess


50


for mirror


52


in FIG.


1


. The toothpick


40


is a nylon toothpick inserted into the channel or recess


48


(see

FIG. 1.

) Napkin clip


40


presses against trip latch


22


at closure so as to open the latter, and allows the string


20


(shown in

FIG. 5

) to retract into the device by means of preloaded “spring wound” spool


16


. The string


20


is allowed to travel in and out of the device


10


via a narrow corridor from the inside to the outside of lower case half


12


. The trip latch


22


is positioned above the string


20


in this corridor and toggles about pivot pin


24


is an “arc like” motion, but for only over a fraction of a degree. The string


20


is in constant contact with trip latch


22


in either direction of movement. As the string


20


moves outwardly, trip latch


22


toggles upwardly allowing the string


20


to pass unobstructed. As the string retracts inwardly, trip latch


22


toggles downwardly and squeezes the string against the base of the corridor, causing the string to lock, wherein


66


is the recess for the Kevlar string which connects both case halves


12


,


30


of the device


10


. The recess


60


for a picture or engraving for decorative purposes, and recess


50


for a mirror may be eliminated if not required for other variations of the device. A center post


80


centers the spool


16


, and more importantly retains the coil spring


18


center tab from releasing during extension or retraction of string


20


. The spool retainer


38


is used as a spacer between the spool


16


and the underside of the napkin clip


40


.




Referring to

FIG. 5

, the device


10


is represented diagrammatically in a simulated motion during closure of the case halves


12


and


30


. The string


20


is preferably a 40″ long Kevlar™ string which joins the two case halves


12


and


30


, and serves as a hanger when wrapped around the neck of a user and retracts into the lower casing


12


for storage. The opposite end of string


20


is attached to the upper casing half


30


, and is secured through the toothpick recess


48


.




Modifications of the above described inventive clothing protective device


10


may incorporate an LED (light emitting diode) display behind the mirror


52


, which will cause a light to shine through the mirror when a button is depressed or if the device is squeezed by user. This display can be employed for time, alarm clock settings, or a variety of reminder messages. Furthermore, the device could also be employed as a pocket pager to indicate the phone numbers of incoming calls and as a cellular phone when the electronic technology enables such electronics to be incorporated into a sub-miniature package the size of the present device


10


. For that purpose, the circuit board and digital display referred to hereinabove under reference numeral


58


is an optional element which is normally not installed in the present device, until the latter is adapted to be modified for the above-referenced electronic utilization.




While there have been shown and described what are considered to be preferred embodiments of the invention, it will, of course, be understood that various modifications and changes in form or detail could readily be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is, therefore, intended that the invention be not limited to the exact form and detail herein shown and described, nor to anything less than the whole of the invention herein disclosed as hereinafter claimed.



Claims
  • 1. A clothing protective device positionable so as to be worn about the neck of a wearer and for clampingly engaging a clothing protective article covering portions of the clothing; said device comprising:a) a casing structure having first and second mating halves consisting of first and second hollow cylindrical cup-shaped members which are manually separable; b) a string member interconnecting said first and second casing halves to enable said casing structure to be suspended from the neck of a wearer upon separation of said first and second casing halves; and c) first and second clip means on respectively each of said first and second casing halves clampingly releasably engaging said clothing protective article when said separated first and second casing halves are suspended from the neck of the wearer, said hollow cylindrical cup-shaped members upon release of said clip means from the clothing protecting article being positionable in mating contact against each after during periods of non-use to form a closed hollow cylindrical housing.
  • 2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first casing half houses operative mechanism for the outward extension of said connecting string member upon separation of said casing halves and for the retraction of said string member into said first casing half at the closing together of said casing halves.
  • 3. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said operative mechanism comprises a spool in said first casing half for winding said string member thereabout upon being retracted into said casing half; and trip latch structure for releasably latching said string member in predetermined extended positions thereof upon separation of said casing halves.
  • 4. A device as claimed in claim 3, wherein said operative mechanism comprises a helical coil spring operatively connected to said winding spool and trip latch for said string member for retracting said string member into said first casing half upon said casing halves being assembled into a closed position.
  • 5. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein pins are provided for aligning said casing halves in the assembled position thereof.
  • 6. A device as claimed in claim 5, wherein magnets are provided for attracting said casing halves to each other in the assembled position thereof so as to form a closed housing.
  • 7. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said second casing half includes a recess for the receipt and storage of a removable toothpick.
  • 8. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein one of said casing halves includes a recessed outer surface for mounting a decorative mirror.
  • 9. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the other of said casing halves includes an outer recessed surface for mounting a picture or having a decorative engraving formed therein.
  • 10. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first and second casing halves are selected from the group of materials consisting of metal, plastic or wood.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of the U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/070,581; filed on Jan. 6, 1998.

US Referenced Citations (13)
Number Name Date Kind
324039 Nelson Aug 1885
598870 Hoagland et al. Feb 1898
1669983 Humphrey May 1928
1725748 Alexander Aug 1929
2861313 Ruf Nov 1958
3453698 Mosby Jul 1969
3813737 Larsen Jun 1974
4425680 Basseches et al. Jan 1984
4587692 Kaderabek May 1986
4953809 Barrus Sep 1990
5008981 Smithson Apr 1991
5191681 Lokken Mar 1993
5509616 Millen, Jr. et al. Apr 1996
Provisional Applications (1)
Number Date Country
60/070581 Jan 1998 US