Patent Application
20150250279
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a curling iron. More particularly, the present invention relates to a curling iron including a releasable clamp permitting the user to style hair with or without the presence of the clamp on the curling iron.
2. Background of the Related Art
Heated hair may be smoothed, manipulated, and styled more easily that non-heated hair. There are numerous hair styling tools and appliances for heated styling of hair including curling irons having a variety of features. Curling irons are intended to impart a curl or pattern to hair being styled by sufficiently heating a barrel or mandrel of the curling iron and restraining the hair in physical contact with the barrel. A section of hair is typically wound around the heated barrel of the curling iron and held in contact with the heated barrel for a period of time. Heat from the heated barrel reforms plastic bonds in the hair. When the heat styled hair is removed from the heated barrel, the hair retains the shape of the curling iron's barrel.
One conventional curling iron utilizes a clamp to hold hair in place along the barrel of the curling iron. The clamp secures a starting section of hair with subsequent windings of the hair being wound on top of the clamp and the barrel, locking the clamp against the barrel. Thus, the hair must be unwound to release the clamp. Unfortunately, unwinding the hair from the barrel reduces the set of the curl and the precision of the set.
In recent years, clampless curling irons have become available. A clampless curling iron provides additional flexibility and benefits over conventional curling irons including, e.g., the ability to wrap hair directly over the barrel while keeping the barrel stationary, eliminating creases and crimps in the hair associated with the clamp, and enabling the curling iron to get closer to the roots thereby creating an increased volume in the curl.
Accordingly, the present disclosure is directed to a curling iron having both clamp and clampless capabilities, thus providing the user with styling flexibility. In one embodiment, a hair curling apparatus includes a handle, a barrel depending from the handle, and barrel dimensioned to accommodate a lock of hair wrapped thereabout and a clamp releasably mounted relative to one of the barrel or the handle. The clamp includes a spoon which is adapted to move relative to the one of the barrel or the handle between a closed position and an open position. The spoon engages the lock of hair when in the closed position.
The clamp includes a spoon mount dimensioned to releasably couple with the barrel. The spoon may be pivotally mounted to the spoon mount. The spoon mount may include a mount base and a lock mounted for movement relative to the mount base. The lock is adapted to move between a release position and a secured position thereof. The lock may be pivotally mounted to the mount base, and is pivotal between the release position and the secured position. The lock may include a lock detent and the mount base may include a lock shelf. The lock detent may be dimensioned to engage the lock shelf when in the secured position of the lock.
The barrel may define a recessed barrel segment having a reduced cross-section. The mount base may be at least partially accommodated within the recessed barrel segment when the clamp is mounted to the barrel. One of the barrel and the mount base may include a key and the other of the barrel and the mount base may include a key slot dimensioned to receive the key when the clamp is mounted to its barrel.
The spoon may be normally biased to the closed position by a spring.
Various embodiments of the present disclosure are described hereinbelow with references to the drawings, wherein:
Referring to the figures and, in particular,
The curling iron 100 receives power from an electrical outlet via a power cord 112 which extends from the handle 102. Alternatively, the barrel 104 may be powered by, for example, a battery or other suitable sources of electrical power.
The barrel 104 may be made of any thermally conductive material adapted to transfer heat from a heater assembly identified schematically as referenced numeral 114 located in the curling iron 100. The barrel 104 may define a smooth cylindrical surface or may have one or more raised or depressed thermally conductive surfaces located thereon including, e.g., transverse ribs, a helical rib, and a raised pattern to impart a decorative crimp or wave pattern onto the hair. The barrel 104 includes an insulative tip 116.
As best depicted in
The heater 114 within the barrel 104 may be any conventional heater assembly which can be incorporated within the barrel 104. The heater assembly 114 may include a controller, e.g., circuitry, to regulate the output of the heater assembly 114. The controller may have a micro-processor for controlling various functions of the heater assembly 114, and various types of feedbacks, comparators, and/or logic circuitry to monitor and respond to the variable temperature loads to which the curling iron 100 is likely subjected.
With continued reference to
As best depicted in
The spoon mount 204 is secured to the spoon 202 via screws 210 which extend through openings 226 of mounting legs 228 of the spoon 202, through openings 230 of the mount base 214 and openings 232 of the spring mount 224. Either the openings 230, 232 of mount base 214 and the spring mount 224 may be threaded to threadably engage the screws 210. In one embodiment, the openings 232 of the spring mount 224 are threaded.
The lock 216 of the releasable clamp 200 is pivotally mounted to the base mount 214 via pivot pin or screw 234. The lock 216 defines a locking detent 236 which engages a corresponding lock shelf 238 of the mount base 214 as will be discussed. The lock 216 is adapted to pivot relative to the base mount 214 between an open position and a closed position. In the closed position, the lock is at least partially accommodated within a gap 240 defined with each mounting leg 218 of the mount base 214.
Assembly of the clamp 200 to the curling iron 100 will now be discussed. With reference to
To secure the releasable clamp 200, the lock 216 is moved from the release position depicted in
The use of the curling apparatus 10 will now be discussed. The curling iron 100 with the clamp 200 mounted thereto may be used to treat hair in a conventional manner, e.g., the spoon 202 may be pivoted by depression of manual segment 206 to the open position of
When it is decided to remove the clamp 200 to provide a clampless capability or mode to the curling iron 100, the lock 216 of the spoon mount 204 is pivoted from the locked position depicted in to the release position depicted in phantom in
Although the illustrative embodiments of the present disclosure have been described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, the above description, disclosure, and Figures should not be construed as limiting, but merely as exemplifications of particular embodiments. It is to be understood, therefore, that the disclosure is not limited to those precise embodiments, and that various other changes and modifications may be effected therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the scope or spirit of the disclosure.
