Patent Application
20180317622
The present invention relates to hair rollers, and more particularly, to flexible hair rollers designed and configured to store and/or transport in a minimal volume.
Hair rollers or curlers are used to produce a new hairstyle by rolling them onto a person's hair. These tubular shaped hair rollers are currently available in various sizes to provide different sizes and styles of curls. When styling hair, typically, a set of hair rollers (e.g., a dozen or more) is needed. However, owning and using these conventional hair rollers has one major disadvantage. Specifically, the hair rollers occupy a lot of space and present a storage issue since they remain in a tubular shape even when the hair rollers are not in use. Particularly, this can be a problem while traveling, when storage space is limited.
Accordingly, although various hair rollers are available currently in the market, further improvements are possible.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, a flexible hair roller includes a flexible substrate extending longitudinally between opposing ends, the flexible substrate having an inner planar side and an outer planar side opposite the inner planar side, a plurality of loops disposed across an entire length of the outer planar side and covering all of the outer planar side of the substrate, a plurality of hooks disposed across an entire width along one of end portions of the inner planar side of the substrate, and a tab connected to the end of the substrate where the plurality of hooks are disposed and extends laterally therefrom, wherein the plurality of hooks from the inner planar side of the substrate are configured to engage and stick to a portion of the plurality of loops from the outer planar side of the substrate so as to transit the flexible hair roller between flattened and rolled positions.
These and other aspects of the present invention will be better understood in view of the drawings and following detailed description.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring again to
The substrate 12 of the flexible hair roller 10 is made of one or more materials having suitable properties for a desired application, including strength, weight, rigidity, etc. Flexible material such as soft plastic or vinyl is preferred. In addition, the material is water resistance and thus washable. Preferred dimensions believed to be suitable for the substrate 12 includes a width of approximately 2.5 inches, a length between 2.5 inches and 7.5 inches, and a thickness between 0.125 inch and 0.1875 inch. The length LA of the area of the disposed hooks 26 is preferably between 0.5 inch to 1 inch.
The plurality of hooks 26 are designed to stick with the plurality of loops 24 upon contacting the plurality of loops 24. The plurality of loops 24 are dimensioned and configured such that they provide adequate adherence when the hair is wound around the outer planar side 22 of the substrate 12. Other shapes, configurations, and dimensions could be used as deemed suitable for the substrate 12 of the flexible hair roller 10.
Referring again to
The tab 14 allows the flexible hair roller 10 to easily transit from the rolled position to the flattened position. For example, when the flexible hair roller 10 is in the rolled position, the tab 14 is disposed above the outer planar side 22 of the substrate 12, as shown in
The tab 14 of the flexible hair roller 10 is made of one or more materials having suitable properties for a desired application, including strength, weight, rigidity, etc. Nylon or polyester is generally preferred. In the depicted embodiment, the tab 14 has a rectangular shape; alternatively, the tab 14 may be in any other shape deemed suitable, such as a square or semi-circular shape. In addition, various dimensions could be used as deemed suitable for the tab 14 of the flexible hair roller 10.
Pictures (e.g., logos) or text (e.g., product descriptions) may be printed on or attached to the inner planar side 20 of the substrate 12 of the flexible hair roller 10, where the plurality of hooks 26 are not disposed.
From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that a flexible hair roller according to the present invention provides easy use for shaping hair, while reducing storage space for hair rollers.
In general, the foregoing description is provided for exemplary and illustrative purposes; the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto. Rather, those skilled in the art will appreciate that additional modifications, as well as adaptations for particular circumstances, will fall within the scope of the invention as herein shown and described and of the claims appended hereto.
