FRONTAL HAIRPIECE

Abstract

A frontal wig for use on the front of a person's head is provided. The frontal wig may include multiple base layers including at least one base layer with a mesh surface for attachment of hair filaments, and at least one base layer including an adhesive surface for mating to the person's head. The frontal wig may include a securing band attached to the base layers at side ends of the base layers, the securing band provided for attaching the frontal wig to the head. The frontal wig may include multiple hair filaments attached to the mesh layer.

Description

BACKGROUND

Field

The present disclosure relates to the field of hair wigs, and more particularly, but not exclusively, to wigs worn on the frontal portion of a person's head.

Background

Hair wigs have traditionally addressed problems associated with balding or thinning hair. Typically, a person may experience hair loss at the front of the head initially. When such hair loss occurs, there are many options for the person, including the wigs or hair transplants. Some other options may include shaving the head or wearing head gear such as hats. While hair loss may be a natural consequence of aging, others experiencing partial hair loss may include cancer patients or those experiencing other medical problems and undergoing treatments.

In some instances, partial hairpieces (“hairpiece” and “wig” may be used interchangeably in the disclosure) may be suitable for users who still have a portion of their original hair or those users who are experiencing early signs of hair loss. Partial hairpieces can provide a better value to end users due to the lower costs associated with creating the partial hairpieces. Frontal hairpieces, as a type of partial hairpiece, may be designed to complement a user's own hair. Creating a natural looking frontal hairpiece, however, has been challenging. Some existing frontal hairpieces rely on bangs or long bunches of hair to drape over the front hairline.

Accordingly, there exists a need for an improved frontal hairpiece that can be applied to the wearer to better address the needs of persons experiencing partial hair loss, with the improved frontal hairpieces complementing the wearer's own hair.

SUMMARY

In an aspect of the disclosure, a frontal wig for use on the front of a person's head is provided. The frontal wig may include multiple base layers including at least one base layer with a mesh surface for attachment of hair filaments, and at least one base layer including an adhesive surface for mating to the person's head. The frontal wig may include a securing band attached to the base layers at side ends of the base layers, the securing band provided for attaching the frontal wig to the head. The frontal wig may include multiple hair filaments attached to the mesh layer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary frontal wig including layers and hairs attached to the layers, in accordance with one or more aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a front view of the exemplary frontal wig of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a mesh layer with attached hair filaments, the layer and filaments forming a part of the exemplary frontal wig of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a front view of an exemplary usage of the frontal wig of FIG. 1 on a model.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a side view of an exemplary usage of the frontal wig of FIG. 1 on a model.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of various concepts. It will, however, be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well known structures and components are shown in the diagrams; such structures and components are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below based on the accompanying drawings. In the description below, if necessary, the terms indicative of the specific direction or position (for example, “upper”, “right”, “left”, “longitudinal”, “transverse”, and other words including these words) are used for easy understanding of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. The meanings of the terms do not limit the technical scope of the present invention. The same parts or members are designated by the same reference numerals throughout the drawings.

The exemplary apparatuses discussed infra are applicable to any hairpieces whether used as frontal wigs or for other areas of the head. To simplify the discussion, the exemplary apparatuses are discussed within the context of these example embodiments. One of ordinary skill in the art, however, would understand that the exemplary embodiments are applicable more generally to a variety of hairpieces.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary frontal wig 100 including layers and hairs attached to the layers, in accordance with one or more aspects of the disclosure. In the example of FIG. 1, the frontal wig 100 is oriented with the front of the wig 100 on top and the rear of the wig 100 facing down; the diagram shows the bottom of the base layer 110 that contacts the head of a user of the wig 100.

The frontal wig 100 includes hairs 105, also called filaments, implanted in the base layer 110. For the hair filaments a variety of styles and materials may be used. In some embodiments, the hair filaments may be made using organic or inorganic substances such as synthetic fibers, natural fibers, natural hairs, or the like. The fiber filaments may then be implanted onto the base layer 110. The base layer 110 may be formed from a net-like or mesh-like layer. Although the base layer 110 is a mesh layer in the example illustrations (with “base layer 110” and “mesh layer 110” used interchangeably), the disclosure is not limited to embodiments using only mesh layers.

In FIG. 1, the example is shown with two base layers 110, 112a-b; however, other embodiments may include fewer or more layers to form the foundation for the wig 100. In the various embodiments, the base layer 110 may be constructed from various types of materials including synthetic or natural fabrics or fibers, etc. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the base layer 110 serves as attachment points for the hair filaments 105. Another layer 112a-b may be adhered to the base layer 110 to serve various functions such as an adhesion layer using, for example, bondage latex, tape, glue, spirit gum, etc. to better secure the wig 100 to a user's scalp.

For example, the adhesive used (not shown) on the second layer may be single-use or reusable for securing the wig 100 to the user. In some embodiments, the wig 100 may include an elastic band 120 attached to the wig 100 at the wide ends, with the elastic band 120 designed to wrap around the user's head underneath their own hair to the rear of the user's head. In some embodiments, the elastic band 120 may be optional when the base layer 110 includes sufficient adhesive material to secure the wig 100 without needing the elastic band 120. When the wig 100 includes the elastic band 120, the band may be attached to the wig, e.g., with a hook at the left attachment point 124 and right attachment point 126 as illustrated or using other clasps or clips suitable for the design. The attachments such as the hook provide for adjustability in the elastic band (it may be shortened or lengthened through a loop) to fit a variety of users and head sizes. The layers may include a soft layer (not shown) for comfort. In such instances, a soft layer may help prevent discomfort from the elastic band or the clips.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the second layer 112a-b is formed from two separate parts 112a and 112b allowing a space between the two parts 112a and 112b. The mesh layer 110 provides ventilation due to the more porous material of the mash as opposed to the second layer. Thus, in some designs breathability of the material may be a consideration in the selection of the base layer materials. In other embodiments where ventilation is not important, the second layer may be a single piece covering the entire area of the mesh layer 110. Because the second layer provides additional support, the material used is chosen to provide better attachment for the anchor points 124, 126 of the clasps. The attachment points and clasps must be strong enough and sufficiently durable to secure the wig 100 to the user for long periods of time, e.g., for many hours. In some instances, the second layer may be a stretchable film-like material. While FIG. 1 shows the two layers 110, 112a-b connected by zig-zag patterns and along the edges, any suitable techniques may be used to join or mate the layers together. If additional layers (such as a soft layer for comfort) are included, the additional layers may attach to the next outer most layer. In this example, a third layer may be attached to the second film layer 112a, b. A fourth layer may be attached to the third layer, etc.

While the figures, including FIG. 1, are shown with a particular hair style of long wavy hairs, this is merely illustrative and not limiting of the embodiments. Frontal wigs 100 of the present embodiments may have various designs and arrangements of the hairs 105 including lower or higher hair density, different colors, different hair textures, length, etc. In some instances, the frontal wig 100 may be customized based on characteristics of the intended user such that the frontal wig 100 more closely matches the hair characteristics of the user.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a front view of the exemplary frontal wig 100 of FIG. 1. In this view, looking at the wig 100 face-on, the base layers 110 are concealed by the hairs 105 of the wig 100. When worn on a user of the wig 100, the base layer will be similarly concealed (also as shown infra in FIGS. 4-5).

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a close-up view of the mesh layer 110 with attached hair filaments 105, the layer and filaments forming a part of the exemplary frontal wig 100 of FIG. 1. The example in FIG. 3 shows a portion of the mesh layer 110 without any other layers obscuring the details. Hair filaments 105 may be attached directly to the lattice structure of the mesh layer 110. The lattice structure provides support for the density of the hairs because the lattice structure provides the attachment points for the hairs. The density of the hairs may follow the lattice structure of the mesh. As described above with respect to FIG. 1, the mesh structure may allow a breathable design to provide cooling and comfort for a wearer of the wig 100. This close-up view of FIG. 3 shows an optional textured feature of the wig 100. High-density hair 106 may be included along with low-density hair 107 for a more natural looking hairpiece. In some embodiments, the density may be uniform throughout the hairpiece.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a front view of an exemplary usage of the frontal wig 100 of FIG. 1 on a female user 400. The user 400 wears the wig 100 on a frontal portion of the user's scalp, and extending down to the top of the ears. As shown, the base layer (or layers) 114 (e.g., layers 110, 112a-b of FIG. 1) includes a curvature that mimics natural hairlines at the front of the user's forehead or scalp. With the hair extending down toward the user's shoulders, the material and methods for securing the hairpiece are obscured from view. The embodiment shown includes the elastic band 120 that wraps around the rear of the user's 400 head. The visual appearance of the hairpiece 100 blends in with the appearance of the user's 400 own natural hair 130.

The width and depth of the frontal wig 100 is typically designed to cover at least the front area of the base layer 114 to best obscure the material of the base layer 114. In some embodiments, the hairs on the wig 100 will span the entire surface area of the base layer 114. In this way, the shape of the base layer dictates the design of the wig 100. Referring back to FIG. 1, the base layer 114 may include a smooth curvature that mimics a natural hairline, extending down to the ears. When viewed from the front, as in FIG. 2, the natural hairline provides an authentic-looking hairpiece. The design of the base layer 114 may take various forms and shapes as desired or as necessitated by a particular user's needs.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a side view of an exemplary usage shown in FIG. 5 of the frontal wig 100. As described previously with respect to FIG. 5, the hairs conceal both the layers of the hairpiece and the elastic band 120 used to secure the hairpiece to the front of the user's head. While the optional elastic band 120 may appear to be visible on the head as illustrated in FIG. 6, when the user's own hair (or pieces of the hairpiece) are let down, the elastic band is concealed underneath the hair and is not visible. In some embodiments, the elastic band 120 may be tucked behind the user's ear.

The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but is to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language claims, wherein reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean “one and only one” unless specifically so stated, but rather “one or more.” Unless specifically stated otherwise, the term “some” refers to one or more. All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the various aspects described throughout this disclosure that are known or later come to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be construed as a means plus function unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase “means for.”

Claims

1. A frontal wig for use on the front of a person's head, the frontal wig comprising: a plurality of base layers comprising at least one base layer comprising a mesh surface for attachment of hair filaments, and at least one base layer comprising an adhesive surface for mating to the person's head;a securing band attached to the base layers at side ends of the base layers, the securing band provided for attaching the frontal wig to the head; anda plurality of hair filaments attached to the mesh layer.

2. The frontal wig of claim 1, wherein the securing band comprises an elastic band secured to the frontal wig with a hook or clasp.

3. The frontal wig of claim 1, wherein the plurality of base layers further comprises a soft base layer provided for comfort and reducing irritation from wearing the frontal wig.

4. The frontal wig of claim 1, wherein the adhesive layer comprises at least two physically separate pieces attached to the mesh surface layer with a physical gap in the center of the frontal wig separating the two physically separate pieces.

5. The frontal wig of claim 1, wherein the plurality of base layers comprising porous surfaces to improve cooling and breathability of the surfaces of the base layers.

6. The frontal wig of claim 1, wherein the base layers form a smooth curvature on the front edge to provide a natural looking hairline.

7. The frontal wig of claim 1, wherein the plurality of hair filaments are attached to the mesh layer with an even density providing even distribution of the hair filaments throughout the base layers.