Patent Application
20240298760
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A portion of the disclosure of this patent document may contain material which is subject to copyright protection. This patent document may show and/or describe matter which is or may become trade dress of the owner. The copyright and trade dress owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by any one of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrights and trade dress rights whatsoever.
The disclosed subject matter relates generally to jewelry and, more particularly, to jewelry pendants with reversible elements.
Jewelry, and other accessories, are commonly used to enhance one's appearance and express one's personality, wealth, and status. The use of jewelry dates at least as far back as 3000 BC in early Mediterranean civilizations, where simple amulets and seals were worn. Throughout history, jewelry designs have changed, as fashions have changed, but the basic principles of jewelry have remained the same. That is, jewelry generally comprises an aesthetic portion, such as a jewel, and a means for wearing it, such as a chain or fastener. Each time an individual wants to change the appearance of their jewelry, the means for wearing such jewelry must be removed.
However, changing jewelry can be challenging for many people, as fine motor skills are generally required to operate the fasteners on many types of jewelry. For example, necklaces and bracelets often have small clasps where a small eye must be precisely inserted into a small opening in the clasp while the wearer is holding the clasp open. Another example includes earrings, where the wearer must thread an earring finding through a small hole in the wearer's ear and thread a stopper onto the backing to keep the earring in place. This can pose significant problems for people with arthritis, neurological impairments, cerebral palsy, and other impairments. As a result, there is a need for improved jewelry assemblies that permit wearers to change the appearance of jewelry, while without requiring the use of fine motor manipulations of the jewelry.
Some forms of jewelry, such as elastic bracelets, eliminate small attachment components, such as clasps, that pose difficulties for those with dexterity problems. However, elastic loses its resiliency and has a tendency to deform with time, which leads to undesirable changes to the bracelets, or even breakage. Given elastic bracelets' propensity to deform and break, it is not a suitable proposal for expensive jewelry. Moreover, elastic bracelets are set in a single configuration, which requires wearers to own multiple pieces of elastic jewelry if they would like to change their style or appearance.
Another proposed alternative for accessible jewelry is jewelry with reversible pieces. These reversible pieces permit the wearer to reverse a piece in their jewelry, changing the appearance of their jewelry. Providing a jewelry alternative that permits wearers to change the appearance of their jewelry without requiring the jewelry to be removed is contemplated to reduce reliance on fine motor skills typically required to perform such tasks.
Despite these efforts, many proposals for jewelry with interchangeable and reversible pieces utilize a small latching element in order to change the appearance of the jewelry. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,550,276 to Frank teaches a spring wire, U.S. Pat. No. 7,296,439 to Richards utilizes a pin and mouth latch, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,588,310 to Lai discloses engageable locking projections. As each of these retain small latching elements in order to latch the reversible jewelry pendants in place, further increasing the motor skills required to change the appearance of jewelry. Further, the small latching elements are placed are on the pendants themselves, disrupting any uniform aesthetic of the pendants.
Currently, no solutions propose a reversible jewelry pendant that limits the fine motor skills required to change the appearance of the jewelry without compromising the aesthetic and structural integrity of typical jewelry elements. Thus, although various proposals have been made to solve the problem, none of those in existence combine the characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, there remains a need for an improved reversible jewelry pendant and assembly.
The present disclosure is directed to reversible jewelry pendants and assemblies. More particularly, the present disclosure is directed to a reversible jewelry pendant which may comprise a frame element, a design element, and at least two connection rods.
For purposes of summarizing, certain aspects, advantages, and novel features have been described. It is to be understood that not all such advantages may be achieved in accordance with any one particular embodiment. Thus, the disclosed subject matter may be embodied or carried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages without achieving all advantages as may be taught or suggested.
In accordance with one embodiment, the frame element may comprise a front side, a back side spaced apart from and joined to one another by an inner edge and an outer edge. In some embodiments, the inner edge of the frame element may define a central opening.
The design element may comprise a first face and a second face joined along an edge, and the at least two connection rods may be operative to secure the design element to the frame element. More particularly, in some embodiments, the at least two connection rods may be operative to suspend the design element within the central opening of the frame element.
In some embodiments, the at least two connection rods may be distinct elements that extend outward from the edge of the design element. Of course, in another embodiment, the at least two connection rods may be formed from a continuous body extending through the design element, wherein each of the at least two connection rods may be defined by a portion extending outward from the design element. As such, a person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the at least two connection rods are defined by the portion of each connection rod extending outward from the design element.
In one embodiment, each of the at least two connection rods may extend outwards from the edge of the design element toward the inner edge of the frame element. In some embodiments, the at least two connection rods may extend from the edge of the design element outwards through at least a portion of the frame element. In one embodiment, the at least two connection rods may extend through the outer edge of the frame element.
The at least two connection rods may be located at any point along the edge operative to permit the design element to rotate within the central opening. In one embodiment, the design element may be operative to rotate about the at least two connection rods. For example, each of the at least two connection rods may be located on an axis located on a midline of the design element. Of course, the axis may be located at any position along the design element to permit the design element to rotate.
In some embodiments, the at least two connection rods may be integrated with the design element and each of the at least two connection rods may extend through an opening in the frame element. Each opening may be sized to permit each of the at least two connection rods to rotate within the opening relative to the frame element.
In an alternative embodiment, the at least two connection rods may be integrated with the frame element, and the design element may rotate around the at least two connection rods. Of course, any manner of rotating the design element may be utilized without departing from the invention, and the aforementioned are provided as non-limiting examples.
It is contemplated that providing a rotatable design element with a first and second face may permit the jewelry pendant to have at least two distinct appearances or looks. As such, the first and second faces may each comprise at least one design element, such as any or a combination of jewels, embellishments, stones, etchings, colored elements, or the like. In some embodiments, the first and second faces may comprise different at least one design elements from one another, however, the first and second faces may share any number of the same at least one design elements as well. It is contemplated that the rotation of the design segment within the central opening may be operative to change an appearance of the reversible jewelry pendant in relation to the front and back side of the frame element.
In some embodiments, the central opening may be configured such that the design element may rotate about the at least two connection rods to permit the first face and second face of the design element to change positions relative to the front side and the back side of the frame element. The front side of the frame segment is contemplated to refer to the side of the reversible jewelry pendant visible during wear, and each of the first and second faces aligning with front side of the frame element may change the visible appearance of the reversible jewelry pendant.
In one embodiment, the inner edge of the frame element is operative to removably secure the design element to display a desired face of the design element with the front side of the frame element without the need for additional securement mechanisms. For example, a slight clearance, such as a clearance or transition fit, may separate the inner edge and the edge. A person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the clearance and transition fits utilize friction to secure elements to each other and may be disengaged from each other through the application of force to the design element. Of course, any manner of securing the frame and design elements to each other may be utilized without departing from the invention.
In one embodiment, the first and second faces of the design element may be convex, or outwardly domed. In other embodiments, the first and second faces of the design element may be concave. In still other embodiments, the first and second faces of the design element may be, additionally or alternatively, grooved, flat, smooth, or formed in any other manner as may be desired.
In yet another embodiment, the first and second faces may be formed differently from one another. For example, the first face may be convex, and the second face may be concave. Of course, any other combination that may be desired is contemplated, and the aforementioned examples are non-limiting.
In one embodiment, the edge of the design element may be tapered such that it has a height less than a height of a mid-portion of the design element. In one embodiment, the edge of the design element may have a height greater than or equal to the mid-portion of the design element.
In some embodiments, the height of the edge of the design element may be less than a height of inner edge of the frame element, which may reduce the clearance between the design element and frame element necessary for the design element to be operative to rotate. In another embodiment, the edge of the design element may have a height equal to the inner edge of the frame element. It is contemplated that the inner edge and the edge having an equal height may be operative to create a uniform appearance of the frame element and the design element while reducing the space necessary for the design element to rotate. Of course, in other embodiments, the edge of the design element may have a height greater than the frame element.
In yet a further embodiment, the reversible jewelry pendant may comprise at least one attachment site. It is contemplated that the at least one attachment site may be any attachment site operative to secure with at least one attachment means to permit the reversible jewelry pendant to be worn.
For example, the reversible jewelry assembly may be configured as a necklace and the at least one attachment means may be a chain. In one embodiment of the necklace, the reversible jewelry pendant may comprise two attachment sites, each operative to secure with one chain. In another embodiment of the necklace, the reversible jewelry pendant may comprise one attachment site operative to secure with the chain. A person of ordinary skill will recognize that chain is a term in the art that may be synonymous with cord, string, or any other length of material operative to secure a pendant around a portion of a wearer's body. Thus, chain and cord may be used interchangeably, however, in the interest of brevity, reference is made throughout to chain.
It is contemplated that the at least one attachment site may be configured as any attachment site known in the art. For example, the at least one attachment site may be a bail, a connector, or even direct connection to the jewelry pendant. The necklace embodiments may further comprise any closures that a person of ordinary skill in the art may desire, such as a clasp. Of course, any components of necklaces that a person of ordinary skill in the art may desire may be utilized.
In some embodiments, the at least one attachment means may be removably secured with the at least one attachment site. For example, in the necklace embodiment where the at least one attachment site is one attachment site, the chain may be continuous through the attachment site. In another embodiment, the at least one attachment means may be secured to the at least one attachment site. For example, when the at least one attachment site is configured as two attachment sites, opposing ends of the chain may be secured with each of the two attachment sites.
The at least one attachment site may be located at any point along the reversible jewelry pendant operative to permit the reversible jewelry pendant to be worn. In some embodiments, the at least one attachment site may be located along the midline of the reversible frame segment. In another embodiment, where the at least one attachment site is two attachment sites, each may be positioned on opposite sides of the midline. It is contemplated that placing the two attachment sites on opposite sides of the midline may stabilize the reversible jewelry pendant when worn.
In a further embodiment, the reversible jewelry assembly may be configured as earrings. In such an embodiment, the assembly may comprise two reversible jewelry pendants. Each of the two reversible jewelry pendants may comprise one attachment site coupled to an earring finding. A person of ordinary skill will recognize that earring findings are well-known in the art, and any desired finding may be used to practice this invention. For example, the earring finding may be a post, fishhook, hoop wire, screw back, latch back, hinged back, long hook, lever back, or any other finding that may be desired.
The at least one attachment site may be located at any point along the frame element of the reversible jewelry pendant. For example, the connection site may be located on the outer edge of the frame element, on the back side of the frame element, or any other location that a person of ordinary skill in the art may desire.
In some embodiments, the reversible jewelry pendant may be from about 2 mm to about 100 mm in diameter. In another embodiment, the reversible jewelry pendant may be from about 7 mm to about 40 mm in diameter. In yet a further embodiment, the reversible jewelry pendant may be about 12 mm in diameter. In yet another embodiment, the reversible jewelry pendant may be about 24 mm in diameter. A person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the reversible jewelry pendant may be configured in many sizes and the aforementioned embodiments are provided as non-limiting examples only.
In one embodiment, a distance between the inner edge and outer edge may define a height of the frame segment. In some embodiments, the height of the frame segment may be from about 0.5 mm to about 5 mm. In another embodiment, the height of frame segment may be about 1.40 mm. In yet another embodiment, the height of the frame segment may be about 1.87 mm.
In some embodiments, the jewelry pendant may be formed from material comprising metal. For example, the jewelry pendant may be formed from material comprising gold, platinum, silver, palladium, titanium, silver, tungsten, and stainless steel. In other embodiments, the jewelry pendant may be made from material comprising plastic, stone, ceramic, acrylic, glass, wood, and resin. Of course, other materials may be utilized to form the jewelry pendant.
In some embodiments, the frame element and the design element may be formed out of the same material. In other embodiments, the frame element and the design element may be formed out of different materials. Further, it is contemplated that in some embodiments, the frame element and the design element may be formed out of any number of the listed materials. In such embodiments, the frame element and the design element may share any number of the same materials.
A person of ordinary skill will recognize that the jewelry pendant may be in any shape as needed or desired. In some embodiments, the frame element and the design element may be the same shape. In other embodiments, only the inner edge of the frame element and the edge of the design element may be the same shape which may create a uniform appearance and permit the design segment to secure with the frame segment to display a desired face.
Of course, the aforementioned embodiments of the jewelry assembly are provided as non-limiting examples only. A person of ordinary skill will recognize that there is a wide variety of jewelry offered, and the reversible jewelry pendant may be utilized in any desired jewelry assembly.
Several advantages of the reversible jewelry pendant and assembly are that they:
Thus, it is an object of this invention to provide reversible jewelry pendants that may change appearance during wear. It is another object of the invention to reduce the fine motor skills required to change the appearance of jewelry.
It is yet a further object of this invention to permit the frame and design elements to be selectively secured to one another such that the first and second faces are in a desired configuration with the front and back side without requiring latching, or other similar, elements.
It is another object of this invention to suspend the design element within frame element to create a uniform jewelry pendant.
One or more of the above-disclosed embodiments, in addition to certain alternatives, are provided in further detail below with reference to the attached figures. The disclosed subject matter is not, however, limited to any particular embodiment disclosed.
The disclosed embodiments may be better understood by referring to the figures in the attached drawings, as provided below. The attached figures are provided as non-limiting examples for providing an enabling description of the method and system claimed. Attention is called to the fact, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered as limiting of its scope. One skilled in the art will understand that the invention may be practiced without some of the details included in order to provide a thorough enabling description of such embodiments. Well-known structures and functions have not been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the description of the embodiments.
For simplicity and clarity of illustration, the drawing figures illustrate the general manner of construction, and descriptions and details of well-known features and techniques may be omitted to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the invention. Additionally, elements in the drawing figures are not necessarily drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention. The same reference numerals in different figures denote the same elements.
The terms “first,” “second,” “third,” “fourth,” and the like in the description and in the claims, if any, are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments described herein are, for example, capable of operation in sequences other than those illustrated or otherwise described herein. Furthermore, the terms “include,” and “have,” and any variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, system, article, device, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is not necessarily limited to those elements, but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, system, article, device, or apparatus
The terms “couple,” “coupled,” “couples,” “coupling,” and the like should be broadly understood and refer to connecting two or more elements or signals, electrically, mechanically or otherwise. Two or more electrical elements may be electrically coupled, but not mechanically or otherwise coupled; two or more mechanical elements may be mechanically coupled, but not electrically or otherwise coupled; two or more electrical elements may be mechanically coupled, but not electrically or otherwise coupled. Coupling (whether mechanical, electrical, or otherwise) may be for any length of time, e.g., permanent or semi-permanent or only for an instant.
Having summarized various aspects of the present disclosure, reference will now be made in detail to that which is illustrated in the drawings. While the disclosure will be described in connection with these drawings, there is no intent to limit it to the embodiment or embodiments disclosed herein. Rather, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents included within the spirit and scope of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
With reference to
The reversible jewelry pendant 100 may comprise a frame element 110, a design element 120, a first connection rod 132, and a second connection rod 134. The reversible jewelry pendant 100 may further comprise at least one attachment site. In the embodiment of the reversible jewelry pendant 100 illustrated in
The frame element 110 may comprise a front side 116 and a back side 118 spaced apart from and joined to one another by an outer edge 114 and an inner edge 112. The inner edge 112 may further define a central opening that comprises the design element 120. As shown, the frame element 110 comprises at least one embellishment, such as an arrangement of jewels, crystals, stones, and the like, whether genuine or not. Of course, other embellishments may be utilized, including color, textual elements, embossings, debossings, scripts, or other embellishments. In some embodiments, not shown, the embellishments may be a type or color of a material forming the frame element.
Returning to the embodiment of the reversible jewelry pendant 100 illustrated in
As shown in
It is contemplated that the first face 124 and the second face 126 of the design element 120 may comprise different looks. As shown in
As shown in
Returning to the embodiments illustrated in
For example, when worn, the front side 116 may correspond to a visible side of the reversible jewelry pendant 100, and the first face 124 may initially be aligned with the front side 116. A wearer desiring to change the look of the jewelry pendant 100 may apply pressure near the edge 122 of the design element 120, disengaging the design element 120 from the frame element 110. The disengagement may permit the design element 120 to rotate about the first connection rod 132 and the second connection rod 134 until the edge 122 secures with the inner edge 112 and the second face 126 is now displayed. This will be discussed in more detail with regard to the embodiment shown in
Returning to
The first connection rod 132 and the second connection rod 134 may extend through the inner edge 112 of the frame element 110. It is contemplated that the first connection rod 132 and the second connection rod 134 extending at least partially through the frame element 110 may be operative to suspend the design element 120 within the central opening of the frame element 110. In the embodiment shown in
A person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the first connection rod 132 and the second connection rod 134 may be formed as a unitary body that extends through the design element 120, where the first connection rod 132 and the second connection rod 134 are defined as a portion of the unitary body that extends outward from the edge 122 of the design element 120. Of course, the first connection rod 132 and the second connection rod 134 may be distinct elements extending from the design element 120.
Continuing with the embodiment of the reversible jewelry pendant 100 illustrated in
The frame element 110 of the reversible jewelry pendant 100 may further comprise at least one attachment site. In the embodiment shown in
In one embodiment, the frame element 110 may have a diameter from about 20 to about 30 mm and the front side 116 and the back side 118 may be separated by a distance from about 1.8 to about 1.9 mm. For example, the frame element 110 may have a diameter of about 24 mm, wherein the first connection rod 132 and second connection rod are located at the midline 12 mm from the outer edge 114. The first attachment site 136 may be located about 16.97 mm apart from the second attachment site 138. To put it another way, the first attachment site 136 and the second attachment site 138 may be located along the outer edge 114 about 3.515 mm from the midline. Of course, the first attachment site and the second attachment site may be located at any point as needed or desired.
In the embodiment shown in
As shown in
Returning to the embodiment shown in
The earring 300 may comprise the reversible jewelry pendant 302, and an attachment means 340. In such an embodiment, the frame element 110 may further comprise an attachment site 336 corresponding to an attachment means 340. The attachment means 340 may be configured as an earring finding comprising a rod 342 and a back 344. As shown, the rod 342 may extend outward from the back side of frame element 310. In one embodiment, not shown, the rod may extend outward from the outer edge of the frame or any other position as needed or desired.
Of course, a person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any form of earring findings, as needed or desired, may be utilized. Including, for example, and without limitation, wires, lever backs, ball posts, hoops, or threaders.
In the embodiment shown in
The design element 320 may become secured with the frame element 310 through the application of force near the edge 322 of the design element 320 until the edge 322 and the inner edge 322 are aligned with each other. The design element 320 may become not secured with the frame element 310, in a similar manner, through the application of an external force near the edge 322, which may rotate the design element 320 about the first connection rod 332 and the second connection rod 334, until the edge 322 and the inner edge 312 are no longer aligned with each other.
While
While certain embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, various modifications are contemplated and can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the reversible jewelry pendant may be utilized for a variety of accessories such as pendants, clips, and buttons. Accordingly, it is intended that the invention not be limited, except as by the appended claim(s).
The teachings disclosed herein may be applied to other systems, and may not necessarily be limited to any described herein. The elements and acts of the various embodiments described above can be combined to provide further embodiments. All of the above patents and applications and other references, including any that may be listed in accompanying filing papers, are incorporated herein by reference. Aspects of the invention can be modified, if necessary, to employ the systems, functions and concepts of the various references described above to provide yet further embodiments of the invention.
Particular terminology used when describing certain features or aspects of the invention should not be taken to imply that the terminology is being refined herein to be restricted to any specific characteristics, features, or aspects of the reversible jewelry pendant and assembly with which that terminology is associated. In general, the terms used in the following claims should not be constructed to limit the reversible jewelry pendant and assembly to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification unless the above description section explicitly define such terms. Accordingly, the actual scope encompasses not only the disclosed embodiments, but also all equivalent ways of practicing or implementing the disclosed system, method and apparatus. The above description of embodiments of the reversible jewelry pendant and assembly is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the precise form disclosed above or to a particular field of usage.
While specific embodiments of, and examples for, the method, system, and apparatus are described above for illustrative purposes, various equivalent modifications are possible for which those skilled in the relevant art will recognize.
While certain aspects of the method and system disclosed are presented below in particular claim forms, various aspects of the method, system, and apparatus are contemplated in any number of claim forms. Thus, the inventor reserves the right to add additional claims after filing the application to pursue such additional claim forms for other aspects of the reversible jewelry pendant and assembly.
