Patent Application
20060086142
Many women have adopted the custom of wearing engagement and wedding rings as a set. The individual rings are generally matching in design and produce an appealing effect when worn together on the finger. Jewelers often display and sell such sets in a wide variety of styles and gemstone settings.
A number of practices and devices have commonly been used to keep the rings in contact and the settings in alignment when worn or displayed.
The remedies have proven disadvantageous in that they detract from the intended look of the set, are difficult to remove, are uncomfortable to wear or may add cost to repairs since both rings must be serviced simultaneously.
There is still a long felt need for a mechanism that will provide the wearer ease of use, simplicity of design and utility in maintaining the rings in proper orientation during store display and normal wear.
This invention relates to a ring ensemble in which a first ring with a single axially protruding shaped element on one side inserts into a single matching aperture on a second ring, engaging first and second rings. The shaped engaging mechanism acts to prevent radial spinning and axial twisting while the rings are either worn or displayed. The engaging mechanism can be easily separated at any time without having to remove the ensemble from the finger and provides an appealing effect when the rings are worn separately.
The invention relates to a mechanism for engaging a ring ensemble in which a first ring has a protruding shaped element that inserts into a matching aperture of a second ring. The engagement of the shaped element into the matching aperture prevents the rings from spinning radially and twisting axially. The mechanism allows easy insertion and separation while the ensemble is being worn on the finger or displayed, and is visually appealing when the rings are viewed in combination or alone.
A ring ensemble is any two rings which are meant to be worn together and have been designed to be presented in a fixed orientation. An example of such an ensemble would be an engagement ring/wedding band set. One skilled in the art would recognize that other similar sets could also take advantage of this invention.
For the purposes of this application, axial twisting is defined as rotation of the rings around the axis of the engaging mechanism. Stated alternatively, axial rotation is rotation out of coincidence. Radial spinning is the rotation of the rings on the finger circumferentially. This is represented by the rotation on the finger such that the settings become misaligned.
The shaped protruding element can be of any reasonable length, but must be long enough to be inserted into the receiving aperture on the second ring. The shape must be such that minimal axial movement results while the set is being held by either first or second ring for the purpose of display (such as would not occur if the shape were circular or cylindrical). One example of a shaped protruding element and aperture can be a heart (see diagram).
A single element is placed on one side of the first ring and the matching side of the second ring. This application defines the side of the ring in which the element and aperture are located as the surface which is perpendicular to the plane of the finger when worn in the normal manner and 90 degrees from the orientation of the gemstone setting. The sides can alternatively be defined as those that contact each other when the two rings are worn on the same finger. In an embodiment of this invention, a single shaped element is placed on both sides of the first ring such that either side can be aligned with the aperture of the second ring. In yet another embodiment, the second ring can have a single aperture on either side such as to accept the element from the first ring.
In an example the shaped element is positioned on a side or sides of the rings and centrally located on the setting.
