The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to wearable, reversible devices. More particularly, this subject matter provides for a wrist band having a rotatable disc with two visually distinct sides.
It is often the case that referees in sporting events need to determine which team has the next possession in the event of a jump ball quickly and efficiently. Currently, referees in basketball games must rely on a third party on the sideline to track which team has the next possession in the event of a jump ball, or the referee must attempt to track this mentally. This causes the referee to often take his or her attention away from the game, resulting from a break in play and mistakes to be made. Further, items or accessories are worn by all kinds of people having properties that are individually expressive.
Accordingly, a device which would allow referees to easily and efficiently track which team has the next possession in the event of a jump ball by rotating a wearable disc depending on which team had possession, or an accessory having various modes of expression would be well received in the art.
According to one embodiment, a wearable band comprises: a strap extending between a first end and a second end; an axle extending between and attached to each of the first end and the second end, the axle including a smaller cross section than the strap; a first disc portion including a first body, the first disc portion having a first channel extending into the first body for receiving the axle, the first disc portion further including a first groove extending into the first body and a first protrusion protruding from the first body, wherein each of the first channel, the first groove and the first protrusion are parallel or substantially parallel; and a second disc portion including a second body, the second disc portion having a second channel extending into the second body for receiving the axle, the second disc portion further including a second groove extending into the second body and a second protrusion protruding from the second body, wherein each of the second channel, the second groove and the second protrusion are parallel or substantially parallel; wherein the first disc portion and the second disc portion are connected such that the first protrusion is located within the second groove and the second protrusion is located within the first groove, and wherein the first and second channels are aligned, and wherein the axle is located within the aligned first and second channels such that the first and second disc portions are configured to rotate around the axle.
According to another embodiment, a wearable band kit comprises: a band that includes: a strap extending between a first end and a second end; and an axle extending between and attached to each of the first end and the second end, the axle including a smaller cross section than the strap; a first disc portion including a first body, the first disc portion having a first channel extending into the first body configured to receive the axle, the first disc portion further including a first groove extending into the first body and a first protrusion protruding from the first body, wherein each of the first channel, the first groove and the first protrusion are parallel or substantially parallel; and a second disc portion including a second body, the second disc portion having a second channel extending into the second body configured to receive the axle, the second disc portion further including a second groove extending into the second body and a second protrusion protruding from the second body, wherein each of the second channel, the second groove and the second protrusion are parallel or substantially parallel; wherein the first disc portion and the second disc portion are configured to be connected such that the first protrusion is located within the second groove and the second protrusion is located within the first groove when the first and second channels are aligned, and wherein the axle is configured to be located within the first and second channels such that the first and second disc portions are configured to rotate around the axle.
According to another embodiment, a method comprises: providing a band that includes: a strap extending between a first end and a second end; and an axle extending between and attached to each of the first end and the second end, the axle including a smaller cross section than the strap; providing a disc that includes: a first disc portion including a first body, the first disc portion having a first channel extending into the first body, the first disc portion further including a first groove extending into the first body and a first protrusion protruding from the first body, wherein each of the first channel, the first groove and the first protrusion are parallel or substantially parallel; and a second disc portion including a second body, the second disc portion having a second channel extending into the second body, the second disc portion further including a second groove extending into the second body and a second protrusion protruding from the second body, wherein each of the second channel, the second groove and the second protrusion are parallel or substantially parallel; sliding the first protrusion within the second groove and the second protrusion in the first groove; connecting the first disc portion and the second disc portion such that the axle is located within the first and second channels; wearing the band with the disc on a wrist of a wearer; and rotating, by the wearer, the disc about the axle to expose the first disc portion or the second disc portion.
The subject matter which is regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention are apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
A detailed description of the hereinafter described embodiments of the disclosed apparatus and method are presented herein by way of exemplification and not limitation with reference to the Figures.
Referring to
The indicating portion 11 and interlocking portion 12 may be made of a plastic material, but may also be made of any other suitable material such that they may be easily manufactured. The indicating portion 11 may be a solid color, but also may have an image, logo, letters, words, or other distinctive indicia on face 17 of indicating portion 11.
The interlocking portion 12 may consist of a protrusion 13 and corresponding groove 14. Protrusion 13 and groove 14 may run parallel (or at least substantially parallel) to each other along face 16 and are spaced and equal distance from the edge of disc 10. Protrusion 13 extends three dimensionally away from face 16. Protrusion 13 begins narrow at face 16 and gradually increases in width as it extends away from face 16 such that the cross-section of protrusion 13 is trapezoidal in shape, with the wider of the parallel sides at the extended point.
Groove 14 extends into disc 10. Groove 14 begins narrow at face 16 and increases in width as it extends into disc 10. Similar to protrusion 13, the cross-section of groove 14 is trapezoidal is shape with the narrower of the parallel sides at face 16. The angle at which protrusion 13 and groove 14 increase in width may be approximately 60 degrees, but may be smaller or larger in order to facilitate stronger connections and manufacturing processes between the protrusion 13 and the face 16, and/or the protrusion 13 and a corresponding groove of another disc (described herein below). Additionally, the cross-sections of protrusion 13 and groove 14 will be substantially similar in size and shape. The cross-sections of protrusion 13 and groove 14 may also be other geometric shapes such as rectangle, circle, and the like.
As shown in
Further, interlocking portion 12 may contain a channel 15. The channel 15 may also run parallel to protrusion 13 and groove 14 along face 16. The channel 15 extends into the disc 10 from the face 16. The cross-section of the channel 15 may be a semicircle or half circular in shape, but may also be any other geometric shape such as a square, rectangle, triangle and the like. As shown in
Referring to
Band 50 may be a bracelet, wristlet, wristband, anklet, necklace or the like. Band 50 may consist of a strap 52 and an axle 51. Strap 52 may extend between a first end 70 and a second end 72. The strap 52 may be rectangular in cross section, with a width substantially larger than its height; such that it may be a wide, flat strap. However, it should be understood that strap 50 is not limited to being rectangular in shape. The axle 51 extends between and is attached to each of the first end 70 and the second end 72. The axle 51 is shown having a smaller cross section than the strap 52. The cross section of axle 51 will correspond to that of channel 15 in disc 10. For example, if the cross section of channel 15 is a semicircle, the cross section of axle 51 will be a circle such that axle 51 is capable of being placed within channel 15. Additionally, the length of axle 51 will be approximately the same length as the disc 10 such that a single disc 10 may be placed along axle 51 between the end points of strap 52. Thus, the length of the axle 51 may correspond with the diameter of the disc 10.
In the embodiment shown, band 50 may be comprised of a single axle 51 and a single strap 52. In this embodiment, band 50 is shown being capable of supporting a single wearable interconnected disc 60 comprising two of the single discs 10 described above. In other embodiments, band 50 may include a plurality of axles and straps, each axle divided by larger dimensioned stops, such that band 50 is capable of supporting a number of wearable interconnected discs. The interconnected discs may be attachable along one portion of the band, or may be divided across different portions (i.e. one or more on a front side of the band, and one or more on a back side). The band 50 could be a variety of colors or patterns depending on the use and preference of the user. The band 50 may be stretchable in order to be applied to the wrist of a wearer. In particular, one or both of the axle 51 and the strap 52 may be stretchable. In other embodiments, the band 50 may be configured to have a release or detachment mechanism to allow for the band to be worn.
A wearable interconnected disc 60 may be obtained by combining two desired versions of disc 10a, 10b, as shown in
As shown in
In one embodiment, the band 50 and wearable interconnected disc 60 may be worn on the wrist of a wearer 100, as shown in
The two visually distinct versions of discs 10a, 10b may be chosen by the user for a number of applications. For example, in one embodiment, a referee of a sporting event, such as basketball, may choose discs which match the two colors of team uniforms, or the two team's logo or team names. For example, if a first team wears white uniforms and is competing against a second team wearing blue uniforms, the referee may choose a first disc 10 which is white and a second disc 10 which is blue and combine them in the way described herein. The referee would then be able to easily track possession by turning the wearable disc to display the color of the team that will get next possession in the event of a jump ball. For example, when the first team has the next possession, the referee would turn the disc so that the white disc is facing outward. When the next team to get possession in the event of a jump ball changes to the second team, the referee would then turn the wearable disc so that the blue disc is facing outward. This allows the referee to easily track who is entitled to the next possession in the event of a jump ball without having to take his or her attention away from the game. It also easily allows the referee to quickly determine which team has next possession in the event of a jump ball without having to consult with a third party or cause a break in play of the game. In one embodiment, a referee may look at the wearable interconnected disc 60 at the same time the referee is indicating a jump ball by placing his or her hands, with thumbs up, directly in front of the head of the referee where the wearable interconnected disc 60 is visible.
In another embodiment, the wearable interconnected disc 60 may be used to convey a message. For example, a first disc could be chosen which is green and combined with a second disc which is red. The green side of the disc could convey “yes” or “go” and the red side could convey “no” or “stop.” Words or letters could also be placed on each disc to convey a message. For example, the letter “L” could be displayed on the first disc to indicate “Left” and an “R” could be displayed on the second disc to indicate “Right” and vice versa.
In yet another embodiment, the discs may feature images or characters from popular television programs for children. Children may collect discs with their favorite images and display them, combining characters or symbols in different ways. It should be understood that there are a vast number of applications for a wearable, reversible disc and the embodiments described hereinabove should not be understood to be limiting and are provided for exemplary purposes only.
Shown in
Similarly,
In still another embodiment, a kit is contemplated which may be provided with the band 50, including the strap 52 and the axle 51. Further, the kit may include a plurality of the discs 10. For example, two of the discs 10 may be provided. In other embodiments, a third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and/or tenth disc, etc., may be provided. Each of the various discs provided in the kit may be entirely made of a unique color.
In still another embodiment a method is contemplated. The method may include providing a band, such as the band 50, and a plurality of discs, such as the discs 10. The method may include attaching, by sliding two discs together, or otherwise connecting two discs together at axle 51. The method is not limited to connecting discs together at a single axle 51, for example, the strap 52 could have a plurality of axles such that discs could attach to the strap 52 along multiple portions thereof where axles are located. The method may include wearing the band on a wrist of a wearer, such as the wearer 100. The method may include orienting the discs, by the wearer, such that a first disc of the two discs is exposed while a second disc of the two discs is proximate or facing the skin of the wearer. The method may further include orienting the discs, by the wearer, such that the second of the two discs is exposed and the first of the two discs is proximate or facing the skin of the wearer. This may include rotating, by the wearer, the discs about the axle. The axle may be made of a stretchable material, and the method may include stretching, by the wearer, the axle during the rotating of the discs. The method may include holding, by the wearer, a basketball with a first hand on the wrist during the rotating, wherein the rotating is accomplished with a second hand of the wearer. The method may include exposing a first color of a first disc and then may include exposing a second color of the second disc that is visually distinct from the first color. The method may include making, by the wearer, a jump ball hand signal, and visually detecting the first color of the first disc portion, by the wearer, while making the jump ball hand signal. The method may include attaching, by sliding, two additional discs together at a second axle on the band 50 wherein the second axle is at an opposite circumferential location along the band from a first axle.
Elements of the embodiments have been introduced with either the articles “a” or “an.” The articles are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. The terms “including” and “having” and their derivatives are intended to be inclusive such that there may be additional elements other than the elements listed. The conjunction “or” when used with a list of at least two terms is intended to mean any term or combination of terms. The terms “first” and “second” are used to distinguish elements and are not used to denote a particular order.
While the invention has been described in detail in connection with only a limited number of embodiments, it should be readily understood that the invention is not limited to such disclosed embodiments. Rather, the invention can be modified to incorporate any number of variations, alterations, substitutions or equivalent arrangements not heretofore described, but which are commensurate with the spirit and scope of the invention. Additionally, while various embodiments of the invention have been described, it is to be understood that aspects of the invention may include only some of the described embodiments. Accordingly, the invention is not to be seen as limited by the foregoing description, but is only limited by the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, it should be understood that the present invention may include any combination of the components, hierarchy and methodology described herein.
This application is a nonprovisional application claiming priority to provisional U.S. Application No. 64/462,541, filed Feb. 23, 2017, the contents of which are incorporated by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62462541 | Feb 2017 | US |