Abstract:
A hinge assembly is provided for connecting the temple of an eyeglass to a lens support assembly. The hinge assembly comprises a cam member with a pair of oppositely directed cam surfaces disposed in orthogonal planes. The assembly also comprises a pair of pivots extending normal to respective ones of the planes and defining orthogonal pivot axes for relative movement between the cam member and the main frame and the temple respectively. The hinge has a pair of followers, each associated with a respective one of the cam surfaces; and a pair of biasing members acting on the followers to maintain the followers in contact with the cam surfaces. An eyeglass comprising the hinge assembly is also provided. The hinge assembly allows a compound movement between the main frame and the temple that can accommodate the abnormal loading that might be placed on the eyeglasses.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates to eyeglasses and to hinges for an eyeglass. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   Eyeglasses typically comprise a frame having a pair of apertures to support lenses and a pair of temples that extend rearwardly from the front portion of the spectacle frame for engagement with the users&#39; ears. The temples are normally connected to the front portion of the spectacle frame by a hinge to allow the temples to be folded behind the lenses in the frame for storage when not in use. 
   In conventional eyeglasses, the hinge permits folding in one direction but inhibits movement of the temples beyond a position in which they are generally perpendicular to the plane of the lenses carried by the spectacle frame. In that position, the hinge is relatively vulnerable to abnormal loads that inevitably occur in normal use. Such loads may occur for example, from accidental contact with the eyeglasses, from improper storage when not in use or may be exerted by the side of a user&#39;s face where the overall width of the wearer&#39;s face is broader than the width of the spectacle frame. Inevitably, the hinge arrangement can be one of the more vulnerable components of the eyeglasses and accordingly, damage frequently occurs. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 4,494,834 to Tabacchi discloses a resilient hinge in which a hinge block is mounted for sliding movement relative to the temple. A spring opposes such movement to hold the hinge block in the temple. If the temple is pulled outwardly, the outer edge of the temple abuts the outer edge of the frame and provides a fulcrum about which the temple rotates. The spring permits the movement and avoids bending of the temple. 
   Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,851 to Beyer shows a hinge arrangement that has a sliding support within the temple to permit lateral outward motion. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 7,073,904, U.S. Publication No. 2005/0163560 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,168,341 to Chene et al. show a number of variants in the placement of the type of hinge shown in the above two U.S. patents. 
   It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a hinge arrangement for a pair of eyeglasses in which the above disadvantages are obviated or mitigated. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In one aspect, an eyeglass comprising a lens support assembly is provided. The eyeglass comprises a pair of temples extending from the lens support to support the eyeglass on a user, and a hinge assembly to connect respective ones of the temples to the lens support assembly frame, each of the hinge assemblies comprising a pair of mutually perpendicular pivot axes to permit movement between the temples and the lens support assembly about the substantially perpendicular axes, and a biasing element operable about at least one of the axes to maintain the temple in a stable position relative to the lens support assembly. 
   In another aspect, a hinge assembly is provided for connecting a temple to the end piece of the spectacle frame. The hinge assembly comprises a cam member with a pair of oppositely directed cam surfaces disposed in orthogonal planes; a pair of pivots extending normal to respective ones of the planes and defining orthogonal pivot axes for relative movement between the cam member and the end piece of the spectacle frame and the temple respectively; a pair of followers, each associated with a respective one of the cam surfaces; and a pair of biasing members acting on the followers to maintain the followers in contact with the cam surfaces. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example only with reference made to the appended drawings wherein: 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a pair of eyeglasses. 
       FIG. 2  is a view on the line II-II of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3  is an exploded view of the arrangement shown in  FIG. 2 . 
       FIG. 4  is a view on the line IV-IV of  FIG. 2 . 
       FIGS. 5A-B  is a pair of views showing alternate configurations of the hinge arrangement shown in  FIGS. 2-4 . 
       FIG. 6  is a sectional view similar to  FIG. 4  of an alternative arrangement of a hinge. 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a portion of a further embodiment of a hinge for eyeglasses. 
       FIG. 8  is a section on the line VIII-VIII of  FIG. 7 . 
       FIG. 9  is a view on the line IX-IX of  FIG. 7 . 
   

   Among those benefits and improvements that have been disclosed, other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying figures. The figures constitute a part of this specification and include illustrative embodiments of the present invention and illustrate various objects and features thereof. 
   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   Detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely illustrative of the invention that may be embodied in various forms. In addition, each of the examples given in connection with the various embodiments of the invention are intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive. Further, the figures are not necessarily to scale, some features may be exaggerated to show details of particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention. 
   Referring now to the drawings, and initially to  FIGS. 1 to 4 , a pair of eyeglasses incorporating a hinge in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention may comprise a laterally extending lens support assembly  11  and a pair of temples  20 . In the embodiment of  FIGS. 1 to 4  the lens support assembly is defined by a frame  11 . The spectacle frame comprises apertures to receive lenses  14 , defined by the lens rim  12 . The eyeglass frame includes a bridge  16  and a pair of end pieces  24  that extend from the sides  18  of the eye rim  12 . A pair of temples  20  generally extend rearwardly to the user&#39;s temple region or ears and are connected to the frame  11  containing the lens rim  12  at the end pieces  24  by a hinge assembly  22  shown in greater detail in  FIGS. 2 through 4 . 
   The hinge assembly  22  is located in the end piece  24  generally formed as an extension of the sides  18 . The end piece  24  is connected, attached or formed as a single piece at one end to the eye rim  12  and has a slot  26  formed at the opposite end. A bore  28  is formed in the end piece  24  that extends inwardly from the slot  26 . The bore  28  houses a follower  30  which is biased out of the bore  28  by a spring  32 . The follower includes a cylindrical tail  31  that passes within the spring  32  so as to locate the spring  32  relative to the follower. The follower  30  bears against a cam surface  34  that is formed on the periphery of a flange  35  of a cam member  36 . The cam member  36  is received in the slot  26  and pivotally secured to the end piece  24  by a pin  38  that defines a first pivot axis. 
   The cam member  36  has a rearwardly extending tongue  40  that is delimited by a second cam surface  42 . The tongue  40  is generally perpendicular to the flange  35  and has a bore  44  disposed at an axis perpendicular to the pin  38 . The tongue  40  is received in a slot  46  formed at one end of the temple  20 . A bore  48  extends from the slot  46  and houses a follower  50  that is free to slide within the bore  48 . The follower  50  has a rearwardly projecting cylindrical tail  51  that is located within a spring  52 . Spring  52  biases the follower  50  out of the bore  48  and into engagement with the cam surface  42 . The cam member  36  is connected to the temple  20  by a pin  54  that extends through the bore  44  and into aligned bores  56  intersecting the slot  46  to define a second pivot axis. The first and second axes are substantially perpendicular to one another to permit movement between the main frame and temple in mutually perpendicular planes and thereby provide universal movement. 
   Each of the cam surfaces  34 ,  42  is profiled to provide a stable disposition of the temple  20  relative to the main frame  12  when generally perpendicular to one another. In a preferred embodiment, the cam surface has a central portion that is at a minimum radius from the respective axis. The cam surface progressively increases in radius to either side of the central portion to provide a progressively increasing resistance to movement. 
   The temple  20  may be folded, as shown in  FIG. 5   a , to a stored position by rotation of the temple  20  about the axis provided by the pin  38 . As the temple  20  is moved inwardly, the cam member  36  rotates about the pin  38  and overcomes any bias imposed by the follower  30  on the cam surface  34 . In some circumstances, the cam surface  34  may be part circular over the movement required to store the temples  20  so as to provide a uniform resistance to movement caused by friction of the follower  30  across the cam surface  34 . Alternatively, the cam surface  34  may be profiled to provide resistance to movement from the stable position over a certain range of movement and then a bias to the stored position once that range of movement has been exceeded. 
   The arrangement of the pin  38  and cam member  36  also permits the temple  20  to be moved outwardly beyond the normal position to accommodate abnormal lateral loads. Such a load placed on the temple  20  causes rotation of the cam member  36  in the opposite direction about the pin  38  and causes displacement of the follower  30  against the bias of the spring  32 . The temples  20  are able to move to accommodate the abnormal loading but upon removal of that loading, the bias of the spring  32  will return the cam member to its stable position. During such movement, the tail  31  is located within the spring  32  allowing it to compress and expand. The tail  31  assists in locating the spring  32  in the chamber  28  and also assists during assembly to hold the spring in situ. 
   The provision of the pin  54  also enables the temples to be displaced vertically in either direction relative to the plane of the lenses  14 , as shown in  FIG. 5   b . The cam surface  42  is profiled to provide a stable position with the temples  20  extending generally perpendicular to the plane of the lenses  14 . However, the pin  54  permits pivotal movement of the temple relative to the cam member  34  and thus movement in a vertical plane. Movement about the pin  54  causes displacement to the follower  50  against the bias of the spring  52  to provide a restorative force when the loading on the temple is removed. The tail  51  again locates the spring  52 , both during operation and assembly. 
   It will be appreciated therefore that the disposition of the pins  38  and  54  along mutually perpendicular axes allows a compound movement between the main portions of the eyeglass frame and temples  20  that can accommodate the abnormal loading that might be placed on the eyeglasses  10 . However, the provision of the cam surfaces  34 ,  42  enables the stable configuration of the eyeglasses  10  to be maintained under normal conditions and facilitates folding of the temples  20  to the stored position. It will be appreciated that the relative disposition of the axes may be reversed from that shown, i.e. the first axis is disposed horizontally and the second vertically, if preferred. 
   An alternative arrangement is shown in  FIG. 6  in which like components will be identified by like reference numbers with a suffix “a” added for clarity. In the arrangement shown in  FIG. 6 , the hinge assembly  22   a  is accommodated within a pair of exterior housings  60 ,  62 . The bore  28   a  is formed within a body  63  that is dimensioned to fit within a cavity  64  formed within the housing  60 . Similarly, the bore  48   a  is formed within a body  66  that is dimensioned to fit within a cavity  68  formed in the housing  62 . The cam member  36   a  is pivotally connected to each of the bodies  24   a ,  66  to form a unitary construction. The housings  60 ,  62  are each provided with a socket  70 ,  72  respectively to which the arm  24   a  and temple  20   a  may be attached by adhesive or pins or other suitable means. In this way, the hinge  22   a  provides a unitary structure to which temples  20   a  and frames  12   a  may be secured to provide the flexibility of the hinge  22   a.    
   A further embodiment of the hinge is shown in  FIGS. 7 through 9  with like components being identified with like reference numerals and a suffix b added for clarity. In the arrangement shown in  FIG. 7 , the hinge assembly  22   b  has a bushing  60  formed at one end of the arm  24   b  with a central bore  62  to receive pin  38   b . The pin  38   b  extends between opposite arms  64  of a yolk  66  that is formed as part of the cam member  36   b . The pin  38   b  is threaded into one of the arms  64  and recessed in a socket in the other arm  64  to provide a flush surface and allow relative pivotal movement between the cam member  36   b  and the arm  24   b . A biasing mechanism similar to that shown in  FIG. 2  is incorporated in the yoke  66  to bear against the bushing  60  and bias the temples to a predetermined position. Alternatively, a spring may be incorporated between the bushing  60  and yoke  66  about the pin  38   b  to provide the bias. 
   The cam member  36   b  has a rearwardly extending tongue  40   b  that is received in a slot  46   b  formed at one end of the temple  20   b . A pin  54   b  extends between the temple  20   b  and the cam member  36   b  to pivotally connect them. The pin  54   b  is perpendicular to the pin  38   b  to permit relative pivotal movement about mutually perpendicular axis. 
   The cam member  36   b  has a cam surface  42   b  which bears against a follower  50   b  biased into engagement with the cam surface  42   b  by a spring  52   b . The cam surface  42   b  is profiled to bias the temple  20   b  to a normal horizontal position but may yield against the bias of the spring  52   b  to accommodate displacement in a vertical plane about the pin  54   b . Similarly, the temple may rotate in a horizontal plane by relative pivotal movement about the pin  38   b  with the biasing device returning the temples to the predetermined position. 
   In the arrangement of  FIGS. 7 through 9 , the construction of the hinge assembly  22   b  is simplified to facilitate production. 
   Although the invention has been described with reference to certain specific embodiments, various modifications thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as outlined in the claims appended hereto. 
   For example it is well known in the art that eyeglasses (e.g., spectacle frames, sunglasses and other types of eyewear) are available in a diverse array of types, shapes, sizes, and materials. Generally, eyeglasses come into three basic types—full, semi or half-rimless, and rimless. In a “full” eyeglass frame, the lens support assembly is comprised of a lens rim that completely encircles the lens. In a semi-rimless eyeglass frame there is no rim encircling both the bottom and top of the lens. Rimless eyeglass frames normally have no rim around the lens. For the most part, rimless eyeglasses come in three pieces (two end pieces and the nose bridge), although other variations also exist. In this configuration, the lenses form part of the of the lens support assembly. Generally, in a rimless configuration, each lens is routinely drilled so that the components fit snugly into the lens. While the invention is described using one specific example of spectacle frames (e.g., rimmed), it can also be adapted and used for semi-rimless, rimless frames. For the purpose of ease and convenience, the embodiments were illustrated and described using a “full” eyeglass frame but each figure could be illustrated with any of the varying types of construction detailed above or others known in the art. 
   Also, while the above descriptions and figures have been described in a specific manner, it can be appreciated that the orientation of individual components can be reversed to achieve the same result. 
   The entire disclosures of all references recited above are incorporated herein by reference.