Adjustable ultraviolet shielding sunglasses particularly for children and infants

Protective eyewear including an elongated strap member, at least a portion of the strap member being elastic, a pair of lens members, the pair of lens members being attached to the strap member adjacent opposite ends thereof, and an attachment mechanism for attaching the opposite ends of the strap member together, the attachment mechanism including: a first interlocking member disposed on a first end of the strap member, and a second interlocking member disposed on a second end of the strap member, the first and second interlocking members being releasably attachable to one another. Preferably, the length of the strap member is adjustable.

BACKGROUND 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to the field of protective eyewear, 
particularly eyewear designed to reduce or eliminate the harmful effects 
of ultraviolet radiation. 
Recent scientific studies have shown that protecting the eyes from harmful 
ultraviolet radiation is important in helping to prevent the formation of 
cataracts. From the earliest stages of life, eye protection is an 
essential part of healthy development. Most high quality sunglasses, 
however, are not designed for those who may require UV shielding the most, 
namely, infants and very young children. In order for sunglasses to be an 
economically feasible prospect for children, they would have to 
incorporate and adjustable feature to allow for the child's rapid growth 
rate. The present invention is directed toward addressing and overcoming 
these obstacles. 
2. Description of the Related Art 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,976,530 relates to a pair of plastic sunglasses having a 
removable visor snap fit to the upper edge thereof, the removable visor 
extending inward toward the forehead of the wearer. 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,934,807 discloses a pair of sunglasses having a foam 
absorber strip removably attached to the frame portion over the wearer's 
eyes, and interchangeable lenses and temple members. 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,586 relates to sunglasses designed to be secured to the 
visor of a cap and having an adjuster mechanism for regulating the angle 
of the sunglasses. 
Finally, U.S. Des. Pats. Nos. 320,608 and 272,865 disclose various designs 
for sunglasses. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
In one aspect, the invention features eyewear, the eyewear including: a 
pair of lens members; an elastic strap member interconnecting the pair of 
lens members; the pair of lens members being disposed at substantially the 
opposite ends of the elastic strap member; and a releasable interlocking 
mechanism for releasably interlocking the pair of lens members together. 
Preferably, the releasable interlocking mechanism includes an adjustable 
interlocking mechanism for selectively interlocking the pair of lens 
members together at a plurality of positions to thereby adjust the elastic 
strap member to a plurality of lengths; each of the lens members is 
constructed of a material that substantially reduces the UV radiation 
passing therethrough; the adjustable interlocking mechanism includes a 
plurality of outstanding studs disposed on one of the ends of the strap 
member and a plurality of recesses for receiving the studs, the plurality 
of recesses being disposed on the other end of the strap member; the strap 
member extends across each of the lens members; the strap member 
additionally includes a cloth portion; the cloth portion includes at least 
two cloth portions, one each of the two cloth portions extending along one 
each of the lens members; each of the two cloth portions includes a 
terrycloth fabric; each of the two lens members includes a plastic 
material; and each of the two lens members is substantially semicircular 
in shape. 
In another aspect, the invention features protective eyewear, the 
protective eyewear including: an elongated strap member; at least a 
portion of the strap member being elastic; a pair of lens members; the 
pair of lens members being attached to the strap member adjacent opposite 
ends thereof; and an attachment mechanism for attaching the opposite ends 
of the strap member together, the attachment mechanism including: a first 
interlocking member disposed on a first end of the strap member; and a 
second interlocking member disposed on a second end of the strap member; 
the first and second interlocking members being releasably attachable to 
one another. 
Preferably, each of the lens members is substantially semicircular in shape 
and has at least one substantially straight edge, and the protective 
eyewear additionally includes a padding member extending across each of 
the substantially straight edges of the lens members; the strap member 
extends substantially across each of the substantially straight edges of 
the lens members; each of the padding members includes a portion of the 
strap member; each of the lens members is substantially UV blocking; the 
first and second interlocking members comprise a mechanism for adjusting 
the length of the strap member; and the first interlocking member includes 
a plurality of studs extending outward from the strap member, the 
plurality of studs being spaced along the longitudinal axis of the first 
end of the strap member, and the second interlocking member includes a 
plurality of recesses, the plurality of recesses being spaced along the 
longitudinal axis of the second end of the strap member. 
In yet another aspect, the invention features protective eyewear for 
protecting the eyes of an individual from the harmful effects of UV 
radiation, the protective eyewear including: first and second lens members 
for substantially covering the eyes of the individual; an elongated strap 
member for extending substantially around the head of the individual; and 
a strap length adjustment mechanism for adjusting the length of the strap 
member; the first lens member being attached substantially adjacent a 
first end of the strap member; the second lens member being attached 
substantially adjacent a second end of the strap member; the first and 
second lens members being spaced substantially apart from one another 
along the length of the strap member; a portion of the strap member 
disposed between the first and second lens members being elastically 
expandable along the longitudinal axis of the strap member; and each of 
the first and second lens members having a substantially reduced 
transmission coefficient for the ultraviolet radiation spectrum. 
Preferably, each of the lens members has a substantially straight edge, and 
the protective eyewear additionally includes an absorbent padding member 
extending along each of the substantially straight edges of each of the 
lens members; and each of the lens members is substantially semicircular 
in shape, the strap member extends along substantially the entire length 
of each of the substantially straight edges of the lens members, the strap 
length adjustment mechanism includes a plurality of studs extending 
outward from the strap member, the plurality of studs being spaced along 
the first end of the strap member, and a plurality of recesses spaced 
along the second end of the strap member, and each of the absorbent 
padding members includes a terrycloth fabric. 
One object of the present invention is the provision of UV protective 
eyewear that is adjustable to fit very small infants and young children 
alike. 
Another object of the invention is the provision of such sunglasses that 
can be adjusted so as to provide a range of UV protection, ranging from a 
maximum to a minimum. 
Another object of the invention is the provision of sunglasses that are 
particularly suitable for infants and young children, in that they can be 
adjusted so as to be comfortably worn throughout the various stages of 
growth. 
The invention will now be described by way of a particularly preferred 
embodiment, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Referring now to all of FIGS. 1-6, a protective eyewear device 10 
constructed according to the present invention generally includes a pair 
of lenses 12 and a strap 14. As shown, the lenses 12 are generally of a 
substantially semicircular shape, having a substantially straight upper 
edge, and the strap 14, in the preferred embodiment described herein, 
extends substantially across the entire length of each of the straight 
upper edges of the lenses 12. 
The lenses 12 are spaced from one another along the length of the strap 14, 
and the strap 14 is provided with an interior elastic portion 16 that 
extends over the space between the lenses 12 and interconnects the lenses 
12 together. Preferably, the elastic portion 16 is constructed from an 
elasticized fabric well known in the art. 
The lenses 12 are preferably of the type described in the art as "UV 
Blocking," meaning that they have a substantially reduced coefficient of 
transmission with respect to the ultraviolet portion of the 
electromagnetic radiation spectrum. Even more preferably, the lenses 12 
are of the type commonly referred to as being 100% UV blocking, meaning 
that they transmit substantially none of the UV spectrum. Preferably, the 
lenses 12 are constructed from a lightweight plastic material, such UV 
blocking plastics now being well known in the technology of optical 
filters. 
In order to provide for a more comfortable fit, the protective eyewear 
device 10 is provided with padding. Preferably, the padding extends 
substantially over at least a portion of each of the straight upper edges 
of each of the lenses 12, and even more preferably over substantially over 
the entire length of each of the straight upper edges of the lenses 12. 
Thus, the upper edge of each of the lenses 12 is provided with a pad 18 
located on at least the interior portion thereof (i.e., the portion in 
contact with the forehead of the wearer and seen in FIG. 5). Even more 
preferably, the pads 18 are constructed from an absorbent material, in 
order to provide for the absorption of perspiration. Most preferably, the 
strap 14 extends over the entire length of the protective eyewear device 
10, extending along the entire length of the upper straight edges of the 
lenses 12, and the strap 14 is most preferably constructed of an 
elasticized terrycloth material. In this manner, in the preferred 
embodiment, the pads 18 form an integral part of the strap 14 which also 
performs the perspiration absorption function referred to above. 
The protective eyewear device 10 is equipped with an adjustable and 
releasable interlocking mechanism for releasably interlocking the pair of 
lenses 12 together. The interlocking mechanism is preferably provided in 
the form of a set of studs 20 (shown in FIG. 5) that are spaced evenly 
along one end of the strap 14 and a set of recesses (or holes) 22 that are 
spaced evenly along the other end of the strap 14, the recesses 22 being 
dimensioned to receive and retain the studs 20 in a releasable fashion. 
Preferably, the studs 20 and the recesses 22 are of a type similar to 
those often found on headgear, for example, baseball caps, that permit 
adjustment to a number of head sizes. Most preferably, the studs 20 are of 
the type that snap fit into the recesses 22. 
The protective eyewear device 10 is particularly adapted to wear by either 
infants or very young children. As compared with presently known eyewear 
using ear loops, the elasticized terrycloth strap 14 reduces the 
likelihood that the eyewear will fall off or be disturbed. Additionally, 
the elasticized strap 14 may be more comfortable for the young. Still 
further, the adjustability of the protective eyewear 10 allows them to be 
worn by an infant or child throughout the various stages of growth. 
While the invention has been herein described by way of a particular 
preferred embodiment, various substitutions of equivalents may be effected 
without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth 
in the following claims.