Watchband adaptor fitting for a wristwatch casing

An adaptor attachable to the watch casing of a watch is structured with attachment means for being secured to the watchband securement means of the watch casing, and is further structured with watchband retaining structure which allows attachment of a watchband by means different than is provided on the watch casing. Thus, the watch casing may be converted for use with watchbands which are not configured to be attachable to that particular watch casing. Likewise, conventional watches employing pin means for attachment of the watchband may be converted to attach uniquely designed watchbands configured for attachment only to correspondingly unique watch casings.

TECHNICAL FIELD 
This invention relates to wristwatches and specifically relates to an 
adaptor structure attachable to the casing of a wristwatch to thereby 
modify the structure of the casing to accommodate watchbands having 
different means of attachment to the casing. 
BACKGROUND 
Wristwatches are structured with a variety of means for attaching the 
watchband, that portion which encircles the wrist, to the watch casing. 
Watch casing, as used herein, refers to that portion which surrounds the 
face of the watch and which houses the mechanical movement of the watch. 
All watch casings also provide means, located on either side of the watch 
face, for attaching the watchband to the casing. 
The most conventional means employed in a watch casing for attaching the 
watchband is a pin positioned between two opposing arm members which 
extend outwardly from the edge of the casing. In some instances, the pin 
is stationary and the watchband is looped about the pin and secured upon 
itself. In such instances, the watchband is a relatively permanent part of 
the wristwatch and requires more extensive disassembly of the watch to 
replace the watchband. 
In other instances, the pin is either inserted through the extended arms 
and held in place by screw means, or the pin is spring-biased between the 
extended arm members. In some embodiments, the pin may be journalled 
between the extended arm members. In instances where the pin is movable, 
the watchband is easily removed by either unscrewing the pin from between 
the arm members or by compressing the spring-biased pin to release it from 
between the arms. The pin, which is positioned within a loop formed in the 
watchband, may be removed from the loop and reinserted in another 
wristband for attachment of the new band to the casing. 
Some watch manufacturers have especially designed the casing of the watch 
to accommodate a reciprocally designed watchband, thereby limiting the 
types of watchbands which may be used with that particular watch casing. 
Typically, the watchband and casing are manufactured by the same company. 
An example of such a reciprocating watch casing and watchband is the 
"Swatch Watch".RTM. brand of watch made by the Swatch Company of 
Switzerland. 
Today, the watch manufacturing industry has made an effort to provide the 
consuming public with a variety of choices as to watch casing styles and 
watchband styles. For example, the Guess.TM. watch has been structured to 
readily allow the removal and replacement of the watchband so that a 
consumer may simply change the watchband to suit different clothing 
styles, different moods, or different color choices. 
Recognizing the consumer's desire to exploit the ways and manners in which 
a wristwatch may be worn, U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,313 to Greer, issued Aug. 9, 
1988, discloses a carrier into which a watch casing may be positioned to 
adapt it for wearing in a variety of ways, including as a lapel pin. The 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,313 also discloses an embodiment of the carrier which 
provides attachment means at either end thereof for supporting a strap. 
Further, U.S. Pat. No. 4,936,019 to Hirsch, issued Jun. 26, 1990, 
discloses a template and cutting instrument for modifying a leather or 
cloth watchband to fit a particularly structured watch casing, such as a 
Swatch Watch.RTM.. 
The patented devices referenced above require either placement of the watch 
casing into a special carrier to adapt it to another means of wearing, or 
require the destruction of an existing watchband in order to adapt it to 
that particular watch casing. Such devices, therefore, require a great 
deal of manipulation or modification and inconvenience to adapt the casing 
to receive different styles of watchbands suitable to the wearer's liking. 
Thus, it would be advantageous in the watch art to provide an adaptor 
structure which quickly and simply attaches to the watchband securement 
means of a watch casing to convert the casing from its original design 
structure for attaching the watchband to a completely different means for 
attaching a watchband so that a variety of different watchband styles may 
be used with the watch casing. 
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION 
In accordance with the present invention, an adaptor structure is provided 
which attaches to the watchband securement means of a watch casing to 
convert the watchband securement means from its original structure to an 
alternative structure to support the attachment of a different type or 
style of watchband to the watch casing. Although the present invention is 
adaptable to any design or configuration of watchband securement means 
attendant to a watch casing, the present invention is illustrated herein 
as attachable to a "Swatch Watch".RTM. design as an exemplar. 
The present invention comprises an adaptor structure having attachment 
structure for securing the adaptor to the watchband securement means of a 
watch casing, and further comprises watchband retaining structure for 
retaining a watchband in proximity to the adaptor structure and watch 
casing. 
The attachment structure of the invention is configured to articulate with 
the particular watchband securement means of the watch casing. That is, in 
the case of a "Swatch Watch".RTM. the watchband securement means of the 
watch casing may be configured with two outer arm members extending away 
from the watch casing and at least two additional arm members extending 
outwardly from the watch casing in parallel orientation to the outer arm 
members and spaced between the outer arm members. Thus, the attachment 
structure of the invention, in an embodiment adaptable to a "Swatch 
Watch".RTM. comprises a complimentary number of extending arm members 
which are consecutively located between the extending arm members of the 
watch casing, and which articulate with the arm members of the watch 
casing about a common pivot point. 
Alternatively, if the adaptor of the invention is used in connection with a 
more conventionally structured watch casing, e.g. one having a 
spring-biased pin mounted between two outer arm members extending 
outwardly from the watch casing, the attachment structure may comprise a 
barrel sized to be receivable between the arm members of the watch casing 
and structured to be securable between the arm members. From the foregoing 
examples, therefore, it is easily understood that the attachment structure 
of the invention comprises a structure which reciprocates and/or 
articulates with the particular design or configuration of watchband 
securement means of the watch casing. 
The watchband retaining structure of the invention provides means for 
attaching a watchband to the adaptor, and thus to the watch casing. The 
watchband retaining structure is particularly designed or configured to 
provide structure which allows the attachment of a watchband to the 
adaptor which is of a different type or style than the watchband which 
originally accompanied the watch casing at time of purchase. Thus, in the 
case of an adaptor structured to be attachable to a "Swatch Watch".RTM. 
the watchband retaining structure of the invention would be a pin 
positioned between two outer arm members. In the case of an adaptor 
configured to be attachable to a conventional type watch casing having a 
pin as the watchband securement means, the watchband retaining means of 
the invention might be a plurality of extending arm members which are 
configured and numbered to articulate with the extending arm members of a 
"Swatch Watch".RTM. watchband. 
The adaptor structure of the present invention may be constructed of any 
suitable material, including hardened plastics, polymers, stainless steel, 
aluminum or the like. The adaptor of the invention may comprise any 
suitable size or dimension commensurate with the size and dimension of the 
particular watch casing with which it is to be used.

BEST MODE OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention is directed to adapting the watchband securement 
means of an existing watch casing to enable attachment of a different type 
or style of watchband to the watch casing. As illustrated in FIG. 1, each 
watch casing 10 is structured with watchband securement means 12, 
positioned on either side of the face 14 of the watch casing 10, for 
attaching a watchband 16 to the watch casing 10. 
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a particularly designed watch casing 10, 
the watchband securement means 12 of which comprises two outer arm members 
18 extending out from the watch casing 10 and two other arm members 20, 22 
which extend outwardly from the watch casing 10 in parallel orientation to 
the outer arm members 18 and which are positioned therebetween. The 
watchband 16 designed to accompany the watch casing 10 is structured with 
reciprocating and articulating arm members 24 which customize the 
watchband 16 to that uniquely structured watch casing 10. The arm members 
24 of the watchband 16 are maintained in secure attachment to the watch 
casing 10 by insertion of a pin 26 or similar means through the adjacent 
arm members 20, 22, 24 and outer arm members 18, as shown. 
FIG. 2 generally illustrates adaptor structure 30 of the present invention 
attached to the watchband securement means 12 of the watch casing 10 shown 
in FIG. 1. The adaptor structure 30 provides a means for converting the 
watchband securement means 12 of the watch casing into a different type or 
style of watchband securement means, shown here as a pin 32, so that a 
different type of watchband 34 can be attached to the watch casing 10. 
FIG. 3 illustrates how the adaptor 30, attached to the watch casing 10, 
has enabled a continuous strap-type watchband 34 to be used with the watch 
casing 10. In a similar, but alternative embodiment of the adaptor 
structure 30, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the watch casing 10 is modified 
through the adaptor 30 to have a spring-biased pin 36 which allows 
attachment of a conventional two-piece, loop ended watchband 38. 
The structure of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 2 is more 
readily understood by reference to FIGS. 6-10. The adaptor 30 generally 
comprises attachment structure 40 configured to articulate with and secure 
the adaptor 30 to the watchband securement means of a watch casing. As 
illustrated in FIGS. 2, 6 and 7, the attachment structure 40 may comprise 
arm members 42 which are in sufficient number, and which are sized, to be 
positionable between reciprocating arm members 20, 22 of a watch casing 
10. The arm members 42 of the adaptor 30 are positioned adjacent to and 
between the arm members 20, 22 of the watch casing 10 and articulate with 
the arm members 20, 22 of the casing 10 about a pivot point, as shown in 
FIG. 2. 
The attachment structure 40 of the invention is configured with means for 
securing the adaptor 30 to the watchband securement means 12 of the watch 
casing 10. Thus, as illustrated, the arm members 42 of the adaptor 30 may 
have apertures 44 formed therethrough, and each aperture 44 is in 
alignment with the aperture 44 of an adjacent arm member 42, to provide a 
channel through which a pin 46 may be inserted to secure the adaptor to 
the outer arm members 18 of the watch casing 10. 
The adaptor 30 also comprises watchband retaining structure 48 for 
providing attachment of a watchband to the adaptor 30, and thus to the 
watch casing 10. As illustrated in FIGS. 2, 6 and 7, the watchband 
retaining structure 48 may be a pin 32 unitarily formed with the adaptor 
30 and positioned between opposing, aligned bearing extensions 50 which 
are associated with the attachment structure 40. The pin 32 of the 
embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 2, 6, 7 and 9 is permanently secured as 
part of the adaptor 30, and therefore provides for attachment of a 
continuous-strap watchband 34 by threading the watchband 34 through the 
opening 52 formed between the attachment structure 40 and the pin 32, as 
shown in FIG. 3. Alternatively, a watchband having formable loops at the 
ends of interlocking strap members may be enfolded about the pin 32 to 
attach the watchband to the adaptor 30. 
An alternative watchband retaining structure 48 is illustrated in FIGS. 4, 
5, 11 and 12, where a spring-biased pin 36 is positioned between bearing 
extensions 50 of the adaptor 30. As more clearly shown in FIG. 11, the 
spring-biased pin 36 may comprise a hollow tube 54 in which is positioned 
a spring 56 (shown in phantom) which bears against a shaft 58 slidably 
positioned within one end of the hollow tube 54. The spring-biased pin 36 
may be removed from the adaptor 30 by applying pressure to the hollow tube 
54 thereby compressing the spring 56 and allowing disengagement of the end 
60 of the hollow tube 54 from the bearing extension 50. The spring-biased 
pin 36 may then be positioned through a formed loop 62 at the end of a 
watchband 38, as shown in FIG. 5, and the spring-biased pin 36 replaced in 
position between the bearing extensions 50. 
The embodiments of the invention described heretofore illustrate a means 
for converting the watch casing of a uniquely designed watch, such as a 
"Swatch Watch".RTM. to accommodate a different, and more conventional, 
type or style of watchband, namely one which attaches to the watch casing 
by pin means. However, it may be desirous to adapt a conventional watch 
casing configured with a pin-type watch securement means to accommodate a 
uniquely configured watchband, such as one designed to particularly fit a 
"Swatch Watch".RTM.. Accordingly, the alternative embodiment of the 
invention shown in FIGS. 13-15 illustrate such adaptability. 
The adaptor 30 shown in FIGS. 13-15 has attachment structure 40 which is 
sized in dimension to fit between and articulate with the pin holding 
extensions 70 of a watch casing 72, the watchband securement means of 
which comprises a conventional pin structure. Thus, the attachment 
structure 40 may be an elongated barrel 74 having a channel 76 formed 
through its length to allow placement of the watchpin 78 therethrough to 
secure the adaptor 30 between the pin holding extensions 70. 
Alternatively, the attachment structure 40 may be a shaft having 
spring-biased pins positioned at either end thereof sized to bear against 
the pin holding extensions 70 of the watch casing 72 to be securely biased 
therebetween. 
Secured to the attachment structure 40 of the adaptor 30 is the watchband 
retaining structure 48, which here comprises a plurality of arm members 80 
which correspond in complimentary number and dimension to the 
reciprocating arm members 82 of a watchband 84. Each arm member 80 of the 
adaptor 30 has an aperture 86 formed therethrough which aligns with the 
aperture 86 of adjacent arm members 80 to form a channel through which a 
pin 88 may be positioned to secure the watchband 84 to the arm members 80 
of the adaptor 30. Thus, a conventional wristwatch casing employing a pin 
watchband securement means can be converted with the adaptor 30 of the 
invention to support attachment of a differently configured watchband. 
The present invention provides adaptor structure securable to the watch 
casing of a wristwatch to convert the watchband securement means of the 
watch casing to a different type or style of watchband securement means. 
The adaptor structure may be configured to fit any type of watchband 
securement means employed in any particular watch casing style, and the 
watchband retaining structure of the adaptor may comprise any number of 
means for attaching a watchband which is different than that means 
employed in the watch casing. Thus, reference herein to specific details 
of the illustrated embodiments is by way of example and not by way of 
limitation. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many 
modifications of the basic illustrated embodiments may be made without 
departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as recited by the 
claims.