Abstract:
An earpiece bracket that conveniently attaches to a cap worn by a user with length adjustment such that the distance between the cap to the earpiece is adjustable in the bracket. The attachment is pivotable so the bracket may swing the earpiece into and out of its operational position. In use, the earpiece depends in the bracket from the cap into an operational position with the speaker portion of the earpiece urged against the user&#39;s ear at the external auditory meatus. The earpiece swings into place during use and away from the ear when not use. The earpiece speaker portion is held against ear at the external auditory meatus under spring bias in the attachment of the bracket to the cap.

Description:
This continuation in part application is derived from application Ser. No. 12/504,121 which in turn is derived from the provisional application filed Jul. 16, 2008 under serial number 61081101 and claims the benefit of that filing date. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates generally to cell phone earpieces and more specifically to a bracket for suspending an earpiece from a cap instead of from an auricle of an ear. 
     2. Prior Art 
     Ear pieces that work in coordination with a cell phone are now becoming common, allowing hands free cell phone use, both for convenience and for operation of a vehicle. The operation of the ear piece depends on maintaining placement of the speaker portion of the ear piece at the external auditory meatus so very little volume is required and external noise is minimized. Typically, an ear piece is sold with a mount that has a C-shaped portion that wraps around and behind a user&#39;s auricle. The ear piece in the mount is then adjusted with its speaker portion at the acoustic meatus where it is partially held in place by the tragus in combination with the C-shaped portion of the mount. 
     The ear piece mount is uncomfortable and unsightly. Because it is sometimes offensive to a user, it is often separated from the earpiece and the earpiece is used without the mount, in which case the earpiece is held to the ear only by placing the speaker portion inside the tragus. This is less than a stable mount but still sometimes preferable to using the C-shaped portion of the mount. A mount that is comfortable and still effective is still needed. 
     While the earpiece is not in use, it is typical to keep the earpiece in the tragus. This can be off-putting to those attempting to have a conversation in person because it is unclear who the earpiece user is talking to; a person on the phone or the person in front of them. Also, it has become gauche in society to walk around with an earpiece in the ear. 
     It is then an object of the present invention to provide an ear piece mounting bracket that is comfortable to use even for extended periods of time. It is a further object that earpiece not be forced into the auditory meatus by the bracket but instead to be positioned over the ear canal so the user can urge it into the ear at their discretion. It is another object that the bracket holds the ear piece to the external auditory meatus independent of the user&#39;s auricle. It is a still further object that the ear piece be conveniently movable away from the auricle and external auditory meatus when not in use so it does not become an irritant to the user and still quickly returned to its operational position when needed for use. 
     SUMMARY 
     These objects are obtained in an earpiece bracket that conveniently attaches to a cap worn by a user. The attachment is pivotable so the bracket may swing the earpiece into and out of its operational position. In use, the earpiece depends in the bracket from the cap into an operational position with the speaker portion of the earpiece positioned near the user&#39;s ear at the external auditory meatus. The earpiece swings into place during use and away from the ear when not use. The earpiece speaker portion is held near the ear at the external auditory meatus under spring bias in the attachment of the bracket to the cap. With the earpiece swung temporarily to the external auditory meatus for a brief period of use and then swung back to the cap until it is needed again, the earpiece is comfortable when in use and does not become an irritant to the ear because of its brief periods of contact with the ear. 
     Persons will have a slightly different manner in regard to where they prefer to wear a cap. Therefore, the bracket provides a length adjustment such that the distance between the cap to the earpiece is adjustable in the bracket. 
     The bracket is also adjustable and can open and lock around the neck of most of the many brands and sizes of earpieces sold on the market. The bracket also has a locking mechanism that locks the bracket onto the neck of a wireless earpiece using compliant force and friction. This allows for facile removal and attachment of various earpieces that can be easily locked into place. 
     The earpiece mounting device can be used with any product designed to provide sound to the ear by adapting the product for mounting to the earpiece mounting device of the present invention as described herein. In referring to an earpiece generally for ease of description, the earpiece is meant to include a wireless telephone earpiece used in association with a cellular phone for hands free operation of the cellular phone, a music player and any similar sound device mountable to the ear for receiving a wireless signal and producing sound to the ear. Use of the term “wireless” is also used for ease and simplicity of description and for all purposes herein should be deemed to include all methods and protocols of transmitting and receiving a data signal without wires. The well-known protocol known as Bluetooth is one such protocol commonly used presently. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view of the bracket of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the assembled bracket of  FIG. 1  with a cap aligned to cover a portion of the assembly. 
         FIG. 3  is perspective view of the bracket of  FIG. 1  partially assembled showing a clip, a friction member on the clip, an elongate member with a slot over the friction member with a spacer within the slot, and a shaft of a bolt extending upward through the clip and continuing through a hole in the friction member and a hole in the spacer. 
         FIG. 4  is an artistic view of the bracket of  FIG. 1  attached to a cap in its operational first position. 
         FIG. 5  is an artistic view of the bracket of  FIG. 1  attached to the cap of  FIG. 4 , rotated to a non-operational second position alongside the cap. 
         FIG. 6  is an exploded perspective view of the bracket of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The bracket  5  of the present invention for suspending a cell phone earpiece  100  from a user&#39;s headgear  102  primarily comprises a clip  10  temporarily attachable to the headgear  102  and an elongate member  12  to which an earpiece  100  may be secured. Typically the headgear  102  is a cap that has a rim  104  to which the clip  10  temporarily attaches. To attach to the headgear  102  the clip  10  comprises two opposing members  14  mutually bending from each other at a line of flexure  16  forming a channel  18  therebetween. The cap rim  104  is then receivable temporarily into the channel  18  under spring bias from the line of flexure  16  that binds the cap rim  104  between the opposing members  14 . 
     The elongate member  12  is mounted pivotably to the clip  10  near an elongate member first end  20  on a bolt  21  extending from the clip  10 . The elongate member  12  may thus rotate on the clip  10  thereby moving the earpiece  100  secured in an earpiece position  22  on the elongate member  12  between first and second positions  24 ,  26 . In the first position  24 , the earpiece when mounted in the earpiece position  22  is over the external auditor meatus  106  of the user. The elongate member  12  comprises first and second sections  23 ,  25  curved inward at least a portion of which is resiliently flexible such that the earpiece  100  in the earpiece position  22  is urged under spring bias against the user&#39;s ear  108  in use. Clearly, the elongate member  12  may instead comprise an actual curve. In the second position  26 , the earpiece  100  is swiveled away from the user&#39;s ear  108 , which may be conveniently alongside the headgear  102  so as not to interfere with or distract the user. 
     The earpiece  100  is secured to the earpiece position  22  at an elongate member second end  28 . The elongate member second end  28  may comprise a resilient wire form with a pair of legs  30 , in which case the earpiece position  22  may be along the legs  30  but is preferably at the gripping portion  32  with the legs  30  grasping the earpiece  100  between them. 
     The elongate member  12  is also slidably mounted to the clip  10 . The bolt  21  passes through a slot  23  longitudinal in the elongate member  12  therein providing adjustment of distance between the clip  10  and the earpiece position  22  in the elongate member  12  to facilitate positioning of the earpiece  100  over the external auditory meatus  106  of the user. 
     At least one friction member  34  is installed over the bolt  21  on a side  36  of the elongate member  12 , and typically over and under the elongate member  12 , providing a friction interface between the elongate member  12  and the clip  10 . 
     A nut  38  on the bolt end  40  binds the friction member or members  34  against the elongate member  12  at a preferred pressure as the nut  38  is tightened on the bolt  21 . Under the friction provided by the friction members, which may be fiber washers, the elongate member  12  moves relative to the clip  10  under positive action by the user and otherwise maintains a fixed position during use. 
     A coil spring  42  may be provided through which the bolt  21  passes and which the nut  38  compresses as the nut  38  is tightened to maintain a preferred pressure against the friction member or members  34 . For ease of description the shaft that extends from the clip  10  through the spring  42  and the friction member or members  34  is represented by a bolt  21  with the assembly held in place by a nut  38  in cooperation with the bolt  21 . The bolt and nut are common and well known parts used for this purpose. However, there are also other parts, such as rivots and pins, etc. that are suitable to perform the same function. A locking nut or a second nut also can be used along with the first nut to prevent the nut from unthreading on a bolt. There are similar other parts that can be used to prevent the nut from unthreading. All of these parts are represented by the use of the term ‘nut’ and for all purposes herein should be deemed included in the use of the term ‘nut.’ For all purposes herein, use of the terms ‘bolt’ and ‘nut’ are for ease of description only and should be deemed to represent all other common and well known parts that perform the same function. For generality, the bolt and similarly functioning parts may be described as a shaft herein and the nut and similarly function parts may be described as a securing member. A cap  60  covers the bolt  21  and frictional members  34  for aesthetic reasons and to prevent soil from interfering with the sliding function. 
     The elongate member  12  also has a pair of detents  63  near the elongate member second end  28  having one detent  63  on each of the pair of legs  30 . The detents  63  provide a locking feature when combined with locking mechanism  61 . The locking mechanism  61  has a locking mechanism channel  65  which fits over and slides along the elongate member second section  25 . Within the locking mechanism channel  65  are two compliant springs  62  which bend when the locking mechanism  61  is slid over the detent  63 . The compliant springs  62  relax after the detent  63  preventing the locking mechanism  61  from sliding back up the elongate member second section  25  toward the elongate member first end  20 . A channel closeout  66  attaches to the locking mechanism channel  65  to keep the locking mechanism  61  slideably attached to the elongate member second section  25 . 
     Gripping portions  32  are coated with a frictional coating  64  to enhance gripping of the cell phone earpiece  100 . The frictional coating  64  is preferably soft vinyl but maybe any rubber, plastic, silicon or adhesive or means for increasing friction. The frictional coating  64  is coated to a thickness of between 0.005 to 0.08 inches. 
     The friction member  34  is preferably made from a fiber washer which provides the optimum friction on the elongate member  12 . This washer can also be metal, plastic, neoprene, or mica. The bolt  21  is tightened to apply between one to eight pounds of force on the fiber washer  34 . This results in a friction force between the fiber washer  34  and the elongate member  12  which is low enough to allow adjustment without pulling the bracket  5  from the users headgear  102  and high enough that the weight of the cellphone earpiece  100  does not cause unwanted adjustment or dangling. 
     Gripping portions  32  are shaped in a ellipse which allows the bracket  5  to grip a cell phone earpiece  100  with a neck  109  between 0.18 and 0.50 inches. This wide range of operation is made possible by the detents  63  working in concert with the locking mechanism  61  to react lateral or out of plane loads which would cause the cellphone earpiece  100  to twist out of the grip of the gripping portion  32 . The locking mechanism  61  keeps the detents  63  planar during use. 
     The bracket  5  is made preferably for Bluetooth™ SIG protocol featured earpiece devices. 
     The channel  18  is flexible steel or other such material and is designed preferably to have clamping force necessary to attach to a cloth hat between 0.01 and 0.25 inches thick and not slide off under the weight of the bracket  5  and wireless earpiece  100 . The bracket  5  does not require a rigid surface for mounting and is suited for flexible cloth hats  102 . 
     The elongate member  12  is preferably made from stainless steel piano wire in a range between 0.02 and 0.08 inches in diameter. It is suitable to make the elongate member  12  from other metals and coated if not stainless. 
     The elongate member  12  moves relative to the clip  10  by sliding between friction members  34 . This sliding adjustment is between 0.9 and 2.0 inches which allows for most users headgear  102  positions and head sizes. 
     To prevent interference with the tragus of the user; the clip  10  must be placed on a user headgear  102  at a position in front of the users ear and the elongate member  12  reaches back to the users ear above the tragus and over the inner ear. The optimal angle is between 5 and 31 degrees forward of vertical from the inner ear. 
     The compliant springs  62  preferably exert a force of between 0.2 and 7 pounds on the elongate member  12 . This force holds the gripping portion  32  together to steady the cellphone earpiece  100  and not allow sloppy movement. The force is not so high that the user would have trouble moving the locking mechanism  61  over the detents  63 . 
     The elongate member  12  comprises first and second sections  23 ,  25  curved inward at least a portion of which is resiliently flexible such that the earpiece  100  in the second position  26  is swiveled away from the user&#39;s ear  108 , which may be conveniently held alongside the headgear  102  so as not to interfere with or distract the user. The earpiece  100  is held against the headgear  102  (and out of the way) by spring force induced in the flexure of the elongate member which causes friction between the soft earpiece  100  and the cloth headgear  102 . The purpose of the flexure of the elongate member  12  is primarily to keep the earpiece  100  away from the ear rather than to push the earpiece  100  into the ear.