Abstract:
An artificial hand assembly for use in training manicurists has a base upon which the hand is mounted at an upwardly extending angle thereto. The hand has removable fingertips having artificial nails therein. In one embodiment the hand is movable with respect to the base about one axis. In another embodiment of the invention, the hand is movable with respect to the base about two axes normal to each other. In still another embodiment the hand is movable with respect to the base in any desired direction or orientation without regard to any discrete axis, by means of a ball and socket connection to the base.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/002,120, filed Dec. 31, 1997, now abandoned and to Provisional Application Serial No. 60/689,684, filed Jun. 10, 2005, through which priority is claimed for the present application. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     This invention relates to an artificial hand for enabling student manicurists, for example, to practice manicuring techniques.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     Artificial hands are commonly used as prosthetic devices which may be made from molded plastic material, such as polyurethane, polyvinyl chloride, or molded foam rubber. For realistic appearance, dyes or other coloring material may impart the desired flesh tones. Artificial hands are also used in dolls or other models of humans. In these, as in other artificial hands for whatever purpose, the finger nails may comprise synthetic polymers or elastomers which can be made to resemble closely real finger nails. Another area in which artificial hands or feet are of considerable utility is the medical training field, one such example being shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,853,293 of Weber, et al., which discloses an artificial or model foot to which various facsimiles of foot conditions may be removably attached. In addition, artificial toenails can be added or removed. The foot may comprise a polyurethane foam, foam rubber, or a fiber filled latex material. The nails may be made of a suitable elastomeric material.  
         [0004]     In U.S. Pat. No. 4,403,442 of Blanc et al, there is shown an artificial doll&#39;s hand having extendable fingernails which are made of synthetic polymers which are similar to human cutaneous material. The doll&#39;s fingernails (and toe nails) may be manicured and painted and, when desired, pulled out and cut off, thereby exposing new un-manicured nails. A similar arrangement is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,691,679 of Kersten.  
         [0005]     U.S. Pat. No. 4,661,187 of Beasley shows a prosthetic device, such as a finger having replaceable fingernails made of suitable acrylic material.  
         [0006]     In the foregoing prior art arrangements, a realistic hand or other appendage is, especially in the case of prosthetic devices, highly desirable. Thus the device is preferably made of a material that imitates the human hand or foot in pliability and tint. Also, where nails are part of the device, acrylic materials can be made to achieve the desired similarity to human nails. An artificial hand for use as a training device instead of as a doll&#39;s hand or as a prosthetic device seems to be lacking in the prior art. Such a training device would be highly desirable for teaching student manicurists, for example.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     The present invention is a training device for use, primarily, by student manicurists, and comprises an artificial hand mounted on a secure base. In one embodiment of the invention, the fingertips which have a fingernail on their distal ends of each finger of the hand are removable so that they can be replaced by new finger tips. The finger tips themselves which, preferably, extend from the first knuckle of the finger, are held in place on the hand by a pin or rod having a slightly enlarged end, which is insertable in a bore in the fingertip. The insertion of the enlarged end is made possible by the resiliency of the hand itself which is made, preferably, from molded foam rubber or suitable plastic material having a degree of resiliency, such as a polyurethane material.  
         [0008]     The hand itself is mounted on a holding member extending at an angle from the base and the hand has a rod end extending from the wrist insertable in a bore in the end of the holding member. In this manner, the hand is firmly held at an angular position which corresponds to the angle of an actual hand upon which a manicurist is working.  
         [0009]     In another embodiment of the invention, a bracket member is mounted to the base and holds an end portion of the wrist of the hand which is pivotably mounted thereon. In this arrangement, the hand can be raised or lowered to accommodate the student manicurist, allowing the student to position the hand in a position that is most comfortable for her or him, while working on the hand.  
         [0010]     In still another embodiment of the invention, the hand is joined to the base by a ball and socket joint, that permits the operator to position the hand in any desired orientation. The joint can be locked to hold the hand in a desired position, or, in its unlocked state, the operator can move the hand from position to position, as would be the case if the operator was working on a human hand.  
         [0011]     In all of the foregoing embodiments, the base upon which the hand is mounted is preferably sturdy enough to withstand any movement of the hand without slipping or tilting. The base may also have a bore, preferably threaded, on its bottom side to permit mounting on a photographer&#39;s tripod, thus steadying the base and permitting the operator to stand while working on the hand. The various features and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following detailed description, read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]      FIG. 1  is a side elevation view of a first embodiment of the invention;  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is a detail of a part of the assembly of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  is a plan view of another embodiment of the invention;  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  is an elevation view of the assembly of  FIG. 3  illustrating the operation thereof; and  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  is a side elevation view of still another embodiment of the invention 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0017]     In  FIG. 1  there is shown a basic assembly  11  of the present invention which comprises a base member  12  and a holding member  13  extending at an angle from the base. Base  12  and member  13  may be made from any of a number of materials such as wood, metal, or molded hard plastic, and the base is preferably weighted to prevent accidental movement of the assembly when in use. Member  13  has a bore  14  therein which receives, in a loose slip fit a pin or rod  16  which extends from the wrist end  17  of an artificial hand  18 . Hand  18  is preferably made of a fairly resilient material to approximate the resiliency of the human hand. Such material may be a polyurethane, polyvinyl chloride, or molded foam rubber. In practice, it has been found that molded foam rubber having a relatively smooth outer surface to approximate human skin works quite well.  
         [0018]     Hand  18  has partial fingers  19 , only three of which are shown, each partial finger  19  having a bore  21  therein extending from its distal end into the partial finger as shown. Fingertips  22  have fingernails  23  at their distal ends which are made of suitable material, such as an acrylic material. Each of the fingertips  22  has extending therefrom a pin  24  having an enlarged end  26 , as best seen in  FIG. 2 , which is insertable into the bore  21 . The enlarged end  26  forces the resilient walls of the bore  21  to expand and thus, when seated, insures a connection that resists any relative movement between the partial finger  19  and the fingertip  22 . On the other hand, fingertip  22  is readily removable from partial finger  19  upon exertion of a strong pull. Base member  12  may have a threaded bore  27  extending into the base from the bottom surface thereof from mounting assembly  11  on a tripod (not shown) such as a photographer&#39;s tripod, thus allowing the operator or student manicurist to practice manicuring while standing.  
         [0019]     In practice, there may be a large supply of fingertips  22 , and they are preferably numbered to match numbered partial fingers  19 . Thus, for example, the thumb fingertip and partial finger will bear the same identifying member, as will the remaining fingertips and partial fingers. The fingernails  23  may be cleaned after use, or they may be replaced by new fingernails. Also, the fingernails may be overly long to allow the operator to practice trimming the nails to a desired length. In the prior art there are shown ways to replace fingernails on artificial hands.  
         [0020]     The hand  18  in the assembly of  FIG. 1  may be rotated by rotation of the pin  16  within the bore  14  of holder  13 . The degree of slip fit of the pin within the bore governs the ease with which the hand may be rotated. The hand  18  thus is rotatable along the axis of the pin  16  and bore  14 .  
         [0021]     It is to be understood that the relationship of the bore  21  and pin  24  may be reversed, with the pin  24  extending from partial finger  19  into a bore  21  in the fingertip  22  this is true also of bore  14  and pin  16 .  
         [0022]      FIG. 3  depicts an embodiment of the invention in which the hand may be raised or lowered as depicted in  FIG. 4 , by being rotated along an axis that is normal to the axis of pin  16  and bore  14 . For simplicity, like parts bear the same reference numerals throughout the several views.  
         [0023]     The embodiment of  FIG. 3  has a bracket  28  mounted on, or otherwise, secured to, base  12 . The bracket  28  is a holding member for the hand  18 , replacing member  13  of  FIG. 1 , and permitting the hand  18  to be oriented at a desired angle. Locking means, not shown, can be used to fix the hand at the selected angle, but such means is not strictly necessary since movement of the hand (unlocked) more nearly approximates that of the human hand. Bracket  28  has first and second upstanding ears  29  and  31  having bushings  32  and  33  for holding a horizontally extending pin  34 . It is to be understood that instead of a single bracket as depicted, the upstanding ears  29  and  31  can be affixed directly to base  12 . A wrist section  36  has a bracket  37  extending from the rear  40  thereof and having first and second spaced arms  38  and  39  having aligned bores  41  and  42  through which pin  34  extends, as shown. Thus section  36  is pivotable along the axis formed by pin  34 , and can be raised or lowered but is otherwise fixed as best seen in  FIG. 4 . The front end  43  of section  36  has a bore  14  extending thereform into the interior of section  36 . The rear end  17  of hand  18  has a pin  16  extending into bore  14  in a slip fit, in the same manner as the embodiment of  FIG. 1  to allow hand  18  to be rotated along the axis of pin  16  and bore  14 .  
         [0024]     The embodiment of the invention shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2  has a hand that is movable (rotatable) on one axis only, and the embodiment of  FIGS. 3 and 4  has a hand that is movable on two discrete axes normal to each other. In  FIG. 5  there is shown an embodiment of the invention in which the hand is movable to virtually any desired position.  
         [0025]     In  FIG. 5 , the wrist end  17  of the hand  18  has extending therefrom a shaft  46  at the distal end of which is mounted a ball  47 . Both shaft  46  and ball  47  are preferably made of metal or other hard material that is highly resistant to wear. Rotatably mounted to the end of holding member  13  is a socket support plate  48  from which extends a split socket member having first  49  and second  51  curved members which receive ball  47  therein. A locking member  52  is threaded in member  49  and has a locking/unlocking handle  53 . When the ball is within the unlocked socket position, the hand can be moved to any desired position and then locked in that position by rotating handle  53  to pull the member  49  and  51  together. The split  54  which separates members  49  and  51  has an enlarged position  56  to allow clearance for shaft  46  as the hand is moved. Additionally, locking member  52  may be adjusted to allow movement of the hand bent to apply some restraining force to such movement approximate the resistance to movement of the human hand.  
         [0026]     It is also possible for the socket member  49 ,  51  and support plate  48  to be mounted on the wrist end  17  and the shaft  46  and ball  47  extend from holding member  13 .  
         [0027]     It is to be understood that the various structural features of the present invention might be incorporated into other types of devices, and the other modifications or adaptations might occur to workers in the art. All such variations, modifications, or adaptations are intended to be included herein as being within the scope of the present invention as set forth. Further, in the claims hereafter, the corresponding structures, materials, acts and equivalents thereof are intended to include any structure, material, or acts for performing the functions in combination with other elements as specifically claimed.