Abstract:
An eyeglass retention system for coupling eyewear and headwear through the use of magnets attached to the temples or arms of glasses and magnetic or metallic elements attached to headwear. Vertical supports and other attachment structures prevent inserts from falling out while multi-point magnetic coupling and safety features enhance performance.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S) 
     This document is a continuation application and claims the benefit of, and priority to, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/605,996, filed on Sep. 6, 2012, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure generally relates to systems for attaching glasses to headwear; and, specifically, the present disclosure relates to systems for attaching magnets to the temples of glasses and for using those magnets to attach those glasses to a metallic element attached to, or built into, the headwear. 
     BACKGROUND 
     There are a number of methods currently used to bring about the retention of glasses or sunglasses on the head or body while not in use. The most popular of which are cords that attach to either temple, also called arms, of a pair of glasses which hang behind the wearer&#39;s head; thus preventing the glasses from falling forward beyond the length of the cord while allowing the wearer to hang the glasses about the body when not in use, usually on one&#39;s chest, from the cord around the wearer&#39;s neck. 
     There are several disadvantages to both wearing and securing one&#39;s glasses in this manner, a brief list of these disadvantages follows: (a) when the glasses hang from the wearer&#39;s neck, they are vulnerable to damage as a result of movement of the arms and body, whereby this vulnerability increases if the wearer is both bending and using their arms to manipulate objects in front of their face; (b) when the glasses are worn, the cord extends from the glasses backwards and have the potential to catch on something behind the wearer&#39;s head; (c) storage of the glasses is complicated by the need to either remove and separately store, or wrap the cord about the glasses, either process necessarily needing reversal for subsequent use of the glasses; and (d) the cord can be easily seen, decreasing the aesthetic value of the glasses. 
     The present disclosure adequately solves these related art disadvantages by storing the glasses on headwear without the use of a cord while maintaining many of the advantages of securing glasses offered by the use of a cord. Further objects and advantages of the present disclosure are below outlined. 
     SUMMARY 
     The present disclosure can provide a number of advantages depending on the particular aspect, embodiment, and/or configuration. None of the particular objects or advantages that follow must be entirely satisfied as they are non-exclusive alternatives; and at least one of the following objects is met; accordingly, several objects and advantages of the present disclosure are: 
     (a) to provide a feature for attaching glasses to headwear; 
     (b) to provide a feature for attaching glasses to headwear that allow for the glasses to remain in a secure and stable position on the headwear despite movement of the wearer&#39;s head and body; 
     (c) to provide a feature for attaching glasses to headwear that allow the glasses to be quickly and conveniently attached and detached; 
     (e) to provide a feature for attaching glasses to headwear that allows for removal and reinstallation of such feature; 
     (g) to provide a feature for attaching glasses to headwear that allows for quick and easy installation, removal, and reinstallation of such feature; 
     (f) to provide a feature for attaching glasses to headwear that allows for concealment of the feature for attachment and does not detract significantly from the aesthetics of the glasses or the headwear; 
     (h) to provide a feature for attaching glasses to headwear that allows for secure installation of such feature for attachment to both the glasses and the headwear; 
     (i) to provide a feature for attaching glasses to headwear that is cheap and easy to produce; and 
     (j) to provide a method for producing such feature for attaching glasses to headwear. 
     These and other objectives and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, certain embodiments of the present disclosure are set forth. The drawings are intended to constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure and illustrate various objects and features thereof 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       1. FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  is an isometric perspective view of a complete eyeglass retention system installed in a hat and on a pair of glasses, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 2  is an isometric perspective view of a hat with the inner sweat band folded down and a hat insert, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-section view of a hat insert, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-section view of a magnetic temple attachment to a temple of a pair of eyeglasses, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective cut away view of a magnetic temple attachment with two magnets and the temple of a pair of eyeglasses, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of magnets embedded in a temple of a pair of eyeglasses, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a hat insert, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a hat insert, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 9  is a cross-section view of a hat insert clipping mechanism, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective view of a hat insert with a vertical support, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 11  is a perspective view of a hat insert with a vertical support, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     2. REFERENCE NUMERALS 
       12  A hat 
       14  Eyeglasses 
       16  Metallic or magnetic insert 
       18  Magnetic temple attachment 
       20  Sweatband 
       22  Forward connecting portion 
       24  Folded edge of metallic sweatband insert 
       26  Creases for collapsibility 
       28  Adhesive layers 
       30  Adhesive coverings 
       32  Textures, hooks, perforations 
       34  Temple of eyeglasses 
       36  Elastic materials 
       38  Magnet(s) 
       40  Embedded magnets 
       42  Short adjustable hat insert 
       44  Metal or magnetic plate 
       46  Adjustable snaps 
       48  Circular adjustable hat insert 
       50  Snap grommet insert 
       52  Snap grommet receptacle 
       54  Foldable tab 
       56  Vertical support 
       58  Attachable vertical support 
       60  Pressure fitted snaps 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the present disclosure, reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same. However, the illustrated embodiments are merely exemplary and many additional embodiments in accordance with the present disclosure are possible. For example, baseball caps are pictured; however, the subject matter of the present disclosure can be applied to most headwear. It is understood that no limitation of the scope of the present disclosure is thereby intended. Any alterations and further modifications in the illustrated devices, and such further application of the principles of the present disclosure, as illustrated herein, are contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the present disclosure relates. 
     Unless otherwise indicated, the drawings are intended to be read, e.g., arrangement of parts, proportion, degree, etc., together with the specification, and are to be considered a portion of the entire written description of the present disclosure. As used in the following description, the terms “horizontal,” “vertical,” “left,” “right,” “up,” and “down” as well as adjectival and adverbial derivatives thereof, e.g., “horizontally”, “rightwardly,” “upwardly,” etc., simply refer to the orientation of the illustrated structure as the particular drawing figure faces the reader. Similarly, the terms “inwardly” and “outwardly” generally refer to the orientation of a surface relative to its axis of elongation or axis of rotation, as appropriate. 
     The phrases “at least one,” “one or more,” and “and/or” are open-ended expressions that are both conjunctive and disjunctive in operation. For example, each of the expressions “at least one of A, B and C,” “at least one of A, B, or C,” “one or more of A, B, and C,” “one or more of A, B, or C,” and “A, B, and/or C” denotes A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, or A, B and C together. The terms “a” or “an” element refers to one or more of that element. As such, the terms “a” or “an”, “one or more,” and “at least one” can be herein used interchangeably. It is also to be noted that the terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having” can be used interchangeably. 
     Shown throughout the figures, the present disclosure is generally directed toward attaching glasses to headwear. An embodiment of such system of attaching eyewear, e.g., glasses, to headwear is illustrated in  FIG. 1 ; which illustrates an isometric perspective view of the basic appearance of the system in actual use with a hat  12 , which could be visor or any kind of headwear; and a pair of glasses  14 , which could be library styled glasses with straight temples, or arms, or any other kind of glasses. In addition to hats and glasses, the system also comprises the use of magnetic coupling. In this embodiment, that coupling is achieved through the use of a metallic insert  16  and magnetic temple attachments  18 . Like the hat and the glasses, the magnetic coupling device can be comprised in part(s) of either one or many magnets of a variety of shapes and sizes attached in a variety of ways to the temples of glasses, such as: embedded in the temples, embedded in an elastic temple attachment, glued to the glasses, taped to the glasses or otherwise fastened to the glasses in any other way. The other part(s) of the magnetic coupling could be either one or plural of: metal plates, metal meshes, or any other ferrous and/or magnetic material capable of coupling with a magnet which is attached to the hat. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates an isometric perspective view of an embodiment of the present disclosure, showing a hat  12  with the inner sweat band  20  folded down as to be visible and a metallic insert  16 . The metallic insert  16  pictured in  FIG. 2  can be a solid piece of metal, or a mesh of metal wires, capable of the attachment of a magnet through headwear, which is capable of being concealed between an inward folded sweatband  20  and the outside of a hat  12 . The larger, rounded portions on the distal ends of the metallic insert  16  rest above and around the ears of the wearer of the hat and create a broad area for the coupling of magnetic temple attachments  18 . Theses broad areas allow for coupling of the hat and the glasses in a manner quick and non-specific to a particular location while also allowing the glasses to move on the hat while maintaining continual magnetic attachment; and the height of these regions also helps to retain the vertical position of the insert in the hat while the forward connecting portion  22  keeps the two metal inserts  16  in the same relative horizontal position. 
     Some advantages of an insert  16  comprising a solid metal or metal mesh are as follows: (a) the insert  16  can be quickly stamped, folded, and otherwise worked from a sheet; (b) the insert  16  provides a good point of magnetic attraction even through the fabric of a hat; (c) the insert  16  is pliable and, as such, the insert  16  can be reformed easily should the insert  16  become crushed by sitting upon it or otherwise; (d) since the insert  16  is entirely made of metal, there is no need to attach metal to the insert  16 ; and (e) since human heads are within such similar dimensions that either one, or just a few sizes, the insert  16  could be mass-produced which would accommodate the vast majority of human heads. 
     The embodiment of the metallic insert  16  shown in  FIG. 2  can have several features which improve its functionality: (a) the edges  24  of the insert  16  can be hemmed, rounded, or folded, to create a safer edge for the user to handle; (b) the larger portions of the insert  16  can have seams  26 , frangible portions, perforations, points of weakness, or any other features for designed failure, thereby increasing safety for the user and allowing for contouring the insert  16  to the shape of the head or reshaping the insert  16  should the insert  16  become crumpled; (c) the insert  16  can have frangible portions, perforations, hooks  32 , texturing, spot welded metal mesh, frayed mesh, or any other features for creating a surface on metal, or metal mesh, with adhesive properties; and (d) the insert  16  can also have an adhesive layer  28 , such as an applied layer of actual adhesive, e.g., glue, epoxy, pressure adhesives, thermal adhesives, friction tape, or any other adhesive for attachment. Such adhesive layer may also have a cover  30  to prevent unintentional attachment of the adhesive to other objects. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates a cross-section view of an insert  16 , such as a metallic insert, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. In this embodiment, the insert  16  is held in place between the hat  12  and the sweatband  20  by an adhesive layer  28 ; however, many forms of headwear do not include sweatbands. In such other forms of headwear, the structure for metallic coupling of the headwear would not comprise an insert  16  between the exterior of a hat and the interior of the hat&#39;s sweatband, but the structure for magnetic coupling that is attached to the hat would have to be a different attachment feature, such as: sewing, embedding, gluing, snapping, clipping, or any other feature for attachment, such as a feature for magnetic coupling into or onto the headwear. 
       FIG. 4  illustrates a cross-section view of one embodiment of a magnetic temple attachment  18 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. In this embodiment of the magnetic temple attachments  18 , an elastic material  36 , such as: stretchy fabric, plastic, shrink wrap, or another material of suitably similar properties capable of housing a magnet or magnets  38  and is attachable to the temple  34 , or arms or earpieces of a pair of glasses such that the magnet or magnets  38  can be easily attached or removed. Another embodiment of a magnetic temple attachment, e.g., to the temple, or arms or earpieces, of a pair of eyeglasses is illustrated in a perspective cut-away view in  FIG. 5 .  FIG. 5  is similar to  FIG. 4 , except that two separate magnets  38  are shown. The use of two magnets  38  creates two points of magnetic attachment, thereby preventing the glasses from rotating about the point of magnetic attraction otherwise created by a single magnet. 
       FIG. 6  illustrates a perspective view of embedded magnets  40 , e.g., embedded in the temple of a pair of eyeglasses  34 , according to yet another embodiment of an attachment of magnets to the temples or arms or earpieces of a pair of glasses, in accordance with the present disclosure. Having the embedded magnets  40  disposed in the temples, or arms or earpieces, of the glasses allows for the following advantages: (a) the embedded magnets  40  can be larger and more powerful while not interfering with the aesthetics or comfort of the temples of the glasses; (b) the embedded magnets  40  can be more securely attached to the temples of the glasses; and (c) the embedded magnets  40  can more easily come in direct contact with the hat as no material needs to cover either the magnet or the periphery of its edges. Such embedded magnets  40  and such temples, housing the embedded magnets  40  can themselves be removable from the glasses or the arms or earpieces of glasses making them interchangeable between pairs of glasses. 
       FIGS. 7 and 8  respectively illustrate perspective views of two alternate embodiments of headwear inserts, in accordance with the present disclosure. Both the short adjustable hat insert  42  shown in  FIG. 7  and the circular adjustable hat insert  48  shown in  FIG. 8  can comprise any material with sufficient properties for providing durable application for their purpose within headwear, such as plastic, fabric, or metal.  FIG. 7  illustrates a short adjustable hat insert  42  that is designed to fit into headwear which, itself, has an adjustable size.  FIG. 8  illustrates a circular adjustable hat insert  48  designed to fit into fitted or non-adjustable headwear. Both of the inserts  42 ,  48  comprise a structure for adjusting their length or circumference, as the case may be. Such structure for adjustment can be snaps  46  as seen on standard baseball caps, buckles, notches, slides, loops, or any other structure for adjustability. Both inserts  42 ,  48  may also have metal or magnetic plates  44 , or other metallic or magnetic elements, such as magnets or metal mesh, and can be of a variable size attached to the inserts  42 ,  48  for magnetic coupling of the glasses. Both inserts  42 ,  48  may also have one feature or a plurality of features for attaching the insert  42 ,  48  between a hat and its sweatband. Such feature or features for attachment may be similar to those described in  FIG. 2 , such as: an applied layer of adhesive  28  with a covering  30  to prevent unintentional attachment of the adhesive layer, snaps  50  that fold over the sweatband of the hat, textures, hooks, attached metal mesh, or any other feature for creating a surface with adhesive properties. 
       FIG. 9  illustrates a cross-sectional view of another alternate embodiment of a headwear insert  54 , in accordance with the present disclosure. In this embodiment, the metal or magnetic plate  44  is connected to the sweatband  20  of the hat  12  on either side of the hat  12  around the ears of the wearer. Each insert  54  may comprise a metal or magnetic plate  44  and a feature for attachment to the hat  12 . In this embodiment, the feature for attachment is a foldable tab which has been folded over a sweatband  20  and attached with a snap grommet insert  50  which has pierced the sweatband  20  of the hat  12  and has been pressure fitted to a snap grommet receptacle  52  that can secure the head of the pin and keep the insert  54  in place. Such feature for attachment of the insert  54  may also be similar to those described in  FIG. 2 , such as: an applied layer of adhesive with a covering to prevent unintentional attachment of the adhesive layer, textures, hooks, attached metal mesh, or any other attachment feature. 
       FIGS. 10 and 11  respectively illustrate two embodiments of vertical supports  56 ,  58  that may be used to maintain the position of a metal or magnetic insert in place within a hat by creating leverage against the top of the hat that can prevent the insert from moving upward and away from the fold made by the interior of a sweatband of a hat which would then cause the insert to fall downward out of the hat, in accordance with the present disclosure.  FIG. 10  illustrates an embodiment of a vertical support  56  that is molded as a continuous part of a circular adjustable hat insert  48 .  FIG. 11  illustrates an embodiment of an attachable vertical support  58  that may be removably attached to a metal or magnetic insert. The vertical support  56 ,  58  may be attached to the metal or magnetic insert in a variety of ways, such as: by pressure fitted snaps  60 , threading the vertical support  56 ,  58  through slots, adhesives, or any other feature for attachment. The vertical support  56 ,  58  may also have a feature for adjusting its length, such adjustment feature can be snaps  46  as seen on standard baseball caps, buckles, notches, slides, loops, or any other structure for adjustability. 
     The multiple embodiments of the metal or magnetic inserts or coupling headwear elements can be alternately coupled with the multiple embodiments of the detachable or permanently installed magnetic temple attachments to form the magnetic coupling of the glasses and headwear of this system. Two likely combinations of such embodiments are: (a) either a solid metal or metallic mesh insert coupled with removable magnetic temple attachments or (b) permanently installed solid metal or metallic mesh regions on headwear coupled with permanently installed magnets in the temples of glasses; either of which may have vertical supports. 
     The advantages of the removable insert and temple attachments are: (a) the removable insert and temple attachments are removable; (b) the removable insert and temple attachments can be installed on many different types of glasses and headwear so that the owner of the system can have one coupling of insert and temple attachments and wear multiple combinations of glasses and headwear; and (c) this coupling is cheap to produce, cheap to buy, and easy to install. The benefits of the permanently installed metallic headwear regions and permanently installed magnets in the temples of glasses are: (a) the magnets in the temples of the glasses can be larger than on removable temple attachments; (b) the magnets in the temples can more easily come into direct contact with the hat; and (c) the metallic regions on the headwear can come into direct contact with the magnets on the temples of the glasses, all of which create a more robust attachment of the glasses to the headwear. 
     It is contemplated that the removable coupling will be more useful for typical consumers, such as outdoor enthusiasts, because of price and removability; while the permanently installed coupling will be more useful to commercial users, such as construction workers, because of the more robust attachment of the glasses to the headwear. 
     It is to be understood that while certain forms of the invention are illustrated, it is not to be limited to the specific forms or arrangements herein described and shown. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure; and the present disclosure is not to be considered limited to what is shown and described in the specification and any drawings/figures included herein. 
     One skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the present disclosure is well adapted to carry out the objectives and obtain the ends and advantages mentioned, as well as those inherent therein. The embodiments, methods, procedures, and techniques described herein are presently representative of the preferred embodiments; are intended to be exemplary; and are not intended as limitations on the scope. Changes therein and other uses will occur to those skilled in the art which are encompassed within the spirit of the present disclosure and are defined by the scope of the claims. Although the subject matter of the present disclosure has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the subject matter of the present disclosure, as claimed, should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments. Indeed, various modifications of the described modes for carrying out the subject matter of the present disclosure which are apparent to those skilled in the art are intended to be within the scope of the claims.