Abstract:
The present invention improves existing eyewear frames to provide a secure and convenient means for storage and transport of eyewear when it is not being worn on the face. The eyewear frames contain rimless or semi-rimless lenses, which may be, for example, prescription lenses, reading lenses, darkened lenses as in sunglasses, or protective lenses, or a military lens such as night-vision goggles. When not in use as eyeglasses, the eyewear can be folded into a band for the wrist, arm or ankle. The eyewear frames may be comprised of a flexible material that allow the earpieces or nosepiece or both to bend or twist. There is an optional protective cover for the lenses when the eyewear is not in use as eyeglasses that may be solid or may be hinged.

Description:
[0001]     This application is a continuation in part from application Ser. No. 10/908,505. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention provides for a storage mechanism for eyeglasses based upon the construction of the eyewear frame.  
         [0003]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0004]     The field of the invention is eyewear, specifically frames for eyewear.  
         [0005]     2. Description of Related Art  
         [0006]     Frames for eyewear are well known in the art. Existing frames generally comprise a rigid or semirigid frame that fits over the eyes for holding a lens or a pair of lenses upon the face in front of the eyes, held in place upon the face by rigid or semi-rigid earpieces that fit behind the ears to hold the eyewear on the face. Alternatively, the eyewear may have a band that encircles the head and attaches to the eyewear to hold the eyewear in place. The eyewear also generally has a rigid piece that crosses the nose between the means for holding the lenses. If the eyewear has rigid earpieces, the earpieces generally fold across the lenses for storage.  
         [0007]     Another alternative embodiment of known eyewear frames is the so-called “pince-nez” frames, which do not have earpieces, but the nosepiece is flexible and when worn, the pince-nez is held in place by friction and compression as the nosepiece causes the eyewear to pinch the bridge of the wearer&#39;s nose to hold the attached lenses before the wearer&#39;s eyes.  
         [0008]     Also known in the art is the so-called “monocle,” a single lens that is held In place before the eye by compressing the edges of the lens between the top and bottom of the human eye socket.  
         [0009]     The existing art provides means for storing eyewear when it is not being worn on the face comprising a case or container for the eyewear. The eyeglasses case or container is cumbersome to carry, requiring a pocket or a satchel or purse if the wearer chooses not to carry the case in his or her hand. This can be inconvenient at times when the wearer either does not have a pocket or chooses not to carry a purse or satchel. Some eyeglasses wearers address this inconvenience by placing their eyeglasses on top of their heads, from whence the eyeglasses can easily fall and become lost or broken. Others wear a necklace or pin that they hook one earpiece through or around, where the eyeglasses can get in the way of various activities such as swimming, skiing, or other active sports or activities. Monocle wearers may have a strap or necklace attached to the lens which they wear around the neck or attached to a jacket, shirt or blouse button.  
         [0010]     Lenses on pivot joints are also known. The inventor has seen a timekeeping watch in the marketplace which has one or more lenses pivotally attached to the watch&#39;s rim. The lens or lenses pivot up to form a binocular or telescope.  
         [0011]     The need exists in the art for a convenient and secure storage system for eyeglasses when they are not being worn.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0012]     The present invention provides eyewear frames that can be folded into a convenient means for storage and transport when the eyewear is not being worn on the face. The invention removes the need for a case or container for the eyewear. The eyewear frames may be made of a flexible material that allows the earpieces or the nosepiece or both to bend or twist. The eyewear frames contain eyeglass lenses, which may be, for example, prescription lenses, reading lenses, darkened lenses for sunglasses, protective lenses, or a military lens such as night-vision goggles. When not in use as eyeglasses, the frames can be folded or bent into a band for the wrist, arm or ankle. A lens may optionally pivot out to allow the individual to use the lens to view something without removing the eyeglasses and converting them from the band form to the traditional eyeglasses form. A small optional memo pad may be attached to the frame for the person using the frame to write short reminders to him- or herself. The memo pad may be made of paper, of washable plastic, or of any other suitable writing surface material. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0013]      FIG. 1  shows the eyeglass frames with lenses attached, in the form of a band, armband or anklet.  
         [0014]      FIG. 2  shows the band form of the eyeglass frames opening out to form traditional eyeglasses.  
         [0015]      FIG. 3  shows the fully expanded eyeglasses.  
         [0016]      FIG. 4  shows the eyeglasses in band form with a lens extended for reading or other viewing with the eyeglasses in band form.  
         [0017]      FIG. 5  shows the earpieces to the eyeglasses comprising a stiffer material and hinged to allow the earpieces to be locked into place in either the band or the eyeglasses configuration.  
         [0018]      FIG. 6  shows the eyeglasses in band form, clipped together at the nosepiece.  
         [0019]      FIG. 7  shows the eyeglasses in expanded form with blocks to prevent the earpieces from moving too far inward.  
         [0020]      FIG. 8  shows the eyeglasses in band form, clipped together at the end of each earpiece.  
         [0021]      FIG. 9  shows the eyeglasses in expanded form.  
         [0022]      FIG. 10  shows the eyeglasses in band form with a sliding mechanism.  
         [0023]      FIG. 11  shows the eyeglasses in expanded form, held together with a clip on the nosepiece.  
         [0024]      FIG. 12  shows a protective shell for the lenses to the eyewear for use when the eyewear is worn in band form on the arm, leg, wrist, or ankle. When the eyewear is worn in eyeglasses form, the protective shell can remain on the wearer&#39;s extremity. The protective shell can be manufactured in any color to meet the wearer&#39;s fashion sense.  
         [0025]      FIG. 13  shows the lenses as they would appear in the eyewear in a rimless design.  
         [0026]      FIG. 14  shows the protective shell as it would appear designed as a clamshell that surrounds the lenses when the eyewear is in the bracelet or anklet formation.  
         [0027]      FIG. 15  shows the rimless or semi-rimless design feature of flipping or pivoting a lens up for viewing; the earpiece of that lens travels with the moving lens. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0028]     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , eyewear  100  is shown folded in a band configuration. The earpieces  105  are next to each other, and the earpieces  105  are hingedly attached  107  to a pair of lenses  110 . The eyewear lenses  110  are attached at a pivot  115  which also serves as the nosepiece  122 . Earpieces  105  made of bendable material capable of being reconfigured between earpieces and a band many times without fatigue or breaking are attached to each lens  110  on the side opposite the pivot  115 .  
         [0029]     In the band configuration, the lenses  110  are closely adjacent to each other, and the earpieces  105  are curled to wrap around the wearer&#39;s wrist, arm, or ankle, with the lenses  110  forming a jewel on the band. The band is comprised of materials flexible enough to accommodate different sized wrists, arms, legs, and ankles. To open the band to form eyeglasses, the earpieces  105  are pulled to separate them from each other. The lenses  110 , which are attached with hinges  117  to the earpieces  105 , are simultaneously pulled apart by the pulling action on the earpieces  105  until the lenses  110  are adjacent to each other across a nosepiece  122  in the form of eyeglasses  130 . The flexible earpieces  105  can then be wrapped around the wearer&#39;s ears.  
         [0030]     The lenses  110  used in the eyewear  100  may be of any type, including but not limited to prescription lenses, sunglasses, reading glasses, protective lenses, or lenses such as night vision lenses.  
         [0031]     There is an optional small lamp  145  attached to the eyewear  100  on the earpiece  105 .  
         [0032]     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , eyewear  100  is shown expanded into eyeglasses  130 , with two earpieces  105 , two lenses  110  configured to rest before a pair of human eyes, and a nosepiece  122 . The nosepiece  122 , which is comprised of either a flexible material or of an inflexible material with a joint  115  in the center of the nosepiece  122 , also serves as a pivot  115  when the eyewear  100  is in the band configuration. A small optional light  145  is attached to an earpiece  105 .  
         [0033]     Referring now to  FIG. 3 , the eyewear  100  is shown fully extended into the configuration of eyeglasses  130 . A small optional light  145  is attached to an earpiece  105 .  
         [0034]     Referring now to  FIG. 4 , the eyewear  100 , shown in the band configuration, may optionally have a joint  115  that allows one lens  110  to rotate or pivot such that the one lens  110  can be positioned, while the eyewear  100  is in the band configuration, in a way that the wearer can use the one lens  110  to look through for functions such as reading small print, magnification or other functions. The eyewear  100  may also optionally have a set of clips  125  for holding a small optional memo pad  135 . The memo pad  135  may be made of whiteboard material, paper, blackboard material, or any other suitable writing surface. The memo pad  135  may be washable.  
         [0035]     Referring now to  FIG. 5 , the eyewear  100  is shown in the eyeglasses configuration  130 . The earpieces  105  in this embodiment are made of a stiff plastic or metal material, and comprise one or a plurality of links  140  to enable the earpieces to be reconfigured between the eyeglasses configuration and the band configuration with a reliable return to the other configuration each time the eyewear is converted between eyeglasses and a band.  
         [0036]     Referring now to  FIG. 6 , eyewear  100  is shown in a band configuration, with earpieces  105  next to each other, lenses  110  next to each other, and a pivot  115  that converts into a nosepiece  122 . An optional block  210  prevents the earpieces  105  from moving too far inward.  
         [0037]     Referring now to  FIG. 7 , eyeglasses  130  are shown with the optional block  210  preventing the earpieces  105  from moving too far inward.  
         [0038]     Referring now to  FIG. 8 , the eyewear  100  is shown in a band configuration wherein the earpieces  105  are separated and surround the wearer&#39;s arm, wrist, ankle or leg. The earpieces  105  are joined at the ear end by a clasp  305 , such as a jewelry clasp.  
         [0039]     Referring now to  FIG. 9 , eyeglasses  130  are shown fully expanded. The lenses  110  are in the configuration that is normal for eyeglasses in general, the pivot  115  forms the nosepiece  122 , and the earpieces  105  are extended to fit the wearer&#39;s head. The clasp  305  is disengaged at the end of each earpiece  105 .  
         [0040]     Referring now to  FIG. 10 , the eyewear  100  is shown halfway between the band configuration and the fully extended eyeglasses configuration. The nosepiece  122  halves are detached and the lenses  110  move laterally across one another to attach to the opposite lens&#39;s  110  earpiece  105  with a clasp  405 .  
         [0041]     Referring now to  FIG. 11 , the eyeglasses  130  are shown fully expanded. The clasp  405  is used to hold the nosepiece  122  together as a nosepiece for eyewear.  
         [0042]     Referring now to  FIG. 12 , an optional cover  505  is shown. The cover  505  can be used to protect the lenses  110  (not shown) from damage when the eyewear  100  (not shown) is being worn in the band configuration. The cover  505  is formed from a durable material that can be formed to cover the lenses  110  (not shown). The cover  505  has a cover band  510  formed of a flexible material that can be used to hold the cover  505  on the arm when the cover  505  is not being used to protect the lenses  110  (not shown).  
         [0043]     Referring now to  FIG. 13 , the lenses  110  may be housed within the eyewear in a rimless design. In such a configuration, the nosepiece  122  is attached directly onto the nose end  1311  of each lens  110  using an attachment mechanism  1312  that may be bolts, rivets, screws, glue, or another, similar, mechanism. The earpieces  105  are hingedly attached directly to the ear end  1313  of each lens  110  using an attachment mechanism  1314  that may be bolts, rivets, screws, glue, or another, similar, mechanism.  
         [0044]     Referring now to  FIG. 14 , the optional cover  505  may be formed using a clamshell  1415  design, wherein the cover  505  surrounds the lenses  110  (not shown). The cover  505  has a hinge  1420  on one side that allows the cover to open and close. The hinge  1420  may be mounted with a spring  1425  to keep it open or shut, or the hinge may be held closed by a clasp  1430  on the opposite side of the cover  505 . A bottom side  1435  of the clamshell  1415  Is substantially flattened, allowing the clamshell  1415  to be comfortable to wear on an arm or a leg. Whether the lenses  110  are rimmed or rimless is immaterial to the design of the optional cover  505 .  
         [0045]     Referring now to  FIG. 15 , a rimless or semi-rimless frame  1505  is shown in the band configuration with a lens  110  pivoted into a viewing position (see  FIG. 4 ). Note that the earpiece  105  that is attached to the lens  110  being pivoted travels with the rimless or semi-rimless lens  110 .  
         [0046]     Referring now to  FIG. 16 , the lenses  110  may be housed within the eyewear in a semi-rimless design. In such a configuration, the nosepiece  122  is attached directly onto the nose end  1311  of each lens  110  using an attachment mechanism  1312  that may be bolts, rivets, screws, glue, or another, similar, mechanism. Alternatively, in the rimmed or semi-rimless design, the nosepiece  122  may be attached to the frame  100  using an attachment mechanism  1312  that may be bolts, rivets, screws, glue, a one-piece design, or another, similar, mechanism. The earpieces  105  are hingedly attached directly to the ear end  1313  of each lens  110  using an attachment mechanism  1314  that may be bolts, rivets, screws, glue, or another, similar, mechanism. Alternatively, in the rimmed or semi-rimless design, the earpieces may be attached to the frame  100  using an attachment mechanism that may be bolts, rivets, screws, glue, or another, similar, mechanism. The lenses  110  in the rimless or semi-rimless design may be held in place using any of the standard methods of holding such lenses in place, including but not limited to glue, bolts, rivets, screws, and nylon string  1605  surrounding the bottom part  1610  of the lens  110  and attaching to the eyewear at the nose end  1311  and ear end  1311  of each lens  110 .  
         [0047]     For any embodiment of the invention, nosepads  1615  may attach directly to the nose end  1311  of each lens  110  or, in the semi-rimless or frame design, to the frame  100  or nosepiece  122 .  
         [0048]     For any embodiment of this invention, the lenses  110  may be of any type that can be used in standard eyewear, including but not limited to reading lenses, darkened lenses for sunglasses, prescription lenses, plate glass or optically inert plastic lenses, protective lenses, and night vision lenses, or any combination of lens types (for example, prescription sunglasses).  
         [0049]     While a preferred embodiment is shown and described herein, it should be understood that the present disclosure is made by way of example only and that variations in the described device and its uses are possible within the scope of this disclosure without departing from the subject matter coming within the scope of claims to be examined, and a reasonable equivalency thereof, which I regard as my invention.