Patent Publication Number: US-10757993-B2

Title: Cap with exchangeable visor

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2018-0038569 filed on Apr. 3, 2018, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     The present invention relates generally to a cap with an exchangeable visor, and more specifically to a cap with an exchangeable visor, in which a visor can be easily coupled to and separated from a cap body, so that the visor and the cap body can be exchanged with a desired cap body and a desired visor, thereby enabling the creation of various types of styling and also providing unique styles. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     In general, caps that are worn on the heads of persons may be classified into protective caps, such as a helmet, etc., that are worn to protect the heads of persons from external impact, and fashion caps that are worn to provide various types of styling and fashion. Such a fashion cap includes a cap body configured to surround the head of a person and a cap visor configured to block sunshine, etc. 
     In this case, the fashion cap is configured such that the cap body and the cap visor are integrated with each other. Accordingly, there occurs the risk of injury when a ball hits the fashion cap when a user plays sports, such as soccer. In order to avoid such a risk, there are frequent cases where the fashion cap is worn backward with the cap visor directed to the head of a person. In this case, a problem arises in that the cap visor directed to the back of the head comes into contact with the neck, back, or the like of the user, and thus the user who wears the cap feels uncomfortable. 
     Furthermore, on a cloudy or rainy day without sunlight, the viewing angle of a user is narrowed by the cap. Accordingly, a problem occurs in that the risk of a safety-related accident increases. 
     In order to overcome the problem, there were proposed caps in which a cap visor could be selectively coupled to and separated from a cap body and the cap visor could be exchanged and then used. These caps are advantageous in that the cap visor can be exchanged with other visors and thus the creation of various types of styling is enabled. 
     However, in the conventional caps configured such that the cap visor is separated from the cap body, the configurations by which the cap visor and the cap body are selectively coupled to and separated from each other are exposed to the outside. Accordingly, the shapes of the caps are different from those of ordinary caps. Therefore, this gives consumers unfamiliar and uncomfortable feelings. As a result, the conventional caps in which a cap visor can be exchanged have not been put to practical use. 
     SUMMARY 
     The present invention has been conceived to overcome the above-described problem of the conventional technology, and an object of the present invention is to provide a new type of cap with an exchangeable visor, which includes a rail part configured to be formed on an outer circumferential surface of a bottom of the cap body, a coupling part configured to be coupled to the visor to surround one side of the visor, and a fastening groove part configured to be coupled to one side of the coupling part and to be engaged with the rail part in a sliding manner, and thus a visor can be easily and selectively coupled to and separated from a cap body, so that the visor and the cap body can be exchanged with a desired cap body and a desired visor, thereby enabling the creation of various types of styling and also providing unique styles. 
     In order to accomplish the above object, the present invention provides a cap with an exchangeable visor, the cap having a cap body configured to surround the head of a person and a cap visor configured to be selectively coupled to and separated from one side of the cap body, the cap including: a rail part configured to be formed on the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body; a coupling part configured to be coupled to the visor to surround one side of the visor; and a fastening groove part configured to be coupled to one side of the coupling part, and to be engaged with the rail part in a sliding manner. 
     The rail part may include: a body formed in a strip shape that extends in the longitudinal direction thereof; a stepped portion configured to come into contact with the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body while forming a step on one side surface of the body; a sewn portion configured to form a plurality of through holes along the center of the body in the longitudinal direction of the body, and to couple the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body and the body to each other through sewing; a protrusion portion configured to protrude from the other side surface of the body at regular intervals; and a guide portion formed to be inclined so that both side ends of the body can be coupled to one end of the fastening groove part. 
     The coupling part may include: a pair of plates configured to come into contact with the top and bottom of the visor; a finishing plate configured to finish first sides of the plates, and formed in a plate shape; side plates configured to be coupled to both sides of the plates, and to surround the left and right sides of the visor; and a plurality of coupling holes formed through one of the plates, and configured to enable fastening pins to be coupled thereinto. 
     The fastening groove part may include: a body formed to have a length corresponding to that of the first body, and configured to accommodate the first body; coupling grooves formed along one surface of the body at locations corresponding to the protrusions of the protrusion portion; and a pair of stoppers disposed at both side ends of the body, and configured to limit the sliding movement of the body coupled to the first body; 
     the stopper may include: a reception hole formed through the top end surface of the first body; a pin formed in a rod shape to have a predetermined length so that it can be moved inside the reception hole in a vertical direction; and a grip formed on one side of the pin, and configured to be held in order to selectively lift and lower the pin; and 
     the pin is moved in a downward direction and accommodated between the protrusions of the protrusion portion, thereby limiting the sliding movement of the body. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view schematically showing the appearance of a cap with an exchangeable visor according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing a state in which a visor has slid from the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of a cap body to one side; 
         FIG. 4  is a sectional view of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5  is a sectional view showing a stopper according to the present invention; and 
         FIG. 6  a view showing an example of a state in which a cap body and a visor according to the present invention have been exchanged. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those having ordinary knowledge in the art to which the present invention pertains can easily practice the present invention. However, in the following description of the preferred embodiment of the present invention, when it is determined that a detailed description of a related well-known function or configuration may make the gist of the present invention unnecessarily obscure, the detailed description will be omitted. 
     Furthermore, throughout the drawings, the same reference symbols are assigned to parts having similar functions and operations. 
     In addition, throughout the specification and the claims, when any portion is described as being connected to another portion, this includes not only a case where they are directly connected to each other but also a case where they are indirectly connected to each other with a third component interposed therebetween. Furthermore, when any portion is described as including any component, this is not intended to exclude another component, but is intended to include another component, unless particularly described to the contrary. 
     Furthermore, the terms “upper” and “lower” used herein refer to the relative directions of components based on a case where a user is in a normal upright position with a cap body worn on the head of the user. 
     A cap with an exchangeable visor according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view schematically showing the appearance of the cap with an exchangeable visor according to the embodiment of the present invention,  FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing a state in which a visor has slid from the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of a cap body to one side,  FIG. 4  is a sectional view of  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 5  is a sectional view showing a stopper according to the present invention, and  FIG. 6  a view showing an example of a state in which a cap body and a visor according to the present invention have been exchanged. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1 , the cap  10  with an exchangeable visor according to the embodiment of the present invention, which has a cap body  11  configured to surround the head of a person and a cap visor  12  configured to be selectively coupled to and separated from one side of the cap body  11 , includes: a rail part  100  configured to be formed along the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body  11 ; a coupling part  200  configured to be coupled to the cap visor  12  to surround one side of the cap visor  12 ; and a fastening groove part  300  configured to be coupled to one side of the coupling part  200 , and to be engaged with the rail part in a sliding manner. 
     In this case, the cap body  11  functions to surround the head of a person. The cap body  11  is worn on and fastened to a head, is made of a material including fiber, and is formed to correspond to the shape of the head. 
     The visor  12  is coupled to one side of the outer circumferential surface of the cap body  11 , and functions to block sunshine and to protect the face of a user from direct sunlight. 
     Furthermore, although the visor  12  is shown as being formed in a curved shape in the accompanying drawings, the visor  12  may be formed in a flat shape as well as in a curved shape. Furthermore, the fastening groove part  300  may be fabricated to correspond to the curved or flat shape of the visor  12  when the fastening groove part  300  to be described later is coupled to one side of the visor  12 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the rail part  100  is formed along the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body  11 , and functions to be engaged with the fastening groove part  300  in a sliding manner and to enable the visor  12  to be coupled. For this purpose, the rail part  100  includes a body  110 , a stepped portion  120 , a sewn portion  130 , a protrusion portion  140 , and a guide portion  150 . 
     The body  110  is formed in a strip shape that extends in the longitudinal direction thereof. The body  110  is made of a plastic or rubber material, and is formed along the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body  11  in order to prevent the shape of the appearance of the cap body  11  from being deformed. 
     Furthermore, the body  110  is formed to a predetermined height, and supports the visor  12  to be described later when it is coupled to the fastening groove part  300 . Furthermore, the body  110  is preferably utilized as an element that is formed on the bottom of the outer circumferential surface of the cap body  11  and that is used to create creative design. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , the stepped portion  120  comes into contact with the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body  11  while forming a step on one side surface of the body  110 . 
     In other words, the stepped portion  120  protrudes from one side surface of the body  110  in a stepped manner, and the protruding surface of the stepped portion  120  comes into contact with the outer circumferential surface of the cap body  11 . In particular, it will be apparent that the stepped portion  120  forms a step in order to enable the body  110  to slide in the state of having been completely accommodated in the fastening groove part  300  in the process in which the stepped portion  120  is coupled to the fastening groove part  300 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 3 , the sewn portion  130  forms a plurality of through holes  131  along the center of the body  110  in the longitudinal direction of the body  110 , and functions to couple the stepped portion  120  to the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body  11  through sewing. 
     The sewn portion  130  minimizes the defect rate resulting from bond adhesion, and secures the coupling between the cap body  11  and the body  110 . 
     The protrusion portion  140  protrudes along the other side surface of the body  110  at regular intervals. 
     In other words, the protrusion portion  140  includes a plurality of protrusions that protrudes in vertical shapes along the other side surface of the body  110  and that are formed at regular intervals. Furthermore, the protrusion portion  140  has a shape in which its upper and lower portions are made to protrude to be spaced apart from each other on the other side surface of the body  110  by the sewn portion  130 . 
     Furthermore, the protrusion portion  140  is configured such that a space is formed between its neighboring protrusions, and thus a pin  332  to be described later can be accommodated within the space. 
     Furthermore, the protrusion portion  140  may be formed in triangular prisms in which both sides of each of the prisms are inclined in protruding directions based on a vertical axis. The reason for this is that when the fastening groove part  300  is engaged with the rail part  100  in a sliding manner, the fastening groove part  300  is coupled to the coupling grooves  320  formed on the fastening groove part  300  and thus the lateral sliding movement of the fastening groove part  300  is minimized, thereby enabling a state in which the visor  12  has been coupled to the outer circumferential surface of the cap body  110  to be maintained. 
     Furthermore, it will be apparent that when a user performs sliding movement in a lateral direction while holding the visor  12 , the protrusion portion  140  is separated from the coupling grooves  320 . 
     The guide portion  150  is formed to be inclined so that both side ends of the body  110  can be coupled to one end of the fastening groove part  300 . In other words, the guide portion  150  is formed such that its upper and lower portions are inclined in sharp shapes with respect to both side ends of the body  110 . This facilitates the insertion of the one end of the fastening groove part  300  into the body  110 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the coupling part  200  performs coupling to surround one side of the visor  12 . The coupling part  200  functions to enable the fastening groove part  300  to be engaged with the rail part  200  in such a manner that the fastening groove part  300  is coupled to one side of the coupling part  200 . For this purpose, the coupling part  200  includes a pair of plates  210 , a finishing plate  220 , side plates  230 , and coupling holes  240 . 
     The plates  210  are formed in plate shapes in order to come into contact with the top and bottom of the visor  12 . 
     In this case, the plates  210  may be formed to have a predetermined thickness. One side of each of the plates  210  may be formed to be curved in accordance with the shape of the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body  11 , and the other side thereof may be formed to correspond to the shape of the back end of the visor  12 . 
     The finishing plate  220  is formed in a plate shape to finish first sides of the plates  210 , and functions to enable the visor  12  to be coupled to the rail part  100  in such a manner that the fastening groove part  300  is coupled to the first sides of the plates  210 . 
     The side plates  230  function to be coupled to both sides of the plates  210  and to surround the right and left sides of the visor  12 . 
     The plurality of coupling holes  240  is formed through one of the plates  210 , and enables fastening pins to be coupled thereinto. In other words, the plurality of coupling holes  240  is formed through one of the plates  210  in contact with the top and bottom of one side of the visor  12 , and enables the fastening pins to couple the visor  12  and the plates  210  to one another. 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , the fastening groove part  300  is coupled to one side of the coupling part  200 , and is engaged with the rail part  100  in a sliding manner. For this purpose, the fastening groove part  300  includes a body  310 , coupling grooves  320 , and a pair of stoppers  330 . 
     The body  310  is formed to have a length corresponding to that of the body  110 , and functions to accommodate the body  110 . 
     In other words, the body  310  includes a plate configured to be formed in a strip shape and to extend in the longitudinal direction thereof, walls configured to extend from the edges of the top and bottom of the plate by a predetermined distance in one direction, and a pair of bent plates configured to be bent inward from two side ends of the walls, respectively. 
     In this case, the bent plates are spaced apart from each other while facing each other. The reason for this is to enable the body  310  to come into contact with the top and bottom of the stepped portion  120  and to slide. It will be apparent that the bent plates are spaced apart from each other because the stepped portion  120  is sewn to the cap body  11  and thus the body  310  needs to be opened by a distance corresponding to the space of the stepped portion  120 . 
     The coupling grooves  320  are formed along one surface of the body  310  at locations corresponding to the protrusions of the protrusion portion  140 . 
     In other words, the coupling grooves  320  are formed in concave grooves on one surface of the body  310 , and the protrusions of the protrusion portion  140  protruding from the other side surface of the body  310  are fitted into the coupling grooves  320  as the body  310  is moved when the body  310  and the body  110  are coupled to each other in a sliding manner. 
     Accordingly, the coupling grooves  320  function to maintain the coupling force between the body  310  and the body  110 . 
     As described above, the fastening groove part  300  is engaged with the rail part  100  in a sliding manner, and moves along the rail part  100 , and is selectively engaged with and separated from the rail part  100 , as shown in  FIG. 6 . Accordingly, the present invention has an advantage in that the cap body  11  and the visor  12  can be easily separated from and coupled to each other. 
     Furthermore, since the cap body  11  and the visor  12  can be separated from and coupled to each other, a user may create desired various designs in such a manner that a plurality of cap bodies and a plurality of visors are provided and different cap bodies and different visors are coupled to each other. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , the pair of stoppers  330  are disposed at both side ends of the body  310 , and limits the sliding movement of the body  310  coupled to the body  110 . For this purpose, each of the pair of stoppers  330  includes a reception hole  331 , a pin  332 , and a grip  333 . 
     The reception hole  331  is formed through the top end surface of the body  310 , and functions to receive the pin  332  to be described below. 
     The pin  332  is formed in a rod shape to have a predetermined length so that the pin  332  can be moved inside the reception hole  331  in a vertical direction. 
     In this case, the pin  332  is moved in a downward direction and accommodated between the protrusions of the protrusion portion  140 , thereby limiting the sliding movement of the body  310 . 
     In other words, the pin  332  is located inside the reception hole  331  formed in the body  310 , is located between the protrusions of the protrusion portion  140  formed on the other side surface of the body  110 , and enables the visor  12  to be securely coupled to the cap body  11  by limiting the movement of the body  310 . 
     The grip  333  is formed on one side of the pin  332 , and is preferably formed to have a size larger than the diameter of the pin  332  so that a user can hold the pin  332  in order to selectively lift and lower the pin  332 . 
     Meanwhile, the cap  10  with an exchangeable visor according to the embodiment of the present invention may be fabricated by forming the fastening groove part  300  configured to be engaged with the rail part  100  on one side of the visor  12  through injection molding without the configuration of the coupling part  200  adapted to be coupled to the visor  12  to surround one side of the visor  12 . 
     The cap with an exchangeable visor according to the present invention is advantageous in that the cap body and the visor can be easily and selectively coupled to and separated from each other, so that the cap body and the visor can be exchanged with a desired cap body and a desired visor, with the result that the creation of various types of styles is enabled, thereby increasing the satisfaction of a user by meeting the personality of the user who pursues unique styling. 
     Furthermore, the cap with an exchangeable visor according to the present invention is advantageous in that the visor can slide from the outer circumferential surface of the bottom of the cap body to one side, so that only the visor can be moved without the movement of the cap body, thereby providing convenience to a user who pursues hipster styling. 
     Moreover, the cap with an exchangeable visor according to the present invention is advantageous in that the stopper is provided, so that the visor can be prevented from being separated and removed from the cap body by means of a simple structure. 
     Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described in the detailed description of the present invention above, this is intended to describe the most preferred embodiment of the present invention as an example, but is not intended to limit the present invention. Furthermore, it will be apparent to those having ordinary knowledge in the art to which the present invention pertains that various modifications and alterations may be made without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention. 
     Therefore, the range of rights of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but the present invention may be implemented as various forms of embodiments within the attached claims. Furthermore, various ranges within which those having ordinary knowledge in the art to which the present invention pertains can make modifications and alterations without departing from the gist of the present invention claimed in the attached claims are viewed as falling within the scope of the attached claims.