Patent Publication Number: US-2009219480-A1

Title: Eyeglasses

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention concerns the eyeglasses field and it refers in particular to the so-called rimless, or Glasant eyeglasses, both for reading and for long distance. 
     PRIOR ART 
     Eyeglasses can be with or without frames, that is rimless. Usually, eyeglasses with a frame can be made following the operating and assembly techniques such as: 
     chamfering the edge of each lens, positioning of the lens in the profile of a frame and blocking by tightening the frame around the lens by means of a screw or using pressure to force the lens to fit into the frame when the latter is made of celluloid or some other plastic material. 
     milling of a groove in the flat edge of each lens and the fixing of the lens between a part of the frame and a nylon thread part and parcel of the frame itself. 
     Eyeglasses without frames are usually made by flat chamfering each lens, drilling each lens at the edges adjacent to the temple and nose areas, followed by insertion and blocking of screws, pins or similar in the drillings of the lenses to connect the latter to the central bridge over the nose and lateral bars. 
     In this embodiment, however, the screws, pins or similar, besides forming a weak point of the structure of eyeglasses, they are always on the inside of the lenses, occupying two parts of the temple and nose areas and consequently limiting the useful field of view. 
     OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Starting from these premises, one object of this invention, is to avoid in fact, the above mentioned drawbacks regarding in particular rimless glasses. 
     Another object of the invention is however to provide eyeglasses that do not require any drilling of the lenses and that, even though they are rimless, do not suffer from any encroachment or limitation of the field of view, thus guaranteeing maximum comfort and safety of the user. 
     Still another object of the invention is to provide rimless eyeglasses simple to produce, with a solid structure and competitively priced even for eyeglasses of the same type, as well as being rapid and immediate to assemble, also directly by the optician, once the ophthalmic lenses, even different, have been chosen, according to the faults of the vision of the user and requirements of the latter as regards to material, shape and colour of the other elements completing the eyeglasses. 
     A further object of the invention is to provide ophthalmic lenses prepared for a simple and direct coupling, both in a reversible and irreversible form, with complementary elements to make up the rimless eyeglasses, without the need either for specific machining or additional special instruments. 
     These objectives and implicit advantages are achieved, according to the invention, with an improved eyeglass in accordance with claim  1  and thus characterised in that each lens is equipped with connecting pins, projecting from the nose and temple areas and in that the nose bridge and front bracket of each bar of the eyeglasses in order to be connected to the lenses have a unidirectional housing to receive said pins. 
     The connecting pins can be made as an integral part of the relative lens or can be associated and fixed to the border of the lens to become integral with it. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       The invention will however be illustrated and become more evident in the continuation of this description made in reference to the enclosed indicative and not limiting drawings, in which: 
         FIGS. 1 ,  2  and  3  are enlarged views from different angles of a lens for eyeglasses according to the invention; 
         FIGS. 4 and 5  are enlarged front and end views of the connecting pin at the nose side of a lens; 
         FIGS. 6 and 7  are enlarged front and end views of the connecting pin at the temple side of a lens; 
         FIGS. 8 ,  9  and  10  show an exploded view of the components of eyeglasses viewed from a different direction; 
         FIG. 11  is an enlarged view of a detail of  FIG. 8  in correspondence with the bridge of the eyeglasses; 
         FIG. 12  is an enlarged view of a detail of  FIG. 8  in correspondence with the temple area of the eyeglasses; 
         FIGS. 13 ,  14  and  15  are views in different directions of the assembled eyeglasses; and 
         FIGS. 16 and 17  are two enlarged detailed views in correspondence, respectively, of the nose bridge and the temple bracket of the assembled eyeglasses. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     As shown, the eyeglasses comprise two lenses  20 , which can have the same or different dioptres and that are however prepared to be connected directly to a nose bridge  21  and with the end brackets  22 ′ of two temple bars  22 . 
     Each lens  20  is in fact equipped with two connecting pins  23 ,  24 , one on the nose side, the other on the temple side and both projecting radially from the peripheral edge of the lens. Said connecting pins  23 ,  24  can be produced as an integral part of the relative lens  20  or can be prepared as separate elements and then fixed stably to the edge of the lens by polymerising or some other process depending on the materials being used. 
     Geometrically, both the connecting pins  23 ,  24  can have a polygonal, star shaped or some other shape cross section, and at least one flat section or longitudinal reference groove so as they may be connected, in a unidirectional way and without them having the possibility of turning, with the parts, nose bridge and end bracket of the bars. Furthermore, each of the pins  23 ,  24  can terminate with a blocking head  25 ,  26 , respectively, that can be ball shaped or conical and however such to form with the rest of the pin a tapered neck  25 ′,  26 ′, respectively. 
     The nose bridge  21  is provided at each of its ends with a housing  27  which is shaped and has a cross-section corresponding to that of the connecting pin  23  on the nose side of each lens and which has, on its bottom, a seat  27 ′ matching that of the head of said pin. In the same way, the end bracket  22 ′ of each bar  22  is provided at its end to be connected to the lens, with a housing  28  shaped and with a cross-section analogous to that of the connecting pin  24  on the temple side of each lens, it also having a shape  28 ′ at the bottom similar to that of the temple pin. In this way, the connecting pins  23 ,  24  of the lenses  20  preferably require to be force fitted into housings  27 ,  28  of the nose bridge  20  and bars  22  of the eyeglasses. 
     Practically, the components  20 ,  21 ,  22  can be connected rapidly and easily by completely inserting the connecting pins  23 ,  24  of the lenses into the respective housings  27 ,  28  provided in the nose bridge  21  and in the end brackets  22 ′ of the bars  22 . In this way the head of each pin, being force fitted, comes into contact with the bottom of respective housing, ensuring fitting in the longitudinal direction of the lenses both to the nose bridge and the end brackets of the bars. At the same time, thanks to the section of pins  23 ,  24  the lenses are unable to turn compared with the bridge and end brackets of the bars, ensuring the correct configuration of the eyeglasses. 
     An appropriate choice of the shapes and sizes of the pins and housings into which they have to be inserted, the connecting of the lenses to the nose bridge and end brackets of the bars of the eyeglasses can be either irreversible or reversible, depending on the needs and type of eyeglasses. 
     When the fitting is irreversible, the connecting pins can also be glued in their respective housings. 
     Where required, in order to facilitate fitting and to make it reversible, in each housing  27 ,  28 , a lock ring  29  can be inserted crossways, through a cut or slot made in the bridge and each end bracket of the bars, which the blocking head of the respective pin  23 ,  24  will pass through, and axially block the latter. The ring can be held radially in the respective cut by any means to make sure it engages with the head of the respective pin. For example, with regards to the nose bridge, each blocking ring  29  may be held in its respective slot by the nose pieces  21 ′ applied to the bridge itself, and on removing the nose pieces it will be possible to release the blocking ring and allow the pin to slide out.