Patent Publication Number: US-6220010-B1

Title: Ornamental chain made up of successive elements each having a generally spherical shape

Description:
The present invention relates to an ornamental chain made up of successive elements each having a shape that is generally spherical, for example. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     It is known to make a chain of balls by means of a method consisting in chasing the material of a metal wire at regular intervals so as to form widened zones, each having a neck half-way along, in surrounding each zone in a sheet of metal formed into a ball, and then in breaking the wire at the neck of each widened zone inside the balls. 
     That method is not particularly well adapted to making an ornamental chain, particularly since the balls thus made do not lend themselves easily to setting precious stones. 
     A bead necklace is known from French patent FR-1 237 084, each bead including an elastically deformable add-on piece having an edge designed to retain the head of a link member linked to an adjacent bead. The add-on piece is presented in the form of a longitudinally slotted sleeve. When the head of the link member is put into place, the sleeve can deform elastically. Such a bead necklace is not entirely satisfactory. In particular, the add-on piece can turn out to be difficult to make in certain cases since the rim tends to prevent it from deforming elastically. In addition, there is the risk of the beads becoming detached in the event of strong traction being accidentally exerted on the necklace. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An object of the present invention is to provide an ornamental chain in which at least one of the successive elements which make up said chain includes a hollow body inside which an insert is fixed that is designed to retain a link member that is linked to an adjacent element of the chain, said insert being constituted by at least one sleeve. 
     In characteristic manner, the sleeve includes a slot that is wide enough to enable the shank of the link member to pass therethrough. 
     As a result of the invention, each element of the chain, as defined above, is not directly engaged with the link member. 
     It is the insert fixed inside the hollow body which serves to retain the link member. 
     This enlarges the choice of materials that can be used to make the hollow body. 
     The invention also enables a wide range of embodiments of said hollow body. 
     Setting a precious stone on the element is also facilitated since the hollow body can be designed to receive a specific support piece. 
     In a particular embodiment, the hollow body is spherical and it is advantageously made by turning, thereby enabling a particularly pleasing surface appearance to be obtained. 
     Still in a particular embodiment, the insert is fixed in a bore passing through the hollow body. 
     The insert can be retained as a force fit inside the hollow body. 
     The insert can have substantially no elasticity towards the outside. 
     When it is desired to mount a precious stone on the element, the hollow body preferably includes a blind bore of axis perpendicular to the axis of the insert in order to receive a support piece for said stone. 
     Another object of the invention is to use the above-mentioned support piece to improve the hold of an insert serving to retain a link member in the hollow body of an element of the chain. 
     In a particular embodiment, the support piece has a fork designed to be engaged astride the insert which advantageously presents a narrowing of its outside section. The support piece can thus assist in holding the insert in the hollow body of the element. 
     In a particular embodiment, the insert and the link member are designed so that said link member is retained in the insert with the possibility of rotating about the axis of the insert. The insert and the link member are preferably designed so that said link member is retained in the insert with the possibility of being displaced along the axis of the insert. The link member advantageously includes an enlarged head at its end retained in the insert and said insert has a narrowing of its inside section. The insert is preferably constituted by two longitudinally-slotted sleeves, each having a narrowing of its inside section. The sleeves are advantageously designed to interfit one inside the other. The link member can be constituted by a two-headed pin having a length lying in the range 2 mm to 20 mm, for example. 
     In another particular embodiment, the link member is mounted in the insert with the possibility of pivoting about a pivot axis perpendicular to the axis of the insert. The link member advantageously has a shank of rectangular cross-section whose long sides are perpendicular to the above-mentioned pivot axis, said shank being provided with a hole at each of its ends through which a respective peg passes. Each peg is preferably engaged, via its ends, in holes made in the insert, said insert possibly being a single block. 
     At each of its axial ends, the insert advantageously has a surface, e.g. a spherical surface, that is situated in continuation with the outside surface of the hollow body, this being advantageous from the point of view of appearance. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention will appear on reading the following detailed description of non-limiting embodiments of the invention, and on examining the accompanying drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a section of an ornamental chain of the invention, showing two consecutive elements; 
     FIG. 2 shows, in isolation, the hollow body of one of the elements of FIG. 1; 
     FIGS. 3 and 4 are sections showing, in isolation, the two sleeves constituting the insert fixed in the hollow body of an element of FIG. 1; 
     FIGS. 5 and 6 show a first link member being put into place in one of the sleeves, and 
     FIGS. 7 and 8 show a second link member being put into place in the other sleeve; 
     FIGS. 9 and 10 show the two sleeves being assembled inside the hollow body of the element; 
     FIG. 11 shows, in isolation, a support piece for a precious stone; 
     FIG. 12 shows the support piece in place inside the hollow body; 
     FIG. 13 shows an end element assembled to the rest of the chain; 
     FIG. 14 is a diagrammatic plan view of an element in accordance with a third embodiment of the invention; 
     FIG. 15 is a diagrammatic section view on dashed line XV—XV of FIG. 14; 
     FIG. 16 is a front view on arrow XVI of FIG. 14; 
     FIG. 17 is a side view on arrow XVII of FIG. 16; 
     FIG. 18 shows, in isolation and in perspective, the insert of the element shown in FIGS. 14 to  17 ; 
     FIG. 19 is a diagrammatic view, in perspective, showing two assembled-together elements; and 
     FIG. 20 is a view similar to FIG. 19, the hollow body of the elements being removed to show the inserts and the link members. 
    
    
     MORE DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The ornamental chain  1 , of which only two identical successive elements  2  are shown in FIG. 1, can be used in the manufacture of a bracelet or of a necklace, for example. 
     Each element  2  includes a hollow metal body  3  with a spherical outside surface  4  that is made by turning on an automatic lathe. 
     The hollow body  3  has a bore  5  passing therethrough on an axis X coinciding with a diameter of the body and it also includes a blind bore  6  of diameter greater than the diameter of the bore  5  on an axis Y perpendicular to the axis X and opening out into the bore  5 . 
     Each element  2  houses an insert  7  constituted by an assembly of a female sleeve  8  and of a male sleeve  9 , shown in isolation in FIGS. 3 and 4. 
     At one axial end, each sleeve  8 ,  9  has a spherical surface respectively referenced  10 ,  11 , said surfaces being situated, once the insert  7  is in place in the hollow body  3 , in continuation with the spherical surface  4  of said hollow body, as can be seen in FIG.  1 . 
     The female sleeve  8  has an outside surface that is circularly symmetrical about the axis X, and that is provided with a shoulder  12  which defines, adjacent to the end  10 , a circularly cylindrical surface  13  having a diameter that corresponds substantially to the diameter of the bore  5  of the hollow body  3 , and adjacent to the opposite end  14 , a surface  15  that is also circularly cylindrical, having a diameter that is less than the diameter of the surface  13 . 
     The male sleeve  9  has a circularly cylindrical outside surface provided with shoulders  17  and  18  which define between them a circularly cylindrical surface  19  having a diameter that is the same as the diameter of the surface  15  of the female sleeve  8 . 
     The shoulder  18  defines, adjacent to the end  11 , a circularly cylindrical surface  20  having a diameter that is the same as the diameter of the surface  13  of the female sleeve  8 . 
     The shoulder  17  defines, adjacent to the opposite end  16 , a circularly cylindrical surface  21  having a diameter that is less than the diameter of the surface  19 . 
     The inside section of the male sleeve  9  has a constant diameter in a region  25  that extends over a major portion of its length and that narrows at  26  in the vicinity of the end  11 . 
     The inside section of the female sleeve  8  is stepped and narrows at  22  in the vicinity of the end  10 . 
     The inside section of the opening of the female sleeve  8  at the end  14  corresponds to the section of the surface  21  of the male sleeve so that the sleeves  8  and  9  can interfit to constitute the insert  7 , the shoulders  14  and  17  coming into abutment against each another. 
     The diameter of the inside section of the female sleeve  8  in the intermediate region  23  between the narrowing  22  and the opening  24  is equal to the diameter of the inside section of the male sleeve  9  at the end  16 . 
     The diameters of the narrowings  22  and  26  are equal. 
     Two successive elements  2  are linked together by a link element which is presented, in the embodiment described, in the form of a pin  30  including a circularly cylindrical shank  32  and, at each of its ends, a head  31  of greater diameter. 
     The pin  30  can be made of metal wire, for example, by chasing the material of said wire locally and at regular intervals so as to form widened zones, each having a neck half-way along, and then by sectioning the wire at said necks. 
     The diameter of the shank  32  is slightly less than the diameter of the narrowings  22  and  26 , while the diameter of the regions  23  and  25  is slighter greater than the diameter of the heads  31 . 
     In the example described, the sleeves  8  and  9  are axially slotted along their entire length so as to enable the head  31  of a pin  30  to be inserted therein, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 7. 
     In the case of the female sleeve  8 , the head  31  is inserted via the end  14 , the axis of the shank  32  thus being substantially perpendicular to the axis X, the pin  30  is then displaced parallel to said axis until the head  31  comes into abutment against the narrowing  22 . 
     The pin  30  is then pivoted through one-fourth of a turn to take the position shown by dashed lines in FIG. 5, the shank  32  thus being substantially on the axis X. 
     The width of the opening of the slot  33  made in the female sleeve  8  is slightly greater than the diameter of the shank  32  of the pin  30 . 
     In addition, the pin  30  is put in place in the male sleeve  9  by inserting the head  31  via the end  16 , the axis of the shank  32  thus being substantially perpendicular to the axis X, and then by sliding the pin  30  parallel to said axis until the head  31  comes into abutment against the narrowing  26 . 
     The pin  30  is then pivoted through one-fourth of a turn so as to bring the shank  32  onto the axis X of the sleeve  2 , as shown by dashed lines in FIG.  7 . 
     Once the heads  31  of the pins  30  are in place in the sleeves  8  and  9 , the sleeves are inserted via their respective ends  14  and  16  into the bore  5 , as shown in FIG. 6, and interfit one inside the other to constitute the insert  7 , as can be seen in FIG.  10 . 
     The sleeves  8  and  9  preferably interfit as a force fit so that they remain assembled by friction. The sleeves  8  and  9  can have no significant elasticity. 
     The sleeves  8  and  9  are retained inside the bore  5  by the force fit between the surface  13  of the female sleeve  8  and the surface  20  of the male sleeve  9 . 
     Naturally, it is not beyond the ambit of the present invention for the sleeves  8  and  9  to be assembled and then fixed in the hollow body  3  by soldering or by any other conventional means. 
     In the embodiment described, a precious stone  45  is set on each element  2  by means of a support piece  40 , shown in isolation in FIG.  11 . 
     The support piece  40  is presented in the form of a circularly cylindrical body that is cut out at its bottom portion to form a fork  41  designed to be engaged astride the insert  7 , and hollowed out at its top portion to form a conical housing  42 . 
     The width of the opening of the fork  41  corresponds to the diameter of the surfaces  13  and  20 . 
     The diameter of the support piece  40  corresponds to the diameter of the blind bore  6  so that it is held therein as a force fit. 
     The housing  42  is surmounted by a thin wall  44  designed to be pressed down onto the stone  45  during the setting operation. 
     The bottom  43  of the housing  42  is pierced to enable a countersink  46  to be made in the insert  7  once the support piece  40  has been inserted without the stone  45  in the hollow body  3 , said countersink being designed to receive the bottom end of the stone  45 . 
     The fork  41  is engaged on the insert  7  by friction, thereby providing both additional strength for retaining the support piece  40  and the insert  7  inside the hollow body  3 , and reinforcement for the assembled sleeves  8  and  9 . 
     FIG. 13 shows an element  2  such as described above, assembled via a pin  30  to an end element  2 ′ which differs from the element  2  by the fact that the hollow body  3 ′ and the support piece  40 ′ are slightly fatter, and by the fact that the bore  5  does not pass right through, but is blind and receives a single-block insert  7 ′. 
     More particularly, the insert  7 ′ is constituted here by a sleeve whose inside section has a narrowing, said insert being force fitted in the bore  5  and being longitudinally slotted for mounting the head  31  of the pin  30  like the above-described sleeves  8  and  9 . 
     As shown, the pins  30  are preferably retained with a certain amount of clearance inside the inserts  7  and  7 ′, and the successive elements of the chain can thus rotate relative to one another about the axis X and can be displaced in translation along said axis X. 
     Advantageous esthetic effects can be obtained as a result of this mobility, since the relative orientations of the stones are thus never fixed. 
     Without going beyond the ambit of the present invention, the insert fixed in the hollow body of an element  2  or  2 ′ can serve to retain one end of a link member that is linked at the other end to a chain of balls obtained by the conventional method recalled at the beginning. 
     In the embodiment in FIGS. 14 to  20 , each element  2 ″ of the chain includes a hollow body  3  that is identical to the hollow body shown in FIG.  2 . 
     The hollow body receives an insert  7 ″, shown in isolation in FIG. 18, and a support piece  40  that is identical to the support piece described above with reference to FIG.  11 . 
     The elements  2 ″ are linked together by link members  50  with the possibility of pivoting about pivot axes Z perpendicular to the axis X of the inserts  7 ″. 
     More particularly, each link member  50  includes a shank  51  of rectangular cross-section whose long sides are perpendicular to the pivot axes Z, said shank being provided with a hole  52  at each of its two ends in which a respective peg  53  is engaged, the ends of said pegs being engaged in holes  54  in the insert  7 ″. The axes of the holes  54  intersecting the axis X perpendicularly. 
     The insert  7 ″ outwardly presents the same shape as the insert  7  shown in FIG. 10, with the exception of the holes  54 . It has a slot  58  passing axially therealong which, in the example described, extends along its entire length, and has a narrowing  59  of its outside section. In the example described, the slot  58  has a rectangular cross-section whose long sides are perpendicular to the axes of the holes  54 . The depth of the slot  58  corresponds substantially to three-fourths of the greatest outside diameter of the insert  7 ″. 
     It is not beyond the ambit of the present invention for the insert  7 ″ to be longitudinally slotted at its axial ends only over a distance that is just long enough to enable the link members  50  to be engaged. 
     In a variant embodiment (not shown), the insert is not longitudinally slotted along its entire length but only at its axial ends. 
     In this case, the insert can have a slot at each of its axial ends, which slot extends over the entire height of the insert, passing vertically therethrough. 
     The shape of the stone that may be fixed on the ball in which the insert is engaged, thus takes account of the fact that the insert is not longitudinally slotted along its entire length. 
     It is necessary to give the term “slot” used in the present description a broad sense, the slot possibly having a cross-section that does not necessarily include two parallel sides. 
     In a variant embodiment (not shown), the slot enabling the end of the link member to be mounted does not open out to the side surface of the insert but only to the end surface of the insert, said surface being designed to continue the outside surface of the hollow body. 
     To assemble the elements  2 ″, the ends of two link members  50  are firstly inserted in the slot  58  of the insert  7 ″, e.g. by inserting them along the axis X of the insert  7 ″, so as to make the holes  52  and  54  coincide, the pegs  53  are then inserted in said holes. It is assumed that one of the link members  50  is already assembled to an element  2 ″ and that the other is free. 
     The insert  7 ″ is then inserted in the bore  5  of the body  3  and the support piece  40  is then put into place, the fork  41  becoming engaged on the above-mentioned section narrowing  59 . 
     The embodiment in FIGS. 14 to  20  enables the stones to be held in a given orientation about the axis X of the inserts. 
     Naturally, it is not beyond the ambit of the present invention for the nature and the shape of the successive elements making up the chain to be modified, said elements possibly not receiving precious stones, the hollow bodies of the elements possibly being made with beads, for example.