Abstract:
Embodiments of the invention are neckties comprising ornaments that impart a substantially three-dimensional appearance to the necktie. Such neckties may be decorated with colors and logos indicating sports team affiliation, corporate affiliation, favorite pet, political affiliation, tourist attraction, favorite automobile, or may indicate some other interest of the wearer.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
     Field  
       [0001]     Embodiments of the invention are related to the field of wearing apparel, particularly neckwear and neckties.  
       Background  
       [0002]     Neckties of various types, such as four-in-hand ties, are well known. Such ties are available in a variety of colors and patterns and are often worn in a formal business setting. In addition to formal neckties or business neckties, there is a market for novelty neckties. Sports fans are often looking for new eye-catching ways to demonstrate their support for their team. They may purchase tee-shirts, jackets, caps, sweatshirts or neckwear. Likewise animal fanciers, corporate employees, tourists, automobile enthusiasts, and others look for unusual ways to proclaim their support for their interest.  
         [0003]     Previous work in novelty neckwear has been described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,692,387, 3,167,784, 5,016,285 and 5,036,550. The preceding references and other references cited in this application are hereby incorporated herein by reference. P. F. Spaniol in U.S. Pat. No. 2,692,387 describes neckties to which interchangeable decorations may be attached in various positions. L. L. Less in U.S. Pat. No. 3,167,784 describes neckwear having interchangeable ornaments hanging from the lower end of shortened tie. W. J. Just in U.S. Pat. No. 5,016,285 describes a necktie to which various interchangeable ornaments may be attached via hook and loop fasteners, such as VELCRO®. S. M. Wilsey in U.S. Pat. No. 5,036,550 describes a novelty necktie made up of rigid segments. The neckwear described in the preceding patents is substantially flat. The surface of the neckwear may be decoratively dyed or painted and ornaments may be attached to the neckwear. However the ornaments described, such as the ornaments of Spaniol or Just, project only slightly above the plane defined by the body of the neckwear. The neckwear therefore maintains a substantially two-dimensional appearance. A new form of neckwear comprising ornaments that impart a substantially three-dimensional appearance to the neckwear will provide consumers with a new, eye-catching, and novel way to demonstrate their enthusiasm for their interests.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0004]     Typical four-in-hand neckties have a length of approximately 150 centimeters, a maximum width of approximately seven to fifteen centimeters and an uncompressed thickness of approximately two to five millimeters. The length of material hanging from the neck of the wearer is generally in the range of thirty to forty-five centimeters depending upon the distance from the wearer&#39;s waist to the wearer&#39;s neck. Since the uncompressed thickness of a typical necktie is at least ten-fold less than the width or the length the appearance of a necktie is substantially flat and two-dimensional.  
         [0005]     Ornaments such as tie clips, or the prior art ornaments of Spaniol or Just, may be attached to neckties but the appearance remains substantially two-dimensional since the ornaments themselves have little thickness. Likewise designs painted upon, or otherwise applied to, the surface of neckties have negligible thickness.  
         [0006]     Embodiments of the invention are neckties comprising at least one ornament that is substantially three-dimensional. A three-dimensional effect is achieved by the at least one ornament having a height which is substantially greater than the thickness of the necktie. Embodiments of the invention have an ornament height of at least one centimeter. Preferably the ornament height is between one centimeter and ten centimeters. Most preferably the ornament height is between 1 centimeter and five centimeters.  
         [0007]     Embodiments of the invention may have ornaments which are fixedly attached to the necktie, or the ornaments may be removably attached to the necktie. The ornaments may be made from a variety of materials such as fabric, plastic, metal, leather, rubber, or wood or combinations thereof. The ornaments, as well as the surface of the necktie may be decorated with colors, logos, and the like to indicate affiliation with sports teams, corporations, political parties, tourist destinations, famous landmarks, animals, automobiles, cartoon characters, or other organizations or interests of the wearer.  
         [0008]     In addition to ornaments, embodiments of the invention may comprise light systems, sound systems, or motion systems. The systems may be used to add further interesting and attention attracting effects to neckties, such as flashing lights, audible greetings and chants, and adding motion effects to ornaments.  
         [0009]     Embodiments of the invention provide wearers with neckwear possessing a new and unusual appearance, enabling them to attract attention and to more effectively deliver their message.  
         [0010]     Other advantages, benefits, and features of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the detailed description of the invention. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0011]      FIG. 1  Front view of a necktie of an embodiment of the invention  
         [0012]      FIG. 2  Side view of a necktie of an embodiment of the invention  
         [0013]      FIG. 3 . Side view of a necktie of an embodiment of the invention  
         [0014]      FIG. 4  Front view of a clip attachment of an embodiment of the invention  
         [0015]      FIG. 5  Front view of neck fastener of an embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0016]     As used herein ‘fixedly attached’ refers to permanent attachment of one object to another. Objects may be fixedly attached by means of glue, thread, staples, rivet fasteners, and other fastening means which permanently attach one object to another.  
         [0017]     As used herein ‘removably attached’ refers to temporary attachment of one object to another. Removable attachment may be achieved through the use of button type fasteners, snap fasteners, hook and loop type fasteners (such as VELCRO®), nut and bolt fasteners, pin and clip fasteners, and other fastening means which temporarily attach one object to another.  
         [0018]     As used herein ‘height’ or ‘ornament height’ or ‘ornamental height’ refers to the height of an ornament. The body of a necktie is typically two dimensional defining a plane which, when the necktie is worn, is substantially parallel to the chest of the wearer. The ‘height’ or ‘ornament height’ or ‘ornamental height’ is the maximum perpendicular distance from the front surface of the body of the necktie to the most distant portion of the ornament exterior.  
         [0019]     As used herein ‘front surface’ refers to the surface of the body of a necktie that faces away from the body of the wearer. The ‘front surface’ is the necktie surface that the wearer displays to viewers.  
         [0020]     As used herein ‘substantially three-dimensional’ refers to objects, such as ornaments, which possess a height which is substantially greater than the thickness of the necktie. Embodiments of the invention have an ornament height of at least one centimeter. Preferably the ornament height is between one centimeter and ten centimeters. Most preferably the ornament height is between one centimeter and five centimeters.  
         [0021]     Embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. The specific embodiments described herein exemplify, but do not limit, the invention. As will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art other specific embodiments of the invention may be readily envisioned.  
         [0022]     Embodiments of the invention are neckties comprising an upper portion configured to attach the necktie to a wearer, a body portion configured to hang vertically downward from the upper portion and at least one ornament, which imparts a substantially three-dimensional appearance to the necktie, attached to the body portion of the necktie.  
         [0023]     An embodiment of the invention, a golf ball necktie, is shown in  FIG. 1 . Comprising the necktie are and upper portion (not shown), the tie body ( 1 ) and golf ball ornament ( 2 ). The upper portion may comprise a length of fabric or other material comprising the body of the tie, as in a four-in-hand tie, or the upper portion may comprise a decorative knot to which a clip ( FIG. 4 ) or strap(s) ( FIG. 5 ) is attached. The clip or strap(s) may be used to attach the necktie to the wearer, typically about the wearer&#39;s neck or about the collar of the wearer&#39;s shirt. The strap(s) may be secured to one another by any convenient means such as button and buttonhole, snaps, hook and eye fastener, hook and loop fasteners (VELCRO®), by knotting the straps together, or other conventional means.  
         [0024]     The golf-ball tie comprises an ornament that resembles a golf ball and has a height that is substantially greater than the thickness of the necktie ( FIG. 2 ) thereby imparting a substantially three-dimensional appearance to the necktie. The surface of the tie body ( 1 ) may optionally be decorated. Shown in  FIG. 1  is an optional decoration displaying a golf club (putter), golf cup and golf flag as might be seen on a golf putting green. The optional decorations may be painted, or dyed, or otherwise applied to the surface of the necktie, or the decorations may be formed from fabric patterns, or they may be formed through embroidery, or the optional decorations may comprise additional ornaments, such as conventional ornaments which do not impart a three-dimensional appearance to the necktie. An alternative embodiment of the invention is shown in  FIG. 3 . In this embodiment the ornament resembling the golf ball is only a partial sphere, instead of a complete sphere. The height of the ornament in  FIG. 3  is great enough to impart a substantially three-dimensional appearance to the necktie. An alternative embodiment of the invention is a necktie comprising an upper portion configured to attach the tie to a wearer, a body portion configured to hang vertically downward from the upper portion and at least two ornaments which impart a substantially three-dimensional appearance attached to the body portion of the necktie. In the case of the golf ball tie the second ornament may resemble a golf flag, the flag also imparting a substantially three-dimensional appearance to the necktie.  
         [0025]     Other embodiments of the invention include neckties comprising ornaments resembling such things as trees, animals, automobiles, trucks, trains, machinery, such as construction machinery, farm machinery, or mining machinery, boats, aircraft, political mascots, buildings, bridges, mountains, famous landmarks, architectural landmarks, scenic landmarks, balls, ribbons, such as yellow ribbons for remembrance, planets, sports mascots, fruit, logos, or flowers. The preceding list is not meant to be exhaustive. Other possible ornaments falling within the scope of the invention will be evident to those of ordinary skill in the art.  
         [0026]     The body of the necktie may comprise fabric, plastic, wood, metal, or a combination thereof. Most preferably the body of the necktie is comprised of fabric, such as wool, cotton, silk, nylon, rayon, or other fabrics or blends of fabrics.  
         [0027]     Ornaments may be comprised of fabric, plastic, wood, leather, rubber, metal, or a combination thereof. A fabric ornament may comprise an outer fabric surface and an interior fill material such as cotton, wool, leather, rubber, cloth, Styrofoam, or other filler material to fill the hollow interior of a fabric ornament. Ornaments made of wood, plastic, rubber, leather, or metal may be solid or hollow. The surface of the ornaments may be decorated. For example, the surface of an ornament may be decorated so that the ornament resembles a ball such as a football, golf ball, basketball, baseball, soccer ball, volley ball, tennis ball or other ball. The ornaments may comprise miniature versions of the balls that they resemble, comprising not only the shape and surface, but also the materials used in the manufacture of the full-sized counter parts. An ornament of the invention may be shaped and/or decorated to resemble a hockey puck, an animal or a corporate logo.  
         [0028]     Embodiments of the invention may optionally comprise a second ornament imparting a substantially three-dimensional appearance to the necktie. For example, a second ornament may resemble a basketball hoop, a volleyball net, a baseball backstop, a hockey net, a football goalpost, a soccer net, or a golf flag.  
         [0029]     The ornaments may be fixedly attached to the body of the necktie by conventional means such as sewing, riveting, gluing, stapling, or other means of fixedly attaching the ornament to the body of the necktie.  
         [0030]     The ornaments may be removably attached to the body of the necktie by conventional means such as snap fasteners, hook and loop fasteners (such as VELCRO®), pin and clip fasteners, nut and bolt fasteners, buttonhole-button type fasteners, or other conventional fastening means. The base of the ornament may comprise the button body of a button-type fastener and the body of the necktie may comprise a buttonhole into which the ornament button body may fit.  
         [0031]     Neckties of the invention may optionally comprise a pocket, or multiple pockets, located on front surface of the necktie. Such pockets may be used to removably attach ornaments to a necktie of the invention. For example, a wearer may wish to display an ornament resembling a flower, such as a rose. The wearer would insert the stem of the floral ornament into a pocket on the front surface of a necktie of the invention. The floral ornament would then be prominently displayed for others to view. Multiple three dimensional ornaments could be inserted into a plurality of pockets to create a bouquet effect.  
         [0032]     The body of the necktie may optionally comprise a rigid or semi-rigid reinforcing member, such as wood, plastic, metal, or cardboard which imparts stiffness to the necktie body. The rigid or semi rigid reinforcing member is covered by the material, such as fabric, comprising the body of the necktie. The rigid or semi rigid reinforcing member will therefore add stiffness to the necktie while remaining unseen by people looking at the necktie body. Adding rigid or semi-rigid reinforcing member to the body of the necktie may prevent the necktie from folding due to the weight of an ornament(s), light system, sound system or motion system.  
         [0033]     Neckties of the invention may optionally comprise a light system. Such a light system comprises a battery, switch, incandescent light bulbs or light emitting diodes (LED), and optional circuitry for controlling the light bulbs or LEDs. The elements comprising the light system are electrically connected. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,753,068, 6,336,730, 5,493,731, 5,836,670, and 4,283,797 describe light systems that may be adapted for use in neckties of the invention. Light systems may be used to spell out a message, highlight a portion of a design, provide supplementary lighting for the wearer of the necktie, and draw attention to the necktie wearer. A light system may be attached directly to the body of a necktie of the invention or the light system may be attached to a reinforcing member within the body of the necktie, or a combination of both methods of attachment may be used.  
         [0034]     Neckties of the invention may optionally comprise a sound system. Such a sound system may be used to produce sounds such as chants, songs, greetings, spoken messages, or other sounds. A sound system for use with neckties of the invention may comprise a battery, a switch, sound production circuitry, and a sound producing element, such as a piezoelectric element. The elements of the sound system are electrically connected. U.S. Pat. No. 5,761,836, 5,275,285, 5,245,171, and 5,063,698 describe sound systems that may be adapted for use with a necktie of the invention. A sound system may be placed within the body of a necktie of the invention, between the front and back surfaces. The sound system may be attached directly to the fabric or other material comprising the body of the tie, or the sound system may be attached to a reinforcing member comprising the interior of the necktie. The sound system switch is located on the rear surface of the necktie so as to be hidden. The switch is preferably a push-button type switch which, when activated, initiates the playback of a short sound sequence, such as a song, greeting, chant, spoken message, or other sound.  
         [0035]     Neckties of the invention may optionally comprise a motion system. A motion system may be powered electrically, for example with a battery, or mechanically, for example with a wind up spring. A electrically powered motion system may comprise a battery, switch, motor, and optional control circuitry. The elements comprising the motion system are electrically connected. A mechanically powered motion system may comprise a miniature wind-up motor and a wind-up means. A motion system may be located behind the front surface of a necktie of the invention. Such a motor system may be used to move an ornament or a plurality of ornaments of a necktie of the invention. For example, an ornament resembling an automobile may be connected to a motion system and the front surface of the necktie may be decorated to resemble a race track. When the motion system is activated the automobile ornament may be moved, the motion simulating the motion of a automobile about a race track. A motion system may be connected to reinforcing member within the body of a necktie of the invention. The body of the motion system is placed behind the front of the necktie so as to hide the motion system from viewers. The motor shaft perpendicularly penetrates the front surface of a necktie and ornaments are attached directly or indirectly to the shaft of the motor. The motion system is activated by a switch located on the rear surface of the necktie. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,679,753, 6,402,584, 5,816,910, 5,310,375, 5,139,454, and 5,087,852 describe systems that may be adapted for use with a necktie of the invention. For example, the flapping heart device of U.S. Pat. No. 6,402,584 may be attached to reinforcing member of a necktie of the invention so that the motion mechanism is supported by the reinforcing member. The flapping portions of the device are positioned in front of the front surface of the necktie and the central support means, and linkage means penetrate the front surface of the necktie, connecting the flapping portions with the rest of the motion mechanism.  
         [0036]     The necktie may worn by the wearer by tying the necktie in a convention knot, such as a Windsor knot. Other embodiments of the invention may be attached to the wearer through the use of a clip as in conventional clip on ties ( FIG. 4 ). Still other embodiments of the invention are attached to the wearer through the use of straps ( FIG. 5 ) which surround the neck and clip together using conventional fasteners such as snaps, buttons, or hook and loop fasteners VELCRO®), or other conventional fastening means.