Abstract:
A neck tie tying aid and a related method is disclosed. The device has a length gauge to allow proper length of the necktie to be achieved, while also having a removably secured section for threading, wrapping and tying the necktie to effect a perfect knot. Elements of the retractable gauge cooperate to also provide the means for releasably securing the device to the necktie. In a related method, the device is used in a one-handed method for tying a necktie.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    This invention relates to a device and method for aiding in the tying of a necktie knot. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Tying a knot in a necktie is a difficult and challenging task that begins for most men when they are teenagers and lasts a lifetime. Even though it is done every day by a large segment of the population, it is not done well by very many, and as fathers of sons everywhere will attest there are certainly some who have to rely on others to tie knots because they cannot do it themselves. 
         [0003]    In the prior art there are many devices and methods for tying neckties, it being a problem that certainly has spawned a large number of solutions. Fundamentally, it requires the taking of two ends of a length of fabric, the necktie, one wider than the other, and tying them in an attractive way that is uniform and repeatable. Very generally speaking, it entails wrapping the wide end around a point near the narrow end, it being desirable to do so such that, after the knot is completed, the bottom end of the tie winds up at about the height of the wearer&#39;s belt. The first consideration is therefore where to tie the knot to result in such a length. Even very, very experienced necktie wearers will occasionally have difficulty with the problem of judging the length correctly. In fact, it is that specific problem, of tying the knot in the proper location to result in the desired length, that a very large number of prior art devices are focused on. There are many patented, and non-patented attempts at solving that problem. Length gauges that measure from the wearer&#39;s neck down, for example, or which give a certain length for a certain height of the wearer, are well known. To arrive at the correct length, a wearer is required to estimate how much fabric the knot itself is going to take and then to apply that so that he winds up with the desired length. Insofar as the tying of a necktie generally requires two hands, there obviously is a difficult task presented for a wearer that wishes to hold a length gauge while tying a necktie. In addition, most length gauges will be at least the length of the desired necktie, typically anywhere from 18 to 24 inches. Having to handle and store a device of such size is something that most would prefer not to do, so it will be desirable to provide a method and/or a device that allows a wearer to arrive at the proper length that is not large or cumbersome to handle. In addition, many of the prior solutions to this problem have required marking of the necktie or measuring it against a marked template. Clearly, that is not a desirable alternative. 
         [0004]    After the proper length is determined for a necktie, and the appropriate spot on the tie for the knot is chosen, the wearer must go through a complicated series of steps to actually tie the knot. In fact, there are a number of different styles of knots that a wearer can choose. For simplicity and generalities, the procedure can be summarized as lapping the wide end over the narrow end at a point where the knot is going to be tied. The wide end is then threaded up through the back and out the front of the opening created below the wearer&#39;s chin. Then, for a knot to be symmetrical and attractive, it is desirable to wrap the wide end around the overlap portion from front to back, and then to thread the wide end up through the same opening and then, as it comes through from back to front, to thread it through under the last layer in the front of the knot. That is all done loosely so that, upon threading the wide end through and under the last layer, the wearer can tighten the knot by pulling on the wide end, and then can adjust the length by pulling down on the narrow end. 
         [0005]    With practice, many wearers can perfect the tying of a necktie, by being very careful about how uniformly the wide end is wrapped around the knot and fed through. For many, though, the tying is not so neat and results in an uneven and asymmetrical knot that is immediately apparent, insofar as a necktie is the most common and visible accessory feature worn by men. It is desirable to provide a device and/or method that assists in the creation of an attractive and symmetrical knot, properly positioned on the tie so that the desired length is achieved. 
         [0006]    Prior art attempts at solving this problem have included guides and clamps and pieces that attach to the tie through which the tie will be threaded, some of which are removable and some of which are intended to stay in the tie even after the knot is completed. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,815,772 and 5,692,241 and 7,143,482 and D614,833 all provide guide devices that are used when tying a necktie knot that provide a device through which the end of the necktie is threaded to assist in the creation of a perfect knot. None of them, however, provide a useful device that is both releasably attached to the tie, so that the wearer is not required to hold it while he&#39;s tying a tie, and still has provisions that make it easily removable upon completion of the knot. In addition, while there are a large number of prior art methods and devices for estimating the length as a tool to help the wearer decide where to tie a knot, such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,698,102; 5,505,002; and 4,059,906, to name a few, there is no prior art device or method that solve both the problem of where to tie the knot and how to tie the knot in a single device or method. The present invention addresses the limitations of the prior art, while providing a device and method for both estimating the location for the knot, as well as providing an improved device and method for tying the knot. It also significantly provides a collapsible device that, while functioning to estimate the length of the tie, is smaller when it is collapsed, and it is significantly innovative in that it uses the same structural elements to collapse the device as it uses to fix the device to the tie so that the wearer can tie the knot without having to worry about holding the device. The releasable attachment features of the present invention also make it a useful device for those having the use of only one hand because, as set forth in more detail, once the tying aid of the present invention is attached to the tie, only one hand is required to thread the tie around and through the tying aid. 
       OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved device for estimating the length of a necktie and the proper position of a knot. 
         [0008]    It is another object of the present invention to provide a method for tying a necktie that enables a wearer to reliably predict the proper location to tie the knot to eliminate the need for tying and re-tying the knot to achieve the proper length. 
         [0009]    It is another object of the present invention to provide a device that enables a wearer to tie a symmetrical and attractive knot in a necktie that is easily manipulated and removable upon completion of the knot. 
         [0010]    It is a further object of the present invention to provide a length gauge device for the tying of a necktie that is collapsible and adaptable to provide a proper length measurement across a wide range of sizes for wearers. 
         [0011]    It is a further object of the present invention to provide a neck tie tying aid that allows a knot to be tied with one hand. 
         [0012]    It is yet another outfit of the present invention to provide a device and method that allows a device to be temporarily and releasably affixed to the overlap point where by the necktie can be threaded around and through the device, while still providing a removable device. 
         [0013]    It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a method and device for tying a necktie that provides a central wrap ring and threading a for guiding in retaining the necktie around the ring and through the middle of the ring to create an attractive not, while still making the device readily removable after the knot is completed. 
         [0014]    It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method and device for tying a necktie that requires the use of only one hand to complete the knot. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0015]    The present invention provides a device for tying a necktie wherein a substantially tubular wrap ring has means for wrapping and threading a necktie through it to effect a knot. The device also includes provisions for removing it after the tie is wrapped and threaded, including a tapered shape to the ring wherein a top end of the substantially tubular shape has a smaller cross-section compared to the lower end which has a larger cross section. The device is substantially tubular, providing a guide through the middle for the necktie, but it does also include an open slot so that it is not a fully enclosed shape. The device also includes means for wrapping and threading, including at least one assist wing that extends substantially parallel to the sidewall of the wrap ring, thereby defining a gap therebetween through which the necktie can be threaded and in which it is retained. 
         [0016]    The present invention also provides means for temporarily and releasably securing the wrap ring to the necktie so that the wearer does not need to hold it while he is using it. The means for releasing includes provisions for ease of removal as well. In the most preferred embodiment, the present invention includes a tapered wrap ring and at least one slot in the wrap ring to aid in removal of the device after the knot is completed. 
         [0017]    The present invention also provides a device comprising a length gauge allowing the wearer to properly estimate and apply the appropriate length for the tie and the position of the knot on the tie. The length gauge is significant in that it is collapsible and includes means for temporarily and releasably securing the wrap ring to the necktie. 
         [0018]    The means for temporarily and releasably securing the wrap ring to the necktie includes structural members that pinch the necktie between them, and specifically include the collapsible length gauge as the folding structural members. 
         [0019]    The present invention further includes a method for tying a necktie comprising the steps of draping a necktie around the wearer&#39;s neck allowing both ends to dangle freely; providing a device for tying a necktie, the device having a substantially tubular wrap ring, a collapsible gauge and means for releasably securing the device to the necktie; placing and holding the device under the wearer&#39;s chin; extending the length gauge to provide a position for the final desired location of the knot; pulling the wide end of the tie down such that the knot location is positioned at the bottom of the gauge; crossing the wide end of the tie over the narrow end of the tie to properly position the location of the knot; retracting the collapsible gauge and securing the device to the tie such that the wrap ring is at chest level; wrapping the wide end of the necktie around the substantially tubular wrap ring and threading the wide end down through the wrap ring, loosely gathering the tie around the wrap ring, detaching the device from the tie and removing the device, tightening the knot, and adjusting the length of the tie by pulling on the narrow end. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0020]      FIG. 1  represents a front view of the device of the present invention. 
           [0021]      FIG. 2  represents a side view of the device of the present invention. 
           [0022]      FIG. 3  represents a side view of the present invention with the length gauge extended. 
           [0023]      FIG. 4  represents a front view of the device of the present invention with the length gauge extended. 
           [0024]      FIGS. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15  represent a schematic progression of the looping and threading of the necktie through and around the device of the present invention, including through the gaps created by the assist wings and through the center gap in the substantially tubular center section, to result in a loosely gathered knot. 
           [0025]      FIGS. 16A-16E  represent a schematic progression of the method steps of tying a necktie using the device and method of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0026]    The necktie knot tying aid  10 , shown in  FIG. 1 , addresses all of the deficiencies and disadvantages of the prior art and provides a device that assists novices, as well as experienced necktie wearers, in tying better knots, is an instruction aid for those learning to tie knots, and provides a useful aid for persons having only one arm to tie a necktie. 
         [0027]    The necktie knot tying aid  10  has a wrap ring  12  that a necktie  14  will be initially threaded around and ultimately directed through. Specifically, the necktie  14  is draped over a wearer&#39;s shoulders such that a narrow end  16  and wide end  18  hang down on a wearer&#39;s torso (see  FIGS. 16A-16F ). The knot tying aid  10  is first applied to gauge and measure the length in the following manner, to ensure that a knot is tied in the proper location on the necktie. Once the necktie is draped over the wearer&#39;s shoulders ( FIG. 16A ), an extended length gauge  20  is positioned to provide a proper length measurement. The aid  10  is held under the wearer&#39;s chin ( FIG. 16  B) such that the gauge  20  hangs down. In the preferred method, disclosed herein, the wearer pulls the wide end  18  of the necktie down near the bottom of the gauge  20  until the location on the tie, at which the knot is desired, is coincident with the bottom of the gauge  20 . As set forth in more detail herein, when the device  10  is not in use as a gauge, the lower extended member  22  is retractable. In the most preferred embodiment of the present invention, the extended member  22  is pivotally connected to an upper member  24  at pins  26 ,  28  about which it is free to rotate, although other methods and devices for providing a retractable gauge are provided, such as telescoping or folding structural members. 
         [0028]    The length gauge  20  is retracted and secured in the preferred embodiment by cooperating magnets  30 ,  32 , a first magnet  30  positioned near a distal end of the extended member  22 , and the second magnet  32  position near and opposed distal end of the upper member  24  such that, when the lower member  22  rotates about pivot pins  26 ,  28 , the magnets  30 ,  32  are adjacent and snap together to hold the lower member  22  in its retracted position (see  FIG. 2 ). 
         [0029]    While this is the most preferred embodiment of the present invention, other embodiments are contemplated that use alternative means for securing the two members together, specifically devices including Velcro, button snaps, clamps, spring-loaded latches, etc., are contemplated and their use does not depart from the principles of the present invention. 
         [0030]    After the length of the necktie is established, and the wide end  18  is lapped over the narrow end  16 , the knot tying aid  10  is applied by securing it at the point where the narrow end  16  and wide end  18  coincide. In a unique feature of the present invention, the overlapping sections of the necktie are clamped between members of the knot tying aid  10 . Specifically, the means for securing the aid  10  to the necktie is provided by magnets  30 ,  32  that snap together to pinch the necktie therebetween. The means for securing is releasable by simply pushing or pulling the magnets  30 ,  32  apart to separate them from each other. While the magnets  30 ,  32  represent the most preferred embodiment for the present invention, often means for releasably temporarily securing the aid  10  to the necktie can be provided by other means without departing from the principles of the present invention. In a significant feature of the present invention, the retraction holding magnets  30 ,  32  of the present invention are also the means for engaging and disengaging the aid  10  to the necktie. To ease the disengagement of the securing means magnets  30 ,  32 , the lower structural member  22  is formed with a curved profile (see  FIG. 2 ) so that a wearer, by pushing on the lower member  22  curved surface  34 , the magnets  30 ,  32  are pushed apart so that the aid  10  can be removed. It is a significant and beneficial design feature of the present invention that both the lower structural member  22  and upper structural member  24  are formed with oppositely bowed profiles (see  FIG. 2 ), creating an opposed scissor connection so that by squeezing the two members  22 ,  24  together, they will rotate in opposite directions about pivot pins  26 ,  28  and will push apart and separate the opposite ends where the magnets  30 ,  32  hold it together. 
         [0031]    To assist in the actual forming and tying of a necktie knot, the aid  10  is provided with a wrap ring  50  around which the fat end  18  of the necktie is wrapped (see  FIGS. 5-15 ). After application of the aid  10  with securing means  30 ,  32 , the wide end  18  is wrapped around the substantially tubular wrap ring  50  and then threaded down through a center channel  52  through the ring  50 . In a significant aspect of the present invention the wrapping of the necktie wide end  18  is improved by inclusion of upright wings  54 ,  56  that are formed when the wrap ring  50  is formed from the same material. The wings  54 ,  56  define guide gaps  58 ,  60  through which the wide end  18  of the necktie is threaded and retained. The wings  54 ,  56  are a very important feature of the present invention because they retain the wide end  18  around the wrap ring  50 . This allows a novice necktie wearer, or even someone having only one hand, to successfully use the aid  10  to tie a knot. That is, once the tie is overlapped (see, for example,  FIG. 16C ) a user can apply the tying aid  10  at the overlap point by snapping the magnets  32 ,  30  together, pinching the overlapped tie between them. Only one hand is required to apply the device, and only one hand is required to thread the necktie around and through the wrap ring  50 . In this way, the present invention provides a device with great utility to persons having the use of only one hand. 
         [0032]    The wide end  18  is threaded around the wrap ring  50 , retained against it by wings  54 ,  56 , and the wide end  18  is then pushed down through the center of the wrap ring  50  (see  FIGS. 11-15 ) until a loose knot  70  is formed. At that point, the aid  10  is removed by disengaging the magnets  30 ,  32  by squeezing the opposed members  22 ,  24 , pushing the magnets  30 ,  32  apart, thus releasing the pinching retention of the necktie, and then the aid  10  can be slid out through the bottom of the knot  70 . In another specific design feature of the present invention, the wrap ring  50  is designed with a slight downward taper (see  FIG. 1 ) so it is wider at the bottom than at the top to ease the removal of the wrap ring  50  from the knot. This allows easy removal of the tying aid device  10 . After the loose knot is tied and aid  10  is removed it is a simple method to tighten the knot by pulling on the narrow end  16 . 
         [0033]    The related method incorporating the tying aid  10  of the present invention provides for the following steps. First, a necktie is draped on the shoulders of a wearer, with a wide end and a narrow roughly even ( FIG. 16A ). Next, the retractable length gauge of the present invention is held under the wearer&#39;s chin, and the bottom member extended to provide the proper length measurement ( FIG. 16B ). Next, the wide end of the tie is pulled down such that the desired knot location is even with the bottom of the gauge. Next, the wide end of the tie is overlapped over the narrow end at chest level ( FIG. 16C ), and then the aid  10  is secured to the overlapping tie ( FIG. 16D ) such that the wide end  18  and narrow end  16  extend from behind the device  10 . The tying aid  10  and the necktie will be held in place as the wide end  18  is wrapped around the aid  10  and then threaded down through the center. Next, the aid  10  is disengaged by squeezing together the curved opposed members  22 ,  24  and breaking apart the retention magnets  30 ,  32 , and the device  10  is extracted from the knot by pulling it out the bottom. Next, the wearer tightens the loose knot and then adjusts the length by pulling down the narrow end, resulting in a perfect knot and the perfect length for the tie. 
         [0034]    The foregoing description of a preferred embodiment of the invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best illustrate the principles of the invention and its practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to best utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the claims appended hereto.