Patent Document

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     The present invention relates to tattoo needle cases and more particularly to an improved case for receiving a plurality of tattoo needles in which the needle heads are well protected for safety purpose and others.  
         [0003]     2. Description of Related Art  
         [0004]     Conventionally, a needle assembly is comprised of a plurality of needles arranged and fixed together on the major portion of the needle by utilizing a point solder technique or a stainless steel tube clamping technique. However, the pointed ends of needles may expose in either technique. Thus, a person may get pricked if sufficient care is not taken in operation. Moreover, accessing needles is not convenient. Further, its storage is disadvantageous. Hence, a need for improvement exists.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0005]     It is an object of the present invention to provide a tattoo needle case with an arrangement for protecting pointed ends of a plurality of needle disposed therein. Moreover, the present invention can completely and satisfactorily solve the safety problem of being accidentally pricked by the needles during use. Further, the needle storage is easy and reliable.  
         [0006]     It is another object of the present invention to provide a tattoo needle case having a needle fastening arrangement for retaining a plurality of needles in place.  
         [0007]     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a tattoo needle case having a sufficient receiving space in cooperation with a needle fastening arrangement for retaining a plurality of needles in place.  
         [0008]     To achieve the above and other objects, the present invention provides a tattoo needle case comprising a seat comprising a front section, a rear section including a receiving space having a predetermined height, and a breaking section interconnected the rear section and the front section; a plurality of needles disposed in the receiving space; and a sheath sleeved on the seat for fastening the needles in the rear section; whereby bending and breaking the front section will expose pointed ends of the needles.  
         [0009]     In one aspect of the present invention, the cavity is a parallelogram and comprises an oblique side such that the pointed ends of the needles can be arranged along the oblique side. Also, each of a front end of the cover and the breaking section is oblique and is substantially parallel to the oblique side. The lengths of the needles exposed from the cover and the breaking section are about the same after breaking the front section. That is, the prolonged portions of the obliquely disposed needles can be supported by the breaking section and the cover. As a result, strength of the seat is enhanced for accommodating elongated needles.  
         [0010]     In another aspect of the present invention, liquid adhesive is applied after placing the needles in the rear section and sleeving the thermoplastic sheath thereon. As such, the fastening of the needles can be successfully carried out by heating the adhesive and cooling thereafter.  
         [0011]     In yet another aspect of the present invention, solder is applied so that the fastening of the needles can be further enhanced by heating the solder and cooling thereafter.  
         [0012]     In a further aspect of the present invention, the metal sheath is put on the seat. Next, pressing the sheath will tightly wrap both the rear section and the needles. As a result, the needles disposed in the rear section are protected.  
         [0013]     The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0014]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a first preferred embodiment of tattoo needle case according to the invention;  
         [0015]      FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the case of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0016]      FIG. 3  is an exploded view of a second preferred embodiment of tattoo needle case according to the invention;  
         [0017]      FIG. 4  is an exploded view of a third preferred embodiment of tattoo needle case according to the invention;  
         [0018]      FIGS. 5 and 5 A are sectional views showing needle arrangements of two-layer and three-layer respectively according to the invention;  
         [0019]      FIGS. 6 and 6 A are sectional views showing two configurations of cover in which needle arrangements of two-layer and three-layer are illustrated respectively according to the invention;  
         [0020]      FIGS. 7 and 7 A are sectional views showing two configurations of rear section in which needle arrangements of two-layer and three-layer are illustrated respectively according to the invention; and  
         [0021]      FIGS. 8 and 8 A are sectional views showing another two configurations of rear section in which needle arrangements of two-layer and three-layer are illustrated respectively according to the invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0022]     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , there is shown a tattoo needle case constructed in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the invention. The preferred embodiment is comprised of a seat  20 , a plurality of needles  30 , and a thermoplastic sheath  40 . Each component will be described in detailed below.  
         [0023]     The rectangular seat  20  comprises a rear section  21  and a front section  22  formed integrally therewith. The rear section  21  comprises a plurality of lengthwise, parallel grooves  211  with the needles  30  disposed therein, a plurality of first risers  212  formed on one side, a plurality of second risers  213  formed on the other side, a cavity  221  provided on the front section  22  with the pointed ends  31  of the needles  30  disposed therein, a forward flat  222 , and a breaking section  25  interconnected the rear section  21  and the front section  22  and including a well  251  and two side openings  252  and  253 .  
         [0024]     The thermoplastic sheath  40  has a section of rectangle. The thermoplastic sheath  40  is sleeved on the seat  20  after placing the needles  30  on the grooves  211  of the rear section  21 . The thermoplastic sheath  40  is adapted to tightly wrap both the seat  20  and the needles  30  after being subject to heat. As a result, the needles  30  disposed in the rear section  21  are protected by the thermoplastic sheath  40 .  
         [0025]     The pointed ends  31  of the needles  30  are completely concealed in the cavity  221  after wrapping the seat  20  by the thermoplastic sheath  40 . Thus, the invention can completely and satisfactorily solve the safety problem of being accidentally pricked during use. Moreover, the needle storage is easy and reliable. In use, a user may hold the flat  222  to bend the front section  22  until the front section  22  is separate from the rear section  21  at the breaking section  25  (i.e., at the well  251  and the side openings  252  and  253 ). As a result, the pointed ends  31  are exposed. This process is quick, safe, and convenient.  
         [0026]     Note that preferably, solder is applied around the seat  20  so that the fastening of the needles  30  can be successfully carried out by heating the solder and cooling thereafter.  
         [0027]     Alternatively, tattoo needle case of the invention can be comprised of a seat  20  and a metal sheath  50  (see  FIG. 8 ). The sheath  50  is sleeved on the rear section  21 . Next, pressing the sheath  50  will tightly wrap both the rear section  21  and the needles  30 . As a result, the needles  30  disposed in the rear section  21  are protected.  
         [0028]     Referring to  FIG. 3 , there is shown a tattoo needle case constructed in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the invention. The second preferred embodiment substantially has same structure as the first preferred embodiment. The characteristics of the second preferred embodiment are detailed below. The case comprises a seat  20 , a plurality of needles  30 , and a thermoplastic sheath  40 .  
         [0029]     The rectangular seat  20  comprises a rear section  21 , a front section  22  formed integrally therewith, and a cover  23  put on the rear section  21  to form a receiving space  24  therebetween. The rectangular cover  23  comprises a plurality of lengthwise, parallel grooves  231  on its underside, a plurality of first flanges  232  formed on one side, and a plurality of second flanges  233  formed on the other side. Similarly, the rear section  21  comprises a plurality of parallel grooves  211  with the needles  30  disposed therein, a plurality of first risers  212  formed on one side, a plurality of second risers  213  formed on the other side, a cavity  221  provided on the front section  22  with the pointed ends  31  of the needles  30  disposed therein, a forward flat  222 , and a breaking section  25  interconnected the rear section  21  and the front section  22  and including a well  251  and two side openings  252  and  253 . The grooves  231  are adapted to engage with upper portions of the needles  30  when the cover  23  is put on the rear section  21 . As such, the needles  30  are tightly retained by both the cover  23  (i.e., the grooves  231 ) and the rear section  21  (i.e., the grooves  211 ). Note that each of the receiving space  24  and the cavity  221  has a sufficient height so as to successfully store the needles  30  therein.  
         [0030]     The thermoplastic sheath  40  has a section of rectangle. The thermoplastic sheath  40  is sleeved on the seat  20  after putting the cover  23  on the rear section  21  and placing the needles  30  in the grooves  211  in the receiving space  24  thereafter. The thermoplastic sheath  40  is adapted to tightly wrap both the seat  20  and the needles  30  after being subject to heat. As a result, the needles  30  disposed in the rear section  21  are protected by the thermoplastic sheath  40 . Moreover, preferably, liquid adhesive is applied after placing the needles  30  in the rear section  21  and sleeving the thermoplastic sheath  40  thereon. As such, the fastening of the needles  30  can be successfully carried out by heating the adhesive and cooling thereafter. Still preferably, solder is applied so that the fastening of the needles  30  can be further enhanced by heating the solder and cooling thereafter.  
         [0031]     Likewise, the pointed ends  31  of the needles  30  are completely concealed in the cavity  221  after wrapping the seat  20  by the thermoplastic sheath  40 . Thus, the invention can completely and satisfactorily solve the safety problem of being accidentally pricked during use. Moreover, the needle storage is easy and reliable. In use, a user may hold the flat  222  to bend the front section  22  until the front section  22  is separate from the rear section  21  at the breaking section  25  (i.e., at the well  251  and the side openings  252  and  253 ). As a result, the pointed ends  31  are exposed. This process is quick, safe, and convenient.  
         [0032]     Referring to  FIG. 4 , there is shown a tattoo needle case constructed in accordance with a third preferred embodiment of the invention. The third preferred embodiment substantially has same structure as the second preferred embodiment. The characteristics of the third preferred embodiment are detailed below. The cavity  221  is a parallelogram and comprises an oblique side  221   a  such that the pointed ends  31  of the needles  30  can be arranged along the oblique side  221   a.  Each of the front end of the cover  23 ′ and the breaking section  25 ′ is oblique and is substantially parallel to the side  221   a.  The lengths of the needles  30 ′ exposed from the cover  23 ′ and the breaking section  25 ′ are about the same after breaking the front section  22 . In other words, the prolonged portions of the obliquely disposed needles  30 ′ can be supported by the breaking section  25 ′ and the front end of the cover  23 ′ by the provisions of the breaking section  25 ′ and the cover  23 ′. As a result, strength of the seat  20  can be enhanced for accommodating elongated needles. Note that each of the front end of the cover  23 ′ and the breaking section  25 ′ can be formed as a curve or arc depending on applications. Also, the pointed ends  31  of the needles  30 ′ are in close proximity with the curve or arc.  
         [0033]     Referring to  FIGS. 5 and 5 A, needles  30  are arranged in two layers and three layers in the receiving space  24  formed by the rear section  21  and the cover  23  respectively. The two-layer or three-layer arrangement can provide a convenient and quick use of the needles.  
         [0034]     Referring to  FIGS. 6 and 6 A, the grooves  231  of the cover  23  are engaged with the corresponding grooves  211  of rear section  21 . Also, the cover  23  are spaced apart from the rear section  21  by the side flanges  232 . In a mounting operation, first place the needles  30  in the receiving space  24  and next put the cover  23  thereon for concealing the needles  30 . Next, put the thermoplastic sheath  40  thereon and heat the same for fastening.  
         [0035]     Referring to  FIGS. 7 and 7 A, needles  30  are arranged in two layers and three layers in the rear section  21  respectively. Next, put the thermoplastic sheath  40  thereon and heat the same for fastening both the rear section  21  and the needles.  
         [0036]     Referring to  FIGS. 8 and 8 A, needles  30  are arranged in two layers and three layers in the rear section  21  respectively. Next, put the metal sheath  50  thereon. Next, pressing the sheath  50  will tightly wrap both the rear section  21  and the needles  30 . As a result, the needles  30  disposed in the rear section  21  are protected.  
         [0037]     While the invention herein disclosed has been described by means of specific embodiments, numerous modifications and variations could be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention set forth in the claims.

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