U.S. patent application number 16/419726 was filed with the patent office on 2020-11-26 for bracelet charm with alignment.
The applicant listed for this patent is Choon's Design LLC. Invention is credited to Cheong Choon Ng, Elizabeth Reed.
Application Number | 20200367615 16/419726 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000004169891 |
Filed Date | 2020-11-26 |
United States Patent
Application |
20200367615 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Ng; Cheong Choon ; et
al. |
November 26, 2020 |
BRACELET CHARM WITH ALIGNMENT
Abstract
A Brunnian link is a link formed from a closed loop doubled over
itself to capture another closed loop to form a chain. One or more
charms can be included with the links to add additional aesthetic
options.
Inventors: |
Ng; Cheong Choon; (Novi,
MI) ; Reed; Elizabeth; (Royal Oak, MI) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Choon's Design LLC |
Farmington Hills |
MI |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000004169891 |
Appl. No.: |
16/419726 |
Filed: |
May 22, 2019 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A44C 5/08 20130101; A44C
25/007 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A44C 25/00 20060101
A44C025/00; A44C 5/08 20060101 A44C005/08 |
Claims
1. A charm comprising: a charm portion; and a mount portion, the
mount portion including a mount opening and at least one alignment
portion for aligning the charm portion with a charm portion of an
adjacent charm.
2. The charm as recited in claim 1, wherein the alignment portion
is disposed on at least one side of the mount portion.
3. The charm as recited in claim 2, wherein the alignment portion
comprises a flat surface.
4. The charm as recited in claim 3, wherein the flat surface is
perpendicular to a front face of the mount portion.
5. The charm as recited in claim 1, wherein the mount portion
comprises a first side spaced apart from a second side and the
alignment portion comprises a first flat surface on the first side
and a second flat surface on the second side.
6. The charm as recited in claim 5, wherein the first flat surface
and the second flat surface are substantially parallel to each
other.
7. The charm as recited in claim 6, wherein at least one of the
first flat surface and the second flat surface is angled relative
to each other.
8. The charm as recited in claim 5, wherein the mount portion
includes a mount width between the first flat side and the second
flat side and the charm portion includes a charm width that is
smaller than the mount width.
9. The charm as recited in claim 1, wherein the mount portion and
the charm portion are of a common thickness.
10. The charm as recited in claim 1, wherein the mount opening
includes straight sides and curvilinear top and bottom sides.
11. The charm as recited in claim 1, wherein the mount opening
comprises a circle.
12. The charm as recited in claim 1, wherein the charm comprises a
single continuous integrated part.
13. A linked item including a charm comprising: a plurality of
linked elastic bands; and at least two charms linked into the
plurality of elastic bands adjacent to each other, wherein each of
the at least two charms includes a charm portion and a mount
portion, the mount portion including a mount opening for receiving
at least one of the plurality of elastic bands and at least one
alignment portion for aligning the charm portion of one that at
least two charms with another of the at least two charms linked
into the plurality of elastic bands.
14. The linked item as recited in claim 13, wherein the alignment
portion comprises a flat surface on at least one side of the mount
portion.
15. The linked item as recited in claim 13, wherein the alignment
portion comprises flat surfaces on each side of the mount portion
that are substantially parallel to each other.
16. The linked item as recited in claim 13, wherein the mount
portion is of a first width between first and second sides and the
charm is of a second width that is less than the first width.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] Kits that include materials for making a uniquely colored
bracelet or necklace have always enjoyed some popularity. However,
such kits usually just include the raw materials such as different
colored threads and beads and rely on the individual's skill and
talent to construct a usable and desirable item.
SUMMARY
[0002] A Brunnian link is a link formed from a closed loop doubled
over itself to capture another closed loop to form a chain. Elastic
bands can be utilized to form such links. An example disclosed
charm can be linked into a series of such elastic bands. The
example disclosed charm includes at least one alignment feature for
aligning adjacent charms.
[0003] Although the different examples have the specific components
shown in the illustrations, embodiments of this invention are not
limited to those particular combinations. It is possible to use
some of the components or features from one of the examples in
combination with features or components from another one of the
examples.
[0004] These and other features disclosed herein can be best
understood from the following specification and drawings, the
following of which is a brief description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an example charm linked into
an example bracelet formed of linked elastic bands.
[0006] FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of example charm linked into the
example elastic bands.
[0007] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an example charm
embodiment.
[0008] FIG. 4 is a front view of an example charm embodiment.
[0009] FIG. 5 is a side view of an example charm embodiment.
[0010] FIG. 6 is a front view of several adjacent example
charms.
[0011] FIG. 7 is a front view of another example charm
embodiment.
[0012] FIG. 8 is a front view of another example charm
embodiment.
[0013] FIG. 9 is a front view of another example charm
embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0014] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, an example linked item is
schematically shown at 10 and is formed from a plurality of elastic
bands using a Brunnian link 12. A Brunnian link is formed between
two continuous looped structures such as elastic bands 14 without
forming an actual knot. Several elastic bands 14 are linked
together with a Brunnian link 12 to form a chain 16. The chain 16
can be fashioned to form a linked article such as the bracelet 10.
The ends of the series of elastic bands links are then secured
together or with a clip 18 to complete a durable wearable item
10.
[0015] Each Brunnian link 12 is formed by capturing ends 20 of one
elastic band 14 with a mid-portion 22 of another elastic band 14.
Each link 12 depends on the previous and subsequent links 12 to
maintain the desired linked article as shown. Although a bracelet
10 is shown by way of example, other articles can be formed
utilizing different Brunnian link structures and are within the
scope and contemplation of this disclosure.
[0016] The example bracelet 10 includes charms 24 that are
assembled into the links 12 to provide an additional aesthetic
variation to the completed bracelet. In this example, four charms
24 are secured within in links 12 between a single row of elastic
bands 14, however, other numbers, spacing and orientations of the
example charms 24 are possible and within the scope and
contemplation of this disclosure.
[0017] Referring to FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, the example charm 24 include
a charm portion 26 and a mount portion 28 with a mount opening 32.
The mount opening 32 is interlinked with the elastic bands 14 to
hold the charm 24 within the linked item 10. The mount portion
includes a diameter 35 (FIG. 4) that corresponds with features of a
loom or other device utilized for forming Brunnian links. The size
of the opening 32 is such that at least one link 12 including the
ends 20 and mid-portion 22 of elastic bands 14 may fit within as is
shown in FIG. 2. Moreover, the size of the opening 32 is also such
that the charms 24 will maintain a desired orientation on the
completed linked item 10.
[0018] The charm portion 26 is a decorative symbol, character,
letter, number, or any other decorative feature. In this example,
the charm portion 26 is a smiley face, however other symbols and
shapes are possible within the scope and contemplation of this
disclosure. For example, a combination of letters spelling a name,
location or word could be formed by combining the proper characters
in an adjacent manner within the linked item.
[0019] The example mount portion 30 includes a first side 38 and a
second side 40. In the disclosed example embodiment, the sides 38,
40 are flat and parallel to each other. The flat sides 38, 40
enable adjacent charms 24 to be orientated relative to each other
in an aligned manner as is shown in FIG. 2. The flat sides 38, 40
are parallel to each other and spaced a distance 46 apart. In this
example, the charm portion 26 includes a width 48 that is smaller
than the distance 46 of the mount portion 28. The smaller width 48
of the charm portion 26 enables a spacing between the adjacent
charm portions 26 while the mount portions 28 abut at the sides 38,
40.
[0020] The example mount opening 32 includes flat portions 37 that
substantially follow the outer periphery of the mount portion 28.
In this example, the mount portion 28 includes the flat sides 38,
40 with a rounded top and bottom sides 34, 36.
[0021] A length 45 of each of the flat sides 38, 40 is equal in
this example. Moreover, the length 45 of the flat sides 38, 40
could be longer or shorter than the entire mount portion 28. The
length 45 is provided for the flat sides 38, 40 to align adjacent
charms 24 and may be different sizes that provide the alignment
function.
[0022] The example charm 24 is a one piece integral structure
formed of an elastic material. The charm 24 includes a thickness 44
that is provided to enable durability and a width of the flat sides
38, 40. The width 44 of the flat sides 38, 40 is provided to
provide sufficient contact area between adjacent charms 24 to
provide the desired alignment. A front face 42 and back face 43 are
substantially identical for the example charm 24. However, other
charm portion 26 shapes and sizes may have different shapes, sizes
and textures for the front and back faces 42, 43 depending on the
specific shape of the charm portion 26.
[0023] Referring to FIG. 6, three example charms 24A, 24B and 24C
are shown abutted against each other such that charm portions 26A,
26B and 26C all remain in a desired orientation and alignment
relative to each other. The alignment portions of each of the
charms 24A, 24B and 24C are the side walls 38, 40. The side walls
38, 40 of each adjacent charm 24A, 24B and 24C contact each other
to provide an even spacing between the charm portions 26A, 26B and
26C. In this example, a side wall 38A of the first charm 24A abuts
the sidewall 40B of the second charm 24B. A second wall 38B of the
second charm 24B abuts the side wall 40C of the third charm 24C.
The abutting contact maintains the charm position and orientation
relative to each other. The size of the mount portions 28A-C
relative to the charm portions 26A-C maintains the spacing 90
between charms 26A-C.
[0024] The charms 24A-C are aligned matter to prevent rotation
about a point 94 as is indicated by arrows 92. The side walls 38,
40 abut each other such that the charms 26A-C do not rotate about
each respective point 94 relative to an adjacent charm. Moreover,
the thickness 44 (FIG. 5) of each of the charms 24A, 24B and 24C
accommodates some misalignment between the charms 26A-C to prevent
overlap.
[0025] It should be appreciated, that the example walls 38, 40 are
disclosed as continuous straight and flat sides. However, the
example walls 38, 40 may be shorter, segmented, or disposed at an
angle to provide different aligned orientations. Moreover, other
alignment structures that enable setting of a desired relative
orientation are within the scope and contemplation of this
disclosure.
[0026] Referring to FIG. 7, another charm 50 is shown that includes
a mount portion 54 with flat sides and a charm portion 52. The
mount portion 54 includes a mount opening 56 with that includes a
circular inside surface indicated at 58. The circular inside
surface 58 does not follow the outline of the outer sides of the
mount portion. Instead, the mount opening 56 provides a continuous
circular opening. It should be appreciated, that other
configurations and shapes of the mount portion and mount opening
could be utilized and are within the contemplation and scope of
this disclosure.
[0027] Referring to FIG. 8, another charm 60 includes a mount
portion 65 and a charm portion 70. The mount portion 65 includes a
mount opening 72 and sides 66 and 68. The sides 66, 68 provide for
alignment by abutting an adjacent charm as shown and described in
FIG. 6. In the example charm 60 shown in FIG. 8, the sides 66 and
68 are disposed at an angle 64 relative to a center longitudinal
axis 62. The angle 64 provides for an angular alignment with an
adjacent charm. The angle 64 may range from just a few degrees to
around 75 degrees. The disclosed example angle 64 is approximately
60 degrees.
[0028] Referring to FIG. 9, another example charm 74 includes mount
portion 78 and charm portion 76. The mount portion 78 includes flat
sides 82 and 84 and a curved top side 80. A circular mount opening
72 is provided to receive elastic bands. The top curved surface 80
represents another embodiment of the mount portion 78 that
maintains the straight flat sides 82, 84 to maintain the desired
orientation with a different shape to provide a different
aesthetic.
[0029] As is appreciated, the disclosed charms 24, 50, 60 and 74
are examples of shapes that are possible within the contemplation
of this disclosure. Each charm embodiment includes a charm portion,
mount portion and an alignment portion to provide a desired
orientation with an adjacent charm. The specific configuration and
shape may vary to provide different desired looks when interwoven
into a completed linked item. Moreover, the material may also vary
in color and texture. The charm 24 may be formed from elastic
material to provide a flexible part similar to the elastic bands.
The charm 24 may also be formed of a rigid material such as plastic
or metal. Moreover, while the disclosed example charms 24, 50, 60
and 74 are all integral one piece parts, it is also within the
contemplation of this disclosure that the charms could be formed as
a mulita-piece assembly.
[0030] Although an example embodiment has been disclosed, a worker
of ordinary skill in this art would recognize that certain
modifications would come within the scope of this disclosure.
Moreover, no part of this disclosure is intended, either explicitly
or implicitly, as any disclaimer or narrowing of claim scope. The
description of any one embodiment is not intended, either
explicitly or implicitly, as limiting the plain and ordinary
meaning set out in the following claims. The example embodiment is
only one of many possible structures and methods that are properly
within the scope of this disclosure. For these reasons, the
following claims should be studied to determine the scope and
content of this invention.
* * * * *