Patents Assigned to American Needle
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Patent number: 7882573Abstract: A headwear piece with a crown having a wall for embracing a head of a wearer. The wall has an upper layer and an underlying layer. The upper layer has an exposed surface on the crown with a first appearance. The underlying layer has a second appearance that is different than the first appearance. The upper layer is configured to obscurely reveal the second appearance of the underlying layer to be seen in conjunction with the first appearance of the exposed surface on the upper layer.Type: GrantFiled: February 28, 2007Date of Patent: February 8, 2011Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Ronald Kronenberger
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Patent number: 7614090Abstract: A headwear piece has a crown defining a surface for engaging a wearer's head and a rim projecting away from the crown. The crown surface has a variable effective diameter. The crown has a rope defined by a plurality of elongate elements each having an actual length and interconnected with each other with the rope in a first state so as to define a shorter effective length extending around at least a portion of the crown. The plurality of elongate elements are extendable by exerting a tensile lengthwise force on the rope to place the rope in a second state. The rope at least one of (a) defines at least a part of the crown surface and (b) bears against a wall that defines at least a part of the crown surface.Type: GrantFiled: April 8, 2005Date of Patent: November 10, 2009Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Ronald Kronenberger
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Patent number: 7430975Abstract: A method including the steps of: providing an article having an exposed surface defined by at least one substrate layer; providing at least a first adornment on the substrate layer, so that the article has a first appearance and to meet an actual or anticipated demand for the article with the first appearance; identifying an actual or anticipated demand for the article having an appearance different than the first appearance; removing the at least first adornment; and providing at least a second adornment on the substrate layer so that the article has a second appearance different than the first appearance and to meet an actual or anticipated demand for the article with the second appearance; and making the article with the second appearance available to meet an actual or anticipated demand for the article with the second appearance. An article with adornment is also provided.Type: GrantFiled: January 25, 2005Date of Patent: October 7, 2008Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Ronald Kronenberger
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Patent number: 7319980Abstract: A method for facilitating sale of objects such as caps over the Internet, including providing a user input for selecting a display icon representing the object offered for sale, providing a user input for a design element selected by the user to be included on the object, and providing a display illustrating the cap represented by the selected display icon with the user selected design element at the user selected location on the cap. A user input for creating text to be included on the cap is also provided. A computer network server includes a display icon generator transmitting a display icon representing an object such as a cap, a request generator transmitting a request for user input to select the display icon and to select a design element to be included on the object, and a processor receiving display icon requests and selected design element and generating a visual representation of the user selected design element, which may include text, on the object represented by the selected display icon.Type: GrantFiled: April 10, 2001Date of Patent: January 15, 2008Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert A. Kronenberger
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Patent number: 7237498Abstract: A method of providing an article to meet an actual or anticipated demand including the steps of: providing an article having an exposed surface defined by at least one substrate layer; tack stitching a first adornment layer fixedly to the at least one substrate layer with thread at first and second discrete locations so that the article has a first appearance; stocking the article with the first appearance to meet an actual or anticipated demand; changing the article to have a second appearance; and making the article with the second appearance available to meet demand for the article. The step of changing the appearance of the article involves: releasing the tack stitching to allow the first adornment layer to be separated from the article; separating the first adornment layer from the article; providing a second adornment layer; and attaching the second adornment layer to the article.Type: GrantFiled: December 3, 2003Date of Patent: July 3, 2007Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Ronald Kronenberger
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Patent number: 7178173Abstract: The combination of a headwear piece and an attachment. The headwear piece has a crown with a circumference and a bill projecting away from the crown and extending less than fully around the circumference of the crown. The bill has a peripheral edge including a front edge portion which blends into spaced first and second side edge portions. The attachment is provided at least partially on the bill. The attachment engages the bill at the front edge portion and exerts a biasing force on the bill tending to impart a curve shape to the bill.Type: GrantFiled: March 1, 2005Date of Patent: February 20, 2007Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert Kronenberger
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Patent number: 7168100Abstract: A headwear piece has a crown defining a receptacle for the head of a wearer and a rim projecting angularly away from the crown. The rim has a core layer that is made from at least one of an animal hide and a synthetic animal hide, and a second layer. The core layer has an upwardly facing surface and a downwardly facing surface and at least part of one of the upwardly facing surfaces and downwardly facing surfaces is covered by the second layer.Type: GrantFiled: March 4, 2004Date of Patent: January 30, 2007Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Ronald Kronenberger
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Patent number: 6370696Abstract: The combination of a crown and first and second visor surfaces. The crown has an internal surface for engaging a wearer's head and an external surface with information thereon relating to a golf course. The first visor surface has information thereon relating to the golf course. The second visor surface has information thereon relating to the golf course that is different than the information on the first visor surface. The first and second visor surfaces are selectively interchangeably mounted to the crown so as to project angularly away from the external surface of the crown.Type: GrantFiled: September 29, 2000Date of Patent: April 16, 2002Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Ronald Kronenberger
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Patent number: 6235326Abstract: A method of forming an edible chip by providing a sheet layer of flexible, edible material, bending the sheet layer about a fold line to define first and second sheet layer walls which abut to each other at a location spaced from the fold line, and treating the sheet layer to rigidify the sheet layer with the first and second sheet layer walls bent about the fold line.Type: GrantFiled: August 18, 1993Date of Patent: May 22, 2001Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert A. Kronenberger
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Patent number: 6076192Abstract: A headwear piece having a crown portion to extend at least partially around the head of a wearer to maintain the headwear piece in an operative position on a wearer's head and a bill projecting from the crown portion. The bill has a core element with a base layer made from expanded foam.Type: GrantFiled: March 5, 1998Date of Patent: June 20, 2000Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Ronald Kronenberger
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Patent number: 5983400Abstract: A headwear piece having a crown to receive the head of a wearer, with the crown having a front and rear, a top and bottom, and an external surface. A rim/bill is attached to the crown in depending fashion and has an external surface projecting angularly downwardly and away from the crown external surface. Ornamentation is provided to produce one of an advertisement, logo, scene and message and is attached to at least one of the crown and rim/bill so that a first part of the ornamentation overlies the crown and the second part of the ornamentation overlies the rim/bill. The first and second parts of the ornamentation cooperatively produce the one of the advertisement, logo, scene and message.Type: GrantFiled: February 27, 1995Date of Patent: November 16, 1999Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert A. Kronenberger
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Patent number: 5983398Abstract: A headwear piece has a crown defining a receptacle for the head of a wearer. The crown has an exposed external surface and an exposed internal surface with there being a circumferential portion of the exposed internal surface to engage the head of a wearer. The crown is defined by a plurality of joined fabric gores. Each of the fabric gores in a first plurality of the fabric gores has a single sheet of material that defines a part of the external surface of the crown and extends continuously to a folded portion which defines a part of the circumferential portion of the exposed internal surface of the crown.Type: GrantFiled: March 5, 1998Date of Patent: November 16, 1999Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Ronald Kronenberger
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Patent number: 5943702Abstract: A headwear piece having a body with an opening to accept the head of a wearer. The body has an exposed external surface. An element defines at least a part of the exposed external surface of the body. Frangible structure connects the element to the body so that the frangible structure can be ruptured to at least partially separate the element from the body.Type: GrantFiled: February 16, 1996Date of Patent: August 31, 1999Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert Kronenberger
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Patent number: 5404593Abstract: A headwear piece having a crown defining a receptacle for the head of a wearer and illumination structure on the crown for projecting an unfocused light as an adornment to the crown to be visible from externally of the crown.Type: GrantFiled: February 18, 1993Date of Patent: April 11, 1995Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert A. Kronenberger
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Patent number: 5331687Abstract: A headwear piece having a crown defining an opening for reception of the head of a wearer, structure for varying the effective diameter of the crown opening to accommodate different size wearer heads, and an actuator for operating the crown opening varying structure. The actuator includes a switch which, in one form, is a dial that is rotatable about an axis to operate the crown opening varying structure to thereby effect the variation in the effective diameter of the opening in the crown. In another form, the switch is translatable to effect a variation in the diameter of the crown opening.Type: GrantFiled: August 7, 1992Date of Patent: July 26, 1994Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert A. Kronenberger
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Patent number: 5325539Abstract: A headwear piece having a crown defining a first opening for reception of the head of a wearer, an inflatable bladder mounted to the crown so that the bladder resides between the crown and a wearer's head in the crown opening, structure for selectively introducing a fluid into the bladder, and structure mounted to the crown for covering the fluid introducing structure and allowing operation thereof from a location externally of the crown.Type: GrantFiled: August 28, 1992Date of Patent: July 5, 1994Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert A. Kronenberger
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Patent number: 5325540Abstract: A headwear piece with a crown for placement on the head of a wearer and having a front and rear and a top and bottom. The crown grips the head of the wearer to maintain the headwear piece in place. The crown has a front wall with a forwardly facing surface. The front wall blends into a top wall that extends rearwardly and terminates at an edge that bounds an opening in the crown through which a substantial portion of a wearer's head can be exposed with the headwear piece in place on a wearer's head. The top wall edge extends from the front of the crown no more than two-thirds, and more preferably no more than one-half, the distance between the front and the rear of the crown.Type: GrantFiled: December 2, 1992Date of Patent: July 5, 1994Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert A. Kronenberger
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Patent number: 5321854Abstract: A headwear piece having a crown defining an opening to accept the head of a wearer, with the crown having a top and bottom, front and back, and a peripheral wall having an annular configuration. An opening is provided through the peripheral crown wall to allow passage therethrough of an accumulation of hair on the head of a wearer with the headwear piece in place on the wearer's head.Type: GrantFiled: January 5, 1993Date of Patent: June 21, 1994Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert A. Kronenberger
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Patent number: 5315715Abstract: A headwear piece having a crown with a surface defining an opening for receiving the head of a wearer, a bladder having first and second layers defining a space therebetween for containing a displaceable fluid, structure for connecting the first and second layers to each other to divide the bladder space into first and second chambers with their being a communication path through the bladder space between the first and second chambers, and structure for connecting the bladder to the crown so that the bladder defines a deformable cushion layer to conform to the head of a wearer.Type: GrantFiled: August 18, 1992Date of Patent: May 31, 1994Assignee: American NeedleInventor: Robert A. Kronenberger