ADJUSTING STRAP FOR HEADWEAR PIECE

Abstract

A headwear piece with a crown defining a receptacle for a wearer's head. The crown has an exposed outside surface, a circumferential inside surface that bears against a wearer's head, and an opening bounded by an edge, including spaced edge portions. A strap assembly has first and second strap parts, each with a length, connected one each to one of the opening edge portions. The first and second strap parts are releasably joinable to each other in at least first and second different predetermined operative relationships. The first strap part has a first surface with a first area facing outwardly and away from a wearer's head and exposed to view with the headwear piece in a worn position. The first surface has discrete ornamentation thereon.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to headwear and, more particularly, to a headwear piece with an adjusting strap through which the size of the headwear piece can be changed.

2. Background Art

Headwear is commonly made with the capability to be adjusted in size by an end user. Many different types of structures have been utilized to change the effective circumference of a “crown” that extends around a wearer's head.

Baseball-style caps are commonly made with a size adjustment capability. In one particular form, the crown is interrupted around its circumference to produce an opening, typically at the back of the crown. Separate strap parts project from spaced portions of an edge, that bounds the opening, and are selectively engageable with each other in different overlapped relationships to change the circumferential gap dimension and thus the overall size of the crown.

Commonly, a series of nibs is provided on one of the strap parts to cooperate with openings on the other of the strap parts. The nibs and openings are spaced from each other at the same, and constant, circumferential intervals so that they can cooperate with each other to maintain a plurality of different overlapped relationships which produce different overall effective strap lengths.

The nibs and apertures are configured and relatively dimensioned so that each nib can be pressed through an aligned aperture and frictionally maintained therewithin. To allow this to occur, the nibs are made with a generally cylindrical shape with a stepped diameter, including a leading head portion that has a larger diameter than a neck between the head and strap body. As a head is pressed through an opening, the head is radially compressed and/or the cooperating opening is enlarged to allow passage of the head through the opening. Thereafter, residual forces in the materials cause a slight spring-back that captively secures the body, on the strap part defining the opening, between the head and the body of the strap part upon which the nibs are formed.

When it is desired to change the effective strap length, the nibs are pried out of their respective openings by drawing the strap parts away from each other. Material deformation allows the separation to occur in substantially the same manner as when the strap parts are connected.

Since baseball-style caps are commonly worn while users are engaged in athletic events or other physical activities, it is common for a wearer to adjust the strap parts so that the cap is fit tightly upon the wearer's head. This produces a substantial force upon the joined strap parts. As a result, designers of these caps typically have chosen to use hard plastic materials that are molded as through an injection molding process. Since plastics suitable for this use are hard and have somewhat limited flexibility, it has been common to make these strap parts relatively thin so that they conform readily to the curvature of the wearer's head without producing any significant discomfort.

The headwear industry, and particularly that segment that focuses on the baseball-style cap category, has become increasingly competitive. This type of cap is worn by a wide range of users. Whereas at one point the baseball-style cap was worn primarily by athletes performing in their sport, such baseball-style caps are now accepted garb even in the work environment. Thus, appearance is one highly focused upon area that purveyors of this type of headwear seek to distinguish themselves with.

The appearance of the adjustable straps, as described above, has been a focal point for the many decades that this basic construction has existed. The most common way to improve the aesthetics of the adjustable straps has been through the strategic selection of color. Blending of the strap into the remainder of the crown may make it less prominent and acceptable for most purposes. However, the adjustable strap continues to stand out, particularly since it is highlighted by the relatively large crown opening across which it spans.

Heretofore, improving adornment of the exposed portions of the strap parts has been limited principally to controlling color. The minimal thickness of the strap parts that allows them to readily conform and also be practically sewn into the crown makes it impractical for these parts to have any molded adornment that might make them more visually appealing.

One attempted solution to the aesthetic problem has been to incorporate separate adornment pieces that might be put in place by the end user. Examples of such structures are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,003,640; 5,287,559; 5,315,714; 5,428,844; 5,499,402; 5,950,242; and 6,006,362.

While the attachments that can be assembled by an end user offer many options for different visual appearances, these type of systems have a number of drawbacks.

Generally, these structures are required to be put in place by a wearer after a size is selected by strategically interconnecting the strap parts. Thus, if a wearer wishes to change size, he/she must separate the adornment structure and thereafter, in a separate step, separate and reconnect the strap parts. While this may be a mere inconvenience to a casual wearer, to an athlete, this may be a more significant problem. Baseball players often wish to make size adjustments while they are on the field. The need to remove the adornment system makes a “quick” adjustment difficult or impossible.

Still further, these add-on adornment piece(s) may add undesired weight and bulk to the headwear piece. The adornment pieces generally have a component that resides between the joined strap parts and the wearer's head. This may produce a localized discomfort.

Additionally, the presence of this component between the strap parts and the wearer's head makes adjustment more complicated. That is, the wearer must preliminarily select a size that is comfortable, then attach the adornment, and thereafter re-place the headwear piece to again test for comfort. This potentially becomes a trial and error exercise which is an inconvenience.

Still further, the add-on adornment pieces may undesirably become a focal point upon the headwear piece. Whereas the intent may be to mask the adjustment strap, the added parts inherently become obvious by their added presence. This is true since typically the designer of the headwear piece wishes to have a streamlined shape, whereas the addition of the adornment produces a localized projection that is unlikely to satisfactorily blend with the overall original aesthetics.

In spite of the fact that this strap appearance has been an aesthetic issue, and in spite of the attempted efforts to improve the aesthetics of headwear at the strap location, virtually every headwear piece with the adjustable strap configuration is made with nothing more than a solid color that at best is coordinated with colors on the rest of the crown, to blend thereinto.

In the highly competitive headwear industry, designers are constantly seeking ways to distinguish their products. In spite of this long-existing problem, and many attempts to address the same, the industry has always reverted to the same adjustable strap construction because of a lack of a viable alternative.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one form, the invention is directed to a headwear piece with a crown defining a receptacle for a wearer's head. The crown has an exposed outside surface, a circumferential inside surface that bears against a wearer's head and an opening bounded by an edge including spaced edge portions. A strap assembly has first and second strap parts, each with a length, connected one each to one of the opening edge portions. The first and second strap parts are releasably joinable to each other in at least first and second different predetermined operative relationships in which: a) the strap assembly has first and second different lengths; and b) the crown has first and second different sizes attributable to the length of the strap assembly changing. The first strap part has a first surface with a first area facing outwardly and away from a wearer's head and exposed to view with the headwear piece in a worn position. The first surface has discrete ornamentation thereon.

In one form, the discrete ornamentation is coordinated with an appearance of the exposed outside surface.

In one form, the ornamentation is an identification of an entity responsible for designing, making, and/or distributing the headwear piece.

In one form, the first surface is made from a rubber-based material.

In one form, the first strap part has a first body, the second strap part has a second body, and there are cooperating parts on the first and second bodies that are joinable and separable by respectively moving the first and second strap parts towards and away from each other substantially in a line extending through a wearer's head with the headwear piece in a worn position.

In one form, the first body has a first component and a second component. The first component defines the first surface and is joined to the second component.

In one form, the discrete ornamentation is formed on the first component by making a three-dimensional impression in the first component.

In one form, the first component is made from a first material and the second component is made from a second material that is different than the first material.

In one form, the first material is softer than the second material.

In one form, the first material is a rubber and the second material is a hard plastic.

In one form, the first component is formed by a compression molding process and the second component is formed by an injection molding process.

In one form, the first and second components each is in the form of a flat strip with oppositely facing surfaces. The first surface defines one of the oppositely facing surfaces on the first component.

In one form, one of the oppositely facing surfaces on each of the first and second components is a flat surface. The flat surfaces are facially presented, and bonded, to each other.

In one form, the oppositely facing surfaces on the second component each has an area that is substantially the same as the first area.

In one form, the cooperating parts on the first body are in the form of openings. The first body has a first component and a second component, with the first component defining the first surface and joined to the second component. The openings in the first body extend through the first and second components.

In one form, the first component is formed by compression molding material with first and second different colors.

In one form, the first component is compression molded directly against the second component.

In one form, the first and second components are separately formed and bonded to each other.

In one form, there is an adhesive layer between the first and second components that bonds the first and second components together.

In one form, the ornamentation is at least one of: a) a word identification of a person, place, or thing; b) a logo; and c) a depiction of a person, place, or thing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one form of headwear piece having a strap assembly, according to the present invention, with cooperating first and second strap parts in joined relationship;

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the headwear piece in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary, rear, perspective view of the headwear piece in FIGS. 1 and 2 with the strap parts separated;

FIG. 4 is a view as in FIG. 3 from a slightly different perspective;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged, fragmentary, rear elevation view of the headwear piece in FIGS. 1-4 with the strap parts joined as in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary, partial cross-sectional view showing cooperating connectors on the separate strap parts;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged, rear elevation view of the strap parts in FIG. 1 in joined relationship;

FIG. 8 is a schematic representation of strap parts, according to the present invention, and cooperating connectors on the strap parts;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged, exploded, perspective view of separate components making up one of the strap parts and defining ornamentation thereon;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of one of the strap components taken along line 10-10 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is an end elevation view of the components of FIG. 9 joined through an adhesive layer;

FIG. 12 is a view as in FIG. 11 wherein the components are joined by being formed, one against the other;

FIG. 13 is a generic representation of components that make up one of the strap parts with ornamentation thereon;

FIG. 14 is a view as in FIG. 6 showing a modified form of connectors;

FIG. 15 is a view as in FIGS. 6 and 14 and showing a further modified form of connectors;

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a modified form of headwear piece, according to the present invention; and

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a still further modified form of headwear piece, according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In FIGS. 1-5, one exemplary form of headwear piece, into which the present invention is incorporated, is shown at 10. The headwear piece 10 consists of a crown 12 that defines a receptacle 14 into which a wearer's head is directed with the headwear piece 10 in a worn position. A rim/bill 16 projects forwardly from the crown 12.

The crown 12 has an exposed outside surface 18 upon which ornamentation 20 is applied. The ornamentation 20 may be in the form of one or more of: a) a selected color; b) a color combination; c) a discrete design; d) discrete lettering; e) a discrete logo, etc. The ornamentation 20 may be coordinated with ornamentation 22 shown on an exposed surface 24 of the rim/bill 16. The precise nature of the ornamentation 20, 22 is not critical to the present invention and gives the headwear piece 10 a particular appearance that is selected to appeal to an end user's needs and preferences.

The crown 12 is typically defined by a plurality of triangularly-shaped gores 26 that are sewn edge-to-edge to produce a cup shape for the receptacle 14. The rim/bill 16 is sewn to the gores 26 at the front of the headwear piece 10.

The crown 12 has a circumferential inside surface 28 that bears against a wearer's head with the headwear piece in a worn position thereon. An opening 30 is formed through the bottom 32 of the crown 12. The opening 30 is bounded by an edge 34, including circumferentially spaced bottom edge portions 36, 38.

A strap assembly at 40 is made up of first and second strap parts 42, 44, each with a length extending in a circumferential direction.

The first strap part 42 has an end 46 connected to the edge portion 36 through one or more lines of stitching 48. The second strap part 44 has an end 50 connected to the other edge portion 38, likewise through one or more lines of stitching 52.

Referring initially to FIGS. 6 and 7, the first and second strap parts 42, 44 are releasably joinable to each other in at least two, and preferably a plurality in excess of two, different predetermined operative relationships in which the strap assembly 40 has different lengths L, as seen in FIG. 7. By varying the length L, the circumferential distance between the edge portions 36, 38 is changed, as a result of which the effective circumferential dimension of the inside surface 28 is changed, thereby changing the “size” of the headwear piece 10.

The precise structure for releasably joining the strap parts 42, 44 is not critical to the present invention. In FIG. 8, the connecting structure is shown schematically to be made up of one or more connectors 54 on the strap part 42 and one or more connectors 56 on the strap part 44. The strap parts 42, 44 are connected to the crown 12, as previously described. Preferably the connectors 54, 56 are of a nature that the connectors 54, 56 are engaged and disengaged by respectively pressing the strap parts 42, 44 against each other and drawing the strap parts 42, 44 away from each other, generally along a line extending through the wearer's head with the headwear piece in a worn position.

One specific form of the connectors 54, 56 is shown in FIGS. 1-6. In those Figures, the first strap part 42 is shown with a first body 58 in the form of a flat strip with a flat surface 60 that faces inwardly towards a wearer's head with the headwear piece 10 in a worn position. The second strap part 44 has a second body 62 in the form of a flat strip with oppositely facing flat surfaces 64, 66.

The connectors 56 are in the form of nibs, each with an enlarged head 68 with a rounded leading portion 70 and a reduced diameter neck 72. The connectors 56 project in cantilever fashion from the surface 66 and are spaced at regular intervals I along the length of the strap part 44.

The connectors 54 are in the form of openings, each with a diameter D that is slightly less than the diameter D1 of the heads 68 on the connectors 56. The connectors/openings 54 are preferably equal in number to the nibs/connectors 56 and are spaced at the same lengthwise intervals I.

Accordingly, the first and second strap parts 42, 44 can be placed in a first relationship, wherein all of the nibs/connectors 56 are alignable with a connector/opening 54. By pressing the nibs/connectors 56 into the connectors/openings 54, the heads 68 deform radially inwardly and/or the body surfaces 74 surrounding the connectors/openings 54 enlarge to allow passage of the heads 68 through the connectors/openings 54.

With the flat surface 66 upon the second body 62 facially abutted to a facing surface 74 on the first body 58, the head 68 aligns with a locally, radially enlarged seat portion 76. The residual forces in the heads 68 caused by their deformation allows them to enlarge towards an undeformed state. As this occurs, the first body 58 becomes captive between the heads 68 and the second body surface 66.

The length L is minimized with the seven depicted connectors/nibs 56 each extending into one of the connectors/openings 54. In an alternative relationship, less than seven of the nibs/connectors 56 are aligned with and directed into the connectors/openings 54, which thus results in a lengthening of the strap assembly 40 and an increasing of the headwear piece size. It is preferred that at least two of the connectors/nibs 56 project into a like number of connectors/openings 54 so that the strap parts 42, 44 are blocked from pivoting relative to each other as could occur if but a single connector/nib 56 was directed into a single connector/opening 54.

Accordingly, the strap parts 42, 44 can be releasably joined to each other through a simple press fit step. By drawing the strap parts 42, 44 away from each other, the strap parts 42, 44 can be separated and moved out of operative relationship with each other, as shown in FIG. 4.

It should be understood that the nibs and cooperating openings could be provided in a reversed orientation. While contemplated by the invention, this is not preferred since it is desirable that the nibs not project in a manner whereby they might contact the wearer's head with the headwear piece in a worn position, as might cause discomfort to the wearer.

The strap part 42 has a first surface 78 facing oppositely to the surface 60 and outwardly and away from a wearer's head. The first surface 78 has a first area that is exposed to view with the headwear piece 10 in a worn position. The first surface 78 has discrete ornamentation thereon, shown generically at 80 in FIG. 1 within the dotted lines.

The ornamentation 80 may take up the entire viewable area of the first surface 78, or any part thereof.

The nature of the ornamentation 80 is also not limited. Generally, it is coordinated with the ornamentation 20 and/or 22, respectively on the crown 12 and rim/bill 16.

The ornamentation may take virtually any form. Exemplary are: a) a word identification of a person, place, or thing; b) a logo; and c) a depiction of a person, place, or thing. Within this group is the anticipated use of institutional/team names and logos.

Alternatively, the ornamentation may be in the form of an identification of an entity responsible for designing, making, and/or distributing the headwear piece 12.

Since it is anticipated that substantial forces will be placed upon the strap parts 42, 44, urging them away from each other, typically this type of strap part is made from a hard plastic material using an injection molding process. In this embodiment, it is preferred, although not required, that the second strap part 44 be injection molded from such hard plastic. The precise identification of plastics is not critical herein, as one skilled in the art would know how to make such a selection to afford the optimal strength and bendability of the body 62, while producing connectors/nibs 56 that are not prone to shearing under the anticipated forces. The second part 44 with this construction would normally, but not necessarily, be made by an injection molding process.

It is possible to place the ornamentation 80 on the strap part 42 that might be made from a single layer. For example, a hard plastic material could be utilized with the adornment 80 separately applied thereto after formation.

Alternatively, a mold could be constructed so that the ornamentation 80 is pre-formed thereon to facilitate production of the strap part 42 in one step through injection molding.

More preferably, the first strap part 42 is made from a softer material that lends itself to compression-type molding. Compression-type molding, as used herein, is intended to encompass a molding process wherein a material is not required to be injected under high pressure into a mold cavity. Instead, a mold with a pre-formed shape, defining the ornamentation, can be pressed against the strap material to change the shape thereof to conform to the mold part. In essence, a running strip of the material might be stamped to have the three-dimensional ornamentation aspect. A rubber-based material is suitable for this purpose. However, other materials that readily lend themselves to three-dimensional shaping are contemplated.

In a preferred form, the first body 58 is made with first and second components 82, 84, as shown additionally in FIGS. 9-11.

The second component 84 may be made in the same manner as the second strap part 44, as by using a hard plastic and through injection molding. This is not a requirement. The first component 82 is then made with a second material that is different than the material making up the second component 84. The material making up the first component 82 may be made from a softer component, such as rubber or other material, that lends itself to reshaping through compressing molding.

The first component 82 has a flat surface 86 that can be brought into confronting relationship with a flat surface 88 on a second component 84. The surfaces 86, 88 may be maintained together by an adhesive layer 90. The second component may be thinner than the second body whereby, with the components 82, 84 joined, the first and second strap parts 42, 44 have similar bending characteristics.

In this embodiment, the ornamentation at 80 takes up substantially the entire area of the first surface 78. The ornamentation 80 is shown to have a three-dimensional aspect. That is, ornamentation parts 80a, 80b, 80c, 80d, 80e are all raised components that are decorative in nature. The adornment component 80e is shown as a raised logo. The adornment components 80b, 80c are raised components, respectively identifying a city and team. Adornment component 80b is a raised border. The rectangular adornment component 80a encompasses the connectors/openings 54.

An additional ornamental feature is a background thickness 92 from which the raised adornment components 80a-80e project.

The first component 82 may be constructed so that the background thickness 92 has a different color than the ornamental components 80a-80e to produce a color contrast that highlights the ornamental components 80a-80e.

In this embodiment, the connectors/openings 54 are through openings whereby the heads 68 become exposed at the ornamentation component 80a. The exposed head portions can be made from a contrasting color to again afford a unique visual aspect.

In this embodiment, the first component 82 has an exposed area the same as the area of the surface 88 on the second component 84. As noted above, it is not necessary that the ornamentation occupy the full exposed first area of the first strap part 42.

With the described arrangement, the components 82, 84 can be separately formed and joined. As an alternative, as shown in FIG. 12, the first component 82 might be mold formed directly against the second component 84 rather than in a separate formation step.

As shown in FIG. 13, the invention contemplates that the first strap part 42 may consist of the second component 84 and any type of component 82′, regardless of how it is applied to the component 84, with ornamentation thereon. The component 82′ might be an adhesively bonded label with or without a three-dimensional aspect.

The invention contemplates many variations of the above structure. As examples, as shown in FIG. 14, connectors/openings 54′, corresponding to the connectors/openings 54, can be made only partially through the body 58′, whereby the heads 68′ are not exposed to view. The necks 72′ are slightly shorter so that the heads 68′ capture the corresponding second component 84′ in conjunction with the surface 66′.

In a further variation, as shown in FIG. 15, the necks 72″ are shown even longer so that the heads 68″ project fully through the connectors/openings 54″.

The invention is not limited to the particular baseball-style cap configuration shown for the headwear piece 10. A modified form of headwear piece 10′ is shown in FIG. 16 in the form of a visor having the conventional construction. That is, the crown 12′ has an opening 94 therein. The headwear piece 10′ utilizes strap parts 42′″, 44′″ corresponding to the strap parts 42, 44. In this embodiment, the ornamentation at 80′″, within the dotted lines, takes up only a part of the exposed surface area.

In FIG. 17 a further modified form of headwear piece is shown at 10″, which includes a crown 12″ as with the headwear piece 12, but without a forwardly projecting rim/bill.

The headwear piece 10″ utilizes first and second straps 42″, 44″″. The ornamentation 80″″ consists of discrete components at spaced locations that do not take up the entire exposed surface area on the strap part 42″

The foregoing disclosure of specific embodiments is intended to be illustrative of the broad concepts comprehended by the invention.

Claims

1. A headwear piece comprising:

a crown defining a receptacle into which a wearer's head is directed with the headwear piece in a worn position,

the crown having an exposed outside surface,

the crown having a circumferential inside surface that bears against a wearer's head and an opening bounded by an edge including spaced edge portions; and

a strap assembly comprising first and second strap parts, each with a length, connected one each to one of the opening edge portions,

the first and second strap parts releasably joinable to each other in at least first and second different predetermined operative relationships in which: a) the strap assembly has first and second different lengths; and b) the crown has first and second different sizes attributable to the length of the strap assembly changing,

the first strap part having a first surface with a first area facing outwardly and away from a wearer's head and exposed to view with the headwear piece in a worn position,

the first surface having discrete ornamentation thereon.

2. The headwear piece according to claim 1 wherein the discrete ornamentation is coordinated with an appearance of the exposed outside surface.

3. The headwear piece according to claim 1 wherein the ornamentation comprises an identification of an entity responsible for designing, making, and/or distributing the headwear piece.

4. The headwear piece according to claim 1 wherein the first surface is made from a rubber-based material.

5. The headwear piece according to claim 1 wherein the first strap part has a first body, the second strap part has a second body, and there are cooperating parts on the first and second bodies that are joinable and separable by respectively moving the first and second strap parts towards and away from each other substantially in a line extending through a wearer's head with the headwear piece in a worn position.

6. The headwear piece according to claim 1 wherein the first body comprises a first component and a second component, the first component defining the first surface and joined to the second component.

7. The headwear piece according to claim 6 wherein the discrete ornamentation is formed on the first component by making a three-dimensional impression in the first component.

8. The headwear piece according to claim 7 wherein the first component is made from a first material and the second component is made from a second material that is different than the first material.

9. The headwear piece according to claim 8 wherein the first material is softer than the second material.

10. The headwear piece according to claim 9 wherein the first material is a rubber and the second material is a hard plastic.

11. The headwear piece according to claim 8 wherein the first component is formed by a compression molding process and the second component is formed by an injection molding process.

12. The headwear piece according to claim 6 wherein the first and second components each comprises a flat strip with oppositely facing surfaces, the first surface defining one of the oppositely facing surfaces on the first component.

13. The headwear piece according to claim 12 wherein one of the oppositely facing surfaces in each of the first and second components is a flat surface and the flat surfaces are facially presented, and bonded, to each other.

14. The headwear piece according to claim 12 wherein the oppositely facing surfaces on the second component each has an area that is substantially the same as the first area.

15. The headwear piece according to claim 5 wherein the cooperating parts on the first body comprise openings, the first body comprises a first component and a second component, the first component defining the first surface and joined to the second component, and the openings in the first body extend through the first and second components.

16. The headwear piece according to claim 11 wherein the first component is formed by compression molding material with first and second different colors.

17. The headwear piece according to claim 11 wherein the first component is compression molded directly against the second component.

18. The headwear piece according to claim 11 wherein the first and second components are separately formed and bonded to each other.

19. The headwear piece according to claim 18 wherein there is an adhesive layer between the first and second components that bonds the first and second components together.

20. The headwear piece according to claim 1 wherein the ornamentation is at least one of: a) a word identification of a person, place, or thing; b) a logo; and c) a depiction of a person, place, or thing.