Patents by Inventor Charles A. Bernheiser

Charles A. Bernheiser has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 6170952
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to a magnifying and/or corrective lens or optical element that may be removably adhered to a plano lens, such as the pane of a of a pair of spectacles or sunglasses, without the use of a mechanical retention device or other mechanical means for retention. The lenses are injection-molded from an aliphatic thermoplastic polyurethane, and capable of conforming to a variety of surface shapes and of adhering via tactile interactions to a plano lens without the use of an adhesive. The lenses may be securely but releasably secured to the surface of a plano lens by finger pressure alone due to their inherent molecular surface-adhesion characteristics to readily create magnifying or corrective lenses, or to modify the magnification or correction of a pair of sunglasses or plano eyeglasses. The lens of the present invention has at least one curved surface and a refractive index such that the curved surface and the refractive index cooperatively produce a nominal magnifying power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 23, 1998
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2001
    Assignee: Neoptx, Inc.
    Inventors: Peter G. La Haye, Dennis L. Burns, Charles A. Bernheiser
  • Patent number: 5587747
    Abstract: An interchangeable eyeglass lens system for sunglasses and other eyewear so that more than one pair of lenses can be used with a particular frame. Lenses particularly adapted for interchangeability and having concavities on the lens periphery for engaging fastener devices, such as studs, resilient tangs, and spring loaded detents on the frame, are included in the system, which allows for the use of a relatively expensive or rigid frame without compromising the structural integrity of the overall eyeglass set. A complete system would have a pair of removable lenses, a frame having a nosebridge which can be removable also, and fasteners mounted on or within the frame or nosebridge for releasably holding the lenses in place on the frame by interengaging the concavities on the lenses. A removable nosebridge with antirotational device, and a spring loaded detent system adapted for use in the system are disclosed, as is a method of removably attaching a lens to the frame of the invention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 24, 1996
    Assignee: Gargoyles, Inc.
    Inventor: Charles A. Bernheiser
  • Patent number: 5515116
    Abstract: An interchangeable eyeglass lens system for sunglasses and other eyewear so that more than one pair of lenses can be used with a particular frame. Lenses particularly adapted for interchangeability and having concavities on the lens periphery for engaging fastener devices, such as studs and spring loaded detents on the frame, are included in the system. A complete system would have a pair of removable lenses, a frame having a nosebridge which can be removable also, and fasteners mounted on or within the frame or nosebridge for releasably holding the lenses in place on the frame by interengaging the concavities on the lenses. A removable nosebridge with antirotational device, and a spring loaded detent system adapted for use in the system are disclosed, as is a method of removably attaching a lens to the frame of the invention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 7, 1996
    Assignee: Gargoyles, Inc.
    Inventor: Charles A. Bernheiser
  • Patent number: 5478824
    Abstract: A corrective lens that is removably adherent to, and substantially in contact with, a pane of a pair of spectacles without the use of a mechanical retention device, and that has at least one curved surface and a refractive index such that the curved surface and the refractive index cooperatively produce a nominal magnifying power. In a preferred embodiment, the corrective lens comprises a flexible plastic capable of conforming to a variety of surface shapes and of adhering via tactile interactions to the pane without the use of an adhesive. Also, a pair of spectacles that comprise a corrective lens securely adhered to a pane of a pair of spectacles without the use of a mechanical retention device. A method of producing a cosmetically appealing pair of spectacles is also disclosed. The method comprises adhering a corrective lens to at least one pane of a pair of spectacles without the use of a mechanical retention device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 1994
    Date of Patent: December 26, 1995
    Assignee: Gargoyles, Inc.
    Inventors: Dennis L. Burns, Charles A. Bernheiser
  • Patent number: D381674
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 1996
    Date of Patent: July 29, 1997
    Assignee: Gargoyles, Inc.
    Inventor: Charles A. Bernheiser