Kit for Providing Modular Grip and Writing Instrument Comprising Modular Grip
A kit for providing a modular grip for a writing instrument includes a plurality of tubular elements. Each of the tubular elements comprises an inner surface, an outer surface, and a representation. The inner surface is adapted to frictionally engage the writing instrument. The outer surface is adapted to be gripped by a user. The representations are disposed on the outer surface. The plurality of tubular elements are adapted to provide a user with the ability to create a modular grip and to customize and/or personalize a writing instrument.
This application is based on and claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/710,411, filed Aug. 22, 2005, the entire contents of which are hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present disclosure relates to writing instruments and, more particularly, to writing instruments having modular grips.
BACKGROUNDMany students, teachers and professionals alike utilize some sort of grip with their writing instruments. There are a variety of reasons why grips are used. For example, some individuals prefer to grasp a thicker portion of a writing instrument (most conventional add-on grips inherently add some level of thickness.) Additionally, many individuals that spend vast amounts of their day writing or scribbling notes may become fatigued or callused from the surface of a typical writing instrument, such as a pen or pencil. Grips are also used to prevent slippage, and to allow the user to exert finer control over his/her writing.
Most conventional add-on grips work to solve this problem by either providing a soft grip and/or an otherwise ergonomically designed grip. One example of an ergonomically designed grip includes a grip having a triangular cross-section. Whether the add-on grip is constructed purely of a soft deformable material or is otherwise ergonomically designed, the grip typically constitutes an elongated tube. The tube is adapted to slide onto the writing instrument and be positioned near its writing tip.
More recently, writing instruments having integral grips (i.e., grips formed integrally with or fixedly attached to writing instruments) have become available. These integral grips are typically rubber or even knurled metal in some circumstances. One integral rubber grip is co-molded with the pen body. The co-molding operation ensures the grip retains its intended position on the pen body. Metal grips are generally formed as separate pieces and subsequently threaded or otherwise attached to the pen or pencil body. Such integral grips are formed with the pen or pencil body and cannot be easily removed therefrom, particularly without damaging the appearance of the writing instrument. Thus, these types of grips do not even provide an individual the ability to change the style of the writing instrument or grip.
While such conventional grips satisfy their utilitarian requirements, they fail to satisfy individuals seeking a more interesting writing utensil. Most are monochromatic and lack any aesthetical appeal. Additionally, such conventional grips fail to provide individuals with an opportunity to customize or personalize their writing utensil beyond merely adding the grip.
SUMMARYOne aspect of the present disclosure includes a kit for providing a modular grip for an instrument, e.g., a writing instrument such as a pen or pencil. The kit comprises a plurality of elastomeric tubular elements. The tubular elements have inners surfaces, outer surfaces, and representations. The inner surface of each tubular element is adapted to frictionally engage the writing instrument. The outer surface is adapted to be gripped by a user. The representations are disposed on the outer surface such that a user can selectively customize the modular grip by utilizing one or more of the plurality of tubular elements.
According to another aspect, the representations include at least one of a geometrical shape, a graphic, and one or more alphanumeric characters.
According to another aspect, the representations are printed onto, debossed from, or embossed into the outer surface.
According to another aspect, each of the plurality of tubular elements has a distinct color.
According to another aspect, the kit further comprises a writing instrument.
According to another aspect, the plurality of tubular elements are adapted to be stacked along a longitudinal axis of the writing instrument for providing a unique modular grip on the writing instrument.
Other embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to a writing instrument having a modular grip constructed of a plurality of tubular elements, and a method of providing the modular grip constructed from the plurality of tubular elements. The plurality of tubular elements, as mentioned, may have various representations provided thereon enabling a user to customize and/or personalize the modular grip and, therefore, the writing instrument.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present disclosure provides a new and unique modular grip for a writing instrument, as well as a kit for packaging and retailing the modular grip (with and without a writing instrument). The modular grip is formed by positioning a plurality of user selectable tubular elements that may be removably disposed on the writing instrument in any configuration desired. This enables individuals to selectively create a unique pen or pencil modular grip. Additionally, each of the tubular elements may be constructed of different or varying colors and may include representations. The representations may comprise letters, numbers, words, phrases, pictures, images, graphics, geometric shapes, or any combination thereof, thereby providing various dimensions to the modular grip customization and/or personalization experience.
In
As illustrated in
The tubular element 14b comprises a generally hollow cylindrical member having an inner surface 20, an outer surface 22, and a pair of ends surfaces 24a, 24b. The end surfaces 24a, 24b are generally perpendicular to and extend between the inner and outer surfaces 20, 22.
The inner surface 20 is generally uniformly cylindrical. So configured, the inner surface 20 is adapted to snugly, but removably fit onto the writing instrument 10, as illustrated in
As is also illustrated in
While tubular elements 14a-14d described above with reference to
Additionally, unlike the tubular elements 14a-14d described above with reference to
The representations 18h-18k of the embodiment depicted in
Referring back to
The kit 200 includes packaging 202 comprising a cardboard backing 204 and a transparent window 206. The transparent window 206 generally comprises an elongated box and includes a flange portion 206a adhered to the cardboard backing 204. Thus, the transparent window 206 contains the plurality of tubular elements 14a-14d on the cardboard backing 204 as a retail package. The cardboard backing 204 further includes an aperture 208 for hanging the kit 200 on a display hook in a retail store. While the kit 200 is depicted as including four tubular elements 14a-14d, another embodiment of the kit 200 may include any number of tubular elements 14. The more tubular elements 14 that the kit 200 contains, the more dimensions a user would be provided for customizing and/or personalizing their writing instrument 10, 100.
As mentioned above, the kit 200 may include generally any assortment of tubular elements 14. For example, the kit 200 may include tubular elements 14a-14d having random non-related representations 18a-18b, as depicted in reference to
Furthermore, in yet another embodiment, the kit 300 may include the plurality of tubular elements 14h-14k depicted in
Further still, the representations 18a-18d, 18g, and 18h-18k have been disclosed herein as being embossed into the outer surfaces 22 of the respective tubular elements 14a-14, 14g, and 14h-14k, in alternative embodiments, the representations 18a-18d, 18g, and 18h-18k may be debossed from the outer surface 22. For example,
Still further, as mentioned above, the representations 18a-18d, 18g, and 18h-18k provided on the respective tubular elements 14a-14, 14g, and 14h-14k may include varying colors. For example, with reference to the embodiment depicted in
In one embodiment, the tubular elements 14 constructed of an elastomeric material such as a thermoplastic elastomer or a silicone material. In alternative embodiments, the tubular elements 14 may comprise synthetic materials such as polyesters or vinyls, which include an elastic banding. In further alternate embodiments, however, the tubular elements 14a-14d may be constructed of generally any material which suits the principles of the present disclosure.
Therefore, in light of the foregoing, it should be appreciated that the tubular elements constructed in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure provide a user with a unique and creative way to create a modular grip for a writing instrument, as well as customize and/or personalize the writing instrument with various colors, phrases, images, characters, or any other foreseeable subject matter. Additionally, the kits constructed in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure provide a potential purchaser with a preselected plurality of tubular elements that may or may not subscribe to a common theme or cooperative presentation of letters, words, phrases, graphics, symbols, and/or images. Such multidimensional applications may be implemented by a user to periodically alter the appearance of their writing instrument to provide a fresh new outlook on school and/or business.
Claims
1. A kit providing a modular grip for an instrument, the kit comprising:
- a plurality of tubular elements, each tubular element comprising: an inner surface adapted to frictionally engage the instrument; and an outer surface adapted to be gripped by a user, wherein at least one of the tubular elements comprises a representation disposed on the outer surface such that a user can combine one or more of the plurality of tubular elements on the instrument to provide a customized modular grip.
2. The kit of claim 1, wherein the representation comprises at least one of a geometrical, alphanumerical, or graphical representation.
3. The kit if claim 1, wherein the representation is selected from the group consisting of a debossed representation, an embossed representation, or a printed representation.
4. The kit of claim 1, wherein at least two of the plurality of tubular elements have different colors.
5. The kit of claim 1, further comprising an instrument selected from the group consisting of a writing instrument, a paint brush, and a tool.
6. The kit of claim 5, wherein the plurality of tubular elements are adapted to be stacked at least one of radially or longitudinally on the writing instrument for providing a modular grip on the writing instrument.
7. A writing instrument, comprising:
- a body containing a writing medium and having a longitudinal axis;
- a writing point extending from the body;
- a first tubular element having an inner surface and an outer surface, the inner surface of the first tubular element adapted to frictionally engage the body and the outer surface of the first tubular element having a first representation; and
- a second tubular element having an inner surface and an outer surface, the inner surface of the second tubular element adapted to frictionally engage the body and the outer surface of the second tubular element having a second representation,
- the first and second tubular elements adapted to be stacked relative to each other along the longitudinal axis of the body of the writing instrument, thereby providing a modular grip.
8. The writing instrument of claim 7, wherein the first representation and the second representation comprise at least one of a geometrical, textual, or graphical representation.
9. The writing instrument of claim 7, wherein the first representation is distinct from the second representation.
10. The writing instrument of claim 7, wherein the first representation is selected from the group consisting of a debossed representation, an embossed representation, and a printed representation.
11. The writing instrument of claim 7, wherein the second representation is selected from the group consisting of a debossed representation, an embossed representation, and a printed representation.
12. The writing instrument of claim 7, wherein the first tubular element is a different color than the second tubular element.
13. A method of forming a modular grip on a writing instrument, the method comprising:
- selecting a first tubular element from a plurality of tubular elements;
- removably positioning the first tubular element onto the writing instrument;
- selecting a second tubular element from the plurality of tubular elements, the second tubular element being distinct from the first tubular element;
- removably positioning the second tubular element onto the writing instrument generally adjacent the first tubular element, thereby creating a modular grip.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein removably positioning the first tubular element and the second tubular element onto the writing instrument comprises positioning the first tubular element and the second tubular element such that representations provided on outer surfaces of the first tubular element and the second tubular element are visible.
15. The method of claim 13, wherein removably positioning the first tubular element and the second tubular element onto the writing instrument comprises positioning a first tubular element and a second tubular element having different colors onto the writing instrument.
16. The method of claim 13, wherein removably positioning the first tubular element and the second tubular element onto the writing instrument comprises positioning a first tubular element and a second tubular element having outer surfaces with different representations.
17. The method of claim 13, wherein removably positioning the second tubular element generally adjacent the first tubular element comprises positioning the second tubular element at least one of radially adjacent or longitudinally adjacent the first tubular element.
18. The method of claim 13, further comprising removably positioning a third tubular element onto the writing instrument generally at least one of the first tubular element or the second tubular element, thereby supplementing the modular grip.
Type: Application
Filed: Aug 21, 2006
Publication Date: Mar 1, 2007
Inventors: John Travers (Plainfield, IL), Matthew Gerules (Chicago, IL), Jason Silverstein (Chicago, IL)
Application Number: 11/466,054
International Classification: A46B 5/02 (20060101);