Eyeglass holder
An eyeglass holder is described in which a pair of elastomeric elements are formed on a base member, the elastomeric elements being configured to provide a target opening, a neck region narrower than the target opening, and a holding region sized to receive the eyeglasses and prevent movement thereof. The elastomeric elements are resilient and when pressed apart will return to their original positions and orientations. The eyeglasses are placed into the target region and then used to urge the elastomeric elements apart at the neck region and then held securely within the holding region. The neck region also functions to prevent vertical movement of the eyeglasses. The eyeglass holder is secured to a support surface using adhesive, hook and loop fasteners, or other fastening means.
The present invention relates in general to eyeglass holders and in particular to eyeglass holders that are mountable on a support surface.
Prescription sunglasses and reading glasses are often lost or damaged after being placed haphazardly in an inappropriate location such as the seat cushion, the dashboard, or visor. If left on a seat cushion, a person may sit on the sunglasses destroying them or damaging them so that they are unfit for use. If left on the dashboard or visor, the motion of the car may slide the sunglasses into an inconvenient location where it may be dangerous to attempt to reach them or, if out of sight, it may be dangerous to attempt to locate the sunglasses with a visual search in the car.
The prior art attempts to address these problems, but the solutions have been relatively complex, expensive to make, and are typically unable to hold a wide variety of eyeglass frames such as half-glasses or oversized glasses. Therefore what is needed in the art is an eyeglass holder that is simple, easy to make, and is capable of holding eyeglasses of a variety of shapes and sizes.
SUMMARYThese and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed on illustration of principles of the invention. The drawings include the following figures:
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed on illustration of principles of the invention. The drawings include the following figures:
The present invention may be understood by the following detailed description, which should be read in conjunction with the attached drawings. The following detailed description of certain embodiments is by way of example only and is not meant to limit the scope of the present invention.
in one embodiment, the eyeglass holder 100 is integrally constructed of a soft non-scratch elastomeric material and includes a longitudinal axis 101 to which the following portions are defined. In particular, the eyeglass holder 100 includes a base 102, having a bottom surface 104. A first elastomeric member 106 is affixed to the base and includes three portions: a concave portion 108, a convex portion 110, and a recurve portion 112. The concave portion 108 is proximate to the base and the recurve 112 portion being distal thereto, wherein the convex portion 110 is disposed in the middle, between the concave portion 108 and the recurve portion 112.
A second elastomeric element 114 is also affixed to the base 102. The second elastomeric element 114 also includes three portions: a concave portion 116, a convex portion 118, and a recurve portion 120. The concave portion 116 is proximate to the base 102 and the recurve 120 portion being distal thereto, wherein the convex portion 118 is disposed in the middle, between the concave portion 116 and the recurve portion 120.
The first and second elastomeric elements, 106 and 114 form a pair of arms in which three regions are formed therebetween. The first of the three regions is a holding region 122 is formed in the space formed between the concave portions of the first and second elastomeric elements, 108 and 116 respectively. The second region is a neck region 124 formed between the convex portions of the first and second elastomeric elements, 110 and 118 respectively. The third region is a target region 126 formed between the recurve portions of the first and second elastomeric elements 112 and 120, respectively. The recurve portions 112 and 120 provide a larger target area for the opening region 126 in which to place the eyeglasses to make it easier to use the eyeglass holder described herein.
Eyeglasses are well known and typically include a wire or plastic frame that surrounds two optical lenses and further includes first and second temple pieces that are pivotally connected to the frame. The temple pieces, as is well known, are typically folded across one another at the rear of the frame to reduce the overall size of the eyeglasses for storage in an eyeglass case, purse, pocket, or the eyeglass holder described herein.
In the preferred embodiment, the elastomeric elements are formed integral with the base portion and are designed to have elastic and/or resilient properties such that when displaced from their original orientation, the elastomeric element will return to its original configuration and orientation when released. The first and second elastomeric elements may be made from a soft material that will not scratch or mar the surface of the eyeglass lenses when the eyeglasses are placed into the eyeglass holder, held within the eyeglass holder, or when removed. The soft material must be sufficiently durable to allow repeated use of the eyeglass holder without fatigue and sufficiently stiff to prevent motion of the eyeglasses within the eyeglass holder after being placed therein. In one embodiment, the soft material is an open cell foam that provides the desired resilliancy and yet has a memory for returning to its original orientation. In another embodiment the soft material is a rubber compound that has the desired surface softness and resilience characteristics.
In another embodiment, the first and second elastomeric elements are lined with an outer covering layer that is applied to the inner surface of the two elastomeric elements to prevent scratching or marring of the lens surface. In this embodiment, the elastomeric elements may be made from stiffer material, such as plastics, and then lined with foam to protect the delicate optical surfaces.
Prior to use, the user may or may not fold the temple pieces of the eyeglasses behind the frame as the eyeglass holder described herein is operative to hold eyeglasses in either configuration. The user grasps the glasses by the frame or the bridge and urges the eyeglasses through the target region 126 into the neck region 124. The first and second elastomeric elements 106 and 114, respectively, are urged apart by the eyeglasses and the eyeglasses are then disposed within the holding region 122. The holding region 122 is sized and dimensioned to securely hold the eyeglasses therein and to substantially prevent lateral and fore and aft movement of the eyeglasses. The eyeglasses are prevented from moving in a vertical direction by the convex portions of the first and second elastomeric elements 110 and 118, respectively, that form the neck region 124.
The eyeglass holder described herein is securely affixed to a support surface, e.g., a dashboard of a vehicle, to properly perform its function of securely and safely supporting a pair of eyeglasses. To this end, the bottom surface 104 of the base 102 may have disposed thereon, an adhesive 105 that is used to secure the eyeglass holder to a surface. The adhesive 105 may be a piece of double sided tape or a piece of foam having adhesive on both sides, wherein, one side is affixed to the bottom surface 104 and the other is affixed to the support surface. In another embodiment, an adhesive, e.g., a glue or epoxy, may be placed directly on the bottom surface 104 to affix the eyeglass holder to the support surface. In another embodiment, a hook and loop fastener may be used wherein one, e.g., the hook fasteners are placed on the support surface and the other, e.g., the loop fasteners are placed on the bottom surface 104. In another embodiment, a fastener may be affixed to the support surface and a fastener engaging means, complimentary to the faster, is affixed to the bottom surface 104 of the eyeglass holder. For example, the fastener may include a clip portion designed for connection and engagement to the fastener engagement means, for example by being press fit together or to be slidably received thereby. In another embodiment, one or more suction cups may be affixed to the bottom surface 104 and used to affix the eyeglass holder to the support surface.
The eyeglass holder described herein may mounted in any convenient orientation, e.g., horizontal, vertical, or at an angle depending upon the support surface.
While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with references to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. All the features disclosed in this specification, including any accompanying claims, abstract, and drawings, may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise.
Claims
1. An eyeglass holder comprising:
- a base member;
- a first elastomeric member attached to said base member;
- a second elastomeric member attached to said base member and spaced apart from said first elastomeric member;
- a longitudinal axis defined between said first and second elastomeric members;
- said first elastomeric member having a concave portion relative to said longitudinal axis proximate to said base, a convex portion relative to said longitudinal axis adjacent to said concave portion, and a recurve portion adjacent to said convex portion and distal to said base member;
- said second elastomeric member having a concave portion relative to said longitudinal axis proximate to said base, a convex portion relative to said longitudinal axis adjacent to said concave portion, and a recurve portion adjacent to said convex portion and distal to said base member; and
- a glass holder area formed between the two concave portions of the first and second elastomeric members, a neck area formed between the two convex portions of the first and second elastomeric members, and an entry area formed between the two recurve portions of the first and second elastomeric members.
2. The eyeglass holder of claim 1 wherein, the base member and the first and second elastomeric members are formed integral with one another.
3. The eyeglass holder of claim 1 wherein, the base member includes a bottom surface having an adhesive formed thereon wherein the base can be secured to a surface by said adhesive.
4. The eyeglass holder of claim 1, further including double sided tape having a first surface affixed to the bottom surface of the base member, and a second surface to be adhered to a support surface.
5. The eyeglass holder of claim 1, further including a piece of foam having a first adhesive surface affixed to the bottom surface of the base member, and a second adhesive surface to be adhered to a support surface.
6. The eyeglass holder of claim 1 wherein the base member includes a magnet wherein the base can be secured to a support surface by said magnet.
7. The eyeglass holder of claim 4 wherein the base member includes a bottom surface and wherein said magnet is secured thereto wherein the base can be secured to the support surface by said magnet.
8. The eyeglass holder of claim 1 further including a fastener engagement element and a fastener element, wherein the fastener engagement element and fastener element are complimentary to one another, and wherein the fastener element is affixed to a surface and is received by the complimentary fastener engagement element, wherein the eyeglass holder is securely mounted on the surface.
9. The eyeglass holder of claim 8, wherein the fastener engagement element and fastener element are press fit together.
10. The eyeglass holder of claim 8, wherein the fastener engagement element and fastener element are slidably fit together.
11. The eyeglass holder of claim 1 further including hook and loop fastener elements, wherein one of the hook and loop fastener elements are affixed on the bottom surface of the base member and the other of the hook and loop fastener elements is affixed to a support surface and is received by the complimentary hook and loop element, wherein the eyeglass holder is securely mounted on the surface.
12. The eyeglass holder of claim 1, further including a suction cup affixed to the bottom surface whereby the eyeglass holder may be affixed to a support surface by said suction cup.
13. The eyeglass holder of claim 2 wherein the base and the first and second elastomeric elements are comprised of open cell foam.
14. The eyeglass holder of claim 2 wherein the base and the first and second elastomeric elements are comprised of plastic.
15. The eyeglass holder of claim 11 wherein the plastic includes a soft outer covering.
16. The eyeglass holder of claim 2 wherein the base and the first and second elastomeric elements are comprised of rubber.
Type: Application
Filed: Oct 17, 2006
Publication Date: May 1, 2008
Inventor: Loren Broady (Salem, NH)
Application Number: 11/582,047
