Portable Hat Band Indicia
An indicia apparatus has a first panel having an area carrying one or more of graphical or textual indicia, and apparatus enabling joining the panel to a strap or hat band of a hat.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the technical are of haberdashery, in particular as related to hats.
2. Description of Related Art
Hats of all sorts are notoriously well known in the art, and it has been known to adorn personal hats with indicia, such as names, advertisements and graphics, for example. In the art hatbands have been imprinted with such indicia. To change display of a particular indicia in such circumstance it is necessary to change the hat, or the hatband on the hat.
What is clearly needed is a portable indicia carrier that can attach securely to a hatband, and that can be quickly and easily removed and replaced with a different carrier with different indicia.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn one embodiment of the invention an indicia apparatus is provided, comprising a first panel having an area carrying one or more of graphical or textual indicia, and apparatus enabling joining the panel to a strap or hat band of a hat.
In one embodiment the first panel is a fabric structure, and the apparatus for joining the panel to a strap or a hat band of a hat comprises extensions of the fabric panel vertically above and below the area carrying the graphical or textual indicia, the extensions ending in strips that adhere to one another, and wherein the joining is accomplished by folding the extensions under and over the strap or hat band and joining the strips on the end of the extensions. Also in one embodiment the strips that adhere are hook-and-loop elements.
In an alternative embodiment the apparatus enabling joining the first panel to a strap or hat band of a hat comprises a second panel having a support channel along a lower edge adapted to engage a lower edge of the first panel, and one or more clips joined to the second panel on a side opposite the channel, enabling the second panel to be joined to a strap or hat band by engaging the clips over the strap or hat band, wherein the first panel displaying the indicia is held in the channel, displaying the indicia outward, and the first panel may be removed and replaced.
In another alternative embodiment the apparatus enabling joining the first panel to a strap or hat band of a hat comprises a second thin panel formed of either magnetically permeable material or magnet material, and the first panel displaying indicia is formed of either magnetically permeable material or magnet material, depending on the material of the second panel, to ensure magnetic attraction of the two panels, and wherein the second panel is placed behind a hat band and the first panel is brought into proximity of the second panel until the two panels adhere magnetically with the first panel displaying the indicia outwardly. In some embodiments the second panel is formed of a malleable metal with strips of either magnetically permeable material or magnet material embedded therein, such that the second panel placed behind a hat band is formed to the curved shape of the hat in the area where the second panel is placed. Also in some embodiments the second panel is formed of a metal with strips of either magnetically permeable material or magnet material embedded therein, and vertical grooves are formed in the second panel in a plurality of locations, reducing the thickness of the second panel at the grooves, such that the second panel placed behind a hat band is formed to the curved shape of the hat in the area where the second panel is placed.
In some embodiments the first panel is formed of a malleable material, and in joining to the second panel the first panel is shaped to the shape of the second panel. Also in some embodiments the second panel is provided with a roughened back surface having a plurality of sharp extensions, such that the second panel, placed behind a hatband, exhibits a high-friction interface to material of a hat behind the hatband.
Carrier 201 in this embodiment has a thin metal flat panel 202 formed along a lower edge to have a channel 204. Further, carrier 201 has two clips 203 in this embodiment joined to panel 202 on a side opposite channel 204.
Carrier 301 in some embodiments may be made of a quite malleable metal material, such that it may be easily formed to the shape of a surface of a hat behind a hat band. In this case malleable metal may be formed into the malleable material, such as in strips that will not prevent the shaping to the curvature of a hat. In other embodiments vertical regions 305 may be formed in carrier 303 to provide lines thin enough that the carrier may be easily bent to shape as needed.
The skilled person will recognize that the embodiments described herein are exemplary, and that there may be many alterations in detail of these embodiments within the scope of the invention. The scope of the invention is limited only by the claims that follow.
Claims
1. An indicia apparatus, comprising:
- a first panel having an area carrying one or more of graphical or textual indicia; and
- apparatus enabling joining the panel to a strap or hat band of a hat.
2. The indicia apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first panel is a fabric structure, and the apparatus for joining the panel to a strap or a hat band of a hat comprises extensions of the fabric panel vertically above and below the area carrying the graphical or textual indicia, the extensions ending in strips that adhere to one another, and wherein the joining is accomplished by folding the extensions under and over the strap or hat band and joining the strips on the end of the extensions.
3. The indicia apparatus of claim 2 wherein the strips that adhere are hook-and-loop elements.
4. The indicia apparatus of claim 1 wherein the apparatus enabling joining the first panel to a strap or hat band of a hat comprises a second panel having a support channel along a lower edge adapted to engage a lower edge of the first panel, and one or more clips joined to the second panel on a side opposite the channel, enabling the second panel to be joined to a strap or hat band by engaging the clips over the strap or hat band, wherein the first panel displaying the indicia is held in the channel, displaying the indicia outward, and the first panel may be removed and replaced.
5. The indicia apparatus of claim 1 wherein the apparatus enabling joining the first panel to a strap or hat band of a hat comprises a second thin panel formed of either magnetically permeable material or magnet material, and the first panel displaying indicia is formed of either magnetically permeable material or magnet material, depending on the material of the second panel, to ensure magnetic attraction of the two panels, and wherein the second panel is placed behind a hat band and the first panel is brought into proximity of the second panel until the two panels adhere magnetically with the first panel displaying the indicia outwardly.
6. The indicia apparatus of claim 5 wherein the second panel is formed of a malleable metal with strips of either magnetically permeable material or magnet material embedded therein, such that the second panel placed behind a hat band is formed to the curved shape of the hat in the area where the second panel is placed.
7. The indicia apparatus of claim 5 wherein the second panel is formed of a metal with strips of either magnetically permeable material or magnet material embedded therein, and vertical grooves are formed in the second panel in a plurality of locations, reducing the thickness of the second panel at the grooves, such that the second panel placed behind a hat band is formed to the curved shape of the hat in the area where the second panel is placed.
8. The indicia apparatus of claim 6 wherein the first panel is formed of a malleable material, and in joining to the second panel the first panel is shaped to the shape of the second panel.
9. The indicia apparatus of claim 5 wherein the second panel is provided with a roughened back surface having a plurality of sharp extensions, such that the second panel, placed behind a hatband, exhibits a high-friction interface to material of a hat behind the hatband.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 20, 2013
Publication Date: Jun 25, 2015
Inventor: Joe Middleton (Seaside, CA)
Application Number: 14/136,942