Adjustable Removable Decorative Band
A fabric element which can be formed or shaped into a generally tubular configuration around a strap, band, or another component of another object, and temporarily and adjustably fastened thereto. The fabric element is generally quadrilateral with a fastening means attached thereto. The fastening means may be adjustable to allow the fabric element to be attached to objects of various size.
This disclosure pertains to the field of décor, and more particularly to apparatus and methods for customizing the décor of an object.
Description of the Related ArtIn a world of ever-increasing diversity of interests, more than ever people identify themselves by brand affiliation. Such brands run the gamut from sports teams to apparel to political candidates to educational institutions, and everything in between. One study estimates that in 2014, retail sales of licensed professional sports products reached almost $13 billion dollars, including almost $700 million dollars in royalty revenue to professional sports leagues.
Although it is now possible to find many products for sale with one's preferred sports teams or other affiliations branded thereon, it is not always possible to find the specific product one desires. Further, there may be instances where a fan would like to use or carry branded products only temporarily, and fans may want to add branding to products they already own. Brand owners also often enter into exclusive licensing deals with certain manufacturers or distributors, resulting in a certain category of products (such as, for example, backpacks) with desired branding being sold by only one company. If a user prefers an alternative product, there is no way to acquire the alternative with the desired branding.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe following is a summary of the invention in order to provide a basic understanding of some of its aspects. This summary is not intended to identify key or critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. The sole purpose of this section is to present some concepts of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.
Because of these and other problems in the art, described herein, among other things, is a fabric element for applying branding to an object comprising: a piece of fabric in a polygonal configuration comprising a back side and an opposing front side and having a first edge and an opposing second edge, the front side having a decorative element disposed thereon; and a fastening means comprising a first fastening means element and a second fastening means element, the first fastening means element disposed on the front side at the first edge and the second fastening means element disposed on the back side at the second edge.
In an embodiment, the polygonal configuration is a quadrilateral.
In another embodiment, the quadrilateral is a rectangle.
In another embodiment, the rectangle is a square.
In another embodiment, the fastening means is a hook-and-loop fastener.
In another embodiment, the hook-and-loop system comprises more than 10% of the width of the fabric element.
In another embodiment, the hook-and-loop system comprises more than 20% of the width of the fabric element.
In another embodiment, the hook-and-loop system comprises more than 30% of the width of the fabric element.
Also described herein, among other things, is a method for decorating an object comprising: providing a piece of fabric comprising a back side and an opposing front side, the front side having a decorative element disposed thereon, and a fastening means; placing the piece of fabric around an object to which it is to be attached, the back side facing the object and the front side facing outward from the object; fastening the fastening means.
The following detailed description and disclosure illustrates by way of example and not by way of limitation. This description will clearly enable one skilled in the art to make and use the disclosed systems and methods, and describes several embodiments, adaptations, variations, alternatives and uses of the disclosed systems and methods. As various changes could be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the disclosures, it is intended that all matter contained in the description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.
Generally, described herein is a decorative band (100) which can be formed or shaped around a strap, band, or other component of another object, and temporarily and adjustably fastened thereto. The band (100) has two basic configurations. “Unfolded” configuration, depicted in
The front side (102), as used herein, generally means the side of the decorative band (100) most clearly visible when decorative band (100) is in fastened configuration (e.g., the “outside” of the fastened configuration formed). The front side (102) generally comprises the decorative elements (112) desired by the user. The decorative element (112) may comprise a logo, image, graphic, design, pattern, word, phrase, symbol, and/or similar content, and occupy some or substantially all of the front side (102).
In the depicted embodiment, the fastening means (104) and (106) comprises a hook-and-loop system, such as Velcro™, but the fastening means (104) and (106) may alternatively comprise, among other things: buttons, hooks, buckles, zippers, strings/laces, snaps, clips, and/or one or more of these in combination. Most fastening means (104) and (106) have two elements, a first fastening means element (104) and a corresponding second fastening means element (106), which interact to perform the fastening function. The depicted first fastening means element (104) is generally disposed at the first edge (101) on the front side (102) and the corresponding second fastening means element (106) is generally disposed at the second edge (105) on the back side (102). However, alternative fastening means may be installed differently. For example, in an embodiment where the fastening means includes a button, the button may be disposed on the front side and pass through holes through the fabric, which exist on both sides.
These fastening means are well-known in the art and one of ordinary skill will have no difficulty in understanding how they may be used in the context of the present disclosure. The fastening means is affixed to the decorative band (100) through means generally known in the art, such as, without limitation, by stitching, adhesive, or both. However, the specific manner of attaching the fastening means will vary depending on the particular fastening means used in a given embodiment. By way of example and not limitation, a button hole is “attached” by forming a hole in the fabric shape (100).
The decorative band (100) may be made out of any suitable material including, but not necessarily limited to: canvas, nylon, Cordura™ nylon, rip-stop nylon, polyester, Kevlar™, pack cloth nylon, leather, polyvinyl chloride (“PVC”) fabric, thermoplastic polyethylene fiber (e.g., Dyneema™ and Spectram™), or any other material now known or in the future developed suitable for such use. The configuration of the depicted decorative band (100) is square, but other configurations are possible and specifically contemplated, as any number of shapes may be configured into the encompassing or enveloping configuration depicted in
As depicted in
The size and configuration of the fastening means will vary from embodiment to embodiment and is generally configured to facilitate an adjustability feature that allows the size of the opening (108) to vary from use to use. By way of example and not limitation, in the depicted embodiment of
While the invention has been disclosed in connection with certain preferred embodiments, this should not be taken as a limitation to all of the provided details. Modifications and variations of the described embodiments may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and other embodiments should be understood to be encompassed in the present disclosure as would be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art.
Claims
1. A fabric element for applying branding to an object comprising:
- a piece of fabric in a polygonal configuration comprising a back side and an opposing front side and having a first edge and an opposing second edge, said front side having a decorative element disposed thereon; and
- a fastening means comprising a first fastening means element and a second fastening means element, said first fastening means element disposed on said front side at said first edge and said second fastening means element disposed on said back side at said second edge.
2. The fabric element of claim 1, wherein said polygonal configuration is a quadrilateral.
3. The fabric element of claim 2, wherein said quadrilateral is a rectangle.
4. The fabric element of claim 3, wherein said rectangle is a square.
5. The fabric element of claim 1, wherein said fastening means is a hook-and-loop fastener.
6. The fabric element of claim 5, wherein said hook-and-loop system comprises more than 10% of the width of said fabric element.
7. The fabric element of claim 5, wherein said hook-and-loop system comprises more than 20% of the width of said fabric element.
8. The fabric element of claim 5, wherein said hook-and-loop system comprises more than 30% of the width of said fabric element.
9. A method for decorating an object comprising:
- providing a piece of fabric comprising a back side and an opposing front side, said front side having a decorative element disposed thereon, and a fastening means;
- placing the piece of fabric around an object to which it is to be attached, the back side facing the object and the front side facing outward from the object;
- fastening the fastening means.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 22, 2016
Publication Date: Jun 28, 2018
Inventors: Sean Alsup (St. Louis, MO), Leon Abramovich (St. Charles, MO), Daniel Lukatsevich (St. Louis, MO)
Application Number: 15/388,274