PERSONAL STORAGE DEVICE
A personal storage device may have at least two interchangeable storage modules, such as a wallet, cell phone carrier, bag, water bottle holder, or the like, removably attached to the ends of a pair of shoulder straps draping over a user's shoulders. The two shoulder straps may be joined by one or more back straps, to which a storage module may also be attached, and an upper chest strap or decorative jewelry chain. A user may quickly and easily exchange a storage module with one of a different configuration in accordance with the user's preference. One or more auxiliary storage features may be attached to or incorporated into the shoulder straps. Personal items carried in the storage modules and/or the auxiliary storage features are readily accessible and their weight is distributed across the user's shoulders. The device may be lighter and less bulky than conventional wallets, pockets, or handbags.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application to Gerald Paulus entitled “PERSONAL STORAGE DEVICE,” Ser. No. 62/871,339, filed Jul. 8, 2019, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated entirely herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Technical FieldThis invention relates generally to wallets, cell phone holders, clutches and carriers of personal articles, and particularly to a modular wearable personal storage device for carrying personal items.
State of the ArtPeople often carry personal items on their person. These personal items may include such things as cell phones and other electronic devices, wallets, credit cards, business cards, cameras, field equipment, identification badges, flashlights, earphones, pens, reading glasses, sunglasses, cell phone battery chargers, calculators, money, tickets, photos, keys, nail clippers, spare change, and the like. For various reasons, as time goes on, people tend to carry more and more personal items on their person, often with bulging pockets.
Many people, and particularly many men, tend to carry personal items in the pockets of their clothing, causing a feeling of being weighted down and causing pockets to bulge or even tear. Wearing a jacket or vest may provide additional pockets for storing personal items, but jackets or vests are not always convenient or worn. Jackets are also often temporarily removed, causing personal items stored therein to become inaccessible, or possibly forgotten or even lost. Other people, and particularly many women, tend to carry personal items in handbags. Many handbags are overly bulky, and handbags may become overloaded and heavy. Handbags are often carried over one arm or shoulder, causing the carrier to walk out of alignment, resulting in back pain and other ailments. In addition, many pockets of clothing, as well as handbags or items stored therein, are susceptible to theft. Furthermore, personal items carried in many pockets and/or handbags are not readily-accessible or conveniently located.
Accordingly, what is needed is an improved storage device for carrying personal items.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates generally to wallets, cell phone holders, clutches and carriers of personal articles, and particularly to a modular wearable accessory personal storage device for carrying personal items.
A personal storage device may comprise a harness and at least two storage modules removably coupled thereto. A harness may comprise first and second elongate shoulder straps for securing the harness over the shoulders of a user.
Some embodiments may further comprise at least one back strap coupled between the first and second shoulder straps and configured to be disposed across a user's back. Some embodiments may further comprise at least one front strap coupled between the first and second shoulder straps and configured to be disposed across a user's upper chest. In some embodiments, the at least one front strap may be a decorative jewelry chain, as may be particularly fashionable for female users. In some embodiments, any of the first and second shoulder straps, the at least one back strap, the at least one front strap, and any combination thereof may be adjustable in length.
A modular attachment device may be coupled to each of the ends of the first and second shoulder straps, and/or to the at least one back strap, for removably attaching a storage module thereto. A modular attachment device may be any device suitable for quickly and removably attaching a storage module to an end of a shoulder strap or to a back strap. The modular attachment device may be further coupled to any of a variety of interchangeable storage modules, such as a modular wallet, a wallet holder, a clutch, a pouch, a cell phone module, a bag, a water bottle, or the like, configured for removable attachment to the ends of a shoulder strap in an interchangeable modular fashion.
In use, a storage module may be disposed at the user's side, hanging near the hips and below the user's arm from the ends of a shoulder strap. Embodiments may comprise a first storage module removably coupled to the ends of the first shoulder strap and a second storage module removably coupled to the ends of the second shoulder strap. A user may quickly and easily remove a storage module from the harness and replace it with a storage module of a different configuration or fashion color in accordance with the user's preference.
Any of a variety of personal items, such as cell phones and other electronic devices, wallets, credit cards, business cards, cameras, field equipment, identification badges, flashlights, USBs, earphones, pens, reading glasses, sunglasses, battery chargers, calculators, money, tickets, photos, keys, nail clippers, spare change, and the like, or combinations thereof, may be conveniently and securely stored and carried within the storage modules at a user's sides, or in a modular backpack or other modular pack removably coupled to the rear portions of the shoulder straps. Carried within the storage modules, the weight of such personal items may be distributed between a first storage module and a second storage module to distribute the load between the user's shoulders, thus preventing back pain and other ailments caused by the uneven distribution of the weight of such items carried in a handbag, for example. Furthermore, a storage module may be less bulky than many handbags and eliminate the need to load personal items into the pockets of a user's clothing.
In some embodiments, the inner and/or outer surfaces of the front portions of the first and second shoulder straps may comprise at least one auxiliary storage feature coupled thereto or incorporated therein. An auxiliary storage feature may be any of a D-ring, an eyeglass holder, a pen pocket, an earphones pocket, a water bottle holder, a cell phone backup battery holder, or the like, or any combination thereof. A preferred embodiment of a personal storage device may comprise a D-ring incorporated into the outer front surfaces of each of the first and second shoulder straps, respectively, an eyeglass holder incorporated into one or both of the first or second shoulder, a pen pocket incorporated into one or both of the first or second shoulder, and an earphones pocket incorporated into one of the first or second shoulder straps.
In some embodiments of a personal storage device, the outer surfaces of the rear portions of each of the first and second shoulder straps may comprise a modular pack attachment device coupled thereto for removably coupling a modular pack thereto. A modular pack may be any of a modular backpack, water pack, or the like, suitable for removable attachment to the outer surfaces of the rear portions of each of the first and second shoulder straps. The modular pack attachment device may be any of a snap, a hook and loop, a buckle, a magnetic snap, a clasp, a zipper, or the like.
The foregoing and other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following more detailed description of the particular embodiments of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
A more complete understanding of the present invention may be derived by referring to the detailed description and claims when considered in conjunction with the Figures, wherein like reference numbers refer to similar items throughout the Figures, and:
As discussed above, embodiments of the present invention relate generally to wallets, cell phone holders, pouches, clutches and carriers of personal articles, and particularly to a modular wearable accessory personal storage device for carrying personal items.
Referring to the drawings, as shown in
A harness 12 may comprise a first shoulder strap 16 and a second shoulder strap 18. Each of the first shoulder strap 16 and the second shoulder strap 18 may be an elongate strap, having an outer surface 40, an inner surface 38 and opposed first and second ends 21 and 23. In use, each of the first and second shoulder straps 16 and 18 may hang over a shoulder 52 of a user 54, respectively, in an inverted U-shaped fashion, thereby forming a front portion 20 configured to hang over the front of the user's torso and a back portion 22 configured to hang over the user's back. In some embodiments, as shown in
As shown in
In some embodiments, any of the first shoulder strap 16, the second shoulder strap 18, and the at least one back strap 26, or any combination thereof, may be of elastic material.
As shown in
Some embodiments of a harness 12 may comprise at least one removable front strap 34 coupled between the front portions 20 of the first and second shoulder straps 16 and 18. The at least one front strap 34 may be configured to be disposed across a user's upper chest while in use. In some embodiments, the at least one front strap 24 may be a decorative jewelry chain, as shown in
In some embodiments, as shown in
As shown in
A representative wallet module 14, of the present invention, is shown in
Similarly, a representative cell phone module 14, of the present invention, is shown in
In use, a storage module 14 may be disposed at a user's side, hanging below the user's arm from the ends 21 and 23 of a shoulder strap 16 or 18, as shown in
It is an advantage of the present invention that any of a variety of personal items, such as cell phones, wallets, credit cards, business cards, cameras, field equipment, identification badges, flashlights, earphones, pens, reading glasses, sunglasses, battery chargers, calculators, money, tickets, photos, keys, nail clippers, spare change, and the like, or combinations thereof, may be conveniently and securely stored and carried within the storage modules 14 at a user's sides. The weight of such personal items may be distributed between a first storage module 14 and a second storage module 14 to distribute the load between the user's shoulders, thus preventing back pain and other ailments caused by the uneven distribution of the weight of such items carried in a handbag, for example. Furthermore, a storage module 14 may be less bulky than many handbags and eliminate the need to load personal items into the pockets of a user's clothing. In use, a user may quickly and easily detach a storage module from the personal storage device 10 and interchange another storage module of a different configuration or fashion color, as may be desired.
As shown in
As shown in
It is understood that embodiments of a personal storage device 10, of the present invention, may be manufactured in any of a variety of sizes, including, but not limited to standard clothing sizes, such as small, medium, large, extra-large, and the like, or one-size-fits-all, whether or not any of a shoulder strap 16 or 18, a back strap 26, a front strap 34, or any combination thereof, of such embodiments, comprises an adjustment device 24 for adjusting a length thereof.
The components defining any personal storage device may be formed of any of many different types of materials or combinations thereof that can readily be formed into shaped objects provided that the components selected are consistent with the intended operation of a personal storage device. For example, the components may be formed of: synthetic and/or natural rubbers, leathers, woods, bones, fibrous materials and/or other like materials; glasses (such as fiberglass) carbon-fiber, aramid-fiber, any combination thereof, and/or other like materials; polymers such as thermoplastics (such as ABS, Fluoropolymers, Polyacetal, Polyamide; Polycarbonate, Polyethylene, Polysulfone, and/or the like), thermosets (such as Epoxy, Phenolic Resin, Polyimide, Polyurethane, Silicone, and/or the like), any combination thereof, and/or other like materials; composites and/or other like materials; metals, such as copper, zinc, magnesium, titanium, copper, iron, steel, carbon steel, alloy steel, tool steel, stainless steel, aluminum, any combination thereof, and/or other like materials; alloys, such as aluminum alloy, titanium alloy, magnesium alloy, copper alloy, any combination thereof, and/or other like materials; any other suitable material; and/or any combination thereof.
Furthermore, the components defining any personal storage device may be purchased pre-manufactured or manufactured separately and then assembled together. However, any or all of the components may be manufactured simultaneously and integrally joined with one another. Manufacture of these components separately or simultaneously may involve extrusion, pultrusion, vacuum forming, injection molding, blow molding, resin transfer molding, casting, forging, cold rolling, milling, drilling, reaming, turning, grinding, stamping, cutting, bending, welding, soldering, hardening, riveting, punching, plating, and/or the like. If any of the components are manufactured separately, they may then be coupled with one another in any manner, such as with adhesive, a weld, a fastener (e.g. a bolt, a nut, a screw, a nail, a rivet, a pin, and/or the like), wiring, sewing, any combination thereof, and/or the like for example, depending on, among other considerations, the particular material forming the components. Other possible steps might include sand blasting, polishing, powder coating, zinc plating, anodizing, hard anodizing, and/or painting the components for example.
The embodiments and examples set forth herein were presented in order to best explain the present invention and its practical application and to thereby enable those of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention. However, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the foregoing description and examples have been presented for the purposes of illustration and example only. The description as set forth is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the teachings above without departing from the spirit and scope of the forthcoming claims.
Claims
1. A personal storage device, comprising:
- a first shoulder strap, comprising: a first outer surface; a first inner surface; a first end; and a second end;
- a second shoulder strap, comprising: a second outer surface; a second inner surface; a third end; and a fourth end;
- at least one back strap coupled between the first and second shoulder straps;
- a first interchangeable storage module removably coupled to the first and second ends; and
- a second interchangeable storage module removably coupled to the third and fourth ends.
2. The personal storage device of claim 1, wherein each of the first shoulder strap and the second shoulder strap comprises at least one adjustment device incorporated therein for adjusting a length thereof.
3. The personal storage device of claim 1, further comprising:
- a first modular pack attachment device coupled to the first outer surface; and
- a second modular pack attachment device coupled to the second outer surface.
4. The personal storage device of claim 1, wherein the at least one back strap is an adjustable tunnel square slidingly coupled between the first shoulder strap and the second shoulder strap.
5. The personal storage device of claim 1, wherein the at least one back strap comprises at least one adjustment device incorporated therein for adjusting a length thereof.
6. The personal storage device of claim 1, further comprising at least one front strap removably coupled between the first and second shoulder straps.
7. The personal storage device of claim 6, wherein the at least one front strap comprises at least one adjustment device incorporated therein for adjusting a length thereof.
8. The personal storage device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first interchangeable storage module or the second interchangeable storage module is a wallet.
9. The personal storage device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first interchangeable storage module or the second interchangeable storage module is a cell phone module.
10. The personal storage device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first inner surface, the first outer surface, the second inner surface, or the second outer surface, comprises at least one auxiliary storage feature.
11. The personal storage device of claim 10, wherein the at least one auxiliary storage feature is a D-ring.
12. The personal storage device of claim 11, wherein the D-ring is coupled to a ring strap sewn into a join seam of one of the first shoulder strap or the second shoulder strap.
13. The personal storage device of claim 10, wherein the at least one auxiliary storage feature is an eyeglasses holder, wherein the eyeglasses holder is a pocket sewn into at least one of the first inner surface, the first outer surface, the second inner surface, or the second outer surface, the eyeglasses holder being configured to receive one of a temple or a side arm of a pair of eyeglasses partially inserted therein for storage and/or carrying of the pair of eyeglasses.
14. The personal storage device of claim 10, wherein the at least one auxiliary storage feature is a pen pocket sewn into at least one of the first inner surface, the first outer surface, the second inner surface, or the second outer surface, the pen pocket being configured to receive a pen partially inserted therein for storage and/or carrying of the pen.
15. The personal storage device of claim 10, wherein the at least one auxiliary storage feature is an earphones pocket sewn into at least one of the first inner surface, the first outer surface, the second inner surface, or the second outer surface, the earphones pocket being configured to receive one or a pair of earphones for storage and/or carrying of the one or the pair of earphones.
16. The personal storage device of claim 10, wherein the at least one auxiliary storage feature is a water bottle holder.
17. The personal storage device of claim 10, wherein the at least one auxiliary storage feature is a cell phone backup battery holder.
18. A personal storage device, comprising:
- a first shoulder strap, comprising: a first outer surface; a first inner surface; a first end; and a second end;
- a second shoulder strap, comprising: a second outer surface; a second inner surface; a third end; and a fourth end;
- at least one back strap coupled between the first and second shoulder straps;
- a first modular pack attachment device coupled to the first outer surface;
- a second modular pack attachment device coupled to the second outer surface;
- a wallet removably coupled to the first and second ends;
- a cell phone module removably coupled to the third and fourth ends;
- a first D-ring coupled to the first outer surface; and
- a second D-ring coupled to the second outer surface, wherein the first inner surface, the first outer surface, the second inner surface, the second outer surface, or any combination thereof, comprises: an eyeglasses holder, wherein the eyeglasses holder is a pocket sewn into the first inner surface, the first outer surface, the second inner surface, or the second outer surface, the eyeglasses holder being configured to receive one of a temple or a side arm of a pair of eyeglasses partially inserted therein for storage and/or carrying of the pair of eyeglasses; a pen pocket sewn into the first inner surface, the first outer surface, the second inner surface, or the second outer surface, the pen pocket being configured to receive a pen partially inserted therein for storage and/or carrying of the pen; and an earphones pocket sewn into the first inner surface, the first outer surface, the second inner surface, or the second outer surface, the earphones pocket being configured to receive one or a pair of earphones for storage and/or carrying of the one or the pair of earphones.
19. The personal storage device of claim 18, wherein each of the first shoulder strap and the second shoulder strap comprises at least one adjustment device incorporated therein for adjusting a length thereof.
20. The personal storage device of claim 19, wherein the at least one back strap is an adjustable tunnel square slidingly coupled between the first shoulder strap and the second shoulder strap.
Type: Application
Filed: Jun 29, 2020
Publication Date: Jan 14, 2021
Inventor: Gerald Paulus (Mesa, AZ)
Application Number: 16/915,731