DECORATIVE TRADEMARK HOLDER

Abstract

A jewelry piece is disclosed which is constituted of an otherwise conventional jewelry item with a decorative body that defines the jewelry item, but which includes a trademark indicia appended to the decorative body and formed to appear as a part thereof. The trademark indicia includes a rearward located plate with a trademark, preferably registered, comprising one or more of a logo, a symbol, a word or words or a series of alphanumeric letters formed thereon and superimposed over the rearward plate an ornamental component that normally conceals the trademark indicia. The ornamental component of the trademark indicia is configured to be moveable relative to the rearward plate to expose the registered trademark.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is generally directed to jewelry and, more particularly, to a product and method that enables attaching or appending to jewelry trademark and branding indicia, in a manner that hides and blends the trademark indicia into the jewelry piece, so that it is rendered unobtrusive to the casual observer. In embodiments of the invention, the trademark indicia, which may comprise a word(s), a letters sequence, a logo or a symbol, is mounted behind a decorative element, so that the overall appearance of the jewelry piece may actually be enhanced artistically and aesthetically by the trademark indicia.

Gold and diamond jewelry derive their value and appeal both from the expensiveness of the materials of which it is made and from the artistry and skill that goes into creating elaborate, exquisite shapes that convey elegance and beauty that make the jewelry to be coveted by people that love to show and delight in their clothes and jewelry that they are wearing.

The delicacy, small size and intricacy of many jewelry components makes it difficult and certainly impractical to append to the jewelry pieces a conventional, highly visible trademark indicia, particularly in the case of very ornate earrings, necklaces, bracelets and the like. A wearer of an expensive and intricate jewelry piece would not tolerate appending to the jewelry a branding tag or visible lettering and the like that would mar and detract from the artistic look of the piece of jewelry.

At the same time, particularly in the case of gold jewelry, governmental regulations require stamping gold jewelry with trademarks so that if any issue arises about the gold content of the material of which the piece of jewelry is made, it is possible to trace back the source of the gold and the gold jewelry to manufacturer thereof, via the trademark owner. But in many instances, even gold stamping is problematic and the discerning of miniaturized trademarks is not always simple and straightforward.

At the same time, manufacturers, suppliers and vendors of very expensive jewelry would appreciate that the jewelry pieces that they market and sell to the public would also be identified by a trademark or logo which would project and convey to various observers that a person is wearing a “branded” item that emanates from a highly reputable and prestigious source.

In general, the marketplace has been exposed to a very disturbing pattern, indeed an explosion in the sales of counterfeit products, including jewelry products that are sold through online, E-commerce channels and Internet portals. In this regard, reference is made to U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0073007 that underscores the problem of fake products invading the marketplace. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0073007 employs elaborate, unique and electronics based methods using RFID tags and the like that would allow a purchaser to communicate RFID tag data through the Internet to verify its genuineness, to avoid purchasing fakes or counterfeit goods. The contents of the mentioned U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0073007 are incorporated by reference herein. However, the techniques described in the mentioned patent publication are not practical for use with very elaborate jewelry pieces that may cost thousands of dollars and which makes it very difficult to purchase online. RFID tags cannot be used to check the authenticity of products being purchased on line.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a product and method of appending trademark indicia to delicate and elaborate jewelry pieces, in a manner that avoids the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a product and method of appending trademark indicia to jewelry that can be implemented inexpensively yet retaining and maintaining the aesthetic appeal of the jewelry.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention are realized in accordance with an embodiment of the invention by a jewelry piece which is constituted of an otherwise conventional jewelry item with a decorative body that defines the jewelry item, but which includes a trademark indicia appended to the decorative body and formed to appear as a part thereof. The trademark indicia includes a rearward located plate with a trademark, preferably registered, comprising one or more of a logo, a symbol, a word or words or a series of alphanumeric letters formed thereon and superimposed over the rearward plate an ornamental component that normally conceals the trademark indicia. The ornamental component of the trademark indicia is configured to be moveable relative to the rearward plate to expose the registered trademark.

Preferably, the trademark comprises a precious stone, for example a diamond and is fabricated of gold. The ornamental component may be flower shaped and the rear plate has as an overall flattened diamond shape.

The jewelry item may be a necklace that has a clasp and the trademark indicia is secured to the necklace adjacent the clasp. A diamond may be included that dangles from the necklace.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the invention which refers to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a jewelry piece, a necklace with a jewelry ornament, which includes trademark indicia in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows the trademark indicia that can be appended to jewelry in one embodiment thereof, including successive views that illustrate its functionality.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

With reference to FIG. 1, there is depicted therein an otherwise conventional jewelry necklace 10 that comprises a chain link 12 with a clasp 14 that enables donning the necklace 10 over one's neck and supporting a diamond ornament 16 that typically rests on the chest of the wearer. The clasp 14 is attached at one end to the chain 12 via a link 15. At the other end, the clasp 14 can be inserted into the catching link 17 via an opening 19.

The trademark indicia 20 of the present invention can also be attached to the link 15 as more elaborately illustrated in FIG. 2.

Referring to FIG. 2, the trademark indicia 20 is has an ornamental flower shape and it can be fabricated of the same precious material as the jewelry piece 10. The trademark indicia 20 comprises, in the depicted embodiment, a rear plate 22 that carries a diamond 30 or the like and has a link 22a. Located in front of and concealing the rear plate 22 is the ornamental component 24 that also has its own link 24a. When the two components, namely the rear plate 22 and the visible ornamental piece 24, are superimposed over one another, their respective links 22a/24a are aligned and can be mounted on the link 15 as shown in FIG. 2 so that normally one only sees the ornamental front component 24 of the trademark indicia 20. Stated differently, the ornamental component 24 can be slid to the side to reveal the element, here the diamond 30 that comprises the actual trademark notice, as indicated by the arrows 26 in FIG. 2. The trademark indicia can be made of any material. It can be a precious metal such as gold, silver and the like, and even a synthetic material.

Thereby, the objective of the present invention is obtained that when one purchases the piece 10, they will not discern on the jewelry piece a conventional trademark indicia, such as word, alphabetical characters or a log. Instead, the flower shape or any jewelry shape of the front piece 24 of the trademark indicia 20 is what one can see and that piece aesthetically blends into the overall jewelry item 10.

While the front piece is presented in the shape of a flower, it can also be in the shape of other ornamentally-themed objects such as the shape of a face of a girl, a mountain or an animal such as a cat or a dog and the like. Regardless, the presence of that shape will alert the user that the actual trademark 30 is located on a plate behind what is visible and that is the mark of authenticity of the jewelry piece. Thereby, those who sell counterfeits will refrain from copying a registered trademark for fear of being subjected to severe penalties under the law, thereby the sales of expensive jewelry pieces will be ameliorated because purchasers will look for the registered trademark and when that registered trademark is not present, they will not purchase the counterfeit jewelry.

Although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments thereof, many other variations and modifications and other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It is preferred, therefore, that the present invention be limited not by the specific disclosure herein, but only by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A jewelry piece, comprising:

a jewelry item comprising a decorative body that defines the jewelry item; and

a trademark indicia appended to the decorative body, wherein

the trademark indicia includes a rearward located plate with a trademark comprising one or more of a logo, symbol, word or words or a series of alphanumeric letter formed thereon and superimposed over the rearward plate an ornamental component that normally conceals the trademark indicia, the ornamental component of the trademark indicia being configured to be moveable relative to the rearward plate to expose the trademark to view its presentation.

2. A jewelry piece as in claim 1, wherein the trademark comprises a precious stone.

3. A jewelry piece as in claim 1, wherein the trademark comprises a diamond.

4. A jewelry piece as in claim 1, wherein the trademark indicia is fabricated of gold.

5. A jewelry piece as in claim 1, wherein the ornamental component is flower shaped.

6. A jewelry piece as in claim 1, the ornamental component of the trademark indicia being configured to be slidable over the rearward plate to expose the trademark to view its appearance.

7. A jewelry piece as in claim 1, wherein the rearward plate of the trademark indicia has an overall flattened diamond shape.

8. A jewelry piece as in claim 1, wherein the jewelry piece is a necklace.

9. A jewelry piece as in claim 1, wherein the jewelry piece is a necklace having a clasp and the trademark indicia is secured to the necklace adjacent the clasp.

10. A jewelry piece as in claim 1, wherein the jewelry item is a necklace and including dangling from the necklace.