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    10 views16 pages

    Us 9215917

    Uploaded by

    Mohammed Abdalrhman
    patent

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 16
    2) United States Patent oy oy ~ « ay @ 6s) on 2) 68) Pluta COMPACT PROTECTIVE COVER FOR EYEWEAR, Applicant: Michael Richard Plata, Huntington Beoch, CA (US) Inventor: Michael Richard Plata, Huntington Beach, CA (US) Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the teem ofthis patent is extended or adjusted under 35 USC. 154(b) by O days. Appl. Now 137840,710 Filed: Man. 15, 2013, Prior Publication Data S 2014)0262843 Al Sep. 18,2014 In.Cl. AMSC 11/04 (2006.01) Gn2c 904 (2005.01) us.cl. CPC .. AdSC 11/04 2013.01); 445F 22000541 (2013.01); G03 914 2013.01) Fleld of Classification Search CPC... ASC 1108; A4SP 220010841; GOXC 9104 spc 206/5, 6; 2014.22. 4.24; 134/901 See application ile for complet s 'US009215917B2 (10) Patent No. 4s) Date of Patent: US 9,215,917 B2 Dec. 22, 2015 66) References Cited US. PATENT DOCUMENTS 4m4238 A + S892 Farley 2005 23a A+ $1986 Sopeman aos SoWISIT A 911999 Lindberg a @aIso1s BL* 72002 Grossman 2066 FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS oN wo21is669 A 72011 ” oroiaas US 1995 » outa Be 112007 * cited by examiner Primary Examiner — Anthony Stashick Assistant Examiner — Mollie Llewellyn (74) Attornes, Agen, or Firm — Plager Sehack LLP on ABSTRACT Protective eyewear cover that may be folded into or onto itself ‘when removed from the eyewear, resulting in a profile thats slightly thicker than and slightly larger than the size of a Single lens of the eyewear. The protective eyewear cover of the present invention is compact in comparison t0 certain ‘con entional eyewear protection, sich asa hard or semi-bard eyeglass case, yet offes maximum protection in comparison ‘0 other conventional eyewear protection, such as eyeglass bags or pouches. 3 Claims, 10 Drawing Sheets U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 1 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 1054 7 FIG. 1C U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 2 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 J a tat — a FIG. 2B U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 3 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 3104 318 305A \e ; _/ 305B- — (| — 310B fi ny ‘ny i) FIG. 3 U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 4 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 5 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 6 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 7 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 rs 7068 7 SSE ase aa U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 8 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 9 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 U.S. Patent Dee. 22, 2015 Sheet 10 of 10 US 9,215,917 B2 ‘090 FIG. 10A 4010 1000 6 e105) ar, «~SCPIG. 10B US 9,215,917 B2 1 COMPACT PROTECTIVE COVER FOR EYEWEAR, FIELD OF THE INVENTION ‘The present invention relates to eyewear. More partct lary, the present invention relates to protetve covering for BACKGROUND Presently, when a consumer purchises eyewear, such a5 prescription glasses, sunglasses or any other type of eye- ‘lasses, the consumer basically has but two options with respect to precting the eyewear from scratches and other types of damage. The frst option i the hard ease (or semi- hard ease) This frst option gives the consumer the greatest level of protection becanse the ease completely encloses the ‘eyewear, Hard cases are typically clam shell type eases or ippered type eases. Both ofthese hard cases work very Well when it comes to protecting the eyewear. However, many ‘consumers dislike hard eases because they are bulky, they take up a far amount of space and they donot comfortably oF ‘easily fit in pockets. The second option isthe hag (or pouch) Thhebag does have certain advantages. For instance, the fabric may be use to clean the eyewear lenses and its wer Tight in weight, not particularly bulky and, therefore, easy cary. Despite these advantages, this second option offers minimal protection because the eyewear lenses are sill susceptible to being broken, seratched of otherwise damaged i dropped, placed next toa sharp or hard object, o stepped upon, a the bog is made from very fine fabric, Tor the ubove-stated reasons, consumers that do not carry ‘orotherwise wse a purse or eary-bag tend to avoid using hard ‘eases altogether, so the hard case remains in the ear, in the ‘office ar at home. The bag, while easy to cany, isalso easy t0 risplace, as itis just fabric, Consequently, say consumers simply use no protection for their eyewear The problem, of ‘course, is without protection, there is much greater risk of ‘doing damage tthe eyewear, ani eyeweareat be very expen- five to repro replace. Consumers that eguleely wear eye- ‘lasses know that even a small sratch oma lens eon he very ‘annoying and uncomfortable to see through. “Accordingly. thee existsa noe foreyewear protection hat provides good protection without sulfering the disadvantages 'sssociated withthe hard case and bag ype eyewear protection “described above. As explained herein below, the compact ‘eyewearprotectivecover ofthe preset invention satisfies this need SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION ‘The present invention provides maximum protection for ‘eyewear without the aforementioned and other deficiencies, sssociated with conventional eyewear protection, Moreover, the present invention i fun to use. In general, the protective eyewear cover, in aecontance with exemplary embodiments of he preset invention, takes advantage of the symmeiy andor contour (i.e. curvature) associated with most eyeglasses, When removed from the ‘eyeglasses, the protective cover may’ be folded into itself, resulting in a profile that is only slightly thicker than and only slightly larger than the sizeof a single lens of the eyeglasses itis intended to protect. Thus, the protective caver of the present invention is compact in comparison to conventional ‘eyewear protection; as seh, consumers should find the pro= 0 o 2 tective ever ofthe present invention easier and more conve- nieat co cary, while sill getting maximum protection forthe eyeglasses Inaccordance with one aspect of the present invention, the ‘aforementioned purposes are achieved by a compact protec- tive cover for eyewear, The cover comprises a first sloeve configured to receive at least a first lens associated with the eyewear and a second sloove configured to receive atleast a second ens associated with the eyewear. The protective cover also comprises an attachment mechanism connecting the first sleeve and the second sleeve such that the frst sleeve and the sovond sleeve are capable of being moved, relative to each other, between a deployed configuration nd a collapsed con- figuration, In te deployed configuration, the frst sleeve and the second sleeve are positioned side-by-side and inthe col- lapsed configuration, te first sleeve andthe second sleeve are ‘overlapping or substantially overlapping. Inaccordance with another aspect of the present invention, the aforementioned purposes are achieved by a compact pro- teetive ever for eyewear, The cover comprises a first sloeve that, in turn, comprises a front pad and a rear pad, the frst sleeve being configured to receive at least ist lens aso fated with the eyewear between its font pad and rear pad. the ‘eave also comprises second sleve that, in turn, comprises ‘front pad anda reur pad, the second sleeve being ooalgured to receive at last a second lens associated with the eyewear between its front pad and rear pad. Sul further, the cover comprises an attachment mechanism connecting the fist sleeve and the second sleeve such that the frst sleeve and the second sleeve are capable of being moved, relative © each other, between a deployed configuration and a closed eon- figuration, In the deployed configuration, the frst sleeve and the second sleeve are positioned side-by-side. In the col- Japsed configuration, the first sleeve ancl the second sleeve are ‘overlapping or substantially overlapping, [BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS. Several figures are provided herein to funter the explana ‘om of the present invention. More specifically: FIGS, TAAIC illustrate a protective cover in accordance ‘with first exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention: FIGS, 2A-28 illustrate the contour and spacing associated with te sleeves of he protectivecover in aovordance with the first exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention; PIG. 3 illustrates an frost and rear view of a protective cover, in accordance with an alternative othe fst exemplary embodiment of the present invention; FIGS, 44-40 illustrate a protective cover, in accordance with a second exemplary embodiment ofthe present iven- sion; PIGS, $A-SE illustrate a protective cover, ia aecontance ‘witha third exemplary embodiment of the present invention: FIGS. 6A-63 illustrate @ proeetive cover, in accordance ‘witha fourth exemplary embadiment a thepresent invention: FIGS. 7A-7B illustrate @ prowetive cover, in accordance ‘with an alternativeto the four exemplary embodimentof the present invention: FIGS. 84-82 illustrate a protective cover, in accordance ‘with fh exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention; FIGS, 9A-9¢ illustrate @ protective cover, in accordance witha sixth exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention; and FIGS. 10A and 10B illustrate a protective cover in cor. dance with # seventh exemplary embodiment of the present invention US 9,215,917 B2 3 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION I is to be understood that both the foregoing general ‘description and the following detailed description are xem play. The descriptions herein are not intended to limit the cope of the present invention, The seope af the present nven- tion is govemed by the scope of the appended claims. FIG. 14 is an illustration of a protective cover 100 in accontance with first exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention, FIG, 1A also ilustates a paie of eyeglasses 10 assist inthe description and understanding of te protective ‘cover 100. As shown, the protective cover 100 comprises a firs sleve 105 and a second sleeve 110. Both the frst sleeve 10S andie second sleeve 110 comprisea front anda war pa. “Tus, the first sleeve 108 has a front pad 108A anda rear pad, 0SB. Likewise, the second sleeve 110 as front pad 110A sand. rear pad 110B. The front and rear pads 108, and 1058 ‘of the fist sloowe 108 are atached to each other by a pad ‘connecting portion 105C, while the Font and rear pads 10, ‘and 110B ofthe second sleeve 110 are attached to each other by a pad connecting portion 110C. Inthe fist exemplary embodiment, the fist sleeve 108 and ‘a second sleeve 110 are rotatably tached to each other. AS shown in FIG. 1A, te first sleve 108 and the scan sleeve 110 are rotatably attchedat a point where the rea pad 105B snd the ear pad 110B overlap each other. In this fist exem- play embodiment, the attachment mechanism 118 may be a pin, post, rivet or any other ike component in conjunction ‘with a receiving component, suchas a reoeiving holes), so Jong as the attachment mechanism 115 allows the frst sleeve 108 and the second sleeve 110 o soap together or otherwise interlock and rotate relative to each other, as illustrated by vector in FIG, 1B, As wll be evident from other exemplary ‘embodiments described below, the attachment mechanism may allow the first sleeve 105 and the second sleeve 110 10 collapse into each other in ways other than rotation, FIG. LA further ilusteates tha the fist sleeve 108 and the second sleeve 110 have a contour C to scoommodate the ‘curvature ofthe eyeglasses, or more specifically, the curvae ture of the lenses and, depending upon the eyeglasses, the ‘curvature of the frame around the lenses. twill be understood, thatthe protective cover 100 could be manufactured so that the contour Cis customized to accommodate a specie pat ‘eyeglasses, such as designer eyeglasses, o it could be manu ‘actured so that the eontonr Cis somewhat genere, to match the average curvature of most ondnary eyeglasses In accordance with a preferred embodiment, the spacing between the upper edges of the front and rear pads and the spacing between the lower edges ofthe front and rear pads will difer in order to anchor the protective caver 100 to the ‘eyeglasses. Thus, for example, the spacing X between the front and earpadsinFIG.1A,ndillustratedin FG, 2B, may be less than the spacing Y between the front and rear pads ‘Consequently, when the eyeglasses are inserted between the front and ear pads, as illustrated by aro Fin FIG. 1, such that the boom of the frame associated with the eyeplasses rests on the pad connection portions 10SC and 110C, the spacing X is such that the comesponding edges ofthe front and rear pads contact the eyeglasses under a slight clamping pressure sulicient toanchor the protective eover 100 in place. However, the spacing X is not so narrow that inserting the ‘eyeglasses bercen the front and eae pads, and removing the ‘eyeglasses from between the front and rear pods requires any Sgnifleant force or effort. The spacing Y is uch that there is ‘minimal contact between the protective cover 100 and the ‘eyeulases in order to avoid wear. Additionally, the size oF 0 o 4 area ofthe front and rear pas are such that the lenses are completely covered, ora least substantially eovered by the Front and rear pas FIG. 2A isa cut-away view of the first sleeve 108 in FIG. 1A. FIG. 2A more clearly illustrates the contour C deseribed hove, FIG. 21 isa cross-section view o the ist sleeve 108 illustrated in FIG. 2A, and it more cleaey illustrates the dilerencein the spacing X andY, also described above, which produces te slight clamping force or pressure that anchors the protective cover 100 the eyeglasses with minimal con- ‘act, As will become evident from the description that fol lows, all butone ofthe exemplary embodiments exhibit some contour or degree of curvature, but forthe very lst embod sient, The purpose of describing the last embodiment as exhibiting litle or no contour is to clarify thatthe scope ofthe vention isnot Kited by the eontour, thats, the amonat oF ature exhibited by the protective cover, even though a Protective cover in accordance with a prefered embodiment ‘ill exhibit atleast some contours such, a protective cover ‘aocording to the present invention may have ao contour, @ ‘mall amount of contour ora significant amount of contour, ‘depending onthe eyeglasses the protective cover is intended to protect. FIGS. 14-1C also illustate the operation ofthe protective cover 100. Thus, for example, FIG. 1 illustrates the protee- tive cover 100 in deployed configuration where the protee- ‘ivecover 100s open andthe fist and second sleeves 105 and 110 are generally positioned side-to-side relative 10 each other FIG. 1 ilustatesa collapsed configuration where the protective cover 100 is closed and the frst and second sleeves 105 and 110 are interleaved and, therefore, overlapping. or substantially overlapping. And, FIG, Illustrates acoatign- ration where the ptective cover 10 is somewhere between the deployed and closed configurations. 1 should be evident from the figures thatthe protective cover 100 moves between the deployed configuration and the collapsed configuration by rotating the first sleeve 10Sand the second sleeve 110 relative to each other. This is also made possible hy the fact that the first sleove 10S ancl the second sleeve 110 are generally symmetric and slightly offset relative toeach other ina front to back direction, Taerefore, when the first sleeve 105 and the second sleeve 110 are completely folded in om themselves, the fromt and rear pads of the first sleeve 105 and the second sleeve 110 are interleaved, as ‘mentioned above. When the protective cover 100 i in this collapsed configuration, iis elear, from FIGS. 14, 1B and AC, that the profile of the protective cover 100 is as stated above only slightly larger than one ofthe lens associated with the eyeplases depicted in FIG. 1A. The protective cover 100 may be manufactured in accor. dance with known techniques and materials, For example, the protectivecover 100 may be manufactured injection mol- ng, layered printing, stamped or any other suitable process. Additionally, the protective cover 100 may be made of any hard andlor durable material, lined with a soft or padded fabric onthe inside to protect the lenses. Whether the protee- tive cover 100 is made of plastic ormetal, the frst and second sleeves 105 and 110 are to be sufficiently pliable so they ean be spread open to allow the lenses snd, if applicable, the tame o pass through. Moreover, it will be understood that each of dhe sleeves 108 and 110 may be manufactured as & ngle, monolithic unit or as multiple components (eg. 28 2 front pad, a rear pad and a pad connection portion) that are sibsequently’ attached to each other by a suitable method. It ‘ill also be understood tht the atachment mechanism 115 ‘may hea component(s) tha isare manafactured separate and ‘pat from the sleeves, or manufactured asa integral part of US 9,215,917 B2 5 sleeve. For example, ifthe tachment mechanism 1183s the form ofa post and receiving hole, as mentioned above, the Postand hole may be integral pats ofan, thus, manufactured 8s pat of the corresponding sleeves. Although the protective cover 100 comprises an attach- ‘ment mechanism 115 that attaches the rear pad LOSE. and the rear pad ILO wherethe two overlap, wll beappreciated hy those skilled in the art of eyewear that the attachment mech- nism could, in contrast, attach the two font pads in asimilae fashion. Thus, FIG. 3 illustrates a front and rear view of protective cover 300, in accordance with an alternative wo the Fist exemplary embodiment, wherein protective cover 300 ‘comprises a first sleeve 308 and a second sleeve 310, and wherein the font pad 308 of the frst sleeve 308 i attached ‘othe front pad 310A of the second sleeve 310 by an attach- ment mechanism 315, in the same or similar manner described above and jusrated in FIG. 1A. One reason for this altemative embodiment is to better sovommodte the bridge andor nose pads ofthe eyeglasses. For example, ihe ‘eveulasses have nove pads, axl the nove pads protrude for- ‘rd, or primarily forward, it may be advantagenes to attach the rear pad ofthe first sleeve to the rear pod of the second sleeve, this llowing the ose pads to pote into oethrough the space between the front pads, as illustrated in FIG. 1A. However, if the nose pads protrade rearward, or primarily rearwanlitmay beadVantageous to atach the front padof the first sleeve tothe front pad ofthe second sleeve thus allowing the nose pads to prota into oF through sila space that ‘would exist herwoen the rear pads, as iustrated in FIG. 3. FIG. 3 also illustrates that the present invention is not limited to a protective covering that slides in an upward direction relative to and over the lenses of the eyewear, as depicted in FIG. 1A. In FIG. 3, the protective cover 300, ‘actualy sides in a dowawaed direction relative to and over the lenses ofthe eyewear “Additionally, in FIG. 3, the wear pads 3058 and 3108 are showin as comprising a eu-out or notched comer 320. The purpose foe eso wold beto allow for more spaceto aecon- ‘odate the bridge ofthe eyeglasses. While these eu-ont oF notched features ar only’ llustated in FIG. 3, it will be appreciated that such features may be applied to any one of the embodiments described herein, FIGS. 44-40 illustrate a protective cover 400, in aeor- ‘dance with a second exemplary embodiment. In this second ‘exemplary embodiment, @ fist sleeve 408 is rotationally attaches oa second sleeve 410, similar wo the frst exemplary ‘embovdiment described above, but forthe attachment mech nism 415 isaspring mectianism, As shown, the spring mecha nism 418 s anchored to the fist sleeve 408 at point Hand to the second sleeve 410 at point A. I will be understood from the discussion sbove that point And B could be on either the trot pas or the rear pos othe stand secon sleeves 408 ‘and 410. Additionally, the spring mechanism 418 is wound round a pivot point common to both the frst and second sleeves 408 and 410, that may involve a pin, a post or some other like component FIGS. 48-4C also illustrate the operation ofthe protective ‘cover 400. More specifically, FIG. 44 illustrates 2 deployed ‘configuration where he protective eover 400 i open, the ist and second sleeves 405 and 410 are generally positioned ‘de-to-side relative 10 exch other, and the spring mechanism 418s under minimal tension, FIG. 4C illustrates a collapsed ‘configuration where the protective cover 400 is closed, the first and second sleeves 405 and 410 are overlapping, oF substantially overlapping, and the spring mechanism 418 is under maximum tension. And, FIG. 43 illustrates a configu- ration where the protective cover 400i somewhere between 0 o 6 the deployed and closed configurations. Although itis not showa, the present invention may include a lock and release ‘mechanism in conjunction with the spring mechanisms 418, ‘where the lock snd release mechanis would hold the spring sechanism 418 in the position illustrated in FIG. 4C and, ‘when sctivated, release the spring mechanism 415 from the positon illustrated in FIG. 4C, 50. 0 automatically deploy the protective cover 400. FIG. 4D illustrates a side view corresponding tothe position of the protective cover 400 in FIG.AA. FIGS, SASF illustate a protective cover $00, in aveor- dance with a thd exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Generally, FIGS. 8A and SB illustrate an exploded view ofthe protective cover 800, whereas FIGS, SC and SD illisttate a front and rear view of the protective cover 50, respoctvely; of the protective cover 500 in a deployed con: figuration, and FIG. 8 illustrates a rear view ofthe protective cover 500 ina collapsed configuration As showa, protective cover S00 comprises ais sleeve S05 ‘and second sleeve $10. Also, a shawn, the first sleeve S08 comprises a front pad SOSA and rear pad S083. Likewise the second sleeve 510 comprises a font pad SIDA and a rear pad 5101, Unlike the first and second exemplary embodi- ‘meals described above, the first sleeve 508 and the second sleeve 510 are not rotatably attached. Instead, attachment ‘meckianism S18 slidably attaches the First sleeve 508 and the second sleeve $10, In this example, the attachment mech nism S15 comprises a rail 818A and a track SISR, where the ‘wack S1SB isconfigured to oveive the ail SISA, such thatthe nil SISA can slide along track SISP between # deployed configuration, where the protective cover $00 is open and the first and sccond sleeves S05 and S10 are generally positioned side-by-side relative to each other, anda collapsed coatign- ‘ition, wherein the protective cover S00 iselosed andthe first ‘and second sleeves $08 and S10 are in an overlapping oF substantially overlapping postion relative to each othe. ‘To prevent the frst sleeve S08 and the second sleeve S10 from becoming detached the track SIST may inclideastop- ping mechanism(s) (not shown). The stopping mectanism(s) ‘would prevent the movement ofthe ail SISA from deploying beyond a point that might eause the first sleeve 50S and the sovond sleeve S10 to detach (similar to the stopping mecha- nisms used to prevent drawers fom sliding out ofa cabinet). ‘Punter, euch of the fist and second sleeves 50S and $10 ‘comprises a locking, mechanism $20 and 825, respectively ‘When the procetive cover $00 is in the collapsed contigur- ‘ion, asillustrated in FIG. SC, the protective cover 500 may be ‘eld in this configuration by the insertion of locking mecha- nism $25 through locking, mechanism $20. When the con- sumer wishes to deploy the protective cover $00, the con sumer would push on the locking mechanism $20, thereby unlocking the fist and second sleeves ‘As shown in FIG. 8A, the protective eover $00 may also comprise a spring $30. The spring may be located on theinner portionof he first sleeveS0S, shovethetrack 184. Whenthe Protective cover 800 is in the collapsed configuration, the spring $30 would be compressed. When the protective cover 00s inthe deployed configuration, the spring 530 would be tres, lowill be understood the spring $30 may be employed ‘alone ‘or in conjunction with the aforementioned locking ‘mechanisms $20 and $25 to apply a separating force on the fist and second sloeves 50S ans $10, 3035 to automatically deploy the protective cover $00, when the consumer unlocks thesleeves, twill he understood thatthe specific design ofthe locking mechanism(s) andior spring may vary without departing fom the scope or spirit of the present invention, US 9,215,917 B2 1 I¢-will also be understood that while this thied exemplary ‘embodiment may be spring-loaded. as described above, other Toms of deploying and collapsing the protetive cover $00 possible. For example, protoctive cover $00 may be ‘deployed and collapsed by 2 purely manual process, where the consumer simply grasps both the fist and second sleeves 505 and 510 and gently moves them together or apa. Another possiblity is that the protective eover S00 may com priseastide button ortab, similartoa drywall knife, where the ‘consumer moves the tab in one direction or the oer. thereby ‘moving the first and secoad sleeves S08 and 510 together oF ‘apart relative to each other “To minimize the overall thickness of the protective cover 500, the thickness ofthe first sleeve $05, which comprises rail 515A, is greater than the thickness of the second sleeve 510, which comprises track SISB. As sue, the second sleeve 810 ‘will be contained between the front and rear pads 505A and, 508B of the first sloeve $08 interleaved) when the protective ‘cover 800 isin the collapsed configuration. ‘Despite the fact that the protective cover $00 employs 2

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