Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
EYE&LASSES WITH QUICK CONNECT ~ND DISCONNECT
TEMPLE PIECES
BACKGROUND AND GENERAL STATEMENT OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to eyeglasses with temple pieces
which may be quickly connected and disconnected to the front
frame piece, as required in a structure such as gas masks where
independent use of the front frame piece with its component
S lenses is required.
The most commonly used style of eyeglasses comprises a
front piece, which includes the lenses, hinged through pin and
knuckle hinges to a pair of temple pieces having bows which
attach the eyeglasses to the ears of the wearer. However,
there are situations in which it ls desirable to use the frame
front piece and lenses independently of the temple p~eces.
Such a situation exists in the use of gas masks, which re-
quire the mask to fit tightly around the face of the u~er. In
such a situation it is not possible for the user to wear eye-
glasses of the type described since the temple pieces wouldproject outslde the periphery of the mask and prevent the re-
quired tight fit of the mask about the face.
.
)
2. ~ L~
The conventional solution to this problem is to provide
eyeglasses without temple pieces which attach to the gas mask
through an attaching device mounted on the eyeglass bridge.
Such an assembly is illustrated in Wise et al 3,563,640. Al-
though this assembly achieves the desired purpose of providingthe gas mask user with eyeglasses which do not interfere with
the proper functioning of the ma~k, it forces the user to pur-
chase an extra pair of prescrlption glasses, one for use in hls
gas mask and the other for ordinary wear, with attendant extra
expense.
It is the general object of the present invention to pro-
vide an eyeglass assembly having a front frame piece which may
be disconnected and connected quickly and easily from the asso-
ciated temple pieces~ without damaging either component of the
assembly. This makes it possible to use the front piece with
associated lenses independentiy, as in a gas mask. It also
makes posslble use of the front piece~temple plece assembly
in the usual manner when gas mask use is not con~empla~ed.
A further object of the invention ls the provi~ion of an
eyeglass assembly having quick connect and disconnect temple
pieces, which assembly is non-injurious to the wearer, of in-
conspicuous appearance and easily adaptable for use with any
of the conventional eyeglasses of the type having a front piece
connected to two temple pieces through the agency of knuckle-
type hinges.
3.
The foregoing and other objects of my lnventlon are ~ccomp-
lished by~the provision of an eyeglass a~sernbly having a front
frame piece, ~ pair o~ temple pieces5 mating h~nge knuckle3 on
the ron~ frame and temple pleces, and removable pln me~ns for
releasably interconnecting the front frame and temple pieces.
Each pin means compri~e~ an arm; preferably a spring arm3
and a pin on one end of the arm dimensioned for insertion into
the knuckles when in mated position. On the other end of the
arm i~ a mounting me9ns for mountlng the arm on the eyeglasses
for shifting rnovement between an advanced engaging posltion and
a retracted releasing position. In the advanced position the
temple pieces are coupled to the front frame pieces so that the
glasses can be used in conventional manner. In the retracted
position, the temple pieces may be re ved from the front piece
and the latter applied to special uses, as for ex~mple, in a
gas mask.
DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
In the drawings:
Fig. 1 i9 a fragmentary perspective view of the eyeglasses
of the invention in a first embodlment;
Fig. 2 is a fragmentary, exploded, perspective view of the
eyeglas~es of Fig. 1~ illustrating the manner of connecting and
disconnecting the temple pieces to and from the Eront piece;
Figs. 3 and 4 are ~ragmentary perspective views illustrating
the eyeglasses of the invention in another embodiment~ with the
temple pieces connected to and disconnected from the front piece,
~ ~``
respectively; and
Fig. 5 is a fragmentary exploded view of the eyeg7ass
assembly of the present invention in a third embodiment.
As shown in the drawings, the eyeglass a~ser~ly to whlch
the present invention pertains comprises broadly a front frame
piece or "front" indicated generally at 10, to which are hinged
a pair of temple pieces, referred to genericall~ as "temp~es",
and indicated generally at 12.
The front frame piece includes a pair of lens-supporting
frames or rims 14 connected in the usual manner by a bridge 16.
Each of the lens-supporting frames carries on its outer margin
a bracket 18 on which is mounted a knuckle hinge component 20.
Temple 12 comprises the usual elongated wire or plastic
elongated member 22 which terminates at its outer end in an
ear-encircling loop or bow 2~. The temp~e has a sleeve extension
26 which may be fabricated from metal, or provlded with a metal
insert. Sleeve:26 mounts knuckle hinge components 28 which mate
with knuckle hinge components 20 on the front frame piece with
the vpenings through the knuckles reglsterlng in conventional
manner. The openings may be internally threaded and designed
to receive a threaded pin, not shown, which releasably couples
the two parts.
The connecting pin normally is o~ very small dimensions and
difficult to insert and remove without magnification and a
special appliance. It is the purpose of my invention to provlde
removable pin means which renders quick and easy the coupling
and uncoupling opera~ions ~o tha~ the front rame piece w~th
its lens components may be used independently when th~s is
5 desired, as in the case of a gas mask application
One such removable pin means is ~llustrated generally a~
30 in Figs. 1 and 2.
As illustrated, it may be fabricated rom a continuous len-
gth of wire or other spring materlal. It comprises an arm 32
which terminates at its ~orward end in a pin 34. The pin lies
substantially at right angles to the arm and ~s dlmensioned for
reception in hinge knuckles 2~, 28 when the knuckles are in
mated position with their respective openings aligned.
Arm 32 is mounted on the temple p-lece through the agency
of an integral, reversely-bent, rearward end 36 which may be
adherently united or welded to sleeve 26, as indicated at 38.
To facilitate the connecting and disconnecting operations~
arm 32 may be provided with an integral, outwardly extending
tab 40 which serves as a finger grip.
To operate the device, spring arm 32 is elevated to its
Fig. 2 position, knuckles 20, 28 mated~ and pin 34 inserted into
the registering openings in the knuckles. The device then assu-
mes its Fig. 1 position, with the temple pieces securely attached
to the front frame piece.
~hen it is desired to disconnect the temple pieces, the
procedure is reversed. Spring arm 32 is elevated, removing the
pin from the hinge knuckles. The two pieces then are separated.
The embodiment of Figs. 3 and 4 is similar, except that
different means o~ mounting the spring arm on each temple piece
is employed.
In this embodiment the spring pin assembly comprises
spring arm 42 having at its forward end ,a pin 44 which liès
substantially at right angles to the spring arm,
Integrally formed wlth the spring arm and pin is a mounting
clip 46 dimensioned for sliding frictional engagement with
10- temple piece 22. Its dimensions are such that it may be slid
on and off the temple piece at will. When it is ~n the operative
position of Figs. 3, it grips the temple piece and secures the
p~n in the connected position. However, it may be flexed to its
Fig. 4 position to disconnect the pin from the knuckles when it
is desired to disconnect the temple piece from the front frame
piece,
Still another embodiment of the eyeglass assembly of my
inventlon is illustrated in Fig. 5.
In this embodiment the removable pin means comprises a
spring arm 48 and an integral pin 50 which in its normal po-
sition lies spaced from and substantially parallel to the spring
arm. The pin asse~bly is releasably secured to the knuckle in
operative position through the agency of a mounting base 52
provided with an aperture 54. The aperture is si2ed to receive
the end of pin 50.
Accordingly, the pin assembly may be inserted in the kn-
uckle~ and locked in position by lnsertlng the end of pin 50
in base aperture 50 in the manner illustrated ln full line in
Flg. 5. However~ it may be sprung and removed to the dashed
line position of that figure when separation of the temple piece
from the front frame piecé is desired.
Having thus described my invention in preferred embodiments9
I claim:
