TWO-PIECE INTERLOCKING SYSTEM FOR TEMPORARY, PERMANENT, OR INTERCHANGEABLE ATTACHMENT BETWEEN RECEPTIVE HEADPIECE AND COSTUME HEADWEAR COMPONENTS CONTAINING BUILT-IN PROGRAMMABLE LED LIGHTS AND SOUND RESPONSIVE CAPABILITIES

Abstract

A method for producing realistic, lightweight, scaled to size facsimiles of animal antlers, horns and other three-dimensional objects for costume headwear, and a system of interlocking components that provide interchangeability, adaptability and versatility in costume looks. Costume components contain LED lights and a sound sensor, providing environmentally responsive capabilities with programmed responses (e.g.: flashing light patterns) when activated (e.g.: in response to music or cheering in a stadium). The system includes an adaptor to retrofit hats, and a headband designed for pets.

Claims

1. A detachable costume head ornament, which attaches to a headband, hat, and the like through an interlocking, twist-lock attachment mechanism (or similar connective fitting) wherein the decorative costume component includes a male or female fitting that connects via said attachment mechanism to a corresponding male or female fitting on a specialized receiving headband, hat insert, helmet and the like.

2. The two-piece interlocking costume headwear system of claim 1 further comprising realistic facsimiles of animal antlers, animal horns, other animal features, or other wearable holiday and seasonal dcor that are produced by using the method of 3D scanning an object, scaling to the desired size, adding a connective fitting part to the base of the object within the 3D model, and printing a 3D replica with a male/female connective fitting in its base; the costume component is then either replicated further through continued 3D printing, or the printed replica is used to produce a mold for mass production. Mass produced costume component pieces that are plastic injection molded will be cast with either a lightweight resin, foam, or the like (for a non-hollow but feather light piece) or by a rotational molding process (or similar) for a lightweight, hollow piece.

3. The two-piece interlocking costume headwear system of claim 1 further comprising costume components exhibiting three-dimensional features of mascots or logos that express affiliation with a sports team or other organization.

4. The two-piece interlocking costume headwear system of claim 1 further comprising a U-shaped headband made of plastic or acrylic (or similar material) or a flexible strip of plastic encased in fabric with an adjustable elastic band attached, which features a male or female fitting where the ornamental pieces will connect, to be either molded into the headband itself or attached via screw, rivet, snap, glue or the like.

5. The two-piece interlocking costume headwear system of claim 1 further comprising an insert for a baseball cap, hat, hood, and the like to be made of a flexible plastic strip (or similar) that fits under the crown of the hat or headwear and includes holes to line up with grommets or small holes punched in the top of the hat or headwear. Inserts under the hat or headwear will attach to the male or female fitting of a twist-lock or similar mechanism by a screw, rivet, or similar through a hole or grommet in hat or headwear, to make the hat or headwear receptive to attachable costume components of the same system.

6. The invention of claims 1-5, wherein the ornamental costume pieces contain internal addressable and programmable LED lights and a sensor capable of responding to external stimuli to produce a result (e.g. a sensor that is programmed to respond to the sound of music or cheering in a stadium by producing flashing LED light patterns).

7. The invention of claims 2, 3 and 6 without the twist-lock (or similar) attachment mechanism (i.e.: a one-piece costume headband or hat with lightweight realistic facsimiles of three-dimensional animal antlers, animal horns, and the like, that are permanently affixed to a headband or hat and that are produced using the method described in claim 2, and that contain programmable LED lights and a sound responsive sensor.

8. I claim the product comprising any feature described above, either individually or in combination with any feature, in any configuration.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Some embodiments of the present invention are illustrated as an example and are not limited by the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references may indicate similar elements and in which:

[0011] FIG. 1 depicts front, side and locked views of male/female parts of one example of a typical twist-lock type connective fitting for the universal attachment system, according to various embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows one example of a twist-lock connective fitting, in which a plug with flanges (11, 13) is inserted into the corresponding gaps in a receptacle (12, 14) and twisted to lock it into place (15).

[0012] FIG. 2 shows one example of a U-shaped headband (23) with an example of a twist-lock receptacle fitting (22) attached to the top with a rivet, screw, or similar (21), according to various embodiments described herein.

[0013] FIG. 3 shows an exploded perspective view of one example of an adjustable fabric-encased specialized receiving headband (35) with one example of a connective male or female twist-lock (or similar) receptacle/plug attachment fitting (37) attached to or molded into the flexible plastic insert (32), according to various embodiments described herein. The flexible plastic insert (32) is encased between two pieces of fabric (31, 33), the top piece of fabric having two holes (38) allowing for the exposure of the attachment fitting (37). A chin strap made of elastic (34) is made adjustable in size with bra strap adjustment rings and sliders.

[0014] FIG. 4 depicts various examples of 3D-printed or injection molded costume components (41, 42, 43) each, according to this embodiment, with a flanged plug (or similar connective fitting) either molded into, inserted into, or attached to its base (44), according to various embodiments described herein.

[0015] FIG. 5 shows an exploded perspective view of a U-shaped headband (56) and costume components (51) with attachment parts according to various embodiments described herein. In this embodiment, a flanged plug twist-lock (or similar) connective fitting (52) is either molded into, inserted into, or attached to the base of the costume component (51). The corresponding fitting (54) is attached to the U-shaped headband with a rivet (53, 55). FIG. 57 shows the U-shaped headband with costume components in locked (attached) position. FIG. 58 shows another embodiment, in this case a headband for cats and dogs (or other pets). The pet costume headband includes a flexible plastic insert (58.1) with grommets or holes to allow for connection between the two twist-lock (or similar) attachment fittings. Elastic straps (58.2) fit around the animal's ears and attach under the animal's chin with a Velcro chin strap (58.4). Costume components for the pet headband will attach using same attachment parts and methods as shown in FIGS. 51-55. FIG. 59 shows a U-shaped headband (59.4) and a different attachment method. In this embodiment, costume components (59.1) are attached by threading a screw (59.3) through a hole or grommet in the headband, and into a threaded insert (59.2) in the base of the costume component. Alternately, costume components can be attached with a screw directly screwed into the base of the component (without a threaded insert), or glued using epoxy.

[0016] FIG. 6 shows one embodiment of costume components fitted internally with programmable LED lights. In this embodiment, a strip of small LED lights (61) is either threaded into a hollow costume component (67), or placed into a mold prior to injection molding, thereby becoming encased/embedded into the plastic during the injection molding process. Wires (63) connecting the LED light strips to the battery, sound sensor, and on/off switch (65) will exit through the bottom of the costume component connector fitting (62) and through the bottom or side of the corresponding fitting (66), and the battery and switch are held in place and concealed in a small pocket (64) on the inside of the fabric-encased headband. Alternately, the battery and switch can be held in place with Velcro, straps, snaps, glue, and the like. In another embodiment, the electrical parts (battery, sound sensor, and switch) can be contained within the connective fittings themselves, either at the base of a costume component or in the corresponding fitting in the headband or hat.

[0017] FIG. 7 shows an exploded perspective of one example of a baseball hat (79) with a flexible plastic hat insert adaptor (76) and a connector such as a snap or a rivet (74,77), which enable the wearer to easily attach one half of the twist-lock attachment (in this case, the female receptacle) (73) to the top of the hat and the hat insert adaptor (76) through the corresponding grommets (75, 78) in the plastic hat insert adapter (76) and the top of the baseball hat. The hat insert adaptor allows a wearer to retrofit any hat, connecting the costume components (71) securely to the top of the hat and the plastic hat insert (76). The plastic hat insert adaptor enables the hat to receive and support the costume components (71) via corresponding interlocking fittings in the base of the components and the top of the hat (72, 73), according to various embodiments described herein.

[0018] FIG. 8 shows another perspective of the example shown in FIG. 7, with the hat insert adaptor, snap/rivet, connective (male/female) twist-lock type (or similar) mechanism and costume components with corresponding interlocking fittings, according to various embodiments described herein.

[0019] FIGS. 9 and 10 show further examples of costume components attached to various types of hats, hoods and the like, fitted with the plastic hat insert adaptor, according to various embodiments described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the term and/or includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. As used herein, the singular forms of a, an, and the are intended to include the plural forms as well as the singular forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms comprises and/or comprising, when used in this specification, specify the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

[0021] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one having ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and the present disclosure and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

[0022] In describing the invention, it will be understood that a number of techniques and steps are disclosed. Each of these has individual benefit and each can also be used in conjunction with one or more, or in some cases all, of the other disclosed techniques. Accordingly, for the sake of clarity, this description will refrain from repeating every possible combination of the individual steps in an unnecessary fashion. Nevertheless, the specification and claims should be read with the understanding that such combinations are entirely within the scope of the invention and the claims.

[0023] New methods for producing realistic costume headwear components and a system for attachment to various forms of headwear are discussed herein. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be evident, however, to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details.

[0024] The present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the invention, and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated by the figures or description below.

[0025] The present invention will now be described by referencing the appended figures representing preferred embodiments. FIG. 1 depicts an exploded perspective view of the elements that comprise one embodiment of the two-piece interlocking mechanism for costume headwear and the like (the system) according to various embodiments of the present invention. In preferred embodiments, a female twist-lock connective fitting (receptacle) (12,14) is attached to the receiving headband (23,35) with a rivet (21,53,55). Attachment may also be achieved with screw (59.3, 59.2), epoxy, or similar, or may be molded directly into the plastic headband or plastic hat insert adaptor itself. In preferred embodiments, a male twist-lock connective fitting (plug) (11,13) is molded or inserted into the base of the costume component (41-44). The plug connector may be attached to the base of the costume component through the molding or 3-D printing process, or via insertion into base and connection via screw and threaded insert, epoxy, or similar method. In the preferred embodiment, the plug has flanges on the side (13) that line up with corresponding gaps on the receptacle (14). The costume component is locked into the correct front-facing position by twisting its base (the plug) in the receptacle on headband or hat insert until the locked position is achieved (15, 57). In other embodiments, the configuration of the interlocking mechanism in this system is reversed, in that the male plug connector is located on the headband or hat insert, and the corresponding female receptacle is located on the base of the costume components. Other embodiments of the interlocking system include any and every method that secures the two components (costume component and headband and/or hat insert) in a secure, interlocked or connected position, including screw-on, press-on, snap-on, plug-in, clip-on, magnetic force, and the like, and is not limited to a twist-lock connective mechanism.

[0026] In preferred embodiments of the specialized receiving headband construction, a flexible strip of HDPE polyethylene, plastic or similar (32) is fitted with two receptacle connectors (12, 37, 54) by attachment via rivet (53,55), screw (59.3, 59.2), or via the molding process. The strip is encased in fabric (31,33). Two holes or grommets (38) in the fabric on the top of the headband allow for access to the receptacles. Costume components are then attached to the headband via the corresponding interlocking connective mechanism (11, 44, 52). The specialized, fabric-encased headband is secured on to the head of the wearer by an adjustable elastic strap, which is sewn into each end of the headband fabric casing (34) and made adjustable with bra strap rings and adjuster parts (34). In another embodiment, a simple U-shaped headband made of molded plastic or acrylic or similar (56) may be used as a substrate for the system, with the receptacle (54) molded directly into the headband or attached with a rivet (53,55), screw (59.3, 59.2), epoxy, and the like. In another embodiment of the invention, similar methods are applied to construct a headband for animals (58). A flexible plastic insert with holes (58.1) makes the headband receptive for use with the system described herein.

[0027] In preferred embodiments of the specialized hat insert system adaptor, a flexible strip of HDPE polyethylene, plastic or similar (76) with two holes corresponding to the two top/side grommets (75) on the crown of a standard baseball hat (79) or similar is fit underneath the crown of a hat in such a way that the holes in the hat insert (78) line up with the grommets (75) in the baseball hat (where applicable). If another type of hat is used (FIG. 9) and grommets or perforations do not already exist, two small holes may be poked into the fabric of the hat or cap corresponding with the existing holes in the hat insert. The receptacle connector (73) is attached to the top of the hat by a rivet (74,77), long prong snap, epoxy, screw or similar attaching from the underside of the hat insert (76), through the hole or grommet (78, 75) to the bottom of the receptacle (73), securing it to the top of the hat. Costume components (71) are then inserted into the receptacle and locked into place via the interlocking connecting mechanism (FIGS. 8-10).

[0028] In preferred embodiments of the system, the non-hollow costume components (41) are molded with a low-density urethane casting resin or casting foam. To preserve internal lighting capability, non-hollow costume components that are intended to light up will be cast with a slightly translucent resin material (milky white resin/plastic), allowing for light to pass through to the surface. Small addressable and programmable LED light strips (61) will be placed into the hollow mold, and will become embedded inside the casting resin once the molding process has taken place and the resin/plastic has cured. Wiring (63) to the coin cell battery, sound sensor, and on/off switch (66) will exit the costume component through the bottom of the component base attachment fitting (62) and through the bottom or side of the corresponding attachment fitting (66) and will be concealed in a small pocket in the headband (64), tucked into the cuff of a hat, or attached with Velcro, snap, strap or similar. Hollow costume components are made through a rotational molding process, or similar. In the preferred embodiment, small addressable and programmable RGB LED light strips (61) are threaded into the hollow costume component (67). The LED circuit is soldered to a real-time microcontroller and to the breakout pins of a sound sensor. A rechargeable power supply is supplied by a coin cell battery or the like, and wired to supply the components. The electronic components are bundled into a small packet which is held and concealed in a small pocket (64) built into the fabric-encased headband, or attached with Velcro, snap, strap, or similar to the headband, hat and the like.