Nosepad for an eyeglasses nosepiece and a connecting system between pin and nosepad in an eyeglasses nosepiece

Abstract

A nosepad for an eyeglasses nosepiece comprises: a pad defining a supporting surface which can be rested directly on a wearer's nose; a connecting portion made as one with the pad and having a through hole by which it is connected to a mounting pin of a frame; and an insert which is at least partly embedded in the pad. The pad and the connecting portion are made entirely of an elastically deformable material which is transparent so that a graphical design and/or a text and/or an advertising logo appearing on the insert can be made visible from the outside.

Claims

1. A nosepad for an eyeglasses nosepiece, comprising: a pad which is at least partly transparent and which defines a supporting surface which is adapted to rest directly on a wearer's nose; a connecting portion fixed to the pad and having a through hole by which it is connectable to a mounting pin integral with a frame of the eyeglasses; an insert which is at least partly embedded in the pad and which is visible from the outside through a transparent portion of the supporting surface of the pad; wherein at least the connecting portion of the nosepad is made of a material which is deformable partly plastically and partly elastically, wherein the insert comprises a plate having, on a side opposite the supporting surface of the pad, a pair of projections which are at least partly not coated with the deformable material, said pair of projections being at least partly not embedded in the pad, and being arranged on opposite sides of the connecting portion, wherein at least one of the projections has a portion which is located on the outside of the connecting portion and is in contact therewith to encircle it, and wherein the at least one projection encircling the connecting portion defines an elastic element configured to counteract expansion of the connecting portion.

2. The nosepad according to claim 1, wherein the insert has a surface which bears a graphical design and/or a text and/or a logo.

3. The nosepad according to claim 1, wherein the insert is made of a rigid galvanized material.

4. The nosepad according to claim 1, wherein the insert and the connecting portion of the nosepad are made of different materials.

5. The plate according to claim 1, wherein the insert is embedded in a part formed by moulding and comprising the pad and the connecting portion.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) These and other features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred, non-limiting example embodiment of it, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 shows an eyeglasses nosepiece according to this invention;

(3) FIG. 2 shows the nosepiece of FIG. 1, with the nosepads removed in order to better illustrate the mounting arms of the nosepiece;

(4) FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the nosepiece of FIG. 1;

(5) FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a nosepad according to the invention and used on the nosepiece of FIG. 1;

(6) FIG. 5 shows a mould used for making the nosepad of FIG. 4 in a cross section through the line V-V of FIG. 6;

(7) FIG. 6 shows the mould of FIG. 5 in a cross section through the line VI-VI;

(8) FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a variant embodiment of the nosepad of FIG. 4;

(9) FIG. 8 is a different perspective view showing the nosepad of FIG. 7;

(10) FIG. 9 shows the nosepad of FIG. 7, in a side view.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

(11) In the accompanying drawings, the numeral 1 denotes in its entirety a nosepiece for eyeglasses, associated with a part of a frame (more specifically, the bridge P of a frame).

(12) As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the nosepad comprises a pair of arms 2 which extend away from the bridge P in a direction substantially perpendicular thereto.

(13) Each arm 2 has, at the free end of it opposite the bridge P, a wide-section portion 3.

(14) Preferably, each arm 2 also has a pair of lateral protuberances 4 which extend in opposite directions and divide the arm 2 into an upper, supporting portion 2a and a lower, fastening portion 2b.

(15) The lateral protuberances 4 and the lower portion 2b of the arm are oriented in such a way as to form, together, three co-planar branches whose function is explained below.

(16) In the embodiment illustrated, the cross section of the arms 2 is quadrangular, and more specifically, rectangular or square. Their cross section might, however, have a different shape, for example circular.

(17) As shown in FIG. 1, each arm 2 is associated with a nosepad 5 mounted at the lower end of the arm and, more specifically, at the lower, fastening portion 2b, which thus defines a mounting pin for the nosepad 5.

(18) More in detail, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the nosepad comprises a pad 5a which is at least partly transparent and which defines a supporting surface S which can be rested directly on a wearer's nose, and a connecting portion 5b fixed to the pad 5a and having a through hole 6 by which it is connected to the mounting pin 2b (defined by the lower, fastening portion 2b of the arm 2).

(19) In the embodiment illustrated, the through hole 6 has a circular cross section. Its cross section, however, might have a different shape, for example, rectangular or square.

(20) Whatever the case, the cross section of the through hole 6 is preferably uniform along the full length of the hole 6.

(21) Preferably, the supporting surface S, which may be flat or slightly convex, is substantially elliptical in shape, with a main direction of extension along the axis of the through hole 6.

(22) More specifically, the connecting portion 5b is located on the side opposite the supporting surface S.

(23) Within the pad 5a there is an at least partly embedded insert 7, which is visible from the outside through a transparent portion 8 of the supporting surface S of the pad 5a.

(24) The insert 7 comprises a substantially flat plate 7a bearing, on a front surfaces of it facing the supporting surface S, a graphical design and/or a text and/or an advertising logo.

(25) The plate 7a of the insert 7 is entirely embedded in the material constituting the pad 5a.

(26) The insert 7 also comprises a pair of projections 7b which are at least partly not embedded in the pad 5a and which are associated with the plate 7a, on the back thereof (that is to say, on the side opposite the surface bearing the graphical design and/or text and/or advertising logo).

(27) In other words, at least an end part of the projections 7b extends beyond the outer dimensions of the pad 5a, as shown in FIG. 4.

(28) The two projections 7b are parallel to, and spaced from, each other in such a way that the two projections 7b are positioned on opposite sides of the connecting portion 5b. In other words, the connecting portion 5b is included between the two projections 7b of the insert 7.

(29) Advantageously, at least the connecting portion 5b is made of a material which is deformable at least elastically.

(30) Preferably, the pad 5a and the connecting portion 5b are made as one piece with the aforementioned material which is deformable (at least elastically or at least partly elastically).

(31) Advantageously, the at least elastically deformable material is transparent and is preferably an elastically flexible polymeric material. For example, the material is a material selected from the group comprising rubber, silicone, plasticized PVC (that is PVC with additives designed to confer deformability on the PVC) or polymer blends.

(32) The insert 7, on the other hand, is made of a rigid, galvanized material, preferably a plastic material. This enables precise compliance with mould tolerances, which is very difficult with inserts made of metal.

(33) In a connecting system (joint) between pin 2b and nosepad 5 in a nosepiece for eyeglasses, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the nosepad 5 is connected to the mounting pin 2b by insertion of the mounting pin 2b into the through hole 6 of the connecting portion 5b.

(34) The coupling between the pin 2b and the hole 6 may be an interference fit (preferable solution), in which case the adjustability of the nosepad 5 is provided by the deformability of the material the connecting portion 5b is made of, or a clearance fit, in which case the adjustability of the nosepad 5 is provided by the clearance between the pin 2b and the hole 6.

(35) The wide-section portion 3 at the end of the arm 2 provides the means whereby the connecting portion 5b is held to the arm 2 since the connecting portion 5b remains confined between the wide-section portion and the two lateral protuberances 4 of the arm 2.

(36) Moreover, the pad 5a of the nosepad 5 remains with its rear surface in abutment against the two lateral protuberances 4, which thus limit the angular excursion of the nosepad 5 in rotation about the axis of the hole 6. FIGS. 5 and 6 show a mould 8 for making a nosepad 5 according to the invention in two cross section views along perpendicular directions.

(37) The mould 8 comprises a first portion (or lower half-mould) 9 and a second portion (or upper half-mould) 10.

(38) The first portion 9 of the mould 8 has a bottom cavity 11 designed to make the connecting portion 5b of the nosepad 5 and, viewed in transversal cross section, being substantially in the shape of a U.

(39) At the sides of the bottom cavity 11 there are two protrusions 12 defining supporting points for the projections 7b of the insert 7. More specifically, therefore, the distance between the protrusions 12 substantially corresponds to the distance between the projections 7b of the insert.

(40) Astride the intersection between the two parts 9, 10 of the mould 8 there is an upper cavity 13 which is designed to make the pad 5a of the nosepad 5.

(41) The upper cavity 13 and the bottom cavity 11 are in communication with each other and sitting operatively astride them is the insert 7.

(42) The insert 7, however, does not entirely separate the two cavities 11, 13 since the extension of the insert 7 in the plane defined by its plate 7a is less than the extension of the pad 5a of the nosepad 5 and the material constituting the pad 5a fully covers the plate 7a of the insert 7 (FIGS. 5 and 6).

(43) In the bottom cavity 11 there is also a movable core 15 designed to make the through hole 6 in the connecting portion 5b.

(44) A method for making the nosepad 5 according to the invention comprises the following steps: preparing the mould 8 described above; preparing an insert 7 in the mould 8; filling the mould 8 (preferably by injection, or by casting) with a material having the properties described above) in the liquid state and such as to define, once cooled, a transparent and at least elastically deformable portion of the nosepad 5.

(45) The step of preparing the insert 7 in the mould 8 is accomplished by resting the projections 7b of the insert 7 on the protrusions 12 of the mould 8 in such a way that between the protrusions 7b there is an empty space which can be filled with the moulding material. More specifically, the empty space defines a part of the bottom cavity 11 designed to make the connecting portion 5b.

(46) In this situation, the bottom cavity 11 is delimited laterally by the projections 7b and the protrusions 11, at the bottom on the side of the first part 9 of the mould, and at the top on the side of the plate 7a of the insert 7.

(47) The step of filling the liquid material into the mould 8 thus makes the pad 5a and the connecting portion 5b as a single piece by a single technological moulding process.

(48) The present invention achieves the preset aims, overcoming the disadvantages of the prior art.

(49) Making the connecting portion from material which is deformable at least elastically facilitates fitting and removal of the nosepad to and from the respective pin.

(50) Moreover, making the pad and the connecting portion as a single piece from a transparent and elastically deformable material makes it possible to obtain a nosepad provided with an embedded insert and having excellent properties of adjustability on the pin and good reliability of fitting/removing the nosepad thanks to the material used.

(51) With regard to the variant embodiment of the nosepad illustrated in FIGS. 7-9, attention is drawn to the following.

(52) The insert 7 comprises at least one projection 7b, which is (at least partly) not covered by the deformable material. Preferably, the insert 7 comprises the plate 7a and the projection 7b extends from the plate 7a. Preferably, the insert 7 has two projections 7b which preferably extend from the plate 7a in the same direction as that in which the connecting portion 5b protrudes (that is, the direction opposite to that in which the supporting surface S faces).

(53) Preferably, at least one of the projections 7b has a portion which is located on the outside of the perforated connecting portion 5b and is in contact therewith to encircle it. Thus, the projection 7b encircles the outside of the connecting portion 5b. The projection 7b defines an elastic element. In light of this, it should be noted that the projections 7b do not surround the connecting portion 5b completely but have a break in them.

(54) The projection 7b encircling the connecting element 5b to define an elastic element is configured to apply its elastic force to counteract expansion of the connecting portion 5b (resulting from expansion of the hole 6 therein). Also, preferably, the pad 5a defines on the face from which the connecting portion 5b protrudes two bulges 16 (made by moulding).

(55) The bulges 16 are a pair of bulges. The bulges 16 are located on one side of the connecting portion 5b in the proximity of a mouth of the hole 6 of the selfsame connecting portion 5b.

(56) Thus, the bulges 16 are positioned at a predetermined distance from the connecting portion 5b, relative to the direction defined by the axis of the hole 6 in the connecting portion 5b itself.

(57) Preferably, the bulges 16 are spaced from one another (along a direction perpendicular to the axis of the hole 6) by a distance greater than the diameter of the hole 6 in the connecting portion 5b. Also, preferably, the bulges 16 are positioned symmetrically about an axis of the hole 6.

(58) Operatively, when the nosepad 5 is mounted on the pin 2b, the lateral protuberances 4 rest on the bulges 16. Thus, the bulges limit the tilting movement about the axis of the hole 6 of the nosepad 5. Since the bulges 16 are made of the soft, flexible material, the tilting movement is not entirely prevented but reduced and dampened. Advantageously, this makes the nosepad and the fastening system thereof particularly robust and reliable, even after prolonged use.

(59) Also, preferably, the pad 5a defines a hole 17 on the face from which the connecting portion 5b protrudes. The hole 17 places a portion of a surface of the insert 7 facing the direction opposite to the supporting surface S of the pad 5a in communication with the outside of the nosepad 5.

(60) The purpose of the hole is to help keep the insert 7 in the correct position when it is inside the mould, during moulding. In other words, this hole is a result of the fact that the mould comprises a stem onto the end of which the insert 7 rests (the insert also being supported on the mould by the at least one projection 7b). The hole 17 corresponds to the volume occupied by the part of the stem surrounded by the injected material during moulding.