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US-12619098-B2 - Eyeglasses retention mechanism

US12619098B2US 12619098 B2US12619098 B2US 12619098B2US-12619098-B2

Abstract

The disclosed device is eyeglasses frame that is self-maintained upon a nose using pad arms attached to a nose bridge via a spring in each of the pad arms. The spring may be activated via one or more levers. As such, a lever would be activating a torsion spring by pulling the pad arms apart to allow for a passage of a nose bridge. Once the pad arms have been placed over the desired location along a nose bridge of a wearer, or removed therefrom, the levers are released returning the pad arms to a pinched orientation with respect to the nose bridge.

Inventors

  • Meyer Lasry

Assignees

  • Meyer Lasry

Dates

Publication Date
20260505
Application Date
20230201

Claims (14)

  1. 1 . A pince-nez vision aid device comprising: two frames disposed adjacently; said frames separated by a bridge; said bridge having a middle portion; a nose pad assembly comprising two arms; each of said two arms pivotably attaching to said bridge on either side of said middle portion; wherein said arms extend rearwardly from points of pivotal attachment of said arms to said bridge, wherein said arms attach levers issuing forwardly from the points of attachment, two springs; wherein said pivotal attachments are respectively spring-loaded by the springs, wherein the springs exert pressure on the nose bridge of a user proportional to the angular extension of the arms; a plurality of removable and replaceable nose pads of different sizes; wherein each said arm is configured to receive a nose pad, selected from the nose pads, by slidably threading an attachment member terminating said arm into an opening in the selected nose pad, wherein all the nose pads when attached to the respective attachment members are entirely disposed rearward of a plane defined by the two frames; wherein when the levers are pressed, the rearward extension of the arms provides an adjustable gap between the attachment members terminating the arms to accommodate the nose pads of different sizes and corresponding nose bridges of different widths, wherein at least partial compensation of the pressure is achievable by selection of nose pads of larger size and greater surface area.
  2. 2 . The vision aid device of claim 1 , wherein said middle portion of said bridge extending forward and said arms extending rearward serve as counterweights for each other.
  3. 3 . The vision aid device of claim 1 , wherein said arms include respective sections extended rearwardly and downwardly to provide a significant gap to receive the nose pad.
  4. 4 . The vision aid device of claim 1 , wherein downward portions of said two arms are angled away from each other.
  5. 5 . The vision aid device of claim 1 , further comprising lenses held in place by said bridge and said frames.
  6. 6 . The vision aid device of claim 1 , wherein said nose pad is manufactured as a single element to form a unitary pad having right and left nose pad sections and a nose pad bridge section connected therebetween.
  7. 7 . The vision aid device of claim 1 , wherein said arms extend rearward and angle away from a vertical axis of said frames.
  8. 8 . The vision aid device of claim 1 , wherein said arms include sections extending rearwardly then downwardly and further include a section extending again rearwardly.
  9. 9 . A method of constructing a pince-nez vision aid device to accommodate different widths of nose bridges of different users, the method comprising: disposing two frames adjacently; separating said frames by a bridge having a middle portion; providing a nose pad assembly having two arms; pivotably attaching said arms to said bridge on either side of said middle portion; wherein said arms extend rearwardly from points of pivotal attachment of said arms to said bridge, wherein said arms attach levers issuing forwardly from the points of pivotal attachment; providing a plurality of nose pads of different sizes which are removable and replaceable; configuring the arms to receive the nose pads by slidably threading attachment members terminating the arms into respective openings in the nose pads, wherein all the nose pads are entirely disposed rearward of a plane defined by the two frames; providing an adjustable gap between the attachment members terminating the arms, by the rearward extension of the arms, when pressing the levers to accommodate the nose pads of different sizes and corresponding nose bridges of different widths; spring-loading said pivotal attachments thereby exerting pressure on the nose bridge of the user proportional to the angular extension of the arms; and selecting a pair of nose pads from the nose pads of different sizes to accommodate a nose bridge width of a particular user; at least partially compensating for the pressure by selection of nose pads of larger size and greater surface area.
  10. 10 . The method of claim 9 , the method further comprising: pressing on the levers to provide the gap sufficient to receive the selected nose pads.
  11. 11 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising: balancing said middle portion of said bridge extending forward and said arms extending rearward, thereby serving as counterweights for each other.
  12. 12 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising: angling outward from each other downward extending sections of the two arms.
  13. 13 . The method of claim 9 , wherein said arms include sections extending rearwardly then downwardly and again rearwardly.
  14. 14 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising: manufacturing as a single element at least one of the nose pads to form a unitary pad having right and left nose pad sections and a nose pad bridge section connected therebetween.

Description

CLAIM OF PRIORITY This application is a continuation in part of a prior non-provisional utility application Ser. No. 17/357,989 filed on Jun. 25, 2021, of the same title and inventor; and further claims the benefit of a provisional patent application No. 63/044,448, filed on Jun. 26, 2020, the contents of which are fully incorporated herein by reference. FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a novel apparatus for removably mounting eyeglasses on one's nose. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Pince-nez style eyeglasses were originally popular in the early 20th century. The pince-nez style eye-glass frames comprise adjacent lenses that are separated by a bridge-like spring that exerts a force on an arch, thereby exerting a downward force on both lenses. This force causes the lenses to fold into each other and thereby pinch the nose bridge of a wearer between them. The pinching force is used to maintain the pince-nez frame mounted on a user's nose. Pince-nez remains an elegant and highly portable vision aid solution. However, this solution has enjoyed limited success due to serious drawbacks as explained below. One major downside of traditional pince-nez is that they tent to slip off of a nose at the least alacrity of motion. Therefore, a user may only wear them when engaging in a very mild activity, such as sitting down at a desk or reading in one spot. Pince-nez that are known in the art are unsuitable for any type of physical activity, such as running, walking or even turning one's head. The slightest motion tends to displace or dislodge the frames. Besides for this significant limitation, the pinching force of existing pince-nez frames is also quite uncomfortable and cannot be worn over a nose for prolonged periods of time. The aforementioned limitation also causes the pince-nez lenses to be quite small to keep the weight down. Larger lenses, such as those that are used in conventional eyeglasses frames with temples, will require a stiffer spring to compensate for the additional weight. While a stiffer bridge may, to some degree, solve the problem of maintaining pince-nez on a nose while engaging in mild physical activity, it also induces a greater degree of soreness and pain to the wearer's nose bridge area, which reduces the utility and appeal of a stiffer bridge embodiment. An additional downside is that pince-nez are less than ideal for wider noses. The pinching force tends to increase with a wider nose bridge since torsion force increases as the lenses are pushed further apart. Thus, pince-nez frames available in the art are limited by the type of possible activity as well as by a particular facial feature. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is the object of the disclosed device to provide an improved version of pince-nez eyeglasses. It is another object of the disclosed device to provide a pince-nez frame that doesn't get displaced with slightest movement of a wearer. It is still another object of the disclosed device to provide a pince-nez pinching mechanism that securely holds a pince-nez frame in place with increased comfort to the wearer. It is still a further object of the disclosed device to provide a full balanced frame, where the pinching mechanism is balanced against the bridge, which extends forward of the bridge, and where the lenses balance the lateral dimension of the frame. In one disclosed embodiment, the eyeglasses are self-maintained upon a nose using pad arms attached to a nose bridge via a spring in each of the pad arms. The spring may be activated via one or more levers. As such, a lever would be activating a torsion spring by pulling the pad arms apart to allow for a passage of a nose bridge. Once the pad arms have been placed over the desired location along a nose bridge of a wearer, or removed therefrom, the levers are released returning the pad arms to a pinched orientation with respect to the nose bridge. The pad arms are made in a twisted and substantially flared pattern so as to capture as much of surface area on each side of a nose bridge as possible. Furthermore, a twisted configuration as shown in the figures allows for increased comfort by alleviating pressure on the skin surface of a nose that is caused by the springs. Additionally, the added space resulting from the extended pad arms, for example the twisted or zigzag configuration, and where the nose pads are slightly flared backwardly away from the frame, allowing for more distribution of tension of the spring and for greater flexibility of positioning of eyeglasses on a wearer's nose. A bridge links the two adjacent lenses of the pince-nez. The preferred bridge extends forwardly by a distance that is proportional to the extension of the nose pads. The bridge serves the dual purpose of a) linking the adjacent lenses; and b) providing equilibrium of torque and weight to offset the downward force of the nose pads. In another embodiment the extension of the bridge is not as pronounced. At the same time, the pad arm