Eyeware

Abstract

The objective of this invention is to provide eyeglasses with a temple length adjustment mechanism that addresses requirements such as the desire for a perfect fit to the head without needing to remove the glasses during adjustment, and particularly addresses the needs of guardians regarding the need for continued use as children grow and safe wearing. The eyeglasses of this invention include: a frame; temples with an open female threaded portion at the rear end opposite to the front end connected to the frame via a hinge; temple tips with a through hole, the rear end of which can be inserted into the through hole and moved forward and backward in the direction of temple extension; a coil spring received in the through hole and applying spring force between the temple and the temple tip; and an adjustment screw inserted into the through hole with its main body passing through the coil spring and its male thread engaging with the female thread, adjusting the length of the rear end of the temple received in the through hole by adjusting the engagement of the male and female threads.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a pair of eyeglasses. Prior Technology

[0002] To ensure comfortable wear of eyeglasses, such as ordinary glasses, various solutions are proposed to make the glasses fit snugly to the wearer's head. For example, interchangeable nose pads of different sizes or mechanisms that allow the temple tips to rotate relative to the temples are proposed. As one such solution, a mechanism is proposed to adjust the length of the temples by moving the temple tips forward and backward relative to the temples (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] [Previous Technical Documents] [Patent Literature] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 1-129230 Summary of the Invention

[0004] [The problem that the invention aims to solve] As a method to ensure a snug fit on the wearer's head, it is generally best to have it adjusted by a professional at an optician's shop, as described in reference 1. There are also cases where glasses can be adjusted from the wearer's side. However, regardless of whether the adjustment is done by a professional or is adjustable from the wearer's side, the common practice is to repeatedly remove and put on the glasses to confirm a proper fit before making adjustments. This process is difficult even for adults to perform fine adjustments. Especially in the case of preschool children wearing glasses, the children themselves cannot verbally describe the fit, forcing adults to visually confirm the fit while repeatedly removing and putting on the glasses for fine adjustments.

[0005] Furthermore, in the case of eyeglasses for children, in addition to the issue of a perfect fit to the head, there are also demands from guardians, such as the desire for continued use as the child grows and the need for safe wearing. Therefore, incorporating mechanisms that address these demands into the eyeglasses becomes a challenge. For example, in the eyeglasses disclosed in reference 1, a mechanism is used to increase the temple length by using a fixing screw to push back the side bar (temple) pressed against the ear clip (temple) by a spring from the rear side. However, in this mechanism, because a female threaded portion needs to be provided at the narrow rear end of the temple, the total length of the female threaded portion is inevitably shortened. The fixing screw engaged with such a female threaded portion may be either a countersunk screw without a screw head, or a screw head that allows the main body or screw head to protrude from the rear end of the temple, in order to prevent it from protruding from the rear end of the temple. This results in the following problems: in the former case, the adjustment of the temple length is limited to an extremely limited range; in the latter case, there is a risk of the protruding screw head scratching the wearer's head.

[0006] This invention was made to solve such problems by providing eyeglasses with a temple length adjustment mechanism, which addresses, for example, the desire to be able to easily and perfectly fit the head without removing them during adjustment, and especially addresses the requirements from guardians such as the desire for children to continue to use them as they grow and the desire for them to be worn safely.

[0007] [Technical means to solve the problem] One embodiment of the eyeglasses of the present invention includes: a frame; temples having a female threaded portion with an opening at the rear end opposite to the front end connected to the frame via a hinge; temple tips having a through hole, the rear end of the temple being able to move forward and backward relative to the extension direction of the temple by being inserted into the through hole; a coil spring being received in the through hole and applying a spring force between the temple and the temple tips; and an adjusting screw being inserted into the through hole with the main body of the coil spring passing through it and the male threaded portion engaging with the female threaded portion, thereby adjusting the receiving length of the rear end of the temple received in the through hole by adjusting the engagement amount of the male threaded portion and the female threaded portion.

[0008] [Effects of the Invention] According to the present invention, a pair of eyeglasses with a temple length adjustment mechanism can be provided, which addresses, for example, the desire to be able to easily and perfectly fit the head without removing the glasses during adjustment, and especially addresses the requirements from guardians, such as the desire for children to continue to use the glasses as they grow and the desire for them to be worn safely. Simple Explanation of the Diagram

[0009] Figure 1 is a perspective view of the eyeglasses equipped with the temple length adjustment mechanism of this embodiment. Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of the adjustment mechanism for adjusting the temple length. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of plane A of Figure 1 showing the longest and shortest states of the temple. Figure 4 is a three-dimensional view of the temple of the mirror. Figure 5 shows the overall 3D view of the foot covers. Figure 6 shows a side view of the glasses. Implementation

[0010] The present invention will now be described through embodiments thereof, but this is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to these embodiments. Furthermore, all the components described in the embodiments are not essential as mechanisms for solving the problem. Also, in the figures, those marked with the same symbol have the same or identical components. Furthermore, even in different embodiments, to avoid complexity, the marking symbols for the same or identical components already described are sometimes omitted.

[0011] Figure 1 is an overall perspective view of the eyeglasses 100 equipped with the temple length adjustment mechanism of this embodiment. Like ordinary eyeglasses, the eyeglasses 100 includes a lens 110, a frame 120, a hinge 130, temples 140, and temple tips 150. The frame 120 supports the lens 110, and the hinge 130 connects the frame 120 and the temples 140 in a manner that folds the temples 140 relative to the frame 120. The temple tips 150 are attached to the ear loops of the wearer's ears and are connected to the temples 140.

[0012] The eyeglasses 100 of this embodiment has a temple length adjustment mechanism at the connection between the temple 140 and the temple tips 150. By having a temple length adjustment mechanism, as shown by the arrow in the figure, the eyeglasses 100 can move the temple tips 150 forward and backward relative to the temple 140 within a certain range.

[0013] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as shown by the coordinate axes in the figure, the extension direction of the temple 140 is defined as the X-axis direction, the arrangement direction of the two lenses 110 is defined as the Y-axis direction, and the direction orthogonal to the X-axis and Y-axis directions is defined as the Z-axis direction. In the following figures, the orientation of the structures shown in each figure is displayed by also describing the same coordinate axes based on the configuration of the eyeglasses 100 as shown in Figure 1. In particular, the positive X-axis direction is sometimes referred to as "rear", the negative X-axis direction as "front", the positive Z-axis direction as "up", and the negative Z-axis direction as "down". Also, the side in the Y-axis direction where the wearer's head is located, sandwiched between the two open temples 140, is sometimes referred to as "inner", and the opposite side is referred to as "outer".

[0014] Next, the structure of the temple length adjustment mechanism will be explained. Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of the temple length adjustment mechanism. In particular, it shows the temple length adjustment mechanism provided on the left ear side of the eyeglasses 100, specifically the temple 140 and temple tip 150. The temple length adjustment mechanism spans the temple 140 and temple tip 150, and in addition to the temple 140 and temple tip 150, it is also composed of an adjustment screw 160 and a coil spring 170.

[0015] The temple 140 has a female threaded portion 141 with an opening on its rear end face 140a, which is opposite to the front end connected to the hinge 130. The female threaded portion 141 has threads along the X-axis direction inside the rear end face 140b, including the rear end face.

[0016] The temple cover 150 mainly comprises: an extension 151 that extends along the extension direction of the temple 140 and hangs above the wearer's ear; and a curved portion 152 that extends downward from the rear end of the extension 151 and along the back of the wearer's ear. The extension 151 is provided with a through hole 153, through which the rear end 140b of the temple 140 can move forward and backward relative to each other in the X-axis direction by being inserted into the through hole 153. More specifically, the through hole 153 is a through hole that extends along the approximately entire length of the extension 151 in the X-axis direction.

[0017] In this embodiment, the rear end of the extension 151 is formed by a curved surface, and the rear opening of the insertion hole 153 is configured to have its entire rear opening edge 153a visible on the outer side 151b, opposite to the inner side 151a facing the wearer's head. In other words, the rear opening edge 153a is not visible on the inner side 151a. By configuring the rear opening so that the rear opening edge 153a is not visible on the inner side 151a, when adjusting the temple length while the wearer is wearing the glasses 100, the possibility of the screwdriver's tip touching the wearer's head when the adjuster inserts the screwdriver into the rear opening as described later can be reduced. Furthermore, especially in the case of a child, who is prone to sweating during exercise, which can cause sweat to seep into the insertion hole 153 and accumulate dirt, it is more ideal to position the rear opening edge 153a on the outer side 151b. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the rear opening edge 153a is provided on the outer side surface 151b, which is formed by a curved surface. However, depending on the design of the foot cover 150, it can also be provided on the upper side, or extend from the upper side to the outer side.

[0018] More specifically, the curved portion 152 curves downward from below the rear opening edge 153a. By extending the curved portion 152 in this way, the rear opening edge 153a is located approximately at the rear end of the extension 151. Since the rear opening edge 153a is located approximately at the rear end of the extension 151, the adjuster can easily insert the tip of a screwdriver into the rear opening to easily adjust the temple length, even when the wearer is wearing the glasses 100. Furthermore, since various designs can be conceived for glasses with a temple length adjustment mechanism, the configuration of the curved portion is not limited to this; temples without a curved portion can also be used.

[0019] The coil spring 170 is entirely housed in the through hole 153, as will be described later, and functions as a compression spring that pushes the foot 150 toward the direction separating from the mirror foot 140. The adjusting screw 160 has a main body 161, a male threaded portion 162, and a screw head 163. In this embodiment, a full screw type adjusting screw 160 with a male threaded portion 162 also provided in the main body 161 is used, but it can also be a half screw type with a male threaded portion 162 provided in the range where it engages with the female threaded portion 141. In the case of the half screw type, the length of the main body 161 on the side without the male threaded portion 162, when the male threaded portion 162 and the female threaded portion 141 are engaged to their maximum length (the state shown in the lower part of Figure 3 described later), can be equal to the length of the portion not engaged with the female threaded portion 141. The adjusting screw 160 is inserted into the through hole 153 from the rear opening, with the main body 161 passing through the coil spring 170 housed in the through hole 153. The front end of the male thread 162 engages with a portion of the female thread 141 of the temple 140. If the adjusting screw 160 is a half-screw type, the threads do not contact the inner surface of the coil spring 170, which can reduce the wear of the coil spring 170.

[0020] The temple length adjustment mechanism of this embodiment adjusts the temple length by the amount by which the male thread 162 is screwed into the female thread 141. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of plane A of Figure 1 showing the longest and shortest states of the temple. Specifically, the upper view of Figure 3 shows the longest state, where the engagement length between the female thread 141 and the male thread 162 is set to the shortest, and the lower view of Figure 3 shows the shortest state, where the engagement length between the female thread 141 and the male thread 162 is set to the longest.

[0021] The through hole 153 has a regulating part 154 inside which regulates the position of the screw head 163 of the adjusting screw 160. Specifically, the regulating part 154 is provided inside the through hole 153 as a dividing wall for a through hole that allows the main body 161 of the adjusting screw 160 to pass through but does not allow the screw head 163 to pass through. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the orthogonal section (YZ section) of the inner cylinder space on the front side, which is divided by the regulating part 154, is rectangular as described later, and the cross-sectional shape of the orthogonal section of the inner cylinder space on the rear side is circular.

[0022] The regulating section 154 regulates the position of the adjusting screw 160 and defines a space for housing the coil spring 170. Specifically, the coil spring 170 is housed in the inner cylinder space in front of the insertion hole 153, with its rear end contacting the spring receiving surface 154a, which serves as the front wall of the regulating section 154, and its front end contacting the rear end face 140a of the temple 140. The coil spring 170 is a compression spring, and while housed in the inner cylinder space in front of the insertion hole 153, it continuously pushes the spring receiving surface 154a and the rear end face 140a, exerting a pushing force in the direction in which the temple 140 and the temple cap 150 separate.

[0023] When the front end of the male thread 162 of the adjusting screw 160 is screwed into a portion of the female thread 141, the position of the screw head 163 relative to the rear end face 140a of the temple 140 is determined. By pushing the abutment surface 154b of the regulating part 154, which is pushed by the coil spring 170, against the screw head 163, the temple sleeve 150 can maintain a stable stationary state relative to the temple 140. At this time, the rear end 140b of the temple 140 is inserted into the through hole 153 with a length covering the entire length of the receiving section, as shown in the figure.

[0024] The engagement amount of the male thread portion 162 relative to the female thread portion 141 is adjusted by rotating the adjusting screw 160 with a screwdriver inserted from the rear opening. As the engagement amount increases, the rear end 140b of the temple 140 is more fully accommodated within the through hole 153, resulting in a shorter temple length (the total length of the temple 140 and the temple sleeve 150). For example, when the engagement amount is increased until the coil spring 170 is in its most compressed state, the length of the rear end 140b is at its maximum, and the temple length is at its shortest (the state shown in the lower part of Figure 3). Conversely, when the engagement amount is kept at its minimum, the length of the rear end 140b is at its shortest, and the temple length is at its longest (the state shown in the upper part of Figure 3). Therefore, the difference between the length of the rear end 140b when the temple length is at its longest and the length of the rear end 140b when the temple length is at its shortest constitutes the adjustment margin for the temple length.

[0025] The minimum engagement amount is determined to ensure that the temple cap 150 remains stable and stationary relative to the temple 140 without wobbling. For this purpose, it is preferable that the rear end 140b fits precisely into the through hole 153, and it is also preferable that the adjusting screw 160 has high rigidity. The adjusting screw 160, in its insertion into the through hole 153 provided within the temple cap 150, is preferably of a small diameter, such as M1.2 or M1.4. Furthermore, especially in cases intended for children, it is ideal to allow for a longer adjustment margin as the child grows; therefore, it is preferable that the adjusting screw 160 has a relatively long overall length and high rigidity. Given the increasing popularity of lightweight resin eyeglasses, in this case, the adjusting screw 160 is preferably a resin-molded screw. If a resin-molded adjusting screw 160 is used for the female thread portion 141 of the resin temple 140, compared with the case of using a metal adjusting screw 160, the wear of the threads of the female thread portion 141, which is a problem due to continuous use, can be reduced. Furthermore, the same applies to resin-molded screws; it is preferable to use high-rigidity super engineering plastics such as PEEK resin as the material.

[0026] Furthermore, as described above, since the adjusting screw 160 is rotated by a screwdriver inserted through the rear opening, it is preferable to insert the front end of the screwdriver into the through hole 153 to a certain extent so that the adjuster can easily perform such an operation. Therefore, in this embodiment, the position of the contact surface 154b in the regulating part 154 that contacts the screw head 163 (indicated by a1 in the upper part of FIG3) is set to be within a range of 5 mm or more but less than 10 mm from the rear opening of the through hole 153 (indicated by b1 in the upper part of FIG3). Moreover, the position of the rear opening is, for example, set at the intersection of the central axis of the through hole 153 and the edge 153a of the rear opening.

[0027] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as described above, the coil spring 170 is a compression spring that exerts a spring force in the direction in which the temple 140 and the temple cover 150 separate. Using a coil spring 170 as a compression spring allows for easy adjustment while the glasses 100 are worn. Specifically, the adjuster initially sets the length to a position longer than optimal, and then gradually tightens the adjusting screw 160 until the curved portion 152 of the temple cover 150 fits snugly behind the wearer's ear, thus achieving the optimal length. This adjustment method, from a loosely fitted position to the optimal fit, is obviously effective for adults, but especially for children who have difficulty verbally expressing their comfort level. Alternatively, depending on other requirements, the coil spring can be configured as a tension spring. In such a configuration, for example, a retaining portion can be provided on both the rear end face 140a and the spring receiving surface 154a to secure each end of the tension spring.

[0028] Based on this adjustment mechanism for adjusting the length of the temple tips, a longer (more threads) female thread portion 141 can be provided at the rear end 140b of the temple tip 140, and a correspondingly longer (more threads) adjusting screw 160 with a male thread portion 162 can be used, thus achieving a greater adjustment margin than the previous mechanism. Therefore, for example, in the case of a child wearing glasses 100, it can be used continuously to accommodate a certain period of growth. Furthermore, generally speaking, the positions of the left and right ears are asymmetrical and slightly offset, so if the left and right ears can be adjusted by adjusting the adjusting screws 160, the fit to the head can be further improved. Also, since the screw head 163 does not protrude from the rear opening edge 153a of the insertion hole 153, there is no risk of scratching the wearer's head. In other words, glasses 100 can be worn safely.

[0029] In this embodiment, the temple length adjustment mechanism, as described above, inserts the rear end 140b of the temple 140 into the insertion hole 153 of the temple cap 150. By rotating the adjusting screw 160, the temple length can be adjusted by moving it forward or backward relative to the extension direction of the temple 140. In the eyeglasses 100 employing such an adjustment mechanism, from the viewpoints of ease of adjustment during wear and stability during wear, it is preferable that the temple cap 150 does not rotate relative to the temple 140 about its extension direction. Therefore, in this embodiment, the eyeglasses 100, with the rear end 140b of the temple 140 inserted with clearance into the inner cylinder space in front of the insertion hole 153 and not rotating about its extension direction, forms a non-circular cross-sectional shape with each of the orthogonal sections relative to the extension direction.

[0030] Figure 4 is a perspective view of the temple 140 as viewed from the rear end. As shown, the rear end 140b of the temple 140 has a rectangular cross-sectional shape as an orthogonal section relative to the extension direction. Figure 5 is a perspective view of the temple cap 150 as viewed from the front end. As shown, the inner cylinder space (the front inner cylinder space is distinguished by the regulating part 154) connected to the front opening by the insertion hole 153 of the temple cap 150 has a rectangular cross-sectional shape as an orthogonal section relative to the extension direction, similar to the rectangle of the rear end 140b of the temple 140. If each cross-sectional shape is rectangular, they can fit together and move forward and backward along the extension direction, and rotation around the extension direction is suppressed. Furthermore, it is not limited to the cross-sectional shape of each orthogonal section being a non-circular shape that is similar to each other, as long as the foot cover is configured not to rotate around the extension direction of the temple. For example, a convex track portion and a concave guide portion that mesh with each other along the extension direction can be provided in one of the inner cylinder spaces on the rear end 140b and the front side of the insertion hole 153.

[0031] Figure 6 is a side view of the eyeglasses 100. As described above, the temple tips 150 have a curved portion 152, which can be fitted snugly behind the wearer's ear by appropriately adjusting the length of the temple tips. However, even if the curved portion 152 is fitted snugly behind the ear, if, for example, the lens 110 is heavy or the overall balance of the eyeglasses 100 is poor, it will shift in the tilt direction indicated by the dashed arrow during wear.

[0032] As with the eyeglasses 100 of this embodiment, in order to maintain the overall balance of the eyeglasses 100 when the temple length is extended or shortened by the adjustment mechanism, it is important to appropriately select the position of the hinge 130 relative to the frame 120. Through repeated experiments, the inventors of this application have concluded that the optimal placement of the hinge 130 (as shown as a2 in Figure 6) is within a range of 5% to 50% from the top of the frame 120 in the vertical direction (as shown as b2 in Figure 6) (as shown as c2 in Figure 6). If the hinge 130 is positioned within this range, even if the temple length changes due to the adjustment mechanism, it is still easy to maintain a perfect fit to the wearer's head.

[0033] Furthermore, in the eyeglasses 100 of this embodiment, it is conceivable that the frame 120 supporting the lens 110 is located around it. For example, in the case where the frame is only along the upper part of the lens and the lower part of the lens is supported by a metal wire extending from the frame, the area shown as b2 in FIG6 is the area defined by the frame and the metal wire.

[0034] Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the X-axis direction was taken as the extension direction of the temple 140. In practice, the glasses can be designed using complex three-dimensional curved surfaces or a combination of line segments, assuming the wearer's head. Even with such glasses, an adjustment mechanism identical to that of the glasses 100 can be incorporated. Moreover, glasses incorporating the aforementioned adjustment mechanism are not limited to children's glasses but can also be applied to adult glasses. For example, in cases where multiple people share a pair of glasses, the temple length can be adjusted to fit each wearer's head. Furthermore, it is not limited to ordinary glasses but can also be applied to MR (Mixed Reality) glasses, etc.

[0035] 100: Glasses 110: Lens 120: Picture frames 130: Hinges 140: Temples 140a: Rear end face 140b: Rear end 141: Female thread section 150: Foot covers 151: Extension 151a: Inner surface 151b: Outer surface 152: Bend 153: Through hole 153a: Rear opening edge 153b: Anterior opening edge 154: Regulation Department 154a: Spring bearing surface 154b: Abutment surface 160: Adjusting screw 161: Main body 162: Male thread section 163: Screw head 170: Coil spring a1, a2: Position A: Face b1, b2, c2: Range X, Y, Z: Axes

Claims

1. A pair of eyeglasses, comprising: a frame; temples having a female threaded portion with an opening at a rear end opposite to the front end connected to the frame via a hinge; temple tips having an insertion hole, wherein the rear end of the aforementioned temple is movable in the direction of extension of the aforementioned temple by insertion into the insertion hole; a coil spring received in the aforementioned insertion hole, applying a spring force between the aforementioned temple and the aforementioned temple tips; and an adjusting screw inserted into the aforementioned insertion hole with its main body passing through the aforementioned coil spring and its male threaded portion engaging with the aforementioned female threaded portion, thereby adjusting the receiving length of the rear end received in the aforementioned insertion hole by adjusting the engagement amount of the aforementioned male threaded portion and the aforementioned female threaded portion.

2. The eyeglasses of claim 1, wherein the opening edge of the aforementioned through hole, which connects to the rear opening of the screw head of the aforementioned adjusting screw, is provided in the aforementioned temple and on a side different from the inner side facing the wearer's head.

3. The eyeglasses of claim 2, wherein the aforementioned temple tips have a curved portion extending from the lower part of the aforementioned opening edge and along the back of the wearer's ear.

4. The eyeglasses as claimed in claim 3, wherein the aforementioned hinge is positioned in a vertical direction relative to the aforementioned frame, within a range of 5% to 50% from the upper part.

5. The eyeglasses of claim 1, wherein the aforementioned through hole has a regulating part that regulates the position of the screw head of the aforementioned adjusting screw, and the contact position of the aforementioned regulating part that connects with the aforementioned screw head is set to be within a range of 5 mm or more but less than 10 mm from the rear opening of the aforementioned through hole.

6. The eyeglasses of claim 1, wherein the aforementioned rear end is inserted into the aforementioned through hole in such a manner that the aforementioned temple tips do not rotate about the aforementioned extension direction of the aforementioned temples.

7. The eyeglasses of claim 1, wherein the aforementioned helical spring is a compression spring located between the aforementioned temple and the aforementioned temple sleeve, which pushes the aforementioned temple sleeve in a direction away from the aforementioned temple.

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