Device for attaching a hair enhancer to a person's hair and hair enhancement apparatus incorporating same

Abstract

A device usable for attaching a hair enhancer to a person's hair and a hair enhancement apparatus incorporating such a device include a strip of flexible material, at least one hair clip attached to a first side of the strip of material, and an adhesive layer attached to a second side of the strip of material. The adhesive layer facilitates attachment of the device to a hair enhancer, such as a hair extension. The strip of material may be sized and shaped to accommodate one hair clip or a plurality of hair clips (e.g., a row of hair clips). The attachment device may also include a backing paper affixed to a side of the adhesive layer which is to be attached to the hair enhancer. In such a case, the backing paper may be removable by a user to enable the adhesive layer to be attached to the hair enhancer.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) upon U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61 / 342,532, entitled “Clip Strip” and filed on Apr. 14, 2010, solely to the extent of the subject matter disclosed in said provisional application, which application is incorporated herein by this reference as if fully set forth herein. This application also claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) upon U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61 / 404,210, entitled “Clip Strip” and filed on Sep. 30, 2010, solely to the extent of the subject matter disclosed in said provisional application, which application is incorporated herein by this reference as if fully set forth herein.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]1. Field of the Invention[0003]The present invention relates generally to the field of hair enhancement products and, more particularly, to a device for attaching a hair enhancer to a user's hair and a hair enhancement apparatus incorporatin...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0012]A second objective of the present invention is to provide an attachable strip of a thin material, such as polyurethane or lace, to which hair clips are attached to aid in the installation of a hair enhancer, such a hair extension, an integration piece, a hairpiece, or a wig, to a user's hair.

[0013]Another objective of the present invention is to provide flexibility to owners of semi-permanent / long-term use hair enhancers, such as adhesive tape hair extensions, by enabling the owners to temporarily convert their semi-permanent hair enhancers to temporary (e.g., daily use) clip-in enhancers through use of a device that includes hair clips attached to a thin film to aid in the attachment and removal of the hair enhancer. For example, the attachment device may be secured to the adhesive tape of semi-permanent hair extensions to at least temporarily convert the extensions to clip-in extensions.

[0015]Generally, the present invention encompasses a device usable for attaching a hair enhancer to a person's hair and a hair enhancement apparatus incorporating such a device. According to one embodiment, the attachment device includes a strip of flexible material, at least one hair clip attached to a first side of the strip of material, and an adhesive layer attached to a second side of the strip of material. The adhesive layer facilitates attachment of the device to the hair enhancer, which may be, for example, a hair extension, a wig, a toupee, a hairpiece, or an integration piece. The strip of material may be sized and shaped to accommodate one hair clip or a plurality of hair clips (e.g., a row of hair clips). Additionally, the strip of material may be polyurethane, lace, or any other type of flexible support material capable of supporting a predetermined quantity of hair clips. The hair clip(s) may be attached to the adhesive layer using an adhesive, by sewing, or by other means. Additionally, the adhesive layer may be implemented using a double-sided tape or other adhesive material.

[0018]According to one embodiment, the attachment device disclosed herein provides a quick and simple way to convert an existing adhesive hair extension into a clip-in hair extension, without having to sew or otherwise secure each individual clip onto the extension. The clips can also be added to hair extensions or other hair enhancers that do not have adhesive attachments. In one embodiment, the hair clips are sewn or otherwise adhered to a thin flexible strip of material that comes with a removable lining on the adhesive side of the device. The liner may be simply removed to allow the attachment device (sometimes referred to below as a “clip strip”) to be applied to an existing hair extension, which may come with or without adhesive. While the discussion below focuses on the use of the attachment device with hair extensions, one skilled in the art will readily recognize and appreciate that the attachment device may be used with or incorporated into other hair enhancers, such as wigs, toupees, and integration pieces; therefore, the discussion below with regard to hair extensions is meant to be an example and not a limitation.

[0021]The present invention also provides users that have excessive top head hair thinning or baldness with a simple option for modifying existing hairpieces as their hair consistency changes. For example, the attachment device of the present invention enables users to customize their hairpieces as the users' hair grows in from chemotherapy, for example. Inexpensive customization of existing hairpieces is an important benefit of the attachment device of the present invention due to the typically expensive nature of many hairpieces.

[0022]No hair enhancer attachment devices or hair enhancers are presently known to include an adhesive attached to a thin strip of material to which is sewn or otherwise attached one or more hair clips. The present invention allows for quick and easy installation of a hair enhancer attachment device to a hair enhancer, as well as easy installation and removal of a hair extension or other hair enhancer to and from a user's hair. The present invention also creates a more versatile hair enhancer for the end user and better enables hair enhancer customization by users and professional stylists.

Problems solved by technology

Many users outside of these areas also use hair extensions because naturally growing hair to a desired length may require a long period of time.

Both methods can be time consuming, damaging to the user's natural hair, and difficult to remove from the user's hair.

Thus, this attachment technique is cumbersome because the end user must sew each individual hair clip by hand or machine to the hair extension.

However, pre-sewn extensions do not always have the hair clips located at the most advantageous positions for the style, comfort, or look that is desired by the user.

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