Eyewear

Abstract

To provide an eyewear having a temple length adjusting mechanism, which meets requests from a guardian or the like, for example, to just fit the eyewear to the head simply so as not to require putting on and off at the time of adjustment, to continuously use the eyewear in accordance with the growth of a child especially when the child wears the eyewear, and to safely wear the eyewear.SOLUTION: The eyewear includes a lens frame, a temple provided with a female screw portion having an opening at a rear end opposite to a front end connected to the lens frame via a hinge, an end cover provided with an insertion hole into which a rear end portion including the rear end of the temple is inserted to be relatively movable forward and backward in an extending direction of the temple, a coil spring accommodated in the insertion hole and exerting a spring force between the temple and the end cover, and an adjusting screw having a body portion inserted into the insertion hole so as to penetrate the coil spring, a male screw portion screwed with the female screw portion, and an accommodation length of the rear end portion of the temple accommodated in the insertion hole adjusted by adjusting a screwing amount of the male screw portion and the female screw portion.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to eyewear. [Background technology]

[0002] Various methods have been proposed to fit eyewear, such as eyeglasses, to the wearer's head so that the wearer can wear them comfortably. For example, mechanisms have been proposed to allow nose pads of different sizes to be replaced, or to rotate the end pieces relative to the temples. One such mechanism is a mechanism that adjusts the temple length by moving the end pieces back and forth relative to the temples (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 1-129230 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The best way to fit the eyewear to the wearer's head is generally to go to an eyeglass retailer and have it adjusted by a professional, but sometimes the wearer can wear eyewear that can be adjusted by themselves, such as the eyewear disclosed in Cited Document 1. However, even when it is adjusted by a professional or when the eyewear can be adjusted by the wearer, it is common for the wearer to repeatedly put on and take off the eyewear to check the fit, and this type of work makes it difficult for even adults to make fine adjustments. In particular, when preschool children wear eyewear, it is difficult for the children to verbally describe the fit, so adults have no choice but to visually check the fit and fine-tune the fit by repeatedly putting on and taking off the eyewear.

[0005] Furthermore, in the case of children's eyewear, in addition to the need for a perfect fit to the head, there are also requests from parents and others for continued use as the child grows and for safe wearing. Therefore, it has been a challenge to incorporate a mechanism into the eyewear that meets such requests. For example, the eyewear disclosed in Cited Document 1 employs a mechanism that extends the temple length by pushing back the side bars (temples) that are pressed against the ear-engaging members (ends) by springs with a fixing screw from the rear end. However, this mechanism requires the provision of a female thread at the narrow rear end of the end piece, which inevitably results in a short overall length of the female thread. The fixing screw that threads into such a female thread must either be a set screw without a screw head to prevent it from protruding from the rear end of the end piece, or the body or screw head must be allowed to protrude from the rear end of the end piece. In the former case, the temple length adjustment is limited to a very limited range, while in the latter case, there is a problem that the protruding screw head may injure the wearer's head.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve these problems, and provides eyewear with a temple length adjustment mechanism that meets the needs of parents and others, such as wanting to be able to easily get a perfect fit on the head so that it does not require putting on or taking off the eyewear when adjusting, and especially when worn by children, wanting to be able to continue using the eyewear as the child grows and wanting the eyewear to be worn safely. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In one aspect of the present invention, eyewear comprises a lens frame, temples each having a female threaded portion with an opening at the rear end opposite the front end connected to the lens frame via a hinge, end pieces each having an insertion hole into which the rear end of the temple including the rear end is inserted to allow the temple to move relatively forward and backward in the extension direction, a coil spring that is housed in the insertion hole and exerts a spring force between the temple and end piece, and an adjustment screw that is inserted into the insertion hole so that the body passes through the coil spring and the male threaded portion screws into the female threaded portion, and the amount of screwing between the male threaded portion and the female threaded portion is adjusted to adjust the length over which the rear end of the temple is housed in the insertion hole. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] The present invention provides eyewear with a temple length adjustment mechanism that meets the needs of parents and others who want to easily get the eyewear to fit perfectly on the head, and who want to continue using the eyewear as their child grows and wear it safely, especially when worn by children. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is an overall perspective view of eyewear equipped with a temple length adjustment mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of an adjustment mechanism for adjusting the temple length. [Figure 3] 2 is a cross-sectional view of the A-side of FIG. 1, showing the temple in its longest and shortest states. [Figure 4] FIG. [Figure 5] This is an overall perspective view of the modern. [Figure 6] FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the invention according to the claims is not limited to the following embodiments. Furthermore, not all of the configurations described in the embodiments are necessarily essential means for solving the problems. In each drawing, components with the same reference numerals have the same or similar configurations. Furthermore, even in different examples, to avoid complication, components that are the same or similar to those already described may not be referenced by reference numerals.

[0011] 1 is an overall perspective view of eyewear 100 equipped with a temple length adjustment mechanism according to this embodiment. Similar to general eyewear, the eyewear 100 includes lenses 110, a lens frame 120, hinges 130, temples 140, and end pieces 150. The lens frame 120 supports the lenses 110, and the hinges 130 connect the lens frame 120 and the temples 140 so that the temples 140 can be folded relative to the lens frame 120. The end pieces 150 are ear hooks that rest on the wearer's ears and are connected to the temples 140.

[0012] The eyewear 100 according to this embodiment is provided with a temple length adjustment mechanism that adjusts the temple length at the connection between the temple 140 and the end piece 150. By providing the temple length adjustment mechanism, the eyewear 100 can move the end piece 150 forward or backward relative to the temple 140 within a certain range, as shown by the arrow in the figure.

[0013] In this embodiment, as shown by the coordinate axes in the figure, the extension direction of the temples 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 perpendicular to the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction is defined as the Z-axis direction. In the subsequent drawings, similar coordinate axes based on the state in which the eyewear 100 is arranged as shown in FIG. 1 are also shown to indicate the orientation of the structure depicted in each drawing. In particular, the positive X-axis direction may be 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." Furthermore, the side of the Y-axis where the wearer's head is positioned between the two open temples 140 may be referred to as "inner," and the opposite side as "outer."

[0014] Next, the configuration of the temple length adjustment mechanism will be described. Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the temple length adjustment mechanism. In particular, it shows the temple length adjustment mechanism provided to the temple 140 and end piece 150 located on the left ear side of the eyewear 100. The temple length adjustment mechanism is provided across the temple 140 and end piece 150, and is composed of an adjustment screw 160 and a coil spring 170 in addition to the temple 140 and end piece 150.

[0015] Temple 140 is provided with a female screw portion 141 having an opening on a rear end surface 140a at the rear end opposite to the front end connected to hinge 130. Female screw portion 141 has a thread along the X-axis direction inside a rear end portion 140b including the rear end.

[0016] The end piece 150 mainly has an extension portion 151 that extends along the extension direction of the temple 140 and rests on the upper part of the wearer's ear, and a curved portion 152 that curves downward from the rear end of the extension portion 151 and extends along the back of the wearer's ear. The extension portion 151 is provided with an insertion hole 153 into which the rear end portion 140b of the temple 140 is inserted, allowing the extension portion 151 to move relatively forward and backward in the X-axis direction. More specifically, the insertion hole 153 is a through-hole that penetrates the extension portion 151 in the X-axis direction over approximately the entire length of the extension portion 151.

[0017] In this embodiment, the rear end of the extension portion 151 is configured with a curved surface, and the rear opening of the insertion hole 153 is provided so that the entire rear opening edge 153a, which is the opening edge, appears on the outer surface 151b opposite to the inner surface 151a facing the wearer's head. In other words, the rear opening edge 153a does not appear on the inner surface 151a. By providing the rear opening so that the rear opening edge 153a does not appear on the inner surface 151a, when the wearer adjusts the temple length while wearing the eyewear 100, the possibility that the tip of the driver will hit the wearer's head when inserting the driver into the rear opening, as described below, can be reduced. Furthermore, particularly for children who tend to sweat easily during exercise, sweat easily seeps into the insertion hole 153, causing dirt to accumulate. Therefore, it is desirable to provide the rear opening edge 153a on the outer surface 151b side. In this embodiment, the rear opening edge 153a is provided on the curved outer surface 151b, but depending on the design of the end cap 150, it may also be provided on the upper surface, or straddling from the upper surface to the outer surface.

[0018] More specifically, the curved portion 152 curves and extends downward from the lower portion of the rear opening edge 153a. By extending the curved portion 152 in this manner, the rear opening edge 153a is positioned approximately near the rear end of the extension portion 151. If the rear opening edge 153a is positioned approximately at the rear end of the extension portion 151, the adjuster can easily insert the tip of the driver into the rear opening and adjust the temple length even when the wearer is wearing the eyewear 100. Note that since eyewear with an end piece length adjustment mechanism can have a variety of designs, the arrangement of the curved portion is not limited to this, and end pieces without curved portions may also be used.

[0019] The coil spring 170 is entirely housed in the insertion hole 153 and functions as a compression spring that biases the end piece 150 in a direction away from the temple 140, as will be described in detail later. The adjustment screw 160 has a body 161, a male thread portion 162, and a screw head 163. In this embodiment, a fully threaded adjustment screw 160 is used in which the male thread portion 162 is also provided on the body 161, but it may also be a partially threaded type in which the male thread portion 162 is provided in a range that threads into the female thread portion 141. In the case of a partially threaded type, the length of the body 161 on the screw head 163 side where the male thread portion 162 is not provided may be the same as the length of the portion that is not threaded into the female thread portion 141 when the male thread portion 162 is threaded into the female thread portion 141 to the maximum length (the state shown in the lower diagram of FIG. 3 described later). The adjustment screw 160 is inserted into the insertion hole 153 from the rear opening so that the body 161 passes through the coil spring 170 housed in the insertion hole 153, and the tip of the male threaded portion 162 is screwed into part of the female threaded portion 141 of the temple 140. If the adjustment screw 160 is a half-threaded type, the threads will not come into contact with the inner surface of the coil spring 170, and wear on the coil spring 170 can be reduced.

[0020] The temple length adjustment mechanism according to this embodiment adjusts the temple length by adjusting how far the male thread portion 162 is threaded into the female thread portion 141. Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of surface A in Fig. 1, showing the longest and shortest states of the temple. Specifically, the upper view of Fig. 3 shows the longest state in which the temple length is longest by shortening the threaded engagement length between the female thread portion 141 and the male thread portion 162, and the lower view of Fig. 3 shows the shortest state in which the temple length is shortest by shortening the threaded engagement length between the female thread portion 141 and the male thread portion 162.

[0021] The insertion hole 153 has therein a restricting portion 154 that restricts the position of the screw head 163 of the adjustment screw 160. Specifically, the restricting portion 154 is provided as a dividing wall inside the insertion hole 153, having a through hole through which the body portion 161 of the adjustment screw 160 passes but the screw head 163 does not. In this embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the orthogonal cross section (YZ cross section) of the front inner-cylinder space divided by the restricting portion 154 is rectangular, as will be described later, and the cross-sectional shape of the orthogonal cross section of the rear inner-cylinder space is circular.

[0022] The restricting portion 154 restricts the position of the adjusting screw 160 and also divides the space in which the coil spring 170 is housed. Specifically, the coil spring 170 is housed in the inner cylindrical space on the front side of the insertion hole 153 so that its rear end contacts a spring bearing surface 154a, which is the front wall of the restricting portion 154, and its front end contacts a rear end surface 140a of the temple 140. The coil spring 170 is a compression spring, and while housed in the inner cylindrical space on the front side of the insertion hole 153, it always biases the spring bearing surface 154a and the rear end surface 140a, exerting a biasing force in directions that move the temple 140 and the end piece 150 away from each other.

[0023] When the tip of the male thread portion 162 of the adjustment screw 160 is threaded into a part of the female thread portion 141, the position of the screw head 163 is determined relative to the rear end surface 140a of the temple 140. The abutment surface 154b of the restricting portion 154, which is biased by the coil spring 170, is pressed against the screw head 163, thereby allowing the end piece 150 to maintain a stable stationary state relative to the temple 140. At this time, the rear end portion 140b of the temple 140 is inserted into the insertion hole 153 over the entire length of the storage length as shown in the figure.

[0024] The degree of engagement of the male thread portion 162 with the female thread portion 141 is adjusted by rotating the adjustment screw 160 with a screwdriver inserted from the rear opening. At this time, the greater the degree of engagement, the further the rear end portion 140b of the temple 140 is accommodated within the insertion hole 153, and as a result, the temple length, which is the total length of the temple 140 and the end piece 150, becomes shorter. For example, if the degree of engagement is increased until the coil spring 170 is in the most compressed state, the accommodation length of the rear end portion 140b becomes maximum, and the temple length becomes shortest (the state shown in the lower diagram in FIG. 3). Conversely, if the degree of engagement is kept to a minimum, the accommodation length of the rear end portion 140b becomes shortest, and the temple length becomes longest (the state shown in the upper diagram in FIG. 3). Therefore, the difference between the accommodation length of the rear end portion 140b when the temple length is longest and the accommodation length of the rear end portion 140b when the temple length is shortest, is the adjustment margin for the temple length.

[0025] The minimum amount of screwing can be determined as the amount by which the end piece 150 does not wobble relative to the temple 140 and can maintain a stable, stationary state. To achieve this, it is preferable that the rear end 140b fit precisely into the insertion hole 153, and the rigidity of the adjustment screw 160 is also high. Since the adjustment screw 160 is inserted into the insertion hole 153 provided in the end piece 150, it is preferable that the diameter of the adjustment screw 160 be small, such as M1.2 or M1.4. Furthermore, particularly for children, it is desirable to leave a long margin for adjustment as the child grows, and it is preferable that the adjustment screw 160 have a relatively long overall length and high rigidity. Lightweight plastic eyewear is becoming more common these days, and in this case, a molded plastic screw is preferable for the adjustment screw 160. Using a molded plastic adjustment screw 160 for the female thread portion 141 of the resin temple 140 can reduce wear on the threads of the female thread portion 141, which can be a problem with continued use, compared to using a metal adjustment screw 160. Furthermore, even among resin-molded screws, those made from super engineering plastics such as PEEK resin, which has a relatively high rigidity, are preferable.

[0026] Furthermore, as described above, since the adjustment screw 160 is rotated by a screwdriver inserted from the rear opening, it is preferable that the tip of the screwdriver can be inserted to some extent into the insertion hole 153 to make it easier for the adjuster to perform such an operation. Therefore, in this embodiment, the position of the abutment surface 154b of the restriction portion 154 that comes into contact with the screw head 163 (the position indicated by a1 in the upper diagram of FIG. 3) is provided in a range of 5 mm to less than 10 mm from the rear opening of the insertion hole 153 (the range indicated by b1 in the upper diagram of FIG. 3). The position of the rear opening is, for example, the intersection of the central axis of the insertion hole 153 and the rear opening edge 153a.

[0027] As described above, in this embodiment, the coil spring 170 is a compression spring that applies a biasing force in a direction that moves the temple 140 and the end piece 150 away from each other. Using a compression spring as the coil spring 170 allows for easy adjustment while the eyewear 100 is being worn by the wearer. That is, the adjuster can initially set the length longer than the optimal length and then gradually tighten the adjustment screw 160 until the curved portion 152 of the end piece 150 fits behind the wearer's ear to adjust it to the optimal length. This adjustment method, which adjusts the length from a loose fit to an optimal fit around the ear, is effective not only for adults but also for children who have difficulty verbally communicating their comfortable fit to the adjuster. However, depending on other requirements, a configuration in which the coil spring is replaced by a tension spring may be adopted. In such a configuration, for example, a fastening portion for fastening each end of the tension spring may be provided on the rear end surface 140a and the spring bearing surface 154a, respectively.

[0028] This adjustment mechanism for adjusting the end piece length allows a relatively long (multiple threads) female screw portion 141 to be provided at the rear end 140b of the temple 140, and accordingly, a long (multiple threads) male screw portion 162 can be used as the adjustment screw 160, thereby achieving a longer adjustment margin than conventional mechanisms. Therefore, for example, when the eyewear 100 is worn by a child, it can be used for a certain period of time as the child grows. Generally, the positions of the left and right ears are not symmetrical and there is a slight misalignment. Therefore, if the adjustment screw 160 can be adjusted separately for each ear, a better fit to the head can be achieved. Furthermore, since the screw head 163 does not protrude from the rear opening edge 153a of the insertion hole 153, there is no risk of injury to the wearer's head. In other words, the eyewear 100 can be worn safely.

[0029] As described above, the temple length adjustment mechanism of this embodiment realizes adjustment of the temple length by inserting the rear end portions 140b of the temples 140 into the insertion holes 153 of the end pieces 150 and rotating the adjustment screws 160 to allow the temples 140 to move relatively forward and backward in the extension direction of the temples 140. In eyewear 100 employing such an adjustment mechanism, it is preferable that the end pieces 150 do not rotate around the extension direction relative to the temples 140, from the viewpoints of ease of adjustment while wearing the eyewear and stability while wearing the eyewear. Therefore, in the eyewear 100 of this embodiment, the cross-sectional shapes of cross sections orthogonal to the extension direction are formed to be similar to each other and non-circular, so that the rear end portions 140b of the temples 140 fit loosely into the inner cylindrical spaces in front of the insertion holes 153 and do not rotate around the extension direction.

[0030] FIG. 4 is an overall perspective view of the temple 140 observed from the rear end side. As shown in the figure, the rear end portion 140b of the temple 140 has a rectangular cross-sectional shape in a cross section perpendicular to the extension direction. FIG. 5 is an overall perspective view of the end piece 150 observed from the front end side. As shown in the figure, of the insertion hole 153 provided in the end piece 150, the inner cylinder space continuing from the front opening surrounded by the front opening edge 153b (the front inner cylinder space divided by the restricting portion 154) has a rectangular cross-sectional shape in a cross section perpendicular to the extension direction that is similar to the rectangular shape of the rear end portion 140b of the temple 140. If the cross-sectional shapes are rectangular in this way, they fit together to be able to advance and retreat in the extension direction, while rotation around the extension direction is restricted. In addition, the cross-sectional shapes of each orthogonal cross section are not limited to non-circular shapes that are similar to each other, and any configuration is acceptable as long as the end cap does not rotate around the extension direction of the temple. For example, a convex rail portion and a concave guide portion that interlock with each other along the extension direction may be provided on one side of the rear end portion 140b and the other side of the inner cylindrical space in front of the insertion hole 153.

[0031] 6 is a side view of eyewear 100. As described above, endpieces 150 have curved portions 152, and by appropriately adjusting the length of the endpieces, curved portions 152 can be fitted behind the wearer's ears. However, even if curved portions 152 are fitted behind the ears, if, for example, lenses 110 are heavy and the overall balance of eyewear 100 is poor, the eyewear may shift in the pitching direction indicated by the dotted arrow while being worn.

[0032] In order to maintain the overall balance of the eyewear 100 even when the temple length is increased or decreased by an adjustment mechanism, as in the eyewear 100 of this embodiment, it is important to appropriately select the position of the hinge 130 relative to the lens frame 120. After repeated trials, the inventors of the present application have found that it is preferable to set the position of the hinge 130 (position indicated by a2 in FIG. 6) so that it falls within a range of 5% to less than 50% from the top (range indicated by c2 in FIG. 6) in the vertical direction of the lens frame 120 (range indicated by b2 in FIG. 6). By positioning the hinge 130 within this range, it is easy to maintain a perfect fit on the wearer's head even when the temple length is changed by the adjustment mechanism.

[0033] In the eyewear 100 according to this embodiment, a lens frame 120 is assumed to support the periphery of the lens 110. However, if, for example, the lens frame fits only along the upper part of the lens and the lower part of the lens is supported by a wire extending from the lens frame, the range indicated by b2 in FIG. 6 is the range defined by the lens frame and the wire.

[0034] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the extension direction of the temple 140 is described as the X-axis direction, for example. However, actual eyewear may be designed using complex three-dimensional curved surfaces or a collection of line segment elements, taking into account the wearer's head. Even such eyewear can incorporate an adjustment mechanism similar to the adjustment mechanism included in the eyewear 100. Furthermore, eyewear incorporating the above-described adjustment mechanism is not limited to children's eyewear, but can also be applied to adult eyewear. For example, when multiple people share a single pair of eyewear, the temple length can be adjusted to fit each wearer's head. Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to eyeglasses, but can also be applied to MR (Mixed Reality) glasses, etc. [Explanation of symbols]

[0035] 100...eyewear, 110...lens, 120...lens frame, 130...hinge, 140...temple, 140a...rear end surface, 140b...rear end, 141...female thread portion, 150...end, 151...extension portion, 151a...inner surface, 151b...outer surface, 152...curved portion, 153...insertion hole, 153a...rear opening edge, 153b...front opening edge, 154...regulating portion, 154a...spring receiving surface, 154b...butting surface, 160...adjusting screw, 161...body portion, 162...male thread portion, 163...screw head, 170...coil spring

Claims

1. Lens frame and a temple provided with a female screw portion having an opening at a rear end opposite to a front end connected to the lens frame via a hinge; an end cap having an insertion hole into which a rear end portion including the rear end of the temple is inserted, thereby allowing the temple to move relatively forward and backward in an extension direction of the temple; a coil spring that is housed in the insertion hole and applies a spring force between the temple and the end cap; an adjustment screw whose body portion is inserted into the insertion hole so as to pass through the coil spring, whose male screw portion is threadedly engaged with the female screw portion, and whose accommodation length of the rear end portion accommodated in the insertion hole is adjusted by adjusting the amount of engagement between the male screw portion and the female screw portion; Eyewear equipped with:

2. 2. The eyewear according to claim 1, wherein an opening edge of a rear opening of the insertion hole on a side communicating with the screw head of the adjustment screw is provided on a side of the end piece that is different from an inner side that faces the wearer's head.

3. 3. The eyewear according to claim 2, wherein the end piece has a curved portion that curves and extends from a lower portion of the opening edge and fits behind the wearer's ear.

4. The eyewear according to claim 3, wherein the hinge is provided at a position within a range of 5% to less than 50% from the top in the vertical direction of the lens frame.

5. 2. The eyewear according to claim 1, wherein the insertion hole has a restricting portion that restricts the position of the screw head of the adjustment screw, and a contact position of the restricting portion that comes into contact with the screw head is located within a range of 5 mm to less than 10 mm from a rear opening of the insertion hole.

6. The eyewear according to claim 1 , wherein the rear end portion is inserted into the insertion hole so as to prevent the end piece from rotating around the extending direction of the temple.

7. 2. The eyewear according to claim 1, wherein the coil spring is a compression spring that biases the end piece between the temple and the end piece in a direction that separates the end piece from the temple.

Images