Ring

Abstract

A ring (1) comprises a ring body (2), an electronic tag (3), a cover material (4), and a sealing material (5). The ring body (2) is configured in an annular shape and includes: an outer peripheral surface (21); an inner peripheral surface (22); and a recess (23) that is recessed from the inner peripheral surface (22) toward the outer peripheral surface (21). The electronic tag (3) is disposed in the recess (23) of the ring body (2) and is capable of contactless communication using radio waves. The cover material (4) is disposed in the recess (23) of the ring body (2), and covers outer surfaces on the outer peripheral surface (21) side and the inner peripheral surface (22) side of the electronic tag (3). The sealing material (5) seals the electronic tag (3) and the cover material (4) disposed in the recess (23) of the ring body (2). The ring body (2) is made of moissanite. The cover material (4) is radio wave transmissive. The sealing material (5) is radio wave transmissive. The brightness of the outer surface of the cover material (4) is greater than the brightness of the outer surface of the electronic tag (3).

Description

ring

[0001] The present invention relates to a ring.

[0002] The refractive index and dispersion of moissanite are higher than those of diamond. Therefore, moissanite is more brilliant than diamond, making it highly valued as a gemstone. Traditionally, moissanite is used as decorative parts for rings.

[0003] There is also a smart ring, which is a ring equipped with an electronic tag capable of contactless communication. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2015-109939 (Patent Document 1) describes a smart ring with an electronic tag, in which a first electronic tag is located on the inner peripheral surface of the ring and a second electronic tag is located on the surface of an ornamental part on the outer peripheral surface of the ring. This ornamental part is a decorative jewel or the like attached to the arm of the ring.

[0004] JP 2015-109939 A

[0005] Traditionally, moissanite has been used in decorative parts of rings, but not in other areas, so there is room for moissanite to enhance the decorativeness of rings.

[0006] In the ring with an electronic tag described in the above publication, the second electronic tag is disposed on the surface of the decorative portion on the outer periphery of the ring, which reduces the decorativeness of the ring.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a ring that enhances decorativeness with moissanite, suppresses the reduction in decorativeness due to an electronic tag, and enables contactless communication using the electronic tag.

[0008] The ring of the present invention comprises a ring body, an electronic tag, a cover material, and a sealing material. The ring body is configured in an annular shape and includes an outer peripheral surface, an inner peripheral surface, and a recess recessed from the inner peripheral surface toward the outer peripheral surface. The electronic tag is disposed within the recess of the ring body and is capable of contactless communication using radio waves. The cover material is disposed within the recess of the ring body and covers the outer surfaces of the outer peripheral surface and inner peripheral surface of the electronic tag. The sealing material seals the electronic tag and the cover material disposed within the recess of the ring body. The ring body is made of moissanite. The cover material is radio wave transparent. The sealing material is radio wave transparent. The brightness of the outer surface of the cover material is higher than the brightness of the outer surface of the electronic tag.

[0009] According to the ring of the present invention, it is possible to provide a ring that enhances decorativeness with moissanite, suppresses the reduction in decorativeness due to the electronic tag, and enables contactless communication with the electronic tag.

[0010] Fig. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing the configuration of a ring according to an embodiment. Fig. 3 is a front view schematically showing the configuration of a ring according to an embodiment. Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing the configuration of a cover material in a modified example of the ring according to an embodiment.

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following, the same or corresponding parts will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and overlapping descriptions will not be repeated.

[0012] The configuration of a finger ring 1 according to an embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 3. The finger ring 1 according to the embodiment is a so-called smart ring. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the finger ring 1 includes a ring body 2, an electronic tag 3, a cover material 4, and a sealing material 5.

[0013] The ring body 2 is configured in an annular shape. In this embodiment, the ring body 2 is transparent. In this embodiment, the ring body 2 has a uniform width around the entire circumference. In this embodiment, the ring body 2 has a uniform thickness around the entire circumference. The ring body 2 includes an outer peripheral surface 21, an inner peripheral surface 22, and a recess 23. In this embodiment, the outer peripheral surface 21 of the ring body 2 is decorated around the entire circumference. Specifically, the outer peripheral surface 21 of the ring body 2 is cut with a series of diamonds around the entire circumference. In this embodiment, the inner peripheral surface 22 of the ring body 2 is not decorated. The recess 23 is recessed from the inner peripheral surface 22 toward the outer peripheral surface 21. The recess 23 is connected to the inner peripheral surface 22. The recess 23 does not reach the outer peripheral surface 21. The recess 23 is provided only on a portion of the inner peripheral surface 22 in the circumferential direction. The recess 23 is provided only in the range of the inner peripheral surface 22 that overlaps with the pad of the finger. The recess 23 is provided at the center of the inner circumferential surface 22 in the width direction, and is not provided at either end of the inner circumferential surface 22 in the width direction.

[0014] The ring body 2 is made of moissanite. That is, the ring body 2 is made of only moissanite. Moissanite has radio wave transparency.

[0015] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the electronic tag 3 is disposed in the recess 23 of the ring body 2. The electronic tag 3 is capable of contactless communication using radio waves. The electronic tag 3 is capable of reading and writing information through contactless communication. Examples of contactless communication include RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) and NFC (Near Field Communication). The electronic tag 3 has an IC (Integrated Circuit) chip and an antenna. Information recorded on the IC chip is read by a reader device. Information is written to the IC chip by a writer device. In this embodiment, the outer surface of the electronic tag 3 is achromatic. Specifically, the outer surface of the electronic tag 3 is black.

[0016] The cover material 4 is disposed in the recess 23 of the ring body 2. The cover material 4 covers the outer surface of the electronic tag 3 on the outer peripheral surface 21 side and the inner peripheral surface 22 side. The cover material 4 may also cover the side surface of the electronic tag 3. In other words, the cover material 4 may cover the entire surface of the electronic tag 3. The cover material 4 is radio wave transparent. In this embodiment, the cover material 4 is a glass film. The brightness of the outer surface of the cover material 4 is higher than the brightness of the outer surface of the electronic tag 3. In this embodiment, the outer surface of the cover material 4 is achromatic. Specifically, the outer surface of the cover material 4 is white.

[0017] The sealing material 5 seals the electronic tag 3 and the cover material 4 arranged in the recess 23 of the ring body 2. In this embodiment, the sealing material 5 is transparent. In this embodiment, the sealing material 5 is configured to be flush with the inner peripheral surface 22 of the ring body 2. The sealing material 5 has radio wave transparency. In this embodiment, the sealing material 5 is a UV (ultraviolet) resin.

[0018] A coating material may be disposed on the surface of the sealing material 5 on the inner circumferential surface 22 side. The coating material is, for example, a silicon-based coating material. This can improve the aesthetic appearance of the surface of the sealing material 5 on the inner circumferential surface 22 side.

[0019] Next, the effects of the ring 1 according to the embodiment will be described. According to the ring 1 according to the first embodiment, the ring body 2 is made of moissanite. Therefore, the proportion of moissanite in the entire ring can be increased compared to when the ring has an arm portion and a decorative portion and moissanite is used in the decorative portion. Therefore, the moissanite enhances the decorativeness of the ring. Furthermore, the electronic tag 3 is disposed within the recess 23 of the ring body 2. The cover material 4 covers the outer surfaces of the electronic tag 3 on the outer peripheral surface 21 side and the inner peripheral surface 22 side, and the brightness of the outer surface of the cover material 4 is higher than the brightness of the outer surface of the electronic tag 3. Therefore, the electronic tag 3 is difficult to see from outside the ring body 2. Therefore, the reduction in decorativeness due to the electronic tag 3 can be suppressed. Furthermore, the electronic tag 3 disposed within the recess 23 of the ring body 2 is capable of contactless communication. Therefore, a ring 1 capable of contactless communication using the electronic tag 3 can be provided.

[0020] The ring body 2 is made of moissanite, which is radio wave transparent. This reduces radio wave reflection and interference compared to when the ring arm is made of metal. This allows for excellent non-contact communication using the electronic tag 3.

[0021] Furthermore, the cover material 4 is radio wave transparent. The sealing material 5 is also radio wave transparent. Therefore, radio waves are not blocked by the cover material 4 and the sealing material 5. Therefore, contactless communication by the electronic tag 3 can be performed satisfactorily.

[0022] Typically, the cut of diamonds used in the decorative parts of rings is processed to facilitate total reflection within the diamond, so that light that enters the diamond is reflected multiple times within the diamond. In contrast, in the ring 1 according to this embodiment, the outer surface 21 of the ring body 2 is cut with a series of diamonds along the entire circumference. This causes light that enters the ring body 2 to be reflected multiple times within the ring body 2, improving transparency and brilliance.

[0023] In the ring 1 according to this embodiment, the ring body 2 is transparent. The outer surface of the electronic tag 3 is black. The outer surface of the cover material 4 is white. In this case, the electronic tag 3 is particularly difficult to see from the outside of the ring body 2.

[0024] Next, a modified example of the ring 1 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 4. As shown in Fig. 4, in the modified example of the ring 1 according to the first embodiment, the cover material 4 includes a first cover member 41 and a second cover member 42. The first cover member 41 is arranged so as to cover the electronic tag 3, and the second cover member 42 is arranged so as to cover the first cover member 41. In other words, the first cover member 41 is sandwiched between the electronic tag 3 and the second cover member 42.

[0025] The brightness of the outer surface of the first cover member 41 is higher than the brightness of the outer surface of the electronic tag 3. The brightness of the outer surface of the second cover member 42 is higher than the brightness of the outer surface of the first cover member 41. In this modification, the outer surface of the electronic tag 3 is black, the outer surface of the first cover member 41 is gray, and the outer surface of the second cover member 42 is white.

[0026] In this modification, the brightness of the outer surface of the first cover member 41 is higher than the brightness of the outer surface of the electronic tag 3. The brightness of the outer surface of the second cover member 42 is higher than the brightness of the outer surface of the first cover member 41. This makes it even more difficult for the electronic tag 3 to be seen from outside the ring body 2. This further reduces the reduction in decorativeness of the electronic tag 3.

[0027] The outer surface of the electronic tag 3 is black, the outer surface of the first cover member 41 is gray, and the outer surface of the second cover member 42 is white. In this case, the electronic tag 3 is particularly difficult to see from the outside of the ring body 2.

[0028] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative in all respects and not restrictive. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the claims, not the above description, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims.

[0029] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Ring, 2 Ring body, 3 Electronic tag, 4 Cover material, 5 Sealing material, 21 Outer peripheral surface, 22 Inner peripheral surface, 23 Recess, 41 First cover member, 42 Second cover member

Claims

1. A ring comprising: a ring body configured in an annular shape and including an outer peripheral surface, an inner peripheral surface, and a recess recessed from the inner peripheral surface toward the outer peripheral surface; an electronic tag disposed within the recess of the ring body and capable of contactless communication using radio waves; a cover material disposed within the recess of the ring body and covering the outer surfaces of the outer peripheral surface side and the inner peripheral surface side of the electronic tag; and a sealant that seals the electronic tag and the cover material disposed within the recess of the ring body, wherein the ring body is made of moissanite, the cover material is radio wave transparent, the sealant is radio wave transparent, and the brightness of the outer surface of the cover material is higher than the brightness of the outer surface of the electronic tag.

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