WO2004103112A2 - Nail ring - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a nail ring (1). The invention comprises a ring (2) which is positioned on a finger and a decorative element (3) which is fixed to the upper part of the ring (2), such that said decorative element (3) covers at least part of the nail of the finger. The invention is characterised in that the ring (2) comprises two loops (2a, 2b) which have an essentially-identical diameter and which are disposed in relation to one another such that they form a V and hold the ring (2) in place on the last two phalanges of the finger.

Description

 NAIL RING

The present invention relates to the field of jewelry for the enhancement of parts of the human body. The present invention relates more particularly to a nail ring comprising a ring intended to be positioned on a finger and a decorative element, said decorative element being fixed on the upper part of the ring so that said decorative element covers at least partly the fingernail.

The present invention is intended in particular for enhancing the nails of the hand.

Unlike "traditional" rings, which are worn around the first phalanx of a finger, nail rings are worn on the fingertip, on the second or third phalanx.

The use of such rings offers many advantages.

In particular, they present a relatively new aspect in the already very “crowded” jewelry sector, where the expectation of new products is particularly high.

In addition, such rings are of particular interest from an aesthetic point of view. Indeed, the ends of the hands are one of the most attractive areas to highlight. It is enough to note lately the craze for the installation of false nails of all kinds.

Finally, nail rings, the decorative element of which is an artificial nail, are also of interest from a practical point of view. Wearing such rings makes it possible to avoid people with long nails and it is common for a nail to break, to have recourse to an institute specialized in the installation of false nails which is on the whole relatively complex and costly in terms of time and money.

However, such rings are still not very present on the market. The international patent application WO9930588 relating to a nail ring serving as an artificial nail is known from the prior art. Said nail ring comprises a front part of artificial nail, a decorative part of nail having an aesthetic shape which consists of the artificial nail and surrounds the finger, and a ring fixed under the part of artificial nail intended to surround finger.

Also known from American patent US4899557 is a nail ring consisting of a ring intended to be placed between the first and second articulation of a finger, of a decorative part fixed at the upper part of said ring, said decorative part s extending over the nail of the finger on which the ring is placed, as well as a stabilization part placed on the lower part of said ring intended to ensure the maintenance of said ring on the finger concerned.

Nail rings of the prior art, however, have the disadvantage of either not providing good support on the finger, or of causing discomfort when bending the finger carrying the nail ring, or else '' be relatively bulky by covering in particular a part of the palm area.

The present invention intends to remedy the drawbacks of the prior art by proposing a nail ring comprising a decorative element fixed to a ring, the retention of which on the finger is perfectly ensured, while allowing flexing of the finger without causing discomfort.

The present invention also aims to offer a nail ring leaving the palmar side of the finger free. The present invention also aims to offer a nail ring that can be adjusted to the finger carrying said ring.

The present invention also aims to provide a nail ring offering interchangeable decorative elements.

To do this, the present invention is of the type described above and it is remarkable, in its broadest sense, in that said ring consists of two loops of substantially identical diameter, said loops being arranged one relative to the other. to the other so as to form a V and to maintain said ring on the last two phalanges of the finger. The ring thus configured makes it possible to offer good retention of said nail ring on the finger, thus minimizing any risk of loss.

Preferably, an opening is formed between said loops at their junction so as to allow adjustment of said ring on the finger by spacing or bringing together the junctions of said loops. Thus, the ring can be adjusted according to the size of the finger by spacing or tightening said ring at the junction of the two loops constituting said ring.

Advantageously, the decorative element constitutes an artificial nail.

Advantageously, said decorative element is fixed to said ring in a removable manner. To do this, according to a first embodiment of the invention, said ring has at least one rod (6b, 7b) on which said decorative element (3) is fixed.

In a first variant of the invention, said ring has on its circumference an opening, preferably disposed on the upper part of the loop to form two legs forming a clamp. Advantageously, said opening is substantially equal to the width of the decorative element.

In a second variant of the invention, a curved tubular element is disposed in the opening, receiving on either side the free ends of said ring, said ends being mounted articulated and driven by a spring mechanism disposed in said tubular element , causing the clamping legs to be clamped.

In another variant of the invention, said loops forming said ring are connected to each other at the base of the V by means of an articulation along a transverse axis, said articulation being provided with a system with spring tending to maintain the junctions of said loops spaced from each other.

The invention will be better understood and other characteristics and advantages thereof will appear more clearly from the explanatory description which follows, made with reference to the appended schematic drawings given solely by way of examples illustrating different embodiments of the invention. invention and in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a nail ring according to a first embodiment of the invention; - Figure 2 is a sectional view of the nail ring of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a top view of the nail ring of Figure 1; Figures 4, 5 and 6 are respectively a left side view, from above and from below the nail ring of Figure 1 worn at the fingertip; Figure 7 is a perspective view illustrating a first alternative embodiment of the nail ring of the previous figures; Figure 8 is a top view of the nail ring of Figure 7; Figure 9 is a top view of the nail ring of Figure 7 worn at the fingertip; - Figure 10 is a bottom view illustrating a second alternative embodiment of the nail ring of Figure 1; Figure 11 is a top view of the nail ring of Figure 10 worn at the fingertip; - Figure 12 is a top view illustrating a third alternative embodiment of the nail ring of Figure 1; FIG. 13 illustrates a top view of a nail ring according to another embodiment of the invention, said ring being worn at the end of a finger.

Figures 1 to 3 show a nail ring according to a first embodiment of the invention. In this exemplary embodiment, said nail ring is (1) is advantageously adjustable.

Said adjustable nail ring (1) consists of a ring (2) made of metal wire having a certain elasticity and on which a decorative element (3) is welded. Advantageously, said ring and said decorative element (3) are made of gold.

Said decorative element (3) consists of an artificial nail (3), which is advantageously mounted on said ring (2) in a removable manner. This option will be described later in the description. The ring (2) is in the form of two loops (2a, 2b) substantially identical, their respective planes being arranged inclined relative to the same longitudinal axis so as to form a V as illustrated in Figure 2. The two loops (2a, 2b) are interconnected by their respective ends placed at the level of the base of the V which bend towards each other so that a small opening (4) is kept to allow adjustment with the finger. The ring (2) thus obtained has the form of an elastic clamp which can be adjusted by slightly spreading or tightening said opening (4). In parallel with this first adjustment, a second adjustment, intended to stabilize the ring (2) on the finger, can be carried out by spreading or slightly tightening the two arms (2a, 2b) of the V.

Figures 4, 5 and 6 supplement Figures 1, 2 and 3 by showing how the nail ring (1) is positioned when worn at the fingertip. We can observe that the small opening (4) is placed on the palmar surface (12) of the last phalanx, and this just before the flexion fold (11) so as not to hinder the flexion movement and leave the tip finger (12) free to touch.

From this small opening (4), which constitutes the base of the V, the first loop (2a) is directed towards the dorsal face of the central phalanx to position itself just after the articulation (13) of the finger, the second loop (2b ) being directed towards the base of the nail, encircling the last phalanx. The ring thus formed is firmly held on the finger, and cannot slide from the latter.

In addition, the V-shape of said ring (2) allows the articulation (13) placed between said loops (2a, 2b) to be in no way hindered during the bending of the finger, the latter being carried out in conjunction with the ring (2). Indeed, the first loop (2a), due to its inclination, creates a blockage in the opposite direction of the bending, and only in this direction, thus allowing the second loop (2b), which encircles the last phalanx and supports said decorative element (3), to accompany the bending movement while maintaining said decorative element (3) on the nail (fig.4). Figures 7, 8 and 9 illustrate an alternative embodiment of the ring (2) whose upper part of the first loop (2a) is sectioned to form an opening (5), the dimensions of said opening being substantially equal to those of the nail. Thus, because of said opening (5) formed in said ring (2), the latter adapts more easily to any type of finger, without requiring adjustment. In addition, the ends of said ring (2) thus formed can serve as a support for other decorative elements, such as for example brilliants.

Figures 10 and 11 illustrate another alternative embodiment of said ring (2).

The loop (2a) of said ring (2) has on its upper part an opening (5) of width substantially equal to that of the nail. The ends of said loop (2a) are respectively provided with at least one pivot (6a, 7a) along a longitudinal axis. The second loop (2b) also consists of an open loop on its upper part ending in two rods (6b, 7b). Each of said rods (6b, 7b) are aligned in the same longitudinal axis as each of the two pivots (6a, 7a). Two branches (6, 7) are then obtained from an articulated clamp.

The decorative element (3) consisting of artificial nail is fixed to said rods (6a, 7a). To do this, said nail has on each side two orifices in which said rods (6b, 7b) engage and form a joint.

An element in the form of a curved hollow rod (9) is disposed in the opening formed at the level of the loop (2a) so as to receive at its ends said pivots (6a, 7a) mounted articulated and driven by a mechanism with spring (not shown) fixed inside said element (9), causing the clamping of the two clamp elements (6,7). The articulation of the two rods (6b, 7b) with the artificial nail (3) can also be adapted to receive a spring mechanism.

However, whether the spring mechanism is applied at the level of the element (9) or at the level of the artificial nail (3), the spring return force must be chosen to remain relatively light.

In this embodiment, the principle of a removable artificial nail applies perfectly. For this, the two rods (6b, 7b) are provided with a system of attachment clips (not visible in the drawing) coming to snap into the orifices of the artificial nail (3). This solution, which also adapts to other embodiments such as that of FIG. 1, is judicious because jewelry lovers love the variety.

The present invention is not limited to the means for fixing the decorative element (3) to said ring (2) described.

In addition, in the case of a final fixing of the decorative element (3) on said ring (2), this can be achieved by means of welding, rivet, etc.

FIG. 12 illustrates another alternative embodiment of the ring (2) where the loop (2a) is connected to the second loop (2b) at the base of the V by an articulation (10) along a transverse axis driven by a spring system (not shown) which tends to separate the two loops (2a, 2b). This allows the artificial nail (3) to be kept as close as possible to the nail to be covered. These nail rings can be worn on different fingers, several sizes are provided depending on the width of the nails. They can be formed and decorated with the most diverse materials and even be made in a single element cast in a mold. FIG. 13 illustrates a top view of a nail ring according to another embodiment of the invention.

In this example, the decorative element (3) consists of three elements of the rigid chain type.

Said chains, of shape substantially similar to that of a fingernail, are arranged successively and so as to rest on a part of the fingernail.

Said chains are fixed on the rods (6b, 7b) constituting the loop (2b) of said ring (2). To do this, said rods (6b, 7b) respectively have three holes in which are hung the end links of each of the chains.

This is, of course, only another example of a decorative element (3). It is understood that those skilled in the art can adapt the decorative element to any other shape.

In addition, the decoration may not be limited to the decorative element (3) itself, the ring (2) can also support decorative elements.

The invention is described in the foregoing by way of example. It is understood that a person skilled in the art is able to carry out different variants of the invention without going beyond the scope of the patent.

Claims

1. Nail ring (1) comprising a ring (2) intended to be positioned on a finger and a decorative element (3), said decorative element (3) being fixed on the upper part of the ring (2) of so that said decorative element (3) at least partially covers the fingernail, characterized in that said ring (2) consists of two loops (2a, 2b) of substantially identical diameter, said loops (2a, 2b) being arranged relative to each other so as to form a V and to maintain said ring (2) on the last two phalanges of the finger. 2. nail ring (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that an opening (4) is formed between said loops (2a, 2b) at their junction so as to allow adjustment of said ring (2 ) on the finger by spacing or bringing together the junctions of said loops (2a, 2b). 3. Nail ring (1) according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that the decorative element (3) constitutes an artificial nail. 4. Nail ring (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that said ring (2) has at least one rod (6b, 7b) on which is fixed said decorative element (3). 5. nail ring (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said ring (2) has on its circumference an opening (5), said opening (5) being preferably disposed on the part upper of the loop (2a) to form two branches (6, 7) forming a clamp. 6. Nail ring (1) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that said opening (5) is substantially equal to the width of said decorative element (3). 7. nail ring (1) according to claim 5 or claim 6, characterized in that a curved tubular element (9) is disposed in the opening (5), receiving on either side the free ends of said ring (2), said ends being mounted articulated and driven by a spring mechanism arranged in said tubular element (9), causing the clamping of the branches (6, 7) forming a clamp. 8. Nail ring (1) according to any one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that the loops (2a, 2b) forming said ring (2) are connected to each other at the level of the base of the V by means of a joint (10) along a transverse axis, said joint (10) being provided with a spring system tending to keep said loops (2a, 2b) spaced from one another.