NAIL DECORATING DEVICE AND KIT

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/493,352, filed on Mar. 31, 2023. The entire disclosure of the above application is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The present invention relates to a nail decorating kit. More particularly, the invention relates to a device for applying particulate matter, such as glitter, to surfaces such as fingernails or fingernail bearing overlays.

BACKGROUND

Decorating fingernails has become quite popular over the last few years, but the process of applying glitter and glitter-based polishes can be time-consuming and messy. Many fingernail procedures require multiple layers of different gels and resins to arrive at decorative nail designs, including glitter, or other decorative particulate matter.

If intricate fingernail designs are desired, typically an expensive trip to a professional nail salon may be required. Thus, the process of decorating one's fingernails, or having someone else do so, can be quite tedious and is often costly.

In view of the foregoing, a simple, cost-effective and fun way of decorating fingernails would be advantageous. In particular, an apparatus and method of decorating fingernails, so simple that children can do so would be desirable.

SUMMARY

The present invention relates to an apparatus for applying glitter, or other decorative particles to surfaces such as fingernails using an easy-to-follow process. The apparatus is easy to set up, assemble, and use by almost anyone, resulting in a highly desirable decorative fingernail designs. Once a fingernail is properly prepped by applying a thin coating of water-soluble adhesive or a template is applied over the fingernail with exposed adhesive thereon, for example, the user inserts their finger into the open area of the shell containing the decorative particulate for a limited period of time while the glitter or other particulate is swirling within the shell to apply a layer of material on the fingernail. Depending on the desired end result, a single application of glitter may be utilized or multiple layers of glitter can be applied, as will be described in greater detail below. Once the final design is obtained, a finish coating may easily be applied, if necessary.

Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a blown apart perspective view of a nail decorating device according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an assembled perspective view of the top and bottom portions of the nail decorating device;

FIG. 3 is an assembled front perspective view of the top and bottom portions of the nail decorating device;

FIG. 4 is an assembled top perspective of the nail decorating device;

FIG. 5 is an assembled side view of the nail decorating device;

FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 5;

FIG. 6 is an assembled front view of the nail decorating device;

FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 6;

FIG. 7 is a top assembled view with a portion of the dome removed;

FIG. 8 is a top assembled view of the nail decorating device; and

FIG. 9 is an assembled view demonstrating the device in use.

Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying figures.

Example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough, and will fully convey the scope to those who are skilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth such as examples of specific components, devices, and methods, to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that specific details need not be employed, that example embodiments may be embodied in many different forms and that neither should be construed to limit the scope of the disclosure. In some example embodiments, well-known processes, well-known device structures, and well-known technologies are not described in detail.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular example embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” may be intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “including,” and “having,” are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. The method steps, processes, and operations described herein are not to be construed as necessarily requiring their performance in the particular order discussed or illustrated, unless specifically identified as an order of performance. It is also to be understood that additional or alternative steps may be employed.

When an element or layer is referred to as being “on,” “engaged to,” “connected to,” or “coupled to” another element or layer, it may be directly on, engaged, connected or coupled to the other element or layer, or intervening elements or layers may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on,” “directly engaged to,” “directly connected to,” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, there may be no intervening elements or layers present. Other words used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted in a like fashion (e.g., “between” versus “directly between,” “adjacent” versus “directly adjacent,” etc.). As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

Although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms may be only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Terms such as “first,” “second,” and other numerical terms when used herein do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the example embodiments.

Spatially relative terms, such as “inner,” “outer,” “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper,” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. Spatially relative terms may be intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, the example term “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.

The device 10 generally includes a base assembly 20, an airflow generator 106, and a shell 100 within which the glitter or other decorative particulate matter is disposed.

The base assembly 20 may include a housing 22 having a bottom wall 24 and a peripheral wall 26 extending upwardly from the edge of the bottom wall. The housing also includes an open area 30 in the space defined by the bottom wall and peripheral wall. Extending upwardly from the bottom wall 24 may be a stanchion 32 for supporting a motor assembly 50 and one or more posts 34, 34A to assist in fixing a supporting member 70 to the base assembly. The ends 36, 36A of the posts 34, 34A may include recesses 38, 38A respectively. The stanchion 32 may have a substantially cylindrical shaped body 40 with an opening 42 along the top edge 44 for receiving a lower portion 58 of the motor assembly housing 54.

The motor assembly 50 generally includes a motor 52, a motor housing 54 encasing the motor, and rotatable shaft 56 driven by the motor. As should be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, the motor can be powered by a battery pack, an electrical connection or both so long as the power source is sufficient to drive the motor and thus the shaft at sufficient revolutions per minute (rpm's) to generate airflow within the shell, as will be described below. If a battery pack is employed preferably it is a rechargeable version and can be charged via an electrically coupled port 66. The motor can be activated by pressing the on/off button 60 occurring along the support member which compresses the switch 62 contained on the panel 64 which mates with the motor housing and motor. Disposed within the open area of the base assembly may be a decorative sleeve 68. If the base assembly is transparent, the decorative sleeve may enhance the appearance of the device.

Coupled to the base assembly 20 along the top edge thereof may be a support member 70 for hosting the shell 100. The support member 70 may include a wall 72 and a downwardly sloping peripheral flange 74. Preferably the wall 72 has a concave shape. The flange 74 may include a step 76 which mates with a ledge 48 occurring along the top edge 28 of the base assembly. Extending from the bottom surface 78 of the wall 72 may be spaced apart pegs 80, 80A which rest within the recesses 38, 38A to assist in securing the support member 70 to the base assembly 20 to preclude rotation. Disposed along the concave wall along a central axis is an aperture 82 for hosting a coupling member 84.

The coupling member 84 includes a body 86 which fits over the top of the motor assembly and within the aperture 82. The hollow integral cap portion 88 of the coupling member seats over the motor shaft 56 allowing the coupling member to rotate along with the motor shaft when the motor is activated. Extending inwardly along the top surface of the concave wall 72 may be one or more spaced apart tabs 90 to assist in retaining the shell 100. The tabs 90 may include elongated legs 92.

As will be described in greater detail below, an airflow generator 106 may be included which causes the decorative particulate material to be dispersed. The airflow generator works in conjunction with the shell 100 which has an overall shape to facilitate suitable airflow to cause particulate dispersion.

The shell 100 generally includes a lower portion 102 and an upper portion 104, which are adjoined after the airflow generator, e.g. a rotor 106, and fixture 108 are coupled. The fixture 108 includes an oversized lip 110 and an upwardly extending stem 112 having a shape designed to mate with the cutout 126 occurring along the center of the rotor. Upon application of the fixture 108 over the coupling member cap 88, the lip 110 seats against the underside of a centrally disposed raised portion 116 on the lower portion 102 of the shell with the stem 112 extending through the hole 118. The rotor 106 may be press fit onto the stem 112 over the top side of the raised portion 116 leaving sufficient clearance between the rotor body 120 and the lower portion of the shell to allow for rotation upon activation. The rotor preferably includes a plurality of spaced apart fluted vanes 122 occurring along the peripheral portion of the rotor body.

The shell 100 itself has a substantially rounded or globe shape and is preferably made from a transparent thermoplastic material. The shell will include one or more openings 130 through which particulate material can be added. Disposed along the opening 130 which preferably is along the top portion may be a flap 132 which traverses the opening and may be held in place by insert 134 which assists in keeping the particulate material (e.g., glitter) contained within the shell, particularly during use. The flap 132 includes an orifice 136 sized to receive a user's finger. The opening 130 may be covered with a selectively displaceable lid 138 which can be press fit within the opening 130 to seal off the opening when not in use.

Once the lower portion 102 of the shell is seated upon the concave wall 72 of the support member and the upper portion 104 is attached to the lower portion to complete the globe shape, to the shell in place, slots 124 are lined up over the tabs 90 and the shell is partially rotated so that the lower portion of the shell is captured under the legs 92 to preclude movement of the shell during use.

During use, as best shown with reference to FIG. 9, after glitter is placed within the shell and with the lid 138 displaced from the opening 130, the user inserts their finger through the opening 130 and beyond the flap 132, such that the fingernail, which includes a fresh wet coat of adhesive or an adhesive bearing template, extends into the open area 140 of the shell. The motor is then activated via a power source to rotate the rotor 106 at a speed sufficient to cause the glitter to disperse in an airborne manner, e.g. under vortex within the shell. For glitter applications, it has been found, for example, that rotation of about 6,000 rpm is sufficient to cause the air passing through the vanes 126 to create the desired glitter dispersion within the shell to ensure an even application of glitter (or other decorative particulate) on the fingernail being coated. As should be appreciated, the user's fingernail can be coated with glitter in a short period of time. Since the shell itself is transparent, the user can easily see when the fingernail is sufficiently coated. As depicted in FIG. 9, for best results it may be beneficial to orient the user's finger such that the adhesive bearing surface is disposed in the direction of the glitter flow. That is, since the rotor rotates in a single direction, i.e. clockwise or counter-clockwise, the glitter will circulate within the shell in a single direction under a vortex.

If different colored glitter is desired for different fingers, multiple shells each containing a different color of glitter may be employed since they can be readily swapped out. Once a first fingernail is decorated with glitter, the shell can easily be removed by partially rotating the shell to disengage the tabs 92. Upon removal another shell containing a different color of glitter can be applied. By using the nail decorating device in the manner described, a variety of nail decorations can be accomplished. Thus, a kit can be provided including a plurality of readily replaceable shells for receiving different colored particulate matter to allow for a quick and easy way to decorate multiple nails with different colors. It should be understood that different sized glitter particles or other decorative particles may be used in a single shell across multiple shells. It should also be understood that under preferred embodiments the particulate material will be biodegradable.

Templates having a desirable cut-out design may be applied over the user's fingernail where the net result would be a design left upon the fingernail after applying decorative particulate material only along the cut-out portion. Further, rather than having a cut-out, a template can be applied to a fingernail and the decorative particulate can be applied to the template having exposed adhesive thereon rather than directly to the fingernail itself. Still other variations of applying the decorative particulate using the device of the present invention are thus contemplated.

The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure. Individual elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure.