US3595031A

US3595031A - Earring clamp having adjustably positionable pivoted member with retracting means

Info

Publication number: US3595031A
Application number: US765578A
Authority: US
Inventors: Emory L Weimer
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1968-10-07
Filing date: 1968-10-07
Publication date: 1971-07-27
Anticipated expiration: 1988-07-27

Abstract

A nonslipping, nonpinching mount for an ear ornament, having means by which a downward force thereon will increase engagement thereof with the ear lobe correspondingly. The earlobe-engaging device includes a pivoted member, a positioning means for adjusting the pivoted member toward or away from the ear, and spring means for automatically retracting the pivoted member as it is adjusted away from the earlobe.

Description

United States Patent Inventor Emory L. Weimer Box 57. Orondo. Wash. 98843 Appl. No. 765,578 Filed Oct. 7. 1968 Patented July 27. 1971 EARRING CLAMP HAVING ADJUSTABLY POSITIONABLE PIVOTED MEMBER WITH RETRACTING MEANS 8 Claims. 7 Drawing Figs.

11.8. C1 63/14 D, 24/243 Int. Cl A44c 7/00 Field of Search 63/ 14, 14.1-14.6; 24/248 E, 248 SA, 249 LS, 243.2, 243 D, 49 P [I'I/IIIIIA [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 482,535 9/1892 Weber 1. 63/14.5 UX 1.262.519 4/1918 Kline 63/l4(.5)' 1,992,643 2/1935 Vidal 63/14 (.3) FOREIGN PATENTS 347.993 7/1960 Switzerland 63/14 (.5)

Primary Exnminer- F. Barry Shay ABSTRACT: A nonslipping, nonpinching mount for an ear ornament, having means by which a downward force thereon will increase engagement thereof with the ear lobe correspondingly. The earlobe-engaging device includes a pivoted member, a positioning means for adjusting the pivoted member toward or away from the ear, and spring means for automatically retracting the pivoted member as it is adjusted away from the earlobe.

EARRING CLAMP HAVING ADJUSTABLY POSITIONABLE PIVOTED MEMBER WITH RETRACTING MEANS Generally speaking, the nonslipping, nonpinching earringmounted structure or means of the present invention includes a substantially U-shaped frame having laterally spaced first and second leg members adapted to be positioned on corresponding sides of an earlobe (usually at the bottom thereof) in an upwardly concave manner with one of said leg members being provided adjacent to the top thereof with an effectively pivotally or hingedly mounted, downward and transversely angularly directed locking member having an earlobe-surfaceengaging and usually transversely projecting or enlarged engagement end at a free terminus thereof opposite from the pivotally or hingedly mounted end thereof, with said locking member normally extending angularly downwardly from said first-mentioned one of said leg members toward the other of said leg members and into a position for positive frictional engagement of said lower engagement end thereof with a corresponding, transversely deflected surface of the earlobe when the entire device is mounted on such an earlobe so that any downward force acting upon said U-shaped frame and transmitted to the frictional engagement end of said locking member and said transversely deflected surface portion of an earlobe can be resolved into two mutually perpendicular force components, one of which extends angularly downwardly and laterally along the effective length of said locking member and the other of which extends in a direction transverse thereto toward the other leg member whereby to effectively pivot the engagement end of the locking member toward said other leg member in what might be termed a gap-closing manner, enhancing and increasing the locking action of said locking member with respect to such an earlobe frictionally engaged thereby and doing so to a degree which is a function of and directly corresponds to the downward dislodgement force exerted on the complete U-shaped frame which might otherwise tend to disengage it from the earlobe.

Also, generally speaking, a preferred form of the invention includes positioning and adjusting means cooperable with respect to the free engagement end of the locking member for controllably laterally adjusting the position of said free engagement end thereof toward and away from said secondmentioned or other one of said leg members so that it can be adjusted initially into a nonpinching earlobe-engaging position for appropriately mounting an earring on an earlobe in a nonpinching manner but in a manner capable of functioning in an engagement-increasing manner as referred to above in response to any temporary increase in downward force acting on the complete earring and which might otherwise tend to disengage it from the earlobe.

ln one preferred form of the invention, the positioning and adjusting means may comprise threaded screw means carried by said first'mentioned one of said leg members which may comprise an inner one of said leg members with the threaded screw means extending laterally outwardly therefrom and having an outwardlydirected abutment end positioned on the rear side of said locking member which, in this form of the invention, is pivotally attached to the upper end of said inner one of said leg members whereby to provide an arrangement such that threaded advancement and retraction of said threaded screw means outwardly and inwardly, respectively, will correspondingly move said lower free engagement end of said locking member outwardly or inwardly toward and away from said first and, in this case, outer one of said leg members, respectively.

In another alternate form of the invention, the location of the positioning and adjusting means is effectively reversed and is carried by the outer one of said leg members for controllable advancement inwardly or retraction outwardly, and, in this case, the locking member is pivotally attached at its top to the outer one of said leg members so that the lower free end thereof can be controllably advanced toward the inner one of said leg members or retracted therefrom as desired.

In one form of the invention, spring means may be so mounted as to effectively provide a slight biasing of the free engagement end of said locking member toward said positioning and adjusting means and away from the oppositely positioned other leg member.

With the above points in mind, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel, nonslipping, nonpinching earring-mounting structure or means which has any or all of the advantages referred to herein, including any or all of the features referred to herein, generically and/or specifically, and individually or in combination, and which is of extremely simple, inexpensive construction adapted for manufacture with a minimum of tooling and, therefore, of capital costs, and also adapted for production at any selected level of cost per unit depending upon the desired quality and cost of the complete final article of manufacture or earring, and of the quality and costs of the materials employed in manufacturing same and thus causing the article to, in effectjrange from an extremely inexpensive item to a somewhat more expensive, high quality, jewelry-type item. All of these features cooperate to facilitate the widespread and large-scale manufacture, sale, and use of the invention for the purposes referred to herein or for any other substantially functionally equivalent mounting purpose where the quick and easy and initially relatively loose and nonpinching mounting of the device of any of a variety of'different types is desirable and yet where the engagement-increasing feature as a function of temporarily increased dislodgement force is also desired Further objects are implicit in the detailed description which follows hereinafter (which is to be considered as exemplary of, but not specifically limiting, the present invention), and said objects will be apparent to persons skilled intheart after a careful study of the detailed description which follows hereinafter, and all such implicit objects are intended to be included and comprehended herein as fully as if particularly defined and pointed out herein.

For the purpose of clarifying the nature of the present invention, several exemplary embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the hereinbelow-described figures of the accompanying drawing and are described in detail hereinafter.

FIG. 1 is a view, partly in elevation and partly broken away into a vertical sectional plane, illustrating one exemplary form of the invention in mounted position with respect to an earlobe which is shown fragmentarily, and with the earring mounting of the present invention being positively engaged on and with respect to the earlobe in a nonslipping and nonpinching manner.

FIG. 1A is a diagrammatic view illustrating the normal downward force applied by gravity (which, of course, may be temporarily modified by additional accelerating or decelerating forces applied thereto as a result of head movements or the like) and shows that said downward force is normally applied to the complete earring structure at the upper pivotally mounted end of the locking member and that it can be said to be capable of being effectively resolved into two mutually perpendicular force components, one of which lies downwardly and toward the right along the length. of the locking member and the other of which acts transversely to the first-mentioned force component in a direction downwardly and toward the 7 left. This view also shows that the normal upwardly directed reactive force exerted by earlobe on the lower free engagement end of the locking member is, ofcourse, equal and opposite to the previously mentioned downward force and can similarly be resolved into two mutually perpendicular reactive force components, each of which is equal and opposite to the two previously mentioned force components of the main downwardly directed force, thus providing an arrangement wherein all forces oppose each other and cancel out except for the fact that the upwardly and rightwardly directed reactive force component acts at the lower free end of the locking member while the equal and oppositely directed main downwardly and leftwardly directed force component acts at the upper pivotally mounted end of the locking member, thus in effect leaving a net upwardly and rightwardly directed reacphysically exemplified in FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a viewsimilar to FIG. 1 but shows what happens if downward force on the earring mounting structural means or, indeed, upon the complete earring including the earring mounting and the jewelry-type body means adapted to be carried thereby, is temporarily increased in any manner whatsoever such as by the fact that the person may shake his head, thus temporarilyincreasing the gravitational effect on the earring or otherwise. The enhanced and effectively increased locking engagement of the earring mounting on the ear as a result of such increased downward force is clearly shown in this view.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 1 but shows the device in an earring, removal position where the positioning and adjusting means has been retracted and consequently the locking member has been correspondingly pivoted in an unlocking direction to an extent such as to easily allow the entire device to he slipped off of an earlobe.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the device in preearlobc engagement position and illustrates certain details of the structure which have not been shown in full in the other views;

. FIG. 5 is a fragment'ary view illustrating a slight modification .of the invention wherein the locking member is provided with a biasing spring normally biasing it against the abutment end of the positioning and adjusting means.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary view generally similar to FIG. 1 but illustrates .a further modification of the invention wherein the locking member is oppositely positioned from the first form of the invention andthe main body portion of the earring is so designed as to hide the locking member positioned inwardly thereof and wherein the outwardly positioned operating end of the positioning and adjusting means is so arranged as to be of a decorative type and to simulate in appearance a portion of the decorative outer main body portion of the earring.

Generally speaking, an exemplary first form of the invention is provided with a substantially U-shaped. frame, such as is generally designated by the reference numeral 20, having laterally spaced, generally upstanding, first and second leg member's22 and 24integrally interconnected by a bottom portion 26 and with the entire U-shaped frame being adapted to be positioned on an earlobe such as is indicated fragmentarily in phantom at 28.

In the exemplary first form of the invention illustrated, the first or first-mentioned leg member 22 actually comprises an inner leg-member'while the secondor second-mentioned leg member 24 actually comprises an outer leg member, with the inner leg member 22 being adapted to be positioned on the inside of the earlobe 28 and the outer leg member 24 being adapted to be positioned on the outside of the earlobe 28.

The upper end (or any other desired portion) of the outer leg member 24 mayineffect be said to comprisea jewelrytype earring body portion, such as is indicated generally at 30, which maybe of an esthetically attractive decorative type in the manner of conventional earrings. In the exemplary form illustrated, this is provided by having the jewelry-type earring body portion 30 bifurcated or substantially shaped like an inverted'Y and provided with an appropriate jewel setting 32 and jewel 34. However. it should be clearly noted that the invention is not limited to the bifurcated arrangement of the jewelry-type earring body portion 30, nor to the provision of the illustrated type ofjewel setting 32 orjewel 34. Indeed. any type of earring body portion may be employed within the broad scope of the present invention.

Also, it shouldbe noted that the word "upper" as used hereinabove in describing the location of the jewelry-type earring body portion 30 with respect to the outer leg member 24, should not be construed as limiting the positioning of the earring body portion 30 to an extreme upper position. Actually, it may be positioned anywhere along the outer leg member 24 or along any auxiliary structure mounted thereby, extending therefrom, or mounted thereby at any location or may even be carried by the bottom interconnecting portion 26. In fact, the earring-type body portion may be at any location with respect to the U-shaped frame 20 where it will be appropriately visibly observable, and all such arrangements are intended to be included and comprehended within the broad scope of the present invention. 1

Generally speaking, one of the

leg members

22 or 24 is provided at or adjacent to the top thereof with an effectively pivotally or hingedly mounted, downwardly and transversely angularly directed locking member having an earlobe-surfaceengaging engagement end at a lower free terminus thereof and positioned so as to define a gap between said engagement end and the other one of said leg members less than the full space between the two

leg members

22 and 24, and it may be provided with positioning and adjusting means for adjusting the initial width of said gap so that appropriate engagement with an earlobe such as that shown M28 in FIG. 1 may be effected in a manner such as that also shown at 28 in FIG. 1.

In the exemplary first form of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 1-4, inclusive. the first-mentioned one of said leg members pivotally mounting the above-mentioned locking member is the inner leg member 22, although the invention is not specifically so limited as will be clarified hereinafter.

In the exemplary first form illustrated, the locking member is generally designated by the reference numeral 36 and at the top end 38 thereof is provided with pivot means or hinge means 40 pivotally or hingedly connecting the locking member 36 with respect to the upper end of said inner leg member 22 in a manner such that the lower free terminus thereof and the engagement end 42 defined thereby extends downwardly angularly and outwardly toward the other or outer leg member 24 in a manner such that thegap existing between the free engagement end 42 and the corresponding laterally outwardly displaced inside surface of the outer leg member 24 is substantially lessthan the width between the inner and

outer leg members

22 and 24 and can be adjusted by the above generally mentioned positioning and adjusting means, which is indicated generally by the reference numeral 44. I

'In the exemplary first formof the invention illustrated, the above-mentioned positioning and adjusting means 44 comprises a transversely outwardly directed threaded screw means 46 threadedly engaging an iriteriorly threaded aperture 48 in the inner leg member 22 and having an outwardlydirected abutment end 50 lying immediatelyinside of and behind the lower engagement end 42 of the locking member 36 so that threaded outward advancement of the threaded screw means 46 by manually rotating the disc-shaped manually graspable operating means 52 in the proper direction will correspondingly pivotally move the free engagement end 42 of the locking member 36 outwardly toward the corresponding, oppositely positioned inner surface of the outer leg member 24 in a gap-decreasing manner'and so that corresponding, oppositely directed rotation of the disc-shaped, manually graspable operating means 52 of the threaded screw means 46 will retract the abutment end 50 and allow the engagement end 42 of the locking member 36 to pivot inwardly away from the opposite outer leg member 24 in a gap-increasing manner.

FIG. 3 illustrates the normal position of the threaded screw means 46 of the positioning and adjusting means 44, either when an earring is being initially mounted on the earlobe 28 or when it is in the process of being disengaged and removed therefrom. In other words, in this view, the threaded screw means 46 has been retracted to a degree such as to allow the engagement end 42 of the locking member 36 to pivot inwardly and to correspondingly increase the gap between the engagement end 42 thereof and the oppositely positioned inside surface of the outer leg member 24 to a degree such that no real positive frictional engagement with the earlobe 28 exists and thus this makes it possible to either slide the U-shaped frame 20 onto the earlobe 28 or slide it off of the earlobe 28.

In the event that the U-shaped mounting frame is to be mounted on the earlobe 28, the first step is to slide it into the position where the U-shaped frame 20 substantially encompasses the earlobe 28, after which the manually graspable operating means 52 is manually grasped and the threaded screw 46 is rotated in an advancement manner to that the abutment end 50 thereof moves outwardly and correspondingly pivotally moves the engagement end 42 of the locking member 36 outwardly into a position such as is best shown in FIG. I where the inner surface of the earlobe 28 has been transversely or outwardly deflected to some extent by the outwardly pivoted engagement end 42 but not to an extent such as to pinch the earlobe 28 in a painful manner. The completion of such an earlobe engagement operation is clearly illustrated in FIG. 1, and it will be found that the engagement end 42 of the locking member 36 is so located with respect to the deflected inner surface of the earlobe 28 as to produce no pinching feeling or painful effect thereon but to be fully capable of the hereinafter-described engagement increasing or enhancing operation as a function of any temporarily increased downward force which might otherwise tend to cause disengagement of the U-shaped mounting frame 20 from the earlobe 28. Such temporarily increased forces might be caused by jostling movement of a personss head or by actually touching some exterior surface with the earring in a manner which might tend to dislodge it.

In any event, whenever such temporarily increased, substantially downwardly directed force is exerted on the U- shaped mounting frame 20, in a manner such as is best shown graphically by the vertical arrow 54 in FIG. 1A, it will be found that this can be resolved into two mutually perpendicular force components, one of which is indicated by the downwardly and outwardly directed arrow 56 and the other one of which is indicated by the perpendicularly inwardly directed arrow 58, which are applied at the upper end of the locking member 36 and which are opposed by equal and opposite reactive forces 54R and the two

components

56R and 58 R effectively applied at the lower end 42 of the'locking member 36, which is at the point of application ofthe force by way of the frictional engagement end 42 with respect to the earlobe 28. It should be noted that the force component 58R is so directed as to tend to pivot the locking member 36 outwardly in a gap-decreasing manner so as to enhance and increase the extent of the locking engagement existing between the engagement end 42 and the transversely deflectable earlobe portion 28 lying between the engagement end 42 and the oppositely positioned inside surface portion of the outer leg member 24. This enhanced or increased engagement is best shown in FIG. 2, which clearly illustrates the fact that any such temporarily increased dislodgement force correspondingly enhances and increases the degree of engagement of the engagement end 42 of the locking member 36 with respect to the earlobe 28 so as to prevent any undesired disengagement of the complete mounting frame 20 from the earlobe 28. This is further enhanced, in one preferred form of the invention, by having the engagement end 42 effectively transversely projecting and enlarged so as to provide a very good bearing and engagement end 42 effectively transversely projecting and en larged so as to provide a very good bearing and engagement surface for frictional engagement with the corresponding inner surface ofthe earlobe 28.

If it is desired to maximize the above-mentioned locking action, the arrangement of the mounting of the locking member 36 and of the normal extent of inward projection of the abutment end 50 may be so arranged that the normal earlobe engagement angle, such as is shown in FIG. I, might be of approximately 45. However, it is not necessary that the angle of the locking member 36 with respect to the right inner leg member 22 actually be 45. It may lie within a wide range of relative angles since the only effect that this has is in modifying the ratio of the transverse force 58R (which tends to pivot the locking member 36 in a gap-decreasing direction) to the angular downward force 56 which lies along the length of the locking member 36. The device will actually work throughout a wide range of initial angular relative orientations of the locking member 36, and all such arrangements are intended to be comprehended within the broad scope of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary view illustrating a slight modification of the invention, and because it is a modification parts which are structurally or functionally similar to those of the first form of the invention are designated by similar reference numerals, followed by the letter a, however.

In the FIG. 5 modification of the invention, the locking member 36ais provided with biasing means (usually biasing spring means) normally biasing it toward and against the abutment end 50aof the positioning and adjusting means 44aso that the locking member 36awill not be pivotally free for unrestrained swinging movement when the earring is disengaged from an earlobe but will at all times be restrained by reason of its being forced against the abutment end 50a. In the exemplary form of this modification illustrated fragmentarily in FIG. 5 the biasing means takes the form of a torsion-type biasing spring 60 mounted at the hinge 40ain a manner such as to apply inward biasing force to be locking member 36aof a relatively small magnitude. However, various other types of biasing spring means may be employed in lieu of the specific torsional biasing spring means indicated at 60 in FIG. 5.

Otherwise, the FIG. 5 modification of the invention is substantially the same as the first form ofthe invention, and it is believed that any further and detailed description thereof will be redundant in the light of the full and complete description of the similar first form of the invention.

FIG. 6 fragmentarily illustrates another slight modification of the invention, and because it is a modification, parts which are structurally or functionally similar to those of the first form of the invention are designated by the same reference numerals, followed by the letter I), however.

In the FIG. 6 modification of the invention, the locking member 36bis hinged or pivotally attached by pivot means or hinge means 40badjacent to the top of the other or outer leg member 24band extends angularly downwardly and inwardly toward the inner leg member 22b. Also, in this modification, the positioning and adjusting means 44bis also positionally reversed relative to the disclosure of the first form of the invention and comprises a threaded screw means 46btransversely carried by the outer leg member 24bin a manner such that the abutment end 50bis inwardly directed and lies behind the positionally reversed free engagement end 42bof the locking member 36bso that threaded advancement of the adjusting screw means 46binwardly will move the engagement end 42bof the locking member 36binwardly toward the oppositely positioned inner leg member 22bin a gap closing or decreasing manner.

In the FIG. 6 modification, graspable operating means 52bis outer leg member 24band is made to be esthetieally attractive and overall design of the outer portion of the complete U-shaped mounting frame 20band, indeed, it may appear to be part of the jewelry-type earring body portion 30band may appear to an onlooker as part of the jewelry setting or associated decorative structure and yet still be functionally capable of use for advancing or retracting the positioning and adjusting screw means 46b.

It should be noted that the FIG. 6 modification ofthe invention may also be provided with a biasing spring means similar to that shown at 60 in the FIG. 5 modification of the invention if desired, and all such modifications are intended to be included and comprehended within the broad scope of the present invention.

It should also be noted that it is possible that the positioning and adjusting means be modified in any of a number of different ways capable of providing effective adjustment of the position of the corresponding free engagement end of the corresponding locking member. In certain modified forms of the the disc-shaped, manually positioned outwardly of the ofa decorative nature so as appear to be part of the invention. this might even comprise the provision of longitudinal tensile member means and/or effective bellcrank means for operating the locking member. This might be done by causing such a tensile member means to extend down. across. and up the opposite side of substantially the complete U- shaped configuration of a mounting frame and terminating at some location along an inner leg member thereof where an adjusting turnbuckle means. or the like, may be mounted and coupled thereto. The opposite end of the tensile member means in such a modified form of the invention may, in turn, be connected to an effective bellcrank means for operating the locking member and such an arrangement would be functionally substantially equivalent to the form of the invention illustrated in FIG. 6, with the modified structure functioning in lieu of the positioning means 44bthereof and such a modified form of the invention is well within the scope of the present invention and is intended to be included and comprehended herein.

It should also be noted that the type of pivot means or hinge such as illustrated at 40 in the first form of the invention, for example, may also be modified and might in some forms of the invention merely comprise an effective pivot or hinge means of an elastic or resiliently defiectable or bendable nature rather than to comprise a true, freely moving pivot or hinge means in the conventional sense, and all such arrangements are intended to be included and comprehended within the broad scope of the present invention.

It should be understood that the figures and the specific I description thereof set forth in this application are for the pur- "pose of illustrating the present invention and are not to be construed as limiting the present invention to the precise and detailed specific structure shown in the figures and specifically described hereinbefore. Rather, the real invention is intended to include substantially equivalent constructions embodying the basic teachings and inventive concept of the present invention.

lclaim:

l. A nonslipping, nonpinching earring mounting means adapted to mount a jewelry-type earring body portion with respect to an earlobe, in a nonslipping and nonpinching manner with respect to such an earlobe, comprising; a substantially U-shaped frame having laterally spaced first and second leg members adapted to be positioned on corresponding sides of an earlobe at the bottom thereof and in an upwardly concave manner, one of said leg members being provided adjacent to the top thereof with an effectively pivotally mounted downwardly and transversely angularly directed locking member having an earlobe-surface-engaging, transversely projecting, engagement end at a free terminus thereof opposite from the pivotally mounted end thereof and normally extending angularly downwardly from said one of said leg members toward the other of said leg members and into position for positive frictional engagement of said lower engagement end thereof with a corresponding transversely deflected surface portion of an earlobe when mounted thereon so that downward force acting upon said upwardly concave substantially U-shaped frame and transmitted thereby to the upper pivotally mounted end of said locking member will be opposed by an equal and opposite upward reactive force exerted by such an earlobe on the lower engagement end of said locking member engaged with such a transversely deflected surface portion of such an earlobe, which reactive force can be resolved into two mutually perpendicular reactive force components, one of which extends angularly along the length of said' locking member and the other of which extends in a direction transverse thereto toward the other leg member whereby to efi'ectively pivot said engagement end of said locking member toward said other leg member in a manner enhancing the locking action of said locking member with respect to such an earlobe frictionally engaged thereby; positioning and adjusting means cooperable with respect to said locking member for controllably laterally adjusting the positionof saidengagement end thereof toward and away from said oth er one of said leg members; and spring means for providing a slight biasing force on said locking member in a direction toward said positioning and adjusting means and away from said other leg member.

2. A device as defined in claim I, wherein said positioning and adjusting means comprises threaded screw means mounted by said first-mentioned one of said leg members in a laterally extending direction toward said other one of said leg members and having an abutment end positioned on the opposite side of said locking member from said engagement end thereof.

3. A device as defined in claim 2, wherein said threaded screw means having at an end thereof opposite to said abutment end an exteriorly positioned conveniently accessible manually graspable operating means for threadedly advancing or retracting said threaded screw means.

4. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said first-mentioned one of said leg members comprises an inner leg member and said other one of said leg members comprises an outer leg member, and wherein the lower free engagement end of said locking member faces outwardly and the locking direction of pivotal movement of said lower free engagement end of said locking member with respect to an earlobe inner surface portion comprises outward pivotal movement thereof away from said inner leg member and toward said outer leg member.

5. A device as defined in claim 4, wherein said positioning and adjusting means comprises threaded screw means mounted by said first-mentioned one of said leg members in a laterally extending direction toward said other one of said leg members and having an abutment end positioned on the opposite side of said locking member from said engagement end thereof, the mounting of said positioning and adjusting threaded screw means with respect to said first mentioned leg member comprising the transverse outwardly directed threaded mounting thereof in said inner leg member with said abutment end of said threaded screw means being outwardly directed and positioned behind and immediately inwardly of the outwardly facing lower free engagement end of said locking member for forcing it outwardly in response to threaded advancement of said positioning and adjusting threaded screw means into an outwardly displaced position such as to correspondingly outwardly deflect a corresponding inner surface portion of such an earlobe for supportedly mounting the entire U-shaped frame thereon.

6. A device as defined in claim 5, wherein said threaded screw means having at an end thereof opposite to said abutment end an exteriorly positioned conveniently accessible manually graspable operating means for threadedly advancing or retracting said threaded screw means.

7. A device as defined in claim 4, wherein said lower, outwardly facing free engagement end of said locking member is outwardly facing free engagement end of said locking member is outwardly enlarged to an extent such as to provide sufficient exterior friction when in engagement with a corresponding surface portion of an earlobe to provide nonslipping engagement of increasing magnitude with respect thereto in response to corresponding increasing downward force exerted on said U-shaped frame and through said downwardly outwardly inclined top-pivoted locking member and said lower and outwardly displaced frictional engagement end thereof to such a surface portion of an earlobe.

8. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said positioning and adjusting means comprises threaded screw means mounted by said first-mentioned one of said leg members in a laterally extending direction toward said other one of said leg members and having an abutment end positioned on the opposite side of said locking member from said engagement end thereof, said first-mentioned one of said leg members comprising an outer leg member and said other one of said leg members comprising an inner leg member, the locking direction of pivotal movement of said free engagement end of said locking member with respect to an earlobe outer surface portion comprising inward pivotal movement thereof away from said outer leg member and toward said inner leg member.

Claims

1. A nonslipping, nonpinching earring mounting means adapted to mount a jewelry-type earring body portion with respect to an earlobe, in a nonslipping and nonpinching manner with respect to such an earlobe, comprising: a substantially U-shaped frame having laterally spaced first and second leg members adapted to be positioned on corresponding sides of an earlobe at the bottom thereof and in an upwardly concave manner, one of said leg members being provided adjacent to the top thereof with an effectively pivotally mounted downwardly and transversely angularly directed locking member having an earlobe-surfaceengaging, transversely projecting, engagement end at a free terminus thereof opposite from the pivotally mounted end thereof and normally extending angularly downwardly from said one of said leg members toward the other of said leg members and into position for positive frictional engagement of said lower engagement end thereof with a corresponding transversely deflected surface portion of an earlobe when mounted thereon so that downward force acting upon said upwardly concave substantially U-shaped frame and transmitted thereby to the upper pivotally mounted end of said locking member will be opposed by an equal and opposite upward reactive force exerted by such an earlobe on the lower engagement end of said locking member engaged with such a transversely deflected surface portion of such an earlobe, which reactive force can be resolved into two mutually perpendicular reactive force components, one of which extends angularly along the length of said locking member and the other of which extends in a direction transverse thereto toward the other leg member whereby to effectively pivot said engagement end of said locking member toward said other leg member in a manner enhancing the locking action of said locking member with respect to such an earlobe frictionally engaged thereby; positioning and adjusting means cooperable with respect to said locking member for controllably laterally adjusting the position of said engagement end thereof toward and away from said other one of said leg members; and spring means for providing a slight biasing force on said locking member in a direction toward said positioning and adjusting means and away from said other leg member.

2. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said positioning and adjusting means comprises threaded screw means mounted by said first-mentioned one of said leg members in a laterally extending direction toward said other one of said leg members and having an abutment end positioned on the opposite side of said locking member from said engagement end thereof.

7. A device as defined in claim 4, wherein said lower, outwardly facing free engagement end of said locking member is outwardly enlarged to an extent such as to provide sufficient exterior friction when in engagement with a corresponding surface portion of an earlobe to provide nonslipping engagement of increasing magnitude with respect thereto in response to corresponding increasing downward force exerted on said U-shaped frame and through said downwardly outwardly inclined top-pivoted locking member and said lower and outwardly displaced frictional engagement end thereof to such a surface portion of an earlobe.