US20040079382A1

US20040079382A1 - Hair piece

Info

Publication number: US20040079382A1
Application number: US10/281,129
Authority: US
Inventors: Ellion Profitt-Campbell
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-10-28
Filing date: 2002-10-28
Publication date: 2004-04-29

Abstract

A hair piece having a base portion, a plurality of hairs and structure for attaching the hair piece to the head of the user. The base portion has a slit that maintains the natural appearance of the parts in the user's hair. The slit extends from the front end of the base portion to the back end of the base portion. The base portion is made of a material that is sufficiently flexible to allow the base portion to be shaped to conform to varying parts in the user's hair. The plurality of hairs extend outwardly from the top surface of the base portion. The hair piece is releasably attached to the head of the user by a plurality of loop fastening units located on the bottom surface of the base portion.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to releasably attachable hair pieces and, more particularly, to releasably attachable hair pieces with slits that allow users to maintain the natural parts in their hair.

2. Description of the Related Art

Hair replacement products, or hair pieces, have been used for many years. Hair pieces have been used by people who experience hair loss and bald spots. The most common forms of hair pieces are full hair pieces, known as wigs, and partial hair pieces, known as toupees. Hair pieces are made in many different shapes, sizes and colors for different hair loss problems. Improvements in hair piece technology have led to hair pieces that are more natural looking and more comfortable for the user.

Certain examples of hair pieces that are representative of the hair replacement industry are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 276,306 to Thompson, U.S. Pat. No. 941,744 to Tattoon, U.S. Pat. No. 1,583,778 to Conley and U.S. Pat. No. 2,192,550 to Jacoby. Thompson discloses a head dress or wave with a spring mechanism made of an elastic material such as metal or rubber used to create a part in the center of the head dress. Tattoon discloses a hair piece foundation with a notch in the front end. The notch in the foundation causes the hair on either side of the part to appear to lie more naturally. Conley describes a semi-flexible parting frame made of a light metal that can be bent into different shapes. Once the metal frame is bent it will retain the shape creating a part in the hair piece. Jacoby discloses a doll wig made with a foundation that contains a strip for creating a part in the wig that makes the scalp visible.

A problem exists with these hair pieces in that the hair pieces do not maintain the appearance of the user's natural part. The existing hair pieces used in the field cover the natural hair of the user, thus concealing the natural part in the user's hair. Some of the existing hair pieces contain mechanisms for creating artificial parts in the user's hair. These hair pieces, however, conceal the natural hair while creating the artificial part.

Therefore, what is needed is a hair piece that can be made in many different shapes and sizes. What is further needed is a hair piece that is capable of maintaining the appearance of the natural part in a user's hair while concealing any thinning of the user's hair. What is still further needed is a hair piece that is sufficiently flexible to be shaped according to the natural part of the user's hair. Finally, what is needed is a hair piece possessing the preceding characteristics that is also easily attached to the user's head.

None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention is a hair piece meeting some or all of the industry needs mentioned above. The hair piece conceals the effects of the user's thinning hair while maintaining the appearance of the natural parts in the user's hair. Preferred embodiments of the present invention comprise a base portion with a slit for maintaining the natural parts in the user's hair, together with a plurality of hairs extending outwardly from the base portion. These embodiments can be used with or without a wig or wave. Further, these embodiments can be used to maintain a number of varying types of natural parts in a user's hair. Moreover, the hair pieces disclosed here can be easily attached to and removed from the user's head.

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, the hair piece comprises a flexible base portion having a top and bottom surface. The base portion has a front and rear end with a slit through the center of the base portion. The opening of the slit begins at the front end of the base portion and extends to the rear end. This slit allows the user of the hair piece to maintain the natural part in their hair. The present invention further comprises an attachment means that is located on the bottom surface of the base portion. The attachment means releasably attaches the hair piece to the head of the user by means of a plurality of loop fastening units. Finally, the present invention further comprises a plurality of hairs extending outwardly from the top surface of the base portion.

The hair piece is releasably attached to the head of the user. To attach the hair piece, the user's natural hair is braided to create either a center or side part. Once the natural part is created the hair piece is placed on top of the user's natural hair. The user's natural hair is then secured to the plurality of loop fastening units on the bottom surface of the base portion.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a hair piece that is capable of forming naturally appearing parts in the user's hair.

It is another object of the invention to provide a hair piece that can be easily attached to and removed from the user's head.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a hair piece that can be used with a wig or the user's natural hair.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a flexible hair piece that can be used to create varying parts in a user's hair.

It is an object of-the present invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.

These and other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of a hair piece according to the present invention. [0018]
FIG. 2 is a top view of the hair piece depicted in FIG. 1. [0019]
FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the hair piece depicted in FIG. 1.[0020]
Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. [0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 depicts a perspective view of a [0022] hair piece 10. The hair piece 10 is shown in reference to the natural part 64 in the hair 62 on the head 60 of the user. FIG. 2 depicts a top view of a hair piece 10. As shown in the FIG. 2 the hair piece 10 comprises a base portion 20, a plurality of hairs 40, and slit 30. The plurality of hairs 40 extend outwardly from the top surface 26 of the base portion 20. Further, the base portion 20 has a front end 22 and a back end 24. The hair piece 10 can be made any size to accommodate the head of any user.
The [0023] base portion 20 is sufficiently flexible so that the hair piece 10 may be shaped to conform to the head 60 of the user and to conform to the shape of the natural part 64 in the user's hair 62. The base portion 20 is sufficiently strong to retain the shape of the part once the hair piece 10 is attached to the head 60 of the user. In one embodiment, the base portion 20 is made of a thin rubber. The base portion 20 is not limited to being made from rubber and can be made from any suitably flexible material evident to those skilled in the art. The base portion 20 is sufficiently thin so that it is not visible while the user is wearing the hair piece 10. The front end 22 of the base portion 20 is shaped to conform to the hair line of the user to create a natural appearance.
As depicted in FIG. 2, the [0024] slit 30 extends through the center of the base portion 20. The slit 30 begins at the front end 22 of the base portion 20 and extends toward the back end 24 of the base portion 20. As the slit 30 approaches the back end 24 of the base portion 20 the walls 32 and 34 of the slit 30 approach one another until they converge at the back end 24 of the base portion 20.
The [0025] slit 30 maintains the natural appearance of the part in the user's hair. When the hair piece 10 is attached to the natural hair 62 of the user the slit 30 allows for the natural part 64 of the user's hair to be seen. The flexible base portion 20 conforms to the natural part 64 of the user's hair 62. The base portion 20 will be shaped so that the slit 30 conforms to the shape of the natural part 64. The slit 30 will therefore not conceal the natural part 64 or the scalp of the user's head 60. The visibility of the natural part 64 and the user's scalp will maintain the appearance of the user's natural part 64.
The [0026] hairs 40 extend outwardly from the top surface 26 of the base portion 20. The hairs 40 can be made from either human hair or synthetic hair. Preferably, the hairs 40 are made from human hair. The hairs 40 cover the entire top surface 26 of the base portion 20 so that the base portion 20 is not visible while on the head 60 of the user. The plurality of hairs 40 are woven to the top surface 26 of the base portion 20. Clearly, the hairs 40 are not limited to being attached to the base portion 20 in this manner and may be attached by any manner known to those skilled in the art.
FIG. 3 depicts a bottom view of an illustrative, non-limiting embodiment of the [0027] present hair piece 10. FIG. 3 shows the attachment means 50. The attachment means 50 are connected to the bottom surface 28 of the base portion 20. The attachment means 50 is a plurality of loop fastening units. The plurality of loop fastening units are located around the outer edge 54 of the bottom surface 28 of the base portion 20. The attachment means 50 is not limited to the plurality of loop fastening units depicted in the present embodiment, and can be any means for attaching the hair piece 10 to the head 60 of the user. The plurality of loop fastening units are made of a thin thread. The plurality of loop fastening units, however, can be made from any suitable material.
The [0028] hair piece 10 is releasably attached to the head 60 of the user. To attach the hair piece 10 to the user's head 60 the user's natural hair 62 must first be braided to create a natural part 64. The natural part 64 may be either a center or side part. FIG. 1 depicts the use of an illustrative, non-limiting embodiment of the present hair piece 10 where the user's natural hair 62 has a center part 64. The base portion 20-is then placed on top of the natural hair 62. The slit 30 is positioned over the natural part 64 so that the natural part 64 and scalp are not concealed by the hair piece 10. The base portion 20 is then attached to the user's natural hair 62 by releasably securing the natural hair to the attachment means 50 located on the bottom surface 28 of the base portion 20. Because the hair piece 10 is releasably attached to the natural hair 62 of the user, the same hair piece 10 can be used for a natural part in the center of the user's hair, then removed, and then used for a natural part on the side of the user's hair.
It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims. [0029]

Claims

I claim:

1. A hair piece comprising:

a base portion having a top surface and a bottom surface, and a front end and a rear end;

a natural part revealing slit in said base portion;

an attachment means; and

a plurality of hairs.

2. The hair piece according to claim 1, wherein said natural part revealing slit is located in the center of said base portion and extends from said front end to said rear end.

3. The hair piece according to claim 1, wherein said attachment means is structured and configured to releasably attach said base portion to the hair of the user.

4. The hair piece according to claim 3, wherein said attachment means is located on said bottom surface of said base portion.

5. The hair piece according to claim 4, wherein said attachment means comprises a plurality of loop fastening units.

6. The hair piece according to claim 5, wherein said plurality of loop fastening units is comprised of thread loops.

7. The hair piece according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of hairs extend outwardly from said top surface of said base portion.

8. The hair piece according to claim 7, wherein said plurality of hairs is fabricated from a material selected from the group consisting of synthetic hair and human hair.

9. The hair piece according to claim 8, wherein said plurality of hairs is human hair.

10. The hair piece according to claim 1, wherein said base portion is comprised of a flexible material.

11. The hair piece according to claim 10, wherein said base portion is comprised of rubber.

12. The hair piece according to claim 11, wherein said base portion is sufficiently thin to be concealed from view while attached to the hair of the user.

13. A method for maintaining the appearance of a natural part in a user's hair comprising:

braiding the natural hair of a user to create a natural part in the hair of the user;

placing a base portion of a hair piece on top of the natural hair of the user;

positioning a slit in the base portion of the hair piece over the natural part in the user's hair; and

attaching the base portion to the natural hair by releasably securing the natural hair to an attachment means on the base portion.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the base portion is attached to the natural hair by weaving the natural hair to the attachment means.

15. A hair piece comprising:

a base portion having a top and bottom surface, said base portion also having a rear end and a front end, said base portion further having a slit through the center of said base portion extending from said front end and ending at said rear end;

an attachment means located on said bottom surface of said base portion; and

a plurality of hairs extending outwardly from said top surface of said base portion.