Folding locket with magnetic closure

Abstract

The invention is a folding locket which can take the form of an oblong or cylindrical locket, and can be folded into a generally heart shaped locket. Magnet pairs hold the locket parts in position for oblong or heart forms, both of which can open to reveal two separate photos. In either of these configurations, oblong or heart, the locket can be opened by rotating the two halves of the locket apart. When the two halves of the locket are rotated apart, a picture, hidden on each side of the locket becomes visible; thus, opening the locket makes visible two pictures which can be selected by the user. The pictures displayed in the mounting are mounted in the position which spans the fold line of the locket.

1 . A folding locket with a first half and a second half, which are rotationally joined at a first end with said first and second halves configured to move between an open or first position and a closed or second position, with a plurality of positioning magnets for holding said locket halves in said closed position. 
     
     
         2 . The folding decorative locket of  claim 1  which further comprises one or more protruding detents on one half configured to interact with a corresponding concave depression on an opposite face of a locket half, for guiding said locket half into exact register with a corresponding locket half for positioning in said closed position. 
     
     
         3 . A generally oblong folding locket with an upper half rotatingly attached to a lower half, the upper and lower half configured to move between a first oblong position and a second heart shaped position, said locket upper and lower halves comprising a plurality of magnet pairs on adjacent faces of said upper and lower halves, with said magnet pairs configured to attract corresponding magnets in said first and second position. 
     
     
         4 . The folding locket of  claim 3  in which said locket is generally the shape of an oblong cylinder with said upper half and said lower half divide said cylinder in equal portions at a slant from a longitudinal axis of the cylinder. 
     
     
         5 . The folding locket of  claim 3  in which said locket swings open from either the first or the second position, to reveal at least one photo, with magnet pairs positioned to releasably hold the locket closed when in the first or second position. 
     
     
         6 . The folding locket of  claim 3  which comprises four quarter units with 2 magnets per quarter unit positioned to engage corresponding magnets on adjacent quarter units to releasably secure said locket in said first or sand second position. 
     
     
         7 . A folding locket with an upper half and a lower half for a locket movable from a first position which is oblong to a second position which is heart shaped, with said top half and said bottom half rotatingly joined along an interface with said top and bottom halves each having a flat interface side which face each other and form an interface plane which is slanted to a longitudinal axis of said locket when in said oblong position, with at least one magnet in said top half and at least one magnet in said bottom and one in said top halves which attract each other and hold said halves together when in said heart shaped configuration, and at least one magnet in said bottom and one in said top half which attract each other and hold said halves together when in said oblong configuration. 
     
     
         8 . The folding locket of  claim 7  in which said locket swings open from either the first or the second position, to reveal at least one photo, with magnet pairs positioned to releasably hold the locket closed when in the first or second position. 
     
     
         9 . A generally oblong folding locket with an upper half rotatingly attached to a generally identical lower half, the upper and lower half configured to move between a first oblong position and second heart shaped position, said locket upper and lower halves comprising a first magnet and a second magnet, with the first magnet in said upper half, and the second magnet in the lower half, with the first and second magnet positioned to attract each other when said locket is in said first position, said locket further comprising a third magnet and a fourth magnet, with the third magnet in said upper half, and the fourth magnet in the lower half, with the third and fourth magnet positioned to be adjacent to each other and to attract each other when said locket is in said second position, with said locket openable in either said first or second position. 
     
     
         10 . The folding decorative locket of  claim 9  which further comprises one or more protruding detents on one half configured to interact with a corresponding concave depression on an opposite face of a locket half, for guiding said locket half into exact register with a corresponding locket half for positioning in said closed position. 
     
     
         11 . The folding locket of  claim 9  in which said magnets are configured to repel magnets in an opposite half when said locket halves are in transit between said first position and said second position. 
     
     
         12 . The folding locket of  claim 9  which further comprises a fifth and sixth magnet, and a seventh and eighth magnet, with 4 magnets on said of said upper and lower locket halves each configured to attract an opposing magnet on an opposing locket half in said first position, and with each magnet configured to attract on opposing magnet in said second position, thus clamping said locket together by magnetic attraction.