EP2540176A2 - Glove and method for its production - Google Patents

Abstract

The gloves (10) has an outer glove portion (12) and an inner glove portion that are made of leather, foam, knitted fabric or thermally insulating textile. The electrically conductive materials (18) are accommodated at finger tip portions that are extended from outer side to inner side of the glove portions. The inner glove portion is detachably or fixedly connected to the outer glove portion. The flaps of the electrically conductive materials are extended from the outer glove portion and are guided through the inner side of the inner glove portion. An independent claim is included for a method of making a glove.

Description

The invention relates to a glove according to the preamble of claim 1 and to a method for its production.

Such a glove, which includes an outer glove and an inner glove as inner lining, is for example from the US 2011/0047672 A1 or from the US 2005/0231471 A1 known. These conventional gloves are used to operate touch screens, so-called touch screens, which are used for example as input and output devices for smartphones, tablet PCs or information systems at stations. In particular, touch screens that operate on a capacitive operating principle determine user input due to a change in an electric field generated by contact with an electrically conductive skin surface of a user. Therefore, a common glove has at least one fingertip over an electrically conductive material that extends from an outside of the outer glove into the interior of the glove, there to come into contact with a skin surface of a user.

From the US 7,874,021 B2 is another glove that includes an outer glove and a lining and is also intended for the operation of touch screens known. In this glove, however, the entire inner lining is made of conductive material, which may adversely affect the wearing comfort for the user due to heat-conducting properties of the material. Furthermore, it is provided in at least one embodiment of the glove that the outer glove in the region of the fingertips has an opening through which the user pushes with his finger together with the conductive inner lining to the outside to operate a touch screen. The disadvantage of this is that the material of the outer glove must be sufficiently stretchable, whereby the material selection is considerably limited. For example, no leather can be used.

Object of the present invention is to provide a glove for the operation of touch screens, which improves the wearing comfort of the user and / or the precise operation of touch screens with the simplest possible design measures.

This object is achieved by a glove with the features of claim 1 or by a method for its production with the features of claim 11. Advantageous embodiments are specified in the dependent claims.

In the case of the glove according to the invention, the electrically conductive material provided on the outer side of the outer glove forms a tab which is guided from the outer glove through the inner glove to the inner side of the inner glove and is connected there to the inner side of the inner glove. In this way, a very stable glove is produced, which also ensures an ideal transfer of electrical potential from the user's hand to the outside of the outer glove. This allows a very precise operation of touch screens.

The glove of the invention is characterized in a variant in that, in contrast to the prior art, the inner lining, hereinafter referred to as inner glove, extends continuously to the fingertip. That is, in the fingers of the glove, no areas of the inner glove are skipped and / or replaced by the electrically conductive material. A continuous inner glove reduces the heat dissipation to the outside and thereby increases the wearing comfort for the user.

In a particularly favorable embodiment, the electrically conductive material forms a convex, three-dimensionally curved surface on the fingertip, which is clearly formed even without a hand stuck in the glove. The convex, three-dimensionally curved surface favors the formation of a kind of edge within this surface, which allows a particularly precise, sometimes punctual operation of the touch screen. Further, user comfort is enhanced because the convex, three-dimensionally curved surface allows for finger movement relative to the touchscreen that is broadly equivalent to what would be possible without wearing a glove.

It is particularly useful if the inner glove with the outer glove is at least partially or partially firmly connected. This has the advantage that inner and outer glove can not move against each other, so that the dressing and undressing of the glove is particularly simple.

For a particularly high wearing comfort, it may be advantageous if the material of the inner glove has a lower thermal conductivity than the material of the outer glove.

Preferably, the conductive material contains silver, since this has a particularly high electrical conductivity, very good skin compatibility and does not corrode.

Instead of or in conjunction with the silver and copper or other highly electrically conductive materials may be included, since this also has a good electrical conductivity.

In an advantageous embodiment, the conductive material is guided from the outer glove through an opening of the inner glove to the inner side of the inner glove. The opening facilitates guiding the conductive material through the inner glove without damaging it.

Preferably, the first material of the outer glove is at least partially a leather, since this has a high material quality.

It is particularly expedient if the conductive material extends within the inner glove in a direction on the finger inner surface, which is directed against the fingertip, that is to the palm. This has the advantage that even with a user's fingers with a slightly smaller hand that does not extend to the fingertips, there is a connection to the conductive material. In addition, a layer layer of the electrically conductive material in the region of the fingertips of the inner glove is saved by this material guide. This has the advantage that touchscreens can be operated more sensitively due to the thinner glove.

The material of the inner glove can not be electrically or only to a very small extent, in order to exclude undesired transverse effects with the electrically conductive material.

It is particularly expedient if the material of the inner glove is or comprises a foam, a fleece, a knit fabric or a heat-insulating textile in order to increase the wearing comfort for the user.

In addition, a favorable embodiment of the invention provides that the outer βenhandschuh has at least an upper hand part and an inner hand part, wherein Inner and upper hand part per finger by at least one side part (so-called "Schichtel") are connected, and wherein the side part has at its fingertip-facing upper end in the direction of the inner hand part bevelled cut guide. This bevelled cut provides a particularly comfortable operation of a touch screen.

• Bereitstellen eines Außenhandschuhs überwiegend aus einem ersten Material, wobei der Außenhandschuh ferner elektrisch leitfähiges Material im Bereich wenigstens einer ausgebildeten Fingerkuppe aufweist und weiter eine Lasche des elektrisch leitfähigen Materials ausgebildet ist;
• Bereitstellen eines Innenhandschuhs aus einem zweiten Material, wobei das zweite Material eine geringere Wärmeleitfähigkeit als das erste Material aufweist;
• Verbinden von Außenhandschuh und Innenhandschuh wenigstens punktbereichsweise;
• Hindurchführen der Lasche des elektrisch leitfähigen Materials zu einer inneren Seite des Innenhandschuhs, und
• Verbinden der Lasche des elektrisch leitfähigen Materials mit der inneren Seite des Innenhandschuhs.

In the method according to the invention for producing the glove, the following method steps are provided:

• Providing an outer glove predominantly of a first material, wherein the outer glove further comprises electrically conductive material in the region of at least one formed fingertip and further formed a tab of the electrically conductive material;
• Providing an inner glove of a second material, the second material having a lower thermal conductivity than the first material;
• Bonding of outer glove and inner glove at least punktbereichsweise;
• Passing the tab of the electrically conductive material to an inner side of the inner glove, and
• Connecting the tab of the electrically conductive material to the inner side of the inner glove.

An advantage of the method according to the invention is that the provision of outer and inner glove occurs independently of each other. This means that the two components can be manufactured in different manufacturing processes. By point or area connecting the outer and inner glove shifting both components of the glove is effectively prevented. In addition, passing the tab of the electrically conductive material to an inner side of the inner glove after joining the outer and inner gloves allows a particularly high-quality glove and a safe, largely lossless Transmission of the electrical fields of the skin of the finger to the outside of the glove.

In an advantageous embodiment of the method, the tab of the electrically conductive material is passed through an opening in the inner glove to the inner side of the inner glove. The passage is greatly facilitated by the opening and reduces the risk of damage to the inner glove.

It is particularly useful if the tab of the electrically conductive material is guided on the inner side of the inner glove in a direction which is directed against the fingertip. As a result, a user can also use the glove whose hand is slightly smaller than a hand that fits in the glove, since contact with the conductive material nevertheless occurs.

For connecting the tab of the electrically conductive material to the inner side of the inner glove, it is particularly advantageous if this is done by sewing or gluing to allow a stable connection.

Figur 1

eine erfindungsgemäßen Handschuh mit Außenhandschuh einer linken Hand in der Draufsicht auf die Handinnenfläche,

Figur 2

einen erfindungsgemäßen Innenhandschuh einer rechten Hand in der Draufsicht auf die Handinnenfläche,

Figur 3

eine Anwendung eines Zeigefingers des erfindungsgemäßen linken Handschuhs bei der Bedienung eines Touchscreens in der Seitenansicht, und

Figur 4

eine Außenansicht eines Zeigefingers eines erfindungsgemäßen linken Handschuhs in der Seitenansicht.

Embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the drawings and will be described in more detail below. In detail show:

FIG. 1

a glove according to the invention with outer glove of a left hand in the plan view of the palm,

FIG. 2

an inner glove according to the invention of a right hand in the plan view of the palm,

FIG. 3

an application of an index finger of the left glove according to the invention in the operation of a touch screen in the side view, and

FIG. 4

an external view of an index finger of a left glove according to the invention in side view.

The same components are provided throughout the figures with the same reference numerals.

FIG. 1 shows a glove 10 according to the invention, in particular the operation of capacitive and / or resistive working touch screens 16 eg of smartphones allows comprising an outer glove 12 and an inner glove 14. Both the outer glove 12, and the inner glove 14 may be made of one or more cut parts , In this case, the outer glove 12 is usually made of a first material having suitable properties for an outer glove. For example, the first material may be a leather to give the glove 10 a particularly high-quality appearance. In addition, other materials such as nylon, rubber or textile materials are possible. The inner glove 14 is usually made of a second material that has a lower thermal conductivity than the first material of the outer glove 12 to provide sufficient for colder outdoor temperatures thermal insulation.

FIG. 1 shows the outer glove 12 according to the invention for a left hand in plan view of the "palm" of the glove 10, wherein the principle of the invention can be mirror images transferred to a right hand and beyond both gloves can be designed accordingly. In this embodiment, all five fingers of a hand are formed on the glove 10 as a single finger, and it is also conceivable that, for example, only the thumb individually and the remaining fingers are formed together as a so-called mitten. As the FIG. 1 further shows, in each case an elastic, electrically conductive material 18, which is made for example of silver-alloyed threads, incorporated in the fingertips of each finger on the thumb and forefinger of the outer glove 12. The proportion by weight of silver is about 20% to 45%, preferably about 30%, in order to achieve optimum electrical conductivity. The electrically conductive material 18 can either be applied to the first material of the outer glove 12 as an additional layer layer or replace the first material, for example the leather, of the outer glove 12 at the desired locations. The latter variant has the advantage that there is no material duplication in this area, whereby the operation of the touch screen is more sensitive possible.

The electrically conductive material 18 on the index finger shown is limited in this embodiment to a portion of the fingertip of the index finger, which is particularly important in the operation of a touch screen 16 of a smartphone, namely the Area that lies on the inside of the finger in the direction of the middle finger. A user of a smartphone predominantly uses this area when operating it.

Due to the functional principle of capacitive touchscreens 16, which is based on the variation of an electric field, the user of the touch screen 16 requires a connection of the electrically conductive material 18 to his skin. Because the human skin causes exactly this displacement of the electric field of the touch screen. For this reason, the invention provides that the electrically conductive material 18 extends from the outside of the glove 10 to an inner side of the inner glove 14.

How very good in FIG. 2 to see the "everted" inside of a right inner glove 14, the electrically conductive material 18 is guided in the form of a tab 20 to an inner side of the inner glove 14. It is particularly advantageous if an opening 22 is already provided in the inner glove 14 due to its production, so that the tab 20 can be guided particularly easily through the inner glove 14, without having to separate, for example, stitches of the second material.

The tab 20 of the electrically conductive material 18 is, as in FIG. 2 shown, folded in a direction on the inside of the finger, which is directed opposite to the fingertip, that is towards the palm. On the one hand, this has the advantage that the function of the glove 10 is guaranteed even in the case of fingers which do not extend to the fingertip of the glove 10 because of their length and, on the other hand, an additional layer of material in the area of the fingertip which is important for the sense of touch is avoided. The inner glove 14 is further distinguished by the fact that it extends consistently over the entire length of the trained fingers of the glove 10, ie to the fingertip, in order to achieve a particularly high level of comfort for the user by heating the entire finger.

In FIG. 3 showing an application of the glove 10 according to the invention in the operation of a touch screen 16 in the side view, it is particularly good to see that the conductive material 18 forms a convex, three-dimensionally curved surface 24 which forms a point or line contact with a Touchscreen 16 and thus a precise operation of the touch screen 16 allows, for example, to facilitate the dragging of displayed objects on the touch screen 16. Like this convex three-dimensional curved surface is created, will be described below. The convex three-dimensionally curved surface results in a kind of edge, which advantageously influences, for example, the drawing for the purpose of enlarging images displayed on the touchscreen 16. Thus, without putting down the index finger, the so-called multi-touch function of the touch screen 16 can be exploited without restriction.

FIG. 4 shows a trained index finger of the glove 10 according to the invention, in particular the outer glove 12, in the side view. As shown, the glove 10 usually comprises an upper hand piece 26 and an inner hand piece 28 which are joined together by a side piece 30 (sheath), for example by stitching. The side part 30 has at the upper end in the direction of the upper hand part 26 to the inner hand part 28 on a chamfer 32, to which the conductive material 18 connects, so that the electrically conductive material 18 into a lateral region which between this and the next finger of the hand lies, extends. The consequence of this particular cut is the convex, three-dimensionally curved surface 24 occupied by the conductive material 18.

An embodiment of a manufacturing method for the glove 10 will be briefly described below.

First, the outer glove 12, which is made of leather as described above, for example, is manufactured and provided. The preparation of the outer glove 12 is based on a template in the form of a pattern whose exact design can be based, for example, on the sex of the user and especially his hand size and shape. The outer glove 12 itself may comprise a plurality of individual parts, which are joined to the outer glove 12, for example by sewing, preferably with an inner seam (left seam). For the electrically conductive material 18, the regions predetermined according to the pattern remain free at the fingertips of the provided fingers of the glove 10. After making the "backbone" for the outer glove 12 from the leather, the conductive material 18, for example, by sewing, for example, with an inner seam (left seam) added. The electrically conductive material 18 has a "mushroom-like" pattern in the pattern to form on the one hand the fingertip and on the other hand the tab 20 described above.

Further, the inner glove 14, which is made of, for example, a heat-insulating fabric as described above, is prepared and provided for the process. The inner glove 14 can be assembled from several individual parts, for example by sewing. In order to facilitate the passage of the tab 20 of the electrically conductive material 18, which is necessary in a subsequent method step, as shown in FIG FIG. 2 represented, in each case an opening 22 on the side facing the palm of the inner glove 14 is incorporated. This can be done, for example, by simply widening individual stitches of the (knitted) textile or by cutting.

The two provided components, outer and inner glove 12, 14, are in the next step, for example, by sewing point or area connected to each other. The already connected to the outer glove 12 tab 20 of the electrically conductive material 18 is now passed through the opening 22, preferably by means of a suitable tool in the direction of the inner side of the inner glove 14 or pulled. This process is facilitated by a "everting" of the glove 10, wherein the otherwise hand-facing side of the inner glove 14 is brought to the outside. Finally, the tab 20 is folded in a direction which points on the palm of the hand against the fingertip, that is towards the middle hand. The tab 20 is now, as in FIG. 2 shown on the inside of the finger. This process is repeated for all fingers that are to be equipped with electrically conductive material 18.

After, for example, perpendicular to the finger extending the tab 20 in the desired position, the tab 20 is connected to the inner side of the inner glove 14 in a suitable manner. Particularly simple and expedient this connection is designed by sewing.

The above-described manufacturing method is applicable to any finger formed on the glove 10. Number and combination of the fingers, which are equipped with the conductive material 18 are not fixed. Depending on the requirement of the touch screen to be operated or an associated application, a number of fingers matched thereto can be formed with the conductive material 18.

Claims (14)

A glove (10) comprising an outer glove (12) made of a first material and an inner glove (14) made of a second material, the glove (10) forming at least one finger up to the fingertip and in the The area of at least one of the fingertips electrically conductive material (16) is incorporated, which extends from the outside of the glove (10) to an inner side of the inner glove (14),
characterized,
that the inner glove (14) to the outer glove (12) or point range firmly connected, at least,
and that a tab (20) of the electrically conductive material (18) from the outer glove (12) is guided through the inner glove (14) to the inner side of the inner glove (14) and connected to the inner side of the inner glove (14). Glove according to claim 1, characterized in that
the conductive material (18) forms on at least one of the formed fingertips a convex, three-dimensional curved surface (24). Glove according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the inner glove (14) extends continuously to the fingertip of the formed fingers. Glove according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the material of the inner glove (14) has a lower thermal conductivity than the outer glove (12). Glove according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the electrically conductive material (18) contains silver and / or copper. Glove according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the first material of the outer glove (12) is at least partially a leather. Glove according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the electrically conductive material (18) extends within the inner glove (14) in a direction on the inner surface of the finger, which is directed against the fingertip. Glove according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the second material of the inner glove (14) is not or only slightly electrically conductive. Glove according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the second material of the inner glove (14) comprises a foam, knitted fabric or a heat-insulating textile. Glove according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the outer glove (12) further comprises at least one upper hand part (26) and at least one inner hand part (28), wherein the inner and upper hand part (26, 28) by at least one side part (30) are, and wherein the side part (30) at one of the fingertip-facing upper end of one of the upper hand part (26) in the direction of the inner hand part (28) inclined sloping cut. A method of making a glove (10) for operating electronic input devices comprising: Providing an outer glove (12) predominantly of a first material, said outer glove (12) further comprising electrically conductive material (18) in the region of at least one formed fingertip and further comprising a tab (20) of said electrically conductive material (18); Providing an inner glove (14) of a second material, the second material having a lower thermal conductivity than the first material of the outer β-glove (12); Connecting the outer glove (12) and the inner glove (14) at least in points or regions; Passing the tab of the electrically conductive material (18) to an inner side of the inner glove (14), and Connecting the tab (20) of the electrically conductive material (18) to the inner side of the inner glove (14). A method according to claim 11, characterized in that
the tab (20) of the electrically conductive material (18) is passed through an opening (22) in the inner glove (14) to the inner side of the inner glove (14). A method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the tab (20) of the electrically conductive material (18) on the inner side of the inner glove (14) is guided in a direction on the finger inner surface, which is directed against the fingertip. Method according to one of claims 11 to 13, characterized in that the connection of the tab (20) of the electrically conductive material (18) with the inner side of the inner glove (14) takes place by sewing or gluing.

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