GB2281023A

GB2281023A - Fingerstall

Info

Publication number: GB2281023A
Application number: GB9416151A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Hubert Anthony Fecher
Original assignee: SOLPORT Ltd
Current assignee: SOLPORT Ltd
Priority date: 1993-08-17
Filing date: 1994-08-10
Publication date: 1995-02-22
Anticipated expiration: 2014-08-10
Also published as: GB9317072D0; GB2281023B; GB9416151D0

Abstract

A fingerstall comprises a pouch-like portion for an injured finger and a pair of ties 15 for tying around the wrist or hand to retain the pouch-like portion on the finger. The pouch-like portion and the ties 15 are made of flexible plastics material which comprises at least one sheet (4) 7, 8 having at least one weld 11 which forms the pouch-like portion from the flexible plastics material and a slit 14 which separates the ties 15 from each other. In this way, only one type of material is used to form the fingerstall, and therefore manufacture is simplified and made cheaper. <IMAGE>

Description

FINGERSTALL The present invention relates to a fingerstall for protecting an injured finger.

Throughout this specification, reference is made to a fingerstall, but the fingerstall is equally capable of protecting an injured thumb. To avoid the need to refer repeatedly to fingerstall or thumbstall, this specification will simply use the term fingerstall.

At the present time, the applicant manufactures a fingerstall comprising a pouch-like portion for an injured finger, a middle portion and a tail portion comprising a pair of ties for tying around the wrist or hand to retain the pouch-like portion on the finger. The pouch-like and middle portions are made of superposed sheets of flexible plastics material. The sheets are heat welded together around their periphery. The middle portion also comprises a lug of relatively rigid plastics material which is heat welded to the end of the middle portion remote from the pouch-like portion. Cotton tape is tied to the lug to form the pair of ties. Instead of a pair of ties, a length of adjustable elastic may be fixed at one end to the lug, and a clip at the other end permits the elastic to be attached to the lug to form a loop around the wrist or hand.

The problem with the known fingerstall is that it requires the fixing together of three different types of material: the flexible plastics sheets, the relatively rigid plastics lug and the cotton tape or adjustable elastic.

According to the present invention, there is provided a fingerstall comprising a pouch-like portion for an injured finger and a pair of ties for tying around the wrist or hand to retain the pouch-like portion on the finger, characterized in that the pouch-like portion and ties are made of flexible plastics material which comprises at least one sheet having (i) at least one weld which forms the pouch-like portion from the flexible plastics material and (ii) a slit which separates the ties from each other.

By using one or more sheets of flexible plastics material to form the ties in addition to the pouch-like portion, the fingerstall is easier and cheaper to manufacture than the prior art fingerstall discussed above.

Preferably, the flexible plastics material comprises a pair of superposed sheets comprising tail portions which form the pair of ties. Each tail portion may comprise a respective one of the ties. However, a better arrangement is one in which the tail portions are welded together and the slit extends through both tail portions and splits the tail portions to form the pair of ties. With this arrangement, each tie comprises a double thickness of sheet material. In order to provide enhanced strength, it is preferable that the pair of superposed sheets forming the pair of ties are welded together along both sides of each tie.

Usually, the flexible plastics material comprises a pair of superposed sheets which are welded together to form the pouch-like portion. Preferably, the flexible plastics material comprises a first sheet which comprises at least part of the pouch-like portion and at least part of the pair of ties. This helps to reduce the number of sheets of flexible plastics material needed to manufacture the fingerstall, thereby reducing the number of welds needed and simplifying manufacture. These benefits are greatest when the first sheet extends from one end of the fingerstall to the other end of the fingerstall. Also, because the first sheet extends the length of the fingerstall, it provides added structural integrity to the fingerstall.

The preferred arrangement is one in which the first sheet functions as one of the sheets of each of the pairs of sheets forming the ties and pouch-like portion, and second and third sheets function as the other ones of those pairs.

In order to prevent the flexible plastics material from tearing and unintentionally lengthening the slit, it is preferable that the pair of superposed sheets forming the pair of ties are welded together across the closed end of the slit.

A non-limiting embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a plan view of the embodiment; Figure 2 is a section along the line II-II of Figure 1; and Figure 3 is a plan view of part of the embodiment, showing the two ties when separated.

The fingerstall comprises a front or head portion 1, middle portion 2 and rear or tail portion 3.

The fingerstall is made from three sheets of flexible plastics material, e.g. sheets of the type used to form the pouch-like portion of our prior art design. A first, lower sheet 4 extends from the front tip 5 to the rear tip 6. Second and third sheets 7, 8 are upper sheets. The second sheet 7 extends from the front tip 5 to a free edge 9. The third sheet 8 extends from a free edge 10 to the rear tip 6. It may therefore be seen that the second and third sheets 7, 8 overlap to an extent L.

A U-shaped weld 11, e.g. a heat weld or a glue weld, unites the periphery of the second sheet 7 with the front periphery of the first sheet 4. A peripheral weld 12 unites the third sheet 8 with the middle and rear periphery of the first sheet 4. The free edges 9, 10 therefore define an opening 13 into a pouch-like portion formed from the first and second sheets 4, 7. During manufacture, a combined welding/slitting operation is performed in order to form a longitudinal slit 14 which separates the tail portions of the first and third sheets 4, 8 into individual ties 15 and also welds together the adjacent side edges 16 of each tie 15. A weld 17 is provided at the blind or closed end of the slit 14 in order to weld together the first and third sheets 4, 8 and thereby prevent tearing of the sheet material.

Claims

1. A fingerstall comprising a pouch-like portion for an injured finger and a pair of ties for tying around the wrist or hand to retain the pouch-like portion on the finger, characterized in that the pouch-like portion and ties are made of flexible plastics material which comprises at least one sheet having (i) at least one weld which forms the pouch-like portion from the flexible plastics material and (ii) a slit which separates the ties from each other.

2. A fingerstall according to claim 1, wherein the flexible plastics material comprises a pair of superposed sheets which are welded together to form the pouch-like portion.

3. A fingerstall according to claim 2, wherein the pair of superposed sheets are joined together by a U-shaped weld to form the pouch-like portion, and the gap between the free ends of the U-shaped weld is the opening into the pouch-like portion.

4. A fingerstall according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the flexible plastics material comprises a pair of superposed sheets comprising tail portions which form the pair of ties.

5. A fingerstall according to claim 4, wherein the tail portions are welded together and the slit extends through both tail portions and splits the tail portions to form the pair of ties.

6. A fingerstall according to claim 1, wherein the flexible plastics material comprises a first sheet which comprises at least part of the pouch-like portion and at least part of the pair of ties.

7. A fingerstall according to claim 6, wherein the first sheet extends from one end of the fingerstall to the other end of the fingerstall.

8. A fingerstall according to claims 2, 4 and 7 or claims 2, 5 and 7, wherein the first sheet functions as one of the sheets of each of the pairs of sheets forming the ties and pouch-like portion, and second and third sheets function as the other ones of those pairs.

9. A fingerstall according to claim 8, wherein the second and third sheets overlap each other with the overlap defining the opening into the pouch-like portion.

10. A fingerstall according to claim 4, 5, 8 or 9, wherein the pair of superposed sheets forming the pair of ties are welded together across the closed end of the slit.

11. A fingerstall according to claim 5, wherein the pair of superposed sheets forming the pair of ties are welded together along both sides of each tie.

12. A fingerstall substantially as herein described with reference to, or with reference to and as illustrated in, Figures 1 to 3 of the accompanying drawings.