GB2363312A

GB2363312A - An article of clothing with a retaining loop for a mobile phone

Info

Publication number: GB2363312A
Application number: GB0014317A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Eric Werman
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2000-06-12
Filing date: 2000-06-12
Publication date: 2001-12-19
Also published as: GB0014317D0

Abstract

The chest area of an upper body garment 10 (eg. a shirt, blouse, jacket) is provided with a loop 12 for the attachment of a mobile phone 16. A second loop may be provided for the attachment of for example a 'hands free' kit 22. The loops may be fabricated from the same material as the garment and may further be reinforced with an integral stiffening element.

Description

2363312 ARTICLE OF CLOTHING Many mobile telephones currently available may

be used with "hands free" kits which generally provide an 5 ear piece and separate microphone connected by a single lightweight cable to an adapter for plugging into a socket on the mobile telephone. A hands free kit generally enables a mobile telephone to be used without holding the telephone adjacent to the user's 10 head. Users of such hands free kits generally carry the mobile telephone in a trouser pocket or on a belt by means of a belt clip provided on the telephone or telephone carrying case. The telephone must generally be removed from such a location for answering calls, 15 dialling telephone numbers or other control operations. Furthermore, a relatively long ear piece cable is required extending from the ear piece when located in the user's ear all the way to a telephone carried in such a location.

20 Alternatively, a mobile telephone may be carried in a jacket or shirt pocket when in use with a hands free kit. However, the telephone will still need to be removed from the pocket to carry out control operations and furthermore may easily fall out.

25 Another disadvantage of carrying a mobile telephone in such a pocket is that the weight of the telephone may affect the way a shirt hangs when worn, disrupting the smooth lie of the shirt or spoiling the hang of a tie.

Yet another problem with conventional ways of 30 carrying a mobile telephone for use with a hands free kit is that no convenient location for retention of a the hands free kit or ear piece are available when not in use.

The present invention seeks to address these and 35 other disadvantages of the related prior art.

Accordingly, the present invention provides an upper body garment, the chest area of the garment being provided with a first loop adapted for retention of a mobile telephone thereon.

Preferably, the first loop is adapted to accept a retaining clip of a mobile telephone or telephone 5 carrying case. Typically, such a retaining clip may be provided by the clip often provided with mobile telephones or mobile telephone carrying cases for retention of the unit on a belt, and is often described as a belt clip.

1 i 0 Locating a mobile telephone in the chest area of an upper body garment provides a single stable location allowing the wearer to carry out normal day to day activities such as sitting at a desk, walking about and getting into and driving a car, without i5 impediment and with the telephone continuously held in ion.

the chosen locat- Only a relatively short length of cable between the telephone and a connected hands free kit ear piece is required because -the mobile telephone is located 20 closer to the user's head than would be the case were the telephone to be retained on a belt or in a trouser pocket.

Location of a mobile telephone Leasonably close -o a user's mouth, and in particular in Ehe upper 25 chest region and preferably towards the centre of the chest region allows a microphone integrally provided with the mobile telephone to be used instead of a microphone provided with a hands free kit. Accordingly, a hands free kit which does not 30 incorporate a microphone may be used with garments embodying the present invention. The hands free kit may therefore comprise only an earpiece connected by a cable or by wireless means to the mobile telephone.

Instead of an ear piece, the hands free kit could 35 comprise a loudspeaker or similar audio output, which could be provided integrally with or separately from the mobile telephone.

Retention of the mobile telephone on a first loop located on the chest area of an upper body garment enables the telephone to be operated, for example for dialling or answering a call, without removing the 5 telephone from its location.

Preferably, the upper body garment further comprises a second loop, which advantageously may be adjacent to the first loop, adapted to retain a portion of a hands free kit. Preferably, the second 10 loop is adapted to retain the ear piece of a hands free kit.

The cable connecting the ear piece of a hands free kit to a mobile telephone retained on the first loop may be threaded through the second loop. When is required, the slack cable may be drawn through the second loop so that the ear piece may be placed in the user"s ear. After use, the ear piece may be returned to the storage position provided by the second loop.

Preferably, the first loop is provided by a 20 horizontally extended strip attached to the garment at first and second horizontally spaced locations. The second loop may be provided by a third attachment of the horizontally extended strip to the garment at a third location horizontally spaced from the first and 25 second locations. Alternatively, a separate strip or other structure could be provided for retention of a portion of a hands free kit.

Preferably, the strip comprises, or is faced with the same fabric as the chest area of the upper body 30 garment, thus retaining a neat appearance to the garment.

The strip may be strengthened by an integral stiffening element to improve the support of a mobile telephone retained thereon and to maintain a better 35 shape of the upper body garment when in use.

To strengthen the garment in the region adjacent to the first loop, and if necessary adjacent to the second loop, the garment may be provided in this region with a reinforcing element, preferably made from material providing more rigidity than the fabric of the garment itself.

5 Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing which illustrates a mobile telephone and hands free kit retained in the chest area of an upper body garment embodying the present 10 invention.

The figure illustrates an upper body garment 10, which in this case is a gentleman's formal shirt, but could equally well be a more casual shirt or ladies blouse, a jacket, tkank top or other garment. The i5 garment 10 is provided, slightly to one side of the centre of the upper chest area, with a horizontally extended strip 12. The strip 's attached to the garment at three horizontally spaced attachment locations 14 to provide two loops, a f4rst longer loop - J 20 and second shcrter loop. The strip may be made from the same cioth as the underlying chest area of the garment, but could equally be made from a cloth of contrasting collour, or from an altogether different material such as a strong cotton tape or plastic.

25 The strip is preferably attached to the garment by stitchinq, but other methods such as glueing or rivetting could be used. -Alternatively, removable attachments using velcro, clips, butons or other fasteners could be used.

30 The strip may be strengthened along its length by a backing strip of a more r i 0 - 4 Ld material such as a rigid or flexible plastic or robust cloth tape, to which the facing fabric may be glued or stitched.

The garment may be reinforced in the region of 35 the three attachment locations 14, for example by means of a more rigid material such as a rigid or flexible plastic or a length of cloth tape stitched or glued to the inside or outside surface of the garment.

In use, a mobile telephone 16 having a belt clip or similar device, or a mobile telephone carried in a carry case 18 having such a device is retained on the S garment 10 by means of the first loop of the horizontal strip 12, for example by hooking the device over the first loop. The cable 20 of a hands free kit comprising an ear piece 22, and optionally a microphone, is passed down through the second loop and 10 plugged into the appropriate socket of the telephone 16. The ear piece 22 is retained in the second loop until required for use when it may be removed and placed in the user's ear, the cable 20 being conveniently drawn through the second loop.

15 If the telephone is located sufficiently close to the user's mouth then the user's voice may be picked up using a microphone incorporated in the mobile telephone. Alternatively, a separate microphone may be provided as part of a hands free kit, for example 20 located on the cable 20 part way between the ear piece 22 and the mobile telephone 18.

A number of further variations of the described embodiment are clearly possible. For example, the strip need not be precisely horizontal, and may be for 25 example only substantially horizontal, vertical, or in some intermediate orientation.

The first loop could be provided by an element attached to the garment at only one location, or at two closely spaced locations, and could be fabricated 30 partly or entirely from a woven cord or string, metal, plastic, fabric or any other suitable material.

The means for retaining the ear piece or other element of a hands free kit could be provided by a ring or other structure, which could be made, for 35 example, of metal, plastic, fabric or cord.

Further means could be provided to better retain the mobile telephone in position, such as a second strip overlying the first. The second strip could be elasticated, or decoupleable from the garment at one or both ends and one or both of the strips could be provided with a gripping portion to assist in 5 retention of the mobile telephone between the strips.

Claims

1. An upper body garment, the chest area of the garment being provided with a first loop adapted for 5 retention of a mobile telephone thereon.

2. The garment of claim 1 wherein the first loop is adapted to accept a retaining clip of a mobile telephone or mobile telephone carrying case.

3. The garment of either claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising a second loop adapted to retain a portion of a hands free kit.

is

4. The garment of claim 3 wherein the second loop is adapted to retain the ear piece of a hands free kit.

5. The garment of either of claims 3 or 4 wherein the second loop is adjacent to the first loop.

6. The garment of any preceding claim, wherein the first loop is provided by a horizontally extended strip attached to the garment at first and second horizontally spaced locations.

7. The garment of claim 6, wherein the second loop is provided by attaching the horizontally extended strip to the garment at a third location horizontally spaced from the first and second locations.

8. The garment of either of claims 6 or 7 wherein the strip comprises the same fabric as the chest area of the upper body garment.

35

9. The garment of any of claims 6 to 8 wherein the strip is strengthened by an integral stiffening element.

10. The garment of any preceding claim wherein the area of the garment adjacent to the first loop is reinforced with a reinforcing element.

11. An upper body garment substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawing.