GB2484949A

GB2484949A - An undergarment

Info

Publication number: GB2484949A
Application number: GB1018135.2A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Jeffery William Shutt
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2010-10-27
Filing date: 2010-10-27
Publication date: 2012-05-02
Anticipated expiration: 2030-10-27
Also published as: GB2484949B; GB201018135D0

Abstract

An undergarment 10 comprises a corset 14 for fitting around the waist of a wearer, a rigid support member 20 for supporting the back of the wearer, a pair of cups 16, 18 attached to the corset for accommodating and supporting the breasts, and a pair of rigid cup supports 22, 24 extending, in use, from the support member over the shoulders to the cups. The support member is preferably formed from plastics. A pocket and a sleeve may be provided on a rear panel of the corset for receiving and retaining the support member. The support member may be substantially T-shaped with connection points comprising threaded apertures being provided at an upper end for connection with the cup supports. Compared to prior art undergarments, the present undergarment may provide extra support to wearers having a larger bust.

Description

TITLE: UNDERGARMENT The present invention relates to an undergarment.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Undergarments for the upper body, in the form of corsets, have been worn by women for many centuries. Historically corsets are worn for improving posture. However, more importantly, especially in modern days, corsets are worn to help defining the figure of a wearer, for displaying a smaller waist and an exaggerated bust, and/or for slimming the body.

There are currently available ready made corsets with various cup sizes and waist or torso measurements. However, women vary greatly in their bust sizes and torso shapes, so although there may be corsets with a range of sizes available, they may not give a perfect fit to the wearer and may not achieve the desired visual result.

To provide the best fit, corsets should preferably be made to measure. However, such corsets tend to be expensive due to the labour and specialist skills involved. As the garment needs to be handmade, the time it takes to complete a corset is also relatively long. Made to measure corsets are therefore not readily available in shops and retail outlet.

Furthermore, corsets rarely cater for women with a larger bust, for example of size D-cup or larger. Back, neck and shoulder pain is a relatively common occurrence for women with large breasts primarily due to the increased weight on the chest and weak muscular support. This can be particularly problematic when picking up, for example, children. Some women suffer extreme pain, deteriorating posture and are at risk of developing spinal deformity and repetitive stress injuries due to their large breasts. It is known that some women even purposely alter their posture by rolling their shoulders forward in a bid to hide their large breasts out of embarrassment. This can lead to compressed nerves and blood vessels resulting in pain and discomfort.

It is an object of the invention to provide an undergarment for females which substantially mitigates or reduces these problems.

STATEMENT OF INVENTION

According to the present invention there is provided an undergarment comprising a corset for fitting around the waist, a rigid support member for supporting the back, a pair of cups attached to the corset for accommodating and supporting a bust, and a pair of rigid cup supports extending, in use, from the support member over the shoulders to the cups.

The undergarment is advantageous because it not only provides the benefits of a corset, but also provides extra support for a large bust. Specifically, the corset and cups in combination help to shape the silhouette of the user's torso and large chest region, which helps engender an air of confidence in the user. Moreover, the pair of rigid cup supports take substantially all of the weight from the chest area and spread the load to the rigid support member and directly to the lower back area and hips through the corset, thereby reducing the risk of spinal deformities and repetitive stress injuries. Additionally, the rigid back support also helps maintain good posture, which again minimises the risk of the developing pain and discomfort associated with having large breasts.

The support member may be made from plastics, which is pre-moulded to conform to the shape of a person's back. The plastics may be shaped using a hot or cold moulding technique and an appropriately rnoulded back support is selected. This enables the back support to take the natural shape of the back when standing in a good postural position and assists in maintaining that good posture, when in use.

The corset may include at least one elastic region for conforming to the shape of the waist. Ideally the elastic portions are at the sides of the corset and pleats in the material may be provided, as desired.

The corset may have front and rear panels, with a pocket mounted on the rear panel for receiving and retaining the back support. Furthermore, a sleeve may be mounted

I

on the rear panel above the pocket for receiving and retaining the back support, in use, a part of the back support passing through the sleeve and into the pocket.

The sleeve and pocket provide a way of attaching the support member to the corset in a secure manner. The shape of the support member after moulding to the shape of the back may also serve to hold the support member in position against the back.

The sleeve may be spaced from the pocket, for example, around 150 to 200mm to provide maximum support for the support member. This may be varied according to the size of corset for different sized people.

The support member may substantially T-shaped, with connection points for the pair of rigid cup supports being provided at side regions at the upper end of the support member.

Threaded fasteners may be provided to engage in respective threaded apertures at the connection points. These threaded fasteners provide a secure releasable fastening.

The front panel of the corset may be laced for enabling tightening of the corset around the waist in conventional manner.

The cups may be attached to the upper region of the front panel of the corset and each cup may be adapted to releasably connect to the rigid cup supports. In an optional arrangement the cups may be detachable from the corset to enable different sized cups to be attached.

The rigid cup supports may be adjustable in length or may be connected at different positions to provide adjustability.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a schematic side view of an undergarment in use; Figure 2 shows a perspective view of the back support and the pair of rigid cup supports of the undergarment of Figure 1; Figure 3 shows a schematic perspective view of the connection of the pair of rigid cup support to the back support of the undergarment of Figure 1; Figure 4 shows a schematic rear view of the undergarment of Figure 1; Figure 5 shows a schematic front view of the undergarment of Figure 1; and Figure 6 shows a schematic perspective view of the cups of the undergarment of Figure 1.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)

Referring firstly to Figure 1, an undergarment is indicated generally at 10, shown on a torso 12 of a female body. The undergarment 10 includes a corset 14 which is adapted to fit tightly around the waist of a person, a pair of cups 16, 18, best seen in Figure 6, for supporting a bust, a support member 20 which extends along and supports the back region and a pair of rigid cup supports 22, 24, best seen in Figure 2.

Referring also to Figures 4 and 5, the corset 14 is constructed from a rear panel 26 and a front panel 28. The front panel 28 is constructed with plurality of lace apertures 30 running down the centre of the panel 28 for receiving laces 32, enabling the corset to be tightened in conventional fashion around the waist. Other fastening means may be utilized, but lacing is preferred because it can be used to achieve maximum tightness around the waist. Areas of the rear and front panels 26, 28 may be provided in elasticated material as indicated at 34 which may conform to the shape of the body to some extent. Pleats in the material may be provided to enhance the fitted appearance.

A pocket 36 is disposed at a lower region of the rear panel 26 on its outer surface and a further open ended pocket 38 or sleeve is provided in an upper region at the centre of the rear panel 26.

Referring also to Figure 2, the support member 20 is substantially shaped as a T. The support member is made from a plastics material, which is pre-moulded to the shape of a person's back using a hot or cold moulding technique. For example, the unheated plastic is shaped in a mould under pressure. Alternatively, vacuum forming could be used, depending on the type of plastics used. The shape of the back support is determined through measurement of a sample of women. A shape and size of back support is selected to fit a particular person accordingly.

An upper part 40 of the support member 20 is provided with two apertures 42, 44, which are positioned to either side of the central axis of the support member 20. The apertures 42, 44 may be internally threaded as indicated in Figure 3. The ends of the rigid cup supports 22, 24 are also provided with corresponding apertures 46, 48 and can be attached to the apertures 42, 44 of the support member 20 by means of screw threaded bolts 50, for example, at size M6. The corners of the support member 20 are rounded, for example at 52 and the sides of the support member 20 are also curved, in order to prevent snagging against clothing or the skin. The rigid cup supports 22, 24 are provided with hooks 54, 56 at the opposite ends to the apertures 46, 48. The hooks 54, 56 are adapted to engage in apertures or slots 58 provided in the upper sides of the cups 16, 18. The cups 16, 18 can either be permanently stitched to the front panel 28 of the corset 14 or in an alternative arrangement, the cups 16 18 may be releasably fastened with a suitable releasable fastener to the front panel 28. Advantageously, the cups 16 18 can be made the same size or different sizes and may be padded or not as desired.

In use, the corset 14 is placed around the waist and tightened using the laces 32 in conventional manner. The lower end of the support member 20 is passed through the open ended pocket or sleeve 38 and down into the pocket 36, where it is retained. The proportions of the support member 20 are such that it extends above the top of the rear panel 26 to the shoulder region of the person wearing the corset 14. Furthermore the widening of the support member 20 at its upper end places the apertures 42 44 for connection of the rigid cup supports 22, 24 substantially towards the inside of the shoulder region on either side of the persons head. The rigid cup supports 22, 24 are preferably prefixed to the support member 20 using the screw threaded bolts or fasteners 50. The rigid cup supports 22, 24 pass over the shoulders to the front of the body and engage in the upper region of the cups 16, 18 for supporting the breast region. The weight of the breasts is taken by the cups 16, 18, transferred through the rigid cup supports 22, 24 and substantially past the shoulders with minimal load being placed upon the shoulders, and then transferred to the lower back and hips through the corset 14. By distributing the load over a greater area than simply the shoulders, the pain and discomfort associated with having a large bust is reduced. The corset 14 is intended to fit to the underside of the bust for maximum slimming and uplifting effect.

It is envisaged that the undergarment will have the effect of providing a smaller waist and exaggerated bust as is conventional, but will be significantly more comfortable than existing corsets or similar undergarments. In providing the undergarment, the corset, support member 10 rigid cup supports 22, 24 and cups 16, 18 can be selected independently to fit a particular person, and therefore the fit achieved should be as if the corset was made to measure. The support member 20 also provides additional support to the back, provides a finn anchor point for the rigid cup supports 22, 24 and is relatively inconspicuous. The rigid cup supports 22, 24, worn over and off the shoulders, relieve the shoulders of the weight of a large bust, thereby reducing the neck, shoulder and back pain associated with having a large bust.

Claims

CLAIMS1. An undergarment comprising a corset for fitting around the waist, a rigid support member for supporting the back, a pair of cups attached to the corset for accommodating and supporting a bust, and a pair of rigid cup supports extending, in use, from the support member over the shoulders to the cups.
2. An undergarment as claimed in claim 1, in which the support member is made from plastics, which is pre-moulded to conform to the shape of a person's back.
3. An undergarment as claimed in claim 2, in which the plastics is shaped using a cold moulding technique.
4. An undergarment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, in which the corset includes at least one elastic region for conforming to the shape of the waist.
5. An undergarment as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the corset has front and rear panels.
6. An undergarment as claimed in claim 5, in which a pocket is mounted on the rear panel for receiving and retaining the back support.
7. An undergarment as claimed in claim 5, in which a sleeve is mounted on the rear panel above the pocket for receiving and retaining the back support, in use, a part of the back support passing through the sleeve and into the pocket.
8. An undergarment as claimed in claim 7, in which the sleeve is spaced from the pocket.
9. An undergarment as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the support member is substantially T-shaped, with connection points for the rigid cup support being provided at side regions at the upper end of the support member.
10. An undergarment as claimed in claim 9, in which threaded fasteners are provided to engage in respective threaded apertures at the connection points.
11. An undergarment as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the front panel of the corset is laced.
12. An undergarment as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the cups are attached to the upper region of the front panel of the corset.
13. An undergarment as claimed in any preceding claim, in which each cup is adapted to releasably connect to one of the rigid cup supports.
14. An undergarment as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the rigid cup supports are adjustable in length.
15. An undergarment substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in Figures 1 to 6 of the accompanying drawings.