IE86258B1 - A protective garment - Google Patents

Abstract

A garment for holding a kneepad to be used by tradesmen who are required to spend long periods of time in the kneeling position. The garment comprises a number of pockets which can hold the insertion kneepad at a number of different heights respectively. This can be useful as people of different heights may use the garment and also a user may require the kneepad to be at different heights depending on the angle of the surface they are kneeling on. The garment is designed to present only one opening as access to all of the different pockets which is useful in construction site environments as any strips of cloth such as an opening presents a risk of being snagged or caught on a nearby protruding object. This is a health hazard to the user of the garment.

Description

“A protective garment” Introduction This invention relates to a protective garment trousers with pockets arranged in each trouser leg to receive a protective kneepad.

Throughout the following description, unless otherwise stated, the term kneepad” should be interpreted as an insertion type kneepad, that is to say a kneepad which is inserted into a pocket of a garment which is located about the knee portion of the trouser legs of the garment, and is primarily intended to provide comfort to the user during extended periods in the kneeling position. The primary function of the insertion kneepad is not intended to be for protection against any striking of the knee area, although the insertion kneepad will offer some protection to the knee from striking into objects or being struck by objects.

Furthermore, the term “sealed” will be understood by those skilled in the art of garment fabrication to encompass various sewing techniques, adhesive bonding and other chemical bonding techniques to fasten cloths together.

Kneepads designed primarily for comfort purposes are usually worn by users who spend extended periods of time in the kneeling position. These kneepads are worn by tradesmen such as electricians, tilers, construction workers and roofers, all of whom have to spend several hours in a kneeling position in order to carry out their tasks. As these users can control the amount of force the insertion kneepad must absorb, i.e. by gently lowering themselves into a kneeling position, the insertion kneepads may be constructed using different materials and a completely different design approach to those kneepads which must protect the knee and be capable of absorbing high force impacts, such as the kneepads worn by sportspeople.

Strap-on kneepads, used for providing comfort to a user, may be strapped to the user around their knee area. Alternatively, the kneepad may come in the form of inserts which may be placed in pockets or sleeves located at the knee portion of a trouser leg of a garment. 186258 -2The strap-on kneepads are well known to cause discomfort when the user needs to stand upright and walk around. These strap-on kneepads may be moulded and formed to accommodate the knee of the user when the user is in the kneeling position, however, they can be uncomfortable and awkward to wear when the user is in a standing position and moreover, the strap-on kneepads inhibit the users ability to walk freely when they are strapped to their knee area. Users who constantly transition from a kneeling position into a standing position while they are carrying out certain tasks may find it necessary to remove the strap-on kneepads during periods when they have to stand upright in order to carry out their task, and then will be required to put the strap-on kneepads back on when they need to get back into the kneeling position to carry out another part of their task. This constant removing and re-fastening of the strap-on kneepad becomes extremely agitating to the user and does not allow them to efficiently carry out their tasks. For these reasons, many users decide not to wear these strap-on kneepads at all, as their disadvantages may outweigh their benefits. A further problem with strap-on kneepads in both the kneeling and standing positions is that the skin around which the kneepad is strapped is not given much room to breathe and therefore heavy perspiration can build up in this area. This can cause discomfort to the user and potentially, over time, if the user spends extended portions of their day in this position, the skin around the knee area can become irritable and possibly infected in addition to other medical problems which the user may encounter.

In an effort to overcome this problem, kneepads intended for providing comfort have been designed in the form of inserts which may be placed in the pockets of garments around the knee area. These insertion kneepads are designed to be substantially flat in their unflexed, unhinged state and thus they allow the user free unrestricted movement in the standing position. As the insertion kneepad is carried in a pocket which is affixed to the garment, the user will not feel any fastening means around their knee, impinging on their movement, nor will they feel the insertion kneepad pushing on their knee, as would be the case with the aforementioned strap-on kneepads which commonly have a permanently curved shape which is then forced out of its normal curved shape during those periods when the user is in the standing position and, thus, the strap-on kneepad is constantly pushing back on the user’s -3knee area, as it wishes to return to its normal curved shape. In fact, as the insertion kneepad is carried in a pocket which is attached to a garment and the garment is worn in a relatively loose-fitting’ normal manner, the user may not feel any presence of a kneepad at all in the standing position. Furthermore, as the insertion kneepad is in a pocket which hangs freely from the knee of a user, there will be no contact during the period of time when the user is in a standing position. This will allow the skin around the knee area, which was in contact with the kneeling pad when the user was in a kneeling position, to breathe. This will reduce the irritation and discomfort felt by the user whilst carrying out tasks which require the use of kneepads.

US 5,729,832 (Grilliot et al.) discloses a protective garment, usually worn by fire fighters or other such emergency personnel which comprises a pocket for receiving a kneepad in each trouser leg. The kneepads allow the emergency personnel to crawl through wreckages. The kneepad offers both a comfortable support and a protective shield against broken glass and other sharp pieces of wreckage. There is only one pocket in each trouser leg, and therefore to accommodate the different heights that different users will require the kneepad to be held at, the kneepad is made to be relatively large, which can lead to mobility problems for the user.

As can be seen, one of the major problems with using a garment having only one pocket for the kneepad is that the location of the kneepad pocket or sleeve may not be appropriate for each person. People of different heights will require pockets located at different heights so that the kneepad is correctly positioned to provide them with the most effective and comfortable support during kneeling.

US 6,751,804 (Warner et al.) discloses a garment having a number of downwardly facing flaps and associated upwardly facing flaps. An upper edge of a kneepad is engaged in one of the downwardly facing flaps and a lower edge of the kneepad is engaged in one of the upwardly facing flaps so that the kneepad is held between two of the flaps on the garment. A number of these flaps are provided so that the height at which the kneepad is held may be altered by engaging the kneepad in different pairs of flaps. The document further discloses that the flaps may be sewn on the interior of the garment or alternatively on the exterior of the garment. However, a substantial portion of each kneepad is exposed as only the upper and lower edges of -4the kneepad are encompassed by the flaps. This leaves a large portion of the kneepad susceptible to damage and additionally, the kneepad may become dislodged from the flaps in a relatively easy manner as only a portion of the kneepad is held in place by the flaps. This is irritating for the user as the kneepad may have to be constantly readjusted and replaced in the flaps and additionally, if the kneepads become dislodged easily, it would be quite common for the kneepads to become misplaced or lost.

US 7,216,370 (Warner et al.) discloses trousers with kneepads in enclosed pockets which allow for a kneepad to be placed at a number of different heights on a trouser leg for different users. The kneepad pockets fully encompass the kneepad to ensure that it does not become easily dislodged from its pocket. The kneepad pockets are located on the interior of the garment and may preferably comprise fasteners such as zippers, hook and loop tape, snaps and buttons to assist in closing the pocket and hold the insertion kneepad in place inside the pocket.

A general problem exists with flaps which are only accessible on the inside knee portion of a garment. A user, such as a roofer, may change working positions between kneeling on an inclined surface and kneeling on a flat surface. This change in working position may require a change in positioning of the height of the kneepad to provide maximum comfort and support. Therefore, the alteration of the positioning of the kneepad would require access to the interior of the garment which would necessitate removal of the garment itself to perform the alteration. This is timeconsuming and awkward.

Furthermore, a different problem exists when the flaps are located on the exterior of the garment. Often, users such as tradesmen will be working in dangerous environments, such as construction sites, which will contain protruding objects from uncompleted work. Garments and work wear for such locations should be as ‘low profile’ as possible, which is to say, the garments should preferably have a minimal amount of flaps, lips, trims and other such strips of cloth which could become caught in the protruding objects causing damage to any one of the user, the garment, or the object. So even in the scenario that the plurality of pockets were to be placed on the exterior of the garment, they would not be low profile’ as each pocket presents an -5opening which could possibly catch on a protruding object in a construction environment. The plurality of pockets would cause a of plurality of openings to be placed on the exterior of the garment according to the teachings of US7,216,370 which would increase the likelihood of catching or snagging the garment on nearby objects.

Moreover, the use of fasteners disclosed in US 7,216,370 would not fully solve the problem of preventing the garment from snagging on nearby protruding objects. A user may not always fully close each of the openings on each of the pockets every time that they use the garment as it would be very time-consuming. Additionally, zippers, buttons and hook and loop tape arrangements still present small flaps and lips which could become caught on nails, screws and other such protruding objects. This is a health hazard to the user of the garment.

EP 1 686 867 discloses two overlapping pouches with separate openings for holding protective pads.

EP 1 719 422 discloses a garment with individual internal pouches for holding protective pads.

DE 29605011 discloses a garment with individual pouches for holding protective pads.

US 2005/0060782 discloses a garment with individual internal pouches for holding protective pads.

US 2006/0277644 discloses a pouch for holding protective pads.

The problem with the disclosures in the prior art documents EP 1 686 867, EP 1 719 422, DE 29605011, US 2005/0060782 and US 2006/0277644 is that the pockets are either located on the inside knee portion of the garment, thus necessitating the removal of the garment to alter the position of the kneepad, or, the plurality of pockets are not accessible through a single common opening. [ -6ι It is a goal of the present invention to overcome at least some of the problems mentioned above or provide an alternative solution to the market.

I Statements of Invention j The present invention is directed towards a pouch assembly for a garment comprising a plurality of pockets each for reception of an associated removable protective pad, and, a common inlet opening, wherein, the plurality of pockets share the common inlet opening to allow said associated protective pad to be inserted into or removed from any of the plurality of pockets. | I In a further embodiment, the plurality of pockets partially overlap and are arranged longitudinally in a linear series; said pockets including an upper: pocket and a iower pocket; the upper pocket comprises a sealed top edge, sealed side edges and an open bottom edge, wherein the open bottom edge comprises a return lip to retain the associated protective pad in the upper pocket; the lower pocket comprises a sealed bottom edge to retain the associated protective pad in the lower pocket, sealed side edges and an open top edge; and, the common inlet opening is formed between the overlap of the open bottom edge of the upper pocket over the open top edge of the lower pocket. i In another embodiment, one or more intermediate pockets are situated between the upper pocket and the lower pocket, each intermediate pocket comprising an open top edge, sealed side edges and an open bottom edge comprising a return lip to retain the associated protective pad in the corresponding intermediate pocket; the common inlet opening is formed by a pair of adjacent pockets, the open bottom edge of the uppermost pocket of said pair of adjacent pockets, and the open top edge of the lowermost pocket of said pair of adjacent pocket which overlaps the bottom edge of the uppermost pocket.

Preferably, the common inlet opening can be closed using fastening means.

Advantageously, the fastening means is hook and loop tape. -7Ιη a yet further embodiment, the fastening means is a plurality of buttons and corresponding slits respectively.

In a yet still further embodiment, the fastening means is a zipper.

In another embodiment, the open bottom edge of the uppermost pocket overlaps the open top edge of the lowermost pocket.

In yet another embodiment, the open top edge of the lowermost pocket overlaps the open bottom edge of the uppermost pocket.

Preferably, the protective pouch assembly can be attached to existing garments.

Still preferably, the protective pouch assembly is located substantially at the ventral knee portion of a garment.

Yet further preferably, the protective pouch assembly is located substantially at the elbow portion of a garment.

Advantageously, the plurality of pockets partially overlap and are arranged longitudinally in a linear series; and, the common inlet opening is positioned at an open top edge of an uppermost pocket.

In a further embodiment, the plurality of pockets partially overlap and are arranged longitudinally in a linear series; and, the common inlet opening is positioned at an open bottom edge of a lowermost pocket, wherein the bottom edge comprises a return lip to retain the associated protective pad in the lowermost pocket.

The present invention is further directed towards a garment comprising a left trouser leg portion and a right trouser leg portion, wherein each of the left and right trouser leg portions has a protective pouch assembly according to any preceding claim mounted at a ventral knee portion of the garment.

Preferably, the left and right leg trouser portions each comprise front and back -8portions joined along an inner seam and an outer seam; and, side edges of each of the plurality of pockets are incorporated into the inner and outer seams.

The advantages of using a garment which only comprises one opening for receiving the kneepad for any of the plurality of pockets is that the risk of catching the garment on a protruding object such as a nail or screw is reduced. Previously, a garment having a plurality of pockets to allow adjustment of the location of a kneepad also presented a plurality of openings, each of which could have become caught on nearby protruding objects in a construction environment. The placement of the opening for the uppermost pocket at the bottom of the pocket, and the use of the same opening at the top of lower pockets allows a minimal amount of openings to be located on the exterior of the garment. The design also still allows alteration of the location of the kneepad without necessitating removal of the garment.

Detailed Embodiment of the Invention The invention will be more clearly understood by the following description of some embodiments thereof, given by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective detail view of a portion of the garment of the present invention; Fig.2 is an exploded perspective detail view of a portion of the garment of Fig. 1 with a kneepad in a lower position; Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective detail view of a portion of the garment of Fig. 1 with the kneepad in an upper position; Fig. 4 is a front detail view of the garment portion of Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is a front detail view of the garment portion of Fig. 1 with the kneepad in the lower position; -9Fig. 6 is a front detail view of the garment portion of Fig. 1 with the kneepad in the upper position; Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view along line VII-VIP of Fig. 5; Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view along lines VIll-VIIΓ of Fig. 6; Fig. 9 is an exploded perspective detail view of a portion of a garment according to an alternative embodiment of the invention; Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the portion of a garment according to the alternative embodiment of Fig. 9; Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of a garment according to a further alternative embodiment of the invention; Fig. 12 is a front view of an upper and lower garment.

Referring to the drawings and initially to Fig. 12, there is illustrated a garment according to the invention, in this case comprising a trousers indicated generally by the reference numeral 100. The trousers 100 has a pair of trouser legs 101 with a protective pouch assembly 102 on a ventral knee portion of each trouser leg.

With reference to Figs. 1-8, there is illustrated the protective pouch assembly 102 with an upper pocket 110 and a lower pocket 120 each for reception of a removable kneepad 200 (see Figs. 2 and 3). The upper pocket 110 comprises a top edge 111 which is sealed to the trouser leg 101 of the pair of trousers 100. The top edge 111 is sealed along a seam using known stitching techniques or adhesive techniques. The side edges 113,115 are also sealed to the trouser leg 101 of the pair of trousers 100. The side edges 113, 115 are also sealed along seams using known stitching techniques or adhesive techniques. The upper pocket 110 also comprises an open bottom edge 117. The open bottom edge 117 is turned inwardly and upwardly to provide a return lip 119 which is used to hold the kneepad 200 in place in the upper pocket 110. The sides of the return lip 119 may be sealed together with the side -10edges 113, 115 of the upper pocket along a common seam. The lower pocket 120 comprises an open top edge 121, sealed side edges 123, 125 and a sealed bottom edge 127. A return lip 129 is formed at the sealed bottom edge 127 of the lower pocket 120. The sides of the return lip 129 may be sealed together with the side edges 123,125 of the upper pocket.

With particular reference to Figs. 2, 5 and 7, a kneepad 200 is shown is place in the lower pocket 120. The kneepad 200 is held in the lower pocket 120 with assistance from the upper pocket 110 which partially overlaps the lower pocket 120. The return lip 129 on the lower pocket 120 is shown, although, it will be appreciated that in further embodiments, the bottom sealed edge 127 of the lower pocket 120 could perform the same role as the return lip 129 and hold the kneepad 200 in place.

With particular reference to Fig. 3, 6 and 8, a kneepad 200 is shown is place in the upper pocket 110. The kneepad 200 is held in the upper pocket 110 with assistance from the return lip 119, the sealed top edge 111 and the sealed side edges 113,115 of the upper pocket 110.

Referring to Figs. 7 and 8, only one inlet opening, indicated generally by reference numeral 700 is provided to allow the kneepad 200 to pass through and to be received in the upper pocket 110 or the lower pocket 120. Arrows A, B indicate insertion of the kneepad 200 into the upper pocket 110 and the lower pocket 120 respectively.

Referring to Figs. 9 and 10, another protective pouch assembly indicated generally by reference numeral 900 is provided, wherein the same or similar parts previously described have been assigned the same reference numerals. In this case the pouch assembly 900 comprises a third, intermediate pocket 910 located between the upper pocket 110 and the lower pocket 120. The intermediate pocket 910 includes a return lip 919 to receive and hold a kneepad (not shown) in the intermediate pocket 910.

The side edges 913, 915 of the intermediate pocket are sealed, preferably together with the sealed side edges 123,125 of the lower pocket 120. The inlet opening 700 is provided between the open bottom edge 117 of the upper pocket 110 and an open top edge 911 of the intermediate pocket 910. Through this common inlet opening 700, a kneepad may be placed in the upper pocket 110, the intermediate pocket 910 -11 or the lower pocket 120.

With reference to Fig. 11, there is illustrated a further protective pouch assembly indicated generally by reference numeral 1100, with parts similar to those already described assigned the same reference numeral. The pouch assembly 1100 comprises a plurality of pockets 1110,1120,1130 into which a kneepad 200 may be inserted through a common inlet opening 700. The common inlet opening 700 is located at a top edge 1111 of the plurality of pockets 1110, 1120, 1130. Each of the pockets 1110, 1120, 1130 comprise a return lip 1119, 1129, 1139 which extend upwardly from the bottom edge 1117, 1127, 1137 of the pockets 1110, 1120, 1130 respectively for retention of the kneepad 200.

It will be further understood that there are numerous embodiments and variations possible for the above described invention which would be within the scope of the appended claims provided that there is oniy one common opening for insertion and removal of a kneepad into any of a plurality of pockets. Specifically, but not limited to, moving the location of the common inlet opening to the side of the pockets 1110, 1120,1130 or at the bottom of the pockets 1110,1120,1130.

It will be further understood that any number of intermediate pockets may be provided whilst maintaining only one inlet opening in the portion of garment, thus, minimising the risk of catching the kneepad pockets. For example, a fourth, fifth or sixth pocket may comprise part of the plurality of pockets of Fig. 11 as long as only one common opening is used for the insertion and removal of a kneepad into any of the pockets.

It will be understood that the protective pouch assembly 102 will be located on the ventral knee portion of a trouser leg 101 of the garment 100 so that the kneepad 200 will provide comfort and support to the knee of a user (not shown) wearing the trouser 100.

Returning to Fig. 12, it will be appreciated that the pouch assemblies hereinbefore described with reference to kneepads could equally well be applied to elbow pad assemblies 106 on an upper torso garment 104 such as a jacket or jumper. Likewise, protective padding worn by sports people could benefit from having an adjustable pad -12location feature on their clothing. Examples would be pads worn by jockeys in horseracing, pads worn by street luge participants, skateboarders, American footballers and rugby players.

In this specification, the terms “comprise”, “comprises”, “comprised” and “comprising” or any variation thereof and the terms “include”, “includes”, “included” and “including” or any variation thereof are deemed totally interchangeable and should be afforded the widest possible interpretation and vice versa.

It should be emphasised that the above described embodiment of the present invention, in particular any (preferred) embodiment, are merely a possible example of many different implementations, merely set forth for a clear understanding of the invention.

Many variations and modifications may be made to the above-described embodiment of the invention, without departing substantially from the scope of the invention. All such modifications and variations are intended to be included herein within the scope of this disclosure and the present invention.

Claims (1)

1. CLAIMS 1. A pouch assembly (102, 900) for a garment (100) comprising a plurality of 2. A pouch assembly (102) according to claim 1, characterised in that, 15 the plurality of pockets (110, 120, 910) partially overlap and are arranged longitudinally in a linear series; said plurality of pockets (110, 120, 910) including an upper pocket (110) and a lower pocket (120); the upper pocket (110) comprises a sealed top edge (111), sealed side edges (113, 115) and an open bottom edge (117), wherein the open bottom edge (117) comprises a return lip (119) to retain the associated protective pad (220) in the upper pocket (110); the lower pocket (120) comprises a sealed bottom edge (127) to retain the associated protective pad (220) in the lower pocket (120), sealed side edges (123,125) and an open top edge (121); and, 30 the common inlet opening is formed between the overlap of the open bottom edge (117) of the upper pocket (110) over the open top edge (121) of the lower pocket (120). 3. A pouch assembly (900) according to claim 1, characterised in that, -14the plurality of pockets (110, 120, 910) partially overlap and are arranged longitudinally in a linear series; said plurality of pockets (110,120, 910) including an upper pocket (110), one or 5 more intermediate pockets (910), and, a lower pocket (120); the upper pocket (110) comprises a sealed top edge (111), sealed side edges (113, 115) and an open bottom edge (117), wherein the open bottom edge (117) comprises a return lip (119) to retain the associated protective pad (220) 4. A pouch assembly (102,900) according to claim 2 or 3, characterised in that, the common inlet opening (700) can be closed using fastening means. 5. A pouch assembly (102,900) according to claim 4, characterised in that, the fastening means is hook and loop tape. 5 pockets (110, 120, 910) each for reception of an associated removable protective pad (200), and, a common inlet opening, characterised in that, 6. A pouch assembly (102, 900) according to claim 4, characterised in that, -15the fastening means is a plurality of buttons and corresponding slits respectively. 7. A pouch assembly (102, 900) according to claim 4, characterised in that, the fastening means is a zipper. 8. A pouch assembly (102, 900) according to any preceding claim, characterised in that, the protective pouch assembly (102, 900) can be attached to existing garments (100). 9. A pouch assembly (102, 900) according to any preceding claim, characterised in that, the protective pouch assembly (102, 900) is located substantially at the ventral knee portion of a garment. 10. Into the inner and outer seams. 15. A pouch assembly substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. 10. A pouch assembly (102, 900) according to any preceding claim, characterised in that, the protective pouch assembly (102, 900) is located substantially at the elbow portion of a garment. 10 in the upper pocket (110); the lower pocket (120) comprises a sealed bottom edge (127) to retain the associated protective pad (200) in the lower pocket (120), sealed side edges (123,125) and an open top edge (121); wherein one or more intermediate pockets (910) are situated between the upper pocket (110) and the lower pocket (120), each intermediate pocket (910) comprising an open top edge (911), sealed side edges (913, 915) and an open bottom edge comprising a return lip (919) to retain the associated protective 20 pad (200) in the corresponding intermediate pocket (910); the common inlet opening (700) is formed by a pair of adjacent pockets, the open bottom edge (117) of the uppermost pocket (110) of said pair of adjacent pockets, and the open top edge (911) of the lowermost pocket (910) of said 25 pair of adjacent pocket which overlaps the bottom edge (117) of the uppermost pocket (110). 10 the plurality of pockets (110,120, 910) share the common inlet opening to allow said associated protective pad (200) to be inserted into or removed from any of the plurality of pockets (110,120, 910). 11. A pouch assembly (1100) according to claim 1, characterised in that, the plurality of pockets (1110, 1120, 1130) partially overlap and are arranged longitudinally in a linear series; and, the common inlet opening (700) is positioned at an open top edge of an uppermost pocket (1110). 12. A pouch assembly (1100) according to claim 1, characterised in that, the plurality of pockets (1110, 1120, 1130) partially overlap and are arranged longitudinally in a linear series; and, the common inlet opening is positioned at an open bottom edge of a lowermost pocket (1130), wherein the bottom edge comprises a return lip (1139) to retain the associated protective pad (200) in the lowermost pocket (1130). 13. A garment (100) comprising a left trouser leg portion and a right trouser leg -16portion, wherein each of the left and right trouser leg portions has a protective pouch assembly (102, 900,1100) according to any preceding claim mounted at a ventral knee portion of the garment (100). 5 14. A garment (100) according to claim 13, characterised in that, the left and right leg trouser portions each comprise front and back portions joined along an inner seam and an outer seam; and, side edges of each of the plurality of pockets (110, 120, 910) are incorporated 15 16. A garment substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.