W. A. MORRISOI\L HYGIENIG MITTEN.

APPLIGATION FILED 00T.12 1910.

1053,20 L Patented Feb. 13, 1913.

WILLIAM A. MORRISON, O13 BOSTON, MASSACHUSE'ITS.

HYGIENIG MITTEN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Pateiated Feb. 18, 1913.

Applieation filed October 12, 1910. SerialNo. 586,681.

T0 all whom z't mag concem:

Be it knovvn that I, WILLIAM A. MORRI- SON, of Boston, in the county of Suf'folk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hygienic Mittens, of Whi0h the following is a specification.

The object of the present invention is toprovide a guard for the hands for hygienic ancl curative purposes, in order to facilit-ate the eure of skin diseases and eruptions which produce itching. In order to eure such diseases and aflections it is essential that the skin should not be broken or scratched, laut to make the persons afflicted with such troubl-e refrain from scratching is diflicult, ancl in the case of children, impossible. Moreover during sleep adults as well as children are liable t0 scratoh the affected places unconsciously and involuntarily.

It is the obj-ect of my invention to provide a guard which Will make slcratehing impossible by surrounding the band with an envelop the surface of Which is at once so smooth and soft that it cannot injure 01 irritate the afi'ected part of the skin, no

matter how hard it may be pressed against the a1fected place, while it is at the same time of such nature that it will distriloute the pressure of' a finger end or knuckle and malte it impossible for the patient to apply a sufficiently harol ancl localized pressure at any point to produce injury.

One of the forms in which my inwantion is reduced to practice is illustrated in the drawings, in Which 4 Figure 1 represents a si-cle elevation of a guard suitalole for the purpose. Fig. 2 represents an elevation of the guard from a position at right angles to the view point of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a cross-section of the guard.

The same reference charaoters indicate the same parts in all the figures.

Briefiy stated the guard consists of an inner sack or mitten a which is designed to fit somewhat closely about the closed band, and an outer cover Z) separated from the inner sack, which also may loe tefmed the lining, 011 all sides by a space 0 which is aclapted to contain air under pressure and form a pneumatic envelop. The guard as a whole is adapted to loe drawn over the band in the manner of a glove or mitten, the inner sack or lining thereof fitting the hand. This inner member may loe made in the form of a glove having digitations -to reoeive the fingers and thumlo, or of a mitten with a separate pocket for the thumlo only, or, as here shown, as a bag in which the fingers anol thumlo are all contained.

The lining a and outer cover b a1e made ofsome material impervious to air, such as rubber, fabric impregnated with rubber, o1 any other material known to the arts and having the desired qualities. This material may be more or less elastic 01' wholly inelastic, if desired.

Attached to the cover Z) and communicating With the intermediate space 0 is an ai1: valve 0Z through which air may be blown to fill the air space and inflate tl1e outer envelop. The air pressure is preferably raised to such a point that the wearer 0f the mitten Will be unalole to protrude a finger 01 knuckle across the air space and against the external covering so as to form a hard point capalole of scratching the skin. Motion of the lining as a whole toward either side of the outer cover is prevented by stay pieces Which retain the inner memloer centrally within the outer member and preserve the air space of uniform thickness on all sides.

The spacers may be of any suitable character, those which I have illustrated being strips co-nnected at their opposit-e edges to the inner and outer members respectively, and crossing the air space, one of such strips, as e, being carried from the back of the mitten around the end to the front side, and another, as f, being carried from one side to the other also around the end. More than two such strips may be employecl if desired and the arrangement may loe varied from that shown according as the needs of any particular case require. Where the spacing strips are disposed as here shown, they ter minate short of the wrist end of the envelop so that the ai1v aclmitted to the valve may flovv into all of the compartments of the air spa0e which are divided from one another by the spacing strips. These strips may also be apertured to permit free'flow of air through them. The strips may be very soft and flexible, and must not be so stifl as oi' themselves to scratch the skin. Provided they have suflicient tensile strength to tie the inner and outer memloers of the guard together, they need have no appre cialole stifl'ness.

Conveniently a cross bar ginay be held a1; its ends within the inner member so as 170 cross the same in such position that it may be grasped by the band.

'lhe .main feature 01 the presentinvention is that it provides a soft enve1op which entirely surrounds thehand on every side so that nowhere is any hard or harsh point 1eft capable of injuring the skin in the manner above noted.

I claim,

l. A band guard c01nprising an air tight Sack provided with a wrist opening and shaped eo form an interior chamber in which the hand is adapted 130 be moved freely, and

an outer air tight cover inclosing said sack except a1; the wrist opening 5Llld separated from the sack ab all points by an air space, whereby a soft anal yielding exterior surface is provided, and longitudinally disposed stays uniting said sack und said outer Cover, a space being formed between the ends 0f said stays and the rear Wall of said cover,

Whreby pressure in said air space is cqual- 1ze 2. A mitten 01 hand-guard for use in the treatment of skin diseases, comprising an inner sack adapted to surround the hand of the Patient and having a wrist opening, an outer sack of a soft and flexible 1naterial impervious to air, enveloping the inner sank and in air tightconnection therewith adjacent to the wrist ortion, there being an inflatable air space between the inne1 and outer sacks ab all points except the wrist connection, and separated flexible st-ays crossing the air space, so disposed at all sides 0f the mitten as to prevent any art of the band within exerting concentrated pressure through the outer sack.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM A. MORRISON.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR H. BROWN, P. W. PEZZETTI.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents eaeh, by addressing the Gommissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.