US1907159A - Abdominal garment - Google Patents

Description

May 2, 1933. F. J. STUART ABDOMINAL GARMENT Original Filed March 19, 1928 ATTORNEY.

Patented May 2, 1933 UNITED STATES FRANK J. STUART, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI ABDOMINAL GARMENT Subxtitute for application Serial No. 262,710, filed larch 19, 1928. This application filed Kay 8, 1938.

Serial No. 610,224. a I

This application is a substitute for apphcation 262,710, for Abdominal garment, filed by me March 19, 1928.

The invention has for an ob ect to efiect a novel construction of a garment having detachable leg pieces and aims part cularly to provide a novel manner of attaching the leg pieces. While variously applicable, the present embodiment of the invention is partic- 1 ularly directed to improvements in abdom nal belts and the like made of elastic materials, the belt portions of which it is undesirable to launder because of the rapid deterioration of the elastic threads which is caused thereb and it is'an object of my invention to en-' a le the leg pieces to be properly attached in such a garment and easily removed for laundering. It is an especial aim to provide a fastening for such leg pieces in which a minimum service will be involved in repairing fastenings due to laundering.

Another important aim of the invention 1s to obviate the need for manipulating any element of the means by which the legs are fastened tothe belt when the belt is removed or replaced upon the person. This is an 1mportant attainment in such appliances and eliminatesthe possibility of irksome delays and adjustments, faulty adjustments of the parts, and liability of discomfort generally.

A further aim of the invention is to present a non-elastic attaching means which will nevertheless accommodate itself to the wearer and to elastic action of the garment and permit the leg part to adjust itself and set co nfortably upon the wearer without excessive strain at the connection locally or as a whole. A further important aim of the invention is to provide a fastener of this kind which may be disconnected without the use of implements and may be likewise replaced.

Additional objects, advantages and features of invention reside in the construction, arran ement and combination of parts involve in the embodiment of the invention, as will be understood from-the following description and accompanying drawing, wherein, Figure 1 is a side view of a garment constructed in accordance with my invention,- as worn.

Figure 2 is a detail of the garment opened out flat. v Figure 3 is a fragmentary. detail of the connecting means.

Figure 4 is a detail of the fastening band.

Figure 5 is a horizontal sectional .view of the belt with the leg part assembled-thereon, parts being broken away to reduce the size of the view.

Figure 6 is an enlarged sectional view at the connection between the leg and belt.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary enlarged elevation of the loops and coengaged hand.

There is illustrated an abdominal belt 10 which may be constructed in accordance with approved practices in garment of this nature, or other garments requiring leg pieces which it is desirable to have detachable. In the present instance, the belt comprises an abdominal supporter-reducer of elastic material, the ends of which are adapted to be connected by a lacing at the back of the wearer. Adjacent each extremity of the belt and spaced above its lower edge, one member 11 of a'separable fastener is attached and at the front of the garment two similar parts 12 of separable fasteners are attached, these last two being preferably spaced equally from the medial vertical line of the belt. A leg piece supporting band or tape 13 is provided,

which is of a length greater than that of the belt 10 at the lower edge, this band having parts 14 of separable fasteners at each end complementary with the members 11 on the belt, and toward the middle portion of the band two similar fastening members ifi are provided on the band complementary with the member 12. This linear measurement of material in the band between the members 15 exceeds the spacing of the members-12, and the material in the band between the members 14 and 15 exceeds in length the space between the fastenings 11 and 12. When in use on the person there is thus a slack portion in the band at the middle between the members 15, as at 13 in Figure 1, while sufiicient' slack is present in the end portions to permit the band to lie in zig-zag form in and between the loops mo 16 and 18, as shown in Figure 7. When the fastenin 14 and 15 are coen aged with 11 and 12, t e middle portion of t e band 13 extending between the members 15 will have a considerable amount of slack, as shown in Figure 2, whereby liability of binding of the band u on the person of the wearer 1s obviated. he corresponding greater lengths of the band betweenthe fastenings 14 and 15 also provides a certain amount of slack which likewise obviates liability of this band binding upon the person and preventing the belt 10 from accommodating itself to the figure of the wearer through the functioning of the elastic therein.

Between the fastenings 11 and 12 upon the belt, a series of uniformly spaced alined endant-loops 16 is attached, these loops attached a distance above the line on which the fastenings 11 are located, so that the lower ends of the loops fall adjacent the level of the fastenings 11, but stopping short of the lower edge of the belt a distance.

Leg pieces 17 are provided, the. cut of which is familiar in the makin of garments of this kind. The form of eac I is such that the outer side extends upwardly and has an upper edge portion which may be alined with and secured to the lower edge portion of the belt 10, the front and rear edges of this outer side of the leg extending continuously downward and inwardly, forming the crotch edge or upper ed of the inner side of the leg piece, which is of much less extent vertically than the other side, as is familiar in such garments. The upper edges of the leg pieces may be hemmedin a simple manner and have attached thereto a series of loops 18 spaced at the same intervals as the loops 16, but extending upwardly so as to lie between the loops 16. These lower loops in the present instance extend above the upper edge of the leg piece (although this is not essential) and are of such length that when they overlap the loops 16 a distance correspondlng to the width of the band 13, the to edge of the leg still will lie a suitable istance above the lower ed e of the belt 10 to permit displacement 0 some or all of the loops 18 downward a distance and yet avoid any gap or o ning there. Loops on the leg pieces and lt are overla ped as indicated, and the band 13 threaded through all, so that the leg is supported by the loops 18 upon the band, and the latter is sustained by the loops 16. There is required only a very slight deflection of the band between the multiplicity of loops in order to take u a considerable amount of slack in the ban In the present instance, the loops on the leg ieceexceed the number of those on the belt two, so that thetwo loops on the leg piece lie flat in front of the foremost loop on the belt inwardly of the fastenings 15 on the belt. This is due to the fact that fewer supports are necessary ing in front than at the back of the device, the greatest strain falling upon the connection between the leg and the belt at the rear. The number of loops may be otherwise varied. It may also be found desirable to vary the spacing of the loops upon the belt progressively from the rear toward the front, making the spacing wider at the front, this being a matter of discretion. In the present instance, the loops are of such width and spacing as to form a ractically continuous connectlon between t e belt and the leg pieces which gives a very good appearance to the article. A detail which may be noted is the provision upon the front edge of the belt of a reinforcement 19 which extends only a short distance over the front portion of the belt, dependin from its lower edge, and being intended or use for the attachment of hose supporters. The front fastenings 15 upon the belt are preferably located inwardly of the ends of the reinforcement toward the middle of the belt, and the leg pieces are so arranged that they overlap the ends of the reinforcement so as to cover a hose supporter fastening when attached making further for the good ap earance of my garment when worn. The astening members 11- 12-1415 may be of any familiar snap action type of which there are numerous kinds upon the market, and they do not require to be of large size or strength, because of the very slight strain which is applied to them by the nature of the supporting connection between the legs and the belt. These fasteningsusually include a small knob-like head on one member adapted to be pressed into a socket of the opposing element. The stress to which they are subjected will be transversely of this head.

The garment being assembled as described, the legs may be readily separated from the belt by simply lifting the members 14 and 15 from the members 11 and 12 on the belt, then grasping the band 13 at the loose portion between the fastenings 15, and drawing the ends of the bands'outwardlythrou h the overlapped loops until the 100 s on t e leg piece and belt are left free to e drawn apart. It will be seen that there is no metal fastening whatever on the leg pieces, so that they may be safely run through the laundry apparatus customarily employed in the Oldlnary wash. The leg pieces are ordinarily made of a material much cheaper than that of the belt, and may be readily re laced by new parts from time to time wit out any work upon the belt. a

Owing to the fact that-the belt 10 becomes soiled very little while worn, and may be readily dry-cleaned,-while the leg pieces require frequent laundering, my invention enables the ready utilization of separable leg pieces upon such a garment to good advantage where before no. suitable connection of this kind had been available. The use of buttons is objectionable for many reasons, and lacks adaptability to Vertical compensation in support of the legs of the garment. Other known fastenings are similarly objectionable. \Nith my construction, should one or more loops not be of the same length as the remainder and be out of line at their extremities, it will be readily ap arent that in the taking up of the slack o the band 13, such out-of-line loops will be prevented from taking more or less of the load in supportin the leg by a greater or lesser amount of slac of the band taken up thereby.

It will be seen that the utilization of my invention involves no impairment of functions in garments of this character, and its manufacture involves only ordinary sewing operations which may be performed by seamstresses.

I claim 1. In a garment of the character described, a waistline garment of elastic material having a multiplicity of pendant loops, a leg member having an upper edge provided with upwardly extending loops to lie between those first mentioned, a non-elastic band tortuously engaged through all of the loops and a separable fastening connecting each end of the band with a respective side of the waistline garment, said band being of a length greater than the normal spacing be tween the points at which its ends are connected to the waistline garment whereby circumferential variation of the size of the garment is permitted by variation of the angular relation of diagonal parts of the band.

2. The structure of claim 1 in which said waistline garment is an elastic belt element having ends separably connected, said band has two points of attachment by separable fasteners at each side of the waistline garment, the linear measurement of the band between the central two being greater than the corresponding measurement of the waistline garment between its two central complementary fastenings, and the linear measurement of the band between the fastening elements on each end portion is greater than the corresponding dimensions of the waistline garment between the respective complementary fastenings normally.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature. I

FRANK J. STUART.

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