US20230157382A1

US20230157382A1 - Garment body of fan-equipped garment and fan-equipped garment

Info

Publication number: US20230157382A1
Application number: US17/979,694
Authority: US
Inventors: Hiroshi Ichigaya; Takeo KURUMIZAWA
Original assignee: SFT Laboratory Co Ltd
Current assignee: SFT Laboratory Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-11-24
Filing date: 2022-11-02
Publication date: 2023-05-25
Also published as: CN116158576A; JP2023077115A

Abstract

A garment body of a fan-equipped garment includes: an outer cloth in which a fan mount part is formed, the fan mount part being configured to receive a fan; and an inner cloth disposed closer to a wearer than the outer cloth. An air-through part is formed only at a hem part of the garment body, the air-through part connecting a space between the outer cloth and the inner cloth and a space at an inner surface side of the inner cloth.

Description

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2021- 190271, filed on Nov. 24, 2021, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a garment body of a fan-equipped garment and the fan-equipped garment.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

In recent years, a fan-equipped garment for cooling the body of a person has been put to practical use and rapidly spread. A fan-equipped garment includes, for example, a garment body made of a material having low air breathability; two fans mounted on the back side of the garment body; a power source that supplies electrical power to the two fans; and a connection cable that electrically connects the power source to the two fans.
When the fans are activated, the fans introduce a large volume of air into the garment body. With the pressure of the introduced air, a space through which air flows is automatically formed between the garment body and the wearer’s body. The introduced air flows in the formed space along the surface of the wearer’s body or the surface of the underwear worn under the garment body. The air is then discharged to the outside through air discharge parts, which are openings at a collar part and sleeve parts, for example.
While flowing through the space between the garment body and the wearer’s body or the underwear, the introduced air allows sweat drained from the body to evaporate. Through the evaporation, the body is cooled by evaporation heat (for example, see international publication No. 2005/063065).

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to improve the cooling capability, it is preferable that such a fan-equipped garment be able to make the air flow uniform, which is introduced inside the garment body by the fans, so as to avoid differences in air flow directions and air amounts depending on parts inside the garment body.
Although a known fan-equipped garment has a sufficient cooling capability, it cannot restrain air that is introduced inside the garment body by the fans from spreading in various directions.
An object of the present invention is to improve the capability of a fan-equipped garment for cooling the wearer’s body by making the flow of introduced air uniform and effectively cooling the wearer’s body.
To achieve at least one of the above objects, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a garment body of a fan-equipped garment, including: an outer cloth in which a fan mount part is formed, the fan mount part being configured to receive a fan; and an inner cloth disposed closer to a wearer than the outer cloth, wherein an air-through part is formed only at a hem part of the garment body, the air-through part connecting a space between the outer cloth and the inner cloth and a space at an inner surface side of the inner cloth.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention but illustrate embodiments of the invention, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description of the embodiments given below, serve to explain the principles of the invention, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front view of a fan-equipped garment in an embodiment, wherein a front-body opening-closing tool is open;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the fan-equipped garment worn by a wearer in the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a back view of the fan-equipped garment worn by the wearer in the embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a cross section along the IV-IV line in FIG. 3 , wherein arrows indicate directions of air flow;

FIG. 5 is a front view of the fan-equipped garment in a modification, wherein the front-body opening-closing tool is open; and

FIG. 6 is a cross section of the fan-equipped garment worn by the wearer along the line as in FIG. 4 , wherein arrows indicate directions of air flow.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1 to FIG. 6 . However, the technical scope of the invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment. The embodiment described below can be variously modified without departing from the scope of the invention.
The description below is based on the state of a fan-equipped garment 100 worn by a wearer, and the forward direction from a wearer W is the front; the backward direction from the wearer is the back; the upward direction from the wearer is up; the downward direction from the wearer is down; the rightward direction from the wearer is the right; and the leftward direction from the wearer is the left.
In the state where the front-body opening-closing tool 13 of a garment body 1 is open, the direction in which the inner surface of the garment body 1 faces (the surface that faces toward the wearer W when being worn) is the front, and the opposite direction is the back.

1. Configuration of Embodiment

As shown in FIG. 1 , the fan-equipped garment 100 of this embodiment includes the garment body 1; fans 2 that introduce air into the garment body 1; a power source 3 that supplies the fans 2 with electric power; and a connection cable 4 that connects the power source 3 to the fans 2. The fan-equipped garment 100 introduces air into the garment body 1 with the fans 2, flows the introduced air along the body surface of the wearer W or along the surface of the underwear, and then releases the air from air discharge parts 17 that are formed at the collar and sleeves of the garment body 1, so that the sweat drained from the body to evaporate. Through evaporation of the sweat, the body is cooled by evaporation heat.

Garment Body

The garment body 1 refers to a garment part of the fan-equipped garment 100 except electric components such as the fans 2, the power source 3, and the connection cable 4. As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3 , the garment body 1 is a blouson-type upper garment that covers the trunk and arms of the wearer W. However, the shape of the garment body 1 is not limited to this. For example, the garment body 1 can be formed as a vest that covers only the trunk of the wearer W.
In the state of being worn by the wearer W, the surface of the garment body 1 that faces the wearer W is referred to as the inner surface of the garment body 1, and the surface opposite the inner surface is referred to as the outer surface of the garment body 1.
With respect to an outer cloth 11 and an inner cloth 12, the surface that faces the wearer W when being worn is referred to as the inner surface of the outer cloth 11/inner cloth 12, and the surface opposite the inner surface is referred to as the outer surface of the outer cloth 11/inner cloth 12.
The garment body 1 includes the outer cloth 11 disposed at the outer surface side of the garment body 1; the inner cloth 12 disposed at the inner surface side of the garment body 1; the front-body opening-closing tool 13; an air-leakage preventer 14; and a power source holder 15, as shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 4 .
At the hem part of the garment body 1, an air-through part 16 is formed that connects the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 and the space at the inner surface side of the inner cloth 12. At the collar ends and the sleeve ends of the garment body 1, air discharge parts 17 are formed that connect the space inside the garment body 1 and the space outside the garment body 1.

A. Outer Cloth

The outer cloth 11 is formed of a garment cloth having no breathability or having a certain level of breathability to be inflated with air introduced by the fans 2. As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3 , the outer cloth 11 is formed to cover the trunk and arms of the wearer W. In the outer cloth 11, fan mount parts 111 are formed.
The fan mount parts 111 are holes that connect the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 of the garment body 1 and the space outside the garment body 1, as shown in FIG. 4 . The fan mount parts 111 are formed on the back body of the outer cloth 11 at positions corresponding to the left and right waist of the wearer W, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 .
The fan mount parts 111 have a circular shape, and the diameter of the fan mount parts 111 is approximately equal to the diameter of the fans 2, which are described later. The fans 2 are mounted by being inserted to the fan mount parts 111. Accordingly, the fans 2 can introduce outside air into the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 of the garment body 1 through the fan mount parts 111.
It is preferable that the portions around the fan mount parts 111 be reinforced by attaching flat, ring-shaped members made of plastic or by folding and sewing portions of the garment cloth that constitutes the outer cloth 11 around the fan mount parts 111, for example.

B. Inner Cloth

The inner cloth 12 is formed of the same garment cloth as the outer cloth 11. As shown in FIG. 1 , the inner cloth 12 is provided from around the upper end to the hem part of the garment body 1 on the inner surface side of the back body of the outer cloth 11, so as to cover portions where the fan mount parts 111 are formed.
When the fan mount parts 111 are formed at positions corresponding to the waist of the wearer W as in this embodiment, the hem part of the garment body 1 refers to the part of the garment body 1 below the lower end of the fan mount parts 111. When, unlike this embodiment, the fan mount parts 111 are not formed at positions corresponding to the waist of the wearer W, the hem part of the garment body 1 refers to the part within 20 centimeters in width from the lower end of the garment body 1.
As shown in FIG. 1 , the entire peripheral edge of the inner cloth 12 except the lower end thereof is closely joined to the outer cloth 11 by sewing or gluing, for example. The lower end of the inner cloth 12 is not joined to the outer cloth 11.
To prevent swelling of the garment body 1 by the air layer formed between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12, the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 may be partially joined (e.g., by sewing) at portions other than the end part of the inner cloth 12 to adjust the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12.
The space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 may be filled with air only, or may be filled with a material (e.g., material having air spaces, such as down or padding) that does not prevent air that is introduced into the space by the fans 2 mounted to the fan mounting parts 111 from flowing through the air-through part 16 into the space between the inner cloth 12 and the wearer W’s body.

C. Air-Through Part

As described above, the lower end of the inner cloth 12 is not joined to the outer cloth 11. Accordingly, the air-through part 16 is formed between the outer cloth 11 and the lower end of the inner cloth 12 that is at the hem part of the garment body 1, as shown in FIG. 4 . The air-through part 16 is an opening that connects the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 and the space at the inner surface side of the inner cloth 12 (the space between the inner cloth 12 and the wearer W’s body when the garment body 1 is worn by the wearer W), as shown in FIG. 4 .
The entire periphery of the inner cloth 12 except the lower end thereof, which is located at the hem part of the garment body 1, is closely joined to the outer cloth 11. Therefore, the air-through part 16 is formed only between the outer cloth 11 and the lower end of the inner cloth 12, which is at the hem part of the garment body 1.

D. Front-Body Opening-Closing Tool

The front-body opening-closing tool 13 allows the front body of the garment body 1 to be front-open. The front-body opening-closing tool 13 is a tool for opening and closing the front body of the garment body 1 when the wearer W wears the fan-equipped garment 100. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , the front body of the outer cloth 11 is divided into left and right portions by the front-body opening-closing tool 13 at around the center in the right-left direction. For example, the front-body opening-closing tool 13 is a zipper that is provided at the left and right portions of the outer cloth 11 and that allows the left and right portions to be attachable to or detachable from each other.

E. Air-Leakage Preventer

The air-leakage preventer 14 is provided at around the lower end of the outer cloth 11, as shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 4 . The air-leakage preventer 14 prevents air in the space between the garment body 1 and the wearer W’s body from leaking outside through the lower end of the garment body 1 when the wearer W wears the fan-equipped garment 100. For example, the air-leakage preventer 14 may be an elastic material (e.g., a rubber cord) provided at the lower end portion of the outer cloth 11 so as to circle around the wearer W’s body.
By the elasticity of the rubber cord or the like, the air-leakage preventer 112 narrows the hem part of the outer cloth 11 below the air-through part 16, so that the hem part below the air-through part 16 closely fits to the wearer W’s body. The air-leakage preventer 112 thus prevents air from leaking outside through the lower end of the garment body 1.
The structure of the air-leakage preventer 14 is not limited to the one that utilizes elasticity of the rubber cord or the like as described above, as long as the air-leakage preventer 14 can narrow the hem part of the outer cloth 11 below the air-through part 16; cause the hem part below the air-through part 16 to closely fit to the wearer W’s body; and prevent air from leaking outside through the lower end of the garment body 1.
For example, (i) a tubular cord-through member formed to circle around the wearer W’s body, (ii) a cord inserted through the cord-through member, and (iii) a cord stopper at a portion of the cord protruding from the cord-through member may be provided around the lower end of the outer cloth 11. When the wearer W wears the fan-equipped garment 100, the wearer W can narrow and fit the hem part of the outer cloth 11 below the air-through part 16 to the wearer W’s body by pulling the portion of the cord protruding from the cord-through member and fastening the cord stopper.

F. Power Source Holder

The power source holder 15 holds the power source 3 at a position where the power source 3 can supply electric power to the fans 2 through the connection cable 4. For example, the power source holder 15 can be a pocket that is provided on the inner surface side of the front body of the garment body 1 and that can house the power source 3, as shown in FIG. 1 .
The specific structure of the power source holder 15 is not limited to the above as long as the power source holder 15 can hold the power source 3 at a position where the power source 3 can supply electric power to the fans 2 through the connection cable 4.

G. Air-Discharge Part

The air-discharge parts 17 are the openings for discharging the air that has been introduced into the garment body 1 by the fans 2 and that has flown along the wearer W’s body or the underwear, as described below. As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 4 , the air-discharge parts 17 are formed at (i) the opening between the neck of the wearer W and the edge of the collar of the garment body 1 and (ii) the opening between the arms of the wearer W and the edges of the sleeves of the garment body 1.

Fans

The fans 2 are attached to the garment: body 1 by being inserted to the fan mount parts 111 formed in the outer cloth 11 of the garment body 1, as shown in FIG. 1 , FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 . The fans 2 send air into the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 of the garment body 1 through the fan mount parts 111, thereby introducing the air into the garment body 1.
The fans 2 receive necessary electric power for operation from the power source 3 through the connection cable 4.
The detailed structure of the fans 2 is not specifically limited as long as the fans 2 can be attached to the outer cloth 11 of the garment body 1 by being inserted to the fan mount parts 111 and can introduce air into the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12.
In this embodiment, two fans 2 are mounted to the two fan mount parts 111 at the positions corresponding to the waist of the wearer W. Although such an arrangement is most preferable, the number and positions of fans 2 is not limited to this.

Power Source

The power source 3 supplies electric power to the fans 2. For example, the power source 3 includes a built-in lithium-ion battery pack provided with a security circuit, and the power source 3 is connected to the fans 2 via the connection cable 4. The power source 3 also includes a switch for switching on/off the electric power supplied to the fans 2.
The detailed structure of the power source 3 is not specifically limited as long as it can supply electric power to the fans 2.
As shown in FIG. 1 , the power source 3 is attached to the garment body 1 by being housed inside the power source holder 15, which is a pocket provided on the inner surface side of the garment body 1.

Connection Cable

The connection cable 4 connects the power source 3 and the fans 2. Via the connection cable 4, the power source 3 supplies the fans 2 with electric power necessary for activating the fans 2.
The detailed structure of the connection cable 4 is not specifically limited as long as the power source 3 can supply the fans 2 with electric power necessary for activating the fans 2 through the connection cable 4.
As shown in FIG. 1 , the connection cable 4 is passed through the air-through part 16, which is formed between the outer cloth 11 and the lower end of the inner cloth 12, into the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12. In the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12, the connection cable 4 is connected to the fans 2.

2. Advantageous Effects of Embodiment

According to the fan-equipped garment 100 in this embodiment, the garment body 1 includes: the outer cloth 11 in which the fan mount parts 111 are formed; and the inner cloth 12 that is disposed on the inner surface side of the garment body 1 and that is closer to the wearer W than the outer cloth 11, wherein the air-through part 16 is formed at the hem part of the garment body 1, the air-through part 16 connecting the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 and the space at the inner surface side of the inner cloth 12 (the space between the inner cloth 12 and the wearer W’s body).
Except the lower end of the inner cloth 12 that is at the hem part of the garment body 1, the entire periphery of the inner cloth 12 is closely joined to the outer cloth 11. Therefore, the air-through part 16 is formed only between the outer cloth 11 and the lower end of the inner cloth 12 that is at the hem part of the garment body 1.
According to such a configuration, by activating the fans 2 that are mounted to the fan mount parts 111 formed in the outer cloth 11 of the garment body 1, all the air introduced into the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 by the fans 2 is sent to the space between the inner cloth 12 and the wearer W’s body, as shown in FIG. 4 .
The air-leakage preventer 14 prevents the air leakage through the lower end of the garment body 1. Therefore, the air that has been sent to the space between the inner cloth 12 and the wearer W’s body altogether flows upward, and is eventually discharged outside through the air-through parts 17 formed at (i) the opening between the wearer W’s neck and the edge of the collar of the garment body 1 and (ii) the openings between the wearer W’s arms and the edges of the sleeves of the garment body 1.
In the space between the inner cloth 12 and the wearer W’s body, a uniform flow of air is formed from the lower part toward the upper part along the surface of the wearer W’s body or the wearer W’s underwear worn under the fan-equipped garment 100, as shown in FIG. 4 . Thus, the air flows in a uniform direction in the space between the inner cloth 12 and the wearer W’s body. The direction of air flow and the amount of air is less likely to vary depending on the position, and the air is less likely to remain at certain positions. This improves the cooling capability of the fan-equipped garment 100 for cooling the wearer W’s body.
Suppose that the air-through part for connecting the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 and the space between the inner cloth 12 and the wearer W’s body is not only formed at the lower end of the inner cloth 12 at the hem part of the garment body 1 but also formed at a different part (e.g., the lateral end or the upper end of the inner cloth 12). In such a case, the above-described air flow from the lower part toward the upper part is disturbed by the air flowing through the air-through part at the different part into the space between the inner cloth 12 and the wearer W’s body. Thus, the above-described advantageous effects cannot be achieved. That is, the above-described advantageous effects are achieved only when (i) the air-through part 16 is formed at the hem part of the garment body 1 and (ii) the air-through part 16 is not formed at the other parts.
As shown in FIG. 4 , the air-through part 16 is formed between the lower end of the inner cloth 12 and the outer cloth 11 by not joining the lower end of the inner cloth 12 to the outer cloth 11. Thus, the air-through part 16 having a sufficient opening area can be easily formed without specific processing, such as forming a hole in the inner cloth 12.
Further, the air layer formed in the space between the outer cloth 11 and the inner cloth 12 can block ultraviolet rays and thereby block heat from outside the garment, for example.

3. Modification

As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 , a fan-equipped garment 100A may have an air-through part 16A that is continuously formed from the hem part of the back body to the hem part of the front body of the garment body 1A. To form the air-through part 16A, the inner cloth 12A of the garment body 1A is formed so as to continuously cover the back body to the front body of the inner surface side of the outer cloth 11; the entire periphery of the inner cloth 12A except the lower end thereof is joined to the outer cloth 11; and only the lower end of the inner cloth 12A is not joined to the front cloth 11.
According to such a configuration, a uniform air flow can be formed from the lower part toward the upper part in the garment body 1 not only at the back side of the wearer W but also at the front side of the wearer W along the wearer W’s body or along the surface of the wearer W’s underwear worn under the fan-equipped garment 100. Thus, the cooling capability of the fan-equipped garment for cooling the wearer’s body can be further improved.

Claims

1. A garment body of a fan-equipped garment, comprising:

an outer cloth in which a fan mount part is formed, the fan mount part being configured to receive a fan; and

an inner cloth disposed closer to a wearer than the outer cloth,

wherein an air-through part is formed only at a hem part of the garment body, the air-through part connecting a space between the outer cloth and the inner cloth and a space at an inner surface side of the inner cloth.

2. The garment body of the fan-equipped garment according to claim 1, wherein

the air-through part is formed between the outer cloth and a lower end of the inner cloth.

3. The garment body of the fan-equipped garment according to claim 1, wherein

the inner cloth is provided at a back body of the garment body, and

the air-through part is formed at the hem part of the back body of the garment body.

4. The garment body of the fan-equipped garment according to claim 3, wherein

the inner cloth is continuously provided so as to extend from the back body to a front body of the garment body.

5. The garment body of the fan-equipped garment according to claim 4, wherein

the air-through part is continuously formed at the hem part so as to extend from the back body to the front body of the garment body.

6. A fan-equipped garment comprising:

the garment body according to claim 1; and

the fan mounted to the fan mount part.