US2517748A - Garment or the like - Google Patents

Description

H. L. WILLIAMS GARMENT 0R Tm: LIKE Filed May 18. 1946 Patented Aug. 8, 1950 y x.

Y v 2,517,745;A y GARMENT' on THE LIKE lelarveyA L. Williams, Hadlyme, conn. Application May 18, 1946, Serial'No. 670,825

Claims.

This invention relates to a water-tight enclosure of the type which includes water-proof clothing, sleeping bags,` covers, etc.

Men who are by accident, by occupation, Vor in connection with recreational activities subjected to immersion or exposure to driving rainorspray for varying periods of time may suffer seriously fromv loss of body heat unless they are protected from the water. In water at temperatures such Aas are encountered in the North `Atlantic and (c1. z sz) Pacific Oceans in winter, loss of lbody heat `may y cause unconsciousness in periods of less than minutes. Consequently, a garment suitable for keeping the wearer and his normal clothing dry must be one that can be very quickly donned, very rapidly sealed against leakage or entrance of water, positively sealed at wrists and neck, light in weight, stowed in small space, and easily entered in time of need and emergencies (such as bailing out of aircraft Orabandoning ship). This `has in the past been considered extremely dim-cult, if not impossible-of attainment, even by use of water-proof` clothing, largely because of the contours of the neck and movements which it is necessary to accommodatewhile at, the same time providing a substantially watertight seal around thek neck while, protecting the neck against constrictive pressure `which might cut 01T blood circulationor other bodily func-l tions. Notwithstanding these recognizeddii-' culties, I have now designed a garment which;

has proven effective to protect the wearer under the most severe conditions of emergency. For` this purpose I have designed a novel type of neck closure and a slide fastener specially located .with

respect to the body contours and with respect to the upperv edge of the neck band.

One important feature of the garment or other.

enclosure made according to my invention is the utilization for a closure of a sheet of rubber or other resiliently elastic material of low modulus of elasticity adapted to assume the approximately circular form of the neck atits upper edge land to yield readily to `changes otf the size of the neck due to breathing, muscular action'and/or movements of the head, and to accommodate persons with necks of respectively different sizes without exerting excessive pressure. I have lfound that this is feasible with a material having a modulus elasticity of about that of vulcanized pure gum rubber, and I have found that such size variations are accommodated withgreater comfort to the wearer, if the elastic neck band is made in the form of a truncated cone, ratherthan a cylinder, and with the sides of thecone sloping with respect to the axis at an acute angle..

I have found, moreover, that both comfort and eciency of the neck lclosure, are improved by making it of greater height than it-willactually assume in use, i. e., of greater height `than that- .Portion OfhsWSererS. seek. whiehisigbeeva ered-by it. Thus the elastic'neck band falls nat. urally into annular folds which more readily. ac" commodate the movements of the head without` noticeable resistance or other serious discomfort to the wearer. It is possible to make such a neckl closure in endless form so that it can be stretched sumciently to allow ones head tobe inserted through" the opening. However, this` requires an opening in the back or front of the suit through which the wearer enters the suit. It is necessary first to insert the feet and body and afterwards to insert the head and shoulders. This is a slow and unnatural method of entry and one which requires excess material in the suit itself to permit` v the entry of the head and shoulders, resulting in wearer and without impairingthe eiciency of,` the fluid-tight seal against the neck of the wear er. This is accomplished in part by the location and length of the closure or slide ifastener as used in such a suit and in part by the form of the neck sband and its relation to the upfper end of the' closure or slide fastener;

In :a garment utilizing this feature of my invention, the slide fastener follows an approxi-- mately straight line from a point -high on the neck at the side of the head substantially behind the ear lobe olf the wearer down the side of the chest toward the front thereof and, if desired,f

farther along the side of the waist and side of the leg toward the front thereof, advantageously to a point below the widest part of the buttocks so as to facilitate entering and removing the' garment. By virtue of this location, the. slide fastener or other closure is subjected to relatively little twisting; it not only Ifollows an approximately straight line but also` lies approximatelyyy in one plane. .At the upper end it is bentgsoniewhat and slightly twisted, to bring it flat against.

the side of the neck. At the shoulder it may be twisted slightly to meet the more nearly transverse plane at .that point. For the rest of its` length, the fastener lies substantially in a di'- algonlal plane, and, if the garment is suiciently" loose at the shoulders, it will tend to follow this same plane throughout from top to bottom.

B-y virtue of the fastener being turned some-v what toward the rear in a diagonal line across the neck closure, such change as is necessary to accommodate the difference between the plane of` the side of the chest andthe plane tangent4 to the side of the neck is accommodated: chiey by lengthwise bend Yin the fastener.` llitd 0f `by a. torsional ,twist aS Would De;

It is an important advantage of the- 3 the case if the fastener went straight up the front center of the suit and thence across the neck band. A further important advantage of this diagonal arrangement of the slide fastener in the neck band is that the greater flexibility of the fastener chain to longitudinal bending allows the neck band to fit more accurately to the curvature of the neck, and thus to avoid leakage frequently encountered heretofore. It also allows the excess width of the neck band to be compressed with formation of annular folds in the sheet of elastic material while the closure or fastener itself remains straight without buckling. It also brings the top end of the slide fastener to a .point higher on the neck than any other practical location and substantially higher than a closure beneath the chin.

, A further. feature ofthe invention lies in extending the rubber or other sheet material ofr the neck band along the slide fastener to a higher level on the rear side of the inside fastener (where itsupper edge lforms an obtuse angle with the longitudinal aXis of the fastener) than on the opposite side (where the. upper edge forms an acute angle). This produces an unbalanced condition with respect to the top of the slide fastener or other closure which draws the fastener against the neck and improves the seal of the neck closure at this point.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to produce a neck closure which will seal more securely to the neck embraced by it than has heretoforebeen feasible without undue pressure against the neck. Another object is to provide a neck closure adapted to fit a range of neck sizes and to accommodate variations in size of the vneck without serious increase in pressure. Another object of the invention is to provide a water-tight` garment to be readily opened and closed by a slide fastener and to be rapidly donned in emergencies. Another object of the invention is to provide a closure means for a garment, sleeping bag, litter cover or the like extending from the top of the. neck to a point below the buttocks, in which torsional stresses in the closure are substantially avoided. Another object is to provide a design of water-tight garment which avoids the need for using excess material in order to provide for donning or removing the garment, with consequent reduction in weight andstowage space required. Another object is to provide a water-tight garment ythe wearer of which may loosen or undo the neck. thereof.

when it is not needed to be completely closed to.

exclude water from the suit, by use of one hand and by a simple motio-nrequiring a minimum of bodily movement. Another object is to provide a garment which-the wearer may don in advance of immersion, or in anticipation thereof, and in which the wearer may perform normally active taskswithout undue discomfort or hinderance, which may be left open conveniently to provide ventilation to the body until the few seconds 4 from the following specification and claims and accompanying drawings.

In the specification and drawings, I have shown and described a; preferred embodiment of my inventionvv and have suggested various modications thereof, but it is to be understood that these are 'not intended to be` exhaustive or limiting of the' invention, but on the contrary are given for purposes of illustration in order that others skilled in the art may fully understand the invention and the principles thereof, and the best manner of applying it in practical use, so that they may modify and adapt it in various forms, each as may be best suited to the conditions of a particular use.r I f -f' In the drawings: -f

Figure l is a View in elevation of a man dressed in a garment embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a view on an enlarged scale of a head and the neck portions;

Figure 3 is a vertical section yof one type of waterproof fastener that may be used on my garment.

Referring to these drawings, I have shown in Figure l a man dressed in a typical immersion suit embodying my inventions. Such a suit may be provided for aviators flying over cold waters, construction workers working in water or subject to sudden immersion, Sportsmen, sailors and fishermen when working Yunder storm conditions or in danger of going overboard, for shallow diving with a diving mask, or as a life-saving suit when it becomes necessary to bail out or abandon ship. It is essential with such an emergency garment that it becapable of being put on and closed with utmostspeed and with no danger of jamming in the closure. Moreover, the garment should be capable of being worn by several sizes' of normal person.

Boots I2 are made integral in the embodiment shown, so that there is no danger of leakage be-- tween the boots and the cover-all garment. The garment itselfis of a suitable water-proof inaterial such, for example, as a rubberized fabric, and the ends of the sleeves are secured to wrist bands I4 or closures which are frusto-conical members of thin sheet rubber or other flexible resiliently elastic sheet material of low modulus elasticity and having the sides of the cone at an acute angle to its axis. The control opening is slightly smaller than the smallest wrist that it is likelyto be 'called upon to t; and, due to its nature described above, Ythis will readily allow passage of larger hands, and will accommodate normally larger wrists without substantial discomfortfto the wearer and without cutting off blood circulation'to the hands.

Alternatively, if desired, the sleeves may be integrally secured to water-proof gloves in the same. manner that the legs are secured to the boots.

The garment I0 is cut with an opening about the base of the neck of the wearer and larger than the neck;V and adjacent this opening it is secured `in Water-tight relation, e. g. by stitching and/or cementing or vulcanizing the water-proof fabric of the garment to a truncated cone of sheet rubber of llow fmodulus of elasticity, comparable to that of thin pure gum rubber, which forms the neck band IB.- This neck band I6 as shown is substantially wider than the normal height of a mans neck, so that-when worn it will naturally' Y assume annular folds as illustrated in Figure v2.

This, as already stated'bove, gives greater ease and flexibility of motion than'if'the neck 'banderal openings.

fitted closely7 throughout the neck of the wearer.

As best shown in Figure 2, the neck band is severed on a diagonal line and the respective ends are secured to a slide fastener I8, but the end 22 of the neck band which extends from the slide fastener rearwardly and forms an obtuse angle extends to a higher level on the neck than the opposite end 24 which is secured to the forward side of the slide fastener. The upper end of the slide fastener 20 as shown lies normally just behind the lobe of the wearers ear and extends diagonally down across the neck band to the side of the chest and thence along the side of the wearer alittle toward the front to a .point on the leg just below the level of the buttocks.

'Ihe slide fastener as shown is of the waterproof type fully described and claimed in my copending application, Serial No. 661,025, filed April 10, 1946, but obviously may be any eicient waterproof type of edge-to-edge closure or fastening device.

One type of such fastener is shown at I4 in Figure 3, wherein a pair of tapes I2 have secured thereto rubber strips 2B respectively, which meet in a tongue and groove 28 or other edge lock adapted to keep the edges flush. To these strips I2 is secured a standard slide fastener as shown at I0, which fastener is disposed within the recess 30 in which is also disposed the slide fastener' chain 24 and the anges of its slider. Also secured to tapes I2 are rubber strips I6, each having a hinging portion I8 of reduced cross section and a, lip portion l20. These strips i6 are also recessed as at 22 to accommodate the inner edges of tapes I2 and various slide fastener elements. The more specic details of this structure and the functioning thereof are disclosed in detail in my aforementioned co-pending application.

Although in the garment illustrated, I have shown attached boots at the bottoms of the legs and un-slit elastic frusto-conical wrist closures at the ends of the sleeves and a neck closure provided with a slide fastener to facilitate entry and removal, it should be understood that any of these three devices may be used at each of such openings or any combination of them at the sev- Thus, at the neck the garment may be integrally secured to a helmet, as more particularly shown and described in my cepending application, Serial No. 725,625, filed January 31, 1947, now Patent No. 2,496,836, dated February 7, 1950, and, if desired, ankle closures may be provided instead of the boots, similar to the wrist closures I4 shown in the drawing of Figure 1; or either the ankles or the wrists may be provided with elastic conical closures with slide fasteners running either diagonally, as shown at the neck in the case illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, or parallel to the axis and preferably for a short distance on the sleeve or leg to a wider portion thereof, so as to facilitate entry and removal of the hands or feet.

I claim:

1. A water-tight neck closure which comprises a frusto-conical member of thin resilient elastic material of low modulus of elasticity with its base adapted to be secured to a water-proof garment, cover or the like and its upper edge to embrace the neck of the wearer and the sides sloping with an acute angle to the axis of said conical member, and said cone being slit along a line starting at one side of the front of said base and extending along an approximately straight line to a point beyond the middle of the adjacent side at the upper rim of the conical member, and a Cil water-tight closure secured to the conical member adjacent the edges of said slit, whereby to close and seal said slit.

2. A water-tight neck closure which comprises a frusto-conical member of thin resilient elastic material of low modulus of elasticity with its base adapted to be secured to a water-proof garment or the like and its upper edge to embrace the neck of the wearer and the sides sloping with an acute angle to the axis of said conical member, and said cone being slit along a line starting at one side of the front of said base and extending along an approximately straight line to a point beyond the middle of the adjacent side at the upper edge of the conical member, and a water-tight slide fastener secured to the conical member adjacent the edges of said slit, whereby to close and seal said slit and said slide fastener meeting said upper edge at an oblique angle and said conical member extending to a higher level on the side of the slide fastener or closure where it forms the obtuse angle with its upper edge than on the opposite side where it forms the acute angle.

3. A water-tight garment including joined neck and body portions adapted closely to fit the wearer thereof, said neck portion comprising a non-continuous strip of rubber sheeting or equivalent material and said body portion having an access opening extending down the front thereof spaced to one side of the front center line of the body portion, the upper end of said access opening when the garment is worn by a man standing erect being aligned with the lower end of the opening in said neck portion, the lower end of said neck portion opening lying forwardly of a substantially vertical line extending centrally through the ear position and the upper end of the neck portion opening lying on the other side of said vertical line and well above the upper edge of said neck portion and terminating adjacent said ear position, and a slide fastener secured to the opposite sides of said openings for opening and closing them.

4. A water-tight garment according to claim 3 wherein said neck and body portion openings when closed by said slide fastener lie adjacent to a plane tangent to the side of the neck portion and intersect the side of the chest and abdomen portions directly beneath the side of the neck portion.

5. A garment according to claim 3 wherein said neck portion is generally frusto-conical in shape, the length of said neck portion being such that when in use said neck portion falls into approximately annular pleats to provide freedom of neck movement.

HARVEY L. WILLIAMS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,836,392 Norton Dec. 15, 1931 1,915,818 Di Carra June 27, 1933 2,008,152 Nier July 16, 1935 l 2,101,911 Lowenbraun et al. Dec. 11, 1937 2,306,488 Morner Dec. 29, 1942 2,385,816 Krupp Oct. 2, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 349,095 Great Britain May 18, 1931

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