WO1991003955A1

WO1991003955A1 - Protective glove for the human hand

Info

Publication number: WO1991003955A1
Application number: PCT/US1990/005184
Authority: WO
Inventors: Dimitrios C. Economides; David A. Greenlee
Original assignee: Greco Technology Company
Priority date: 1989-09-18
Filing date: 1990-09-13
Publication date: 1991-04-04
Also published as: AU6517090A

Abstract

A disposable protective glove for the human hand is formed by providing a thin coating of liquid protective material on the surface of the hand, and converting the coating into a flexible, continuous film of protective material intimately contacting the surface of the hand by curing the coating on the hand. The material may be latex, silicone or vinyl and may be applied by spraying or dipping. The hand may be given an initial electric charge to aid in coating. Curing may be by exposure of the coated hand to heated or unheated air, by infrared or other heat, by ultraviolet light, or by dipping in or spraying of a curing liquid, which may also be a sterilizing agent. Apparatus for forming the glove comprises a housing having a chamber for spraying and curing, controlled by an electronic controller which controls variable cycle times. Another embodiment includes a spray chamber and a curing dip tank, while another embodiment has two dip tanks for both coating and curing the coating on the hand.

Description

PROTECTIVE GLOVE FOR THE HUMAN HAND

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to protective coverings for human extremities and, more particularly, to protective gloves for the human hand.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Workers in the health care and allied industries have developed an ever-increasing need to protect themselves and patients. In the practice of medicine, dentistry, veterinary, and other of the healing arts, and in the conduct of work in laboratories, there is a twofold need to provide protective coverings for human extremities, especially the hands and arms. One is preventing contamination of the hand by contact with germs, chemicals and other harmful substances. The other is preventing contamination by the hand of the objects and substances it touches, such as wounds. An analogous situation exists in delicate industrial manufacture, where "clean room" conditions are required to eliminate contamination by oils and other substances carried by human skin. Thus, there is a continuing need for protective gloves which provide a barrier to the transmittal of germs or other harmful substances or liquids to or from hands. Natural rubber latex, vinyl and other natural and synthetic-base materials have been utilized for nearly 100 years to provide "ready-made", or preformed, gloves to protect the hands. These gloves vary in thickness, fit and flexibility, depending on the amount of tactile perception or "feel" required by the glove user, on the severity of conditions (abrasion, snagging, cutting, etc.) encountered by the user, and, especially, on the material used. Natural rubber has good elasticity, or stretchabilit , and adheres closely to the hand to produce good "feel", while vinyl gloves have limited elasticity and, thus, inferior "feel". In the health care industry, relatively thin gloves are commonly used to provide a reasonable degree of "feel" for the user. USPN 3,608,053 - Agostinelli states that latex gloves preferably have a thickness of only .004" to .012". Of course, the thinner the glove, the better the "feel"; however, the thinner the glove, the more susceptible it is to snagging and tearing when donning, or putting on, the glove.

One persistent major problem that glove users have always experienced with preformed gloves is inaccurate fit. The millions of different glove users have millions of different sized and proportioned hands. Heretofore, the only opportunity for a user to obtain an accurate fit was to have the gloves custom made, which is prohibitively expensive. To economically accommodate these millions of different hand sizes, conventional preformed protective gloves are manufactured in a limited number of standard sizes. Normally, up to eleven standard sizes are made. Stocking this many different sizes presents a substantial inventory problem for manufacturers, distributors, dealers and users.

Attempts have been made to reduce the number of standard glove sizes required to approximately fit most users. USPN 4,115,873 - Stansbury uses statistical analysis of users' hand dimensions in an attempt to optimize the fit of each glove size. An approximate fit is all that is possible with currently-available gloves, since few users have the same hand dimensions as the eleven or fewer standard size gloves that are available. For most users, the gloves are too tight or too loose, and have fingers that are too long or too short, as noted in USPN 4,218,873 - Stansbury. For the sake of economy, most standardized protective gloves are ambidextrous, which further aggravates the fit problem. Industry has attempted to lessen this significant problem through novel construction techniques, such as those shown in the Stansbury patents, to improve the fit of ambidextrous gloves. However, despite changes in glove construction or the number of standard sizes offered, there are thousands of users who are doomed to using terribly ill-fitting gloves. For these people even the standard sizes cannot possibly fit their hands. These unfortunates are the thousands of users with oddly- proportioned or misshapen hands or with missing or partially missing fingers.

There is an ancillary problem caused by gloves that do not fit well. Gloves that are too tight can constrict blood supply to the hands. This can cause numbness and other complications if tight gloves are worn too long. This is highly undesirable for users performing surgery or other delicate laboratory or industrial work. Another major problem experienced by users of the currently-available preformed gloves is the difficulty encountered in donning the gloves. Latex and other protective glove materials must provide sufficient friction to enable the wearer to successfully grasp and manipulate objects. However, this friction complicates the task of inserting the hand in, or donning, the glove. It can produce "bubbles" at the fingertips and a too-tight-in-one-place, but too-loose-in-another- place, syndrome. The friction problems caused by donning latex gloves is discussed at length in USPNs 4,499,154 - James and 4,597,108 - Momose.

Industry has expended much time, money and energy in attempting to solve this vexing problem. Various chemical compositions and many different types of lubricants have been developed to treat gloves in an attempt to overcome the problems caused by the friction inherent in latex. Some of these treatments are disclosed in the James patent and in USPNs 4,152,783 - Choksi and 4,143,423 - Sternleib. Unfortunately, the use of some of these lubricants can cause other problems, such as wound contamination, as noted in the above patents.

One solution proposes treating the glove interior and exterior surfaces with different chemicals to improve interior slipperiness only, as related in the Momose patent. Providing more "slipperiness" on the glove interior is a mixed blessing, however. While the reduction in friction facilitates donning the glove, such a glove is more likely to "creep", or slip on the hand during use. Thus, the amount of friction reduction must be limited and controlled.

Another proposed solution provides a multilayer glove which is donned once, but includes several peel- away layers, as related in USPN 4,696,065 - Elentany. Besides the problem caused by friction, donning a glove is further complicated if the user is wearing a ring, has a blister or is wearing a bandage, all of which increase friction and change the shape and size of the hand. Another attempt to solve the difficulties encountered in donning protective gloves involves inflating the glove by inserting it into a sealed chamber which is then evacuated. This arrangement is illustrated in USPNs 1,938,685 - Breuls and 4,002,276 - Poncy. A variant includes packaging the gloves with a cuff gripper to hold the glove during hand insertion. This can also be used in conjunction with glove inflation. These attempts to solve the glove donning problem have met with little commercial success and, more significantly, do not address the major problem of glove fit.

Despite the numerous attempts to solve these vexatious problems, by many inventors over a period of many decades, the use of protective gloves is still plagued by the same two age-old problems of inaccurate fit and difficulty in donning.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a flexible protective covering for a human extremity, especially a protective glove for the human hand, which overcomes the problems of inaccurate fit and difficulty in donning, yet provides superior "feel" for the user.

This invention provides a glove that accurately fits all shapes and sizes of human hand, can be easily donned by all users, and provides superior tactile "feel" for the user. This is accomplished by forming the glove on the hand. The glove is preferably disposable.

Such a disposable protective glove for the human hand is formed by providing a thin covering of protective material encompassing the hand, and converting the covering into a flexible, continuous film of protective material intimately contacting the surface of the hand. Such a glove is disposable by stripping the glove from the hand after use in the manner of currently available preformed gloves. In one embodiment, the hand is inserted into a receptacle where a thin coating of liquid protective material, such as latex, is sprayed onto the surface of the hand; thereafter, the thin coating is converted into a continuous film by curing the coating of protective material on the hand. The curing can be accomplished by heating or drying with heated air, evaporation of a curing agent, treatment with a curing agent or ultraviolet light, or by any other conventional means. In another embodiment, the hand is dipped into a tank containing a quantity of liquid protective material to coat the hand; the coating is thereafter converted into a continuous film by curing the coating on the hand in a similar manner. The dipping can be accomplished by providing a thin volume or layer of the liquid latex or silicone floating on a quantity of greater density supportive liquid.

The protective coating can be latex, silicone, or other similar materials which cure into a thin film of flexible material and which can be similarly applied by spraying or dipping. The curing is accomplished by spraying, or immersing the hand in the curing agent, or by evaporating some curing agent mixed with the liquid material applied to the hand. To provide sterile gloves, the curing agent can also be a sterilizing agent, such as alcohol. Alternatively, the cured glove can later be exposed to the sterilizing agent.

In a preferred embodiment, the hand is given an electrical charge. The charged hand is exposed to a quantity of protective material having an opposite charge which will electrocoat the hand. The coated hand is then cured to form a thin continuous film of protective material on the hand. The material can be in the form of a particulate dispersion of liquid particles or of powder (dry material) supplied by a fluidized bed, an electrical suspension, or may be created by an airless spraygun. The liquid dispersio may also be carried within a larger volume of an iner carrier liquid into which the hand is dipped. In al embodiments of the invention, curing can be by exposur to heat, evaporation, a chemical curative agent, o ultraviolet or infrared light.

In all of the embodiments disclosed, a protectiv glove is provided which accurately fits any hand b forming the glove on the hand so that it conforms to the actual shape of the hand. In each embodiment, this is accomplished by providing a thin covering of protective material encompassing the hand, and converting the covering into a flexible, continuous film of protective material intimately contacting the surface of the hand.

Preferably, a thin coating of liquid protective material is provided on the surface of the hand, and is thereafter converted into a glove comprising a continuous film of protective material by curing the coating on the hand. The glove so formed will conform to the contours of the hand, becoming virtually a second skin. This process provides the user with a glove having a fit and "feel" far superior to that possible with preformed gloves. Furthermore, the friction inherent in latex and similar materials is now transformed from a liability into an asset, since it will inhibit glove "creep", or movement on the hand.

Ideally, a protective glove for medical use, according to this invention, which would prevent the transfer of germs and the like to the hands, would be formed by dipping the hands in a tank of solution. It would cure by quickly air drying to form a glove comprising a microscopically thin covering on the hands. This covering would be so highly antiseptic and/or liquid impervious as to effectively block passage of germs and the like and/or kill them during surgery or other medical treatment for a finite time period, such as two hours. Removal would then occur by dipping the hands into a tank of antiseptic solvent. This invention encompasses protective coverings, especially gloves, and methods and apparatus for forming the gloves on a human hand, or other extremity. A better understanding of this invention may be obtained by reference to the following detailed description of the embodiments shown in the attached drawings, in which:

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of a glove forming apparatus having a chamber for both spraying and curing the glove on the hand according to this invention, broken away to show the details of construction; Fig. 2 is a sectional view, taken along lines 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side view of a preferred form of the apparatus of Fig. 1, modified to include an electrocharger and also broken away; Fig. 4 is a side view of another embodiment of the invention having a dip tank for forming and a chamber for curing the glove on the hand, again broken away to show the details of construction;

Fig. 5 is a side view of another form of the apparatus of Fig. 4, modified to include an electrocharger and also broken away;

Fig. 6 is a side view of yet another embodiment of the invention having separate dip tanks for forming and curing the glove on the hand, again broken away to show the details of construction; Fig. 7 is a side view • of another form of the apparatus of Fig. 6, modified to include an electrocharger and also broken away;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view, taken along lines 8-8 of Fig.7, also broken away to show the details of construction;

Fig. 9 is a partial sectional view taken along lines 9-9 of Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a side view of a hand wearing a glove formed in accordance with the invention; and

Fig. 11 is a front view of the gloved hand of Fig. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, apparatus 20 for forming a glove according to this invention comprises a housing 22 which is divided into an upper chamber 24 and a lower chamber 26. Chamber 24 is accessible through an opening 28 formed in the front of housing 22. Chamber 24 is defined by side walls 30 (only one of which is shown), and rear 32, upper 34, front 36 and bottom 38 walls. A plurality of spray nozzles 40, spaced along walls 30 - 38, are connected to fluid conduits 42 and 44 which are supplied with fluid by a fluid supply system 46. The walls 30 - 38 are preferably coated with a non-stick substance, such as Teflon.

Fluid supply system 46 includes a replaceable cartridge 48 comprising a case 50 having a drip collecting tank 52 and a reservoir of fluid protective material contained in a chamber 54. Chamber 54 is attached to a fitting 56 that quick-connects in a conventional manner to the inlet of an electrically- operated fluid pump 58. Referring again to Fig. 1, the fluid supply system 46 further includes an electronic control unit 78 which controls operation of pump 58 to selectively supply pressurized fluid to conduits 40, 42, as will be later described. A plurality of air jets 80 are provided in the walls 30 - 38 of upper chamber 24 and are connected by supply tubing 82 and an air control valve 84 to a blower 86 for supplying heated air, the operation of which is controlled by controller 78. The upper lip 88 of cabinet opening 28 mounts a light source 90 and an air ejector 92, which is connected to blower 86 by supply tubing 94 and air valve 84. Lower lip 96 of opening 28 mounts a photocell 98, connected to controller 78, and air receptor ports 100, which combine with air ejector 92 to form an air curtain.

Bottom wall 38 of upper chamber 24 is sloped inwardly and downwardly to a drain opening 102 which registers with an upper opening 104 in drip collecting tank 52. A power cord 106 is provided for connection to a conventional wall socket and an on-off switch 108 is provided for controller 78. Operation of the glove forming apparatus 20 will now be described.

Switch 108 is switched on to power up control unit 78, which turns on light source 90 which emits a light beam received by photocell 98. Blower 86 turns on to supply air to ejector 92. Hands 110A and B are inserted through opening 28 into upper chamber 24. This action breaks the light beam emitted from light source 90, causing photocell 98 to signal control unit 78 which initiates a cycle of operation as follows.

Control unit 78 starts air blower 86 and operates air valve -84 to supply air to air ejector 90 to create an air curtain at opening 28. Control 78 then operates fluid control valve 58 to supply liquid protective material to spray nozzles 32 through fluid conduits 42 44 to spray-coat hands 110 for a predetermined tim period that is controlled by an adjustable glov control switch 114 on controller 78. When the spra cycle is completed, excess sprayed fluid is allowed t collect on bottom wall 38 and flow through drai openings 102 and 104 into drip collecting tank 5 during a predetermined pause period.

Controller 78 next turns on a heater in blower 8 and shifts valve 84 to supply warm air to air jets 8 for a predetermined time period to cure the liqui coating into a thin, flexible continuous film o protective material. At the end of the variable, predetermined curing period, the controller 78 wil sound an audible signal, whereupon the hands 110 may b removed. Removal of hands 110 is sensed by photocel 98, which causes controller 78 to reset for anothe cycle. If desired, an automatic timed shutoff may b provided to turn off the unit if switch 108 is no actuated to do so.

The hands 110 now are encompassed by a thin, continuous film of protective material . This comprise protective glove 116 on hand 110, as shown in Figs. 10 and 11, which conforms to the hand in a manner heretofore unknown, literally becoming a "second skin" of protective material. Preferably these gloves are formed of a natural or synthetic rubber latex supplied in liquid form in chamber 54; however, other materials can be used, such as vinyl or silicone, or any other suitable material. Although coating of two hands at a time is described, the apparatus 20 could easily be simplified to accommodate only one hand. Although only a wrist-length glove is illustrated, longer or shorter gloves can easily be formed for hands or other extremities through simple modifications of the apparatus illustrated in the drawings.

The simple electric pump shown could readily be replaced by some other mechanical arrangement for pressurizing the liquid protective material. An alternative arrangement would have reservoir 54 contain a flexible plastic bag that is pressurized by squeezing selectively to spray the material, or constantly, utlizing a control valve to selectively spray the material. Alternatively, chamber 54 could have its contents pressurized by an aerosol propellant. The material for coating the hand could be provided in chamber 24 via a fluidized bed or an electric suspension of liquid droplets or a dispersion of protective material in powder form. In another modification, the air jets could be replaced by another spray system for curing the coating on the hand with a fine spray of liquid curing material; this would require another reservoir and pressurizing arrangement like that described above. A modification of the embodiment of Figs. 1 and 2 is depicted in Fig. 3. Glove forming apparatus 120 quite similar to apparatus 20 is provided. Features corresponding to those of the Figs. 1 and 2 embodiment are indicated by the same numeral increased by 100; thus opening 128 corresponds to opening 28. The main difference in the Fig. 3 embodiment is the addition of an electro-charger 121, which is provided on the lower lip 196 of opening 128. Hands 210 are touched to electro-charger 121, as they are inserted through opening 128 into spray chamber 124, to impart a slight electrostatic charge to the hand. This charge is similar to that obtained by walking over a wool carpet in low humidity conditions.

This electrostatic charge will attract the latex or other liquid material sprayed from spray nozzles 140 to the hands 210 in a manner' similar to that involved in the electrostatic spray painting process, such as the well-known process developed by Ransburg and others. By providing a droplet-attracting electrostatic charge to the hand, overspray will be reduced, as will the cycle pause time required for the overspray to collect and flow to and through openings 202 and 204 into drip tank 152.

As with the Figs. 1 and 2 embodiment, the curing of the liquid coating could be by heated air drying. However, a different arrangement is illustrated which could also be used with the prior embodiment, dependent on the type of liquid protective material used. The walls 130-138 are provided with a plurality of spaced heating units 181 that are connected by an electric circuit 183 to controller 178. Upon completion of the spray and pause cycles, controller 178 powers heating units 181 for a predetermined time period to cure the liquid coating on hands 210. Heaters 181 may be resistance units or infrared units, depending on material requirements. As with the Figs. 1 and 2 embodiment, completion of the predetermined curing period is audibly signalled, whereupon hands 210 are removed from chamber 124. This action is sensed by photocell 198, causing controller 178 to reset for another operation cycle.

Another embodiment of this invention is illustrated in Fig. 4, wherein apparatus 220 is divided into a lower front dip tank 222, an upper curing chamber 224, a rear reservoir compartment 226 and a control compartment 228. Apparatus housing 230 includes a front opening 232 into chamber 224 which is defined by upper 234, side 236 (only one shown) and rear 238 walls. These walls mount a plurality of spaced ultraviolet curing units 240, as will be later described. A flexible, retractable door 242 separates chamber 224 from dip tank 222, and is retractable into a motorized door takeup reel 244 to expose tank 222. The curing units are here shown as ultraviolet light units, although the air dry units of the Figs. 1 and 2 embodiments could be utilized. Alternatively, the infrared or resistance heating units of the Fig. 3 embodiment could be used. The type of curing used is dependent on the type of liquid protective material used, rather than the type of application apparatus used.

An electric eye, comprising a light source 246 and a photocell 248, embrace opening 232 to detect the insertion of a hand 250. An electronic controller 252 is located in chamber 228 and is conventionally connected to light source 246, photocell 248, takeup reel 244, and curing units 240.

Reservoir compartment 226 houses a quantity of liquid protective material contained in a replaceable plastic container 254 that is introduced into compartment 226 through an access door 256. Container 254 includes a quick-connect coupling 258 for connection to a float valve unit 260 mounted on dip tank 222. With this arrangement, the quantity of liquid protective material 262 in dip tank 222 is maintained by gravity feed of replacement material from bag 254 through valve 260. As with prior embodiments, controller 252 is provided with a power cord 264, an on-off switch 266, and a glove thickness switch 268. Operation is as follows. After switch 266 is turned on, hands 250 to be coated are inserted through opening 232, which is sensed by photocell 248. This causes controller 252 to signal reel 244 to open door 242 and initiate a timer in the controller. Hands 250 are then dipped into the tank 222 of liquid material 262 to a depth corresponding to the length of glove desired. After a predetermined time period, variably controlled by switch 268, an audible signal will sound to indicate removal of coated hands 250, which are then lifted from tank 222 into curing chamber 224 where they are inverted to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4.

After a pause period to allow excess material to drip into tank 222, controller 252 signals reel 244 to close door 242. Ultraviolet curing units 240 are then activated for a predetermined period to cure the liquid material into the thin continuous film of protective material that is the glove 116 shown in Figs. 10 and 11. At the end of the cure period, another audible signal sounds and hands 250 can then be removed from curing chamber 224. This removal of hand 250 is sensed by photocell 248 which signals controller 252 to reset for another operation cycle.

This apparatus is simpler than that of Figs. 1 and 3 in that no pressurization of the reservoir material is required and no fluid distribution system or spray nozzles are required. Yet, a similar protective glove is formed on the hand.

Fig. 5 depicts a modification, where apparatus 320 has its element parts corresponding to those of the Fig. 4 embodiment designated by similar numerals increased by 100. Thus, cabinet 230 of Fig. 4 is numbered 330 in Fig. 5. One of the differences in apparatus 320 is the addition of an electro charger 370 mounted on the lower lip 372 of opening 332 in housing 330. This functions to impart an electric charge to hands 350. in the same manner as electro charger 121 in the Fig. 3 embodiment.

Another change is that tank 322 contains a volume of an inert liquid 362, such as distilled water. This volume is injected with a dispersion of droplets of liquid protective material through quick-connect coupling 358, a supply line 374 and injector control valve 376 from replaceable plastic reservoir 354 containing liquid protective material 355, which is under pressure. This liquid protective material becomes a fine dispersion when injected into the inert carrier liquid in tank 322. When the charged hand 350 is inserted into tank 322, the droplets of protective material are attracted to and coat the hand to form the liquid coating which, upon removal from the tank, is cured in curing chamber 324 in the same manner as in the Fig. 4 embodiment.

Fig. 6 depicts yet another embodiment of the invention which utilizes a glove-forming apparatus 420 that includes a housing 422 having a pair of dip tanks 424, 426. Housing 422 includes a slidable door 428 that is retractable from a position closing both tanks 424, 426 into a take-up reel 430. Door 428 has a handle 432 that is used to retract the door into reel 430. When handle 432 reaches reel 430 on edge 434 of tank 424, it actuates switch 436 that is connected to a timer-controller 438. A hand 440 may then be inserted into tank 424 containing liquid protective material 442 for a predetermined period, as determined by a variable control switch 444 on timer 438.

At the end of the period, timer 438 will emit an audible signal, whereupon hand 440 is removed and inverted for another predetermined period. At the end of this period, the timer will emit another audible signal; hand 440 is then dipped into tank 426 which contains a liquid curing material 446. After another predetermined interval, timer 438 will signal that it is time to remove and invert hand 440 for a drying period, the end of which is signalled by timer 438. Apparatus 420 provides a very economical apparatus for practicing the invention, since it eliminates all spray or heating requirements. Timer-controller 438 may be electrically or battery operated. Alternatively, it may be a hand-wound mechanism for ultimate economy. Regardless, it is operable to form a protective glove conforming to the hand 440 in accordance with the invention, just as with the previously-described embodiments. Apparatus 420 offers another possible advantage in that the curing liquid

446 may additionally be a sterilizing material, such as alcohol, which can simultaneously cure the liquid coating, which can be latex or silicone, on hand 440.

This embodiment could also be used for the ideal medical glove mentioned previously. Tank 424 could contain a quantity of material which would quickly air dry to form a glove comprising a microscopically thin covering of highly antiseptic and/or liquid impervious material . Tank 426 could then contain an antiseptic liquid solvent to enable glove removal.

A modification of the previous embodiment is depicted in Figs. 7, 8 and 9, where apparatus 520 is similar to that of Fig. 6, and wherein elements corresponding to those of Fig. 6 are denoted by numbers increased by 100; thus, tank 524 in Figs. 7-9 corresponds to tank 424 of Fig. 6. The main difference in this embodiment is that apparatus 520 is automated in its operation.

The housing 522 mounts a reservoir section 548 which houses a replaceable plastic container 550 containing liquid protective material 551 that is connected via a quick connect coupling 552 to an electric injector valve 554 through a conduit 556. Dip tank 524 is filled with an inert liquid 562 which is injected during each coating cycle with a dispersion of droplets of protective material from container 550. As with the Fig. 5 embodiment, an electro charger 564 is provided on edge 534 of housing 522 to impart an electric charge to hands 540A and B. A light source 566 is mounted on a bridging structure 568 and is aimed at a photocell 570 mounted on rear lip 572 of housing 520. Door 528 extends from motorized take-up reel 530 along a track 574 and through a slot 576 in bridging structure 568 to a receptor 578. A controller 580 is connected to charger 564, motorized reel 530, injector valve 554, light 566, and photocell 570. Upon touching charger 564, controller 580 opens door 528 to bridge 568 to uncover tank 524. Simultaneously, controller 580 actuates injector valve 554 to inject a predetermined charge of protective material from bag 550 into tank 524. Upon dipping in tank 524, charged hands 540 will attract the dispersion of droplets of protective material to form the liquid coating. Upon an audible signal, the hands are removed and inverted and tank 526 is fully opened. Hands 540 are then dipped into curing tank 526 containing curing liquid 546 for a predetermined time. Upon another signal from controller 580, hands 540 are removed, enveloped by a protective glove, as depicted in Figs. 10 and 11. As with the embodiment depicted in Figs. 1- 5, controller 580 has a cycle time control 582, and on- off switch 584 and power cord 586.

The various embodiments illustrated and described above all provide a glove for the hand which envelopes and conforms to the contours of the hand to form a thin film of protective material that is a glove.

The liquid protective material provides an intimate coating which conforms to the contours of the hand, duplicating the user's handprint and fingerprint. This accurate, conforming fit provides a "feel" and dexterity for the user which closely duplicates that of a naked hand, and is far superior to anything attainable with the currently-available preformed protective gloves. A glove formed in accordance with this invention is virtually a "second skin".

The "thinness", or minimum thickness, of conventional preformed protective gloves is limited by the necessity of providing material with sufficient tenacity to resist tearing and snagging which can occur when donning the glove. No such constraints are placed on the thinness of a glove formed on the hand in accordance with this invention, since it is not "donned" in the conventional sense. Such a glove formed on the hand also eliminates the problems caused by the inherent frictional characteristics of latex and other similar materials. Actually, this inherent friction will now become beneficial, since it will prevent slippage of the glove on the hand.

Claims

WE CLAIM:

1. A disposable protective glove for the human hand formed by providing a thin covering of protective material encompassing the hand, and converting the covering into a flexible, continuous film of protective material intimately contacting the surface of the hand.

2. The glove of claim 1, wherein the thin covering is converted by exposure to a combined curing and sterilizing agent to form a sterile glove.

3. The glove of claim 2, wherein the agent is alcohol .

4. The glove of claim 1, wherein the thin covering is provided by a liquid protective material sprayed onto the surface of the hand and the covering is converted into the continuous film by curing the covering on the hand.

5. The glove of claim 1, wherein the thin covering is provided by dipping the hand in a volume of liquid protective material and the covering is converted by curing the film on the hand.

6. The glove of claim 1, wherein the protective material is vinyl.

7. The glove of claim 1, wherein the protective material is latex.

8. The glove of claim 1, wherein the protective material is silicone.

9. Apparatus for forming a disposable protective glove on a human hand, comprising a receptacle for receiving the hand, a quantity of liquid protective material in the receptacle for coating the hand by dipping, and means for converting the coating into a flexible, continuous film upon removal of the hand from the liquid.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the converting means comprises a second receptacle containing a quantity of liquid curative agent for receiving the coated hand.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the protective material is silicone and the curative agent is alcohol.

12. Apparatus for forming a disposable protective glove on a human hand, comprising a housing having a receptacle for receiving the hand, a reservoir -of liquid protective material, spray means connected to the reservoir for spray-coating the hand with the liquid material, and means for converting the coating into a flexible, continuous film.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the converting means include means for curing the coating on the hand, and further including control means for controlling the duration of spraying and the duration of curing.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the spray means include a plurality of spray nozzles surrounding the hand .

15. A method of forming a disposable protective glove on a human hand, comprising the steps of providing a thin covering of protective material encompassing the hand, and converting the covering into a flexible, continuous film of liquid-impervious protective material contacting the surface of the hand.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the thin covering is provided by coating the hand with liquid protective material.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the thin covering is converted by exposing it to a combined curing and sterilizing agent.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the liquid protective material is liquid latex, and the liquid latex coating is converted by curing the latex on the hand.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein curing the latex coating includes heating the coating.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the latex coating is provided by spraying liquid latex onto the surface of the hand.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the latex coating is provided by dipping the hand into a quantity of liquid latex.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein the liquid protective material is liquid silicone and the coating is converted by curing the silicone on the hand.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein curing the silicone coating includes applying a liquid curative agent to the coating.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the coating is converted by exposing it to a sterilizing agent.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the silicone coating is provided by spraying liquid silicone onto the surface of the hand.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein the silicone coating is provided by dipping the hand into a quantity of liquid silicone.

27. A protective glove for a human hand formed by providing an electrical charge on the hand, exposing the hand to a quantity of protective material to coat the hand with protective material , and converting the coating into a thin film on the hand.

28. A method of forming a protective glove on a human hand, comprising the steps of providing an electrical charge on the hand, providing a quantity of protective material , exposing the hand to the material to coat the hand, and curing the coating on the hand to form the glove.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the hand is coated by dipping the hand into a volume of liquid comprising a particulate dispersion of protective material suspended in a volume of liquid carrier material .

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the coating is converted by dipping the hand into a quantity of liquid curing agent.

31. Apparatus for forming a protective glove on a human hand, comprising means for applying an electrical charge on the hand, means providing a quantity of protective material to coat the hand with the material , and means to convert the coating into a continuous film of protective material .

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the curing step includes exposing the coated hand to a combined sterilizing and curing agent to form a sterile glove.

33. Apparatus for forming a glove on a human hand, comprising a housing having a chamber for receiving a hand, a supply of protective material, material distribution means connected to the supply for providing a coating of protective material on the hand, curing means for curing the coating, and control means for controlling the operation of the material distribution means and the curing means and including detecting means for detecting insertion of a hand into the chamber.

34. A replaceable cartridge for the apparatus of claim 33, comprising a flexible sealed bag containing a supply of liquid protective material, a fluid connector connectable to the material distribution means, spray means included in the material distribution means, and a receptacle connectable to the chamber to collect the excess sprayed material.

35. The apparatus of claim 34, wherein the curing means include an air distribution system including a blower, an air heater, a plurality of nozzles for directing heated air over the coated hand to cure the coating, and an air curtain covering the entrance to the chamber and operable to contain the sprayed material within the chamber.

36. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the curing means include ultraviolet lights within the chamber for curing the coating.

37. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the curing means include infrared lamps within the chamber for curing the coating.

38. The apparatus of claim 33, further including charging means to impart an electrical charge to the hand prior to coating.

39. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the material distribution means include means for spraying protective material to coat the charged hand.

40. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the material distribution means include means for producing a suspension of particulate protective material for coating the charged hand.

41. The apparatus of claim 40, wherein the suspension is a powder suspension.

42. The apparatus of claim 40, wherein the suspension is a liquid suspension.

43. Apparatus for forming a flexible protective glove on a human hand, comprising a housing containing a dip tank of liquid protective material and a curing chamber, a movable closure for the dip tank, control means including first detecting means for detecting insertion of a hand into the housing and second detecting means for detecting movement of the hand into and out of the dip tank to open and close the closure, a replaceable cartridge containing liquid protective material, and valve means connecting the cartridge and the dip tank.