WO2013169292A1

WO2013169292A1 - Free-floating protective glove

Info

Publication number: WO2013169292A1
Application number: PCT/US2012/066527
Authority: WO
Inventors: Erik EINESSON; Paul Harris
Original assignee: BATT, Michael, J.
Priority date: 2012-05-07
Filing date: 2012-11-26
Publication date: 2013-11-14
Also published as: AU2012379656A1; CN104540407A; US20150189933A1; EP2846652A1; EP2846652A4

Abstract

A free-floating mesh protective glove is disclosed. The glove has palm-side inner and outer fabric layers joined along their peripheries, and a top-side outer fabric layer attached to the palm-side layers along their peripheries, except in a cuff region. Protection against stabbing and cutting is provided by two metallic-meshes layers shaped to fit inside the palm-side layers and held in place by being sandwiched between, but not attached to, them. The metal meshes slide past each other when the glove is clenched, improving flexibility and reducing crinkling. The woven mesh layers have stainless steel fibers with a diameter of 0.2 mm or less and apertures of 0.45 mm or less. The meshes are layered together with a warp-fiber direction in one mesh oriented at an angle of approximately 22.5 degrees with respect to the warp-fiber direction of the adjacent mesh.

Description

FREE-FLOATING PROTECTIVE GLOVE

Inventors:

Erik Einesson and Paul Harris

Claim of Priority

This application claims priority to US Application no. 61/643,453 filed on May, 7th, 2012, and to US Application no. 61/683,240 filed on August 15th, 2012 the contents of both of which are hereby fully incorporated by reference.

Technical Field

The invention relates to a structure of and a method for making a safety glove, and more particularly, to a safety glove incorporated one or more double layers of metallic mesh sandwiched between an inner and an outer glove fabric layer without being attached to the glove fabric layers.

Background Art

Fine metal meshes used in protective clothing, such as, but not limited to, protective gloves and mittens, has been shown to provide superior protection against both cuts and punctures.

When article of protective clothing containing metal meshes are subject to tight bending as when, for instance, a protective glove is squeezed to a tight fist, there may be a tendency for the metal mesh to deform by non-recoverable crinkling which may result in reduced effectiveness of the glove.

The present invention provides a protective material in which two layers of mesh may be sandwiched between outer layers of fabric such that the metal meshes are free- floating with respect to both each other and to the fabric layers between which they are sandwiched. Being free floating, the meshes are free to slide past each other, alleviating much of the stress that causes non-recoverable crinkling. Such free floating protective materials provide a cost effective means of manufacturing protective clothing including, but not limited to, protective gloves and mittens, as described in greater detail below.

Description of the background art:

The relevant background art includes:

US Patent 6,581,212 issued to Andresen on June 24, 2003 entitled "Protective" that describes a protective garment for protection of body parts against cuts or puncture wounds comprising an inner layer, a protective layer and an outer layer, the protective layer being composed of a wire mesh of woven metal wires, the thickness of the metal wires being between 0.03 mm and 0.20 mm and the apertures in the wire mesh being between 0.05 mm and 0.45 mm, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

US Patent 7,191,803 issued to Orr, et al. on March 20, 2007 entitled "Elastic fabric with sinusoidally disposed wires" that describes a fabric for use with a system for monitoring prescribed body functions comprising an elastic fabric, adapted to be carried by a torso, which is stretchable in its longitudinal direction so as to expand and contract in response to body movement and size. The carrier includes at least one conductive and inelastic yarn arranged longitudinally of and located between upper and lower surfaces. The conductive yarn is arranged in sinusoidal configurations longitudinally of the fabric. The conductive yarn forms a breakout through one of the outer surfaces, at selected locations along the length of the fabric, forming opposed exposed ends above the surface. A monitoring unit, which includes a connector and a sensor, is secured with the one surface at the breakout with the connector being united with the exposed ends of the conductive yarn. The fabric acts to maintain the monitoring unit in a desired stationary position allowing the sensor to sense signals emitted from the torso and transmit these senses signals.

US Patent 5,903,920 issued to Granqvist on May 18, 1999 entitled "Garment for personal protection" that describes a garment for personal protection against both shots from firearms and stabs from stabbing weapons, wherein the garment comprises an outer covering, an inner covering, and a shot-absorbing unit located between the outer covering and the inner covering. The shot-absorbing unit includes: (i) a plurality of first layers of woven fibers with different mesh sizes, the first layers being flexibly fixed relative to one another and being positioned in mutually different directions, (ii) a plurality of second layers of woven fibers with different mesh sizes, the second layers being flexibly fixed relative to one another and being positioned in mutually different directions, and (iii) at least one intermediate member provided between the first layers and the second layers, the intermediate member being flexibly fixed relative to at least one of the first layers and having mutually interlinked and at least partially mutually movable rings which are made of a material which is capable of resisting sharp objects. The first and second layers of the shot-absorbing unit are placed in a direction of potential incidence of a bullet and a stabbing weapon, with the first layers being positioned closest to the outer covering and the second layers being positioned closest to the inner covering. The second layers are greater in number than the first layers and a total number of the first and second layers and a density of each of the first and second layers are such that the garment has as light a weight and as thin a size as possible and such that the garment maintains relative flexibility in order to thereby be adaptable to and accompany movements of a wearer without obstructing the wearer in any essential respect. Various implements are known in the art, but fail to address all of the problems solved by the invention described herein. Embodiments of this invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and will be described in more detail herein below.

Disclosure of the Invention

The present invention pertains to structures of, and methods for making, free- floating protective gloves.

In a preferred embodiment, the free-floating protective glove may include palm- side inner and outer layers of fabric that may be sized and shaped to approximately match a human hand. These layers of fabric may be joined together in a vicinity of their peripheries. The protective glove of the present invention may also have a hand-shaped top-side outer-layer of fabric that may be attached to the palm-side layers along most of their peripheries, except in a cuff region. The cuff region may not be joined so as to allow a hand to be placed inside the glove, or mitten, formed by the three joined layers of fabric.

Protection against both stab and cut wounds may be provided by two or more metallic-mesh layers that may be shaped and sized to be similar, but slightly smaller than said palm-side inner and outer fabric layers and which may be sandwiched between, but not attached to them. In this way, the metal meshes are free to slide past each other when the gloves are clenched. This sliding of the meshes allows for greater flexibility of the glove and reduces crinkling of the meshes.

In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the metallic mesh layers may be comprised of woven metal fibers and may have fiber diameters of 0.2 mm or less, and apertures of 0.45 mm or less.

The two metallic-mesh layers may also be layered together such that the warp fiber direction one metallic-mesh layer may be oriented at an angle of 22.5 degrees +/ 5 degrees with respect to the warp fiber direction of an adjacent metallic -mesh layer. This angle of orientation improves the puncture resistance of the meshes.

Therefore, the present invention succeeds in conferring the following, and others not mentioned, desirable and useful benefits and objectives.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple to manufacture yet effective protective glove.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a long lasting, hard wearing protective glove that may be manufactured inexpensively.

Brief Description of Drawings

Fig. 1 A shows a cross-sectional view of a free-floating protective glove of the present invention taken on BB.

Fig. 1 B shows a sectional plan view of a free-floating protective glove of the present invention taken on AA.

Fig. 2 A shows a cross-sectional view of a mono-layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention.

Fig. 2 B shows a cross-sectional view of a mono-layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent.

Fig. 2 C shows a cross-sectional view of a mono-layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent further.

Fig. 2 D shows a cross-sectional view of a mono-layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent still further.

Fig. 3 A shows a cross-sectional view of a double mesh layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention. Fig. 3 B shows a cross-sectional view of a double mesh layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent.

Fig. 3 C shows a cross-sectional view of a double mesh layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent further.

Fig. 4 shows a plan view of a portion of mesh.

Fig. 5 shows a plan view of a portion of overlapping, off-set meshes.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. Identical elements in the various figures are identified with the same reference numerals.

Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention. Such embodiments are provided by way of explanation of the present invention, which is not intended to be limited thereto. In fact, those of ordinary skill in the art may appreciate upon reading the present specification and viewing the present drawings that various modifications and variations can be made thereto.

Figure 1 A shows a cross-sectional view of a free-floating protective glove of the present invention taken on "BB" and Figure 1 B shows a sectional plan view taken on AA.

In a preferred embodiment, the free-floating protective glove 100 may have a pair of metallic-mesh layers 130 that may be sandwiched between a palm-side inner-layer of fabric 110 and a palm-side outer-layer of fabric 105. The palm-side outer-layer 105 and the palm-side inner-layer 110 may be fixed, or joined, together in a vicinity of their peripheries 115. There may also be a top-side outer-layer of fabric 120 and an optional top-side inner-layer of fabric 180. The top-side outer-layer of fabric 120 and the optional top-side inner-layer of fabric 180 may also be joined in a vicinity of their peripheries 115, and all four layers, i.e., the inner and outer top-side and palm side fabric layers may all be joined fixedly joined in a vicinity of their peripheries 115 except for in a vicinity of a cuff region 125. In this way, a gap may be left in the cuff region 125 so as to allow the free- floating protective glove 100 to be worn on a user's hand.

The layers of fabric may all be shaped and sized to substantially match a human hand. As human hands differ in size, the fabric may be shaped and sized to fit one a hand of a size as measured by the circumference of a hand in the vicinity of the knuckles, as is customary in the glove industry. The free-floating protective glove 100 may, for instance, be made and classified to conform to standard glove lettering sizes in which a men's medium glove (M) corresponds to a knuckle circumference of about 20 cm (7 ½ - 8 inches), a small (S) to 20 cm ( 7 inches) and a large (L) to 23 cm (81/2 - 9 inches) while a woman's medium glove (M) corresponds to a knuckle circumference of about 18 cm (7 inches), a small (S) to 17 cm ( 6 ½ inches) and a large (L) to 19 cm (71/2 inches).

The inner and outer fabric layers may, for instance, be made from any suitably flexible materials having appropriate desired characteristics such as, but not limited to, breathability, vapor or water resistance, electrical insulation or some combination thereof. Joining the fabrics may, for instance, be done by a means such as, but not limited to, stitching, welding, gluing, stapling or riveting, or some combination thereof. When the joining is done, at least in part, by sewing, the process may use any suitable sewing thread such as, but not limited to, cotton, nylon, rayon, polyester, silk, wool, acrylic or metal thread, or some combination thereof.

Claim 2: The protective glove of claim 1 wherein said metallic mesh layers are comprised of woven metal fibers 135 having fiber diameters of 0.2 mm or less, and apertures 150 in the wire mesh of 0.45 mm or less. Figure 2 A shows a cross-sectional view of a mono-layer sandwich 230 of protective material of the present invention. The mono-layer sandwich 230 may, for instance, include a top fabric layer 220, a bottom fabric layer 225 and a single metal mesh layer 235 sandwiched between the top and bottom fabric layers. The single metal mesh layer 235 may be free to move relative to both the top and the bottom layer by sliding.

Figure 2 B shows a cross-sectional view of the mono-layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent. As indicated in Figure 2 B, the top fabric layer 220 begins to stretch, creating an upper layer strain 240, while the bottom fabric layer 225 may be compressed creating a lower layer stress 245.

Figure 2 C shows a cross-sectional view of a mono-layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent further. The stretching or upper layer strain 240 has increased, as has the bottom fabric layer 225 lower layer stresses 245. The increased stretching and compressing may now result in mesh layer separation 250 beginning to occur. This separation may, for instance, occur through frictional forces transferring some of the upper layer strain 240 from the top fabric layer 220 to the single metal mesh layer 235, and some of the lower layer stress 245 from the bottom fabric layer 225 to the single metal mesh layer 235.

Figure 2 D shows a cross-sectional view of a mono-layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent still further. Because of the degree of curvature, the single metal mesh layer 235 may now have begun to crinkle up, as mesh layer buckling 255 sets in as a consequence of the frictional transfer of stresses and strains to the mesh layer increases and may begin to exceed performance thresholds of the mesh.

Figure 3 A shows a cross-sectional view of a double mesh layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention. The double mesh layer sandwich 280 may include a top fabric layer 220, a bottom fabric layer 225 and a upper metal mesh layer 260 and a lower metal mesh layer 265. The upper and lower metal mesh layers, 260, 265 may be sandwiched between the top and bottom fabric layers 220, 225. The metal mesh layers may, however, not be attached to the top and bottom layers, but may be free to slide past both the fabric layers and themselves, subject only to frictional forces. Figure 3 A also shows three upper fiducial markers 270 and three lower fiducial markers 275. These markers may be real makes on the mesh, or may be fictional markers imagined to help understand the changes that occur to the double mesh layer sandwich 280 under bending.

Figure 3 B shows a cross-sectional view of a double mesh layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent. As the double mesh layer sandwich 280 bends, the top fabric layer 220 stretches creating upper layer strain 240. Some of the upper layer strain 240 may be transferred to the upper metal mesh layer 260. At the same time, the bottom fabric layer 225 may now be compressed and develop lower layer stress 245. Some of this lower layer stress 245 may, for instance, be transferred to the lower metal mesh layer 265 via frictional forces. However, since the meshes themselves may slide past each other, the upper mesh may now stretch, and the lower mesh may compress, resulting in the outer upper and lower fiducial markers 270, 275, that were all aligned in the flat example of Figure 3 A, now separating. This slight separation is indicative of the meshes sliding past each other, thereby reducing buildup of stresses and strains within the mesh.

Figure 3 C shows a cross-sectional view of a double mesh layer sandwich of protective material of the present invention being bent further. As seem by the outer pairs of fiducial markers 270, 275, the pair of metal mesh layers 260, 265 may have effectively reduced the amount of sheer across them by sliding past each other, thereby significantly reducing any mesh layer separation and they may have delayed the onset of buckling or crinkling. Figure 4 shows a plan view of a portion of mesh.

In a preferred embodiment, the metallic mesh used in the free-floating protective gloves may be constructed of woven metal fibers 135. Such a mesh may have interwoven warp fibers 142 and weft fibers 145. These fibers are preferably made of stainless steel, though they may be constructed of a metal or metal alloy such as, but not limited to, stainless steel, steel, aluminum, iron, copper, bronze, brass, magnesium, magnelium, titanium, zinc or some combination thereof.

In a preferred embodiment, the metallic mesh layers may be made of woven metal fibers 135 having fiber diameters of 0.4 mm or less, and apertures 150 in the wire mesh of 0.8 mm or less, and more preferably, of fiber diameters of 0.2 mm or less, and apertures 150 in the wire mesh of 0.45 mm or less.

Figure 5 shows a plan view of a portion of overlapping, off-set meshes. The two metallic-mesh layers are layered together such that one mesh 155 has a warp fiber direction 165 that may be oriented at an angle of orientation 160 with respect to a warp fiber direction 140 of the other metallic-mesh layer 170.

Informal testing using moire patterns has shown that layering square meshes together at an angle of orientation 160 of approximately of 22.5 degrees may result in the best average reduction in effective aperture size, and therefore, may provide the protective material with improved puncture protection.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the meshes may be overlaid with an angle of orientation 160 of 22.5 degrees +/ 5 degrees, and more preferably, with an angle of orientation 160 of 22.5 degrees +/ 1 degrees.

In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the free-floating protective glove 100 may include a top-side inner-layer of fabric 180 joined to the top-side outer- layer of fabric 120 in a vicinity of their peripheries and a second pair of metallic-mesh layers that may be shaped and sized to be similar, but slightly smaller than the top-side inner and outer layers. This second pair of metallic mesh layers may be sandwiched between, but unattached to, the top-side inner and outer layers of fabric so that the metal- mesh layers may slide with respect to the fabric layers containing them, and with respect to each other. This additional pair of metallic-mesh layers may, for instance, be provide stab and cut protection for the upper portion of the hand. To increase this stab protection, the second pair of metallic meshes may layered together so that a warp fiber direction 195 of one of the second pair of metallic-mesh layers 205 may be oriented at an angle of orientation 160 of 22.5 degrees +/ 5 degrees with respect to the warp fiber direction 210 of the other metallic -mesh layer 215 of the second pair of meshes.

Although this invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is to be understood that the present disclosure has been made only by way of illustration and that numerous changes in the details of construction and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention.

Industrial Applicability

The present invention has applicability in industries that use protective gloves such as, but not limited to, the oil drilling industry, the coal mining industry and the security industry.

Claims

What is claimed:

Claim 1 : A free-floating protective glove 100, comprising:

a palm-side outer-layer of fabric 105 sized and shaped to substantially match a human hand;

a palm-side inner-layer of fabric 110, shaped and sized to match said palm-side outer layer, said palm-side inner and outer layers of fabric being fixedly joined in a vicinity of their peripheries 115;

a hand-shaped top-side outer-layer of fabric 120, fixedly attached to said palm-side layers of fabric in a vicinity of a portion of their peripheries excluding a cuff region 125; and at least two metallic-mesh layers 130, shaped and sized to be similar, but slightly smaller than said palm-side inner and outer layers, said two metallic mesh layers being sandwiched between, but unattached to, said palm-side inner and outer layers of fabric such that said metal-mesh layers may slidably move with respect to said fabric layers and with respect to each other.

Claim 2: The protective glove of claim 1 wherein said metallic mesh layers are comprised of woven metal fibers 135 having fiber diameters of 0.2 mm or less, and apertures 150 in the wire mesh of 0.45 mm or less.

Claim 3 : The protective glove of claim 2 wherein said metal fibers are stainless steel fibers. Claim 4: The protective glove of claim 1 wherein said two metallic-mesh layers are layered together such that a first warp fiber direction 165 of a first metallic-mesh layer 155 is oriented at an angle of orientation 160 of 22.5 degrees +/ 5 degrees with respect to a second warp fiber direction 140 of a second metallic-mesh layer 170.

Claim 5: The protective glove of claim 4 wherein said angle of orientation is 22.5 degrees +/- 1 degree.

Claim 6: The protective glove of claim 5 wherein said palm-side inner and outer layers of fabric are fixedly joined by stitching 175.

Claim 7: The protective glove of claim 6, further comprising a top-side inner-layer of fabric 180 joined to said top-side outer-layer of fabric 120 in a vicinity of their peripheries; a second pair of metallic-mesh layers 185, shaped and sized to be similar, but slightly smaller than said top-side inner and outer layers, said second pair of metallic mesh layers being sandwiched between, but unattached to, said top-side inner and outer layers of fabric such that said metal-mesh layers may slidably move with respect to said fabric layers and with respect to each other, and wherein said second pair of metallic-mesh layers are layered together such that a third warp fiber direction 195 of a third metallic-mesh layer 205 is oriented at an angle of orientation 160 of 22.5 degrees +/ 5 degrees with respect to a forth warp fiber direction 210 of a forth metallic-mesh layer 215.