WO2023091094A1

WO2023091094A1 - Washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component

Info

Publication number: WO2023091094A1
Application number: PCT/TH2022/000043
Authority: WO
Inventors: Rhampapacht VORAPATCHAIYANONT
Original assignee: Vorapatchaiyanont Rhampapacht
Priority date: 2021-11-16
Filing date: 2022-11-15
Publication date: 2023-05-25

Abstract

Washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component, whereby the liquid-locking component is made up of two or more washable fabric layers, with at least one fabric layer having non-liquid-permeable property on at least one side, and at least one fabric layer having liquid-permeable property on at least one side, whereby the fabric layers are arranged and assembled together using internal liquid-locking mechanism in at least one area, in such a way that the lower fabric layers are folded upwards, and the upper fabric layers are folded downwards, and all fabric layers' edges, which can vary in distance from the end of the fabric, are attached together at the internal integration point, creating liquid retainer areas within the fabric layers, while avoiding the existence of any needle holes or connection trail on the outer area that typically pose key leakage risk, thus creating robust resistance to liquid leakage even when dealing with high amount of liquid, and allowing full usage of the liquid-locking component's liquid absorption and retention capacity, rendering the invention to be viable as a true and effective replacement for or alternative to one-time-use disposable absorbent products, eliminating leakage risk due to product detachment, and contributing to plastic waste reduction and reduced cost burden born by the user of such absorbent products.

Description

WASHABLE WEARABLE ITEMS WITH INTEGRATED LIQUID-LOCKING COMPONENT

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to washable wearable items comprising at least one liquid-locking component, including the associated method of manufacturing.

Background of the Invention

The two main pressing problems found in products used to absorb and lock in liquid or fluid, such as sanitary pads, diapers, or nursing breast pads include the following:

1. Most of these types of products are disposable products designed for one-time use, and typically contain large proportion of plastic elements. With an extremely short lifespan of usefulness due to their one-time-usage nature, they generate substantial amount of waste, especially non-biodegradable plastic-waste that take a significantly long time to decompose, posing direct harm to the environment and proving to be worryingly unsustainable. At the same time, these one-time-use disposable products create a prolonged cost burden for their users, as users are required to continually and frequently re-purchase such non-reusable products to support their life needs. From the usage point of view, the plastic component from these products can also pose further usage complications, as it is prone to causing skin allergies and rashes due to the dampness exacerbated by the closed sealing and air-impermeability of the plastic element which easily traps in moisture, or due to the friction of the plastic surface of the products with the users’ skin.

2. These types of products are also sensitive to liquid leakage risk, particularly due to the fact that they are typically required to be stuck on or attached to the wearable or clothing items of the users. This attachment requirement renders the products sensitive to movements, as they can easily detach, move, twist or fall off from the users’ clothing as the users move around during normal daily activities. Not only does this sensitivity to movement create discomfort and limit the movement capacity of the users to some extent, but it also creates high leakage risk - such that if the absorbent area detaches or moves away from its intended location, the liquid can then easily permeate to unintended areas or stain outer clothing, defeating the purpose of the product usage itself.

Therefore, there exhibits a strong need for a new invention of reusable products that can be used to effectively absorb and lock in fluids, including but not limited to urine, period, breast milk, sweat, vaginal secretions and other secretions, while exhibiting robust resistance to leakage risk, even when high amount of liquid is present. This invention, washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking components, together with its manufacturing and assembly mechanism, is designed to address the aforementioned issues, and to provide a truly robust leakage resistant capability that renders the invention to be able to serve on a stand-alone basis as a true replacement of or an effective alternative to the one-time-use absorbent products.

This invention is made from washable fabrics, assembled together to form wearable items, which include but are not limited to pants, underwear, innerwear, bras, activewear, and pajamas, and which comprise at least one washable liquid-locking component as an integrated part of the wearable itself, providing the wearable items with the inherent capability to absorb and lock liquid on a stand-alone basis, without the need to attach any external absorbent products onto the user’s items of clothing. This eliminates the associated risk of product detachment from the intended positions as users move around, as well as eradicating the leakage risk due to such detachment cause. At the same time, the liquid locking component is designed and assembled using internal liquid-locking mechanism, which allows for high amount of liquid to be absorbed, stored and locked within the component, utilizing full capacity of the component while robustly preventing leakage from outer and surrounding direction. The assembly mechanism is also innovative and distinct from normal assembly technique used in manufacturing or assembly process for normal wearables or clothing items, or even for existing types of clothing items intended to have some liquid-absorbent and some leakage prevention capability, in that the typical assembly technique creates an unfortunate limitation in the item’s liquid locking efficacy, rendering the clothing item to only be able to store liquid and prevent leakage when minimal or limited amounts of liquid is involved. For example, the said item of clothing may be able to provide a thin barrier, preventing minimal amount of period fluid that is leaked out of sanitary pads used in conjunction with the clothing, from penetrating onto the outer part of the clothing. However, it does not have the capability to store or absorb high amount of liquid within the clothing itself, and hence most of the time such clothing items are still required to be used in conjunction with other external absorbent products like absorbent pads anyways. Some existing clothing items of this type, with certain materials and assembly method used, may be able to absorb and store certain medium amount of liquid, but even so, they are still largely faced with serious weaknesses preventing them from realizing their full liquid storage capacity or from truly being able to work on a stand-alone basis to hold liquid and prevent leakage in the case of high amount of liquids. In other words, they still face serious liquid leakage problems when large amount of liquid is present. The leakage risk is especially high at the side area of the absorbent components, such as the side or edge of the crotch area of an absorbent underwear item, or the surrounding rim area of a nursing bra pad item. As the liquid permeates through the absorbent area and reaches the side or end or edge area of the absorbent component, despite still having significant dry area remaining with large absorbency capacity left in the component, the liquid can easily leak through the side area or permeate through the end part connecting to other areas of the clothing items intended to be kept dry, thus transferring the liquid to unwanted areas of the clothing and creating serious leakage problems. This presents an unfortunate premature leakage problem, since the product runs into leakage problem despite not having realized or reached its full absorbency capacity with extensive leftover dry areas. The level of liquid the item can actually hold thus becomes much lower than its full capacity or than as often advertised, rendering it not suitable for usage on a stand-alone basis or in the situation when high amount of liquid is present, such as with heavy period flows, or with heavy cases of incontinence, urination or lactation. Instead, in such situations, the user still needs to rely on other external products to be attached upon or used in conjunction with this previous design of such items of clothing.

This leakage weakness at the side or end area of the absorbent component in previous existing designs is hence also a key issue that this present invention is designed to solve and eliminate. The aforementioned leakage weakness found in previous designs can be mainly attributed to an unfitting method of assembly of the various fabric layers to form the absorbent component. The widely used means of assembling the fabric layers are thread sewing or bonding by adhesive, glue or heat, both of which still illustrate various serious weaknesses in functionality and effectiveness as per described below:

With thread sewing method, the leakage risk along the needle holes is extremely high, since conventional sewing creates external needle holes that run through from the absorbent fabric layers to the dry fabric layers. This allows liquid to seep from the absorbent fabric layers, through the needle holes as well as the soaked thread lines, towards the outer area or side area of the fabric layers that are supposed to be kept dry, thus wetting the supposed dry areas of the component which can then permeate to external clothing or other unwanted areas that come in contact with these wet areas. In addition, many wearable designs require installing elastic bands on top of or surrounding the edge of the absorbent area for better flexibility, snugness and fit of the clothing items. Most elastic bands widely used are non-liquid-resistant, so as they come into contact with the wet or absorbent part of the absorbent component, whether it be wet fabric or soaked threads that are sewn on top of or run through the elastic band, the liquid is then transferred over to the elastic band. The elastic band itself is usually attached covering the edge of the absorbent area, or swerving around the rim touching both the absorbent part as well as the dry part of the component along the side or outer areas which are directly in contact with other external clothing, hence easily transferring liquid to outer clothing, creating unwanted leaks and stains.

If bonding means is used in the fabric assembly process to form the absorbent component, whether it be via glue, adhesive or heat, typically there is still a need to hold together the fabric layers or to cover the side-edge or end part of the component with some materials. In most cases, elastic bands are still used, which again are typically non-liquid-resistant, hence posing similar leakage risk to the aforementioned case, as liquid permeates through from the absorbent part of the component and touches the elastic band that extends to the intended dry part of the clothing items, risking the liquid transfer to external clothing. At times, bonding films or materials such as polyurethane films, which are liquid-resistant, are used to cover and hold together the edge of the absorbent layers, in which case the rim surface can feel hardened or plastic-like which can cause irritation or discomfort to the user. The bonding method can also affect, or more specifically reduce, the absorbency efficacy of the item, due to the pressure used to bond the fabrics together creating less space to store the liquid within the layers, or due to interference of glue or adhesive in the absorbency ability. In addition, the usage of bonding technique requires specialized machines that may not be widely available in general industrial factories and can result in higher cost of production and resulting product price. Finally, the glue or adhesives used in the bonding process are required to be chosen carefully and tested to be safe and non-toxic to the body, as they are applied to parts of product directly in contact with sensitive areas of the body. The quality and strength of the glues and adhesives used are also sensitive and key to determining the lifespan of products - inferior quality adhesives can result in quicker wear and shortened product lifespan, as compared to when thread sewing method is used.

There have been previous inventions, with some relation to wearable items or products with some liquid-locking or leakage prevention capability, and are described in some details below:

Thai Patent Registration No. 0701002428 discloses a one-time-use sanitary panty, which is a disposable underwear with front, back, and crotch area with two leg openings. The longitudinal edge of the front area is connected with the longitudinal edge of the back area, using a welded seam. The sanitary panty comprises an outer coverage, and an absorbent unit, whereby the outer coverage is made up of flexible laminate consisting of a flexible film applied in between two nonwoven layers, and whereby a welded seam is reinforced by having at least one strip of attachment materials comprising thermoplastic filaments attached to the coverage area with a sticking agent, and positioned closely to the welded connection area. Thai Patent Registration No. 0701005743 discloses a disposable diaper in an underwear form, which comprises a crotch area whereby its inner surface on the area arranged towards the front waist area and on the area arranged towards the back waist area have cross-sectional straplike units respectively, both of which extend across the structure used to absorb bodily fluid. Each strap-like unit has a far end section that is assembled with a leak-proof pathway built along the edge or rim of the structure absorbing the bodily fluid. The middle area extending towards the far end portion is disconnected to the inner surface of the crotch. The strap-like units are assembled together only along the central area, as viewed from the cross-sectional side perspective.

As illustrated, the previous inventions discussed above disclose a type of one-time-use disposable products made into wearable items, in the form of an underwear or a diaper, which can be used to absorb bodily fluids. These inventions hence demonstrate one of the key issues that this current invention intends to address, as well as point out a key difference with the current invention, which is that the materials used, designs, as well as the manufacturing and assembly technique disclosed in these previous inventions render the inventions not capable to be rewashed for continuous use, allowing only for one-time-usage.

Thai Patent Registration No. 0301002189 discloses a sanitary panty that can hold absorbent products, comprising the main body part, and the decorative fabric, which are attached to the leg opening areas. The area designed to hold absorbent products is formed on the inner area of the crotch in between the leg openings, wherein the decorative fabric is arranged on the side edge of the main body part, extending from the crotch area towards the waist area, whereby the outer edge of the decorative fabric along the leg openings and inner edge are stacked on top of the outer surface of the main body, wherein the first edge portion of the main body protrudes along the inner lining edge of the decorative fabric, and the second edge portion of the main body protrudes out from the lower end of the first edge portion towards the crotch area.

Thai Patent Registration No. 9801004361 discloses an underwear designed for use together with absorbent materials, which is an underwear item used for holding onto disposable type of absorbent products, which helps increasing the snugness of the absorbent product with the wearer’s body. The invention comprises an elastic waistband, front area, back area, crotch area, and flexible leg openings, whereby the crotch area is arranged in between the front and back area, and exhibits greater resistance to elasticity than in the front or back area. The crotch area has numerous angular elasticity control, extending from the longitudinal elasticity controlled area towards the flexible leg pronged area, and to the longitudinal elasticity controlled area, which controls the stretchability of the crotch in both longitudinal and cross-sectional direction. The longitudinal elasticity controlled area works together with the back and upper side, rendering the crotch and any absorbent materials that may be placed onto the area, to be pushed up and come in close contact with the user’s body when wearing this underwear item.

The previous inventions as discussed above disclose a type of panties or underwear items designed to have a structure that helps with increasing the grip or ability to hold onto external disposable absorbent sanitary products, which are required to be used in conjunction with such panties or underwear, so that these external stuck-on absorbent products can more firmly stay in place as compared to when attached on to a normal underwear, thereby reducing the leakage-risk arising from unintended movement or detachment of the attached external sanitary product against the panty or underwear itself. While intending to help reduce liquid-leakage risk of the wearer by improving panty-grip of absorbent products, these previous inventions do not have an absorbent or liquid-locking component built in as an integrated part of the underwear, thereby rendering it necessary for the wearer to use this underwear item in conjunction with external disposable absorbent product. In other words, the invention cannot be used on a standalone basis, which illustrates a key difference with the current invention, which is a washable wearable item with built-in capability for fluid-absorption and leakage-prevention, and can be used on a stand-alone basis without the need for any external add-on absorbent products.

China Patent Registration No. CN202857842U discloses a seepage prevention heath care briefs for menstrual period, which is an underwear intended to have a built-in lining layer that can prevent small amounts or stains of menstrual period that may have leaked from sanitary pads that are stuck on to the underwear from seeping through the underwear towards the outer clothing. The underwear comprises the body part whereby a leakage prevention lining layer is arranged on the inner surface of the body part, and extends toward the front and rear sides from the crotch, to form a front body piece and a rear body piece. The anti-leakage liner is assembled with the body part using bonding or sewing method, and the area of the back piece of the anti-leakage liner is larger than that of the front piece. The anti-leakage liner comprises a waterproof layer, a water absorbing layer, and a skin friendly layer arranged in this sequence from the inside to the outside.

China Patent Registration No. CN2204589Y discloses a sanitary underwear against oozing, which is an anti-leakage underwear comprising a front piece, a back piece, and a crotch piece in between front and back piece, whereby an anti-leakage lining sheet is attached to the crotch piece and the back piece, connecting the two parts. The anti-leakage lining sheet can be made with waterproof cloth such as rain-proof silk, preferably a thin imitation-bonding non-woven fabric on which polyethylene film is hot-rolled and bonded, whereby the shape of the anti-leakage lining is two overlapping trapezoids. The anti-leakage lining is attached to the crotch and back piece by thread-sewing or by sewing on such connecting items as Velcro or buttons in which case the lining piece can be detached or replaced.

The previous inventions described above disclose a type of underwear consisting of a thin anti-leaking lining layer to reduce menstrual leakage from sanitary products such as pads or tampons onto the wearer's outer clothing. Therefore, these inventions exhibit several key differences from the current invention, including the invention structure, material selection, intended functionality, as well as the assembly methods used. More specifically, these previous inventions, with simply an add-on thin waterproof liner, do not contain a liquid-locking retainer area and mechanism, thereby making them impossible to absorb, retain and lock-in large amounts of liquid. In addition, in these previous inventions, the anti-leakage lining layer is assembled with the underwear part using direct thread stitching method, which creates external needle holes or threads pathway that allow fluid to easily permeate or flow through from the wet absorbent part of the underwear onto the outer part of the underwear intended to be kept dry, easily creating leakage when liquid reaches these thread seams. Therefore, these previous inventions cannot be used as a standalone absorbent wearable, especially when there is a large amount of liquid involved such as in the case of heavy menstrual flows, and are still required to be used in conjunction with sanitary pads or other sanitary products. Again, this illustrates a key difference with the current invention, which utilizes a novel internal liquid-locking mechanism to assemble fabric layers, which avoids the existence of needle holes and connection trails on the outside that pose key leakage-risk, as well as allows building up of a barrier surrounding the absorbent part of the retainer component reducing leakage risk at the edge and surrounding area of the retainer component, enabling effective liquid retaining and lock-in capability as well as robust leakage prevention, even when handling high amounts of liquid.

Summary of the Invention

The present invention relates to washable wearable items comprising one or more liquidlocking components that are made up of two or more washable fabric layers, with at least one fabric layer having non-liquid-permeable property on at least one side, and at least one fabric layer having liquid-permeable property on at least one side, whereby all the fabric layers are arranged into two sections, namely the lower fabric layers and the upper fabric layers, which are assembled together using internal liquid-locking mechanism, at least in one area, in such a way that the lower fabric layers are folded upwards, and the upper fabric layers are folded downwards, and all fabric layers’ edges, which can vary in distance from the end point of the fabric, are attached together at the internal integration point, preventing the existence of thread holes or attachment trails that are prone to leakage risk at the outer area, while at the same time creating considerable liquid retainer areas within the fabric layers that can hold and lock in higher amount of liquid as compared to retainer area created from normal fabric layering with direct stacking, or from bonding technique with direct fabric stacking. Additionally, the lower fabric layers can be arranged or adjusted to have broader cross-sectional width than the upper fabric layers’ cross-sectional width, in the case that there is a need to create a barrier along the edge surrounding the upper fabric layers. There is also an option to install elastic bands, whether it be liquid-resistant or non-liquid-resistant, on to the liquid locking component in the case that more flexibility or snugness is desired to be enhanced.

The liquid-locking component can be assembled or integrated with the dry component of the wearable item at one or more areas, in one way or the other, including but not limited to the following methods: sewn with threads, bonding with glue, adhesive or sticking agents, bonding with heat, fastened with tapes, rubber bands, attachment equipment, elastic bands, lining or glue strips, attachment with ironing, lamination, usage of buttons, Velcro, zipper, slots for inserts, attachment net, tied with cloth or rope or ribbons, or fastened with hooks, straps or belt.

The number of layers of fabrics, in both the lower fabric layers and the upper fabric layers, used to assemble into and form the liquid locking component, can be adjusted up or down without limit, based on the required level of liquid-locking capacity and design, as long as there exist at least one fabric layer within the lower fabric layers and at least one fabric layer within the upper fabric layers. The higher number of fabric layers used results in increased absorbency and liquidlocking capacity of the liquid locking component. Additionally, the shape of the fabrics used to assemble into the liquid locking component can be adjusted into any form and designed in any and unlimited ways, to fit various purposes, objectives and functionalities required by the different types of wearable items. One or more fabric layers arranged in the lower fabric layers and upper fabric layers can also be opted to be structurally or chemically treated, modified, decorated or arranged to have one or more of the following properties - anti-bacterial, fragrant, easy stain removable, or a cooling effect - to correspond with the functionalities and purposes required by the wearable items. Additionally, the dry component of the wearable items can also be chosen to have non-liquid-permeable property or liquid-permeable property.

The objective of this invention is to create wearable items that, on a stand-alone basis, can effectively be used to absorb and hold varying amounts of liquids, including but not limited to period, urine, breast milk, sweat, saliva, bodily secretions, vaginal secretion, and securely lock-in these liquids within some specified contained areas of the wearable items, robustly preventing permeation of these liquids to unwanted areas, while maintaining washability and reusability, and allowing for reasonably long usage life-span. This would render the invention to be suitable as true replacement for one-time-use absorbent products such as diapers, conventional sanitary pads, and nursing breast pads. The intended benefits and objectives of this invention thus include i) reducing waste generated from one-time-use disposable absorbent products, particularly non- sustainable plastic-waste that is harmful to the environment, ii) reducing cost and economic burden of users caused by the need to continuously purchase such one-time-use disposable products to support various life needs, iii) reducing liquid leakage risk due to movement and detachment of external absorbent products that are required to be attached or stuck onto clothing items of the users, and iv) reducing leakage risk at sensitive-to-leakage areas such as the side or edge of the liquid locking component embedded within a wearable item. These benefits are made possible by the invention’s design and assembly and production method including the internal liquid-locking mechanism as per described, which render the liquid locking component to have no thread holes or attachment pathway weakness on the outside, resulting in significantly reduced leakage risk even when liquid touches the side or edge points of the liquid-locking component, allowing for high liquid-holding capacity as well as the ability to fully utilize its capacity without premature leakage risk, unlike in the case of existing absorbent wearable items. Therefore, this invention can significantly improve the users’ experience and is suitable to effectively handle and prevent leakage on a stand-alone basis without the need for other add-on absorbent products, even when high amounts of liquid is present, such as in the case of heavy flow of periods, heavy case of incontinence, urination or heavy lactation.

Brief description of the drawings

Embodiments of the invention are described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 shows one, yet non-limiting, possible embodiment of a cross-sectional side view of the structure and components of the washable wearable item with integrated liquid-locking component.

Figure 2 shows two, yet non-limiting, possible embodiments of the structure and components of the washable wearable item with integrated liquid-locking component from the view of liquid-receiving side.

Figure 3 shows various, yet non-limiting, possible embodiments of the structure and components of the washable wearable item with integrated liquid-locking component from the view of the side opposite to the liquid-receiving side. Detailed Descriptions of the Invention

Figure 1-3 illustrates one or more, yet non-limiting, possible embodiments of the structure and components of the wearable items with integrated liquid-locking components, from the cross- sectional side view, from the view of liquid-receiving side, and from the view of the side opposite to the liquid-receiving side. This description is now focused on the structure and components of the invention, which is a type of washable wearable items comprising one or more liquid-locking components. The invention comprises at least one liquid-locking component 1, which is attached or connected to the dry component of the wearable item 7 at the connection area 8, whereas one or more areas of the liquid locking component 1 can be attached to the dry component of the wearables 7 in one way or the other.

The connection area 8 connecting the liquid-locking component 1 and the dry component of the wearable item 7 can be chosen to be assembled or integrated using any of the following methods: sewn with threads, bonding with glue, adhesives or sticking agents, bonding with heat, fastened with tapes, rubber bands, attachment equipment, elastic bands, lining or glue strips, attachment with ironing, lamination, usage of buttons, Velcro, zipper, slots for inserts, attachment net, tied with cloth or rope or ribbons, or fastened with hooks, straps or belt.

The liquid locking component 1 comprises two or more washable fabric layers, with at least one fabric layer having non-liquid-permeable property on at least one side, and at least one fabric layer having liquid-permeable property on at least one side; whereby elastic bands can be optionally installed upon the liquid locking component 1 in one way or the other; whereby all fabric layers are arranged into two sections namely the lower fabric layers 2 and the upper fabric layers 3, whereby the lower fabric layers 2 comprise one or more fabric layers arranged and assembled together, in which at least one fabric layer exhibits non-liquid permeable property on at least one side; and whereby the upper fabric layers 3 comprise one or more fabric layers arranged and assembled together, in which at least one fabric layer exhibits liquid permeable property on at least one side; whereby the lower fabric layers 2 and the upper fabric layers 3 are assembled together, at least in one area, in such a way that the lower fabric layers 2 are folded upwards, and the upper fabric layers 3 are folded downwards, and all fabric layers’ edges, which can vary in distance and position from the end point of the fabric, are attached together at the internal integration point 4 creating liquid retainer areas 9 within the fabric layers; whereby the internal integration point 4 can be chosen to be connected or integrated using any of the following methods: sewn with threads, bonding with glue, adhesives or sticking agents, bonding with heat, fastened with tapes, rubber bands, atachment equipment, elastic bands, lining or glue strips, atachment with ironing, or lamination; whereby the lower fabric layers 2 can be arranged to have broader cross-sectional width than the upper fabric layers 3’s cross sectional width, in the case that there is a need to create a barrier 5 along the edge surrounding the upper fabric layers 3.

In one certain embodiment of this invention, the washable wearable items comprising integrated liquid-locking component, comprise the liquid-locking component 1 that is made up of two or more washable fabric layers, with at least one fabric layer having non-liquid-permeable property on at least one side, and at least one fabric layer having liquid-permeable property on at least one side, whereby all the fabric layers are arranged into two sections namely the lower fabric layers 2 and the upper fabric layers 3 that are assembled together, at least in one area, using internal liquid-locking mechanism, in such a way that the lower fabric layers 2 are folded upwards, and the upper fabric layers 3 are folded downwards, and all fabric layers’ edges, which can vary in distance from the end of the fabric, are atached together at the internal integration point 4, which avoids the existence of thread holes or atachment trails on the outer area which is the key cause for leakage risk, while at the same time creating considerable liquid retainer areas 9 within the fabric layers; whereby additionally the lower fabric layers 2 can be arranged to have broader cross- sectional width than the upper fabric layers 3’s, in order to create a barrier 5 along the edge surrounding the upper fabric layers 3; whereby elastic bands, whether liquid-resistant or non-liquid-resistant, can be optionally installed upon the liquid-locking component 1 in one way or the other, in order to increase the flexibility or snugness or fit of the wearables items as required; whereby the liquid-locking component 1 can be assembled with the dry component of the wearable items 7, in one way or the other, at one or more areas, using any of the following methods: sewn with threads, bonding with glue, adhesives or sticking agents, bonding with heat, fastened with tapes, rubber bands, atachment equipment, elastic bands, lining or glue strips, atachment with ironing, lamination, usage of butons, Velcro, zipper, slots for inserts, atachment net, tied with cloth or rope or ribbons, or fastened with hooks, straps or belt; whereby the number of layers of fabrics, in both the upper fabric layers 3 and the lower fabric layers 2, as part of the liquid-locking component 1, can be adjusted up or down without limit to correspond to the required level of liquid-locking capacity and design, as long as there exist at least one fabric layer within the lower fabric layers 2 and at least one fabric layer within the upper fabric layers 3; whereby the shape and form of the fabrics used to assemble into the liquid-locking component 1 can be adjusted into any form and designed in any and unlimited ways, based on the purposes, objectives and functionality required by the different types of wearable items; whereby one or more fabric layers can also be opted to be structurally or chemically treated, modified, decorated or arranged to have one or more of the following properties - anti-bacterial, fragrant, easy stain removable, or a cooling effect - to fit and correspond with the functionality and purposes required by the wearable items; whereby the dry component of the wearable item 7 can also be chosen or arranged to have non-liquid-permeable property or liquid-permeable property. Certain embodiments of the present invention were described above. It is, however, expressly noted that the present invention is not limited to those embodiments, but the intention is that additions, modifications and improvements to what was expressly described herein are also included within the scope of the invention, without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Therefore it is intended that the disclosure not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed, but that the disclosure will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended Claims.

Preferred Embodiment of the Invention

Without limiting the scope of the invention to certain embodiments, one preferred embodiment of the Invention is as described in the Detailed Descriptions of the Inventions.

Claims

1. Washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component, comprising: at least one liquid-locking component (1), dry component of the wearable item (7), and connection area (8), with the following special characteristics: at least one liquid locking component (1) that is connected to the dry component of the wearable item (7) at the connection area (8) is made up of two or more washable fabric layers, with at least one fabric layer having non-liquid-permeable property on at least one side, and at least one fabric layer having liquid-permeable property on at least one side, whereby all the fabric layers are arranged into two sections, namely the lower fabric layers (2) and the upper fabric layers (3) that are assembled together, at least in one area, in such a way that the lower fabric layers (2) are folded upwards, and the upper fabric layers (3) are folded downwards, and all fabric layers’ edges, which can vary in distance from the edge of the fabric, are attached together at the internal integration point (4) creating liquid retainer areas (9) within the fabric layers.

2. The washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component according to claim 1, wherein the lower fabric layers (2) comprise one or more fabric layers arranged and assembled together, in which at least one fabric layer exhibits non-liquid- permeable property on at least one side.

3. The washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component according to claim 1, wherein the upper fabric layers (3) comprise one or more fabric layers arranged and assembled together, in which at least one fabric layer exhibits liquid-permeable property on at least one side.

4. The washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component according to claim 1, wherein the internal integration point (4) can be chosen to be connected or integrated using any one or more of the following methods: sewn with threads, bonding with glue, adhesives or sticking agents, bonding with heat, fastened with tapes, rubber bands, attachment equipment, elastic bands, lining or glue strips, attachment with ironing, or lamination.

5. The washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component according to claim 1, wherein the lower fabric layers (2) can be arranged to have broader cross- sectional width than the upper fabric layers (3)’s cross-sectional width, creating a barrier (5) along the edge surrounding the upper fabric layers (3). The washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component according to claim 1, wherein the liquid-locking component (1) can be arranged to have elastic band (6) installed upon, in one way or the other. The washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component according to claim 1, wherein the liquid-locking component (1) can be assembled or integrated with the dry component of the wearable item (7), in one way or the other, at one or more areas. The washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component according to claim 1, wherein the connection area (8) connecting the liquid-locking component (1) and the dry component of the wearable item (7) can be chosen to be assembled or integrated using any one or more of the following methods: sewn with threads, bonding with glue, adhesives or sticking agents, bonding with heat, fastened with tapes, rubber bands, attachment equipment, elastic bands, lining or glue strips, attachment with ironing, lamination, usage of buttons, Velcro, zipper, slots for inserts, attachment net, tied with cloth or rope or ribbons, or fastened with hooks, straps or belt. The washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component according to claim 1, wherein one or more fabric layers arranged in the lower fabric layers (2) and upper fabric layers (3) can be structurally or chemically treated, modified, decorated or arranged to have any one or more of the following properties: anti-bacterial, fragrant, easy stain removable, a cooling effect or combination thereof. The washable wearable items with integrated liquid-locking component according to claim 1, wherein the dry component of the wearable item (7) can be arranged to have non-liquid-permeable property or liquid-permeable property.