U.S. patent application number 09/924829 was filed with the patent office on 2004-05-06 for finger and palm protector for public use.
Invention is credited to LeVert, Francis E., LeVert, Gerald C., LeVert, Lisa A..
Application Number | 20040083530 09/924829 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 32179421 |
Filed Date | 2004-05-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040083530 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
LeVert, Lisa A. ; et
al. |
May 6, 2004 |
Finger and palm protector for public use
Abstract
A protective shield 2 for protecting the operable part of a
working hand comprises multiple finger sleeves and a palm shield.
The sleeves being composed of hydrophobic polymeric or other
materials coated or otherwise laden with disinfecting or
pharmaceutical agents for destroying disease causing virus inter
alia. The hand protector being designed to be attached separately
or in a sheath in a non-obtrusive position on the users body such
that only the hand to be protected is required to employ the hand
protector for use.
Inventors: |
LeVert, Lisa A.; (Knoxville,
TN) ; LeVert, Gerald C.; (Knoxville, TN) ;
LeVert, Francis E.; (Knoxville, TN) |
Correspondence
Address: |
FRANCIS E. LEVERT
1725 EAST MAGNOLIA AVENUE
KNOXVILLE
TN
37917
US
|
Family ID: |
32179421 |
Appl. No.: |
09/924829 |
Filed: |
August 9, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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60223569 |
Aug 7, 2000 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
2/159 ;
2/161.7 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A41B 2400/52 20130101;
A41B 2500/50 20130101; A41D 13/082 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
002/159 ;
002/161.7 |
International
Class: |
A41D 019/00 |
Claims
We claim:
1. A protective shield for preventing the transfer of disease and
viruses to the palm and digits of the working hand of an
individual, comprising: a plurality of sleeves whose first ends are
open and whose second distal ends are closed; a palmar shield of
finite extent having first and second surfaces and first and second
edges; finger insertion enabling means mounted in said first ends
of said sleeves; retaining means cooperating between the host and
the protective shield for maintaining said protective shield within
the insertable reach of the hand of a user.
2. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein said retaining means
comprises hook and loop fasteners attached to an object on the user
and the second edge of the palmar shield.
3. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein said finger insertion
enabling means is a plurality of rings mounted one each in said
first end of each of the plurality of sleeves.
4. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein said retaining means
comprises hook and loop fasteners for attaching said protective
shield to an article of clothing of the user and to the apron of
the protective shield.
5. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein said retaining means
is a portable container.
6. A protective shield for preventing the transfer of disease and
viruses to the palm and digits of the working hand of an
individual, comprising: a plurality of sleeves whose first ends are
open as by rings mounted in said first ends of said sleeves and
whose second distal ends are closed; a palmar shield of finite
extent having first and second surfaces and first and second edges;
means cooperating with said sleeves and said palmar shield for
counteracting the transfer of active viruses or other infectious
agents from a public surface to the palm and fingers of a hand;
and, retaining means cooperating between the host and the
protective shield for maintaining said protective shield within the
insertable reach of the hand of a user.
7. The protective shield of claim 6, wherein said means cooperating
with said sleeves and said palmar shield for counteracting the
transfer of active viruses or other infectious agents from a public
surface to the palm and fingers of a hand comprises disinfectants,
fungicides in cooperation with a binding agent that allows one to
coat the active surfaces of the protective shield.
8. The protective shield of claim 6, wherein said means cooperating
with said sleeves and said palmar shield for counteracting the
transfer of active viruses or other infectious agents from a public
surface to the palm and fingers of a hand comprises disinfectants,
fungicides in cooperation with a binding agent immersed in the
material of the palmar shield and sleeves.
9. A apparatus for preventing the transfer of disease and viruses
to the hands of an individual comprising: a sheath with an absorber
mounted in the interior of said sheath with said absorber being
substantially impregnated with a contact transferable
decontaminator; a palm and finger protector having an apron
contiguous with a multiplicity of sleeves connected to said apron
which is inserted and withdrawn with rubbing contact with said
absorber to facilitate the transfer the decontaminants to the
working surfaces of the palm and finger protector; attaching means
connected to the apron and to the sheath for securing and palm and
finger protector in the sheath and for connecting the sheath to an
element on the body for securing said apparatus during non-use.
10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the decontaminant is a
liquid.
11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the decontaminator is a
powder.
12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein said attaching means consist
of hook and loop fasteners.
13. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein the number of sleeves
equal the number of fingers.
14. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein a single sleeves is
used to cover multiple fingers in addition to an independent sleeve
for the thumb.
15. The protective shield of claim 5, wherein the protective
shields have a limited lifetime.
16. The protective shield of claim 6, wherein said retaining means
is a portable container.
17. The protective shield of claim 16, wherein the protective
shields are used only once.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE OF RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. Section 119, the benefit of priority
from Provisional Application 60/223,569 with filing date Aug. 7,
2000 is claimed for this Non-Provisional Application.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Technical Field
[0003] This invention relates to the protective apparatus for the
hands, and more particularly, multiple sleeves coupled to a palm
apron for inserting multiple digits of the grasping hand of a user.
The sleeves and palm apron provide for insulation of the fingers
and contiguous part of the grasping hand from contact with the
operative portions of doors, door handles and surfaces of public
conveniences
[0004] 2. Description of the Prior Art
[0005] The use of devices for receiving a user's fingers for a
variety of purposes is known in the prior art. More specifically,
sleeves, cots and puncture resistant gloves for a wide variety of
purposes heretofore devised and utilized for protecting the user
from infectious diseases, corrosive or poisonous agents. Others
have been developed to facilitate the grasping of objects by
extending the effective lengths of fingers. Garrett-Roe in U.S.
Pat. No. 5,749,097 (1998) described a protective apparatus
consisting three sheaths tethered together for protecting two
fingers and a thumb of the hand of a manicurist from solvents
present during the natural discourse of the manicurist duties.
Davis et. al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,796,302 (1988) disclosed a
multi-finger guard with two sheaths for protecting the fingers from
impacts. Kim in U.S. Pat. No. 5,363,508 described a finger and palm
guard for barbers and cosmetologists made up of a pair of tubular
members or rings that accommodate the middle and index fingers of
the user's hand. Attached to and extending from each of these
members is a projection that extends over the palmar fascia in the
region immediately adjacent the knuckles joining the metacarpals
and the third phalanges of both the middle and index fingers. The
finger and palm guard is designed to prevent a path for the
transmission of various diseases. Sullivan et al. in U.S. Pat. No.
5,087,499 disclosed a puncture-resistant and medicinal treatment
garment.
[0006] In addition to the possible transmission of disease by sharp
implements such as needles an surgical knifes, the ecology of
infection is complex and involves interactions with climate, food
and water supply, arthropod vectors, animal contacts, contact with
objects handled by carriers of infectious diseases. In public
facilities, such as restrooms it is the contact of the hands with
objects that are touched or grasped by many users that results in
the spread of infectious disease. The washing of hands by workers
in convenient food places is therefore encouraged or otherwise
mandated for the restaurant workers.
[0007] It is an object of this invention to provide a protector for
the preferred working hand from germs and other infectious agents
resulting from exposure to contaminated surfaces during normal
activities. A second object of this invention is to provide a
multiple finger contamination protector that will receive without
assistance the thumb and a multiplicity of adjacent fingers of a
working hand. A still further objective of this invention is to
provide a palm and finger protector, which is contact-coated with
fungicide and disinfectant agents, that prevent the vectoring of a
fungi and a virus to the hand of a wearer. Other objects of this
invention will become apparent during a reading of the detailed
description of the invention.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] An apparatus for protecting the operable part of a working
hand comprises multiple finger sleeves, a palm shield, and a sheath
for receiving the hand protecting apparatus. The sleeves being
composed of hydrophobic polymeric or other materials coated or
otherwise laden with disinfecting or pharmaceutical agents for
destroying disease causing virus inter alia. The hand protector
being designed to be attached separately or in a sheath in a
non-obtrusive position on the users body such that only the hand to
be protected is required to employ the hand protector for use.
DETAILED LIST OF FIGURES
[0009] FIG. 1 is a plan view of the apparatus of this invention
shown as it would be deployed on the hand of a user.
[0010] FIG. 2 is a side view of the device of this invention
deployed on the belt of a user.
[0011] FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of the device of this
invention complete with a receiving sheath and mounted on the belt
of a user.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0012] Referring now to the figures and more particularly to FIG.
1, a sketch according to one embodiment of the palm and finger
protector of the present invention as referenced by the numeral 2.
The palm and finger protector referenced by the numeral 2 has palm
apron 14 which is attached to the finger sleeves 8, 6, and 4
proximate their first ends using first terminal edge 15a as shown
in FIGS. 1 and 2. Throughout this application, the palm and finger
protector may be referred to interchangeably via the phrase
protective shield. The first face 16 of apron 14 is for contacting
surfaces while the second face 17 contacts the users' palm. In
FIGS. 1 and 2, the fingers sleeves 4 through 8 are attached to the
apron via adhesive 10 (not shown in FIG. 1). It should be
understood, however, that the fingers and apron could have been
made in one integral unit. Also, they could have been joined by
sewing the finger sleeves to the first terminal edge of the apron.
The finger sleeves 8, 6 and 4 are design to receive the thumb,
index and middle fingers at their open first ends 5, 7 and 9 of
FIG. 2, respectively. When employed on a hand, the sleeves 4
through 8 and the first face 16 of the apron prevents the physical
contact between the palm and fingers with surfaces in public use.
The palm apron and finger sleeves of the device of this invention
were made of plastic. However, even though the initial finger and
palm protectors were made of plastic, they could just as well been
made of rubber, organic or other polymeric materials. They could
have also been made of a combination of the aforementioned
materials. Returning to the protective shield of this invention,
the closed distal ends of finger sleeves 8, 6 and 4 are set at
linear distances from their open first ends that substantially
parallels the average relative differences in the lengths of
fingers of adults. Likewise, the closed distal ends of finger
sleeves 8, 6 and 4 are set at linear distances from their open
first ends that substantially parallels the average relative
differences in the lengths of fingers of children. The open first
ends 5, 7 and 9 are defined by rings 11a, 11b, 11c which are
embedded in plastic finger sleeves 8, 6 and 4 (see FIGS. 1 and 2)
near the open first ends of the sleeves 8, 6, and 4. Rings 12,
which are not connected to sleeves, serve to help hold the apron
14--second face in good contact with the surface of the palm of a
hand. When the protective shield is mounted on the hand, phalanges
3 are inserted through rings 12. The inclination of the plastic
rings 11a, 11b and 11c is set such that the plastic rings at the
open first ends 5, 7 and 9 are displaced linearly in a manner
substantially identical to the relative position of the heel of the
thumb to the knuckle of the index and middle finger. The angle of
the plane containing the thumb ring 11a being essentially at a
right angle relative to the plane containing the rings 11b and 11c
for the index and middle fingers, respectively. Rings 11a through
11c provide for easy insertion of the fingers of the users. The
outer surface 18 of the finger sleeves 8, 6 and 4 and that of palm
apron 14 are coated with a disinfectant or a fungicide (not shown
in the FIG. 1). The disinfectant could be any of a number of
chemicals anti disease and viral destructive agents. For example,
any disinfecting and pharmaceutical agents that are compatible with
plastics Furthermore any known conventional means of coating the
various types of disinfecting and pharmaceutical agents on plastics
may be used. Depending whether or not the palm and finger protector
is a disposal unit, the manner and type of disinfectant or
pharmaceutical agent will be chosen accordingly. The disinfecting
agent and the fungicide can be applied with commercially available
bonding agent for coating or binding active elements to a surface.
The disinfectant and or fungicide can also be immersed in the
fabric or material of construction of the protective shield.
Throughout this specification the inventors have described a palm
and finger protector that make use of a disinfectant inter alia
added to its surface or immersed in its material of construction.
However, a disposable palm and finger protector could provide a
barrier to viruses and infectious disease transmission with and
without the conjunctive use of a disinfectant or chemical agent.
The hand shields of FIGS. 1 and 2 are shown attached to belt 24 of
a user in FIG. 2. It could, however, be kept for ready use and
safekeeping in an independent container wherefrom it is removed
only when needed. In the case of disposable shields, a plurality of
shields may be housed in a single container
[0013] FIG. 2 shows the palm and finger protector of this
invention, as it could be stored on a user. The palm and finger
protector could be suspended in a front or rear pocket or the side
belt area 22 of a skirt, dress or pants. . In any case, the second
edge 23 of apron 14 (FIGS. 1 and 2) maybe attached to a wear's belt
as shown in FIG. 2 as by mating hoop and loop fabrics fasteners 26a
and 26b, respectively. Loop 26a may be mechanically attached to a
host belt or garment while loop 26b is attached to the first
surface 16 of apron 14 near its second edge 23. As mentioned
previously, both apron 14 and finger sleeves 8, 6 and 4 were
composed of plastic. However, any type of fiber, whether they are
the high strength polymeric type, conventional fabrics or
combinations of both, may be utilized to fabricate the apparatus of
this invention. A wide variety of materials could be used in
manufacturing the finger and palm protector, depending on whether
it was desired to have the protector to be reusable or disposable.
Various types of plastics, metal, leather, or combinations thereof
are contemplated. The use of fiber construction can be used to
enhance the absorption of the disinfectants or pharmaceutical
agents to increase the effective lifetime of the finger and palm
protector. For example a, 10% solution of 1-ethenyl-2-pyrrolidinone
homopolymer with iodine and 1-vinyl-2-pyrrolidinone polymers in an
iodine complex would make an adequate disinfectant. The
disinfectant could be an integral part of the polymeric
materials.
[0014] A second embodiment of the device of this invention is shown
in FIG. 3. The second embodiment of FIG. 3 shows absorber 28 as it
is disposed in the interior of sheath 30 and palm and finger
protector 2' as it would be positioned during non use within sheath
30. Sheath 30 is composed of a liquid impervious material having a
first part 31 and a second part 33 that are mechanically held
together in non leaking contact as by adhesive (not shown in FIG.
3) or by stitching (not shown in FIG. 3) so as to form pocket 35.
Parts 31 and 33 each have first and second surfaces. Absorber 28 is
attached to the entire second face of part 31 and a substantially
portion of the first surface of part 33. Hoop fastener 32a is
attached to the second surface of part 33 at its first end 34. The
mating loop fastener 32b is as by adhesive or other mechanical
methods to belt 24'. The sheath 30 is thereby attached to the belt
24' of the user. The nook and loop fastener 26a' and 26b' function
as described previously. The difference being that loop 26b' is
attached by adhesive to the second surface of part 33. It should be
clear that the loop fastener 32b could have been attached at other
positions on the body to an article of clothing. Absorber 28, which
is impregnate with disinfectant and pharmaceutical agents which are
designed to coat the grasping surfaces of the fingers sleeves 8',
6', and 4' (not shown in FIG. 3) and the first face 16 (not shown
in FIG. 3) of apron 14 such that the effective disease and virus
fighting capability of the protector is rejuvenated each time it is
placed in sheath 30. The absorber 28 is encased over substantially
the full inner surface of sheath 30. Together the protective shield
2 and sheath 30 forms an assembly that rejuvenates the active
disease and virus fighting strength of the system after each use.
The disinfectant and pharmaceutical agents maybe added to the
absorber when need via a standard commercial container.
[0015] The use and function of the apparatus of this invention will
now be discussed. In this case, the user, utilizing the apparatus
of the first embodiment, insert the thumb index and middle fingers
into the sleeves and breaks the bonding of loop 26b to hook 26a.
The palm and finger protector 2 is now ready for use. The user can
now grasp a surface without fear of exposure to dangerous viruses
and disease.
[0016] The purpose and design of the device of this invention have
been discussed in clear detail that would make clear the claimed
invention. The invention is susceptible to variations and
modifications from the embodiments, materials and methods of
fabrication described herein. For example the finger sheaths may
include all the fingers of the grasping hand. Likewise they could
be made of highly absorbent paper fibrous materials.
[0017] Several different variations and or modifications of the
present invention are possible from the embodiments and method of
fabrication described above. For example, the number of sleeves may
be changed to include more or fewer digits. Further, the sleeves
could be replaced with single sleeve that encompass the full hand.
Additionally, the size and shape of the apron may be changed.
Finally, the user need not carry the protective shield on his/her
person. The protective shield(s) may be transported in a separate
container. In view of these facts, it should be understood that the
present invention is limited only by the scope of the claims
presented below.
* * * * *