U.S. patent application number 13/542628 was filed with the patent office on 2013-02-07 for sporting apparel.
This patent application is currently assigned to EXIT 21 GLOBAL SOLUTIONS LLC. The applicant listed for this patent is Pedro Valles. Invention is credited to Pedro Valles.
Application Number | 20130031698 13/542628 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 47625969 |
Filed Date | 2013-02-07 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130031698 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Valles; Pedro |
February 7, 2013 |
SPORTING APPAREL
Abstract
Embodiments of sporting apparel, including, shorts, pants,
trousers and so forth, are disclosed herein. In various
embodiments, the sporting apparel may be arranged about the waist
of a wearer. In various embodiments, the sporting apparel may
include one or more strips of hook-loop fasteners (e.g., Velcro)
that may be integrated into textile layers, rather than on top
thereof, to reduce bulk. In various embodiments, a flap may be
provided to be folded over all or a portion of a closure of
sporting apparel, to reduce a likelihood that the closure will come
undone, e.g., during combative sports.
Inventors: |
Valles; Pedro; (Boulder,
CO) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Valles; Pedro |
Boulder |
CO |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
EXIT 21 GLOBAL SOLUTIONS
LLC
Portland
OR
|
Family ID: |
47625969 |
Appl. No.: |
13/542628 |
Filed: |
July 5, 2012 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61514474 |
Aug 2, 2011 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
2/221 ; 2/228;
2/237; 2/243.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A41D 1/08 20130101; A41F
9/00 20130101; A41D 1/089 20180101; A41D 2300/32 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
2/221 ; 2/237;
2/228; 2/243.1 |
International
Class: |
A41F 9/00 20060101
A41F009/00; A41D 27/00 20060101 A41D027/00; A41D 1/06 20060101
A41D001/06; A41D 1/14 20060101 A41D001/14; A41D 1/08 20060101
A41D001/08 |
Claims
1. Sporting apparel comprising a waistband portion to be arranged
around a wearer's waist, the waistband portion comprising first and
second ends, a first strip of hook-loop fasteners adjacent the
first end, and a second strip of hook-loop fasteners, adjacent the
second end, that is removably attachable to the first strip of
hook-loop fasteners, wherein at least part of the first or second
strip of hook-loop fasteners is integrated into a layer of the
waistband portion.
2. The sporting apparel of claim 1, wherein the first or second
strip of hook-loop fasteners overlays a cut-out portion of the
layer of the waistband portion.
3. The sporting apparel of claim 1, wherein the first strip of
hook-loop fasteners includes one or more edges attached to one or
more inner edges of a cut-out portion of the layer of the waistband
portion.
4. The sporting apparel of claim 1, further comprising a textile
portion attached to the waistband portion, the textile portion
comprising a third strip of hook-loop fasteners adjacent the first
strip of hook-loop fasteners and a fourth strip of hook-loop
fasteners adjacent the second strip of hook-loop fasteners that is
removably attachable to the third strip of hook-loop fasteners.
5. The sporting apparel of claim 4, further comprising a gore in
between the third and fourth strips of hook-loop fasteners.
6. The sporting apparel of claim 4, wherein at least part of the
third or fourth strip of hook-loop fasteners is integrated into a
layer of the textile portion.
7. The sporting apparel of claim 4, wherein the third or fourth
strip of hook-loop fasteners overlays a cut-out portion of a layer
of the textile portion.
8. The sporting apparel of claim 1, further comprising a flap
attached to an inner surface of the waistband portion, the flap
being foldable over the first and second strips of hook-loop
fasteners of the waistband portion when the second strip of
hook-loop fasteners is removably attached to the first strip of
hook-loop fasteners.
9. The sporting apparel of claim 8, wherein the flap comprises a
third strip of hook-loop fasteners that is removably attachable to
a fourth strip of hook-loop fasteners, wherein an operative surface
of the fourth strip of hook-loop fasteners faces an opposite
direction as an operative surface of the second strip of hook-loop
fasteners.
10. The sporting apparel of claim 9, wherein at least part of the
third strip of hook-loop fasteners is integrated into a layer of
the flap.
11. The sporting apparel of claim 9, wherein the third strip of
hook-loop fasteners overlays a cut-out portion of a layer of the
flap.
12. The sporting apparel of claim 1, wherein the sporting apparel
comprises a pair of shorts.
13. The sporting apparel of claim 1, wherein the sporting apparel
comprises a pair of pants.
14. The sporting apparel of claim 1, wherein the sporting apparel
comprises a skirt.
15. A method of manufacturing sporting apparel, comprising: cutting
a portion out of a layer of a waistband portion of the sporting
apparel to create a cut-out portion; and replacing the portion with
a strip of hook-loop fasteners.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein replacing the portion with a
strip of hook-loop fasteners comprises overlaying the strip of
hook-loop fasteners over the cut-out portion.
17. The method of claim 15, further comprising stitching one or
more edges of the strip of hook-loop fasteners to one or more inner
edges of the cut-out portion.
18. The method of claim 15, wherein the strip of hook-loop
fasteners is a first strip of hook-loop fasteners, the method
further comprising: cutting a portion out of a textile portion
attached to the waistband portion; and replacing the portion
cut-out from the textile portion with a second strip of hook-loop
fasteners.
19. The method of claim 18, further comprising overlaying the
second strip of hook-loop fasteners over the portion cut-out of the
textile portion.
20. Sporting apparel comprising: a waistband portion to be arranged
around a wearer's waist, the waistband portion comprising first and
second ends, a first strip of hook-loop fasteners, and a second
strip of hook-loop fasteners that is removably attachable to the
first strip of hook-loop fasteners; and a flap attached to an inner
surface of the waistband portion, the flap being foldable over the
first and second strips of hook-loop fasteners of the waistband
portion when the second strip of hook-loop fasteners is removably
attached to the first strip of hook-loop fasteners.
21. The sporting apparel of claim 20, wherein at least part of the
first or second strip of hook-loop fasteners is integrated into a
layer of the waistband portion.
22. The sporting apparel of claim 20, wherein the first or second
strip of hook-loop fasteners overlays a cut-out portion of the
waistband portion.
23. Sporting apparel comprising: a waistband portion to be arranged
around a wearer's waist, the waistband portion comprising first and
second ends, a first Velcro portion, and a second Velcro portion
that is removably attachable to the first Velcro portion, wherein
at least part of the first or second Velcro portion is integrated
into a layer of the waistband portion; and a textile portion
attached to the waistband portion and forming two or more legs, the
textile portion comprising a third Velcro portion adjacent the
first Velcro portion and a fourth Velcro portion adjacent the
second Velcro portion that is removably attachable to the third
Velcro portion.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional
Patent Application No. 61/514,474, filed Aug. 2, 2011, entitled
"Sporting Apparel," the entire disclosure of which is hereby
incorporated by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The background description provided herein is for the
purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work
of the presently named inventor, to the extent it is described in
this background section, as well as aspects of the description that
may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, is
neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the
present disclosure. Unless otherwise indicated herein, the
approaches described in this section are not prior art to the
claims in the present disclosure and are not admitted to be prior
art by inclusion in this section.
[0003] Shorts, pants and other "bottoms" worn while playing sports
may be constructed to be durable. However, with durability
sometimes comes bulkiness. For example, in martial arts-related
sports, shorts worn by fighters may be constructed so that they are
adjustable but do not easily come undone. Strips of hook-loop
fasteners (e.g., Velcro) may be sewn on top of a textile such as
fabric in order to allow the fighter to "fasten/unfasten" the
shorts near the crotch. However, some fighters complain that the
multiple layers of strips of hook-loop fasteners and textile causes
the crotch area to be too bulky. Some fighting disciplines require
fighters to repeatedly bend at the waist and/or lift thighs, and if
the crotch of a pair of shorts (or pants) is too bulky it may rub
against the fighter's stomach or other parts of the fighter's body,
causing skin irritation, fatigue, and discomfort.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0004] Embodiments will be readily understood by the following
detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
To facilitate this description, like reference numerals designate
like structural elements. Embodiments are illustrated by way of
example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the
accompanying drawings.
[0005] FIG. 1 depicts an example of sporting apparel, in accordance
with various embodiments.
[0006] FIG. 2 depicts layers of the apparel of FIG. 1, in
accordance with various embodiments.
[0007] FIGS. 3-5 depict various stages of assembly of an example
closure, in accordance with various embodiments.
[0008] FIGS. 6-8 depict a strip of hook-loop fasteners in various
stages of being integrated into a layer of textile, in accordance
with various embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0009] In the following detailed description, reference is made to
the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof wherein like
numerals designate like parts throughout, and in which is shown by
way of illustration embodiments that may be practiced. It is to be
understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural or
logical changes may be made without departing from the scope of the
present disclosure. Therefore, the following detailed description
is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of
embodiments is defined by the appended claims and their
equivalents.
[0010] Various operations may be described as multiple discrete
actions or operations in turn, in a manner that is most helpful in
understanding the claimed subject matter. However, the order of
description should not be construed as to imply that these
operations are necessarily order dependent. In particular, these
operations may not be performed in the order of presentation.
Operations described may be performed in a different order than the
described embodiment. Various additional operations may be
performed and/or described operations may be omitted in additional
embodiments.
[0011] For the purposes of the present disclosure, the phrase "A
and/or B" means (A), (B), or (A and B). For the purposes of the
present disclosure, the phrase "A, B, and/or C" means (A), (B),
(C), (A and B), (A and C), (B and C), or (A, B and C).
[0012] The description may use the phrases "in an embodiment," or
"in embodiments," which may each refer to one or more of the same
or different embodiments. Furthermore, the terms "comprising,"
"including," "having," and the like, as used with respect to
embodiments of the present disclosure, are synonymous.
[0013] Referring now to FIG. 1, sporting apparel 10 may come in
various forms, such as a pair of sporting shorts 12. Sporting
apparel 10 may be worn while participating in various sporting
activities, including but not limited to mixed martial arts,
wrestling, boxing, swimming, surfing, basketball, and so forth. In
various embodiments, sporting apparel 10 may be particularly
well-suited for combative sports because, for reasons which will be
described below, one or more portions of sporting apparel 10 may be
manufactured in a manner that reduces bulk.
[0014] Sporting apparel 10 may include a waistband portion 14.
Waistband portion 14 may include various numbers of layers 16 (see,
e.g., FIG. 2). Layers 16 may be formed from textiles and/or other
materials, such as strips of hook-loop fasteners (e.g., Velcro). In
various embodiments, waistband portion 14 may include one or more
elastic portions (not shown) that enable waistband portion 14 to be
stretched to fit a variety of waist sizes (e.g.,
"one-size-fits-all").
[0015] A textile portion 18 may be attached to waistband portion
14. In various embodiments, textile portion 18 may include one or
more legs 20 through which a wearer may insert his or her legs when
wearing sporting apparel 10. While legs 20 of sporting apparel 10
in FIG. 1 are relatively short, the length of legs 20 is not of
particular importance, and FIG. 1 is not meant to be limiting in
this regard. For example, in various embodiments, sporting apparel
10 may have longer legs 20, which may lead to sporting apparel 10
being considered "pants" or "trousers," rather than shorts. Other
intermediate leg lengths, such as may be found in "Capri" pants,
are also contemplated herein. In still other examples, disclosed
techniques may be used to construct legless apparel, such as
skirts, with less bulky waists, e.g., for use during tennis.
[0016] As best seen in FIG. 3, waistband portion 14 may include a
first end 22 and a second end 24 that together (and, in various
embodiments, along with other components) may form a closure 26.
Closure 26 may have various components, described below, that may
be fastened together using strips of hook-loop fasteners to
securely fit sporting apparel 10 about a wearer's waist. Closure 26
may be at various positions along waistband portion 14. In FIGS. 1
and 3-5, for example, closure 26 is positioned near a crotch area
of sporting apparel 10, but this is not meant to be limiting, and
closure 26 may be at other positions along waistband portion
14.
[0017] First end 22 and second end 24 of waistband portion 14 may
be removably attached around a waist of a wearer. To this end,
waistband portion 14 may include a first strip of hook-loop
fasteners 28 and a second strip of hook-loop fasteners 30 that is
removably attachable to first strip of hook-loop fasteners 28. In
various embodiments, multiple discrete strips of hook-loop
fasteners may be included to strengthen a bond between first end 22
and second end 24. For instance, in the embodiment shown in the
Figures, first strip of hook-loop fasteners 28 includes a first
piece 32 and a second piece 34. Second strip of hook-loop fasteners
30 likewise includes a first piece 36 and a second piece 38. Strips
of hook-loop fasteners may include more or less pieces without
departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Moreover, in
addition to or instead of the elastic portion mentioned previously,
in various embodiments, sporting apparel 10 may be adjustably
fitted about a variety of waist sizes by adjusting a relative
position at which first strip of hook-loop fasteners 28 is
removably attached to second strip of hook-loop fasteners 30.
[0018] As noted in the background, attaching strips of hook-loop
fasteners such as first strip of hook-loop fasteners 28 or second
strip of hook-loop fasteners 30 on top of a textile surface (e.g.,
a surface of waistband portion 14 or textile portion 18) may result
in multiple layers. When multiple strips of hook-loop fasteners and
underlying textiles are assembled over or near one another, that
portion of the apparel may become quite bulky.
[0019] Accordingly, in various embodiments, one or more strips of
hook-loop fasteners described herein may be wholly or partially
integrated into various textile layers of sporting apparel 10. All
or part of a strip of hook-loop fasteners may be integrated into a
layer in various ways. Examples of this are seen in FIGS. 6-8. In
FIG. 6, a portion has been cut-out of a textile layer 16 to form a
cut-out portion 60.
[0020] A strip of hook-loop fasteners such as first strip of
hook-loop fasteners 28 may be integrated into layer 16, and more
particularly, into cut-out portion 60, in various ways. In FIG. 7,
cut-out portion 60 and first strip of hook-loop fasteners 28 may be
die cut, so that they are similar in size. First strip of hook-loop
fasteners 28 may substantially fit within cut-out portion 60. First
strip of hook-loop fasteners 28 may include one or more edges that
may be attached to one or more inner edges of the cut-out portion
of layer 16, e.g., using stitching or adhesives.
[0021] In other embodiments, such as the one shown in FIG. 8, first
strip of hook-loop fasteners 28 may be slightly larger than cut-out
portion 60. In such cases, an outer perimeter of first strip of
hook-loop fasteners 28 (e.g., the area of first strip of hook-loop
fasteners 28 between the dotted lines and cut-out portion 60 of
FIG. 8) may be attached, using stitching, adhesives or other
similar means, to an area of layer 16 surrounding cut-out portion
60. Although FIGS. 7-8 depict first strip of hook-loop fasteners
28, this is for illustration only, and the same techniques may be
used to integrate any strip of hook-loop fasteners described herein
with any textile layer described herein.
[0022] In various embodiments, strips of hook-loop fasteners may be
integrated into other textile layers than waistband portion 14. For
instance, and referring back to FIGS. 3-5, textile portion 18 may
include a third strip of hook-loop fasteners 40 near first strip of
hook-loop fasteners 28, and a fourth strip of hook-loop fasteners
42 near second strip of hook-loop fasteners 30 that may be
removably attachable to third strip of hook-loop fasteners 40. In
various embodiments, a gore 44 may be positioned in between the
third strip of hook-loop fasteners 40 and fourth strip of hook-loop
fasteners 42, to extend from a bottom of a "fly" of closure 26 to
adjacent waist band portion 14. Gore 44 may protect the wearer's
privacy in the event closure 26 becomes unfastened.
[0023] In various embodiments, at least part of the third strip of
hook-loop fasteners 40 and/or fourth strip of hook-loop fasteners
42 may be integrated into a layer 16 of textile portion 18, in
manners similar to those described above. For example, the third or
fourth strip of hook-loop fasteners may fit into (see FIG. 7) or
overlay (see FIG. 8) a cut-out portion of a layer 16 of textile
portion 18.
[0024] In various embodiments, and as best seen in FIGS. 1 and 3-5,
sporting apparel 10 may include a flap 46 attached to an inner
surface 48 of waistband portion 14. In various embodiments, flap 46
may be foldable over first strip of hook-loop fasteners 28 and
second strip of hook-loop fasteners 30 of waistband portion 14 when
second strip of hook-loop fasteners 30 is removably attached to
first strip of hook-loop fasteners 28, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5.
In various embodiments, flap 46 may additionally fold over
additional fasteners (not shown), such as laces after they are tied
together. This may prevent the laces from coming untied.
[0025] Similar to waistband portion 14 and textile portion 18, flap
46 may include one or more strips of hook-loop fasteners that may
be removably attached to other, suitably positioned strips of
hook-loop fasteners to strengthen closure 26. For instance, flap 46
may include a fifth strip of hook-loop fasteners 50 that may be
removably attachable to a sixth strip of hook-loop fasteners 52. In
various embodiments, fifth strip of hook-loop fasteners 50 may be
integrated into a layer 16 of flap 46. In various embodiments,
sixth strip of hook-loop fasteners 52 may be integrated into a
layer 16 of waistband portion 14 so that its operative surface
faces an opposite direction as an operative surface of second strip
of hook-loop fasteners 30.
[0026] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the "buckle" area of
sporting apparel of FIG. 1, as defined by the arrows of FIG. 1.
FIG. 2 depicts an example of how integrating strips of hook-loop
fasteners into textile layers may result in a lower number of total
layers (and thus, less bulkiness) than if strips of hook-loop
fasteners were merely placed on top of textile layers. In FIG. 2,
there are four layers 16 formed from strips of hook-loop fasteners.
First strip of hook-loop fasteners 28 is seen near the bottom,
fifth strip of hook-loop fasteners 50 is seen near the top, and
second and sixth strips of hook-loop fasteners 30, 52 are seen near
the middle. In other embodiments, second strip of hook-loop
fasteners 30 and sixth strip of hook-loop fasteners 52 may be
integrated into a single layer 16 with respective hook or loop
fasteners on each side. There are two textile layers 16: one at the
top and one at the bottom. Thus, there are a total of six layers.
If each strip of hook-loop fasteners were affixed on top of a
textile layer, rather than integrated into a textile layer as
described herein, then there could be nine or more layers, which
would be much more bulky than the arrangement seen in FIG. 2.
[0027] The following paragraphs describe various example
embodiments. In various embodiments. shorts may include a waistband
having a first end that is removably attachable to a second,
opposite end using one or more strips of hook-loop fasteners that
are integrated into one or more textile layers of the waistband. In
various embodiments, the one or more strips of hook-loop fasteners
may be inserted into one or more cut-out portions of the one or
more textile layers of the waistband.
[0028] In various embodiments, the one or more strips of hook-loop
fasteners may overlay one or more cut-out portions of the one or
more textile layers of the waistband. In various embodiments, the
one or more strips of hook-loop fasteners may be attached to the
waistband with stitching. In various embodiments, the strips of
hook-loop fasteners may be attached to the waistband with
adhesive.
[0029] In various embodiments, pants may include a waistband having
a first end that is removably attachable to a second, opposite end
using one or more strips of hook-loop fasteners that are integrated
into one or more textile layers of the waistband.
[0030] Although certain embodiments have been illustrated and
described herein for purposes of description, a wide variety of
alternate and/or equivalent embodiments or implementations
calculated to achieve the same purposes may be substituted for the
embodiments shown and described without departing from the scope of
the present disclosure. This application is intended to cover any
adaptations or variations of the embodiments discussed herein.
Therefore, it is manifestly intended that embodiments described
herein be limited only by the claims and the equivalents
thereof.
[0031] Where the disclosure recites "a" or "a first" element or the
equivalent thereof, such disclosure includes one or more such
elements, neither requiring nor excluding two or more such
elements. Further, ordinal indicators (e.g., first, second or
third) for identified elements are used to distinguish between the
elements, and do not indicate or imply a required or limited number
of such elements, nor do they indicate a particular position or
order of such elements unless otherwise specifically stated.
* * * * *