U.S. patent application number 13/720056 was filed with the patent office on 2013-05-16 for system and method of associating a personalized article of clothing displaying travel history with information related to a person wearing the article of clothing.
The applicant listed for this patent is Matthew Paas. Invention is credited to Matthew Paas.
Application Number | 20130117909 13/720056 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 48279228 |
Filed Date | 2013-05-16 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130117909 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Paas; Matthew |
May 16, 2013 |
SYSTEM AND METHOD OF ASSOCIATING A PERSONALIZED ARTICLE OF CLOTHING
DISPLAYING TRAVEL HISTORY WITH INFORMATION RELATED TO A PERSON
WEARING THE ARTICLE OF CLOTHING
Abstract
An article of clothing can be personalized with indicia
communicating a travel history of a person wearing the article of
clothing. A unique identifier can be assigned to the person wearing
the article of clothing and displayed on the article of clothing.
Further, the unique identifier can correspond to a data record on a
database, and the data record can comprise information related to
the travel history of the person wearing the article of clothing.
The information in the data record can be accessed, such as through
a social network interface, to associate the information with the
person wearing the article of clothing.
Inventors: |
Paas; Matthew; (Walker,
MI) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Paas; Matthew |
Walker |
MI |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
48279228 |
Appl. No.: |
13/720056 |
Filed: |
December 19, 2012 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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12321327 |
Jan 20, 2009 |
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13720056 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
2/244 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G09F 21/02 20130101;
A41D 27/08 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
2/244 |
International
Class: |
A41D 27/08 20060101
A41D027/08 |
Claims
1. A system for associating an article of clothing personalized
according to a travel history of a person with information related
to the person comprising: an article of clothing; at least one
personalized indicium configured to be disposed on the article of
clothing to communicate a travel history of a person associated
with the article of clothing; a unique identifier specific to the
person associated with the article of clothing and configured to be
disposed on the article of clothing; a data record corresponding to
the unique identifier and comprising information related to the
travel history of the person associated with the article of
clothing; and a database configured to store the data record and to
allow access to the data record through the unique identifier.
2. The system of claim 1 wherein the unique identifier is
permanently disposed on the article of clothing.
3. The system of claim 1 wherein the unique identifier is removably
disposed on the article of clothing.
4. The system of claim 1 wherein the article of clothing has an
inside surface and an outside surface, and the unique identifier is
disposed on the inside surface.
5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a cover configured to
selectively block visual access to the unique identifier on the
article of clothing.
6. The system of claim 5 wherein the cover comprises a panel
releasably attached to the article of clothing on top of the unique
identifier.
7. The system of claim 1 wherein the unique identifier is
alphanumeric.
8. The system of claim 1 wherein the information related to the
travel history of the person associated with the article of
clothing comprises at least one of a list of places, a graphical
representation of places, and a photograph.
9. The system of claim 1 wherein the information related to the
person associated with the article of clothing comprises at least
one of a name, an address, an age, a sex, a phone number, an email
address, a marital status, an educational background, and an
employment background.
10. The system of claim 1 wherein the database is configured to be
communicably coupled with a social network interface for
communicating the information in the data record through the social
network interface.
11. The system of claim 1 wherein the at least one personalized
indicium represents a geographic location where the person
associated with the article of clothing has traveled, and an
aggregate of the at least one personalized indicium corresponds to
the travel history of the person associated with the article of
clothing.
12. The system of claim 11 wherein the travel history is an actual
travel history of the person associated with the article of
clothing.
13. The system of claim 1, further comprising a base indicium
configured to be disposed on the article of clothing and having a
first area and at least one second area less than or equal to the
first area, wherein the at least one personalized indicium is
configured to be applied to the at least one second area.
14. The system of claim 13 wherein the first area of the base
indicium is shaped as one of a country, a continent, and Earth, and
the at least one personalized indicium is respectively shaped as
one of a state of the country, a country of the continent, and a
continent of the Earth.
15. The system of claim 14 wherein the base indicium, the at least
one personalized indicium, and the unique identifier form appliques
configured to be applied to the article of clothing.
16. The system of claim 1 wherein the at least one personalized
indicium comprises a color different from a color of at least one
of the article of clothing and the base indicium so that the color
of the at least one personalized indicium distinguishes the at
least one personalized indicium from the at least one of the
article of clothing and the base indicium.
17. The system of claim 1 wherein the at least one personalized
indicium comprises a first personalized indicium and a second
personalized indicium, and the first personalized indicium
comprises a color different than a color of the second personalized
indicium so that the color of the first personalized indicium
distinguishes the first personalized indicium from the second
personalized indicium.
18. The system of claim 1 wherein the at least one personalized
indicium is releasably attached to the article of clothing.
19. The system of claim 1 wherein the unique identifier comprises a
barcode.
20. A method for associating a personalized article of clothing
with information related to the person, the method comprising:
providing an article of clothing for personalization with at least
one personalized indicium to communicate a travel history of a
person associated with the article of clothing; assigning a unique
identifier specific to the person associated with the article of
clothing and providing the unique identifier on the article of
clothing; and associating the unique identifier with a data record
maintainable by the person associated with the article of
clothing.
21. The method of claim 20, further comprising providing access to
the information in the data record via a social network interface
when the unique identifier is provided to the social network
interface.
22. The method of claim 20, further comprising providing a cover to
selectively conceal the unique identifier.
23. The method of claim 20 wherein the providing of the unique
identifier on the article of clothing comprises providing the
unique identifier on an inside surface of the article of clothing.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 12/321,327, filed Jan. 20, 2009, which is
incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Many people enjoy traveling, not only to various locations
within a state or various states within a country, but also around
the world. Friends and family members often share their travel
experiences with each other, such as by sharing pictures and
telling stories about events that occurred while traveling. Travel
can also be a uniting subject that brings together strangers having
common travel histories or interests in traveling to the same
locations. Social networking and other internet-related media
outlets can provide ways for people to connect and share travel
information.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0003] An embodiment of the invention relates to a system according
to one embodiment for associating an article of clothing
personalized according to a travel history of a person with
information related to the person comprises an article of clothing;
at least one personalized indicium configured to be disposed on the
article of clothing to communicate a travel history of a person
associated with the article of clothing; a unique identifier
specific to the person associated with the article of clothing and
configured to be disposed on the article of clothing; a data record
corresponding to the unique identifier and comprising information
related to the travel history of the person associated with the
article of clothing; and a database configured to store the data
record and to allow access to the data record through the unique
identifier.
[0004] In another embodiment, the invention relates to a method for
associating a personalized article of clothing with information
related to the person comprises providing an article of clothing
for personalization with at least one personalized indicium to
communicate a travel history of a person associated with the
article of clothing; assigning a unique identifier specific to the
person associated with the article of clothing and providing the
unique identifier on the article of clothing; and associating the
unique identifier with a data record maintainable by the person
associated with the article of clothing.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] In the drawings:
[0006] FIG. 1 is a front elevation view of an article of clothing
having personalized indicia according to one embodiment of the
invention, showing states of the United States which have been
traveled to by an individual.
[0007] FIG. 2 is a front elevation view of an article of clothing
having personalized indicia according to another embodiment of
invention, showing continents of the Earth which have been traveled
to by an individual.
[0008] FIG. 3 is a front elevation view of an article of clothing
having personalized indicia according to another embodiment of the
invention, showing countries of South America which have been
traveled to by an individual.
[0009] FIG. 4 is a front elevation view of an article of clothing
having personalized indicia according to another embodiment of the
invention, showing various island states which have been traveled
to by an individual, as well as a unique identifier.
[0010] FIG. 5 is a front elevation view of an article of clothing
having personalized indicia according to another embodiment of the
invention, showing the state parks of Michigan which have been
traveled to by an individual.
[0011] FIG. 6 is a front elevation view of an article of clothing
having personalized indicia according to another embodiment of the
invention, showing golf courses of the United States which have
been traveled to by an individual.
[0012] FIG. 7 is a schematic representation of a data record
maintained on an electronic information database according to
another embodiment of the invention.
[0013] FIG. 8 is a schematic view of a system according to one
embodiment of the invention for associating a personalized article
of clothing displaying travel history with information related to a
person wearing the personalized article of clothing.
[0014] FIG. 9A is a front elevation view of an article of clothing
similar to that of FIG. 1 with the addition of a unique identifier
on the article of clothing and a cover for selectively displaying
the unique identifier, wherein the cover is removed from the unique
identifier.
[0015] FIG. 9B is a front elevation view of the article of clothing
of FIG. 9A, wherein the cover is applied to the article of clothing
over the unique identifier to conceal the unique identifier.
[0016] FIG. 10 is a front elevation view of an article of clothing
similar to that of FIG. 1 with the addition of a unique identifier
on an inside surface of the article of clothing.
[0017] FIG. 11 is a front elevation view of an article of clothing
similar to that of FIG. 1 showing states of the United States which
have been traveled to by an individual by displaying only the
states that have been traveled to without an outline of the states
not traveled to.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
[0018] Referring now to the drawings, and to FIGS. 1-6
collectively, a personalized article of clothing 10 is shown as
comprising an inner surface 12 and an outer surface 14 having a
personalized indicium 16 or a plurality of the personalized
indicium 16 (i.e., personalized indicia, and hereinafter referred
to as "personalized indicia" with the understanding that, unless
stated otherwise, "personalized indicia" is intended to mean one or
more than one indicium, for simplicity). In general, the article of
clothing 10 may comprise, for example, a t-shirt, tank top, long
sleeve shirt, sweat shirt, pair of trousers, coat, hat, purse, and
the like. It will be understood that the articles of clothing may
be fabricated from any suitable material, including, cotton,
polyester, hemp, fur, leather, and denim, just to name a few.
[0019] In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and as
is best shown in FIG. 1, the article of clothing 10 may comprise a
base indicium 18 or a plurality of the base indicium 18 (i.e., base
indicia, and hereinafter referred to as "base indicia" with the
understanding that, unless stated otherwise, "base indicia" is
intended to mean one or more than one indicium, for simplicity).
The base indicia 18 may include text or graphics, for example, a
planet, continent, country, state, territory, province, city,
county, region, etc. The base indicia 18 may be permanently or
removably attached to or associated with the article of clothing 10
by, for example, a thermally activated adhesive (e.g., iron-on
indicia) disposed on the base indicia 18. In one embodiment, the
base indicia 18 is placed upon the article of clothing 10, and the
adhesive is activated via application of heat. Although, it will be
understood that base indicia 18 may also be embroidered and/or
stitched via a sewing machine or by hand onto the article of
clothing 10. Moreover, the base indicia 18 may be silk-screened
and/or absorbed into/onto the article of clothing 10 using inks,
paints and/or fabric dyes. In one embodiment, the base indicia 18
may optionally include an outline 20 disposed on the article of
clothing 10. It will be understood that the article of clothing 10
may or may not include the base indicia 18.
[0020] The personalized indicia 16 and the base indicia 18 may be
fabricated from, for example, a durable material such as a textile
or a polymer, although any one of a number of durable materials
that would be known to one having ordinary skill in the art are
likewise contemplated for use in accordance with the present
invention. Both the personalized indicia 16 and the base indicia 18
may comprise, for example, text, a reflective material, photos,
images, colors or patterns of colors, and the like. Furthermore,
the personalized indicia 16 and the base indicia 18 may optionally
comprise a substantially flat or partially raised profile so as to
provide texturing.
[0021] In one embodiment, the base indicia 18 may also comprise a
series of hooks and/or loops fabricated so as to receive a
corresponding series of hooks and/or loops disposed on the
personalized indicia 16 so as to form a releasable connection
therebetween. In another embodiment, the base indicia 18 may also
comprise a magnetic surface fabricated so as to receive a second
magnetic surface disposed on the personalized indicia 16 so as to
form a releasable connection therebetween. The personalized indicia
16 allows a user to change the aesthetic appearance of the article
of clothing 10 and can, therefore, also be thought of as
customizable indicia. It will be understood that the personalized
indicia 16 may be permanently or releasably connected to the
article of clothing 10 via the same methods as disclosed for
securing the personalized indicia 16 to the base indicia 18 and for
disposing the base indicia 18 on the article of clothing 10.
[0022] Referring now to FIG. 1, and by way of non-limiting example,
the illustrated article of clothing 10 includes the base indicia 18
comprising a map outlining the United States of America and further
outlining individual states. The personalized indicia 16 includes
several of the indicium having the size and shape of the individual
states outlined on the map. Furthermore, the personalized indicia
16 may comprise a color so as to distinguish the personalized
indicia 16 from the article of clothing 10 and/or the base indicia
18. The personalized indicia 16, comprising individual states in
the present example, may be placed upon the corresponding areas of
the map. For example, a removable indicium 16A is shown removed
from the article of clothing 10. The removable indicium 16A is
shown as corresponding to the State of Colorado and may preferably
be placed upon the base indicia 18 in location X. In one example,
the personalized indicia 16 may be utilized to display the states
to which the user has traveled. Connections, as discussed above,
for example, magnets and/or hook and loop fasteners, may operate to
releasably secure the personalized indicia 16 with the article of
clothing 10 and/or the base indicia 18.
[0023] In an embodiment of the present invention, the article of
clothing 10 may have the personalized indicia 16 that pertains to
desired travel history or actual travel history of an individual.
The desired travel history may be a travel history that the person
wearing the article of clothing 10 desires to communicate via the
personalized indicia 16 and may correspond to locations to which
the person would like to travel alone or in combination with
locations to which the person has traveled, i.e., the actual travel
history. In such an embodiment, the article of clothing 10 may have
the inner surface 12 and the outer surface 14, wherein the outer
surface 14 comprises an area (e.g., the front, back, and/or
sleeves), and the personalized indicia 16 may be associated with
the area, wherein the personalized indicia 16 corresponds to a
desired location or location traveled to or on by the individual,
and further wherein the personalized indicia 16 operates to change
the appearance of the article of clothing 10 relative to the same
without the personalized indicia 16.
[0024] In an embodiment of the present invention, the personalized
indicia 16 may be the same or different and comprise at least one
of a continent, country, state, territory, province, city, county,
township, village, reservation, ocean, lake, river, stream, harbor,
port, wonder of the world, landmark, park, hiking trail, ski lodge,
golf course, bridge, stadium, track, museum, gallery, store,
restaurant, watering hole, highway, station, airport, and
combinations thereof. It will be further understood that the
personalized indicia 16 may comprise the same or different color of
another piece of personalized indicia associated with the article
of clothing 10. For example, the personalized indicia 16 may
consist of states of the United States, countries of Europe, and/or
cities on the planet Earth, just to name a few.
[0025] Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 7, the article of clothing 10
may also comprise a unique identifier 22 that corresponds to a data
record 24 maintained on an electronic information database. The
unique identifier 22, in one embodiment, may be alphanumeric (i.e.,
a model number, a serial number, and the like, such as 1, 02, 003,
1234, AB1234, etc.). It will be understood that the data record 24
may include information 26, such as personal information (e.g.,
name, address, age, sex, phone number, email address, marital
status, educational background, employment background, hobbies,
interests, birthdate, etc.), pictures, photos, and/or information
associated with the individual wearing the article of clothing 10.
The information 26 may pertain to the travel history of the
individual as identified on the article of clothing 10. It is also
contemplated that the identifier 22 may be associated with, for
example, MySpace, Facebook, and/or other informational social
networking interfaces and associated databases.
[0026] As is best shown in FIGS. 1-7 collectively, the present
invention is also directed to a method for producing the article of
clothing having the personalized indicia 16 pertaining to the
travel history of an individual. The method may comprise the steps
of: providing the article of clothing 10 having the inner surface
12 and the outer surface 14, wherein the outer surface 14 comprises
an area adapted to contain the personalized indicia 16, and
associating the personalized indicia 16 with the area adapted to
contain the same which corresponds to a location traveled to or on
by the individual and, in turn, personalizing the article of
clothing 10 for the individual. The method may also include the
step of associating additional personalized indicia 16 with the
area adapted to contain the same which corresponds to locations
traveled to or on by the individual and, in turn, further
personalizing the article of clothing for the individual. The
method may also comprise the step of associating the unique
identifier 22 with the article of clothing 10, wherein the
identifier corresponds to the 24 data record maintained on an
electronic information database so that a person may observe the
data record 24 in the context of the individual who adorned the
article of clothing 10.
[0027] By way of additional example, the present invention may be
directed to the article of clothing 10 having the personalized
indicia 16 pertaining to the travel history of an individual, and
the article of clothing 10 may have the inner surface 12 and the
outer surface 14, wherein the outer surface 14 comprises the base
indicia 18 having a first area (e.g., the United States), and at
least one region defined by and having at least a second area
(e.g., a state of the United States) which is less than or equal to
the first area. The personalized indicia 16 associated with the at
least one region of the outer surface 14 of the article of clothing
10 may substantially correspond to the at least second area, and
the personalized indicia 16 operates to change the appearance of at
least a portion of the outer surface 14 of the article of clothing
10 when the personalized indicia 16 is associated with at least a
portion of the outer surface 14 of the article of clothing 10 so as
to create a personalized article of clothing.
[0028] Referring now to FIG. 8, the article of clothing 10 with the
personalized indicia 16 and the unique identifier 22 and the
database 28 with the data record 24 may form a system 30 for
associating the personalized article of clothing 10 with
information related to the person wearing the article of clothing
10. The system 30 may include other elements, which will be
described below. With the system 30, a person may wear or otherwise
be associated with the article of clothing 10, while another
person, an observer of the article of clothing 10, can ascertain
from the personalized indicia 16 and from the data record 24, which
he or she may access with the unique identifier 22, information
about the travel history of the person and, possibly, information
about the person not related to the travel history (e.g., personal
information, such as--name, address, age, sex, phone number, email
address, marital status, educational background, employment
background, hobbies, interests, birthdate, etc.).
[0029] To use the system 30, the article of clothing 10 is
personalized for a person associated with the article of clothing
10, such as the wearer of the article of clothing 10, by applying
the personalized indicia 16. The personalized indicia 16
communicate the travel history of the person, which may be
geographic locations to which the person has traveled and may be
applied by the person or by another person or company, such as a
producer of the article of clothing 10. When the article of
clothing 10 displays more than one of the personalized indicia 16,
the aggregate of the personalized indicia 16 corresponds to the
travel history of the person associated with the article of
clothing. The number and types of the personalized indicia 16
applied to the article of clothing 10 may be updated, such as by
adding more of the personalized indicia 16, as the travel history
of the person changes with time.
[0030] The article of clothing 10 also displays the unique
identifier 22 that is assigned to and is specific to the person.
The unique identifier 22 may be assigned by selection of the unique
identifier 22 by the person, or the unique identifier 22 may be
assigned by another person or company, such as the producer of the
article of clothing 10. The unique identifier 22 may be provided on
the article of clothing 10 when the person purchases the article of
clothing 10. In another embodiment, the unique identifier 22 may be
provided separately from the article of clothing 10, such as in a
separate package that comes with the article of clothing 10 or that
is provided separately from the article of clothing 10, either at
the time of purchase of the article of clothing 10 or at a later
date. Further, when the unique identifier 22 is alphanumeric, the
unique identifier 22 may be randomly assigned/selected or may be a
particular username. As alternatives, the unique identifier 22 may
be in the form of, for example, a barcode, a RFID (radio frequency
identification) tag, or QR (quick response) two-dimensional barcode
that can be scanned with a scanning device, including mobile
computing devices having scanning applications.
[0031] As mentioned above, the unique identifier 22 may correspond
to the data record 24 maintained on the database 28. The data
record 24 may be accessed by the person to establish and/or update
the information 26 in the data record 24 according to the travel
history or personal information of the person. The information 26
related to the travel history of the person may include, for
example, a list or graphical representation (i.e., a map) of places
to which the person has traveled and/or would like to travel,
photographs taken during travels (with or without descriptive
captions and with or without embedded GPS data related to where the
photograph was taken), a travel log or journal, a calendar with
dates of previous travels and future travels, and the like. The
database 28 may be in communication with a server 32 or other
computing device that enables access of the database 28 over the
Internet, such as through a website or application accessible by a
computer 34, examples of which include, but are not limited to, a
desktop computer, a laptop computer, a workstation, and a mobile
computing device, such as a cellular phone and a tablet. In this
manner, the person can use the computer 34 to establish and/or
maintain the data record 24. The data record 24 on the database 28
may be accessed by the person in any suitable manner and is not
limited to the particular manner described above and shown in FIG.
8.
[0032] By displaying the unique identifier 22 on the article of
clothing 10, another person, such as an observer of the article of
clothing 10, may also access the data record 24 to view the
information 26 and associate the information 26 with the person
wearing the article of clothing 10. In one example, the observer
may view the information 26 through a social network interface 36,
which may have access to the data record 24 through the server 32
or other suitable communication system(s). The observer may be
required to enter the unique identifier 22 to be given access to
the information 26 and, optionally, a password provided by the
person wearing the article of clothing 10. When the unique
identifier 22 is graphical (i.e., not alphanumeric), the observer
may scan the unique identifier 22 with a scanning device, including
a mobile computing device, and upload the scanned information or
image to access the data record 24. The information 26 may be
displayed to the observer in any suitable manner. As one example,
the social network interface 36 may be for a social network
dedicated solely to travel. As another example, the social network
interface 36 may be for a general social network, such as the
aforementioned Facebook and MySpace, which provides a virtual space
for users to share travel information. Alternatively, the observer
may be able to view the information directly through a computer 38
rather than via the social network interface 36, and the person
associated with the article of clothing 10 may also access the data
record 24 via the social network interface 36 if desired. The
computer 38 may be any suitable type of computing device, examples
of which include, but are not limited to, a desktop computer, a
laptop computer, a workstation, and a mobile computing device, such
as a cellular phone and a tablet.
[0033] As explained in the description of the system 30 and its
use, the system 30 may be employed to implement a method for
associating the personalized article of clothing 10 with
information related to the person associated with the article of
clothing 10. In one embodiment, the method may comprise providing
the article of clothing 10 for personalization with at least one of
the personalized indicia 16 to communicate the travel history of
the person associated with the article of clothing 10, assigning
the unique identifier 22 specific to the person associated with the
article of clothing 10 and providing the unique identifier 22 on
the article of clothing 10, and associating the unique identifier
22 with the data record 24 maintainable by the person associated
with the article of clothing 10. The method may further include
providing access to the information in the data record via a social
networking interface when the unique identifier is provided to the
social network interface. Further, the method may involve providing
a cover to selectively conceal the unique identifier or providing
the unique identifier on an inside surface of the article of
clothing.
[0034] Referring now to FIGS. 9A and 9B, the article of clothing 10
may be configured to selectively display the unique identifier 22.
The person wearing the article of clothing, in some instances, may
desire to share the unique identifier 22 only with certain other
people, such as friends and family, so as to allow only those
certain other people access to the information 26 on the data
record 24. In the embodiment of FIGS. 9A and 9B, the unique
identifier 22 may be selectively concealed with a cover 40
releasably secured to the article of clothing 10 on top of the
unique identifier 22, such as by the aforementioned hook and loop
fasteners or magnetic fasteners or with any other type of reusable
attachment means. When the person wishes to display the unique
identifier 22, the person may remove the cover 40, as shown in FIG.
9A, and then place the cover 40 back on the article of clothing 10
when the person wishes to conceal and block visual access to the
unique identifier 22, as shown in FIG. 9B. The cover 40 may be a
completely removable panel, as shown in the figures, or may be in
the form of a flap where the cover 40 remains attached to the
article of clothing 10, such as along one edge, when a portion of
the cover 40 that is not attached is lifted to reveal the unique
identifier 22 when desired. Further, the unique identifier 22
itself may be removable from the article of clothing 10, if
desired, such as for selective display of the unique identifier 22
or locating/moving the unique identifier 22 at/to a desired
position on the article of clothing 10.
[0035] As shown in FIG. 10, the unique identifier 22 may optionally
be located on the inside surface 12 of the article of clothing 10,
which also enables selective display of the unique identifier 22.
To share the unique identifier 22, the person wearing the article
of clothing 10 simply reveals the inside surface 12 that contains
the unique identifier 22, such as by folding back the bottom of the
shirt in the example of FIG. 10. Other exemplary locations for the
unique identifier 22 on the inside surface 12 of the article of
clothing 10 when the article of clothing 10 is a shirt include, but
are not limited to, the inside of the sleeve and the inside of the
collar. When the unique identifier 22 is on the inside surface 12,
the unique identifier 22 may be permanently or removably attached
to/disposed on the inside surface 12.
[0036] The article of clothing 10 in the above system 30 may
include the base indicia 18 in addition to the personalized indicia
16, as explained with respect to FIG. 1. When the article of
clothing 10 includes the base indicia 18, the base indicia 18 may
have a first area, and in the example where the base indicia 18 is
a country, the first area may correspond to the area defined by the
outline of the country. The base indicia 18 may also include at
least one second area that is less than the first area, and in the
same example, the second area(s) may correspond to the states
within the country. Other examples of the first and second areas
include, but are not limited to, continents and countries, and the
Earth and continents, respectively. The first and second areas may
also be thought of as regions and sub-regions, respectively, and
the sub-regions may optionally be defined by a border on the base
indicia 18 with the personalized indicia 16 having a shape as
defined by the border. As shown in FIG. 11, the article of clothing
10 for the system 30 may optionally omit the base indicia 18 and
include only the personalized indicia 16 to communicate the travel
history of the person.
[0037] The above description provides several examples of the
manner in which the base indicia 18 and the personalized indicia 16
may be applied to or otherwise disposed on the article of clothing
10. These examples also apply to the application of the unique
identifier 22. It is also within the scope of the invention to
employ methods other than those listed above for applying the base
indicia 18, the personalized indicia 16, and the unique identifier
22 to the article of clothing 10 and/or to each other.
[0038] Further, the base indicia 18, the personalized indicia 16,
and the unique identifier 22 may also be thought of as appliques.
Appliques are defined as ornamentation that is sewn on to or
otherwise applied or attached to a piece of material. As the base
indicia 18, the personalized indicia 16, and the unique identifier
22 are items that are applied to the article of clothing 10, they
constitute base, personalized, and identifier appliques 18, 16, 22
that change the appearance of the article of clothing 10 and
contribute to the structure of the article of clothing 10.
[0039] This written description uses examples to disclose the
invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person
skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and
using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated
methods. While the invention has been specifically described in
connection with certain specific embodiments thereof, it is to be
understood that this is by way of illustration and not of
limitation, and the scope of the appended claims should be
construed as broadly as the prior art will permit.
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