The present invention relates to an attachable breast form enhancement system comprising a pair of breast forms adjoined by an enhancement connector. More specifically, the breast forms have a re-usable pressure sensitive adhesive layer for adjoining to the user's skin and are adjustably adjoined together by a connector that allows the user to customize the amount of breast cleavage and push-up enhancement.
Women who, for whatever reason, are not satisfied with the size of their own breasts and desire larger, more shapely breasts must select among two alternative methods for enhancing their breast size, by either using rudimentary externally worn articles, such as foam pads and the like, or by undergoing a surgical operation to be fitted with a breast implant. Opting for use of a surgical breast implant carries with it the danger inherent in any surgical operation and can be quite expensive. In addition to the dangers inherent with the surgical operation is the potential health dangers that may be associated with using a particular type of breast implant, namely, the silicone breast implant. Accordingly, women wishing to enhance their physical appearance in a non-permanent and health-risk free manner opt to use one of the many types of externally worn articles.
A key feature of such externally worn article is that it look and feel natural so as to complement and not detract from the existing female breast that it is used to enhance. In addition to enhancing an existing breast, externally worn articles are designed to replace a female human breast that has been surgically removed. Externally worn articles that can be worn for the purpose of either enhancing or replacing human breasts are referred to a breast forms, and include a wide range of breast enhancers, breast inserts, and breast prostheses. A popular type of breast form has been made from a silicone gel material that is completely encased by plastic film material. The advantage of this type of breast form is that it looks like a natural human breast when worn and feels natural to the user, thus enhancing the self image and confidence of the user. Other breast forms, such as foam pads, water-filled pads and the like, do not afford the user these important qualities but, rather, look unnatural and feel foreign.
In addition to the demand for devices and methods for enhancing breast size and shape, there is also a demand for being able to use those devices and methods while wearing a full-range of clothing. For example, women wearing a backless dress or a halter top will not want to wear a traditional bra. As a result, bras have been developed that are both backless and strapless. Such backless, strapless bras have used non-permanent adhesives, such as a disposable double-sided tape, to secure the bra to the user. Known backless, strapless bras, however, have only provided limited means for enhancing breast size and shape. For example, known backless, strapless bras having full-sized cups are not designed to easily accommodate a breast form and do not use an adhesive that allows the user to easily remove and re-use the bra.
As a result, there exists a need for a breast form enhancement system that provides the benefits of a breast form, yet also the benefits of a backless, strapless bra. Furthermore, there exists a need for such a system having a permanent and re-usable adhesive that allows the user to position the breast forms in a desired position without concern of the breast forms shifting from that position. Moreover, such a system should have means for pushing-up the breasts and enhancing breast cleavage.
There also exists a need for an improved breast form to be used with an improved breast form enhancement system that is specially designed to accommodate women with sagging breasts. Known breast forms have a structure designed to enhance the lower portion of a user's breast and, therefore, are thicker in the regions that cover that portion. As a result, women who have sagging breasts may not be well suited to use the known breast forms because the known breast forms would only further exaggerate the degree of sagging of the breast because the lower portion of the breast is already larger and rounder than the upper portion of the breast. Therefore, it is desirable to have a breast enhancement system with a breast form that is specially adapted to counter-balance the effect of sagging breasts.
a is a front view of the breast form system of
b is a front view of the breast form system of
The present invention provides an attachable breast form enhancement system comprising a pair of breast forms adjoined by a connector. The breast forms have an interior surface with a pressure sensitive adhesive layer that adjoins to the user's breasts. The pressure sensitive adhesive layer can be a permanently grown pressure sensitive adhesive that has an adhesion force to the breast forms that is greater than a cohesion force to the user's breasts. The connector adjoins the separated breast forms by attaching to the inner sides of the breast forms and pulling the user's breasts together. The connector can be either permanently or removably attached to the breast forms. Several different configurations of breast forms and connectors are available to achieve the benefits of the present system. The present breast forms system allows a user to eliminate the use of traditional bras by simply attaching the pair of breast forms to the user's breasts/skin, and then adjoining the breast forms together with the connector.
Thus, the separated breast forms provide the user with the desired amount of breast size and shape enhancement, and the connector provides the user the desired amount of breast cleavage and push-up enhancement. Because users can control the placement of the breast forms on the users' skin, and can control how much the breasts are pulled together by the connector, the present invention provides users with a single system that allows them to customize the shape and size of their breasts, as well as their breast cleavage and push-up enhancement.
Breast form enhancement systems constructed according to principles of this invention, generally comprise a pair of breast forms adjoined by an enhancement connector.
Generally, the user of the breast form system 10 positions the pressure sensitive adhesive layer of each of the breast forms 12 on the left and right breasts, and then adjoins the breast forms to each other by engaging the connector 14. The user can create varying degrees of breast cleavage and breast push-up enhancement depending on where the breast forms are positioned on the user's breasts and how much the connector 14 pulls the two breast forms towards each other. Furthermore, the placement of the connector relative to the top and bottom of the breast forms will impact the degree of cleavage and push-up enhancement. Accordingly, the breast form system 10 enables the user to position the breast forms at a position that creates a desired breast shape, and also allows the user to control the amount of cleavage and push-up enhancement by adjoining the breast forms with the connector.
The breast form system 10 can be formed from several different types of breast forms 12. The breast forms 12 are intended to include all types of externally worn articles that can be worn to enhance or replace a user's breasts. These include, but are not limited to, breast forms made from a volume of silicone gel encased by a thermoplastic film material. The breast forms also include any liquid, air, or gel encased by any foam, plastic, rubber, fabric, or molded unwoven fiber material, as well as any solid material that is suitable for external breast enhancement, such as a foam, soft rubber, fabric, molded unwoven fiber, or plastic. Accordingly, it is understood that a wide range of materials, structures, and sizes are within the scope of the breast forms 12 for purposes of this invention.
A front view of the breast forms 12 is shown in
The pressure sensitive adhesive layer 33 can include any type of pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) that is suitable for removably attaching a breast form to a user's skin, such as various types and forms of double-sided tape and permanently grown PSAs. The pressure sensitive adhesive layer 33 allows the user to place each of the breast forms at a position on the user's breasts that will create a desired shape and look of the breasts. The amount and type of PSA comprising the pressure sensitive adhesive layer 33 can vary, as can the portions of the interior surface that have the pressure sensitive adhesive layer. Various factors can contribute to the amount, type, and placement of the pressure sensitive adhesive layer such as the size, shape, and weight of the breast form.
The pressure sensitive adhesive layer 33 is preferably a re-usable PSA that is permanently grown to the interior surface 30 of each breast form. Unlike known adhesives, the pressure sensitive adhesive layer 33 will not readily shift once it is positioned on the user and can be re-used repeatedly without losing its adhesive properties. The pressure sensitive adhesive layer 33 has an adhesion force to the breast forms 12 that is greater than a cohesion force to the user's skin. The pressure sensitive adhesive layer is further able to withstand tremendous movement and pressure from the user without slipping and can even be subjected to water or sweat without degeneration of the adhesive properties. In fact, if the pressure sensitive adhesive layer becomes dirty (i.e. collects unwanted particles such as dust, lint, or debris), it can be cleaned with soap and water to remove the unwanted particles and fully restore the adhesive properties.
The breast forms 12 are each adapted to accommodate the connector 14. The connector 14 can have many different forms, but generally will have two or more separate portions, where a first portion attaches to one breast form and a second portion attaches to the other breast form. The first and second portions of the connector are designed to engage each other in order to adjoin the two breast forms. Furthermore, the separate portions of the connector 14 can be either permanently or removably attached to the breast forms. It is also possible for the connector 14 to be a single unit that removably attaches to both breast forms. The manner in which the connector 14 attaches to the breast forms will vary depending on the particular structures of the breast forms and the connector.
The breast form system 10 shown in
The fabric layer and thermoplastic film material are permanently and inseparably adjoined by heat lamination or other similar processes. Referring to
Another embodiment of the breast form system includes one or more of the breast forms being specially designed to accommodate sagging breasts. Known breast forms are not well suited for women with sagging breasts because the breast forms have a greater thickness near the lower portion of the breast form, which would only further accentuate the sag in the user's breast when the breast form is positioned over the user's breast. A side-view of a breast form 120 that is designed to accommodate sagging breasts is shown in
More specifically, the breast form 120 shown in
The connector 14 can be adjoined to the breast form at the interior surface 30 or the exterior surface 32, or both surfaces. Further, the connector can be adjoined to either the thermoplastic film material or the fabric layer, or both. Because the particular material used to construct the breast forms will vary (i.e. thermoplastic film, rubber, fabric, etc.), the material to which the connector is adjoined should be able to withstand a number of different pulling forces without separating from the breast forms.
Referring to
In
Another embodiment of the breast form system 10 is shown in
Another embodiment of the connector 14 is shown in
The single unit connectors shown in
Further embodiments of the breast form system 10 can be achieved by making minor alterations to the connector 14 and the breast forms. For example, referring to
The manner in which any of the permanently or removably attached portions of the connector are adjoined to the breast forms can vary. The same is true with respect to portions of the breast form that are adapted to engage the connector. The various portions of the connector and the breast form could be attached by stitching, heat sealing, adhesives, or any other suitable means. For example, the connector can be part of a sub-assembly that attaches to the breast forms. Referring to
The various features of the breast form system 10 allow it to serve as a replacement for the traditional bra, yet also provide breast size and shape enhancement. Moreover, the user is able to customize the amount of breast cleavage and push-up enhancement. Unlike traditional bras, the present breast form system 10 has no straps or cups that are usually necessary to hold the user's breasts or an external breast form or enhancement device. The user can wear the present breast form system without needing to wear any other type of bra. The presence of both the pressure sensitive adhesive layer and the connector makes the present breast form different than currently available bras and enhancement systems. Because the breast forms are positioned directly onto the user's breasts, and because of the specially designed pressure sensitive adhesive layer, the breast forms will remain in the desired position until the user removes them. Furthermore, the user can wear the present breast form system with nearly all possible types of clothing. The outline and structure of the present breast form system is not visible under even the tightest articles of clothing. Additionally, the breast forms can be made of is silicone gel that makes the breast forms so realistic that the breast form system will not be detected by others even when hugging the user.
The present breast form enhancement system allows users to boost their self-esteem without turning to dangerous, or cumbersome, alternatives currently available. Moreover, the present system is well adapted for post-mastectomy patients because the left and right breast forms can be easily made in different sizes. Because the breast forms are individual units, a user can mix and match different sizes to fit their particular needs, and still achieve the full benefits of the enhancement system by including the connector.
Once the user adjoins the breast forms to their skin and creates the desired look and shape, the user can create greater cleavage by pulling the breast forms together to engage the connector. Furthermore, if the user wants to push-up the breasts, the user can position the breast forms at a lower and more outward position on the breasts, and then adjoin the breast forms with the connector, or can select a breast form system that positions the connector a lower region of the breast forms.
The placement of the connector relative to the top 16 and bottom 18 of the breast forms will control the amount of push-up enhancement. For example, compare the positioning of the connector 14 in
In addition to the specific features and embodiments described above, it is understood that the present invention includes all equivalents to the structures and systems described herein, and is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiments. For example, the connector can be made an integral portion of the breast forms that is either attached or removable. Individuals skilled in the art to which the present breast form enhancement system pertains will understand that variations and modifications to the embodiments described can be used beneficially without departing from the scope of the invention.
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/801,901, filed on Mar. 15, 2004, now allowed as U.S. Pat. No. 6,852,001, scheduled to issue on Feb. 8, 2005, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/159,251, filed May 31, 2002 allowed as U.S. Pat. No. 6,758,720, issued on Jul. 6, 2004.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 10801901 | Mar 2004 | US |
Child | 11053211 | US | |
Parent | 10159251 | May 2002 | US |
Child | 10801901 | US |