Patent Application
20090209174
1. Technical Field
The invention relates generally to the field of undergarments. Specifically, the invention relates to a device for improving the comfort of undergarments.
2. Description of the Related Art
Undergarments, including brassieres and underwear, generally come in several fixed sizes. However, human bodies come in all shapes and sizes, and so inevitably, people have difficulty finding undergarments that provide a comfortable fit. Generally, people will settle on a particular size of undergarment that matches their body proportions as close as possible, and tolerate any areas of misfit. These areas of misfit may lead to discomfort for the wearer such as itching, irritation, and rashes.
Bras can be an especially troubling type of undergarment for which to find an adequate fit. It is estimated that as many as eighty-five percent of women wear the incorrect bra size, further evidenced by the many retailers who offer special ‘bra fitting’ sessions that purport to help women find the appropriate bra size.
Generally, bras are sized by two measurements: band size, which should approximate the circumference of the wearer's chest; and cup size, which includes several alphabetic gradations corresponding to the fullness of a woman's breast. Although not providing specific numerical size information, the cup size is generally chosen, often by trial-and-error, so as to approximate the size of the wearer's breasts. Bras also come in several styles such as support, athletic, strapless, underwire, padded, and minimizing. Considering the wide range of wearer's proportions, the wide range of bra types, and the relatively few bra sizes, it is not surprising that finding a perfect fit can be difficult, if not impossible for most women.
Complicating the fit issue is the fact that undergarments need to be washed regularly. Repeated washing can lead to resizing caused by wear, stretch, and/or shrinkage in the materials that the undergarments are made from. As an example, a bra may have one type of material forming the strap portion and another material or materials forming the cup portion. These different materials may respond differently to repeated washings and may cause the overall fit of the bra to change over time.
Another issue that is often experienced with underwire bras is that, after repeated washings or extended wear, the underwire may break through the material enclosing it and protrude into the soft tissue of the wearer's breast causing pain and discomfort. Although underwires generally include some type of cap over the end of the underwire, having the underwire exposed outside of the material of the bra can still cause discomfort for the wearer when the underwire presses against the wearer's skin. At the present time, there are few suitable methods available to repair a bra with a protruding underwire, and so the bras are generally discarded. Given the generally expensive nature of brassieres relative to other undergarments, wearer's are often reluctant to discard even a defective bra. Consequently, women will often continue to wear bras with protruding underwires and simply tolerate the discomfort.
There are several other potential areas of discomfort associated with undergarments. For example, the hook section of a bra can cause discomfort for some people and tags on any type of undergarment can be irritating. As an additional example, the straps of a bra can dig into a woman's shoulder or the elastic material from which the straps are made can break down and become irritating over time. As a further example, women with larger bra sizes can encounter pain, discomfort, or itching from the bottom edge of the bra. Consequently, a need remains for an inexpensive and easy way to temporarily modify or repair undergarments to improve the comfort of the wearer and to extend the useful life of the undergarment.
The disclosure provides a comfort device and a method of improving the comfort of an undergarment. The comfort device includes an adhesive layer and a padding layer. The padding layer comprises one or more sub-padding layers and embossing to hold the sub-padding layers together. The padding layer also includes a plurality of scallops disposed around the edge.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the disclosure will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
a through 4d illustrate various shapes of a comfort device according to some embodiments of the present invention;
a and 5b illustrate a comfort device being used to improve the comfort of a bra according to some embodiments of the invention;
a and 6b illustrate a comfort device being used to improve the comfort of underwear according to some embodiments of the invention; and
Example embodiments are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Many different forms and embodiments are possible without deviating from the spirit and teachings of this disclosure and so the disclosure should not be construed as limited to the example embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art. In the drawings, the sizes and relative sizes of layers and regions may be exaggerated for clarity.
It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. Thus, a first element discussed below could be termed a second element without departing from the teachings of the disclosure.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular example embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one skilled in the art to which this disclosure pertains. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.
Referring to
The bra 10 may also include underwires 11. The underwires 11 are typically sewn into the material of the bra 10 below the cups 16. The underwires 11 are generally made from either metal or a stiff plastic so as to provide rigid support for the bra 10. Often the underwires 11 include some type of cap over the ends of the underwires 11 to minimize the occurrence of the underwires penetrating the material of the bra 10. However, even when this precaution is taken, the underwires 11 can still penetrate the material of the bra 10 and cause discomfort to the wearer. The most common area of the bra 10 for the underwires 11 to break through is under the arm of the wearer, as shown by regions A in
The underwear 20 typically includes a waistband 22 and a tag 24. The waistband 22 generally includes an elastic material to hold the underwear 20 in place on the wearer. The tag 24 typically includes information concerning the construction of the underwear 20 and use and care instructions. The tag 24 may be made from a different material than the remainder of the underwear 20 and may be a source of irritation or discomfort to the wearer.
A person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the bra 10 and underwear 20 may be made from various materials and in various colors. As an example, the bra 10 may be made mostly from cotton, polyester, silk, satin, lycra, lace, bamboo fibers, and the like, but may also include some type of cushion or padding material in the cups 16. The underwear 20 may be made almost entirely from a single material such as cotton, polyester, silk, satin, lycra, lace, bamboo fibers, and the like. The bra 10 and underwear 20 may be, for example, white, pink, beige, black, or combinations of any colors or patterns. Additionally, the underwear may include any type of embellishment or design.
Any portion of the bra 10 and/or the underwear 20 can cause discomfort to the wearer. The extent of this discomfort depends on many factors including, for example, the proportions of the wearer, the construction of the undergarment, the material from which the undergarment is made, the process of manufacture of the undergarment, and/or the wear state of the undergarment. Currently, a wearer has few options for relieving this discomfort other than hiring a seamstress to correct the problem causing the discomfort or discarding the undergarment.
Referring to
The adhesive layer 32 may comprise any type of adhesive that is suitable for adhering the comfort device 30 to fabrics that are used to make undergarments and/or to adhere to the adhesive layer 32 to itself. The adhesive should have sufficient adhesive strength such that the comfort device 30 is maintained in position during use. But, the adhesive strength should also be low enough that the comfort device 30 can be removed from the undergarment after use, for example, prior to washing the undergarment, without damage to the undergarment. According to some embodiments, the adhesive layer 32 may comprise fabric hook-and-loop fasteners, such as Velcro®.
The padding layer 34 may be made from a material that is soft to the touch and/or a material that is absorbent. As an example, the padding layer 34 may include cotton. The padding layer 34 may include one or more additives. The additives may include a skin moisturizer, such as aloe vera, an antiperspirant, an antibiotic, a scent-release chemical, and/or a topical analgesic. These additives may, among other things, improve the condition of the wearer's skin, minimize perspiration, treat skin rashes/irritation, and/or emit a pleasant fragrance. Also, the padding layer 34 may be hypo-allergenic to minimize the occurrence of allergic reactions by the user.
Referring to
a through 4d illustrate various shapes of a comfort device according to some embodiments of the present invention.
Referring to
The adhesive layer 32 may extend across a substantially entire surface of the comfort device 30 or the adhesive layer 32 may cover only a portion of the surface of the comfort device 30. As an example, when the comfort device 30 has a rectangular shape, the adhesive layer 32 may only cover end portions of the comfort device 30. As a further example, when the comfort device 30 has an ‘H’ shape, the adhesive layer 32 may be disposed only on the protruding portions of the ‘H’. In this case, when the comfort device 30 is used, the protruding portions may adhere to each other, but not the undergarment, such that the comfort device 30 may be re-positioned on the undergarment by, for example, sliding along a strap.
a and 5b illustrate a comfort device being used to improve the comfort of a bra according to some embodiments of the invention.
Referring to
a and 6b illustrate a comfort device being used to improve the comfort of underwear according to some embodiments of the invention.
Referring to
Referring to
According to embodiments of the invention, undergarments can be easily and inexpensively modified to improve the comfort of the wearer. Also, undergarments that have become worn over time can be modified using a comfort device as an alternative to discarding the undergarments.
Although the invention has been described with reference to women's undergarments, and specifically bras and underwear, a person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that embodiments of the invention are also applicable to men's undergarments and other types of women's undergarments such as camisoles, slips, body shapers, and the like. For example, men's underwear also typically include a tag which may be a source of discomfort for the wearer. Consequently, a comfort device according to embodiments of the invention could be used to alleviate this discomfort.
The foregoing is illustrative of the invention and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although a few example embodiments of the invention have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the example embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.
