BACKGROUND
Traditional clothing available for toddlers and young children is designed to be reworn and requires frequent laundering since children of this age typically soil their clothing during play. Clothing can also be readily damaged during play, rendering the item no longer wearable. The present invention addresses these issues by disclosing disposable or minimally reusable clothing for toddlers and young children. The disposable clothing can be worn over another outfit, and is ideally inexpensive to manufacture. The clothing should also be durable, water-resistant and flame-resistant.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,240,561 discloses disposable infant wear garments. These are made of non-woven fabric, with the body of each garment designed in one main piece for minimal seams.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,931,115 discloses a low cost process for the molding of plastic clothing. The clothing can be stored on rolls or in flat packs prior to use, and can be removed by tearing an individual garment along the perforations provided.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,378,136 discloses a disposable gown; U.S. Pat. No. 6,458,116 discloses a process for making disposable pants; U.S. Pat. No. 6,412,115 discloses a lightweight disposable protective cover all garment.
Various patents disclose methods of producing disposable surgical gowns. U.S. Pat. No. 6,117,800 discloses a surgical gown material. The material is designed to be impermeable to liquid and viral contaminants. It has a core having one side overlaid with a microdenier polyester fabric, and an opposite side overlaid with a knitted polyester fabric. The core is comprised of two layers of microporous urethane film bonded to each other with a layer of breathable, urethane adhesive.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,564,386 discloses a disposable surgical gown with a back closure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,653 discloses a surgical gown with a liquid impermeable elastic laminate.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,167,731 discloses a disposable surgical gown and a method for producing single-ply knitted wrist cuffs.
The previous references are relevant to the extent that they disclose various methods and processes for producing disposable clothing. However, these patents are not unique to producing disposable play clothing designed for toddlers and young children, which is the subject of the present invention.
SUMMARY
Traditional clothing for toddlers and young children often becomes soiled during play, requiring frequent laundering, which is both costly and time consuming. It is therefore an object of the present invention to disclose a method and process for producing, inexpensive, disposable garments for toddlers and young children. The garment disclosed in the present invention will ideally be fabricated from a non-woven fabric, which is considerable less expensive than woven fabrics. The garment can either be worn by itself, or worn over another outfit. The garment is meant to be disposable after a single use. However, it can be re-worn to a limited extent. Since the garment will most likely be used during play, the material used for fabrication should be durable and abrasion resistant. The material should also be wrinkle resistant, flame resistant, and relatively impermeable to water. Polyester will be the material of choice since it possesses these desirable characteristics.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1A is a front view of a pattern cut-out of the first disposable jump suit garment, according to one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 1B is a pattern cut-out of the disposable jump suit garment in FIG. 1A of the present invention, demonstrating the form of the garment prior to folding to create the final garment, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2A is a front view of the pattern cut-out of the second disposable jump suit garment, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2B is a back view of the disposable jump suit garment in FIG. 2A, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3A is a front view of the pattern cut-out of the third disposable jump suit garment, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3B is a back view of the disposable jump suit garment in FIG. 3A, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4A is a front view of a pattern cut-out of the fourth disposable jump suit garment, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4B is a back view of the disposable jump suit garment in FIG. 4A, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5A is a front and back view of the pattern cut-out of disposable pants or shorts, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5B is a pattern cut-out of the disposable garment in FIG. 5A of the present invention, demonstrating the form of the garment prior to folding to create the final garment, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6A is a front and back view of a pattern cut-out of a disposable shirt, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6B is a pattern cut-out of the disposable garment in FIG. 6A of the present invention, demonstrating the form of the garment prior to folding to create the final garment, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
FIG. 1A is a front view of the pattern cut-out of the first jump suit according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The jump suit may be either worn by itself, or over other clothing. This garment, as well as those additional garments to be disclosed according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, will be ideally fabricated from a non-woven fabric, such as polyester. This and other garments to be disclosed are meant to be disposable or minimally re-usable.
In one embodiment, the jump suit illustrated in FIG. 1A is a put on by stepping into one leg of the garment at a time, and then fastening the shoulder straps 105 and 110. By way of example, shoulder strap 105 is shown fastened by a button, and shoulder strap 110 is tied. Alternatively, Velcro may be used to secure the shoulder straps. The body of the garment 100 and the legs 115 are designed to be sufficiently loose to fit over other clothing.
The dashed lines show the seams that require sewing during manufacture. In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1B, the garment can be manufactured as a single piece that can be folded along seam 135 to create the front and back of the garment. This has the advantage of reducing the amount of sewing, and consequently the cost, required to manufacture the finished garment. Therefore, sewing is only required along the outer seam 120, and inner seam 125.
FIG. 2A is a front view of the pattern cut-out of the second disposable jump suit, and FIG. 2B shows the back view of the same garment, according to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The jump suit consists of the body 200, collar 205, arms 210, arm cuffs 215, legs 220, and leg cuffs 225. The arm and leg cuffs are shown with ribbing. There is a front opening 230. The garment is donned with the front opening 230 in the open configuration. The front opening is closed (preferable with Velcro) after the garment has been put on. Alternatively, an adhesive material may be applied to the seam 250 of front opening 230. Said adhesive material could be initially covered with a thin, removable plastic strip. When closing front opening 230, the adhesive covering is removed and the two flaps are opened. With pressure, the adhesive maintains the flaps of front opening 230 together in a closed position.
The garment disclosed in FIGS. 2A and 2B could require more sewing to complete the finished garment than the first jump suit disclosed in FIGS. 1A and 1B. The dashed lines depict the seams that require sewing. The arms are created by folding the garment over on itself since the front and back of the garment can be manufactured as a single piece, and then sewing seam 235. The manufacture of the garment is completed by sewing out seam 240, inner seam 250, and the collar with seam 245.
FIGS. 3A and 3B disclose the pattern cut-out for the third disposable jump suit, according to one exemplary embodiment. The jump suit is similar to the second jump suit disclosed in FIGS. 2A and 2B, with the exception of the hand and foot sections 310 and 315, respectively. These sections enclose the hands and feet for added warmth. The seams to be sewn are indicated by dashed lines, as before. Additional seams are required to enclose hand and foot sections 310 and 315. The front opening 320 is closed in a similar manner to the front opening disclosed in FIG. 2A.
FIGS. 4A and 4B disclose the pattern cut-out for the fourth disposable jump suit, according to one exemplary embodiment. This design is similar to the previous designs disclosed, according to the present invention, with the exception that the sleeves 405 and pant legs 415 are designed to be shorter than the respective extremity. Outer folds 425 and 435 are shown on the arm and pant legs.
FIGS. 5 and 6 disclose the pattern cut-out of a disposable, two-piece outfit, according to one exemplary embodiment. FIG. 5A discloses the shorts. The shorts consist of the main body 500, legs 530, and waist 510. By way of example, waist 510 may contain an elastic material or a cord for closure. Fold 505 is provided on the legs 530. FIG. 5B discloses the initial pattern cut-out for the shorts depicted in FIG. 5A. The pattern folded at seam 535, and the remaining seams are closed by sewing. Manufacturing the unit as a single piece reduces the amount of sewing, and therefore the cost, of the finished product.
FIGS. 6A and 6B disclose the shirt that can be worn with the shorts depicted in FIGS. 5A and 5B, according to one exemplary embodiment. The shirt contains short sleeves, and slips over the head, pancho-style. FIG. 6B depicts the initial configuration of the shirt during the manufacturing process. The unit is folded along line 620, with the remaining seams closed by sewing. As in FIG. 5, this reduces the amount of sewing required to complete the finished product.
While the preferred embodiment with various alternative embodiments of the invention have been disclosed and described in detail herein, it may be apparent to those departing from the spirit and scope thereof.
Patent Application
20180338546
