The present invention relates generally to hand coverings such as gloves used to insulate or otherwise separate contact of the surface of the fingers of a user, with an object being touched thereby. More particularly, the invention relates to a glove device which is configured for easy ingress and egress which provides a partial covering for a plurality of fingers of a user. The glove device is configured to self support itself in a position rendering it easily engaged to the fingers of a user.
Gloves and finger protection have been used by men and women alike for hundreds of years. In some cases, gloves are employed as covering for the entire hand to protect the wearer from cold, or heat, or moisture, or other environmental conditions, which are uncomfortable to the hand over extended durations of time. Gloves are also employed by users to form a protective barrier to the exterior surface of fingers of a user where such users anticipate contact by their fingers with dirt, grime, food, chemicals, excessive heat, electrical conductors, excessive cold, and for other reasons where one would wish to, or be required to, maintain separation of the surface of a user's fingers, from what is being touched.
However, the use of gloves conventionally requires the time-consuming engagement of each of the individual fingers of the hand, along with the palm of the hand, within the glove itself. Such can be frustrating for example in the case of tight plastic or polymeric gloves, and for tight fitting fabric gloves. Further, there are many occasions where the wearing of gloves to shield fingers from a surface, or enhance the grip of fingers with such a surface, requires more time to engage the gloves, than the temporary contact, by a plurality of fingers with the anticipated surface, is worth.
Such can occur regularly, for example, for a person working with fasteners, such as nuts and bolts, where they wish to momentarily shield one or more fingers from contact with a nut or bolt, but also wish to be able to quickly remove the glove. This is because, despite their protective ability from heat and cold and grease and grime, gloves also inhibit the sense of touch of the fingers of the wearer. Such inhabitancy can be good where contact with an object is overly cold or hot or greasy. However, the loss of this sense is a problem where the user needs to feel a surface or use fine motor skills which require their cognizance, or feel of what they are touching.
The device herein disclosed provides a finger covering glove device which is configured in a fashion, enabling a wearer to easily cover portions of fingers extending to their distal ends of plurality of fingers quickly, and only when needed. The disclosed device is also configured to allow the user to also quickly and easily disengage the covering from their fingers. Still further, the glove device herein is configured to allow the user to only cover the individual fingers of the user anticipated for use in manipulating the object of choice, thereby leaving the remaining fingers employable for use where a sensitive sense of touch may be required.
The forgoing examples of related art, as to finger and hand coverings, such as gloves, and the limitations related therewith are intended to be illustrative and not exclusive, and they do not imply any limitations on the invention described and claimed herein. Various limitations of the related art will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading and understanding of the specification below and the accompanying drawings.
The glove device herein disclosed and described provides a solution to the shortcomings in prior art with regard to finger and hand covering glove devices.
The glove device herein features a glove body having a finger covering assembly, formed of a plurality of finger covering sections extending from a palm shield at a first end of the glove body. The finger covering sections are elongated and adapted for positioning upon a support surface in a fashion which maintains the openings communicating through the palm shield with the finger-engageable covering sections in an upright and expanded configuration. Such holds the openings of each of the plurality of finger covering sections, adapted for easy passage of fingers of a user, into and out of the axial cavity of each respective finger covering section.
In all modes of the disclosed device the plurality of covering sections forming the assembly, are operatively connected with each other at a first end of the body of the glove device, in a fashion configured to maintain each opening in the finger covering communicating with each respective covering section, in an expanded configuration. Such allows for ingress and egress of fingers of the user through the respective opening in the palm shield into and out of the axial passages of each of the covering sections. While shown in the drawings as covering a length on the fingers extending from the distal ends of fingers toward the palm of the hand, that length and resulting axial passage for covering the chosen number in the plurality of fingers can vary, and be longer or shorter as needed.
The glove assembly formed features a body having a plurality of finger covering sections extending from a palm shield located at a first end of the glove body. Each of the chosen plurality of finger covering sections is molded into a spaced positioning from the other finger covering sections, and each extends from the palm shield. Both the palm shield of the glove body and the plurality of finger covering sections may be formed as a unitary structure, such as by injection molding or blow molding or the like.
A polymeric or woven, or knitted or non woven material forming each covering section, and body of the glove assembly itself, can be formed in a fashion to yield a skeletal structure. It is also anticipated the device may be formed of paper, waxed-paper or coated woven or unwoven material such as a coated scrim of fabric paper or the like. This skeletal structure maintains a configuration of the body of the glove assembly which is upright and easily engaged and thereby adapted for easy use.
Alternatively, a skeletal or position-fixing structure may be operatively connected with each of the formed finger covering sections in the finger covering glove assembly. This skeletal structure may be a separate structure and operatively engaged with each of the plurality of finger covering sections of the body of the glove assembly defining the device, such as by adhesive or co-molding.
This skeletal or position-maintaining structure may also be formed of a polymeric or other material which is rigidly elastic. So formed, the skeletal structure can connect with each of the elongated finger covering sections in a biased engagement which all of the plurality of finger coverings in the body of the glove assembly. This forms the body of the device with the finger covering sections extending from the palm shield at the first end of the body of the device, by default in an expanded configuration. As can be discerned, in this expanded configuration, the glove device is configured for unencumbered insertion of the fingers of the user, through the plurality of openings in the palm shield section of the body, and directly into each of the axial cavities within each of the plurality of covering sections in the glove assembly. Once so inserted, each of the covering sections surrounding a respective finger or thumb of the user is easily moved and compressed toward a contact with the exterior surface of an object to be gripped. As also can be discerned, forming each device in this expanded configuration allows for stacking of a plurality of such devices engaged with each other.
Each of the covering sections in the plurality forming a finger covering assembly, may be customized in its configuration. While the glove body may be made from paper, coated paper or the like, woven, non woven, or other material which is flexible and elastic, currently forming the palm shield and covering sections of a polymeric or plastic material is preferred. However, it is anticipated that depending on the use, that the device can be configured of other materials such as tissue paper or coated paper or a polymeric coated scrim or the like. Each of the chosen number in the plurality of covering sections extending from the palm shield of the body of the device, may have interior surface areas which are formed of material which is thicker than sections of the body opposite the interior surface area which may be thicker. Alternatively, the interior surface forming the covering sections might be thinner than that of the exterior, for instances such as where heat may be present in the area surrounding an object, but a tactile sense of feel is more desirable during gripping of the object.
Additionally, portions of the covering sections can have areas which are thicker or otherwise configured to provide an insulation from the object to be touched, such as a hot, cold, object or one having electric current.
With respect to the above description, before explaining at least one preferred embodiment of the herein disclosed invention in detail, it is to be understood that the finger covering assembly formed of a plurality of covering sections is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangement of the components in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention herein described is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways which will be obvious to those skilled in the art. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception upon which this disclosure is based may readily be utilized as a basis for designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present disclosed finger covering assembly system and method. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent construction and methodology insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
It is an object of this invention, to provide a glove device which is easily engaged with, and disengaged from a plurality of digits of the first hand of a user, without the need of using the second hand of the user to pull the finger coverings onto the fingers.
It is a further object of this invention to provide such a glove device, which is formed with a plurality covering sections for a plurality of fingers, where the covering sections support the body of the glove device upright on a support surface with openings to the covering sections expanded.
It is yet another object of this invention, to provide such a glove device, which is stackable by insertion of a plurality of glove devices into adjacent such glove devices to form a stack, where each glove device at a top of the stack, is positioned for one handed easy engagement of the fingers of the user therein.
Additional objects features, and advantages of the present invention, as well as the advantages thereof over existing prior art, which will become apparent from the description to follow, are accomplished by the improvements described in this specification and hereinafter described in the following detailed description which fully discloses the invention, but should not be considered as placing limitations thereon.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and form a part of the specification, illustrate some, but not the only or exclusive, examples of embodiments and/or features. It is intended that the embodiments and figures disclosed herein are to be considered illustrative rather than limiting.
In the drawings:
Other aspects of the present invention shall be more readily understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, and the following detailed description, neither of which should be considered limiting.
In this description, the directional prepositions of up, upwardly, down, downwardly, front, back, top, upper, bottom, lower, left, right and other such terms refer to the device as it is oriented and appears in the drawings and are used for convenience only; they are not intended to be limiting or to imply that the device has to be used or positioned in any particular orientation.
Now referring to drawings in
Such self supporting on the plurality of extended finger coverings 14 in all modes of the device 10, is accomplished by forming the body 11 of the device 10 and the sidewalls 36 of the plurality of finger coverings 14 extending away from the first end 13 of the body 11, of a material and structure and number, which define a plurality of hollow support members adapted to hold and maintain the first end of the body 11, elevated above a support surface 19, and holding both the openings 12 and the axial cavities 17 of each covering section 14, in an expanded configuration. This forms the device 10 in a manner adapted for easy one-handed engagement of fingers 16 of one hand of the user, into the respective axial cavity 17, of each respective covering section 14, with the hollow covering sections 14 defining support members which concurrently holding the first end 13 of the body 11 with the openings 12 enlarged, elevated above the support surface.
Such a one-handed engagement, which is available in all modes of the device 10 in all drawings herein, is depicted in
The depicted variance in length shown in this longer mode of the device 10, while shown with a plurality of three fingers 16 covered with covering sections 14, in all modes herein could be formed with any number of a plurality of covering sections 14 to cover any number of fingers of the user. In all such modes of the device 10 herein, the length of projection of the covering sections 14 may be varied for the task or situation of anticipated use of the glove device 10. With the longer lengths of such covering sections 14, the palm shield 15 is preferred to shield the palm of the user during use, and to provide a layer of the body 11 though which the openings 12 communicate and are held in registered positions separated from each other.
A skeletal structure 18 may be provided to hold the openings 12 open and operatively spaced from each other, and to engage and hold each of the covering sections 14 to the formed body 11 which as in other modes includes a plurality of such covering sections 14 projecting from the first end 13 and a plurality of space openings 12 for one-handed engagement of the fingers 16 therethrough. This skeletal structure 18 may be formed as part of a unitary mode of the device 10 by for example co-molding of the body 11, or it may be operatively engaged with each of the plurality of covering sections 14 employed with the body 11 of the device 10 such as with adhesive or insertion into passages formed in the sidewalls 36 defining the conduit-like covering sections 14. Such skeletal structure 18 may be employed with any mode of the device 10 herein and in the mode with the shorter covering sections 14 of
This skeletal structure 18, may also be formed of a rigid yet elastic material, which, when engaged with each of the covering sections 14, will impart a resistive bias with each of the covering sections 14 of the body 11 of the device 10 to form the device 10 in an expanded configuration, adapted for insertion of the fingers 16 of the user through the openings 12 in each covering section 14.
With the fingers of the user so inserted, the user may compress each of the covering sections 14 toward a common center area therebetween, to grip an object within a finger-forced contact of each of the covering sections 14 therewith. When the wearer is done gripping or holding the object between the compressed contact of the plurality of covering sections 14, relaxing the fingers 16 will allow the skeletal structure 18 engaged with each of the covering sections 14 to return them to the expanded configuration such as in
Also shown in
A rib 30 is formed and surround the entire perimeter edge of the palm shield 15 portion at the first end 13 of the body 11. This rib 30 originally had planar surfaces on a top and bottom which worked well, but it was found during experimentation that when the rib is formed with a curved circumference or at least formed with curved surfaces on a top and bottom surface of the rib 30 where stacked ribs 30 will contact, when the devices 10 are placed in a stack as in
This enhanced separation was also provided by the formation of a gap 35 between adjacent palm shields 15 of adjacent devices 10 in the stack 32 as well as a minimizing in contact between the ribs 30 on adjacent devices 10 in the stack 32. This gap 35 between the palm shields 15 is caused by the thickness D1 of the rib 30 exceeding the thickness D2 of the palm shield 15 portion of the body 11 as shown for example in
Further, when engaged on the hand of the user as in
The curved or rounded rib 30 provided this enhanced may be solid, hollow, or formed by a curving of the perimeter edge of the palm shield 15 portion of the body 11 during formation. In experimentation this circular perimeter edge, or curved edge of the rib 30, running along the perimeter edge of the palm shield 15 portion of the body 11, at the first end 13 of the body 11, was also found to provide a skeletal structure which helps maintain the openings 12 expanded.
As shown in
It should be noted and anticipated that although the finger covering having a plurality of finger covering sections herein is shown in its most simple form, various components and aspects of the device may be differently shaped or slightly modified when forming the invention herein. As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate the descriptions and depictions set forth in this disclosure or merely meant to portray examples of preferred modes within the overall scope and intent of the invention, and are not to be considered limiting in any manner.
While all of the fundamental characteristics and features of the finger covering invention have been shown and described herein, with reference to particular embodiments thereof, a latitude of modification, various changes and substitutions are intended in the foregoing disclosure and it will be apparent that in some instances, some features of the invention may be employed without a corresponding use of other features without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth. It should also be understood that various substitutions, modifications, and variations may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Consequently, all such modifications and variations and substitutions are included within the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/432,470 filed on Dec. 9, 2017 which is incorporated herein in its entirety by this reference thereto.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
342341 | Edwards | May 1886 | A |
408912 | Chesterton | Aug 1889 | A |
1416001 | Detwiler | May 1922 | A |
1990553 | Koffler et al. | Feb 1935 | A |
2471308 | Casnati | May 1949 | A |
D231513 | Adams | Apr 1974 | S |
5749097 | Garrett-Roe | May 1998 | A |
6145128 | Suzuki | Nov 2000 | A |
D558929 | Bleakney | Jan 2008 | S |
D634898 | Lion | Mar 2011 | S |
D724272 | Nielson | Mar 2015 | S |
D831896 | Krahe | Oct 2018 | S |
10136686 | Savides | Nov 2018 | B2 |
D849360 | Lugar | May 2019 | S |
20140028039 | Rampersad | Jan 2014 | A1 |
20150189930 | Roth | Jul 2015 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
2626444 | Aug 1989 | FR |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20180199643 A1 | Jul 2018 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
62432470 | Dec 2016 | US |