Patent Grant
12254790
The present disclosure relates generally to systems and methods for providing a patch. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a patch hangtag.
Hangtags are commonly attached to a product in order to convey information about that product, such as the price of the product, size of the product, names, logos, information regarding relevant promotions, the manufacture of the product, and the composition of the product. It is very common to find hangtags on products that are made out of fabric, such as clothing, outerwear, apparel, outdoor gear items.
Patches can be used for repairing tears or cuts in fabrics. Traditionally, patches used to repair tears or cuts in fabrics have been made from relatively heavy woven fabrics and have been sewn or stitched onto an item to repair it. Sewing or stitching patches onto certain items can weaken or otherwise degrade the item depending on the material that the item is made from. As such, self-adhesive patches have also been used to mend items that are made out of certain fabrics and materials. Self-adhesive patches may include an adhesive on one side of the patch, protected by a backing layer.
This disclosure relates to a system for increasing the life of an outerwear garment. In some embodiments, systems may include an outerwear garment having an outer layer formed of a first material, and a hangtag that is attachable to the garment. The hangtag may include a patch made of the first material. The patch may be used for covering a hole, blemish, or imperfection, or other damage formed in the outer layer of the outerwear garment. The first material may include any suitable outdoor gear fabric and, in one configuration, could be denier nylon ripstop, etc.
This disclosure is also related to a method for extending the use of, for example, an outdoor gear item. This method may include providing the outdoor gear item (e.g., providing the gear item for sale) with a hangtag attachable to the outdoor gear item. In some embodiments, the hangtag includes a patch for repairing a hole formed in the outdoor gear item.
This disclosure is also related to a kit for an outdoor gear item. This kit may include the outdoor gear item and a hangtag removably attached to the outdoor gear item. The hangtag may include a patch for covering a hole formed in the piece of outdoor gear. The outdoor gear item may include one of a sleeping bag, a tent, a jacket, and a stuff sack.
In other aspects, benefits of the patches and/or hangtags for the patches include decorative and/or embellishment purposes. This allows a user to take an old garment and make it more stylish, or renew/update the look of the garment with a patch. The patch can also make the garment unique to the owner, allowing greater customization and creative expression.
Patches (either on a hangtag or applied to a garment) can additionally be used to transmit information, such as letters, words, numbers, QR codes, designs, symbols, patterns. This is beneficial in many ways, such as collecting end user data, complete life cycle analysis of products, advertising, tracking garments within the supply chain, locating and retrieving lost and found gear, listing military rank, etc.
The drawings are illustrative and not limiting of the scope of the invention which is defined by the appended claims. The various elements of the invention accomplish various aspects and objects of the invention. Not every element of the invention can be clearly displayed in a single drawing, and as such not every drawing shows each element of the invention. The components in the drawings are not necessarily to scale relative to each other. Like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.
The following provides a detailed description of particular embodiments of the present invention. Reference will now be made to the drawings in which the various elements of the illustrated configurations will be given numerical designations and in which the invention will be discussed to enable one skilled in the art to make and use the invention. The description is only exemplary of the principles of the present invention, and should not be viewed as narrowing the scope of the claims which follow, which claims define the full scope of the invention.
The present disclosure relates generally to systems for providing a patch. The system for providing a patch may comprise a patch hangtag, which may comprise a hangtag with a patch attached, connected, or coupled thereto.
Referring to
The gear item 20 may comprise any number of articles or items that comprise woven materials or fabrics and/or non-woven materials or fabrics, such as garments, apparel, clothing, purses, backpacks, bags, tents, sleeping bags, inflatable sleeping pads, inflatable mattresses, stuff sacks, other outdoor gear items, and the like. The gear item 20 may comprise an outer layer that is made out of a first material 25, which may be a fabric (e.g., woven or non-woven material). The first material 25 may comprise any number of materials depending on the intended use thereof, including but not limited to nylon (denier nylon ripstop), polyester, and polyethylene-based fabrics. For example, in some embodiments, the first material 25 can include nylon, ripstop nylon, ripstop fabrics, polyester, polyester blends, canvas, waterproofed fabric, merino wool, polartec polyester, Cordura, fleece, linen, canvas, cotton, Spandex waterproofed non-woven fabric, polyethylene-based fabrics, polyurethane-based fabrics, Gortex®, and/or combinations thereof.
In some embodiments, the gear item 20 and/or the outer layer of the gear item may comprise a second material 27. In some embodiments, the second material is different than the first material. In some embodiments, the second material can include elastic or stretchy materials, nylon, ripstop nylon, ripstop fabrics, polyester, polyester blends, canvas, waterproofed fabric, waterproofed non-woven fabric, polyethylene-based fabrics, polyurethane-based fabrics, Gortex®, and/or combinations thereof.
Referring to
In some embodiments, the hangtag 30 includes a body 35 having a first surface 37 for receiving the patch 50. In some embodiments, the body 35 may comprise a wax liner or wax-like material to facilitate removal of the patch 50 from the hangtag 30. In this way, the hangtag 30 may act as a backing material that holds the patch 50 and prevents any adhesive on the patch 50 from drying out or otherwise losing its adhesive properties until the patch 50 is removed from the hangtag 30. In some embodiments, the first surface 37 comprises the wax liner or wax-like material. In some embodiments, the body 35 and/or the first surface 37 is split or constructed from one or more pieces. Such multi-piece construction can facilitate easy removal of the patch 50 from the body 35, the first surface 37, and/or the hangtag 30.
A user can peel a first piece away from the patch 50 (or, alternatively, the patch 50 can be pulled away from the first piece) and place a first exposed portion of the patch 50 on, for example, the gear item 20. Once the patch has been positioned on the gear item 20, the user can then remove a second piece from the patch 50 (providing a second exposed portion of the patch 50) to completely secure the patch 50 to the gear item 20. In this way, the user can ensure the patch 50 is properly aligned over the damage, hole, etc. of the gear item 20 before finally securing the patch 50 to the gear item 20.
In some embodiments, the patch 50 can also have a front cover material, such as a clear plastic, to protect the front of the patch. Or, to reduce packaging, no front cover may be provided. Patch 50 may be made out of, or otherwise comprise, the first material 25 that the outer layer of the gear item 20 comprises, or a material that is substantially similar to the first material 25. In some embodiments, the patch 50 may comprise an adhesive patch that may be reversibly adhered to a first surface 37 of the hangtag 30. Any suitable patch 50, such as the patch described in U.S. Patent Publication 2018/0264781 (now U.S. Pat. No. 11,298,916), which is entirely incorporated by reference, can be used. The patch 50 may also comprise fabric (e.g., woven, non-woven, synthetic fabrics, etc.) opposite the adhesive, where the adhesive may be thicker than the fabric. In some embodiments, a thickness of the fabric of the patch 50 may range from approximately 0.001 to 0.01 inches, such as 0.0015, 0.002, 0.003, 0.004, 0.005, 0.006, 0.007, 0.009 inches, or a thickness within a range defined by any two of the foregoing values.
In some embodiments, the QR code or other type of scannable barcode may direct a user to company data information, like a hiking trail map or a ski area boundary trail map, and direct customers to data with the use of, for example, a smartphone. Additionally, QR code or other type of scannable barcode may hold lost and found address information within a computer database to help users locate lost gear and garments.
In some embodiments, the QR code or other type of scannable barcode may direct a manufacturing user to data such as repair, warranty and life cycle data on how long the product lasts. This may allow a manufacturer to design higher quality gear and garments after determining what lasts longest with the trackable QR codes.
Referring back to
Referring again to
The tag 300 As shown in
The tag 300 may further comprise instructions for using the patch 350 on the hangtag 330. Instructions for applying the patch 350 to a gear item may include at least one of: cleaning a damaged area of a gear item with isopropyl alcohol; removing loose threads from the gear item; peeling patch 350 from hangtag 330; centering patch 350 over the damaged area of the gear item and applying the patch from its center out to its edges; tumble drying the gear item on LOW for a certain period of time (e.g. between 5 and 20 minutes) or warming the patch with a hair-dryer or other similar apparatus; and pressing down on the patch 350 over the gear item with moderate pressure in circular motion for a certain period of time (e.g. between 10 seconds and 2 minutes). The tag 300 and/or the hangtag 330 can include information and data useful to the consumer on all sides of the tag 300 and/or the hangtag 300.
As shown in
In some embodiments, the patch 350a is the same material as the patch 350b, allowing a user to cover and repair multiple blemishes in the same gear item. In some embodiments, such as illustrated in
Companies that offer the system 10 for providing a patch as described above may achieve various significant benefits, including obtaining greater brand visibility without the need to manufacture significantly more packaging than industry standard hangtags. By extending the life and use of various gear items, use of system 10 may also help to reduce the amount of textile products in landfills and reduce the carbon emissions associated with returns from warranty and repair claims by providing an elegant repair solution to more conveniently remedy rips, tares, and snags.
Other benefits of the patches and/or hang tags for the patches include decorative and/or embellishment purposes. This allows a user to take an old garment and make it more stylish, or renew the look with a patch. The patch can also make the garment unique to the owner.
Patches could be used to transmit information, such as letters, words, numbers, QR codes, designs, symbols, patterns. This is beneficial in many ways, such as collecting end user data, complete life cycle analysis of products, advertising, tracking garments within the supply chain, locating and retrieving lost and found gear, listing military rank, etc.
Throughout this description, various aspects discussed in one drawing may be present and/or used in conjunction with the embodiment shown in another drawing, and each element shown in multiple drawings may be discussed only once. The described features, structures, or characteristics of configurations of the invention may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more configurations. In some cases, detailed description of well-known items or repeated description of substantially the same configurations may be omitted. This facilitates the understanding of those skilled in the art by avoiding an unnecessarily redundant description. All statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the invention, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.
Reference in the specification to “one configuration” “one embodiment,” “a configuration” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the configuration is included in at least one configuration, but is not a requirement that such feature, structure or characteristic be present in any particular configuration unless expressly set forth in the claims as being present. The appearances of the phrase “in one configuration” in various places may not necessarily limit the inclusion of a particular element of the invention to a single configuration, rather the element may be included in other or all configurations discussed herein.
As used in this specification and the appended claims, singular forms such as “a,” “an,” and “the” may include the plural unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a patch” may include one or more of such patches, and reference to “the hangtag” may include reference to one or more of such hangtags.
As used herein, the term “generally” refers to something that is more of the designated adjective than not, or the converse if used in the negative. As used herein, the term “about” is used to provide flexibility to a numerical range endpoint by providing that a given value may be “a little above” or “a little below” the endpoint while still accomplishing the function associated with the range, for example, “about” may be within 10% of the given number or given range. As used herein, a plurality of items, structural elements, compositional elements, and/or materials may be presented in a common list for convenience. However, these lists should be construed as though each member of the list is individually identified as a separate and unique member.
Numerical data may be expressed or presented herein in a range format. It is to be understood that such a range format is used merely for convenience and brevity and thus should be interpreted flexibly to include not only the numerical values explicitly recited as the limits of the range, but also to include all the individual numerical values or sub-ranges encompassed within that range as if each numerical value and sub-range is explicitly recited. As an illustration, a numerical range of “about 5 to about 60” should be interpreted to include not only the explicitly recited values of about 1 to about 5, but also include individual values and sub-ranges within the indicated range. Thus, included in this numerical range are individual values such as 6, 7, 8, 9, etc., through 60, and sub-ranges such as from 10-20, from 30-40, and from 50-60, etc., as well as each number individually. This same principle applies to ranges reciting only one numerical value as a minimum or a maximum. Furthermore, such an interpretation should apply regardless of the breadth of the range or the characteristics being described. Additionally, the words “attached,” “connected,” and “coupled” are used throughout for clarity of the description and can include either a direct connection or an indirect connection.
While methods are described herein in discrete steps in a particular order for the sake of clarity, the steps do not require a particular order and more than one step may be performed at the same time. For example, a later step may begin before earlier step completes. Or, a later step may be completed before an earlier step is started.
Although the foregoing disclosure provides many specifics, such as use of the system with a garment, it will be appreciated that other items of gear, such as tents, sleeping bags, other items of clothing, etc., are contemplated and these should not be construed as limiting the scope of any of the ensuing claims. Other embodiments and configurations may be devised which do not depart from the scopes of the claims. Features from different embodiments and configurations may be employed separately or in combination. Accordingly, all additions, deletions and modifications to the disclosed subject matter that fall within the scopes of the claims are to be embraced thereby. The scope of each claim is indicated and limited only by its plain language and the full scope of available legal equivalents to its elements.
Furthermore, if any references have been made to patents and printed publications throughout this disclosure, each of these references and printed publications are individually incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
The present application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/330,048, filed on Apr. 12, 2022, the entire contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7373749 | Lewis | May 2008 | B1 |
| 20060080752 | Darling | Apr 2006 | A1 |
| 20080263919 | Halliday | Oct 2008 | A1 |
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| 20220108633 | Bruno | Apr 2022 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20230326375 A1 | Oct 2023 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63330048 | Apr 2022 | US |
