Patent Application
20100064407
The present disclosure relates to protective clothing. More particularly, this disclosure relates to a wearable protective garment including one or more layers that may allow a user to remove a contaminated or soiled layer without changing the whole garment.
Laborers and professionals in many industries are exposed to a variety of conditions that may soil or contaminate their clothing. For example, with each patient visit or procedure, health care workers may be exposed to various pathogens and contaminants that can soil and compromise the safety of their clothes. To avoid spreading the contaminants to other individuals or equipment, the worker would usually remove or discard the entire contaminated garment. The present disclosure relates to a protective garment or outerwear with one or more removable layers that may allow the user to remove a contaminated or soiled layer without changing the whole garment.
In one embodiment, the protective garment may be an overcoat, smock, gown or a lab coat of the type worn by doctors, scientists, technicians, laboratory workers and by other professionals in the medical and health care industries. In one embodiment, the protective garment may include one or more removable layers that may conform to the shape and fit of at least a portion of an underlying garment or a foundation garment. When the wearer of a protective garment, as disclosed herein, engages in an activity that may soil or contaminate one or more of the removable layers of the protective garment, the wearer may remove one or more layers from the protective garment and place it in the recycling, trash or laundry. In another embodiment, the protective garment may be a butcher's coat or other protective clothing, coat, pants, coveralls, lab coats, aprons, chaps and covers that may be used for industrial applications or in food preparation and processing. In one such embodiment, the protective garment disclosed herein may be used for general maintenance, painting, lead or asbestos cleanup, mold remediation, chemical application, pesticide/herbicide applications, radioactive cleanup, construction, automotive work, fiberglass installation, agriculture, environmental cleanup, sand blasting, forensics, woodworking, mining and cross-contamination prevention.
The protective garment, including the removable layers, can be constructed of one or more natural or synthetic materials. In one embodiment, the removable layers of the protective garment may be constructed from a lightweight and breathable material. In one embodiment, the protective garment is constructed of one or more of cotton, cotton polyester blend, polyester and nylon. In another embodiment, the protective garment is constructed of one or more washable, disposable or recyclable materials such as paper, plastic, vinyl, polypropylene or polyethylene. In one embodiment, the protective garment may include a foundation garment or underlying garment made of one material and one or more removable layers constructed of the same or of a different material. For example, a protective garment may include a cotton and/or polyester underlying garment with multiple removable layers constructed from paper, plastic, vinyl, polypropylene, polyethylene, or any other suitable woven or non-woven material.
The protective garment may be constructed of one or more materials selected according to the expected working conditions or a particular desired performance characteristic. In one embodiment, depending on the expected risk of chemical or fluid contamination, the underlying garment and/or one or more of the removable layers can be constructed of lightweight shear spun-bonded polypropylene. In another embodiment, where the risk of fluid contamination may be significant, one or more of the removable layers can be constructed from a water repellant material such as a flash-spun high density polyethylene, like Tyvek®, or polypropylene coated with polyethylene or breathable micro-porous polypropylene. In another embodiment, the underlying garment and/or one or more removable layers can include materials that incorporate antimicrobial agents or that have been treated with antimicrobial agents. For example, the underlying garment and/or one or more of the removable layers may be treated with, or include, an antimicrobial agent such as iodine, chlorine, silver oxide or silver nanoparticles.
The protective garment may include one or more removable layers that can be attached to an underlying garment or a foundation garment. In one embodiment, the removable layers can also be mechanically attached to the lab coat using such methods as, but not limited to, hook and loop fasteners, buttons, snaps, hook and eye fasteners or zippers. In another embodiment, the one or more removable layers may also be attached using a suitable adhesive, such as a low tack adhesive, adhesive film or tape.
In one embodiment, the protective garment may include one or more removable layers disposed on an underlying foundation garment configured as a whole coat. The underlying garment may comprise a back, front panels, chest pocket or pockets, waist pockets, front closures, sleeves and a collar with lapels. The underlying garment may be constructed, for example, using one of, or a combination of, cotton, cotton/polyester blend, polyester, nylon, plastic, vinyl, polyethylene, polypropylene or any other suitable material. In one embodiment, the one or more removable layers are configured to substantially conform to the shape of the underlying foundation garment and may include substantially all components of the foundation garment. In one embodiment, the removable layers may include a back, front panels, front opening, neck opening and sleeves. In one embodiment, the removable layers can be placed on the foundation garment. In one embodiment, the removable layers can be attached to the foundation garment using the front closure buttons on the foundation garment. In one embodiment, the removable layers can be attached to the foundation garment using such methods as adhesive, low-tack adhesive, hook and loop fasteners, hook and eye fasteners, buttons, snaps or zippers. In one embodiment, the removable layers can be attached to the foundation garment by mechanically press bonding the removable layers to the foundation garment.
A protective garment as disclosed herein may include a frame or support to which one or more removable layers may be attached. The frame may be used to reduce the bulk or weight of the protective garment. In one embodiment, the frame may include a shoulder, back and chest pieces. In one such embodiment, the frame or support may be similar to a half-vest and can include an attached collar, lapels and button strip. The frame or support can be constructed using a durable fabric such as a heavy weight cotton duck, polyester, or nylon. In another embodiment, the frame may be constructed of cotton, cotton polyester blend, polyester or nylon. In another embodiment, the frame or support may be stiffened using an underlayment material or by using battens stitched into the material. In one embodiment, the frame may also be a semi-rigid structure comprising rods or strips that may be configured to comfortably fit over the wearer's shoulders. The frame can be constructed of nylon, plastic or vinyl and may include attached fabric breast pieces for improved comfort and to support breast pockets as desired. In one embodiment, the removable layers may be attached to the frame using adhesive, low tack adhesive, adhesive film, tape or by mechanical means, such as but not limited to, hook and loop fasteners, buttons, snaps, hook and eye fasteners and zippers. In another embodiment, the removable layers may be attached to the frame using slots that engage a piping edge sewn or formed into the removable layers.
The protective garment may include an underlying garment that may be constructed as a coat or gown and may include removable layers that may include one or more removable panels. This can allow the wearer to remove one or more of the removable panels that may have been soiled or contaminated during a procedure or process. In one embodiment, the removable panels may be shaped to conform to the shape or a region of the underlying garment or foundation garment. In one embodiment, a protective garment may include removable panels that may be constructed as one or more of a collar/lapel panel, back panel, shoulder panels, breast panels, waist panels, sleeve panels, and pant leg panels. In one embodiment, the protective garment may include one or more removable sections that may directly engage or overlap the edges of one or more of any adjacent removable panel. In another embodiment, the protective garment may include one or more removable layers or removable panels that do not engage or overlap any adjacent removable layer or panel.
In one embodiment, the protective garment may be configured as a surgical gown or smock with removable layers covering at least a portion of the protective garment. In one such embodiment, the protective garment may include an underlying garment fashioned like a surgical gown with ties, for example, at the back, waist or neck, and include removable layers that may cover at least a portion of the protective garment such as the front and sleeves of the garment.
In another embodiment the protective garment can be constructed as an apron having removable layers. The apron may be worn by a butcher or others in food service or processing. This has the advantage of allowing a food handler to remove a layer anytime the apron may become soiled or if the handler, such as a butcher, leaves the processing area to interact with customers. A protective garment with removable layers which are substantially self adhesive may also be used with the protective garment as described herein. For example, the removable layers may be made from plastics, vinyl, and polyethylene products that can have inherently tacky characteristics that may adhere to another removable layer or the underlying garment. For example, spun-bonded polypropylene layers can be combined on a filament level by stacking individual sheets and subjecting the stack or bundle to pressure, causing an engagement to occur between the weave or individual filaments in the material. In one embodiment, the spun-bonded layers can be combined as sheets prior to cutting and placement on the underlying garment or frame. In another embodiment, the removable layers may be mated together and placed on a mandrel before press bonding the removable layers together. In one embodiment, the individual removable layers may include non-adhered regions or tabs, which can facilitate removal of the individual layers.
The protective garments as disclosed herein, may also be configured using multiple layers of dissimilar material designed to perform a specific function or designed around different stages in a procedure. In one embodiment, a protective garment, such as a surgeon's gown, may include an underlying layer with removable layers staged for steps in the surgery. For example, the topmost removable layer on a surgeon's gown may be a polyethylene coated polypropylene for waterproof protection, used during the initial stages of an operation, while the next layers may be spun-bonded polypropylene, or another lightweight and comfortable material, used during closing and post-op monitoring.
With reference to the figures, a protective garment, such as protective garment 100 shown in
As shown in
With reference to
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In another embodiment shown in
It will be obvious to those having skill in the art that many changes may be made to the details of the above-described embodiments without departing from the underlying principles of the invention. The scope of the present invention should, therefore, be determined only by the following claims.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61093944 | Sep 2008 | US |
