Patent Application
20250194700
The present disclosure relates to clothing. In particular, the present disclosure relates to a collar design for a tactical shirt and a tactical shirt with such a collar.
Tactical clothing is often designed to the specific needs of a tactical environment, including being compatible with the accessories often worn in a tactical environment. Such accessories may include body armor or plate carriers.
The systems, methods and devices described herein have innovative aspects, no single one of which is indispensable or solely responsible for their desirable attributes. Without limiting the scope of the claims, some of the advantageous features will now be summarized.
An aspect of the present disclosure involves a tactical shirt including a body having a neck opening. A collar surrounds the neck opening. The collar defines a width between a first edge located at the neck opening and a second free edge. The collar includes a front portion and a rear portion. A maximum width of the rear portion is at least 1.8 times a maximum width of the front portion. The collar also includes a first transition between the front portion and the rear portion on a first side of the collar, and a second transition between the front portion and the rear portion on a second side of the collar. The second free edge of the collar defines a first collar point at the first transition and a second collar point at the second transition. The first collar point and the second collar point are spaced apart from one another in a standing orientation of the collar
In some configurations, the rear portion is foldable to define a folded orientation of the collar.
In some configurations, in the folded orientation, a lateral distance between the first collar point and the second collar point defines a maximum width of collar.
In some configurations, in the standing orientation, a lateral distance between the first collar point and the second collar point is at least 50 percent of a maximum width of the collar.
In some configurations, the collar is formed by a single piece of fabric.
In some configurations, the single piece of fabric is folded with a folded edge defining the second free edge of the collar.
In some configurations, a maximum stretch direction of the single piece of fabric is in a circumferential direction of the collar.
In some configurations, each of the first and second transitions includes a corner between the front portion and a respective one of the first and second transitions.
In some configurations, each of the first and second transitions is limited to no more than about 10% of an overall circumference of the collar.
In some configurations, the maximum width of the rear portion is at least about 2 inches.
In some configurations, the maximum width of the rear portion is between 2-2.5 inches.
In some configurations, a maximum depth of the front portion as measured from a base of the collar at an intersection with a top edge of a shoulder of the tactical shirt is less than or equal to about 8 inches, less than or equal to about 7 inches, or less than or equal to about 6.5 inches.
In some configurations, the maximum depth of the front portion is between about 4-7 inches, or between about 4.75-6.5 inches.
In some configurations, the front portion includes a right side and a left side.
In some configurations, the right side and the left side are coupled at a front center of the collar.
In some configurations, end portions of the right side and the left side overlap one another.
An aspect of the present disclosure involves a tactical shirt including a body having a neck opening and a collar that surrounds the neck opening. The collar defines a width between a first edge located at the neck opening and a second free edge. The collar includes a front portion, a rear portion, a first transition between the front portion and the rear portion on a first side of the collar, and a second transition between the front portion and the rear portion on a second side of the collar. The second free edge of the collar defines a first collar point at the first transition and a second collar point at the second transition. The rear portion is foldable from a standing orientation to a folded orientation of the collar. In a standing orientation of the collar, a lateral distance between the first collar point and the second collar point is at least 50 percent of a maximum width of the collar.
In some configurations, the neck opening defines a fixed circumference.
In some configurations, the lateral distance is at least 4 inches.
In some configurations, the collar is formed by a single piece of fabric.
The foregoing and other features of the present disclosure will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only several embodiments in accordance with the disclosure and are not to be considered limiting of its scope, the disclosure will be described with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings.
Embodiments of systems, components and methods of assembly and manufacture will now be described with reference to the accompanying figures, wherein like numerals refer to like or similar elements throughout. Although several embodiments, examples and illustrations are disclosed below, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the inventions described herein extends beyond the specifically disclosed embodiments, examples and illustrations, and can include other uses of the inventions and obvious modifications and equivalents thereof. The terminology used in the description presented herein is not intended to be interpreted in any limited or restrictive manner simply because it is being used in conjunction with a detailed description of certain specific embodiments of the inventions. In addition, embodiments of the inventions can comprise several novel features and no single feature is solely responsible for its desirable attributes or is essential to practicing the inventions herein described.
Certain terminology may be used in the following description for the purpose of reference only, and thus are not intended to be limiting. For example, terms such as “above” and “below” refer to directions in the drawings to which reference is made. Terms such as “front,” “back,” “left,” “right,” “rear,” and “side” describe the orientation and/or location of portions of the components or elements within a consistent but arbitrary frame of reference which is made clear by reference to the text and the associated drawings describing the components or elements under discussion. Moreover, terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” and so on may be used to describe separate components. Such terminology may include the words specifically mentioned above, derivatives thereof, and words of similar import.
It can be desirable for tactical clothing to meet the dual purpose of providing satisfactory performance in a tactical environment and providing a professional appearance in a nontactical environment. For example, tactical clothing should be compatible with gear and accessories used in a tactical environment (e.g., body armor or plate carriers). The accessories may be worn for a significant period of time and the tactical clothing should be comfortable for the user when such accessories are worn. However, because it is often worn in a professional environment by police and military, it is also desirable for tactical clothing to provide an appearance that is appropriate in an office or other professional environment.
With reference to
With further reference to
A perimeter edge or free edge 132 of the collar 110 defines a first collar point 130 at the first transition 120 on the first side of the collar 110 and a second collar point 130 at the second transition 122 on the second side of the collar 100, opposite the first side of the collar 110. Each of the transitions 120, 122 can have a folding collar width 134, which is a width of the foldable portion of the rear portion 114 of the collar 110 at least at the transitions 120, 122. The folding collar width 134 can be equivalent to the length of the free edge 132 in each transition 120, 122 between the front portion 112 and the rear portion 114 of the collar 110. In some configurations, the folding collar width 134 can be approximately one-half of a width of the collar 110 at the location of the respective transition 120, 122. In some configurations, each of the first and second transitions 120, 122 includes an inside corner between the front portion 112 and a respective one of the first and second transitions 120, 122. In such cases, each of the folding collar widths 134 is defined between the inside corner and the collar point 130 of the respective transition 120, 122. Preferably, the collar 110, including the transitions 120, 122, are symmetrical relative to a vertical centerline of the tactical shirt 100.
As described previously, the rear portion 114 of the collar 110 is foldable so that the collar 110 resembles a polo-type collar.
In some configurations, the collar 110 is formed by a single piece of fabric. The single piece of fabric is folded with a folded edge defining the perimeter edge or the free edge 132 of the collar 110. As indicated by the arrows in
In the illustrated arrangement, each of the transitions 120, 122 is a relatively sharp transition in contrast to a gradual transition. Thus, each of the transitions 120, 122 occurs over a limited span of the circumference of the collar 110. In some configurations, each of the first and second transitions 120, 122 is limited to no more than about 20%, no more than about 15%, no more than about 10%, or no more than about 5% of an overall circumference of the collar 110. In some configurations, each of the first and second transitions 120, 122 is limited to no more than about 1.5 inches, no more than about 1.0 inches, or no more than about 0.5 inches in the circumferential direction of the collar 110. Such an arrangement allows the collar 110 to create a dress collar or polo-style collar in the folded condition when the rear portion 114 is folded.
With reference to
In some configurations, a maximum depth 154 of the front portion 112 as measured from a base of the collar 110 at an intersection with a top edge of a shoulder of the tactical shirt 100 is less than or equal to about 9 inches, less than or equal to about 8 inches, less than or equal to about 7 inches, or less than or equal to about 6.5 inches. In some configurations, the maximum depth 154 of the front portion 112 is between about 4-9 inches, between about 4.25-8 inches, or between about 4.75-7.5 inches. A maximum depth 156 of the rear portion 114 as measured from the base of the collar 110 at an intersection with a top edge of a shoulder of the tactical shirt 100 can be less than or equal to about 3 inches, less than or equal to about 2 inches, or less than or equal to about 1-½ inches. In some configurations, the maximum depth 156 can be between about 0.5-3 inches, between about 0.5-2 inches, or between about five-eighths (⅝) inch and about one and one-half (1-½) inches. Such an arrangement can reduce or eliminate overlapping of the collar 110 with a tactical vest, plate carrier, or other body armor.
The collar 110 can be provided in several configurations and shapes. For example, the collar could be substantially circular in shape. However, in the illustrated configuration, the front portion 112 includes a right side and a left side that cooperate to form a V-shape. The right side and the left side are coupled at a front center of the collar 110. In the illustrated configuration, end portions of the right side and the left side overlap one another at the front center of the collar 110.
It should be emphasized that many variations and modifications may be made to the herein-described embodiments, the elements of which are to be understood as being among other acceptable examples. All such modifications and variations are intended to be included herein within the scope of this disclosure and protected by the following claims. Moreover, any of the steps described herein can be performed simultaneously or in an order different from the steps as ordered herein. Moreover, as should be apparent, the features and attributes of the specific embodiments disclosed herein may be combined in different ways to form additional embodiments, all of which fall within the scope of the present disclosure.
Conditional language used herein, such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might,” “may,” “e.g.,” and the like, unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certain embodiments include, while other embodiments do not include, certain features, elements and/or states. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements and/or states are in any way required for one or more embodiments or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with or without author input or prompting, whether these features, elements and/or states are included or are to be performed in any particular embodiment.
Moreover, the following terminology may have been used herein. The singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to an item includes reference to one or more items. The term “ones” refers to one, two, or more, and generally applies to the selection of some or all of a quantity. The term “plurality” refers to two or more of an item. The term “about” or “approximately” means that quantities, dimensions, sizes, formulations, parameters, shapes and other characteristics need not be exact, but may be approximated and/or larger or smaller, as desired, reflecting acceptable tolerances, conversion factors, rounding off, measurement error and the like and other factors known to those of skill in the art. The term “substantially” means that the recited characteristic, parameter, or value need not be achieved exactly, but that deviations or variations, including for example, tolerances, measurement error, measurement accuracy limitations and other factors known to those of skill in the art, may occur in amounts that do not preclude the effect the characteristic was intended to provide.
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 interpreted to include all of 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 1 to 5” should be interpreted to include not only the explicitly recited values of about 1 to about 5, but should also be interpreted to also include individual values and sub-ranges within the indicated range. Thus, included in this numerical range are individual values such as 2, 3 and 4 and sub-ranges such as “about 1 to about 3,” “about 2 to about 4” and “about 3 to about 5,” “1 to 3,” “2 to 4,” “3 to 5,” etc. This same principle applies to ranges reciting only one numerical value (e.g., “greater than about 1”) and should apply regardless of the breadth of the range or the characteristics being described. A plurality of items 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. Thus, no individual member of such list should be construed as a de facto equivalent of any other member of the same list solely based on their presentation in a common group without indications to the contrary. Furthermore, where the terms “and” and “or” are used in conjunction with a list of items, they are to be interpreted broadly, in that any one or more of the listed items may be used alone or in combination with other listed items. The term “alternatively” refers to selection of one of two or more alternatives, and is not intended to limit the selection to only those listed alternatives or to only one of the listed alternatives at a time, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63610900 | Dec 2023 | US |
