Toolster system and dock-it pockets

Abstract

The tool carrier system has a tool belt, an apron and a plurality of tool carrier pockets. The tool belt fits over the waist and thigh of the user to distribute the weight of the tools carried therein. The apron is fitted over the waist of the user in a similar manner as the tool belt. Both the tool belt and the apron are lined with U-loop lining. The system has a plurality of pockets and accessory casings that may be mounted onto either the belt or the apron by Velcro. The pockets may also be mounted on a work area for storage or display. The system may also include a cover for the tool belt to protect the tools and prevent tools from getting caught or being dropped from the tool belt.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to tool belts and related accessories.

2. Description of Related Art

Workers of many trades use tool belts to conveniently carrying tools during a task. A tool belt allows the user to take just the necessary tools without carrying around a heavy tool box. Homeowners also find tool belts useful for house repairs and gardening tasks.

Examples of prior art tool belts may be found in U.S. Pat. 507, 106 of Lyle, U.S. Pat. D496787 of Cabrera et al. and D510,480 of McCarter. As an alternative, a tool pouch may be mounted onto a belt as shown in U.S. Pat. D482,524. However, previous tool belts and tool pouches are bulky and may cause back strain because they allow the weight of the tools to pull towards one side of the body. There is also the risk of dropping a tool that gets caught while entering a tight space or going up a ladder.

The system of the present invention overcomes the aforementioned problems by distributing the weight so as to avoid back strain. The system further provides the option of covering the tools to protect them and prevent dropping a tool.

Other benefits of the present invention are its low weight and versatility.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises a belt panel shaped to include a waist fitting portion, a thigh fitting portion and a tool carrier support portion. A plurality of tool carrier pockets of different sizes may be mounted onto the carrier support portion. The combination of the waist fitting portion and the thigh fitting portion serves to securely fit the device while distributing the weight of the tools mounted thereon to prevent back strain.

The invention further comprises accessory carriers which may be used to hold personal items such as a pair of glasses or a cellular phone and a stealth cover to protect the tools.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is described in detail below with reference to the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the tool belt of the present invention worn by a user (FIG. 2 of Ser. No. 10/866,856).

FIG. 2 is a front view of the tool belt of the present invention (FIG. 1 of Ser. No. 10/866,856).

FIG. 3 is a front view of the belt panel of the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows an alternate embodiment of the system provided with two symmetrically positioned thigh fitting portions (FIG. 5 of Ser. No. 10/866,856).

FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of the alternate embodiment of the present invention worn by a person (FIG. 6 of Ser. No. 10/866,856).

FIG. 6 shows the use of the carrier pockets onto the belt panel (new).

FIG. 7 shows the exemplary use of the carrier pocket mounted on a work table (new).

FIG. 8 shows the use of the stealth cover of the present invention (new).

FIG. 9 shows the back side of the stealth cover(new).

FIG. 10 shows an alternate embodiment in the system in the form of an apron or mini tool belt.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The system of the present invention includes a tool belt, an apron or mini tool belt and a plurality of pockets and accessory cases which may be selectively mounted in either of the tool belt or the apron, as needed.

The tool belt of the system starts with a belt panel 1, shown in FIG. 3. The material selected for the belt panel is a lightweight, breathable and washable fabric such as Nylon. The belt panel is lined on the exterior with medical grade Neoprene and SBR U-loop. The upper portion of the belt panel 1 forms a waist fitting portion 2 provided on one end with Velcro for fitting the belt onto the user's waist. The lower portion of the belt panel 1 forms a thigh fitting portion 3 having one end provided with Velcro 4 to securely fit the belt panel onto the user's thigh. FIG. 1 shows the tool belt worn by a user. An alternate embodiment has thigh fitting portions 3a and 3b for both legs of the user, as shown in FIG. 5.

In order to properly fit the belt panel, the user must first lay out the belt panel. Holding the waist panel by both ends of the waist fitting portion, the user positions the end with U-loop onto the side of the body and locks onto it the end with Velcro such that the belt panel is fit snugly onto the user's waist. The user then holds both ends of the thigh fitting portion, positioning the end lined with u-loop on the interior of the thigh and locking onto it the end with Velcro to securely fit the thigh fitting portion. Combining the waist fitting portion with at least one thigh fitting portion results in a fit which not only distributes the weight of the system to avoid back strain but keeps tools closer to the body. The system may be offered in different sizes or, due to the flexibility of the belt panel and strength of the Velcro locking mechanism, it may be offered as a one-size fits all.

The apron or mini-toolbelt 5, shown in FIG. 10, is similar in construction and material to the tool belt. It is of shorter length, preferable from waist to hip, and the upper portion forms a waist fitting portion with Velcro 6 to properly secure the apron in position. The apron panel is also lined on the exterior with medical grade Neoprene and SBR U-loop.

The system includes a plurality of tool carrier pockets 7 of different shapes and sizes, as shown in FIG. 1. Each pocket may be provided with loops 8 or recesses 9 for holding at least one tool such as a hammer or screwdriver. A pocket 7 may include a recess with a closure, such as a zipper 10, to carry nails or other small items safely.

The pockets 7 are made of a material similar to the belt panel and apron panel, and the back side 11 is conveniently provided with Velcro 12 for selectively mounting the pocket(s) onto either of the belt panel 1 or the apron panel 5, as desired. This way, the user may store items relating to different tasks onto separate pockets and later mount only the needed tool sets to carry on the tool belt or apron.

As shown in FIG. 7, the Velcro 12 provided on the pockets also allows the versatility of mounting the pockets onto another surface for storage or display. The pockets, referred to as Dock-it Pockets, help sort tools and may be used to organize a work or storage area. Dock-it pockets may be mounted on a work bench, a school locker, craft area, waitress station, nurse station, garage wall, etc.

Alternately, a main pocket may be permanently secured to the belt panel and/or apron panel and additional pockets may be removably mounted on the belt panel by the user, as desired.

Accessory casings 13 of different shapes and sizes provided with Velcro 14 on their back side for mounting on the belt panel 1. The accessory casings may serve for holding personal items such as a pair of safety glasses or sunglasses, a cellular phone, writing/marking implements, etc. Similar to the pockets, the accessory casings may be mounted onto other surfaces for storage or display.

The tool belt may also include a stealth cover in the form of a fabric panel 15 outlined with Velcro 16 to allow mounting said cover over the carrier support portion to protect the tools. This helps prevent dropping a tool while entering a tight space, going into the crawling space of a residence, under a car, or going up a ladder. The cover 15 may be selectively mounted over the carrier support portion or the top edge of the cover may be permanently secured to the belt panel 1 so that the cover 15 may be rolled up or down to a selected length.

The material for the accessory carriers and the fabric for belt panel 1, the cover 15, the apron panel 5 and the pockets 7 may be selected in a plurality of colors and patterns to provide the user with a variety of choices. By providing different color options, the user would be able to sort tools for different tasks by color. For example, gardening tools may be held in a green pocket while painting tools are held in a blue pocket. Also, multiple users sharing the system may establish a color coding system to distinguish each person's items.

The system of the present invention may be customized to many tasks and trades. The system may be used by homeowners, mechanics, HVAC technicians, carpenters, plumbers, waiters/waitresses, nurses, gardeners and other similar trades.

While the present invention has been shown and described herein in what are conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is recognized that departures, modifications, adaptations, variations and alterations in the described methods and systems may be made and will be apparent to those skilled in the art of the foregoing description which does not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention which is therefore not to be limited to the details herein.

For this reason, such changes are desired to be included within the scope of the appended claims. The descriptive manner which is employed for setting forth the embodiments should be interpreted as illustrative but not limitative of the full scope of the claims which embrace any and all equivalents thereto.

Claims

1. A tool carrier comprising: a pocket having: a front side having at least one of the group comprising of a recess, a loop, a casing and a zippered compartment; and a back side provided with Velcro, thereby being configured to be mounted onto a U-loop lined surface.

2. In combination, the tool carrier recited in claim 1 and a tool belt system comprising: a panel lined with Velcro-compatible U-loop lining, said panel including a waist fitting portion with means to lock said panel onto the user's waist, wherein said carrier is selectively mounted onto said panel to thereby carry at least one tool.

3. In combination, the tool carrier system recited in claim 1 and a work area comprising: at least one piece of Velcro-compatible U-loop lining secured to a predetermined location within the work area, whereby said carrier is selectively mounted onto said piece of lining.