Apparel – Body garments
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-19
2001-08-28
Lindsey, Rodney (Department: 3765)
Apparel
Body garments
C002S079000, C002S115000, C002S275000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06279161
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates to clothing apparel, and in particular to a garments with hidden sublayer materials under seams strategically located over body muscles, tendons, and joints, where the sublayer(s) only become visible and vary in size when the muscles, tendons, and joints are flexed, bent or moved, causing an animation effect of the muscles, tendons and joints.
BACKGROUND AND PRIOR ART
Full body type garments with stretchable type seams have been used that allow users to wear body hugging clothes during activities such as athletics, exercising, and the like. See for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,554,361 to Ettien et al and 3,771,169 to Edmund. However, these types of garments are generally limited to vertical seams usually placed adjacent and under armpit areas, along and down the inside of leg areas and the like, that are intended to remain primarily out of sight.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,801,987 to Thompson, Jr. and 5,608,913 to Lacoste each provide ventilation and stretchable type seams beneath the armpit areas. These patents generally are intended to continuously hide their seams and only use the seams to allow the garments to stretch over the body during physical activities.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,040,245 to Staley describes an undergarment having vertically oriented and always externally visible stretchable panels in the thigh area that allow the user a conforming fit.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,817,053 to Zerk and 4,282,609 to Freedman et al. each describe stretchable hosiery having varying colored portions that are primarily used for forming a slimming appearance when being worn, with the dark(colored) portions always being visible.
Italian patent 375,712 and French patent 1,007,746 to Thierfelder show additional hosiery having stretchable panels that are always visible when being worn.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,708 to Fujimoto describes wearing articles using various stretchable panels that generally extend over “muscle fibers”, abstract. However, the panels are always externally visible, and the wearing articles are for “achieving a taping function”, abstract.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,000,989 to Donaldson describes a lower body garment formed from plural and always visible stretchable materials each attached to another material at different orientations allowing the garment to stretch while the wearer is bending and stretching.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,033,127 to Schmeltz describes transformable clothing that can be adjustably lengthened as needed.
None of the patents cited above allow for hidden sublayers beneath seams strategically located over selected body muscles, tendons and joints that only become visible when the muscles, tendons and joints are flexed, bent, and moved.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The first objective of the present invention is to provide a garment having a hidden sublayer material beneath a seam that is strategically located over a muscle that becomes visible to vary in dimension and size when the muscle is flexed.
The second object of this invention is to provide a garment having a hidden sublayer material beneath a seam that is strategically located over a joint that becomes visible to vary in dimension and size when the joint is being bent.
The third object of this invention is to provide a garment having a hidden sublayer material beneath a seam that is strategically located over a tendon that only becomes visible to vary in dimension and size when the tendon is moved.
The fourth object of this invention is to provide a garment having a surface portion that appears to animate an underlying muscle being flexed.
The fifth object of this invention is to provide a garment having a surface portion that appears to animate an underlying joint being bent.
The sixth object of this invention is to provide a garment having a surface portion that appears to animate an underlying tendon being moved.
A preferred embodiment of the invention includes methods and apparel for causing animation effects of muscles, tendons and joints with body garments. The invention includes garments having strategically located seams positioned over various muscles, tendons and/or body joints. Each closely oriented seam is connected to the other by being sewn to an underlying elastic material having a different color than that of the garment's exterior surface. Alternatively, each of the seams can be formed from chemically or other technically produced fabric that has a designated stretch and non-stretch areas engineered for selected locations. When the muscle, tendon and/or joint is flexed and bent the underlying material appears in varying dimensions mimicking that of the muscle, tendon and joint so as to cause an animation effect when viewed from another person looking at the garment. The body muscles can include side thigh muscles, calf muscles, arm muscles, and the like, and combinations, thereof. The body joint can include the knee, kneecap, elbow, shoulder, wrist, hip, ankle, and the like. The novel seams can be positioned in various arrangements such as angled slits parallel to one another running down along the sides of the wearer's thigh and calf areas.
REFERENCES:
patent: 890792 (1908-06-01), Peine
patent: 1817053 (1931-11-01), Zerk
patent: 2000898 (1935-05-01), Donaldson
patent: 2554361 (1951-05-01), Ettien et al.
patent: 3771169 (1973-11-01), Edmund
patent: 3801987 (1974-04-01), Thompson, Jr.
patent: 4282609 (1981-08-01), Freedman et al.
patent: 4282728 (1981-08-01), Tapp et al.
patent: 4625336 (1986-12-01), Derderian
patent: 5033127 (1991-07-01), Schmeltz
patent: 5040245 (1991-08-01), Staley
patent: 5109546 (1992-05-01), Dicker
patent: 5282277 (1994-02-01), Onozawa
patent: 5367708 (1994-11-01), Fuhimoto
patent: 5608913 (1997-03-01), LaCoste
patent: 5737772 (1998-04-01), Dicker et al.
patent: 1007746 (1952-02-01), None
patent: 2557436 (1985-05-01), None
patent: 375712 (1939-10-01), None
Law Offices of Brian S. Steinberger
Lindsey Rodney
Steinberger Brian S.
LandOfFree
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