Foundation garments – Breast or chest – e.g. – brassieres – With stiffening strips – strands – or stays – e.g. – wired
Reexamination Certificate
1999-07-29
2001-02-13
Hale, Gloria M. (Department: 3741)
Foundation garments
Breast or chest, e.g., brassieres
With stiffening strips, strands, or stays, e.g., wired
C450S051000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06186862
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a brassiere underwire having an extended sewing flange along the outer side of the underwire and to a brassiere having such underwires supporting the cups thereof.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Brassiere underwires have been provided heretofore in a variety of configurations (see especially U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,201,220; 4,153,062; 4,133,316; 3,562,802 and 3,035,584).
In all of these publications, underwires are described which are of substantially uniform cross section and thickness over the entire length of the generally U-shaped underwire from tip to tip thereof.
Brassiere underwires form stays which impart, shape to or retain the shape of the cup of the brassiere and are generally received in a tubular fabric formation along the lower edge of the cup. That tubular formation or pocket can be formed by stitching. To prevent undesired movement of the underwire stay, it is known to form the stay with sewing flanges which can easily be pierced by a sewing needle and which allow the stay to be fixed in that tubular pocket. Reference can be had, in this regard, to U.S. Pat. No. 4,235,240 which provides such sewing flanges both along the inner and outer sides of the U-shaped underwire or forms the sewing flange so that it extends over the entire length of the underwire. Neither arrangement has been found to be fully satisfactory. The flanges on both the inner and outer sides of the underwire, even where flexibility is promoted by notching those flanges or making them discontinuous, have been found to make the underwire incapable of bending out of its plane to a sufficient degree and where the flanges extend to the tips of the underwire, the underwire has proved to be uncomfortable to the wearer. For that reason, sewing flanges along the underwire have not been found to be acceptable heretofore.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is, therefore, the principal object of the present invention to provide an underwire which is free from the drawbacks of underwires having flanges on the inner and outer sides of the wire or flanges which extend to the tips thereof and hence render the underwire excessively stiff and incapable of conforming to the contours of the body.
Another object of the invention is to provide an underwire which can be effectively stitched into a brassiere and yet is free from the drawbacks of the earlier underwires described.
It is also an object of this invention to provide an improved brassiere of the underwire type.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
These objects and others which will become apparent hereinafter are attained, in accordance with the invention in an underwire which is generally U-shaped, is formed with a sewing flange along the bight and is spaced from the ends of the wire and is thinner than the wire from which is projects and wherein that sewing flange is tapered inwardly toward each wire end.
According to a feature of the invention, the underwire, which is free from sewing flanges or discontinuities along the inner side thereof, has its sewing flange so formed that it is of greater flexibility at approximately the center of the sewing flange. The greater flexibility can be achieved by one or more holes formed in the flexible zone at the center of the sewing flange and/or by making the sewing flange narrower at this central zone.
More particularly, an underwire stay for a brassiere can comprise a generally U-shaped wire of substantially uniform thickness and width having ends formed with rounded tips and a curved bight between the ends, and a sewing flange thinner than the wire and projecting outwardly from the bight over a portion of the length of the wire spaced from the tips, extending continuously along the bight and tapering tangentially to the ends, the wire having a continuously curved inner edge.
A brassiere provided with such underwires can comprise:
a pair of brassiere cups interconnected at a front of the brassiere and provided with straps for supporting the brassiere cups, each of the cups being formed with a respective tubular sleeve beneath the respective cup;
a respective underwire stay received in each of the sleeves, each of the underwire stays comprising a generally U-shaped wire of substantially uniform thickness and width having ends formed with rounded tips and a curved bight between the ends, and a sewing flange thinner than the wire and projecting outwardly from the bight over a portion of the length of the wire spaced from the tips, extending continuously along the bight and tapering tangentially to the ends, the wire having a continuously curved inner edge; and
stitching through each of the sewing flanges securing each sewing flange to secure each underwire stay to the respective cup.
When the underwires are formed integrally from a synthetic resin material, both the wire and the flange are provided in one piece, e.g. from a polyamide. Alternatively, the wire can have a metal core covered by a plastic sheath and, in that case, the flange is formed unitarily with the plastic sheath.
REFERENCES:
patent: 1474190 (1923-11-01), Fox
patent: 3030633 (1962-04-01), Chalfin
patent: 3035584 (1962-05-01), Menkel
patent: 3531807 (1970-10-01), Devito
patent: 3562802 (1971-02-01), Avis
patent: 3747606 (1973-07-01), Tareau
patent: 4133316 (1979-01-01), Schwartz
patent: 4153062 (1979-05-01), Delet
patent: 4201220 (1980-05-01), Rowell
patent: 4235240 (1980-11-01), Cousins
Dubno Herbert
Hale Gloria M.
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