Apparel – Body garments – Shirts
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-09
2001-06-26
Vanatta, Amy B. (Department: 3765)
Apparel
Body garments
Shirts
C002S123000, C002S159000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06249916
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to cuff constructions, and in particular to cuff constructions for garments and the like which provide an opening for the thumb of the wearer to extend outside the cuff.
2. Description of the Related Art
Cuffs are well known in the art of clothing manufacture. Almost every article of clothing has a cuff of some sort at the opening through which a person's hand is extended. These cuffs come in many forms, such as button closing cuffs and elastic band closing cuff, but the main function of these cuffs is merely to seal the clothing around the arm of the wearer and not to cover the hands. Thus, people would commonly pull the sleeves of the garment over the hand to provide a makeshift covering to protect the hands. This would distort the garment and make the hands unavailable to perform a variety of tasks.
In the past various modified cuffs have been devised. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,756,027 issued to Buenos et al. on Jul. 12, 1988 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,117 issued to Buenos et al. on Jun. 30, 1992 disclose a cuff construction with a panel for entirely covering the finger and thumb of the hand like a mitten.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,359,784 issued to Harrington on Nov. 23, 1982 discloses a sleeve-mitten combination for enclosing the entire hand, fingers and thumb of the wearer in a tubular structure formed at the end of a sleeve.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,138,717 issued to Tolton on Aug. 18, 1992 discloses an athletic garment having a “piston and cylinder” cuff arrangement to furnish the wearer with an extra five to six inches of cuff extension without having the sleeve ride-up the arm of the wearer. The sleeve arrangement does not cover any portion of the hand of the wearer.
However, none of the cuffs of the past provide protection to the hands and which permits the wearer to retain a normal sense of touch and full use of the hand. It would be advantageous if a cuff provided a covering for the hands of the wearer that allows at least a portion of the thumb and/or the fingers to be exposed so that the wearer's sense of touch is not unimpeded by the presence of a hand covering.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a cuff construction for covering at least a portion of the hand which provides the additional function of providing an opening for the thumb and/or the fingers of the wearer to extend to the outside of the cuff, that conveniently stored within the cuff and out of the way when not in use.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a cuff for a garment sleeve having an improved construction for providing a covering for the hand which allows at least a portion of the fingers to be exposed to the exterior of the cuff and at least one readily accessible opening permitting at least a portion of the thumb to extend outside the cuff. The cuff construction of the present invention allows the wearer's sense of touch in the fingers and thumb to remain unimpeded by the cuff such that the ability to conduct athletic and other activities with the hand for which dexterity and the sense of touch are important are not impaired.
In the preferred embodiment, the cuff construction of the present invention comprises a tubular member having a side wall and one end secured to the distal end of a sleeve and which is capable of extending to at least the knuckle area of the hand where the fingers meet the hand of the wearer. The free end of the tubular member provides an opening for the fingers of the hand. The tubular member has a second opening in the side wall for the thumb to pass through. The thumb opening may be in communication with a thumb sheath secured to the tubular member at the second opening in the side wall. The thumb sheath covers at least a portion of the wearer's thumb and has a free end which allows at least a tip of the thumb to extend therethrough.
The tubular member is switchable from a first rolled position to a second unrolled position. In the first rolled position, the tubular member is folded back forming an opening through which the wearer's hand extends uncovered as in a normal cuff. In the second unrolled, or in use position, the tubular member is unfolded away from the sleeve, revealing the opening for the thumb and extending over the hand of the wearer to a position near the knuckle area of the hand. In this manner a substantial portion of the wearer's hand is covered and protected by the cuff and kept warm, while the thumb and the fingers of the hand remain exposed to the exterior of the cuff such that the sense of touch of the wearer is unimpeded and the full use of the hand is possible.
The cuff construction of the present invention may be incorporated in any long sleeved garments, such as but not limited to, sweatshirts, sweaters, coats, jackets, and the like. The cuff construction of the present invention may be made of an elastic ribbed material commonly used in the manufacturing of conventional cuffs or may be made of the same material as the garment in which the cuff is incorporated.
OBJECTS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide an improved cuff construction for a garment.
It is another object of the invention to provide an improved hand covering which does not impede the wearer's sense of touch at the fingers and thumb.
It is another object of the invention to provide an improved covering for the hands.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a cuff construction which includes a covering for a portion of the hands which is an integral part of the cuff.
It is still a further object of the invention to provide a garment construction including a covering for at least a portion of the wearer's hand, which is stored in the cuff of the garment.
It is yet another object of the invention is to provide a garment construction in which a hand covering is integrally formed with the garment cuff.
These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent from a review of the accompanying drawings and the detailed description of the drawings.
REFERENCES:
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patent: 5913408 (1999-06-01), Shanahan
Mellon Charles B.
Mellon Mark A.
Handcuffs, Inc.
Martin & Ferraro LLP
Vanatta Amy B.
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