Apparel – Guard or protector
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-01
2001-10-16
Calvert, John J. (Department: 3765)
Apparel
Guard or protector
C002S267000, C002S022000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06301722
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of pads and padding and more particularly, to the field of pads and padding primarily intended for use with sports gear and accessories to provide protection for athletes.
2. Discussion of the Background
Most pads and padding are presently not integrated (or at least not easily integrated) into sports gear and accessories. For example, tapes for athletic use currently consist primarily of single layer, bandage-type tapes that are wound around or applied over various parts of the athlete's body. In a common application, the tape may be wound around an ankle or wrist to provide additional support and to help restrict or limit the movement or flexure of the joint to avoid injury or further injury to it. Smaller pieces of such bandage-type tape may also be used to hold protective pads in place over various parts of the athlete's body. Depending upon the particular application and desires of the athlete, such tapes may be elastic to move and stretch with the athlete's movements or may be inelastic to provide restricting support and protection. Regardless, such prior tapes are normally not designed to additionally act or serve as protective pads and padding in and of themselves. Similarly, other sports gear and accessories such as jerseys, pants, kneepads, elbow pads, and the like are presently not easily adaptable to act or serve as protective pads and padding in and of themselves.
With this in mind, the present invention was developed to offer many of the advantages and simplicity of current sports gear and accessories but with the additional advantage of incorporating protective pads and padding. Further, the pads and padding of the present invention do so in an overall design that is very porous and breathable and will help to keep the athlete dry and cool in use.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention involves flexible pads primarily intended for use as protective padding for athletes and other users. The pad technology of the present invention can be easily integrated into nearly all sports gear and accessories. In one preferred embodiment, the pads include two, outer layers of substantially inelastic material spaced apart by a middle section of discrete beads of substantially elastic, resilient material. Adjacent beads of the middle section preferably abut one another and are integrally joined (e.g., glued or fused) to each other. Similarly, the outer layers of the pad contact adjacent beads of the middle section sandwiched therebetween and are joined to them. In this manner, the joined beads and outer layers form an integral, strong pad. In the specific application of the pad technology to make a tape, the padded tape can be used in most applications like conventional tapes yet will additionally provide protective padding for the athlete or other user.
The outer layers of the pads are preferably porous and breathable and made of waterproof (i.e., non-absorbent) material such as woven, non-woven or knitted polyester or polypropylene. The resilient beads are preferably made of waterproof (i.e., non-absorbent) material such as closed-cell, polypropylene or polyethylene foam, blends of polypropylene and polyethylene foams, or rubberized polypropylene and/or polyethylene foams). Consequently, moisture and air will readily pass through the assembled pads but will not be absorbed by any of the component layers or beads. The pads will also help to keep the athlete cool and dry in use and can be washed and dried for re-use if desired.
The middle section of beads can have one or more sublayers of beads of the same or different sizes, shapes, densities, and materials depending upon the desired application. When adapted for use as a tape, the outer surfaces of the pad layers can be coated with pressure sensitive adhesives for ease of use. The pads of the present invention can be used with hard, outer shells if desired. Further, although the beads of the present invention are preferably integrally joined to each other to add integrity to the pads, adjacent beads can be unjoined and/or spaced apart and still function effectively in certain situations as protective padding for the athlete or other user. In still other applications, the outer layers of the pads can be made of elastic, stretchable material if desired. Also, in many applications such as jerseys and pants, the sports gear or accessory can be made entirely of the padded structure of the present invention.
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Bainbridge David W.
Nickerson L. Paul
Brock USA, LLC
Calvert John J.
Carson W. Scott
Patel Tejosh
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