Apparel – Guard or protector
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-09
2001-10-23
Calvert, John J. (Department: 3765)
Apparel
Guard or protector
C002S022000, C002S463000, C002S464000, C002S465000, C002S467000, C128S882000, C602S061000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06305031
ABSTRACT:
THIS INVENTION concerns an appliance for protection against impact and strain injury and is particularly intended to prevent such injuries to sports people.
In certain sports, such as football for example, players are particularly vulnerable to injury of the lower leg including bruised lower shins, swelling of the softer muscle tissue on the inner shin, bruised ankles, abrasions to the calves and rear of the leg and swelling or bruising to the Achilles tendon. Many of these injuries occur as a result of impact but also muscle and tendon strain.
Conventional injury prevention means in general include such as elasticated sleeves adapted to be applied over joints or sensitive areas of the body, and devices known as shin pads i.e. one-piece rigid shields which are worn, for example, beneath a football sock. Existing shin-pad designs, whilst effective to a degree, offer a limited level of protection against many of the aforesaid types of injury. One weakness of the standard shin pad is that as a result of a head-on or side-on impact, the pad tends to slip around the lower leg beneath the sock and thus does not provide sufficient impact resistance.
The present invention is concerned with providing a protective appliance which conforms closely to the shape of a body part and which affords adequate impact resistance whilst maintaining its position in use. A further object of the present device is to ensure that the force of an impact is distributed throughout the appliance thus minimising localised bruising.
Commensurate with affording adequate protection, the wearer must retain complete freedom of movement so as not to impair physical performance and also to ensure that muscle injury due to unnatural movement or restraint, does not occur.
According to the present invention, an appliance for protection against impact and strain injury, includes a flexible web or sleeve adapted to be worn about a part of the body and to conform closely to the shape thereof, and a plurality of interconnected rigid plates attached to or adapted to be attached to the web or sleeve such as to permit limited relative movement between the plates.
The web or sleeve may be of continuous tubular form throughout its length, or alternatively, a plurality of longitudinally-spaced straps to be applied about the body to secure the rigid plates, or a panel being part of an item of sports clothing.
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patent: 6098208 (2000-08-01), Carden
Armadillo Sports Design Limited
Calvert John J.
Mangels Alfred J.
Patel Tejash
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