US2552177A - Protector - Google Patents

Description

May 8, 1951 A. P. HURT 2,552,177

PROTECTOR Filed March 14, 1949 INVENTO Ar fhur P Hur 1 ATTORNEY Patented May 8, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PROTECTOR Application March 14, 1949, Serial No. 81,283

Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in protectors of the kind adapted to be worn encircling the elbows or knees to prevent injury thereto while engaging in sports.

The principal object of this invention is the provision of a more comfortable and improved flexible protector, the fabric portion of which is formed from a single piece of elastic material.

The garments of this invention possess the advantages of having a seamless back and a minimum of other seams. They are garments easily adaptable to wide Variation in circumferential contour. They are economical to manufacture because of their unique production from flat material. These advantages will be explained in detail hereinafter.

The garments hitherto known which most nearly approach the garments of this invention have been of two types: one a very expensive garment having an integrally formed pocket of the type illustrated in British Patent #245,897 to Haywood Ltd. et a1., dated January 21, 1926, and the other of the type illustrated in U. S. Patent #2,188,718 to Jung in which a narrow selvaged material is joined at the back and fitted with an exterior patch pocket in front for padding. Such shaping as is done on the circumferential edges of such garments is done on the fabric machine. The garments of this invention may be formed from fabric blanks having selvage edges also, but the most economical and the preferred method of forming the edges of the fabric blank is by cutting. An additional economy may be realized by cutting fabric blanks from material having slight imperfections in such a way that the portion comprising the blank is of perfect material.

The pocket for padding on the garments of this invention presents the smooth lines of an integrally formed pocket and, in addition, the construction of the pocket eliminates the most uncomfortable and undesirable rear seam of previous garments.

In the drawings, Figure l is the fabric blank of a typical protector. Figure 2 is a perspective view of a typical finished protector. Figure 3 is a cross sectional view along lines 3-3 of Figure 2. Figure 4 is a cross sectional view of Figure 2 along the lines indicated by 4-4 of Figure 3. Figure 5 is a perspective view of the protector of Figure 2 prior to insertion of the pad.

My preferred garment consists of a substantially tubular body, l2, formed from fiat preferably universally elastic material, II, in such manner that the end portions, I3 and I4, overlap and are secured to the tube at 15 and 16' preferably by fiat lock seams. A pocket, ll, having a front wall, l8, and a rear wall, [9, is thus formed to receive the pad, 26. I prefer that the top edge, 24-, and the bottom edge, 2|, of the front wall be in register substantially with the respective top and bottom edges of the rear wall as is indicated in Figure 4, but this is not essential. I also prefer to finish one circumferential edge before inserting the pad as is indicated at 23 of Figure 5, but this is entirely optional. Any of the usual ways of finishing an elastic edge as to leave it yieldable to a degree may be utilized, but I prefer to overedge the edge, 2|, at the same laying in a length of rubber, 22, a process which may be done by the proper machine as is fully understood in the art. By this process, the bottom of pocket, ll, if the edges are substantially in register, is closed when walls l8 and I9 are secured together by the overedging, 23. The pad, 20, may then be inserted and the edge, 24, finished in any usual manner to leave it yieldable to a degree, but preferably, as before, by overedging, 26, and laying in a length of rubber, 25. If desired, one edge of the pocket, ll, may be separately overedged or finished and left open or disengagingly secured to provide for pad removal. If the top and bottom edges of the pocket front wall are desirably not in register with the respective top and bottom edges of the pocket rear wall, these front wall edges may be secured to the tubular body by a flat lock seam or any other usually employed seam for this purpose. While the preferred blank shown in Figure 1 is in the shape of a trapezoid, any of the edges may be altered within the scope of this invention. For instance, if a protector is desired with a narrowed back portion, the central portions of edges 21 and 2 may be made to approach each other. Or if a pad with difierently shaped side edges is utilized, the end portions, [3 and M, may be altered accordingly.

As padding in the garments of this invention, I prefer sponge rubber with rounded or beveled front edges, but any type of resilient padding, whether of a fibrous 0r non-fibrous nature, is suitable and may be utilized.

I claim:

1. In a protector garment, a strip of elastic fabric, end portions of said strip in overlapping relationship, means for securing the underlying end of said strip to the surface of said strip at a point intermediate the ends thereof, an e1astic substantially-tubular retaining band formed thereby, means for securing the overlying end of said strip to said band, a pocket defined by said overlapping end portions extending from one circumferential edge to the other of said band and a resilient pad contained in said pocket.

2. A protector comprising a resilient pad, a pocket containing said pad and a substantially tubular retaining band, said pocket and said band being formed from a single strip of flat elastic fabric, the rear wall of said pocket being common with the front wall of said band, the front wall of said pocket overlapping said common wall, said pocket extending from one end to the other of said tubular band.

3. In the protector garment of claim 1, the elastic fabric being universally elastic, the circumferential edges of said garment being yieldingly overedged thereby securing the top and bottom edges of the overlapping end portions in respective register.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,188,718 Jung Jan. 30, 1940 2,332,141 Greene Oct. 19, 1943

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