Abstract:
A foldable protective garment including an outer shell shaped to fit about at least part of the body of a wearer, the outer shell being foldable into a compact position, and a pouch coupled to the outer shell. The pouch is shaped and sized to receive generally all of the outer shell therein when the outer shell is in the compact position. The pouch includes an upper mouth and a lower mouth located on a generally opposite side of the pouch relative to the upper mouth, and the upper mouth and the lower mouth are both selectively openable and closable.

Description:
[0001]     The present invention is directed to a protective garment, and more particularly, to a protective garment having a pouch in which the protective garment may be stored.  
       BACKGROUND  
       [0002]     Protective or hazardous duty garments are widely used in various industries to protect the wearer from various hazardous conditions, such as heat, smoke, cold, sharp objects, chemicals, liquids, fumes and the like. Such garments may include materials which should be stored in a protective pouch. For example, protective garments may be made of or include aramid or other material which should be shielded from light in order to protect the materials. Furthermore, storing the garment in a protective pouch protects the garment from fumes and chemicals. Folded protective garments which are stored in a pouch are also more compact and therefore require less space and are easier to stow.  
         [0003]     It may be desired to have a storage pouch that is fixedly coupled to the garment so that the storage pouch does not become separated from the garment and is always available for immediate use. However, due to the bulk nature of protective garments it may be difficult to fit protective garments into pouches. Accordingly, there is a need for garment having a storage pouch wherein the garment can be quickly and easy stored in the storage pouch and which can be quickly and easily removed from the storage pouch.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0004]     In one embodiment, the present invention is a garment having a storage pouch wherein the garment can be quickly and easy stored in the storage pouch and which can be quickly and easily removed from the storage pouch. In particular, in one embodiment the invention is a foldable protective garment including an outer shell shaped to fit about at least part of the body of a wearer, the outer shell being foldable into a compact position, and a pouch coupled to the outer shell. The pouch is shaped and sized to receive generally all of the outer shell therein when the outer shell is in the compact position. The pouch includes an upper mouth and a lower mouth located on a generally opposite side of the pouch relative to the upper mouth, and the upper mouth and the lower mouth are both selectively openable and closable.  
         [0005]     These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0006]      FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of one embodiment of the protective garment of the present invention, with part of the garment cut away to show the various layers thereof;  
         [0007]      FIG. 2  is a front exploded perspective view illustrating various layers of the garment of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0008]      FIG. 3  is a cross section taken along lines  3 - 3  of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0009]      FIG. 4  is a front perspective view of the garment of  FIG. 1 , shown with the pouch in its open position;  
         [0010]      FIG. 5  is a front perspective view of the garment of  FIG. 4 , with the pouch in its external position;  
         [0011]      FIG. 6  is a cross section taken along lines  6 - 6  of  FIG. 5 ;  
         [0012]      FIG. 7  is a front perspective view of the garment of  FIG. 5 , with the arms of the garment pulled into the pouch;  
         [0013]      FIG. 8  is a cross section taken along lines  8 - 8  of  FIG. 7 ; and  
         [0014]      FIGS. 9-12  are a series of front perspective views showing the remaining steps for folding the garment into the pouch. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0015]      FIG. 1  illustrates a protective or hazardous duty garment in the form of a garment or body suit, generally designated  10 . The garment  10  may include a torso portion  12  shaped to cover or be located adjacent to the torso of a wearer and waist portion  14  shaped to cover or be located adjacent to the waist of a wearer. The garment  10  may also include a pair of sleeves or arms  16  and a pair of legs  18 ,  21 , shaped to cover or be located adjacent to the arms and legs, respectively, of the wearer. The garment  10  may include a hood  23  shaped to fit over the head of a wearer.  
         [0016]     The garment  10  may include a releasable fastener  22  (such as a zipper or the like) which extends from the ankle  24  of leg  18 , up and around the crotch  26 , and to the ankle  28  of leg  21 . The fastener  22  can be opened to fully open the legs  18 ,  21  (see  FIG. 5 ) so that the garment  10  can be donned doffed by passing the garment  10  over the head and shoulders of a wearer. However, the garment  10  may have any of a wide variety of configurations, openings, fasteners (i.e. slide fastener components, snaps, buttons, hook and loop fastening systems (i.e. VELCRO®), straps, ties and the like) which can be located in a variety of locations (i.e., across the chest of the garment  10 , along the side of the garment  10 , etc.) to enable donning and doffing of the garment  10 .  
         [0017]     As shown in  FIGS. 1-3 , the garment  10  may include various layers through the thickness of the garment  10 . For example, in the illustrated embodiment, the garment  10  includes an outer shell  30 , a moisture barrier  32  located inside of and adjacent to the outer shell  30 , a thermal liner or barrier  34  located inside of and adjacent to the moisture barrier  32 , and an inner liner or face cloth  36  located inside of and adjacent to the thermal liner  34 . The outer shell  30  may be made of or include a variety of materials, including a flame, heat and abrasion resistant material such as a compact weave of aramid fibers and/or polybenzamidazole fibers. Commercially available aramid materials include NOMEX and KEVLAR fibers (both trademarks of E.I. DuPont de Nemours &amp; Co., Inc.), and commercially available polybenzamidazole fibers including PBI (a trademark of Celanese Corp.) fibers. Thus, the outer shell  30  may be an aramid material, a blend of aramid materials, a polybenzamidazole material, a blend of aramid and polybenzamidazole materials, or other appropriate materials, and may have a weight of, for example, between about 6-10 oz/yd 2 .  
         [0018]     The moisture barrier  32  and thermal liner  34  may be generally coextensive with the outer shell  30 , or spaced slightly inwardly from the outer edges (i.e., spaced inwardly from the outer ends of the arms  16 , legs  18 ,  21  and collar  38 ) of the outer shell  30  to provide moisture and thermal protection throughout the garment  10 . The moisture barrier  32  may include a semi-permeable membrane layer  40 , which may be generally moisture vapor permeable but generally impermeable to liquid moisture.  
         [0019]     The membrane layer  40  may be made of or include expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (“PTFE”) such as GORE-TEX or CROSSTECH (both of which are trademarks of W.L. Gore &amp; Associates, Inc.), polyurethane-based materials, neoprene-based materials, cross-linked polymers, polyamid, or other materials. The membrane layer  40  may have microscopic openings that permit moisture vapor to pass therethrough, but block liquids (i.e., water) from passing therethrough. The membrane layer  40  may be made of a microporous material that is either hydrophilic, hydrophobic, or somewhere in between. The membrane layer  40  may also be monolithic and may allow moisture vapor transmission therethrough by molecular diffusion. The membrane layer  40  may also be a combination of microporous and monolithic materials (known as a bicomponent moisture barrier), in which the microporous or monolithic material can be layered or intertwined.  
         [0020]     The membrane layer  40  may be bonded or adhered to a substrate  42  of a flame and heat resistant material. The substrate  42  may be aramid fibers similar to the aramid fibers of the outer shell  30 , but may be thinner and lighter in weight. The substrate  42  may be woven, non-woven, spunlace or other materials. In the illustrated embodiment, the substrate  42  faces the outer shell  30 . However, the orientation of the moisture barrier  32  may be reversed such that the membrane layer  40  faces the outer shell  30 .  
         [0021]     The thermal liner  34  may be made of any suitable material which provides sufficient thermal insulation. In one embodiment, the thermal liner  34  may include a relatively thick (i.e. typically from {fraction (1/16)}″-{fraction (3/16)}″ thick) batting, felt or needled non-woven material  44  which can include aramid fiber batting (such as NOMEX batting), aramid needlepunch material, an aramid non-woven material, an aramid blend needlepunch material, an aramid blend batting material, an aramid blend non-woven material, or foam (either open or closed cell) materials. The batting  44  preferably traps air and possesses sufficient loft to provide thermal resistance to the garment  10 .  
         [0022]     The batting  44  is typically quilted to a thermal liner face cloth  46 , and the thermal liner face cloth  46  may be a weave of a lightweight aramid material. Thus, either the batting  44  alone, or the batting  44  in combination with the thermal liner face cloth  46 , may be considered to be the thermal liner  34 . In one embodiment, the thermal liner  34  may have a thermal protection performance (“TPP”) of at least about 20, or of at least about 35. The thermal liner  34  may be treated with a water-resistant material, or may be made of an inherently water-resistant material. In the illustrated embodiment, the thermal liner face cloth  46  faces the moisture barrier  32 /outer shell  30 . However, the orientation of the thermal liner  34  may be reversed such that the batting  44  faces the moisture barrier  32 /outer shell  30 .  
         [0023]     Although the moisture barrier  32  is shown as being located between the outer shell  30  and the thermal liner  34 , the positions of the moisture barrier  32  and thermal liner  34  may be reversed such that the thermal liner  34  is located between the outer shell  30  and the moisture barrier  32 .  
         [0024]     The face cloth  36  may be the innermost layer of the garment  10  and can provide a comfortable surface for the wearer and protect the batting  44  from abrasion by the wearer. The face cloth  36  may be made of a quilted material as part of a quilt package. The garment  10  may include a pair of wristlets  41 , each wristlet being located at the end of an associated arm  16 . The wristlets  41  and hood  23  may be made of a woven material knitted from a flame and heat resistant material including aramid materials, a blend of aramid materials, a polybenzamidazole material, or a blend of aramid and polybenzamidazole materials. The wristlets  41  may include an elastic material included or stitched therein.  
         [0025]     Each layer of the garment  10 , and the garment as a whole, may be designed to meet the National Fire Protection Association (“N.F.P.A.”)  1971  standards for protective firefighting garments (“Protective Clothing for Structural Firefighting”). The NFPA standards specify various minimum requirements for heat and flame resistance and tear strength. For example, in order to meet the NFPA standards, an outer shell  30  of a garment must be able to resist igniting, burning, melting, dripping and/or separation at a temperature of 500° F. for at least five minutes. Furthermore, in order to meet the NFPA standards, all combined layers of the garment  10  must provide a thermal protection performance rating of at least thirty five. However, if desired the garment  10  may have a thermal protection performance of less than thirty five, or may not meet various other NFPA standards, in which case the garment  10  may be sold or marketed as not necessarily meeting NFPA standards. For example, the garment  10  may be a recreational snow suit or have various other uses.  
         [0026]     The garment  10  may include a storage pouch  50  which is directly or indirectly coupled to the outer shell  30 . The outer shell  30  may include a slit or opening  52  therein to provide access to the inner cavity  80  of the pouch  50 . The storage pouch  50  may include a pair of opposed panels of material  54 ,  56  ( FIG. 3 ) which are fixedly coupled together along their side edges  58  ( FIGS. 1 and 5 ), such as by stitching. The opposed panels  54 ,  56  may be made of a variety of materials, such as the same materials outlined above for the outer shell  30 .  
         [0027]     The pouch  50  may include an upper fastening mechanism  66  and a lower fastening mechanism  68  for releasably coupling the opposed panels  54 ,  56  together along their top  60  and bottom edges  62 . For example the upper fastening mechanism  66  may include a strip  70  of hook-and-loop fastening material (such as VELCRO®) located at, on or adjacent to the upper edge  60  of the panel  54  and another strip  70  located on, at, or adjacent to the upper edge  60  of panel  56 . The upper fastening mechanism  66  may also include a male snap component  72  located on, at, or adjacent to the upper edge  60  of panel  56  and a female snap component  74  located on, at, or adjacent to the upper edge  60  of panel  54 .  
         [0028]     The lower fastening mechanism  68  may include a strip  71  of hook-and-loop fastening material (such as VELCRO®) located on, at, or adjacent to the lower edge  62  of the panel  54  and another strip  71  of hook-and-loop fastening material located on, at or adjacent to the lower edge  62  of panel  56 . The lower fastening mechanism  68  may also include a male snap component  73  located on, at, or adjacent to the lower edge  62  of panel  56  and a female snap component  75  located on, at, or adjacent to the lower edge  62  of panel  54 . In this manner, the upper fastening mechanism  66  can be operated by pressing the strips  70  of hook-and-loop fastening material together and/or by pressing the snap components  72 ,  74  together. The lower fastening mechanism  68  can similarly be operated by pressing the strips  71  of hook-and-loop fastening material together and/or by pressing the snap components  73 ,  75  together. The upper  66  and lower  68  fastening mechanisms can also be operated to open the mouths  82 ,  84  by pulling the associated components of the fastening mechanism apart.  
         [0029]     The pouch  50  includes the inner cavity  80  located between the panels  54 ,  56 , and the pouch  50  includes an upper mouth  82  (i.e. located adjacent to or between the top edges  60 ) and a lower mouth  84  (i.e. located adjacent to or between the bottom edges  62 ). The upper mouth  82  may generally coincide with the slit  52  in the outer shell  30 . A wide variety of fastening devices (besides the snaps  72 ,  74 ,  73 ,  75  and patches of hook-and-loop fastening material  70 ,  71 ) including but not limited to slide fastener components, snaps, buttons, hooks, loops, ties and the like may be used to as the fastening mechanisms  66 ,  68 .  
         [0030]     The pouch  50  may be fixedly coupled to the outer shell  30 . For example, the top edges  60  may be fixedly coupled to the outer shell  30  (i.e. by stitching) such that the upper mouth  82  is coupled to the outer shell  30  about is periphery. As shown in  FIG. 3 , in the illustrated embodiment the pouch  50  is located immediately adjacent to the outer shell  30  such that the pouch  50  is located between the outer shell  30  and the moisture barrier  32 , and between the outer shell  30  and the thermal liner  34 .  
         [0031]      FIGS. 1 and 3  illustrate the pouch  50  in an internal position wherein the pouch  50  is located generally inside of the outer shell  30 . In this configuration, the inner cavity  80  of the pouch  50  can be accessed, if desired, via the upper mouth  82 . In order to store the garment  10  inside the pouch  50 , the pouch  50  is moved to its external position shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6  wherein the pouch  50  is located generally outside of the outer shell  30 . In order to move the pouch  50  to this configuration, a user reaches through the upper mouth  82  and pulls the pouch  50  outside of the inner shell  30 , thus “inverting” the pouch  50  in the process. Next, if not already done so, the lower fastening mechanism  68  is operated (i.e. by pulling the bottom edges  62  apart) so that the bottom edges  62  of the pouch  50  are separated to open the lower mouth  84 , thereby moving the pouch  50  into its sleeve-like configuration shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . The zipper  22  is opened to move the legs  18 , 21  to their open position and the hood  23  is then inverted and stuffed into the inner cavity of the garment  10  as shown in  FIG. 5 .  
         [0032]     The user then reaches through the lower mouth  84  of the pouch  50 , through the upper mouth  82  and down one of the sleeves or arms  16  of the garment  10 . At this point, the user&#39;s arm is located between the outer shell  30  and the moisture barrier  32  of the garment  10 . The path of access (i.e., the path in which a user will insert his or her arm) is shown as arrow  90  in  FIG. 5 . The user then grasps the garment (i.e., either the moisture barrier  32  and/or outer shell  30 ) at the tip of the arrow  90  and pulls the arm  16  of the garment  10  through the upper mouth  82  and at least partially through the lower mouth  84  of the pouch  10 . As the user pulls the arm  16  through the upper  82  and lower  84  mouths, the arm  16  will be inverted and the outer shell  30  of each arm  16  will be separated from the moisture barrier  32 , thermal liner  34  and face cloth  46  of that arm because the outer shell  30  and moisture barrier  32  are joined at or adjacent to the wristlet  41  of each arm  16 . This inverting step is then repeating for the remaining arm  16 . As can be seen in  FIGS. 7 and 8 , each arm  16  may form a generally “looped” shape when inverted in this manner with part of the loop formed by the outer shell  32  and part of the loop formed by the remaining components (i.e. moisture barrier  32 , thermal liner  34  and face cloth  46 ) of the arm  16 .  
         [0033]      FIGS. 7 and 8  illustrate the garment  10  after both arms  16  have been inverted and folded into the pouch  50 . Next, the pouch  50  is “flipped” or pivoted about a hinge line A ( FIG. 7 ) located adjacent to the upper edges  60  until the pouch  50  is located in its configuration shown in  FIG. 9 . In this configuration, the lower mouth  84  is actually located above the upper mouth  82 . Next, as shown in  FIG. 10 , the torso portion  12  of the garment  10  is stuffed into the pouch  50  through the upper mouth  82 . The torso portion  12  should be forced to the lower mouth  84  of the pouch  50  as much as possible during this step. Furthermore, it is helpful to ensure that the pouch  50  remains in a generally cylindrical shape while inserting the torso portion  12  into the pouch  50  at this stage.  
         [0034]     Once the torso portion  12  is received in the pouch  50 , the bottom of each leg  18 ,  21  may be inserted and stuffed into the pouch  50  through the upper mouth  82  until the legs  18 ,  21  are entirely received inside the pouch  50 . As shown in  FIG. 11 , the upper mouth  82  of the pouch  50  is then closed, such as by operating the upper fastening mechanism  66  (i.e. engaging the strips of hook-and-loop fastening material  70  and the snaps  72 ,  74 ). Finally, the portions of the arms  16  protruding through the lower mouth  84  are inserted into the pouch  50  via the lower mouth  84 . The lower mouth  84  of the pouch is then closed, such as by operating the lower fastening mechanism  68  (i.e. engaging the strips of hook-and-loop fastening material  71  and the snaps  73 ,  75 ).  
         [0035]     The resultant, folded garment is shown in  FIG. 12 . The pouch  50  may then be firmly compressed by the folder to force the bag to become somewhat flat. The pouch  50  may include a handle  92  securely coupled thereto to provide for easy carrying and/or hanging of the garment  10 .  
         [0036]     In order to remove the suit  10  from the pouch  50  for wearing, the upper mouth  82  of the garment  10  is opened by operating the upper fastening mechanism  66 . The legs  18 ,  21  and torso portion  12  of the garment  10  are then pull out of the pouch  50 . The user then reaches into the pouch  50  and through one of the arms  16  until a wristlet  41  is located by feel. The wristlet  41  is then grasped and pulled to pull the arm  16  out of the pouch  50 , thereby re-inverting the arm  16  to its normal position. The remaining arm  16  is then extracted in the same manner. The hood  23  is then pulled out of the body cavity of the garment  10 , and the pouch  50  stuffed through the slit  52  of the outer shell  30  such that the pouch  50  is located generally inside of the outer shell  30 . Finally, the upper mouth  82  of the pouch is closed by operating the upper fastening mechanism  66 , and the zipper  22  is zipped thus returning the garment  10  to its form shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0037]     Thus, the pouch  50  provides a convenient and useful mechanism for storing the garment  10  therein and protects the garment  10  from sunlight as well as various other harmful chemicals, fumes and the like. The upper  82  and lower  84  mouths and upper  66  and lower  68  fastening mechanisms enable the pouch  50  to be moved to its generally sleeve-like configuration wherein the user can reach through the lower mouth  84  and open mouth  82  to invert the arms  16 , and allows the arms  16  to protrude through the lower mouth  84 . Thus this configuration of the pouch  50  provides greatly increased access for folding and unfolding of the garment  50  into and out of the pouch  50 . The pouch  50  may also be used as a storage well for storing various loose items, such as gloves, goggles, etc.  
         [0038]     Having described the invention in detail and by reference to the preferred embodiments, it will be apparent that modifications and variations thereof are possible without departing from the scope of the invention.