Abstract:
An athletic glove having at least one padded insert is provided. The padded insert comprises reticulated or open cell form, or a rubber formed into a matrix that allows ventilation paths.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to gloves and, more particularly, athletic gloves having palm located pads that are breathable and useful for gripping, for example, a handlebar of a bicycle. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Athletic gloves, and particularly cycling gloves, of various configurations have become popular because they aid in gripping a handlebar of a bicycle, they are durable, they provide cushioning, they protect the hands of the cyclist, and they reduce abrasion to the hands of the cyclist. Many padded cycling gloves are currently available on the market. The following are some examples of padded cycling gloves, all of which are incorporated herein by reference as if set out in full. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,216,276, titled P ADDED  A THLETIC  G LOVES , issued Apr. 17, 2001, describes a padded athletic glove wherein pre-formed, air blown, silicon foam pads are stitched on the glove, or are applied to the glove using adhesive. Cycling gloves are mentioned wherein protective padding is provided on the palm and/or fingers of the glove. Athletic gloves are described that protect the palms and/or fingers, that assist in caching a ball or the like, and that enhance the gripping of an object. Pads are described that range from about 0.010 inch to about 0.012 inch thick, having a durometer range of about 45 Shore A to about 55 Shore A, and having a specific gravity of about 1.12 to about 1.16. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,987,642,titled P ROTECTIVE  B ATTING  G LOVE , issued Nov. 23, 1999, describes a batting glove that includes shock-absorbing vinyl nitril pads (about 1/16 to 3/32 inch thick) that are glued to the glove and then covered by a thin layer of leather that is sewn to the glove. 
     U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,031,640, titled P AD FOR  P REVENTING  C ARPAL  T UNNEL  S YNDROME , issued Jul. 16, 1991, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,751, titled G LOVE FOR  P REVENTING  C ARPAL  T UNNEL  S YNDROME , issued Dec. 28, 1999, described gloves with pad placement such that pressure is diverted away from median nerve of the hand. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,618,860,titled A THLETIC  G LOVES FOR  U SE WHEN  C YCLING AND  M ETHOD OF  M AKING , issued Sep. 16, 2003, describes athletic gloves having pads on the palms where the pads are adhered to the palms instead of stitched. 
     One significant issue with these and other padded gloves is ventilation. Often, perforations are provided in portions of the palm. For various structural reasons, conventionally, the perforations are located in areas of the palm not associated with padding. For example, referring to  FIG. 1 , a palm side  102  of a conventional cycling glove  100  is shown. Palm side  102  has one or more pads  104 ,  106 ,  108 , and  110  strategically placed for cushioning. Typically, pads  104 ,  106 ,  108 , and  110  comprise at least one layer of foam surrounded by leather, synthetic leather, or other durable fabric to resist wear. Palm side  102  optionally has texture  112  to aid in grip. Cycling glove  100  may have finger and thumb extensions  114 , which are shown terminating in an opening such that the fingers and thumbs are partially exposed or could be extensions that completely envelop the fingers and thumbs such as conventional gloves. Placed between pads  104 ,  106 ,  108 , and  110  are a plurality of perforations  116  in palm side  102 . Perforations  116  may be between pads as shown or elsewhere on palm side  102 . Perforations  116  allow air circulation that aids in ventilation of the wearer&#39;s hand. Pads  104 ,  106 ,  108 , and  110  may be separated by air flow channels  118  to allow air flow over perforations  116  to facilitate ventilation. 
     As can seen, however, cycling glove  100  lacks perforations and/or ventilation where pads  104 ,  106 ,  108 , and  110  reside. Often the wearer&#39;s hand generates a significant portion of heat at those locations because, in part, there is a lack of air circulation. Thus, it would be desirous to provide a cycling glove that had ventilation paths through pads. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to athletic gloves having a padded insert. The padded insert comprises a reticulated or open-cell foam, or a matrix of rubber material having ventilation pathways. 
     The foregoing and other features, utilities and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of a preferred embodiment of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
       The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the present invention, and together with the description, serve to explain the principles thereof. Like items in the drawings are referred to using the same numerical reference. 
         FIG. 1  is a palm side elevation view of a conventional cycling glove; 
         FIG. 2  is a palm side elevation view of a cycling glove consistent with an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded view of a pad section of the cycling glove shown in  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 4  is an exploded view of an un-vented pad associated with the glove of  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIGS. 5A-5D  are views of another embodiment of a pad section consistent with an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a view of still another embodiment of a pad section consistent with an embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 6A  is an exploded perspective view of an another embodiment of the pad section shown in  FIG. 6 , showing the base layer as a mesh. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 1 to 6 , the present invention will be described. The present invention will be described with specific reference to cycling gloves, but one of skill in the art would understand on reading the disclosure that other padded gloves, such as, for example, golfing gloves, batting gloves, and the like, could be substituted for cycling gloves without departing from the scope or spirit of the present invention. 
     Referring first to  FIG. 1 , pads  104 ,  106 ,  108 , and  110  lack ventilation, in part, because of the foam and leather, synthetic leather, or other wear resistant covering (generally referred to hereinafter as “covering”). Conventional foam and covering lack sufficient breathability to provide sufficient air circulation and/or venting. Glove  100  therefore creates “hot spots” on the palm over which the padding resides. Some modicum of ventilation is provided by perforations  116 , but glove  100  is typically designed to fit snuggly to the hand of the wearer causing perforations  116  to provide an unsatisfactory solution. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , a glove  200  consistent with the present invention is shown. Glove  200  includes a palm  202  with a wear resistant portion  204 , such as, for example, leather, synthetic leather, or the like, and finger and thumb extensions  206 . Wear resistant portion  204  and extensions  206  include a number of perforations  208  for ventilation. Strategically placed on palm  202  are one or more pad sections  210 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 3 , and exploded view of pad section  210  is shown which will be explained in more detail. Pad section  210  includes a base  302  (which would be closer to the wearer&#39;s skin) having perforations  304 . Base  302  could be the same as wear resistant portion  204  or a separate piece joined to wear resistant portion  204  by thermal welding, adhesives, stitching or other conventional joining devices. A layer of foam  306  is aligned with and resides external to base  302 . Foam  306  would have ventilation paths  308  extending through foam  306 . Foam  306  could be closed cell foam formed with ventilation paths  308  or be an open cell, reticulated, or other breathable foam that does not require especially formed paths such as, for example, polyurethane foam. Ideally, a majority of ventilation paths  308  align with perforations  304 . Foam  306  does not necessarily reside directly on base  302  and other material layers could reside between foam  306  and base  302 . Finally, a mesh layer  310  resides external to foam  306 . Mesh  310  provides some wear protection to foam  306 , but the large mesh loops  312  provide ventilation pathways from perforations  304  through ventilation paths  308  and mesh loops  312 . While shown as a large grade mesh, mesh  310  could be other types of breathable fabrics, such as, for example, polyester, nylon, and the like. Substantially surrounding pad section  210  is a boarder  314 . Boarder  314  is connected to mesh  310  and base  302  (or wear resistant portion  204 ). Boarder  314  is connected using a conventional coupling  316 . Coupling  316  could be, for example, welding, embossing, stitching, adhesives, or the like. 
     Foam  306  may have material  316  contained therein. Material  316  may be one or more or anti-microbial materials, wickable materials, absorbent materials, or temperature regulating materials for hygiene management, moisture management and/or temperature management of the wearer. 
     Optionally, wear resistant portion  204  could have surface texture  112  to assist with gripping. Moreover, glove  200  could have un-vented padding portions  212 , such as the EVA pad shown. Un-vented padding could use foam similar to vented foam  306  or other foams/gels. Referring to  FIG. 4 , an exploded view of un-vented padding portion  212  is shown. Padding portion  212  comprises base  402 , foam  404 , and top layer  406 . Base  402  is typically contiguous with wear resistant portion  204 , but may be a separate piece coupled to portion  204 . Foam  404  may be any conventionally used foam, such as, for example, a moshi foam. Top layer  406  is a durable fabric such as leather or synthetic leather. Top layer  406  could be the same as wear resistant portion  204 , but does not need to be the same. Padding  212  is connected to glove  200  using conventional coupling  316 . 
     While  FIG. 3  is described with reference to foam  306 , foam  306  could be replaced with a formed rubber  500 , such as, for example, TPR rubber shown in  FIGS. 5A-D .  FIG. 5A  shows a top elevation view of formed rubber  500 . Formed rubber  500  is formed into a soft webbing  502  having openings  504 . Openings  504  are similar to ventilation paths  308  described above and, ideally, are aligned with perforations  304 . Referring to  FIG. 5B , a perspective view of webbing  502  and openings  504  is shown. Webbing  502  includes a base  506 , a channel support  508 , and webbing walls  510 . Notice the particular pattern shown in  FIGS. 5A-5D  is exemplary and should not be considered limiting. Referring now to  FIG. 5C , it is believed formed rubber  500  should have a domed shaped such that ends  512  are shorter than a central portion  514 . Finally,  FIG. 5D  shows an exploded view of pad  210  with formed rubber  500  instead of foam  306 . 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 6 and 6A , another example of a padding section  600  is depicted. Padding section  600  could replace or be used in conjunction with padding section  210 , see  FIG. 2 . Padding section  600  comprises a base  602 , an insert  604 , and a non-breathable wear resistant top layer  606  with a plurality of perforations  608 . Base  602  is shown in  FIGS. 6 and 6A  as a breathable fabric or liner, such as, for example, polyester, nylon, or the like, or as a mesh. However, base  602  could comprise perforated non-breathable material similar to base  302  described above (Moreover, base  302  could be replaced with base  602 ). Insert  604  could be a foam, such as, close cell foam with openings  308 , open cell foam or reticulated foam, such as foam  306 , or insert  604  could be a formed rubber  500 , such as TPR rubber shown in  FIG. 5 . Top layer  606  is a non-breathable material, such as, for example, leather, synthetic leather, or the like. 
     Generally, when formed rubber  500  is used for the breathable padding construction, mesh  310  is used to provide increased ventilation because formed rubber  500  is, itself, relatively durable. However, when open cell or reticulated foam  306  is used for the breathable padding, top layer  606  with perforations  608  is used as the reticulated and/or open cell foam is less durable and/or wear resistant. Structure  600  is similarly surrounded by boarder  314  to connect alternative padding to the glove. Boarder  314  is connected to the glove using conventional coupling  316 . 
     While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various other changes in the form and details may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.