Radiation shielding clothing

The present invention comprises a radiation blocking clothing material utilized to construct articles of clothing such as but not limited to undergarments. The radiation blocking clothing material includes a first thread fiber, a second thread fiber and a third thread fiber constructed in a double sided knit structure. The double-sided knit structure promotes the material of the first thread fiber and second thread fiber to be on one side of the body of the radiation blocking clothing. The first thread fiber is a 84 D DTY silver fiber and the second thread fiber is a 90D DTY silver thread fiber and the conductive silver functions to block radiation having Faraday properties. The third thread fiber is manufactured from a cotton or a cotton blend. The composition of the body is operable to include a range of silver content within the range of 48 to 62 percent.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to radiation shielding for humans, more specifically but not by way of limitation, radiation shielding clothing such as but not by way of limitation, undergarments, manufactured from a fabric constructed according to the present invention.

BACKGROUND

Everyday millions of people are exposed to electromagnetic radiation. There are different sources of radiation that can produce harmful effects for humans. The higher the frequency of the radiation the more damage it is likely to cause to a human. Microwaves are an exemplary source of radiation that is known to cause damage to human cells. A very common type of radiation that most humans are exposed to is electromagnetic radiation. Sources of electromagnetic radiation are commonly utilized devices such as but not limited to cell phones and wireless routers. This type of radiation emitted by electronics is non-ionizing radiation, which does not have the ability to break chemical bonds as some of the other stronger types of radiation can do. Electromagnetic radiation does however interact with our body, which can potentially lead to indirect damage following longer term exposure.

The proliferation of electronic devices in the world has placed great concern on the ability to shield electromagnetic interference. Given the unknown long term exposure effects, humans could potentially be vulnerable to the consistent exposure to radiation. Electromagnetic shielding has become a more prominent concern but few options are available for the everyday consumer to protect themselves from radiation exposure. As is known in the art, attenuation is a principal indicator for measuring the effectiveness of electromagnetic interference shielding. It refers to the difference between an electromagnetic signal's intensity before shielding and its intensity after shielding. Attenuation is measured in decibels (dB) that correspond to the ratio between field strength with and without the presence of a protective medium. The decrease in a signal's intensity, or amplitude, is usually exponential with distance, while the decibel range falls along a logarithmic scale. By way of example but not limitation, an attenuation rating of 50 dB indicates a shielding strength ten times that of 40 dB. Existing clothing has been shown to be incapable of blocking radiation at a level of 50 dB. Further, attempts to manufacture garments from radiation blocking cloth have not yielded a fabric composition that provides both effective radiation blocking and comfort to the wearer.

Accordingly, there is a need for a cloth having a composition that is operable to block radiation up to a level of 50 dB wherein the cloth is utilized to manufacture clothing such as but not limited to undergarments.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is the object of the present invention to provide a radiation blocking clothing that comprises a composition of materials that is operable to block radiation having an effectiveness of at least 50 dB.

Another object of the present invention is to provide radiation blocking garments manufactured from a fabric composition wherein the fabric composition includes a first fiber wherein the first fiber is a silver fiber.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a radiation blocking garment manufactured from a fabric composition wherein the fabric composition includes a second fiber wherein the second fiber is formed from a combination nylon and silver.

An additional object of the present invention is to provide a radiation blocking garment manufactured from a fabric composition wherein the fabric composition includes a third fiber wherein the third fiber is formed from cotton.

An alternative object of the present invention is to provide a radiation blocking garment manufactured from a cloth having a first fiber, a second fiber and a third fiber, wherein the first fiber, second fiber and third fiber are structured in a particular pattern.

Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a radiation blocking garment manufactured from a cloth having a first fiber, a second fiber and a third fiber, wherein the pattern of the first fiber, second fiber and third fiber functions as a Faraday shield.

An additional object of the present invention is to provide a radiation blocking garment manufactured from a cloth wherein the cloth provides alternate materials on opposite sides of the cloth.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a radiation blocking garment manufactured from a cloth wherein the structure of the cloth provides a surface resistance of a range between 0.01 to 0.5 ohms.

Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a radiation blocking garment manufactured from a cloth wherein at least one embodiment of the present invention is an undergarment to be worn by a user.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to the drawings submitted herewith, wherein various elements depicted therein are not necessarily drawn to scale and wherein through the views and figures like elements are referenced with identical reference numerals, there is diagrammed a radiation shielding clothing material100constructed according to the principles of the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings submitted herewith, the radiation shielding clothing material100includes a first side5and a second side10and is configured to be flexible. The radiation shielding clothing material100is contemplated within the scope of the present invention to be utilized to manufacture various clothing articles. A preferred clothing article to be manufactured within the scope of the present invention are various forms of undergarments such as but not limited to underwear. It is further contemplated within the scope of the present invention that the radiation shielding clothing material100could be utilized to manufacture numerous styles and types of clothing.

Referring in particular toFIG. 1herein, the specific thread structure of the present invention is illustrated therein. The radiation shielding clothing material100comprises a first thread fiber15, a second thread fiber20and a third thread fiber25structured in a specific pattern so as to achieve the desired results of blocking radiation with an effectiveness of 50 dB. The exemplary preferred pattern of the present invention illustrated inFIG. 1herein is known as double sided knit structure. The aforementioned structure provides a completed radiation shielding clothing material100that has a first material on the first side5and a second material on the second side10. In the present invention as will be further discussed herein, having a first material on the first side5and second material on the second side10provides a technique to accomplished the desired radiation blocking effectiveness.

The first thread fiber15of the present invention is 84D FDY silver fiber. As is known in the art, D is an abbreviation for denier, which is a unit of measure for the linear mass density of the fiber. Thread fibers are manufactured utilizing various techniques and the first thread fiber15is manufactured utilizing a fully drawn yarn(FDY) technique. While good results have been achieved utilizing 84D FDY silver fiber to manufacture the first thread fiber15, it is contemplated within the scope of the present invention that the first thread fiber15could be manufactured having a denier range of 70D to 94D and still achieve the desired outcome wherein the radiation shielding clothing material100is capable of blocking radiation with an effectiveness of 50 dB.

The second thread fiber20of the present invention is 90D DTY silver fiber of which a detailed illustration is provided inFIG. 2herein. As is known in the art, a DTY thread fiber is manufactured from a process referred to as draw textured yarn(DTY). The second thread fiber20includes a core material22of nylon or similar synthetic fiber and an outer layer24of silver. The second thread fiber20functions in conjunction with the first thread fiber15so as to provide the desired radiation blocking effectiveness described herein. While a 90D DTY silver fiber is the preferred embodiment for the second thread fiber20, it is contemplated within the scope of the present invention that the second thread fiber20could be manufactured within a denier range wherein the radiation shielding clothing material100could still achieve the desired radiation blocking effectiveness. More specifically but not by way of limitation, the second thread fiber20could be manufactured within a denier range of 80D to 95D.

The third thread fiber25of the present invention is a 40S cotton fiber. As is known in the art, 40S refers to the count of cotton within a thread fiber. It is contemplated within the scope of the present invention that the third thread fiber25could be manufactured from alternate materials or a combination of cotton and alternate materials. By way of example but not limitation, it is contemplated within the scope of the present invention that the third thread fiber25could comprise of a cotton and spandex blend. The aforementioned structure of the radiation shielding clothing material100of the present invention is such that the first thread fiber15and second thread fiber20will be present on the first side5creating the outer layer of the radiation shielding clothing material100. While the third thread fiber25will be present on the second side10of the radiation shielding clothing material100which enables the ability to provide an improved comfort to the wearer of the garment manufactured utilizing the radiation shielding clothing material100.

The structure of the radiation shielding clothing material100is such that the first thread fiber15and second thread fiber20are adjacent due to the weave structure discussed herein and present on the first side5. The proximity of the first thread fiber15and second thread fiber20are such that the surface resistance of the first side5approximately ranges between 0.01 to 0.5 ohms. The aforementioned structure in combination with the materials utilized to construct the first thread fiber15and second thread fiber20enable the radiation shielding clothing material100to possess Faraday properties. Faraday properties are achieved through utilization of the conductive materials of the first thread fiber15and second thread fiber20and the proximity of the first thread fiber15and second thread fiber20to each other. The low surface resistance of the first side5resulting from the aforementioned structure facilitates the blocking of electromagnetic radiation with an effectiveness of 50 dB. It is the combination of materials utilized to construct the first thread fiber15and second thread fiber20in conjunction with the radiation shielding clothing material100structure described herein that achieve the desired effectiveness of radiation blocking. The silver content of the first thread fiber15and second thread fiber20present on the first side5and the low surface resistance acts as a conducting surface thus absorbing the electromagnetic radiation.

The radiation shielding clothing material100composition, specifically the percentage of silver provides the desired radiation blocking effectiveness of 50 dB. The percentage silver as a part of the total composition of the radiation shielding clothing material100utilized is 48 to 62 percent. Remaining percentages consistent of cotton or a blend of cotton and other suitable fabric such as but not limited to spandex. Good results have been achieved incorporating approximately four percent of spandex material as part of the overall composition of the radiation shielding clothing material100. It is further contemplated within the scope of the present invention that the percentage of cotton as part of the overall composition of the radiation shielding clothing material100be within the range of 38 to 52 percent.

While in the preferred embodiment, silver has been utilized as the source for conductive material in order to achieve the desired radiation blocking effectiveness. It is further contemplated within the scope of the present invention that other conductive metals could be utilized in place of and/or in conjunction with silver. More specifically but not by way of limitation, it is contemplated within the scope of the present invention that copper could be utilized in place of silver wherein the amount of copper would be equal to the amount of silver described herein both in thread fiber construction and total composition percentage of the radiation shielding clothing material100.