A heavy-duty garment with an adjustable ventilation device

Abstract: In correspondence with its front and rear shoulder parts, the garment has an inner fabric (4) which is very permeable to air and is spaced from the outer fabric (2) so that air can circulate between the front and rear parts of the garment in the spaces (8) thus formed. The spaces (8) communicate with the outside through apertures (10) controlled by adjustable closures (12) and resilient means(11) are provided in correspondence with the apertures (10) for spacing the two fabrics (2, 4) apart by a distance proportional to the extent of the aperture so that the internal ventilation of the garment can be adjusted in dependence on the degree of humidity created within it in use.

Description: The present invention relates to a heavy-duty garment comprising: a) an inner part, constituting the front and rear shoulder parts of the garment, which bears on the user's chest, the inner part being made from an air-permeable fabric; b) an outer part, made from a waterproof fabric, c) spacer means for spacing the outer part from the inner part to enable air to circulate freely between the spaces formed between the outer part and the inner part in the front and rear parts of the garment, d) apertures in the outer part, said apertures being controlled by adjustable closure means and adapted to put said spaces into communication with the outside, e) resilient means in correspondence with each of the apertures for spacing the outer part from the inner part to a degree proportional to the extent of the aperture, whereby the internal ventilation of the garment can be adjusted by means of said adjustable closure means in dependence on the degree of humidity created within it, in use. A heavy-duty garment of the above-mentioned type is known from US-A-3 045 243. Said document discloses a garment comprising a jacket in which at least one slit is made in the chest region of its outer impermeable part. One edge of each slit is bowed away from the wearer by means of a curved spacer in order to form an aperture, which is made closable by affixing a slide fastener to its two edges. Said apertures weaken the resistance of the outer part of the garment and adversely affect the waterproofing of the garment. Moreover, if said apertures were made of small size in order to partially obviate said drawbacks, the garment would not ensure a sufficient internal ventilation and a sufficient dissipation of moisture vapour under conditions of physical exertion. The object of the present invention is to provide a completely satisfactory solution to the problems described above by virtue of the characteristics which form the subject of the characterising part of claim 1. The substantially annular wide aperture formed between the upper and lower parts of the outer part of the garment ensures good internal ventilation and dissipation of moisture also under extreme conditions of physical exertion (for example in forest fire fighting) does not weaken the resistance of the garment and being directed downwardly does not adversely affect the waterproofing of the garment. Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become clear from the description which follows with reference to the appended schematic drawings, provided purely by way of non-limiting example, in which: figure 1 is a perspective view of a garment produced in accordance with the present invention, figure 2 is a partial section taken on the line II-II of figure 1 on an enlarged scale, figure 3 is a perspective view of an internal part of the garment shown in figure 1, figure 4 is a perspective view of a detail of figure 3, and figure 5 is a section taken on the line V-V of figure 3. A heavy-duty garment generally indicated 1 is constituted, in the embodiment illustrated, by a coat which is intended to be worn by a forest fire fighter. The coat 1 comprises an upper outer part 2, and a lower outer part 2a, which are made from a fabric which has good mechanical strength and has been treated so as to make it waterproof. The coat 1 has an inner part 3 which constitutes the yoke of the garment which is intended to bear against the user's chest in use. The inner part 3 is made from a fabric which has an air-permeability factor of at least 6 mm/Pascal and a minimum thickness of 1.5 mm. Said air-permeable fabric may be constituted, for example, by a layer of net fabric sandwiched between two layers of knitted fabric. Spacer means, generally indicated 5, are provided at the shoulders for spacing the upper outer part 2 from the inner part 3 by a distance of at least 2 mm, whereby a substantially annular space 8 is formed between the parts 2 and 3 of the coat, said space 8 allowing air circulation inside the garment. In the embodiment illustrated, in figures 3 to 5 each spacer 5 is constituted by a body of curved shape with internal ribs 6 forming channels 7 for allowing inside air circulation also in the shoulder area of the garment. Alternatively, the spacers could be constituted by applied raised elements or by a layer of very permeable fabric thicker than the fabric from which the inner part 3 is made. The upper outer part 2 has a lower flap 9 which extends downwardly by a small distance beyond the lower edge of the inner part 3. The lower outer part 2a of the coat 1 extends downwardly from the lower portion of the inner part 3. As shown in figure 2, the lower outer part 2a is sewn at its upper end to the outer surface of the lower end of the inner part 3. Arcuate resilient elements 11 are interposed in the front and rear parts of the garment between the lower end of the inner permeable part 3 and the flap 9. Said elements 11 tend to displace outwardly the flap 9 with respect to the lower end of part 3 and to the upper end of part 2a, whereby a substantially annular wide aperture 10 is formed which puts the space 8 in communication with the outer atmosphere. Closure means 12 are interposed between the upper end of the lower outer part 2a and the flap 9 for adjusting the cross-sectional area of the air passage through the aperture 10 against the action of the resilient means 11, so that the internal ventilation of the garment can be adjusted in dependence on the degree of humidity created within it, in use, without thereby adversely affecting the waterproofing of the garment. In the embodiment shown in figures 1 and 2 said closure means 12 are formed by a number of sliding-clasp fasteners; the closure can however be achieved by other means such as micro-hook adhesive strips, buttons, laces or the like. Resilient means different from the arcuate resilient elements 11 shown by way of example could also be used provided they are adapted to fulfil the same function.

Claims: A heavy-duty garment, comprising: a) an inner part (3), constituting the front and rear shoulder parts of the garment, which bears on the user's chest, the inner part (3) being made from an air-permeable fabric; b) an outer part (2), made from a waterproof fabric, c) spacer means (5, 6) for spacing the outer part (2) from the inner part (3) to enable air to circulate freely between the spaces (8) formed between the outer part (2) and the inner part (3) in the front and rear parts of the garment, d) apertures (10) in the outer part (2), said apertures being controlled by adjustable closure means (12) and adapted to put the spaces (8) into communication with the outside, e) resilient means (11) in correspondence with each of the apertures (10) for spacing the outer part (2) from the inner part (3) to a degree proportional to the extent of the aperture, whereby the internal ventilation of the garment (1) can be adjusted by means of said adjustable closure means (12) in dependence on the degree of humidity created within it, in use, characterised in that the garment is a coat (1) in which the outer part comprises an upper part (2) having a lower flap (9) extending downwardly by a small distance beyond the lower edge of the inner part (3) and a lower part (2a) extending downwardly from the outer surface of the lower portion of the inner part (3), said resilient means (11) being interposed between the lower end of the inner part (3) and said flap (9) for displacing outwardly the flap (9) whereby a substantially annular aperture (10) is formed, said adjustable closure means (12) being interposed between the upper end of the lower upper part (2a) and the flap (9) for adjusting the cross-sectional area of the air passage through said aperture (10). A heavy-duty garment as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that the inner part (3) is made from a fabric having an air-permeability of at least 6 mm/Pascal and a minimum thickness of 1.5 mm. A heavy-duty garment as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that the inner part (3) is made from a fabric constituted by a layer of net fabric sandwiched between two layers of knitted fabric. A heavy-duty garment according to claim 1, characterised in that the spacer means are constituted by a layer of very permeable fabric, thicker than the fabric constituting the inner part (3) of the garment.

Inventors: CAPELLO GIUSEPPE, CAPELLO, GIUSEPPE
Applicants: PROMETEO SPA, PROMETEO S.P.A.
Application year: 1990
Main classification: A41D13
IPC codes: A41D13, A41D27