Abstract:
Disclosed is a headwear which is mainly made of non-stretchable fiber. The headwear comprises a head receiving portion including a first stretchable fabric made of high twist yarn and a sweat band peripherally attached to the inside of the head receiving portion. Since the head receiving portion is mainly made of high twist yarn, the headwear has a fixed peripheral size but is adjustable within a predetermined range corresponding to small changes of head size. Also, the headwear can fit the head size to provide a comfortable sense of wearing.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to a headwear, more particularly, relates to a headwear that fits a variety of head sizes and can slightly expand to fit different head sizes. 
   2. Description of the Prior Art 
   A baseball cap generally includes a crown, a visor and a sweat band. The crown receives a wearer&#39;s head and fixes the cap on the head. Accordingly, it is formed substantially in the shape of a hollow hemisphere. The crown, in general, is composed of panels or gores, which are successively stitched to form the crown. The visor is attached to the front portion of the lower edge of the crown, to protect the eyes from excessive sunlight. The sweat band is peripherally attached to the inside of the crown, along a lower edge thereof, such that it circumferentially contacts the head. The sweat band absorbs sweat to prevent it from running down onto the wearer&#39;s face, and presses the head to fix the cap on the head. 
   Because people have different sizes of head, size adjustable caps are preferred to fill this need. In order to meet this demand, several types of headwear have been designed, such as an adjustable cap, a free size cap and a sized cap. 
     FIG. 1  is a rear perspective view of a conventional adjustable cap. 
   Referring to  FIG. 1 , the conventional adjustable cap  10  includes a crown  20  and a visor  30 . The crown  20  is composed of a plurality of gores, which are connected one by one to form the crown  20 . The visor  30  is attached to the crown  10  at the front portion thereof. Additionally, a sweat band may be formed on the inside of the crown  20 . 
   In order to fit a range of head sizes, the adjustable cap  10  includes a size adjustable part, which is composed of a rear opening, a strap  42  and a buckle  44 . The rear opening is formed at the rear portion of the lower edge of the crown  20 . The strap  42  is provided at one end of the rear opening and the buckle  44  is at the other end corresponding to the strap  42 . By lengthening or shortening the length of the strap  42  and buckling it to the buckle  44 , the peripheral size of the crown  10  can be adjusted depending on the head size of the wearer. 
   However, the adjustable cap  10  has a drawback in that some of the wearer&#39;s hairs coming out from the rear opening, and the lower edge of the crown could be partially wrinkled or crumpled. This drawback and the wrinkling affect the aesthetic appearance of the cap. Also, it requires a wearer to manually adjust the length of the strap  42  depending on his/her own head size. 
   Compared with the adjustable cap, a free size cap is capable of fitting a relatively broad range of head sizes without the use of a buckle and strap, so that it overcomes some of the above problems associated with the adjustable cap. Generally, in a free size cap, the crown and/or sweat band can be elastically stretchable in the direction of circumference so as to fit a broad range of head sizes. In this instance, the crown and/or the sweat band are composed of elastic material, for example spandex or polyurethane. 
   When the crown and/or the sweat band are stretched depending on the head sizes, they have the restoring force and press the head in return. The restoring force of the stretchable elastic fabric helps the cap to hold the head. 
   However, the more the crown is stretched, the bigger the pressing force applied to the head. Also, this pressing force is continuously applied to the head, when in use. So, the wearer could find it uncomfortable when he/she wears it, and it could leave an indent mark on the head after wearing for a long time. Moreover, since the crown of a free size cap is made up of stretchable fabric, there is a problem that the crown can be wrinkled and cannot maintain its aesthetic shape when not in use. 
   Some prior arts are known concerning to the free size cap, as follows. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 6,131,202 to Yan relates to a multi-axially stretchable cap. According to the Yan patent, the gores of the cap are composed of multi-axially stretchable fabric, in which stretchable synthetic fiber are woven in both directions, as weft and wrap. Also, a sweat band includes a thin layer of synthetic foam material. Thus, the stretchable cap can stretch in weft and warp direction to provide an easy fit for the head. However, as the above described, the synthetic fabric can press the head with a large restoring force, when in use. Also, since the warp expands and contract in longitudinal direction and the weft in circumferential direction, the restoring forces by the weft and the warp are applied to the head independently. So, the restoring force by the weft is applied not associating with the warp, such that the wearer might still have an uncomfortable feeling while wearing the cap, in a manner similar to other free size caps. Further more, in case that the warp is elastically stretchable, the restoring force of the warp can draw the crown upward while wearing the cap, so to present the wearer an unpleasant feeling of wearing. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 6,347,410 to Lee relates to a self-sizing cap. The self-sizing cap of the Lee patent includes a crown portion, a visor and a sweat band. The crown portion is composed of triangle-shaped fabric panels and it can accommodate a range of head sizes comfortably. The sweat band is composed of two or more layers shaped into an elongated rectangle. The lower edge of the sweat band is flexibly attached to the lower peripheral edge of the crown portion, such that the sweat band can be stowed or deployed. When the sweat band is deployed, it can expand the attachment area on the wearer&#39;s head and provide more shade and warmth, and also it can have matching or contrasting color combinations. 
   PCT application No. WO01/05259 relates to a cap with a stretchable band. The cap includes a crown and an inner band, wherein the inner band is elastically stretchable along its direction of elongation and includes a liner for encircling the head comfortably. The crown is composed of gores and at least one of the gores is made of elastically stretchable material. 
   The abovementioned three patent references all are related to free size caps, which fit a relatively broad range of head sizes. The crowns of the free size caps continuously press the head and might provide the wearer with an uncomfortable feeling when in use. Moreover, the more the free size cap stretches, the more heavily the cap presses the head. 
   On the other hand, a sized cap is mainly made of non-stretchable material and has a fixed peripheral size. The sized cap generally includes a crown and a sweat band, which are mainly made of non-stretchable fiber. It does not have a rear opening for size adjustment, and does not elastically expand and contract. Thus, the crown of the sized cap is not wrinkled or crumpled, providing a good appearance. 
   The sized cap can best fit only one head size. However, it follows that many different sizes of caps should be fabricated for different head sizes. Also, depending on one&#39;s hairstyle and/or length, a sized cap could feel either too tight or loose, such that it could occasionally make the wearer feel uncomfortable. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   It is an object of the present invention to provide a headwear that has a fixed peripheral size but is adjustable within a predetermined range corresponding to small changes of head size. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide a headwear that fits the wearer comfortably. 
   To achieve the objects of the present invention, there is provided a headwear comprising a head receiving portion and a sweat band, wherein the head receiving portion includes first stretchable fabric mainly made of non-stretchable fiber, namely an improved sized cap. 
   The head receiving portion may be a crown or a head band. The crown is usually used to a cap or a hat for covering a head, and includes a plurality of panels. The panels are made of the first stretchable fabric and are stitched one by one to form the crown. While the headband may be used to a visor-type cap to peripherally receive the head. 
   The first stretchable fabric might be woven fabric, knitted fabric or non-woven fabric, wherein the fabrics are substantially made of non-stretchable fiber. Preferably, the first stretchable fabric includes high twist yarn. To fabricate high twist yarn, non-stretchable fibers are twisted over 800 times per meter in S or Z twist. Generally, the high twist yarns that are twisted about 1,000˜3,000 times are widely used for commercial purposes. Though high twist yarn is made of non-stretchable fiber, it can slightly stretch due to its unique structural features. Accordingly, the crown composed of high twist yarn can fit the wearer&#39;s head, despite some changes in its peripheral size. 
   The sweat band is peripherally attached to the inside of the head receiving portion, more particularly, attached there along the lower edge of the head receiving portion. The sweat band absorbs sweat to prevent it from running down onto the face and slightly presses the circumference of the head to fix the headwear in place. 
   Preferably, the sweat band may include a band core and a second stretchable fabric. The band core, as a center portion of the sweat band, presses the head softly, and the second stretchable fabric partially receives the band core to cover it against the head. The band core includes soft material, for example polyurethane foam, other resin foam, woven fabric, knitted fabric, non-woven fabric, etc. The second stretchable fabric is composed of high twist yarn, allowing it to slightly expand and contract in a small range of peripheral size. Also, the second stretchable fabric could include elastic material as weft, such as spandex and polyurethane, so the sweat band can stretch more elastically than the head receiving portion. Thus the sweat band can fit the head in spite of some changes in head peripheral size, and can contact and press the head comfortably, neither too tightly nor loosely. 
   Additionally, a visor, a bill or a brim can be secured to the head receiving portion and extend outwardly. For example, in case that the headwear is a cap or an ivy cap, a visor might be formed at the front portion of a crown, and in case that the headwear is a hat, a brim might be formed along the lower edge of the crown, and still another headwear such as a visor-type cap might include a visor or a bill at the front portion of the headband. Namely, headwears of the present invention, such as a cap, a hat, an ivy cap, a visor-type cap, etc., can have a visor, a bill or a brim. 
   According to the present invention, the headwear has one head size and can slightly expand and contract to fit a head of the one head size, depending on some changes of hair style or length. Also, the headwear can fit heads of people who have almost the same but minutely different head sizes. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The above objects and other advantages of the present invention will be more apparent by describing preferred embodiments thereof in detail with reference to accompanying drawings in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a rear perspective view of a conventional adjustable cap; 
       FIG. 2  is a partially cut view of a headwear according to a first embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 3  is a sectional view of a sweat band of the headwear of  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 4  is a partially cut view of a sweat band and a lower edge of a crown in a headwear according to a second embodiment of the present invention; and 
       FIG. 5  is a sectional view of the sweat band of the headwear of  FIG. 4 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   Embodiment 1 
     FIG. 2  is a partially cut view of a headwear according to the embodiment 1 of the present invention, and  FIG. 3  is a sectional view illustrating a sweat band of the headwear of  FIG. 2 . 
   Referring to  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 , the headwear is a cap  100  for a baseball player or a kid, which includes a crown  110 , a visor  120  and a sweat band  130 . 
   The crown  110  is made up of plurality of gores  112 . The gores  112  are successively stitched one by one, to form a hemisphere-shaped crown  110 . Two of the gores  112  are stitched to form an inseam. A bias tape  114  is provided over the inseam between two adjacent gores on the inner side of the crown  110 . Also, the bias tape  114  helps to prevent the gores  112  from being deformed. 
   Each of the gores  112  includes a first stretchable fabric mainly composed of high twist yarn. The high twist yarn generally is made of non-stretchable fibers that are twisted over 800 times per meter. The high twist yarn has slight expansion properties. Although the high twist yarn is made of non-stretchable fibers, it can expand and contract because of its high-twist structural feature. Here, the high twist yarn is included in the gore  112  as weft or warp, otherwise at least as weft, to help the crown  110  to expand circumferentially. Also, the gores  112  of this embodiment could be woven fabric, knitted fabric or non-woven fabric made of the high twist yarn. 
   The visor  120  has rigid nature and is secured to a front portion of the crown  110 . It extends outwardly to protect a face or a neck from becoming sun burnt and eyes from sunlight. 
   The sweat band  130  is attached to the inside of the crown  110  along its lower edge to fix the cap  100  on the head. The sweat band  130  absorbs sweat to prevent it from running down onto the face. Particularly, the lower end portion of the crown  110  is inwardly bent, and the sweat band  130  is overlaid on. The lower edge of the crown  110  and the sweat band  130  are engaged with each other by the inwardly bent portion of the crown  110 . The lower end portions of the sweat band  130  and the crown  110  are wholly pressed and stitched together to form a stitch line  146  that encircles the crown  110 , parallel to its lower edge. The stitch line  146  is visible on the outer side of the crown  110  to provide an aesthetically pleasing appearance. 
   The sweat band  130  includes a band core  132  therein. The band core  132  is partially covered by a second stretchable fabric  136 . The second stretchable fabric  136  is also mainly made of a high twist yarn described above or could include some elastic material like spandex, polyurethane, etc. When the second stretchable fabric includes elastic material, the second stretchable fabric  136  can stretch more elastically than the first stretchable fabric. 
   The band core  132  is composed of soft materials. This allows the sweat band  130  to wrap softly around the head, so to reduce pressing force and provide a comfortable fit. Also, the band core  132  helps to maintain the shape of the sweat band  130 . The band core  132  can be made of polyurethane foam, other resin foam, woven fabric, knit fabric and non-woven fabric. 
   The second stretchable fabric  136  is disposed so that its weft direction is substantially parallel or somewhat inclined to the circumference of the sweat band  130 . The second stretchable fabric  136  would be interposed between the band core  132  and the head, when in use, and partially covers upper and lower end portions of the band core  132 , so to cover the inner face of the band core  132 . 
   When the second stretchable fabric  136  is engaged with the band core  132 , the upper and lower end portions of the sweat band  130  are stitched with a stretchable yarn  142  and  144 . 
   Also, when the sweat band  130  is stitched to the crown  110 , a stretchable yarn also is preferably used, so to form a stitch line  146 . At this time, the lower end portions of the sweat band  130  and the crown  110  are wholly pressed and stitched together with the stretchable yarn, such that the stitch line  146  is visible on the outer side of the crown  110  and formed along the lower edge of the crown  110 . Since the stretchable yarns for engaging the sweat band  130  and the crown  110  and for forming the stitch line  146  have stretchable properties, they can easily stretch corresponding to the expanding and contracting of the crown  110  and the sweat band  130 . Thus, the stretchable yarns can regulate the appearance of the crown  110 , and the stitch line  146 , specially, can present the cap  100  with an aesthetically pleasing appearance. 
   When the wearer puts on the cap  100 , the crown  110  and the sweat band  130  slightly expand so that it can accommodate a limited number of head sizes. As shown in  FIG. 3 , the lower end portion of the sweat band  130  is fixedly attached to the lower end portion of the crown  110 , while the upper portion of the sweat band  130  is separated from the inner side of the crown  110 . So, the upper portion of the sweat band  130  can move for a comfortable fit. 
   In sum, because the sweat band  130  and the crown  110  include high twist yarns according to embodiment 1, the cap  100  has an expanding property to a small degree. Therefore the cap  100  has smaller restoring force than the conventional free size cap, thus leaving no indented mark on the forehead. Additionally, the band core  132  made of a soft material makes the sweat band  130  wrap softly around the head, so to reduce the pressing force and provide a comfortable fit. 
   In embodiment 1, the cap  100  is described in detail as the headwear of the present invention. However, the headwear of the present invention might include a hat and ivy cap having a few panels, and a visor-type cap having a head band, etc., and the above descriptions can help to understand other styles of headwear. 
   Embodiment 2 
     FIG. 4  is a partially cut view illustrating a sweat band and a crown of a headwear according to embodiment 2 of the present invention, and  FIG. 5  is a sectional view of the sweat band of the headwear. 
   In the embodiment 2, the headwear can be described with reference to the detail descriptions and drawings of the above embodiment, so that repeated descriptions and drawings may be omitted. 
   Referring to  FIG. 4  and  FIG. 5 , the headwear is cap  200  for a baseball player or a child, and the cap  200  includes a crown  210 , a visor and a sweat band  230 . 
   The crown  210  is made up of plurality of gores  212 . The gores  212  are successively stitched one by one, to form a hemisphere-shaped crown  210 . Two of the gores  212  are stitched to form an inseam. A bias tape  214  is provided over the inseam between two adjacent gores on the inner side of the crown  210 . Also, the bias tape  214  helps to prevent the gores  212  from being deformed. 
   Each of the gores  212  includes a first stretchable fabric mainly composed of high twist yarn. The high twist yarn generally is made of non-stretchable fibers that are twisted over 800 times per meter. The high twist yarn has slight expansion properties. Although the high twist yarn is made of non-stretchable fibers, it can expand and contract because of its high-twist structural feature. Here, the high twist yarn is included in the gore  212  as weft or warp, otherwise at least as weft, to help the crown  210  to expand circumferentially. Also, the gores  212  of this embodiment could be woven fabric, knitted fabric or non-woven fabric made of the high twist yarn. 
   The visor  220  has rigid nature and is secured to a front portion of the crown  210  in a manner similar to that of the visor  120  of the first embodiment. It extends outwardly to protect a face or a neck from becoming sun burnt and eyes from sunlight. 
   The sweat band  230  is attached to the inside of the crown  210 , along its lower edge. The sweat band  230  can fix the cap  200  on the head and absorb sweat to prevent it from running down on the face. Particularly, the lower end portion of the crown  210  is partially folded to the inside and the sweat band  230  is overlaid on and stitched to the folded portion of the crown  210 . The lower end portions of the sweat band  230  and the crown  210  are stitched together to form a stitch line  246  that encircles the crown  210  and is parallel to its lower edge. The stitch line  246  is visible on the outer side of the crown  210  to provide an aesthetically pleasing appearance. 
   The sweat band  230  includes a band core  232  therein, and the band core  232  is composed of a polyurethane form layer  233  inward and an elastic band layer  234  outward. The polyurethane form layer  233  is partially covered by a second stretchable fabric  236  to face the head. The second stretchable fabric  236  is mainly made of high twist yarn described above and could include some elastic material like spandex, polyurethane, etc. When the second stretchable fabric includes the elastic material, it can stretch more elastically than the first stretchable fabric. 
   The polyurethane foam layer  233  is formed inside of the band core  232  and is made of very soft material. So, it makes the sweat band  230  wrap the head softly around the head, so to reduce pressing force and provide a comfortable fit. Also, the polyurethane foam layer  233  helps to maintain the shape of the sweat band  230 , when not in use. The elastic band layer  234  is formed outside of the band core  232  and is made of elastic material, so to provide a proper restoring force. 
   The second stretchable fabric  236  is disposed so that its weft direction is substantially parallel or somewhat inclined to the circumference of the sweat band  230 . The second stretchable fabric  236  would be interposed between the band core  232  and the head, when in use, and partially covers upper and lower end portions of the band core  232 , so to cover the inner face of the band core  232 . 
   When the second stretchable fabric  236  is engaged with the band core  232 , the upper and lower end portions of the sweat band  230  are stitched with a stretchable yarn  242  and  244 . 
   Also, when the sweat band  230  is stitched to the crown  210 , a stretchable yarn is preferably used, so to form a stitch line  246 . At this time, the lower end portions of the sweat band  230  and the crown  210  are stitched together and the stitch line  246  is formed adjacent to and parallel to along the lower edge of the crown  210 . Since the stitch line  246  is made of a stretchable yarn, they can stretch corresponding to the expanding and contracting of the crown  210  and the sweat band  230 . The stitch  246  can regulate the appearance of the lower end portion of the crown  210  to present the cap  200  with an aesthetically pleasing appearance. 
   A shape tape  218  is attached circumferentially to the crown  210 , adjacent to the lower edge thereof. The shape tape  218  is stitched along the folded portion of the crown  210 . As the wearer puts on and takes off the cap repeatedly, the crown  210  also expands and contracts repeatedly, in which case the crown  210  is likely to become deformed and wrinkled. In order to prevent the cap from becoming deformed and/or wrinkled, the shape tape  218  is stitched circumferentially to the crown  210 . As shown in  FIG. 4 , the shape tape  218  has a free upper portion  218   a  not attached to the crown  210  or the sweat band  230 . Also, a top portion of the shape tape  218  does not contact the crown  210  or the sweat band  230 . 
   Referring to  FIG. 5 , when the wearer puts on the cap, the crown  210  and the sweat band  230  slightly expand so that it can accommodate a limited number of head sizes. The lower end portion of the sweat band  230  is fixedly attached to the lower end portion of the crown  210 , while the upper portion of the sweat band  230  is separated from the inner side of the crown  210 . So, the upper portion of the sweat band  230  can additionally move for a comfortable fit. 
   Because the sweat band  230  and the crown  210  include high twist yarns, the cap can expand circumferentially to a small degree. Also, the cap according to the present invention has smaller restoring force than the conventional free size cap, thus leaving no indent mark on the wearer&#39;s forehead. Moreover, the sweat band  230  including the soft band core  232  wraps softly around the head, so to reduce the pressing force and provide a comfortable fit. 
   Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, it is understood that the present invention should not be limited to those preferred embodiments, but various changes and modifications can be made by one skilled in the art within the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.