Abstract:
A system for utility garments provides the wearer of a variety of garments including blazers, lab coats, and vests with the option of removing pockets and discarding the garment for disposal or cleaning, while not having to remove the contents of the pockets. The wearers who would benefit from such garments include medical workers. The pockets may have one or more compartments to place items needed by the wearer during use. In one embodiment the pockets or the garment or both may be disposable to prevent spread of infection and similar problems.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     This invention relates to items of clothing, more particularly, to items of clothing having removable pockets, more particularly, this invention relates to utility garments to be worn by hospital and medical personnel.  
         [0003]     2. State of the Art  
         [0004]     A variety of pursuits, including healthcare, and the like, can require the wearer of a garment associated with that pursuit to place items in the pockets of the garment he or she wears during such pursuits. Blazers, vests, lab coats and the like may be worn by such wearers. The garments may become soiled or unsuitable for further wear and the pockets and their contents may be wished to be transferred to different garments. Indeed, the pockets may be transferred on the whim of the user, who decides to wear a different outfit for whimsical reasons. Then the contents of all the pockets must be removed and placed into a new garment that may also become unsuitable for further use quickly.  
         [0005]     In one example, hospital and other health care workers need to deal with patients on a daily basis. Some of these patients have open wounds or sores, others have contagious diseases, others may be incontinent, and the like. Therefore, the people in the health care industry frequently have to change their outer garments as they become soiled with a variety of unsavory materials.  
         [0006]     These same workers have to carry a variety of objects, and tools with them as the work. These include stethoscope, thermometers, blood pressure cuffs and the like. Frequently, the workers carry these objects in their pockets. If they have to change their clothes during the day, they also have to empty their pockets and transfer the contents to the new garment.  
         [0007]     Similarly, those who work with ill patients and the like may have the need to replace their garments that may become soiled with dirt, water, blood, and the like, and could benefit from easily replaceable pockets.  
         [0008]     It would be of great advantage to these workers if they had a protective garment that shielded them from the unsavory materials they may be exposed to, and allowed easy and facile transfer of the objects in their pockets to a new outer protective garment.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0009]     This invention provides a system for utility garments provides the wearer of a variety of garments including blazers, lab coats, and vests with the option of removing pockets and discarding the garment for disposal or cleaning, while not having to remove the contents of the pickets. The wearers who would benefit from such garments particularly include various medical workers. The pockets may have one or more compartments to place items needed by the wearer during use. In one embodiment the pockets or the garment or both may be disposable to prevent spread of infection and similar problems.  
         [0010]     In one embodiment this invention provides a system for utility clothing comprising: at least one outer garment shell having a front portion with at least one removable attachment for a pocket disposed thereon; and at least one pocket removably placeable upon each of the at least one removable a ent pont on each of the at let one outer garment shell such that the pocket is exposed to the wearer of the vest for easy access during weaning.  
         [0011]     In another embodiment, this invention provides an utility garment comprising: an outer garment shell having a front portion with at least one removable attachment for a pocket disposed thereon; and a pocket removably placed upon each of the at least one removable attachment point such that the pocket is exposed to the wearer of the garment for easy access during wearing.  
         [0012]     In yet another embodiment, this invention provides a pocket for use in an outer utility garment comprising: a front; a back attached to the front, with at least one opening; and at least one removable attachment point disposed on the back of the pocket such that the opening of the pocket is exposed to the wearer of the garment for easy access during wearing.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0013]     The FIG shows a front view of a utility vest having removable pockets disposed thereon, with several of the pockets shown removed therefrom. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0014]     Referring now to the FIG., an outer utility vest  10  has several pockets disposed thereon. Although a vest is described herein, the exact same principle can be used on blazers, lab coats, overcoats, shirts, and the like, made out of many different kinds of materials, including, cotton, wool, synthetic materials including nylon, rayon, dacron, urethane, and combination fabrics that may contain two or more of the previously listed fabrics. The fabric may be tightly woven, loosely woven, knit, woven as a mesh and the like. The material may be of any color, and the pockets may be of the same color or a different color than the garment shell.  
         [0015]     A utility vest  10  of the present invention includes a vest shell  12  that has a front portion shown in the FIGURE, having arm holes for the wearer  14 , a neck hole for the wearer  16 , and a front closure  18 . The front closure may be secured by zippers, buttons, snaps, tie fasteners, and the like.  
         [0016]     Four pockets ( 18 ,  22 ,  24 , and  26 ) are shown in the FIG., although fewer or more may be used in this invention. Each pocket is attached to a removable attachment point on the front of the vest.  
         [0017]     In use the vest will have at least one pocket (for example,  18 ,  22 ,  24 , and  26 ) removably placed upon at least one of the removable attachment points (for example,  32 ,  36 , and  42 ) such that the pocket is exposed to the wearer of the vest for easy access during wearing. It is, of course, possible that during use by some personnel who will wear the vest, that they will attach only one pocket, although there may be many more attachment points on the vest shell. It should of course be noted that the pockets need not all be removable. In many environments at least one permanent pocket may be useful, or even mandatary.  
         [0018]     In one preferred embodiment, the vest shell  10  have four removable attachment points thereon. It is also preferred that pockets are placed upon each of the four removable attachment points. The four preferred locations for pockets include the right upper chest area  20  (from the wearer&#39;s point of view), on the left upper chest area  26 , on right waist area  22 , and on left waist area  24 . It is preferred, although not required, that the pockets be reusable, since the purpose of the pockets is to allow the loading of pockets and the use on more than one garment. It will be noted that the pockets are all shown attached by different means in the accompanying FIG. The variety of attachment means is for illustration purposes only. In actual use it would be greatly preferred to use only one type of attachment means. Moreover, all the pockets on the illustrative garment are shown to be removable. In any real garment of this invention, there may be one or more pockets permanently affixed to the garment.  
         [0019]     One preferred method of attaching pockets is by use of hook and loop material (for example Velcro®). A pocket may have hook and loop material disposed on its back (not shown in the FIG.) for attachment to hook and loop material  24  disposed on the vest shell. In the FIG., the hook and loop material is shown as strips sewn or otherwise secured to the vest shell. When the vest shell becomes soiled, the wearer unfastens the hook and loop material, discards that vest shell, for cleaning or disposal, and reattaches the pocket to another clean vest shell.  
         [0020]     Another method of attachment of a pocket  26  is by pressure sensitive snaps  42 . At least one pressure sensitive snap disposed on the back of the pocket  26  may mate with another disposed on the front of the vest shell  12 . When the vest shell becomes soiled, the wearer unfastens the snaps, discards that vest shell, for cleaning or disposal, and reattaches the pocket to another clean vest shell.  
         [0021]     Yet another method of attachment of a pocket  24  is by buckle assembly  38  and  36 . The buckle assembly may be of any size and type that allows the use of the front of the vest by the user. Although two buckle assembles used to secure the pocket to the vest shell are shown in the FIG., only one need be used to secure the pocket to the vest shell  12 .  
         [0022]     Each of the pockets ( 20 ,  22 ,  24 , and  26 ) may have more than one compartment disposed therein (as shown in the FIG. for  20 ,  22 , and  26 ). For example, a pocket  26  may have a single compartment  44  suitable for use by a pen or other writing instrument. Alternatively, a pocket  22  may have a plurality of compartments  34 . Otherwise, a pocket  20  may have two or more compartments  28  and  30  for convenience, or even for the fashionable look such a divided pocket may provide.  
         [0023]     As shown, the plurality of compartments  34  in the pocket  22  may be used for transport of blood or other biological samples. In modern medical practice, contact with blood is scrupulously avoided by medical personnel; therefore, it is preferred to use pockets fabricated from disposable material for these pockets. Alternatively, any of the items used by medical personnel may be stowed in specially designed compartments. For example, this invention contemplates the use of compartments specially made for pagers and cell phones, thermometers, probes, examination lights and other sources of illumination, and the like.  
         [0024]     As noted above, pockets intended to be devoted to uses invoking extensive blood work are probably best disposed after use. However, it in one preferred embodiment of this invention, all pockets are made to be disposed. It is contemplated that the outer vest shell of the utility vest be washable, and reusable after use. However, it may be that the most efficient way to use the vest of the present invention is to dispose of the entire vest shell after each use.  
         [0025]     This invention also contemplates a pocket for use in an outer utility garment. Such a pocket will have a front, a back attached to the front, with at least one opening; and at least one removable attachment point disposed on the back of the pocket such that the opening of the pocket is exposed to the wearer of the garment for easy access during wearing. The pocket may be disposable or reusable. It may include more than one compartment defined within it, and it may have a closure flap  46  or similar privacy device attached thereto. Here the flap is closed by a button  48 , although snaps, hook and loop material, and like methods may be used for pocket closure. If it has multiple compartments defined there within, these compartments may be specially made to carry pagers and cell phones, thermometers, probes, examination lights and other sources of illumination, and the like.  
         [0026]     The garment and the pockets may be made from the same material or from different materials. These materials may be woven or non-woven, and may be made from, cotton, linen, wool, rayon, nylon, polyester, or combinations of the various fabrics. They may be fabricated from wood derived non-woven materials for disposal. Other materials are possible, for example, polyurethane, polyethylene both as a sheet and woven from thread made from the material, and the like, but of course, some concession to the comfort of the wearer must be made in the choice of fabric or fabrication material. Obviously if the garment is to be reusable, it needs to be made of more robust material that will tolerate the various cleaning processes that may be used to cleanse the garment.  
         [0027]     The garment may include adjustment means on the sides so more than one size person may comfortably wear the garment.  
         [0028]     Iit should be noted that the system contemplated as one aspect of this invention, includes a plurality of garments, including blazers, lab coats, vests and the like and a plurality of pockets that may be transferred from one garment to another.  
         [0029]     This invention has been described with reference to specific examples and embodiments. A variety of modifications, alterations, and changes will suggest themselves to one of ordinary skill in the art. The appended claims are intended to encompass all such modifications, alterations, and changes.