Patent Publication Number: US-2009222968-A1

Title: Child&#39;s Garment With Double Slider Zipper

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to garments for infants and small children, and particularly to a child&#39;s garment with a double slider zipper. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     Infants and small children typically must be kept warm, both while sleeping at night and when going outside during the winter in cold climates. Consequently, sleepwear and outerwear for infants and small toddlers are often in the form of jumpsuits, many of which are equipped with feet or booties for keeping the child&#39;s feet warm. Such clothing is effective in keeping the child warm, but can be inconvenient when it becomes necessary to either partially or entirely remove the sleepwear or outerwear, especially when it becomes necessary to change the child&#39;s diaper or during toileting. The jumpsuit is often equipped with buttons, which are cumbersome. Even when the jumpsuit is equipped with a zipper, the zipper is a single slider zipper that opens at the top, so that the entire jumpsuit needs to be removed for access to the diaper, which requires time to remove the upper portion of the garment, and which leaves both the child&#39;s upper and lower body exposed. 
     Consequently, there is a need for a one-piece child&#39;s garment that covers both the upper and lower body, and which has a closure element that can alternately be opened from either the top or the bottom to access either portion of the child&#39;s body when needed. Such a garment would minimize exposure to the cold or other elements, and would further be more convenient to use for the child&#39;s parent or caregiver. Thus, a child&#39;s garment having a double slider zipper solving the aforementioned problems is desired. 
     DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION 
     The disclosure is directed to a child&#39;s garment with double slider zipper. The garment is adapted for covering both upper and lower portions of a child&#39;s body. The garment has a central opening that extends from the upper end of the garment to the lower end. The double slider zipper has teeth mounted on a pair of stringers attached to opposing edges of the central opening. The zipper extends from the upper end of the garment to the lower end. The double slider zipper has an upper slider and a lower slider mounted in bottom-to-bottom relation so that the upper slider is selectively movable to a first open position to provide access to the upper portion of the child&#39;s body while keeping the lower portion covered by the garment, and the lower slider is selectively movable to a second open position to provide access to the lower portion of the child&#39;s body while keeping the upper portion covered by the garment. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a child&#39;s garment with double slider zipper according to the present invention, with the zipper being in a closed configuration. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a child&#39;s garment with double slider zipper according to the present invention, with the zipper being in a first open configuration. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a child&#39;s garment with double slider zipper according to the present invention, with the zipper being in a second open configuration. 
         FIG. 4  is a double slider zipper according to the prior art that may be incorporated into the child&#39;s garment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a partial front view of an alternative embodiment of the child&#39;s garment with double slider zipper according to the present invention. 
     
    
    
     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. 
     BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION 
     The current invention is directed to a double zippered child&#39;s garment. The garment has an upper portion that is configured to cover a child&#39;s upper body, including his chest, arms, and upper torso, and a lower portion configured to cover the child&#39;s lower body, including the lower torso, hips and legs, and may also cover the feet. The lower portion may have separate legs with integral booties, or may be a one-piece, sleeping bag configuration. It should be understood that the garment may have any configuration, dependent upon the particular needs and desires of the user. For example, in the above, the garment may include separate legs without attached booties. Alternatively, it should be understood that, as noted above, the double slider zipper may be affixed to a sleeping bag-type structure, or any other suitable garment, cover or flexible structure. The garment is furnished with an elongated zipper on the front of the garment extending from the collar to the foot or lower end of the garment, the zipper extending along only one leg when the garment has two legs. The zipper has a double slider so that the upper portion may be opened by sliding the pull on the upper slider down from the collar, or the lower portion may be opened by pulling the lower slider up from the foot of the garment. 
     The provision of the double slider facilitates access to one portion of the child&#39;s body while keeping the other portion clothed for warmth and comfort, and also requires less work from the caregiver (or from the child), since it is not necessary to remove the entire garment to perform such chores as changing a diaper, or during toileting. The garment may also be equipped with features that prevent accidental opening of the zipper by the child. Such features may include, for example, a flap or tab that covers the pull of the upper zipper. The flap may be releasably secured by a snap fastener, button, or other fastener that the child cannot easily open. 
       FIG. 4  shows a conventional double slider zipper  10  which may be incorporated into the child&#39;s garment of the present invention. The zipper  10  includes a first row of teeth  28  attached to a first stringer or tape  50 , and a second row of teeth  30  attached to a second stringer  50 . The zipper  10  includes an upper slider  20  and a lower slider  22 . The sliders  20  and  22  are configured in a bottom-to bottom arrangement so that the teeth are locked together when the sliders  20  and  22  are moved to the ends of the stringers  50 , and open or separate when the sliders  20  and  22  are moved towards the middle of the stringers. The zipper  10  is preferably made from metal or from plastic, although it should be understood that the materials, sizes and contouring of the zipper elements are dependent upon the particular needs and desires of the user. 
       FIG. 1  shows an exemplary child&#39;s garment with a double slider zipper of the present invention, designated generally as  12  in the drawings. The garment  12  includes an upper portion configured to cover the child&#39;s upper body, including the chest, arms, and upper torso, and a lower portion configured to cover the child&#39;s lower body, including the lower torso, hips and legs. The exemplary garment  12  shown in the drawings has separate legs with integral booties, although it will be understood that the scope of the present invention also extends to a garment having a one-piece, sleeping bag configuration, and to a garment having no provision for covering the feet, e.g., an elongated coat, and generally to any child&#39;s garment having an upper and lower portion for covering the child&#39;s upper and lower body in which it may be desirable to have separate access to one portion of the child&#39;s body while keeping the other portion covered. 
     The garment  12  is furnished with an elongated zipper  10  on the front of the garment  12  extending from the collar to the foot or lower end of the garment  12 . As shown in the drawings, the zipper  10  extends along only one leg  18  when the garment  12  has two legs. The zipper  12  has a double slider so that the upper portion may be opened by sliding the pull on the upper slider  20  down from the collar, or the lower portion may be opened by pulling the lower slider  22  up from the foot of the garment  12 , with the two sliders being independently operable. The zipper  12  is attached to the garment  12  by attaching one stringer  50  to a first side  14  of the garment  12  and attaching the opposing stringer  50  to the opposite second side  16  of the garment. 
       FIG. 1  shows the garment  12  in a closed configuration, with the upper slider  20  pulled up to the collar and the lower slider  22  pulled down to the lower end of the garment  12 .  FIG. 2  shows the garment  12  with the upper slider  20  pulled down to the crotch area in a first open configuration, with the lower slider  22  remaining closed, as the garment  12  would be configured to provide access to the upper portion of the child&#39;s body while keeping the lower portion clothed. The stringer  50  on which the first row of teeth  28  is mounted is attached to the edge  24  of the first side  14  of the garment  12 , for example, by stitching, and the stringer  50  on which the second row of teeth is mounted is attached to the edge  26  of the opposite second side  16  of the garment  12 . 
       FIG. 3  shows the garment  12  with the upper slider  20  pulled up to the collar and the lower slider  22  pulled up to the crotch area in a second open configuration, as the garment  12  would be configured for providing access to the lower portion of the child&#39;s body while keeping the upper portion clothed. The stringer  50  on which the lower portion  32  of the first row  28  of zipper teeth is mounted is attached to the edge  40  of the rear portion of leg  18 , for example, by stitching, while the stringer  50  on which the lower portion  34  of the second row  30  of zipper teeth is mounted is attached to the opposing edge  36  of leg  18 . 
     The garment  12  may be provided with other features for the comfort and safety of the child, such as, for example, having elastic cuffs at the ends of the sleeves, a high friction surface on the bottom of the feet, etc. 
       FIG. 5  shows the child&#39;s garment  12  equipped with an additional safety or convenience feature in the form of a flap or tab  52 , which may be folded over the upper slider  20  and secured to the opposite side of the garment  12  by a snap fastener  54 , button, hook and loop, or other releasable fastener. The flap  52  precludes the child from playing with the pull of upper slider  20  and accidentally pulling upper slider  20  down to open the upper portion of the garment. Thus, the child&#39;s garment  12  provides the child with a warm garment  12  that permits the caregiver easy, convenient, selective access to either the upper or lower portion of the child&#39;s body without the necessity of completely removing the garment  12 . It should be understood that a second flap may also be provided for the lower slider  22 . 
     The use of the double zipper system with a garment, such as garment  12 , is desirable, but not limited to, particular application to infant clothing. Particularly, the opening of the garment from the bottom up, via lower slider  22 , allows for easy and comfortable access during diaper changing and toilet training, for example, without requiring the full removal of the garment from the child, thus keeping the child continuously warm throughout the process. It should be understood that such a garment and zipper system may be used with a person of any age where such a double zipper system would be desired. 
     It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.