Patent Publication Number: US-7908669-B2

Title: Clothing protector scarf

Description:
This application includes material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to scarves and, more particularly, to a scarf that functions as a bib, or similar means of protecting clothing. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Most people require that their clothing be protected during certain activities. These include, but are not limited to, dining, applying makeup and burping babies. The handicapped and elderly, especially those suffering from disorders that affect motor functioning, are particularly susceptible to spillage when dining or engaging in other activities requiring fine motor competence. The most typical solutions designed for protecting clothing have been the use of various bibs, scarves, wraps and napkins. 
     The major shortcomings of other bibs, scarves, wraps and napkins are their limited utility as fashion accessories, limited versatility as protective garments or the potentially unwanted attention they bring to the wearer, especially in public. They are typically not designed to be worn as accessories for other garments in public nor they are typically designed for purposes other than clothing protection. In addition, many people, such as the handicapped and elderly, find that wearing a bib or napkin while, for example, dining in public results in bringing unwanted attention to their deficits, resulting in feelings of diminished self-respect and loss of dignity. 
     OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is object of the invention to protect clothing while dining or engaging in other activities that may result in spilling or soiling. 
     It is another object of the invention to serve as a decorative fashion accessory when not being used as a clothing protector. 
     In one embodiment, the invention is a clothing protector scarf that is worn around the neck and drapes over one&#39;s chest on two sides, from the neck to at, or slightly above, one&#39;s waist When not used for dining, or other purposes of clothing protection, the two sections of the scarf remain separated and the scarf is worn as a decorative fashion accessory. When dining, the two sections of the scarf may be joined together along their leading edges with hook and loop (Velcro) fasteners, forming a continuous surface of fabric capable of keeping food from coming in contact with the clothing underneath. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of preferred embodiments as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which reference characters refer to the same parts throughout the various views. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating principles of the invention. 
         FIG. 1  is a front detail view of an embodiment of a clothing protector scarf fabric components, displayed horizontally, comprising of two sheets of fabric. 
         FIG. 2  is a front detail view of an embodiment of a clothing protector scarf fabric components, displayed horizontally, comprising of four sheets of fabric. 
         FIG. 3  is a front detail view of an embodiment of a clothing protector scarf, completed, displayed horizontally with left side Velcro loop fasteners showing; and right side (from wearer&#39;s perspective) folded back to reveal backside Velcro hook fasteners. 
         FIG. 4  is a front detail view of an embodiment of a clothing protector scarf, as it would appear when worn around the wearer&#39;s neck, draping down the wearer&#39;s chest, with left side Velcro loop fasteners showing and right side (from wearer&#39;s perspective) folded back to reveal back side Velcro hook fasteners. 
         FIG. 5  is a front perspective view of an embodiment of a clothing protector scarf, as it would appear when worn as decorative garment in accordance with the invention; and 
         FIG. 6  a front perspective view of an embodiment of a clothing protector scarf as it would appear when worn and fastened to form a continuous surface protective garment in accordance with the invention. 
     
    
    
     For purposes of clarity and brevity, like elements and components will bear the same designations and numbering throughout the Figures. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 1  is a front detail view of an embodiment of clothing protector scarf fabric components  10 , displayed horizontally. There is provided a front layer elongated fabric member  12  and a back layer elongated fabric member  14 . Each is generally hourglass shaped, preferably in the range of 55″ in length with a wide end  16  preferably in the range of 8″ in width and a narrow end  18  of preferably in the range of 3″ in width. The clothing protector scarf fabric components  10  can incorporate shorter fabric members to construct a garment more suitable for children and small adults. In this smaller embodiment, the front layer elongated fabric member  12  and back layer elongated fabric member  14  would have lengths preferably in the range of 45″ each. The front elongated fabric member and back elongated fabric member are joined together with single seam stitching  20 , preferably in the range of ½″ from the outer edge of the fabric members. After stitching  20 , the fabric is pulled inside-out through a stitching gap  22  of 2½″ to 3″ in length. 
     An alternate method of construction is shown in  FIG. 2 , which is a front detailed view of the clothing protector scarf fabric component  10 , displayed horizontally, comprising of four sheets of fabric. This alternate method of construction uses four fabric members, instead of two. There is provided a front layer fabric member  13  (two each) and a. back layer fabric member  15  (two each). Each generally wedge shaped, preferably in the range of 28″ in length, each with a wide end  16  preferably in the range of 8″ in width and a narrow end  18  of preferably in the range of 3″ in width. The clothing protector scarf fabric components  10  can incorporate shorter fabric members to construct a garment more suitable for children and small adults. In this smaller embodiment, the front layer fabric member  13  and back layer fabric member  15  would have lengths preferably in the range of 23″ each. The front layer fabric member  13  and back layer fabric member  15  are joined together with single seam stitching  20 , preferably in the range of ½″ from the outer edge of the fabric members. After stitching  20 , the fabric is pulled inside-out through the gap at the narrow end  18 , producing a scarf half  17 . This alternate method of assembly is conducive to pulling the joined fabric members inside-out when the front layer fabric member  13  and/or the back layer Fabric member  15  is comprised of a heavier material such as terrycloth. A stitching gap  22  is not required for this alternate assembly method. 
       FIG. 3  is a front detail view of an embodiment of the clothing protector scarf  11 , completed and displayed horizontally. The Velcro fasteners described in this description are of the iron-on variety. There is provided a lower left Velcro loop fastener  32  (Note: left, right, back and front references are from the wearer&#39;s perspective) preferably in the range of ½″ in diameter, located along the front of the left side inner edge  28 , preferably in the range of 15″ from the narrow end  18  and flush with the left side inner edge  28 . There is provided an upper left Velcro loop fastener  34  preferably in the range of ½″ in diameter, located along the back front of the left side inner edge  28 , preferably in the range of 10″ from the narrow end  18  and flush with the left side inner edge  28 . There is provided a lower right Velcro hook fastener  38  preferably in the range of ½″ in diameter, located along the back side of the right side inner edge  30 , preferably in the range of 15″ from the narrow end  18  and flush with the right side inner edge  30 . There is provided an upper right Velcro hook fastener  36  preferably in the range of ½″ in diameter, located along back side of the right side inner edge  30 , preferably in the range of 10″ from the narrow end  18  and flush with the right side inner edge  30 . If the clothing protector scarf  11  is constructed using the fabric components as depicted in  FIG. 1 , gap stitching  23  is required. The gap stitching  23  is a single seam. preferably in the range of ⅛″ from the outer edge. If the clothing protector scarf  11  is constructed using the fabric components as depicted in  FIG. 2 , narrow end stitching  19  is required. The narrow end stitching  19  is a single seam joining each scarf half  17  ( FIG. 2 ) at the narrow end  18 . In another embodiment of a clothing protector scarf  11 , the right and left loop and hook fasteners can be interchanged. The sidedness of the fasteners is not critical as long as the loop fasteners are on one side and the hook fasteners are on the other_ In another embodiment of a clothing protector scarf  11 , the Velcro fasteners can be replaced with an alternate fastening method such as buttons and buttonholes or small metal hooks. 
       FIG. 4  is a front detail view of an embodiment of the clothing protector scarf  11 , as it would appear when worn around the neck and draping over the wearer&#39;s chest. The lower left Velcro loop fastener  32  and upper left Velcro loop fastener  34  are shown in relation to the narrow end  18  (which rests on the back of the wearer&#39;s neck) and the left side inner edge  28  and left side outer edge  26 . The lower right Velcro hook fastener  38  and upper right Velcro hook fastener  36  are shown in relation to the narrow end  18  and right side outer edge  24  and right side inner edge  30  (folded back to reveal the fasteners). 
       FIG. 5  is a front perspective view of an embodiment of the clothing protector scarf  11 , as it would appear when worn as decorative garment in accordance with invention. 
       FIG. 6  is a front perspective view of an embodiment clothing protector scarf  11  as it would appear when worn and fastened to form a continuous surface protective garment in accordance with the invention. 
     While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the scarf could be constructed using a single elongated fabric member. The fabric used for such an embodiment would preferable be thicker and more absorbent than fabric used in a two layer embodiment.