Patent Publication Number: US-2015059048-A1

Title: Garment for persons with limited movement

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a garment for the human torso. More specifically, the present invention relates to a garment having strategically located connectors along a plurality of seams of the garment to facilitate donning or removal of the garment by a person having injuries, surgeries or otherwise limited flexibility or range of movement. More specifically, the garment of the present invention can be donned or removed in a manner that does not require the movement of shoulder joints to extreme displacements and in a manner that enables the garment to be more easily donned onto or removed from an unconscious, semi-conscious or otherwise movement impaired person. 
     2. Background of the Related Art 
     Medical patients, especially patients having injuries or surgeries to a shoulder, an arm, the neck or the collarbone are often physically impaired and unable to don or remove conventional clothing or conventional hospital gowns. For example, but not by way of limitation, a person with a collarbone or shoulder injury, a broken arm, or a person recovering from collarbone, shoulder, arm, breast or cardiac surgery, may be unable to position the arm and elbow above the shoulder to insert the arm into a sleeve of a conventional pullover shirt. While some hospital gowns are constructed to be donned from the front, as opposed to the back, these garments are not generally favorable for being fastened in the rear or for being worn in a modest manner. 
     SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
     An embodiment of the present invention comprises a garment comprising a superior shoulder seam connector, an inferior shoulder seam connector and at least one side seam connector proximal to the superior shoulder seam connector and the inferior sleeve seam connector to enable the garment to be donned and/or removed by persons having a limited range of arm movement in one or both shoulders. The present invention can be donned or removed by a person in a laying position, a sitting or standing position. The present invention can be worn in public because, unlike conventional hospital gowns, it appears as a conventional pullover shirt when all of the connectors are in the connected mode. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective frontal view of an embodiment of the garment of the present invention with all seam connectors connected. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective rear view of the embodiment of the garment of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is the perspective frontal view of  FIG. 1  after the (user&#39;s) left shoulder seam connector and the left side seam connector are disconnected. 
         FIG. 4  is the perspective frontal view of  FIG. 1  after the right shoulder seam connector is disconnected. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective frontal view of an embodiment of the garment  10  of the present invention with all seam connectors  11 ,  23  and  24  connected. The embodiment of the garment  10  comprises a torso portion  12 , a front portion  30 , a pocket  25  on the front portion  30 , a neck opening  18 , a bottom opening  15 , a (user&#39;s) left shoulder seam connector  24 , a left sleeve superior seam connector  23 , a right sleeve  16 , and a left side torso seam connector  11 . The a(user&#39;s) left shoulder seam connector  24 , a left sleeve superior seam connector  23  and a left side torso seam connector  11  each comprise an elongate hook seam portion and an elongate loop seam portion. More specifically, left side torso seam connector  11  comprises an elongate hook seam portion  13  and an elongate loop seam portion  14  which, when aligned and pressed one against the other completes the seam and retains the seam in the connected mode as illustrated in  FIG. 1 . Similarly, the left sleeve superior seam connector  23  comprises an elongate hook seam portion  22  and an elongate loop seam portion  21  which, when aligned and pressed one against, the other completes the seam and retains the seam in the connected mode as illustrated in  FIG. 1 . The garment  10  further comprises a slit or opening  35  in the interior panel  36  to facilitate an electronic connector (not shown in  FIG. 1 ). 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective rear view of the embodiment of the garment  10  of FIG. revealing a rear portion  31  and a (user&#39;s) right side seam connector  17  comprising an elongate hook seam portion  20  and an elongate loop seam portion  18  which, when aligned and pressed one against the other completes the seam and retains the seam in the connected mode as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . 
     It will be understood that, with the seam connectors  11 ,  17 ,  23  and  24  in the connected mode as illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the garment  10  will function as a conventional pull-over shirt. However, as will be illustrated in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the garment  10  can be donned and/or removed in unconventional ways that are accommodating for persons having limited mobility of one or both of the shoulders, one or both of the arms, the neck, the torso or the collarbone. 
       FIG. 3  is the perspective frontal view of  FIG. 1  after the (user&#39;s) left shoulder seam connector  24  and the left side seam connector  11  are disconnected. Also disconnected is the left inferior sleeve connector  32  comprising of a left inferior sleeve connector hook portion  27  and a left interior sleeve connector loop portion  29 . It will be understood by inspection of  FIG. 3  that the disconnection of these three connectors  11 ,  24  and  32  enables the donning or the removal of the garment  10  onto or from the body of the user by sliding the garment  10  onto and then up the user&#39;s right arm (riot shown) for donning, or by sliding the garment  10  down and then off of the user&#39;s right, arm (not shown); that is by inserting the user&#39;s right hand (not shown) into the right sleeve  16  and then by sliding the right sleeve  16  up and along the user&#39;s tight arm(not shown) until the garment  10  is donned or, for removal, by sliding the right sleeve  16  down and along the user&#39;s right arm (not shown) and then by pulling the user&#39;s right hand (not shown) through the right sleeve  16 . 
       FIG. 3  also reveals the interior of the pocket  25  and the slit  35  on the interior of the pocket  25  to facilitate the wired connection of a medical instrument such as, for example, a heart monitor, stored and/or carried in the pocket  25  by the user of the garment  10 . 
       FIG. 4  is the perspective frontal view of  FIG. 1  after the right shoulder seam connector  17  is disconnected. It will be understood that the garment  10  in the configuration illustrated in  FIG. 4  can be donned onto the user&#39;s body by having the user insert his or her feet into the neck opening  18  (which is substantially enlarged by disconnection of the right shoulder seam connector  17 ) and then by raising the garment  10  and sliding the garment  10  up and along the user&#39;s legs, past the user&#39;s hips and along the user&#39;s torso, and then by inserting the user&#39;s left arm into the left sleeve  21  and by connecting the right shoulder seam connector  17  above the left shoulder, or by receiving the user&#39;s head and shoulders into the bottom opening  15  and then by sliding the garment  10  along the user&#39;s torso until the right sleeve  21  and the left sleeve  16  are below the user&#39;s armpits, and then by inserting the user&#39;s left arm into the left sleeve  21  and by connecting the right shoulder seam connector  17  above the user&#39;s right shoulder. It will be understood that this process of donning the garment  10  can be made even easier by beginning with both the right shoulder seam connector  17  and the left shoulder seam connector  24  in the disconnected mode. 
     It will be understood that the garment  10  in the configuration illustrated in  FIG. 4  can be removed from the user&#39;s body by sliding the garment downwardly along the user&#39;s torso, past the user&#39;s hips and downwardly along the user&#39;s legs until the garment  10  is removed past the user&#39;s feet, or by having the user elevate his or her arms over his or her head, and then by sliding the garment  10  upwardly from the user&#39;s torso and along the user&#39;s elevated arms until the user&#39;s hands are pulled through the garment  10  and the garment is removed. It will be understood that the process of removing the garment  10  can be made even easier by beginning with both the right shoulder seam connector  17  and the left shoulder seam connector  24  in the disconnected mode.