Patent Publication Number: US-2011047675-A1

Title: Garment connection system

Description:
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/239,232, filed on Sep. 2, 2009, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
     The present invention is directed to a garment connection system, and more particularly, to a fluid-resistant garment connection system. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     Protective or hazardous duty garments are used in a variety of industries and settings to protect the wearer from hazardous conditions such as heat, fire, smoke, cold, sharp objects, chemicals, liquids, fumes and the like. Such protective or hazardous duty garments are often used in adverse conditions, such as in the presence of high temperatures, smoke, chemicals, vapors and the like. However, existing garments may not provide sufficient protection from harmful vapors or fluids, particularly at garment junctions. 
     SUMMARY 
     In one embodiment, the invention is a boot and trousers system including a pair of trousers, the trousers including a barrier material which is generally impermeable to undesired fluids. The system further includes a boot having a body and an upper portion, wherein the upper portion is folded about the body of the boot to define a flap portion. The barrier material is releasably coupled to the flap portion and to the body. 
     In another embodiment, the invention is a boot and trousers system including a pair of trousers, the trousers including a barrier material which is generally impermeable to undesired fluids. The system further includes a boot having a body and an upper portion, wherein the upper portion is folded about the body of the boot to define a flap portion. At least part of the barrier material is positioned between the flap portion and the body. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a user wearing a coat, trousers and boots; 
         FIG. 2  is a side perspective cutaway view of a boot and a lower part of the trousers of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a side cross section of the pant leg and boot of  FIG. 3 ; 
         FIG. 3A  is a side cross section of the pant leg and boot of  FIG. 3 , illustrating an alternate construction; 
         FIGS. 4-8  are a series of side cross section views illustrating how the boot can be detached from the trousers; and 
         FIG. 9  is a side cross section of the boot configured for stand-alone use. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     As best shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the present invention may take the form of a system  10  for connecting a pair of trousers  12  to a pair of boots  14 . The trousers  12  may include various layers through its thickness to provide various heat, moisture and abrasion resistant qualities so that the trousers  12  can be used as a protective, hazardous duty, and/or firefighter garment. For example, the trousers  12  may include an outer shell  16 , a moisture-resistant/vapor-resistant/fluid-resistant barrier  18  located inside of and adjacent to the outer shell  16 , and a thermal liner/barrier  20  located inside of and adjacent to the moisture/vapor barrier  18 . In the illustrated embodiment the layers  16 ,  18 ,  20  are generally annular at the lower end of each trousers leg and arranged such that the moisture barrier  18  is positioned between the thermal barrier  20  and outer shell  16 . However, if desired, this configuration can be reversed such that the thermal barrier  20  is positioned between the outer shell  16  and the moisture barrier  18 . If desired, an inner liner or inner face cloth (not shown) may be positioned inside the thermal barrier  20  to form the inner-most layer of the trousers  12 . Moreover, if desired, the trousers  10  may not necessarily include the thermal barrier  20 . 
     The outer shell  16  may be made of or include a variety of materials, including a flame, heat and abrasion resistant material such as a compact weave of aramid fibers and/or polybenzamidazole fibers. Commercially available aramid materials include NOMEX and KEVLAR fibers (both trademarks of E.I. DuPont de Nemours &amp; Co., Inc. of Wilmington, Del.), and commercially available polybenzamidazole fibers include PBI fibers (a trademark of PBI Performance Fabrics of Charlotte, North Carolina). Thus, the outer shell  16  may be an aramid material, a blend of aramid materials, a polybenzamidazole material, a blend of aramid and polybenzamidazole materials, or other appropriate materials. If desired, the outer shell  16  may be covered with a polymer, such as a durable, water repellent finish (i.e. a perfluorohydrocarbon finish, such as TEFLON® finish sold by E. I. Du Pont de Nemours and Company of Wilmington, Del.). The materials of the outer shell  16  may have a weight of, for example, between about five and about ten oz/yd 2 . 
     The moisture barrier  18  and thermal barrier  20  (if utilized) may be generally coextensive with the outer shell  16 , or spaced slightly inwardly from the outer edges of the outer shell  16  (i.e., spaced slightly inwardly from the lower end of the legs or the waist) to provide moisture and thermal protection throughout the trousers  12 . 
     The thermal barrier  20 , if utilized, may be made of nearly any suitable material that provides sufficient thermal insulation. In one embodiment, the thermal barrier  20  may include a relatively thick (i.e. between about 1/16″- 3/16″) batting, felt or needled non-woven bulk or batting material, which can be coupled to a face cloth. The bulk material can also take the form of one or two (or more) layers of E-89® spunlace fabric made of a combination of NOMEX® and KEVLAR® fabric. The bulk material can also, or instead, include aramid fiber batting (such as NOMEX® batting), aramid needlepunch material, an aramid non-woven material, an aramid blend needlepunch material, an aramid blend batting material, an aramid blend non-woven material, foam (either open cell or closed cell), or other suitably thermally insulating materials. The thermal barrier  20  may trap air and possess sufficient loft to provide thermal resistance to the trousers  12 . If desired, the thermal barrier  20 , or parts thereof, may be treated with a water-resistant or water-repellent finish. 
     In one embodiment, the thermal barrier  20  has a thermal protection performance (“TPP”) of at least about twenty, and in another embodiment, at least about thirty five. Moreover, in one embodiment the trousers  12  as a whole will have a TPP of at least about twenty, and in another embodiment have a TPP of at least about thirty five, although the trousers  12  may have a relatively low TPP is some cases and may not be particularly thermally insulating. 
     The moisture barrier  18  may be generally water vapor permeable but generally impermeable to liquid moisture, as well as generally impermeable to the vapor form of harmful/undesirable materials (i.e. non-aqueous materials in one embodiment). The moisture barrier  18  may have microscopic openings that permit moisture vapor (such as water vapor) to pass therethrough, but block liquids (such as liquid water) from passing therethrough. The microscopic openings may be small enough to allow water vapor to pass therethrough, but block vapors/airborne particulates, etc. of harmful materials, which can be larger than water vapor molecules. Thus the moisture barrier  18  can be considered a selective vapor barrier and/or can have selective vapor barrier (or near-complete vapor barrier) qualities, but is generally termed moisture barrier herein in compliance with common industry usage. 
     The moisture barrier  18  may be made of a microporous material that is either hydrophilic, hydrophobic, or somewhere in between. The moisture barrier  18  may also be monolithic and may allow water moisture vapor transmission therethrough by molecular diffusion. The moisture barrier  18  may also be a combination of microporous and monolithic materials (known as a bicomponent moisture barrier), in which the microporous or monolithic materials are layered or intertwined. The moisture barrier  18  may include a membrane layer bonded to a substrate of flame and heat resistant material on one or both sides thereof to provide structure and protection to the membrane layer. 
     The moisture barrier  18  can instead, if desired, be generally impervious to all fluids, vapors, aerosols, liquids and gases, including water and water vapor. The moisture barrier  18  can be configured to block harmful materials from passing therethrough. Such harmful materials may include liquids (including chemical warfare agents, biological warfare agents and toxic industrial chemicals), vapors and aerosols of an aqueous or non-aqueous nature (including chemical warfare agents and toxic industrial chemicals), and contaminated particulates (such as biological warfare agents). Examples of chemical warfare agents include soman (GD) nerve agent and distilled mustard (HD) blister agent. Examples of toxic industrial chemicals include acrolein (liquid), acrylonitrile (liquid), ammonia (gas), chlorine (gas), and dimethyl sulfate (liquid). 
     The moisture barrier  18  may be made of or include expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (“PTFE”) such as GORE-TEX or CROSSTECH materials (both of which are trademarks of W. L. Gore &amp; Associates, Inc. of Newark, Del.), polyurethane-based materials, neoprene-based materials, cross-linked polymers, polyamid, GORE® CHEMPAK® materials, sold by W. L. Gore &amp; Associates, Inc. including GORE® CHEMPAK® Ultra Barrier Fabric, GORE® CHEMPAK® Selectively Permeable Fabric, or GORE® CHEMPAK® Sorptive Fabric, neoprene, rubber, synthetic rubber or other materials. Besides the materials outlined above, the moisture barrier  18  can be made of nearly any material that is generally impermeable to the materials which are desired to be prevented from contact with the wearer, or from contact with inner layers of the garment  12 . 
     In one embodiment, each layer of the trousers  12 , and the trousers  12  as a whole, may meet the National Fire Protection Association (“NFPA”) 1971 standards for protective firefighting garments (“Protective Clothing for Structural Firefighting”), which are entirely incorporated by reference herein. The NFPA Structural Firefighting standards specify various minimum requirements for heat and flame resistance and for tear strength. For example, in order to meet the NFPA standards, each of the outer shell  16 , moisture barrier  18 , and thermal barrier  20  individually, and the trousers  12  as a whole, must be able to resist igniting, burning, melting, dripping, separation and/or shrinking by more than 10% in any direction at a temperature of 500° F. for at least five minutes. Furthermore, in order to meet the NFPA standards, the combined layers of the trousers  12  must provide a thermal protective performance rating of at least thirty five. 
     NFPA 1971 standards include a Chem/Bio Option, also known as the CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear) Option (the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference) which provides specifications that protective ensembles must meet in order to be certified under that Option. For example, the Chem/Bio Option specifies that the garment must pass a MIST test (Man In Simulant Test). In one case the MIST test essentially consists of introducing the garment into a chamber filled with a vaporized test material (such as oil of wintergreen). Absorbent pads are placed on the wearer and/or inside the garment. After the garment has been exposed to the vaporized material for a sufficient period of time, the garment is removed from the chamber. The absorbent pads are removed and analyzed to determine how much of the vaporized test material they have absorbed. Thus, the garment disclosed herein may instead, or also, be arranged to meet the Chem/Bion Option standards. 
     However, the trousers  12  may include various arrangements of liners/materials, as desired, in which the various layers described herein are included, omitted, and/or rearranged. For example, the trousers  12  may lack any thermal barrier  20 , or lack any moisture barrier  16 , or include only an outer shell  12  and lack other layers, etc., or may take on various other configurations as desired to meet various other NFPA requirements, and need not even necessarily be NFPA compliant. 
     The boots  14  may also, in one embodiment, be compliant with NFPA regulations. Each boot  14  may include an outer layer  22  made of a relatively strong, durable and abrasion-resistant material, such as leather, synthetic leather, rubber, synthetic rubber, fibrous materials such as NOMEX® or KEVLAR® fibers, or various other materials as desired. Each boot  14  can include various inner layers as shown, for example, in  FIGS. 3-9 . In one embodiment, each boot  14  includes a fluid barrier/moisture barrier  24  and a thermal barrier  26  positioned inside the outer layer  22 . Each of these layers  22 ,  24 ,  26  may be generally annular about upper portions of the boot  14 . The moisture barrier  24  and thermal barrier  26  may be made of the same or similar materials and/or have the same qualities as those outlined above for the moisture barrier  18  and thermal barrier  20  of the trousers  12 . However, the thermal liner  26  for the boots  14 , if utilized, may not necessarily be fire resistant, and can be made of a nonwoven synthetic fabric such as CAMBRELLE® material sold by Camtex Fabrics Limited of Cumbria, United Kingdom, with a moisture barrier attached thereto.  FIGS. 3-9  illustrate the moisture barrier  24  positioned between the outer layer  22  and the thermal barrier  26 ; however, if desired, the position of these layers may be reversed such that the thermal barrier  26  is positioned between the outer layer  22  and the moisture barrier  24 . 
     In one embodiment, the moisture barrier/fluid barrier  24  is generally continuous and extends throughout the boot  14  to provide continuous moisture/vapor/fluid protection thereto. Similarly, the moisture barrier  18  of the trousers  12  may be generally continuous and extend throughout the trousers  12  to provide continuous moisture/vapor/fluid protection thereto. By “continuous” it is meant that continuous moisture/vapor/fluid protection is provided; not necessarily that only a single seamless moisture/vapor/fluid barrier layer is provided. In other words, multiple pieces of a moisture barrier  18 / 24  can be coupled together in a moisture tight/vapor tight/selectively vapor tight manner and still be continuous as intended herein (although a one-piece moisture could also of course be utilized and considered continuous). If desired, the moisture barrier  22  and thermal barrier  26  of the boots  14  can be made of a differing material than the particular moisture barrier  18  and thermal barrier  20  of the associated trousers  12 . 
     Each boot  14  may include a pair of pulls  28  ( FIG. 2 ) on opposite sides thereof to aid the wearer in pulling the boot  14  over his or her feet. Each boot  14  may include a durable, puncture-resistant tread or sole  30  on its bottom surface thereof and made of a differing material than the outer layer  22 , or moisture barrier  24  or thermal barrier  26 . Each boot  14 , and the tread  30 , is thus designed to provide the outer-most surface protecting a wearer&#39;s foot to protect from abrasion, wear, and rough or sharp materials (such as broken glass, metal shards, etc.) on ground surfaces. 
     Each boot  14  includes a body portion  32  and an upper portion, flap or flap portion  34  forming, and/or extending away from, an upper edge  36  of the body portion  32 . When folded as shown in  FIG. 3 , the flap portion  34  defines a space  38  between the flap portion  34  and the body portion  32 . In the illustrated embodiment, the flap portion  34  includes an outer protective portion  22   a  that can be of the same (or differing) material as the outer layer  22  of the boot  14 . If desired, the flap portion  34  may include one or more of the inner layers  24 ,  26  of the boot  14  (or other inner layers, if included). For example, in the embodiment of  FIGS. 3-9 , the flap portion  34  includes a portion  26   a  of the thermal barrier material  26 . In the illustrated embodiment, the thermal barrier  26   a  of the flap  34  is continuous with the thermal barrier  26  of the body portion  32 . However, if desired, the thermal barrier  26   a  in the flap  34  can be separate and discrete from the thermal barrier  26  in the body portion  32  of the boot  14 . Alternately, if desired, the thermal barrier  26   a  can be omitted from the flap  34 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 3A , in one embodiment the flap  34  includes a moisture barrier portion  24   a.  In the embodiment of  FIG. 3A , the flap moisture barrier  24   a  is continuous with the body moisture barrier  24 , but the moisture barriers  24 ,  24   a  can be made of separate pieces of material if desired. 
     As best shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the moisture barrier  18  of the trousers  12  includes a generally annular extension portion  40  which extends away (generally upwardly in the configuration of  FIGS. 2 and 3 ) from the lower edge of the trousers  12 . A distal end of the extension portion  40  is received in the space  38  between the flap portion  34  and the body  32  of the boot  14 . In the illustrated embodiment, the end of the extension  40  is folded about itself under the flap portion  34 , as shown in  FIGS. 2-4 , to form a two-ply folded section of the barrier material  42 . The folded section  42  can be omitted but may aid in sealing the boot  14 /trousers  12  connection, as will be described in greater detail below. 
     The moisture barrier extension  40  includes a pair of fastening components  44   a,    46   a  on opposite sides thereof. As can be seen in  FIG. 3 , fastening component  44   a  on the radially outer surface of the extension portion  40  releasably engages a corresponding fastening component  44   b  at or adjacent to the end of the flap portion  34 . Fastening component  46   a  on the radially inner surface of the extension portion  40  releasably engages a corresponding fastening component  46   b  at or near the upper edge  36  of the body  32  of the boot  14 . 
     In the illustrated embodiment, each fastening component  44   a,    44   b,    46   a,    46   b  takes the form of a zipper/zipper track such that a zipper pull (i.e., see zipper pull  50  of  FIG. 2  which is associated with fastening components  44   a,    44   b ) can be extended about the periphery of the fastening components  44   a,    44   b,    46   a,    46   b  to couple or decouple the associated fastening components. The fastening components  44   a,    44   b,    46   a,    46   b  can be configured to form a fluid and/or vapor tight seal when closed (i.e., in the case of a zipper the zipper is fluid/vapor tight), or if desired the components  44   a,    44   b,    46   a,    46   b  may not form a seal when closed. Moreover, the fastening components  44   a,    44   b,    46   a,    46   b  can take any of a wide variety of other forms besides zippers such as hook-and-loop fastening material (i.e., VELCRO®), a plastic zipper seal utilizing linear beads such as that analogous to a seal found on ZIPLOC® plastic bags (also known as “press-to-close” zippers, or reclosable or releasable closures), snaps, hooks, clasps, magnets, frictional engagement, interlocking shapes or the like. 
     The arrangement shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3  provides a relatively vapor tight/fluid tight/selectively vapor tight arrangement to the wearer. In particular, instead of having trousers which are open at the bottom in which an annular gap is formed about each boot  14 , the moisture barrier extension  40  extends from the radially inner surface/lower edge of the trousers  12  to the boot  14 , and is coupled thereto. Moreover, each boot  14  includes its own moisture barrier  24  that is coupled to the moisture barrier extension  40  in a fluid tight/vapor tight manner via the fastening components  46   a,    46   b.  In this manner, when harmful vapors are introduced into the surrounding environment, such vapors are prevented from entering the boot  14  and/or inner cavity of the legs of the trousers  12 . The wearer can thus remain relatively protected from harmful vapors and the trousers  12 /boot  14  form a sealed connection/cavity therebetween. Moreover, should any vapor or moisture penetrate through the outer layer  22  of the boots  14 , the moisture barrier  24  within the boots  14  helps to protect the wearer from contamination. 
     Because the moisture barrier extension  40  is trapped or sandwiched between the flap  34  and the body  32  of the boot  14 , a relatively vapor tight connection is formed therebetween, and in particular the folded portion  42  can be compressed by the folded portion  34 , and held in place by the fastening components  44   a,    44   b  to improve the seal provided by the folded portion  42 . In the embodiment of  FIG. 3A , the folded portion  42  is pressed into contact with, and directly engages, the moisture barrier  24  of the boot  14  to aid in sealing of the boot  14 . 
     Moreover, the fastening components  44   a,    44   b,    46   a,    46   b  also help to mechanically and/or fluid-tightly securely couple the moisture barrier extension  40  to the boot  14 , thereby further protecting against vapor penetration. If desired, more complete vapor protection can be provided by using vapor-tight fasteners (at least for fastening components  46   a,    46   b ), and ensuring the fastening components  46   a,    46   b  (i.e., their fastener flaps) are attached in a fluid-tight manner (i.e., any stitching is secured by vapor-tight sealing tape or the like, or adhesives or other non-penetrating methods are used to attach the fastening components  46   a,    46   b ). The coupling arrangement  10  shown herein, in combination with various other protective features, may provide a garment/ensemble which passes the MIST test, and more broadly, meets the Chem/Bio Option of NFPA 1971 standards. 
     In order to detach the boot  14  and trousers  12 , the fastening components  44   a,    44   b  are first separated, as shown in  FIG. 4 . Next, as shown in  FIG. 5 , the flap portion  34  is unfolded until the flap portion  34  extends vertically upwardly from the upper edge  36  of the body  32  of the boot  14 . Next, the extension portion  40  is inverted (i.e. turned inside-out), such as by partially extracting the boot  14  out from the trousers  12 , as shown in  FIG. 6 . Inverting the extension portion in this manner may help to provide easier/direct access to the fastening components  46   a ,  46   b.  Next, as shown in  FIG. 7 , the fastening components  46   a,    46   b  are decoupled and, as shown in  FIG. 8 , the boot  14  is completely separated from the trousers  12 . 
     Next, as shown in  FIG. 9 , the boot  14  can be configured for use as a stand alone boot; i.e., for use in a manner in which the boot  14  is not sealingly coupled to the trousers  12 . In particular, the fastening component  44   b  of flap portion  34  can be releasably coupled to the fastening component  46   b  of the body  32  of the boot  14  to provide a finished appearance and generally sealed functionality to the boot  14 . For example, in the illustrated embodiment the outer portions  22 ,  22   a  (which can be made of the same material and have the same appearance) form the entire outer surface of the boot  14  (except of the fastening components  44   b,    46   b ) providing a continuous and finished appearance. In this manner, the boot  14  can be used with various other trousers, including trousers which do not include the moisture barrier extension  40  or otherwise contribute to form a generally vapor-tight or vapor-resistant connection with the boot  14 . 
     The boot  14  shown herein thus has dual use capability as it can be used in standard firefighter trousers or other protective garments when a moisture or fluid tight, vapor-tight or vapor-resistant connection is desired. In order to couple the boot  14  to the trousers  12 /moisture barrier extension  40 , the steps shown in  FIGS. 3-9  are carried out in reverse. It should be noted that the pulls  28  ( FIG. 2 ) are located on, or protrude outwardly from, a radially inner surface of the boot  14 . In this manner, the pulls  28  are spaced away from the flap  34  and fastening components  44   b,    46   b,  and do not interfere with the coupling of the moisture barrier extension  40  to the boot  14 . 
     Thus, the system  10  may utilize boots  14  that are detachable from the trousers  12  so that the trousers  12  and boots  14  can each be separately cleaned, maintained, and replaced as desired. Moreover, the boots  14  can be used as a stand-alone components with other trousers which do not require a vapor-tight or vapor-resistant connection therewith (i.e., for non-CBRN suits). 
     The system and method shown herein can also be used to form vapor/fluid-tight or vapor/fluid-resistant connections at other portions of garments. For example, the system can be utilized to attach gloves to the sleeve of a coat; a hood to the body of the coat; a coat to a pair of trousers (i.e. about the waist of the coat and trousers, etc.), and make other connections in the same manner as described above and shown herein. The method and structure disclosed herein can be used to detachably, yet sealingly, attach various other garments and parts thereof together to provide the advantages specified herein. 
     Although the invention is shown and described with respect to certain embodiments, it should be clear that modifications will occur to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the specification, and the present invention includes all such modifications.