Patent Abstract:
A protecting and grip-enhancing device includes an inner body formed of a first material and having opposite outer sides, a thermally insulating outer body formed of a second material and secured to at least one outer side of the inner body and continuously covering a substantial portion thereof, and hinge structure joining two adjacent regions of the device to facilitate folding of the adjacent regions relative to each other along the hinge structure. Plural hinge structures may be provided, each including a reduced thickness of outer body material and stitching extending through the reduced thickness and an underlying portion of the inner body. The outer body may include relatively thick and relatively thin regions and the thick region may include alternating raised ribs and open-ended channels. The device may be in the form of a mitt or a potholder.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND  
       [0001]     This application relates to devices, such as potholders, oven mitts and similar devices for protecting a user&#39;s hand or other surfaces from contact with hot or cold articles, such as cooking pots, pans, lids, handles, grills, grill tools and the like.  
         [0002]     Heretofore, thermal protective devices, such as potholders, mitts and the like, have been formed of suitable cloth or textile materials, such as cotton, the amount of thermal protection being afforded being essentially proportional to the thickness of the material. However, such cloth devices provide relatively poor temperature control, are subject to scorching or burning, and are not water-repellent or stain-resistant. Also, they can tend to be relatively slippery in use. Accordingly, it has been known heretofore to provide such cloth devices with coverings or coatings of thermally-insulating and/or grip-enhancing materials over all or portions of the outer surfaces of the devices. Alternatively, it is known to provide devices made entirely of such thermally insulating and/or grip-enhancing materials. However, such devices may tend to be relatively stiff or inflexible in use because of the nature of the material used or the additional thicknesses of the materials used, and may lack moisture control if formed of essentially non-absorbent and/or non-breathable materials. Thus, such devices may not provide optimal combinations of thermal insulation and grip-enhancing characteristics.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0003]     There is disclosed herein an improved protecting and grip-enhancing device which avoids disadvantages of prior devices while affording additional structural and operating advantages.  
         [0004]     An aspect of the disclosure is the provision of a device with both effective thermal insulation and improved grip enhancement, wherein the grip enhancement results from improved frictional or non-slip characteristics and/or improved flexibility to enhance dexterity.  
         [0005]     Another aspect is the provision of a device of the type set forth which is double-sided and reversible.  
         [0006]     Another aspect is the provision of a device of the type set forth which has improved patterns of thermally insulating and grip-enhancing features.  
         [0007]     Certain ones of these and other aspects may be attained by providing a protecting and grip-enhancing device comprising an inner body formed of a first material and having opposite outer sides, a thermally insulating outer body formed of a second material secured to at least one outer side of the inner body and continuously covering a substantial portion thereof, and hinge structure joining two adjacent regions of the device to facilitate folding of the adjacent regions relative to each other along the hinge structure.  
         [0008]     Other aspects may be attained by providing a device of the type set forth, wherein the outer body includes a first region having a first thickness and a second region peripheral to the first region and having a second thickness less than the first thickness.  
         [0009]     Still other aspects may be attained by providing a device of the type set forth, wherein the outer body includes a plurality of alternating raised ribs and open-ended channels. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]     For the purpose of facilitating an understanding of the subject matter sought to be protected, there are illustrated in the accompanying drawings embodiments thereof, from an inspection of which, when considered in connection with the following description, the subject matter sought to be protected, its construction and operation, and many of its advantages should be readily understood and appreciated.  
         [0011]      FIG. 1  is a front elevational view of a mitt in accordance with a first embodiment;  
         [0012]      FIG. 2  is a sectional view taken generally along the line  2 - 2  in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0013]      FIG. 3  is a rear elevational view of a mitt in accordance with another embodiment;  
         [0014]      FIG. 4  is a sectional view taken along the line  4 - 4  in  FIG. 3 ;  
         [0015]      FIG. 5  is a top plan view of a potholder in accordance with another embodiment;  
         [0016]      FIG. 6  is an enlarged, fragmentary view of a circled portion designated  6  in  FIG. 2 ;  
         [0017]      FIG. 7  is an enlarged, fragmentary view of a circled portion designated  7  in  FIG. 2 ;  
         [0018]      FIG. 8  is an enlarged, fragmentary view of a circled portion designated  8  in  FIG. 4 ; and  
         [0019]      FIG. 9  is an enlarged, fragmentary view of a circled portion designated  9  in  FIG. 4 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0020]     Referring to  FIGS. 1, 2 ,  6  and  7 , there is illustrated a hand protecting and grip-enhancing device in the nature of a mitt  10 , which includes a body assembly  11  arranged to define a pocket  12  ( FIG. 2 ) having a finger-receiving portion  13  for receiving all of a user&#39;s fingers, a thumb-receiving portion  14  and a wrist-receiving portion  15 , the latter portion being open to permit insertion of the user&#39;s hand. The mitt  10  is designed to be reversible, having opposite outer sides  16  and  17  ( FIG. 2 ) which are substantially identical, so that the mitt can be worn on either hand.  FIG. 1  shows the side  16  of the mitt  10 , which would be the side engaging a user&#39;s palm if the mitt is worn on the user&#39;s left hand. It will be appreciated that the opposite side  17  would be the palm-engaging side if the mitt were worn on the user&#39;s right hand.  
         [0021]     The body assembly  11  includes an inner body  20  formed of fabric or textile materials, and an outer body  25 , which is secured to the outer surface of the inner body  20 , substantially along the finger-receiving and thumb-receiving portions  13  and  14 , since those are the portions most likely to come into contact with a hot or cold article. Referring in particular to  FIGS. 2, 6  and  7 , the inner body  20  may include several layers of material, including, for example, an inner, hand-engaging layer  21  of a suitable soft, absorbent and comfortable material, such as terry cloth, a filler layer  22 , formed of a material such as cotton, and an outer liner  23 , which may formed of cotton or other suitable material. While an essentially three-layer inner body construction has been illustrated, it will be appreciated that any desired number of layers could be utilized and various types of fabric or textile materials could be used.  
         [0022]     The outer body  25  is formed of a suitable frictional and thermally insulating material, such as silicone, which may be overmolded on the outer surface of the inner body  20  or, alternatively, could be applied by other techniques, such as suitable adhesive or bonding or stitching, and the like. The outer body  25  covers substantially all of the finger-receiving and thumb-receiving portions  13  and  14 , having a relatively thick region  26  which covers the majority of the area of the finger-receiving portion  13  and thumb-receiving portion  14 , particularly along the inner or facing portions thereof, and a thin region  27 , which is disposed along the outer periphery of the thick region  26 . It will be appreciated that the thick region  26  is that which is most likely to come into contact with the associated article being grasped and where most of the gripping pressure between thumb and fingers will be applied. While the thin region  27  may come into contact with hot or cold surfaces, such as when reaching into an oven or other confined space in order to grasp an object, it is not at a location where gripping pressure will be applied and, therefore, less thermal protection need be afforded. The relative difference in thickness between the thick and thin regions  26  and  27  may be seen from  FIG. 2 , although it will be appreciated that other thickness differences could be utilized. The wrist-receiving portion  15  does not include the outer body  25 , since it is unlikely to come into contact with very hot or very cold surfaces and, therefore, the inner body  20  alone affords adequate protection. The free edges of the layers of the inner body  20  at the open end of the wrist-receiving portion  15  may be covered with a suitable trim piece  29 , which may be formed of any desired fabric material, such as cotton, and may be stitched in place to protect the free ends of the inner body layers and to provide a more decorative and attractive appearance.  
         [0023]     Because of the thickness and relative stiffness of the outer body  25 , particularly the thick region  26  thereof, as compared to the inner body  20 , the mitt  10  may be somewhat difficult to manipulate. In order to enhance flexibility and dexterity to facilitate grasping of objects, there are provided a plurality of hinge structures  30  extending across each side of the finger-receiving portion  13  and the thumb-receiving portion  14 . Each hinge structure  30  essentially defines a hinge line  31 , most being straight lines, along which adjacent portions of the mitt may be relatively easily folded or bent. More specifically, referring in particular to  FIGS. 2 and 6 , each hinge structure  30  includes a thinned outer body region  32  along which a line of stitching  33  is formed extending from the outer surface of the outer body  25  to the pocket  12 . Thus, there are defined a plurality of bend lines along which adjacent portions of the mitt  10  can relatively easily be bent or flexed. Additionally, if desired, a line of stitching  34  may be formed along the outer periphery of the thin region  27  to provide an enhanced attachment to the inner body  20  and inhibit delamination of the outer body  25  at its outer edge.  
         [0024]     In fabrication, it will be appreciated that the two sides  16  and  17  of the mitt  10  may be separately formed as two different bodies which are then laid back to back in overlapping relationship, with the outer bodies  25  in facing contact with each other, and the two pieces may then be stitched together along a seam  35  along the entire periphery of the mitt  10 , except at the open end of wrist-receiving portion  15 . Then the seamed-together pieces may be turned inside out to result in the finished configuration shown in  FIG. 2 , all in a known manner. In this regard, the thick region  26  of the outer body  25  may be provided with a very thin margin portion to facilitate stitching of the seam  35  therethrough and inversion of the seamed mitt.  
         [0025]     Referring to  FIGS. 3, 4 ,  8  and  9 , there is illustrated an alternative embodiment of mitt, generally designated by the numeral  40 , which is substantially the same as the mitt  10 , described above, except that it has a differently configured outer body  45 .  FIG. 3  shows the opposite side of the mitt from that shown in  FIG. 1 . In this case, it can be seen that the outer body  45  has an end edge which defines a straight line at  44 , along which a line of stitching may be provided to inhibit delamination, as was explained above. The outer body  45  has a thick region  46  which extends along substantially the same area of the mitt  10  as the thick region  26 , described above, and a thin region  47  which, as can be seen, is slightly larger than the thin region  27 , described above. However, in this case, the thick region  46  is provided with a plurality of alternating ribs  48  and grooves  49  arranged along substantially straight lines which are substantially parallel to the adjacent ones of the hinge structures  30 . Since the hinge structures  30  are formed along non-parallel lines, some of the ribs and grooves are generally wedge-shaped, as at  43 . This ribbing provides a further improvement of the grip-enhancing function of the outer body  25 , and the grooves  49 , which are open-ended, define air flow channels to further enhance the thermal insulating characteristics of the outer body  45 .  
         [0026]     While, in the illustrated embodiments, each of the mitts  10  and  40  is substantially identically configured on the opposite sides thereof, it will be appreciated that this need not be the case. For example, if desired, the outer body arrangement  25  could be disposed on one side of the mitt while the outer body  45  could be disposed on the other side thereof. Other arrangements could also be utilized.  
         [0027]     Referring to  FIG. 5 , there is illustrated another protecting device in the nature of a potholder  50 , which is shown as a substantially square, flat device, which may be formed of inner and outer bodies substantially in the same manner as the mitt, described above. More specifically, the potholder  50  could have an inner body of fabric or textile material either single-layered or multi-layered, covered on both sides thereof with an outer body  65  (one shown) of a non-slip and thermally insulating material, such as silicone. In the illustrated embodiment, the outer body  65  has an inner thick region  66  surrounded by a peripheral thin region  67 . Also, there are formed across the potholder  50  a plurality of hinge structures  70 , each of which may be substantially identical to the hinge structures  30 , described above in connection with  FIGS. 1-4 , to facilitate flexing of the potholder  50  when it is used for manual grasping of an object. Thus, the potholder  50  provides two types of grip enhancement, viz., non-slip and flexibility. It will be appreciated that the potholder  50  could have any desired size and shape and, depending upon the thicknesses of the material used, the hinge structures  70  may or may not be desired. The potholder may, of course, be used to protect a user&#39;s hand while grasping an object or may be used as a trivet beneath an object to protect an underlying surface.  
         [0028]     From the foregoing, it can be seen that there has been provided an improved protecting device which performs improved grip-enhancing and thermally insulating functions and is reversible in use.  
         [0029]     The matter set forth in the foregoing description and accompanying drawings is offered by way of illustration only and not as a limitation. While particular embodiments have been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from the broader aspects of applicants&#39; contribution. The actual scope of the protection sought is intended to be defined in the following claims when viewed in their proper perspective based on the prior art.

Technology Classification (CPC): 0