Abstract:
A cut resistant glove is provided having an inner surface and an outer surface wherein the inner surface is adapted for contacting a hand of a user, and the outer surface is visible while the user is wearing the glove. The glove includes a two layer knit fabric of a plaited construction including a first layer on the inner surface and a second layer on the outer surface. The outer surface is constructed from non-stretchable, cut resistant yarn, wherein the yarn has filaments that are generally parallel to one another and the inner surface is constructed from a stretchable, elastic yarn.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention is directed to cut resistant gloves. More particularly, the present invention is directed to cut resistant gloves having a plaited construction. 
         [0002]    Current knit, cut resistant glove constructions presently on the market include: 
         [0003]    1) String knit construction in gauges varying from about 7 gauge to 18 gauge. The difference in gauge results in a courser or finer knit cloth, where a higher gauge number is finer than a lower gauge number. 
         [0004]    2) Plaited knit construction where two layers are knit together at the same time. The inside of the cloth can be one yarn, a composite of several yarns, or a group of yarns knit together at the same time. The outside can be knit in a similar fashion. 
         [0005]    The present invention is directed to the second type of glove construction, i.e., plaited glove construction. Plaited gloves have been available to the market for many years. Their use has increased as manufacturers have been able to combine different components to get desired characteristics. For example, by utilizing a composite yarn on the outside and a stretchable yarn on the inside, manufacturers have been able to achieve good cut resistance in a stretchable and comfortable glove. A composite yarn is a core wrapped with various component yarns or several component yarns knit together, or several yarns that have been combined prior to being knit into a glove. 
         [0006]    Gloves have also been made with a non-elastic filament on the inside and stretchable elastic on the outside. This construction has been used to allow a darker color outside to hide dirt and to keep the clear or white filament on the inside. High tensile strength filament yarns tend to be white, cream or natural colored. If these yarns are made in a color, the process typically weakens the yarn. Adding dye to the liquid formula prior to extrusion may decrease the strength of the filament. Likewise, if a filament is dyed after extrusion, the surface must be etched in order for the dye crystals to adhere to the filament. This etching weakens the yarn as well. Consequently, most plaited gloves involving filament yarns utilize the dark colored plaiting yarn on the outside construction to hide the dirt. 
         [0007]    Cut resistant gloves are typically made, partially, with cut resistant filaments. All such gloves use an elastic fiber of one of various types to enable adequate stretching. Some glove fibers are plied in a method of stretching elastic fiber or fibers and then wrapping a cut-resistant filament around the elastic fiber or fibers, and adding a cross-wrap of, for example, nylon, to counter the torque. 
         [0008]    Another method of making a cut resistant glove made from a filament elastic is called plaiting (sometimes spelled “plating.”), as discussed above. In plaited construction, it is not the yarn design that makes the glove elastic, but the knitting process. In plaiting, essentially, two gloves are knit together simultaneously. This allows for the outer surface of the glove to be made from one material and the inside to be of another. Plaiting became popular because one side of a glove could be made from an elastic material and the other side made from a cut resistant filament. One advantage of this design is that, on the filament side, pure filament could be used and the fibers of the filament could be parallel. Many gloves are made today with this construction, however, all such gloves have the filament on the inside and the elasticized nylon on the outside. The reason gloves have been made in this manner is that the non-elastic filament (which provides the abrasion and cut resistance) is placed such that the most protection is closest to the hand of the user. However, unfortunately, on the outside of the glove, the elasticized material, e.g., nylon, lacks both cut and abrasion resistance, so the gloves wear out quickly. U.S. Pat. No. 6,044,493 (Post) describes a glove having a plated construction where the cut-resistant fibers form the outer surface of the glove and elastic fibers form the inner surface of the glove. 
         [0009]    The safety industry generally recognizes that cut protection is achieved by utilizing the following factors in yarn design: 
         [0010]    1) Tensile strength—the strength of the fiber is so strong that it resists the force of a cutting edge; 
         [0011]    2) Dulling action—the fiber is so hard that it resists the sharpness of a cutting edge; and 
         [0012]    3) Slippage—the surface of the fiber is so slippery that the moving edge cannot catch in order to cut. 
         [0013]    Not all of these factors are necessarily included in one cut-resistant yarn. For this reason additional components can be added in either the construction of the glove or in the construction of the filament bundle of the yarn. These additional characteristics are: 
         [0014]    1) Loft—a soft thickness in the cloth that keeps an edge from exerting a cutting force; 
         [0015]    2) Stretch—the ability of the knit cloth to stretch and move ahead of the cutting edge; and 
         [0016]    3) Rolling—when individual filaments in a yarn bundle can roll on each other, it increases the cut resistance of the yarn and the glove. 
         [0017]    In the industry today, most cut resistant gloves are designed with either tensile strength or dulling action as the key components. 
         [0018]    As stated above, many gloves in the prior art use an elastic inside and a glass outside. U.S. Pat. No. 7,669,442 (Zhu) is directed to a glove comprising three different types of yarns. These yarns include a cut resistant composite yarn, a companion yarn, and a liner yarn that are co-knit together with the lining yarn plated to the interior of the glove. The lining contacts the skin and separates the cut resistant yarn from the skin. The stated purpose is to prevent skin irritation from abraded fiberglass or other cut resistant fiber from contacting the skin. However, Zhu utilizes a core having at least two different core yarns and at least one wrapping yarn that is helically wrapped around the two combined core yarns. The companion yarn that is wrapped around the core yarns provides additional protection from irritation to the user by the cut resistant composite yarn and provides lubricity to the yarn bundle knitted in the glove. 
         [0019]    All references cited herein are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0020]    A cut resistant glove is provided wherein the glove has an inner surface and an outer surface and wherein the inner surface is adapted for contacting a hand of a user, and the outer surface is visible while the user is wearing the glove. The glove includes a two layer knit fabric of a plaited construction including a first layer on the inner surface and a second layer on the outer surface. The outer surface is constructed from non-stretchable, cut resistant yarn, wherein the yarn has filaments that are generally parallel to one another and the inner surface is constructed from a stretchable, elastic yarn. 
         [0021]    The stretchable, elastic yarn may be of a color that contrasts with the a color of the non-stretchable, cut resistant yarn such that the elastic yarn becomes more visible during wear of the non-stretchable, cut resistant outer surface of the glove. 
         [0022]    The filaments of the non-stretchable, cut resistant yarn may include a dulling agent. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0023]    The invention will be described in conjunction with the following drawings in which like reference numerals designate like elements and wherein: 
           [0024]      FIG. 1  is a bottom view of a cut resistant glove having a plaited construction in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0025]      FIG. 2  is a front view of a portion of a plaited fabric as knitted in the cut resistant glove, having a plaited construction of  FIG. 1 ; and 
           [0026]      FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of the cut resistant glove having a plaited construction of  FIG. 1 , taken substantially along lines III-III of  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0027]    The present invention is directed to plaited gloves knit with non-stretchable filament yarn on the outside. The present invention utilizes the rolling action of the parallel filaments as its key component for cut resistance and wear. Wear becomes a necessary part of hand protection because as a glove surface wears down, its cut resistance is severely diminished. By placing the non-elastic yarn on the outside of the glove, the most abrasion resistant component (the filament) is on the outside. Additionally, when the filament fibers of the cut resistant yarn are parallel to each other, they can roll on each other for increased cut resistance. An added benefit is that the parallel filaments are less likely to trap dirt and can be cleaned more easily in a laundering process. Non-elastic filament also increases the puncture resistance. 
         [0028]    The safety glove industry has always been concerned with wear factor of cut resistant gloves as safety personnel know that as a glove surface wears down, the cut resistance is diminished. By utilizing a contrasting colored stretchable elastic on the inside of the glove, the user will be able to clearly see when the outside filament is wearing down and becoming less safe as the contrasting colored stretchable elastic begins to show through. For example, a high-visibility nylon may be used on the inside of the glove in, for example, orange, yellow, lime green, or red, such that the user will be able to see the wear of the glove and know when it is no longer safe to wear. This has been a major issue with gloves in that the user does not easily know when the gloves are worn thin enough to become a hazard. It is of particular importance with plaited gloves, since they typically are thicker than standard elastic filament yarn gloves. 
         [0029]    Lastly, the cut resistant yarn is pure filament, with fibers running parallel, and is non-stretchable in its yarn form. This yarn provides the highest tensile strength and the most abrasion resistance of any yarn construction. By plaiting this yarn on the inside with a stretchable elastic yarn, the resulting glove construction will have both stretch and loft. The stretch will come from the inside plaiting yarn and the loft will come from the double layer construction of the plaiting process. 
         [0030]    Of the six categories listed above, the present invention utilizes the following characteristics: 
         [0031]    1) Tensile strength 
         [0032]    2) Slippage (common in filament yarns) 
         [0033]    3) Rolling 
         [0034]    4) Loft 
         [0035]    5) Stretch 
         [0036]    If the cut resistant yarn has filaments that also include a dulling agent in its construction, then all six of the industry&#39;s recognized components would be part of the glove of the present invention. Filament yarns with a dulling component added are available. 
         [0037]    In a plaited glove using a stretchable yarn with a non-stretchable filament, the non-stretchable filament is knit loosely so that the stretchable yarn can pull it in. As the hand flexes, the stretchable yarn stretches and the filament moves to its original looser knit state in order to create a “give” in the fabric. 
         [0038]    With the non-stretchable filament on the outside, the most abrasion resistant yarn, i.e., the cut resistant filament, is on the outside for wear. 
         [0039]    In the past, glove makers have put the stretchable yarn on the outside of the glove because these yarns are usually a texturized yarn that is plied with elastic. Since cut resistant gloves typically have a coating applied to the palm portion for improved grip performance, it is substantially easier to have a coating adhere to a texturized stretchable yarn than to a cut resistant yarn. However, present technology, known to those skilled in the art, includes coatings that adhere to cut resistant filaments, for example, polyurethane, nitrile, latex, and foam nitrile. 
         [0040]    The invention will be illustrated in more detail with reference to the following embodiment, but it should be understood that the present invention is not deemed to be limited thereto. Referring now to the drawing figures, wherein like reference numbers refer to like elements throughout the several views, there is shown in  FIG. 1  a cut-resistant glove  10  in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The glove  10  has a two layer, plaited construction, as well known to those skilled in the art. However, in the present glove, non-elastic, abrasion and cut resistant yarn  12  is located on the outside surface  14  of the glove  10  and stretchable, elastic filament yarn  18  is located on the inside surface  20  of the glove  10  (see  FIG. 2 ).  FIG. 2  depicts a section of a plaited fabric  16  as used on the glove  10 , showing both the inner stretchable elastic filament yarn  18  on the inside surface  20  and the cut resistant yarn  12  on the outside surface  14  of the glove  10 . Here, the cut resistant yarn  12  has filaments that are substantially parallel to one another other so that they can roll on each other for increased cut resistance. 
         [0041]    On the inside surface  20  of the glove  10 , contrasting colored  22  stretchable elastic yarn  18  is used. As the glove  10  is used for its intended purpose and the cut resistant yarn  12  is slowly worn down, the user will be able to clearly see when the outside, cut resistant yarn  12  is becoming less safe as the contrasting colored  22  stretchable elastic yarn  18  begins to show through. As stated, the stretchable elastic yarn  18  may be high visibility nylon in, for example, orange, yellow, lime green, or red. 
         [0042]    The cut resistant yarn  12  is preferably made from Dyneema® brand ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), but may also be high performance polyethylene (HPPE), gel spun polyethylene, melt spun polyethylene, filament nylon, Abratex® , or high tenacity filament with 100 to 800 denier and 1 to 20 denier per filament. 
         [0043]    The elastic yarn  18  is preferably made with nylon filaments, but may also be cotton, polyester or spun nylon or spun polyester or other synthetic in either filament or spun form in 40 to 600 denier. 
         [0044]    As best seen in  FIG. 3 , a flexible polymer coating  22  to provide improved grip may be placed in strategic locations on the glove  10 , such as on the palm  24  and inside surfaces (or a portion thereof) of the fingers  26 . The coating  22  may also be, for example, polyurethane, nitrile, latex, foam nitrile, or combinations thereof. 
         [0045]    The glove is manufactured such that the cut resistant yarn is plated during the knitting of the exterior of the glove and the elastic yarn is plated during the knitting of the interior of the glove. 
         [0046]    In a process for making the glove  10 , a glove  10  is made by providing the individual cut resistant yarns  12  and the elastic yarn  18  to be used in the glove  10 . A first bobbin of cut resistant yarn  12  and a second bobbin of elastic yarn  18  are provided. The two yarns are then co-knit in one step into a glove using known, commercially available glove knitting machines such as those made by Shima Seiki of Japan (or generic equivalent). The resulting glove  10  has cut resistant yarn  12  on the outside surface  14  of the glove  10  and elastic yarn  18  on the inside surface  20  of the glove  10 . 
         [0047]    While the invention has been described in detail and with reference to specific embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.