1garment with Configurable Shoulder Sections and Attachment Mechanisms

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/639,197, filed Apr. 18, 2024, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/139,312, filed Apr. 25, 2023, now abandoned, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/665,318, filed Feb. 4, 2022, now abandoned, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/159,131, filed Jan. 26, 2021, now abandoned, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/745,264, filed Jan. 16, 2020, now abandoned, which is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/392,512, filed Apr. 23, 2019, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

The subject matter described herein relates generally to garments, and, more particularly to garments with configurable shoulder sections and attachment mechanisms. The shoulder sections may generally be configured in at least an open configuration and a closed configuration.

Garments such as pull-over shirts may sometimes be difficult to place onto a human body. The garments may first need to be pulled over one's head, and then the person may need to manipulate his/her arms into and through the sleeves. If the sleeves are somewhat tight or otherwise positioned close to the body of the garment, this may be uncomfortable and sometimes even harmful.

In one particular example, garments designed specifically for infants, while very important to keep the baby warm and safe, are often times difficult to place onto the baby's body without having to bend or otherwise manipulate the baby's head, shoulders and arms to fit within the collar and the sleeves of the garment. Knowing that a baby's body may be extremely fragile and delicate, this may cause discomfort to the baby and sometimes even damage to their body.

For example, placing a shirt or a onesie onto a baby may require the shirt or onesie to first be pulled over the baby's head. The neck of a baby may be very delicate and fragile such that this action must be done with great care to avoid hurting the baby. Then, when the garment is generally around the baby's neck, the baby's arms must be bent, twisted and manipulated to pull them through the sleeves of the garment. This action may be very unpleasant for the baby and may even cause damage to the baby's arms, joints and internal ligaments. It can also be seen that this same potentially harmful scenario may also be true for any type of person, not just an infant.

In other examples, to secure the garments to the body of a baby, a parent has to use force on the baby's fragile and delicate body, such as pressing snap buttons together to close a garment.

Accordingly, needs exist for a garment that may be placed onto a person's body in such a way that avoids the need to bend, twist or otherwise manipulate the person's body, and for attachment mechanisms that provide an easy way to secure the garment without putting force on the person's body.

Disclosed herein are embodiments of a garment with configurable shoulder sections. The shoulder sections may generally be configured in at least an open configuration and a closed configuration. This may allow the garment to be placed on a person's body without having to manipulate the person's arms through the sleeves. The garment also includes configurable attachment mechanisms positioned on the shoulder sections, including a finger-pocket snap attachment mechanism.

In some embodiments, a garment may comprise a front side including at least one lower flap positioned below at least one shoulder portion of the garment; a back side including at least one upper flap extending from the back side; at least one attachment mechanism for attaching the at least one upper flap to the at least one lower flap; wherein the at least one attachment mechanism includes at least one finger-pocket loop positioned on the at least one upper flap and sized to receive a tip of a person's finger.

In some embodiments, a onesie may comprise a front side including at least one lower flap positioned below at least one shoulder portion of the onesie; a back side including at least one upper flap extending from the back side; at least one attachment mechanism for attaching the at least one upper flap to the at least one lower flap; wherein the at least one attachment mechanism includes at least one finger-pocket loop positioned on the at least one upper flap and sized to receive a tip of a person's finger. A lower front flap of the onesie includes at least one attachment mechanism for attaching the lower front flap to a lower back flap; wherein the at least one attachment mechanism includes at least one finger-pocket loop positioned on the lower front flap and sized to receive a tip of a person's finger.

In some embodiments, a garment may comprise a front side including at least one first flap; a back side including at least one second flap; at least one attachment mechanism for attaching the at least one first flap to the at least one second flap; wherein the at least one attachment mechanism includes at least one of a finger-pocket snap, a hook and loop, a magnet, a button and a zipper.

The configuration of the garments and attachment mechanisms described herein in detail are only example embodiments and should not be considered limiting. Other configurations, methods, features and advantages of the subject matter described herein will be or will become apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following figures and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional configurations, methods, features and advantages be included within this description, be within the scope of the subject matter described herein and be protected by the accompanying claims. In no way should the features of the example embodiments be construed as limiting the appended claims, absent express recitation of those features in the claims.

Before the present subject matter is described in detail, it is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to the particular embodiments described, as such may, of course, vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting, since the scope of the present disclosure will be limited only by the appended claims.

Disclosed herein are embodiments of a garment with configurable shoulder sections. The shoulder sections may generally be configured in at least an open configuration and a closed configuration. This may allow the garment to be placed on a person's body without having to manipulate the person's arms through the sleeves. The garment also includes configurable attachment mechanisms positioned on the shoulder sections. The attachment mechanism includes at least one of a finger-pocket snap, a hook and loop, a magnet, a button and a zipper.

In some embodiments, the garment may prevent a user, e.g., a parent, having to manipulate a child's head, arms, legs, fingers into and out of the garment. The garment may go around the child, e.g., an infant, while he/she is lying flat starting from the feet and slid upward around the child to be secured at the shoulders with an attachment mechanism, e.g., a finger-pocket snap. This may allow for dressing and undressing efficiency, less physical and emotional disruption to the infant, less frustration for the infant and the parent, and foster a quicker and easier way to partake in skin-to-skin time when feeding the infant. In some embodiments, additional attachment mechanism may also be located at the crotch area or the garment.

In some embodiments, the finger-pocket snap attachment mechanism described herein may prevent the tedious nature of securing snaps on an infant garment for people of all ages, sizes and abilities. It may prevent putting force onto the body of the child to secure the snaps. It may also enable parents or caregivers with limited digital dexterity and large hands and/or fingers to more easily secure the garment on the child. In some embodiments, the finger-pocket snap attachment mechanism may include a finger-pocket loop (or finger-flap) that may foster an easier way to connect snaps on an infant garment at the shoulder and crotch seams. For example, instead of having to bend the seam over and away from the child to secure the snap (e.g., to avoid placing force on the child's body when connecting the snaps), a parent may simply slide his or her finger into/under the finger-pocket loop (or fold-over flap) under/behind the snap button. When the parent is “snapping” the button, the force is transferred through to the finger under/behind the finger-pocket loop, not on the body of the child.

Referring now to the drawings, garment, according to some exemplary embodiments, is described with reference to.

As shown in, garmentmay include an upper portion, a lower portion, a body, an upper opening, a lower opening, a top left shoulder portion, a top right shoulder portion, a front sideand a back side. Garmentmay also include an inside areathat may be formed as the region between the front sideand the back side. In addition, garmentmay also include a collarthat may be formed as an upper portion of top opening. The upper left shoulder portionand the upper right shoulder portionmay also each include at least one upper flapand at least one lower flap. That is, the upper left shoulder portionmay include at least one upper flapand at least one lower flap, and the upper right shoulder portion may also include at least one upper flapand at least one lower flap. It should be noted that in this specification, a single upper flapand a single lower flapon each of the left and right sides of the garmentmay be used as a main example. However, it should be noted that any number of upper and lower flaps,may be used on either the left or right shoulder portions,of the garment.

In some embodiments, the left and right upper flapsmay generally be mirror images of each other, and that the left and right lower flapsmay generally be mirror images of each other. In some embodiments, the left and right upper flapsmay not generally be mirror images of each other, and that the left and right lower flapsmay not generally be mirror images of each other, and that the flaps,may be formed of any type of different shapes and sizes.

In some embodiments, the upper flapmay generally be an upper extension of the backof the garment. The flapmay be formed of the same material as the backsection of the garmentsuch that the upper flapmay simply extend up from the backon the left and right upper sides. In some embodiments, the upper flapsmay be sewn or otherwise attached to the top of the back sectionon the upper left and right portions of the garment. In this way, it can be seen that the upper flapsand the back portion of the collarmay generally form the top of the backof the garment. Other configurations of the upper flapswith respect to the backof the garment may also be used.

In some embodiments, the lower flapmay generally be an upper extension of the frontof the garment. The flapmay be formed of the same material as the frontsection of the garmentsuch that the lower flapmay simply extend up from the fronton the left and right upper sides. In some embodiments, the lower flapsmay be sewn or otherwise attached to the top of the front sectionon the upper left and right portions of the garment. In this way, it can be seen that the lower flapsand the front portion of the collarmay generally form the top of the frontof the garment. Other configurations of the lower flapswith respect to the frontof the garment may also be used.

The top openingof the garmentmay be generally formed as the in-between space between the upper flapsand the back portion of the collar, and the lower flapsand the front portion of the collar. That is, the left and right upper flapscombined with the back portion of the collarmay generally define and form the back side of the opening, and the left and right lower flapscombined with the front portion of the collarmay generally define and form the front side of the opening.

The upper shoulder portions of the garmentmay also be referred to as the yoke of the garmentand that in this scenario, the yoke may include the upper flapsand the lower flaps, individually or in combination.

In some embodiments, the upper flapmay generally have two main positions, an upper position T and a lower position L. As shown in, the right upper flapmay generally be in an upper position T and the left upper flatmay generally be in a lower position L. In this way, the top left shoulder portionand the top right shoulder portionmay be generally configured in at least an open configuration (e.g., when the upper flapsare in the upper position T) and in a closed configuration (e.g. when the upper flapsare in the lower position L).

With the upper flapgenerally in an upper position T, the upper flapmay fold forward in the direction of arrow A to transition from an upper position T to a lower position L. In addition, when generally in a lower position L, the upper flapmay fold upward in the direction of arrow B to transition from a lower position L to an upper position T.

In some embodiments, when the upper flapis placed in a generally lower position L, a portion of the upper flapmay come into physical contact with a portion of the lower flap. This is shown inwhere the left upper flapis in the lower position L and is generally lying over a portion of the lower flap. In this configuration, a portion of the inner surfaceof the upper flapmay generally overlay a portion of the outer surfaceof the lower flap.

With the upper flapand the lower flapin physical contact as described above, the upper flapand the bottom flapmay generally be attached or joined to one another in the area of their physical contact using one or more attachment mechanisms.

In this way, the combined upper flapand lower flapmay generally form the upper shoulder portions,. The left upper flapcombined and joined with the left lower flapmay generally form the upper left shoulder portion, and the right upper flapcombined and joined with the right lower flapmay generally form upper right shoulder portion.

In some embodiments, the upper flapand the lower flapcombinations (left and right) may include attachment mechanisms, which may include, for example finger-pocket snap material, hook and loop material, snaps, buttons, ties, zippers, magnets or other types or combinations of types of attachment mechanismsthat may be used to attach and join the upper flapwith the lower flapfor each combination. In this way, the upper flapmay be attached and joined to the lower flapwhen it is folded downward into its lower position L.

In some embodiments, the right upper flapand right lower flapmay each include one or more attachment mechanismsthat may include at least one hook and loop section. For example, the upper flapmay include a hook and loop sectionand the lower flapmay include hook and loop section. When the hook and loop sectionis hook material, the hook and loop sectionis loop material so that the two sections,may mate and generally attach to one another. When the hook and loop sectionis loop material, the hook and loop sectionis hook material so that the two sections,may mate and generally attach and be joined to one another. When the upper flapis in the lower position L overlaying the lower flap, at least a portion of the hook and loop material sectionmay overlay at least a portion of the hook and loop material sectionso that the overlapping portions of sectionsandmay attach and adhere to one another.

In some embodiments, the upper flapmay fold forward along an axis that may be generally represented by line C in. In some embodiments, the top edge of the lower flapmay generally follow line C as well so that the upper flapmay generally fold forward and down across the top edge of the flap. The top edge of the lower flapmay be generally linear so that as the upper flapfolds across it, the fold in the upper flapmay also be generally linear such that the upper flapmay fold uniformly downward over the lower flap.

The hook and loop sectionand the hook and loop sectionmay generally be positioned in locations that may be mirrored with each other about line C. In this way, when the upper flapfolds forward along line C, its hook and loop sectionmay rotate downward into a position that may generally coincide with the position of the hook and loop sectionthat may be configured with the lower flap. This is depicted as dashed lines in the upper left shoulder section ofof the garmentin. In this configuration, the majority of the top sectionmay overlap with the majority of the lower section, and that the respective sections,may then be pressed together in order for the hook and loop material of each section to mate and adhere to one another. In this way, the upper flapmay be securely attached to the lower flapwhen in its lower position L. It should be noted that the upper flapand the lower flapmay each include more than one hook and loop section,, and that the sections,may be configured in different positions, locations and configurations.

It should be noted and appreciated that, althoughillustrates an example of attachment mechanismas hook and loop material, other types and numbers of attachment mechanismsmay also be used to attach the upper flapto the lower flapin a similar manner as described above. For example, the upper flapand the lower flapmay be attached to one another using one or more snaps, with at least one side of the snap (e.g., the male side and/or female side) configured with the inner surface of the upper flap, and at least one of the other side of the snap (e.g., the female and/or male side) configured with the outer surface of the lower flap. As with the example above regarding using hook and loop material sections,as the attachment mechanism, each side of the snap on the upper flapand the lower flaprespectively may be configured to generally come into physical contact and mate with one another when the upper flapis folded forward into lower position L and the snap sections are pressed together.

In some embodiments, as depicted in, attachment mechanismmay include finger-pocket snap material. In some embodiments, the finger-pocket snap material may include a finger-pocket loopwith a snap button first side(e.g., a male side) positioned on the outer surfaceof the finger pocket loop, and a snap button second side(e.g., a female side). In some embodiments, at least one finger-pocket loopwith a snap button first sidemay be positioned on the outside surfaceof the lower flap, and at least one corresponding snap button second sidemay be positioned on the inner surfaceof the upper flapto attach the lower flapto the upper flap. In some embodiments, as shown in, the loopmay be sewn onto the outside surfaceof the lower flapin such a way to form an opening (or loop). The loopmay be sized to receive a tip of a person's finger. In some embodiments, as shown in, the top edge proximity of the lower flap(left and/or right) may include two or more finger-pocket loopspositioned side-by-side, each may be sized to receive a tip of a person's finger. In this way, the left and right lower flapmay each include at least one snap button first sidepositioned on the outer surfaceof each finger pocket loop. In this configuration, a portion of the inner surfaceof the upper flap(left and right) may be configured with at least one snap button second sidepositioned on the inner surface. Snap button first sideand snap button second sidemay be configured to generally come into physical contact and mate with one another, for example when the upper flapis brought, e.g., folded downward, towards the lower flap(as shown in) and the snap buttons are pressed together. In some embodiments, the snap button first side may be a male side, and the snap button second side may be a female side.

illustrates an exemplary operation where a user (e.g., a parent) may insert a fingertip into a finger-pocket loopso that when the snap button is pressed together, the pressure is on the fingertip, not on the body of the infant. It should be appreciated that the examples described above should not limit the scope of the disclosure in any manner and that other configurations, and combinations of configuration are also within the scope of the present disclosure.

Advantages of the finger-pocket snap material may include, for example, preventing the tedious nature of securing snaps on an infant garment for people of all ages, sizes, and abilities. It may prevent putting force onto the body of the child to secure the snaps. It may also enable caregivers with limited digital dexterity and large hands/fingers to more easily secure the garment on the child.

In some embodiments, the attachment mechanismmay include one or more magnets used to attach the upper flapto the lower flapin a similar manner as described above. For example, the upper flapand the lower flapmay be attached to one another using one or more magnets, with at least one magnet configured with the inner surface of the upper flap(e.g., sewn into a fold of the material), and at least one magnet configured with the outer surface of the lower flap(e.g., sewn into a fold of the material). As with the example above regarding using hook and loop material sections,, or finger-pocket snap material as the attachment mechanisms, each magnet on the upper flapand the lower flaprespectively may be configured to generally come into physical contact and mate with one another when the upper flapis folded forward into lower position L and the flap sections are pressed or gently put together at the magnets. The magnetic poles of each magnet may be arranged such that the magnets may attract one another when in physical contact with one another as described. In this way, the magnets may adhere to or otherwise hold one another thus attaching the upper flapand the lower flaptogether as desired.

Note that the descriptions above and the examples provided are meant for demonstration purposes to benefit this description, and do not limit the present disclosure in any way. In addition, those of ordinary skill in the art will realize and appreciate, upon reading this description, that other configurations of the upper flapand the lower flapmay also be used and configured with other numbers and types of attachment members. For example, other attachment mechanismsmay include one or more latches, hooks, zippers, buttons, and other types or combinations of types of attachment mechanisms. In addition, the attachment mechanismsmay be configured in different positions and/or in other combinations of positions as compared to the positions described in the examples above or below. It is understood that the scope of the garmentis not limited in any way by the type, types or combinations of types of attachment mechanismsthat may be used.

It should also be noted that the upper flapmay be folded downward along other fold lines that may be different than fold line C in. For example, the upper flapmay be folded downward along a fold line that may be generally parallel to the x-axis as depicted in, and as depicted in the exemplary garment of. In general, it should be appreciated that the upper flapmay be folded downward along any position or fold line that may be in any direction with respect to the x-axis and y-axis of the figure. Similarly, in the embodiments where the lower flapmay be folded upward, it should be appreciated that the lower flapmay be folded upward along any position or fold line that may be in any direction with respect to the x-axis and y-axis of the figure.

In some embodiments, the left and right upper flapsmay be formed as upper extensions of the frontof the garmentinstead of the back, and that the left and right lower flapsmay be formed as upper extensions of the backof the garment instead of the front. In this example, the upper flaps, being formed in the frontof the garmentmay fold backwards and downwards instead of forward and downwards as described in the examples above. The lower flapsmay reside on the backof the garments and may receive the upper flapsas they are folded backwards and downwards. In the example of the finger-loop snap material, when the lower flapsreside on the back, the finger-pocket loopmay also reside on the back. In addition, all or at least some of the characteristics of upper and lower flaps,described with respect to the other examples in this specification also apply to this example.

In yet another example, the lower flapsmay extend upward such that the flapsmay be joined and attached to upper flapstowards the top of left and right upper shoulder portions,without the need for upper flapsto be folded downward. In this example, upper flapsand lower flapsmay generally extend to substantially the same height and attach to one another at the top area.

It should be noted that none of the examples described above or in any other sections of this specification limit the scope of the disclosure in any manner and that other configurations, and combinations of configurations, of the upper flapand the lower flapwith respect to the frontand backare also within the scope of the present disclosure.

As shown in, with the left upper flapconfigured and the left lower flapas described, the left side openingmay be formed. The left side openingmay be generally formed by the upper flapand the lower flapcombination and may extend from outside the garment on the left side of the upper left shoulder portionto the insideof the garment. In this way, the left side openingmay form the opening of the left sleeve. It may be preferable that left side openingbe large enough to easily and comfortably accommodate the arm of the child or infant that may be placed into the garment.

Referring now to, exemplary embodiments of garmentas a onesie are illustrated. As shown in, garmentmay include an upper portion, a lower portion, a body, an upper opening, a lower opening, a top left shoulder portion, a top right shoulder portion, a front sideand a back side. In addition, garmentmay also include a collarthat may be formed as an upper portion of top opening. The upper left shoulder portionand the upper right shoulder portionmay also each include at least one upper flapand at least one lower flap. That is, the upper left shoulder portionmay include at least one upper flapand at least one lower flap, and the upper right shoulder portionmay also include at least one upper flapand at least one lower flap. It should be noted that in this specification, a single upper flapand a single lower flapon each of the left and right sides of the garmentmay be used as a main example. However, it should be noted that any number of upper and lower flaps,may be used on either the left or right shoulder portions,of the garment.

In some embodiments, the left and right upper flapsmay generally be mirror images of each other, and that the left and right lower flapsmay generally be mirror images of each other. In some embodiments, the flaps,may be formed of any type of different shapes and sizes.

In some embodiments, the upper flapmay generally be an upper extension of the backof the garmenton the left and right upper sides. In this way, it can be seen that the upper flapsand the back portion of the collarmay generally form the top of the backof the garment. Other configurations of the upper flapswith respect to the backof the garment may also be used.

In some embodiments, the lower flapmay generally be an upper extension of the frontof the garmenton the left and right upper sides. In this way, it can be seen that the lower flapsand the front portion of the collarmay generally form the top of the frontof the garment. Other configurations of the lower flapswith respect to the frontof the garment may also be used.

In some embodiments, the garmentmay include lower center front flapand lower center rear flap.

In some embodiments, garmentmay include attachment mechanismusing finger-pocket snap material as described above, having a finger-pocket loopwith a snap button first side(e.g., a male side) and a snap button second side(e.g., a female side). In some embodiments, as depicted in, at least one finger-pocket loopwith a snap button first sidemay be positioned on the outside surfaceof the upper flap, and (as depicted in) at least one corresponding snap button second sidemay be positioned on the inner surfaceof the lower flapto attach the lower flapto the upper flap. In some embodiments, as shown in, the loopmay be sewn onto the outside surfaceof the upper flapin such a way to form an opening (or loop). The loopmay be sized to receive a tip of a person's finger (see also example in). In some embodiments, as shown in, the top edge proximity of the upper flap(left and/or right) may include two or more finger-pocket loopspositioned side-by-side, each may be sized to receive a tip of a person's finger. In this way, the left and right upper flapmay each include at least one snap button first sidepositioned on the outer surfaceof each finger pocket loop. In this configuration, a portion of the inner surfaceof the lower flap(left and right) may be configured with at least one snap button second sidepositioned on the inner surface. Snap button first sideand snap button second sidemay be configured to generally come into physical contact and mate with one another, for example when the lower flapis folded upwards, towards upper flapand the snap buttons are pressed together. In some embodiments, the snap button first side may be a male side, and the snap button second side may be a female side.

In some embodiments, garmentmay include, as depicted in, at least one finger-pocket loopwith a snap button first sidemay be positioned on the outside surfaceof the lower center front flap, and at least one corresponding snap button second sidemay be positioned on the inner surfaceof the lower center rear flapto attach the lower center rear flapto the lower center front flap. In some embodiments, the loopmay be sewn onto the outside surfaceof the lower center front flapin such a way to form an opening (or loop). The loopmay be sized to receive a tip of a person's finger (see also example in).