Blackout Hoodie

Passengers in an airplane, automobile or other type of vehicle often lack control of their environments and the ability to be comfortable in such environments. In particular, passengers who wish to sleep or rest have sleep masks, eye masks, or eye pillows, devices that are designed for use by all but are not adjustable to the contours of the individual user's facial features. In addition, there are prior art devices that include hoodies, namely, sweatshirts with a hood, neck pillows with a hood, or stand-alone hoods to provide coverage of the head of users. While the prior art devices provide partial assistance to control the head area environment of the users, they do not provide full assistance to the users in controlling and blocking light from entering through the upper or lower portions of the devices.

Eye masks to assist travelers in sleeping and resting are shown in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 9,572,718 to Sternlight on Feb. 21, 2017 teaches an eye mask with a forward portion including a malleable nose bridge for conforming to the user's nose. The forward portion may include an opaque outer layer and an inner malleable layer with side straps to secure the eye mask to the user's head. While this mask has a malleable nose bridge, light may still come through to the user's face in both the upper and lower portions of the eye mask.

U.S. Pat. No. D465,234 to Gordon on Nov. 5, 2002 and U.S. Pat. No. D489,749 to Landvik on May 11, 2004 both teach eye masks that appear to be deformable around the nose area and fixes with a hook-and-loop fastener around the back of the user's head. These devices are relatively large on the head and are relatively heavy, hot and uncomfortable.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,217 to Kitayama on Oct. 10, 1989 teaches an eye mask that has a fixed shape around the nose. This nose bridge is not malleable so it is not adaptable to the user's face and may allow ambient light to seep in between the user's face and the mask.

U.S. Pat. No. D302,167 to Sherman on Jul. 11, 1989 teaches an eye mask with a pliable internal perimeter having elastic straps to hold the mask on the user's face. The elastic straps apply a pressure against the user's face that may be uncomfortable and result in a claustrophobic feeling against the face of the user.

Hoodies, namely sweatshirts with hoods, or neck pillows with a hood, or stand-alone hoods provide coverage of the head of users when traveling or are used in everyday life to provide coverage to the heads of users and control the environment of users' head areas. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 9,521,873 to Mignone on Dec. 20, 2016 and U.S. Pat. No. 11,412,787 to Galustyants both teach sweatshirts with hoodies and face masks configured to protect the face of a user from the environment and to absorb perspiration, while permitting breathing through the facemask.

U.S. Pat. No. 10,863,826 to Schneider on Dec. 15, 2020 and U.S. Pat. No. 7,657,954 to Bunkers on Feb. 9, 2010 both teach neck pillows with detachable hoods to block light while the user is resting in public environments such as on airplanes.

U.S. Des. Pat. D744,207 to Donner et al. on Dec. 1, 2015 teaches a hood which includes a head-covering sized and shaped to at least partially cover the head of a user, leaving the user's face exposed. It has a collar portion coupled to and extending downward from a rear portion of the head-covering portion with the collar portion not coupled to any other garment.

The present device is a black-out hoodie that is a head covering designed to assist the user in blocking the transmission of light to the user's eyes when attempting to rest, meditate or sleep in familiar environments or sleep or relax when traveling. The black-out hoodie also provides a head covering to protect the user's head area from variations in the temperature of the area surrounding the user's head. The black-out hoodie provides a hood which covers the top and sides of the user's head and neck with a upper front portion that can be extended over the user's forehead and eyes to the bridge of the user's nose to cover the eyes. The upper front portion of the hoodie is provided with a flexible nose bridge which can be manipulated to form around the nose and block openings through which light may be transmitted to the eyes upwardly from the area beneath the eyes. Transmission of light from the area above the eyes is blocked by the portion of the hoodie that covers the user's forehead and eyes.

The black-out hoodie includes a body portion having an upper front portion and a front section which is open to allow the face of the user to initially remain uncovered. The rear section of the body portion forms the back side and the right and left sides of hood and covers the neck. Around the perimeter of the front section, the material of the hoodie overlaps to provides a passage through which a cinching mechanism, such as a drawstring, may be threaded from one side to the other through the passage to allow the user to pull on the exposed drawstring to adjust the size of the opening of the front section. At the midpoint of the perimeter of the front section, a flexible nose bridge is provided.

After the black-out hoodie is placed over the head to be worn by the user, the hoodie may then be adjusted so that the upper front portion is pulled forward over the forehead of the user and further adjusted to align the flexible nose bridge with the user's nose and conform the nose bridge to fit across the user's nose. When the black-out hoodie is positioned in this manner, the user pulls on the ends of the drawstring on each side of the hoodie causing the front opening of the hoodie to decrease and cover the eyes and the upper portion of the face to at least partially block the transmission of light to the eyes. The ends of the drawstring may be allowed to dangle loosely, or they may be tied together, or they may be locked in place by use of a cordlock. The user may essentially block transmission of most, if not all, light to the eyes from the area below the eyes by adjusting and fitting the flexible nose bridge to conform across the user's nose and pulling on the ends of the drawstring to decrease the front opening of the hoodie.

Any soft, pliable clothing materials may be used for the blackout hoodie, with the preferred materials being polyester for the exterior and a smooth soft material for the interior of the upper portion of the hoodie. The material used on the interior of the upper portion should be capable of blocking the transmission of light through it.

The blackout hoodie is a garment designed to be worn over the head without the need for any other garments. The hoodie may also be provided with clips to be detachably joined to an upper body garment, such as a shirt, sweatshirt, or jacket. The hoodie may also be an integral part of an upper body garment, such as a shirt, sweatshirt, or jacket.

Taking into consideration the foregoing features and objectives, the invention provides a hoodie having a head covering portion that at least partially covers the head of the user with an open front section which allows the face of the user to initially remain uncovered. Around the perimeter of the front section of the hoodie, the material of the hoodie overlaps, providing a passage through which a cinching mechanism, such as a drawstring, may be threaded for one side to the other to allow for an adjustment in the size of the opening of the front section. At the midpoint of the perimeter of the front section, a flexible nose bridge is provided.

When worn by the user to block out the transmission of light, the hoodie is placed over the head of the user and then may be adjusted so that the upper front portion is pulled forward over the forehead of the user and further adjusted to align the flexible nose bridge with the user's nose and conform the nose bridge to fit across the user's nose to provide partial coverage over the eyes. The hoodie is further adjusted to align the flexible nose bridge portion located front section with the user's nose and to conform the nose bridge to fit across the user's nose. When deployed, the user pulls on the ends of the drawstring on each side of the hoodie to cause the front opening of the hoodie to further close and cover the eyes and the upper portion of the face to at least partially block the transmission of light to the eyes of the user.

The transmission of light above the eyes of the user may be essentially fully blocked from the area by the coverage provided by the upper portion of the hoodie. The transmission of light in the area below the eyes of the user may be essentially fully blocked by adjusting and fitting the flexible nose bridge to conform across the user's nose. The front opening of the hoodie is decreased by pulling on the ends of the drawstring. For a loose fit, the user may allow the ends of the drawstring to dangle. For a tighter fit, the ends of the drawstring may be pulled and tied together or pulled and cinched together using a cordlock.

The blackout hoodie may be made of any soft, pliable clothing material, including for example, cotton, polyester, nylon, rayon, or any combination thereof with the preferred material being polyester for the exterior. Smooth, soft materials, capable of blocking the transmission of light, may be used for the interior of the upper portion of the hoodie.

The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of example implementations of a blackout hoodie. It is to be understood that the implementations described below are examples and that this disclosure is not intended to limit the invention to any example described below.

is a elevational front view of the blackout hoodie of the present invention.is an elevational left-sided view of the hoodie of. The blackout hoodieas shown inmay be used by a person traveling in any vehicle, or relaxing at home or elsewhere, to block the transmission of light to the eyes of the user. The exterior of the blackout hoodie may be made of any soft, pliable clothing material, including for example, cotton, polyester, nylon, rayon, or any combination thereof with the preferred material being polyester. Smooth, soft materials, capable of blocking the transmission of light, may be used for the interior of the upper portion of the hoodie. It is to be understood that any suitable material may be used without limiting the scope of the invention.

It is to be understood that the term “front” in relation to the view or to parts of the blackout hoodieshall refer to the portion of the hoodie that initially surrounds the face of the user. The term “back” in relation to the view or parts of the blackout hoodieshall refer to such views that are on the side that contacts the back of the head of the user while the hoodie is in use.

Referring to, the blackout hoodieinincludes a head covering portionthat at least partially covers the head of the user with an open front sectionwhich allows the face of the user to initially remain uncovered. Around the perimeterof the front section of the hoodie, the material of the hoodie overlaps, providing a passagethrough which a cinching mechanism, such as a drawstring, may be threaded for one side to the other to allow for an adjustment in the size of the opening of the front section. At the midpoint of the perimeter of the front section, a flexible nose bridgeis provided. The flexible nose bridge may be made of rubber, vinyl, metal, soft plastic or any other material known in the art to be pliable under the conditions for which the blackout hoodie is to be used.

illustrates an elevational left-sided view of the hoodie of. The hoodiehas an upper portion, a rear portion, and a left sideand right side (not shown), and a lower portionwhich covers the user's neck. The drawstringis threaded through the passageto allow the endsto dangle from the front of the hoodie. The exterior portions of the hoodiemay be made of any soft, pliable clothing material, including for example, cotton, polyester, nylon, rayon, or any combination thereof with the preferred material being polyester. At least the interior of the front section of the upper portionmay be made of smooth, soft materials, capable of blocking the transmission of light.

is a flat plan view of the interiorof the hoodie of. a flexible nose bridgeis located at the midpoint of the perimeter of the front section. At least the front sectionof the upper portion of the interiorof the hoodie may be made of smooth, soft materials, capable of blocking the transmission of light. The endsof the drawstring dangle from dangle from the left and ride sides of the front portion of the hoodie.

is a flat plan view of the exteriorof the hoodie of. The exterior portion of the hoodiemay be made of any soft, pliable clothing material, including for example, cotton, polyester, nylon, rayon, or any combination thereof with the preferred material being polyester. Flexible nose bridgeis located at the midpoint of the perimeter of the front section. The drawstringdangles from the left and right sides of the front portion of the hoodie.

is a top plan view of a portion of the hoodie ofshowing the flexible nose bridge portionlocated in the upper portion of the hoodie.is a top plan view of the nose bridge portionof. The nose bridge portionofis made from a flexible material that allows the user to bend and shape the nose bridge to conform to the shape of the user's nose and block out the transmission of light from beneath the nose bridge portionof the hoodie.

is a front perspective view of the blackout hoodie ofworn by a user. In, the hoodiecovers the head of the user and the front of the upper portionis pulled down over the forehead and eyes of the user. The endsof the drawstring are pulled to decrease the front opening of the hoodie and have the hoodie cover the eyes of the user. The ends of the drawstring are left dangling so that the lower portion of the front opening of the hoodie is open.

shows a front perspective view of the hoodie ofwith the endsof the drawstring pulled tightly and tiedto firmly seal the hoodie and cover the eyes of the user.

is a front perspective view of another example of the hoodie ofhaving a cordlock deviceon the ends of the drawstring on each side of the hoodie. Hoodiehas a head covering portionthat at least partially covers the head of the user with an open front sectionwhich allows the face of the user to initially remain uncovered. Around the perimeterof the front section of the hoodie, the material of the hoodie overlaps, providing a passagethrough which a cinching mechanism, such as a drawstring, may be threaded for one side to the other to allow for an adjustment in the size of the opening of the front section. At the midpoint of the perimeter of the front section, a flexible nose bridgeis provided.

The hoodie ofas worn by a user is shown in. The hoodieis pulled down over the forehead and eyes of the user to cover the eyes, A cordlockis provided on the endsof drawstringon each side of the hoodie to adjust and maintain the size of the front opening of the hoodie to that selected by the user. The fit of the hoodie inis loose because the cordlock has not fully tightened the endsof drawstringto firmly seal the hoodie and cover the eyes of the user.

shows the hoodie ofwhere the cordlockon the endsof the drawstringis adjusted so that front opening of the hoodieis decreased and the hoodiecovers the eyes of the user and the position of the hoodie is locked in place by the cordlockto maintain the size of the front opening of the hoodie to that selected by the user.

is an interior flat view of the hoodie ofwith clips that can be used to attach the hoodieto other articles of clothing or a neck pillow. The clipsare located on the lower portion of the hoodieand may be sewn onto to the hoodie or attached with double-sided clips, one side clipped to the hoodie and the other side clipped to the other article clothing or pillow. The clips may be plastic, silicone, soft clips or metal clips. The distal portionsof the ends of the drawstringmay be protected from unraveling by using plastic, silicone, or metal tips.

is a top perspective view of a portion of the hoodie ofshowing one of the clips. The clips may be plastic, silicone, soft clips or metal clips.

The blackout hoodie of the present invention is a garment designed to block the transmission of light to the eyes of a user when traveling or relaxing to allow for ease in sleeping and rest without being disturbed by light. The hoodie is designed to be worn on or over the head without the need for any other garments. The hoodie may also be provided with clips as shown into be detachably joined to an upper body garment, such as a shirt, sweatshirt, or jacket. The hoodie may also be an integral part of an upper body garment, such as a shirt, sweatshirt, or jacket.