US3366973A

US3366973A - Glove construction

Info

Publication number: US3366973A
Application number: US480556A
Authority: US
Inventors: Milton W Israel
Original assignee: ANGELICA UNIFORM CO
Current assignee: ANGELICA UNIFORM CO
Priority date: 1965-08-18
Filing date: 1965-08-18
Publication date: 1968-02-06
Anticipated expiration: 1985-02-06

Description

Feb. 6, 1968 M. w. ISRAEL 3,366,973

GLOVE CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 18, 1965 3 Sheets-$heet 1 INVENTOR MILTON W. ISRAEL ATTORNEYS Feb. 6, 1968 w, |$RAEL 3,366,973

GLOVE CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 18, 1965 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 6

INVENTOR MILTON W. ISRAEL M M f ATTORNEYS Feb. 6, 1968 M.'W. ISRAEL GLOVE CONSTRUCTION 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 18, 1965 FIG. 7

FIG. 8

INVE NTOR MILTON W. ISRAEL ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,366,973 GLOVE CONSTRUCTION Milton W. Israel, University City, Mo., assignor to Angelica Uniform Company, St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Filed Aug. 18, 1965, Ser. No. 480,556 Claims. (Cl. 2-169) This invention relates generally to the glove art, and more particularly to improvements in resiliently expansible gloves.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved stretch-type glove having elongation characteristics adapted to accommodate hands of different size and adjust to various finger lengths.

Another object is to provide a novel glove construction to provide a snug, but non-binding fit, and eliminating the need for using the fourchette or kyle to achieve such a fit.

Another object of the invention is to provide a stretchtype glOVe formed from a novel pattern eliminating the need for a seam at the finger tips thereby reducing bulk in the finger portions and increasing the comfort and sensitivity of the fingers.

Another object is to provide a glove in which the entire body portion may be formed as a unitary blank and folded upon itself for stitching, and in which a separate thumb portion is formed as a unitary blank and inset into the body portion.

Another object is to provide a novel glove requiring a minimum of stitching and having no objectionable bulk or seams.

A further object is to provide a novel, inexpensive, stretch-type fabric glove particularly adapted for use as a protective hand covering for clean room conditions or the like requiring special sanitary conditions.

A further object is to provide a stretch-type work glove adapted to be formed with a palm and finger blank of non-porous material and a hand back and finger blank of resiliently expendable material.

Another object is to provide a novel glove formed from a universal pattern for both the left and right hands.

A still further object is to provide a novel pattern and method by which a glove may be economically and simply manufactured with savings in both labor and material.

These and still other objects and advantages will become more apparent hereinafter.

Briefly, the invention is embodied in a glove construction having body and thumb portions, said body portion having front and back sections with at least two finger portions of equal length, the finger portions being joined along a fold line at the fingertip ends thereof, the body and thumb portions being formed from stretch fabric providing endwise elongation to adjust the length of the two finger portions. In addition, the invention consists in the novel pattern for the glove and in the method of making the glove.

The invention is also embodied in the construction and in the arrangements and combinations of parts and features hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings which form a part of this specification and wherein like numerals refer to like parts wherever they occur:

FIG. 1 .is a plan view of a body portion blank for a glove embodying the invention,

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a thumb portion blank for a glove embodying the invention,

FIGS. 3 and 4 show the folded and stitched body and thumb portions, respectively,

FIG. 5 is a view showing the thumb portion inset into the body portion of the glove,

FIG. 6 is a greatly enlarged view showing a finished glove according to FIGS. 1-5,

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a glove body pattern for another embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a thumb pattern for said other embodiment, and

FIG. 9 is an enlarged view showing a finished glove according to FIGS. 7 and 8.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-6 of the drawings wherein one glove construction 10 embodying features of the invention is illustrated, the glove construction ltl is formed from body and thumb patterns providing a glove body blank 11 shown in FIG. 1 and a glove thumb blank 12 shown in FIG. 2.

The body blank or pattern 11 comprises a first section 13 and a second section 14 interconnected in a unitary piece. For reference purposes, the first section 13 will be called the front section and the second section 14 Will be called the back section, but it will be understood that these words are not limiting since the glove 10 can be worn on either the right or left hand as will become more readily apparent hereinafter.

The front section 13 has a carpus or wrist portion 15, metacarpus or palm portion 16 and small, ring, middle and index phalanx or

finger portions

17, 18, 19 and 20, respectively. The back section 14 has a carpus or wrist portion 21, metacarpus or hand portion 22 and small, ring, middle and index phalanx or

finger portions

23, 24, 25 and 26, respectively. The term hand portion may be used herein interchangeably with the term palm portion to indicate the metacarpus or principal parts of the hand. The front and

back sections

13 and 14 are identical in configuration and the three major

length finger portions

18, 24 and 19, 25 and 20, 26 are of equal length and are joined along a fold line aa at the

common fingertip ends

29, 30 and 31 thereof. The

free margins

27 and 28 of the

wrist portions

15 and 21 are positioned at remote ends of the body blank 11. A kerf or notch 34 is provided in the side margin 35 of the front section 13 opposite to the small finger portion 1'7, and a similar kerf or notch 36 is formed in the side margin 37 of the back section 14. The

kerks

34 and 36 define

thumb receiving margins

38 and 39 in the glove body 11.

Referring to FIG. 2, the thumb blank 12 includes a front strip portion 42 and a back strip portion 43 of substantially equal length and being joined along a fold line b--b at the common tip end 44 thereof. The free

outer margins

45 and 46 of the

strips

42 and 43 are adapted to be secured to the

margins

38 and 39, respectively, of the

kerfs

34 and 36. Each of the

margins

45 and 46 may be provided with a projecting tab 47 to facilitate locating or positioning the thumb portion 12 on the glove body 11.

A feature of the present invention resides in the use of a stretch fabric; that is, a fabric Woven or knit from an elastic thread or yarn and possessing predetermined re silient or elastic properties. Several stretch fabrics are available in the market and a typical fabric used in the present invention is a stretch, 70 denier, nylon tricot fabric manufactured by Southern Silk Mills of Spring City, Tenn. The fabric should be woven to be expansible in all directions and should possess total or composite elongation properties (adding the degree of stretch in the end or warp direction and the degree of stretch in the lateral or weft direction) of about 200%. The opti mum stretch in the end direction should be about 35-50% with a minimum stretch of about 30%.

In making a glove construction 10 according to the present invention, the glove body and thumb patterns are oriented on the stretch fabric or material With the finger portions extending in the direction of end stretch and the blanks 11 and 12 are cut to the patterns. The glove body blank 11 is folded on itself at the fold line a-a to superirnpose the back section 14 over the font section 13. FIG. 3 illustrates a preferred method of stitching the glove body 11, in which a continuous thread chain 48 is used from the wrist margin 28 around the small finger 23 and along the sides of each

major length finger

24, 25 and 26 to the thumb opening 36 to sew the front and back sections together. The thread chain foms side seams 48' along the sides of each of the three long finger portions and is carried across or around the folded

fingertip ends

29, 30 and 31 in an unbroken, free thread chain loop 49 so that no stitched seam is formed along the fold line of the fingertips. Acco'dingly, since the finger sheaths or stalls formed by these finger portions are of equal length, the degree of fabric stretch accommodates adjustment to actual finger length to achieve a fit. Another thread chain forms a seam 50 between the thumbopening 36 and the wrist margin 28.

It will be understood that the thread chain loops 49 may be clipped according to conventional stitching techniques. In addition to this conventional practice, it is possible to use a further technique of applying an alcohol solution of nylon resin on the end of each finger seam 48' to prevent raveling. Such an anti-fray solution is available under the trademark Sergene from E. L. du Pont de Nemours & Co. and is described in Technical Information Bulletin I -l70 dated October 1961.

The thumb blank 12 is folded on itself to superimpose the back strip 43 over the front strip 42. FIG. 4 illustrates the stitching of the thumb blank 12 to forma thumb cot or stall and shows that a continuous thread chain is used to form seams 51 along the sides of the thumb cot and an unbroken, free thread chain loop 52 extends around the thumb end 44 so that no stitched seam is formed along the fold line of the end 44.

FIG. 5 illustrates the stitching of the thumb cot 12 into the thumb opening of the glove body 11. The thumb cot 12 is turned so that the side seams 51 are laterally disposed or transverse of the plane of the side seams 43 of the

finger portions

24, 25 and 26. The thumb portion margin 45 of the front strip 42 is stitched by a seam 56 to the thumb receiving margins 38 of both the front and

back section kerfs

34 and 36 with the tab 47 being indexed at the adjacent glove body seam 48", and the back strip margin 46 is secured by the seam 56 to the margins 39 of the

kerfs

34 and 36 with its tab 47 indexed at the adjacent body scam 50. The manner of stitching the thumb cot and glove body together is selected to catch the end of one seam in another seam to prevent raveling, and the

chain loops

49 and 52 also constitute a novel means to prevent raveling. In fact, the use of the

chain loops

49 and 52 permit a skilled seamstress to close the glove body 11 and thumb cot 12 and sew them together with one continuous seam. It is preferred to use a standard 401 stitch which is relatively more extensible or less binding than other conventional textile stitching, and also to stitch the glove construction 10 under fabric tension whereby the stretch characteristics of the fabric will not be restricted by the seams.

It will be clear that the

kerfs

34 and 36 are identical in size so that the thumb hole in the glove body 11 extends inwardly from the outer forefinger margin the same distance on both the front and

back sections

13 and 14. Therefore, the thumb cot 12 is set into the glove body 11 to extend outwardly normal to the outer forefinger margin and a glove 11 may be used for either the right or left hand so that only one glove pattern is required. Since the side seams 51 of the thumb cot are laterally disposed relative to the body seams 48, the smooth fabric surface of front section 42 extends across the ball of the thumb.

Referring to FIG. 6, it will be seen that the glove construction 10 may be finished by providing a wrist hem 53 having seam 54 using an anti-fray solution (Sergene) finish to prevent raveling. The hem 53 may be provided with an elastic band 55. The glove 10 is inverted or turned inside out to conceal the raw edges or selvage of the seamed margins and the chain loops and to provide a smooth finished glove.

Referring to FIGS. 7'9, 21 further embodiment of the glove construction is illustrated as utilizing a twopiece pattern for the glove body 111 and for the thumb 112. This embodiment, now to be described in detail, permits the use of two different materials and has particular value in the manufacture of gloves having a nonporousfirst or front section 113 for minimizing contamination from the palm and fingers and having a stretch fabric second or back section 114. The non-porous material may be a stretch nylon impregnated or surface treated with a yieldable plastic coating having a compatible stretch property so that the material will remain nonporous under tension.

As shown in FIG. 7, the glove body 111 has a first section 113 having a carpus or. wrist portion 115, a metacarpus or hand portion 116 and small, ring, middle and index phalanx or

finger portions

117, 118, 119 and 120, respectively. A fold line cc defines the fingertip ends 121, 122 and 123 of the major length finger portions of the front or palm side of the first section, and

fingertip portions

124, 125 and 126 are formed as back section extensions integral with the

finger portions

118, 119 and 1211'. These back section extension portions preferably have angular

free margins

127, 128 and 129 cut on the bias. The glove body 111 also has a second section 114 having a carpus or wrist portion 132, metacarpus or hand portion 133 and small, ring, middle and index phalanx 0r

finger portions

134, 135, 136 and 137, respectively. The second section 114 is identical in configuration with the first section 113 in the wrist, hand and small finger portions, and the

finger portions

135, 136 and 137 are preferably formed with angular

free margins

133, 139 and 140 complementary to the

margins

127, 128 and 129 of the

finger extensions

124, 125 and 126 with appropriate seam allowance.

The

finger portions

135, 136 and 137 are stitched to the fingertip back

extensions

127, 128 and 129 by

seams

142, 143 and 144 (FIG. 9), as by the conventional 401 stitch, to form a pre-assembled, but unitary or integral glove body blank 111 with identical front and back sections, only using two different materials. The angularity of the

seams

142, 143 and 144 is preferred as it provides maximum fabric elongation for stretch fit of the finger sheaths. The glove body 111 also has

thumb receiving kerfs

145 and 146 formed in the first and

second sections

113 and 114.

As shown in FIG. 8, the thumb portion 112 has a front strip 148 with a free margin 149 and a thumb tip end 151) defined by a fold line d-d. A thumb tip back section extension 151 is formed integral and preferably has an angular margin 152 cut on the bias. The second or back strip 153 of the thumb 112 has a free margin 154 and an angular margin 155 complementary to the back extension margin 152. The

angular margins

152 and 155 are stitched by a conventional 401 stitch forming a seam 156 whereby a pie-assembled, but unitary or integral thumb blank 12b is formed.

The glove body and

thumb blanks

111 and 112 are stitched together in the same manner as the glove embodiment shown in FIGS. 16, and it will be apparent that the thread chains of

seams

142, 143, 144 and 156 will be caught and prevented from raveling by the side seams of the finger sheaths or stalls 135, 136 and 137 and the thumb cot or stall 112.

It should be noted that in the FIGS. 79 embodiment of the invention, the glove 110 is intended to be constructed of two different materials-one for the first or palm section 113 and another for the second or back of the hand section 114. Although this would appear to restrict the use of the pattern shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 to the left hand only, it will be seen that by folding the

back section extensions

124, 125 and 126 oppositely on the

fold lines

121, 122 and 123, the same pattern is reversible for use in making either right-hand or left-hand gloves. The thumb pattern is similarly reversible, but the finished glove will only be useable on one or the other hand. Accordingly, the body pattern may be modified so that the thumb cot 112 may be set into the palm section in a usual manner, as by the Bolton technique, English thumb or the like.

It should also be noted that the end seam of the small finger portion in each of the glove embodiments and 110 can be eliminated by providing an integral back section extension following the same pattern arrangement for the

major length fingers

118, 119 and 120 shown in FIGS. 7-9. Although the sensitivity of the glove wearer will be improved by eliminating the end seam and material bulk in each of the finger sheaths and thumb cot, the small finger and even the ring finger are not considered to be critical since, in most persons, the thumb, index and middle fingers do the major sensing work.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention constitutes an important advance in the glove art. Each embodiment of the glove is made from a simple pattern that is easily oriented on the stretch fabric in a manner to reduce waste of material. The unitary body and thumb blanks 11 and 12 obviate the need for fourchettes or kyles and other small pieces so that excessive stitching is not required and the glove manufacture can be performed by relatively unskilled labor and automatic equipment may even be adaptable to the swing of such glove construction. Although the glove construction is simple in design, the features of the invention provide a snug fit for a range of hand sizes with adaptation to dilferent finger lengths as well as accommodate effective enlargement of the hand when clenching or grasping an object. The glove construction of the present invention eliminates bulk of material and end seams at the fingertips to provide for end elongation of the stretch fabric to achieve the necessary fit and to improve comfort and sensitivity of feel. Furthermore, there is no seam extending across the ball of the thumb as the thumb cot is set into the glove body to locate the seams along the sides.

The present invention is intended to encompass such changes and modifications of the embodiments herein disclosed as will be readily apparent to all skilled in the art, and the invention is only to be limited by the scope of the following claims.

What I claim is:

1. A glove construction comprising a body portion and a thumb cot, the body portion being formed from a unitary blank having similar first and second sections, said body portion having at least two finger sheaths of equal length formed with unseamed end folds, said thumb cot being formed from a unitary blank and having opposed side seams and an unseamed end fold, and said thumb cot being set into an opening in said body portion at the margin to locate said side seams laterally of the ball of the thumb of a wearer, said side seams of said thumb cot being disposed in a plane transverse of the plane of the side seams of said finger sheaths whereby said glove construction is adapted for use on either the right or left hand.

2. The glove construction of claim 1 wherein the body portion and thumb cot are formed from a stretch fabric providing endwise elongation to adjust the relative length of said two finger portions.

3. The glove construction according to claim 2 in which the optimum endwise elongation of said stretch fabric is about 3550% with a minimum stretch of about 30%.

4. Glove body means comprising substantially similar front and back sections of a unitary integral blank with each section having seamless wrist and hand portions and finger portions extending from said hand portions and being disposed in opposed end-to-end relationship, at least two finger portions of each section being of equal length and being interconnected along fold lines adapted to define the tip ends of said two finger portions of each section, the first and second sections being formed integrally from a stretch fabric having predetermined end elongation in one direction, said finger portion of said first and second sections extending in the one direction of end elongation of said fabric.

5. The glove body means of claim 4 wherein three finger portions of each section are of equal length and are interconnected along fold lines adapted to define the tip ends of the three finger portions of each section.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,226,604 12/1940 Geissmann 2169 2,386,688 10/1945 Julianelli et al. 2169 2,447,951 8/1948 Lindfelt 2167 2,538,837 1/1951 Johnston 2- 169 2,898,021 8/1959 Miles et a1. 223-43 X 2,907,046 10/1959 Scherr 2159 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

G. V. LARKIN, Examiner.

Claims

1. A GLOVE CONSTRUCTION COMPRISING A BODY PORTION AND A THUMB COT, THE BODY PORTION BEING FORMED FROM A UNITARY BLANK SIMILAR FIRST AND SECOND SECTIONS, SAID BODY PORTION HAVING AT LEAST TWO FINGER SHEATHS OF EQUAL LENGTH FORMED WITH UNSEAMED END FOLDS, SAID THUMB COT BEING FORMED FROM A UNITARY BLANK AND HAVING OPPOSED SIDE SEAMS AND AN UNSEAMED END FOLD, AND SAID THUMB COT BEING SET INTO AN OPENING IN SAID BODY POR-