Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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-1-
A PROTECTIVE GLOVE
Field of the Invention
The invention relates to protective gloves used for protecting a wearer's hand
and/or wrist when impacted against a surface and therefore may have
particular applications in the field of motorcycles.
Background to the Invention
25
By definition gloves are protective in one way or another. The boxer's gloves
will for example incorporate an outer padding to protect the user's hand when
punching - naturally in such circumstances the user's hand would without
protection undoubtedly be damaged. Other gloves are destined to protect the
user's skin as he frequently repeats a movement under a given load. One
example of such gloves would be those used in weight lifting.
Many prior art gloves are designed to have enhanced gripping capacities. An
example of such a glove is shown in LTS patent number 6055669 which
presents a bowling ball glove with improved grip to allow a pitcher of a ball
to
impose enhanced spin to a ball. Another example of non-slip gloves is
presented in Japanese document 1216778.
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Motorcycle gloves are generally designed to protect the wearer during a wide
variety of travel situations. One of the requirements of gloves is that they
be
thermally insulating which becomes particularly important in harsh weather
conditions or at elevated speeds. Such gloves are also customarily equipped
with a water proofing layer which may take the form of a synthesised
breathable material such as GORTEX (registered trade mark). The outer
coating of many motorcycle gloves are still however often made out of leather,
primarily because leather offers an ideal combination of natural protective
and
aesthetical properties. In certain areas of the motorcyclist's gear, there is
sometimes proposed the incorporation of a highly abrasion-resistant material -
for exaanple located over the kneecaps or elbows or even over the outer
portion of the glove which may come into contact with the road as the user
manoeuvres a curve during say a race. An example of such a proposal is
disclosed in GB 022627.5.
However, in this proposal the underside of the glove will primarily be
designed to enhance the user's grip to facilitate difficult manoeuvr,,s t.~ be
carried out.
One of the objectives of the invention is to present a radical departure from
the
conventional teaching of the above discussed prior art where the underside of
the glove has the sole function of improving adhesion to objects during use.
A further objective of the present invention is to provide improvements to the
protective characteristics of gloves when a user is impacted or propelled onto
a
surface.
Prior art gloves prove generally adequate in terms of thermal insulation and
in
being waterproof. However, in a motorcycle fall it is typical for the user of
the
glove to have the reflex of outstretching his arm in the vain attempt of
protecting himself from the fall. As the user with his outstretched arms
impacts on the road surface his hands and wrists are submitted to forces which
often result in a fracture of a metacarpal ox carpal bone. Statistically, the
scaphoid bone is the most likely to fracture in these instances. There are
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typically one thousalzd of such accidents per day in the United Kingdom alone,
a high percentage of which results in a fractured scaphoid bone.
The scaphoid bone is crucial to the intricate function of the wrist, it is the
strong mechanical link between the proximal and distal carpal rows and can be
regarded as an extension of the thumb ray into the wrist. It is subjected to
shearing, rotational and compression forces from several surrounding
structures. Therefore, any fracture of this bone is usually complex, often
requiring prolonged immobilisation. The fracture is usually accompanied by a
dull, deep pain in the wrist and throughout its treatment a pain may
periodically be felt which may take weeks or even months to subside.
A further objective of the present invention is therefore to offer specific
protection to the bones in the hand and wrist and particularly to the scaphoid
bone.
The solution to this problem presented hereafter also aims at retaining the
flexibility and grip which, the .conventional glove user has been accustomed
to.
Summarv of the Invention
In a first broad independent aspect, the invention prevents a glove for
protecting a wearer's hand and/or wrist when impacted against a surface,
wherein the surface of the finger regions of the underside of the glove has a
sufficiently high coefficient of friction to allow the gripping of obj ects in
conventional fashion and at least one surface area located. over the palm
region
and/or underside of the wrist region of the glove has a relatively low
coefficient of friction so as to reduce any force transmitted on impact to the
user's palm andlor wrist.
In a second broad independent aspect, the invention covers a glove for
protecting a wearer's hand and/or wrist when impacted against a surface,
wherein at least one surface area located over the palm region andlor
underside of the wrist region of the glove has a sufficiently low coefficient
of
friction and is sufficiently cushioned as to reduce any force transmitted on
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impact to the user's palm and/or wrist, and the surface of the finger regions
of
the underside of the glove has a different coefficient of friction to allow
the
gripping of objects in conventional fashion.
In a third broad independent aspect, the invention presents a motorcycling
glove for protecting a wearer's hand and/or wrist when impacted against a
surface, wherein at least one surface of the finger regions of the underside
of
the glove has a sufficiently high coefficient of friction to allow the
gripping of
objects in conventional fashion and at least one surface area located over the
palm region and/or underside of the wrist region of the glove has a
sufficiently
low coefficient of friction relative to the surface of impact so as to reduce
any
force transmitted on impact to the user's palm and/or wrist.
The above configurations have the advantage of improving the distribution of
forces when a wearer's hand and/or wrist is impacted against a surface. In
addition, the wearer's dexterity is not in any way hampered which allows him
to freely manoeuvre objects such as the controls of a motorcycle. These
configurations will also reduce the seriousness of carpal fractures and will
therefore allow its wearer should he suffer a fall of having a more rapid
recovery. They will also in many instances prevent any fracture occurring
altogether. These configurations will also be advantageous as the force may
even be diverted to the forearm of the wearer which is constituted of bones
which heal in a relatively straightforward manner should they themselves
fracture.
In a subsidiary aspect, the surface area having a low coefficient of friction
is
located over the scaphoid bone of the user's wrist.
Simply by modifying the surface area over the scaphoid bone of a user's wrist,
the lilcely damage to this bone can be reduced or even prevented.
Advantageously, the surface area with the low coefficient of friction rnay
comprise fibrous material, the fibres generally extending in the direction of
the
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forearm. This would allow the glove to be particularly ergonomic while
advantageously diverting the force towards the forearm.
In a fourth broad independent aspect, the invention covers a glove for
5 protecting a wearer's hand and/or wrist when impacted against a surface
comprising as part of its hand, wrist or forearm cover a single chamber or a
series of chambers which contain fluid or are capable of containing fluid and
are arxanged so that any fluid flow substantially remains during conventional
use of the glove within the chamber or the series of chambers and which are
located in a position to protect a section of the hand, wrist, forearm by
absorbing at least in part the force of the impact.
This configuration is particularly benefl vial in absorbing the force
resulting
from the impact and thus limits the occurrence of fractures in the bones
beneath the chamber and may altogether prevent such fractures occurring in
many instances.
In a subsidiary aspect according to the fourth broad independent aspect, the
chamber or the series of chambers cover an area corresponding essentially to
the palm and/or underside of the wrist, the fingers being relatively
u~.irestricted
in movement as in a conventional glove.
This configuration offers a particularly practical solution to the
incorporation
of a chamber into a conventional glove.
In a further subsidiary aspect, one chamber is located in use essentially over
the underside of the scaphoid bone of the user's wrist. Covering this
relatively
small area dramatically reduces the extent of fractures and immobilisation
which are often the result of when a wearer impacts against a surface for
example during a fall from a motorcycle.
In a further subsidiary aspect, any chamber in a section of the glove above
the
wrist crease is primarily empty during conventional use of the glove and at
least one adjacent chamber projects past any such chamber over the wrist
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crease so that on impact fluid flows from the adjacent chamber into the
chamber in the section of the glove above the wrist crease.
This configuration is particularly advantageous as it combines in a
particularly
non-conventional fashion ergonomic and protective properties.
In a further subsidiary aspect, a chamber with pressurised fluid and control
means adapted to release said pressurised fluid on impact so that the fluid
fills
a protective chamber.
This aspect allows a rapid expansion of protective area without hindering the
wearer's movements in conventional use.
In a further subsidiary aspect, a single chamber protrudes from the glove over
essentially the palm and/or wrist and is essentially triangular when viewed in
cross-section.
This configuration will allow the' area of protection to rapidly spread across
a
wide area and facilitate the transfer of impact force from the wrist and/or
palm
region towards the forearm of the user. Transferring the force from the wrist
to
the forearm region may stress the forearm ox even fracture the forearm.
However, any such fracture can relatively rapidly heal as opposed to the more
complex recovery which would follow the fracture of say a carpal bone.
In a further subsidiary aspect, the walls of the or each chamber are
sufficiently
elastic so that the or each chamber stretches on impact over the area to be
protected. This configuration allows the chambers to be relatively unobtrusive
whilst during impact offering improved protection.
In a further subsidiary aspect, fluid is contained in conventional use
primarily
in the forearm region and upon outstretching the hand, circulation of fluid
from the forearm to the palm and/or wrist regions of the glove is achieved.
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One of the advantages of this arrangement is that the forearm itself may be
protected as well as protecting the critical palm andlor wrist regions of the
glove when the hand is outstretched. Another advantage of this arrangement
becomes apparent when the wearer grasps objects such as the handle bars of a
motorcycle because in that mode of operation under the pressure of the grasp,
the fluid is primarily retained in the forearm region so as to allow
unrestricted
precise grasping of objects..
In a further subsidiary aspect, the fluid circulates from each chamber to an
adjacent chamber through restriction means. This allows a gradual absorption
of force over the entire time of impact.
Brief Description of the Figures
Figure 1 shows a schematic perspective view of the underside of a right glove
in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 represents in perspective view the underside of the right glove in
accordance with a second embodiment.
20~
Figure 3 shows a schematic perspective view of the underside of the right
glove according to a third embodiment.
Figure 4 represents a cross-sectional view across the low friction areas of
the
glove.
Figure 5 shows the underside of a left glove in perspective view in accordance
with a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 6 shows the underside of a left glove in perspective view in accordance
with a fifth embodiment.
Figure 7 represents a schematic perspective view of the underside of a left
glove in accordance with a sixth embodiment.
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Detailed Description of the Figures
Figure 1 shows a protective glove generally referenced 1 comprising a top side
2 (only partially visible in the drawing) and an underside 3, the glove has
four
separately displaceable finger and thumb covers such as that referenced 4.
The glove 1 can be approximately split into three general regions; the finger
region 5, the palm region 6 and the wrist region 7. Over part of the palm
region and the underside of the wrist region, there are provided two pads 8
and
9. The coefficient of friction of finger region 5 may for example be
equivalent
to that of the leather used typically in motorcycle geax. By contrast, the
coefficient of friction of pads 8 and 9 will be selected by the person spilled
in
the art to be considerably lower than at least the coefficient of friction of
finger region 5 so that when the user is propelled onto a surface with his
arms
outstretched, the impact's farce usually primarily transmitted to the palm and
wrist region of the glove may be diminished and even transferred in effect
towards the forearm.of the wearer.
Pads 8 and 9 are constituted of fibre materials which axe orientated in the
direction of the forearm. While this construction is particularly advantageous
other materials are envisaged within the scope of the present invention and
may be utilised by the person skilled in the art in the design of the glove.
One
particularly useful material is thought to be a rigid PVC or a nylon. Other
low
friction materials may be a metal such as titanium, silicon, silicon
copolymers,
silicon elastomers, polytetrafluorethylene, homopolymers, graphites, boron,
polypropylene and/or polyethylene. It is also envisaged to utilize a material
which has similar low coefficient of friction as the above materials but is
sufficiently bendable to allow the wearer to conventionally utilize the glove
without noticeable restriction.
The area of low coefficient of friction relative to the surface of impact such
as
a road surface may also cover the entire underside of the glove provided that
the coefficient of friction of that area with the object that the wearer
grasps in
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conventional use such as the handle bars or other controls of a motorcycle is
sufficiently high to allow the gripping of objects in conventional fashion.
The underside area of the glove may for example have a coefficient of friction
with the generally plastic controls of a motorcycle of say l, whilst a
coefficient of friction with the average road surface of below 0.5.
Returning to the specific description of figure 1, advantageously, the typical
coefficient of friction of the pad's material with the average road surface is
below 0.5.
The location of pads 8 and 9 and their shape is selected to improve the
ergonomics of the glove. Pads 8 and 9 generally form a C shape with a gap 10
located between pads 8 and 9 so that movements about the wrist crease are in
no way impeded.
The geometry of pad 8 is designed to generally cover the scaphoid and lunate
bones of the carpus of the user. Pad 9 is destined to cover the lower region
of
the last metacarpal bone which may also be subjected to fracture in a
conventional glove.
Figure 2 shows a glove 11 with an impact absorbing pad 12 which may be
located beneath low friction pads 8 and 9 of glove 1. Pad 12 is constituted of
two fluid containing chambers 13 and 14 which correspond in size to pads 8
and 9 of glove 1. The fluid contained in chambers 13 and 14 may have a high
viscosity by being for example a silicon gel. The walls of chambers 13 and 14
may be generally elastic so as to stretch, preferably without rupturing in
most
load conditions on impact. A further chamber 15 may be located between
chambers 13 and 14 and designed to be empty of fluid during normal use.
'uJalls 16 and 17 may be adapted to allow the passage of fluid from chambers
13 and 14 to chamber 15 on impact whilst sufficiently sealed during
conventional use of the glove to effectively prevent such passage of fluid.
This latest characteristic of the glove allows it to be particularly ergonomic
whilst being sufficiently protective.
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Figure 3 presents glove 18 with a single low friction pad covering the carpal
region and th.e lower portion of the metacarpal region of the user's hand when
inserted in the glove. Pad 19 incorporates an array of fibres crossing each
other to form a web like structure.
5
Pad 19 may be integral to the glove or may be constructed so as to be
detachable from the glove should appropriate releasable attachable means be
provided between the pad and the main body of the glove. These releasable
attachment means may be selected by the person skilled in the art from known
10 alternatives,
Figure 4 presents a cross-section 20 of a glove similar to the gloves
presented
in Figure 1 and Figure 2, the section line following essentially a line
through
low friction pads located over an absorption pad. There are provided two low
friction pads 21 and 22 from which fibrous elements such as that referenced 23
project and are designed to achieve a low coefficient of friction on a typical
road surface schematically illustrated and referenced 24. A waterproof layer
which may be selected to be of a breathable type by the person spilled in
the art, wraps around the glove. Above friction pads 21 and 22, there is
20 provided aa.1 absorption pad 26 within layer 25. Absorption pad 26 may
incorporate a single chamber or alternatively incorporate a number of
chambers identical to that presented with reference to Figure 2 and in which
the wrist crease gap may be filled by fluid following the impact on the road
surface.
Further towards the hand receiving chamber 28 of the glove, there is provided
a thermal layer 29 of standard lcind.
Figure 4 also shows schematically within the glove the position of the
scaphoid bone 30 as well as the lunate bone 31 and the lower region of a
further wrist member 32.
Figure 5 represents a glove 33 with a single chamber 35 stretching from the
glove's forearm region 34 up to the tips of the finger regions 36 of the
glove.
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The walls of chamber 35 and the properties of the fluid 38 combine so that
when the user holds onto the handle bars of the motorcycle the fluid contained
within the chamber 35 migrates under the gripping action towards the forearm
region 34. When the grip is released from the handle bars such as when
outstretching the arms during a fall the fluid tends to flow into the wrist
and
palm region of the glove as shown by arrow 37 so as to absorb at least in part
the force of the impact.
Furthermore when low friction pads are provided over the palm or wrist of the
user the force of impact will be reduced and will tend to be diverted towards
the forearm which may also be protected by the lower region of chamber 35.
Figure 6 illustrates a further embodiment of the invention where a glove 39
incorporates a single chamber 40 protruding from the glove and of general
triangular shape when viewed in cross-section. This configuration is
particularly advantageous as it enhances the area over which the impact forces
are spread and therefore will reduce the pressure exerted on a given bone.
Figure 7 presents a glove 41 incorporating in t~,~ foreart'~ region a chamber
42
capable of containing a pressurised fluid. The fluid of chamber 42 may be
released into channel 43 and into impact absorbing section 44 on impact, as
appropriate control means (not illustrated in the figure) instruct the opening
of
chamber 42.
Chamber 42 may be provided with an inlet valve (not illustrated in the figure)
through which air or any other appropriate fluid selected by the person
skilled
in the art may be pumped into the chamber by the user through conventional
means and retained therein. This latest feature would render possible the
chamber's properties to be individually set by the wearer of the glove.
The impact absorbing portion of the glove of any appropriate previously
described embodiment may advantageously incorporate a portion of one or
more chambers occupied by a first fluid operating in conjunction with a
second portion of one or more chambers occupied by a second fluid, the
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second fluid being selected so that during impact when the first fluid is
caused
to displace in conjunction with the second fluid, the second fluid compresses
so that when the impact force ceases to be applied the second fluid tends to
return the first fluid to its position before impact. This may be achieved for
example by having the second fluid be air whilst the first fluid is relatively
less
compressible such as a gel.
