Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02554826 2006-07-28
HOCKEY GLOVE
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to hockey gloves.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Traditional hockey gloves have finger gussets and finger pads that are
directly
mounted on the finger gussets such that, for each finger gusset and finger
pad, the
base layer of the finger pad's pocket is also the upper layer of the finger
gusset.
Because there is no space between the finger pad and the finger gusset, the
movement
of the finger may be imparted by the finger pad. There is therefore a need for
a
hockey glove offering greater flexibility to the fingers of the player.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
As embodied and broadly described herein, the present invention provides a
hockey
glove for receiving a hand of a player, the hand having a palm, a dorsal side,
four
fingers, each finger having palm and dorsal surfaces, lateral and medial
surfaces, a
proximate articulation, proximate, middle and distal phalanges with middle and
distal
articulations therebetween, and one thumb with palm and dorsal surfaces. The
hockey
glove comprises a hand receiving portion comprising: (a) a palm sheet for
facing the
palm of the hand and the palm surface of the fingers and thumb, the palm sheet
having a palm periphery; (b) a dorsal sheet for covering the dorsal surface of
the
fingers, the dorsal sheet having a dorsal periphery; (c) a side finger web for
facing the
lateral and medial surfaces of each finger, the side finger web having an
upper web
periphery and a lower web periphery, the upper web periphery being connected
to the
dorsal periphery and the lower web periphery being connected to the palm
periphery
for defining first, second, third and fourth finger gussets for respectively
enclosing the
four fingers; and (d) a finger pad for covering at least partially the dorsal
surface of
one finger, the finger pad having a padding element enclosed in a pocket, the
pocket
comprising lateral and medial flaps extending downwardly along a portion of a
length
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of the finger pad for connecting the pocket to one of the first, second, third
and fourth
finger gussets such that there is a void area between the pocket and the
finger gusset.
The invention further provides a hockey glove for receiving a hand of a
player, the
hand having a palm, a dorsal side, four fingers, each finger having palm and
dorsal
surfaces, lateral and medial surfaces, a proximate articulation, proximate,
middle and
distal phalanges with middle and distal articulations therebetween, and one
thumb
with palm and dorsal surfaces. The hockey glove comprises a hand receiving
portion
comprising: (a) a palm sheet for facing the palm of the hand and the palm
surface of
the fingers and thumb, the palm sheet having a palm periphery; (b) a dorsal
sheet for
covering the dorsal surface of the fingers, the dorsal sheet having a dorsal
periphery;
(c) a side finger web for facing the lateral and medial surfaces of each
finger, the side
finger web having an upper web periphery and a lower web periphery, the upper
web
periphery being connected to the dorsal periphery and the lower web periphery
being
connected to the palm periphery for defining first, second, third and fourth
finger
gussets for respectively enclosing the four fingers, each finger gusset
comprising
portions of the finger web defining lateral and medial sides for facing the
respective
lateral and medial surfaces of the finger, a portion of the dorsal sheet
defining an
upper side for facing the dorsal surface of the finger and a portion of the
palm sheet
defining a bottom side for facing the palm surface of the finger; and (d) a
finger pad
for covering at least partially the dorsal surface of one finger, said finger
pad having a
padding element enclosed in a pocket, said pocket comprising a base layer
facing a
lower side of said padding element and an overlapping layer facing lateral,
medial and
upper sides of said padding element, said base layer having lateral and medial
flaps
extending downwardly along a portion of a length of said finger pad and said
overlapping layer having lateral and medial flaps extending downwardly along a
portion of the length of said finger pad, wherein said lateral flaps of said
respective
base and overlapping layers have their respective ends inserted between a
portion of
said lateral side of said finger gusset and a portion of said upper side of
said finger
gusset, wherein said medial flaps of said respective base and overlapping
layers have
their respective ends inserted between a portion of said medial side of said
finger
gusset and a portion of said upper side of said finger gusset, and wherein
said ends of
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said lateral flaps of said respective base and overlapping layers are
connected to said
respective portions of said lateral and upper sides of said finger gusset and
said ends
of said medial flaps of said respective base and overlapping layers are
connected to
said respective portions of said medial and upper sides of said finger gusset
such that
there is a void area between said base layer of said pocket and said upper
side of said
finger gusset.
The invention also provides a hockey glove for receiving a hand of a player,
the hand
having a palm, a dorsal side, four fingers, each finger having palm and dorsal
surfaces, lateral and medial surfaces, a proximate articulation, proximate,
middle and
distal phalanges with middle and distal articulations therebetween, and one
thumb
with palm and dorsal surfaces, said hockey glove comprising (a) a plurality of
finger
gussets, each finger gusset being adapted to receive a respective one of the
fingers,
each finger gusset having an upper side; and (b) a plurality of finger pads,
each finger
pad being mounted on a respective one of said finger gussets so as to extend
over at
least part of said upper side of said respective one of said finger gussets,
each finger
pad comprising a padding element enclosed in a pocket, said pocket having a
first
longitudinal end, a second longitudinal end, and a base layer that is spaced
from said
upper side of said respective one of said finger gussets such that there is a
void area
between said base layer of said pocket and said upper side of said finger
gusset, said
void area extending from said first longitudinal end to said second
longitudinal end.
Other aspects and features of the present invention will become apparent to
the
persons skilled in the art upon review of the following description of
embodiments of
the invention in conjunction with the accompanying figures.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
A detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention is provided
herein
below, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in
which:
Figure lA is a top view of a human hand with the integument of the hand shown
in
broken lines and the bones shown in full lines;
Figure 1 B is a bottom perspective view of a human hand;
Figure 1 C is a top perspective view of the human hand of Figure 1 B;
Figure 2 is a front side perspective view of a prior art hockey glove, in
which the side
pad protecting the side of the index finger has been removed for better
illustrating the
connection between the finger pads and the finger gusset of the sheath
enclosing the
index finger;
Figure 3 is a side view of the prior art glove of Figure 2;
Figure 4A is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along lines 4A-4A of
Figure 3;
Figure 4B is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along lines 4B-4B of
Figure 3;
Figure 5 is a front side perspective view of a hockey glove constructed in
accordance
with the invention, in which the side pad protecting the side of the index
finger has
been removed for better illustrating the connection between the pocket of the
finger
pads and the finger gusset of the sheath enclosing the index finger;
Figure 6 is side view of the hockey glove of Figure 5 showing the fingers in a
straight
position;
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Figure 7 is a side view of the hockey glove of Figure 5 showing the fingers in
a flexed
position;
Figure 8 is a rear side perspective view of the hockey glove of Figure 5;
Figure 9 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along lines 9-9 of Figure
6;
Figure 10 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along lines 10-10 of
Figure 6;
Figure 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along lines 11-11 of
Figure 8; and
Figure 12 is an enlarged schematic exploded view showing components of a
finger
sheath.
In the drawings, the embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of
examples.
It is to be expressly understood that the description and drawings are only
for the
purpose of illustration and are an aid for understanding. They are not
intended to be a
definition of the limits of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
To facilitate the description, any reference numerals designating an element
in one
figure will designate the same element if used in any other figures. In
describing the
embodiments, specific terminology is resorted to for the sake of clarity but
the
invention is not intended to be limited to the specific terms so selected, and
it is
understood that each specific term comprises all equivalents.
As shown in Figures 1 A, 1 B, 1 C, a human hand comprises a palm P, a dorsal
side DS,
four fingers F and a thumb T. Each finger F has a palm surface PS, a dorsal
surface
DS, a lateral surface LS, a medial surface MS, a proximate articulation PA, a
proximate phalanx PP, a middle articulation MA, a middle phalanx MP, a distal
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articulation DA and a distal phalanx DP. The thumb T has a palm surface PS and
a
dorsal surface DS.
Figures 2 and 3 illustrate a prior art hockey glove 10 for receiving the hand
of a
player. As it is known in the art, a hockey glove has a side pad (or side
pads) located
adjacent the index finger and extending generally from the base of the index
finger to
approximately the beginning of the distal phalanx of the index finger for
protecting
the side portion of the index finger. In order to better illustrate the
connection between
the finger pads and the finger gusset, the side pad has been removed in
Figures 2 and
1o 3.
The hockey glove 10 has a hand receiving portion covering the palm P and
dorsal side
DS of the hand and extending generally to the end of the fingers F and a thumb
sheath
covering the thumb T. The hand receiving portion comprises a palm sheet 12 for
facing the palm P and the palm surfaces PS of the respective fingers F and the
palm
surface PS of the thumb T and a dorsal sheet for covering the dorsal surface
DS of the
respective fingers F. The hand receiving portion also comprises a side finger
web 14
for facing the lateral surface LS and medial surface MS of each finger F, this
side
finger web 14 being connected to the palm and dorsal sheets for defining
finger
gussets 16 for enclosing the fingers F. As it is well known in the art, pads
26, for
protecting the dorsal surface DS of each finger F, cover the finger gussets
16.
As shown in Figures 4A and 4B, the finger gusset 16 is made of portions of the
side
finger web 14 (see medial and lateral sides 18, 20), a portion of the palm
sheet 12 (see
bottom side 22) and a portion of the dorsal sheet (see upper side 24). The pad
26 is
made of a padding element 28 enclosed in a pocket 29 formed of the upper side
24
and a layer 30 surrounding the lateral, medial and upper sides of the padding
element
28. The respective ends of the medial side 18, layer 30 and upper side 24 are
stitched
together and the respective ends of the lateral side 20, layer 30 and upper
side 24 are
also stitched together (see stitches 32). It is understood that the stitches
32 are located
along the length of the pad and that there are also stitches at both ends of
the pad for
closing the pad pocket 29. The pad pocket 29 is directly mounted on the finger
gusset
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16 and the side 24 serves as a base layer for the pad pocket 29 and as an
upper layer
for the finger gusset 16. In other words, the pad pocket 29 and the finger
gusset 16
share a common layer, namely, the side 24.
Hence, in the prior art glove 10, there is no space between the pad 26 and the
finger
gusset 16 and the movement of the finger F may be imparted by the pad 26 due
to the
common layer (side 24) that serves both as a base layer for the pad pocket 29
and as
an upper layer for the finger gusset 16.
Figures 5 to 12 illustrate a hockey glove 100 constructed in accordance with
an
embodiment of the invention. As it is known in the art, a hockey glove has a
side pad
(or side pads) located adjacent the index finger and extending generally from
the base
of the index finger to approximately the beginning of the distal phalanx of
the index
finger for protecting the side portion of the index finger. In order to better
illustrate
the connection between the finger pads and the finger gusset, the side pad has
been
removed in Figures 5 to 8.
The hockey glove 100 has a hand receiving portion 102 covering the palm P and
dorsal side DS of the hand and extending generally to the end of the fingers F
and a
thumb sheath covering the thumb T. The glove 100 further comprises a cuff
portion
103, which extends from the wrist up towards the lower forearm of the player,
the
cuff portion 103 being secured to the hand receiving portion 102 of the glove
100.
The hand receiving portion 102 comprises four finger sheaths 104 adapted to
enclose
the index finger, middle finger, third finger and little finger of the player.
The hand
receiving portion 102 also comprises a palm sheet 106 for facing the palm P
and the
palm surfaces PS of the respective fingers F and the palm surface PS of the
thumb T.
The palm sheet 106 is made of a suitable flexible material such as soft
leather, leather-
like materials, synthetic suede, or Nash fabric. An example of a suitable
material is
commercialized under the name CLARINO (trade-mark of Kuraray Co. Ltd.). The
palm sheet 106 may also be treated with silicone to improve stick control and
may
further be reinforced with a protective layer. The hand receiving portion 102
also
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comprises a dorsal sheet 108 for covering the dorsal surface DS of the
respective
fingers F. The hand receiving portion 102 further comprises a side finger web
110 for
facing the lateral surface LS and medial surface MS of each finger F. The side
finger
web 110 is connected to the palm sheet 106 and dorsal sheet 108 for defining
finger
gussets 112 for enclosing the fingers F.
The hand receiving portion 102 also comprises dorsal pads 114 for protecting
the
dorsal side DS of the hand H of the player and finger pads 116 for protecting
the
dorsal surface DS of each finger F. While the glove 100 is shown as having, on
each
finger, first and second protective pads 116 and one flexion zone between
these two
pads 116, it will become apparent to a person skilled in the art that a
variety of other
patterns of protective pads/flexion zones may be used. For example, on each
finger,
the glove may comprise three finger pads with two flexion zones. A spacer 115
made
of flexible material fills the gap between the first and second finger pads
116 of a
given finger sheath 104 for covering the player's knuckles when the finger
sheath 104
is fully bent inwardly (see Figure 7). As best shown in Figures 6, 7 and 11,
the first
finger pad 116 covers at least partially the dorsal side DS of the proximate
phalanx PP
of the finger F and the second finger pad 116 covers at least partially the
dorsal side
DS of the medial phalanx MP and distant phalanx DP of the finger F.
Figures 9 to 12 show the detailed construction of the finger pads 116 and the
finger
gusset 112 that encloses the index finger F.
The finger pad 116 has a padding element 118 enclosed in a pocket 120 made of
a
base layer 122 and an overlapping layer 124 surrounding the sides and top of
the
padding element 118. Examples of materials for the padding element 118
comprise
polyethylene and may include various composite materials designed to absorb
the
energy of an impact. The padding element 118 may comprise a layer of low
density
padding and a layer of high density padding which overlies the low density
padding.
The high density padding is generally of greater density, stiffer, and less
compressible
that the corresponding layer of low density padding. The relative thicknesses
of the
layers of low and high density paddings may vary. The layers 122, 124 of the
pad
pocket 120 can be made of leather, knit polyester and PVC or other materials.
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The finger gusset 112 is made of portions of the side finger web 110 (see
medial side
110A that faces the medial surface MS of the index finger F and lateral side 1
l OB that
faces the lateral surface LS of the index finger F), a portion of the palm
sheet 106 (see
bottom side 106A that faces the palm surface PS of the index finger F) and a
portion
of the dorsal sheet 108 (see upper side 108A that faces the dorsal surface DS
of the
index finger F). The lower end of the medial side 110A is connected to the
medial end
of the bottom side 106A along the length of the finger gusset 112 (see
stitches 128),
and the lower end of the lateral side 110B is connected to the lateral end of
the bottom
side 106A along the length of the finger gusset 112 (see stitches 128).
As best seen in Figures 10 and 12, the palm sheet 106 has a palm periphery
106P and
the dorsal sheet 108 has a dorsal periphery 108P. The side finger web 110 has
an
upper web periphery 110UP and a lower web periphery 1 lOLP. The base layer 122
further comprises a medial flap 122A and a lateral flap 122B extending
downwardly
along a portion of the length of the finger pad 116 and the overlapping layer
124
further comprises a medial flap 124A and a lateral flap 124B extending
downwardly
along a portion of the length of the finger pad 116. The medial flap 122A of
the base
layer 122 and the medial flap 124A of the overlapping layer 124 have their
respective
ends inserted between a portion of the medial side II 0A and a portion of the
upper
side 108A (or, in other words, between a portion of the upper web periphery
110UP
and a portion of the dorsal periphery 108P) and the lateral flap 122B of the
base layer
122 and the lateral flap 124B of the overlapping layer 124 have their
respective ends
inserted between a portion of the lateral side 110B and a portion of the upper
side
108A (or, in other words, between a portion of the upper web periphery 110UP
and a
portion of the dorsal periphery 108P).
The respective ends of the base layer 122 and the respective ends of the
overlapping
layer 124 are stitched together to form the pad pocket 120 (see stitches 125
in Figure
9). The overlapping layer 124 is first stitched to the base layer 122 for
forming the
pad pocket 120, the pad pocket 120 is then turned in order to have the
stitches 125
inside the pad pocket 120. The padding element 118 is inserted in the pad
pocket 120,
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which is afterwards closed and stitched at one end, or both ends, for
enclosing entirely
the padding element 118.
The upper end of the medial side II 0A is connected to the medial end of the
upper
side 108A along the length of the finger gusset 112 and the upper end of the
lateral
side I l OB is connected to the lateral end of the upper side 108A along the
length of
the finger gusset 112 (see stitches 126 in Figure 9). It is therefore
understood that the
upper web periphery 110UP of the side finger web I10 is connected to the
dorsal
periphery 108P of the dorsal sheet 108 via stitches 126 for forming the upper
portion
of the four finger gussets 112.
The ends of the medial flaps 122A, 124A are stitched to the respective
portions of the
medial side I l0A and upper side 108A and the ends of the lateral flaps 122B,
124B
are stitched to the respective portions of the lateral side I IOB and upper
side 108A
(see stitches 130 in Figure 10). It is understood that stitches 126 and
stitches 130 can
be the same stitches if the flaps 122A, 124A, 122B, 124B, medial, lateral and
upper
sides 110A, 110B, 108A of the finger gusset 112 are all simultaneously
stitched
together.
The flaps 122A, 124A, 122B, 124B therefore connects the finger pad 116 to the
finger
gusset 112 such that there is a void area 132 between the finger pad 116 (the
base
layer 122 of the pad pocket 120 more precisely) and the finger gusset 112 (the
upper
side 108A of the finger gusset 112 more precisely). Hence, the base layer 122
of the
pad pocket 120 is spaced from the upper side 108A of the finger gusset 112
such that
there is the void area 132 between said the base layer 122 and the upper side
108A.
As best seen in Figure 11, the void area 132 extends from a first longitudinal
end
120A of the pad pocket 120 to a second longitudinal end 120B of the pad pocket
120.
In order words, the void area 132 extends along the entire length of the
finger pad
116.
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As best seen in Figures 6, 7 and 11, the lateral flaps 122B, 124B and the
medial flaps
122A, 124A of the first pad 116 are located proximate a region between the
proximate
articulation PA and middle articulation MA of the finger F and the lateral
flaps 122B,
124B and the medial flaps 122A, 124A of the second pad 116 are located
proximate
the distal articulation DA of the finger F.
The lower web periphery 110LP of the side finger web 110 is finally connected
to the
palm periphery 106P of the palm sheet 106 via stitches 128 for forming the
bottom
portion of the four finger gussets 112 and thereby completing the construction
of
these finger gussets 112.
The above description of embodiments should not be interpreted in a limiting
manner
since other variations, modifications and refinements are possible within the
spirit and
scope of the present invention. The scope of the invention is defined by the
appended
claims and their equivalents.
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