Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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SCENT-SUPPRESSING FIBER, AND ARTICLES INCORPORATING SAME
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention.
The present invention relates to scent-suppressing fibers, and to fabrics and
fabric articles
made using the fibers. More particularly, the present invention relates to a
fiber or thread
having a scent-suppressing material associated therewith, and to fabrics and
fabric articles
containing such fibers. Fabric woven from the scent-suppressing fiber is
itself scent-
suppressing, and can be formed into scent-suppressing garments and equipment.
2. Backfzround Art.
The acuity of animals' sense of smell is well known, particularly to hunters,
bird
watchers, and other outdoor enthusiasts. Wildlife has an instinctive reaction
to human scent
that has developed and has been honed over thousands of years. As a result of
this sensory
ability, wildlife has an advantage in detecting a human presence, often before
humans have
the ability to detect wildlife.
In order to overcome this sensory advantage and give an advantage to humans
who
are attempting to approach wildlife, many solutions have been offered. One
partial solution
is visual camouflage. This ancient solution attempts to confuse wildlife by
using clothing or
natural items, such as leaves, to break up the silhouette of a human. Visual
camouflage can
be successful in concealing a human's presence to wildlife, as long as the
wearer is
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conscientious about the wind direction when approaching wildlife, and remains
downwind
from the animal. This situation could complicate matters and at its best, is a
compromise.
Another solution is to mask human scent with another scent, or olfactory
camouflage.
Olfactory camouflage provides a scent that wildlife would either be attracted
to or at least
indifferent to. This solution could be described as an offensive scent/scent
strategy, since the
user would be actively emitting a scent to engage the wildlife, and therefore
betray the
presence of something emitting a scent. A preferred strategy would be to
remove any
indication of the presence of the human by suppressing any emanation of scent
from the
human.
Suppression of human scent can be achieved by wearing scent-suppressing
clothing.
Some layered clothing of this type is known and is commercially available,
such as the
clothing sold by A.L.S. Enterprises, Inc. of Muskegon, Michigan under the
trademark
SCENT-LOK. Ideally, this clothing would be of a style and type that is
comfortable and easy
to wear. Because of the nature of the use of the clothing in an outdoor,
hostile environment,
the clothing should be durable and resistant to tearing and puncturing.
Finally, the clothing
would be able to be washed and re-worn multiple times without losing its scent-
suppressing
capabilities, unlike some prior art clothing which cannot be washed even once,
or other scent-
dampening clothing that gradually loses its effectiveness after frequent
washings or exposure
to soaking in water, a condition that can be expected while spending a great
deal of time
outdoors, often in remote locations.
Examples of published patents relating to known scent-suppressing clothing
include
U.S patent numbers 5,678,247; 5,383,236; 6,134,718; 5,539,930; and 6,000,057.
The prior
art includes articles of clothing consisting of various coatings of scent
absorbing materials,
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via silk screening or spray coating or using a layered effect, usually
sandwiching the active
layer between two or more inactive layers.
Although multilayered and coated scent-suppressing fabrics have been shown to
have
some efficacy, they are expensive to manufacture, as well as cumbersome, hot
and somewhat
uncomfortable when used to form garments. Additionally, coated fabrics are
susceptible to
losing scent-suppressing abilities due to surface wear or puncture, or as a
result of cleaning.
A need exists for a scent-suppressing fabric which is capable of being made in
a
single layer, to reduce manufacturing cost and increase comfort in the end
product. A need
also exists for a scent-suppressing fabric which does not include a separate
coating layer on
one side of the fabric, so that the scent suppression capability is maintained
even after wear
and surface damage associated with the rigors of outdoors activities or due to
normal
cleaning. A need exists for a cost effective scent-suppressing fiber and
fabric made witli the
fiber that can be used to provide improved scent-suppressing garments,
equipment and the
like.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a scent-suppressing fiber that is capable of being
woven into
a single-layered fabric that has scent-suppressing properties. The fabric can
be formed into
articles of clothing to be worn in order to suppress or prevent the wearer's
bodily scent or
scents from emanating from the wearer to the environment. The fabric can also
be formed
into equipment and accessories which are scent-suppressing to suppress or
prevent scent from
emanating from these items.
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In a first embodiment of the invention, the fiber is a composite material
including a
conventional thread core, coated with a scent-suppressing material, such as
carbon, a carbon-
containing compound, or silver nitrate.
In a second embodiment of the invention, the fiber is a composite thread
formed from
a plurality of filaments, where some of the filaments include a scent-
suppressing material.
In a third embodiment of the invention, the fiber comprises a filamentous
thread
formed from a polymeric material in which carbon or another scent-suppressing
material is
trapped in interstices within, or otherwise incorporated into the polymer.
These scent-suppressing fibers may be woven to form a fabric sheet that is
formed
completely of woven carbon scent-suppressing fibers, or alternatively may be
formed of
carbon scent-suppressing fibers interwoven with conventional fibers.
The resulting scent-suppressing fabric sheet is capable of being formed into
articles of
clothing or other equipment that suppresses scent emission detectable by
wildlife. Because
the scent-suppressing fiber is structurally a part of the article, its
durability is much higher
than if the scent-suppressing fiber were applied superficially, as in a
sandwich-type layering
system or applied as a fabric coating. Also, because the scent-suppressing
fiber may be
continuously present within and throughout the material, the scent-suppressing
capability
covers the entire garment and is not limited to only large surface areas.
The invention will allow the user to reduce or eliminate the ability of
wildlife to
detect the user's presence. Interweaving scent-suppressing materials in the
structure of the
fabric itself provides articles of clothing and other equipment formed of the
scent-suppressing
fabric.
Examples of some articles of clothing which may be fabricated from the scent-
suppressing fabric can include whole body suits, upper and lower body
coverings, foul-
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weather gear, foot wear, and head and hand coverings. The garments
incorporating the scent-
suppressing fiber will have a cumulative effect; therefore, the higher the
percentage of the
user's body that is covered a fabric article according to the invention, the
greater the user's
scent will the suppressed from entering the environment and betraying the
user's location to
wildlife. Other articles that could contain items emitting human scent may be
formed from
the scent-suppressing fabric, such as containers and storage vessels.
Additionally, the present
invention can be incorporated into camping gear, such as tents, portable
blinds, sleeping bags,
tarpaulins, hammocks and chairs.
For a more complete understanding of the present invention, the reader is
referred to
the following detailed description section, which should be read in
conjunction with the
accompanying drawings. Throughout the following detailed description and in
the drawings,
like numbers refer to like parts.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is a cross sectional view of a scent-suppressing fiber illustrating
the carbon
coating on a non-carbon filamentous core.
Figure 2 is a front perspective view of two carbon-scent-suppressing fibers
twisted to
form a scent-suppressing thread.
Figure 3 is a detail perspective view of fabric woven of non-scent-suppressing
fibers
interwoven with carbon scent-suppressing fibers illustrating a scent-
suppressing fiber to non-
scent-suppressing fiber ratio of 1 to 1.
Figure 4 is a detail perspective view of fabric woven with only carbon scent-
suppressing fibers.
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Figure 5 is a front perspective view of a portable fabric hunting blind
manufactured
using fabric woven of carbon scent-suppressing fibers.
Figure 6 is a front perspective view of a person wearing clothing articles,
including a
hooded jacket, face scarf, gloves and trousers, formed using fabric woven of
carbon scent-
suppressing fibers.
Figure 7 is a front perspective view of a soft carrying bag formed of fabric
woven of
carbon scent-suppressing fibers.
Figure 8 is a front perspective view of a shoe insert formed of fabric woven
of carbon
scent-suppressing fibers.
Figure 9 is a front perspective view of a boot covered in fabric woven of
carbon scent-
suppressing fibers.
Figure 10 is a side view of a sock formed of fabric incorporating carbon scent-
suppressing fibers.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring now to the drawing figures, Figure 1 illustrates a fiber 10 having
scent-
suppressing properties according to a first embodiment of the present
invention. In the
embodiment of Figure 1, the fiber 10 has a filamentous central core 14 that is
encapsulated in,
or coated with an element, mixture or compound 12 which is scent absorbing or
scent-
suppressing.
The scent-suppressing coating 12 is formed from a material which may include
carbon, silver nitrate, or a mixture of these materials, or may be formed of a
mixture or
compound which includes carbon. However, it is well within the scope of this
invention to
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substitute other effective scent absorbing or suppressing elements or
compounds for carbon
and/or silver nitrate.
The filamentous core 14 may be any conventional natural or man-made fiber,
including, but not limited to, cotton thread, wool thread, nylon strand,
acrylic strand, and
polyester strand or a mixture of these. The elongate, continuous filamentous
core 14 is
preferably flexible and provides a resilient, strong, tough base or structure
that supports the
scent-suppressing coating, so that when the fiber is woven into fabric, the
fabricated end-
product is pliable, tough, and durable as well as scent-suppressing.
The coating 12 may be applied to the filamentous core 14 using conventional
methods, which may include, but are not limited to spraying, dipping or
extrusion. The
filamentous core 14 is completely surrounded by coating 12 such that the
entire external
surface of fiber 10 comprises coating 12, and such that coating 12 is
generally evenly
distributed about filamentous core 14. The coating may include a binder and an
elasticizer, in
addition to the scent-suppressing agent.
A single fiber 10 may be used as a single-strand thread 16, or alternately,
may be
twisted with other fibers 10 (Figure 2) to form a multi-strand thread 18.
Figure 5 shows an alternative thread 32 that can be used in place of the fiber
10 in the
practice of the present invention. In the thread 32 showin in Figure5, a
plurality of
microfibers 34 made of polyester or other polymeric thread mixture may be used
in a
grouping with the addition of additional scent-dampening microfibers 36 with
scent-
suppressing material incorporated therein, such that the scent-dampening
microfibers 36
become an integral part of the thread. Active carbon, silver nitrate, mixtures
of active carbon
with silver nitrate, or other scent dampening materials may be used.
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In yet another alternative, instead of being made in discrete layers with the
scent-
dampening material limited to the outer layer as shown in Figure 1, instead,
the entire thread
may be made of a substantially homogeneous material which includes a scent-
suppressing
material as part of a polymer making up the thread.
In an alternative embodiment, individual threads 16 or 18 are interwoven, by
conventional methods, with conventional threads to form a scent-suppressing or
deodorant
fabric sheet 20 (Figure 3) in which scent-suppressing fibers provide some
portion of the
threads in the fabric. In one application of this type of fabric, scent-
suppressing fibers may
be included with a ratio of scent-suppressing fiber to conventional fiber in a
range of about 5
- 1 to about 1-10. In the embodiment depicted in Figure 3, scent-suppressing
fibers may be
included with conventional fibers in a ratio of about 1 to 1. Inclusion of
scent-suppressing
fibers in both the weft and warp, only the warp, or in only the weft of the
fabric sheet 20 are
acceptable variations within the scope of the invention, as long as the
effectiveness of the
scent suppression of fabric 20 is maintained. By interweaving coated and non-
coated threads,
the cost of the fabric 20 is reduced, and aesthetic qualities, such as color
and texture, can be
modified to suit the specific application.
In another embodiment of the invention, individual threads 16 or 18 are woven
by
conventional methods to form a scent-suppressing or deodorant fabric sheet 30
(Figure 4) in
which scent-suppressing fibers form all the threads in both the weft and warp.
By forming
fabric 30 using all scent-suppressing threads 16, 18, the effectiveness of
scent suppression of
the fabric is maximized.
Scent-suppressing fiber threads 16 or 18 may be woven together to form a scent-
suppressing or deodorant fabric sheet 20, 30, which in turn are fabricated
into articles of
clothing or other equipment formed of fabric 20, 20 to inhibit or eliminate
the emission of
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scents when the wearer is in the vicinity of wildlife. The articles of
clothing (Figures 6, 8-10)
fabricated from the inventive fabric can include, but are not limited to,
whole body suits 50 as shown in Figure 7,
upper body coverings 53 such as shirts, undershirts, coats, jackets, or vests,
lower 55 body coverings such as shorts, trousers, waders, overalls, and long
and short
undergarments,
foul-weather gear such as ponchos, jackets, and coats,
foot wear including socks 58, shoes and boots 56 or components thereof,
including
shoe or boot liners and footwear inserts 70,
head and face coverings such as hats, scarves 52, masks, and hoods 51, and
hand coverings such as mittens, gloves 54, and muffs.
The equipment formed of scent-suppressing fabric 20, 30 may be wholly or
substantially
formed of the fabric. Examples of equipment which may be wholly or
substantially formed
of scent-suppressing fabric include, but are not limited to, camping gear,
such as tents,
portable blinds 40 (Figure 5), sleeping bags, tarpaulins, hammocks and chairs,
and baggage
60 (Figure 7), including gym bags, duffel bags and backpacks.
Scent-suppressing fabric may be used as a deodorant covering for items which
are
wholly or substantially non-fabric items that could also contain items
emitting human scent
such as containers and storage vessels, including, but not limited to,
coolers, beverage
containers, canteens, or gun cases. Deodorant coverings can also be used with
shoes or
boots, or included in camouflage accessories for guns, bows, or other hunting
equipment.
Such coverings may be integrally formed on the equipment item during
manufacture, or may
be provided as a separate accessory which is selectively added or removed from
the item as
needed.
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Although the present invention has been described herein with respect to
specific
illustrative embodiments tliereof, the foregoing description is intended to be
illustrative, and
not restrictive. Those skilled in the art will realize that many modirications
of the preferred
embodiments could be made which would be operable. All such modirications,
which are
within the scope of the claims, are intended to be within the scope and spirit
of the present
invention.
