Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02714457 2010-09-03
1 STORAGE DEVICE FOR MOUTH GUARD
2
3 FIELD OF THE INVENTION
4 100011 The present invention relates to a storage device for mouth guards.
6 DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
7 100021 In many sporting events, particularly contact sports, it is now usual
for participants to
8 utilize a mouth guard to protect the gums and teeth of the participant. The
mouth guards are
9 worn during the sporting activity but are frequently removed during
stoppages in the activity or
when the participant is temporarily inactive.
11 [00031 When a mouth guard is removed, the participants will either hold the
mouth guard or
12 find a location which it can be stored. These might include being lodged in
the face mask,
13 placed in a pocket, placed on a bench, in a spare shoe, behind the ear or
within the clothing used
14 by the participant. None of these are particularly sanitary and are also
prone to damage or
inadvertent loss.
16 [00041 It is therefore an object of the present invention to obviate or
mitigate the above
17 disadvantages.
18
19 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
100051 In general terms, the present invention provides a storage device for a
mouth guard
21 that includes a band that may be secured to the participants body. A
storage compartment is
22 formed on the band and sized to receive a mouth guard.
23 [00061 Preferably, the compartment is in the form of a pocket and the band
is sized to
24 encompass a limb of the participants, such as a wrist or ankle.
[00071 As a further preference, the band has a fastening along overlapping
edges of the band
26 to permit adjustment of the size of the band.
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1 [0008] Typically, the band is formed from an elasticized material or a
neoprene and the
2 compartment is secured to one surface of the band by stitching.
3
4 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] Embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example
only with
6 reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
7 [00101 Figure 1 is a front view of the storage device.
8 [0011] Figure2 is a rear view of the storage device.
9 [0012] Figure 3 is a exploded view showing the components of the storage
device of Figures
1 and 2.
11 [0013] Figure 4 is a diagrammatic representation of the storage device in
use on the arm of
12 an athlete.
13 [0014] Figure 5 is an illustration of a storage device in use on the lower
leg of an athlete.
14 [0015] Figure 6 is front view of an alternative embodiment of storage
device.
[0016] Figure 7 is a rear view of the storage device of Figure 6.
16 [0017] Figure 8 is a perspective view showing the assembly of the storage
device of Figures
17 5 and 6.
18 [0018] Figure 9 is a view similar to Figure 6 of an alternative embodiment.
19
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
21 [0019] Referring therefore to Figure 1, a storage device generally
indicated 10 includes a
22 band 12 of elasticized material. Typically, the material may be an
elasticized towelling or a
23 similar absorbent material that is formed from a length of the material
with adjacent edges sewn
24 to one another as indicated at 14 in Figure 2 to form a continuous annulus.
The annulus is sized
so as to be a comfortable but snug fit over a limb of an athlete, such as the
wrist shown in Figure
26 4 or an ankle as shown in Figure 5. Naturally, different sized bands 12 may
be formed to suit
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1 different applications, but generally are sized so as not to impede movement
of the athlete and to
2 be a snug fit on the athlete.
3 100201 A compartment 16 is formed on the outer surface of the band 12. In
the embodiment
4 shown in Figures 1 to 3, the compartment is formed as a pocket from a
rectangular panel of
material 18, that is sewn along three edges to the band 12. The free edge
allows a mouth guard
6 to be inserted within the pocket formed by the panel 18 and retained snugly
within the pocket in
7 a secure manner. It will be appreciated that the compartment may be formed
as a simple loop
8 sewn to the band at opposite ends rather than an enclosed pocket to allow
the mouth guard to be
9 held by the elastic nature of the material against the band. Similarly,
alternative materials may
be used such as an neoprene. Preferably at least the material of panel 18 is
antimicrobial,
11 although the band 12 itself may also be treated so as to be antimicrobial.
12 [0021] In use, the storage device 10 is slipped onto the limb of the
participant, either the
13 wrist shown in Figure 4 or the ankle as shown is Figure 5, where it does
not interfere with the
14 normal equipment used by the participant. The material used for the storage
device 10 is
compatible with materials normally found in sports clothing and is not
objectionable from a
16 safety perspective.
17 [0022] With the device in place, the mouth guard may simply be inserted
into the
18 compartment 16 where it is secured during the normal movement of the
athlete. Moreover, the
19 absorbent nature of the material maintains the mouth piece dry and absorbs
any fluids that may
be on the mouth piece. The snug nature of the pocket formed by the compartment
16 means that
21 the athlete may move around freely without the potential loss of the mouth
guard so that it is
22 always readily available when needed.
23 [0023] In an alternative embodiment shown in Figure 5 through 7, the
stitching 14 is
24 replaced by a hook and loop fastening 20, commonly referred to as Velcro,
along one edge of the
band 12. As shown in Figure 7, the releasable fastening 20 provided by the
Velcro allows the
26 band 12 to be securely wrapped around the athletes limb so as to a snug
fit. The compartment 16
27 is secured to one face so it is always directed outwardly from the limb and
is available for
28 storage of the mouth guard.
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1 [00241 It will be appreciated that the storage device 10 is readily removed
and can be washed
2 after each use to maintain the sanitary conditions. Moreover, when removed,
the device serves
3 as a storage for the mouth guard ensuring it does not come into contact with
mud and soiled
4 equipment as might otherwise be the case.
100251 The compartment may be sized to suit different needs. In the embodiment
shown in
6 Figure 9, the material 18 is enlarged to extend around a major portion of
the band 12, offering
7 more choices for locating the mouth guard. In this embodiment, as referred
to in the description
8 of Figures 1 to 3, the material 18 is sewn to the band 12 along opposite
lateral edges, so as to
9 define an enlarged loop rather than an enclosed pocket of a mouth guard but
other devices may
be stored within the pocket, such as ear plugs, nose clips, goggles or
whistle, where intermittent
11 use is envisaged.
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