Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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PLAITED GLOVE
SPECIFICATION
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This PCT application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. 120 of Application
Serial No.
13/170,992 filed on June 28, 2011 entitled "PLAITED GLOVE", the entire
disclosure of which
is included herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to cut resistant gloves. More particularly,
the present
invention is directed to cut resistant gloves having a plaited construction.
Current knit, cut resistant glove constructions presently on the market
include:
1) String knit construction in gauges varying from about 7 gauge to 18
gauge. The
difference in gauge results in a courser or finer knit cloth, where a higher
gauge number is finer
than a lower gauge number.
2) Plaited knit construction where two layers are knit together at the same
time. The
inside of the cloth can be one yarn, a composite of several yarns, or a group
of yarns knit
together at the same time. The outside can be knit in a similar fashion.
The present invention is directed to the second type of glove construction,
i.e., plaited
glove construction. Plaited gloves have been available to the market for many
years. Their use
has increased as manufacturers have been able to combine different components
to get desired
characteristics. For example, by utilizing a composite yarn on the outside and
a stretchable yarn
on the inside, manufacturers have been able to achieve good cut resistance in
a stretchable and
comfortable glove. A composite yarn is a core wrapped with various component
yarns or several
component yarns knit together, or several yarns that have been combined prior
to being knit into
a glove.
Gloves have also been made with a non-elastic filament on the inside and
stretchable
elastic on the outside. This construction has been used to allow a darker
color outside to hide
dirt and to keep the clear or white filament on the inside. High tensile
strength filament yarns
tend to be white, cream or natural colored. If these yarns are made in a
color, the process
typically weakens the yarn. Adding dye to the liquid formula prior to
extrusion may decrease the
strength of the filament. Likewise, if a filament is dyed after extrusion, the
surface must be
etched in order for the dye crystals to adhere to the filament. This etching
weakens the yarn as
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well. Consequently, most plaited gloves involving filament yarns utilize the
dark colored
plaiting yarn on the outside construction to hide the dirt.
Cut resistant gloves are typically made, partially, with cut resistant
filaments. All such
gloves use an elastic fiber of one of various types to enable adequate
stretching. Some glove
fibers are plied in a method of stretching elastic fiber or fibers and then
wrapping a cut-resistant
filament around the elastic fiber or fibers, and adding a cross-wrap of, for
example, nylon, to
counter the torque.
Another method of making a cut resistant glove made from a filament elastic is
called
plaiting (sometimes spelled "plating."), as discussed above. In plaited
construction, it is not the
yarn design that makes the glove elastic, but the knitting process. In
plaiting, essentially, two
gloves are knit together simultaneously. This allows for the outer surface of
the glove to be
made from one material and the inside to be of another. Plaiting became
popular because one
side of a glove could be made from an elastic material and the other side made
from a cut
resistant filament. One advantage of this design is that, on the filament
side, pure filament could
be used and the fibers of the filament could be parallel. Many gloves are made
today with this
construction, however, all such gloves have the filament on the inside and the
elasticized nylon
on the outside. The reason gloves have been made in this manner is that the
non-elastic filament
(which provides the abrasion and cut resistance) is placed such that the most
protection is closest
to the hand of the user. However, unfortunately, on the outside of the glove,
the elasticized
material, e.g., nylon, lacks both cut and abrasion resistance, so the gloves
wear out quickly. U.S.
Patent No. 6,044,493 (Post) describes a glove having a plated construction
where the cut-
resistant fibers form the outer surface of the glove and elastic fibers form
the inner surface of the
glove.
The safety industry generally recognizes that cut protection is achieved by
utilizing the
following factors in yarn design:
1) Tensile strength¨ the strength of the fiber is so strong that it resists
the force of a cutting
edge;
2) Dulling action ¨ the fiber is so hard that it resists the sharpness of a
cutting edge; and
3) Slippage ¨ the surface of the fiber is so slippery that the moving edge
cannot catch in
order to cut.
Not all of these factors are necessarily included in one cut-resistant yarn.
For this reason
additional components can be added in either the construction of the glove or
in the construction
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of the filament bundle of the yarn. These additional characteristics are:
1) Loft ¨ a soft thickness in the cloth that keeps an edge from exerting a
cutting force;
2) Stretch ¨ the ability of the knit cloth to stretch and move ahead of the
cutting edge; and
3) Rolling ¨ when individual filaments in a yarn bundle can roll on each
other, it increases
the cut resistance of the yarn and the glove.
In the industry today, most cut resistant gloves are designed with either
tensile strength
or dulling action as the key components.
As stated above, many gloves in the prior art use an elastic inside and a
glass outside.
U.S. Patent No. 7,669,442 (Zhu) is directed to a glove comprising three
different types of yarns.
These yarns include a cut resistant composite yarn, a companion yarn, and a
liner yarn that are
co-knit together with the lining yarn plated to the interior of the glove. The
lining contacts the
skin and separates the cut resistant yarn from the skin. The stated purpose is
to prevent skin
irritation from abraded fiberglass or other cut resistant fiber from
contacting the skin. However,
Zhu utilizes a core having at least two different core yarns and at least one
wrapping yarn that is
helically wrapped around the two combined core yarns. The companion yarn that
is wrapped
around the core yarns provides additional protection from irritation to the
user by the cut
resistant composite yarn and provides lubricity to the yarn bundle knitted in
the glove.
All references cited herein are incorporated herein by reference in their
entireties.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A cut resistant glove is provided wherein the glove has an inner surface and
an outer
surface and wherein the inner surface is adapted for contacting a hand of a
user, and the outer
surface is visible while the user is wearing the glove. The glove includes a
two layer knit fabric
of a plaited construction including a first layer on the inner surface and a
second layer on the
outer surface. The outer surface is constructed from non-stretchable, cut
resistant yarn, wherein
the yarn has filaments that are generally parallel to one another and the
inner surface is
constructed from a stretchable, elastic yarn.
The stretchable, elastic yarn may be of a color that contrasts with the a
color of the non-
stretchable, cut resistant yarn such that the elastic yarn becomes more
visible during wear of the
non-stretchable, cut resistant outer surface of the glove.
The filaments of the non-stretchable, cut resistant yarn may include a dulling
agent.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will be described in conjunction with the following drawings in
which like
reference numerals designate like elements and wherein:
FIG. 1 is a bottom view of a cut resistant glove having a plaited construction
in
accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a front view of a portion of a plaited fabric as knitted in the cut
resistant glove,
having a plaited construction of FIG. 1; and
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the cut resistant glove having a plaited
construction of
FIG. 1, taken substantially along lines III- -111 of FIG. 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to plaited gloves knit with non-stretchable
filament
yarn on the outside. The present invention utilizes the rolling action of the
parallel filaments as
its key component for cut resistance and wear. Wear becomes a necessary part
of hand
protection because as a glove surface wears down, its cut resistance is
severely diminished. By
placing the non-elastic yarn on the outside of the glove, the most abrasion
resistant component
(the filament) is on the outside. Additionally, when the filament fibers of
the cut resistant yarn
are parallel to each other, they can roll on each other for increased cut
resistance. An added
benefit is that the parallel filaments are less likely to trap dirt and can be
cleaned more easily in a
laundering process. Non-elastic filament also increases the puncture
resistance.
The safety glove industry has always been concerned with wear factor of cut
resistant
gloves as safety personnel know that as a glove surface wears down, the cut
resistance is
diminished. By utilizing a contrasting colored stretchable elastic on the
inside of the glove, the
user will be able to clearly see when the outside filament is wearing down and
becoming less
safe as the contrasting colored stretchable elastic begins to show through.
For example, a high-
visibility nylon may be used on the inside of the glove in, for example,
orange, yellow, lime
green, or red, such that the user will be able to see the wear of the glove
and know when it is no
longer safe to wear. This has been a major issue with gloves in that the user
does not easily
know when the gloves are worn thin enough to become a hazard. It is of
particular importance
with plaited gloves, since they typically are thicker than standard elastic
filament yarn gloves.
Lastly, the cut resistant yarn is pure filament, with fibers running parallel,
and is non-
stretchable in its yarn form. This yarn provides the highest tensile strength
and the most
abrasion resistance of any yarn construction. By plaiting this yarn on the
inside with a
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stretchable elastic yarn, the resulting glove construction will have both
stretch and loft. The
stretch will come from the inside plaiting yarn and the loft will come from
the double layer
construction of the plaiting process.
Of the six categories listed above, the present invention utilizes the
following
characteristics:
1) Tensile strength
2) Slippage ( common in filament yarns)
3) Rolling
4) Loft
5) Stretch
If the cut resistant yarn has filaments that also include a dulling agent in
its construction,
then all six of the industry's recognized components would be part of the
glove of the present
invention. Filament yarns with a dulling component added are available.
In a plaited glove using a stretchable yarn with a non-stretchable filament,
the non-
stretchable filament is knit loosely so that the stretchable yarn can pull it
in. As the hand flexes,
the stretchable yarn stretches and the filament moves to its original looser
knit state in order to
create a "give" in the fabric.
With the non-stretchable filament on the outside, the most abrasion resistant
yarn, i.e.,
the cut resistant filament, is on the outside for wear.
In the past, glove makers have put the stretchable yarn on the outside of the
glove
because these yarns are usually a texturized yarn that is plied with elastic.
Since cut resistant
gloves typically have a coating applied to the palm portion for improved grip
performance, it is
substantially easier to have a coating adhere to a texturized stretchable yarn
than to a cut
resistant yarn. However, present technology, known to those skilled in the
art, includes coatings
that adhere to cut resistant filaments, for example, polyurethane, nitrile,
latex, and foam nitrile.
The invention will be illustrated in more detail with reference to the
following
embodiment, but it should be understood that the present invention is not
deemed to be limited
thereto. Referring now to the drawing figures, wherein like reference numbers
refer to like
elements throughout the several views, there is shown in FIG. 1 a cut-
resistant glove 10 in
accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The glove 10
has a two layer,
plaited construction, as well known to those skilled in the art. However, in
the present glove,
non-elastic, abrasion and cut resistant yarn12 is located on the outside
surface 14 of the glove 10
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and stretchable, elastic filament yarn 18 is located on the inside surface 20
of the glove 10 (see
FIG. 2). FIG. 2 depicts a section of a plaited fabric 16 as used on the glove
10, showing both
the inner stretchable elastic filament yarn 18 on the inside surface 20 and
the cut resistant yarn
12 on the outside surface 14 of the glove 10. Here, the cut resistant yarn12
has filaments that are
substantially parallel to one another other so that they can roll on each
other for increased cut
resistance.
On the inside surface 20 of the glove 10, contrasting colored 22 stretchable
elastic yarn
18 is used. As the glove 10 is used for its intended purpose and the cut
resistant yarn 12 is
slowly worn down, the user will be able to clearly see when the outside, cut
resistant yarn 12 is
becoming less safe as the contrasting colored 22 stretchable elastic yarn18
begins to show
through. As stated, the stretchable elastic yarn 18 may be high visibility
nylon in, for example,
orange, yellow, lime green, or red.
The cut resistant yarn 12 is preferably made from Dyneema brand ultra-high-
molecular-weight polyethylene (UH1VfWPE), but may also be high performance
polyethylene
(HPPE), gel spun polyethylene, melt spun polyethylene, filament nylon,
AbratexO , or high
tenacity filament with 100 to 800 denier and 1 to 20 denier per filament.
The elastic yarn 18 is preferably made with nylon filaments, but may also be
cotton,
polyester or spun nylon or spun polyester or other synthetic in either
filament or spun form in 40
to 600 denier.
As best seen in FIG. 3, a flexible polymer coating 22 to provide improved grip
may be
placed in strategic locations on the glove 10, such as on the palm 24 and
inside surfaces (or a
portion thereof) of the fingers 26. The coating 22 may also be, for example,
polyurethane,
nitrile, latex, foam nitrile, or combinations thereof.
The glove is manufactured such that the cut resistant yarn is plated during
the knitting of
the exterior of the glove and the elastic yarn is plated during the knitting
of the interior of the
glove.
In a process for making the glove 10, a glove 10 is made by providing the
individual cut
resistant yarns12 and the elastic yarn18 to be used in the glove 10. A first
bobbin of cut resistant
yarn 12 and a second bobbin of elastic yarn 18 are provided. The two yarns are
then co-knit in
one step into a glove using known, commercially available glove knitting
machines such as
those made by Shima Seiki of Japan (or generic equivalent). The resulting
glove 10 has cut
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resistant yarn 12 on the outside surface 14 of the glove 10 and elastic yarn
18 on the inside
surface 20 of the glove 10.
While the invention has been described in detail and with reference to
specific
embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that
various changes and
modifications can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope
thereof.
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