Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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2,990,365
COMPRESSION SHORTS
Inventor: Vishal Puni, Montreal (CA)
Appl. No: 2,990,365
Filed: Dec. 27, 2017
Description
TITLE
[0001] COMPRESSION SHORTS
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates to garments, and more particularly to
garments
known generally in the art as compression shorts.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Compression shorts are garments worn by individuals for a variety of
purposes,
but are primarily worn by active individuals and athletes participating in
sports activities.
Essentially, compression shorts serve as a type of lower body girdle,
providing
compressive support to several areas of the wearer's body, including the hips,
pelvis,
thighs, groin, abdomen and back areas. Compression shorts are often used by
individuals during sports activities to reduce muscle fatigue, improve
thermoregulation
by wicking perspiration away from the body, and maintaining muscle warmth to
reduce
the potential for muscle strains.
These garments may be worn by individuals as a preventative measure, or to
provide
additional support for areas weakened by injury.
[0004] Compression shorts are often manufactured using stretchable or
elastomeric
fabrics such as nylon, polyester, LycraTM and SpandexTM. Typically,
compression
shorts are constructed such that this elastomeric fabric is placed in tension
when the
shorts are pulled onto the wearer's body, thereby providing some degree of
compressive support for the wearer. The particular part of the body receiving
this
compressive support depends upon the nature of the construction of the
garment.
[0005] Simple shorts, although capable of providing some general level of
compression
to portions of a user's body, generally do not target such compression to a
particular
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2,990,365
area of the wearer's body and not to others; rather, they simply "squeeze"
whatever
portion of the body the fabric overlies.
[0006] Further, such shorts do not necessarily provide resistance to undesired
ranges of
movement. They do not provide any specific resistance to certain
unidirectional and
multidirectional motions. In many instances, limiting certain muscle and joint
actions is
very important when one is trying to heal from an injury such as a hip sprain,
osteitis
pubis, or groin strain. Other prior art shorts have attempted to address
disorders of the
hips by adding various straining straps or fabric panels. Examples of shorts
using
straining straps or fabric panels are U.S. Patent No. 6,430,752 and published
U.S.
Patent Application 2010/0281593.
However, these shorts do not effectively limit certain muscle and joint
actions for the
legs, hips, and pelvis.
[0007] To prevent or treat hip injuries, special wrapping or taping techniques
to limit joint
and muscle motions have been used for years in sports medicine. These wrapping
or
taping techniques must be performed by persons possessing special skills and
knowledge, and for hygienic reasons may only be used for short durations.
[0008] Until now there has not been a single garment that reproduces the leg,
hip, and
pelvis anatomy to provide specific unidirectional and multidirectional support
to both
muscle and joint action. There remains a pressing need for compression shorts
which
are constructed to provide not only general compressive forces to the areas of
the body
covered by the shorts, but also to provide specific extra forces to certain
areas of the
body to limit certain undesired joint movements and muscle activities in the
hips, legs,
and pelvis.
Specifically, a better lower body garment is needed for the prevention and
treatment of
hip instabilities, osteitis pubis, muscle weakness and strains, pelvis and
abdominal
muscle injuries, as well as for improving postural control.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] It is an object of the present invention to design compression shorts
that may
create compression to specific areas of the wearer's lower body.
[0010] The present application may provide more specific compressive
protection to a
wearer's lower body than that provided by prior art shorts. The compression
shorts are
constructed of multiple strips of material sewn together to form the shorts.
These strips
may be oriented primarily in spiral, diagonal configurations, which have been
determined to be particularly helpful in stabilizing, to some extent, a
wearer's hip, leg,
and pelvis, in addition to supporting the wearer's groin, back, and abdominal
areas.
[0011] More particularly, the compression shorts have a front portion, a rear
portion, and
sleeve portions, with all these portions attached to one another at multiple
front, rear,
and oblique seams. Like most traditional shorts, the compression shorts have a
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2,990,365
waistband encircling the upper edges of the front and the rear portions, as
well as cuffs
formed at the lower edge of the sleeve portions. Unlike traditional shorts,
the
compression shorts may also contain two sleeve portions on each side, attached
in
between by a gusset, as well as a waistband. Seams attaching the sleeve
portions to
the front and the rear portions of the shorts may run in a spiral, diagonal
direction from
the waistband down to the inside portion of the shorts. This is in contrast to
other shorts
in which the sleeve portions of the front and the rear portions of the shorts
are attached
by vertical seams extending from the waistband down the outside of the
sleeves, as well
as vertical seams on the inside of each sleeve which meet in the midline of
the shorts in
the crotch area.
[0012] Two groups of fabric strips extend from the inside seam of the lower
portion of
the sleeves of the shorts and wrap around the rear of the sleeves as they
spiral
diagonally upwards across the front portion of the shorts, while two groups of
fabric
strips extend laterally in a diagonal upwards direction across the upper
portion of the
rear of the shorts, and one group of fabric forms a gusset in the crotch area
of the
shorts extending between the front and the rear portions of the shorts thereby
attaching
the sleeves.
[0013] The waistband and cuffs serve to keep the compression shorts positioned
correctly on the wearer's body.
[0014] The seams of the compression shorts serve as anchor points for the
fabric strips.
The waistband and cuffs reinforce the positioning of the anchor points, and
thus the
positioning of the strips, on the wearer's body. The seams may be made of
thread.
[0015] The fabric strips extend diagonally from the inside seam of the right
and the left
sleeves of the garment at an upwards angle relative to the vertical centerline
on the
front and the rear portions between the waistband and the gusset. The angle,
width, and
size of the strips serve to compress different muscle groups and portions of
the wearer's
lower body.
[0016] The unique orientation and configuration of the fabric strips used in
the
construction of the compression shorts may provide specific compressive
support to a
wearer's hip, leg, groin, and pelvis areas.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] In drawings which illustrate specific embodiments of the invention, but
which
should not be construed as restricting the spirit or scope of the invention in
any way:
[0018] FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of compression shorts according
to the
invention.
[0019] FIG. 2 illustrates a front view of FIG. 1.
[0020] FIG. 3 illustrates a rear view of FIG. 1.
[0021] FIG. 4 illustrates a right side view of FIG. 1.
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2,990,365
[0022] FIG. 5 illustrates a left side view of FIG. 1.
[0023] FIG. 6 illustrates a top view of FIG. 1; and,
[0024] FIG. 7 illustrates a bottom view of FIG. 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] Throughout the following description, specific details are set forth in
order to
provide a more thorough understanding of the invention. However, the invention
may be
practiced without these particulars. In other instances, well known elements
have not
been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the
invention.
Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an
illustrative, rather
than restrictive, sense.
Further, throughout the drawings, the words "right" and "left" are used in the
sense of
the wearer of the garment. Thus, the right side of the garment as worn is on
the left side
as viewed in the illustrated drawing. The "left" side of the garment as worn
is on the
right side as viewed in the illustrated drawing.
[0026] Referring first to FIG. 1, one embodiment of the compression shorts
configured in
accordance with the principles of the present invention is denoted generally
herein by
the numeral "22". Shorts 22 is constructed using five fabric strips, of which
the right and
the left oblique portions 1, 2 respectively form the majority of the front
portion while the
right and the left oblique portions 4, 5 respectively form the majority of the
rear portion,
and a gusset portion 3 extending between the front and the rear portions.
Right front and right rear portions 1, 4 respectively are attached to one
another at right
oblique seam 6. Left front and left rear portions 2, 5 respectively are
attached to one
another at left oblique seam 7. Right and left oblique seams 6, 7 respectively
are shown
in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3.
Right and left front oblique portions 1, 2 respectively are attached at
vertical seam 10.
Right and left front oblique portions 1, 2 respectively are attached to the
front of gusset
portion 3 at concave seam 8.
[0027] As shown in FIG. 3, the right and left rear oblique portions 4, 5
respectively are
attached at vertical seam 11.
Right and left rear oblique portions 4, 5 respectively are attached to the
rear of gusset
portion 3 at concave seam 9.
[0028] The shorts 22 have a waistband 14 which encircles the upper edges of
front
portions 1,2, and rear portions 4, 5, and right cuff 12 and left cuff 13
formed by the
lower edges of right and left oblique portions 1, 2 respectively.
[0029] The inventor has determined that strips 1, 2 shall extend diagonally in
an
upwards spiral manner across the front portions of the shorts at an angle
relative to the
vertical centerline between waistband 14 and gusset 3, and strips 4, 5 shall
extend
diagonally across the rear portions of the shorts at an angle relative to the
vertical
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2,990,365
centerline between waistband 14 and gusset 3.
[0030] As shown throughout the figures, shorts 22 have a right sleeve formed
by the
lower edge of the right oblique portion 1 terminating with cuff 12 and a left
sleeve
formed by the lower edge of the left oblique portion 2 terminating with cuff
13. Each of
the sleeves formed by portions 1, 2 respectively may generally be configured
to extend
at least partially down the leg of the wearer.
[0031] In a preferred embodiment, the various fabric strips are connected
together by
seams made of thread. The waistband and cuffs reinforce the positioning of the
strips
on the wearer's body.
[0032] Compression shorts are described which provide specific compression to
certain
areas of a wearer's lower body.
Compression is applied to the wearer's lower body via the strips of fabric.
The strips
may be oriented in diagonal, oblique, and/or horizontal configurations across
the shorts.
[0033] As will be apparent to those skilled in the art in the light of the
foregoing
disclosure, many alterations and modifications are possible in the practice of
this
invention without departing from the spirit or scope thereof. Accordingly, the
scope of
the invention is to be construed in accordance with the substance defined by
the
aforementioned claims.
Date Recue/Date Received 2020-08-10
