LEG PROTECTOR

Abstract

A leg protector sized to fold over the wearer's leg to cover the front side of the wearer's leg while leaving the backside of the wearer's leg exposed for easily placement and removal of the leg protector. Unlike conventional gaiters and half chaps that effectively operate as a second pant leg positioned over the pants, the adjustable strap of the insulated leg protector extends across the rear side of the wearer's leg to retain the leg protector without fully covering the backside of the wearer's leg. The arrangement allows the leg protector to be quickly put on by the wearer by draping the leg protector over the wearer's leg and secured with the adjustable strap. Similarly, the leg protector can also be removed by simply undoing the adjustable strap.

Description

RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/775,139 filed Mar. 8, 2013, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is generally directed to riding clothing for operators of vehicles that are exposed and not enclosed within a vehicle cab. Specifically, the present invention is directed to a leg protector that is strategically positioned to cover forward facing portions of a wearer's leg while being easily removed from the wearer's leg.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Certain transportation devices including self-propelled bicycles or motorized vehicles such as motorcycles, mopeds, scooters, snowmobiles, and all-terrain vehicles are “open type” vehicles in which the rider is exposed to the elements and wind from the moving vehicle. Depending upon temperature and speed of operation, the lack of wind protection often requires that the rider wear specialized riding clothing designed to prevent chilling of the rider from the wind generated by the moving vehicle. The riding clothing often serves additional purposes such as, for example, protecting the rider from exposure to precipitation or providing a safety layer to the rider from contact with debris or even in the event of an accident. While riding clothing offers a number of advantages, there are a number of inconveniences presented by current riding clothing that can cause riders to avoid using such clothing for trips having a short duration such as running errands or short commutes to work and the like.

One disadvantage associated with currently available riding clothing involves the materials and methods used in constructing rider clothing. Generally, conventional riding clothing is constructed of leather or tightly woven synthetic material that typically cannot be significantly stretched, and therefore restricts the wearer's movements. In addition, riding clothing is often form fitting to reduce air resistance created by the clothing. The tight fit of the riding clothing combined with the relatively inflexible material used in riding clothing can significantly limit the wearer's freedom of movement.

Another drawback of presently available riding clothing is the difficulty associated with putting on and taking off riding clothing. One of the advantages associated with using open type vehicles is that they are often substantially more fuel efficient than cars, trucks or other closed cab vehicles. However, the simple act of putting on and removing tight fitting riding clothing can frustrate a rider if they must change between riding clothing and work/recreational clothing at least twice a day for work commutes or even more often when running errands around the home. Not only can putting on and taking off riding clothing be time consuming, many open-type vehicles have very limited or no storage space for riding clothing.

In light of the advantages and increase usage of open-type vehicles, it would be advantageous to have improved riding clothes that overcome the deficiencies associated with presently available riding clothes.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a leg protector having a flexible body including a knee portion, a shaped shin protector and at least one adjustable strap. The leg protector can further comprise a thigh portion including its own adjustable strap. The leg protector is sized to fold over the wearer's leg to cover the front side of the wearer's leg while leaving the backside of the wearer's leg exposed. Unlike conventional gaiters and half chaps that effectively operate as a second pant leg positioned over the pants, the adjustable strap of the insulated leg protector extends across the rear side of the wearer's leg to retain the leg protector without fully covering the backside of the wearer's leg. The arrangement allows the leg protector to be quickly put on by the wearer by draping the leg protector over the wearer's leg and secured with the adjustable strap. Similarly, the leg protector can also be removed by simply undoing the adjustable strap. The leg protector can include a liner or padding to provide to insulate the wearer's leg in a cold environment. In some embodiments, the leg protector can include one or more pockets for storing items such as, for example, money, driver's license, credit cards, notes and the like. In some embodiment, the one or more pockets could include a transparent portion, thereby allowing a light or reflector to be placed into the pocket to increase visibility of wearer at night. The leg protector can be rollable into a storage disposition, wherein the adjustable strap retains the leg protector in a rolled state for storage.

In certain embodiments of the present invention, the knee portion can comprise a cup-shape sized to cover the front, top and sides of the wearer's knee when the wearer is in a seated position. For the purposes of this disclosure, a seated position describes a seated rider in which the rider's thigh is generally positioned at a ninety degree angle relative to the rider's calf, wherein the rider's knee is generally pointed toward the front of the vehicle. Similarly, the shin portion can extend from the knee portion to the wearer's footwear and comprise an elongated planar shape folded form a u-shaped cross-section for receiving the wearer's shin to cover the front and sides of the wearer's shin when the wearer is in a seated portion.

In certain embodiments, the bottom end of the shin portion can be flared to overlap with the wearer's footwear. Collectively, the knee portion and the shin portion substantially cover the front portion of wearer's leg from the knee to the foot to protect the portions of the wearer's leg that faces forward when the wearer is seated. As the thigh portion of the wearer's leg is substantially horizontal when the wearer is seated, the leg protector does not cover the wearer's thigh as that portion of the wearer's leg is generally not aligned with the path of the wind travelling past the wearer's leg as the vehicle is moving forward. The strategic portions of the wearer's leg protected by the leg protector minimizes the amount of material used to protect the most exposed portions of the wearer's leg, thereby allowing the leg protector to be efficiently stored when not in use. In addition, the knee portion and the shin portion cooperated to provide increased flexibility and mobility to the wearer as compared to currently available chaps and gaiters.

In certain embodiments, the leg protector can further comprise an outer environmental or wind deflecting layer and an inner comfort or insulating layer. The outer wind deflecting layer can comprise leather, synthetic leather, synthetic woven material, soft shell material or other conventional material capable of preventing wind from penetrating through the wind deflecting layer. Similarly, the inner layer can comprise can comprise fleece, non-woven material, woven material, THINSULATE or other insulating material. In certain embodiments, the deflecting layer and the insulating layer can comprise flexible materials allowing the leg protector to be tightly rolled to allow the leg protector to be more efficiently stored. The leg protector can include one or more pockets for the storage of small items when the leg protector is worn. In some embodiments, the inner insulating layer can be removable such that the insulating effect is minimized when temperatures are highest, for example, during summer months and when the insulating effect is not desired.

A leg protector, according to an embodiment of the present invention, can comprise a knee portion, a shin portion and at least one adjustable strap. The knee portion can comprise a cup-shape shaped to receive and cover the front, top and sides of a wearer's knee when the wearer's knee is positioned in a seated position. In certain embodiments, the knee portion can be articulated to allow the wearer to flex their knee and stand unimpeded while still wearing the leg protector. The shin portion extends from the knee portion and can comprise an elongated planar shape folded form a U-shaped cross-section to receive and cover the front and sides of the wearer's shin. The adjustable strap can affixed to one edge of the shin portion and pulled behind the wearer's calf to secure the shin portion and the leg protector as a whole to the wearer's leg.

In certain embodiments, the leg protector can further comprise a thigh portion having a thigh strap. The thigh portion extends from the knee portion and is positioned opposite the shin portion. In operation, the thigh strap can be affixed to one side of the thigh portion and pulled beneath the wearer's thigh and affixed to the opposite side of the thigh portion to secure the thigh portion to the wearer's thigh. The thigh portion cooperates with the adjustable strap to provide a point of engagement for the leg protector above and below the knee.

In other aspects of the invention, representative embodiments of a leg protector can include materials suited for specific outdoor or physical activities. For example, an outer environmental layer can have optical properties to promote viewing such as, for example, in low light or high traffic conditions, or alternatively to limit viewing such as, for example, camouflage in hunting, law enforcement or military conditions. The outer environmental layer can made of various materials suited for these conditions such as, for example, puncture, tear or bite resistant materials for use in law enforcement, military or field conditions.

The above summary of the various representative embodiments of the invention is not intended to describe each illustrated embodiment or every implementation of the invention. Rather, the embodiments are chosen and described so that others skilled in the art can appreciate and understand the principles and practices of the invention. The figures in the detailed description that follow more particularly exemplify these embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention can be completely understood in consideration of the following detailed description of various embodiments of the invention in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a leg protector according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the leg protector depicted in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the leg protector depicted in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a top view of the leg protector depicted in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the leg protector depicted in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a left side view of the leg protector depicted in FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a right side view of the leg protector depicted in FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a leg protector according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the leg protector is being worn by a wearer in a seated position.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the leg protector depicted in FIG. 1 rolled into a storage disposition.

FIG. 10 is a front view of a leg protector according to an embodiment of the present invention.

While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As depicted in FIGS. 1-7, a leg protector 10, according to an embodiment of the present invention can comprise a flexible body 11 having a knee portion 12, a shin portion 14 and at least one adjustable strap 16. The knee portion 12 further comprises a plurality of articulation segments 18 such that the knee portion 12 can be folded into a cup shape as depicted in FIGS. 2 and 6-7. In some embodiments, knee portion 12 can further include a rigid cap, for example, a plastic cap to provide additional protection to the wearer. The shin portion 14 can further comprise a center segment 20 and two side segments 22 positioned on either side of the center segment 20. The side segments 22 can be folded relatively to the center segment 20 to form the shin portion 14 into a channel having U-shaped cross-section. As depicted in FIGS. 1-3, each adjustable strap 16 is affixed to at one end to the side segments 22 and further comprise a fastening element 24 positioned at the opposite end of the strap 16. The opposing side element 22 can further comprise a corresponding fastening element 26 engagable by the fastening element 24. The fastening element 24 and corresponding fastening element 26 can comprise mating hook and loop elements, interlocking buckles or other conventional releasably securable fasteners such as snaps, toggles or buttons.

As depicted in FIG. 8, in operation, the center segment 20 of the shin portion 14 is generally aligned with the center of a wearer's shin and the side segments 22 are folded around the sides of the wearer's shin. Each adjustable strap 16 is wrapped behind the wearer's calf such that the fastening element 24 of the adjustable strap 16 is secured to the corresponding fastening element 26 on the opposite side segment 22. In certain embodiments, the adjustable strap 16 can comprise an elastic or compression band such that the adjustable strap 16 tightens around the wearer's calf to secure the shin portion 14 to the wearer's shin. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the adjustable strap 16 can comprise a fixed length band with a buckle for adjusting the effective length of the adjustable strap 16.

As depicted in FIGS. 1-3 and 6-8, the flexible body 11 can further comprise a thigh portion 28 having a thigh strap 30. The thigh portion 28 further comprises a center portion 32 and two wing portions 34. The thigh strap 30 is affixed to one of the two wing portions 34 and further comprises a fastening element 36 at the opposite end of the thigh strap 30. In this configuration, the opposing wing portion 34 further comprises a corresponding fastening element 38 for engagable to the fastening element 36. The fastening element 36 and corresponding fastening element 38 can comprise mating hook and loop elements, interlocking buckles or other conventional releasably securable fasteners such as snaps, toggles or buttons.

As depicted in FIG. 8, in operation, the center portion 32 of the thigh portion 28 is generally aligned with the center of a wearer's thigh and the wing portions 34 are folded around the sides of the wearer's thigh. The thigh strap 30 is wrapped behind the wearer's calf such that the fastening element 36 of the thigh strap 30 is secured to the corresponding fastening element 38 on the opposite wing portion 34. In certain embodiments, the thigh strap 30 can comprise an elastic or compression band such that the thigh strap 30 tightens around the wearer's thigh to secure the shin portion 14 to the wearer's thigh. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the thigh strap 30 can comprise a fixed length band with a buckle for adjusting the effective length of the thigh strap 30. The thigh strap 30 can cooperate with the adjustable strap 16 of the shin portion 14 to provide a point of contact above and below the wearer's knee to allow the wearer to stand and sit without impeding the wearer's movement or mobility while still securing the leg protector 10 to the wearer's leg.

As depicted in FIGS. 1-3 and 8, the articulation segments 18 of the knee portion 12 allows the knee portion 12 to be folded around the wearer's knee. In certain embodiments, as depicted in FIGS. 1-3, the shin portion 14 and the thigh portion 28 are positioned on opposite sides of the knee portion 12. In this configuration, the shin portion 14 and the thigh portion 28 are arranged in a wish bone shape centered on the knee portion 12 such that a wearer can articulate their knee while still wearing the leg protector 10.

In certain embodiments, the leg protector 10 can further comprise an outer environmental layer or wind deflecting layer 40 and an inner comfort or insulating layer 42. The outer wind deflecting layer 40 can comprise leather, synthetic leather, synthetic woven material, soft shell material, ballistic nylon, cordura or other conventional material capable of preventing wind from penetrating through the wind deflecting layer. Furthermore, the outer environmental layer can be constructed of materials that have an environmental trait such, as for example, materials that are puncture, tear or bite resistant materials for use in law enforcement, military or field conditions. Outer wind deflecting layer can also incorporate environmental traits such as, for example, reflective material or colors such as, for example, safety orange, safety green or safety yellow, to increase the visibility of the wearer in low-light or nighttime conditions. Alternatively, the outer environmental layer can incorporate environmental traits such as, for example, material to limit visibility such as, for example, camouflage in hunting conditions or black or dark materials for nighttime or other low light law enforcement or military conditions. Similarly, the comfort or inner layer 42 can comprise can comprise fleece, polyester, suede, non-woven material, woven material, THINSULATE or other insulating material. The inner comfort layer can be selected to have comfort traits such as, for example, thermal performance and moisture control. In certain embodiments, the deflecting layer 40 and the insulating layer 42 can comprise flexible materials allowing the leg protector 10 to be tightly rolled to allow the leg protector 10 to be more efficiently stored in a rolled configuration 41 as shown in FIG. 9. As illustrated in FIG. 10, the outer wind deflecting layer 40 can include one or more pockets 43 for the storage of items when leg protector 10 is being worn. Representative items can include, for example, money, credit cards, identification, notes, badges and the like. Alternatively, pocket 43 can allow for the insertion of additional padding or protective plates to protect a wearer in rugged or tactical environments. Pocket 43 can comprise a fastening member such as, for example, a zipper, a snap to assist in holding pocket 43 closed. In some embodiments, pocket 43 can include a transparent portion such that a wearer could position a light or reflector in the pocket 43 to increase visibility of the wearer at night or in low-light conditions or to display identification or law enforcement badges or information. In some embodiments, inner insulating layer 42 can be removable from within the leg protector 10 such that the inner insulating layer 42 can be removed during times of elevated temperatures, i.e. the summer months, when insulation is not desired by a wearer. In addition, leg protector 10 can accommodate the previously described plastic cap over the knee portion 12, either within the leg protector 10 or mounted on top of the outer wind deflecting layer 40.

As depicted in FIGS. 1-2, in certain embodiments, the shin portion 14 can further comprise a flared end portion 44 positioned opposite the knee portion 12. In operation, the flared end portion 44 can be positioned in overlapping arrangement with the wearer's foot wear.

While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and described in detail. It is understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A leg protector, comprising:

a flexible body defining a shin portion, a knee portion and a thigh portion, wherein the shin portion and the thigh portion each include at least one adjusting strap having a fastening element, wherein the flexible body is formable with the adjusting strap such that the shin portion and the thigh portion are formable into a u-shaped cross-section.

2. The leg protector of claim 1, wherein the flexible body comprises an outer environmental layer and an inner comfort layer.

3. The leg protector of claim 2, wherein the outer environmental layer has an environmental performance trait selected from the group consisting essentially of: wind resistance, water resistance, optical reflectance, optical viewing enhancement, optical viewing reduction, puncture resistance, tear resistance, bite resistance and combinations thereof

4. The leg protector of claim 3, wherein the inner comfort layer has a comfort trait selected from the group consisting essentially of: thermal performance and moisture control.

5. The leg protector of claim 2, wherein the shin portion comprises a center segment and a pair of side segments, wherein the side segments are foldable relative to the center segment to define the u-shaped cross section.

6. The leg protector of claim 5, wherein the adjusting strap is attached to a first side segment, and wherein the fastening element comprises a first fastening element on the adjusting strap and a second fastening element on a second side segment.

7. The leg protector of claim 5, wherein the center segment includes a pocket in the outer environmental layer.

8. The leg protector of claim 7, wherein the pocket can include a transparent portion for displaying interior contents of the pocket.

9. The leg protector of claim 1, wherein the knee portion includes a plurality of articulation segments adapted to provide flexibility between the shin portion and the thigh portion.

10. A method for enhancing comfort of a motorcycle rider, comprising:

positioning a flexible leg protector adjacent a wearer's leg, wherein a shin portion covers a wearer's shin, a knee portion covers a wearer's shin and a thing portion covers a wearer's thigh;

forming the flexible leg protector into a u-shaped cross-section around a wearer's leg; and

fastening at least one adjusting strap on both the shin portion and the thigh portion to retain the flexible leg protector around the wearer's leg.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein forming the flexible leg protector into a u-shaped cross-section, further comprises:

providing the shin portion with a center segment and a pair of side segments; and

folding the pair of side segments relative to the center segment.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

forming the flexible leg protector to having an outer environmental layer and an inner comfort layer.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

selecting the outer environmental layer to have an environmental trait.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the environmental trait is selected from the group consisting essentially of: wind resistance, water resistance, optical reflectance, optical viewing enhancement, optical viewing reduction, puncture resistance, tear resistance, bite resistance and combinations thereof.

15. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

selecting the inner comfort layer to have a comfort trait.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the comfort trait is selected from the group consisting essentially of: thermal performance and moisture control.

17. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

providing a pocket in the outer environmental layer.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

including a transparent window for displaying interior contents of the pocket.

19. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

providing a plurality of articulation segments in the knee portion so as to allow flexing of the flexible leg protector between the shin portion and the thigh portion.

20. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

removing the flexible leg protector from the wearer's leg by unfastening the adjusting straps on the shin and thigh portions; and

rolling the flexible leg protector to form a rolled configuration for storage of the flexible leg protector.