Ski lift blanket

Abstract

A ski lift blanket that covers a skier during the ride on the chair lift to keep the skier warm. The blanket has a face shield or high collar to keep the face warm. The blanket can be fastened around the waist and deployed by the skier during the ride up. The blanket has two pockets that allow the skier to wrap the blanket around them even while their hands are in gloves. Before exiting the chair lift, the skier can roll up the blanket and secure it with straps fastened by hook and loop fasteners.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/422,865, filed Nov. 1, 2002.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates to a ski blanket to cover and keep a skier warm while the skier is riding the chair lift up to the top of the slope.

[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0005] The use of a blanket for protection from the elements is well known. Skiers are exposed to the elements in a variety of situations, and particularly while riding on a ski lift. A blanket may be used to protect the skier from the elements while riding on the ski lift. However, there is no convenient and quick way to store the blanket so that the skier is relatively unencumbered by the blanket. Other large outer garments, such as coats, jackets, etc., are available which can be rolled into a pouch for compact storage. However, the related art does not show a blanket which can be rolled into a pouch and attached to the skier's body for compact storage while skiing. Further, the related art does not show such a blanket equipped with pockets so that the skier can insert his gloved hands into the blanket pockets to hold the blanket closely against the body while riding on a ski lift.

[0006] U.S. Patent Publication No. 2001/0032360, published on Oct. 25, 2001, describes a blanket that covers only the chest, arms, and legs of a person while seated, lying down, or partly reclining. The blanket has a lower inner pocket to contain the legs, and an outer pocket for the hands and forearms of the user. The blanket has two pairs of braided lace on each upper side for fastening the blanket to a bed, a seat, or a deck chair.

[0007] U.S. Pat. No. 6,003,749, issued December 21, 199 to R. C. Sabo, describes a multiple use camouflage system for camouflaging a person that utilizes a rectangular sheet of camouflaged transparent mesh netting with spaced straps secured along one edge, and spaced D-rings on the opposite side edge. A slit extends from a bottom edge to enable strapping the two sections around the legs or the body. The netting can be used as a blind and folded into a fanny pack for storage or carrying.

[0008] U.S. Pat. No. 1,246,871, issued Nov. 20, 1917 to J. L. Cabelinsky, describes a thin raincoat having a pocket providing a bag for storing the raincoat. U.S. Pat. No. 2,058,474, issued Oct. 27, 1936 to J. R. Long, describes a combined raincoat and carrying bag having a zippered carrying bag incorporated into the inside surface of the rear portion of the raincoat.

[0009] U.S. Pat. No. 2,072,030, issued Feb. 23, 1937 to W. T. Damron, describes a combined raincoat and pocketbook in which the raincoat includes two pocketbook pockets in front and inside the raincoat. U.S. Pat. No. 2,292,347, issued Aug. 11, 1942 to P. H. Bailey, describes a jacket having a rectangular cloth sheet stitched to the inside surface of the jacket for storing the jacket.

[0010] U.S. Pat. No. 2,325,494, issued Jul. 27, 1943 to W. Fayer, describes a sportsman's jacket having a pocket on the rear of the jacket into which the jacket may be folded. Other garments having pockets or bags into which the garment may be folded are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,334,061, issued Nov. 9, 1943 to B. Berkman; U.S. Pat. No. 3,085,254, issued Apr. 16, 1963 to L. Cutler; U.S. Pat. No. 3,670,340, issued Jun. 20, 1972 to M. Walker, U.S. Pat. No. 4,404,687, issued Sep. 20, 1983 to M. Hager; U.S. Pat. No. 5,165,111, issued Nov. 24, 1992 to R. A. Lieberman; French Patent No. 1,434,108, published Feb. 28, 1966; and German Patent No. 2,208,503, published Aug. 23, 1973.

[0011] U.S. Patent Publication No. 2002/0088830, published Jul. 11, 2002, describes a combination blanket and bottle carrier bag. The blanket is integrally formed with the carrier bag and may be folded to fit into the carrier bag. A plurality of straps are provided for carrying the bag.

[0012] None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0013] The present invention is a ski blanket that has pockets on one side large enough to allow gloved hands to be inserted therein. The ski blanket has a high collar to keep the user's face warm. The ski blanket has a strap extending laterally which can be secured around the skier's waist by patches of hook and loop fastening material at the ends of the strap. The ski blanket also has two additional straps extending from the bottom of the blanket with hook and loop fastener patches so that the blanket can be rolled up and secured to the skier's waist when not being used to keep the skier warm. The ski blanket is made of a wind and water resistant material for protection from the elements.

[0014] Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a skier with a blanket that keeps the skier warm and stays in place.

[0015] It is another object of the invention to allow a skier to dress lighter since the ski blanket provides additional warmth when riding a ski lift.

[0016] It is a further object of the invention to provide a ski blanket that can also be used to carry the injured party or to wrap around the injured party until help arrives.

[0017] Still another object of the invention is to provide a ski blanket that provides aid to a lost skier, since the ski blanket can have a reflective layer or reflective SOS letters on one side.

[0018] It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.

[0019] These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of a ski lift blanket according to the present invention.

[0021] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the ski lift blanket according to the present invention according to the present invention.

[0022] FIGS. 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 3E, and 3F are environmental front views showing how the ski lift blanket of the present invention is folded by the user.

[0023] FIG. 4 is an environmental, perspective view of the ski lift blanket according to the present invention after it has been folded.

[0024] Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0025] The present invention is drawn to a ski lift blanket 10 that has a main body 12 with a high collar 14 that acts as a face shield. This is best seen in FIG. 1. The high collar 14 can have an optional strap (not shown) that can be fastened around the skier's S head with hook and loop fasteners. As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 12 of the ski lift blanket 10 can be rectangular or square in shape. The main body 12 can be long enough to extend only to the skier's waist, as shown in FIG. 1, or to reach the ankles of the skier S with a strap with hook and loop fasteners to attach the ski lift blanket 10 around the legs of the skier S. The ski lift blanket 10 is constructed of wind-resistant and water-resistant material that is light in weight. The ski lift blanket 10 can have a reflective layer or reflective lettering spelling out “S.O.S.” on the inside surface. The reflective layer may be made from aluminum, for example, for additional warmth.

[0026] The blanket material utilized must be a fabric flexible enough to allow the ski lift blanket 10 to be folded by the skier S easily. The main body 12 of ski lift blanket 10 has two inside pockets 16 that are large enough to allow for gloved hands. The pockets 16 allow the skier S to hold the ski lift blanket close to the body. The belt 20 holds the bottom of the ski blanket 10 in place at the skier's S waist. The belt 20 utilizes hook and loop fasteners at the ends of the belt to keep it in place and to aid in a quick release if needed. Other types of fasteners can be utilized, such as a snap hook and mating ring.

[0027] The ski lift blanket 10 has two parallel straps 18 extending from the bottom edge that help to keep the ski lift blanket 10 rolled neatly when not in use by the skier. FIG. 4 shows the ski lift blanket 10 rolled up, allowing the skier S to proceed downhill or cross-country.

[0028] FIGS. 3A-3F show how the ski lift blanket 10 is utilized by the skier S. FIG. 3A shows the skier S with the ski lift blanket 10 in place. FIG. 3B shows the skier, after slipping the hands from the inner pockets 16, folding one side of the ski lift blanket 10. FIG. 3C shows the other side of the ski lift blanket 10 being folded. In FIG. 3D, the skier S is rolling and folding the ski lift blanket 10. In FIG. 3E, the skier is applying the straps 18 to secure ski lift blanket 10 in a roll on the waist, the belt 20 still being secured around the skier's waist. FIG. 3F shows the skier S ready to exit the ski lift with the ski lift blanket 10 securely fastened and positioned at the front of the waist. FIG. 4 shows the belt 20 rotated 180° about the waist to position the ski blanket 10 behind the skier's back and out of the way while skiing.

[0029] It should be pointed out the ski lift blanket 10 can be utilized to help keep an injured skier warm until help arrives. The ski lift blanket can be utilized to move the skier. The ski lift blanket 10 can have a large SOS in fluorescent letters on the main body 12 so that a lost cross-country skier can signal for help.

[0030] It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the sole embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A ski lift blanket to aid in keeping a skier warm while riding on a ski lift, comprising:

a fabric sheet defining a main body of the blanket and having a high collar extending from the main body adapted for covering a face of the skier;

at least two inside pockets disposed on the main body dimensioned and configured for gloved hands, whereby the skier is able to hold the ski lift blanket closely;

a belt having opposing ends and mating hook and loop fasteners disposed on the opposing ends, the belt being positioned at a lower section of the main body and being adapted for fastening around the skier's waist; and

at least two straps having hook and loop fasteners disposed thereon, the straps extending from the main body, whereby the blanket in rolled up and secured by the straps when not in use by the skier.

2. The ski lift blanket according to claim 1, wherein the main body and face shield are constructed of a wind-resistant and water-resistant material flexible enough to allow the ski lift blanket to be folded and rolled up.

3. The ski lift blanket according to claim 1, wherein the main body has multiply layers and one layer is reflective.

4. The ski lift blanket according to claim 4, wherein the reflective layer is made from aluminum.