COMBINED SURFING SHORTS AND WETSUIT UNDERGARMENT

Abstract

The present invention relates to a wet suit undergarment and surfing shorts combination. The combination comprises a wet suit underpants garment formed of insulating material, preferably Neoprene, capable of covering and conforming to the body of a wearer from the waist to the thighs. An interconnecting means is located around at least a portion of the waist and/or pelvic portion and/or thigh portion of both garments and is capable of securing the wet suit underpants garment to the pair of outerwear short pants so that they are capable of remaining interconnected during water sports activity.

Description

REFERENCES TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS

[0001] This is a continuation-in-part application of patent application Ser. No. 10/389,216, Filed Mar. 14, 2003.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates to water sports attire and in particular to a surfing wet suit garment designed to be concealed under and removably attached to a pair of shorts.

[0004] 2. Description of the Prior Art

[0005] Much of the surfer's time is spent paddling the board in order to attain proper positioning for catching and riding waves. When the water and/or air is relatively warm, surfers generally prefer to wear only a bathing suit and/or a pair of board shorts.

[0006] Wet suits are required when the weather and/or water temperature is cooler. Wet suits are suits made of thermally insulating rubberized material, generally designed to fit close to the body, and adapted so that a thin layer of water exists between the suit and the wearer's body. The suit once wet, does not exchange much water, thus the thin layer of water adjacent the wearer's body provides an insulating function.

[0007] Prior art U.S. Patent Application #20020023283, issued Feb. 28, 2002 to Kania, discloses an article of apparel designed to be worn by divers and swimmers which is formed by placing a prefabricated male mold inside a prefabricated female mode. Then a polymeric material is injected into a gap formed between the male mold placed inside the female mold. Also included is a built-in air bladder system to change the buoyancy of the diver and swimmer.

[0008] Prior art U.S. Patent Application #20020026664, issued Mar. 7, 2002 to Grounds, provides a garment for use in water sports that is designed to protect one or more vulnerable regions of a person's body considered susceptible to injury associated with repetitive contact with a hard surfboard surface. The invention comprises a body garment that has an inside surface and an outer surface; and one or more than one cushioning pad connected to the body garment. The cushioning pad or pads are disposed adjacent the inside surface, or the outer surface, or the inside surface and the outer surface, and positioned in juxtaposition to the one or more than one vulnerable region of the body, and one or more than one insert pad for insertion into one or more than one pocket. The vulnerable regions may be optionally selected from the group consisting of the body area in proximity to the ribs, upper hips, elbows, inner elbows, knees, ankles, front of ankles adjacent the feet, and lower back.

[0009] Prior art U.S. Pat. No. 6,434,749, issued Aug. 20, 2002 Grounds, shows a garment for use in water sports that is designed to protect one or more than one vulnerable region of a person's body considered susceptible to injury associated with repetitive contact with a hard surfboard surface. The invention comprises a body garment that has an inside surface and an outer surface and one or more than one cushioning pad connected to the body garment. The cushioning pad or pads are disposed adjacent the inside surface, or the outer surface, or the inside surface and the outer surface, and positioned in juxtaposition to the one or more than one vulnerable region of the body, and one or more than one insert pad for insertion into one or more than one pocket. The vulnerable regions may be optionally selected from the group consisting of the body area in proximity to the ribs, upper hips, elbows, inner elbows, knees, ankles, front of ankles adjacent the feet, and lower back.

[0010] Prior art U.S. Pat. No. 6,041,437, issued Mar. 28, 2000 to Barker, claims a waterproof thermal insert for outdoor sport pants. The insert is sewn into the rear of a pair of pants from the belt line to the region between the middle of the thigh to the back of the knee, from each outside seam to inside seam, and from the inside seam to the crotch. The insert is composed of three layers: an outside layer of water repellent, closed cell foam neoprene; a middle layer of a synthetic, thermal insulating fabric, such as Outlast.RTM. Zermatt; and an inner layer of a soft, flexible material, such as polar fleece. The three layers are sewn together. If additional protection is desired at the sewn seams, the seams may be heat-sealed with an overlay of thermoplastic tape. Alternatively, the insert may be composed of two layers: an outside layer of water repellent, closed cell foam neoprene; and an inner layer of a composite fabric combining a synthetic, thermal insulating material with a soft, flexible material, viz., Outlast.RTM, Glacier or Outlast.RTM, Glenpile.

[0011] Prior art U.S. Pat. No. 5,649,328, issued Jul. 22, 1997 to Martin, describes a garment for wearing while In-Line Skating that comprises a pair of loose fitting outer shorts and form fitting inner shorts. Both shorts have padded portions to absorb the impact of a fall when landing on the hips, buttocks and or coccyx. The impact protection is provided by a fixed pad in the inner shorts and by removable pads that fit securely into pockets on the rear portion of the outer shorts. The outer shorts also providing abrasion and cut protection by utilizing highly abrasion resistant fibers in the rear section.

[0012] Prior art U.S. Pat. No. 6,182,288, issued Feb. 6, 2001 to Kibbee, indicates a garment anchoring system and method. A body armor vest is anchored at the waist of a wearer by providing an elastic lower garment, preferably in the form of a legged brief type undergarment that snugly fits the lower torso of the wearer. The lower garment anchors the vest in place by attaching along a strip across the front and back of the vest at the waist. The lower garment distributes an elastic force that horizontally and vertically returns the vest, when pulled out of position by the movement of the wearer, to its intended position, with the waist level thereof centered at the front and back of the wearer's waist. Detachable fasteners are provided to allow the easy putting on, adjustment and removal of the vest and lower garment combination. With the legged brief version of the lower garment, the fasteners preferably include strips of hook and loop material sets at the front and back of the waist on the vest shell and lower garment. The lower garment, particularly the legged version, is particularly adaptable to use in a kit for anchoring bulletproof vests as well as other garments.

[0013] Prior art U.S. Pat. No. 6,231,411, issued May 15, 2001 to Vinay, puts forth a fashionable life saving device that utilizes the look of casual clothing such as shorts, pants, bathing suits or skorts to disguise inflatable chambers. The invention comprises a gas canister, safety devices including a manual inflation tube, thereby providing a subtle way to ensure safety in and around the water. When inflated, the chambers rest under the user's arms, but are safely attached to his waist or the lower part of his body for security and safety.

[0014] Prior art U.S. Pat. No. 3,329,966, issued Jul. 11, 1967 to Slavik, concerns a form-fitting garment in the nature of a pair of trousers. The garment made from rubber, neoprene sponge or a similar material is suitable for use as an article of skin diving apparel, foul-weather gear or the like. In the manufacture of garments such as skin diving pants and the like, designed to be used for active sports or work, provide protection to the wearer against cold surrounding water or weather. It is desirable that the garment fit the contour of the wearer's body as closely as possible, for both freedom of action and for efficiency of insulation.

[0015] What is needed is a wet suit garment that can be worn under surfing shorts to allow a much longer time in the water while surfing in waters not requiring a full wet suit while still maintaining the preferred style of surfing shorts.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0016] An object of the present invention is to provide a wet suit garment that can be worn under surfing shorts to allow a much longer time in the water in comfort while surfing in waters not requiring a full wet suit.

[0017] Another object of the present invention is to provide an outerwear pair of short pants that covers the wet suit garment, so externally the wearer can maintain their preferred style of surfing shorts or if desired have small portions of the wet suit underpants garment visible above or below the outerwear short pants.

[0018] One more object of the present invention is to provide an interconnecting means, including mating hook and loop fasteners for a removable connection or sewn-in stitches, adhesive lamination, adhesive tape lamination, heat lamination, plastic welds, rubber welds, blending of the outerwear short pants fabric with the wet suit underpants garment for a permanent connection, which interconnecting means may be located around a portion of the waist, the pelvic covering portion or the thigh covering portion of both garments so they are capable of remaining interconnected during water sports activity.

[0019] An additional object of the present invention is to attach the smooth loop portion of the mating pair of hook and loop fasteners to the inner waist portion of the pair of outerwear short pants allowing the short surfing pants to be worn comfortably without the wet suit underpants garment.

[0020] A further object of the present invention is to attach at least a portion adjacent to a bottom of the thigh covering portion of the wet suit underpants and the outerwear short pants so that the outerwear short pants are restrained from sliding on the wet suit underpants garment while a user is sitting on a surfboard.

[0021] A corollary object of the present invention is to attach a lower circumference encircling each of the thigh covering portions to keep water from ballooning up the outerwear short pants legs.

[0022] One additional object of the present invention is to provide a wet suit underpants garment fabricated of a material having a resilient binding quality so that the wet suit underpants garment is adapted for support and protection of a wearer's genitals.

[0023] Another additional object of the present invention is to provide a wet suit underpants garment which may be fabricated of a variety of materials including a material selected from the list of materials including a Neoprene material with a soft lining, a fleece material, a synthetic fabric, a wool material, an insect material, an animal material, a plant fabric.

[0024] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a pair of outerwear short pants capable of covering and concealing from view the wet suit underpants garment or revealing a top or bottom portion as desired.

[0025] Yet one more object of the present invention is to help prevent chafing and skin rash by having the wet suit underpants garment under surfing shorts.

[0026] In brief, a wet suit undergarment and surfing shorts combination that allows a wearer to stay a much longer time in the water while surfing in waters not requiring a full wet suit while still maintaining their preferred style of surfing shorts. The combination comprises a wet suit underpants garment formed of insulating material capable of covering and conforming to the body of a wearer from their waist to their thighs. The wet suit underpants garment traps a thin layer of water between itself and the wearer's body, thereby maintaining the temperature of the thin layer of water similar to the temperature of the body of the wearer. The combination further comprises pair of outerwear short pants capable of covering and concealing from view the wet suit underpants garment. An interconnecting means, which may be a removable hook and loop fastener connector or permanent connector such as sewn-in stitching or welds or adhesive laminates or a blending of materials, is located around at least a portion of the waist, and possibly the pelvis covering portion and thigh covering portions of both garments. The interconnecting means is capable of securing the wet suit underpants garment to the pair of outerwear short pants so they are capable of remaining interconnected during water sports activity.

[0027] In the hook and loop connector version, the smooth loop portion of the mating pair of hook and loop fasteners is attached to the inner waist portion of the pair of outerwear short pants allowing the short surfing pants to be worn comfortably without the wet suit underpants garment. The surfing shorts are secured on the wearer with a tie string means. Preferably, the interconnecting means on waistband of the wet suit underpants garment and the surfing shorts are attached around the waistband up to the tie string means.

[0028] An advantage of the present invention is in providing a way for the wearer to stay in the water longer without wearing a full wet suit.

[0029] Another advantage of the present invention is the wearer can maintain their preferred style of outer surfing shorts.

[0030] An additional advantage of the present invention is the surfer shorts conceal the wet suit underpants garment or reveal a small portion at the top or bottom as desired.

[0031] One more advantage of the present invention is the surfer shorts and the wet suit underpants garment can be interconnected temporarily or permanently.

[0032] An added advantage of the present invention is that bottom stitching of the two pants together prevents the outerwear short pants from riding up when worn sitting on a surf board and from ballooning with water in action.

[0033] Yet another advantage of the present invention is the surfer shorts can be worn without the wet suit underpants garment.

[0034] Yet one more advantage of the present invention is to help prevent chafing and skin rash while surfing.

[0035] Still another advantage of the present invention is to provide support for the genitals of the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0036] These and other details of my invention will be described in connection with the accompanying drawings, which are furnished only by way of illustration and not in limitation of the invention, and in which drawings:

[0037] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a surfer sitting on a surfboard in the water wearing the combination wet suit underpants garment and outerwear short pants, preferably surfer shorts;

[0038] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the wet suit underpants garment aligned for insertion within the outerwear short pants;

[0039] FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the wet suit underpants garment inserted within the outerwear short pants showing the mating hook and loop fasteners between the two around the waistbands;

[0040] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the wet suit underpants garment inserted within the outerwear short pants with mating hook and loop fasteners interconnecting the wet suit underpants garment and outerwear short pants around a portion of the waists and a portion of the legs;

[0041] FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the wet suit underpants garment inserted within the outerwear short pants showing a series of plastic welds or rubber welds interconnecting the two around a portion of the waistbands;

[0042] FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the wet suit underpants garment inserted within the outerwear short pants with sewn-in stitches interconnecting the wet suit underpants garment and outerwear short pants around a portion of the waists and a portion of the legs;

[0043] FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the wet suit underpants garment inserted within the outerwear short pants showing a lamination of adhesive or adhesive tape, or a heat lamination interconnecting the two around a portion of the waistbands;

[0044] FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the wet suit underpants garment inserted within the outerwear short pants showing the two interconnected around a portion of the waistbands by a blending of the wet suit underpants garment with the outerwear short pants material.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0045] In FIG. 1-8, the invention comprises a wet suit underpants garment 20 and outerwear short pants 40, preferably surfing shorts, combination 10. The combination 10 comprises a wet suit underpants garment 20 formed of insulating material, preferably Neoprene, capable of covering and conforming to the body of a wearer from the waist to the thighs and further capable of trapping a thin layer of water underneath the wet suit underpants garment 20, thereby maintaining the temperature of the thin layer of water similar to the temperature of the body of the wearer from the waist to the thighs of the wearer.

[0046] The combination 10 also comprises pair of outerwear short pants 40 capable of covering and concealing from view the wet suit underpants garment 20. The combination 10 further comprises an interconnecting means 30 and 30A-30F attaching the outerwear short pants 40 to the wet suit underpants garment along an attaching portion to interconnect the wet suit underpants garment and the pair of outerwear short pants so that they are capable of remaining interconnected during water sports activity, the outerwear short pants covering at least a substantial portion of the wet suit underpants garment and concealing from view at least a substantial portion of the wet suit underpants garment.

[0047] The wet suit underpants garment 20 and the pair of outerwear short pants 40 each comprise a pelvic area covering portion 12 including a waist portion 11 and a pair of leg encircling portions 15, for a pair of brief wet suit underpants garment, and a pair of thigh covering portions 13 for a longer shorts wet suit underpants garment. The attaching portion may comprises any desired portion including a portion selected from the following list of attaching portions including: at least part of each of the waist portions 11, at least part of the pelvic area covering portions 12, at least part of each of the pairs of thigh covering portions 13, at least a part of both the waist portions 11 and the thigh covering portions 13, at least a part of both the pelvic area covering portions 12 and the thigh covering portions 13, and at least a part of both the waist portions and the pelvic area covering portions 12.

[0048] The means of attaching may comprise a variety of attaching means including at least one of the attaching means taken from the list of attaching means including mating hook and loop fasteners 30A and 30B (FIGS. 1-4 shown as in the waist portion 11, or the thigh portion 13, or both), sewn-in stitches 30D (FIG. 6 shown as possibly in the waist portion 11 or the pelvic covering portion 12 or the thigh covering portion 13 or all three), lamination 30E such as adhesive lamination, adhesive tape lamination, or heat lamination (FIG. 7), welds 30C such as plastic welds or rubber welds (FIG. 5), blending 30F of the outerwear short pants fabric with the wet suit underpants garment (FIG. 8).

[0049] In FIGS. 3 and 4, the attaching means 30 is fashioned from a mating pair of hook and loop fasteners 30A and 30B, around at least a portion of the waist of the wearer (as shown in FIG. 3). The interconnecting means 30 is capable of interconnecting the wet suit underpants garment 20 and the pair of outerwear short pants 40 so they are capable of staying connected during water sports activities. The hook portion 30A of the mating pair of hook and loop fasteners 30 is attached around an outside waist portion of the wet suit underpants 20 (as shown in FIG. 2). The smooth loop portion 30B of the mating pair of hook and loop fasteners 30 is attached to an inner waist portion of the pair of outerwear short pants 40 (as shown in FIG. 2) so the short pants 40 are capable of being worn without the wet suit underpants garment 20 with the smooth loop portion 30B of the mating pair of hook and loop fasteners 30 contacting the skin of the wearer. The pair of outerwear short pants 40 comprises a pair of surfing shorts that are secured on the wearer with a tie string means. The waist band of the wet suit underpants 20 and the surfing shorts 40 are each provided with a strip of mating hook and loop fasteners 30 that is attached around the waist band, preferably up to the tie string means.

[0050] When the attaching portion comprises only a portion of a waist portion of the wet suit underpants garment 20 and the outerwear short pants 40 encircling a back and sides and part of a front of the waist portion up to a center opening of the outerwear short pants, the outerwear short pants 40, preferably surfer shorts, are adapted to look and move “naturally” while concealing all or at least the substantial portion of the wet suit underpants.

[0051] When the attaching portion comprises at least a part adjacent to a bottom of the thigh covering portion 13 of the wet suit underpants garment 20 and the outerwear short pants 40, the outerwear short pants are restrained from sliding on the wet suit underpants garment while a user is sitting on a surfboard, as in FIG. 1. When the attaching portion comprises a lower circumference encircling each of the thigh covering portions 13, as shown by the sewn-in stitching 30D at the bottom of the wet suit underpants garment 20 of FIG. 6, the attachment keeps water from ballooning up the outerwear short pants legs 40.

[0052] In FIGS. 4 and 6, the wet suit underpants garment 20 may longer than the outerwear short pants 40 and the thigh covering portions 13 of the wet suit underpants garment have a visible extending portion 21 (shown dashed) below the outerwear short pants. The wet suit underpants garment 20 may have a visible waist portion 22 (shown dashed) extending above the outerwear short pants 40.

[0053] The wet suit underpants garment 20 is preferably fabricated of a material having an inner soft surface to prevent chaffing and rash on a skin of a user, and the wet suit underpants garment 20 is preferably fabricated of a material having a resilient binding quality so that the wet suit underpants garment is adapted for support and protection of a wearer's genitals. The wet suit underpants garment 20 may be fabricated of a number of different materials including material selected from the list of materials including a Neoprene material with a soft lining, a fleece material, a synthetic fabric, a wool material, an insect material, an animal material, a plant fabric.

[0054] In practice, the wet suit underpants garment 20 and the surfing shorts 40 would be manufactured preferably with mating strips of hook and loop fastening devices 30 attached to their waistbands. The smooth loop portion 30B of the hook and loop material 30 is to be attached to the surfing shorts 40, allowing them to be worn comfortably without the wet suit underpants garment 20. The hook and loop fastening devices 30 would preferably extend around the waistbands up to the tie string of the surfing shorts 40 (as shown in FIG. 3). To wear the combination 10 of the wet suit underpants garment 20 and the surfing shorts 40 (as illustrated in FIG. 1) the wearer would first put on the wet suit underpants garment 20 and then the surfing shorts 40. The hook 30A and loop 30B portions of the interconnecting means 30 on the waistbands of the wet suit underpants garment 20 and the surfing shorts 40 would then need to be mated together (as shown in FIG. 3). The final step would be to securely tie the surfing shorts 40 around the wearer's waist (as illustrated in FIG. 1).

[0055] It is understood that the preceding description is given merely by way of illustration and not in limitation of the invention and that various modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed.

Claims

1. A wet suit undergarment and surfing shorts combination comprising:

a wet suit underpants garment formed of insulating material adapted for covering and conforming to the body of a wearer from the waist to the thighs of the wearer and further adapted for trapping a thin layer of water underneath the wet suit underpants garment and adapted for maintaining the temperature of the thin layer of water similar to the temperature of the body of the wearer from the waist to the thighs of the wearer;

a pair of outerwear short pants adapted for attaching to at least a portion of the wet suit underpants garment by a means of attaching the outerwear short pants and the wet suit underpants garment along an attaching portion to interconnect the wet suit underpants garment and the pair of outerwear short pants so that they are capable of remaining interconnected during water sports activity, the outerwear short pants covering at least a substantial portion of the wet suit underpants garment and concealing from view at least a substantial portion of the wet suit underpants garment;

wherein the wet suit underpants garment and the pair of outerwear short pants each comprise a pelvic area covering portion including a waist portion and a pair of leg encircling portions and the attaching portion comprises a portion selected from the following list of attaching portions including at least part of each of the waist portions, at least part of the pelvic area covering portions, at least part of each of the pairs of leg encircling portions, at least a part of both the waist portions and the pairs of leg encircling portions, at least a part of both the pelvic area covering portions and the pairs of leg encircling portions and at least a portion of both the waist portions and the pelvic area covering portions.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein the wet suit underpants garment comprises a pair of briefs fabricated of wet suit material.

3. The combination of claim 1 wherein the wet suit underpants garment comprises a pair of shorts fabricated of wet suit material having thigh covering portions.

4. The combination of claim 1 wherein the attaching portion comprises only a portion of a waist portion of the wet suit underpants garment and the outerwear short pants encircling a back and sides and part of a front of the waist portion up to a center opening of the outerwear short pants so that the outerwear short pants are adapted to look and move “naturally” while concealing at least the substantial portion of the wet suit underpants.

5. The combination of claim 1 wherein the attaching portion comprises an entire waist portion of the wet suit underpants garment and the outerwear short pants.

6. The combination of claim 3 wherein the attaching portion further comprises at least a part adjacent to a bottom of the thigh covering portion of the wet suit underpants and the outerwear short pants so that the outerwear short pants are restrained from sliding on the wet suit underpants garment while a user is sitting on a surfboard.

7. The combination of claim 6 wherein the attaching portion comprises a lower circumference encircling each of the thigh covering portions to keep water from ballooning up the outerwear short pants legs.

8. The combination of claim 1 wherein the means of attaching comprises a permanent means of attaching the wet suit underpants garment and the outerwear short pants so that they remain permanently attached together.

9. The combination of claim 8 wherein the means of attaching comprises at least one of the attaching means taken from the list of attaching means including sewn-in stitches, adhesive lamination, adhesive tape lamination, heat lamination, plastic welds, rubber welds, blending of the outerwear short pants fabric with the wet suit underpants garment.

10. The combination of claim 1 wherein the means of attaching comprises a removable means of attaching the wet suit underpants garment and the outerwear short pants so that they are separable.

11. The combination of claim 10 wherein the means of attaching comprises mating hook and loop fasteners.

12. The combination of claim 3 wherein the wet suit underpants garment is longer than the outerwear short pants and the thigh covering portions of the wet suit underpants garment have a visible extending portion below the outerwear short pants.

13. The combination of claim 1 wherein the wet suit underpants garment has a visible waist portion extending above the outerwear short pants.

14. The combination of claim 1 wherein the wet suit underpants garment is fabricated of a material having an inner soft surface to prevent chaffing and rash on a skin of a user.

15. The combination of claim 1 wherein the wet suit underpants garment is fabricated of a material having a resilient binding quality so that the wet suit underpants garment is adapted for support and protection of a wearer's genitals.

16. The combination of claim 1 wherein the wet suit underpants garment is fabricated of a material selected from the list of materials including a Neoprene material, a fleece material, a synthetic fabric, a wool material, an insect material, an animal material, a plant fabric.