Brimless lined elastic head covering

Abstract

A brimless lined elastic head covering worn by a user with a head. The brimless lined elastic head covering has a center panel with two sides, a pair of side panels with one side panel attached to each side of the center panel forming an outer shell with a perimeter, an inner surface and a back side. There is also a brim band with two ends that is attached around the perimeter of the outer shell, a liner that is shaped and dimensioned to mate with the inner surface of the outer shell, a rectangular cut out on the back side of the outer shell to accommodate a user's ponytail and an elastic band that is attached to each end of the brim band that is disposed across the bottom of the rectangular cut out allowing for expansion and contraction.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/517,906, filed Nov. 7, 2003.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a head covering. More particularly, to a brimless lined elastic head covering.

2. Description of the Related Art

A bandana can be worn as a head covering with two or more of its corners tied at the nape of the wearer's neck. In regions of the country where a motorcycle helmet is not required, a bandana is frequently worn by motorcycle riders for protection from wind, dirt and the sun. It is also worn by others as a fashion accessory associated with contemporary and free-spirited individuals.

Unfortunately though, the traditional bandana has several known drawbacks, particularly for motorcycle riders. First, donning a bandana is not a simple task. Rather, the bandana must be tied onto one's head, by tilting the head uncomfortably forward while reaching behind the neck and then tying the corners of the bandana into a knot. Because the wearer is unable to see the knot as he or she is tying it, donning a bandana can be both cumbersome and time consuming.

Furthermore, donning a bandana can be especially cumbersome when worn by a person who has a ponytail. He or she must either position the ponytail inside the bandana or tie the bandana knot around or over the ponytail, either of which is cumbersome and requires awkward positioning of the ponytail.

Once the bandana knot is tied, the corner tails formed by the portions of the corners extending from the knot can be annoying to the wearer when hanging down on the back of the neck or snapping in the wind. Worse yet, the corner tails of a motorcycle driver's bandana can be particularly annoying to a passenger riding behind the driver on the back of a motorcycle. In such circumstances, the corner tails frequently are blown directly into the passenger's face.

While being worn, the bandana typically loosens with time and therefore must be retied. This not only requires tilting the head and tying a knot again, but also requires untying the original knot. But given that the original knot typically tightens while the bandana is worn, untying it can require digging fingernails into the knot and result in strained or fatigued fingers. Furthermore, because bandanas are known to loosen while being worn, a wearer often ties his bandana uncomfortably tight in anticipation of its gradually loosening.

Moreover, because bandanas are typically square sheets of fabric wrapped onto a rounded head, they do not fit smoothly, and therefore are not aerodynamic. Hence, bandanas tend to flap or snap in the wind when worn on a motorcycle and can appear untidy when worn off a motorcycle. Because bandanas are typically constructed of a single thin sheet of fabric, they tend to wear out quickly. This is especially true near the corners where the fabric is continually being pulled into and out of a tight knot. Although not as popular as the bandana, there are other similar types of brimless head coverings, which are also found in the related art.

U.S. Pat. No. Des. 58,303 issued to Bartholomew on Jul. 12, 1921, outlines an ornamental design for a cap.

U.S. Pat. No. Des. 110,933 issued to Steffen on Aug. 16, 1938, outlines an ornamental design of a hat.

U.S. Pat. No. Des. 187,519 issued to Lasting on Mar. 29, 1960, outlines an ornamental design of a hat.

U.S. Pat. No. Des. 367,155 issued to Lewis on Feb. 20, 1996, outlines the ornamental design for a cap.

U.S. Pat. No. Des. 370,772 issued to Lewis on Jun. 18, 1996, outlines an ornamental design for a cap.

U.S. Pat. No. Des. 374,548 issued to Hartland on Oct. 15, 1996, outlines an ornamental design for a piece of headwear.

U.S. Pat. No. Des. 415,337 issued to Watts on Oct. 19, 1999, outlines an ornamental design for a cap.

U.S. Pat. No. Des. 473,039 issued to Erspamer on Apr. 15, 2003, outlines an ornamental design for a brimless hat.

U.S. Pat. No. 1,505,289, issued to Sanders on Aug. 19, 1924, outlines the use of a hair-pressing cap for use by individuals or by professional hairdressers.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,417,323, issued to Richards et al. on Mar. 11, 1947, outlines the use of a type of cap which is adapted to be worn while the user is swimming or engaged in aquatic activities and serves as a medium for preventing the wearer's hair from becoming wet.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,608,914 issued to Keesler on Mar. 11, 1997, outlines the use of a headcover for a human head that has an isosceles triangular shape first fabric material with the base of a smaller isosceles triangle shaped supple fabric sewn to the first fabric material such that the smaller triangle is sewn to and centered on the base of the first fabric material.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,385,776 issued to Linday on May 14, 2002, outlines the use of modular caps with detachable and interchangeable components and detachable pockets and detachable logos that can be selectively displayed on and removed from these detachable, interchangeable components.

Although each of these patents outlines the use of novel and useful brimless head coverings, what is really needed is a more comfortable brimless head cover that is easy to put-on, is comfortable and can also accommodate a ponytail. Such a head covering would be well-received in the marketplace and would address a large demand for such a head covering.

Consequently, none of the above items, inventions or patents is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed and, therefore, a brimless lined elastic head covering solving the aforementioned problems is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention is a brimless lined elastic head covering worn by a user with a head. The brimless lined elastic head covering has a center panel with two sides, a pair of side panels with one side panel attached to each side of the center panel forming an outer shell with a perimeter, an inner surface and a back side. There is also a brim band with two ends that is attached around the perimeter of the outer shell, a liner that is shaped and dimensioned to mate with the inner surface of the outer shell, a rectangular cut out on the back side of the outer shell to accommodate a user's ponytail and an elastic band that is attached to each end of the brim band that is disposed across the bottom of the rectangular cut out allowing for expansion and contraction.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a head covering that simulates the look and feel of a traditional bandana without requiring its wearer to tie its corners into a knot.

It is another object of the invention to provide a head covering without portions that hang on the wearer's back or flap in the wind.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a head covering that easily accommodates a ponytail.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a head covering with a liner for added comfort and durability.

Moreover, it is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.

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

FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of a brimless lined elastic head covering according to the present invention as worn by a person with a ponytail.

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of a brimless lined elastic head covering according to the present invention, shown tilted forward with the liner partially cut-away.

FIG. 3 is a top view of a brimless lined elastic head covering according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the outer shell and elastic band of a brimless lined elastic head covering according to the present invention.

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

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention is a brimless lined elastic head covering 10 that can be worn by a user U. As shown in FIG. 1, the brimless lined elastic head covering 10 fits snuggly over a user's U head such that it simulates the look and feel of a traditional bandana, but without a knot or hanging corners, and is dimensioned to easily allow a user's U ponytail to pass through.

As is depicted in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the brimless lined elastic head covering 10 worn by the user U with a head, comprises a center panel 40 with two sides, a pair of side panels 50 with one side panel attached to each side of the center panel 40 forming an outer shell 20 with a perimeter, an inner surface and a back side and a brim band 30 with two ends 36 that is attached around the perimeter of the outer shell 20. The brimless lined elastic head covering 10 further comprises a liner 70 that is shaped and dimensioned to mate with the inner surface of the outer shell 20, a rectangular cut out 48 on the back side of the outer shell 20 to accommodate a user's U ponytail and an elastic band 80 that is attached to each end of the brim band 30 that is disposed across the bottom of the rectangular cut out 48 allowing for expansion and contraction.

The liner 70 is constructed of a fabric that includes cotton and is shaped and dimensioned to mate with the inner surface of the outer shell 20. The edges of the liner 70 and the upper edge of the brim band 30 of the outer shell 20 are sewn together making the brimless lined elastic head covering 10 fully lined for added comfort.

The center panel 40 is trapezoidal with two side edges 42 tapering outward from the front edge 44 to the back edge 46 and with a rectangular cut-out 48 along the back edge 46. The two side panels 50 are mirror images of each other and are almond-shaped with an upper edge 52 and a lower edge 54. The brim band 30, center panel 40, and two side panels 50, are constructed of a fabric that includes cotton in their composition for washability and breathability.

As depicted in FIG. 4, the outer shell 20 is assembled with each side edge 42 of the center panel 40 forming a seam with an upper edge 52 of a side panel 50. The lower edge 54 of each side panel 50 and the front and back edges 44,46 of the center panel 40 align with each other and are sewn onto the upper edge 32 of the brim band 30. The ends of the brim band 36 also align with the sides 49 of the rectangular cut out 48 and the ends 82 of the elastic band 80.

The elastic band 80 has two ends 82 each of which is sewn to an opposing side 49 of the rectangular cut out 48 such that the bottom edge 84 of the elastic band 80 aligns with the bottom edge 34 of the brim band 30. The elastic band 80 is disposed inside of a fabric sleeve 84 for protection against the exterior.

Use of the brimless lined elastic head covering 10 is straightforward. The elastic band 80 makes the brimless lined elastic head covering 10 comfortable for the user U and the outer shell 20 is of a single-piece construction and does not have to be tied at each end like an ordinary bandana (not shown). The brimless lined elastic head covering 10 also simulates the look and feel of a bandana but incorporates a liner for added durability. The brimless lined elastic head covering 10 is also considered very stylish and can come with a large number of different designs and colors. The brimless lined elastic head covering 10 can also be made of a variety of washable materials and has durable stitching between the center panel 40 and the side panels 50. The brimless lined elastic head covering 10 can be worn by users U of all ages and sizes.

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

Claims

1. A brimless lined elastic head covering worn by a user with a head, comprising:

a center panel with two sides;

a pair of side panels with one side panel attached to each side of the center panel forming an outer shell with a perimeter, an inner surface and a back side;

a brim band with two ends that is attached around the perimeter of the outer shell;

a liner that is shaped and dimensioned to mate with the inner surface of the outer shell;

a rectangular cut out on the back side of the outer shell to accommodate a user's ponytail; and

an elastic band that is attached to each end of the brim band that is disposed across the bottom of the rectangular cut out allowing for expansion and contraction.

2. The head covering according to claim 1, wherein the center panel is trapezoidal.

3. The head covering according to claim 1, wherein the pair of side panels are mirror images of each other.

4. The head covering according to claim 1, wherein the pair of side panels are almond-shaped.

5. The head covering according to claim 1, wherein a liner is sewn inside of the outer shell as a layer between the user's head and the outer shell, when worn by the user.

6. The head covering according to claim 1, wherein the elastic band is disposed inside of a fabric sleeve.