GLOVE

Abstract

A glove wearable for exercise includes a back part covering the back side of a wearer's hand when worn, a palm part covering the palm side of the wearer when worn, and a resin pattern formed tightly adhered on a surface of the back part. The resin pattern is formed in a web, and density of the pattern is preferably adjusted region by region of the back part, in accordance with the amount of deformation when the glove is worn.

Description

This nonprovisional application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2009-013282 filed with the Japan Patent Office on Jan. 23, 2009, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety as if fully set forth herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a glove wearable when practicing exercise, attaining more comfortable fit when worn.

2. Description of the Background Art

When a person grips an object such as a bat when he/she plays baseball, for example, it is often the case that the player wears a glove having good anti-slip characteristic, to prevent slipping between the gripped object and a palm part of the glove covering the palm side of the wearer. When a person grips the object wearing a glove having good anti-slip characteristic, slipping between the object and the palm part can be prevented and, therefore, he/she can hold the object with sufficient gripping power.

An example of such a glove is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2007-231430 (Patent Document 1). The glove described in this document has slip-preventive print formed, for example, of silicone resin only on partial regions on the palm part and on an inner side of thumb part. According to the description of this document, the silicone resin is formed not entirely on the palm part or inner side of thumb part. Regions not having the silicone resin formed thereon allow more smooth operation of bending and the like, for example, than regions having silicone resin formed thereon. Therefore, the operation of bending the glove can be done smooth by, for example, clasping one's hand when he/she wears the glove.

A glove described in Japanese Patent National Publication No. 2002-508455 (Patent Document 2) has fine patterns of two-component silicone elastic sealant printed on a palm part, formed of impregnated polyurethane artificial leather. Before heat-treatment, artificial leather fiber is dipped in the two-component silicone elastic sealant, and thereafter subjected to heat treatment, so that the glove formed of impregnated polyurethane artificial leather having a smooth surface comes to have improved gripping force as compared with a glove not having such patterns. Further, the gripping force is not lost even when humidity conditions of the environment of use vary, and good feel can be maintained.

Further, WO99/55433 (Patent Document 3) describes a glove having superior stretchability and anti-slip characteristic, formed by stitching stretchable cloth with thin strip of non-slip cloth having superior anti-slip characteristic.

In the gloves disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, however, means or effects for improving fit, which a wearer feels as comfortable wearability when he/she wears the glove, is not discussed. Patent Document 3 describes that comfortable fit can be attained regardless of the size of wearer's hand, as highly stretchable cloth is used for forming the glove. Generally, when a stretchable member is simply adopted, it means that the member expands in all directions and, therefore, in practice, a glove must be formed in a size smaller than the actual size of one's hand and stretched hard to be fit. This means that regions of the glove covering a portion where hand moves significantly lack sufficient stretchability, and it becomes difficult to follow dynamic movement of one's hand through flexible stretching/contraction of the glove.

If the glove size is made larger to enable free stretching/contraction of the glove even at regions where the hand moves much more, the glove would be too large as compared with the actual size at regions covering portions where the hand moves only slightly. Therefore, such a glove cannot provide appropriate fit on the wearer's hand. Namely, in order to improve comfortable fit of the wearer while taking into consideration the movement of one's hand, it is necessary to improve stretchability in a direction in which the hand moves much more and to improve fastening force in a direction in which the hand moves much less.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention was made in view of the problem described above, and its object is to provide a glove that allows easy movement of one's hand when worn and that further improves comfortable fit when worn.

The present invention provides a glove wearable for exercise, including: a back part covering a back side of a wearer's hand when worn; a palm part covering a palm side of the wearer's hand when worn; and a resin pattern formed tightly adhered on a surface of the back part. Preferably, the back part of the glove is formed of a stretching member.

Preferably, a plurality of the resin patterns crossing each other are formed on the surface of the back part of the glove. Further, preferably, in the glove, the resin pattern is formed in a web.

Preferably, the back part includes a back side finger part covering a wearer's finger; the palm part includes a palm side finger part covering the wearer's finger; and the resin pattern is formed on a surface of the back side finger part.

Preferably, in the glove, at a region near a root of the back side finger part and at a region at a central portion in longitudinal direction of the back side finger part, the resin pattern is made thicker than at other regions.

Preferably, the back part of the glove includes a wrist side portion positioned on a wrist side of the wearer; and density of the resin pattern at a central portion of the wrist side portion is higher than the density of the resin pattern at portions peripheral to the central portion of the wrist side portion.

Preferably, density of the resin pattern on the wrist side portion of the glove is higher than the density of the resin pattern on the back side finger part.

Preferably, the back side finger part of the glove includes a joint region covering a finger joint of the wearer and an adjacent region adjacent to the joint region; and density of the resin pattern on the adjacent region is higher than the density of the resin pattern on the joint region.

Preferably, density of the resin pattern at a central portion in widthwise direction of the back side finger part of the glove is higher than the density of the resin pattern at a side end in the widthwise direction of the back side finger part.

Preferably, in the glove, density of the resin pattern extending in a direction crossing longitudinal direction of the back side finger part is higher than the density of the resin pattern extending in the longitudinal direction.

Further, preferably, an end of the finger part of the back part and an end of the finger part of the palm part of the glove are directly connected to each other.

The glove in accordance with the present invention includes a resin pattern on the back part covering the back side of the wearer when worn. This arrangement applies fastening force to the wearer's hand, because of the elastic force of the resin pattern. Taking into consideration that amount and direction of expansion/contraction vary region by region of the back part, the density and direction of resin pattern may be adjusted region by region of the back part. By such an adjustment, flexible hand movement realized by the stretchability and comfortable fit to the wearer can both be improved.

The foregoing and other objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a back part of a glove 1 in accordance with Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of an area 11 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a palm part of glove 1 in accordance with Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of an area 16 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a back part of a glove 2 in accordance with Embodiment 2 of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a back part of a glove 3 in accordance with Embodiment 3 of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of a back part of a glove 4 in accordance with Embodiment 3 of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing an exemplary structure of a resin pattern 10a (10b).

FIG. 9 is a flowchart representing a method of manufacturing glove 1 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing stretchable members prepared separately for a thumb part 15 and other part of back part 100.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of the back part of a glove 5 implementing the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the following, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the figures. In the embodiments, elements attaining the same functions are denoted by the same reference characters, and description thereof will not be repeated unless particularly necessary.

Embodiment 1

A glove 1 in accordance with Embodiment 1 is worn when the wearer practices exercise, for example, when the wearer plays baseball, to prevent slipping between a gripped object such as a bat and a palm part of the glove covering the palm side of the wearer.

Glove 1 includes a back part 100 (see FIG. 1) covering the back side of wearer's hand when worn, a palm part 200 (see FIG. 3) covering the palm side of wearer's hand when worn, and a resin pattern 10 tightly adhered to a surface of back part 100.

Further, back part 100 shown in FIG. 1 and palm part 200 shown in FIG. 3 include finger parts covering wearer's fingers. Specifically, the finger parts include a thumb part 15, an index finger part 25, a middle finger part 35, a ring finger part 45, and a little finger part 55. Finger parts of back part 100 will be referred to as back side finger parts, and finger parts of palm part 200 will be referred to as palm side finger parts.

Of the finger parts, index finger part 25 may be classified to regions including an index finger tip end part 22 covering the tip end portion of index finger when worn, an index finger middle part 24 as a central portion in the longitudinal direction of index finger part 25, and an index finger root part 26 at a root of index finger part 25. Similarly, middle finger part 35 may be classified to regions including a middle finger tip end part 32 covering the tip end portion of middle finger when worn, a middle finger central part 34 as a central portion in the longitudinal direction of middle finger part 35, and a middle finger root part 36 at a root of middle finger part 35. Ring finger part 45 may be classified into regions including a ring finger tip end part 42 covering the tip end portion of ring finger when worn, a ring finger middle part 44 as a central portion in the longitudinal direction of ring finger part 45, and a ring finger root part 46 at a root of ring finger part 45. Little finger part 55 may be classified into regions including a little finger tip end part 52 covering the tip end portion of little finger when worn, a little finger middle part 54 as a central portion in the longitudinal direction of little finger part 55, and a little finger root part 56 at a root of little finger part 55.

Back part 100 of glove 1 having the above-described shape should preferably be formed mainly of a stretching member 20 having superior stretching characteristics, to allow free movement of the hand and fingers when worn. Back part 100 and palm part 200 may be formed by using one type of stretching member, or back part 100 and palm part 200 may be formed by combining a plurality of different types of stretching members. Further, it is possible to use a stretching member as a base and use a non-stretching member partially.

It is particularly preferably to use knitted fabric that stretches in two ways, as stretching member 20 for back part 100. Then, stretching of back part 100 can be increased in one direction in which the member constituting the knitted fabric expands and in the other direction crossing said one direction. It is preferred that extension ratio of stretching member 20 when a load of 4.9 N (500 gf) is applied to an area of 5 cm×5 cm is in the range of at least 5% and at most 150%, both in the one and the other direction mentioned above. Here, the extension ratio refers to the ratio of the dimension after stretching to the dimension before stretching. Stretching member 20 for back part 100 may be knitted fabric or woven fabric formed, for example, by combining fibers selected from polyurethane fiber, polyamide fiber and polyester fiber.

For palm part 200, stretching member 20 may also be used, or a member formed of leather or resin processed to prevent slipping may be used for improving gripping of an object when worn.

As shown in FIG. 1, glove 1 has a resin pattern 10 formed on surfaces of finger parts and a wrist side portion 60 of back part 100. Here, wrist side portion 60 refers to a portion positioned on the wrist side of the wearer of back part 100, other than the finger parts.

Resin patterns 10a and 10b may be formed by an elastic member such as urethane resin. Further, resin materials such as rubber, silicone resin, PVC (polyvinyl chloride), polyamide elastomer, polyester elastomer, rubber-based elastomer, olefin-based elastomer, polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, EVA (ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer) and ABS (acrylonitril-butadien-styrene copolymer) may be used as the material for resin patterns 10a and 10b.

As shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 2, resin pattern 10 is preferably formed such that a plurality of resin patterns 10a and 10b crossing each other are collected to form a web.

When resin pattern 10 is provided on the surface of back part 100, resin patterns 10a and 10b deform in the direction of expansion of each of resin patterns 10a and 10b, so that tensile force can be applied to back part 100. Since the resin material forming resin patterns 10a and 10b has elasticity, the stretched resin tends to return to the original state, generating fastening force on the wearer's hand, resulting in good fit or comfortable wearing feeling, on the wearer's hand.

Further, resin pattern 10 on glove 1 is formed in a web. Therefore, an area surrounded by resin pattern 10 but not having resin pattern 10 thereon comes to have, for example, a rectangular shape and, therefore, the area stretches/contracts well. Various regions of wearer's hand move in different direction and different amount when he/she wears glove 1 and, therefore, the direction and amount of stretching/contraction differ at different regions of back part 100. Therefore, it is preferable to vary the density of forming resin pattern 10, that is, the amount of formed resin, region by region of back part 100. Further, it is preferred that the density is changed region by region of back part 100, in consideration of the direction in which resin patterns 10a and 10b expand.

In glove 1 in accordance with the present embodiment, the density and the direction of expansion of resin pattern 10 formed on back part 100 formed of stretching member 20 are adjusted region by region. By way of example, at wrist side portion 60, it is preferred that the shape of wrist side portion 60 deforms freely following the change in the shape of one's hand when the wearer grips the object. When the wearer grips the object, thumb and index finger sides of the back of wearer's hand move significantly. Particularly, the movement in the longitudinal direction (up/down direction of FIG. 1, that is, the direction along the longitudinal direction of the back side finger parts) on the thumb and index finger sides is considerably large. The movement on the little finger side (movement in the longitudinal direction on the little finger side) is the next largest. In contrast, the amount of movement at the central portion of wrist side portion 60 is relatively small. Even in the same region, movement in the longitudinal direction is more dynamic than in the lateral direction (left/right direction of FIG. 1).

Therefore, at wrist side portion 60, it is preferred to make higher the density of resin pattern 10 at the central portion where the amount of deformation is small when the glove is worn, than the density at regions on the side of thumb part 15, index finger part 25 (right side of FIG. 1) and little finger part 55 (left side of FIG. 1) as regions peripheral to the center, where the amount of deformation is large when the glove is worn.

Stretching member 20 forming back part 100 has higher stretchability than the elastic member forming resin pattern 10a, and hence it deforms more easily. Therefore, the density of resin pattern 10a is made higher at a region where amount of deformation is small, for example, at the central portion of wrist side portion 60, and because of the elastic force of elastic member forming resin pattern 10, back part 100 applies large fastening force on the wearer's hand. Because of the fastening force and the small amount of deformation, sense of oneness between the hand and glove 1 can be improved when the wearer grips the object. Thus, at the central portion of wrist side portion 60, comfortable fit on the wearer's hand in accordance with the hand movement can be improved.

Since the density of resin pattern 10a is increased at the region where the amount of deformation is small as described above, it is possible to maintain good fit of glove 1 on the entire hand of the wearer, even when the density of resin pattern 10a is made lower at regions where the amount of deformation is large (portions peripheral to the central portion of wrist side portion 60). At regions where the amount of deformation is large, the density of resin pattern 10a is made lower, so that easier deformation is possible because of the stretchability of stretching member 20 forming back part 100. Thus, the wearer can freely and flexibly move his/her hand.

As described above, glove 1 realizes both good fit and high flexibility for the wearer and, therefore, it ensures comfortable wearability for the wearer.

Further, by improving stretchability in a region where the density of resin pattern 10a is low, expansion/contraction of wrist side portion 60 becomes easier to meet different sizes and shapes of the wearers. As a result, comfortable wearability for a large number of wearers can be attained regardless of the size and shape of wearers' hands.

As described above, in glove 1, a plurality of resin patterns 10a are arranged concentrically with approximately the central portion of wrist side portion 60 being the center. The space between neighboring resin patterns 10a is made narrower at a region closer to the center of wrist side portion 60 and made wider at regions on the sides of thumb part 15 and little finger part 55.

A plurality of resin patterns 10b are arranged radially with approximately the central portion of wrist side portion 60 being the center, to cross the concentric resin patterns 10a. The space between neighboring resin patterns 10b is also made narrower at a region closer to the center of wrist side portion 60 and made wider at regions on the sides of thumb part 15 and little finger part 55.

As shown in FIG. 1, resin pattern 10 similar to that on wrist side portion 60 is also arranged on the back side finger parts. Resin pattern 10 on the back side finger parts has its density adjusted in the similar manner as at wrist side portion 60.

Referring to FIG. 1, by way of example, resin pattern 10 is not arranged on index finger middle part 24, middle finger middle part 34, ring finger middle part 44 and little finger middle part 54. The reason for this is that, of the index finger part 25, middle finger part 35, ring finger part 45 and little finger part 55, these regions deform much more as the hand moves when worn, and by not providing resin pattern 10 on these regions, easier deformation is attained utilizing superior stretchability of stretching member 20 forming back part 100.

From the same reason as described with reference to index finger middle part 24 and the like above, resin pattern 10 is not arranged on root part 28 near the root of back side finger part of glove 1. This portion corresponds to a region around the proximal phalanx or between the proximal phalanx and the metacarpal bone, and the amount of deformation is very large when the wearer wears the glove. By not providing resin pattern 10 on this region, easier deformation is attained utilizing superior stretchability of stretching member 20 forming back part 100. At the back side finger parts, it is preferred to make the density of resin pattern in a region adjacent to a joint region higher than the density of resin pattern in joint regions covering joint portions of the wearer where the amount of deformation is large when the glove is worn.

If there are such regions on which resin pattern 10 is not arranged, however, the wearer may feel that the sense of oneness as a glove is lost between regions where resin pattern exist and regions where not, when he/she wears the glove. Therefore, it is preferred to arrange a resin pattern even in such regions where resin pattern 10 is not arranged, for example, to arrange a projected line pattern 21 at index finger middle part 24 and a projected line pattern 27 at a root part 28.

Projected line patterns 21 and 27 are formed, for example, as a set of two parallel lines as shown in FIG. 1. It is preferred that two sets of projected line patterns 21 and 27 are formed of the same resin material as resin pattern 10 (10a, 10b), to cross each other in respective regions, as shown in FIG. 1. It is preferred that the line patterns are made thicker than resin pattern 10 (10a, 10b). Then, good fit for the wearer can be realized by the fastening force and the sense of oneness as a glove can be maintained, since the resin forming projected line patterns 21 and 27 is an elastic member. Since projected line patterns 21 and 27 are made thicker than resin pattern 10, it is possible to realize sufficiently good fit for the wearer even though the number of patterns is small.

It is preferred to increase the feeling of good fit on the wearer's fingers at the central portions in the widthwise direction (direction intersecting the longitudinal direction) of each back side finger part. Therefore, the arrangement in which two projected line patterns 21 cross each other at the central portion as shown in FIG. 1 is preferred. By such an arrangement, because of the effect of elastic force applied by the two resin lines at the central portion, feeling of better fit for the wearer can be attained and the sense of oneness as a glove can be maintained.

Though projected line patterns 21 and 27 are arranged to extend diagonally to the longitudinal direction of the back side finger parts in FIG. 1, the patterns may be arranged in a direction along the longitudinal direction of the back side finger parts, or in a substantially orthogonal crossing direction.

Further, at thumb part 15 of glove 1, like other pack side finger parts where resin pattern 10 is arranged, resin pattern 10 is formed in the similar manner as at other portions, even at the portion corresponding to a joint when the wearer wears the glove as shown in FIG. 1. Considering the fact that the amount of deformation in the longitudinal direction of thumb part 15 is considerably large at a region corresponding to a thumb joint when the glove is worn, the space between resin patterns 10a (10b) in the longitudinal direction may be made wider than at other portions, also for thumb part 15.

The amount of deformation when worn is small particularly at the central portion in the widthwise direction of the back side finger parts. Therefore, at the central portion in the widthwise direction, resin pattern 10 is arranged, so that the fastening force is applied to the wearer's fingers because of the elastic force of the elastic member, in the similar manner as applied by resin pattern 10 on wrist side portion 60 described above. As a result, the sense of oneness between the wearer's fingers and glove 1 can be improved, and better fit is realized.

It is noted, however, that the density of resin pattern 10 at the central portion in the widthwise direction of back side finger parts should preferably be made higher than the density of resin pattern 10 at the side end in the widthwise direction. Here, the central portion in the widthwise direction refers to the upper side portion of a cross-section crossing the longitudinal direction of the wearer's finger, and the side end in the widthwise direction refers to the left and right sides in the cross section crossing the longitudinal direction of the wearer's finger, that is, end regions of back part 100.

As described above, if the density of resin pattern 10 is made higher to attain better fit at the central portion in the widthwise direction of the back side finger parts, the good fit of glove 1 on the entire fingers of the wearer can be maintained even if the density is made lower at side ends in the widthwise direction. When the density of resin pattern 10 at the side ends is made lower, the wearer can freely and flexibly move his/her fingers, because of the stretchability of stretching member 20. From the foregoing, both good fit and high flexibility for the wearer's fingers can be realized at the back side finger parts and, therefore, the glove ensures comfortable wearability for the wearer. It is noted that resin pattern 10 may not be provided on the side ends.

Further, as the stretchability is improved at the side ends, it becomes easier to expand/contract the back side finger parts to meet different sizes and shapes of the wearers' fingers. As a result, comfortable wearability for a large number of wearers can be attained regardless of the size and shape of wearers' fingers.

It is preferred that, in glove 1, the density of resin pattern 10a (10b) extending in a direction crossing the longitudinal direction of back side finger parts (that is, the direction along the widthwise direction) is made higher than the density of resin pattern 10a (10b) extending in the longitudinal direction of back side finger parts. Thus, the density of resin pattern 10a (10b) extending in the widthwise direction of back side finger parts in which the amount of deformation is small, is made higher. By such an approach, it is possible to attain better fit on the wearer's fingers in the similar manner as described above, because of the elastic force of elastic member forming resin pattern 10a (10b). Further, when the density of resin pattern 10a (10b) extending in the longitudinal direction of back side finger parts is made lower, deformation of the back side finger parts in the longitudinal direction becomes easier when the glove is worn, because of the stretchability of stretching member 20. Specifically, it is possible to easily bend and unbend the fingers (open and close one's hand) when a person wearing the glove grips an object.

As regards the longitudinal direction of each of the back side finger parts, it is preferred that the density of resin pattern 10a extending in the direction crossing the longitudinal direction of back side finger parts is made lower from root part 28 to the finger tip. As can be seen, for example, from index finger part 25 of FIG. 1, the density of resin pattern 10a extending in the widthwise direction is made higher at index finger root part 26 than at index finger tip end part 22. This makes easier the deformation of back side finger part at the tip end portion of the wearer's finger when the glove is worn. As a result, it becomes possible to more flexibly follow bending and unbending of the wearer's fingers when the glove is worn.

Further, it is particularly preferred to arrange resin pattern 10a extending in the longitudinal direction of each of the back side finger parts with its density made lower, for example, toward the joint region such as index finger middle part 24. More specifically, in order to make the density near index finger middle part 24 lower than the density at the tip end portion of the finger, it is preferred to arrange resin patterns 10a slightly curved with respect to the longitudinal direction of the back side finger part, so that the space between resin patterns 10a becomes wider. By such an arrangement, it is possible to more flexibly follow the deformation at the joint region.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of thumb part 15 viewed from the side of palm part 200. It is preferred that an end of thumb part 15 on back part 100 is directly connected at a connecting line 150 to an end of thumb part 15 on palm part 200. Though thumb part 15 is shown as an example in FIG. 4, it is also preferred that, for each of index finger part 25, middle finger part 35, ring finger part 45 and little finger part 55, an end on back part 100 and an end of palm part 200 of each finger part are directly connected to each other.

As described above, a wide area is not provided at the boundary between back part 100 and palm part 200, and back part 100 and palm part 200 are directly connected, for example, by stitching. This improves the feeling of good fit when the wearer's fingers are received snugly by respective members of the finger parts.

It is preferred that resin pattern 10a (10b) is arranged (extended) integrally and continuously at back part 100, with connecting line 150 being the end. This realizes better fit on the wearer's fingers.

As the elastic member for attaining better fit on the wearer, the above-described resin pattern 10 (10a, 10b) and projected line patterns 21 and 27 may appropriately be combined. Further, thickness and width of projected line patterns 21 and 27 may be arbitrarily designed in accordance with the intended use.

Palm part 200 of glove 1 shown in FIG. 3 is the area that directly contacts the object, when the wearer grips the object. Therefore, unlike back part 100, resin pattern 10 is not formed.

Embodiment 2

A glove 2 in accordance with Embodiment 2 of the present invention basically has the same structure as glove 1 in accordance with Embodiment 1 of the present invention. Glove 2, however, is different from glove 1 in that resin pattern 10 is not formed at a connecting part 30 between thumb part 15 and wrist side portion 60.

In glove 1, back part 100 is entirely formed as an integral piece. In contrast, in glove 2, thumb part 15 and remaining part other than thumb part 15 are formed separately and these are connected at connecting part 30 by stitching, for example, as will be described later. To attain good connection, leather or resin member same as that used for palm part 200 may be used for connecting part 30 for connection and, therefore, resin pattern 10 is not formed thereon.

Though glove 2 having the above described structure is different from glove 1 in the connecting part 30, such a difference does not have much influence and similar effects and functions as glove 1 can be attained.

Embodiment 2 of the present invention differs from Embodiment 1 only in the points described above. Therefore, structures, conditions, effects and the like of Embodiment 2 not specifically described above are all similar to those of Embodiment 1.

Embodiment 3

A glove 3 in accordance with Embodiment 3 of the present invention basically has the same structure as glove 2 in accordance with Embodiment 2 of the present invention. Glove 3, however, is different from glove 2 in that resin pattern 10 is not formed on thumb part 15, index finger tip end part 22, middle finger tip end part 32, ring finger tip end part 42 and little finger tip end part 52.

When we consider general movement of one's hand, it is understood that fingers move much more than the back. Therefore, the back side finger parts are deformed much more than wrist side portion 60 of glove 1. Therefore, it is preferred that the density of resin pattern 10 on wrist side portion 60 is made higher than the density of resin pattern 10 on the back side finger parts, as in glove 3.

By such an approach, it is possible to maintain the sense of oneness and good fit of glove 3 on the wearer by the resin pattern 10 of wrist side portion 60 and to provide higher flexibility at the back side finger parts of which amount of deformation is large, because of superior stretchability of stretching member 20. As a result, deformation of the back side finger parts, that is, operations including opening/closing of the wearer's hand and gripping of an object, can be made easier and more flexible.

Further, since regions on which resin pattern 10 is not formed are provided at some portions of back side finger parts, it becomes possible to improve stretchability of stretching member 20 forming the back side finger parts when the glove is worn, in accordance with sizes and shapes of the wearers' fingers. As a result, better fit for a large number of wearers can be attained when the glove is worn, regardless of the size and shape of wearers' fingers.

A glove 4 shown in FIG. 7 basically has the same structure as glove 3. Glove 4, however, is different from glove 3 in that resin pattern 10 is not formed on index finger root part 26, middle finger root part 36, ring finger root part 46 and little finger root part 56.

By such an arrangement, it becomes possible to improve stretchability of stretching member 20 forming the back side finger parts when the glove is worn, in accordance with sizes and shapes of the wearers' fingers, as in the case of glove 3. Therefore, flexibility of the back side finger parts can further be improved to ease deformation, and better fit for a large number of wearers can be attained when the glove is worn.

It is noted that a design 61 at thumb part 15 of gloves 3 and 4 is provided to ease bending of thumb part 15, and provision thereof is optional.

Embodiment 3 of the present invention differs from Embodiment 2 only in the points described above. Therefore, structures, conditions, effects and the like of Embodiment 3 not specifically described above are all similar to those of Embodiment 2.

Further, in any of the gloves in accordance with the embodiments described above, as the member forming the tip end portions (finger tip portions) of back side finger parts (and palm side finger parts), a protecting member having higher hardness than the stretching member 20 forming other regions may be used. By adopting such a member, nails of the wearer can be protected, and damage to the regions where such protecting member is arranged by the wearer's nails can be prevented.

Next, an exemplary structure of the linear patterns forming resin pattern 10 above will be described with reference to FIG. 8.

In the example shown in FIG. 8, the cross-sectional shape of resin pattern 10a is approximately rectangular. More specifically, resin pattern 10a has a side surface 8 rising substantially vertically from the surface of stretching member 20 having stretchability and forming back part 100, with a pointed upper corner 9. Upper corner 9 of resin pattern 10a may be rounded as indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 8.

The force necessary to stretch resin pattern 10a corresponds to the fastening force caused by resin pattern 10a. The force is in proportion to the volume of resin pattern 10a. Here, as resin pattern 10a has side surface 8 rising substantially vertically from the surface of stretching member 20, sufficient volume of resin pattern 10a can be ensured while the area for forming resin pattern 10a on stretching member 20 is kept small. In other words, it is possible to attain desired fastening force by resin pattern 10a while the area for forming resin pattern 10a is kept small.

Height (thickness) and width of resin pattern 10a are arbitrarily adjustable. By appropriately adjusting these, it is also possible to adjust the volume of resin pattern 10a and to adjust the fastening force of resin pattern 10a.

It may be required to differentiate fastening forces applied to various portions by resin pattern 10 considering sizes of hands and preferences of wearers. Since the fastening forces applied by resin pattern 10 to various portions can easily be varied by appropriately adjusting the height (thickness), width, density and the like of resin pattern 10a as described above, such requirement can readily be met.

Next, the method of manufacturing glove 1 in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 9.

As shown in FIG. 9, first, a member is prepared (S10). It is preferred, particularly for back part 100, that the member is stretchable member 20 mainly formed of a member of superior stretchability, to allow free movement of the hand and fingers when one wears the glove. For palm part 200, the same stretching member 20 as back part 100 may be used, or a member formed of leather or resin processed to prevent slipping may be used to improve gripping of the object when worn.

Here, stretching member 20 providing entire back part 100 as one integrated piece as in the case of glove 1 shown in FIG. 1 may be prepared, or only the thumb part 15 of back part 100 may be prepared separate from other portions, to form glove 2 shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 10 shows such an example, and stretching member 20 for forming back part 100 shown in FIG. 10 includes a thumb part member 300, and a body part member 400 as the stretching member 20 for the regions other than thumb part 15.

Next, a resin for forming resin pattern 10 is prepared (S20). By way of example, urethane resin having prescribed elasticity and believed to have good forming characteristic is prepared.

Next, the resin is introduced to a mold (S30). The mold has a cavity corresponding to the shape of resin pattern 10, and the resin is introduced to the cavity. When the resin is introduced to the mold, the resin is set to a flowable state (for example, liquid state), to be poured to the mold. Thereafter, the resin is heated in the mold (S40). For example, it is heated at a temperature not lower than the curing temperature of the resin. Thus, part of the resin (at a portion in contact with the mold and its vicinity) is cured, or the resin as a whole is semi-cured.

Thereafter, the resin in the above-described state is brought to be tightly adhered on the above-described stretching member (for example, thumb part member 300 and body part member 400) (S50). Specifically, stretching member 20 is put on the resin material that is in the heated state in the mold, and pressure is applied to stretching member 20 so that the stretching member 20 comes into contact with the resin. By curing the resin in this state, a desired resin pattern can be formed on the surface of stretching member 20. It is also possible to form resin pattern 10 using a mold and thereafter to tightly adhere the resin pattern on stretching member 20 using an adhesive.

Here, if thumb part member 300 and body part member 400 are prepared separately as shown in FIG. 10 as described above, it is possible to place thumb member 300 at an arbitrary position not to be overlapped on main body part 400, when these members are set in the mold. Therefore, as compared with an example in which back part 100 as a whole is prepared as an integrated piece of stretching member 20, the space occupied by stretching member 20 in the mold can be made smaller by adjusting the positions of thumb part member 300 and body part member 400. As a result, the number of stretching members of back part 100 that can be processed at one step can be increased, and production yield can be improved.

When thumb part member 300 and body part member 400 are prepared separately, these members with resin pattern 10 formed thereon are stitched together (S60). At (S60), back part 100 formed in this manner is stitched to palm member 200 at connecting line 150 (see FIG. 4). In this manner, gloves 2, 3 and 4 described above can be formed. When entire back part 100 is prepared as one integrated piece, glove 1 described above can be formed.

A glove 5 as an implementation of the present invention shown in FIG. 11 has the characteristics of the glove in accordance with the present invention described above. As regards the back side finger parts of glove 5, resin patterns 10 are arranged only on index finger root part 26, middle finger root part 36, ring finger root part 46 and little finger root part 56. Further, on thumb part 15, resin pattern 10 is arranged only on that region where design 61 is provided in glove 3. This facilitates bending (deformation) of thumb part 15. Further, as in the case of glove 2, only the thumb part 15 of back part 100 is formed as a separate piece, and thumb part 15 and the part other than thumb part 15 are connected to each other at connecting part 30 to provide an integrated back part 100.

Although the present invention has been described and illustrated in detail, it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation, the scope of the present invention being interpreted by the terms of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A glove wearable for exercise, comprising:

a back part covering a back side of a wearer's hand when worn;

a palm part covering a palm side of the wearer's hand when worn; and

a resin pattern formed tightly adhered on a surface of said back part.

2. The glove according to claim 1, wherein

said back part is formed of a stretching member.

3. The glove according to claim 1, wherein

a plurality of said resin patterns crossing each other are formed on the surface of said back part.

4. The glove according to claim 1, wherein

said resin pattern is formed in a web.

5. The glove according to claim 1, wherein

said back part includes a back side finger part covering a wearer's finger;

said palm part includes a palm side finger part covering the wearer's finger; and

said resin pattern is formed on a surface of said back side finger part.

6. The glove according to claim 5, wherein

at a part of region near a root of said back side finger part and at a part of region at a central portion in longitudinal direction of said back side finger part, said resin pattern is made thicker than at other regions.

7. The glove according to claim 5, wherein said back side finger part includes a joint region covering a finger joint of the wearer and an adjacent region adjacent to said joint region; and

density of said resin pattern on said adjacent region is higher than the density of said resin pattern on said joint region.

8. The glove according to claim 5, wherein density of said resin pattern at a central portion in widthwise direction of said back side finger part is higher than the density of said resin pattern at a side end in the widthwise direction of said back side finger part.

9. The glove according to claim 5, wherein density of said resin pattern extending in a direction crossing longitudinal direction of said back side finger part is higher than the density of said resin pattern extending in said longitudinal direction.

10. The glove according to claim 1, wherein said back part includes a wrist side portion positioned on a wrist side of the wearer; and

density of said resin pattern at a central portion of said wrist side portion is higher than the density of said resin pattern at portions peripheral to said central portion of said wrist side portion.

11. The glove according to claim 10, wherein density of said resin pattern on said wrist side portion is higher than the density of said resin pattern on said back side finger part.

12. The glove according to claim 1, wherein

an end of said finger part of said back part and an end of said finger part of said palm part are directly connected to each other.