UTILITY ARMBAND

Abstract

The present invention is a utility armband comprising an elongated flexible band, and a main body panel having a top portion, a bottom portion, and a central portion. Opposite ends of the top portion include a pair of slits which is adapted to pass the elongated flexible band therethrough. The utility armband further comprises a left panel and a right panel extending from a central portion, at least one slot piece mounted on the main body panel, left panel, and right panel, and an adjustable strap retractably attached at the bottom portion of the main body panel. The slot piece includes at least one opening shaped to receive at least one attachment elements coupled to an item such as a tool or accessory, in a snap-fit manner. With at least one tool is inserted onto the slot piece, the main body panel rests on a user's forearm and the left and right panels wrap around the user's arm.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(1) Field of the Invention

This invention relates to utility bands, and more particularly to a utility armband for providing easy access to a variety of tools and accessories.

(2) Description of Related Art

Carpenters, electricians, plumbers, and other builders need to have necessary tools and supplies such as wrenches, hammers, screwdrivers and the like within easy reach to avoid wasting valuable time and energy searching for a needed tool while working. Moreover due to the manual nature of the work performed, these occupations require both hands to be free to perform the necessary work. One solution to achieve both objectives is a standard tool box for storing needed tools. U.S. Pat. No. 6,237,451 issued to Wei on May 29, 2001 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,203,469 issued to Chang on Apr. 20, 1993 describe a tool box for storing/organizing tools. Though the tool box can hold a variety of tools and allows the user to choose the tools to be used, such a tool box often leads to inefficiency as the tool box is not in close proximity to the user. This may not be practical for enclosed spaces or for work on a ladder. In those cases the user would needs to stop what he/she is doing to get the desired tool or accessory.

Another example of a device attempting to solve the problems associated with carrying tools is a utility belt. The utility belt is worn around the waist and generally includes a hammer holster and a number of pockets. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,923,105 issued to Snyder on May 8, 1990 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,747,527 issued to Trumpower on May 31, 1988 describe utility belt having pouch and loop arrangement. However, although a hammer can be inserted into the loop and a number of nails or screws into the pockets, the worker particularly on a ladder or in a small enclosed area would still find difficulty in reaching down to the waist area to access the needed tools and accessories. Likewise items placed in such pockets could easily fall out of the tool belt. Further, the worker may find difficult to reach down to retrieve a tool or accessory from the utility belt if the worker is lying down on a flat surface, working under a vehicle or in a crawl space.

Bands worn on the wrist are another proposed solution to this problem. U.S. Pat. No. 6,530,508 issued to Devine on Mar. 11, 2003 discloses a magnetic utility wristband for holding magnetically attractable metallic work items. The wristband includes an elongated flexible band sized in length to wrap around a user's wrist using a single centrally located hook and hook receptor combination. A number of elongated magnetic bars are held in a central portion of the wristband and spaced in a substantially parallel strip. Although this magnetic wristband may be successful, it is also unduly complicated, costly, and time consuming as the magnets get attracted to each other and any metal objects while its manufacturing and assembling.

Similarly, a body mountable carrier that can be attached to a wearer's arm or leg for carrying a detachable device such as a portable phone, tool, appliance or the like is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,359 issued to Flowers on Jul. 18, 1995. While such body mountable carrier accomplishes its objectives, it is limited to the extent that the carrier is not applicable for the majority of hand held tools such as hammers, screwdrivers, wrenches, power drills, scissors or the like.

There are numbers of wristband designs with a flashlight holster for attaching a flashlight for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,508,249, 5,154,506, 5,601,356, and 5,752,633, however, these designs have not been utilized to provide a simple and convenient place to store heavy tools.

While many of the prior art designs provide access to variety of tools, each of these belts or bands is quite limited for the reasons mentioned, as well as complicated, and costly. Furthermore, most of these traditional belts would not be useful when the worker is on a ladder or in small enclosed areas.

All referenced patents, applications and literatures are incorporated herein by reference to their entirety. Furthermore, where a definition or use of a term in a reference, which is incorporated by reference herein, is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of the term in the reference does not apply. The invention may seek to satisfy one or more of the above-mentioned desire. Although the present invention may obviate one or more of the above-mentioned desires, it should be understood that some aspects of the invention might not necessarily obviate them.

In these respects, the utility armband according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and so doing provides a utility armband that is not anticipated, rendered obvious, suggested, or even implied by any of the prior art portable utility band, either alone or in combination thereof.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of utility bands now present in the prior art, the general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a utility armband for providing easy access to a variety of tools and accessories.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a utility armband for easy access to a variety of tools in close proximity;

Another object of the present invention is to provide a utility armband that can be used regardless of the working situation or environment like when the user is lying down on a flat surface, under a vehicle or in a crawl space, in a small enclosed area etc.;

Another object of the present invention is to provide a utility armband that is simple and economical to manufacture;

Another object of the present invention is to provide a utility armband that is suitable to carry heavy tools like hammers, screwdrivers, wrenches, power drills, scissors, etc.;

Another object of the present invention is to provide a utility armband having a plurality of slot pieces for holding the tools;

Another object of the present invention is to provide a utility armband having the ability to have any tools and/or accessories to be hung partially from a single mounting bracket which allow the tools/accessories to hang loose so it can freely rotate on the armband to allow such tools/accessories like a tool bag which holds other items to remain horizontal to the ground while the user's arm is in motion.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a utility armband which contains a plurality of attachment elements that can be coupled to any tools or accessories and said attachment elements may be removable.

To attain this, the present invention in one embodiment generally comprises of an elongated flexible band, and a main body panel having a top portion, a bottom portion, and a central portion. Opposite ends of the top portion include a pair of slits which is adapted to pass the elongated flexible band therethrough. The utility armband further comprises a left panel and a right panel extending from a central portion of the main body panel, at least one slot piece mounted on the main body panel, left panel, and right panel, and an adjustable strap retractably attached at the bottom portion of the main body panel. The slot piece includes a pair of openings shaped to receive a pair of attachment elements coupled to a tool in a snap-fit manner.

In typical use, a utility armband having an elongated flexible band and a main body panel is provided. Opposite ends of a top portion of the main body include a pair of slits which is adapted to pass the elongated flexible band therethrough. The main body panel includes a bottom portion attached with an adjustable strap and a central portion having a left panel and a right panel extending therefrom. At least one tool is inserted onto a pair of openings provided on a slot piece that is mounted on the main body panel, left panel, and right panel. Each tool or accessory would contain a corresponding attachment element to correspond to the slot piece openings on the main body, left panel and right panel. In one present embodiment, the slot pieces on the armband may be interchangeable and positioned at various locations on the armband. In addition, the slot pieces may be interchangeable with other slot pieces containing different configurations, such as a magnetic pad to be used to hold small metal objects like screws, nails etc. The attachment elements on the tools or accessories may also be made to be permanently coupled to the tools or accessories or be removable. Then, the elongated flexible band is wrapped around an arm of a user and connected by a hook and loop fastener. The adjustable strap is also connected by a hook and loop fastener to prevent the main body panel, left panel, and right panel from slipping forward.

There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter.

In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of the construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of the description and should not be regarded as limiting. To accomplish the above and related objects, this invention may be embodied in the form illustrated in the accompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact, however, that the drawings are illustrative only, and that changes may be made in the specific construction illustrated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING(S)

Various other objects, features and attendant advantages of the present invention will become fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a utility armband in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of a utility armband shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front view of a utility armband;

FIG. 4 is a side view of a utility armband, illustrating the way a plurality of tools coupled with a pair of attachment elements is inserted onto a slot piece;

FIG. 5 is a side view of a utility armband shown in FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a front view of a utility armband with a plurality of tools inserted onto a slot piece.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention and its various embodiments can now be better understood by turning to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, which are presented as illustrated examples of the invention defined in the claims. It is expressly understood that the invention as defined by the claims may be broader than the illustrated embodiments described below.

Many alterations and modifications may be made by those having ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it must be understood that the illustrated embodiment has been set forth only for the purposes of example and that it should not be taken as limiting the invention as defined by the following claims. For example, notwithstanding the fact that the elements of a claims are set forth below in a certain combination, it must be expressly understood that the invention includes other combinations of fewer, more or different elements, which are disclosed herein even when not initially claimed in such combinations.

Referring now to the drawings, which are provided by way of illustration and example, and wherein like reference numerals designate like or corresponding elements among the several views, there is shown in FIG. 1, a utility armband 10 for providing easy access to a variety of tools and accessories comprising an elongated flexible band 20 and a main body panel 30 having a top portion 40, a bottom portion 50, and a central portion 60. Opposite ends of the top portion 70 includes a pair of slits 80 which is adapted to pass the elongated flexible band 20 therethrough. The utility armband 10 further includes a left panel 90 and a right panel 100 extending from the central portion 60 of the main body panel 30, at least one slot piece 110 mounted on the main body panel 30, left panel 90, and right panel 100, and an adjustable strap 120 retractably attached at the bottom portion 50 of the main body panel 30 using an adjustable retract 130. The at least one slot piece 110 includes a pair of openings 140. The left panel 90 and the right panel 100 are retractably attached to the central portion 60 of the main body panel 30.

A pair of opposite ends 150 of the elongated flexible band 20 is connected by a hook and loop fastener 160 to wrap around a user's arm. The adjustable strap 120 at the bottom portion 50 of the main body panel 30 is also connected by a hook and loop fastener 170 to prevent the main body panel 30, left panel 90, and right panel 100 from slipping forward. With at least one tool (not pictured) is inserted onto the slot piece 110, the main body panel 30 rests on the user's forearm and the left and right panels 90 and 100 wrap around the user's arm.

Turning now to the FIG. 2, the left panel 90 and right panel (not pictured) are connected to the central portion 60 with a flex joint 180. FIG. 3 shows a front view of the utility armband 10. A removable pad 190 is secured on bottom sides 200, 210, and 220 of the main body panel 30, left panel 90, and right panel 100 respectively.

FIG. 4 shows a side view of the utility armband 10 illustrating the way a plurality of tools 240 coupled with a pair of attachment elements 260 is inserted onto the pair of openings 140. For illustration purpose, the utility armband 10 is shown to include a vinyl bag 280, an LED flashlight 300 inserted onto the slot piece 110 mounted on the main body panel 30 and a hard magnetic box 310 inserted onto the slot piece 110 mounted on the left panel 90. The pair of attachment elements 260 can be coupled to the at least one tool 240 by any suitable coupling means. As shown, the pair of openings 140 is shaped to receive the pair of attachment elements 260 in a snap-fit manner.

FIG. 5 shows a side view of a utility armband 10 shown in FIG. 4. The vinyl bag 280, LED flashlight 300 are inserted onto the slot piece 110 mounted on the main body panel 30 and the hard magnetic box 310 is inserted onto the slot piece (not pictured) mounted on the left panel (not pictured). FIG. 6 shows a front view of the utility armband 10 with the LED flashlight 300 inserted onto the slot piece 110 mounted on the main body panel 30, the hard magnetic box 310 inserted onto the slot piece 110 mounted on the left panel 90, and the vinyl bag 280 inserted onto the slot piece 110 mounted on the right body panel 100.

Thus, specific embodiments and applications of the have been disclosed. It should be apparent, however, to those skilled in the art that many more modifications besides those already described are possible without departing from the inventive concepts herein. The inventive subject matter, therefore, is not to be restricted except in the spirit of the appended claims. Moreover, in interpreting both the specification and the claims, all terms should be interpreted in the broadest possible manner consistent with the context. In particular, the terms “comprises” and “comprising” should be interpreted as referring to elements, components, or steps in a non-exclusive manner, indicating that the referenced elements, components or steps may be present, or utilized, or combined with other elements, components, or steps that are not expressly referenced. Where the specification claims refer to at least one of something selected from the group consisting of A, B, C . . . and N, the text should be interpreted as requiring only one element from the group, not A plus N, or B plus N, etc.

Claims

1. A utility armband for providing easy access to a variety of tools and accessories, comprising:

a main body panel having a top portion, a bottom portion, and a central portion.

a left panel extending from the central portion of the main body panel;

a right panel extending from the central portion of the main body panel;

at least one slot piece including at least one opening, the slot piece being mounted on either the main body panel, left panel, or right panel; and

whereby with at least one item is inserted onto the slot piece, the main body panel rests on a user's forearm and the left and right panels wrap around the user's arm.

2. The utility armband as recited in claim 1 comprising of an elongated flexible band having a pair of opposite ends attached to the top portion of the main body;

3. The utility armband as recited in claim 1, wherein the said bottom portion of the main body is retractably attached to at an adjustable strap;

4. The utility armband as recited in claim 1, wherein the left panel and the right panel are attached to the central portion of the main body panel by a flexible joint;

5. The utility armband as recited in claim 1, wherein the pair of opposite ends of the elongated flexible band is connected by a hook and loop fastener;

6. The utility armband as recited in claim 1, wherein the adjustable strap at the bottom portion of the main body panel is connected by a hook and loop fastener;

7. The utility armband as recited in claim 1, wherein the adjustable strap prevents the main body panel, left panel, and right panel from slipping forward;

8. The utility armband as recited in claim 1, further comprising a pair of attachment elements coupled to said at least one item by any suitable coupling means;

9. The pair of attachments as recited in claim 8 being removable;

10. The utility armband as recited in claim 1, wherein the pair of openings is shaped to receive the pair of attachment elements in a snap-fit manner;

11. The utility armband as recited in claim 1, wherein a removable pad is secured on a bottom side of the main body panel, left panel, and right panel;

12. The utility armband as recited in claim 1, where the opposite ends of the top portion being including a pair of slits which is adapted to pass said elongated flexible band through;

13. Said slot pieces of claim 1 being interchangeable;

14. A method for releasably storing a variety of tools and accessories onto a utility armband, the method comprising:

a. providing the utility armband having an elongated flexible band and a main body panel including a bottom portion and a central portion;

b. inserting at least one tool onto a pair of openings provided on a slot piece that is mounted on the main body panel and left and right panels of the central portion;

c. wrapping the elongated flexible band around an arm of a user and connecting by a hook and loop fastener; and

d. wrapping an adjustable strap that is retractably attached at the bottom portion of the main body panel by a hook and loop fastener.

15. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the left panel and the right panel are retractably attached to the central portion of the main body panel.

16. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the adjustable strap prevents the main body panel, left panel, and right panel from slipping forward.

17. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein a pair of attachment elements is coupled to the at least one tool to be inserted through the pair of openings.

18. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the pair of openings is shaped to receive the pair of attachment elements in a snap-fit manner.