WATERTIGHT SWIM CAP

Abstract

A watertight swim cap has a rear skullcap section which is fabricated of silicone rubber material. The skullcap section is configured to substantially cover the head of a swimmer. A front rim section of the cap is fabricated of a silicone rubber material which is softer than the material used in the skullcap section. The top edge of the rim section is fused to the bottom edge of the skullcap section to form a single integral cap which, when worn by a swimmer, provides a watertight seal between the cap and the head of the swimmer.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to caps for swimmers which provide a watertight seal.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Swim caps are worn for a variety of different reasons, e.g. to keep a swimmer's head or hair dry, to provide less of a drag for the racing swimmer, etc. However, for all these purposes, it is critical that a watertight, leak-proof seal be provided and maintained between the swimmer's cap and swimmers head.

There have been a number of prior attempts to accomplish this; among these are caps which use adhesive, elastic strips, or upstanding ridges around their forward perimeters, various fasteners to tighten the cap around the head, and inflatable cushions or bladders adjacent to the swimmer's head. These prior “watertight sealing” means have proven to be awkward, weighty, cumbersome, but most importantly, largely unsuccessful in truly preventing leakage from underneath the cap.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is thus the object of the present invention to provide a swim cap which addresses the limitations and disadvantages of prior caps in providing an effective watertight seal between the cap and the head of the swimmer.

This and other objects are accomplished by the present invention, a swim cap which comprises a rear skullcap section which is fabricated of silicone rubber material. The skullcap section is configured to substantially cover the head of a swimmer. A front rim section of the cap is fabricated of a silicone rubber material which is softer than the material used in the skullcap section. The top edge of the rim section is fused to the bottom edge of the skullcap section to form a single integral cap which, when worn by a swimmer, provides a watertight seal between the cap and the head of the swimmer.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic of the invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention, itself, however, both as to its design, construction and use, together with additional features and advantages thereof, are best understood upon review of the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is perspective view of the swim cap of the present invention positioned on the head of a swimmer.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the components of the swim cap of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an elevation view of the swim cap of the present invention.

FIG. 3A is a section taken from FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Swim cap 1 of the present invention comprises rear skullcap section 2 which is configured to substantially cover the head of a swimmer 20. Skullcap section 2 has bottom edge 4 which circumscribes the bottom of the skullcap section. Skullcap section 2 is fabricated of a silicon rubber material which is a durable, yet flexible silicon rubber.

Front rim section 6 has top edge 8 which circumscribes the top of the rim section. Rim section 6 is fabricated of a silicon rubber material which is softer then the material used for skullcap section 2. The softer silicon rubber material of front rim section 6 allows the rim section to tightly hug the hairline and ears; the heat of the swimmer's body softening the silicon rubber of the rim section just enough to make it tacky. This allows rim section 6 to stick to the skin, contouring around the headline of swimmer 20, as seen in FIG. 1. This forms an airtight, watertight seal preventing water from seeping beneath rim section 6.

Rim section 6 extends from top edge 8 at the forehead or headline of swimmer 20, to the swimmer's neck. Skullcap portion 2 extends from bottom edge 4 around the swimmer's head to where rim section 6 covers the neck of the swimmer. See FIG. 1.

The silicon rubber material of skullcap section 2 is a hard silicon with the chemical formula [R₂SiO]n, in which R is an alkyl, such as methyl or ethyl. The most common silicone material is linear polydimethylsiloxane. The softer silicone rubber material of rim section 6 has more methyl in it, thus making it soft and stickier. It is contemplated that the softer silicon in rim section 6 will be 28% by weight of the total weight of the swim cap. The cap weight is contemplated to be 0.122 kgs, with rim section 4 having approximately 0.03416 kgs more methyl and skullcap section 2 having 0.08784 kgs less methyl.

The silicon rubber material of skullcap section 2 and the softer silicon rubber material of rim section 4 are fused together at their respective edges 4 and 8, in the fabricated mold, see FIG. 3A, to form the single, integral swim cap 1 of the present invention. The resulting swim cap provides the necessary watertight seal to prevent leakage through and underneath rim section 6 and ultimately into the cap itself.

Certain novel features and components of this invention are disclosed in detail in order to make the invention clear in at least one form thereof. However, it is to be clearly understood that the invention as disclosed is not necessarily limited to the exact form and details as disclosed, since it is apparent that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Claims

1. A swim cap comprising:

a rear skullcap section fabricated of silicon rubber material, said skullcap section configured to substantially cover the head of a swimmer, and

a front rim section fabricated of a silicon rubber material which is softer than the silicon rubber material of the skullcap section, the silicon rubber material of the rim section being fused to the silicon rubber material of the skullcap section to form a single integral cap, wherein when the cap is worn by a swimmer, an airtight, watertight seal is formed between the cap and the swimmer.

2. The swim cap as in claim 1 wherein the rim section has a top edge which circumscribes the top of said rim section and the skullcap section has a bottom edge which circumscribes the bottom of said skullcap section.

3. The swim cap as in claim 2 wherein the rim section extends from the top edge at the forehead of the swimmer to the swimmer's neck, and the skullcap section extends from the bottom edge around the swimmer's head to where the rim section covers the swimmer's neck.

4. The swim cap as in claim 2 wherein the top edge of the rim section and the bottom edge of the skullcap section are fused together to form the cap as a single, integral, unitary cap.

5. The swim cap as in claim 3 wherein the top edge of the rim section and the bottom edge of the skullcap section are fused together to form the cap as a single, integral, unitary cap.

6. The swim cap as in claim 1 wherein the softer silicon rubber material of the skullcap section and the rim section comprise methyl, the silicon rubber material of the rim section comprising more methyl than the silicon rubber material of the skullcap section.

7. The swim cap as in claim 6 wherein the cap weight is 0.122 kgs, the silicon rubber material of the rim section having 0.03416 kgs more methyl and the silicon rubber material of the skullcap section having 0.08784 kgs less methyl.

8. The swim cap as in claim 3 wherein the softer silicon rubber material of the skullcap section and the rim section comprise methyl, the silicon rubber material of the rim section comprising more methyl than the silicon rubber material of the skullcap section.

9. The swim cap as in claim 8 wherein the cap weight is 0.122 kgs, the silicon rubber material of the rim section having 0.03416 kgs more methyl and the silicon rubber material of the skullcap section having 0.08784 kgs less methyl.