Specialty Pants for Wheelchair Bound Patients

Abstract

A pair of specialty pants for immobile patients includes at least two open-ended zippers configured in series on each pant leg. This configuration of zipper assemblies affords access to the full length of the patient's leg and makes it much easier to put on or take off the specialty pants for a patient with mobility issues such as a wheelchair bound patient.

Description

This application claims priority from and incorporates by reference in its entirety U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/880,401 filed on Jul. 30, 2019.

BACKGROUND

Technical Field

Various embodiments of the present invention relate to clothing for people with mobility issues, and more specifically, to pants for immobile patients.

Description of Related Art

Hospitalization can cause stress for anyone, a factor that tends to diminish the healing benefits of patient care. For some even the anxiety of an emergency room (ER) visit may be enough to elevate blood pressure and possibly trigger dormant conditions such as PTSD symptoms. Those with mobility issues may face even more stressful conditions in a hospital setting that can lead to addition anxiety and depressive symptoms. This may result in reluctance to seek medical assistance. Obese individuals may also be subject to increased anxiety in hospital settings due to fears that the hospital equipment, clothing or furniture may not properly accommodate their needs. Further, obese individuals may be sensitive to causing additional burdens to hospital staff which could garner negative attitudes, looks, or words from staff. When caring for bariatric patients, doctors, nurses and hospital staff have a need for hospital equipment that provides for patient comfort and safety. This includes hospital equipment such as beds, wheelchairs, lifts, scales, stretchers, gowns, commodes, and the like. The staff and caretakers at nursing homes face many of the same challenges with immobile and obese residents.

Long term care patients and nursing home patients that are immobile may develop feelings of helplessness and depression due to their inability to perform daily living activities such as dressing themselves or changing clothes. Such ordinary tasks can seem daunting due to decreased mobility. Immobile patients and obese people, whether in hospitals nursing homes, may require special accommodations to preserve their dignity and provide for a high standard of care. Self-esteem among immobile and obese patients requires not only new procedures but also new equipment and tools.

SUMMARY

The present inventor recognized certain drawbacks in the conventional pants worn in hospital settings and elder care facilities. For example, conventional pants do not provide ready access to much of the patient's body and legs, and are difficult to put on and take off of patients stricken with immobility issues. The novel new features and characteristics of the specialty pants for immobile patients, as disclosed herein, overcome these drawbacks and provides certain benefits and advantages not realized in the prior art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute part of the specification, illustrate various aspects of the invention. Together with the general description, the drawings serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1A depicts a front view of a pair of specialty pants for immobile patients, according to various embodiments.

FIG. 1B depicts a front view of the pair of specialty pants of FIG. 1A with zippers unzipped for access, according to various embodiments.

FIG. 1C depicts details of an open-end zipper assembly suitable for use with various embodiments of the specialty pants for immobile patients.

FIG. 2A depicts a front view of a pair of specialty pants for immobile patients featuring access pockets and side pockets, according to various embodiments.

FIG. 2B depicts details of a dual closed-end zipper assembly suitable for use with various embodiments of the specialty pants for immobile patients.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present inventor recognized the lack of suitable clothing—in particular, pants—for immobile and obese patients with immobility issues. Hospital gowns provide convenient access for patient care, but afford very little privacy. This can lead patients to feel uncomfortable and embarrassed, thus diminishing the healing benefits of patient care. Conventional pants and pajama bottoms, on the other hand, afford the requisite degree of privacy. However, conventional pants and pajama bottoms can be difficult to put on and take off an immobile patent such as a wheelchair bound person or an obese person with mobility issues. The inability to perform simply daily activities like putting on clothes in the morning may result in feelings of inadequacy and helplessness which can lead to depression in immobile patients and obese people. The various embodiments disclosed herein overcome these drawbacks and provide certain benefits and advantages for immobile patients and obese people with mobility issues.

FIG. 1A depicts a front view of a pair of specialty pants 100 for immobile patients, according to various embodiments. (The specialty pants 100 may also be called specialty trousers 100.) Various embodiments may be configured with a waistband 115 to provide structural support for the specialty pants 100. The waistband 115 is provided at the proximal end of the specialty pants 100. The pant legs of the specialty pants 100 extend downward away from waistband 115 to distal ends. The distal ends of the pant legs, in some embodiments, may be cuffed (not show). In some implementations the waistband 115 may feature waistband material sewn over the top of cloth extending up from the pant legs. For example, the waistband material may be sewn slightly under the top end of the pants. In such implementations the waistband is considered to include the waistband material and all cloth extending upwards above it to the proximal (upper) end of the pants. A waistband fastener 117 in the form of a snap, a button or a hook and loop, may be proved near the front center part of the waistband 115.

Various embodiments of the specialty pants 100 include at least four pantleg zipper assemblies 110 on the pant legs to ease dressing and undressing of the wearer, and provide access for medical or hygiene procedures—that is, at least two pantleg zipper assemblies 110 per pant leg. Each pantleg zipper assembly 110 includes a zipper slider 101 moveably mounted on two opposing rows of zipper teeth. The zipper teeth themselves are typically mounted on a strip of durable cloth or other material which is often called a tape. The zipper teeth mounted on a tape may be called a zipper track or zipper teeth tracks. FIGS. 1A-C depict vertical zipper teeth tracks 103a and 103b. The teeth tracks 103a and 103b run up the pant leg. The zipper teeth tracks 103a and 103b are depicted in the figures as being positioned towards the sides of specialty pants 100. However, in at least some embodiments the zipper teeth tracks 103a and 103b may be positioned to run up and down the front, the back or the inner sides of the pant legs. Further, at least some embodiments may be implemented with more than one set of zipper teeth tracks 103a and 103b per pant leg. Details of the pantleg zipper assembly 110 are shown in FIG. 1C, discussed below.

To aid in the explanations herein the zipper sliders 101 are labeled in the figures as 101a, 101b or 101c to distinguish between upper zipper sliders 101a, the lower zipper sliders 101b and the fly and pocket zipper sliders 101c. The label “101” as used herein is generic to 101a, 101b, 101c, or any combination of the three. Moveably mounting the zipper slider 101 allows the wearer, or another person such as a nurse or caretaker, to slide the zipper slider 101 up and down in the vertical direction so as to zip and unzip the zipper teeth tracks 103a and 103b. The specialty pants 100 may have a zipper assembly 110 and zipper slider 101c for the fly of the pants, as shown in FIG. 1A. The fly zipper makes it easier for a wearer to put the specialty pants 100 on and take them off, and makes the specialty pants 100 look and feel more like regular pants to the person wearing them.

In FIG. 1A the zipper slider 101 of the right pant leg (shown on the left of the figure) has been pulled up to unzip a lower portion of the leg. This allows a doctor, nurse or care provider to conveniently access the patient's lower leg for medical or hygiene procedures. The top zipper sliders 101a similarly open the pantleg zipper assemblies 110 from the top allowing access to the patient's hip and upper leg. Various embodiments may have a barrier cloth 119 behind the pantleg zipper assembly 110 to keep the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b away from the patient's skin. To fasten the barrier cloth 119 to the pant leg across the pantleg zipper assembly 110 the barrier cloth 119 may have Velcro™ hook and loop fasteners 113a/113b attached to it. Typically, single tabs of Velcro™ are provided near the bottom of the pant leg adjacent the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b to serve as the hook and loop fasteners 113a/113b. In this way, the barrier cloth 119 is correctly lined up as the user begins to zip up the pantleg zipper assembly 110. Other embodiments may have either multiple tabs of Velcro™ along the length of the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b from top to bottom, or even continuous strips of Velcro™ along the length of the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b from top to bottom to ensure that the barrier cloths 119 remain in place between the patient's leg and the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b. The barrier cloth 119 may be implemented in one long strip of cloth running from the top of the pant leg to the bottom, or may be implanted using two pieces of cloth—one behind each zipper teeth track 103a/103b.

FIG. 1C depicts details of an open-end zipper assembly suitable for use as the pantleg zipper assembly 110 in accordance with various embodiments of the specialty pants for immobile patients. A retaining box 105 is positioned at an end of the zipper teeth track 103a. The corresponding end of the zipper teeth track 103b has an insertion pin 107 that fits into the retaining box 105 to align the zipper teeth track 103a and 103b in anticipation of zipping up pantleg zipper assembly 110. The retaining box 105 and insertion pin 107 produce an open-end pantleg zipper assembly that comes apart similar to the zipper on a coat. This allows the full length of the pant leg to open up and spread flat or be folded out of the way. To open up the lower portion of the pant leg the lower zipper slider 101b is pulled upward, separating zipper teeth track 103a from zipper teeth track 103b until the zipper slider 101b reaches the retaining box 105. With zipper slider 101b against retaining box 105 the insertion pin 107 can be removed from the retaining box 105, allowing the zipper teeth track 103a to be completely separated from zipper teeth track 103b and the pant leg to be opened. The retaining box 105 keeps one side of zipper slider 101b on the zipper teeth track 103a or 103b (the side opposite the insertion pin 107). At the other end of the zipper tracks 103a and 103b the open-end stops 109 prevent the zipper slider 101b from coming off zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b upon closing (zipping) the pantleg zipper assembly 110. To close (zip) the zipper assembly 110 the zipper slider 101b is pulled along the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b to the open-end stops 109 which serve as the end of the zipper tracks on the end where the zipper slider 101b zips toward. The actual metal or plastic teeth portions of zipper teeth tracks 103a and 103b are typically fastened to a durable yet flexible cloth strip, as shown in FIG. 1C. To simplify the explanation the pantleg zipper assembly 110. The zipper teeth themselves are typically mounted on a strip of durable cloth or other material called a tape 129. The zipper teeth mounted on tape 129 may be called a zipper track or zipper teeth tracks.

FIG. 1B depicts a front view of the specialty pants 100 of FIG. 1A with the pantleg zipper assemblies 110 of one pant leg unzipped for access, according to various embodiments. The zipper sliders 101a and 101b are typically the same type of component part—that is, the same type of zipper slider. They are labeled “a” and “b” for the purposes of this explanation to distinguish between the upper zipper sliders 101a and the lower zipper sliders 101b. However, in some embodiments the various zipper sliders 101a and 101b may be different styles or sizes to suit the purpose. For example, smaller zipper sliders may be used for the pockets or for the fly zipper of the pants. The upper pantleg zipper assembly 110 and the lower pantleg zipper assembly 110 are in series with each other. This means that, upon unzipping both the upper and lower pantleg zipper assemblies 110 the pant leg opens completely up to provide access to the full length of the patient's leg. In other words, the cloth flap of the pant leg at Point A shown in FIG. 1B can be separated from the cloth flap of the pant leg at Point B once the upper pantleg zipper assembly 110 and the lower pantleg zipper assembly 110 have both been unzipped. In this way, with the upper and lower pantleg zipper assemblies 110 in series with each other, the unzipped pant leg can be laid flat and slipped beneath an immobile patient while in bed, in a wheelchair, or while sitting in a chair. In other embodiments the upper and lower zippers may be closed-end zippers so the central part of the pant leg stays intact—that is, does not separate completely as shown in the figures.

The specialty pants 100 are configured such that the upper zippers 110 are closed (zipped) in response to each upper zipper slider 101a being pulled upwards towards the top of its respective trouser leg. The lower zippers 110 are closed (zipped) in response to each lower zipper slider 101b being pulled downwards towards the bottom of its respective trouser leg. In some embodiments this configuration is reversed so that the zippers 110 are zipped by pulling the zipper sliders 101a and 101b towards the middle (knee area) of the trouser leg. These embodiments, and the embodiment depicted in FIGS. 1A-B are called opposing pull zipper configurations. In an opposing pull zipper configuration the top zipper 110 and the bottom zipper 110 pull in opposite directions to close (and also pull in opposite directions to open).

In yet other embodiments the zippers 110 that are in series with each other may be configured in a congruent zipper configuration so the zippers are all pulled the same way to open them and the same way to close them. For example, the zippers 110 may be configured in a congruent zipper configuration so that zippers 110 are each pulled upward to open them and are each pulled downward to close them. Alternatively, the zippers 110 may be configured in a congruent zipper configuration so that zippers 110 are each pulled downward to open them and are each pulled upward to close them.

The opposing zipper configuration depicted in FIGS. 1A-B is advantageous inasmuch as the zippers 110 are positioned at the ends of the pant legs in the closed position. This can be seen in FIG. 1A where top zipper 101a is positioned at the top of the right pant leg while zipper 101b which is unzipped just a few inches is positioned towards the bottom of the right pant leg. The other opposing zipper configuration—with the closed zippers 110 toward the center (knee) portion of the pant leg—may provide greater ease of access in certain situations. For example, a wheelchair bound patient or person in the sitting position would place the closed zippers 110 on top of their lower thigh, just above the knee. If a nurse, doctor or other hospital staff needs to access to the patient's thigh this arrangement is quite convenient.

The embodiments depicted in FIGS. 1A-B show the upper zipper assemblies 110 being approximately the same length as the lower zipper assemblies 110. As such, the upper zipper assembly 110 extends downward from the top of the waistband 115 to a point in the vertical middle section of the pant leg. In some embodiments the upper to lower pantleg zipper ratio is 50/50. That is, the ratio of the length of the upper pantleg zipper assembly to the length of the lower pantleg zipper assembly is 50/50. In other embodiments the upper/lower zipper ratio may be as his as 75/25 to as low as 25/75, or any single ratio or range of ratios within 75/25 to 25/75. For example, various embodiments fall within one or more of the following upper/lower zipper ratio ranges: 55/45 to 45/55; or 60/40 to 40/60; or 62.5/37.5 to 45/55; or other such upper/lower zipper ratios as are known by those of skill in the art.

The embodiments depicted in FIGS. 1A-B have two pantleg zipper assemblies 110 on each pant leg. Other embodiments may have more than two pantleg zipper assemblies 110 per pant leg. One such embodiment has three pantleg zipper assemblies 110 per pant leg. Another embodiment has four pantleg zipper assemblies 110 per pant leg. Depending upon the requirements of the implementation, some embodiments may have five or more pantleg zipper assemblies 110 per pant leg. In various embodiments with three or more pantleg zipper assemblies 110 per pant leg the length of the longest pantleg zipper assembly 110 is typically within 35% the length of the shortest pantleg zipper assembly 110. In one three zipper embodiment, however, a short pantleg zipper assembly 110 may be provided at the bottom of the pant leg to provide access to the ankle, or alternatively may be provided at the top of the pant leg to provide access to the patient's hip. The short pantleg zipper assembly in such embodiments may be 25% or less of the overall pant leg length—that is, 25% or less of the sum of the three series zipper lengths.

Various embodiments of the specialty pants 100 may have one or more pockets 121a for the convenience of the patient, as depicted in FIGS. 1A-B. The specialty pants 100 may have conventional pockets that are fixed in place, or may be configured with one or more access pockets featuring a removable inner pocket portion 121b. The removable inner pocket portion 121b is shown in FIG. 1B inside the unzipped pant leg. In some embodiments the removable inner pocket portion 121b may be removable to transform one or more of the pocket holes into an access hole for medical procedures or wound care. Such a pocket with a removable inner pocket portion 121b is called an access pocket. Pocket removal zipper 131 allows a user to remove the removable inner portion of the pocket 121b transforming pocket hole 121a into an access hole. If the access hole is no longer needed, the removable inner portion of the pocket 121b can again be removably affixed using removal zipper 131. Since the removal zipper 131 may be positioned directly against the patient's leg or other skin the removal zipper 131 may be implemented with nylon teeth. Nylon zipper teeth tend to be less scratchy to the patient than metal zipper teeth. In some embodiments a number of buttons or snaps, or a Velcro™ hook-and-loop strip may be used to keep the removable inner portion of the pocket 121b in place rather than a zipper assembly.

In some embodiments the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b extend upward across the waistband 115 so that it unzips and comes apart. Even though the waistband 115 may be configured to unzip and comes apart, it is still considered a single component for the purposes of this disclosure. This provides access to a patient's hip and upper thigh by way of unzipping the side zipper of the specialty pants 100 rather than the necessity of removing the entire pants as is required with conventional pants. The specialty pants may also be provided with a fly which is accessible via a fly zipper slider 101c. Features such as the fly and the pockets make the specialty pants 100 feel more like conventional pants, thus helping to put the patient or other wearer at ease. The specialty pants 100 embodiments may also be provided with a belt 111 and belt loops sewn or otherwise affixed to an outside top portion of the pants.

FIG. 2A depicts a front view of a pair of specialty pants 150 for immobile patients featuring access pockets 120 and side pockets 123a, according to various embodiments. The present inventor realized that it can be difficult for a wheelchair bound person or obese person with mobility issues to put their hand in the pocket of conventional trousers while in the sitting position. To overcome this disadvantage the various embodiments may be configured to have side pockets 123a. The side pockets 123a may be positioned approximately parallel to the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b on the side of the pant leg, for example, within 2 inches on either side of the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b. The side pockets 123a typically use a dual closed-end zipper assembly 120 as shown in FIG. 2B. A side pocket 123a is considered to be “approximately parallel” to the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b if the end points of the side pocket 123a dual closed-end zipper assembly are within 15 degrees of the line defining the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b nearest the side pocket 123a. In other embodiments the side pockets 123a may be positioned approximately perpendicular to the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b along the side of the pant leg (+/−15 degrees of perpendicular), or at any angle in between parallel and perpendicular. The side pockets 123a are typically positioned no closer than 8 inches from the top of the waistband 115 (proximal end of the specialty pants 100) and no lower than the wearer's knee. Providing side pockets 123a midway along the wearer's thigh in this manner makes it much easier for the wearer to access the pocket while seated in a wheelchair, or even in a conventional chair.

FIG. 2A depicts an access pocket 120 on each leg of the specialty pants 100. An “access pocket,” as this term is used herein, is a pocket with a dual closed-end zipper assembly and a removable inner pocket portion 125 (shown by the dotted lines), which is similar to the removable inner pocket portion 121b discussed above in conjunction with FIG. 1B. Access pockets 120 may be positioned anywhere on the specialty pants 100. For example, access pockets 120 may be positioned on the thigh of the pants, a position quite convenient to a wheelchair bound person or obese person with mobility issues. Access pockets 120 can also be placed lower on the wearer's leg down by the ankle. Such a location is not particularly useful to an immobile person, but rather, may be used by nurses or hospital staff to store items for their use in treating that particular patient.

FIG. 2B depicts details of a dual closed-end zipper assembly suitable for use with various embodiments of the specialty pants for immobile patients. The dual closed-end zipper assembly 120 zips back and forth (or up and down) to zip and unzip. The zipper slider 101c shown in FIG. 2B of the dual closed-end zipper assembly 120 is captive on both zipper tracks. That is, the zipper slider 101c remains on both of the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b as it zips and unzips, coming to a stop at each end against the closed-end stop 127.

Some embodiments of the specialty pants 100 may be configured with one or more pantleg removal zipper assemblies 133. The pantleg removal zippers 133 zip around the leg of the pants to remove a portion of it. This is especially handy if the wearer has a lower leg cast on, a swollen foot or calf, or wound dressing on their lower leg that should remain exposed. This may be achieved by providing an open-end zipper assembly (as shown in FIG. 1C) spanning from the open-end stop 109 of the zipper teeth track 103a around the pant leg to the open-end stop 109 of the zipper teeth track 103b. In this way, the ends of the vertical zipper teeth track 103b is closely adjacent to the end of the zipper track of the pantleg removal zippers 133 zip, allowing the lower panel of the pant leg to be removed. Another means of implementing the pantleg removal zippers is by using a Nendo™ crossover-intersection zipper which are configured to cross-over each other at a zipper track intersection.

Various embodiments use zippers with either metal zipper teeth or nylon zipper teeth or zipper teeth made from other types of plastics or man-made materials. The metals used in metal zipper teeth typically include brass, aluminum and nickel. But other types of metals may be used such as stainless steel—so long as the metals are rust resistant and not subject to being damaged when washed. Metal zipper teeth tend to be more durable and heat resistant than nylon zipper teeth. However, nylon zipper teeth are more flexible than metal zipper teeth, and thus able to resist damage due to some amount of flexing or stretching.

Although the above description has been explained in terms of using zippers some embodiments may be implemented using other types of fabric connectors. For example, it may be possible to use Ziploc™ type resealable connector strips with slide-seal pull tabs. Yet other embodiments may be implemented using a Nendo™ straight-line zipper with reconfigurable gaps, a Nendo™ Zippppper, a Nendo™ crossover-intersection zipper, or other such cloth closure mechanism utilizing a linear pull tab (similar to a zipper slider) as are known by those of ordinary skill in the art.

The terminology used herein describes the embodiments outlined in this specification, and is not intended to limit the invention. A “linear cloth connector mechanism” detachably connects two pieces of cloth together. “Linear cloth connector mechanisms” are linear inasmuch as they connect pieces of cloth together (i.e., unzip and zip) along a path or line—although it may not necessarily be a straight line. Examples of different types of “linear cloth connector mechanisms” utilizing a slider component (e.g., zipper sliders 101a-c of FIGS. 1A-C) may include: zippers, Ziploc™ type resealable connector strips, Nendo™ cloth connector mechanisms, and other such connection mechanisms known to those of ordinary skill in the art.

The terms “up” or “upward” refer to a direction on the pants in the standing position tending away from the feet of the pant legs. The terms “directly up” or “directly upward” refer to the direction straight upward along the zipper teeth tracks 103a/103b while zipped. The term “horizontal” in regards to pants means the sideways direction—that is, the average direction of the waistband. Since pants cover a human body composed of non-planar, non-standard shaped members, the shape of the pants themselves are not easy to describe in a mathematically precise manner. That's why the “horizontal” direction is described in terms of the average direction of the waistband. The waistband of the specialty pants is located at the “proximal end”. The ends of the pant legs (near a wearer's feet) are “distal ends”. The term “vertical” in regards to pants means the up/down direction from the pants' waistband to end of the pant legs. The “vertical” direction on a pair of pants is at a right angle to the “horizontal” pants direction defined above. The “vertical middle point” of a pant leg is the point which is 50% of the way down from the top of the waistband to the bottom of pant leg. The “vertical middle point” is generally measured along the outermost vertical line of the pants—that is, the vertical line on the outermost crease if the pants are laid flat on the ground. The vertical middle points running horizontally across the front and back of the pants run in a straight line from the left vertical middle point to the right vertical middle point. The “vertical middle section” of the pant leg is the middle third centered around the vertical middle point—that is, one sixth of the way above and below the vertical middle point.

The phrase “moveably mounted” as used herein means mounted in a manner that allows the component some degree of movement. For example, a hinge is moveably mounted on a door frame inasmuch as the hinge can swing outward away from the door frame, and a zipper slider is moveably mounted on zipper tracks inasmuch as it can be moved (zipped/unzipped) back and forth. The phrases “removably attached”, “removably affixed” or “removably mounted”, as used herein, mean a part or component that can be attached to another part, and later removed without destroying or damaging either part or the mechanism for removably attaching the two pieces. For example, the Velcro™ hook and loop fasteners 113a/113b may be used to removably attach the two flaps of the pant leg in anticipation of zipping up the pant leg. By contrast the belt loops which are sewn (or riveted, glued, etc.) to pants on or near the waistband 115 not removably attached. The belt loops are considered to be “permanently attached” or “permanently affixed”, as used herein, since they are attached in a manner that is not conducive to separating the parts without damaging one part or the other, or damaging the means of attaching them together. Two parts may be “permanently attached” (or “permanently affixed”), for example, by being sewn, glued or riveted together. Moreover, two component parts that are formed from the same piece of cloth or other material may be considered to be permanently attached together. For example, it is possible that barrier cloth 119 could be formed from the same piece of cloth material as the pant leg by folding it over and hemming it, rather than sewing on a separate piece of material for the barrier cloth 119. In such an implementation where the barrier cloth 119 is formed from the same piece of cloth material as the pant leg, the two component parts are considered to be permanently attached. To this end, two component parts formed from the same piece of cloth material are considered to be “attached”, for the purposes of this disclosure. The term “arranging” can mean either attaching to or forming on. For example, a barrier cloth 119 arranged on a pant leg can either be attached (e.g., sewn to) the pant leg or can be formed from the same piece of cloth material as the pant leg.

The phrase “at least proximate” refers to two or more components' locations relative to each other. For example, the top retaining box 105 is “at least proximate” to the waistband 115 of the specialty pants 100. As such, the retaining box 105 may either be positioned on the waistband 115, or may be adjacent the waistband 115 on the pant leg. The term “adjacent” as used herein shall mean that the item is within the greater of either: 1) within one inch of the other component; or 2) within 20% of the length of the item that is said to be adjacent another component. For example, the pocket hole 121a is said to be adjacent the waistband 115 if the pocket hole 121a is either within one inch of the waistband 115 or is within a distance of no more than 20% of the pocket hole 121a's width. “At least proximate” can also mean within a distance of no greater than one-half the largest dimension of the thing itself. For example, a one inch long part is at least proximate another item if it is within at least one-half an inch of the item.

The two sides (zipper teeth tracks) of an “open-ended” ended zipper assembly separate from each other upon being unzipped. For example, most coats employ open-ended zipper assemblies so that the sides with the zipper tracks can come open, allowing the wearer to put on or take off the coat. The zipper slider is typically configured to remain captive on one of the zipper tracks of an “open-ended” ended zipper assembly between a retaining box and an open-end stop. In contrast to the open-ended zipper assembly, the zipper on the fly of a pair of pants is closed-ended since the fly zipper simply reaches the bottom end stops without the two parts of the pants separating at the closed end. Two open-ended zipper assemblies are said to be in “series” if a piece of cloth connected to one side of the zipper teeth track 103a of both zipper assemblies separates from the piece of cloth connected to the other side of the zipper teeth track 103b of both zipper assemblies. For example, the upper and lower zipper assemblies 110 of the left pant leg shown in FIG. 2B (on the right) are in series since, with both zipper assemblies 110 unzipped, the two sides of the pant leg separate from each other to expose the full length of the patient's leg. (The right pant leg zipper assemblies 110 are also in series—but are not show as being completely unzipped in the figures.)

The ends of the zipper tracks of a “dual closed-end” zipper assembly do not separate. Rather, the zipper tracks are held together at each end by a closed end stop. For example, some coin purses feature a dual closed-end zipper. A “dual closed-end” zipper unzips and zips, but the ends of the zipper tracks do not come apart, even when unzipped. A zipper assembly may be configured with one open-end (separates) and one closed-end (end stays together). The zipper on the fly of a pair of jeans is typically such a zipper with a closed-end at the bottom and an open-end at the top. The slider of a zipper is “captive” on a given zipper track if it cannot be pulled off the zipper track. The slider on a dual closed-end zipper is captive on both zipper tracks. The slider on an open-end zipper assembly comes off of at least one of the tracks. For example, a typical coat zipper unzips and the slider comes away from one of the tracks to open the coat. But the zipper slider of a coat is typically captive on the other coat zipper track. An “open-end zipper assembly” unzips to separate two pieces of cloth. A zipper assembly is in the “zipped position” if the zipper assembly is at least 95% zipped up, that is, at least 95% of the zipper tracks are zipped together (closed). A dual closed-ended zipper assembly is in a “unzipped position” if the zipper assembly is at least 95% unzipped. An open-ended zipper assembly is in the “unzipped position” if the two zipper tracks can separate from each other. For example, a coat with an open-ended zipper is in the unzipped position if the two zipper tracks can be separated, allowing the coat to open so the wearer can put it on or take it off.

As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” and/or “including” used in this specification, including the claims, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. The terms “obtaining” or “providing”, as used herein and in the claims, means to retrieve an article or device to be assembled as part of the apparatus at issue. Further, the terms “obtaining” or “providing” may be defined to mean fabricating, or adapting another part to operate as the article or device. For example, bending up the ends of a bottom panel to form side panels can be interpreted as providing side panels attached to a bottom panel. The term “plurality”, as used herein and in the claims, means two or more of a named element. It should not, however, be interpreted to necessarily refer to every instance of the named element in the entire device. Particularly, if there is a reference to “each” element of a “plurality” of elements. There may be additional elements in the entire device that are not included in the “plurality” and are therefore, not referred to by “each.”

The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of any means plus function elements in the claims below are intended to include any structure, material, or act for performing the function in combination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. The description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope or gist of the invention. The various embodiments included for discussion herein were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

Claims

1. Specialty pants suitable for an immobile patient which are configured for accessibility and ease of dressing and undressing, the specialty pants comprising:

a waistband of the specialty pants, a top of the waistband being at a proximal end of the specialty pants;

a first pant leg ending in a first distal end, and a second pant leg ending in a second distal end;

a plurality of pantleg zipper assemblies mounted on the first pant leg including a first zipper assembly and a second zipper assembly in series with the first zipper assembly;

the first zipper assembly including two first zipper teeth tracks, the two first zipper teeth tracks extending from the proximal end of the specialty pants to a vertical middle section of the first pant leg;

the second zipper assembly including two second zipper teeth tracks, the two second zipper teeth tracks extending from the first distal end of the first pant leg towards an end of the two first zipper teeth tracks in the vertical middle section of the first pant leg;

a first zipper slider configured as part of the first zipper assembly, the first zipper slider being moveably mounted and being captive on at least one of the two first zipper teeth tracks;

a second zipper slider as configured part of the second zipper assembly, the second zipper slider being moveably mounted and being captive on at least one of the two second zipper teeth tracks.

2. The specialty pants of claim 1, wherein the first zipper assembly and the second zipper assembly are both open-ended zipper assemblies.

3. The specialty pants of claim 2, wherein the two first zipper teeth tracks extend across the waistband to the proximal end of the specialty pants.

4. The specialty pants of claim 1, wherein the first zipper assembly is in a zipped position with the first zipper slider adjacent the proximal end of the specialty pants.

5. The specialty pants of claim 4,

wherein the first zipper assembly is in a zipped position with the first zipper slider adjacent the first distal end of the first pant leg; and

wherein the first zipper assembly and the second zipper assembly are both open-ended zipper assemblies.

6. The specialty pants of claim 4, further comprising:

one or more barrier cloths positioned behind the first zipper assembly and the second zipper assembly.

7. The specialty pants of claim 4, wherein the first zipper assembly and the second zipper assembly are characterized by an upper/lower zipper ratio ranges of from 55/45 to 45/55.

8. The specialty pants of claim 4, further comprising:

a side pocket positioned within 2 inches of the first zipper assembly but no closer than 8 inches from the proximal end of the specialty pants.

9. The specialty pants of claim 5, wherein the first zipper assembly and the second zipper are configured in an opposing pull zipper configuration.

10. The specialty pants of claim 4, further comprising:

a waistband fastener and a plurality of belt loops provided on the waistband.

11. The specialty pants of claim 5, further comprising:

one or more access pockets, each of the one or more access pockets including a dual closed-end zipper assembly and a removable inner pocket portion.

12. The specialty pants of claim 11, wherein at least one of the one or more access pockets is located above a vertical middle point of the first pant leg.