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Color-coding system for infant clothingRelated Patent Categories: Apparel, Body Garments, Bag Type, Separable, Children'sColor-coding system for infant clothing description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070033697, Color-coding system for infant clothing. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/707,271, filed Aug. 11, 2005, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates generally to infant clothing. More particularly, the present invention relates to articles of infant clothing having indicia thereon for aiding or assisting in sizing, sorting, and preventing or inhibiting loss. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Institutional settings, such as hospitals, often have a large supply of infant clothing articles including T-shirts, undershirts, gowns, singlets, rompers, bodysuits, and the like for use by their pediatric patients. The infant clothing articles are available in various sizes, including 3-months, 6-months, 9-months, 12-months, and 18-months. [0004] Distinguishing the articles of infant clothing from other institutional linens and from each other may be difficult. The infant clothing articles are most often manufactured and available in an all white color. White is a neutral color, is often associated with cleanliness and sterility and is, thus, generally preferred in hospital settings and other institutional settings. For these reasons, other linens in hospital and institutional settings such as bed sheets, pillowcases, cloth diapers, towels, washcloths, and the like are also often white. These different types of linens are often laundered with the various sizes and types of infant clothing, some of which are of a generally similar size as the infant clothing articles (e.g., washcloths and pillowcases). Because the infant clothing articles are generally the same color and often a similar size as the other linens, the infant clothing articles may become mixed in and/or accidentally sorted with the other linens and/or misplaced. [0005] Distinguishing the infant clothing articles by size may also be difficult. Once separated from the other types of linens, infant clothing articles are often sorted, generally by size. Sorting infant clothing articles according to size may be problematic, particularly in institutional settings, which generally have vast amounts of infant clothing articles. Because the size of the clothing is not readily apparent, it is often difficult and time-consuming to determine the size for purposes of sorting and storing and later to locate the desired size from storage. [0006] Current methods of distinguishing infant clothing articles and/or sizes of infant clothing articles include kaumography and tagging. Kaumography is a process of transferring a label or a decal to an article of clothing by applying heat to the label or decal. The label or decal may include the size of the clothing and/or a distinguishing mark, color, or logo. Kaumography requires an additional step in manufacturing the article and, thus, may be a time-consuming and/or expensive way of distinguishing the clothing and/or indicating size. Alternatively, tagging involves placing a tag or label on the article of infant clothing, usually on the upper, back, inside portion of the article of infant clothing, to indicate the size. Although tags may be required to provide information about the article of infant clothing such as fiber content, relying on writing on the tag to identify the size of the article of infant clothing may be undesirable because the tags may lose ink color, curl, shrink, and/or tear. Moreover, the writing on the tag may be difficult to see from a distance, thus making it difficult to identify the sizes and sort the clothing. In addition, because the tags and the writing on the tags are often small in size or can fade during washing and/or laundering, they do not readily distinguish the articles of infant clothing from the other linens or from other sizes of infant clothing items. Thus, tagging may also be a time-consuming and/or ineffective way of differentiating the infant clothing articles and/or the size of the infant clothing articles. [0007] Therefore, there exists a need for an improved system of coding articles of infant clothing that promotes efficiency in size determination and sorting and minimizes the risk of loss. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0008] According to one embodiment, an article of infant clothing comprises a front portion and a back portion. At least one edge of the back portion is attached to at least one edge of the front portion by a corresponding at least one seam area such that the front portion and the back portion form a tubular body casing having a neck opening, a first arm opening, and a second arm opening. The article of infant clothing includes at least one indicia thereon, which has a color corresponding with a size of the article of infant clothing. [0009] According to one method of distinguishing an article of infant clothing, an article of infant clothing is provided. The article of infant clothing has a front portion and a back portion. At least one edge of the back portion is attached to at least one edge of the front portion by a corresponding at least one seam area such that the front portion and the back portion form a tubular body casing having a neck opening, a first arm opening, and a second arm opening. At least one indicia on the article of infant clothing is also provided. The at least one indicia has a color thereon corresponding with a size of the article of infant clothing. The color of the at least one indicia is compared to a color code. The color code has a color corresponding to a size of the article of infant clothing. [0010] According to one method of manufacturing an article of infant clothing, an article of infant clothing is provided. At least one indicia is provided thereon. The at least one indicia has a color corresponding with a size of the article of infant clothing. [0011] The above summary of the present invention is not intended to represent each embodiment or every aspect of the present invention. The detailed description and Figures will describe many of the embodiments and aspects of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0012] The foregoing and other advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings. [0013] FIG. 1a illustrates a front view of a short sleeve, slip-over infant shirt according to one embodiment of the present invention. [0014] FIG. 1b illustrates a back view of the slip-over infant shirt of FIG. 1a. [0015] FIG. 2a illustrates a front view of a long sleeve, snap-side infant shirt, according to another embodiment of the present invention. [0016] FIG. 2b illustrates a back view of the snap-side infant shirt of FIG. 2a. [0017] While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention. DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS [0018] The present invention is directed to infant clothing articles having indicia thereon for aiding or assisting in sizing, sorting, and/or minimizing the risk of loss of the infant clothing articles. Continue reading about Color-coding system for infant clothing... Full patent description for Color-coding system for infant clothing Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Color-coding system for infant clothing patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. 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