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08/24/06 - USPTO Class 002 |  18 views | #20060185058 | Prev - Next | About this Page  002 rss/xml feed  monitor keywords

Football glove

USPTO Application #: 20060185058
Title: Football glove
Abstract: This invention is a glove designed for football quarterbacks. The glove protects his fingers against injury, and enhances his ability to grip and throw a football with accuracy and distance in inclement weather. It has three principal features: (1) It is made of a thin, supple, tacky, water-resistant leather-like material (thickness range 0.008 to 0.024 inches) which fits tightly to the player's hand similar to a golf glove; (2) The four fingers of the glove contain hollow fingertip inserts molded from semi-rigid rubber-like material. These inserts lengthen the fingers slightly and are contoured to conform to the rounded shape of a football so that the fingertips make complete contact with its surface. The inserts enable the quarterback to put firm pressure on the ball when gripping and throwing, and also protect his fingers from injuries caused by striking his hand against the helmet of a defender; and (3) The glove has a pocket sewn into its back to retain a slim package of air-activated chemical which the player can insert to warm his hand in extremely cold weather. (end of abstract)



Agent: Charles B. Mcgough - Savannah, GA, US
Inventor: Charles Brownell McGough
USPTO Applicaton #: 20060185058 - Class: 002163000 (USPTO)

Related Patent Categories: Apparel, Body Garments, Gloves, Fingers

Football glove description/claims


The Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20060185058, Football glove.

Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority to, and the benefits of, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/650,456 filed on Feb. 7, 2005.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

[0002] Not applicable

REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING

[0003] Not applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0004] 1. Field of Endeavor

[0005] The field of endeavor of this invention is athletic (or sports) gloves, specifically gloves used by participants in the game of football as played primarily in the United States and Canada.

[0006] 2. Prior Art

[0007] The players of almost all sports use various types of gloves to protect their hands and improve their performance, and literally dozens of patents have been applied for or issued in this field.

[0008] For example, U.S. Patent Application 20050251078 (Fleishmann; Nov. 10, 2005) describes two-piece finger protectors containing webs and straps designed to protect the hands of soccer goal keepers. USPAs 20040199978 and 2004002522 (Cass; Oct. 14 and Feb. 12, 2004) disclose an athletic glove having holes in the gripping surfaces of three or more fingers and the palm to allow, primarily, for better gripping and handling of a basketball.

[0009] USPA 20040107476 (Goldwitz; Jun. 10, 2004) describes a glove in which two or three of the finger sections are truncated so that, when the glove is worn, the tips of these fingers are exposed. USPA 20040021330 (Percell; Feb. 5, 2004) describes an adhesive film for rubber adhesive tips which, when bonded to fingertips, supposedly enhance the player's ability to grip and throw a ball.

[0010] USPA 20030037364 (Albert; Feb. 27, 2003) is an application for a patent on a "grip-enhancing glove", which contains a plurality of recesses or suction cups on the palm of a bowling glove to enhance control.

[0011] U.S. Pat. No. 5,983,397 (Seminara; Nov. 16, 1999) describes a "Batting Glove", which consists of leather wrist, palm, and finger positions, hook-and-loop fasteners, a raised rubber pad, and other features all designed to enable the batter to cradle a baseball bat handle. U.S. Pat. No. 4,691,387 (Lopez; Sep. 8, 1987) describes a glove apparatus consisting of a non-slip grip and padding on various parts of the hand, which is claimed to provide the wearer advantages in water sports, baseball, weight lifting, golf, cycling, and other sports.

[0012] U.S. Pat. No. 4,624,016 (Luevano, Nov. 25, 1986) claims that its laminated cushion "athletic glove with built-in cushioning" provides protection to the user's hand without interfering with flexing of the hand, thumb, and fingers.

[0013] All of the above patents and applications describe gloves and features of gloves which are intended to protect the athlete's hand and/or improve his/her ability to catch, grip, and/or throw a ball, bat, or other athletic equipment item.

[0014] None of these devices, however, employ any of the three major features of the invention disclosed herein, which are described in detail in the following sections of this application.

[0015] It should also be noted that a number of American sporting goods companies sell gloves designed to improve the performance of football players, including quarterbacks. These gloves are generally made of tacky rubber-like synthetic material which helps the player grip the football, especially under adverse playing conditions such as rain, snow, mud, or cold. In theory, the quarterback is thus able to pass the football with greater length and accuracy than he otherwise could if he were handling the football with his bare hands under these difficult conditions.

[0016] However, these gloves, while popular with almost all football position players, are not widely used by quarterbacks at any level (high school, college, or professional). The reason for this is that the current football gloves are constructed of a relatively stiff and thick (approximately 0.035 inch) material which does not conform perfectly to the quarterback's hand and fingers. The gloves are designed for ruggedness so that they can be used over and over again in many football games. Their relatively heavy construction causes the quarterbacks to lose sensory tactile "feel" in their throwing hand, which causes them to pass the football with less accuracy and consistency than they normally would with their bare hand. Therefore even in cold, wet conditions, when a glove could provide warmth and improved gripping ability, very few quarterbacks at any level use the current generation of gloves.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

[0017] The football glove described herein has three unique and advantageous features which improve upon, and distinguish it from, all gloves which are currently available to football players, including those playing the quarterback position.

[0018] These features are: (1) The glove is made of a very thin (typically less than one-third the thickness of a standard football glove) leather or synthetic leather-like material, fitted tightly to the player's hand; (2) the fingers of the glove enclose rubber or synthetic rubber-like hollow fingertip inserts which protect the player's fingertips against impact injuries, and which are shaped so that the player's fingertips fit tightly against the contour of the football when he/she grips the ball in a throwing position, and (3) a small pocket on the back of the glove designed to hold a slim package of air-activated hand warmer chemicals, which the player can insert in the glove to warm his/her hands in very cold playing conditions. These handwarmer/footwarmer packages are widely available, and are used primarily by outdoor sportsmen.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

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