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  Scent-suppressing fiber, and articles incorporating sameUSPTO Application #: 20070271682Title: Scent-suppressing fiber, and articles incorporating same Abstract: Scent-suppressing fiber to be woven into articles of clothing or other equipment formed of fabric to inhibit or eliminate the emission of scents when the wearer is in the vicinity of wildlife. The fiber is a conventional thread coated with carbon. A fabric sheet is formed completely of woven carbon scent-suppressing fibers, or alternatively may be formed of carbon scent-suppressing fibers interwoven with conventional fibers. The resulting fabric sheet is formed into articles of clothing to suppress scent emission that highly sensitive wild creatures can detect. Because the fiber is structurally a part of the clothing article, its cost is less than if the scent-suppressing fiber were applied superficially, as in a sandwich type layering system. Also, because the fiber is continuously present in the material, the scent-suppressing capability covers the entire garment and is not limited only to large surface areas. (end of abstract) Agent: Carrier Blackman And Associates - Novi, MI, US Inventor: Robert Eastman USPTO Applicaton #: 20070271682 - Class: 002243100 (USPTO) Related Patent Categories: Apparel, General Structure The Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070271682. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to scent-suppressing fibers, and to fabrics and fabric articles made using the fibers. More particularly, the present invention relates to a fiber or thread having a scent-suppressing material associated therewith, and to fabrics and fabric articles containing such fibers. Fabric woven from the scent-suppressing fiber is itself scent-suppressing, and can be formed into scent-suppressing garments and equipment. [0003] 2. Background Art [0004] The acuity of animals' sense of smell is well known, particularly to hunters, bird watchers, and other outdoor enthusiasts. Wildlife has an instinctive reaction to human scent that has developed and has been honed over thousands of years. As a result of this sensory ability, wildlife has an advantage in detecting a human presence, often before humans have the ability to detect wildlife. [0005] In order to overcome this sensory advantage and give an advantage to humans who are attempting to approach wildlife, many solutions have been offered. One partial solution is visual camouflage. This ancient solution attempts to confuse wildlife by using clothing or natural items, such as leaves, to break up the silhouette of a human. Visual camouflage can be successful in concealing a human's presence to wildlife, as long as the wearer is conscientious about the wind direction when approaching wildlife, and remains downwind from the animal. This situation could complicate matters and at its best, is a compromise. [0006] Another solution is to mask human scent with another scent, or olfactory camouflage. Olfactory camouflage provides a scent that wildlife would either be attracted to or at least indifferent to. This solution could be described as an offensive scent/scent strategy, since the user would be actively emitting a scent to engage the wildlife, and therefore betray the presence of something emitting a scent. A preferred strategy would be to remove any indication of the presence of the human by suppressing any emanation of scent from the human. [0007] Suppression of human scent can be achieved by wearing scent-suppressing clothing. Some layered clothing of this type is known and is commercially available, such as the clothing sold by A.L.S. Enterprises, Inc. of Muskegon, Mich. under the trademark SCENT-LOK. Ideally, this clothing would be of a style and type that is comfortable and easy to wear. Because of the nature of the use of the clothing in an outdoor, hostile environment, the clothing should be durable and resistant to tearing and puncturing. Finally, the clothing would be able to be washed and re-worn multiple times without losing its scent-suppressing capabilities, unlike some prior art clothing which cannot be washed even once, or other scent-dampening clothing that gradually loses its effectiveness after frequent washings or exposure to soaking in water, a condition that can be expected while spending a great deal of time outdoors, often in remote locations. [0008] Examples of published patents relating to known scent-suppressing clothing include U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,678,247; 5,383,236; 6,134,718; 5,539,930; and 6,000,057. The prior art includes articles of clothing consisting of various coatings of scent absorbing materials, via silk screening or spray coating or using a layered effect, usually sandwiching the active layer between two or more inactive layers. [0009] Although multilayered and coated scent-suppressing fabrics have been shown to have some efficacy, they are expensive to manufacture, as well as cumbersome, hot and somewhat uncomfortable when used to form garments. Additionally, coated fabrics are susceptible to losing scent-suppressing abilities due to surface wear or puncture, or as a result of cleaning. [0010] A need exists for a scent-suppressing fabric which is capable of being made in a single layer, to reduce manufacturing cost and increase comfort in the end product. A need also exists for a scent-suppressing fabric which does not include a separate coating layer on one side of the fabric, so that the scent suppression capability is maintained even after wear and surface damage associated with the rigors of outdoors activities or due to normal cleaning. A need exists for a cost effective scent-suppressing fiber and fabric made with the fiber that can be used to provide improved scent-suppressing garments, equipment and the like. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0011] This invention relates to a scent-suppressing fiber that is capable of being woven into a single-layered fabric that has scent-suppressing properties. The fabric can be formed into articles of clothing to be worn in order to suppress or prevent the wearer's bodily scent or scents from emanating from the wearer to the environment. The fabric can also be formed into equipment and accessories which are scent-suppressing to suppress or prevent scent from emanating from these items. [0012] In a first embodiment of the invention, the fiber is a composite material including a conventional thread core, coated with a scent-suppressing material, such as carbon, a carbon-containing compound, or silver nitrate. [0013] In a second embodiment of the invention, the fiber is a composite thread formed from a plurality of filaments, where some of the filaments include a scent-suppressing material. [0014] In a third embodiment of the invention, the fiber comprises a filamentous thread formed from a polymeric material in which carbon or another scent-suppressing material is trapped in interstices within, or otherwise incorporated into the polymer. [0015] These scent-suppressing fibers may be woven to form a fabric sheet that is formed completely of woven carbon scent-suppressing fibers, or alternatively may be formed of carbon scent-suppressing fibers interwoven with conventional fibers. [0016] The resulting scent-suppressing fabric sheet is capable of being formed into articles of clothing or other equipment that suppresses scent emission detectable by wildlife. Because the scent-suppressing fiber is structurally a part of the article, its durability is much higher than if the scent-suppressing fiber were applied superficially, as in a sandwich-type layering system or applied as a fabric coating. Also, because the scent-suppressing fiber may be continuously present within and throughout the material, the scent-suppressing capability covers the entire garment and is not limited to only large surface areas. [0017] The invention will allow the user to reduce or eliminate the ability of wildlife to detect the user's presence. Interweaving scent-suppressing materials in the structure of the fabric itself provides articles of clothing and other equipment formed of the scent-suppressing fabric. [0018] Examples of some articles of clothing which may be fabricated from the scent-suppressing fabric can include whole body suits, upper and lower body coverings, foul-weather gear, foot wear, and head and hand coverings. The garments incorporating the scent-suppressing fiber will have a cumulative effect; therefore, the higher the percentage of the user's body that is covered a fabric article according to the invention, the greater the user's scent will the suppressed from entering the environment and betraying the user's location to wildlife. Other articles that could contain items emitting human scent may be formed from the scent-suppressing fabric, such as containers and storage vessels. Additionally, the present invention can be incorporated into camping gear, such as tents, portable blinds, sleeping bags, tarpaulins, hammocks and chairs. [0019] For a more complete understanding of the present invention, the reader is referred to the following detailed description section, which should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the following detailed description and in the drawings, like numbers refer to like parts. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0020] FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of a scent-suppressing fiber illustrating the carbon coating on a non-carbon filamentous core. [0021] FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of two carbon-scent-suppressing fibers twisted to form a scent-suppressing thread. Continue reading... Full patent description for Scent-suppressing fiber, and articles incorporating same Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Scent-suppressing fiber, and articles incorporating same 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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