Selectively folded two-ply brassiere and blank for making the same
IPC분류정보
국가/구분
United States(US) Patent
등록
국제특허분류(IPC7판)
D04B-001/22
A41C-003/00
출원번호
US-0346622
(2003-01-17)
발명자
/ 주소
Rabinowicz, Sigi
Hanan, Talya
출원인 / 주소
Tefron Ltd.
대리인 / 주소
Alston & Bird LLP
인용정보
피인용 횟수 :
1인용 특허 :
10
초록▼
A brassiere for extending around a wearer's torso and supporting the wearer's breasts. The brassiere includes a torso strap supporting a pair of breast cups which in turn support the wearer's breasts. The breast cups are constructed of a two-ply fabric, preferably a circularly knit fabric, and each
A brassiere for extending around a wearer's torso and supporting the wearer's breasts. The brassiere includes a torso strap supporting a pair of breast cups which in turn support the wearer's breasts. The breast cups are constructed of a two-ply fabric, preferably a circularly knit fabric, and each of the breast cups has a fold line positioned along at least a portion of its top edge so as to improve wearer comfort and reduce seams visible through clothing. Also, an underwire may be attached to an exterior side of one of the plies of the two-ply material of each of the breast cups to provide extra support. Optionally, the fold may be knit to have a thinner material than the remaining plies to facilitate formation of a smooth folded upper edge of the breast cup with a finished appearance.
대표청구항▼
1. A brassiere for extending around a wearer's torso and supporting the wearer's breasts, said brassiere comprising:a torso strap having at least one pair of ends;a pair of breast cups each defined by a two-ply fabric material having an inner body-adjacent layer and an outer layer, said breast cups
1. A brassiere for extending around a wearer's torso and supporting the wearer's breasts, said brassiere comprising:a torso strap having at least one pair of ends;a pair of breast cups each defined by a two-ply fabric material having an inner body-adjacent layer and an outer layer, said breast cups adjacently attached to each other and to the torso strap between the ends of the torso strap, said breast cups each having a lower edge configured to extend under at least a portion of one of the wearer's breasts and an upper edge configured to extend over at least an upper portion of one of the wearer's breasts, wherein the lower edge has a seam formed along at least a portion thereof to attach the layers together and wherein said upper edge is defined by a fold line between the inner and outer layers so as to eliminate banding along said upper edge. 2. A brassiere of claim 1, wherein said folded upper edge is configured to extend along a medial portion of the wearer's breast. 3. A brassiere of claim 1, wherein said breast cups are attached at a point between the wearer's breasts and the folded upper edge extends laterally upwards from the attachment point. 4. A brassiere of claim 1, wherein the torso strap is constructed of a two-ply material and includes at least one edge defined by a fold line between the plies. 5. A brassiere of claim 4, wherein the fold line of the torso strap defines a lower edge of the torso strap. 6. A brassiere of claim 1, wherein the two-ply fabric material is formed of a circularly knit fabric blank folded upon itself along the fold line defining the upper edge of each of the breast cups. 7. A brassiere of claim 1, further comprising underwires attached to the breast cups. 8. A brassiere of claim 7, wherein the underwires are disposed between the plies of the two-ply material. 9. A brassiere of claim 7, wherein the underwires are disposed against an exterior side of one of the plies of the two-ply material. 10. A brassiere of claim 1, wherein the torso strap includes a pair of lateral panels each having an free end opposite the torso strap's attachment to one of the breast cups, the free ends of the lateral panels having cooperative fastener members attached thereto for releasably securing the free ends to each other. 11. A brassiere of claim 1, wherein the upper edge is formed of a portion of the breast cup material having a thickness less than the remaining portion of the breast cup material. 12. A brassiere for extending around a wearer's torso and supporting the wearer's breasts, said brassiere comprising:a torso strap having at least one pair of ends;a pair of breast cups each defined by a two-ply fabric material having an inner body-adjacent layer and an outer layer, said breast cups adjacently attached to each other and to the torso strap between the ends of the torso strap, said breast cups each having a lower edge configured to extend under at least a portion of one of the wearer's breasts and an upper edge configured to extend over at least an upper portion of one of the wearer's breasts, wherein said upper edge is defined by a fold line between the inner and outer layers so as to eliminate banding along said upper edge. 13. A brassiere of claim 12, wherein said folded upper edge is configured to extend along a medial portion of the wearer's breast. 14. A brassiere of claim 12, wherein said breast cups are attached at a point between the wearer's breasts and the folded upper edge extends laterally upwards from the attachment point. 15. A brassiere of claim 12, wherein the torso strap is constructed of a two-ply material and includes at least one edge defined by a fold line between the plies. 16. A brassiere of claim 15, wherein the fold line of the torso strap defines a lower edge of the torso strap. 17. A brassiere of claim 12, wherein the two-ply fabric material is formed of a circularly knit fabric blank folded upon itself along the fold line defining the upper edge of each of the breast cu ps. 18. A brassiere of claim 12, further comprising underwires sewn to the breast cups. 19. A brassiere of claim 18, wherein the underwires are disposed between the plies of the two-ply material. 20. A brassiere of claim 18, wherein the underwires are disposed against an exterior side of one of the plies of the two-ply material. 21. A brassiere of claim 12, wherein the torso strap includes a pair of lateral panels each having an free end opposite the torso strap's attachment to one of the breast cups, the free ends of the lateral panels having cooperative fastener members attached thereto for releasably securing the free ends to each other. 22. A brassiere of claim 12, wherein the upper edge is formed of a portion of the breast cup material having a thickness less than the remaining portion of the breast cup material. 23. A blank for making a brassiere for extending around a wearer's torso and supporting the wearer's breasts, comprising a fabric structure having:a first series of courses defining first left and right breast cup panels and defining a first torso strap panel, the first series of courses beginning at a first end of the fabric structure and progressing toward an opposite second end of the fabric structure, an end of the first series of courses defining an upper edge of the breast cup panels and a lower edge of the torso strap panel; anda second series of courses knit to the end of the first series of courses and progressing to the second end of the fabric structure, the second series of courses defining second left and right breast cup panels and defining a second torso strap panel arranged in mirror image to corresponding panels of the first series of courses, wherein the fabric structure can be folded about a fold line located between the first and second series of courses to create a two-ply structure having the first left and right breast cup panels and the first torso strap panel overlying the second left and right breast cup panels and the second torso strap panel, respectively. 24. A blank of claim 23, wherein the fold line is thinner than the rest of the blank to facilitate folding. 25. A blank of claim 23, wherein the fabric structure comprises a circularly knit fabric tube. 26. A blank of claim 23, wherein the fabric tube further comprises a turned welt knit at at least one end of the tube. 27. A method for making at least a portion of a brassiere, said method comprising:knitting a tubular blank by:circularly knitting a first series of courses to form a first tubular structure including a first pair of breast cup panels and a first torso strap panel defined within the tubular structure; andcircularly knitting a second series of courses to an end of the first series of courses to form a second tubular structure as an extension of the first tubular structure, wherein the second tubular structure includes a second pair of breast cup panels and a second torso strap panel wherein the second pair of breast cup panels and the second torso strap panel are shaped similarly to, and positioned in mirror image to, the first pair of breast cup panels and second torso strap panel, respectively, about a juncture between the first and second series of courses;folding the blank about the juncture between the first and second series of courses such that the first tubular structure overlies the second tubular structure and the panels are in registration with each other so as to form a two-ply blank;cutting the two-ply blank along cut lines to define a pair of breast cups and a separate torso strap each breast cup having an upper edge defined by a fold line created by folding the blank; andattaching peripheral edges of the two plies of the breast cups and torso strap together. 28. A method of claim 27, further comprising sewing underwires to an exterior side of one of the plies. 29. A method of claim 27, further comprising sewing underwires between the plies. 30. A method of claim 27, wherein stitching includes stitching to gether at least a portion of a lower peripheral edge of each of the breast cups. 31. A method of claim 27, wherein a plurality of courses are knit at the juncture between the first and second series of courses so as to form a region that is relatively thin compared to the remainder of the blank to facilitate folding the blank at the juncture. 32. A method of claim 27, further comprising slitting the tubular blank along a longitudinal line generally located at a mid-portion of the torso strap and opening up the tubular blank into a flat configuration whereby the torso strap portion is formed into two halves each having one end joined to one of the breast cups and an opposite free end, and further comprising attaching cooperative fastener members to the free ends of the two halves of the torso strap. 33. A method of claim 27, wherein the brassiere is knit with a heat-settable yarn, and further comprising heating and molding the breast cups. 34. A blank for making a brassiere for extending around a wearer's torso and supporting the wearer's breasts, comprising:a tubular two-ply fabric structure having a first series of courses defining a first tubular fabric ply and a second series of courses knit to one end of the first series of courses so as to define a second tubular fabric ply and wherein the first and second series of courses are separated by a fold line and the fold line defines an upper edge of each of a pair of left and right breast cups defined in the two-ply fabric structure. 35. A blank of claim 34, wherein the two-ply fabric structure comprises a single-ply fabric tube produced on a circular knitting machine and subsequently folded to from the two-ply structure.
Schuster Thomas F. (Hickory NC) Osborne Harold G. (Boomer NC), Circularly knit brassiere having knit-in-lift and support panels, and a blank and method for making same.
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