PANTS HAVING WAISTBAND FOR RECEIVING FLEXIBLE RESTRAINTS

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/110,984, filed Feb. 2, 2015, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND

In many jurisdictions, law enforcement officers have adopted use of flexible restraints (commonly made of a flexible material such as plastic and referred to as Flexibands, Flexible Handcuffs, Plastic Handcuffs, Flexicuffs, and other terms). A variety of reasons for such adoption exist, including low cost, low weight and profile, and sanitary considerations. Unlike conventional metal handcuffs, such restraints are generally not reusable. However, even so, flexible restraints may become indispensable whenever a large number of restraints is required or whenever it is impractical for an officer to carry conventional handcuffs, such as while undercover or in plain-clothes. Although low-profile compared to conventional restraints, flexible restraints still compete for space with other equipment in the modern police officer kit, and may still present an unacceptable visual cue as to the status of undercover police. In order to remain inconspicuous, off-duty, undercover, and plainclothes police officers may forego carrying this useful tool. Therefore, the provision of tactical storage and concealment of flexible restraints is useful for law-enforcement officers.

BRIEF SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary of some embodiments of the invention in order to provide a basic understanding of the invention. This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention. It is not intended to identify key/critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some embodiments of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

Embodiments herein are directed to a slender pocket forming a tunnel in a pants garment (e.g., full length pants, shorts, overalls, jumpsuit, suit, girdle, harness, or other variations). For example, in at least one embodiment, the tunnel is formed as a tube of fabric that is fixed to an interior side of the pants garment and that runs parallel to and/or along the waistband. The tunnel is sufficiently narrow that a flexible restraint contained therein is held along the contour of the waistband, and sufficiently broad that one or more flexible restraints may be stored therein. One or more openings in the tunnel permit access to the restraints, such as at or near an edge of the waistband. Such openings may correspond to an end of the tunnel which the flexible restraints or cuffs can be inserted into. Additionally or alternatively, the opening or openings may be oriented transverse to—or parallel to—a direction of travel of the tunnel. For example, for a tunnel traveling in a horizontal direction along the waistband or waistline of the pants, a given opening may be oriented to permit vertical feeding of a flexible restraint into the tunnel or may instead be oriented to permit horizontal feeding of a flexible restraint into the tunnel. In various embodiments, the tunnel is fixed along a region of a lower seam of the waistband, but other orientations and locations of the tunnel and/or openings may be utilized. In accordance with various embodiments, equipment secured within the tunnel may be disguised or hidden by the lower seam. The tunnel (or restraints extending therefrom) may additionally or alternatively be covered and obscured from view by a belt worn through a region circumscribed by belt loops if any belt loops are present.

In some embodiments, the slender tunnel or pocket is formed within the waistband of the pants garment. The tunnel may be bounded by existing layers of material that are folded over or otherwise arranged to form the waistband, or additional layers of material may be added to the waistband to form part or all of the tunnel. Thus, in one example, the tunnel is incorporated into the waistband, and positioned within a region of the pants normally covered by a belt. At least one opening of the tunnel may be proximate to or within that covered region, for example, to provide easy access to the tunnel or contents thereof for a wearer of the pants. The tunnel can be sufficiently narrow that a plastic cuff, locking plastic tie, or other flexible restraint inserted therein will follow the contour of the waistband when the pants are worn. The tunnel may also be sufficiently broad that one or more flexible restraints can be easily tucked into and removed from the tunnel. In at least one example, the tunnel has at least one opening placed within reach of the wearer, such as near a seam where the waistband meets the remainder of the body of the pants garment (or the self-fabric). The open end or openings may exit to the exterior of the pants in some embodiments, or additionally or alternatively exit to the interior of the pants. When the pants are worn, the pressure of a belt, the tension in the waistband, or both can cause the flexible restraints to remain in place until intentionally removed.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and advantages of the present invention, reference should be made to the ensuing detailed description and accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a front view of a belt received in pants that include features for storing, accessing, and/or concealing flexible restraints in accordance with at least one embodiment.

FIG. 2 illustrates a front view of the pants of FIG. 1, showing the pants without the belt.

FIG. 3 illustrates a front view of the pants of FIG. 1, showing the pants turned inside out.

FIG. 4 illustrates a front perspective view of another arrangement of the pants of FIG. 1, showing features for storing, accessing, and/or concealing flexible restraints at least partially within in a hollow inner portion of a waistband of the pants.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, various embodiments of the present invention will be described. For purposes of explanation, specific configurations and details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, it will also be apparent to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without the specific details. Furthermore, well-known features may be omitted or simplified in order not to obscure the embodiment being described.

Referring now to the drawings, in which like reference numerals represent like parts throughout the several views, FIG. 1 shows an example of a pants garment 100 (hereinafter pants 100) having features for storing, accessing, and/or concealing flexible restraints 116 such as flexible restraints. Such features may include tunnels, e.g., features provide a passage through at least some portion of the pants 100. The flexible restraints 116 may be formed of plastic and/or any other suitably flexible material and correspond to restraints referred to as Flexibands, Flexible Handcuffs, Plastic Handcuffs, Flexicuffs, and other terms. The pants 100 may correspond to any variation of garment worn about the legs, waist, and/or torso of a wearer, including, but not limited to full length pants, shorts, overalls, jumpsuits, suits, girdles, harnesses, or other variations. The pants 100 may be worn with a belt 126 (such as shown in FIG. 1) or without a belt (such as shown in FIG. 2). In some embodiments, the belt 126 may provide an additional modicum of concealment for the flexible restraints 116, for example, as described in more detail below; however, in various embodiments, the flexible restraints 116 may still be effectively concealed in the pants 100 even without use of the belt 126.

FIG. 3 shows the pants 100 inside-out. Thus, an interior side 132 of the pants 100 (e.g., that faces toward a wearer of the pants 100 when worn by the wearer) occupies most of the view in FIG. 3, although a portion of an exterior side 130 (e.g., that faces away from the wearer when worn) may also be seen. This is in contrast to FIG. 1, in which a larger portion of the exterior side 130 and a smaller portion of the interior side 132 are visible.

The pants 100 shown in FIG. 3 have a waistband 102. At least part of the waistband 102 may form a transition between the interior side 132 and the exterior side 130 of the pants 100. The waistband 102 may correspond to a portion of the pants 100 that may be secured or cinched around a waist of a wearer when worn. The waistband 102 may be formed with any suitable construction, and may include any suitable features for obtaining a desired construction including, but not limited to hems, stitching, joining of multiple layers of fabric, etc.

A restraint tunnel 104 for receiving flexible restraints 116 is shown in FIG. 3 as a tube of material affixed to the waistband 102 so as to at least partially encircle waist of a wearer of the pants 100 when the pants 100 are worn by the wearer. Openings 112 may be provided for access into or from the tunnel 104 for flexible restraints 116. For example, the illustrated restraint tunnel 104 has a first opening 112A and a second opening 112B at respective first and second ends 118A and 118B of the restraint tunnel 104. The first and second openings 112A and 112B are shown respectively positioned on each side of the centerline 120 of the pants 100. These illustrated first and second openings 112A and 112B of the restraint tunnel 104 are located at a distance 110 from the centerline 120 of the pants. This distance may be 4 inches in accordance with some embodiments, for example, to allow ease of access to these first and second openings 112A and 112B for the wearer, but the distance may also vary. Additionally, the distance may differ or be the same between the sides of the centerline 120.

Openings 112 can also be provided in the tunnel 104 at locations other than the ends 118 of the tunnel 104. For example, the tunnel 104 in FIG. 3 is also shown with third and fourth openings 112C and 112D. The illustrated third opening 112C is oriented transverse to a direction of travel of the tunnel 104, while the fourth opening 112D is oriented parallel to a direction of the tunnel 104. Hence, if the direction of travel of the tunnel 104 is considered to be a horizontal direction, flexible restraints 116 can be fed into the third opening 112C also in a horizontal direction. In contrast, a flexible restraint 116 may be fed vertically into the tunnel 104 through the fourth opening 112D, and the contour of the tunnel 104 may cause the vertically-fed flexible restraint 116 to curve and shift into a horizontal alignment as the flexible restraint 116 is inserted further into the tunnel 104.

Providing openings 112 on each side of the centerline 120 may allow flexible restraints 116 to be inserted into either side and drawn from either side. In some aspects, a flexible restraint 116 may be of a length that is sufficient to extend through an entire length of the tunnel 104, for example, from the first opening 112A at the first end 118A to an opening 112B at the second end 118B. Additionally or alternatively, flexible restraints 116 may be used that have lengths that are sufficiently short that different restraints 116 can be inserted into different openings 112A and 112B and extend into the tunnel 104 without contacting and/or interfering with one another.

The openings 112 of the restraint tunnel 104 may be sized relative to the flexible restraints 116. For example, the flexible restraints 116 may include a head and a tail. The head may have a larger cross-sectional size than the tail. For example, the head may correspond to a ratcheting or other receiving structure for receiving a ribbed surface of the tail so that the flexible restraint 116 can be secured about a person's wrist, foot, or other limb by routing the tail through the head and pulling the tail until the flexible restraint 116 is taut or exhibits a suitable or desired amount of tension. Any opening 112 in the restraint tunnel 104 can be sized to permit passage by the tail through the opening 112 into or out of the restraint tunnel 104 and prevent passage by the head through the opening 112 into or out of the restraint tunnel 104. For example, this may cause the head of the flexible restraint 116 to always be accessible outside of the restraint tunnel 104 for ease of grasping by a wearer of the pants 100. As one illustrated example, the fourth opening 112D in FIG. 1 is shown having a narrower width than either a width or thickness that determine a cross-sectional size of a head of a corresponding flexible restraint 116. As may also be appreciated with reference to the other openings 112 in FIG. 1, not all openings 112 need necessarily exhibit sizing restrictions relative to the head of a corresponding flexible restraint 116.

The waistband 102 shown in FIG. 3 is substantially within a region of the pants 100 that may be covered by the belt 126. This may correspond to a region defined by belt loops 122. For example, the illustrated pants 100 include belt loops 122 fixed at upper tack points 106 and lower tack points 108 at intervals spaced about the waistband 102, and the restraint tunnel 104 is shown positioned between these upper tack points 106 and lower tack points 108. Moreover, although belt loops 122 and corresponding tack points 106 and 108 are shown in this example, in some embodiments the pants 100 may lack belt loops 122 entirely and remain within the scope of this disclosure.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the restraint tunnel 104 is affixed to the interior of the waistband 102 in a region proximate to a lower seam 114 of the waistband 102. The lower seam 114 may correspond to a facing seam, which may represent where a fabric forming the waistband 102 is attached to itself after being folded over to form a hem of the waistband 102. However, although the openings 112 of the restraint tunnel 104 are shown proximate to the lower seam 114 of the waistband 102 and facing the front-side centerline 120 of the pants 100, the precise locations of the openings 112 may vary.

The restraint tunnel 104 can receive a single flexible restraint 116 or multiple flexible restraints 116. When received, the flexible restraints 116 may extend toward a rearward portion of the restraint tunnel 104, e.g., along and around the waistline of the wearer. Additionally, although the restraint tunnel 104 is shown in FIG. 3 as a single continuous tunnel around the waistband 102 (e.g., which may simplify manufacturing processes), the restraint tunnel 104 may correspond to separate tunnels, e.g. such that the openings 112 and 112 B correspond to separate tunnels extending along different portions of the waistband 102. Additionally or alternatively, multiple tunnels 104 may be positioned adjacent one another (e.g. stacked vertically above one another between the upper and lower tack points 106 and 108).

In some aspects, features made be provided that facilitate moving flexible restraints 116 between a position along the interior side 132 of the pants 100 and a position along the exterior side 130 of the pants 100. For example, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, a slit 124 is provided adjacent the first opening 112A in the first end 118A of the tunnel 104. This slit 124 may permit a wearer of the pants 100 to reach from the exterior side 130 of the pants 100 and through the slit 124 (e.g. as illustrated by arrow 180 in FIG. 1), such as to grasp a flexible restraint 116 projecting from the first opening 112A of the tunnel 104 or otherwise positioned at another location along the interior side 132 of the pants 100.

The slit 124 may be positioned so as to be difficult to detect when the pants 100 are worn by a wearer. For example, the slit 124 may be positioned within the region of the pants 100 that may be covered by the belt 126. Additionally or alternatively, the slit 124 may be formed by omitting or severing stitching that would otherwise be present in the pants 100. For example, with reference to FIG. 2, the slit 124 may be formed by separating stitching 140 that is used for attaching and/or forming a flap along the fastening interface at a front of the pants 100. Such a construction may hide the presence of the slit 124 from an observer, for example, when the pants 100 are worn without a belt 126, as in FIG. 2.

In some aspects, a slit 134 can be provided to provide access to a flexible restraint 116 through a pocket 138 of the pants 100. For example, the slit 134 shown in FIG. 3 may permit a wearer of the pants 100 to reach inside the pocket 138 for accessing (via the slit 134) a flexible restraint 116 positioned at a location along the interior side 132 of the pants 100. In some cases, this may include the wearer reaching through the slit 134 to reach and/or grasp the flexible restraint 116 (e.g., as is illustrated by arrow 182 in FIG. 2). Such an arrangement may permit a wearer of the pants 100 to store the flexible restraint 116 in the tunnel 104 by directly inserting the flexible restraint 116 along the interior side 132 of the pants 100, which may be easier than storing the flexible restraint 116 by a process of respectively threading through the pocket 138, slit 134, and the first opening 112A.

In some embodiments, the belt 126 when worn may conceal any sign of flexible restraints 116 stored in the restraint tunnel 104. As one example, the free end of a flexible restraint 116 extending out of one of the openings 112 can be tucked under the belt 126 or behind a region covered by a belt, offering additional concealment while maintaining ready access for the wearer. Also, the pants 100 may allow a wearer to protect against a free end of a flexible restraint 116 and/or portions of the tunnel 104 from being visible through the fabric of the pants 100. For example, the belt 126 may cover a portion of the fabric of the pants 100 that may otherwise bulge or be raised by the presence of the flexible restraint 116 pushing against the fabric, such as in response to the pants 100 being tightly cinched about the wearer.

FIG. 4 shows another arrangement of the pants of FIG. 1, showing a tunnel 104A that may be used in addition to or in lieu of the tunnel 104 shown in FIGS. 1-3. The pants 100 shown in FIG. 4 include a hollow inner portion 140 of the waistband 102. For example, the hollow inner portion 140 may correspond to a space formed between a fold and stitching in a hem that forms at least part of the waistband 102. The hollow inner portion 140 may additionally or alternatively correspond to any other space formed between multiple joined portions of fabric of the waistband 102A. The hollow inner portion 140 of the waistband 102 forms boundaries of the tunnel 104A shown in FIG. 4. Thus, for example, in pants 100 having belt loops 122, the restraint tunnel 104 may be located within a region circumscribed by upper tack points 106 and lower tack points 108 of the belt loops 122.

Flexible restraints 116 stored within the restraint tunnel 104 may be accessed through a fifth opening 112E that provides a passage from the inner hollow portion 140 of the waistband 102 to the exterior side 130 of the pants 100. The fifth opening 112E is shown in FIG. 4 as located along the lower external waistband seam 114. The fifth opening 112E may be sufficiently long or large that a user can reach within the opening using one, two, or more fingers to secure or to retrieve one or more flexible restraints 116 therefrom. Alternatively, an end of a flexible restraint 116 may extend from the opening, so that the end is readily accessible to a wearer of the pants 100.

In various embodiments, the fifth opening 112E may be situated so that the fifth opening 112E is fully covered by a belt 126 when worn by the wearer, or so that the fifth opening 112E is otherwise obscured. This arrangement may permit the wearer to grasp a free end of the flexible restraint 116 by reaching underneath and/or behind the belt 126. As with the tunnel 104 shown in FIG. 1, the tunnel 104A shown in FIG. 4 can extend contiguously and/or fully around the waistband 102 of the pants 100, or more than one tunnel 104A can extend from one or from each side of the pants 100 and extend partly or fully around the waistband 102 of the pants 100.

Openings 112 for the tunnel 104A shown in FIG. 4 may be placed in other locations or at other orientations than those just described for the fifth opening 112E. For example, a sixth opening 112F is shown in FIG. 4 at a rear of the pants 100 rather than at a front of the pants 100. Such a location may provide a wearer with more options of storage locations and/or access points for flexible restraints 116. Nevertheless, locating flexible restraints 116 so as to be accessible from a front of the pants 100 may allow a wearer to more easily load flexible restraints 116 into the pants 100 while wearing the pants 100 and/or more easily check and confirm that stored flexible restraints 116 are not visible or otherwise remain suitably concealed. The sixth opening 112F is also arranged with a vertical span rather than the horizontal span shown for the fifth opening 112E, although other orientations are also possible. Moreover, in various embodiments, due to the restraint tunnel 104A extending around the belt line of the wearer, contour changes to the pants 100 due to one or more flexible restraints 116 being received in the tunnel 104A can be covered by a belt 126 worn by the wearer.

As maybe appreciated by the foregoing description, the tunnel 104 or 104A (or multiples thereof) and respective openings 112 can be arranged relative to the pants 100 to facilitate a variety of manners of accessing flexible restraints 116. For example, with respect to FIG. 1, a wearer of the pants 100 may reach along the interior side 132 of the pants 100 (e.g. starting from above the waistband 102) to reach a flexible restraint 116, such as reaching along the illustrated arrow 184 toward the third opening 112C (e.g. for a horizontally-fed flexible restraint 116) and/or reaching along the illustrated arrow 186 toward the fourth opening 112D (e.g., for a vertically-fed flexible restraint 116). Additionally or alternatively, as best seen in FIG. 4, a wearer of the pants 100 may reach along the exterior side 130 of the pants 100 (and behind the belt 126, if present) to grasp a flexible restraint 116, such as reaching along the illustrated arrow 188 (e.g. toward a bottom of a belt loop 122 in order to access a flexible restraint 116 from the second opening 112B) and/or along the illustrated arrow 190 (e.g. toward a top of a belt loop 122 in order to access a flexible restraint 116 from the second opening 112B). As also noted above and most readily apparent from FIG. 2, in some embodiments, the wearer of the pants 100 may reach through the pants 100 to grasp a flexible restraint 116, such as reaching along the illustrated arrow 180 (e.g. through the slit 124) and/or along the illustrated arrow 182 (e.g., through the pocket 138 and/or slit 134). Thus, the pants 100 may be configured in a number of suitable combinations so that a wearer of the pants 100 may readily access, grasp, and deploy a flexible restraint 116 for use, e.g., without the flexible restraint 116 being visible to others beforehand.

Other variations are within the spirit of the present invention. Thus, while the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative constructions, certain illustrated embodiments thereof are shown in the drawings and have been described above in detail. It should be understood, however, that there is no intention to limit the invention to the specific form or forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims.

The use of the terms “a,” and “an,” and “the,” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. The term “connected” is to be construed as partly or wholly contained within, attached to, or joined together, even if there is something intervening. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate embodiments of the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention. As one example, although features may be described herein using ascending ordinal numbers such as first, second, etc., such terms are used merely to assist with identification among various features and do not imply a requirement that all such features be included in all embodiments.

Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.

All references, including publications, patent applications, and patents, cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each reference were individually and specifically indicated to be incorporated by reference and were set forth in its entirety herein.