GB2482288A

GB2482288A - Apparatus for connecting an adult hand to a child hand

Info

Publication number: GB2482288A
Application number: GB1012454.3A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Roline Coetzee
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2009-12-09
Filing date: 2010-07-26
Publication date: 2012-02-01
Also published as: GB0921517D0; GB201012454D0

Abstract

An apparatus for connecting an adult hand to a child hand comprises at least one adult sized glove; at least one child sized glove; hook-and-eye fasteners disposed on at least one surface of said child sized glove; and patches 102 of hook-and-eye fasteners disposed on at least one surface of said adult sized glove; whereby said adult sized glove and said child sized glove can be attached together by the hook and eye fastenings. The fastener material is disposed on surfaces which protrude on the human hand and not in surfaces which crease. The gloves are made from breathable nylon mesh 100 and rubber sections 106 are disposed on the finger tips to increase grip and prevent damage and wear. The device may further include a wrist strap 108 attached to the adult sized glove, for wrapping around the child sized glove.

Description

Patent Application of Roline Coetzee Co-operating Gloves for Assisted Exercise

Background of the Invention

[1] The present invention relates to exercise aids for the physically impaired, and in particular to aids for attaching the hands of an aide to the hands of a physically impaired person for exercise.

[21 Gloves are known in the art which are designed to improve a wearer's grip on a particular object. For example, U.S. Fat. No. 6,055,669 to Albert discloses a bowling glove comprising a palm portion and a control-enhancing material attached to the palm portion. The control-enhancing material includes a plurality of recesses, such as suction cups, positioned on the palm portion of the bowling glove. The areas covered by the control-enhancing material include the underside of the index finger, the underside of the thumb, the underside of the little finger, and the underside of the middle and ring fingers. The control-enhancing material is positioned at all or some of the areas on the glove that contact the bowling ball when the glove is worn on the hand of the user and the user is holding a bowling ball. The control-enhancing material works to grip the surface of the bowling ball by a suction force and a friction force.

[3] Similarly, U.S. Design. Pat. No. D506794 to Hunt discloses a design for a training bat and batting glove for baseball, wherein the grip area of the bat and the gripping area of the glove comprise interacting hook-and-loop fastener elements such as Velcro or the like, for enhancing a user's grip on the bat when wearing the glove.

[4] Gloves are also known in the art which are designed for therapeutic purposes. For example, Chinese Pat. No. CN 201020196 to Qiyun discloses a glove for the training and rehabilitation of hands, specifically for sufferers of cerebrovascular disease. The glove comprises a glove body with elastic tubes arranged on a rear face of the glove body in line with the finger tendons of a hand. Elastic bands are provided inside the elastic tubes and connected to the ends of the tubes furthest from the palm, that is, at the fingertips. Elastic band adjusters are connected proximate to the ends of the elastic tubes with adjusting buckles positioned inside the adjusters. The tensile force of the elastic bands can be adjusted through the adjusting buckles. A wrist fixing band is arranged at the wrist of the glove body. The elastic band adjusters are affixed to the wrist fixing band. The glove can be used for rehabilitation exercises such as finger extending and wrist lifting for sufferers of cerebrovascular disease.

[5] Furthermore, Chinese Pat. No. CN 200963301 to Xu discloses a hand function rehabilitation device which enables a user with only one functional hand to perform exercises on a physically impaired hand using the functional hand. The device comprises a pair of gloves, a finger stretching thread, a clamped moving belt, a stretching thread socket, and a push/stretch rod.

One end of the finger stretching thread is connected to the finger tip of the glove, and the other end is connected to the pushing rod through a stretching thread bracket. The clamped moving belt and the stretching thread bracket are positioned on the wrist of the simulated glove. In use, the functional hand uses the rod to move the fingertips of the glove up and down, thus exercising the impaired hand, improving muscle tone and blood circulation.

Brief Suimtiary of the Invention [6] It can be seen from the forgoing that there is a long-established need for exercise aids for the physically impaired.

It would be advantageous to have exercise aids which were suitable for children, since their size makes adult aids impractical for them.

[7] It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide adult and child sized gloves which co-operate by attaching to each other, to aid an adult in assisting a child with restricted movement to exercise. It is a further object of the invention to provide such gloves which have a fun element making them suitable for children to use.

[8] To this end, an apparatus for connecting an adult hand to a child hand is disclosed, comprising: at least one adult sized glove; at least one child sized glove; hook-and-eye fasteners such as Velcro disposed on at least one surface of said child sized glove; and hook-and-eye fasteners disposed on at least one surface of said adult sized glove; whereby said adult sized glove and said child sized glove can be attached together.

The gloves may be brightly coloured or comprise bells or the like.

[9] An advantage of the present invention is that an adult can comfortably and safely support a child during exercise with reduced risk of strain or injury to the assisting adult and greater comfort for the child. A further advantage is that the colours and bells or the like make the apparatus fun and appealing for a child to use.

Brief Description of the Several Views of the Drawing [10] The invention can be better understood with reference to the following drawings, in which: [11] Figure 1 shows the front of the adult glove of the present invention.

[12] Figure 2 shows the back of the adult glove of the present invention.

Detailed Description of the Invention

[13] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, shown in Figures 1 and 2, wherein like numerals refer to like components, an apparatus for connecting an adult hand to a child hand is disclosed, comprising: at least one adult sized glove; at least one child sized glove; hook-and-eye fasteners disposed on at least one surface of said child sized glove; and hook-and-eye fasteners disposed on at least one surface of said adult sized glove; whereby said adult sized glove and said child sized glove can be attached together.

[14] Preferably, there are two adult sized gloves (a left and a right glove) and two child-sized gloves (a left and a right glove) . The hook-and-eye fasteners are intended to be Velcro or a similar material.

[15] It should be noted that the child glove is not shown in the figures, but is exactly the same as the adult glove but smaller and without the wrist strap.

[16] Preferably, the hook-and-eye fastener material is disposed over a large proportion of the surface area of the gloves, to maximize the grip of the gloves on each other. This preferably includes both the front (palm) sides of the gloves and the rear sides of the gloves. Thus when exercising, an adult can attach his/her hands over or under the child's hands. The hands can be attached in a multiplicity of positions, anywhere that fastener material from one glove will be in contact with that from the other glove.

[17] Most preferably, the fastener material is disposed in patches 102 on the surfaces of the gloves, corresponding to the protrusions of a human hand, as shown in the figures. Thus there is a patch for each section of each finger to the front and rear of the glove, and a patch for each section of the palm. Another way to visualize this arrangement is that there is fastener material disposed everywhere on the hand except for where the hand creases. One advantage of this is that it allows the gloves to crease easily and naturally along the crease lines of the wearer's hand -i.e. where there is no fastener material present.

A further advantage is that it enhances the grip of one glove on another by ensuring that gripping material is present everywhere that the gloves will touch when worn.

[18] Preferably, the gloves comprise breathable nylon mesh with Velcro mounted thereon. An advantage of this is that the gloves will not cause the wearer to overheat, and will be comfortable to wear and manipulate. Preferably a thicker and more durable section 104 may be disposed in the region between thumb and forefinger, since this area is likely to undergo more strain.

Further thicker sections may be disposed at the fingertips.

Furthermore, rubber sections 106 may be disposed at some or all fingertips, for increasing the grip of the wearer on objects being manipulated with the hand. Rubber sections may also be disposed to the rear of the fingertips of the gloves, for preventing damage or wear to the gloves by fingernails.

[19] The apparatus preferably further comprises a wrist strap 108 attached to the adult sized glove, for wrapping around the child sized glove. An advantage of this is that it further secures the grip of one glove on the other. The strap may comprise Velcro or other hook-and-eye fastener material, or may comprise a buckle as known in the art. The strap may comprise fabric, rubber, Velcro or any suitable material.

[20] The apparatus may be brightly coloured or feature pictures, cartoons, animals, or be branded with popular childrens' brands or the like, to make the apparatus appealing to a child. Furthermore, the apparatus may comprise bells, motion-responsive lights, or other noise-making or motion-responsive components attached to the gloves, to give audio feedback or other types of positive feedback upon physical motion, to further enhance the appeal to a child and encourage a child to perform the exercises.

Claims

Claims 1. An apparatus for connecting an adult hand to a child hand comprising: at least one adult sized glove; at least one child sized glove; hook-and-eye fasteners disposed on at least one surface of said child sized glove; and hook-and-eye fasteners disposed on at least one surface of said adult sized glove; whereby said adult sized glove and said child sized glove can be attached together.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said hook-and-eye fasteners are disposed on the surfaces of the gloves corresponding to protrusions of a human hand.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 comprising: one left handed adult sized glove; one right handed adult sized glove; one left handed child sized glove; and one right handed child sized glove.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said hook-and-eye fasteners are disposed on a front and a rear side of said gloves, whereby the gloves can be attached to each other in a multiplicity of positions.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a wrist strap attached to the at least one adult sized glove, for wrapping around the at least one child sized glove.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising at least one selected from the list comprising: bells, noise-making components, motion-responsive lights, motion-responsive components.