Infant bodysuit

Abstract

An infant bodysuit having a pair of rows of snap sockets either one of which can receive a curved row of snaps studs, the rows of snap sockets and snap studs being provided along a gentle curve that is easy for a caregiver to match up the studs and sockets. Reinforcement, through a woven fabric facing, is provided in the region of the snap sockets on the front panel to provide two-dimensional stability throughout the region. Rib binding is used along the leg openings and covers the facing material for improved comfort to the infant. A flat, straight edge bottom is provided along the bottom edge of the front panel to reduce bulkiness. An improved leg opening is achieved by significantly narrowing the width of the front panel from the top of the leg opening down to the attachment portion.

1 . A bodysuit for an infant, comprising:
 one or more fabric panels substantially configured into a tubular shape to receive the torso of the infant and having openings for the infant's neck, arms, and legs; and   a first closure mechanism on the back side of the leg opening and a second closure mechanism on the front side of the leg opening, wherein the first closure mechanism mates with the second closure mechanism;   wherein the first and second closure mechanisms include mating portions of three or more snaps, one of the first and second closure mechanisms including three or more snap studs and the other of the first and second closure mechanisms including three or more snap sockets, the snap studs and snap sockets collectively referred to as snap features;   wherein the snap features in each of the first and second closure mechanisms are formed in a curved row;   wherein at least one of the first and second closure mechanisms includes at least two rows each having three or more snap features, wherein either row can be used to temporarily attach the first closure mechanism to the second closure mechanism so as to temporarily attach the front side of the leg opening to the back side of the leg opening in between the two legs of the infant so as to form a pair of separate leg openings and contain the infant within the bodysuit;   wherein each of the curved rows follows a curve of sufficiently large radius such that there is a straight line passing between a portion of the outermost of the snap features in a given row that passes through a portion of the center snap feature in the same row.   
     
     
         2 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the center snap feature in a given row is substantially equidistant from the outermost of the snap features in that same row. 
     
     
         3 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the center snap feature in a given row is significantly closer to the outermost of the snap features in that same row than to the outermost of the snap features in a different row. 
     
     
         4 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the distance from the neck opening to the center snap feature in a given row on the front side is less than the distance from the neck opening to the outermost of the snap features in that same row. 
     
     
         5 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 1 , wherein two rows of snap features are located on the front side and one row of snap features is located on the back side. 
     
     
         6 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 5 , wherein the portion of the front side where the two rows of snap features are located is reinforced by a fabric material that is stiffer and more rigid than the fabric panels to provide increased two-dimensional stability between the two rows of snap features and between the snap features of a given row. 
     
     
         7 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 6 , wherein the stiffer fabric material is covered along the periphery of the leg openings with a material that is softer than the fabric material. 
     
     
         8 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 6 , wherein a majority of the bodysuit is composed of a knit fabric material, and the knit material covers the stiffer fabric material. 
     
     
         9 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 1 , wherein a majority of the bodysuit is composed of a knit fabric material. 
     
     
         10 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the snap features on the front side are snap sockets and the snap features on the back side are snap studs. 
     
     
         11 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the orientation of the curved row of snap features on the back side corresponds to the orientation of the curved rows of snap features on the front side when the front side is temporarily attached to the back side. 
     
     
         12 . A bodysuit for an infant, comprising:
 one or more fabric panels substantially configured into a tubular shape to receive the torso of the infant and having openings for the infant's neck, arms, and legs; and   a first closure mechanism on the back side of the leg opening and a second closure mechanism on the front side of the leg opening, wherein the first closure mechanism mates with the second closure mechanism;   wherein the first and second closure mechanisms include mating portions of three or more snaps, one of the first and second closure mechanisms including three or more snap studs and the other of the first and second closure mechanisms including three or more snap sockets, the snap studs and snap sockets collectively referred to as snap features;   wherein the snap features in each of the first and second closure mechanisms are formed in a row;   wherein at least one of the first and second closure mechanisms includes at least two rows each having three or more snap features, wherein either row can be used to temporarily attach the first closure mechanism to the second closure mechanism so as to temporarily attach the front side of the leg opening to the back side of the leg opening in between the two legs of the infant so as to form a pair of separate leg openings and contain the infant within the bodysuit;   wherein the portion of the one or more fabric panels that includes the at least two rows of snap features is reinforced by a fabric material that is stiffer and more rigid than the fabric panels to provide increased two-dimensional stability between the two rows of snap features and between the snap features of a given row.   
     
     
         13 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 12 , wherein the stiffer fabric material is a woven fabric facing. 
     
     
         14 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 13 , wherein the woven fabric facing is a single sheet that covers the entire region where the two rows of a snap features are attached. 
     
     
         15 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 12 , wherein the stiffer fabric material is covered along the periphery of the leg openings with a material that is softer than the fabric material. 
     
     
         16 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 15 , wherein a majority of the bodysuit is composed of a knit fabric material, and the knit material covers the stiffer fabric material. 
     
     
         17 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 12 , wherein a majority of the bodysuit is composed of a knit fabric material. 
     
     
         18 . A bodysuit for an infant, comprising:
 one or more fabric panels substantially configured into a tubular shape to receive the torso of the infant and having openings for the infant's neck, arms, and legs; and   a first closure mechanism on the back side of the leg opening and a second closure mechanism on the front side of the leg opening, wherein the first closure mechanism mates with the second closure mechanism;   wherein the first and second closure mechanisms include mating portions of three or more snaps, one of the first and second closure mechanisms including three or more snap studs and the other of the first and second closure mechanisms including three or more snap sockets, the snap studs and snap sockets collectively referred to as snap features;   wherein the snap features in each of the first and second closure mechanisms are formed in a row;   wherein at least one of the first and second closure mechanisms includes at least two rows each having three or more snap features, wherein either row can be used to temporarily attach the first closure mechanism to the second closure mechanism so as to temporarily attach the front side of the leg opening to the back side of the leg opening in between the two legs of the infant so as to form a pair of separate leg openings and contain the infant within the bodysuit;   wherein the portions of the one or more fabric panels that form the front side and back side of the leg opening are sized relatively to each other so that the material forming each of the front side and the back side of the leg opening narrow at a significantly higher rate at the top of the leg opening as compared to the bottom of the leg opening and, in addition, the front side of the leg opening is significantly narrower in width from the material forming the back side of the leg opening from the highest side edge of the leg opening down to the bottom edge of the leg opening.   
     
     
         19 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 18 , wherein the bottom edge on the front side of the leg opening is a straight edge. 
     
     
         20 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 19 , wherein the snap features in each of the first and second closure mechanisms are formed in a curved row. 
     
     
         21 . A bodysuit as defined in  claim 18 , wherein each of the curved rows follows a curve of sufficiently large radius such that there is a straight line passing between a portion of the outermost of the snap features in a given row that passes through a portion of the center snap feature in the same row.