Personal apparel garment particularly for health conscious three-finger-glove hand cover prophylactics

Abstract

The design is a combination of left and/or right three-finger-gloves integrated with various attachment garments. The gloves help guard against unwanted hand contact with foreign surfaces while the attachment garment provides various utility and fashion functions. The size and shape of the hand covers are specifically designed to enable the wearer to easily slip into and remove. The glove design prevents moisture intrusion while providing a non-slip grip surface and the added dexterity of a three-finger hand cover. The preferred embodiment includes connecting the hand covers together by way of an over-the-shoulder strap garment worn on the outside of normal apparel. The materials used for construction can vary depending on user preference including cloth, leather, man-made fabrics, or bonded fibers such as paper or felt.

1 ) Left and right hand covers configured as three-finger-gloves connected together by way of a utility garment. Each hand cover includes separately articulated thumb covering and index finger covering with the remaining fingers in a single mitten like covering. The three-finger-glove hand covers include a moisture proof barrier between the user's skin and exposure to external contaminants. The user can thus grip objects with the opposing thumb and use the index finger to point and press on objects separately from the remaining fingers without coming into contact with foreign contaminants. The hand body of the glove adjoins and supports the finger covers and terminates as an easy access cuff opening. The three-finger-glove hand covers can optionally be attached to, or integrated with, any of several garment embodiments. 
     
     
         2 ) The hand cover access cuff is specifically sized and shaped to enable the user to easily pull on and remove the hand covers cited in  claim 1 . The cuff form is supported by interface banding and fabric structure to enable the user to easily access the inner structure of the glove. 
     
     
         3 ) Fingertips Guards are affixed to the exterior of the thumb and index finger covers of each glove. The exterior of the articulated thumb and index fingertips of the hand cover cited in  claim 1  are augmented with a durable elastic material to provide non-slip surfaces that assures accurate thumb and index finger manipulation of objects. The Fingertip Guard material includes a resistive/capacitive characteristic to support user interface with touch-screen technologies. 
     
     
         4 ) The exterior surface of the three-finger-glove hand cover palm grips are augmented with a durable elastic material to provide a non-slip surface. The palm grip surface and the surface of the finger flexor length of the hand covers cited in  claim 1  are affixed with a durable elastic material that is textured to provide a non-slip surface that assures a firm grip of objects and mechanically insulates the glove body fabric from direct contact with the objects. 
     
     
         5 ) A moisture proof barrier prevents liquids from soaking through the three-finger-glove hand covers. The hand covers cited in  claim 1  are made of multiple layers of flexible fabric with a durable utility surface on the exterior and a soft interior lining with a moisture proof barrier sandwiched between to guard against chemical and biological intrusion. The hand covers are constructed of materials that remain flexible in all weather conditions. 
     
     
         6 ) The three-finger-glove interior lining is made of soft materials to provide user comfort and ease of fit. The interior lining material of the three-finger-glove hand covers cited in  claim 1  are made of a soft, pliable, hypoallergenic material for wearer comfort and ease of employment. 
     
     
         7 ) The left and right three-finger-glove hand covers cited in  claim 1  are constructed such that they can be attached to a Strap of various fashions and materials that is sized to be draped over the user's shoulders while in use. The Strap length is sized to position the three-finger-glove hand covers in alignment with the user's normal posture hand position. The Strap consists of the left and right Arm Segments and an over the Shoulder Segment that combine to make up a single garment of various design and utility dependant on user preference. The Strap can be a simple cord or band that includes the left and right arm segments and the shoulder segment in a single piece of fabric or it can be separate segments with pockets or other clothing like attributes. The Strap is made of a durable non-stretchy material such as woven cloth, leather, man-made fabrics, or fiber composites. 
     
     
         8 ) The Hand-Cover to Strap Attachment Mechanism provides for the hand cover removal and attachment for maintenance purposes. The left and right individual three-finger-glove hand covers cited in  claim 1  can be attached to the strap cited in  claim 7  by an Attachment Mechanism such as a synch, buckle, or self adhering patch that enables the glove to be affixed to the Strap to form a single garment. The Attachment Mechanism provides for the individual hand covers to be attached to the Strap cited in  claim 7  or alternatively attached to any garment fitted with an appropriate attachment interface. The hand cover Attachment Mechanism can thereby be attached to a coat, shirt, belt, or other garment via the mechanism and removed only when needed. The Attachment Mechanism on the hand covers thereby provides the capability to attach them to each other or any other appropriately configured stationary object for easy stowage, transport, and access. 
     
     
         9 ) The left and right Arm Segments of the Strap sited in  claim 7  each include a hand back section with hand cover Attachment Mechanism interface cited in  claim 8 , a forearm section, and a bicep section. Each of these garment sections can be separate pieces of fabric to facilitate function or style options or a single integrated piece of fabric. The Arm Segments are made of a durable non-stretchy material such as cloth, leather, man-made fabrics, or fiber composites. 
     
     
         10 ) The Shoulder Segment is a band of fabric that extends over the shoulder of the user and attaches to the Arm Segments cited in  claim 9  to form the Strap cited in  claim 7 . The Shoulder Segment is made of a durable non-stretchy material such as cloth, leather, man-made fabrics, or fiber composites. 
     
     
         11 ) The Arm Segment to Shoulder Segment Attachment Mechanism provides for the joining of the Arm Segments cited in  claim 9  to the Shoulder Segment cited in  claim 10  into a Strap cited in  claim 7 . The Arm Segment to Shoulder Segment Attachment Mechanism enables the user to adjust the length of the Arm Segment by looping through and attaching to a synch, buckle, or self adhering patch. The Arm Segment to Shoulder Segment Attachment Mechanism also serves to enable the left and right Arm Segments to be attached to each other directly thus bypassing the Shoulder Segment if desired by the user. 
     
     
         12 ) The Arm Segment Attachment Mechanism is fitted to the Shoulder Segment cited in  claim 10  and works in conjunction with the Arm Segment to Shoulder Segment Attachment Mechanism cited in  claim 11  to join the garment segments together into a single Strap cited in  claim 7 . 
     
     
         13 ) Arm Segment Pockets are incorporated into the Arm Segment material cited in  claim 9  and include a plurality of pockets integrated with the back of the hand cover section, forearm section, and bicep section of the garment. These general utility pockets can utilize any of several closing devices including cover flaps, snaps, buttons, or zippers. 
     
     
         14 ) The Torso Attachment System secures the Shoulder Segment cited in  claim 10  to the user during violent activity. The Torso Attachment System can be any of several style or utility options from simple arm bands, to chest harness, or sleeved garments of various designs and fashions that serve to secure the Shoulder Segment to the wearer's torso.