Wearable sports guard

Abstract

A wearable guard that provides cut and impact protection. The wearable guard includes a wearable piece of clothing including a cut-resistant material, and at least one pocket for retaining at least one insert over a protected area of a wearer. The wearable guard also includes the insert, which is formed from an impact-resistant material.

1 . A wearable guard comprising:
 a wearable piece of clothing including a cut-resistant material at least in a portion of the clothing to be worn over a protected area of the wearer;   the wearable piece of clothing including at least one pocket for retaining at least one insert over the protected area of a wearer; and   the at least one insert being formed from an impact-resistant material.   
     
     
         2 . The wearable guard of  claim 1  wherein the cut-resistant material comprises cut-resistant textile fibers. 
     
     
         3 . The wearable guard of  claim 2  wherein the cut-resistant textile fibers comprise one or more fiber types selected from the group consisting of: para-aramid fibers, liquid crystal polymer (LCP) fibers, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers, nylon fibers, polyphenylene benzobisoxazole (PBO) fibers, glass fibers and steel fibers. 
     
     
         4 . The wearable guard of  claim 1  wherein the at least one insert is removably retained by the at least one pocket. 
     
     
         5 . The wearable guard of  claim 1 , wherein the pocket includes the cut-resistant material. 
     
     
         6 . The wearable guard of  claim 1 , wherein the wearable piece of clothing is configured to be worn about a neck, a wrist or on a torso of the wearer. 
     
     
         7 . The wearable guard of  claim 6 , wherein the wearable piece of clothing is a shirt configured to be worn on the torso of the wearer, the cut-resistant material is provided in at least a neck portion of the shirt, and the at least one insert is retained at least in the neck portion of the shirt. 
     
     
         8 . The wearable guard of  claim 6 , wherein the wearable piece of clothing is a shirt configured to be worn on the torso of the wearer, the cut-resistant material is provided in at least a wrist portion of the shirt, and the at least one insert is retained in at least the wrist portion of the shirt. 
     
     
         9 . The wearable guard of  claim 6 , wherein the wearable piece of clothing is a neck guard configured to be worn about the neck of the wearer, the cut-resistant material is provided in at least a neck portion of the neck guard, and the at least one insert is retained in at least the neck portion of the neck guard. 
     
     
         10 . The wearable guard of  claim 9 , wherein the neck guard further comprises at least one of a skirt and a bib configured to be worn over a portion of a torso of the wearer, wherein the cut-resistant material is further provided in the at least one of the skirt and the bib, and wherein the at least one insert is further retained in the at least one of the skirt and the bib. 
     
     
         11 . The wearable guard of  claim 6 , wherein the wearable piece of clothing is a wrist guard to be worn about the wrist of the wearer, the cut-resistant material is provided in at least a wrist portion of the wrist guard, and the at least one insert is retained at least in the wrist portion of the wrist guard. 
     
     
         12 . The wearable guard of  claim 1 , wherein the impact-resistant material is a soft and flexible material capable of absorbing or dispersing energy upon impact. 
     
     
         13 . The wearable guard of  claim 6 , wherein the insert is shaped to conform to the neck, wrist or torso of the wearer. 
     
     
         14 . The wearable guard of  claim 1 , wherein the insert comprises a tab designed to protrude from the at least one pocket when the insert is inserted in the at least one pocket, the tab being graspable for removing the insert from the at least one pocket. 
     
     
         15 . The wearable guard of  claim 1 , wherein the insert has a variable thickness, the insert being thicker in at least one portion of the insert to be worn over a more fragile area of the wearer. 
     
     
         16 . The wearable guard of  claim 15 , wherein the at least one thicker portion has a thickness of about 8 mm, and wherein a remainder of the insert has a thickness of about 4 mm. 
     
     
         17 . The wearable guard of  claim 1 , wherein the insert has a thickness of about 4 mm.