Protective garments with inconspicuous protective features

Abstract

A protective garment includes a garment body having an appearance of a conventional garment, and an inner pocket supported on an inner surface of the garment in a position to receive padding for protecting a body part. Each inner pocket has an open end for insertion and removal of a pad. An anchor point supporting the inner pocket on the inner surface is aligned with a visible anchor point on an outer surface of the garment body, to aid in disguising the presence of the inner pocket(s) and padding. Impact-protective pads are dimensioned to fit within the pockets. In this manner, a person other than the wearer is unlikely to be alerted that the wearer is wearing impact-protective clothing. A protective face shield and face mask impact-resistant bodies and padding are also provided that have appearances that are conventional or inconspicuous to provide inconspicuous impact protection to a wearer.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A protective garment comprising:
 a garment body constructed to have an appearance of a conventional garment, said garment body having a first anchor point visible on an outer surface of said garment body, said garment body having an inner surface;   at least one inner pocket having an open end, said at least one inner pocket being positioned to receive protective padding for protecting a body part, said at least one inner pocket being at least partially supported on said inner surface at a second anchor point aligned with said first anchor point.   
     
     
         2 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 at least one protective pad constructed of an impact-resistant material, said at least one protective pad being dimensioned to fit said at least one inner pocket.   
     
     
         3 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein said first anchor point comprises at least one of stitching and a fastener. 
     
     
         4 . The protective garment of  claim 3 , wherein said second anchor point comprises said at least one of said stitching and said fastener. 
     
     
         5 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein garment is configured as one of a scrub top, pants, a tunic and a protective gown. 
     
     
         6 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein said first anchor point is entirely coextensive with said second anchor point. 
     
     
         7 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein said first anchor point is entirely coextensive with said second anchor point. 
     
     
         8 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein a common row of stitching forms both said first anchor point and said second anchor point. 
     
     
         9 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein said at least one protective pad is formed of a rigid material. 
     
     
         10 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein said at least one protective pad is formed of a soft padding material. 
     
     
         11 . The protective garment of  claim 10 , wherein said at least one protective pad is formed of a foam material. 
     
     
         12 . The protective garment of  claim 10 , wherein said at least one protective pad is formed of a honeycomb foam material. 
     
     
         13 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein said at least one inner pocket is disposed to overly at least one of a wearer's upper arm, lower arm, chest, and torso. 
     
     
         14 . The protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein said protective garment comprises a plurality of protective pads and a plurality of inner pockets. 
     
     
         15 . The protective garment of  claim 14 , wherein a set of more than one protective pad is dimensioned to be received in a single pocket. 
     
     
         16 . The protective garment of  claim 15 , wherein pads of the set of more than one protective pad have different densities. 
     
     
         17 . The protective garment of  claim 14 , wherein no pocket of the plurality of inner pockets is disposed to overly a joint of a wearer. 
     
     
         18 . A protective face shield garment comprising:
 a headgear configured to encircle a wearer's head, said headgear being constructure of rigid material;   at least one strap connected to the headgear and dimensioned to engage the head to support the headgear on the head, said at least one strap being constructed of rigid material;   a face shield body suspended from the headgear in a position to cover the wearer's face when the headgear and said at least one strap are supported on the head, the face shield body being constructed of transparent rigid material;   a first foam padding member supported on the headgear in position to abut the head; and   a second foam padding member supported on said at least one strap in position to abut the head.   
     
     
         19 . The protective face shield garment of  claim 18 , wherein said first foam padding member and said second foam padding member are constructed of padding having a density for protecting the head against physical impacts from a human attacker. 
     
     
         20 . A protective face mask garment comprising:
 a face mask body having a three-dimensional shape contoured to conform to a wearer's face and head, said face mask body being constructed of transparent rigid material, the face mask body defining openings positioned to register with eyes, ears, a nose, and a mouth of the face;   at least one head strap connected to the face mask body and dimensioned to engage the head to support the face mask body on the head and over the face; and   foam padding member supported on an inner surface of the face mask body in a position to abut the head.   
     
     
         21 . The protective face mask garment of  claim 20 , wherein said at least one head strap is constructed of a resilient material and is dimensioned to fit over a head of the wearer to support the face mask on the wearer's head in a position with the face mask body positioned over a face of the head. 
     
     
         22 . The protective face mask garment of  claim 20 , wherein said foam padding is dense and thick enough to protect the head and face against physical impacts from a human attacker. 
     
     
         23 . The protective face mask garment of  claim 20 , wherein said foam padding comprises:
 a first foam padding member extending around a periphery of the face mask body; and   a plurality of second foam padding members positioned to extend around openings in the face mask body.