Knit Gloves with Conductive Finger Pads

Abstract

The seamless knit glove has electrically conductive finger regions, either defined by pads or thread. The glove is worn by a user to enable operation of a capacitive touch screen on an electronic device. The seamless knit glove finger sleeves, anterior palm side and posterior “back side” are knit as a unitary structure which has a high degree of stretch. The glove needs no finger-linking operation to attach the sleeves to the anterior and posterior glove regions. In one, electrically conductive yarn is deployed over at least an anterior tip region of the thumb and the index finger sleeve to enable the user to activate a capacitive touch screen of an electronic device. The user's electrical skin condition is transferred via the conductive threads to the capacitive touch screen. In another, a multiplicity of printed-on conductive ink pads is disposed over the anterior surfaces of the thumb and index sleeves.

Description

[0001]The present invention relates to a seamless knit glove with electrically conductive finger regions enabling a user to operate an electronic device having a capacitive touch screen.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]In northern climates, individuals typically wear gloves during winter. When those individuals wish to operate capacitive touch screen cellular telephones or computer tablets, collectively identified herein as “electronic devices,” the conductive touch screen does not operate properly because the screen is designed to change electrical state when the user's finger touches the screen. Since the user's finger has an electrical charge associated with it, when the user touches a capacitive touch screen, the screen changes its electrical state at that particular location thereby resulting in a user input to the cell phone or tablet. However, when the user wears gloves in cold weather, the capacitive touch screen does not operate because the yarn separates and electrically i...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0010]In another embodiment, the seamless knit glove has printed thereon a multiplicity of conductive ink pads on the anterior portions of the seamless knit gloves whereby, when the gloves are worn by the user, the seamless knit stretches to establish an electrical connection between the hand and finger of the user, the ink pads and the capacitive touch screen of the electronic device. The seamless knit glove, knitted on a 7 gauge automatic machine, has stretch nylon automatically disbursed throughout the glove by the knitting process to allow an equal distribution of stretch throughout the glove. With the use of acrylic or other 7 gauge yarn along with stretch nylon, the glove becomes a form fitting unit tapered along the contours of the hand, fingers and wrist. It is this tapering and related stress on the yarn / stretch nylon blend that allows conductivity from the finger tips to interact with the conductive ink to activate a capacitive touch screen. The knit glove which is seamless knit glove allows significant stress between the hand and finger joints which a circular knit finger-linked glove would not permit or withstand without delinking.

Problems solved by technology

The knit glove which is seamless knit glove allows significant stress between the hand and finger joints which a circular knit finger-linked glove would not permit or withstand without delinking.

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