Wetsuits

Abstract

To provide a wetsuit that is both easy to move in and waterproof. [Solution] In a wetsuit formed three-dimensionally by joining together a number of cut pieces, such as a front body 8 and thighs 14, which have been cut into a predetermined shape in advance to fit the body, the surface of the wetsuit at the butt joint (joining line) where the end faces of the cut pieces to be joined meet is welded and joined with a sealing tape 26 having a hot melt layer, and the welding and joining are carried out simultaneously while heat is applied to the sealing tape, and the joining lines 22a, 23a, 24a, 24c have a convex shape that is curved in the direction of stretching in response to body movement.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] This invention relates to wetsuits primarily used in water sports such as surfing and scuba diving. [Background technology]

[0002] This type of wetsuit is formed three-dimensionally by joining several pieces that have been cut into a predetermined shape to fit the body. When worn, a thin layer of water is formed between the wetsuit and the surface of the body, and this layer is warmed by body heat, allowing the wetsuit to retain its heat even in the water. For this reason, the joints must be highly waterproof to prevent new water from entering the heat-retaining water layer from the outside.

[0003] Regarding waterproofing, a conventional technique is known in which thick suit fabric (cut pieces) having a thickness of, for example, 3 mm or more is sewn together by a scoop stitch that does not allow the sewing thread to penetrate to the back surface of the fabric. Patent Document 1 discloses a joining technique in which a sealing tape having a hot melt layer is placed on the surface of the butted part of the cut pieces, and the sealing tape is sewn together with the fabric by sewing (sewing) so that the sewing thread may or may not penetrate to the back surface of the fabric, and then the sealing tape is heated and pressed with an iron to weld it. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-95191 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] If the sewing thread penetrates the back side of the fabric, the waterproofness is impaired, but the joining technology described in Patent Document 1 can be said to prevent the deterioration of waterproofness due to penetration by welding with a sealing tape in a later process. However, since the fabric is sewn together with the sealing tape, it is difficult to say that the penetration structure can be completely prevented by welding the hot melt layer. In other words, since there is no hot melt layer on the surface of the sealing tape (the outer surface side of the suit), it cannot be denied that water will penetrate from the surface side of the sealing tape through the sewing thread to the back side.

[0006] The thickness of the suit fabric is also related to its thermal insulation, and while a thicker fabric makes it easier to perform the scoop stitching that contributes to waterproofing, it also makes it more difficult to move around when in use. In recent years, the development of thin fabrics with excellent thermal insulation and waterproofing has progressed, and there is also a tendency to place more importance on lightweight and ease of movement when worn, so the thickness of wetsuit fabrics can sometimes be 2 mm or less. When scoop stitching is performed on such thin fabrics, the needle easily penetrates the back side, and a decrease in waterproofness is unavoidable.

[0007] The present invention has been devised in view of the above-mentioned points, and its object is to provide a wetsuit that can achieve both ease of movement and waterproofness. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, the wetsuit (2) of the present invention is a wetsuit formed three-dimensionally by joining a plurality of cut pieces (8, 10, 12a, 12b, 14, etc.) that have been cut into predetermined shapes in advance to fit the body, and the front and back of the wetsuit (2) at the butt joints of the ends of the cut pieces to be joined are welded together with a sealing tape (26) having a hot melt layer, and the welded joint is performed by simultaneously welding and joining while applying heat to the sealing tape (26).

[0009] The wetsuit of the present invention is seamlessly welded without any pinholes or sewing threads, so it is possible to obtain high waterproofness and airtightness with few steps. Even with a thin suit fabric, there is no need to worry about needle penetration due to scooping stitches, so it is possible to obtain a wetsuit that is easy to move in.

[0010] In addition, in the above-mentioned wetsuit (2), the joining lines (20a, 20b, 22a, 22b, etc.) welded with the sealing tape (26) may be curved, which can improve the stretchability of the wetsuit compared to straight lines.

[0011] In addition, the above-mentioned wetsuit (2) may be configured so that the curved line is convex in the direction that stretches in response to body movement, thereby reducing the load when moving the body and improving ease of movement.

[0012] In addition, in the above-mentioned wetsuit (2), the knees may be configured with multiple joint lines, and the joint lines may be configured to be diagonal in addition to vertical and horizontal directions. This can reduce the complex load caused by bending and straightening the knees, and improve ease of movement.

[0013] In addition, the wetsuit (2) may be configured so that the thickness of the cut portion is 2 mm or less, thereby improving ease of movement. Effect of the Invention

[0014] According to the present invention, a wetsuit can be made that is both easy to move in and waterproof. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] 1A is a left side view of a wetsuit according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1B is a front view, FIG. 1C is a rear view, and FIG. [Diagram 2]2 is a front view of a main part showing a joining line of the wetsuit shown in FIG. 1 and a sealing tape covering the joining line. [Diagram 3] 3A and 3B are views showing the details of a cross section of a joining line, where FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in FIG. 2, and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along line YY in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing one method of welding and joining according to the present embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0017] FIG. 1 shows a wetsuit 2 according to this embodiment, in which (a) is a left side view, (b) is a front view, (c) is a back view, and (d) is a right side view. The wetsuit 2 is formed three-dimensionally by joining a plurality of cut pieces that have been cut into a predetermined shape in advance to fit the body, and is composed of cut pieces (suit fabric or parts) such as a neck part 4, a flap 6 that opens and closes the opening with a fastener (not shown), a front body 8, a back body 10, a left arm part 12a, a right arm part 12b, a thigh part 14, a left knee part 16a, a right knee part 16b, a left leg part 18a, and a right leg part 18b. The wetsuit 2 of this embodiment is a wetsuit for surfing.

[0018] The left arm 12a and the right arm 12b are three-dimensionally configured as two-piece sleeves, one on the outside and one on the inside, and their joining lines (cut lines) 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d are curved (wave-shaped) to reduce the load on the arms when paddling in surfing. That is, they are curved in a convex shape in a direction that stretches in response to the movement of the body (including the direction in which the muscles swell). As is clear from Figs. 1(b) and 1(c), the joining lines 22a and 22b of the thigh 14 are curved upward in a convex shape to reduce the load when bending forward and bending and stretching. In addition, as is clear from Figs. 1(a) and 1(d), the intersection of the joining lines 22a and 22b is curved downward in a convex shape to reduce the load when bending forward and bending and stretching. Furthermore, the joining lines 23a and 23b of the crotch (groin) 15 are also curved, so that the load can be reduced when opening the legs.

[0019] The left knee 16a and the right knee 16b (around the knee) are configured with a plurality of joining lines, and in addition to the joining lines 24a, 24b between the thighs 14 extending substantially in the vertical and horizontal directions, the joining line 24c between the left leg 18a and the right leg 18b extends in a diagonal direction. In this way, the combination of vertical, horizontal and diagonal directions reduces the complex load during bending and stretching. In the illustrated example, the joining line 24d on the back side (calf part) of the left leg 18a and the right leg 18b is substantially linear.

[0020] Fig. 2 is a front view of the main part showing each joining line of the wetsuit shown in Fig. 1 and the sealing tape covering the same. Fig. 3 is a detailed view of the cross section of the joining line, (a) is a cross section taken along line XX in Fig. 2, and (b) is a cross section taken along line YY in Fig. 2. As shown in Fig. 3, each cut piece (suit fabric) has a structure in which the front and back surfaces of chloroprene rubber 28, which is a foamed elastic body, are covered with surface layers 30 such as nylon fibers. Note that the structure of the suit fabric is an example, and the material of elastic body 28 and the presence or absence of surface layer 30 are not limited to this.

[0021] In Fig. 1, the joining line is shown as only a single line for ease of understanding, but as shown in Fig. 2, each actual joining line is configured by applying sealing tape 26 to the joining portion (butt joint) where cut pieces are butted together. In the wetsuit 2 of this embodiment, depending on various conditions such as the strength and durability required for the joining portion or the type of fabric used (material and thickness of rubber, cloth, etc.), it is possible to appropriately select whether the sealing tape 26 is applied only to the front side of the fabric or to both the front and back sides at each joining line.

[0022] In the illustrated example, at the joining line 22a of the thigh 14, as shown in FIG. 3(a), only the front surface of the wetsuit 2 at the butt joint portion (joining line) 29 of the cut pieces to be joined is welded and joined with the sealing tape 26. On the other hand, at the joining line 23a of the crotch 15 and the joining lines 24a and 24b of the left knee 16a and the right knee 16b, as shown in FIG. 3(b), both the front surface and the back surface of the wetsuit 2 at the butt joint portion (joining line) 29 of the cut pieces to be joined are welded and joined with the sealing tape 26. In each joining line, the line of the sealing tape 26 is also curved in accordance with the curvature of each joining line. As described above, each cutting piece in this embodiment is made of a thin suit fabric with a thickness t (see FIG. 3(b)) of 2 mm or less, which makes it difficult to guarantee waterproofness by scooping, and therefore the wetsuit 2 is easy for the user to move in.

[0023] A method of welding and joining using the sealing tape 26 will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 shows a schematic diagram of the welding and joining using the device.

[0024] To join the joining line by welding with the sealing tape 26, the cut pieces to be joined, for example the cut pieces of the front body 8 and the thigh portion 14, are butted together without being seamed and bonded with an adhesive or the like in advance, and then fed between the rollers 32 and 34 arranged vertically with the front side facing up. The sealing tape 26 is supplied from a bobbin (not shown) and fed to the pressure-welding portion of the rollers 32, 34. Just before the sealing tape 26 enters the pressure-welding portion, hot air is blown from a heating nozzle 36 onto the hot melt layer of the sealing tape 26, melting the hot melt layer and bonding it to the joining portion at the pressure-welding portion between the rollers 32, 34. That is, in the welding joining in this embodiment, welding and bonding are performed simultaneously (including simultaneously) while applying heat (hot air) to the sealing tape 26. In the case where the sealing tape 26 is to be welded to the back side as well, after joining the cut pieces on the front side of the wetsuit 2 in this manner, the wetsuit 2 is turned inside out and the sealing tape 26 is welded to the back side in the same manner.

[0025] In this way, in this embodiment, the cut pieces are welded together with the sealing tape 26 while their end faces are butted together without being stitched, so there is no need to worry about the deterioration of waterproofness due to sewing, as in the configuration described in Patent Document 1, and even thin suit fabrics can be easily joined, and high waterproofness and airtightness can be obtained. Since the elasticity of the fabric of the sealing tape 26 is lower than that of the fabric of the wetsuit 2 (the fabric of each cut piece), the heat-welded portion of the sealing tape 26 suppresses the elasticity of the wetsuit 2, but in the wetsuit 2 of this embodiment, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, the joining line is made into an optimal curve (wave-shaped) shape at that location, so that the distance can be extended to provide room in the stretch direction. Therefore, it is possible to maintain ease of movement due to the elasticity of the entire wetsuit 2 while maintaining high waterproofness and airtightness.

[0026] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims and the technical ideas described in the specification and drawings. For example, in the above embodiment, a specific joining device was used for joining, but any appropriate device can be used as long as the above welding and joining can be performed. In addition, in the above embodiment, the sealing tape 26 is welded and joined by applying heat (hot air) to the sealing tape 26, but the sealing tape 26 may be heated by other heating means (heater, etc.) other than hot air. [Explanation of symbols]

[0027] 2. Wetsuits 4 Neck 6 Flap 8 Front body (cut piece) 10 Back body (cut piece) 12a Left arm (cut piece) 12b Right arm (cut piece) 14 Thigh (cut piece) 15 Crotch section (cut piece) 16a Left knee (cut piece) 16b Right knee (cut piece) 18a Left leg (cut piece) 18b Right leg (cut piece) 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 22a, 22b, 23a, 23b, 24a, 24b, 24c, 24d, 29 Joint line 26 Sealing Tape 32, 34 Laura 36 Heated Nozzle

Claims

1. A wetsuit that is formed three-dimensionally by joining a plurality of pieces that have been cut into a predetermined shape to fit the body, The front and back of the wetsuit are welded and joined at the butt joints of the end faces of the cut pieces with a sealing tape having a hot melt layer, The wetsuit is characterized in that the welding and bonding are performed simultaneously while applying heat to the sealing tape.

2. 2. The wetsuit according to claim 1, wherein the joining line welded with the sealing tape is curved.

3. 3. The wetsuit according to claim 2, wherein the curve has a convex shape in a direction that stretches in response to body movement.

4. 3. The wetsuit according to claim 2, wherein the knees are formed by consolidating a plurality of said joining lines, and the joining lines exist diagonally in addition to vertically and horizontally.

5. 5. The wetsuit according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of the cut piece is 2 mm or less.

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