Ambidextrous Keyhole Pocket for Secure One-Handed Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing garment pockets are often limited to single-hand access, require two hands to open, sag and gape open, are not reversible, and may incorporate uncomfortable materials, making them impractical and vulnerable to theft or loss.
Innovation Solution
The ambidextrous keyhole-access pocket, which allows one-handed access and secure closure through a keyhole structure integrated with a pocket, ensuring items remain secured by a passive restraint system, is reversible, and can be made from soft materials.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a typical open pocket is used on a scarf, then the pocket is simple and accessible, but items can be easily stolen or lost due to lack of security
Solution Approach 1:
The pocket is divided into two functional parts: a keyhole access point and a pocket body. The keyhole provides a controlled entry point that requires deliberate action to access, while the pocket body provides secure storage. This segmentation allows the pocket to maintain simplicity while improving security against theft and loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The keyhole acts as an intermediary element between the external environment and the pocket interior. It serves as a controlled interface that requires intentional manipulation to access items, thereby providing passive security without requiring complex closures or fastening mechanisms.
2Reliability
If a pocket with closure (snap, zipper, button, hook & loop, magnet) is used, then items are secured, but two hands are required to open and access items
Solution Approach 1:
The complex closure mechanism is extracted and replaced with a simpler keyhole structure. The keyhole provides sufficient security without requiring the two-handed manipulation of zippers, snaps, or buttons, thereby improving ease of operation while maintaining item security.
Solution Approach 2:
The keyhole access mechanism is designed to be operated unidirectionally with one hand. The geometry of the keyhole allows insertion and retrieval motions to be performed with a single hand, making the pocket self-sufficient in terms of operation simplicity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a non-reversible scarf with pocket is used, then the design is simple, but the usefulness is limited to one orientation
Solution Approach 1:
The scarf is constructed with reversible properties, allowing it to be worn in multiple orientations (front-facing and back-facing). The pocket design remains functional in both orientations, providing universal wearability and adaptability to different wearing preferences or occasions without requiring complex construction.
4Strength
If plastic materials are used in the pocket, then durability is improved, but comfort and washability are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The material parameters of the pocket are changed from plastic to soft, washable fabrics. This parameter change maintains the structural integrity and durability needed for the pocket function while significantly improving comfort against the skin and ease of maintenance through washing or dry-cleaning.
Data Source
AI summary
Many garments lack pockets, and/or have pocket openings which may: be accessible to only right hand or left exclusively, require both hands to open the pocket closure, gape open, allowing items to exit the pocket without the wearer intending this. An extra pocket or a plurality of pockets offering both security and easy access is a welcome amenity. Disclosed is the reversible ambidextrous keyhole-access pocket, first embodiment as an integral part of a scarf having one or more such pockets, as well as a new method of suspending and accessing said pocket. Practical and elegantly simple but also unique, novel, surprising and unexpected, the combination of a particular style of keyhole and pocket, transforms the utility and convenience of pockets, improving articles into which said pockets are made.