Mesh Pocket for Race Bib Security and Visibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Participants in athletic events often lose or damage their race bibs due to the use of safety pins, which can come loose or puncture their clothing.
Innovation Solution
A lightweight, semi-translucent protective pocket made of a mesh member attached to apparel, with a border member securing it in place, allowing the race bib to be inserted and maintained in a vertical orientation while exposed to elements through spaced apertures, and featuring closure means like hook and loop fasteners for securement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If safety pins are used to secure race bibs, then the race bib is held in place, but the safety pin can inadvertently open during the race causing loss of the race bib and/or the participant being stuck with the sharp point of the pin
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a protective pocket as an intermediary device between the race bib and the participant's body. This pocket securely holds the race bib using a fastening mechanism (such as hook and loop fasteners or elastic materials) that eliminates the need for exposed safety pins, thereby maintaining security while removing the harmful sharp points and reducing the risk of inadvertent opening.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective pocket is constructed from flexible materials such as mesh fabric, elastic bands, or soft polymers that conform to the participant's body and securely hold the race bib. These flexible materials provide secure attachment without rigid sharp components, eliminating the injury risk associated with traditional safety pins while maintaining reliable bib retention.
2Reliability
If safety pins are used to secure race bibs, then the race bib is held in place, but the use of safety pins can damage or ruin the sports apparel
Solution Approach 1:
The protective pocket serves as an intermediary that distributes the securing forces across a larger area of the apparel through its fastening mechanism, rather than concentrating force at single pin penetration points. This prevents puncture holes and localized damage to the sports apparel while maintaining secure race bib attachment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical penetration system of safety pins with a non-penetrating fastening system such as hook and loop fasteners, elastic materials, or adhesive strips. This substitution eliminates the puncture mechanism that causes damage to sports apparel while maintaining the security function of holding the race bib in place.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a protective pocket is made opaque, then the race bib is fully protected, but visibility of the race bib through the pocket is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The protective pocket employs local quality by using mesh or translucent materials in specific regions where visibility is needed (such as the front panel), while maintaining protective coverage in other areas. This allows the race bib to remain visible through the pocket structure while still receiving protection from the mesh framework and surrounding materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes porous or mesh materials for the pocket construction that allow light transmission and race bib visibility while providing physical protection. The mesh structure offers protective coverage through its framework and tension while maintaining optical transparency, enabling simultaneous achievement of protection and visibility functions.
Data Source
AI summary
A protective pocket is provided for a substantially two-dimensional object, such as a race bib. The protective pocket includes cooperating first and second lightweight fabrics, and an opening for receiving the object. The first fabric may be an item of a race participant's apparel or a backing that itself is attached to such an apparel item. The second fabric may be a mesh member having spaced apertures through which the object is visible and exposed to elements. The protective pocket is configured to maintain the object in a substantially vertical planar orientation, and thereby in an “upright” position, such that it that is (a) substantially parallel to the plane defined by the adjacent surface of the race participant's apparel item, and (b) substantially parallel to the plane defined by the adjacent body part of the race participant (e.g., a torso or leg). This positioning also improves the visibility of the indicia printed on the object through the mesh member. In order to facilitate this positioning, the mesh member is tightly secured to the first fabric so as to allow limited movement between open and closed positions.