Outerwear Garment with Automatic Dee-Ring Access Flap
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional fall-arrest harnesses are often worn over outerwear garments, leading to improper fastening, restricted movement, and potential injury or death during falls, as they can be cumbersome and difficult to use effectively when worn over bulky clothing.
Innovation Solution
An outerwear garment with a rear side Dee-ring access flap and releasable fasteners that automatically open when a lanyard from a fall-arrest harness is tensioned, allowing the harness to be worn underneath without impeding movement or restricting lanyard function, and featuring lanyard hook-receiving members to prevent damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the fall-arrest harness is worn over the outerwear garment, then the harness is easily accessible, but the harness cannot be properly fastened and restricted movement occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent allows the fall-arrest harness to be worn underneath the outerwear garment body, with the Dee-ring accessible through an aperture in the rear side of the garment. This nesting arrangement enables the harness to be properly fastened against the body while remaining accessible through the aperture, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and fastening reliability.
2Ease of operation
If the fall-arrest harness is worn over bulky clothing, then the harness is accessible, but movement is restricted and the harness cannot function properly
Solution Approach 1:
The harness is positioned underneath the outerwear garment body, allowing it to move freely with the body without being constrained by bulky outer clothing. The aperture provides access to the Dee-ring while maintaining full range of motion, resolving the contradiction between accessibility and movement freedom.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the harness is worn under the outerwear garment, then movement is unrestricted, but the lanyard movement is restricted and the garment can choke or wrench the body
Solution Approach 1:
The outerwear garment body is segmented with a specific aperture in the rear side that is sized and positioned to allow the lanyard to pass through freely. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by providing a dedicated pathway for the lanyard that maintains movement freedom while preventing choking or wrenching hazards.
Solution Approach 2:
The aperture in the rear side of the outerwear garment body acts as an intermediary element that facilitates lanyard movement. It provides a controlled opening that allows the lanyard to move freely without being restricted by the garment fabric, eliminating the choking hazard while maintaining the benefit of unrestricted movement.
4Object-affected harmful factors
If the Dee-ring is covered by the outerwear garment, then the harness is concealed, but access for attachment is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The rear side of the outerwear garment body is segmented with a specifically positioned and sized aperture that provides direct access to the Dee-ring. This segmentation allows the harness to remain concealed within the garment while the aperture enables easy access for attachment operations, resolving the contradiction between concealment and accessibility.
Data Source
AI summary
An outerwear garment for use with a fall-arrest harness devised to permit a fall-arrest harness to be worn underneath an outerwear garment body, such as a jacket, vest, or coat, between an aperture on a rear side thereof and a Dee-ring access flap covering the aperture. A plurality of fasteners disposed on each of the rear side adjacent the access flap and along the perimeter of the access flap permits the access flap to be automatically opened for access to the fall-arrest harness. Lanyard hook-receiving members disposed on a front side of the garment body also permit hanging of lanyard hooks thereon during periods of non-use.