Rolled Edge Pocket Flap Closure for Protective Garments
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Solution Overview
Problem
Firefighters and emergency workers face difficulty in opening pockets due to diminished tactile feedback caused by thick gloves, making it hard to access items within the pockets, especially when the pockets' closures are not easily identifiable by touch.
Innovation Solution
A closure system for protective garments featuring a fabric-made closure body with an edge that includes an inner and outer layer and a thicker insert, providing enhanced tactile feedback, which can be made from fire-resistant materials like Kevlar, and equipped with a fastener for secure closure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the protective garment is made with thick gloves for protection, then protection capability is improved, but tactile feedback is diminished making it difficult to operate closures
Solution Approach 1:
The closure system incorporates a rolled edge with increased thickness and protruding features at the specific location where tactile interaction is needed. This localized modification provides enhanced tactile feedback without requiring the entire glove or garment to be thinner, thus maintaining overall protection while improving operability at the critical interaction point.
Solution Approach 2:
The rolled edge acts as an intermediary element between the closure mechanism and the wearer's gloved hand. Its protruding structure and increased thickness provide a tactile interface that can be easily detected and manipulated through thick gloves, mediating the interaction between the protected hand and the closure system.
2Ease of operation
If the closure edge is made thicker with an insert, then tactile feedback is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The closure system employs a nested structure where an insert element is placed within the rolled edge of the closure system. This nesting approach allows the thicker, more tactilely prominent edge to be achieved by embedding a core element within the folded fabric structure, rather than requiring a completely separate complex mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The rolled edge is constructed as a composite structure combining the base fabric material with an insert element (such as a cord, tube, or shaped component). This composite construction provides the desired tactile properties through the combination of materials and structures, achieving enhanced feedback without requiring overly complex individual components.
Data Source
AI summary
A closure for use with a pocket for a protective garment is provided. The closure includes a margin, a closure body and an edge. The edge is thicker than the closure body so as to provide better tactile feedback for the wearer. The edge may also include an insert located within the edge.