Oh, patents! Spanx® Arm hosiery (2)

 Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

The Spanx® arm hosiery design was also awarded the US design patent USD880108,  titled  Arm Hosiery,  on April 7, 2020. As a reminder, according to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO): 

“a utility patent” protects the way an article is used and works (35 U.S.C. 101), while a “design patent” protects the way an article looks (35 U.S.C. 171) [MPEP Chapt. 1502.01; [R-07.2015]].

Below the Figures 1, 8 and 9 extracted from the patent, respectively showing the patented ornamental design of the three-quarter-length right sleeve, full-length and elbow-length arm hosiery sleeves. The patent further specifies that the broken lines, on the drawings, indicate those parts of the garment that are excluded from the claimed design. As a result only the ornamental design of the sleeves is patented. The bodice, to which the sleeves are attached, is excluded from this patent. Also included below, an advertisement for the Spanx® full-length embodiments of the arm hosiery, in multiple colors, marketed as Arm Tights®!

References

Spanx® https://www.spanx.com/  

MPEP – Chapt. 1502-01 – Distinction between design and utility patent
https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1502.html

Oh, patents! Sheertex indestructible pantyhose

Copyright© Françoise Herrmann

Ladies! If you have been dreaming of indestructible pantyhose, try Sheertex (originally called Sheerlu Genius)! They are made from the same fibers as bulletproof vests, guaranteed run-and pile-resistant. The only catch is that Sheertex will be resuming orders on September 1, 2019, after a new production cycle. The company completely sold out of its stock.

Katherine Homuth (Hague), the Founder and CEO of Sheertex, and inventor of the Sheerly Genius pantyhose is both thankful for the business, and quite astonished that such run, tear and pile resistant pantyhose were not invented any earlier.

Listed by Time Magazine as one of the 50 best inventions in 2018, the Sheertex pantyhose invention is disclosed in the patent application US20180368483A1 titled Rip resistant, non-pilling fine knit garments. A patent application which also presents an extensive list of definitions [0027-0047], so that the terms used to describe the invention do not invoke legal ambiguities or confusion with the more widely understood meanings of certain terms. For example, the term "non-additive", defined in paragraph [0044], in reference to coloring or dying processes, implies a process that does not change the total apparent or non-apparent Denier of the fiber. Similarly, the term "sheer" is defined in paragraph [0027], according to industry standards, as a knit with an appearance that is 30 Denier or less. The distinction between "apparent Denier" and Denier is also explicitly defined as "the total denier of visible fibers used in the knit" [0042], excluding the clear fibers, considered non-apparent within the context of the invention.

The Sheertex invention arises in a prior art situation where Denier, the measurement of the linear mass density of fibers per of 9000 meters of fiber is traditionally inversely correlated with the sheerness of a knitted garment (e.g.; hosiery). Sheerness is a measure of how much light can travel through a  garment. Thus, the higher the density of the fiber the less light can pass through. For hosiery, sheerness is also associated with low tensile strength or resistance to tearing (i.e.; the maximum amount of stress before a garment loses its elasticity). Thus, low Denier (between 1 and 30) is associated with sheerness (a high amount of light passing through the hosiery), resulting in a fragile garment considered disposable. Denier between 31 and 100 is semi-opaque hosiery with little light passing through, and above 100 Denier is no light passing through and completely opaque hosiery, resulting in relatively more resistant hosiery.

In response to the prior art, the Sheertex invention offers a product that is sheer, elastic and high tear-resistant, using an UHMWPE (Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene) fiber, in combination with a clear Spandex (i.e. elastic) fiber. The clear Spandex fiber makes it possible to produce 32 Denier hosiery with the appearance of 30 Denier. The combination of fibers also has increased moisture-wicking and anti-microbial properties, and it is possible to obtain hosiery of different colors using a non-additive process. 

Finally, the invention pantyhose also have “abrasion pads” knitted in areas of high friction such as heels and thighs to prevent the appearance of “bald spots”. Pantyhose bald spots are those areas where the knit thins out and loses elasticity, due to wear of the less resistant clear Spandex fiber, relative to the indestructible (bulletproof) UHMWPE fiber.

For pantyhose stuffed and dragged on asphalt behind a car to mimic a fall, wearing pantyhose, as part of a variety of Gizmodo-organized testing, performed independently of Sheertex, the Sheertex pantyhose were found destructible. However, in comparison to regular pantyhose which are destroyed on impact, Sheertex pantyhose were definitely found “a helluva lot” more resistant (Song, 2019).

Thus, ballistic-fiber Sheertex pantyhose finally fulfill the dreams of many women for pantyhose that are both sheer and highly resistant to tearing, wear, rip and run, even if it comes at the higher price of $99.

Included below, the abstract of the Sheertex pantyhose invention, together with the patent application Figure 1 drawing. The Figure 1 drawing shows an exemplary embodiment of the invention tights 10, front and back, including abrasion pads on heels 60 and thighs 62.

The present invention relates to knits that can be used to make rip - resistant sheer hosiery or similar garments, using a specific combination of UHMWPE fiber and stretch fiber, such as spandex. The knit has rip - resistant and anti - microbial properties. Details are provided to avoid problems with pilling and the appearance of bald spots during use. A variation of the knit is useful for activewear. [Abstract US20180368483A1]

References

Sheertex

https://sheertex.com/

Song V. (2-26-2019) We destroyed the 'Unbreakable' pantyhose, but they still beat every other kind

https://gizmodo.com/we-destroyed-the-unbreakable-pantyhose-but-they-still-1832734259

The 50 best inventions in 2018
https://time.com/collection/best-inventions-2018/

Oh, patents! Spanx® (1)

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

In 1998, Sara Blakely is purported to have cut off the feet on a pair of pantyhose for a smooth and tight look under a pair of white pants and the freedom to wear open-toe sandals to match. An idea that she then patented, and successfully marketed into a billion-dollar business called Spanx®. Thus, with a single control top, body smoothing and footless pantyhose product, the shapewear industry was re-born, providing women with a whole line of new and comfortable undergarments that support and lift, while offering the desirable aesthetics of “smooth” body contours. A shapewear line that also diversified to such products as bodysuits, slips, high-waisted shorts, camis, tanks and shaping thongs, boyshorts and briefs, while also expanding to include specific undergarments for Mamas during pregnancy, and more recently undergarrments  for men,

Add crimson packaging for the fine line of super comfortable body shaping products with cartoon characters featuring Sara Blakely, in a world of nudes, beige and blush, and the spectacular story of Spanx® also documents itself.

In 2012, the founder and inventor of the original product, Sara Blakely, was named the world’s youngest, self-made female billionaire by Forbes Magazine and one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential people.

The following is a list of the Spanx® US utility and design patent applications, and granted patents, including a WIPO patent. These patents cover both the Spanx® garments and Spanx® product display systems. Many more Spanx® patent family members have been filed at the European Patent Office, and at the national patent offices of Australia, Canada, Austria, Germany and elsewhere.   

• US2001035032 (A1) ― 2001-11-01 - Pantyhose under garment
• US2003196252 (A1) ― 2003-10-23 - Two-ply body-smoothing undergarment  
• US2016206012 (A1) ― 2016-07-21 - Abdominal-restraint garment and methods of assembling the same
• USD760471 (S) ― 2016-07-05 - Garment  
• US9320366 (B1) ― 2016-04-26 - Product storage unit and method of arrangement 
• US2015342265 (A1) ― 2015-12-03 - Flocked shapewear garments
• USD741631 (S) ― 2015-10-27 - Display tower 
• USD733994 (S1) ― 2015-07-14 - Garment
• US2015255011 (A1) ― 2015-09-10 - Display Fixture 
• USD724874 (S) ― 2015-03-24 - Multi-faceted display tower 
• US2014317823 (A1) ― 2014-10-30 - Reversible Compression Garments and Methods of Assembling and Using Same
• US2014273742 (A1) ― 2014-09-18 - Posterior-Lifting Garment and Methods of Assembling The Same 
• US2014273741 (A1) ― 2014-09-18 - Abdominal-restraint garment and methods of assembling the same 
• USD707920 (S) ― 2014-07-01 - Garment 
• US2008127683 (A1) ― 2008-06-05 - Tubular knit bra
• US2007199134 (A1) ― 2007-08-30 - Hosiery Garment and Method of Making the Same 
• WO0176398 (A2) ― 2001-10-18 - A pantyhose undergarment and method for manufacturing 

References

Spanx®

www.spanx.com