Unitary shoulder pad

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to shoulder pads and more specifically it relates to a unitary shoulder pad for supporting a shoulder strap on a user's shoulder. It is often necessary to carry strapped items such as camera cases, computer cases, rifles and tote bags. The shoulder of the typical person slopes downward from the base of the neck to the arm. This downward slope often causes shoulder straps to slide down and off the shoulder. People often have a tendency to account for this by raising the elevation of the shoulder and arm often leading to muscle fatigue and soreness in the shoulder area.

An effort has been made in the prior art to mitigate the above described problem. Many of these pads are made from multiple components requiring assembly using such methods as stitching or riveting. Others have used the approach of injection molding to form their pad resulting in higher cost per unit to produce and expensive tooling costs.

The present invention relates to a shoulder pad and more particularly pertains to supporting a shoulder strap on a user and to facilitate the retaining of the shoulder strap on a shoulder of the user regardless of the downwardly sloping angle of the shoulder, the retaining being done in a safe, reliable, convenient and economical manner.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A unitary shoulder pad is disclosed, for enclosing the upper segment of a shoulder strap and supporting the strap on a user's shoulder. The present invention generally relates to a unitary shoulder pad which includes being composed from a rubbery material. The unitary shoulder pad further includes an elongated hollow body. The unitary shoulder pad further includes a top cover. The unitary shoulder pad further includes a base, the base being wedge shaped. The unitary shoulder pad still further includes a pair of mating edges separated by an access slot, the interior of the mating edges having strips of hook and loop fasteners, the mating edges being detachably fastened together in a mating engagement after passing a shoulder strap through the access slot.

There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, some of the features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter.

In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction or to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of the description and should not be regarded as limiting.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved unitary shoulder pad for supporting a shoulder strap on a user's shoulder. It is often necessary to carry strapped items such as camera cases, computer cases, rifles and tote bags. The shoulder of the average person slopes downward from the base of the neck to the arm. This downward slope often causes shoulder straps to slide down and off the shoulder. People often have a tendency to account for this by raising the elevation of the shoulder and arm often leading to muscle fatigue and soreness in the shoulder area. The present invention relates to a shoulder pad and more particularly pertains to supporting a shoulder strap on a user and to facilitate the retaining of the shoulder strap on a shoulder of the user regardless of the downwardly sloping angle of the shoulder, the retaining being done in a safe, reliable, convenient and economical manner.

Another object of the present invention that provides a new and improved unitary shoulder pad which has all of advantages of the prior art shoulder pads of known designs and configurations and none of the disadvantages.

Another object of the present invention that provides a new and improved unitary shoulder pad that reduces muscle strain of the shoulder and facilitates the retaining the shoulder strap on a shoulder regardless of the downwardly sloping angle of the shoulder which would tend to make the shoulder strap slide down the shoulder, the supporting and retaining being done by a completely unitary shoulder pad.

Another object of the present invention that provides a new and improved unitary shoulder pad that is of durable and reliable construction.

Another object of the present invention that provides a new and improved unitary shoulder pad that reduces shoulder muscle strain of the shoulder.

Another object of the present invention that provides a new and improved unitary shoulder pad that is susceptible of lower cost to manufacturer with regards to both material and labor, and which is accordingly susceptible to low prices of sale to the consuming public, thereby making such a unitary shoulder pad economically available to the buying public.

Lastly, it is an object of the present invention that provides a new and improved unitary shoulder pad. A unitary shoulder pad is positionable on a shoulder situated for enclosing and supporting a strap on a user's shoulder. The unitary shoulder pad is composed of a rubbery material and includes an elongated hollow body, and includes a top cover, and further includes base, the base being wedge shaped, and still further includes a pair of mating edges separated by and access slot, the interior of the mating edges having strips of hook and loop fasteners. The mating edges being detachably fastened together in a mating engagement after passing a strap through the access slot.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become obvious to the reader and it is intended that these objects and advantages are within the scope of the present invention. To the accomplishment of the above and related objects, this invention may be embodied in the form illustrated in the accompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact, however, that the drawings are illustrative only, and that changes may be made in the specific construction illustrated and described within the scope of this invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various other objects, features and attendant advantages of the present invention will become fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the present invention attached to a shoulder strap and being worn on a user's shoulder.

FIG. 2 is a perspective front view of the present invention in FIG. 1 in its resting position without any downward pressure being applied.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the present invention in a closed position.

FIG. 4 is a perspective rear view of the present invention in FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the present invention in its open position.

FIG. 6 is a rear view of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a side view of the first alternate embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the first alternate embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to FIG. 1 it will there be seen that an illustrative embodiment of the new and improved unitary shoulder pad is denoted as a whole by the reference numeral 10. The unitary shoulder pad 10 is displayed over the user's shoulder and having a smaller outside surface 24 situated towards the user's neck area.

As further described in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 the unitary shoulder pad 10 comprises an elongated hollow body 14, a smaller outside surface 24 and an opposing larger outside surface 26, top cover 16, base 18 having a wedge shape, base 18 also having an upper surface 20 and a lower surface 22, the upper surface 20 and a lower surface 22 being significantly closer together towards the smaller outside surface 24 and significantly farther apart towards the larger outside surface 26, the upper surface 20 being situated for contact with the shoulder strap and lower surface 22 situated for contact with the user's shoulder, the upper surface 20 being at a decline from the larger outside surface 26 towards the smaller outside surface 24, and the lower surface 22 being at an incline from the larger outside surface 26 towards the smaller outside surface 24, allowing for a wedge shape positioned to raise the outer area of the shoulder strap and being in a more parallel position with the ground reducing the shoulder strap from having a sloping position, and further includes a pair of mating edges 34 and 36 separated by and access slot 32, the interior of the mating edges 34 and 36 having strips of hook and loop fasteners 28 and 30, the hook and loop fasteners 28 and 30 being held to the mating edges 34 and 36 by an adhesive means, the mating edges 34 and 36 being detachably fastened together in a mating engagement after passing a shoulder strap through the access slot 32.

FIG. 4 shows the unitary shoulder pad 10 having a smaller outside surface 24 and an opposing larger outside surface 26.

The unitary shoulder pad 10 comprises an integral, one piece, durable, being inexpensive to produce and having no lose parts to assemble. The unitary shoulder pad 10 is composed of a rubbery material. The rubbery material selected from but not limited to, a group of moldable polymers and foam rubbers including of latex, neoprene, ethylene propylene diene Monomer. Extrusion molding has been found to be well suited form of construction of this group of moldable polymers and foam rubbers.

As further shown in FIG. 5, a unitary shoulder pad 10 with the access slot 32 in its open position. A shoulder strap can be inserted into unitary shoulder pad 10 by opening the access slot 32. While not illustrated this is done by gripping the mating edges 34 and 36 at one end of the unitary shoulder pad 10 by the user's fingers and thumbs, prying the hook and loop fasteners 28 and 30 apart, inserting the strap, and resealing the mating edges, and then placing the shoulder strap and unitary shoulder pad 10 as depicted in FIG. 1 over the user's shoulder with the outer surface 24 toward the user's neck and the lower surface 22 of the wedge configuration on the shoulder allowing slip resistance of the unitary shoulder pad 10 from sliding off of the shoulder.

As further shown in FIG. 6 the unitary shoulder pad 10 as viewed from the rear and being composed of a rubbery material having the ability to flex as is depicted by the broken lines and illustrating the unitary shoulder pad's conformability when placed on a user's shoulder while under the downward force of the shoulder strap attached to an object being carried.

FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 shows alternate embodiment 100 of the invention having shoulder contacting longitudinal raised rib projections 102 being integral with the base's lower surface.

What has been described and illustrated herein is a preferred embodiment of the invention along with some of its variations. The terms, descriptions and figures used herein are set forth by way of illustration only and are not meant as limitations. Those skilled in the art will recognize that many variations are possible within the spirit and scope of the invention in which all terms are meant in their broadest, reasonable sense unless otherwise indicated.