DEVICE FOR FACILITATING THE USE OF WORKING GLOVES WHICH NEED TO BE EASILY FITTED AND REMOVED

The present invention relates to a device for facilitating the use of working gloves which need to be easily fitted and removed, in accordance with the introduction to the main claim.

Normal hygiene requirements and the laws of certain countries require that those handling food products must either not also handle money or take suitable precautions before doing so. One of these precautions consists of wearing suitable working gloves for at least one of these functions. In a commercial concern, such as a bakery, the personnel must repeatedly handle food products and take money from the customer, so that the fitting and removal of hygienic gloves must be a practical and quick operation. EP1004249 B1 describes a device enabling working gloves to be easily fitted and removed. This device presents a flat resting base with a releasable connecting means of magnetic type between the glove and resting base. In a marketed embodiment, this resting base is of wedge shape in order to be more ergonomic. The resting base is intended to be rested or fixed in a horizontal plane to a table or counter, or in a vertical plane, for example to a wall. In another embodiment, the resting base also presents a hook which acts as the releasable connection means between the resting base and the glove.

Food shop assistants have often to move from one to the other side of a counter to serve customers, with several assistants often being behind the same counter. For this reason, it may be uncomfortable, for facilitating the use of working gloves, to use a device presenting a fixed

resting base so that the glove has always to be replaced in the same position.

An object of the present invention is therefore to provide a device enabling the aforesaid drawback to be overcome. A particular object is to provide a device enabling the working glove to be more easily repositioned, and be more readily available when required.

Said objects are attained by a device the innovative characteristics of which are defined by the claims. The invention will be more apparent from the ensuing detailed description, provided by way of non-limiting example, of one embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of just the resting element; Figure 3 is a view of the resting element coupled to a pocket;

Figure 4 is a longitudinal section through the device with a coupling base. With reference to Figures from 1 to 3, it can be seen that the device of the invention, for facilitating the use of working gloves which need to be easily fitted and removed, comprises a glove 1 presenting an entry mouth 2, and a widener 3 disposed at the entry mouth 2 to maintain the entry mouth open even when the glove 1 is not worn. Said widener 3 preferably comprises a ring or armband of flexible elastic plastic material inserted into the entry mouth 2 of the glove 1. The entry mouth 2 of the glove 1 is press-fitted to the widener 3 such that the glove 1 can be easily replaced by compressing the widener 3. Alternatively, the glove 1 and widener 3 can be coupled together by any coupling means, for example hooks or

buttons inserted into suitable holes provided in the widener armband 3, to fix the glove 1 disposed about the widener armband 3. This solution can be useful for intensive use of the glove 1 , by which the glove could tend to escape from the widener. The device of the invention also comprises a resting element 4 to be used for holding the glove 1 when not worn. The glove 1 and resting element 4 can be connected together by a releasable connection means 5. This connection means 5 can comprise a permanent magnet 7 connected to the resting element 4 and an iron element 8 connected to the widener 3. The widener 3 could be a permanent magnet made for example of permanently magnetized ferromagnetic material and the resting element 4 be of iron or ferromagnetic material. This enables the glove to be disposed on the resting element in any desired position. The resting element 4 could also be a permanent magnet for example of permanently magnetized ferromagnetic material and the widener 3 be of iron or ferromagnetic material. This enables the resting element to be connected magnetically for example to an iron counter. The resting element 4 and the widener 3 can also both be permanent magnets. The connection means 5 can also comprise a Velcro strip, i.e. a material formed from a female part comprising a plurality of rings and a male part, complementary to the former, comprising a plurality of hooks to engage said rings. The female part and male part of the Velcro can be superposed and hence be easily connected together and released by pulling apart. If one of the two Velcro parts is disposed on the widener 3, the widener 3 must be formed in such a manner as not to have to be completely inserted into the entry mouth of the glove 1. For practicality in

use and to enable the glove to be fitted and removed without the aid of a second hand, the connection means 5 is arranged to exert a force sufficient to enable a hand to be completely inserted into and withdrawn from the glove 1 without causing the glove 1 to escape from the resting element 4. If the glove is for example of plastic and is fairly wide relative to the hand, such forces are fairly small. The resting element 4 is of hook- shape or of U- or J-shape, to be able to be easily coupled, for example, to the pocket of a pair of trousers or of a jacket (Figure 3). Other shapes are evidently possible, however said resting element 4 must comprise at least one hook-shaped part to be able to easily engage a pocket of an article of clothing of the user or a belt. This hook-shaped part makes the resting element 4 removably wearable by the user, the hook-shaped part being able to be inserted into a pocket or into an element of clothing and then extracted, and the glove being able to be connected to the resting element 4 even when the resting element 4 is being worn.

Figure 2 shows that the resting element 4 is of flattened curved U- or J-shape to be able to easily rest on a flat surface. Moreover, it is made of plastic and is rounded in order not to ruin fabrics with which it may come into contact when for example it is hung on a pocket of a pair of trousers or of a jacket, as shown in Figure 3. Additionally, the dimensions of the resting element are such as to enable it to be easily hooked onto a pocket of an article of clothing.

The weight of the resting element 4 added to the weight of the magnet 7 connected to it causes the glove 1 to separate from the resting element 4 when the glove 1 is raised. In this manner, it is the actual weight of the resting element 4 disposed in a vertical plane which results

in release of the connection means 5 when the glove is put on and then raised.

The resting element 4 can comprise an element 9 for its coupling to a support such as a vertical surface. This coupling element 9 can comprise for example a Velcro strip, with a female part connected to the resting element 4 and a male part to be fixed, for example by adhesive, to any surface. In this manner the resting element 4 can be coupled to any surface, including vertical, by the Velcro and if necessary can be separated from that surface by separating the female part from the male part of the Velcro. Once separated, the resting element 4 can be hooked to a pocket of an article of clothing without the Velcro female part connected to it damaging or attaching to the article. In contrast, the Velcro male part remains attached to the surface, for example of a table or wall.

As shown in Figure 4, advantageously the device of the invention can comprise a coupling base 6 to which the resting element can be removably connected, for example by an insertion fit. In this manner the coupling base 6 can be fixed to a vertical surface, and the resting element 4 can be coupled to the coupling base 6 or separated from it and hooked to the pocket of an article of clothing or to the belt of the operator. The movement required to separate the glove 1 from the resting element 4 is different from that required to separate the resting element 4 from the coupling base 6, or the force to separate the glove 1 from the resting element 4 is less than that required to separate the resting element 4 from the coupling base 6. In this manner the operator can put on the glove 1 and then detach it from the resting element 4 without releasing said resting element 4 from the coupling base 6.

In operation, the widener 3 keeps open the entry mouth 2 of the glove 1 , which when not in use is connected to the resting element 4 by the releasable connection means 5. For example, a permanent magnet can be disposed on the resting element 4 and the widener 3 can comprise an iron element.

When the operator decides to wear the glove 1 , for example to handle money, he inserts the hand into the glove 1 through the entry mouth 2 which is kept open by the widener 3.

The operator then moves his hand to disconnect the glove 1 from the resting element 4, for example by lifting his hand, while the resting element 4 remains in position. This can be due to the weight of the resting element 4, which is greater than the magnetic force which would tend to cause it to remain connected to the glove 1 , or due to the fact that the resting element 4 is coupled to the coupling base 6 or fixed to any surface by the Velcro strip 9. When the operator has terminated the operation for which the glove 1 was required, he rests the glove 1 on the resting element 4 to connect it thereto, for example by the mutual magnetic attraction force, and withdraws his hand from the glove 1. The glove 1 then remains on the resting element 4 with its entry mouth widened and hence ready to be again worn.

When the glove 1 is to be replaced, for example because it is soiled, the operator withdraws the widener 3 from the entry mouth of the glove 1 , takes a new glove and inserts the widener into its entry mouth. If the widener is a flexible elastic armband of circumference slightly greater than the perimeter of the entry mouth, the operator can compress this elastic ring, easily insert it into the entry mouth of the glove 1 and release

it so that it resumes its natural annular shape and exerts a pressure on the glove entry mouth which keeps it open while at the same time secures the widener to the glove.

As the resting element is of hook shape, it can be easily hooked to a pocket or belt.

As this hook shape is flat, said resting element can be easily rested on a horizontal surface, for example a table.

The connection means can evidently be any releasable connection means, preferably magnetic, but also hook-like, or comprising Velcro or be of insertion-fit type.