The present invention relates to a posture support garment, particularly a shirt worn on the upper body that includes features to improve the overall posture of a person wearing the garment.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Clothing that is alleged to improve posture and/or provide other health benefits for people, especially athletes, is known. A common approach is to incorporate an aspect of compression by way of a tight fit and so-called "compression garments" are pieces of clothing (often socks, pantyhose, sleeves etc.) that provide targeted support. Compression is especially useful for people with poor circulation or that must stand for long periods, where the clothing can be provided with varying degrees of compression usually achieved by the use of different fabrics within a single garment.

Compression techniques are now common in sports clothing, either during the performance of a sports activity or for recovery. For example, the range of sportswear shirts offered by the company IntelliSkin ^® provide a tight fitting shirt alleged to have performance and therapeutic benefits. It is also alleged to provide posture improvement and support as a consequence of various panels or material selections sewn into the garment; however, the exact benefits in this regard are unclear. Mostly, these panels just provide alternative but probably not significantly different levels of compression compared the main garment material.

In the field of orthopaedics it is also known to introduce rods or like rigid structures into garments for the purposes of posture correction. The practical use of such clothing is limited by inconvenience, (lack of) comfort and, sometimes, an unconventional appearance. Several prior patent publications are known which relate to garments for alleged posture improvement, e.g. US2014/317826, US2010/256717, US2011/131697, US5367708, US2010/050313. Such documents generally disclose a patch or other material type incorporated in a shirt that restricts stretch of the main shirt material, i.e. a multi- directional stretchable shirt is likewise restricted from stretching multi-directionally in certain areas. While these garments do arguably provide some level of posture support/correction, they are believed to be too restrictive to be worn comfortably.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The posture support garment according to the present invention seeks to enable improved posture by way of a wearable article of clothing. At the least, the present invention is intended to provide an alternative to a purely compression garment or those incorporating rigid elements that are offered and alleged to be effective as posture correction tools.

In one broad aspect of the invention there is provided a posture support garment according to claim 1. The garment incorporates a tight fitting upper body shirt with a portion of restricted stretchability extending from a location of the shirt associated with the spine of a user. Preferably the restricted portion is a band of material with reduced stretch, compared to the main shirt material, that extends from a central rear position, in the region of the shoulder blades, and over a shoulder area of the shirt.

The advantage of a posture support garment according to the invention is that the fabric located on the back of the shirt (adjacent a spine area), being restricted from stretching and combined with over-shoulder panels, has the effect of pulling the shoulders of a user rearwards so that the user is naturally urged to avoid a hunched-over position. At the same time, the front portion of the shirt does not have any restrictive panel or over-tightness, such that breathing is unimpaired. Particularly, a function of the present invention is to provide a tight fitting shirt including panels of material that allow stretch in only one direction, thereby enabling normal arm movement rotation and comfort. The primarily V-shaped back portion is unbroken from the spine, up and over a shoulder area in the vicinity of the rhomboid and trapezius muscles. Prior art such as US2011/131697 is intended primarily for spine support whereas the present invention targets the upper back because those muscles control neck movement and pulling the shoulders in.

The notable features of the invention are that, in practice, layers of perforated fabric (which allow stretch in only one direction) can be overlaid to result in a posture support shirt that is comfortable to wear, but yet corrects posture for the user in an effective way.

Known prior art does not anticipate the use of panels that restrict stretchability in only one direction. For example, according to US2014/317826 and US2010/256717, a patch or other material type is used which generally restricts stretch in all directions compared to the shirt on which it is located. These garments are believed to be too restrictive to be practically comfortable in use. The present invention utilises a uni-directional material solution so that the shirt is wearable and feels less restrictive (for breathing, etc.) compared to the prior art. Having some freedom of movement in the other direction clearly will lead to greater comfort for the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figures 1 and 2 illustrate front and rear views of a posture support garment according to the invention;

Figures 3 and 4 illustrate inside-out views of the garment shown in Figures 1 and 2, including detail of a restricted stretch fabric portion shown at an upper back region; and

Figures 5 to 7 illustrate front, side and rear perspective views respectively. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

An external appearance of the posture support garment according to the invention is best illustrated by Figures 1, 2 and 5-7 of the accompanying drawings. The garment is primarily constructed of an upper body shirt 10 which, in use, should be relatively tight fitting on the user in order for the invention to be effective. The main body of shirt 10 is assembled from a generally stretchable fabric (e.g. poly-cotton) as is known in the art. The illustrated form of the t-shirt 10 has a V-neck pattern, although any generally suitable pattern could be utilised.

According to the invention, several panels 11, 12 of a different material are sewn into the main shirt 10. These are intended to be a (first) restrictive portion in that they form a band of actively reduced stretchability compared to the rest of the shirt material. The restrictive portions/bands extend in a shallow V-shape from a centre rear 14 of the shirt 10 (Figure 2) over the shoulders, toward the front of the shirt (Figure 1). Panels 11 terminate each side of the frontal chest area 15 at a seam 16. By way of preferred example, these panels are a perforated material that enable a degree of stretchability in a lateral direction from the longitudinal "grain" of the perforations 13, but more restricted stretchability in the longitudinal direction itself. In other words, the overall restricted stretchability is unidirectional.

Directional stretch supplied by the perforated grain of the material is denoted in Figure 2 as "S" for stretchable and "R" for restricted stretch, in relation to both the main body and over-shoulder/sleeve portion which are oriented slightly differently. Essentially there is restricted stretch by the perforations in the longitudinal grain direction R but no significant restriction (beyond its natural limit of stretchability) in the lateral direction to the grain, S. When in place, these panels 11, 12 have the effect of "pulling" from the front of the shirt, over the shoulders, toward the centre of the rear of the shirt, adjacent the spine of a user. For the purposes of interpretation it should be clear to a skilled person that the directional arrows and orientation of the grain of the material are not exact. According to the invention, the restricted portion of stretch R should generally be laterally or, at an angle, otherwise radiating away from the spine and over the shoulders of a user. This is needed in order to encourage a wearer of the shirt into a more upright position as the shoulder blades are urged together by the tightness of the fabric, away from any tendency to hunch- over. "Lateral" herein should not be limited to a strictly horizontal interpretation as, indeed, the preferred embodiment is a shallow V-shape. The preferred angle is approximately 10° to 30° from horizontal for the back panel 12. The relative angle then increases for panel 11 so that it can evenly pass over the shoulders. The angle of panel 11 is offset from the back panel 12 by a further 10° to 30°.

According to the invention, the series of panels 11, 12 are sewn into/onto or otherwise adhered with the garment to be restrictive compared to the natural stretch properties of the main body shirt 10. The panels could be sewn over the existing material or incorporated as separate panels entirely. For ease of manufacture it is considered most practical to maintain the original material in place and simply layer over it with the stretch modifying layer, rather than cutting out portions of the shirt material. Referring to Figure 1, it is clear that the shoulder panels 11 extend around the shoulder area in a wide band to terminate at the seam 16. Seam 16 itself extends from a collar 17 to armpit region 18 of the shirt 10. Meanwhile, according to Figure 2, the rear-back area 14 of the shirt 10 features the two spinal/rear panels 12, extending from a central seam 19 to a comparable armpit-to-collar seam 16, forming an overall V configuration that is arranged with the restrictive fabric perforations extending away from the spine. The spinal panels 12 are preferably located with the upper back region of a user, adjacent the shoulder blades.

Figures 3 and 4 illustrate the same shirt from Figures 1 and 2, but pulled "inside-out" to show detail ordinarily hidden from view when the shirt is worn. Here, a second set of shoulder panels 20 are shown on the inside of shirt 10 with perforations that allow stretchability and restriction in the same directions S/R as the external shoulder panels 11. In the preferred embodiment perforated panels are stitched to the shoulder region of the shirt internally 20 and externally 11 such that a layer of regular shirt material is sandwiched in between. However, alternative embodiments may be envisaged where the regular T- shirt material is removed (cut-out) in order to provide ventilation through the fabric.

Figure 4 shows a large shield-shaped portion 21 of perforated fabric stitched to the inside upper back of the main shirt 10, extending between collar 17 and the collar-to-armpit internal seams 16. This forms a second restrictive portion wherein perforations run in a vertical direction and, hence, provide a restricted stretch function R in a longitudinal direction coinciding with the spinal axis.

It will be apparent that part of the shield portion 21 coincides with the external V-shaped spinal portions 12 from Figure 2 which are oriented to provide a non-stretch function R laterally or angularly away from the spine. Therefore, at this coinciding area 22, stretch is inhibited in both the longitudinal and lateral directions (multi-directional restriction compared to uni-directional restriction elsewhere on the garment). This provides a relatively rigid support around the shoulder blade area of the user and effectively discourages the shoulders from being hunched forward. Furthermore, in the upper-most back region 21 of the shield portion, stretch is at least inhibited in a vertical direction which subtly pulls the head of a user backwards.

Of course the illustrated system is implemented with fabric which, even though restrictive, will have a small measure of "give" to accommodate comfort of the user. It is not intended that the various panels be absolutely rigid, just that the garment encourages a particular posture that is desirable according to best osteopathic practice.

Several modifications to the garment according to the invention may be possible that still retain its general advantages. For example, the portions that inhibit stretch in a particular direction are shown as patches of fabric with perforations, however, alternative solutions may be considered. Furthermore, in the region 22 that is intended to have restricted stretch in both/all directions, a single layer of fabric could be contemplated which inhibits stretch in all directions relative to the main T-shirt fabric which is intended to enable a tight but accommodating fit for the user. Alternatively, the restrictive portion could be achieved by an adhesive patch or other substance that is printed/painted onto the shirt material.

It will also be apparent that the invention can be realised as a method of retrofitting an existing t-shirt (long or short sleeved) by incorporating areas of restricted stretchability in specific locations as disclosed herein.

Construction of a shirt incorporating the invention can be undertaken with available materials and manufacturing techniques. Once constructed, it is an advantage of the invention that the garment is easily foldable for storage/packing since the inherent 'rigidity' provided by the restricted stretch portions do not impart any stiffness per se as part of the structure, in the way that a rod or other insert would.

By way of example, the preferred materials which have different relative stretch properties are as follows:

Main body shirt fabric: 250gsm; 94%Polyester; 6% Spandex

Mesh panels (which enable limited stretch in one direction by way of multiple linear perforations in the same direction): 100% polyester It will be clear to a skilled person that some variation will be possible to experiment with relative stretch properties. Some garments may be constructed to have a more subtle corrective influence than others dependent on the width of the mesh panels or the nature of the mesh itself.