Athletic gear or other devices comprising post-molded expandable components
AssigneeBauer Hockey, LLC
InventorsThierry Krick, François Asselin, Jean-François Laperrière, Martin Ladouceur, Ivan Labonté, Marco Beauregard
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A device (e.g., an article of athletic gear) comprising a post-molded expandable component, which is a part of the device that is configured to be expanded or has been expanded after being molded. This may allow the post-molded expandable component to have enhanced characteristics (e.g., be more shock-absorbent, lighter, etc.), to be cost-effectively manufactured (e.g., by using less material and/or making it in various sizes), and/or to be customized for a user (e.g., by custom-fitting it to the user).
Claims31
An article of athletic gear wearable by a user, the article of athletic gear comprising:
- an outer part that comprises an outer surface of the article of athletic gear;
- and
- expandable material covered by the outer part, formed into an initial three-dimensional configuration and subsequently expanded to an expanded three-dimensional configuration that is a scaled-up version of the initial three-dimensional configuration.
A method of making an article of athletic gear wearable by a user, the method comprising:
- forming expandable material into an initial three-dimensional configuration;
- expanding the expandable material from the initial three-dimensional configuration to an expanded three-dimensional configuration that is a scaled-up version of the initial three-dimensional configuration;
- and
- providing an outer part that comprises an outer surface of the article of athletic gear and covers the expandable material in the expanded three-dimensional configuration.
A method of making an article of athletic gear wearable by a user, the method comprising:
- forming expandable material into an initial three-dimensional configuration using 3D printing;
- expanding the expandable material from the initial three-dimensional configuration to an expanded three-dimensional configuration that is a scaled-up version of the initial three-dimensional configuration;
- and
- providing an outer part that comprises an outer surface of the article of athletic gear and covers the expandable material in the expanded three-dimensional configuration.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.