Pants incorporating a tick barrier system

#The invention is in the field of protective clothing. More particularly, the invention is a tick barrier system for a pair of pants. The system makes use of a pair of specially-designed shields, with one shield located inside each pant leg. The shields are adapted to allow the placement of a bottom portion of the shields within a top portion of a user's socks. The shields then function to prevent ticks from gaining access to the skin of the user's legs.

#Each shield is made of a thin, flexible material and is tubular in shape. In the preferred embodiment, the shield is made of a breathable fabric. While the entire shield is located within the pant leg, only the top of the shield is secured to the pant leg's inner surface. The shield's top portion is secured such that it creates a complete seal between the pants and the shield. Both permanent and removable forms of the shield are disclosed. The shield is treated with an insect repellant to enhance its effectiveness.

#In recent years, a significant amount of research has been done relative to the transmission of diseases from infected ticks to humans. Ticks are known to carry potentially dangerous diseases such as Lyme disease, Lone Star Tick Syndrome and Rocky Mountain Tick Fever. It has been discovered that when a human is bitten by an infected tick, this can result in the disease being transmitted to the human, with possibly dire consequences. For the many people who enjoy outdoor activities and are thereby routinely exposed to ticks, significant effort has been made to educate these people about the hazards associated with tick bites and precautions that can be taken to minimize the potential for tick bites.

#FIG. 1 is a front view of a pair of pants that incorporate a tick barrier system in accordance with the invention.

#FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the bottom portion of the right pant leg shown in FIG. 1, and taken at the plane indicated by 2--2.

#FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional, elevation view of the bottom portion of the right pant leg of the pants shown in FIG. 1, and taken at the plane indicated by 3--3 in FIG. 2. Also shown, in phantom, is the bottom portion of a wearer's leg and a sock.

#Referring now to the drawings in greater detail, wherein like characters refer to like parts throughout the several figures, there is shown by the numeral 1 a pair of pants that include a tick barrier system in accordance with the invention.

#The pair of pants 1 are similar in outward appearance to any conventional pair of pants and includes a top portion 2 and two pant legs 4. The pants may be made of any conventional material, including relatively thick and/or padded material. Located within a bottom portion of each pant leg 4 is a tick shield 6.

#In FIG. 1, the tick shields 6 are shown in phantom. FIGS. 2 and 3 provide views of one of the pant legs wherein one of the tick shields 6 can be viewed directly.