Non-constrictive ice bag device

• US 7,096,687 B2
• Filed: 06/06/2003
• Issued: 08/29/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Albert Long Trinh, Dennis Sam Trinh
• Original Assignee: Albert Long Trinh, David Lam Trinh
• Inventors: Trinh, Albert Long, Trinh, David Lam
• Primary Examiner(s): Jones, Melvin
• Application Number:
  US10/455,885
• Publication Number:
  US 20040244412A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,180 Days
• Field of Search: 625/30, 622/593, 624/572, 623/71, 607/96, 607/112, 607/114
• US Class Current: 62/530
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 13/0055 by means of dry ice
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2007/0001 Body part
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2007/0098 ways of manufacturing heating or cooling devices for therapy
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 7/103 refillable
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2303/081 using ice cubes or crushed ice
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2400/26 Refrigerating devices for cooling wearing apparel, e.g. garments, hats, shoes or gloves
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 3/08 portable, i.e. adapted to be carried personally

Abstract

Ice bag covers, articles and methods useful in the creation of a non-constrictive ice bag device that is compact and can be attached to a garment, said ice bag device comprising (a) an outer cover with extended peripheries to attach said outer cover to the inside or the outside of a garment using a plurality of safety pins; (b) a cooling medium, optionally in a liquid impermeable inner container that can fit inside the outer cover, said inner cooling container preferably being a plastic zipper bag which is sealed on three sides and having the fourth side open, the fourth side preferably having a rib and groove sealing closure; and (c) a plurality of safety pins for use to attach the ice bag device to a garment and to close the open side(s) of the outer cover; and wherein the ice bag device is optionally packaged in association with a set of instructions for use to direct the consumer how to use the product properly, to ensure that the consumer knows what benefits can be achieved, and how best to obtain these benefits, and a method of doing business in which an established entity, especially a sports organization is used to assure the user that the device and method of use are safe and effective.

Claims

1. A flexible outer cover for an ice bag device, that is compact, not bulky, so that it can fit in a first-aid box along with other first-aid items, said cover being either a piece of flexible substrate or a sack structure with one or more open sides, having one or more extended peripheries for use to attach the outer cover to the inside or the outside of a garment by the use of a plurality of safety pins, wherein each extended periphery has a width of at least about 1 centimeter, and wherein said cover has dimensions to form one or more compartments suitable for containing one or more cooling packs which can comprise a generally liquid impermeable container capable of containing a cooling medium or which can contain cooling media when the cover is relatively liquid impermeable and sealable.

2. The outer cover of claim 1 wherein said cover has a generally rectangular or square configuration when flattened.

5. The outer cover of claim 2 wherein said cover is a piece of substrate having extended peripheries on at least three sides.

6. The outer cover of claim 1 wherein said cover is made of material which is either woven, knitted, crocheted, non-woven fabric of natural and/or synthetic fibers, felt, velvet, flocked material, heat-bonded plastic fiber material, solvent-laid thermally bonded plastic fiber material, open-cell plastic foam, close-cell plastic foam, porous plastic film, nonporous plastic film, rubber, paper, and/or laminated materials.

11. A method for first aid treatment of injuries by using safety pins to attach the outer cover of claim 1 which holds an inner container containing a cooling medium to a garment to apply said cooling medium to an injured body part when the garment is worn.

3. A flexible outer cover for an ice bag device, said cover being either a piece of flexible substrate or a sack structure with one or more open sides, having one or more extended peripheries for use to attach the outer cover to the inside or the outside of a garment by the use of a plurality of safety pins, wherein each extended periphery has a width of at least about 1 centimeter, and wherein said cover has dimensions to form one or more compartments suitable for containing one or more cooling packs which can comprise a generally liquid impermeable container capable of containing a cooling medium or which can contain cooling media when the cover is relatively liquid impermeable and sealable, wherein said cover has a generally rectangular or square configuration when flattened and wherein said cover has either a generally tubular structure having two opposite open ends, and wherein the cover has at least two extended peripheries from the two open ends or wherein said cover has a sack structure having three sealed sides and having the fourth side open, and wherein the cover has at least two extended peripheries, one extended periphery being at the open end and the other periphery being at the opposite side ofthe open end.

4. The outer cover of claim 3 wherein said cover has a sack structure having three sealed sides and having the fourth side open, and wherein the cover has at least two extended peripheries, one extended periphery being at the open end and the other periphery being at the opposite side of the open end.

19. An article of manufacture comprising one or more flexible outer covers according to claim 3, packaged in association with a set of instructions that tell an individual how to use the cover to assemble an ice bag device, how to use the product properly, and to ensure that the consumer knows what benefits can be achieved, and how best to obtain these benefits, wherein the instructions are in one language or multilingual, and wherein the instructions are in words, in illustrative images and/or icons, or in words in combination with illustrative images and/or icons, said article optionally further comprising one or more of:

(1) the corresponding number of inner cooling containers to form cooling packs to be placed in the compartment(s) of the outer cover, wherein the cover can form one or more compartments, and wherein each cooling container is either an empty plastic zipper bag, refrigeratable gel pack, or chemical cool pack;

(2) a plurality of safety pins; and

/or (3) a sealed plastic wrapper to contain the outer cover, the inner cooling container(s), and/or the safety pins,

wherein said article carries indicia on one or more of;

the outer cover, the inner containers, the wrapper, the package, and/or the set of instructions, showing one or more of;

a logo, emblem, symbol, motif, sign, figure, mark, icon, pictogram, insignia, design, image, description, and/or advertisement for one or more of;

a sport league, sport franchise, sport sponsor, non-profit or governmental organization, and/or for-profit commercial or industrial organization.

7. An ice bag device comprising:

(a) a flexible outer cover, said cover being either a piece of flexible substrate or a sack structure with one or more open sides, having one or more extended peripheries for use to attach the outer cover to the inside or the outside of a garment by the use of a plurality of safety pins, wherein each extended periphery has a width of at least about 1 centimenter, and wherein said cover has dimensions to form one or more compartments suitable for containing one or more cooling packs which can comprise a generally liquid impermeable container capable of containing a cooling medium or which can contain cooling media when the cover is relatively liquid impermeable and sealable.

(b) at least one plastic liquid impermeable inner cooling container suitable for holding a cooling medium to form a cooling pack, wherein said inner container either is completely sealed and contains a cooling gel or water, or an endothermic chemical cooling system, or has one open side that can be closed by means of a resealable closure and contains ice or an ice and water mixture, and wherein said cooling packs have dimensions that enable them to fit inside the outer cover; and

(c) from about 1 to about 20 safety pins.

8. The ice bag device of claim 7 wherein said inner container has a resealable rib and groove sealing closure and contains ice or an ice and water mixture.

9. The ice bag device of claim 8 wherein said inner container is a commercially available zipper bag.

10. The ice bag device of claim 7 wherein said ice bag device comprises from about 4 to about 12 safety pins.

12. A method of creating a non-constrictive ice bag device of claim 7 for attaching to theinside or the outside of a garment, such that said ice bag device is in close contact with an injured body part of the user when the garment is worn, by the steps of filling one or more plastic zipper containers with ice or an ice and water combination;

placing the filled container(s) inside a flexible outer cover for an ice bage device, said cover being either a piece of flexible substrate or a sack structure with one or more open sides, having one or more extended peripheries for use at attach the outer cover to the inside or the outside of a garment by the use of a plurality of safety pins, wherein each extended periphery has a width of at least about 1 centimenter, and wherein said voer has dimensions to form one or more compartments suitable for containing one orm ore cooling packs which can comprise a generally liquid impermeable container capable of containing a cooling medium or which can contain cooling media when the cover is relatively liquid impermeable and sealable; and

using a plurality of safety pins to attach the assembled ice bag device to the surface of the garment and optionally and additionally to seal said outer cover.

13. An article of manufacture comprising one or more flexible outer covers for an ice bag device, each of said covers being either a piece of flexible substrate or a sack structure with one or more open sides, having one or more extended peripheries for use to attach the outer cover to the inside or the outside of a garment by the use of a plurality of safety pins, ehrein each extended periphery has a width of at least about 1 centimeter, and wherein said cover has dimensions to form one or more compartments suitable for containing one or more cooling packs which can comprise a generally liquid impermeable container capable of containing a cooling medium or which can contain cooling media when the cover is relatively liquid impermeable and sealable, said covers being packaged in association with a set of instructions that tell an individual how to use the cover to assemble an ice bag device, how to use the product properly, and to ensure that the consumer knows what benefits can be achieved, and how best to obtain these benefits, wherein the instructions are in one language or multilingual, and wherein the instructions are in words, in illustrative images and/or icons, or in words in combination with illustrative images and/or icons.

14. The article of claim 13 further comprising one or more of:

(1) the corresponding number of inner cooling containers to form cooling packs to be placed in the compartment(s) of the outer cover, wherein the cover can form one or more compartments, and wherein each cooling container is either an empty plastic zipper bag, refrigeratable gel pack, or chemical cool pack;

(2) a plurality of safety pins; and

/or (3) a sealed plastic wrapper to contain the outer cover, the inner cooling container(s), and/or the safety pins.

15. The article of claim 13 wherein said outer cover has dimensions suitable to contain one inner cooling pack.

16. The article of claim 13 wherein said set of instructions comprises one or more of the following instructions:

(a) place the outer cover on a location either inside or outside of a garment such that the compartment(s) containing the cooling pack(s) is at the location in close contact with the injured area of the body when the garment is worn;

(b) attach the outer cover to the garment using the safety pins, leaving one or more sides of the outer cover open to insert one or more inner cooling packs;

(c) attach the outer cover to the inside of the garment if there is room inside the garment to fit the complete ice bag device and/or if the garment is composed of a thick layer, or attach the outer cover to the outside of the garment if the garment is made of thin material that allows good transmission of cold to the injured body part and/or if there is not enough room inside the garment;

(d) fill one or more plastic zipper bags with ice and seal said bags for use as the inner cooling packs;

(e) pre-cool one or more gel packs for use as the inner cooling packs;

(f) activate one or more chemical cool packs for use as the inner cooling pack;

(g) place the filled inner cooling pack(s) in the compartment(s) of the outer cover;

(h) close the remaining open side(s) of the outer cover and attach the extended peripheries of said open side(s) to the garment using the same safety pins, by carefully piercing said peripheries so as to avoid puncturing the inner cooling pack(s); and

/or

(i) wear the garment to apply the resulting attached ice bag device over the injured part.

17. The article of claim 16 wherein said set of instructions further comprises one or more of the following instructions:

(j) the instruction to direct the consumer to a source of ice, including a home refrigerator, ice boxes or ice coolers for beverages at a sport game, and/or a fast food restaurant and/or a hotel or motel on a trip;

(k) the instruction to direct the consumer to keep an ice bag device in their first-aid kit; and

/or (I) the instruction disclosing the non-constrictive nature of the ice pack herein when attached to a garment and/or the benefit of the non-constrictive nature.

18. An article of manufacture according to claim 13 wherein the set of instructions is printed on one or more of:

the package, the wrapper, and/or an accompanying instruction flyer or booklet; and

/or is communicated via print and/or electronic mass media, optionally selected from newspapers, magazines, radio, television, internet, circulars to members of sport and/or outdoor organizations, and combinations thereof.

20. The method of doing business wherein the article of claim 13 is distributed with the approval of one or more entities having an association with individuals that are likely to be injured and need an ice bag device on an urgent basis, said entity optionally being an amateur or professional athletic association and/or optionally, attaching the indicia of at least one of said entities to said article and/or associating said indicia with said article.