ADHESIVE ICE BAG DEVICE

• US 20040244413A1
• Filed: 06/06/2003
• Published: 12/09/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Albert Long Trinh, Dennis Sam Trinh
• Original Assignee: Albert Long Trinh, David Lam Trinh
• Inventors: Trinh, Albert Long, Trinh, David Lam
• Granted Patent: US 7,065,983 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 62/530
• 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 2007/0226 adhesive, self-sticking
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2007/0276 with separate compartments connectable by rupturing a wall or membrane
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 7/103 refillable
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 7/106 self-cooling, e.g. using a chemical reaction
• 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, methods, and articles of manufacture useful in the creation of a adhesive, non-constrictive ice bag device that is compact and can be attached to a garment, said ice bag device preferably comprising (a) a flexible outer cover for one or more cooling packs, having one face partially or entirely covered with mounting adhesive for temporarily attaching said cover, when it is filled with at least one cooling pack, to the inside or the outside of a garment, such that said cooling pack is in close contact with an injured body part of the user, without the need for a strapping and/or wrapping means, and (b) optionally, but preferably, one or more liquid impermeable inner containers that are filled with a cooling medium to form said cooling packs and can fit inside said outer cover, each said inner container being preferably a plastic zipper bag which is sealed on three sides and which has the fourth side open having a rib and groove sealing closure, and wherein said article comprising said outer cover is optionally packaged in association with a set of instructions for use to direct the user how to use the product properly, to ensure that the user 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 suitable for use to treat an injured area of a body, said cover being a sack structure with one open end, having one face covered with a mounting adhesive layer that can be used to temporarily attach said outer cover to the inside or the outside of a garment, at a location on the garment that is in close contact with the injured area of the body, when the garment is worn, wherein said cover has dimensions to form one or more compartments suitable for containing one or more cooling packs, wherein each cooling pack comprises one inner, generally liquid impermeable, container containing a cooling medium, or for containing a cooling medium when the cover is relatively liquid impermeable, and wherein the adhesive layer is covered with a release layer or is applied immediately before use.

2. The outer cover of claim 1 wherein said cover either has a generally rectangular or square configuration when flattened, or wherein said adhesive layer can either cover one entire face of the outer cover or cover only part of that face as one or more adhesive strips;

or wherein said cover has a generally rectangular or square configuration when flattened and said adhesive layer can either cover one entire face of the outer cover or cover only part of that face as one or more adhesive strips.

3. The outer cover of claim 2 wherein said adhesive strips cover one or more edges of the outer cover;

or wherein each adhesive strip has a width of at least about 1 cm;

or wherein said adhesive strips cover one or more edges of the outer cover and each adhesive strip has a width of at least about 1 cm.

4. The outer cover of claim 2 wherein said outer cover optionally has a mounting adhesive layer on its face, and has from 1 to 4 extended peripheries from the edges of said outer cover, wherein each extended periphery is optionally covered with a mounting adhesive layer that can be used to temporarily attach said outer cover to a garment, in addition to or instead of the adhesive layer on the face of the outer cover, and wherein said adhesive layer is covered with a release layer.

5. The outer cover of claim 1 wherein said outer cover has a periphery extended from the edge of the open end, wherein said periphery has an adhesive layer covering the reverse side of the periphery with respect to the mounting adhesive layer side, for use as a closing means to retain the cooling pack(s) in the outer cover.

6. The outer cover of claim 1 wherein said adhesive layer is renewed after use by either using double-sided adhesive strips that are applied over the original adhesive layer or by removing the adhesive strips and replacing them with new strips.

7. 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.

8. An ice bag device comprising:

(a) a flexible outer cover according to claim 1;

and

(b) at least one cooling pack which optionally comprises a resealable, fluid impermeable plastic container containing ice or ice and water mixture, said resealable fluid impermeable plastic container optionally comprising a rib and groove sealing closure, and said resealable fluid impermeable plastic container optionally being a commercially available zipper bag.

9. An ice bag device comprising:

(a) a flexible outer cover according to claim 1;

and

(b) at least one cooling pack which comprises a permanently sealed fluid impermeable plastic container containing a cooling medium which is selected from the group consisting of water, cooling gel, or endothermic chemical cooling system.

10. An ice bag device for use to be attached to the inside or the outside of a garment, at a location on the garment that is in close contact with the injured area of the body, when the garment is worn, comprising:

a flexible outer cover according to claim 1 wherein said outer cover has a closed sack structure, and at least one cooling pack wherein each cooling pack comprises one inner, generally liquid impermeable, sealed container containing a cooling medium

11. An ice bag device comprising:

(a) a flexible outer cover according to claim 1;

and

(b) at least one plastic liquid impermeable inner 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, said inner container optionally being a commercially available zipper bag containing ice or an ice and water mixture.

12. A method for first aid treatment of injuries by using the cover of claim 1 comprising a mounting adhesive layer to temporarily attach the said outer cover holding 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.

14. A method for creating an ice bag device for attaching to the inside 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 using a double-sided adhesive tape to attach said ice bag device to said garment, wherein said ice bag device comprises (a) an inner plastic zipper container, optionally a commercially available zipper bag, containing ice or an ice and water combination;

or (b) an outer cover containing an inner plastic zipper container of claim 12 containing ice or an ice and water combination.

15. An article of manufacture comprising the following elements:

one or more flexible outer covers according to claim 1, optionally one or more empty zipper bag containers, or one or more sealed fluid impermeable containers containing water, refrigeratable cooling gel, or endothermic chemical cooling system, optionally a seal plastic film wrapper to contain one or more of said elements, and optionally, packaged in association with a set of instructions that tells a user how to use the cover to assemble an ice bag device, and/or how to use the product properly, and/or to ensure that the user knows what benefits can be achieved, and/or how best to obtain these benefits, wherein the instructions are in one or more languages, and wherein the instructions are in words or words in combination with illustrative images and/or icons, said article optionally comprising one said outer cover and the corresponding number of empty plastic zipper containers to form cooling packs to be placed in the compartment(s) of the said outer cover, wherein said cover has one or more compartments to contain said cooling packs, and said outer cover optionally having dimensions suitable to contain one inner cooling pack.

16. The article of claim 15 comprising one or more flexible outer covers and one refrigeratable gel pack

17. The article of claim 15 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 said cover is 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 mounting adhesive layer;

(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 one or more thick layers of fabrics, 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 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 pack for use as the inner cooling packs;

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

(h) close the open end of the outer cover with the extended periphery covered with adhesive, when said extended periphery is available;

(i) wear the garment to apply the attached ice bag device over the injured part; and

/or

(j) optionally, apply the ice bag device directly on the skin surrounding the injury using the mounting adhesive, wherein the ice bag device comprises an outer cover having a sack structure with one open end, two or more extended peripheries with only said extended peripheries being covered with mounting adhesive, said set of instructions optionally further comprising one or more of the following instructions;

(k) the instruction to direct the consumer to keep one or more said articles in their fist-aid kit;

(l) 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; and

/or (m) the instruction disclosing the non-constrictive nature and/or benefit.

18. The article of claim 15 wherein said 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.

19. The article of claim 15 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.

20. The method of doing business wherein the article of claim 15 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.

13. A method for creating an ice bag device for attaching to the inside 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 using first aid adhesive tape and/or sport tape to attach said ice bag device to said garment, wherein said ice bag device comprises an inner plastic zipper container containing ice or an ice and water combination, said zipper container optionally being a commercially available zipper bag.