FIELD OF THE INVENTION jO0.il This invention relates to the fields of sun protection articles, and clothing for recreational activities in water.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0021 There are over three million cases of sunburn each year in the United States alone. Such overexposure to sunlight and accompanying ultraviolet radiation not only causes skin swelling, irritation, blisters, peeling, fever and nausea, but can also lead to premature wrinkling, skin aging, and skin cancer (such as basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and even in extreme cases malignant melanoma).

[003] Many clothing articles are intended to protect skin from the sun. Some articles are designed to protect parts of the body that are generally uncovered by clothing, such as the head and/or neck. Some examples of such articles of clothing include hats, scarves, and bandanas. Some such articles are also designed for cold weather use, to provide more heat to the wearer. Such articles may be unsuitable for active recreational activities in warm weather, where the wearer may emit more body heat than usual. j0041 Other articles like visors may be intended for warm weather use but provide only limited protection from the sun. Such articles may also become somewhat insecurely fastened when the wearer is engaged in particular recreational activities.

[005] Other articles intended to offer sun protect protection may also be designed to shelter a user’s head and body from raining water.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[006] An initial overview of the technology is provided below and specific technology embodiments are then described in further detail. This initial summary is intended to aid readers in understanding the technology more quickly, but is not intended to identify key or essential features of the technology, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. The foregoing and other features, utilities and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of a preferred embodiment of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. [007] Described herein is a sun protective article. In some examples, the article may include a cylindrical piece of fabric having an upper end and a lower end. In some examples, the upper end may include a first opening and the lower end may include a second opening. some examples, the lower end may be configured for placement around a neck of a person so that at least a portion of the neck may extend through the second opening. In some examples, the upper end may be configured for placement around a head of the person so that at least a first portion of the head including the eyes may extend through the first opening while at least a second portion of the head including the ears is covered by the cylindrical piece of fabric.

1.0091 In some examples, the upper end may be connected to a stabilizer configured to rest on a first part of a top of the head so that a second part of the top of the head is uncovered by either the stabilizer or the cylindrical piece of fabric. In some examples, the stabilizer may be further configured to counterbalance at least some of the weight of the cylindrical piece of fabric when the stabilizer rests on the first part of the top of the head.

1010] Described herein is also a sun-protection system. In some examples, the system may include a cylindrical piece of fabric having an upper end and a lower end. In some examples, the upper end may include a first opening and the lower end may include a second opening.

[Oi l] In some examples, the upper end may be connected to a stabilizer configured to rest on a first part of a top of the head so that a second part of the top of the head is uncovered by either the stabilizer or the cylindrical piece of fabric. In some examples of the system, the stabilizer may further be configured to counterbalance at least some of the weight of the cylindrical piece of fabric when the stabilizer rests on the first part of the top of the head.

[012] In some examples, the system may also include an anchor. In some examples, the lower end of the cylindrical piece of fabric may be configured to attach to the anchor. In some examples, the anchor may be, or include, or attach to, an upper body garment. The above-described embodiments are considered that of some embodiments only. It is understood that the embodiments shown in the drawings below and described above are merely for illustrative purposes and not intended to limit scope. Therefore, alterations, modifications, and such further applications as would occur to those skilled in the relevant art(s) are also contemplated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[014] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a sun protection article embodiment in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. [015] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the sun protection article embodiment of FIG. 1 in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. 3 is another perspective view of the sun protection article embodiment of FIG.

1 in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

1017] FIG. 4A is a perspective view of a sun protection article embodiment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. 4B is a perspective view of a sun protection article embodiment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

_I.QJ.31 FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the sun protection article embodiment of FIG. 1 in its environment of use, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. FIG. 6 is a front view of another sun protection article embodiment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[021] People engaging in outdoor activities are often at risk of damage to their skin from the sun. Although articles exist to protect skin from the sun, they often entail disadvantages and drawbacks in certain scenarios and for particular activities. Some articles may not fully protect face, neck, and ears from sun at all angles — for example, when the user is in a horizontally-aligned lying position and then suddenly springs to a vertically-aligned upright position.

[(122,1 In addition, many articles for protecting the skin from the sun do not adequately protect the face, ears, and neck, and/or are not well-suited for demanding water recreational activities. Some such activities may involve substantial contact between the wearer of the article protection and heavy impact with water. Such forces from the water may cause such articles to become separated from the wearer and lost in the water.

[023] Also, many articles for protecting the skin from the sun may (even be designed to) trap body heat against not only the face, ears, and neck, but also against the head. Nevertheless, when engaging in rigorous physical activity, it may be desirable for at least part of the head to be uncovered, to allow the body to cool itself more effectively.

[(12,4,1 In addition, many such head sun protection articles are designed to cover the head, and therefore are in frequent contact with the hair. As a result, hours of use of such articles may leave the hair disheveled and a mess.

HI25] Moreover, many such head sun protection articles are designed to either cover, or to be used in conjunction with articles that cover, the head, and consequently deprive the user of a potential benefit of the head being left exposed to the sun. Specifically, some users desire that their hair will become bleached from exposure to the sun, and must therefore choose between either covering their heads, or leaving their face, neck, and/or ears exposed to the sun’s damaging effects.

1026] Relatedly, although some “hoodies” may protect part of the head from the sun, when used in the water they may (among other drawbacks already mentioned) block the wearer’s field of view, restrict movement, and/or trap water within the hoodie. This may add weight to the user’s clothing, affect the user’s balance when engaging in acrobatic maneuvers, and also add drag to the user when moving (for example, swimming) in water. j027] Described herein is a sun protection article that addresses one or more of the aforementioned drawbacks. For example, the article may protect parts of the neck, ears, and face from the elements including the sun, while allowing heat to escape from part of the top of the head. The article may also fasten or be placed securely in position to continue to protect the neck, ears, and much of the face from the sun in such a manner that even rigorous water recreational activities are unlikely to displace the article from the wearer. In addition, the article may entail less contact with the hair, and therefore leave the more orderly and neat, while also leaving much of the hair uncovered and exposed to the sun’s rays so that the hair may become bleached therefrom.

[028] FIG. 1 shows a sun protection article 105 in accordance with aspects of this disclosure. The article 105 may include a cylindrical piece of fabric 115 having an upper end 110 and a lower end 120. In some examples, the upper end 110 may include a first opening 125 and the lower end 120 may include a second opening 130. The lower end 120 may be narrower than the upper end 110, and the second opening 125 may be smaller than the first opening 130. In addition, the upper end 110 may have a first side 135 opposite a second side 140.

J029] The lower end 120 may be configured to attach to an anchor 145. The anchor 145 may attach to, include, or constitute an article of clothing. For instance, the article of clothing may be for placement on a torso, like a shirt, and/or a rash guard 150. Moreover, the lower end 120 may be configured to attach to the rash guard 150 based at least in part on being sewn to the rash guard 150, with the anchor 145 including the threads holding or fastening the lower end 120 to the rash guard 150. In some examples, the article of clothing and the cylindrical piece of fabric 115 may together be a single article (not shown).

[030] The cylindrical piece of fabric 115 may be made from any suitable material. In some examples, the cylindrical piece of fabric 115 may be waterproof or water resistant. In some example, the cylindrical piece of fabric 115 may be elastic. In some examples, the cylindrical piece of fabric 115 may be waterproof and elastic. In some examples, materials may include spandex.

1031 j As shown in FIG. 2, the lower end 120a may be configured for placement around a neck 205 of a person 210 so that the neck 205 may extend through the second opening 130. Also, the anchor 145a may hold the lower end 120a in place around the neck 205.

[032] In some examples, the upper end 110a may be configured for placement around a head 215 of the person 210 so that at least a first portion 220 of the head 215 including the eyes may extend through the first opening 125a while at least a second portion 225 of the head 215 including the ears 230 may be covered by the cylindrical piece of fabric 115a.

[033] In addition, sun protection article 105 may include a stabilizer 235. The stabilizer may include a first cord 240, protruding from the first side 135a of the upper end 110a, and a second cord 245 protruding from the second side 140a of the upper end 110a.

[034] As shown in FIG. 3, the upper end 110b may be connected to a stabilizer 235a that is configured to rest on a first part 305 of a top of the head 215b so that a second part 310 of the top of the head 215b is uncovered by either the stabilizer 235a or the cylindrical piece of fabric 115b. The first part 305 of a top of the head 215b may be, for example, one or more of the vertex or crown, or the top (such as either the mid-scalp region or the forelock or frontal region). The second part 310 of a top of the head 215b may also be, for example, one or more of the vertex or crown, or the top (such as either the mid-scalp region or the forelock or frontal region), or parts thereof that are not in contact with the stabilizer 235a. Thus, much of the head 215b may be uncovered, which will present certain benefits. For example, significant body heat (e.g., 7-10%) is released through the head, which amount increases when other parts of the body are covered with clothing, etc. Yet many existing articles that offer sun protection are designed to either cover the top of the head or to be used with other articles that cover the top of the head. Other benefits are described in greater detail below.

[035] In some examples, the stabilizer 235a may be further configured to counterbalance at least some of the weight of the cylindrical piece of fabric 115b when the stabilizer 235a rests on the first part 305 of the top of the head 215b. Relatedly, some degree of tension between the stabilizer 235a and the anchor 145a connected to the lower end 120a may assist in holding the cylindrical piece of fabric 115b in place over a second portion 225a of the head 215a, without the cylindrical piece of fabric 115b folding over itself. Such second portion 225a of the head 215a may include, for example, one or more or all of the ears 230, cheeks 310, neck 205a, and the nose 315, or parts thereof. Thus, such parts may be protected from the sun. [036] The upper end 110b may be configured so that the first side 135b aligns with the right ear 230a and the second side 140b aligns with the left ear 230b when the first cord 240a and the second cord 245a are connected. The first side 135b may also include a first portion 320 for covering the right ear 230a, and the second side 140b comprises a second portion 325 for covering the left ear 230b, when the first cord 240a and the second cord 245a are connected.

[037] In some examples, a portion (not shown) of the cylindrical piece of fabric 115b may be designed for placement over the mouth. Accordingly, the portion made of material designed facilitate respiration, such as a breathable mesh. s further shown in FIG. 3, and as mentioned above, the stabilizer 235a may be placed over the first part 305 (e.g., the crown) of the top of the head 215b, and the lower end 120a may be attached to the anchor 145a, which may result in tension between the two parts. This tension may assist in holding the cylindrical piece of fabric 115b in place over the ears 230a, 230b, cheeks 310, neck 205a, and the nose 315, to protect those parts from the sun. Thus, the stabilizer 235a, and its placement over the top of the head 215b may hold up the cylindrical piece of fabric 115b in place, while the anchor 145a may help to keep the cylindrical piece of fabric 115b in a proper position.

[039] The tension between the stabilizer 235a and the anchor 145a may be adjustable. For instance, in some embodiments the cords 240a, 245a may be untightened and tied together at difference points (for example, tied in a bow). In other embodiments, the stabilizer 235a may comprise a buckle, fasteners (e.g., hook and loop fasteners), etc. Thus, the tension and the size of the article may be adjusted according to user comfort, preference, head size, etc. addition, the tension may easily be adjusted temporarily, by for example removing/lowering the stabilizer 235a from off the top of the head 215b, and then placing it back on the top of the head 215b when desired. Yet the lower end 120a may still be attached to the anchor 145a and therefore removing the stabilizer 235a will not require a hand to hold the article or risk in it being lost or washed out to sea. Thus, the wearer of the article may show more of the face when needed, for example to communicate with another person more effectively (by uncovering the mouth and showing more of facial expressions).

[941] Moreover, as shown in FIG. 4A, the first side 135c and the second side 140c may further be configured to secure the strap 410 of a sports visor 415 thereunder. This may assist in preventing forces from water (e.g., from a wave) from pulling the sports visor 415 from off the head 215c. Alternatively, in some embodiments, the tension between the anchor 145b and the stabilizer 235b and in cords 240b, 245b may tightly apply pressure to the sides of the strap 410 of the sports visor 415, securing it thereunder.

[0421 As shown in FIG. 4B, the first side 135d and the second side 140d may further be configured to secure temples 420 of a pair of glasses 405 thereunder. This may assist in preventing forces from water (e.g., from a wave) from pulling the glasses 405 from off the head 215d. Alternatively, in some embodiments, the tension between the anchor 145c and the stabilizer 235c and in the cords 240c, 245c may tightly apply pressure to the sides of the temples 420 of the pair of glasses 405, securing them thereunder.

[043] As shown in FIG. 5, sun protection article embodiments may entail certain advantages in particular environments of use. For example, in water environments, the tension between the anchor 145c and the stabilizer 235d may allow the article 105a to stay in place even when the wearer 505 moves quickly into a variety of position and engages in potentially acrobatic maneuvers, or is acted upon by large quantities of water in great force (or may occur when the wearer 505 is on a surfboard 510). And even when the stabilizer 235d may temporarily become displaced from the top of the head 215e, the article 105a will still at least stay with the wearer 505 because of the lower end 120c being attached to the anchor 145c, so that it can be securely positioned again in order to offer sun protection.

[044] In addition, while the wearer 505 is engaging in recreational activities that may require substantial physical exertion, much of the head 215e may be uncovered by the cylindrical piece of fabric 115c, which may allow more body heat to escape. Moreover, such parts of the head 215e uncovered by the cylindrical piece of fabric 115c may, for a particular wearer 505, still be covered with hair 515, which may lessen the risk that the skin on such parts of the head 215e will be exposed to the sun’s harmful rays. Instead, that hair 515 may be exposed to the sun’s rays 520, which may result in desirable sun-bleaching of the hair 515. Moreover, because a relatively small amount of the article 105a (e.g., the stabilizer 235d) may be in contact with the hair 515, the hair 515 may stay less disheveled from the article 105a (e.g., become less tangled and snarled from repeated contact with material such as fabric).

]045I FIG. 6 shows an example of one another sun protection article embodiment 105b. The article embodiment 105b may include a cylindrical piece of fabric 115d with one or more portions 605 that cover additional areas of skin, such as the forehead 610. In some such examples, the first side 135e and the second side 140e may be part of the body of the cylindrical piece of fabric 115d.

[046] Described herein is also a sun-protection system. In some examples, the system may include a cylindrical piece of fabric having an upper end and a lower end. In some examples, the upper end may include a first opening and the lower end may include a second opening.

[(1471 In some examples, the upper end may be connected to a stabilizer configured to rest on a first part of a top of the head so that a second part of the top of the head is uncovered by either the stabilizer or the cylindrical piece of fabric. In some examples of the system, the stabilizer may further be configured to counterbalance at least some of the weight of the cylindrical piece of fabric when the stabilizer rests on the first part of the top of the head. some examples, the system may also include an anchor, wherein the lower end is configured to attach to the anchor. In some examples, the anchor may be or include an upper body garment. Some non-limiting examples of such an upper body garment may include a rashguard, a t- shirt, a wet suit, etc. The above-described device is considered that of some embodiments only. It is therefore understood that the embodiments shown in the figures below and described above are merely for illustrative purposes and not intended to limit scope. Alterations and modifications, therefore, and such further applications as would occur to those skilled in the relevant art(s), are also contemplated.

[05(11 Although the foregoing detailed description contains many specifics for the purpose of illustration, a person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that many variations and alterations to the foregoing details can be made and are considered to be included herein. Accordingly, the foregoing embodiments are set forth without any loss of generality to, and without imposing limitations upon, any claims set forth. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting. Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. s used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. j0521 In this disclosure, “comprises,” “comprising,” “containing” and “having” and the like can have the meaning ascribed to them in U.S. Patent law and can mean “includes,” “including,” and the like, and are generally interpreted to be open ended terms. The terms “consisting of’ or “consists of’ are closed terms, and include only the components, structures, steps, or the like specifically listed in conjunction with such terms, as well as that which is in accordance with U.S. Patent law. “Consisting essentially of’ or “consists essentially of’ have the meaning generally ascribed to them by U.S. Patent law. In particular, such terms are generally closed terms, with the exception of allowing inclusion of additional items, materials, components, steps, or elements, that do not materially affect the basic and novel characteristics or function of the item(s) used in connection therewith. For example, trace elements present in a composition, but not affecting the compositions nature or characteristics would be permissible if present under the “consisting essentially of’ language, even though not expressly recited in a list of items following such terminology. When using an open ended term, like “comprising” or “including,” it is understood that direct support should be afforded also to “consisting essentially of’ language as well as “consisting of’ language as if stated explicitly and vice versa.

[053] The terms “first,” “second,” “third,” “fourth,” and the like in the description and in the claims, if any, are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It is to be understood that any terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments described herein are, for example, capable of operation in sequences other than those illustrated or otherwise described herein. Similarly, if a method is described herein as comprising a series of steps, the order of such steps as presented herein is not necessarily the only order in which such steps may be performed, and certain of the stated steps may possibly be omitted and/or certain other steps not described herein may possibly be added to the method.

[054] The terms “left,” “right,” “front,” “back,” “top,” “bottom,” “over,” “under,” and the like in the description and in the claims, if any, are used for descriptive purposes and not necessarily for describing permanent relative positions. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments described herein are, for example, capable of operation in other orientations than those illustrated or otherwise described herein. The term “coupled,” as used herein, is defined as directly or indirectly connected in an electrical or nonelectrical manner. Objects described herein as being “adjacent to” each other may be in physical contact with each other, in close proximity to each other, or in the same general region or area as each other, as appropriate for the context in which the phrase is used. Occurrences of the phrase “in one embodiment,” or “in one aspect,” herein do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment or aspect. As used herein, the term “substantially” refers to the complete or nearly complete extent or degree of an action, characteristic, property, state, structure, item, or result. For example, an object that is “substantially” enclosed would mean that the object is either completely enclosed or nearly completely enclosed. The exact allowable degree of deviation from absolute completeness may in some cases depend on the specific context. However, generally speaking the nearness of completion will be so as to have the same overall result as if absolute and total completion were obtained. The use of “substantially” is equally applicable when used in a negative connotation to refer to the complete or near complete lack of an action, characteristic, property, state, structure, item, or result. For example, a composition that is “substantially free of’ particles would either completely lack particles, or so nearly completely lack particles that the effect would be the same as if it completely lacked particles. In other words, a composition that is “substantially free of’ an ingredient or element may still actually contain such item as long as there is no measurable effect thereof.

As used herein, the term “about” is used to provide flexibility to a numerical range endpoint by providing that a given value may be “a little above” or “a little below” the endpoint. Unless otherwise stated, use of the term “about” in accordance with a specific number or numerical range should also be understood to provide support for such numerical terms or range without the term “about”.

[0571 As used herein, a plurality of items, structural elements, compositional elements, and/or materials may be presented in a common list for convenience. However, these lists should be construed as though each member of the list is individually identified as a separate and unique member. Thus, no individual member of such list should be construed as a de facto equivalent of any other member of the same list solely based on their presentation in a common group without indications to the contrary.

[058] Numerical data may be expressed or presented herein in a range format. It is to be understood that such a range format is used merely for convenience and brevity and thus should be interpreted flexibly to include not only the numerical values explicitly recited as the limits of the range, but also to include all the individual numerical values or sub-ranges encompassed within that range as if each numerical value and sub-range is explicitly recited. As an illustration, a numerical range of “about 1 to about 5” should be interpreted to include not only the explicitly recited values of about 1 to about 5, but also include individual values and sub-ranges within the indicated range. Thus, included in this numerical range are individual values such as 2, 3, and 4 and sub-ranges such as from 1-3, from 2-4, and from 3-5, etc., as well as 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, individually. [059] This same principle applies to ranges reciting only one numerical value as a minimum or a maximum. Furthermore, such an interpretation should apply regardless of the breadth of the range or the characteristics being described.

10601 Reference throughout this specification to “an example” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the example is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in an example” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

[0611 Reference in this specification may be made to devices, structures, systems, or methods that provide “improved” performance. It is to be understood that unless otherwise stated, such “improvement” is a measure of a benefit obtained based on a comparison to devices, structures, systems or methods in the prior art. Furthermore, it is to be understood that the degree of improved performance may vary between disclosed embodiments and that no equality or consistency in the amount, degree, or realization of improved performance is to be assumed as universally applicable.

J0621 A few embodiments of the disclosure and improvements have been described. It should be understood that this description has been made by way of example, and that the invention is defined by the scope of the following claims.