Strap for securing a pant leg to a wearer during a stage of partial undress

United States Patent Application 20080155733

An assembly and method for preventing a wearer's pants from contacting the floor during a stage of partial undress are provided. The assembly is formed of a strap of fabric, leather, plastic, elastic or other thin, flexible material. A cinching assembly is provided at opposing ends of the strap. The cinching assembly is used to securely wrap the strap about each of the wearer's pant legs at a position along the thigh or calf. By securing the strap about each pant leg, the pants are prevented from contacting the floor when the pants are unfastened and lowered.

Schwartz, Madeleine E. (West Hempstead, NY, US)

11/647781

07/03/2008

12/29/2006

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TOMPKINS, ALISSA JILL

Paul J. Esatto, Jr., (Garden City, NY, US)

1. (canceled)

2. (canceled)

3. (canceled)

4. (canceled)

5. A method for preventing a wearer's pants from contacting a floor during a stage of partial undress, said method comprising: carrying at least one strap in an easily accessible manner; securing each strap of said at least one strap around each pant leg prior to unfastening said pants, said strap being secured at a position along said wearer's leg determined to prevent said pants from contacting said floor; and partially undressing by unfastening and lowering said pants.

6. The method as in claim 5, wherein said at least one strap is formed of a thin, flexible material selected from a group consisting of: fabric, leather, plastic and elastic.

7. The method as in claim 5, wherein said at least one strap has a strap securing means selected from a group consisting of: hooks and loops (Velcro™), hook and eyelets, snaps and buckles.

8. The method as in claim 5, wherein said at least one strap is secured at a position along the wearer's thigh and calf.

9. The method as in claim 5, further comprising: raising and re-fastening said pants; removing each strap of said at least one strap from around each pant leg; and storing said at least one strap in said easily accessible manner.

I. FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to garment accessories. More specifically, the present invention relates to a device and method for securing a pant leg to a wearer during a stage of partial undress.

II. BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Public restrooms are generally considered to be dirty and unsanitary. This view is especially true for restroom floors. Thus, a dilemma arises for people using a public restroom—how to prevent the wearer's pants from contacting the restroom floor and becoming dirty when using a public restroom stall.

Generally, using a public restroom stall becomes a balancing act of holding one's pants from contacting the floor while using the stall. More often than not, this balancing act fails and the pants end up on the floor.

An object of the present invention is to provide a device for preventing one's pants from contacting the floor of a public restroom.

Another object of the present invention is to provide such a device that is also small, lightweight, easily stored when not in use, and available when needed.

III. SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present invention addresses the above-identified objective by providing a means for holding a pair of pants at a predetermined position on a wearer's legs during partial undress while using a restroom stall.

The present invention holds the wearer's pants at the predetermined position using a band having hook-and-loop patches on opposing ends for forming a variable circumference loop. The band is placed around each pant leg and tightened about the wearer's leg using the hook-and-loop patches prior to lowering the pants. In this way, when the pants are lowered, the bands about each leg prevent the pants from dropping below the point at which the bands are placed.

An embodiment of the present invention provides a means for securing a pant leg to a wearer during a stage of partial undress. The securing means is fabricated from a pair of straps; and a cinching assembly for securing the straps about each leg. The cinching assembly is provided at opposing ends of the strap for cinching the strap into a loop.

Additionally, a method is provided for preventing a wearer's pants from contacting a floor during a stage of partial undress. The method includes the steps of providing a pair of straps; and securing each strap of the pair of straps about each of a wearer's leg;

IV. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 illustrates a method of using an embodiment of the present invention.

V. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF DISCLOSURE

Referring to FIG. 1, an embodiment of the present invention is shown. The present embodiment is formed of a strip 102 of natural or man-made fabric, plastic, elastic, or other thin, flexible material. At a first end of the strip 102, a section of hooks 104 is attached, while at an opposing end of the strip 102, a section of loops 106 is attached. The hooks 104 and loops 106 of the opposite ends can be brought together to engage each other to form a closed band. The sections of hooks 104 and loops 106 may cover any percentage of the strip 102, so that the circumference of the closed band formed by engaging the hooks and loops can be varied according to individual need.

The hooks 104 and loops 106 are of the type commonly referred to as Velcro™. Although, alternative closure means may be used as well, such as snaps, buckles, hook and eyelets, etc.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a method for using the present invention is shown. When a person prepares to use a public restroom stall, or any restroom facility for that matter, the person prepares by securing a strap 206 of the present invention around each leg of the pants 204 at a position along each leg. As shown in FIG. 2, the strap 206 may be positioned at any location along the thigh and calf, inclusively. Positioning of the strap 206 is dependent on personal preference, type of fabric and style of the pants, etc. When the pants 204 are lowered, the portion of the pants above the straps 206 drop down. However, since the straps 206 prevent the lower portion from lowering or moving, the pants do not drop low enough to touch the floor.

The described embodiments of the present invention are intended to be illustrative rather than restrictive, and are not intended to represent every embodiment of the present invention. Various modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims both literally and in equivalents recognized in law.