AU2013100324A4 - Nursing Bra With Attached Absorbent Pads - Google Patents

Abstract

A nursing bra with flaps, that when opened expose a nipple for breast feeding. Attached to the flaps directly or indirectly is a removable absorbent pad. The removable absorbent pad is attached by at least two male and female snaps. The bra, absorbent pad and number of male and female snaps are relative to the area of the bra cup and flap. The absorbent pad is made of disposable or reusable materials. Figure 1 Figure 2

Description

1 NURSING BRA WITH ATTACHED ABSORBENT PADS Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention pertains to a nursing bra. A nursing bra is used for support of the breasts and provides ease of access to the nipple while nursing. Two cups create separation of the breasts. Access to the nipple is created from a flap that is fixedly attached to the bra band at one part and removably attached at another part, namely the top of the flap. The flap can then be opened to expose the nipple or closed to cover the nipple. When the flap is open and nipple exposed the bra cup supports the breast and maintains structure to the bra. An absorbent pad is then placed in the nursing bra to absorb any liquid that may leak from the nipple so as to not saturate the nursing bra or clothing worn. [0002] Previously the absorbent pad has been separate to the nursing bra, however this patent covers a nursing bra with an absorbent pad that attaches to the flap of the nursing bra directly or indirectly by male and female snaps. The issues that arise with a separate absorbent pad is that there is the possibility that while opening the flap, the absorbent pad may fall out creating an embarrassing scene. The absorbent pad is made of disposable or reusable materials. Background of the Invention [0003] There are numerous absorbent pads, which in this context are also referred to as breast pads, that contain a sticky or non-slip side of the pad so they do not move around in the bra or on the breast, these are commonly seen in disposable breast pads. Prior inventions include EP patent 1,199,056 a breast pad with non-slip side, US patent 2 2012/0,129,428 a breast pad with adhesive flaps that stick to the breast and US patent 4,674,510 in which a breast pad contains an adhesive strip that attaches to the bra. [0004] There are also garments which provide a place to hold absorbent pads or breast pads commonly in a pocket like structure. Prior inventions include US patent 6,659,841 a strapless bra with pockets for breast pads to be inserted, US patent 6,983,489 a nursing garment and built in bra with breast pad pockets, US patent 5,024,628 and US patent 2,585,338 in which a bra has pockets for breast pads. While a pocket stops the breast pad from moving, the internal side of the pocket rests on the nipple and thus also becomes wet. To overcome this issue US patent 6,319,092 presents a bra with removable cup, while stopping the leak, there is no support for the breast while swapping cups. Replacing a cup would also be too revealing to do in public as the breast will remain exposed while the cups are swapped. [0005] The most pertinent prior invention is US patent 5,461,725 in which a garment contains a single snap in order to attach a breast pad. However this garment is designed as a 'single self-sufficient garment' so that a bra is not necessary but an absorbent pad can still be used. This design works for smaller sized women but larger breasts need the support that a pair of bra cups provide. Summary of the Invention [0006] The main problems presented by the above design are that the adhesive or non-slip surface can wear out and the absorbent pad may still move and a pocket may become wet as the moisture transfers through to the breast pad. The only garment which has a male female snap system does not provide adequate support for well-endowed women.

3 [0007] Currently, in order to breastfeed using a bra without a pocket, the flap must be detached and absorbent pad moved so as to access the nipple. If not careful the absorbent pad is able to fall from the bra itself or be removed by a small nursing child providing embarrassment. This extra consideration of making sure the breast pad is in place adds extra time to attaching the flap back into place. An attached absorbent pad means it will always stay in place within the bra. The absorbent pad can easily be snapped out and replaced if need be. [0008] The present invention relates to a bra and absorbent pad combination where in the absorbent pad adheres to the flap with the use of male and female snaps. One set of snaps will be on the flap and the corresponding set will be at correlating locations on the absorbent pad. Two or more snaps will be used to attach the absorbent pad to the flap. More snaps will be used for a larger cup size than a smaller cup size as a result of the area. The absorbent pad is shaped either from a dart or seam line and graded to accommodate the cup sizes. The snaps will either be attached directly to the internal lining of the flap or indirectly attached to tabs that are attached to the flap. The bra will take form as either a structured or soft structured garment with a pair of cups for support. Brief Description of Drawings [0009] Figure one shows the right hand side flap down, displaying the bra cup and attached absorbent pad. [0010] Figure two shows the bra without the flap on the right hand side, showing how the bra cup exposes the nipple 4 [0011] Figure three shows the left hand side flap without the absorbent pad, the bottom two snaps are on the bra lining and top snap is on a tab attached to the flap. The right hand cup shows the absorbent pad directly and indirectly attached to the flap and tab. [0012] Figure four shows a variation of figure three. All the snaps are on the flap, and the right hand cup shows the absorbent pad sewn with a dart instead of a seam. [0013] Figure five shows the inside of the complete bra Description of the Preferred Embodiments [0014] In figure one, a perspective of the nursing bra having the reference number 10 is shown being worn by a female model 11. In this view the nursing bra 10 is shown with the flap 2 open on the models right hand side and closed on the left hand side. The clip 9 on the flap connects to the clip 7 on the bra strap 15. These clips enable the flap to be open or closed in order to expose the nipple for nursing a baby. In this embodiment the bra band 12 holds the cups in place. The bra cup 3 holds the shape of the bra when the flap 2 is down. The internal bra flap 8 can be seen in this figure and shows what the bra looks like when the absorbent pad 4 is in place. In this embodiment the absorbent pad 4 is held in place by a male 14 and female 13 snap (the snap back 6 is visible) attached to a tab 5, which is then attached to the internal bra flap 8. If the absorbent pad 4 was removed, the back of the snap 6, tab 5, and internal bra flap 8 would still be visible. [0015] In figure two, the nursing bra 10 is shown with the right hand side flap 2 removed. This is shown as an illustration only as the flap 2 is fixedly attached to the bra band 12. This shows how the nipple 16 is exposed while the flap is down. The bra cup 3 supports the shape of the nursing bra 10.

5 [0016] Figure three illustrates the inside of the nursing bra 10 with the bra cup 3 removed for illustrative purposes. The bra cup 3 is fixedly attached to the bra band 12. The left hand side internal flap 8 shows the nursing bra 10 without the absorbent pad 4 in place. The right hand side internal flap 8 shows the nursing bra 10 with the absorbent pad 4 in place. In this illustration the absorbent pad 4 has a seam to create shaping. None of the male 14 and female 13 snaps can be seen when the absorbent pad is in place, bar the snap back 6 attached to the tab 5. The left hand side's internal flap 8 shows the female snaps 13 which have correlating locations on the absorbent pad. The clip 9 is shown attached to the flap, however it is not attached to the bra straps 15. The bra strap 15 is fixedly attached to the clip 7 which is then fixedly attached to the bra cup 3. [0017] Figure four shows an alternative attachment of the absorbent pad 4 to the internal flap 8. The right hand side shows direct attachment via only male 14 and female 13 snaps instead of indirectly via a tab 5. On the right hand side flap 8 three female snaps 13 are visible that correlate to male snaps 14 on the absorbent pad 4. The absorbent pad 4 has a dart for shaping instead of a seam. [0018] In figure five the back of the complete nursing bra 10 is visible. The left hand side flap 8 does not have the absorbent pad 4 in place. The right hand side flap 8 has the absorbent pad 4 in place. This image shows the tip of tabs 5 visible as well as the back of the snaps 6. A female snap 13 is visible on the left hand side showing where the absorbent pad 4 would be attached. The bra strap 15 is fixedly attached to the clip 7 which is then fixedly attached to the bra cup 3. The bra cup 3 is then fixedly attached to the bra band 12. The flap 2 is fixedly attached to the bra band 12. However, the flap is removably attached 6 to the bra straps 15 via clip 7 and clip 9. The back of the bra follows normal bra construction with the bra straps 15 joining back onto the bra band 12. [0019] It should be understood that where the invention has been particularly shown, described and illustrated in detail with reference to the preferred embodiments and modifications thereof, equivalent changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention as claimed, except as precluded by the prior art.

Claims (4)

1. A nursing bra comprising: a pair of bra cups, each bra cup having an opening for, in use, exposing a nipple; a flap fixedly attached to each bra cup at one part and releasably attached at another part such that the flap can be opened to expose the nipple or closed to cover the nipple; and an absorbent pad removably attached to each flap by two or more fasteners; wherein each fastener comprises a first part attached to the flap and a second part attached at a correlated location on the absorbent pad.

2. The nursing bra of claim 1 wherein there are at least two fasteners providing attachment between the absorbent pad and the flap; either directly attached to the flap or indirectly attached to a tab attached to the flap

4. The nursing bra of any preceding claim wherein the fasteners comprise a male and female snap fastening.

5. The nursing bra of any preceding claim wherein the absorbent pad is made of disposable or reusable materials.