US20120135667A1

US20120135667A1 - Brassiere

Info

Publication number: US20120135667A1
Application number: US12/927,963
Authority: US
Inventors: Vivian Yuhsi Chan
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2010-11-29
Filing date: 2010-11-29
Publication date: 2012-05-31

Abstract

A brassiere includes a left cup, a right cup, and a bra body, wherein a cup size of the left cup cavity is different from a cup size of the right cup cavity. The bra body is for selectively retaining the left cup and the right cup in position to form a brassiere structure, in such a manner that a wearer with asymmetrical breasts is able to individually select the left and right cups according to the left and right breast sizes respectively to optimize the support of the breasts of the wearer for supporting the weight of the breasts and positioning the left and right cups covering left and right breasts of wearer respectively.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to an underwear garment, and more particularly to a brassiere (bra) which is able to independently select the left cup size and right cup size for correctly fitting the asymmetrical breasts of wearer.
2. Description of Related Arts
The brassiere (bra) is a common female garment for covering, supporting, or shaping the breasts of female. Normally, the brassiere has two cone shaped cups for enclosing and supporting the breasts and a chest band for spacedly interconnecting the two cups for surrounding at the underbust, so as to mainly support the breast weight via the chest band through the cone shaped cups. The chest band normally has a set of sliding fastener for slidably adjusting and fastening the chest band at the back side of the wearer in accordance with the size of the underbust thereof, so that the chest band is able to fittedly sit at the underbust of wearer. The bra may further have one or more shoulder straps for assistantly supporting breasts. Although the shoulder straps are optional, the correctly fitted brassiere is still able to support the breast solely by the chest band thereof.
In order to give best support of the breast and avoid bumps and seams in the cups, the brassieres have to be correctly sized to fit the breasts of each of the wearers. The bra may be also designed for perfectly fitting on the breasts of wearer, so that the bra is able to shape the breasts as the desire of the wear, such as enhancing the cleavage or lifting up the breasts of wearer. The poor fitness of the brassiere can dramatically reduce the function of the bra and decrease the performance that the brassiere was originally designed for. More seriously, the incorrect size of bra may cause serious pain, discomfort, or even deforming the original shape of the breasts to an unwanted shape. One example is that the poor fitted bra may shift the supporting force of bra from the chest band to the shoulder straps, so that the weight of the breasts will mainly load on the shoulder or the neck to cause the neck joint injury. The breast weight carried by the shoulder rather than the chest band may also result in the contribution of back pain and/or shoulder pain.
Currently, each brand of the bra manufactures roughly has the combinations of back size and the cup size, so that the wears are able to select a better fitted bra for supporting their breasts in accordance with the aspects of individual sizes of underbust and the height of breasts. For instances, the size of 32A bra has a peripheral length of the underbust of 32 inches and cup size of A, which is the scale of bra depending on the height from the bottom of the cone shaped cup to the apex of the cone shaped cup; or the size of 36G bra has a peripheral length of the underbust of 36 inches and cup size of G. Therefore, the wearer is able to select a pair of symmetric cups of the bra according to her own size of underbust and the breasts.
However, a significant number of women are having troubles of finding a correct size bra. The rough standard of the current brassiere is unable to accurately fit the individual sizes and contours of wears' breasts. One of the most common problems is that most women's breasts are asymmetrical. According to the researches, 62% of women have the left breast larger than the right breast, especially for women having larger size breasts. In this case, the existing brassies are only possible to fit one of the breasts of the wearer.
For instances, the wearer with asymmetrical breasts may have to select the bra which fits the larger left breast, so that the smaller right breast has a loosen fit in relation to the left cup of the bra; and conversely, the wearer with asymmetrical breasts may have to choose the bra which fits the smaller left breast of the wearer, so that the larger right breast may have to be squished and deformed for being enclosed by the right cups of bra. Therefore, the bra wearer, especially for the female wearer having the asymmetrical breasts, has a difficult time finding a correctly fit of bra for best supporting and covering her breasts. The poor fit of bra due to the asymmetrical breast of women may also cause the above mentioned problems, such as pains and the deformation of original shape of breasts. The wearer is unable to buy a bra for individually fitting each of the left and right breasts thereof.
The padding may be provided for inserting into a rear compartment of the cup in order to slightly adjust the volume and receiving cavity of the cup, so that the bra may be able to provide a little bit better fit for asymmetrical breasts of wearer. However, the padding within the rear compartment of the cup tends to have the unwanted lateral movements therein, so that the cup with the padding will be easily deformed to cause the un-comfortableness and/or the pains due to incorrectly transfer the supporting force of the bra to the undesired location. In addition, the inserted padding elements are unable to adjust the size of the receiving cavity of the cup with a relatively larger difference. For instance, when the breasts are one cup size different, such as size B of left breast and size C for right breast, the padding is hardly to fill the difference of the receiving cavity of bra.
The wearer may be able to purchase a perfect fit bra by ordering a customized bra, which could take the sizes of individually asymmetrical left and right breasts into account, so that the two cups of the bra integrally connected with each other by the chest band are able to perfectly fit the breasts. However, the custom-made brassiere is expensive and non-affordable for most of the wearer. The wearer also has to inconveniently go to the specific bra customizing shop for measuring and tailoring the size and shape of the breasts thereof. It is time consuming that the wearer may have to pick it up after the customized brassiere is made.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

The invention is advantageous in that it provides a brassiere (bra), which is able to selectively fit individual sizes of left and right breasts of a wearer without being customized.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a brassiere, wherein the wearer is able to selectively and separately purchase two cups of the brassiere with two different cup sizes in accordance with the sizes of left and right breasts of the wearer.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a brassiere, wherein the brassiere is able to optimize the fit between the brassiere and the asymmetrical breasts of the wearer without adding any padding.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a brassiere, wherein the left and right cups of the brassiere are able to be detachably connected with each other via the bra bridge and the chest band.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a brassiere, wherein the convex front cup faces of the two cups of bra are identical while the size of the receiving cavity within the concave rear cup faces of the two cups are different, so that the wearer is able to have the outer appearance of symmetrical breasts while wearing the brassiere of present invention.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a brassiere, wherein the bra may further have one or more shoulder straps for assistantly supporting the weight of the breasts via the bra.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a brassiere, wherein the shoulder straps are detachably connected to the cups and/or the bra body, so that the wear is able to selectively connect the shoulder straps to form variety styles of bras, such as forming shoulder straps crossing at the back of the wearer, or detaching the shoulder straps in order to wear the bra under a dress in a hidden manner.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a brassiere, wherein the left and right cups are able to individually fit each of left and right breasts of wearer to optimize the supporting force of the bra to correctly support the weight of breasts.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a manufacturing method for the brassiere, wherein the brassiere can be mass produced without significantly increasing the manufacturing cost of the brassiere such that the wearer with asymmetrical breasts is able to individually select the left and right cups according to the left and right breast sizes respectively to optimize the support of the breasts of the wearer without purchasing an expensive tailor-made brassiere.
Additional advantages and features of the invention will become apparent from the description which follows, and may be realized by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particular point out in the appended claims.
According to the present invention, the foregoing and other objects and advantages are attained by providing a brassiere which comprises a conic shaped left cup, a conic shaped right cup, and a bra body for detachably coupling the left and right cups with each other.
The left cup has a convex front cup face and a concave rear cup face to define a left cup cavity within the concave rear cup face.
The right cup has a convex front cup face and a concave rear cup face to define a right cup cavity within the concave rear cup face, wherein a cup size of the left cup cavity is different from a cup size of the right cup cavity.
The bra body selectively retains the left cup and the right cup in position to form a brassiere structure, in such a manner that a wearer with asymmetrical breasts is able to individually select the left and right cups according to the left and right breast sizes respectively to optimize the support of the breasts of the wearer.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the present invention comprises a method of making a brassiere, wherein the method comprises the following steps.
(a) Manufacture a plurality of conic shaped left cups, wherein each of the left cups has a convex front cup face and a concave rear cup face defining a left cup cavity within the concave rear cup face, wherein the left cup cavities have different cup sizes.
(b) Manufacture a plurality of conic shaped right cups, wherein each of the right cups has a convex front cup face and a concave rear cup face defining a right cup cavity within the concave rear cup face, wherein the right cup cavities have different cup sizes.
(c) Detachably couple one of the left cups with one of the right cups via a bra body to form a brassiere structure that the wearer with asymmetrical breasts is able to fittingly wear the brassiere.
In accordance with still another aspect of the invention, the present invention comprises a method of purchasing a brassiere which comprises the following steps.
(A) Select a left cup with a left cup cavity matching with a left breast size of the wearer.
(B) Select a right cup with a right cup cavity matching with a right breast size of the wearer.
(C) Retain the left and right cups in position via a bra body to form a brassiere structure for the wearer enabling to fittingly wear.
Still further objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the ensuing description and drawings.
These and other objectives, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, the accompanying drawings, and the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a perspective rear view of a brassiere according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1B is another example of the fastener of the bra bridge portion of the brassiere according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are the sectional views of the conic shaped left cup with a first size and a conic shaped right cup with a second size respectively according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective rear view of another alternative brassiere according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective front view of another alternative brassiere according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective front view of a brassiere according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of a method of making the brassieres according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of a method of purchasing the brassieres according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIGS. 1A and 2 of the drawings, a brassiere (bra) according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated, wherein the brassiere comprises a conic shaped left cup 10, a conic shaped right cup 10′, and a bra body 20 for detachably fastening the left cup 10 and right cup 10′ to form the brassiere structure, so as to provide a supporting force of the bra from the bra body 20 to the left and right cups 10, 10′ thereof.
The left cup 10 has a convex front cup face 11 and a concave rear cup face 12 to define a left cup cavity 121 having a first cup size for receiving a left breast of a wearer. The left cup 10 also has an inner edge 13 at one side of the left cup 10 and an outer edge 14 at the other side of the left cup 10.
The right cup 10′ has a convex front cup face 11′ and a concave rear cup face 12′ to define a right cup cavity 121′ having a second cup size for receiving a right breast of a wearer. The right cup 10′ also has an inner edge 13′ at one side of the right cup 10′ and an outer edge 14′ at the other side of the right cup 10′.
The bra body 20 selectively retains the left cup 10 and the right cup 10′ in position to form the brassiere structure, in such a manner that a wearer with asymmetrical breasts is able to individually select the left and right cups 10, 10′ according to the left and right breast sizes respectively to optimize the support of the breasts of the wearer.
Referring to FIG. 6 of the drawings, the present invention also provides a method of making the brassiere with different sizes of the left cup 10 and right cup 10′, especially for mass production, according to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, wherein the method comprises the following steps.
(A) Make a plurality of left cups 10 of the bra.
(B) Make a plurality of right cups 10′ of the bra.
(C) Detachably and selectively couple one of the left cups 10 with one of the right cup 10′ via the bra body 20 to form the brassiere structure in accordance with a left breast size and a right breast size of the wearer. Therefore, the wearer is able to separately choose the sizes of the left cup 10 and right cup 10′ of the bra.
In the steps (A) and (B), the convex front cup faces 11, 11′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′ are symmetrical to keep a symmetrical front size of the brassiere structure when the left and right cups 10, 10′ are worn
According to the preferred embodiment, the step (C) further comprises a step (C.1) of retaining a distance between the corresponding left cup 10 and the corresponding right cup 10′ and a step (C.2) of retaining the left and right cups 10, 10′ in position with respect to the wearer body.
According to the preferred embodiment, in the step (C.1), the bra body 20 comprises a retaining structure for retaining a distance between the left cup 10 and the right cup 10′. The retaining structure comprises at least a chest band 201 for detachably coupling the left cup 10 and the right cup 10′ and for being worn around the underbust for supporting the weight of the breasts through the left and right cups 10, 10′.
In this preferred embodiment of the present invention, the chest band 201 preferably comprises a bra bridge portion 21 for detachably fastening the two inner edges 13, 13′ of left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively together, and a back band portion 22 for detachably fastening the two outer edges 14, 14′ of left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively together for surrounding around two sides and rear back portion of the underbust of wearer, in such a manner that the chest band 201 is able to detachably connect the two left and right cups 10, 10′ while being able to provide the supporting force to the respective received breasts of wear via each of the left and right cups 10, 10′.
As shown in FIG. 1A, the retaining structure further comprises a fastener 210 for detachably coupling the bra bridge portion 21 with the left and right cups 10, 10′. Accordingly, the fastener 201 comprises a first bridge fastener 211 positioned at the inner edge 13 of the left cup 10, and a second bridge fastener 212 positioned at the inner edge 13′ of the right cup 10′, wherein the first and second bridge fasteners 211, 212 are detachably fastened with each other to retain a distance between the left and right cups 10, 10′.
The first bridge fastener 211 preferably has a inserting portion 2111 and the second bridge fastener 212 preferably has a inserting slot 2121 for the inserting portion 2111 of the first bridge fastener 211 inserted into the inserting slot 2121 of second fastener element 2112, thereby the inner edges 13, 13′ of left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively are detachably coupled to each other via the first and second bridge fasteners 211, 212.
More specifically, the first bridge fastener 211 has a substantially inversed U-shaped end to form the inserting portion 2111 thereat, so that inserting portion 2111 is able to slide into the inserting slot 2121 in any sliding down fashion. An apex of the inversed U-shaped end is able to retain and limit the inserting portion 2111 slidably inserted into the inserting slot 2121, so as for securely connecting the two inner edges 13, 13′.
It is worth to mention that the inserting portion 2111 preferably having an elongated shape preferably has a length equal or slightly longer than a length of the elongated inserting slot 2121, wherein the inserting portion 2111 may further has a retention member 2112 integrally provided at the lower end of the inserting portion 2111, wherein the retention member 2112 may have an essentially C or U shape, so that after the inserting portion 2111 is inserted into the inserting slot 2121, the retention member 2112 is able to extend through the inserting slot 2121 to retain the inserting portion 2111 in position, so as to securely connect the two inner edges 13, 13′ of the cups 10, 10′.
Alternatively, the first bridge fastener 211 may have two inserting portion 2111 provided at two opposed sides of the first bridge fastener 211, wherein two inserting slots 212 may be attached at the two inner edges 13, 13′ respectively, as shown in FIG. 1B. Therefore, the first bridge fastener 211 is able to detachably insert the two inserting portion 2111 into the respective inserting slots 2121 for detachably connecting the inner edges 13 and 13′ with each other, so as to form a detachably bra bridge portion 21 thereof.
According to the step (C.2), the back band portion 22 in the preferred embodiment preferably has two length-adjustable back connecting bands 221 and 221′ rearwardly extended from a lower portion of each of the outer edges 14, 14′ of the respective left and right cups 10, 10′ by one end thereof. Preferably, the back connecting bands 221, 221′ are integrally extending from two outer edges 14, 14′ of the left and right cups 10′, 10′ respectively.
The back band portion 22 further comprises at least two back fasteners 220 provided at two free end portions of the back connecting bands and arranged in such a manner that when the back fasteners 220 are detachably fastened with each other, the back connecting bands 221′. 221′ form a loop structure for fitting around the underbust of the wearer while supporting the supporting force from the left and right cups 10, 10′ to the breasts of wearer. It should be noted that the two opposed connecting ends of the connecting bands 221, 221′ may be detachably connected with each other via tying a knot. The back band portions 22 preferably made of material having predetermined elasticity, so that the back band portion 22 is able to automatically fit the length of the underbust of wearer.
It is worth to mention that the back connecting bands 221, 221′ can be detachably or integrally extended from the respective outer edges 14, 14′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′.
It is important that the back band portion 22 is preferably made of material having a predetermined elasticity, so that the chest band 201 is able to fittedly and comfortably around the underbust of the wearer for optimizing the support force of the bra.
The back fasteners 220 of the chest band 22 are at least a first back fastener 222 and at least a second back fastener 223, wherein the first back fastener 222 is preferably provided at the opposed connecting end of the back connecting band 221, while the second back fastener 223 is preferably provided at the opposed connecting end of the back connecting band 221′, such that the two back connecting bands 221, 221′ are able to be detachably fastened for being fitted at the underbust for supporting the weight of the breasts of wearer and for positioning the left and right cups 10, 10′ at the left and right breasts of wearer respectively in accordance with the shape and orientation of each of the breasts thereof.
The first and second back fasteners 222, 223 can be any conventional fasteners for detachably and/or adjustably fastening the back connecting bands 221, 221′. For example, the first back fastener 222 may have a plurality sets of fastening slots made by metal, plastic, or the combination materials fixedly located at the opposed connecting end of the back connecting band 221 of the left cup 10, and the second back fasteners 223 may have at least a set of corresponding fastening hooks for interconnecting with the respective fastening slots. Each of the sets of fastening slots may be vertically and spacedly fixed at the connecting end of back connecting band 221, in such a manner that the fastening hooks are able to slidably fastening with respective set of fastening slots of the first back fastener 222 to adjust the length of the chest band 201 of the bra, so as to be firmly and comfortably fitted at the underbust of the wearer.
It should be noted that the back fastener 220 of the back band portion 22 may be buttons and holes, inserted slot and inserting member, interlocking type fasteners, zippers, Velcro type fasteners, snap fasteners, or the likes.
In this case, a step of insertably fastening the respective first bridge fastener 211 with the second bridge fastener 212 may be provided. Therefore, the first bridge fastener 211 is able to insertably fasten with the second bridge fastener 212 in order to detachably connect the inner edge 13 of left cup 10 and the inner edge 13′ of right cup 10′, so as to detachably connect the left cup 10 with right cup 10′. It is worth to mention that the first and second back fasteners are interchangeable.
Alternatively, a step of forming a plurality of first bridge fasteners 211, and a step of forming a plurality of second bridge fasteners 212 at each of the inner edges 13, 13′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′, as described and shown in FIG. 1B. Therefore, the first bridge fastener 211 is able to insertably fasten with the second bridge fastener 212 in order to detachably connect the inner edge 13 of left cup 10 and the inner edge 13′ of right cup 10′.
Accordingly, one or more shoulder straps 30 may further provided for assistantly supporting the weight of the breasts, wherein the shoulder straps 30 may symmetrically coupling with each of the left and right cups 10, 10′ for evenly distributing the weight of the breast on the shoulder, or neck portion of the wearer. Each of the shoulder straps may integrally or detachably formed with the left and right cups 10, 10′; each of the back connecting bands 221, 221′ of the back band portion 22; and/or bra bridge portion 21. In other words, the two length-adjustable shoulder straps 30 are extending from the left and right cups 10, 10′ to the back connecting bands 221, 221′ respectively for evenly distributing the weight of the breast of the wearer on the shoulder thereof.
Accordingly, the shoulder straps 30 may be detachably connected to the left and right cups 10, 10 and/or the bra body, such as the bra bridge portion 21 or the back band portion 22. The shoulder straps 30 can also be integrally formed with the brassiere.
As shown in FIG. 1, the shoulder straps 30 detachably connecting with each of the left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively are illustrated as one of the example. Accordingly, a through slot 32 may further be symmetrically provided at each of the top edge of the left and right cups 10, 10′ and/or an upper peripheral edge of each of the two back connecting bands 221 and 221′ of the back band portion 22. A corresponding inserting member 31 may be provided at two opposed ends of each of the shoulder straps 30 for detachably and insertably fastening with the corresponding through slots 32, so that each of the shoulder straps 30 is able to detachably connect to the top edge of the left or right cups 10, 10′ while detachably connecting to the respective connecting band 221 or 221′. Therefore, the shoulder straps 30 are able to across the top shoulder of the wear to assistantly support the weight of breasts thereof.
As will be readily appreciated that the detachably shoulder straps 30 are able to transform the bra into variety of styles thereof, so that the wearer is able to selectively and detachably form the desired style of the shoulder straps 30 according to the formations of the outer garment that the wearer is going to wear. Other applications or formations of detachably shoulder straps 30 are shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawings. In the FIG. 3, only one shoulder strap 30 is detachably connecting to the left and right cups 10, 10′ for winding at rear side of the neck of wearer. In the FIG. 4, the two shoulder straps 30 for crossing at the back side of the wearer.
It is worth to mention that the shoulder straps 30 may be detachably connected to the cups 10, 10′ or the bra body by any conventional or above described detachably fasteners or method for adjustably attaching with the bra body and/or the cups 10, 10′. Preferably, the back connecting bands 221, 221′ are detachably coupled with the outer edges 14, 14′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively.
As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the side sectional views of each of the conic shaped left cup 10 and right cup 10′ are illustrated, wherein the cavities 121 and 121′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively are having a size different from each other, so that the wearer with asymmetrical breasts is able to selectively pick up the size of left cup 10 and right cup 10′ in order to individually fit the left breast and right breast of the wearer. After the wearer chose the sizes of each of the left cup 10 and right cup 10′, the wearer is able to assemble the separated left and right cups 10, 10′ to form the bra with different sizes of the two cups 10, 10′, so as to optimize the fit of the bra. Therefore, the bra of the present invention having better fit, especially for wearer with asymmetrical breasts, is able to optimize the function of supporting, covering, shaping the breasts of the wearer via the bra.
Accordingly, the sizes of the cavities 121 and 121′ can be formed and determined by any conventional method, such as filling, and standard measurement, such as size of A cup, or B cup. The size of each of the cups 10, 10′ may be determined by variety of factors, such as the volume of the cavities 121, 121′, the height from the bottom of the conic shaped cup to the apex point thereof, and/or the position of the central apex point of the cups 10, 10′.
In this case, a first filling 101 is provided for being sandwiched between the convex front cup face 11 and the concave rear cup face 12 of the left cup 10 to integrally form the left cup 10. A second filling 101′ is provided for being sandwiched between the convex front cup face 11′ and the concave rear cup face 12′ of the right cup 10′ to integrally form the right cup 10. Thereby, the sizes of the cup cavities 121, 121′ of the left and right cups are able to be determined via the fillings 101, 101′. The filling material can be fabric, foaming material, or the likes for providing the predetermined cushioning of the cups, so as to comfortably support the breasts of the wearer. It is worth mentioning that the cup size of each of the left and right cups 10, 10′ is non-adjustable such that no padding is needed to add to adjust the cup size thereof. In other words, the cup cavity 121, 121′ of each of the left and right cups 10, 10′ is pre-configured in a non-adjustable manner for well supporting the respective breast of the wearer.
Alternatively, the left and right cups 10, 10′ may be formed via one single piece material having the desired shape the thickness to form the variety of sizes of the cups 10, 10′, wherein the front cup faces 11, 11′ and the rear cup faces 12, 12′ are integrally formed at two opposite sides of the single piece material of each of the left and right cups 10, 10′. Therefore, the material of the cups 10, 10′ are preferably fabric, or any other materials having the predetermined elasticity or cushioning characteristic for providing the cushioning feature, such as foaming material.
Therefore, the wearer is able to individually select the sizes of each of the left cup 10 and the right cup 10′ of the bra of present invention without alternating the structure of the bra to compromise the supporting force or comfortableness of the bra when being worn by the wearer. It is appreciated that each of the left and right cups 10, 10′ can be formed a size between any two of the existing standard sizes, such as between size A and B cup of the existing cup size of bra.
In order to provide a symmetrical outer appearance when the bra is being worn by the wearer, the left and right cups 10, 10′ preferably have an identical outer shape of the convex front cup face 11 and 11′ while having different sizes of the cup cavities 121, 121′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′. Therefore, the front cup faces 11 and 11′ may have the same shape while the rear cup faces 12 and 12′ may have different shapes for individually fitting each of the left breast and right breast of the wearer. In other words, the size of each of the cup cavities 121, 121′ may be different from each other via adjusting the fillings or the thickness of the cups 10 and 10′.
As will be readily appreciated by one skilled in the art, one or both of the cups 10, 10′ of the bra may have a protruding portion protruded out from the bottom of the rear cup face 12 or 12′, so that the bra is able to perform the push-up function thereof or for a better fit for minimizing any seams between the breasts and the corresponding cups 10, 10′. For instance, the left cup 10 has a cavity size the same as existing cup size D, while the right cup 10′ has a cavity size the same as existing cup size C, wherein the right cup 10′ may have relatively thicker filling or material with extra protruding portion as mentioned above for fitting and lifting up the right breast of the wearer, so as to have a substantially symmetrical appearance of the breasts, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B.
As shown in FIG. 3, an alternative bra body 20A of the bra is illustrated, wherein the bra in the FIG. 3 has the similar structure and function as mentioned in the above preferred embodiment of the present invention. The following description will focus on the chest band 201A of the alternatively bra body 20A.
The chest band 201A also has a bra bridge portion 21A for detachably fastening the two inner edges 13, 13′ of left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively together, and a back band portion 22A for detachably fastening the two outer edges 14, 14′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively together, so as to detachably connect the left and right cups 10, 10′ and for being worn by the wearer to fittedly cover and supporting the breasts thereof.
In the alternative bra body 20A, the bra bridge portion 21A preferably has a bridge fastener 210A thereat, wherein the bridge fastener 210A preferably comprises an interlocking arrangement having a first interlocking element 211A integrally and sidewardly extended from the inner edge 13 of the left cup 10 toward the other inner edge 13′ of the right cup 10′, and a second interlocking element 212A integrally and sidewardly extended from the inner edge 13′ of right cup 10′ toward the other inner edge 13 of the left cup 10. The first interlocking element 211A may has a shape matching the second interlocking element 212A for slidably interlocking therewith, so as to automatically fasten the first and second interlocking elements 211A, 212A after the first interlocking element 211A is slidably interlocked with second interlocking element 212.
According to the alternative bra body 20A of the bra of the preferred embodiment of present invention, in the step (C) of the method of making the brassieres, a step of interlockingly fastening the first bridge fastener 211A and second bridge fastener 212A may further provided for selectively connecting the left cup 10 and the respective right cup 10′.
In this case, the first interlocking element 211A may have an inversed E-shaped interlocking element, while the second interlocking element 212A has a corresponding slot interlocking element, so that the first and second interlocking elements 211A, 212A are able to slidably interlock with each other in the interlocking fashion, so as to automatically fasten the first and second interlocking elements 211A, 212A with each other for detachably fastening the left and right cups 10, 10′. Alternatively, the first and second interlocking elements 211A, 212A are a side interlocking slot and a side protruding element, so that the first and second interlocking elements 211A, 212A may be slidably and automatically interlocked with each other in a side-to-side fashion. Therefore, the inner edges 13, 13′ of left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively are detachably connected to each other via the first and second interlocking elements 211A, 212A.
The back band portion 22A in the alternative bar body 20A preferably has two back connecting bands 221A and 221A′ detachably and rearwardly extended from each of the outer edges 14, 14′ of the respective left and right cups 10, 10′ by one end of each of the respective back connecting band 221A or 221A′. A back fastener 220A is preferably further provided for detachably fastening the opposed connecting ends of each of the connecting bands 221A, 221A′, thereby the left and right cups 10, 10′ are connected via the chest band 201A.
In other words, the back connecting band 221A is detachably connected to the outer edge 14 of the left cup 10, and the back connecting band 221A′ is detachably connected to the outer edge 14′ of the right cup 10′. The back fastener 220A further comprises at least a first back fastener 222A and at least a second back fastener 223A, wherein the first back fastener 222A is located adjacent to the opposed connecting end of the back connecting band 221A while the second back fastener 222A is located adjacent to the opposed connecting end of the back connecting band 221A′. Therefore, the two opposed connecting ends of each of the back connecting bands 221A, 221A′ are detachably connected with each other via the first and second back fasteners 222A, 223A, which are described in the above preferred embodiment of the present invention.
The back connecting bands 221A, 221A′ are able to detachably connect to the outer edges 14, 14′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′ by any conventional or above mentioned fastening methods or fasteners. One example is that a through channel, having similar functions and structure of the above mentioned inserting slot 2121, is integrally formed at the outer edges 14, 14′ of each of the cups 10, 10′, and a connecting member provided at the opposed connecting ends of each of the back connecting bands 221A, 221A′, wherein the connecting member has an essentially inversed U shape having a through opening and an elongated element, which is similar to the function and structure of the above mentioned inserting portion 2111, so that the elongated element is able to be slidably received within the through channel through the through opening of the connecting member, so as to retain and detachably fasten the connecting member with the through channel. Therefore, the back connecting bands 221A, 221A′ are able to detachably connect with the outer edges 14, 14′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively.
It should be noted that the detachably back connecting bands 221A, 221A′ of the back band portion 22A enable the wearer to selectively change the connecting bands 221A, 221A′ in order to change the styles of the bra, such as the selectively change the colors or graphics of the connecting bands 221A, 221′.
It is important that the back band portion 22A is preferably made of material having a predetermined elasticity, so that the chest band 201A is able to fittedly and comfortably around the underbust of the wearer for optimizing the support force of the bra. It should be noted that the fastener 220A and the detachably fastening method or fastener between the outer edges 14, 14′ and the respective connecting bands 221A, 221A′ may be buttons and holes, inserted slot and inserting member, interlocking type fasteners, zippers, Velcro type fasteners, snap fasteners, or the likes.
In the FIG. 4 of the drawings, another example of the back fastener 210B at the bra bridge portion 21B is illustrated, wherein a first bridge fastener 211B is sidewardly extended from the inner edge 13 of the left cup 10 toward the other inner edge 13′ of the right cup 10′, and a second bridge fastener 212B is sidewardly extended from the inner edge 13′ of the right cup toward the other inner edge 13 of the left cup 10.
As shown in FIG. 4, one or more fastening buttons 2111B are preferably attached at the first bridge fastener 211B, while one or more corresponding fastening holes 2121B are preferably provided at the second bridge fastener 211B, such that the fastening buttons 2111B at the first bridge fastener 211B are able to pass through the fastening holes 2121B at the second bridge fastener 212B to secure one inner edge 13 or 13′ to another, and vice versa.
The fastening holes 2121B may further be arranged to horizontally and spacedly apart along the second bridge fastener 212B, so that the fastening buttons 2111B are able to selectively fasten to the corresponding fastening holes 2121B to adjust the distance between the left cup 10 and the right cup 10′. Therefore, the wearer is able to further adjust the length of the bra bridge portion 21B in accordance with the position of the left and right breasts of the wearer as if custom made bra. It is worth to mention that the left and right cups 10, 10′ may be connected to each other via simply sewing the first bridge fastener 211B with the second bridge fastener 212B after the wearer selected each of the sizes of left and right cups 10, 10.
Accordingly, in the step (C) of the method of making the brassieres, a step of adjustably fastening the first bridge fastener 211A and second bridge fastener 212A may further provided for adjusting the distance between the two corresponding inner edges 13 and 13′ of the left and right cups 10, 10′.
It is important that the fastening buttons 2111B and fastening holes 2121B may be replaced by snap fasteners, hooks and slots, or any other fasteners for connecting the inner edges 13 and 13′ and/or for adjusting the distance between the left cup 10 and right cup 10′, so as to further adjustably align an apex portion of the cups 10, 10′ with the nipples of the respective breasts of wearer via the distance adjustable fastener 210B.
As will be readily appreciated by one skilled in the art, the fasteners at the bra bridge portion 21 and at the back band portion 22 as mentioned in the above preferred embodiments and/or the alternatives are interchangeable. For example, the detachable connecting bands 221A, 221A′ can be incorporated with the back fasteners 210 or 210A at the bra bridge portion 21 or 21A.
Referring to FIG. 5 of the drawings, a bra according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated, wherein the bra has the left cup 10, right cup 10′ preferably having a size of the cavity 121′ different than a size of the cavity 121 of left cup 10, and a bra body 20C for detachably connecting the left and right cups 10, 10′, so that the wearer is able to separately select the size of each of the left cup 10 and right cup 10′, which is mainly determined by the size of the respective cavity 121 or 121′.
The convex front cup faces 11 and 11′ may further have one or more first fastener 210C, such as a loop of Velcro, provided thereat respectively, preferably adjacent to a bottom portion of the front cup faces 11, 11′. The bra body 20C comprises a chest band 201C, wherein one or more second fastener 220C, such as hooks of Velcro, are provided at a middle inner side of the chest band 201C at a location corresponding to the respective first fasteners 210C at the front cup faces 11 and 11′, in such a manner that the chest band 201C is able to attach with the left and right cups 10, 10′ respectively for detachably connecting the left cup 10 with the right cup 10′. The chest band 201C preferably has a peripheral length which is long enough to wind around the underbust of the wear, so that after the chest band 201C is attached to the left and right cups 10, 10′, two ends of the chest band 201C is able to rearwardly extend to detachably and adjustably connect one end with another end of the chest band 201C via any fastening methods or fastener, so as to firmly and securely fit at the underbust of the wearer for positioning the left and right cups 10, 10′ in a position and for supporting the weight of the breasts of wearer.
Therefore, the chest band 201C is able to detachably connect the left cup 10 and right cup 10′ and to provide the supporting force to the breasts of wearer via the left and right cups 10, 10′, when the chest band 201C is fitted at the underbust of the wearer.
Referring to FIG. 7 of the drawings, the present invention further provides a method for the wearer to purchase the brassiere, wherein the method comprises the following steps.
(A) Select the left cup 10 with the left cup cavity 121 matching with the left breast size of the wearer.
(B) Select the right cup 10′ with the right cup cavity 121′ matching with the right breast size of the wearer.
(C) Retain the left and right cups 10, 10′ in position via the bra body 30 to form the brassiere structure for the wearer enabling to fittingly wear in order to fit the different sizes of the left and right breasts.
Therefore, the present invention is able to individually select the sizes of left and right cups 10, 10′ for providing the optimized fit for the asymmetrical breasts of the wearer without expensively and complicatively customized process. The brassieres of the present invention are able to be produced in a massive production way, while being able to provide the wearer a better fit of the left cup and right cup of the bra. Thereby, the bra with perfectly fitting each of the left and right breasts of wearer is able to maximize the supporting force of the bra to better support the weight of the breasts, so as to minimize the uncomfortableness and possibility of pain or injuries of the wearer.
One skilled in the art will understand that the embodiment of the present invention as shown in the drawings and described above is exemplary only and not intended to be limiting.
It will thus be seen that the objects of the present invention have been fully and effectively accomplished. It embodiments have been shown and described for the purposes of illustrating the functional and structural principles of the present invention and is subject to change without departure from such principles. Therefore, this invention includes all modifications encompassed within the spirit and scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A brassiere, comprising:

a conic shaped left cup having a convex front cup face and an opposed concave rear cup face defining a left cup cavity within said concave rear cup face;

a conic shaped right cup having a convex front cup face and an opposed concave rear face defining a right cup cavity within said concave rear cup face, wherein a cup size of said left cup cavity is different from a cup size of said right cup cavity; and

a bra body for selectively retaining said left cup and said right cup in position to form a brassiere structure, in such a manner that a wearer with asymmetrical breasts is able to individually select said left and right cups according to the left and right breast sizes respectively to optimize the support of the breasts of the wearer.

2. The brassiere, as recited in claim 1, wherein said convex front cup faces of said left and right cups are symmetrical to keep a symmetrical front size of said brassiere structure when said left and right cups are worn, wherein said cup cavity of each of said left and right cups is pre-configured in a non-adjustable manner for well supporting the respective breast of the wearer.

3. The brassiere, as recited in claim 1, wherein said bra body comprises at least a first bridge fastener provided at an inner edge of said left cup, and at least a second bridge fastener which is provided at an inner edge of said right cup and is detachably fastened with said first bridge fastener to retain a distance between said left and right cups.

4. The brassiere, as recited in claim 2, wherein said bra body comprises at least a first bridge fastener provided at an inner edge of said left cup, and at least a second bridge fastener which is provided at an inner edge of said right cup and is detachably fastened with said first bridge fastener to retain a distance between said left and right cups.

5. The brassiere, as recited in claim 3, wherein said bra body further comprises two length-adjustable back connecting bands extending from two outer edges of said left and right cups respectively, and at least two back fasteners provided at two free end portions of said back connecting bands and arranged in such a manner that when said back fasteners are detachably fastened with each other, said back connecting bands form a loop structure for fitting around the underbust of the wearer.

6. The brassiere, as recited in claim 4, wherein said bra body further comprises two length-adjustable back connecting bands extending from two outer edges of said left and right cups respectively, and at least two back fasteners provided at two free end portions of said back connecting bands and arranged in such a manner that when said back fasteners are detachably fastened with each other, said back connecting bands form a loop structure for fitting around the underbust of the wearer.

7. The brassiere, as recited in claim 5, wherein said bra body further comprises two length-adjustable shoulder straps extending from said left and right cups to said back connecting bands respectively for evenly distributing the weight of the breast of the wearer on the shoulder thereof.

8. The brassiere, as recited in claim 6, wherein said bra body further comprises two length-adjustable shoulder straps extending from said left and right cups to said back connecting bands respectively for evenly distributing the weight of the breast of the wearer on the shoulder thereof.

9. The brassiere, as recited in claim 6, wherein said back connecting bands are detachably coupled with said outer edges of said left and right cups respectively.

10. The brassiere, as recited in claim 8, wherein said back connecting bands are detachably coupled with said outer edges of said left and right cups respectively.

11. The brassiere, as recited in claim 8, wherein said shoulder straps are detachably coupled with said left and right cups and said back connecting bands respectively.

12. The brassiere, as recited in claim 10, wherein said shoulder straps are detachably coupled with said left and right cups and said back connecting bands respectively.

13. A method of making a brassiere, comprising the steps of:

(a) making a plurality of conic shaped left cups, wherein each of said left cups has a convex front cup face and a concave rear cup face defining a left cup cavity within said concave rear cup face, wherein said left cup cavities have different cup sizes;

(b) making a plurality of conic shaped right cups, wherein each of said right cups has a convex front cup face and a concave rear cup face defining a right cup cavity within said concave rear cup face, wherein said right cup cavities have different cup sizes; and

(c) detachably coupling one of said left cups with one of said right cups via a bra body to form a brassiere structure, in such a manner that a wearer with asymmetrical breasts is able to individually select said left and right cups according to the left and right breast sizes respectively to optimize the support of the breasts of the wearer.

14. The method as recited in claim 13 wherein, in the steps (a) and (b), said convex front cup faces of said left and right cups are symmetrical to keep a symmetrical front size of said brassiere structure when said left and right cups are worn.

15. The method, as recited in claim 14, wherein the step (c) further comprises a step of retaining a distance between said corresponding left cup and said corresponding right cup by detachably coupling an inner edge of said left cup with an inner edge of said right cup, wherein first and second bridge fasteners are provided at said inner edges of said left and right cups respectively and are detachably fastened with each other to retain a distance between said left and right cups.

16. The method, as recited in claim 15, wherein the step (c) further comprises a step of retaining said left and right cups in position with respect to the wearer body by extending two length-adjustable back connecting bands from two outer edges of said left and right cups respectively and detachably fastening two back fasteners at two free end portions of said back connecting bands respectively with each other to form a loop structure for fitting around the underbust of the wearer.

17. The method, as recited in claim 16, wherein the step (c) further comprises a step of extending two length-adjustable shoulder straps from said left and right cups to said back connecting bands respectively for evenly distributing the weight of the breast of the wearer on the shoulder thereof.

18. The method, as recited in claim 17, wherein said back connecting bands are detachably coupled with said outer edges of said left and right cups respectively, wherein said shoulder straps are detachably coupled with said left and right cups and said back connecting bands respectively.

19. A method of purchasing a brassiere for a wearer with asymmetrical breasts, comprising the steps of:

(a) selecting a left cup with a left cup cavity matching with a left breast size of the wearer;

(b) selecting a right cup with a right cup cavity matching with a right breast size of the wearer; and

(c) retaining said left and right cups in position via a bra body to form a brassiere structure for the wearer enabling to fittingly wear, such that the wearer with asymmetrical breasts is able to individually select said left and right cups according to the left and right breast sizes respectively to optimize the support of the breasts of the wearer.

20. The method as recited in claim 19 wherein, in the steps (a) and (b), each of said left and right bra cups has a convex front cup face that said convex front cup faces of said left and right cups are symmetrical to keep a symmetrical front size of said brassiere structure when said left and right cups are worn.

21. The method, as recited in claim 20, wherein the step (c) further comprises a step of retaining a distance between said corresponding left cup and said corresponding right cup by detachably coupling an inner edge of said left cup with an inner edge of said right cup, wherein first and second bridge fasteners are provided at said inner edges of said left and right cups respectively and are detachably fastened with each other to retain a distance between said left and right cups.

22. The method, as recited in claim 21, wherein the step (c) further comprises a step of retaining said left and right cups in position with respect to the wearer body by extending two length-adjustable back connecting bands from two outer edges of said left and right cups respectively and detachably fastening two back fasteners at two free end portions of said back connecting bands respectively with each other to form a loop structure for fitting around the underbust of the wearer.

23. The method, as recited in claim 22, wherein the step (c) further comprises a step of extending two length-adjustable shoulder straps from said left and right cups to said back connecting bands respectively for evenly distributing the weight of the breast of the wearer on the shoulder thereof.

24. The method, as recited in claim 23, wherein said back connecting bands are detachably coupled with said outer edges of said left and right cups respectively, wherein said shoulder straps are detachably coupled with said left and right cups and said back connecting bands respectively.