Hip protective undergarments

Abstract

Disclosed herein is an undergarment with a self-orienting, integrated, conformable hip protection pad.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A hip protective garment, comprising:
 a form-fitted body portion; and   a conformable hip pad disposed on and integral with the body portion of the garment, the hip pad comprising a center, such that when the garment is disposed on the user, the center of the hip pad is disposed adjacent to the upper trochanter region of the user's hip,   wherein the conformable hip pad comprises a plurality of cushioning regions separated by one or more channels defining one or more hinges between the cushioning regions whereby the hip pad may conform to the contours of the user's hip when the garment is worn.   
     
     
         2 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad comprises an integrated locator device that allows the user to verify the position of the center of the hip pad relative to the upper trochanter region of the user's hip. 
     
     
         3 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad comprises a removable impact sensor adapted to measure the force of an impact. 
     
     
         4 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein at least a portion the body portion comprises an absorbent material. 
     
     
         5 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad comprises an energy absorbing foam material. 
     
     
         6 . The hip protective garment of  claim 5 , wherein the energy absorbing foam material is a polyurethane foam. 
     
     
         7 . The hip protective garment of  claim 6 , wherein the polyurethane foam has a density of from 160 kg/m 3  to 480 kg/m 3 . 
     
     
         8 . The hip protective garment of  claim 7 , wherein the polyurethane foam has a density of from 240 kg/m 3  to 400 kg/m 3 . 
     
     
         9 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad has a central region of uniform thickness extending radially from the center of the hip pad. 
     
     
         10 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad has a central region of uniform thickness extending radially from the center of the hip pad by from 1 cm to 10 cm. 
     
     
         11 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad has a central region of uniform thickness extending radially from the center of the hip pad by from 3 cm to 8 cm. 
     
     
         12 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad has a central region of uniform thickness extending radially from the center of the hip pad by about 5 cm. 
     
     
         13 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the central region of uniform thickness has a thickness ranging from 1 mm to 30 mm. 
     
     
         14 . The hip protective garment of  claim 13 , wherein the central region of uniform thickness has a thickness ranging from 5 mm to 25 mm. 
     
     
         15 . The hip protective garment of  claim 14 , wherein the central region of uniform thickness has a thickness ranging from 10 mm to 20 mm. 
     
     
         16 . The hip protective garment of  claim 15 , wherein the central region of uniform thickness has a thickness of about 15 mm. 
     
     
         17 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad comprises an impact-resistance of up to 10,000 Newtons. 
     
     
         18 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad comprises an impact-resistance of up to 7000 Newtons. 
     
     
         19 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad comprises an impact-resistance of up to 5000 Newtons. 
     
     
         20 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , wherein the hip pad comprises an impact-resistance of up to 3000 Newtons. 
     
     
         21 . The hip protective garment of  claim 1 , comprising:
 a form-fitted body portion; and   a conformable hip pad disposed on and integrated with the body portion of the garment, the hip pad comprising a center, such that when the garment is disposed on the user, the center of the hip pad is disposed adjacent to the upper trochanter region of the user's hip;   
       wherein the hip pad comprises a polyurethane foam with a density of about 320 kg/m 3  a thickness of about 15 mm, and that is capable of absorbing about 7000 Newtons of force. 
     
     
         22 . A conformable hip pad comprising a center for use with a garment, such that when the garment is disposed on the user, the center of the hip pad is disposed adjacent to the upper trochanter region of the user's hip, wherein the conformable pad comprises a plurality of cushioning regions separated by one or more channels defining one or more hinge regions between the cushioning regions, whereby the hip pad may conform to contours of the user's hip when the garment is worn, wherein the hip pad comprises a foam material having a density of from 240 to 400 kg/m 3  and a thickness of from 10 to 20 mm and that is capable of absorbing about 7000 Newtons of force. 
     
     
         23 . The conformable hip pad of  claim 22 , wherein the foam material is a rate-dependent foam. 
     
     
         24 . The conformable hip pad of  claim 22 , wherein the foam material is a microcellular polyurethane foam. 
     
     
         25 . The conformable hip pad of  claim 22 , wherein the hip pad has a center cushioning region comprising a central region extending radially from a center point with a substantially uniform thickness and wherein the thickness of further cushioning regions decreases radially from the central region toward a perimeter of the hip pad. 
     
     
         26 . The conformable hip pad of  claim 22 , wherein an upper surface of the cushioning region comprises a surface defined by a thickness of the cushioning region that generally decreases radially toward a perimeter of the hip pad. 
     
     
         27 . The conformable hip pad of  claim 22 , for disposing in a pocket of a form-fitted body portion of a hip protective garment, the hip pad comprising a center, such that when the garment is disposed on the user, the center of the hip pad is disposed adjacent to the upper trochanter region of the user's hip;
 wherein the hip pad comprises a polyurethane foam with a density of about 320 kg/m 3 , a thickness of about 15 mm, and that is capable of absorbing about 7000 Newtons of force.   
     
     
         28 . The conformable hip pad of  claim 22 , for providing on and integral with a form-fitted body portion of a hip protective garment, the hip pad comprising a center, such that when the garment is disposed on the user, the center of the hip pad is disposed adjacent to the upper trochanter region of the user's hip;
 wherein the hip pad comprises a polyurethane foam with a density of about 320 kg/m 3 , a thickness of about 15 mm, and that is capable of absorbing about 7000 Newtons of force.