Upper-body garment with open sleeve and vented back constructions

Abstract

An upper-body garment can include an open sleeve and vented back constructions. In at least some examples, the upper-body garment includes arm sleeves with elongated openings (e.g., on the bottom side of the sleeve), and the elongated openings transition into a vented back construction. Among other things, the upper-body garment can provide a sleeved garment that affords at least some benefits associated with arm sleeves, while also providing a breathable garment that is less restrictive of the wearer's movements (e.g., arm movements or other motion associated with the upper torso).

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An upper-body garment comprising:
 a front panel comprising a front sleeve edge and a front side edge;   a back panel comprising a back side edge and a back upper portion, the back side edge attached to the front panel proximate the front side edge;   a back vent panel extending over the back upper portion of the back panel and coupled to the back panel at one or more locations of the back upper portion, the back vent panel comprising a back vent sleeve edge and a back vent bottom edge, the back vent bottom edge at least partially detached from the back panel; and   a sleeve comprising a distal end, a proximal end, and a slit along an underside of the sleeve, the proximal end attached to the front sleeve edge of the front panel and the back vent sleeve edge of the back vent panel, the slit extending from the proximal end and towards the distal end.   
     
     
         2 . The upper-body garment of  claim 1 , wherein the slit comprises a first length and the sleeve comprises a second length, and wherein the first length is at least half of the second length. 
     
     
         3 . The upper-body garment of  claim 1 , wherein the back panel comprises a back panel top edge and the back vent panel comprises a back vent top edge, which is attached directly to the back panel top edge. 
     
     
         4 . The upper-body garment of  claim 3 , wherein the back panel top edge and the back vent top edge are coupled to each other proximate a collar of the upper-body garment. 
     
     
         5 . The upper-body garment of  claim 1 , wherein the back panel comprises a racer-back configuration. 
     
     
         6 . The upper-body garment of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the sleeve comprises a cuff at the distal end;   the sleeve comprises a first slit edge and a second slit edge that are detached along the underside of the sleeve to form the slit; and   the first slit edge and the second slit edge are affixed along a seam proximate the cuff.   
     
     
         7 . The upper-body garment of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the sleeve comprises a first slit edge and a second slit edge that are detached along the underside of the sleeve to form the slit; and   the second slit edge is continuous with the back vent bottom edge.   
     
     
         8 . The upper-body garment of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the back panel comprises a back panel top edge;   the front panel comprises a front panel top edge; and   the back panel top edge is free from any direct attachment to the sleeve or to the front panel top edge.   
     
     
         9 . An upper-body garment comprising:
 a torso portion comprising a front and a back;   a sleeve comprising:
 a proximal end coupled to the torso portion; 
 a distal end that is opposite the proximal end; 
 a slit extending from the proximal end and towards the distal end, the slit comprising a slit front edge and a slit back edge that are detached from one another to form the slit, the slit terminating at a position between the proximal end and the distal end; and 
   the back of the torso portion comprising a back base-layer panel and a back vent panel that overlays a upper region of the back base-layer panel, wherein the back vent panel comprises a bottom edge that is at least partially detached from the back base-layer panel and that is continuous with the slit back edge.   
     
     
         10 . The upper-body garment of  claim 9 , wherein the slit comprises a slit length and the sleeve comprises a sleeve length, and wherein the slit length is at least half the sleeve length. 
     
     
         11 . The upper-body garment of  claim 9 , wherein the upper region of the back base-layer panel comprises a racer-back style panel. 
     
     
         12 . The upper-body garment of  claim 9 , wherein the slit back edge is free from direct attachment to the back base-layer panel. 
     
     
         13 . The upper-body garment of  claim 9 , wherein the back base-layer panel comprises a first top edge and the back vent panel comprises a second top edge, which is coupled directly to the first top edge proximate at least one of a collar of the upper-body garment or a base of a hood of the upper-body garment. 
     
     
         14 . The upper-body garment of  claim 9  further comprising:
 a second sleeve comprising:
 a second proximal end coupled to the torso portion; 
 a second distal end that is opposite the second proximal end; 
 a second slit extending from the second proximal end and towards the second distal end, the second slit comprising a second slit front edge and a second slit back edge that are detached from one another to form the second slit, the second slit back edge being continuous with the bottom edge of the back venting panel and with the back edge of the slit. 
 
 
     
     
         15 . An upper-body garment comprising:
 a torso portion comprising a multi-layer back portion;   the multi-layer back portion comprising an inner layer and an outer layer, wherein the outer layer comprises a bottom edge that is at least partially detached from the inner layer; and   a sleeve comprising:
 a proximal end coupled to the torso portion; 
 a distal end that is opposite the proximal end; 
 a slit extending from the proximal end and towards the distal end. 
   
     
     
         16 . The upper-body garment of  claim 15 , wherein the slit comprises a slit front edge and a slit back edge that are detached from one another to form the slit. 
     
     
         17 . The upper-body garment of  claim 16 , wherein the slit front edge and the slit back edge are connected at an intermediate portion proximate the distal end. 
     
     
         18 . The upper-body garment of  claim 16 , wherein the slit back edge aligns with the bottom edge of the outer layer. 
     
     
         19 . The upper-body garment of  claim 15 , wherein the inner layer comprises an inner-layer top edge and the outer layer comprises an outer-layer top edge, which is attached directly to the inner-layer top edge. 
     
     
         20 . The upper-body garment of  claim 15 , wherein the slit comprises a slit length and the sleeve comprises a sleeve length, and wherein the slit length is in a range between one-third and two-thirds the sleeve length.