GARMENT

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001]The present invention relates to a garment.

BACKGROUND ART

[0002]Conventionally, a garment added with a posture correction function by increasing compression of a wearer has been developed (e.g., Patent Literature 1).

[0003]The garment disclosed in Patent Literature 1 includes a base fabric, a ring-shaped elastic member extending in a ring shape along each of left and right sleeve portions on the respective armhole portions of the base fabric, and a back portion elastic member extending in a lateral direction on a back portion of the base fabric and coupling the left and right ring-shaped elastic members. The ring-shaped elastic member is made of an elastic yarn or a rubber tape. The back portion elastic member is made of an elastic yarn or a rubber sheet. In the garment having such a configuration, a shoulder portion around the base of an upper arm of the wearer is pulled rearward by linkage between the back portion elastic member and the ring-shaped elastic member, whereby the posture of the wearer can be corrected to a chest out posture.

[0004]In recent years, the number of people trying to increase muscle strength is increasing. Muscles to be increased in muscle strength also include muscles on the back surface side such as the deltoid muscle and the latissimus dorsi muscle. When trying to increase muscle strength as described above, it is effective to apply the muscle with a load as described above not only during training but also in a state where training is not performed.

[0005]Also in the garment disclosed in Patent Literature 1, since the back portion elastic member and the ring-shaped elastic member can apply the muscles on the back surface side of the wearer with a load, it is considered to be effective in increasing the wearer's muscle strength.

[0006]However, the garment disclosed in Patent Literature 1 is not sufficient to effectively increase the wearer's muscle strength. Specifically, in conventional garments including the garment disclosed in Patent Literature 1, a front body and a back body constituting a base fabric are joined at a shoulder portion and both underarm portions. Therefore, the ring-shaped elastic member of the garment disclosed in Patent Literature 1 is formed on the base fabric in a state of straddling the joint part. In the conventional garment, as a result of this joint part having a low elongation with respect to the base fabric, the tensile elastic force transmitted in the extending direction of the ring-shaped elastic member is dispersed at the joint part of the base fabric in the shoulder portion, and therefore a sufficient load cannot be applied to the wearer's muscles.

CITATION LIST

Patent Literature

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

[0008]The present invention is made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a garment effective for increasing muscle strength by effectively applying muscles on the back surface side of a wearer with a load.

[0009]A garment according to one aspect of the present invention is a garment to be worn by a wearer in a state where compression is applied to an upper body of the wearer, and includes a low elongation portion and a high elongation portion. The low elongation portion is a site provided in a part and having a first elongation. The high elongation portion is a site provided in a remainder and having a second elongation higher than the first elongation.

[0010]The low elongation portion includes a part of a base fabric serving as a base of the garment, and a low elongation band member overlapped with and joined to the part of the base fabric. The low elongation band member includes a pair of ring portions extending around left and right arm holes, respectively, and a coupling portion that couples the pair of ring portions to each other at a back section of the wearer.

[0011]The high elongation portion is a part of the base fabric excluding the part to which the low elongation band member is joined. The base fabric is formed by joining a front body portion and a back body portion to each other. The back body portion includes a back surface portion which is a part covering the back, and a pair of armhole portions which are seamlessly continuous to the back surface portion and extend from the back surface portion to a chest side of the wearer along the left and right armholes, respectively, through a shoulder portion, and are joined to side edges of the back surface portion. The low elongation portion is formed in a part of the back surface portion and the pair of armhole portions.

[0012]In the garment according to the present aspect, the base fabric and the low elongation band member in the low elongation portion have ends joined to each other at an armpit part of the wearer around each of the left and right armholes, and the other part configured continuously and seamlessly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0013]FIG. 1 is a view of a garment according to an embodiment as viewed from a front side.

[0014]FIG. 2 is a view of the garment according to the embodiment as viewed from a rear side.

[0015]FIG. 3A is a view illustrating a front body of constituent members of the garment according to the embodiment.

[0016]FIG. 3B is a view illustrating a back body of the constituent members of the garment according to the embodiment.

[0017]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a joint form of a low elongation band member to a base fabric in the back body.

[0018]FIG. 5A is a view of a state in which a user wears the garment according to the embodiment as viewed from a lateral side.

[0019]FIG. 5B is a view of a state in which the user wears the garment according to the embodiment as viewed from the rear side.

[0020]FIG. 6A is a view of a garment according to Comparative Example 1 as viewed from the front side.

[0021]FIG. 6B is a view of the garment according to Comparative Example 1 as viewed from the rear side.

[0022]FIG. 7 is a view of a garment according to Comparative Example 2 as viewed from the rear side.

[0023]FIG. 8 is a view illustrating the back body of the constituent members of the garment according to the embodiment.

[0024]FIG. 9 is a view illustrating a garment according to Modification 1 in an unfolded state.

[0025]FIG. 10A is a cross-sectional view illustrating a partial configuration of a garment according to another modification.

[0026]FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional view illustrating a partial configuration of a garment according to another modification.

[0027]FIG. 10C is a cross-sectional view illustrating a partial configuration of a garment according to another modification.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0028]An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiment described below exemplarily illustrates the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment at all excluding the essential configuration thereof.

1. External Configuration of Garment 1

[0029]An external configuration of a garment 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is a view of the garment 1 as viewed from the front side, and FIG. 2 is a view of the garment 1 as viewed from the rear side.

[0030]As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the garment 1 is, as an example, a garment to be worn directly on an upper body, and is compression wear to be worn in a state where the upper body is applied with compression. The garment 1 includes a front body 10, a back body 11, left and right sleeves 12 and 13, a collar 14, and a low elongation band member 20. Note that the front body 10, the back body 11, the left and right sleeves 12 and 13, and the collar 14 are formed of a base fabric. The base fabric and the low elongation band member 20 are joined to each other using an adhesive. However, they may be joined by sewing.

[0031]The low elongation band member 20 is formed of a member having a relatively low elongation with respect to the base fabric including the front body 10 and the back body 11. That is, when the elongation of the site (low elongation portion) where the low elongation band member 20 is joined to the base fabric is the first elongation, the site (high elongation portion) where the low elongation band member 20 is not joined in the base fabric has the second elongation higher than the first elongation. The results of measuring the bursting strength (JIS-L-1096 Mullen method) between the base fabric and the site where the low elongation band member 20 is joined to the base fabric will be presented.

(Base Fabric) 548 kPa

(Base Fabric+Low Elongation Band Member 20 ) 750 kPa

[0032]As described above, the site where the low elongation band member 20 is joined to the base fabric has a bursting strength about 37% higher than that of the base fabric.

[0033]Note that the ratio related to the bursting strength of the site where the low elongation band member 20 is joined to the base fabric with respect to the base fabric is an example. For example, the bursting strength may be higher by 20% or more, more preferably higher by 30% or more than that of the base fabric.

[0034]Here, in the garment 1, a part where the low elongation band member 20 is overlapped with and joined to the base fabric is the low elongation portion, and a part where the low elongation band member 20 is not joined to the base fabric is the high elongation portion. That is, the low elongation portion is a site having the first elongation by joining the low elongation band member 20, and the high elongation portion is a site having the second elongation higher than the first elongation by not joining the low elongation band member 20.

[0035]The low elongation band member 20 is formed of a band-shaped member in which each of the left and right is bifurcated, and is formed by joining a pair of ends positioned in left and right, respectively, of this band-shaped member. Specifically, the low elongation band member 20 includes a right ring portion 20a extending around the periphery of the armhole, which is a joint point of a right sleeve, a left ring portion 20b extending around the periphery of the armhole, which is a joint point of a left sleeve, and a coupling portion 20c that couples the ring portions 20a and 20b at a part covering the back of the wearer. Note that in the low elongation band member 20, the right ring portion 20a and the left ring portion 20b correspond to the pair of ring portions.

[0036]The right ring portion 20a is formed so as to position over front and rear parts P1 and P4 of the scapulohumeral joint (base part of the humerus with respect to the scapula) of the wearer. The left ring portion 20b is formed so as to position over front and rear parts P2 and P3 of the scapulohumeral joint (base part of the humerus with respect to the scapula) of the wearer. The right ring portion 20a has longitudinal ends joined to each other by sewing at a right armpit 1c, and the left ring portion 20b has longitudinal ends joined to each other by sewing at a left armpit 1d.

[0037]Note that the right ring portion 20a and the left ring portion 20b are respectively joined only at the sewn parts of the armpits 1c and 1d, and the other part in the extending direction is configured to be continuous. That is, in the right ring portion 20a and the left ring portion 20b, seams (joint parts between ends) are formed in the armpits 1c and 1d, respectively, and on the other hand, the part excluding the armpits 1c and 1d in the extending direction is configured seamlessly.

[0038]As illustrated in FIG. 2, the coupling portion 20c is formed to extend in a shoulder width direction in a region between the left and right scapulae of the wearer. The right ring portion 20a and the left ring portion 20b are disposed so as to pass through more inward than the scapula of the wearer at coupling parts of the coupling portion 20c.

2. Structures of Front Body 10 and Back Body 11

[0039]Each structure of the front body 10 and the back body 11 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 4.

[0040]As illustrated in FIG. 3A, the low elongation band member 20 is not joined to the front body 10 of a base fabric 100.

[0041]On the other hand, as illustrated in FIG. 3B, the low elongation band member 20 is joined to a part of the back body 11 of a base fabric 110. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the low elongation band member 20 is joined to the back body 11 of the base fabric 110 via an adhesive between a part of a front surface 11j of the base fabric 110 and an entire surface or a part of a back surface 20d of the low elongation band member 20. However, they may be joined by sewing.

[0042]Returning to FIG. 3B, the back body 11 includes a body portion (back surface portion) 11a covering the back of the wearer, and armhole portions 11b and 11c extending beyond the shoulder portion of the wearer with respect to the body portion 11a. An edge 11f, which is one end side in the width direction of a right armhole portion 11b, is an armhole edge to which a right sleeve 12 is joined. An edge 11g, which is one end side in the width direction of a left arm-hole portion 11c, is an arm-hole edge to which a left sleeve 13 is joined.

[0043]An edge 11d, which is the other end side in the width direction of the right armhole portion 11b, is joined to an edge 10a of the front body 10. An edge 11e, which is the other end side in the width direction of the left armhole portion 11c, is joined to an edge 10b of the front body 10. Note that the edges 11d and 11e of the back body 11 and the edges 10a and 10b of the front body 10 may be joined by an adhesive or may be joined by sewing.

[0044]Edges 10c and 10d of the front body 10 and edges 11h and 11i of the back body 11 are joined at armpit parts of the wearer. The edges 10c and 10d of the front body 10 and the edges 11h and 11i of the back body 11 may also be joined by an adhesive or may also be joined by sewing.

[0045]The right ring portion 20a of the low elongation band member 20 has a configuration portion 20al joined to the base fabric 110 in the right armhole portion 11b and extending to the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c, and a configuration portion 20a2 joined to a part of the base fabric 110 in the body portion 11a and extending from the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c to the edge 11h. Note that the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c with the right ring portion 20a is separated inward in the shoulder width direction from the armhole edge 11f of the base fabric 110. Due to this, the right ring portion 20a is not over the scapula of the wearer at the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c.

[0046]The left ring portion 20b has a configuration portion 20b1 joined to the base fabric 110 in the left armhole portion 11c and extending to the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c, and a configuration portion 20b2 joined to a part of the base fabric 110 in the body portion 11a and extending from the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c to the edge 11i. Note that the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c with the left ring portion 20b is separated inward in the shoulder width direction from the armhole edge 11g of the base fabric 110. Due to this, the left ring portion 20b also is not over the scapula of the wearer at the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c.

[0047]As illustrated in FIG. 3B, the base fabric 110 of the back body 11 and the low elongation band member 20 joined to the part of the base fabric 110 have no joint point in the extending direction of the low elongation band member 20 at the shoulder portion (arrows A1 and A2) covering the shoulder of the wearer. The right ring portion 20a of the low elongation band member 20 is formed in an annular shape by joining an end side 20a3 of the configuration portion 20a1 and an end side 20a4 of the configuration portion 20a2 together with the edges 11h and 10c. Similarly, the left ring portion 20b of the low elongation band member 20 is formed in an annular shape by joining an end side 20b3 of the configuration portion 20b1 and an end side 20b4 of the configuration portion 20b2 together with the edge 11i and the edge 10d. That is, the ring portions 20a and 20b of the low elongation band member 20 are each formed in a ring shape by joining the ends in the extending direction at the armpits 1c and 1d, respectively, and the part excluding the armpits 1c and 1d (see FIGS. 1 and 2) is seamlessly configured continuously in the extending direction.

[0048]The interval between the right armhole edge 11f of the right armhole portion 11b and an armhole side edge 20a5 of the configuration portion 20al is 10 mm or less. However, it is disposed to be wider than 10 mm on the side of the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c relative to the shoulder portion indicated by arrow A1. The interval between the left armhole edge 11g of the left armhole portion 11c and an armhole side edge 20b5 of the configuration portion 20b1 is also 10 mm or less. However, it is disposed to be wider than 10 mm on the side of the coupling part of the coupling portion 20c relative to the shoulder portion indicated by arrow A2.

[0049]The coupling portion 20c is formed in the back part of the back body 11 so as to extend in the shoulder width direction between the left and right scapulae of the wearer. The coupling portion 20c is also disposed so as not to cover the scapula of the wearer.

3. Muscle Strength Increasing Function by Garment 1

[0050]A muscle strength increasing function of the garment 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5A to 7. Note that FIGS. 6A and 6B illustrate a garment according to Comparative Example 1, and FIG. 7 illustrates a garment according to Comparative Example 2.

[0051]As illustrated in FIG. 5A, when a wearer 500 wearing the garment 1 swings an arm 501 forward (arrow B1), the shoulder portion (scapulohumeral joint) is pulled toward the rear side, which is opposite to the direction of swinging the arm 501, by the low elongation band member 20 (arrow B2). Due to this, the wearer is applied with a load in an orientation opposite to the swinging direction only by performing a motion of swinging the arm 501 forward.

[0052]As illustrated in FIG. 5B, when the arm 501 is swung upward (arrow B3), a force indicated by arrow B4 is applied by the coupling portion 20c, and a force indicated by arrow B5 acts on a part more upward than the coupling portion 20c of the ring portions 20a and 20b. Due to this, the wearer 500 is applied with a load in an orientation opposite to the swing-up direction also by a motion of swinging the arm 501 upward.

[0053]As described above, only by moving the arm 501 not only during training but also in daily life, the wearer 500 wearing the garment 1 is applied with an appropriate load on the deltoid muscle, the latissimus dorsi muscle, and the like of the back, and can achieve a muscle strength training effect.

[0054]As illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B, in the garment according to Comparative Example 1 has a right front portion 92a and a left front portion 92b of a low elongation band member 92 joined to an armhole part of a front body 90, and a right rear upper portion 92c, a right rear lower portion 92e, a left rear upper portion 92d, a left rear lower portion 92f, and a coupling portion 92g of the low elongation band member 92 joined to an upper portion of a back body 91. The right rear upper portion 92c, the right rear lower portion 92e, and the coupling portion 92g are formed to be continuous, and the left rear upper portion 92d, the left rear lower portion 92f, and the coupling portion 92g are formed to be continuous.

[0055]In the garment according to Modification 1, an edge 92c3 of the coupling part (arrow C5) of the coupling portion 92g with the right rear upper portion 92c and the right rear lower portion 92e is disposed so as not to be separated from a right arm hole portion 91c, and an edge 92d3 of the coupling part (arrow C6) of the coupling portion 92g with the left rear upper portion 92d and the left rear lower portion 92f is disposed so as not to be separated from a left armhole portion 91d. In the garment according to Modification 1, the right front portion 92a and the right rear upper portion 92c have edges 92al and 92cl joined to each other at the shoulder portion (arrow C3), and the right front portion 92a and the right rear lower portion 92e have edges 92a2 and 92c2 joined to each other at the armpit. The left front portion 92b and the left rear upper portion 92d have edges 92b1 and 92d1 joined to each other at the shoulder portion (arrow C4), and the left front portion 92b and the left rear lower portion 92f have edges 92b2 and 92d2 joined to each other at the armpit.

[0056]Thus, in the garment according to Modification 1, since the front portions 92a and 92b joined to the base fabric of the front body 90 and the rear upper portions 92c and 92d joined to the base fabric of the back body 91 are joined at the shoulder portions (parts indicated by arrows C3 and C4), the tensile force in the longitudinal direction acting on the front portions 92a and 92b when the wearer moves an arm is dispersed at the joint parts of the shoulder portions (parts indicated by arrows C3 and C4). Therefore, the tensile force described above is not effectively transmitted to the rear upper portions 92c and 92d. For this reason, the garment according to Comparative Example 1 cannot effectively apply a load to the deltoid muscle and the latissimus dorsi muscle of the wearer, and is not sufficient to achieve the muscle strength increasing function.

[0057]In the garment according to Comparative Example 1, since the low elongation band member is also disposed in the parts covering the scapulae (arrows C5 and C6), the wearer is hindered from raising an arm when he tries to do so. Therefore, also from this point, the muscle strength increasing function cannot be sufficiently achieved.

[0058]In the garment according to Modification 2 illustrated in FIG. 7, a low elongation band member 94 joined to the base fabric includes a right ring portion 94c, a left ring portion 94d, and a coupling portion 94g. The right ring portion 94c and the left ring portion 94d are coupled by the coupling portion 94g at a back part (D1) of a back body 93. The coupling portion 94g is disposed to be greatly separated from left and right armhole portions 93c and 93d, and the length in the shoulder width direction is very short as compared with the garment 1 of the above embodiment.

[0059]When the wearer wearing the garment as illustrated in FIG. 7 moves an arm, a tensile strength as indicated by arrow D2 acts on the ring portions 94c and 94d.

[0060]However, since the garment according to Modification 2 has the length of the coupling portion 94g formed very short, the degree to which both the shoulders of the wearer are pulled rearward is small. Therefore, it is considered that the garment according to Comparative Example 2 also hardly achieves the function of increasing the wearer's muscle strength.

[0061]Similarly to Modification 1, the garment according to Modification 2 also has the front body and the back body in the base fabric joined at the shoulder portion, the tensile force transmitted on the front surface side of the ring portions 94c and 94d is dispersed at the joint part. Therefore, the garment according to Comparative Example 2 also cannot effectively apply a load to the muscles on the back surface side.

4. Dimension of Low Elongation Band Member 20 in Garment 1

[0062]A dimension of the low elongation band member 20 in the back body 11 of the garment 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 8.

[0063]As illustrated in FIG. 8, the width dimension of the ring portions 20a and 20b of the low elongation band member 20 is W1, and the dimension in the up-down direction of the coupling portion 20c is W2. In this case, W1 and W2 are set such that the ratio of W2/W1 is about 100% to 200%. More desirably, W2/W1 is about 130% to 170%.

[0064]The value of W1 is set to, for example, 30 mm to 50 mm. As described above, an interval W5 between the right armhole edge 11f of the right armhole portion 11b and the armhole side edge 20a5 of the configuration portion 20a1 is set to 10 mm or less.

[0065]The width of the coupling portion 20c in the width direction is W2, and the width between the left and right armhole edges 11f and 11g of the back body 11 is W4. In this case, W3 and W4 are set such that the ratio of W3/W4 is about 40% to 70%. More desirably, W3/W4 is about 50% to 60%.

5. Effects

[0066]The garment 1 according to the present embodiment includes the low elongation portion (site where the low elongation band member 20 is overlapped and joined to the base fabric 110) in which the pair of ring portions 20a and 20b and the coupling portion 20c are integrally formed, and the low elongation portion (site where the low elongation band member 20 is joined to the base fabric 110) is continuously and seamlessly configured in the extending direction excluding the armpits 1c and 1d. Therefore, in the garment 1, the tensile force transmitted in the longitudinal direction of the ring portions on the left and right sides is transmitted to the back surface side without being dispersed by the shoulder portions. Hence, the garment 1 can apply a force that pulls rearward both arm base parts (scapulohumeral joint) of the wearer 500. This allows the wearer 500 to be applied with a load to muscles on the back side such as the deltoid muscle and the latissimus dorsi muscle only by wearing the garment 1, and can increase the muscle strength.

[0067]In the garment 1 according to the present embodiment, the pair of ring portions 20a and 20b have the respective end sides 20a3, 20a4, 20b3, and 20b4 joined to each other at the armpits 1c and 1d, and the garment 1 has no joint portion at the other part in the extending direction as well as the shoulder portions (A1 and A2 parts in FIG. 3B). Therefore, the garment 1 is applied with a tensile strength in the longitudinal direction of each of the ring portions 20a and 20b with the joint part in the armpits 1c and 1d as a base point. Therefore, with respect to the wearer 500 wearing the garment 1, it is possible to effectively pull rearward both the arm base parts (scapulohumeral joint parts) of the wearer 500 while suppressing dispersion of the force.

[0068]As illustrated in FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 4, the garment 1 according to the present embodiment includes the base fabrics 100 and 110 and the low elongation band member 20, and the low elongation portion is configured by overlapping and joining the low elongation band member 20 with respect to the base fabric 110. Therefore, in the garment 1, the difference in elongation between the low elongation portion and the high elongation portion can be variously set by selecting the base fabric 110 and the low elongation band member 20. Hence, it is possible to adjust the force to pull rearward both the arm base parts (scapulohumeral joint parts) of the wearer 500 to an appropriate magnitude.

[0069]As illustrated in FIG. 3B, the garment 1 according to the present embodiment employs the back body 11 having the pair of armhole portions 11b and 11c. Therefore, the garment 1 can be manufactured without complicated work while the low elongation portion is continuously and seamlessly configured in the extending direction excluding the armpits 1c and 1d.

[0070]In the garment 1 according to the present embodiment, the pair of ring portions 20a and 20b are formed so as to pass through more inward than the left and right scapulae at the coupling parts of the coupling portion 20c. Due to this, with the garment 1, the motion of the scapula in the wearer 500 is hardly hindered. Hence, also when the wearer 500 tries to raise the arm 501, the motion is hardly hindered.

[0071]In the garment 1 according to the present embodiment, the pair of ring portions 20a and 20b are respectively formed so as to extend over the scapulohumeral joints, and the part where the ring portions 20a and 20b are joined is formed with a relatively low elongation. Therefore, the garment 1 can effectively pull rearward both the arm base parts with the site around the scapulohumeral joint as the point of action.

[0072]As described above, the garment 1 according to the present embodiment can apply a load to the muscles on the back surface side of the wearer 500.

[Modification 1]

[0073]In the above embodiment, the front body 10 and the back body 11 are separately prepared and joined to each other, but in the present modification, the front body and the back body are integrally formed. A garment 2 according to the modification will be described with reference to FIG. 9. Note that FIG. 9 illustrates the garment 2 in a state before edges are joined to each other. The sleeve, the collar, and the like are not illustrated.

[0074]As illustrated in FIG. 9, the garment 2 according to the present modification includes a base fabric 21 having a back body 21a and front bodies 21b and 21c, and a low elongation band member 22 joined to a part of the base fabric 21. Also in the present modification, a site where the low elongation band member 22 is joined to the base fabric 21 is a low elongation portion, and the remaining site (site where the low elongation band member 22 is not joined) is a high elongation portion.

[0075]In the garment 2 according to the present modification, each of the front bodies 21b and 21c is continuous with the back body 21a. A right front body 21b is formed so as to extend continuously at a right shoulder part (arrow E7 part) of the back body 21a. A left front body 21c is formed so as to extend continuously at a left shoulder part (arrow E8 part) of the back body 21a.

[0076]The garment 2 includes a right armhole portion 21j extending to the right front body 21b beyond the right shoulder part from the back body 21a, and a left armhole portion 21k extending to the left front body 21c beyond the left shoulder part from the back body 21a. An edge 21l, which is one end side in the width direction of the right armhole portion 21j, is an armhole edge to which the right sleeve is joined. An edge 21m, which is one end side in the width direction of the left armhole portion 21k, is an armhole edge to which the left sleeve is joined.

[0077]As illustrated in FIG. 9, the garment 2 according to the present modification has a part where the low elongation band member 22 is also joined to each of the right front body 21b and the left front body 21c. That is, in the garment 2 according to the present modification, the front bodies 21b and 21c also have a low elongation portion and a high elongation portion.

[0078]The low elongation band member 22 includes a right ring portion 22a formed so as to extend along the right armhole edge, a left ring portion 22b formed so as to extend along the left armhole edge, and a coupling portion 22c coupling the right ring portion 22a and the left ring portion 22b at an upper portion of the back body 21a. In the present modification, the right ring portion 22a, the left ring portion 22b, and the coupling portion 22c are continuously formed.

[0079]The coupling portion 22c is formed in the back part of the back body 21a so as to extend in the shoulder width direction between the left and right scapulae of the wearer.

[0080]Note that also in the present modification, the low elongation band member 22 is joined to the base fabric 21 using an adhesive as an example.

[0081]Also in the present modification, the right ring portion 22a, the left ring portion 22b, and the coupling portion 22c are arranged so as not to cover the scapulae of the wearer.

[0082]In the garment 2, an edge 21d (arrow E1 part) of the back body 21a and an edge 21e (arrow E2 part) of the right front body 21b are joined, and an edge 21f (arrow E3 part) of the back body 21a and an edge 21g (arrow E4 part) of the left front body 21c are joined. An edge 21h (arrow E5 part) of the right front body 21b and an edge 21i (arrow E6 part) of the left front body 21c are joined.

[0083]Note that edges 22al and 22a2 of the right ring portion 22a of the low elongation band member 22 are overlapped with and joined to the edge 21d of the back body 21a and the edge 21e of the right front body 21b. Similarly, edges 22bl and 22b2 of the left ring portion 22b of the low elongation band member 22 are overlapped with and joined to the edge 21f of the back body 21a and the edge 21g of the left front body 21c. Note that the joint of the edges 22al and 22a2 and the joint of the edges 22b1 and 22b2 are performed by sewing as an example.

[0084]The garment 2 according to the present modification is different from the above-described embodiment in that the back body 21a and the front bodies 21b and 21c are formed so as to be continuous, but the other configurations are the same as those of the above-described embodiment. Therefore, the garment 2 according to the present modification can also achieve the same effects as the garment 1 according to the above embodiment.

[0085]Since the garment 2 according to the present modification is cut so that the back body 21a and the front bodies 21b and 21c are continuous, it is also possible to achieve an effect that the number of man-hours for member management can be reduced by reducing the number of members.

[Other Modifications]

[0086]In the above embodiment and Modification 1, members having a lower elongation than that of the base fabric (low elongation band members 20 and 22) are overlapped and joined, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 10A, a joint fabric 24 made of the same material as the base fabric 23 may be overlapped with a part of a front surface 23a of the base fabric 23, and the front surface 23a of the base fabric 23 and a back surface 24a of the joint fabric 24 may be joined by an adhesive, sewing, or the like.

[0087]As illustrated in FIG. 10B, a low elongation portion 26 can also be formed in a part of a base fabric 25. That is, not overlapping and joining two fabrics, a form having a low elongation portion and a high elongation portion in one fabric can also be employed. Note that as a method of forming the low elongation portion 26, various methods can be employed, and for example, a method of impregnating a partial region of the base fabric 25 with an adhesive or the like can be employed.

[0088]As illustrated in FIG. 10C, it is also possible to employ a fabric in which a print layer 28 is formed in a part of a base fabric 27 and a low elongation portion and a high elongation portion are provided. Note that the base fabric 27 is not necessarily formed of one type of yarn, and may be a layer in which two or more types of yarns may be interwoven. The print layer 28 is not necessarily a coating film, and may be a film made of a fiber layer.

[0089]Although not illustrated, a garment having a low elongation portion and a high elongation portion can be formed by joining end sides of the base fabric and the low elongation band member by sewing or the like.

[0090]Furthermore, in the embodiment and Modification 1, the compression wear is employed as an example of the garments 1 and 2, but the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention can be applied to a garment in which a tensile force acts on fabric in response to a motion of a wearer.

SUMMARY

[0091]A garment according to one aspect of the present invention is a garment to be worn by a wearer in a state where compression is applied to an upper body of the wearer, and includes a low elongation portion and a high elongation portion. The low elongation portion is a site provided in a part and having a first elongation. The high elongation portion is a site provided in a remainder and having a second elongation higher than the first elongation.

[0092]The low elongation portion includes a part of a base fabric serving as a base of the garment, and a low elongation band member overlapped with and joined to the part of the base fabric. The low elongation band member includes a pair of ring portions extending around left and right armholes, respectively, and a coupling portion that couples the pair of ring portions to each other at a back section of the wearer.

[0093]The high elongation portion is a part of the base fabric excluding the part to which the low elongation band member is joined. The base fabric is formed by joining a front body portion and a back body portion to each other. The back body portion includes a back surface portion which is a part covering the back, and a pair of armhole portions which are seamlessly continuous to the back surface portion and extend from the back surface portion to a chest side of the wearer along the left and right armholes, respectively, through a shoulder portion, and are joined to side edges of the back surface portion. The low elongation portion is formed in a part of the back surface portion and the pair of armhole portions.

[0094]The base fabric and the low elongation band member in the low elongation portion have ends joined to each other at an armpit part of the wearer around each of the left and right arm-holes, and the other part configured continuously and seamlessly.

[0095]The garment according to the above aspect includes the low elongation band member having the pair of ring portions and the coupling portion, and the pair of armhole portions and the pair of ring portions forming the low elongation portion are each continuously and seamlessly configured excluding the armpit parts. Therefore, the tensile force transmitted in the longitudinal direction of the ring portions on the left and right sides is transmitted to the back surface side without being dispersed by the shoulder portions. Hence, the garment according to the above aspect can apply a force that pulls rearward both arm base parts of the wearer. This allows the wearer to be applied with a load to muscles on the back side such as the deltoid muscle and the latissimus dorsi muscle only by wearing the garment according to the above aspect, and can increase the muscle strength.

[0096]Note that the “compression” described above indicates a pressure with which a tensile force acts on the fabric in response to a motion of the wearer in each of the low elongation portion and the high elongation portion. Therefore, the garment according to the above aspect is not limited to so-called compression wear.

[0097]In the garment according to the above aspect, since the low elongation portion is formed by overlapping and joining the low elongation band member with the base fabric, the difference in elongation between the low elongation portion and the high elongation portion can be variously set by selecting the base fabric and the low elongation band member. Hence, it is possible to adjust the force to pull rearward both the arm base parts of the wearer to an appropriate magnitude.

[0098]By adopting the configuration in which the low elongation portion is formed on a part of the back surface portion and the pair of armhole portions, the garment according to the above aspect can be manufactured without complicated work while continuously and seamlessly forming the low elongation portion excluding the armpit part.

[0099]In the garment according to the above aspect, the pair of ring portions may be respectively formed apart from the armholes such that coupling parts of the coupling portion are positioned inside relative to left and right scapulae of the wearer in a width direction of the back of the wearer.

[0100]In the garment according to the above aspect, since each of the pair of ring portions is formed so as to pass through more inward than the left and right scapulae at the coupling part of the coupling portion, the motion of the scapula in the wearer is hardly hindered. Hence, also when the wearer tries to raise the arm, the motion is hardly hindered.

[0101]In the garment according to the above aspect, the pair of ring portions may be respectively formed so as to position over scapulohumeral joints of the wearer.

[0102]In the garment according to the above aspect, the pair of ring portions are respectively formed so as to position over the scapulohumeral joints, and the pair of ring portions are formed with an elongation relatively lower than other parts. Therefore, the garment can effectively pull rearward both the arm base parts with the site around the scapulohumeral joints as the point of action.

[0103]As described above, the garment according to each of the above aspects is effective for increasing muscle strength by applying a load to the muscles on the back surface side of the wearer.