A glove box is a sealed enclosure in which all handling of materials inside the box is carried out through long, relatively impermeable gloves secured to ports in the walls of the enclosure. The operator’s hands and forearms are placed in the gloves from the outside of the box so that the operator is able to manipulate items inside the box with relative freedom while viewing the operation through a window.
The purpose of a glove box is protection or isolation, which is provided by a physical barrier. Depending on the type of glove box, the physical barrier may be to isolate a sensitive material inside the box from environmental contamination or to protect the operator from hazardous materials being manipulated inside the box.