GB1576647A - Crash helmets - Google Patents

Description

(54) IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO CRASH HELMETS (71) We, STADIUM LIMITED, a British Company of Queensway, Enfield, Middlesex, do hereby declare the invention for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement:- THIS INVENTION relates to crash helmets of the type which includes a bar portion defining the lower rim of the helmet at the front thereof, said bar portion extending in front of the wearer's chin, an opening being provided in the front of the helmet for the wearer to see through, said bar portion also defining the lower edge of said opening. Such helmets are herein referred to as being "of the kind specified".

A helmet of the kind specified is commonly fitted with a transparent visor which extends on the outside of the helmet in front of said opening and fits fairly closely to the helmet.

When a helmet of the kind specified, fitted with such a visor, is worn in certain conditions, for example in cold weather, there is a tendency for water vapour from the breath of the wearer to condense on the inner surface of the visor, obscuring the wearer's vision.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a means of overcoming this disadvantage.

According to the present invention there is provided the combination of a crash helmet of the kind specified with a mask member arranged to engage the face of the wearer closely in the region below the eyes and above the mouth and nostrils, said mask member being arranged to cooperate closely with the bar portion of the helmet so as to divide off, in use, the space defined within the helmet, above said mask member and in front of the wearer's face, from the space defined between said mask member and the lower part of the wearer's face, the lastmentioned space being in communication with the surrounding atmosphere, the arrangement being such that during inhalation by the wearer, air can be drawn into the last-mentioned space from the surrounding atmosphere and during exhalation by the wearer, the major portion of the exhaled air will pass to the surrounding atmosphere otherwise than via said space defined within the helmet above the mask member and in front of the wearer's face.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view showing the combination of a crash helmet and a mask member embodying the invention, as worn, FIGURE 2 is a perspective view from below showing the crash helmet and the mask member detached from the crash helmet, FIGURE 3 is a front elevational view showing the crash helmet of Figure 1 with a mask member fitted therein, and, FIGURE 4 is a rear view of a mask member showing the interior thereof.

Figure 1 shows a crash helmet of the type which encloses substantially the whole of the wearer's head but has an opening in the front, the region of the wearer's eyes, for the wearer to see through. The helmet has a continuous rim 12, the part of this rim at the front of the helmet being defined by a bar portion 14 integral with the remainder of the helmet into which extends the front of the wearer's chin, said bar portion 14 defining, by its upper edge, the lower edge of said opening in the front of the helmet.

The helmet comprises, in known manner, an external shell of plastics material which also forms the exterior of the bar portion 14, an internal layer of shock absorbing material and a fabric lining. The shock absorbing material and fabric lining may be omitted over the interior of the bar portion 14 or the layer of cushioning material may be reduced in thickness over the bar portion 14, as shown in Figure 2.

The form of the helmet is such that when it is fitted, there is an appreciable gap between the wearer's chin and the internal surface of the bar portion 14. Forming the helmet in this way not only facilitates manufacture and makes it easier for the wearer to pull the helmet on and remove the same but also allows the wearer to breathe when a close-fitting visor of the type shown in Figure 1 is used in conjunction with the helmet.

The visor 16, of transparent sheet plastics material, is preferably mounted at 18 for pivoting between a raised position shown in full lines of Figure 1 and a lowered position, shown in dotted lines in Figure 1, in which the visor cooperates closely with a bead 20 extending continuously around said opening in the front of the helmet.

It is a disadvantage of known helmets of the same general type as that shown and fitted with similar visors that, in unfavourable conditions, for example in cold humid weather, despite the substantial gap between the bar portion 14 and the lower part of the wearer's face, when the visor is in the lowered position it becomes misted up by water vapour from the wearer's breath condensing upon the internal surface of the visor, thus impeding the wearer's vision.

To avoid this disadvantage, the helmet shown has a mask member 22 fitted thereto which, in effect, directs the wearer's breath downwards under the rim 12 to the surrounding atmosphere, thereby avoiding misting of the visor.

The mask member 22 is of flexible construction comprising various sheets of appropriate fabric stitched together. As best shown in Figure 4, the mask member comprises three panels, respectively constituting a bottom part 24, an intermediate part 26 and an upper part 28, the intermediate part 26 being connected with the upper part 28 along an upper seam 30 and intermediate part 26 being connected with the bottom part 24 along a lower seam 32.

The mask member is shaped to provide a recess to receive the lower part of the wearer's face, his chin and the lower part of his nose, thus encompassing his mouth and nostrils. The intermediate part 26 is curved about a generally vertical axis so as to be concave on the side which faces towards the wearer and convex on the other side.

The mask member 22 is fitted in the helmet so that the intermediate part 26 lies against and conforms in curvature with the interior surface of the bar portion 14, the mask member being detachably secured to the helmet by fastening means, preferably of the type known under the registered Trade Mark "VELCRO" which comprises two components one having a hooked pile fabric comprising a plurality of stiff plastics bristles extending from a fabric base, the bristles being hooked at the free end for engagement with the other of said components, said other component comprising a pile of loosely matted fibres secured to a squatting base and adapted to be engaged by the hooks of the hooked pile fabric.

Other fastening means such as press stud fasteners, may however be used. In the preferred embodiment illustrated, two strips 34 of hooked pile fabric are secured to the convex surface of the intermediate part 26, the two strips 34 being disposed at different levels on the intermediate part 26, and a strip 36 of the loosely matted pile fabric is secured to the interior surface of the bar portion 14.

The provision of two vertically spaced strips 34 of hooked pile fabric on the mask member permits a wide range of adjustment of the mask member relative to the bar portion 14 to cater for various wearers.

As shown in Figure 1, in use, the portion of the bottom part 24 adjoining its free edge generally engages under the wearer's chin, whereas the portion of the upper part 28 adjacent the free edge of the latter engages the wearer's nose and cheeks. In order to allow the free edge of the upper part 28 to be moulded closely to fit the face of any particular wearer, a malleable metal wire, indicated at 40 in Figure 3, is incorporated in the edge of the upper portion 28, so that the edge may be bent readily to the desired form but will retain the shape to which it was bent until deformed anew. The wire 40 is preferably thick copper wire. A malleable metal strip may be used instead of wire 40.

This close moulding of the free edge of the upper part 28 to the wearer's face ensures that exhaled air passes through the apertures 42 and not into the space defined within the helmet and directly in front of the wearer's eyes. This close moulding also ensures that the upper part 28 can be fitted sufficiently closely to the wearer's nose and cheeks to allow unimpeded vision in a downward direction.

It will be appreciated that the depth of the interior of the mask member 22 and of the bar portion 14 is such that the part of the interior of the mask member 22 which is furthest in front of the wearer's face when the mask is worn will be spaced substantially in front of the wearer's mouth and nose so that a space is defined internally of the mask member 22 between the latter and the lower part of the wearer's face, the wearer's mouth and nostrils being in communication with this space, and this space being divided off, by the upper portion 28 from the space defined within the helmet, when the visor 16 is in the lower position, between the upper part of the wearer's face and the visor 16.The bottom part 24 is provided with apertures providing a communication between the space with which the wearer's nose and mouth communicates and the surrounding atmosphere, these apertures being so positioned in the bottom part 24 as not to be covered by the wearer's chin. In the preferred embodiment, these apertures are fitted with covers 42 of wire mesh.

It will be appreciated that the mask member 22 can be readily detached from the helmet to allow convenient use of the visor in conditions where the problem of a visor misting is unlikely to arise. A detachable covering strip 44 (Figure 2) may be provided to cover the strip 36 when the helmet is used without the mask member, the strip 44 providing, on its face remote from that which engages the strip 36, a soft lining for the bar member 14. The strip 44 may carry hooked pile "VELCRO" fabric on its face which engages strip 36 or may be securable in place by other convenient means.

The helmet is provided with a conventional chin strap comprising in two parts 48, 50 releasably connectable with each other. The chin strap 48, 50 will normally be secured when the helmet is worn, but is shown unfastened in the drawings so as to present an unobstructed view of the mask member 22.

It will be appreciated that auxiliary connecting means, such as an auxiliary strap, may be used to connect the mask member 22 loosely with the helmet and avoid accidental loss of the mask member 22.

The mask member 22, besides preventing misting of the visor 16 in the manner described also substantially acts as a draught excluder and thus prevents the helmet being lifted and moved back on the wearer's head by wind entering the aperture between the wearer's chin and the internal surface of the bar portion 14. Our Patent No. 1,402,287 also discloses a draught excluder which can be added to a crash helmet of the kind specified.

It will be appreciated that the mask member, instead of being formed of various sheets of fabric stitched together might be moulded in one piece in rubber or plastics, or any other convenient mode of manufacture may be employed.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS: 1. The combination of a crash helmet of the kind specified with a mask member arranged to engage the face of the wearer closely in the region below the eyes and above the mouth and nostrils, said mask member being arranged to cooperate closely with the bar portion of the helmet so as to divide off, in use, the space defined within the helmet, above said mask member and in front of the wearer's face, from the space defined between said mask member and the lower part of the wearer's face, the lastmentioned space being in communication with the surrouding atmosphere, the arrangement being such that during inhalation by the wearer, air can be drawn into the lastmentioned space from the surrounding atmosphere and during exhalation by the wearer, the major portion of the exhaled air will pass to the surrounding atmosphere otherwise than via said space defined within the helmet above the mask member and in front of the wearer's face.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said mask member includes a bottom part which, in use, extends from said bar portion to the wearer's chin and is exposed in the aperture bounded by the bottom rim of the helmet, so that said space defined between said mask member and the lower part of the wearer's face is bounded at the bottom by said bottom part, the last mentioned space communicating with the surrounding atmosphere via one or more openings provided in said bottom part.

3. The combination of claim or claim 2 wherein said mask member is releasably securable to said bar portion.

4. The combination of claim 3 wherein said mask member is releasably securable to said bar portion at varying heights within the helmet.

5. The combination of claim 3 or claim 4 wherein said mask member is releasably securable to said bar portion by fastening means comprising a hooked pile fabric and a co-operating loose-fibred fabric.

6. The combination of any of claims 1 to 5 wherein said mask member has a flexible upper part, a marginal portion of which is adapted to engage the wearer's face and which marginal portion incorporates a malleable metal wire or strip so that said mar

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims (8)

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. helmet, when the visor 16 is in the lower position, between the upper part of the wearer's face and the visor 16. The bottom part 24 is provided with apertures providing a communication between the space with which the wearer's nose and mouth communicates and the surrounding atmosphere, these apertures being so positioned in the bottom part 24 as not to be covered by the wearer's chin. In the preferred embodiment, these apertures are fitted with covers 42 of wire mesh. It will be appreciated that the mask member 22 can be readily detached from the helmet to allow convenient use of the visor in conditions where the problem of a visor misting is unlikely to arise. A detachable covering strip 44 (Figure 2) may be provided to cover the strip 36 when the helmet is used without the mask member, the strip 44 providing, on its face remote from that which engages the strip 36, a soft lining for the bar member 14. The strip 44 may carry hooked pile "VELCRO" fabric on its face which engages strip 36 or may be securable in place by other convenient means. The helmet is provided with a conventional chin strap comprising in two parts 48, 50 releasably connectable with each other. The chin strap 48, 50 will normally be secured when the helmet is worn, but is shown unfastened in the drawings so as to present an unobstructed view of the mask member 22. It will be appreciated that auxiliary connecting means, such as an auxiliary strap, may be used to connect the mask member 22 loosely with the helmet and avoid accidental loss of the mask member 22. The mask member 22, besides preventing misting of the visor 16 in the manner described also substantially acts as a draught excluder and thus prevents the helmet being lifted and moved back on the wearer's head by wind entering the aperture between the wearer's chin and the internal surface of the bar portion 14. Our Patent No. 1,402,287 also discloses a draught excluder which can be added to a crash helmet of the kind specified. It will be appreciated that the mask member, instead of being formed of various sheets of fabric stitched together might be moulded in one piece in rubber or plastics, or any other convenient mode of manufacture may be employed. WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. The combination of a crash helmet of the kind specified with a mask member arranged to engage the face of the wearer closely in the region below the eyes and above the mouth and nostrils, said mask member being arranged to cooperate closely with the bar portion of the helmet so as to divide off, in use, the space defined within the helmet, above said mask member and in front of the wearer's face, from the space defined between said mask member and the lower part of the wearer's face, the lastmentioned space being in communication with the surrouding atmosphere, the arrangement being such that during inhalation by the wearer, air can be drawn into the lastmentioned space from the surrounding atmosphere and during exhalation by the wearer, the major portion of the exhaled air will pass to the surrounding atmosphere otherwise than via said space defined within the helmet above the mask member and in front of the wearer's face.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said mask member includes a bottom part which, in use, extends from said bar portion to the wearer's chin and is exposed in the aperture bounded by the bottom rim of the helmet, so that said space defined between said mask member and the lower part of the wearer's face is bounded at the bottom by said bottom part, the last mentioned space communicating with the surrounding atmosphere via one or more openings provided in said bottom part.

3. The combination of claim or claim 2 wherein said mask member is releasably securable to said bar portion.

4. The combination of claim 3 wherein said mask member is releasably securable to said bar portion at varying heights within the helmet.

5. The combination of claim 3 or claim 4 wherein said mask member is releasably securable to said bar portion by fastening means comprising a hooked pile fabric and a co-operating loose-fibred fabric.

6. The combination of any of claims 1 to 5 wherein said mask member has a flexible upper part, a marginal portion of which is adapted to engage the wearer's face and which marginal portion incorporates a malleable metal wire or strip so that said mar

ginal portion can be bent to fit closely a particular wearer's face and will retain the form to which it is bent unless deformed further.

7. The combination of any of claims 1 to 6 wherein said mask portion has a curved front portion which engages the internal face of said bar portion, which internal face faces towards the back of the helmet.

8. The combination of a crash helmet of the kind specified with a mask member, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.