JP2003275361A - Throat guard - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a throat guard which does not give rise to pain in the throat in spite of exertion of an impact force thereto by touching of a ball or the like and prevents the occurrence of a failure by an improved impact resistance. <P>SOLUTION: The throat guard has a cover 1 and a protrusion member 2 which is sewn to the surface of the cover 1 and consists of an injection molded thermoplastic elastomer. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a throat guard.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a throat guard is detachably attached to a lower portion of a mask by a locking belt to protect the throat from balls and the like.

A conventional throat guard has a pad portion and a cup portion, and the pad portion is made of a plate-like foam (such as PE or PU) (synthetic leather, artificial leather, nylon,
It is made by sandwiching it with a front fabric and a back fabric (made of polyester etc.) and sandwiching it,
The cup portion was made of a hard resin and was sewn to the surface cloth of the pad portion.

[0004]

However, in the conventional throat guard, since the cup portion is made of a hard resin, the shock absorbing property is poor, and the impact due to contact with a ball or the like is directly transmitted to the throat. , I had a pain in my throat. Further, the impact may cause breakage such as cracking in the cup portion. Further, since the cup portion is made of a heavy hard resin, when the mask is attached, the throat guard unnecessarily sways and feels uncomfortable.

Therefore, the present invention provides a throat guard that does not cause pain in the throat even when an impact force is applied by a ball or the like, and that the impact resistance is improved and damage is prevented. The purpose is to provide.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a throat guard according to the present invention is a ridge member made of a skin and a thermoplastic elastomer sewn on the surface of the skin and injection-molded. And ,.

Further, it is provided with a skin made of an injection-molded thermoplastic elastomer having ridges on its surface.

Further, it has a hooking belt and a stopper, and one end of the hooking belt is sewn on the front surface side together with a curling portion, and the stopper is steplessly engaged from the other end of the hooking belt. It is arranged on the back side so that it can be stopped. Further, the skin covers the pin portion to which the stopper is fixed from the front side.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings showing the embodiments.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a throat guard according to the present invention. The throat guard is detachably attached to a lower portion of a mask M by hooking belts 32, 32 so that a throat can be removed from a ball or the like. Is to protect. That is, this throat guard is used for referees and athletes in sports such as baseball and softball, and by wearing the mask M on the face, the front side of the throat is covered.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the throat guard includes an outer skin 1, a protruding member 2 sewn on the surface of the outer skin 1 with a sewing thread 9, a back cloth 10, an outer skin 1 and a back surface. And a plate-like foam 11 (such as PE or PU) sandwiched between the cloth 10 and the cloth 10, and the outer skin 1, the foam 11, and the back cloth 10 have a curling portion 26 and a sewing thread 9. It is sewn integrally in.

The protruding member 2 is made of an injection-molded thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), and the TPE is, for example, polyurethane type, polyester type, polyethylene type, polystyrene type or the like. This TPE has properties of wear resistance and tear strength.

The TPE is, for example, Shore D25-
It is a soft TPE of 55, which has a hardness lower than that of the cup portion of the conventional throat guard. The conventional cup portion is formed from a hard resin (for example, a synthetic resin such as plastic) having a hardness of Shore D65 to 95.

The projecting ridge member 2 is formed in a substantially shallow plate shape having a peripheral wall portion (side wall portion) 13, a surface wall portion 14 and a flange wall portion 15, and a skin so that the surface wall portion 14 projects to the front side. Sewn on 1. Further, the projecting ridge member 2 has an internal space 16 having an opening formed on the back surface side. The front side means the side opposite to the throat when the mask M is attached to the face.

As described above, in the present invention, since the above-mentioned protruding member 2 is used in place of the conventional cup portion, the shock absorbing property is improved, and the shock caused by the contact of a ball or the like is absorbed and dispersed. , The shock is not directly transmitted to the throat and the throat pain can be prevented. Moreover, it is possible to prevent damage to the protruding member 2 due to the impact. Further, the protruding member 2 is
Since TPE is used, weight reduction can be achieved,
When the mask M is attached, the throat guard does not unnecessarily sway and becomes uncomfortable.

The outer skin 1 is made of synthetic leather, artificial leather, nylon, polyester or the like. The outer skin 1 is injection-molded with the same TPE as that of the protruding member 2.
You may make it improve impact absorption and impact resistance.

Next, another embodiment of the protruding member 2 is shown in FIG. 3, in which a plurality of rib portions 17 abutting the skin 1 are provided in the internal space 16 of the protruding member 2 and on the back surface of the front surface wall portion 14. ... may be provided to make it resistant to impact. That is, in the projecting ridge member 2 shown in FIG. 2, the cushioning property of the projecting ridge member 2 is softened by the air layer in the internal space 16, whereas in the projecting ridge member 2 shown in FIG. The cushioning property of the bump member 2 becomes hard.

Although not shown, a foam block (PE, PU, EVA, etc.) may be provided in the inner space 16 of the protruding member 2, or the inner space 16 of the protruding member 2 may be provided. The foam block and the rib portion 17 may be combined and interposed, and the degree of freedom in impact resistance (the degree of freedom in designing resilience and strength) increases. Further, the wall thickness of the surface wall portion 14 of the protruding member 2 may be increased in order to improve impact resistance.

Next, FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the present invention, which is provided with a skin 3 made of an injection-molded thermoplastic elastomer having a protrusion 3a on its surface. That is, the entire surface of this throat guard is molded with TPE, and shock absorption and impact resistance can be further improved.
Prevents damage (such as scratches and tears), resulting in excellent durability.

It should be noted that the protruding ridge 3a of the outer skin 3 may be formed in a two-stepped shape as shown in FIG. 5, and the volume of the internal space 20 formed on the back surface side of the protruding ridge 3a may be reduced. It may be made larger to make its cushioning property softer. Of course, the projecting ridge 3a may be formed in a plurality of steps and can be easily manufactured by injection molding. Further, although not shown, a rib portion or a foam block body may be provided in the internal space 20 of the protrusion 3a.

Although not shown, the surface of the protruding member 2 or the skin 3 may be formed in advance as a curved surface, an uneven pattern surface, or a sloped surface. The surface of 2 or the outer skin 3 may be formed in advance as a leather wrinkle pattern, and the back surface side of the outer skin 3 may be formed in advance as a concave curved surface corresponding to the throat. In short, by forming the above-mentioned shape and pattern on the injection molding die,
Alternatively, the above-mentioned shape and pattern can be formed on the outer skin 3.

Next, as shown in FIG. 6, this throat guard has a hooking belt 32 and a stopper fitting 30, and
One end of 32 is sewn on the front surface side together with the edge winding portion 26, and a stopper 30 is arranged on the back surface side so as to be able to be locked steplessly from the other end side of the hook belt 32.

That is, one end of the hook belt 32 has the skin 1
(3), the foam 11 and the backing material 10 are sandwiched by the curling portion 26, and further, the hook belt 32 is folded back to form the hook belt.
With the edge winding portion 26 sandwiched at one end of 32, the hooking belt 32, the edge winding portion 26, the skin 1 (3), the foam 1 with the sewing thread 9.
1. The backing material 10 is sewn integrally, and can be firmly sewn.

The stopper 30 is attached to the foam 11 and the backing material 10,
It is fixed at the (crimped) pin portion 27, and the skin 1 (3) covers the pin portion 27 from the front side.

The stopper 30 is, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7,
It is pivotally connected to a bottom wall 34 fixedly inserted in a pin portion 27, left and right side walls 35, 35 connected to the left and right end edges of the bottom wall 34, and a hole portion 35a penetrating the side wall 35. And a push plate 36.

The push plate 36 has a pressing portion 38 bent in a substantially elliptic curve shape on one end side thereof, and the protrusions 37, 37 are provided on the left and right side edge edges of the pressing portion 38, respectively. Projector 37
Is locked in the hole portion 35a in a loose fitting manner. And push plate
The 36 can swing around the protrusions 37, 37. At this time,
It can be said that the pressing portion 38 includes a cam surface having the protrusion 37 as an axis.

Then, in order to lock the hooking belt 32 with the stopper 30, first, the protrusion 37 (shaft) of the pressing portion 38 is used.
The push plate 36 is swung so that the portion (surface) separated from the bottom wall 34 is separated from the bottom wall 34.

Then, as shown in FIG. 8A, one end of the hook belt 32 is inserted between the pushing plate 36 and the bottom wall 34. At this time, the catch belt 32 is inserted while lifting the portion (surface) of the pressing portion 38 on the side of the protrusion 37. Then, after inserting the hooking belt 32 into a desired size, as shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), the push plate 36 is swung back to the original state. At this time, the hooking belt 32 is clamped by the pressing portion 38 where the protrusion 37 is in pressure contact with the hole 35a and the bottom wall 34, and the hooking belt 32 is locked by the stopper 30.

As described above, by the stopper 30 having the pressing portion 38 having the cam surface, the hook belt 32 can be easily and continuously locked with a simple structure.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and, for example, the shape of the projecting ridge member 2 or the skin 3 (projecting ridge 3a), the structure of the stopper 30, and the like depart from the scope of the invention. It is possible to change the design within the range not to do.

[0031]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, it has the following effects.

(According to the first aspect) The impact absorbing property (cushioning property) of the protruding member 2 disperses the impact force due to the contact of a ball or the like without causing throat pain.
You can surely protect your throat. Further, the protruding member 2
Due to the impact resistance, it is possible to prevent the protrusion member 2 from being damaged due to contact with a ball (such as a foul tip).
Further, the TPE of the protruding member 2 can reduce the weight as compared with the conventional hard resin cup portion, and when the mask M is attached, it does not feel uncomfortable. Moreover, the degree of freedom in designing the protruding member 2 is increased, and a desired surface shape / pattern can be easily formed. Moreover, since the outer skin 1 and the protruding member 2 are separate members, the outer skin 1 and the protruding member 2 can be colored in different colors (colors) to easily provide a novel and many types of throat guards. Become. Moreover, the overall strength is high and the durability is not reduced.

(According to the second aspect) Due to the shock absorbing property (cushioning property) of the projecting ridge portion 3a, the impact force due to the contact of the ball or the like is dispersed, and the throat is not pained.
You can surely protect your throat. Furthermore, due to the impact resistance of the skin 3, it is possible to prevent damage to the skin 3 due to contact with a ball (such as a foul tip). Further, the TPE of the outer skin 3 can reduce the weight as compared with the conventional cup portion made of a hard resin, and when the mask M is attached, there is no discomfort. Further, the degree of freedom in designing the skin 3 is increased, and a desired surface shape / pattern can be easily formed. Moreover, since the protrusion 3a can be formed integrally with the skin 3 by injection molding, the manufacturing is easy and the molding time can be shortened. Further, the number of parts and the number of manufacturing processes are reduced, so that the cost can be reduced and the throat guard can be easily assembled.

(According to the third aspect) The length of the hooking belt 32 can be freely adjusted in accordance with the shape of the mask M, which is flexible. In particular, it is possible to make delicate adjustments and make the length most suitable for the user. (According to claim 4) The pin portion 27 by contact with a ball or the like
Can be prevented from being damaged, and it will look good.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view showing still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged side sectional view of a main part.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a fastener.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view of a main part action.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 epidermis 2 protruding member 3 epidermis 3a ridge 26 Edge winding part 27 pin 30 stopper 32 hook belt

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A throat guard having a skin 1 and a ridge member 2 made of a thermoplastic elastomer sewn on the surface of the skin 1 and injection-molded. 2. A throat guard comprising a skin 3 made of an injection-molded thermoplastic elastomer having a ridge 3a on its surface. 3. A hook belt 32 and a stopper 30 are provided, one end of the hook belt 32 is sewn on the front surface side together with the curled portion 26, and the stopper 30 is the other end of the hook belt 32. The throat guard according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the throat guard is arranged on the back surface side so that it can be locked steplessly from the side. 4. The throat guard according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the outer skins 1 and 3 cover the pin portion 27 for fixing the stopper 30 from the front side.