Eye gear helmet fastener

Abstract

A helmet (10), especially a sports and recreational activities safety or protective helmet, having eye gear or goggle fastening means which properly position the eye gear and inhibit or prevent the eye gear from moving too far towards the rear of the helmet. More specifically, the outer shell of the helmet of the present invention includes at least one, preferably two, eye gear strap retaining means such as webbing or side clips (20). A gap in the outer shell is formed, which gap is adapted to receive at least a portion of the strap of straps (41) of the eye gear (40) of goggles. Once the strap of straps are received in the gap, the eye gear is properly oriented toward the front of the helment and inhibited or prevented from slipping too far twards the rear of the helmet.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention is directed to protective helmets for recreational activities and competitive sports, including skiing, particularly alpine skiing, snowboarding, cycling, including bicycling, skateboarding, roller skating, rollerblading, ice skating and related sports, nautical sports, sky diving and scootering.

[0002] Head injuries in various recreational and competitive sporting activities are well documented. The use of helmets has recently increased in such activities, especially in bicycling and skiing, in an effort to protect the head of the participant. Most conventional helmets protect the head upon impact by distributing the force of the impact around the outer shell of the helmet, which energy is then transferred to an inner absorbing liner. The more energy that is distributed and absorbed, the less likely serious head injury will result.

[0003] In many recreational and sporting activities, eye gear, such as goggles, is worn in addition to the helmet. The helmet should adequately accommodate and hold the eye gear in place in order to facilitate its use and avoid situations where the eye gear inadvertently moves into a position hindering the user's ability to see.

[0004] For example, many conventional ski helmets include a rear clipping mechanism that holds the goggle strap to the helmet, preventing inadvertent dislodging of the goggles from the helmet. However, even when such clipping mechanisms are used, the goggles tend to slip over the top of the helmet and dangle freely in the back, where they are subject to damage and are difficult for the user to reposition appropriately.

[0005] It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a helmet that includes eye gear fasteners or clips that assist in maintaining the goggles towards the front of the helmet where they are readily accessible to the user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] The problems of the prior art have been overcome by the present invention, which provides a helmet, especially a sports and recreational activities safety or protective helmet, having eye gear or goggle fastening means which properly position the eye gear and inhibit or prevent the eye gear from moving too far towards the rear of the helmet. More specifically, the outer shell of the helmet of the present invention includes at least one, preferably two, eye gear strap retaining means such as webbing or side clips. The retaining means is coupled to or is integral to the outer shell such that a gap between a portion of the retaining means and the outer shell is formed, which gap is adapted to receive at least a portion of the strap or straps of the eye gear or goggles. Once the strap or straps are received in the gap, the eye gear is properly oriented toward the front of the helmet and inhibited or prevented from slipping too far towards the rear of the helmet.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] FIG. 1 is side view of a helmet suitable for use in the present invention;

[0008] FIG. 2 is a front view of one embodiment of the fastening means in accordance with the present invention;

[0009] FIG. 3 is a side view of a helmet having the fastening means in place in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention; and

[0010] FIG. 4 is a side view of a helmet having the fastening means of FIG. 2 and showing the eye gear in a retracted or stored position on the helmet in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

[0011] The configuration of the helmet of the present invention is not particularly limited. FIG. 1 shows one embodiment where the helmet 10 includes a top or crown portion 12, a front region 13, a rear region 14, and opposite side regions 15 (only one shown). In this embodiment, the front region 13 terminates in a brim 16, generally at or above the forehead of the user. Opposite side regions 15 terminate in opposite lower jaw portions 12 (one shown) which extend beyond an earpiece or opening and are angled at about 45° from the ear in a direction towards the mandible of the user. The lower jaw portions 12 can have straps or other suitable fastening means that, in use, extend under the user's chin and fasten the helmet in place on the cranium. In the opposite side portions, a hole or perforated portion can be formed to accommodate the user's ears and allow for adequate auditory function. The rear region can be substantially flat as shown. Alternatively, for example, the helmet 10 can have a substantially spherical shape or a domed shape. It can be a unitary piece, or can be constructed of two or more pieces fastened together. The particular configuration of the helmet is within the skill in the art, and the present invention is not limited to any particular design.

[0012] Materials of construction of the helmet outer shell are generally resilient materials conventional for safety helmet design, and can include composites, graphite, Kevlar, titanium, fiberglass, stainless steel, injection molded thermoplastics, vacuum formed thermoplastics, aluminum and combinations of these materials. An absorbing liner, disposed inside of the shell of the helmet 10, also can be formed of conventional absorbing materials, such as expanded polystyrene (EPS). Preferably the liner is permanently disposed inside of the shell, such as with an adhesive.

[0013] The fastening means of the present invention is designed to grasp or retain the strap or straps of the eye gear worn by the wearer of the helmet in such a way that allows the eye gear to be easily positioned over the eyes during use, and stored in a retracted position on the crown of the helmet when not in use. The fastening means also inhibits or prevents the eye gear from retracting past the vertical centerline of the helmet towards the rear 14 of the helmet, where the user would have difficulty retrieving the eye gear for appropriate positioning over the eyes when desired. The present invention includes within its scope any suitable fastening means on the helmet that fulfills these purposes, including webbing and clips.

[0014] Turning now to FIGS. 2 and 3, there is shown the preferred embodiment of the fastening means of the present invention, which is a clip 20. Shown in FIG. 3 is a helmet 10 having a clip 20 in accordance with the present invention. The clip 20 can be a stamped, cast, forged or machined alloy, a composite thermoset, or is preferably made of thermoplastic, such as by injection molding, vacuum forming or die cutting. Preferably the clip 20 is beveled to match the spherical configuration of the helmet. As shown in FIG. 2, the top surface 21 of the clip has the largest dimension, and is in contact with the helmet surface when assembled to the helmet. Preferably the inside surface of the top surface 21 is chamfered to provide a good fit to the helmet. The bottom surface of the clip 20 has a longer portion 22, which begins at side 23 and slopes towards the rounded bottom 24. A shorter portion 25 begins at opposite side 26 and slopes towards the same rounded bottom 24. The clip 20 installed to the opposite side of the helmet is the mirror image of the clip 20 shown in FIG. 3. One or more holes 28 are formed in the clip 20 to mechanically fasten the clip 20 to the helmet such as by screwing, snapping, pinning, riveting, etc. Other means of coupling the fastening means to the helmet include adhesives, sonic welding, and Velcro. The fastening means also could be molded as an integral part of the helmet using complex injecting molding tools known to those skilled in the art.

[0015] In view of the bevel in the clip 20, both between the opposite sides 23 and 26 and between the top surface 21 and rounded bottom 24, when the clip is attached to the helmet, a gap is created between the outer surface of the helmet and the portion of the clip 20 not directly contacting the outer surface of the helmet 10. This gap is accessible from the bottom side of the clip 20, and is large enough to accommodate the strap or straps 41 of the eye gear 40, as shown in FIG. 3. Only a portion of the strap(s) (e.g., ½ to ¾ of the strap(s)) need be positioned in the gap in order for the eye gear to be inhibited or prevented from moving too far towards the rear 14 of the helmet 10. Preferably the gap is between ⅛ to {fraction (1/10)} of an inch.

[0016] Alternatively, especially where the fastening means is flexible such as a webbing, both the top and bottom portions of the fastening means can contact the helmet. To install the eye gear strap into such a fastener, the flexible fastening means is temporarily lifted or raised in an amount sufficient to allow the strap to be inserted between the helmet and the fastening means.

[0017] Preferably the strap(s) are held in the gap such that the eye gear can be retracted from in front of the eyes of the user as shown in FIG. 3 to a stationary retracted position on the crown of the helmet as shown in FIG. 4. In the embodiment where the fastening means is a clip 20, a clip 20 is preferably position on each side of the helmet along the natural path of the goggle straps, and is preferably at or forward of (in the direction towards the user's eyes) the vertical centerline of the helmet. This allows for adequate flexibility when the eye gear 40 is manipulated from in front of the eyes of the user to the stored or retracted position on the crown of the helmet as shown in FIG. 4, yet inhibits or prevents the eye gear 40 from retreating further back towards the rear 14 of the helmet where it would no longer be readily accessible to the user and could be subject to damage.

Claims

1. A helmet adapted to fit over the head of a wearer and secure eye gear to said helmet, said eye gear having a strap, said helmet comprising: a crown region adapted to cover the top of said head, a rear region adapted to cover the rear of said head, a pair of opposite side regions adapted to cover the sides of said head, and fastening means attached to said helmet, said fastening means having a portion spaced from one of said opposite side regions to form a gap therebetween, whereby said strap of said eye gear is held in said gap.

2. The helmet of claim 1, wherein said fastening means comprises at least one clip.

3. The helmet of claim 1, wherein said fastening means comprises two clips.

4. The helmet of claim 1, wherein said helmet has a vertical centerline, and wherein said fastening means holds said strap such that said eye gear is inhibited from moving past said vertical centerline towards said rear of said helmet.