Hat with Adjustable Shading and Related Methods
Disclosed is an apparatus and related methods for adjustable shading.
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STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENTN/A
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of Invention
The present application is in the field of apparatuses with adjustable shading.
2. Background of the Invention
For years individuals have sought to avoid excessive exposure to the sun. One remedy for excessive sun exposure is a head covering. Typically, head coverings have been useful for providing relief from overhead sun exposure. However, sun exposure is directional whereby overhead protection, by itself, does not ensure adequate sun avoidance. For example, overhead coverings have frequently been inadequate for shading the side of the head, the neck, the temples, the ears, and/or the shoulders of the wearer. Additionally, sun exposure is variable whereby sun protection or shading preferences may vary from time to time. Accordingly, there is a need for an improved head covering that protects a wearer from directional sun exposure while accommodating variable shading preferences of a wearer.
To address these problems, some have attempted to provide head coverings that may shade different areas of a wearer's head and neck. For example: U.S. Pat. Nos. 946,770 (issued Jan. 18, 1910), 2,883,669 (issued Apr. 28, 1959), 5,694,648 (issued Dec. 9, 1997), and US 2008/0066214 (published Mar. 20, 2008) disclose a cap with a neck flap; U.S. Pat. No. 4,845,782 (issued Jul. 11, 1989) discloses a cap having a visor and combination ear and neck flap that is capable of foldingup against the cap, or cinch around the flap perimeter; U.S. Pat. No. 5,351,343—(issued Oct. 4, 1994) discloses a cap with an ear plus neck flap, wherein strings are used to externally cinch the ear flap behind the head of the wearer; U.S. Pat. No. 5,623,732 (issued Apr. 29, 1997) discloses a hat plus hood combination wherein the hood flaps over the neck; U.S. Pat. No. 5,950,241 (Sep. 14, 1999) discloses a hat with a neck flap that folds upward; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,052,830 (Apr. 25, 2000) discloses a cap with a shawl. Although the cited references provide an improvement over a typical head covering, these solutions also have some drawbacks.
The cited references have not adequately improved head coverings for directional sun exposure and accommodating variable shading preferences of a wearer. For instance, the cited references require full shading or no shading without a means for intermediate shading configurations. As a result, there is still a need for methods and apparatus that improve head coverings with adjustable shading.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAccordingly, it is an object of the present application to disclose an apparatus with adjustable shading to accommodate directional sun exposure and variable shading preferences of a wearer.
It is a further object of the present application to disclose an apparatus for shading the side of the head, the neck, the temples, the ears, and/or the shoulders of a wearer.
The manner in which these objectives and other desirable characteristics can be obtained is explained in the following description and attached figures in which:
It is to be noted, however, that the appended figures illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention, and therefore, are not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments that will be appreciated by those reasonably skilled in the relevant arts. Also, figures are not necessarily made to scale.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTSThe present application discloses a preferred embodiment of a shading apparatus with adjustable shading. In general, the disclosed shading apparatus may feature: a headband that fits around a wearer's head; a preferably stiff brim that extends forwardly from the front of the headband for shading the wearers eyes and face; and, a havelock that may preferably extend laterally and rearwardly from the vicinity of the headband for shading the temples, ears, and neck of the wearer. The shading provided by the havelock may suitably be adjusted for varying degrees of wearer coverage.
Preferable features of the cap 100 are best seen in
The headband 101 with adjusting means 102 is for securing the cap 100 to the head of a wearer. As best seen in
It should be noted that, although a cord 106 plus cord lock 107 is disclosed as the adjusting means 102, any type of adjusting means may be used. For example, snaps, ties, velcro, and belt, and other adjusting means known to one of skill in the art may be used. It should also be noted that, although a fabric strip 109 has been disclosed, the headband 101 may comprise a loop of any type of material, including but not limited to, plastics, leathers, fabrics, meshes, metals, and the like.
Still referring to
Suitably, the volume and dimensions of the cover 103 may vary according to wearer preferences and hair styles. For example, the cover 103 may feature a cut-out above the adjusting means in back of the cap 100 whereby a wearer's pony-tail may extend through the cut-out and hang down over the top of the havelock 300. For another example, the cover 103 may feature a pocket above the adjusting means in back of the cap 100 whereby a wearer's long hair may be collected in the pocket. The addition of the pocket may be particularly important in military applications wherein long haired soldiers are required to style their hair in a bun configuration at the back of their head.
In addition, it should be noted that, although the cover 103 is depicted as a plurality of fabric pieces sewn together and assembled to the headband 101, the covering does not need to be fabric and instead may be constructed of materials, including but not limited to, plastics, metals, and woods as would be consistent with hats for use with heavy construction.
Preferable features of the brim 200 are best seen in
Preferable features of an unfurled havelock 300 are best seen in
Referring to
Suitably, while the havelock 300 is unfurled, the slack cinching means 302 does not typically perform any functions. In a preferable unfurled embodiment: the cape 300 may be a fabric, plastic neoprene, or a flaccid material; and the cinching means 302 may be a cord 304 plus cord lock 305 wherein the cord 304 runs through a pocket within the cape 301 and slackily attaches to both lateral portions 306 of the cape. Preferably, the cord 304 is within 10 to 30 inches in length, with 20 inches being preferable for most hat sizes.
Preferable features of a cinched havelock 300 are best seen in
Referring to
In addition to gathering the cape, the configuration of the pocket 303 may suitably define the cinching direction of the cape 301. Suitably, the pocket 303 is configured wherein the cord 304 ends angle from the cord lock 305 towards the lateral portions of the cape 301. Referring to
In the preferable embodiments disclosed above, the shading provided by the shading apparatus 1 may suitably be adjusted for varying degrees of wearer coverage. The adjustability of the shading apparatus 1 coverage is preferably disclosed by comparing the shading apparatus 1 depicted in
Referring to
Referring now to
It is contemplated that the shading apparatus 1 may be adapted for use as both a provider of shade and a personal cooling device. More specifically, the shading apparatus 1 may be saturated with water prior to placement over a wearer's head. A soaked apparatus 1 will transfer water to the wearer and thereby conduct heat away from the wearer's head, neck, and shoulders while providing the shading functions set forth above. The wet apparatus 1 will further cool the wearer as the water evaporates. Such an adaptation may be particularly important in tropical or desert climates. Accordingly, what is disclosed may be a method of cooling a human comprising the steps of: wetting an apparatus 1 with water; placing the wet apparatus 1 on the human; and, allowing the water to contact the human and evaporate.
It is further contemplated that the shading apparatus 1 may be adapted for use underneath a helmet or wherein the covering 103 is replaced with a helmet.
It should be noted that
Claims
1. A shading apparatus comprising:
- a head band with side locking adjusting means;
- a brim; and,
- a havelock with a cinching means for adjusting the havelock.
2. The shading apparatus of claim 1 wherein said havelock is unfurlable and is operationally configured to extend over at least a portion of said brim.
3. The shading apparatus of claim 2 wherein the cinching means is a cord and cord lock, said cord attached to the lateral portions of the havelock and partially disposed in a pocket.
4. The shading apparatus of claim 3 wherein the cord is within about ten to thirty inches.
5. The shading apparatus of claim 3 wherein the adjusting means is a second cord plus a second cord lock, wherein a first end of the second cord is attached to the headband and a second end is adapted to be pulled through the second cord lock.
6. The shading apparatus of claim 5 wherein the second cord is within a range of about five to ten inches.
7. The shading apparatus of claim 3 wherein the wherein the lateral portions of the Havelock may be cinched to the side of the headband via pulling a central portion of the cord through the cord lock.
8. The shading apparatus of claim 7 wherein the cord is configured with an angle in a range of forty to sixty degrees from the cord end, cord lock, and front-to-back axis of the apparatus.
9. The shading apparatus of claim 2 further comprising a cover with a ventilation means.
10. The shading apparatus of claim 9 wherein the havelock is positioned around the sides and back of the headband and the brim is positioned at the front of the headband.
11. The shading apparatus of claim 10 wherein the havelock is provided to around the headband from in a range of about twenty-five or about fifty-five degrees relative to an origin defined by the center line of the cap and brim to respectively about minus twenty-five or about minus fifty-five relative to the origin whereby the havelock and brim partially overlap.
12. A method of shading comprising the steps of:
- obtaining a shading apparatus comprised of a headband, a brim, and a havelock with a cinching means;
- manipulating the cinching means to draw the lateral portions of the havelock toward the sides of the headband; and,
- securing the headband to a wearer.
13. The method of claim 12 wherein the cinching means is a cord and cord lock, said cord attached to the lateral portions of the havelock and disposed in a pocket.
14. The method of claim 13 wherein the cord is within about ten to thirty inches in length.
15. The method of claim 14 wherein the lateral portions of the Havelock may be cinched to the side of the headband via pulling a central portion of the cord through the cord lock.
16. The method of claim 15 wherein the pocket is configured with an angle in a range of about forty to sixty degrees from the front-to-back axis of the head covering.
17. The method of claim 16 wherein the shading apparatus further comprises a cover with a ventilation means.
18. The method of claim 17 wherein the havelock is positioned around the sides and back of the headband and the brim is positioned at the front of the headband.
19. The method of claim 18 wherein the havelock is provided to around the headband from in a range of about twenty-five or about fifty-five degrees relative to an origin defined by the center line of the cap and brim to respectively about minus twenty-five or about minus fifty-five relative to the origin whereby the havelock and brim partially overlap.
20. A method of blocking UV rays comprising the steps of:
- obtaining a shading apparatus comprised of a headband, a brim, and a havelock with a cord and cord lock, said cord attached to the lateral portions of the havelock and disposed in a pocket; and,
- pulling a central portion of the cord through the cord lock.
21. The method of claim 20 wherein the cord is configured with an angle in a range of about forty to sixty degrees from the cord end, cord lock, and front-to-back axis of the apparatus.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 18, 2009
Publication Date: Jun 23, 2011
Inventor: Kenneth Oates (San Diego, CA)
Application Number: 12/641,719
International Classification: A42C 5/04 (20060101); A42B 1/00 (20060101);