Mask apparatus
The Invention is a mask. The mask comprises a mask body covering the head of a wearer and supported a perforated panel before the eyes of the wearer. The perforated panel features a multiplicity of small perforations cut, punched, burned or formed through the perforated panel through which the wearer may see.
1. Field of the Invention
The Invention relates to a mask worn by an individual to obscure the identity and appearance of the individual and to cause the individual to superficially resemble another person, such as a politician or an athlete.
2. Description of the Related Art
Masks are well known. Examples from the prior art include paper masks covering the entire head of the wearer and bearing indicia, such as U.S. Pat. No. 2,000,242 to Manning issued Oct. 3, 1933, U.S. Pat. No. 2,795,796 to Ray issued Jun. 18, 1957, U.S. Pat. No. 2,853,710 to Swann issued Sep. 30, 1958, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,599,240 to Shapur issued Aug. 17, 1971.
Other examples from the prior art utilize woven fabric screens that obscure the eyes of the wearer, including U.S. Pat. No. 5,035,004 to Koester issued Jul. 31, 1991, U.S. Pat. No. 5,546,604 to Geller issued Aug. 20, 1996, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,662,376 B2 to Cook issued Dec. 16, 2003.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,964,757 to Jarvis issued Dec. 20, 1960 teaches a paper mask worn over the face that features slits extending from one side of the mask to the other.
None of the prior art patents teaches a paper mask that covers the entire head of the wearer and that features a paper screen bearing indicia and having a multiplicity of small perforations through which the wearer may see. None of the prior art patents teach a woven fabric mask that covers the entire head of the wearer and that bears indicia visible to persons other than the wearer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe Invention is a mask to be worn by a person. The mask is formed of a single piece of paper that is folded and glued to form a paper bag. One side of the paper bag bears many small perforations forming a perforated panel. The number, size and location of the perforations forming the perforated panel are selected to allow a wearer to see through the perforated panel. The number, size and location of the perforations also are selected to allow the perforated panel to support printing, such as printing of the likeness of an athlete or politician. The size, number and location of the perforations are also selected to allow ventilation so that the wearer can breathe.
The perforated panel allows a person to see an object through the panel when the illumination of the object to be seen is brighter than the illumination of the surface of the perforated panel nearest to the person. When a person (the “wearer”) wears the mask of the Invention, the wearer's head is covered and the inside surface of the perforated panel is thereby darkened, enhancing the wearer's ability to see objects outside of the mask. The wearer's vision can be improved by further darkening the inside surface of the perforated panel or of the entire mask, as by imprinting an opaque, dark, flat color on the inside surface of the mask.
Conversely, a person outside the mask (also referred to herein as “a person other than the wearer) does not see clearly the darkened face of the wearer when the outside surface of the mask is illuminated. Instead, the person outside the mask sees the indicia printed on the perforated panel and on the mask body.
In a second embodiment, the Invention is a mask composed of a woven fabric. The woven fabric forms a bag completely covering the head of a wearer. The weave of the fabric is adequately loose to allow the wearer to see through the weave and to breathe. The weave is adequately dense so as to support printing, such as an image of an athlete or a politician. A person other than the wearer who observes the alternative embodiment mask in use observes the image of the athlete or politician and does not observe clearly the features of the wearer.
In a third embodiment, the perforated panel may be composed of a woven fabric that is glued or otherwise incorporated into a paper bag to form the mask of the Invention.
The indicia imprinted on the perforated panel may be any indicia that the wearer finds desirable. For example, and without limitation, the indicia may include a camouflage pattern for use by hunters, the image of a sports or political personality, or letters or numbers. The mask may be reversible and may bear different indicia on the front, back and each side.
Different masks may bear different indicia, such as different letters of the alphabet. Adjacent persons may wear masks bearing different indicia. Such persons may arrange themselves to spell out different messages using their masks, and may change the message by moving their masks to expose indicia appearing on different sides of the masks.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The mask 2 of the Invention is illustrated by
As illustrated by
As shown by
As used in this application, the term “perforation ratio” means the ratio of a unit area of the perforated panel in the region of maximum perforation density as a denominator and the total of the perforation areas falling within that unit area as a numerator. Consider a one square inch unit area of the perforated panel 6, shown by
Perforated panel 6 has an inside surface 28 and an outside surface 30. The ability of the wearer to see the object 26 through the perforated panel is greatly enhanced if the brightness of the object 26 as perceived by the wearer is greater than the brightness of the inside surface 28 of the perforated panel 6 as perceived by the wearer.
Also as shown by
Stated in other terms, if a light source 24 is located inside the mask 2 and illuminates the wearer's face so that the wearer's face is brighter than the outside surface 30 of the perforated panel 6, the person who is not the wearer will see the wearer's face through the mask 2 and will not perceive the indicia 18 printed on the perforated panel 6. If the light source 24 illuminates the outside surface 30 of the perforated panel 6 while the wearer's face is in relative darkness, the person other than the wearer will see the indicia 18 printed on the perforated panel 6 and will not see the wearer's face.
The mask 2 of the Invention achieves relative darkness of the wearer's face by covering the entire head of the wearer. The paper or other material from which the mask body 4 and perforated panel 2 are constructed should be adequately opaque to restrict illumination of the wearer's face. The effect may be further enhanced by printing a dark color on the perforated panel 6 or the mask body 4.
The mask body 4 may be composed of any material that is sufficiently thin, flexible and opaque to be formed into the bag shape, to be worn comfortably, to block sufficient light to darken the face of the wearer, to not pose a suffocation hazard, and to support printing. Suitable materials for the mask body include paper, plastic, Tyvec™, and knitted, woven or felt fabric. The perforated panel may be composed of any material that will support a clean perforation within the specified size range and perforation ratio and that is adequately thin, flexible and opaque. Suitable materials for the perforated panel include paper, Tyvec™, plastic, and metal sheet or foil.
As shown by
In describing the above embodiments of the invention, specific terminology was selected for the sake of clarity. However, the invention is not intended to be limited to the specific terms so selected, and it is to be understood that each specific term includes all technical equivalents that operate in a similar manner to accomplish a similar purpose.
Claims
1. A mask apparatus, the mask apparatus comprising:
- a. a perforated panel, said perforated panel having a length, a width and a thickness, said thickness of said perforated panel being small compared to said length and said width, said perforated panel having a multiplicity of perforations cut, punched, burned or formed therethrough;
- b. a mask body, said mask body attached to said perforated panel, said mask body being adapted to engage a body of a wearer, said mask body being further adapted to support said perforated panel before an eye of said wearer.
2. The mask apparatus of claim 1 wherein each of said perforations in said multiplicity of said perforations has a perforation area, said perforated panel has a region of maximum perforation density, said region of maximum perforation density having a perforation ratio, said perforation ratio being a ratio of a unit area of said perforated panel as a denominator and a sum of said perforation areas that appear within said unit area of said perforated panel as a numerator, said perforation ratio for said region of maximum perforation density being equal to or greater than 0.197 when said unit area is one half of a square inch.
3. The mask apparatus of claim 2 wherein each of said perforations in said multiplicity of perforations has a perforation area, said perforation area of each of said perforations being less than or equal to 0.042 square inches.
4. The mask apparatus of claim 3 wherein said perforation ratio for said region of maximum perforation density is less than 0.7 when said unit area is one half of a square inch.
5. The mask apparatus of claim 3 wherein said mask defines an interior volume, said mask body and said perforated panel being composed of a material that is sufficiently opaque to substantially shade a face of said wearer from a light source located outside of said interior volume.
6. The mask apparatus of claim 5 wherein said material composing said mask body and said perforated panel is a paper.
7. The mask apparatus of claim 6 wherein said material composing said mask body and said perforated panel is a single piece of said paper.
8. The mask apparatus of claim 7 wherein said mask body is adapted to cover a head of said wearer.
9. The mask apparatus of claim 8, further comprising: indicia, said indicia appearing on said perforated panel and on said mask body.
10. The mask apparatus of claim 9 wherein said indicia comprise: a likeness of a person.
11. The mask apparatus of claim 9 wherein said mask body and said perforated panel are foldable to a substantially flat condition.
12. The mask of claim 1 wherein each of said perforations in said multiplicity of said perforations has a perforation area, said perforated panel has a region of maximum perforation density, said region of maximum perforation density having a perforation ratio, said perforation ratio being a ratio of a unit area of said perforated panel as a denominator and a sum of said perforation areas that appear within said unit area of said perforated panel as a numerator, further comprising:
- a. said perforation area of each of said perforations and said perforation ratio are selected to render said perforated panel substantially optically transparent to said wearer when an object viewed by said wearer through said perforated panel is more brightly lit than an interior surface of said perforated panel;
- b. said perforation area of each of said perforations and said perforation ratio are selected to render said perforated panel substantially optically opaque to a person other than said wearer when an outside surface of said perforated panel is more brightly lit than a head of said wearer.
13. The mask of claim 12 wherein said perforated panel and said mask body are composed of a paper, wherein said mask body is adapted to cover an entire head of said wearer, and wherein said mask body supports said perforated panel before an eye of said wearer.
14. The mask of claim 13, further comprising: indicia appearing on said perforated panel.
15. The mask of claim 12 wherein said perforated panel is composed of one of a paper, a plastic and a metal.
16. A mask apparatus, the mask apparatus comprising:
- a. a bag, said bag being composed of a yarn, said yarn being woven into a fabric, said fabric being assembled into said bag, said bag being adapted to cover a head of a wearer;
- b. said fabric having an outside surface, said fabric being selected so that said outside surface of said fabric will bear an imprinting of indicia and so that said imprinting of said indicia will be visible to a person other than said wearer when said outside surface of said fabric is more brightly lit than said head of said wearer;
- c. said fabric having an inside surface, said fabric being selected so that said wearer may see through said fabric when an object to be observed by said wearer is more brightly lit than said inside surface of said fabric.
17. The mask apparatus of claim 16 wherein said indicia comprises: a likeness of an individual.
18. A mask apparatus, the apparatus comprising:
- a. a perforated panel, said perforated panel being composed of a fabric, said fabric being a woven textile;
- b. a mask body, said mask body being composed of a paper, said mask body being attached to said perforated panel, said mask body and said perforated panel in combination being in the shape of a bag, said mask body and said perforated panel in combination being adapted to engage a body of a wearer and to cover an entire head of said wearer, said mask body being further adapted to support said perforated panel before an eye of said wearer, said fabric having an outside surface;
- e. indicia imprinted on said outside surface, said fabric being selected so that said outside surface of said fabric will bear an imprinting of said indicia and so that said imprinting of said indicia will be visible to a person other than said wearer when said outside surface of said fabric is more brightly lit than said head of said wearer, said fabric having an inside surface, said fabric being selected so that said wearer may see through said fabric when an object to be observed by said wearer is more brightly lit than said inside surface of said fabric.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 29, 2005
Publication Date: Nov 2, 2006
Inventor: Felix Penzarella (Philadelphia, PA)
Application Number: 11/118,984
International Classification: A41D 11/00 (20060101);