Granted Patent B2

US 9,781,966 · App. 13/954,763 · Granted Oct 10, 2017

Abstract

Claims (30)

1. A helmet configured to protect a wearer's head, said helmet comprising an outer shell having left and right side portions, inner padding configured to be located between said left and right side portions of said outer shell and the wearer's head when said helmet is worn, and a lateral adjustment device configured for adjusting a fit of said helmet about the wearer's head, said lateral adjustment device being located between said outer shell and said inner padding and comprising:

a. a first leg having proximal and distal ends, said distal end being fixed to said outer shell or said inner padding;

b. a second leg having proximal and distal ends;

c. a connecting leg portion between said first and second legs, said connecting leg portion interconnecting said first and second legs;

d. a third leg having proximal and distal ends, said distal end being mounted to said second leg; and

e. an actuator configured to be movable by the wearer for moving said second leg between first and second positions with respect to said third leg while pivoting said connecting leg portion such that said first and second legs are movable from a first orientation to a second orientation wherein, in said second orientation, said first and second legs lie in spaced planes.

2. The helmet of claim 1 , wherein said lateral adjustment device is a left lateral adjustment device mounted to said left side portion of said outer shell, said helmet further comprising a right lateral adjustment device mounted to said right side portion of said outer shell.

3. The helmet of claim 1 , wherein said lateral adjustment device comprises a locking mechanism for allowing locking of relative positions of said second leg and third leg at any one of a plurality of positions.

4. The helmet of claim 3 , wherein said locking mechanism comprises a ratchet mechanism including mutually engaging teeth on said second leg and third leg permitting relative movement in a first direction and precluding movement in a second opposite direction.

5. The helmet of claim 1 , wherein the combination of said first leg, said second leg, and said connecting leg portion define a parallelogram shape in said second orientation.

6. The helmet of claim 1 , wherein said connecting leg portion comprises a plurality of spaced parallel connecting leg portions and said first leg, second leg, and connecting leg portions define a plurality of parallelograms in said second orientation.

7. The helmet of claim 6 , wherein said plurality of spaced parallel connecting leg portions comprises at least three connecting leg portions.

8. The helmet of claim 4 , wherein said actuator comprises a tab configured to be accessible by the wearer and extending adjacent said proximal end of said second leg, said tab being pivotable for bending said second leg upon contact with said third leg and disengaging said teeth of said ratchet mechanism such that said second leg is movable with respect to said third leg.

9. The helmet of claim 1 , wherein said second leg comprises a tooth and said third leg comprises a plurality of engaging teeth permitting relative movement in a first direction and precluding movement in a second opposite direction.

10. The helmet of claim 1 , wherein in said first orientation, said first and second legs are substantially co-planar and said inner padding is configured to apply a first pressure upon the wearer's head, and wherein in said second orientation, said inner padding is configured to apply a second pressure upon the wearer's head, said second pressure being greater than said first pressure.

11. The helmet of claim 1 , wherein said left and right side portions of said outer shell terminate at front edges, said front edges comprising left and right edges and an upper generally horizontal ledge, said helmet further comprising: (i) a back portion configured for facing at least partially an occipital region of the wearer's head; (ii) a flexible band extending from said left and right edges of said outer shell adjacent the wearer's left and right temples when said helmet is worn by the wearer and around said back portion for defining a loop; (iii) a locking means located on one of said left and right side portions of said outer shell, said locking means configured to be accessible from outside said outer shell by at least one finger of the wearer for moving said locking means between a first position wherein movement of said band is precluded and a second position wherein movement of said band is allowed for adjusting a length of said loop relative to said locking means; and (iv) a slider having a slider portion and a gripping portion, said slider portion being at least partially in contact with said horizontal ledge of said outer shell and being slidable along said horizontal ledge and said gripping portion being at least partially accessible from outside said outer shell by at least one finger of the wearer for forward or rearward movement of said slider such that, in said second position of said locking means, said band is forwardly or rearwardly movable with respect to one of said left and right side portions of said outer shell in order to facilitate adjustment of tightness of fit of said helmet on the wearer's head by varying said length of said loop relative to said locking means.

12. The helmet of claim 11 , wherein said locking means is a left locking means, said helmet further comprising a right locking means located on said right side portion of said outer shell.

13. The helmet of claim 12 , wherein said slider is a left slider with a left slider portion slidable along said horizontal ledge of said outer shell, said helmet further comprising a right slider with a right slider portion slidable along said horizontal ledge of said outer shell.

14. The helmet of claim 13 , wherein said left and right slider portions have left and right slots for registering with said horizontal ledge.

15. The helmet of claim 14 , wherein each of said left and right locking means comprises a threaded fastener extending through an opening in said band.

16. The helmet of claim 15 , wherein said opening in said band comprises a slot, whereby when each locking means is in said second position, said slot may be moved with respect to said fastener.

17. The helmet of claim 14 , wherein said left locking means comprises a left threaded fastener extending through a first opening in said band near said left slider and wherein said right locking means comprises a right threaded fastener extending through a second opening in said band near said right actuator slider.

18. The helmet of claim 11 , wherein said locking means comprises a star wheel.

19. The helmet of claim 13 , wherein said left and right locking means are located rearwardly with respect to said left and right sliders.

20. A helmet, comprising:

a) a shell;

b) inner padding; and

c) a lateral adjustment system configured for adjusting a fit of the helmet on a wearer's head in a lateral direction of the helmet, the lateral adjustment system comprising:

a first leg and a second leg interconnected to one another by a connecting leg portion, an end of the first leg being fixed to the shell or inner padding, the first and the second legs being disposed between the shell and the inner padding; and

an actuator disposed on the second leg, the actuator being configured to be movable by the wearer such as to move the second leg relative to the first leg from a first position to a second position while pivoting the connecting leg portion, wherein, in the second position of the second leg, the first leg and the second leg lie in planes that are spaced at different distances from the shell.

Assignments (18)