US3137859A

US3137859A - Safety helmet head suspension

Info

Publication number: US3137859A
Application number: US229573A
Authority: US
Inventors: Zbikowski Ted
Original assignee: JOSEPH BUEGELEISEN CO
Current assignee: JOSEPH BUEGELEISEN CO
Priority date: 1962-10-10
Filing date: 1962-10-10
Publication date: 1964-06-23
Anticipated expiration: 1981-06-23

Description

June 23, 1964 T. ZBIKOWSKI 3,137,859

SAFETY HELMET HEAD SUSPENSION Filed Oct. 10, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. 7E0 ZfiIA'OWS/(l BY (44 fflkm M June 23, 1964 T. ZBIKOWSKI SAFETY HELMET HEAD SUSPENSION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 10, 1962 0 on I U K E INVENTOR, 7'50 Z8/KOW5/(4 ,4 rraer/e/s United States Patent 3,137,859 SAFETY HELMET HEAD SUSPENSIQN Ted Zbikowski, Detroit, Mich, assignor to Joseph Buegeleisen Co., Southfield, Mich. Filed Oct. 10, 1962, Ser. No. 229,573 2 Claims. (Cl. 2-3) This invention relates to a safety helmet head suspension.

Objects of this invention are to provide a safety helmet head suspension which is removably secured to the helmet shell, which is readily adjustable in size to fit various size heads, and which is formed to distribute loads at four wide zones along the top and sides of the human skull and around the horizontal circumference of the skull to thus avoid localized impacts and thereby protect the head.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent upon reading the following description of which the attached drawings form a part.

In these drawings:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the helmet.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken in the direction of arrows 22 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken as if in the direction of arrows 33 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the rear section of the headband and FIG. 5 is an elevational view of the front section of the headband.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the head supporting cradle, per se.

The helmet 10 is formed of an inverted bowl-shaped, hard, outer protective shell 11 having a resilient edge bead 12 and an inner, relatively thick, resilient liner 13 secured to the inner wall of the shell. The liner may be formed of a resilient plastic material such as foamed polystyrene or the like.

Arranged within the shell is a head-supporting suspension or cradle 14 which is formed of a headband consisting of a front section 15 and a rear section 16 formed of a relatively thin, resilient but stiff sheet material such as polyethylene plastic sheet or the like of about .040 of an inch in thickness, thus being stiff but still resiliently bendable or springy.

The opposite ends of the front part 15 are provided with pairs of male snap fastener halves 18 arranged to snap fit within pairs of openings 19 when the opposite ends of the front and rear sections are overlapped. The openings 19 are of a sufficient diameter and depth to function as female snap fastener halves.

Each of the headband sections or parts are provided with integral upwardly extending tabs 22 whose upper ends are horizontally widened at 23 and connected by narrowed portions 24 to their respective headband parts. Each tab has a male snap fastener half 25 secured thereto, which fastener half also secures a cloth loop band 26 to the respective tab.

As shown in FIG. 3, female snap fastener halves 27 are secured to the liner 13 at locations corresponding to the locations of the tab fastener halves 25 for interconnecting therewith. Also, the looped bands 26 are interconnected by a string or cord 28.

The size of the headband is adjusted by overlapping the respective ends of the headband parts and securing the snap fastener halves 18 within the particular holes 19 3,137,859 Patented June 23, 1964 "ice which provide the desired circumferential size to fit the head of the wearer. The cord 28, being knotted and passing through the loops 26 can be adjusted in length for proper fitting. In this manner, the cradle can be easily adjusted to the size of the wearers head before connecting it within the shell. Then the tab snap fasteners 25 are engaged with the liner fastener halves 27 so that the headband is connected to the helmet shell at four locations and is otherwise free of connection to the shell. When the headband becomes dirty or damaged, it can be easily replaced while preserving the relatively expensive shell and liner for reuse.

The arrangement of the tabs including their widened upper ends results in distributing impact loads over four wide zones of the head as well as circumferentially, thus preventing localized impact to the skull.

This invention may be further developed within the scope of the following claims. Accordingly, it is desired that the foregoing description be read as being merely illustrative of an operative embodiment of this invention and not in a strictly limiting sense.

I now claim:

1. A safety helmet comprising an inverted bowl-shaped shell having a forward end and a rear end and a head supporting cradle arranged within the shell, the cradle comprising a substantially horizontally arranged head band adapted to encircle and closely receive a human head and being formed of a thin, stifl", but relatively resilient sheet material; said head band having a forward pair and a rear pair of oppositely aligned integral tabs, each tab extending upwardly above the upper edge of the head band a considerable distance and being widened in a horizontal direction at its upper end and being integrally connected to the head band by a narrow portion, the widened portions of the two pairs of tabs being adapted to contact the human head at locations relatively close to the top thereof; a snap fastener half secured upon the widened portion of each of said tabs and being normally connected to a corresponding snap fastener half secured to the shell, the four snap fasteners forming the only connection between the cradle and the shell; each tab having a cloth loop permanently secured thereto by its respective snap fastener half, the free ends of the four loops being joined together by a cord passing through each of them, the loops thus forming upper extensions of the tabs to form the upper portion of the cradle and being adapted to rest upon the upper portion of the human head.

2. A construction as defined in claim 1 and including the narrowed portions of the two tabs of each pair of tabs being relatively close to each other, with the widened portions thereof extending horizontally away from each other and with said snap fastener halves each being located approximately centrally of its respective tab widened portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,706,294 Sprinkle Apr. 19, 1955 2,855,605 Aileo Oct. 14, 1958 3,015,103 Zbikowski Jan. 2, 1962 FOREIGN PATENTS 249,441 Great Britain Mar. 25, 1926 154,042 Sweden Apr. 10, 1956

Claims

1. A SAFETY HELMET COMPRISING AN INVERTED BOWL-SHAPED SHELL HAVING A FORWARD END AND A REAR END AND A HEAD SUPPORTING CRADLE ARRANGED WITHIN THE SHELL, THE CRADLE COMPRISING A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTALLY ARRANGED HEAD BAND ADAPTED TO ENCIRCLE AND CLOSELY RECEIVE A HUMAN HEAD AND BEING FORMED OF A THIN, STIFF, BUT RELATIVELY RESILIENT SHEET MATERIAL; SAID HEAD BAND HAVING A FORWARD PAIR AND A REAR PAIR OF OPPOSITELY ALIGNED INTEGRAL TABS, EACH TAB EXTENDING UPWARDLY ABOVE THE UPPER EDGE OF THE HEAD BAND A CONSIDERABLE DISTANCE AND BEING WIDENED IN A HORIZONTAL DIRECTION AT ITS UPPER END AND BEING INTEGRALLY CONNECTED TO THE HEAD BAND BY A NARROW PORTION, THE WIDENED PORTIONS OF THE TWO PAIRS OF TABS BEING ADAPTED TO CONTACT THE HUMAN HEAD AT LOCATIONS RELATIVELY CLOSE TO THE TOP THEREOF; A SNAP FASTENER HALF SECURED UPON THE WIDENED PORTION OF EACH OF SAID TABS AND BEING NORMALLY CONNECTED TO A CORRESPONDING SNAP FASTENER HALF SECURED TO THE SHELL, THE FOUR SNAP FASTENERS FORMING THE ONLY CONNECTION BETWEEN THE CRADLE AND THE SHELL; EACH TAB HAVING A CLOTH LOOP PERMANENTLY SECURED THERETO BY ITS RESPECTIVE SNAP FASTENER HALF, THE FREE ENDS OF THE FOUR LOOPS BEING JOINED TOGETHER BY A CORD PASSING THROUGH EACH OF THEM, THE LOOPS THUS FORMING UPPER EXTENSIONS OF THE TABS TO FORM THE UPPER PORTION OF THE CRADLE AND BEING ADAPTED TO REST UPON THE UPPER PORTION OF THE HUMAN HEAD.