Patent ID: 11926398
Assignee: THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AS REPRESENTED BY THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
Field: Transport (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B  A | IPC A  B

Claim 5:
6. A helmet apparatus, comprising:
a helmet having an exterior surface, an interior region for a user's head, an interior wall within the interior region, a substantially oval-shaped head-entry opening leading to the interior region, and a substantially oval-shaped neck dam mating surface extending about the substantially oval-shaped head-entry opening, the helmet further comprising a pair of neck dam latch pins, wherein one of the neck dam latch pins is attached to the exterior surface of the helmet and located on a first side of the helmet and the other neck dam latch pin is attached to the exterior surface of the helmet and located on an opposite second side of the helmet;
a neck dam comprising a neck dam frame having a substantially oval shape that corresponds to the substantially oval shape of the neck dam mating surface, wherein the neck dam frame has a surface adapted to be joined to the substantially oval-shaped mating surface of the helmet; and
a pair of neck dam latch devices attached to the neck dam frame, wherein each neck dam latch device is associated with a corresponding one of the pair of neck dam latch pins, wherein each neck dam latch device is configurable to a first position to engage the neck dam latch pin so as to secure the neck dam mating surface of the helmet to the surface of the neck dam frame and to a second position to disengage the neck dam latch pin so as to release the neck dam mating surface from the surface of the neck dam frame;
wherein each neck dam latch device comprises:
a neck dam latch body attached to the helmet proximate to a corresponding neck dam latch pin;
a neck dam latch casing rotatably coupled to the neck dam latch body and having a handle extending therefrom;
a rotatable neck dam latch shaft member fixedly attached to the neck dam latch casing, said neck dam latch shaft member having an offset cam on an end thereof; and
a neck dam cam latch having an opening therein and a hook portion configured to grasp the corresponding neck dam latch pin, wherein the offset cam of the neck dam latch shaft member is inserted into the opening in the neck dam cam latch;
whereby rotation of the neck dam latch casing in a first direction causes the hook portion of the neck dam cam latch to move outward away from the neck dam latch shaft member and rotate away from the neck dam latch pin, thereby releasing the neck dam latch pin; and
whereby rotation of the neck dam latch casing in a second direction causes the hook portion of the neck dam cam latch to rotate toward the neck dam latch pin and move inward toward the neck dam shaft member to grasp the neck dam latch pin.