Patent ID: 6766540
Filing Date: 2004-07-27
Classification: A61F,A62B,B63C,Y10T

Abstract:
A face mask comprising a lens frame, buckles mounted on transversely opposite extremities of said lens frame, a headband having longitudinally opposite end portions respectively turning around said buckles so that a peripheral length of the headband is adjusted, and band guides carried by said headband so as to guide said headband passing therethrough, said face mask further comprises:said headband made of a flexible elastic plastic and said longitudinally opposite end portions thereof respectively having transversely opposite side edges extending in parallel to a longitudinal direction of said headband, a width of said headband between said side edges as well as a thickness of said headband measured along said side edges being substantially uniform, said end portions being formed on transversely middle zones of respective inner surfaces thereof destined to come in contact with a mask wearer's head with a plurality of engagement teeth arranged intermittently in a longitudinal direction of said end portions each projecting from one of said inner surfaces and having a front surface gently sloping toward a pointed distal end of one of said end portions in said longitudinal direction and a rear surface abruptly sloping in an opposite direction; each of said buckles acts upon any one of said engagement teeth under a spring-biasing effect to enable the peripheral length of the headband to be adjusted; and each of said band guides having a first guide opening through which one of said end portions is guided from a backside toward a front of said face mask and a second guide opening through which said end portion is guided from said front toward said backside of said face mask after said end portion has been turned around one of said buckles wherein both said first guide opening and said second guide opening have a width corresponding to a width of said headband and a height corresponding to a thickness of said headband, said first guide opening being formed with a first guide area adapted to guide transversely opposite lateral zones of said end portion extending along its respective side edges and a second guide area being contiguous to said first guide area, said first guide area having a width and a height dimensioned to allow said lateral zones extending along said side edges of said end portion to be slidably moved as said end portion is moved in a back-and-forth direction of said face mask, said second guide area having a width and a height respectively dimensioned to be larger than a width and a height of said engagement teeth so that said engagement teeth freely pass said second guide area, and said second guide opening has a height substantially same as or slightly larger than said thickness of said end portion and smaller than a sum of said thickness of said end portion and said height of said engagement teeth so as to prevent said end portion passing therethrough from unintentionally moving and simultaneously to prevent said end portion from coming off from the associated one of said engagement teeth.