Abstract:
An eye shield attachment can be used in combination with a safety helmet. The helmet has a front brim continuous with a rim extending along each opposite side of the safety helmet adjacent to a pair of rim slots in the rim of the safety helmet. The eye shield attachment has a lens and a right and a left structure. Each of the right and left structures has (a) a side frame adapted to be suspended below the rim and to extend toward the front brim, and (b) at least one tong adapted to be removably and dependently attached from below to a corresponding one of the rim slots in the helmet for supporting the side frame. The lens is attached distally between the right and the left structures and can pivot under the front brim between a lowered and a raised position and still remain subjacent to the front brim. The right and left structures are adjustable to provide an adjustable orientation of the lens while in the lowered position.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to devices and methods for shielding the eyes, and in particular, to eye shields designed to attach to a safety helmet. 
   2. Description of Related Art 
   Construction workers and emergency personnel often wear safety helmets under varying conditions and for extended periods of time. The users of these helmets may also wear safety glasses for avoiding eye injury, or ordinary sunglasses to deal with bright light and glare. When doing close-up work or when working in a relatively dark environment, safety helmet users will often temporarily remove their glasses. The temporarily removed glasses are then often lost or damaged. In some cases a user may wish to glance at a bright scene or a dark scene and therefore may wish to briefly don or remove sunglasses, but this process is inconvenient and for efficiency&#39;s sake may be performed by temporarily lifting or removing the safety helmet. Obviously, helmet removal is to be avoided for safety reasons. 
   The safety helmets known as hardhats typically have right and left slots along the lower rim of the helmet for holding accessories such as ear muffs. See for example U.S. Pat. No. 4,639,950. In FIGS. 6 and 7 of U.S. Pat. No. 5,012,528 a visor 96 is attached through pivot 92 to arm 88, which connects through pivot 92 to a connecting member 86 that is attached to side slots on a hard hat from above. When not needed, visor 96 swings upwardly to a position above the brim of the hard hat. See also U.S. Pat. No. 4,479,738. 
   In U.S. Pat. No. 5,966,738 a safety visor is attached to an arm 21 that is pivotally connected to blocks 22 that are designed to snap into the side slots on a hard hat from above. The visor is positioned in front of the brim when in use. When no longer needed, the visor swings into a position above the brim. See also U.S. Pat. No. 4,442,551. 
   In U.S. Pat. No. 5,533,207 an eye shade 13 is bolted or screwed to bill 12 of a hard hat. 
   In FIG. 5 of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. U.S. 2002/0069489 a pair of wings 10 are clipped into the side slots of a hard hat to provide a nook for holding the temples of sunglasses that are not in use. 
   In U.S. Pat. No. 5,926,854 a face shield is hinged to a bracket that is screwed or bolted onto the side of a protective helmet. 
   In U.S. Pat. No. 6,490,729 the goggles straps 34 can be pushed onto quick fasteners that attach to the edge of a safety helmet. 
   See also U.S. Pat. No. 6,134,719 (helmet windshield attached to the helmet by pivots 11); U.S. Pat. No. 5,890,233 (alternative visors pivotally connected to the side of a light sports helmet); U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,109; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,185,739. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In accordance with the illustrative embodiments demonstrating features and advantages of the present invention, there is provided an eye shield attachment for use in combination with a safety helmet. The helmet has a front brim continuous with a rim extending along each opposite side of the safety helmet to a pair of rim slots in the rim of the safety helmet. The eye shield attachment has a right and a left structure each adapted to removably attach to a corresponding one of the rim slots in the helmet and extend along the rim to the front brim. Also included is a lens attached distally between the right and the left structures to pivot under the front brim between a lowered and a raised position and remain subjacent to the front brim. 
   In accordance with another aspect of the invention, an eye shield attachment is used in combination with the foregoing safety helmet. The eye shield attachment has a right and a left structure each adapted to removably attach to a corresponding one of the rim slots in the helmet and extend along the rim to the front brim. Also included is a lens attached distally between the right and the left structures to pivot between a lowered and a raised position. The right and left structures are adjustable to provide an adjustable orientation of the lens while in the lowered position. 
   In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, an eye shield attachment is used in combination with the foregoing safety helmet. The eye shield attachment has a right and a left structure each with (a) a side frame adapted to be suspended below the rim and extend toward the front brim, and (b) at least one tong adapted to be removably and dependently attached from below to a corresponding one of the rim slots in the helmet for supporting the side frame. Also included is a lens attached distally between the side frames of the right and the left structures. 
   In accordance with still yet another aspect of the invention, a method is provided for attaching an eye shield to the foregoing safety helmet. The method includes the step of attaching to the pair of rim slots, support structure that extends along the rim to the front brim. Another step is moving the eye shield between a raised and a lowered position. The method also includes the step of adjusting the position of the eye shield while in the lowered position. 
   In accordance with still yet another aspect of the invention, a method is provided for attaching an eye shield to the foregoing safety helmet. The method includes the step of inserting into the rim slots from below, support structure that extends along the rim to the front brim. Another step is adjusting the position of the eye shield while under the front brim. 
   By employing apparatus and methods of the foregoing type, an improved eye shield attachment is achieved. In a preferred embodiment, a pair of hubs each have tongs that snap into rim slots on the sides of a conventional safety helmet. A pair of preferred telescopic temples project from these hubs so that their longitudinal and angular orientation can be adjusted. A lens is rotatably attached to the ends of the temples in order to flip up from a lower position to a raised position. The pivoting is arranged to allow the lens to flip up and still remain subjacent to the brim of the helmet. 
   Accordingly, the preferred eye shield attachment can be conveniently placed on a safety helmet and adjusted so that the lens is located below the brim of the helmet at a position that is in front of the user&#39;s eyes and spaced far enough away for comfort, including far enough away to accommodate a user&#39;s eyeglasses. The preferred lenses are attached to the temples by pivot pins. The pivot pins are easily removable so lenses can be replaced to provide different lenses with different tinting, etc. The preferred lenses extend back to provide lateral protection against eye injury. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The above brief description as well as other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more fully appreciated by reference to the following detailed description of presently preferred but nonetheless illustrative embodiments in accordance with the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein: 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a safety helmet with an eye shield attachment in accordance with principles of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is a separate, perspective view of the eye shield attachment of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 3  is an exploded, perspective view of one of the side frames of the attachment of  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 4  is a detailed, fragmentary, front view of one of the joints of the attachment of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 5  is a side view of the eye shield attachment of  FIG. 1  shown with its lens in a raised position; and 
       FIG. 6  is an exploded, perspective view of the lens and one of the side frames of the attachment of FIG.  1 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   Referring to  FIG. 1  a safety helmet  10  is shown as a hard hat, although other safety helmets may be employed having different shapes, including the shape associated with the helmets worn by firefighters. The front brim  12  of helmet  10  is shown as a somewhat elongated bill, although embodiments are contemplated where the front brim of the helmet will simply be an edge without any substantial forward projection. Therefore, as used herein, the term brim does not necessarily imply an outwardly projecting element. 
   The rim  14  of helmet  10  extends continuously from front brim  12 . The helmet  10  has on its right and left side along rim  14  a conventional rim slot  16  in the form of a four-sided rectangular passage open at its upper and lower ends. 
   An eye shield attachment is shown mounted in rim slot  16 . In particular, a lens  18  is shown mounted distally, that is, on the distal end of a side frame  20 . The proximal end of side frame  20  is pivotally attached to a hub  22 . Side frame  20  and hub  22  taken together are herein referred to as a right structure. It will be appreciated that a mirror-image, left structure is attached to the other rim slot on the opposite side of helmet  10 . Lens  18  is mounted distally on this right and left structure. 
   A pair of tongs  24 A and  24 B upwardly projecting from hub  22  are shown reaching out of the top of rim slot  16 . A longer tong  26 , also affixed to hub  22 , upwardly projects between tongs  24 A and  24 B (the trio of tongs  24 A,  24 B, and  26  are also referred to as a plurality of tabs). Center tong  26  has a step or shoulder  28  designed to latch over the upper edge of the outside wall  30  of rim slot  16 . As described further hereinafter, center tong  26  is deflectable to allow it to latch and unlatch in rim slot  16 . 
   Referring to  FIGS. 2 ,  3 ,  4  and  6 , center tong  26  is shown being for the most part thinner than tongs  24 A and  24 B, except for the ramping shoulder portion  28 , which is shown with a barbed or eave-like shape. The underside or undercut of shoulder  28  is designed to latch as described previously in connection with FIG.  1 . Being thinner, tong  26  is more easily deflected so that shoulder  28  can retract for unlatching, or swing back for latching. The tong  26  is thinned by having an inside face that is set back relative to the back faces of tongs  24 A and  24 B, which also have thickening ribs  25 A and  25 B. The outside faces of tongs  24 A,  24 B, and  26  are substantially coplanar, except for the shoulder portion  28 . 
   Accordingly, tongs  24 A and  24 B will center the assembly in the rim slot with tong  26  latching the assembly in place. Preferably, hub  22  and the tongs  24 A,  24 B, and  26  will be a single, integrally molded plastic item, although other embodiments may employ multiple components made of various materials. 
   Previously mentioned side frame  20  is shown with a channel  32  slidably supporting a telescopic temple  34 . Channel  32  has for the most part a U-shaped cross-section forming a longitudinal groove receiving temple  34 . The proximal end of channel  32  merges into a cylindrical stub  32 A having coaxial hole  36 . Temple  34  is embraced on three sides by channel  32 , except where its bridge  37  forms an annular structure that encloses temple  34  on the fourth side. The rest of temple  34  in channel  32  is enclosed by a cover  44  that is held in place by screw  46  and by a tongue  43  designed to fit under bridge  37 . 
   The distal end of stub  32 A facing hub  22  fits over a cylindrical journal  48  formed on the inside face of hub  22 . The outward face of stub  32 A has a cylindrical recess  33  that is sized to receive journal  48 . Recess  33  is inscribed on its inner circumference with five lower grooves or serrations  32 B and five upper grooves or serrations  32 C. Journal  48  has on its circumference at the 12 o&#39;clock and 6 o&#39;clock positions axial ribs  49  designed to snap into one of the grooves  32 B and  32 C. Preferably, channel  32  can be detained relative to hub  22  in a neutral position or to other detent positions that are reached by rotating channel  32  from neutral in either direction by two increments of 10° to 12° each to thereby adjust the angle of elevation of side frames  20 . 
   Screw  46  is sized to pass through hole  45  in cover  44  and hole  36  in stub  32 A and be screwed into the coaxial boss  51  of journal  48 , while still allowing stub  32 A to rotate relative to journal  48 . The serrations  32 B and  32 C of stub  32 A will act as detents as the ribs  49  ratchet against the serrations. 
   A rack of ridges or teeth  40  are located along a proximal portion of groove  38  of temple  34 . A nub  41  on the tip of cantilever  42  can act as a detent that ratchets on successive ones of the teeth  40 , as temple  34  slides telescopically in channel  32 . Cantilever  42  is formed by molding cover  44  with a long U-shaped slot. 
   Temples  34  each have a central jog that brings their distal ends  52  closer together. The distal ends  52  are formed into enlarged heads that form an annular bearing  54 . Lens  18  has on its upper corners a pair of hubs  58  that are journalled in annular bearings  54  to form a pivot joint th at pivotally supports lens  18 . Bearing  54  is shown with axial grooves  54 A at the 12 o&#39;clock, 9 o&#39;clock and 10:30 positions for detaining the lens  18  as it rotates to a lowered position (0°), intermediate position (75°), or a fully raised position (90°). 
   Lens  18  is locked in place with fastener  55  shown as a shaft having a slotted head on one end and on the opposite end a bifurcated tip fitted with an opposing pair of transverse nubs  57 . The shaft and nubs  57  of fastener  55  can slide into the outside opening of a φ-shaped through-bore  61  in hub  58  and can reach an inside opening that communicates with a pair of transverse channels  61 A. Accordingly, fastener  55  can be fully inserted into bore  61  with nubs  57  vertical before being given a quarter turn that causes nubs  57  to snap into channels  61 A and lock lens  18  onto temple  34 . 
   The front of lens  18  is convex so that the lens curves backwardly from front section  18 A. The right and left portions of lens  18  are bent back into a pair of wings  62 , designed to provide lateral protection against eye injury. 
   Suitably, the front to back length of wings  62  will be greater than 1 cm, and preferably greater than 2 cm. It is desirable to space the tips of wings  62  about 1-4 cm from a plane tangent to the outside surface of the front section  18 A. 
   The lower edge of lens  18  below the front section  18 A has an indentation  64  designed to fit over a user&#39;s nose. The upper edge  66  of lens  18  is concave and is designed to conform to and provide clearance at a user&#39;s forehead when lens  18  is swung into the raised position shown in FIG.  5 . It will be noticed that the pivot joint formed by hubs  58  create an effective horizontal axis of rotation below brim  12 . Also, lens  18  swings from a lower into a raised position while still remaining at a position subjacent to the brim  12 . 
   Lens  18  may be made of transparent plastic tinted to provide a degree of eye shading. Preferably, lens  18  can be removed from temples  34  by unfastening bearing  54  from journals  58 . This allows a user to change the lens to an untinted clear lens when no eye shading is required but eye protection is still desired. Alternatively, the lens can be replaced to provide darker or lighter tints to suit the ambient light intensity. In addition, the tints can be selected to provide a different color to accommodate lighting conditions or simply for personal preferences or for reasons or fashion. 
   To facilitate an understanding of the principles associated with the foregoing apparatus, its operation will be briefly described. A user may select any one of the conventional safety helmets having rim slots similar to slot  16  of FIG.  1 . The foregoing eye shield attachment may be installed by grasping one of the hubs  22  and inserting the tongs  24 A,  24 B, and  26  from below into the rim slot  16 . The tongs  24 A and  24 B will guide and center the assembly. Tong  26  will deflect inwardly to accommodate the narrow clearance inside rim slot  16 . When fully inserted, shoulder  28  will clear the upper edge of the wall  30  of rim slot  16  and snap into place to latch hub  22  onto the rim slot  16 . The foregoing operation will be performed on the right and left side so that right and left structures  20  are held in place below rim  14  as shown in FIG.  1 . 
   The user may now telescopically and longitudinally adjust temple  34  relative to channel  32 . Preferably, lens  18  will be spaced from the user&#39;s face F ( FIG. 1 ) to avoid pressure on the face or nose and thereby increase the wearing comfort. Moreover, the temple  34  can be extended to provide clearance for eyeglasses E that the user may be wearing. As temple  34  slides inside channel  32  nub  41  of cantilever  42  will ratchet over the teeth  40  formed in the groove  38  of temple  34  to thereby provide a number of successive detent positions. 
   In addition, the user may elevationally adjust lens  18  by adjusting the angle of elevation of side frame  20 . This adjustment allows the user to vertically center lens  18  relative to the user&#39;s eyes, as well as provide an appropriate clearance from the underside of front brim  12 . Once angularly adjusted, side frames will tend to stay in the same angular orientation since the serrations  32 B and  32 C ( FIG. 6 ) in stub  32 A will engage the ribs  49  ( FIG. 3 ) on journal  48  of hub  22 . 
   When the user is wearing the helmet  10  lens  18  will typically be positioned as shown in  FIG. 1  providing protection for the user&#39;s eyes and, if desired, shading. If there is some need to get the lens  18  away from the user&#39;s eyes, the lens  18  can be quickly flipped up to the raised position shown in FIG.  5 . The illustrated raised position is the 75° position offered by the intermediate one of the grooves  54 A (FIG.  3 ). This process can be performed without removing helmet  10 . Because upper edge  66  is concave there will be clearance between the lens  18  and the user&#39;s forehead when the lens is in the raised position. 
   Also, since the lens  18  is stored in the raised position by side frame  20 , the lens will not be lost or damaged. Furthermore, the lens  18  can be quickly flipped back to the operative position again without the need to remove helmet  10 . 
   In some embodiments bearing  58  will be non-symmetrical and have an inward lobe that can snap into a matching indentation in journal  58 . This feature will also allow the lens to be swung upwardly and detained in the raised position. Alternatively, no detents will be provided and the rotating joints at the distal and proximal ends of side structures  20  will have a friction fit that allows continuous angular adjustment. Similarly, temple  32  may have a frictional telescopic joint that allows continuous longitudinal adjustment. 
   It is appreciated that various modifications may be implemented with respect to the above described, preferred embodiments. For example, the outline, shape, and curvature of the lens can be adjusted to accommodate various helmets, users&#39; head sizes, personal preferences, fashion considerations, etc. In some cases, the lens will be given a curvature to act as prescription lenses that correct the user&#39;s sight deficiencies. Furthermore, the pivot point of the lens can be repositioned to alter the height reached by the lens when swung into the raised position. Moreover, some embodiments may have a brace spanning the distal ends of the side frames and the lens may be pivotally mounted on that brace. In some embodiments a ball will be formed at the distal end of the side frames that will snap into sockets on the lens or vice versa. In still other embodiments, the ball joint may be replaced with a simple hinge, including a live hinge. Also, in some embodiments the side frames may be made of a flexible material that can be arbitrarily bent to adjust the position of the lens. In addition, instead of telescopic side frames, some embodiments will allow the lens to slide on a rail or groove in the side frames. Also, instead of a plurality of tongs, the eye shield attachment may have a removable component that is inserted down through the rim slot to attach to structure located below the rim of the helmet that ultimately supports the lens. Moreover, instead of a central tong that latches by deflecting in and out, a pair of side tongs may flex together, front to back. Still other embodiments may use a hook-like structure that is inserted down into the rim slot but with an external structure that extends downwardly on the outside of the helmet to a position below the helmet rim to support a side frame below the helmet rim. 
   Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.