Pilot head support apparatus

An apparatus for supporting the head of a crew member sitting in a forward posture in a vehicle during high "G" accelerations is disclosed. The invention comprises an upper torso assembly secured to the crew member's upper torso and a head support member. The head support member is hingedly connected to the upper torso assembly for preventing the crew member's head from rotating forward when sitting in a forward lean posture during high G accelerations. The apparatus thereby maintains the proper head position for viewing aircraft displays and viewing the vehicle's external environment. The head support member further allows for free head mobility when the crew member is in the normal upright sitting position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
This invention is related to head restraint systems for vehicles, and more 
particularly to an apparatus for supporting the head of a crew member of a 
vehicle while the crew member is sitting in a forward lean posture during 
high "G" accelerations. 
2. Description of the Related Art 
Modern high performance fighter aircraft are capable of flight maneuvers 
which subject the crew members to very high accelerations, "G's." Severe 
stresses are placed upon the crew members by such aircraft maneuvers. 
Indeed, many modern aircraft are capable of aerial maneuvers which are 
beyond the tolerance of the human crew members. Consequently, fighter 
aircraft and their crew members are occasionally lost. 
Several approaches have been proposed for protecting the crew member from 
the effects of high "G" accelerations. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 
4,664,341, issued to R. J. Cummings, entitled "HEAD RESTRAINT SYSTEM" 
(assigned to Rockwell International Corporation), discloses a system which 
helps enable free and unencumbered head movement during tolerable lateral 
inertia forces, while locking in place and protecting the pilot's head 
during periods of high lateral inertia forces. The invention utilizes a 
helmet that rotates on a track and in an inertia reel, which will lock 
when lateral forces exceed predetermined levels. 
Great Britain Patent No. 656,079, entitled "IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO 
HEAD AND LIKE SUPPORTS FOR PERSONS SUBJECTED TO ACCELERATION FORCES" 
discloses a head supporting device for resisting acceleration forces on 
the human body. A support member is mounted to be movable in the direction 
of the acceleration force and is coupled to a counter-balancing mass which 
is subjected to the same acceleration force. 
Great Britain Patent No. 978,422, entitled "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEATS" 
discloses the use of a helmet restraining device which is securely 
attached to the seat and clasps the helmet between a pair of cranked 
hinged arms, the arms being under the direct influence of spring 
influenced operating plungers, and the indirect influence of the tension 
springs operating on hinged detents. Several other elements are required, 
including slotted grid-engaging racks and wires interlinked with the slots 
for restraining movement of the helmet relative to the arms. 
U.S. Pat. No. 3,170,659, issued to P. W. Wood, Jr., entitled "HEAD 
RESTRAINT FOR USE IN SE VEHICLES," discloses a head restraint for 
restraining the head movement of a crew member occupying a seat structure 
in a space vehicle during acceleration and attitude changes of the 
vehicle. The head restraint utilizes a pair of air flap members which are 
movably joined to opposite sides of a rear head support. The rear head 
support is joined to a frame member adapted for joining to the seat 
structure in the space vehicle. A pair of anchor blocks are joined to the 
frame member to laterally straddle the air flap members. A pair of 
adjusting means are joined to the anchor blocks for engaging the adjacent 
air flap member and adjusting the lateral position of each of the air flap 
members to restrain the head of the occupying crew member. 
U.S. Pat. No. 3,376,064 discloses the use of a rigid U-shaped head 
encircling member pivotally attached to a head limiting member. The head 
encircling member is spaced from the head to allow normal movement thereof 
but restraining the same from unusual lateral and forward movement. 
Other restraining devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,638,293; U.S. 
Pat. No. 4,004,763; U.S. Pat. No. 3,179,360; U.S. Pat. No. 3,278,230; U.S. 
Pat. No. 3,099,261; U.S. Pat. No. 4,339,151; U.S. Pat. No. 3,873,996; and 
U.S. Pat. No. 3,925,822. 
Sitting in a forward lean position has been demonstrated to increase a 
pilot's ability to withstand the G force caused by aircraft high turns. 
However, in this position, it is difficult to impossible, depending on the 
G force, to hold one's head up. If unsupported, the head rolls forward so 
that the chin rests on the chest. The line of sight is thus downwards 
towards the floor. 
None of the above-cited references addresses the specific problem as to how 
to effectively hold the head up while utilizing a forward leaning posture. 
Even if some of the above disclosed devices may be used during such a 
forward leaning posture, the devices are typically complex and do not 
allow unrestricted head movement while the crew member is in an upright 
position. 
U.S. patent Ser. No. 07/249,794, entitled "HEAD SUPPORT/SPINE OFFLOADING 
EJECTION SEAT INSERT" assigned to the present assignee, discloses a seat 
insert insertable within the existing seat of a vehicle for maintaining a 
crew member of the vehicle in a forward posture during high G 
acceleration. The seat insert includes an elongated head support member 
for supporting the crew member's head during a forward leaning posture. A 
helmet support strap extends from the upper end of the head support member 
to the top of the crew member's helmet for distributing weight off of the 
cervical spine and for maintaining the head in an "eyes up" attitude in 
forward lean. A second strap extends from the upper end of the head 
support member to the back of the helmet for limiting head/helmet 
differential rotation. 
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
It is therefore a principal object of the present invention to provide the 
necessary head support for a pilot when full forward leaning during high G 
turns, yet permit complete head mobility in erect and moderate forward 
lean position. 
It is another object of the present invention to provide a head support 
device which is adjustable and/or custom made to accommodate pilots of 
differing anthropometry. 
It is another object of the present invention to provide a head support 
device which is physically and functionally compatible with crew personnel 
equipment, including helmet, oxygen mask and torso harness. 
It is yet another object to provide a device which is compatible with 
ejection seat components including parachute and inertia reel straps, and 
ejection seat in-flight and post-ejection function. 
The present invention is an apparatus for supporting the head of a crew 
member sitting in a forward posture in a vehicle during high "G" 
accelerations. In its broadest aspects, the invention comprises an upper 
torso assembly secured to the crew member's upper torso and head support 
means. The head support means is hingedly connected to the upper torso 
assembly for preventing the crew member's head from rotating forward when 
sitting in a forward lean posture during high G accelerations. The 
apparatus thereby maintains the proper head position for viewing aircraft 
displays and viewing the vehicle's external environment. The head support 
means further allows for free head mobility when the crew member is in the 
normal upright sitting position. 
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will 
become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention 
when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Referring now to the drawings and the characters of reference marked 
thereon, FIG. 1 illustrates a pilot 10 sitting in the cockpit of an 
aircraft 12. The pilot 10 is accommodated with the apparatus 14 of the 
present invention. During relatively low accelerations the crew member 10 
sits relatively erect or upright, and the apparatus 14 is in a stowed 
position. However, when the crew member is subjected to relatively high 
accelerations during certain flight maneuvers, he moves toward a forward 
lean position, and a portion of the apparatus 14 rotates upwardly to 
support the crew member's head, as illustrated by phantom line 10' and 
will be disclosed in detail below. 
Referring now to FIG. 2, it can be seen that the apparatus 14 includes an 
upper torso assembly 16 and head support means 18 hingedly connected 
thereto. The head support means 18 includes a unitary, rigid head support 
member 19 having a chin support portion 20 and a lever arm portion 22. The 
lever arm portion 22 is connected by hinges 24 to the upper torso assembly 
16. The hinges 24 are preferably spring loaded to urge the head support 
means in a stowed position away from the crew member's chin while that 
crew member is in an upright posture. 
Deployment strap means 26 is connected to the head support means at one end 
and engages a retractable pin 28 which is connected to the seat back (not 
shown) of the aircraft. Strap means 26 is preferably formed of thin nylon. 
To accommodate various degrees of forward leaning, the strap lengths are 
adjustable. 
The upper torso assembly 16 includes an upper torso frame 29 having a back 
section 30 and two over-the-shoulder sections 32. 
Referring now to FIG. 3, the crew member 10 is illustrated in an upright 
position. This is the preferred position during relatively low 
accelerations. As can be seen in this figure, the upper torso assembly 16 
further includes a torso harness 34 worn over the upper torso frame 29 to 
secure the frame 29 to the crew member's upper torso. While in this erect 
position, there is slack in the deployment straps 26 and the head support 
member 19 is in a stowed position. When sitting upright, the head support 
member is kept down in this vertical, stowed position and unobtrusively 
rests on the pilot's chest allowing unrestricted head movement. 
Referring now to FIG. 4, the crew member 10 is illustrated sitting in a 
forward lean posture. In moving toward this posture, the strap means 26 
become taut, forcing the head support member to rotate upwardly providing 
support for the crew member's chin. Otherwise, the head would roll forward 
so that the chin would rest on the chest. 
The force acting to lift the head is a function of the tension in the 
straps. The force exerted by the straps on the head support member 
increases in proportion to aircraft G, since the straps also serve to 
restrain the upper torso from rotating forward. That is, as aircraft G 
increases, the upper torso is rotated forward, which places an increasing 
tension on the straps. Thus, the tension in the straps, which increases 
with increasing aircraft G level, causes the head support member to lift 
the head with increasing force. 
The head support member 19 is preferably molded of a lightweight, high 
strength, rigid material such as a lightweight titanium alloy or 
carbon-based composite. The chin support portion 20, which makes contact 
with the body, is preferably padded. 
The back section 30 extends from the mid-back. The over-the-shoulder 
sections 32 come down over the front of the chest to mid-chest level. The 
upper torso frame 29 is designed to be adjustable to accommodate differing 
pilot anthropometry. It is designed to closely fit the pilot so that it is 
stabilized on the upper torso. Adjustability may involve accommodating 
various neck lengths, jaw lengths. The length of the straps can be 
adjusted to accommodate the variants in shoulder-to-seat back-distance 
among differing sized pilots when in the full forward lean position. 
The deployment straps may be connected to the pin which is used to secure 
the inertia reel straps. Most ejection seat types have such a pin. The pin 
is retracted by pulling the ground egress handle or automatically during 
post ejection seat/man separation, thereby freeing the man from the seat. 
The apparatus 14 is designed for easy donning and doffing. The donning 
procedure is as follows. The upper torso frame 29 is put on first. The 
torso harness 34 is put on over the upper torso frame 29. The head support 
member 19 is then attached to the upper torso frame 29 with pip pins. The 
deployment straps 26 are attached to the release pin 28 in the seat back. 
Finally, the parachute straps (not shown) are attached to the torso 
harness 34. The device is taken off using the reverse procedure. 
The present invention may be utilized with the seat insert disclosed in the 
patent application Ser. No. 07/249,794 entitled "HEAD SUPPORT/SPINE 
OFF-LOADING EJECTION SEAT INSERT". The present invention may also be 
utilized with co-Applicant Munson's co-pending patent application Ser. No. 
07/289,846 entitled "HYDRAULIC BUOYANCY FORCE SUIT". 
The apparatus 14 may be manufactured in different sizes to accommodate 
different anthropometric ranges. 
Obviously, other modifications and variations of the present invention are 
possible in light of the above teachings. For example, the torso harness 
may be modified to contain an integral frame to which the head support 
means can be attached. It is therefore to be understood that, within the 
scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise 
than as specifically described.