Abstract:
A shield for protecting a wearer from ultraviolet radiation is removably attachable to headgear such as a hard hat, helmet, baseball cap and the like. The shield attaches to the visor or bill of the headgear, wraps around the headgear, and is connected at the back of the headgear, thereby protecting the face and neck of a wearer. The shield has a clamp, which in a preferred embodiment, attaches to the center of the visor of the headgear. In another embodiment of the invention, the shield filter includes a curtain which attaches to the sides of the shield and wraps around the back of the headgear and hangs down to also protect the sides and back of the wearer&#39;s neck.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention pertains generally to devices which protect a wearer from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation from the sun, and more particularly to a flexible shield which can be attached to and wrapped around the hat or other headgear of the wearer. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Many people have skin which is sensitive to the sun&#39;s powerful rays. Even when these people use the most protective sun block products, they can still burn after only a short period of exposure. One solution to this problem is to shield the face and neck of the individual with a material which blocks the harmful ultraviolet light, but which passes visible light. Such shields, facemasks, and the like, which attach to headgear, and which protect a user, are well known in the art. For example: 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,884,296 shows a protective face shield having a shield member of transparent flexible material in the upper corners of which pairs of slits are formed. A headband is threaded through the slits in a manner such that once the headband is donned the shield member may be pulled away from the wearer&#39;s face to provide good air circulation. A lower portion of the face shield is contoured inwardly to protect the throat. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,544,361 illustrates a lightweight headgear mountable protective face shield capable of protecting substantially the entire face of a human wearer from ultraviolet radiation. The face shield comprises an articulated shielding arrangement to be positioned in blocking relationship to tie wearer&#39;s face. The shielding arrangement comprising a plurality of segments extending across the wearer&#39;s face, the ends of which are preferably pivotally connected to hinge plates positioned at either side of the wearer&#39;s head. The hinge plates are attached to a securing mechanism which secures the face shield to an article of headgear. In a preferred embodiment, the face shield is detachably secured to the forwardly projecting bill of a baseball style cap by a securing mechanism comprising a pair of jaws between which the bill is secured by clamping. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,634,210 discloses a flexible face shield which includes two side wings that are connected to a main body by living hinges and a face-engaging element that spaces the body away from the face of a wearer. A flexible band attaches the shield to the wearer. The face shield body is opaque to the sun and one form of the shield includes cutouts which are covered with sunglasses-type material. The body is preferably cardboard or other such material so the shield can be folded and bent for storage or to customize it for the particular wearer. The shield can be discarded after use if desired. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,806,102 is directed to a face shield for a helmet. The face shield having a weather lens and a face lens spaced from the weather lens so as to form an air gap, is characterized in that an electroconductive film is attached to the air gap of the weather lens, in that upper and lower electrodes are printed on upper and lower sides of the electroconductive film, respectively, in that a plurality of dot electrodes which are uniformly spaced from each other are printed on the entire part of the electroconductive film, and in that the weather lens is made from a material such as a polycarbonate, butyrate, or an acrylic, and the face lens from an anti-fog sheet. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is directed to a darkly tinted shield which removably attaches to a hat or other headgear to protect the face and neck of a wearer from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation from the sun. A preferred name for the present invention is “Daisy Shader”. 
     In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a shield for protecting the face and neck of a wearer from ultraviolet radiation is mountable in wrap around fashion to headgear such as a hat, a helmet, a cap, and the like. The shield is attached to the center of the visor or brim of the headgear, and wraps around both sides of the headgear fastening in the back of the headgear. The shield includes a thin sheet which blocks much of the ultraviolet radiation but passes visible light so that the wearer can see. The sheet is shaped and dimensioned so that when it is wrapped around the headgear, it covers the face of the wearer. Elastic straps are connected to each end of the sheet so that the straps may be wrapped around the headgear and connected at the back of the headgear, thereby attaching the shield to the headgear. A clamp is disposed near the top center of the sheet. The clamp is shaped and dimensioned to receive and selectively grasp the visor of the headgear, so that the clamp may be fixedly attached to the center of the visor. The clamp is designed to permit the shield to be mounted flush with the visor of the headgear. 
     In accordance with an important aspect of the invention, the mouth of the clamp is angled upward to match the downward angle of the visor of the headgear. This design causes the sheet to be oriented substantially vertical on an upstanding wearer. 
     In accordance with an important feature of the invention, the shield also includes a curtain which may be connected to the sides of the shield and wrapped around the back of the neck of the wearer. The curtain hangs down to provide further protection against ultraviolet radiation. 
     In accordance with another important feature of the invention, at least one spacer is disposed on the inside surface of the sheet to allow air to ventilate from under the attached shield. 
     Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of the invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a rear elevation view of a headgear mountable shield in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the shield; 
     FIG. 3 is a front elevation view of the shield; 
     FIG. 4 is an enlarged view along the line  4 — 4  of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of headgear; 
     FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the headgear; 
     FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the headgear being worn by a wearer; 
     FIG. 8 is a side elevation view of the shield installed on the headgear; 
     FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the shield installed on the headgear; 
     FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the shield installed on the headgear of a wearer; 
     FIG. 11 is a side elevation view of a curtain; 
     FIG. 12 is a side elevation view of the curtain installed on the shield and headgear; 
     FIG. 13 is a top plan view of the curtain installed on the shield and headgear; 
     FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the curtain installed on the shield and headgear of a wearer; 
     FIG. 15 is a rear elevation view of a second embodiment of the shield and curtain; and, 
     FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the curtain installed on the second embodiment shield and the headgear. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring initially to FIGS. 1-3, there are illustrated rear elevation, top plan, and front elevation views respectively of a headgear mountable shield for protecting a wearer from ultraviolet radiation in accordance with the present invention, generally designated as  20 . Also referring to FIGS. 5-7, there are illustrated side elevation, top plan, and perspective views respectively of headgear  500  having visor (bill or brim)  502  having a center portion  504 , and a body  506 . In the shown embodiment headgear  500  comprises a helmet or hard hat. It may be appreciated however that headgear  500  can include other forms of head coverings such as baseball-type hats, hats having brims, etc. 
     Shield  20  includes a thin sheet  22  which blocks at least some ultraviolet light and passes at least some visible light. Sheet  22  is shaped and dimensioned to be selectively attachable to the visor  502  and body  506  of headgear  500  in wrap around fashion (also refer to FIG.  10 . Sheet has a first end  24 , an opposite second end  26 , a top edge  28 , a bottom edge  30 , and a center portion  32 . In a preferred embodiment, sheet  22  is fabricated from a sheet of polycarbonate to which has been applied a sheet of tinting material such as is used to tint automobile windows. Such an arrangement can block as much a 99% of ultraviolet radiation. Sheet  22  has an outward facing side  21  and an opposite inward facing side  23 . When worn by a wearer, outward facing side  21  is disposed away from the wearer, and inward facing side  23  is disposed toward the wearer (refer also to FIG.  10 ). 
     A first flexible elongate member  34  is attached to first end  24 , the first flexible elongate member  34  having a free end having a first connector  36 . A second flexible elongate member  38  attached to second end  26 , the second flexible elongate member  38  having a free end having a second connector  40 . First  38  and second  40  connectors are selectively connectable to each other. In a preferred embodiment, first  34  and second  38  elongate members include elastic bands having cooperating connectors which can be stretched around body  506  of headgear  500  (refer also to FIGS.  8 - 10 ). 
     Also referring to FIGS. 8 and 9, a clamp  42  is disposed near top edge  28  at center  32  of sheet  22 . Clamp  42  is shaped and dimensioned to receive and selectively grasp visor  502  of headgear  500 , so that clamp  502  may be fixedly attached to the center  504  of visor  502 , first  34  and second  38  flexible elongate members wrapped around the back of body  506  of headgear  500 , and first  36  and second  40  connectors connected, thereby attaching shield  20  to headgear  500 . In the shown embodiment, clamp  42  includes a screw which abuts visor  502 , however it may be appreciated that other forms of clamps could also be employed. In the shown embodiment, one clamp  42  which connects to the center of visor  502  is utilized. It may be appreciated however that multiple clamps  42  could be employed which connect to different locations on visor  502 . 
     At least one spacer  44  is disposed near top edge  28  of inward facing side  23 . Spacer  44  creates a slight gap between shield  20  and headgear  500  to ensure proper air circulation. In the shown preferred embodiment, two spacers  44  are disposed at opposite ends  24  and  26  of sheet  22 . 
     Outward facing side  21  has first  46  and second  48  curtain connectors for attaching a curtain  50  to sheet  22  (also refer to FIGS.  12 - 14 ). First curtain connector  46  is disposed near top edge  28  and near first end  24  of sheet  22 , and second curtain connector  48  is disposed near top edge  28  and near second end  26  of sheet  22 . Additionally, outward facing side  21  has third  52  and fourth  54  curtain connectors for attaching curtain  50  to sheet  22 . Third curtain connector  52  is disposed near bottom edge  30  and near first end  24  of sheet  22 , and fourth curtain connector  54  is disposed near bottom edge  30  and near second end  26  of sheet  22 . Sheet  22  has a longitudinal axis  56  and a central transverse axis  58  which is perpendicular to longitudinal axis  56 . 
     FIG. 4 is an enlarged view along the line  4 — 4  of FIG. 1 showing clamp  42  connected to sheet  22 . And, FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of headgear  500 . When headgear  500  is installed on an upstanding wearer, visor  502  has a downward angle V. Clamp  42  has a slot  60  for receiving visor  502  of the headgear  500 , slot  60  defining an outwardly projecting axis  62 . Transverse axis  58  and outwardly projecting axis  62  define an upward acute angle C which substantially equals the downward angle V of visor  502 . Because the angles are equal, when shield  20  is installed on headgear  500 , transverse axis  58  will be substantially vertical. 
     FIGS. 8-10 are side elevation, top plan, and perspective views of shield  20  installed on headgear  500 . Clamp  42  is attached to visor  502 , first  34  and second  38  flexible elongate members are wrapped around body  506  of headgear  500 , and connectors  36  and  40  connected at the back of headgear  500 . 
     Referring now to FIG. 11, there is illustrated a side elevation view of a curtain  50 . Curtain  50  is typically fabricated from opaque fabric or other flexible material, and has a first end  64 , an opposite second end  66 , a top side  68 , and an opposite bottom side  69 . Elastic  70  is disposed along top side  68 . A first connection means  72  is disposed near first end  64  and top side  68  of curtain  50 , and a second connection means  74  is disposed near second end  66  and top side  68  of curtain  50 . First connection means  72  is selectively connectable to first curtain connector  46 , and second connection  74  means is selectively connectable to second curtain connector  48 . In the shown embodiment, first  72  and second  74  connection means are button holes which cooperate with first  46  and second  48  curtain connectors which are buttons attached to sheet  22 . It may be appreciated however that, the curtain connectors of sheet  22  and the connection means of curtain  50  could include other devices such as clasps, hook and loop fasteners, snaps, etc. 
     Third connection means  76  are disposed near first end  64  and bottom side  69  of curtain  50 , and fourth connection means  78  are disposed near second end  66  and bottom side  69  of curtain  50 . Third connection means  76  are selectively connectable to third curtain connector  52  of sheet  22 , and fourth connection means  78  are selectively connectable to fourth curtain connector  54  of sheet  22 . By having curtain connections on the lower portion of sheet  22 , curtain  50  is held fixedly in place with respect to sheet  22 , and not subject to displacement by the wind or other force. 
     FIGS. 12-14 are side elevation, top plan, and perspective views respectively of curtain  50  installed on shield  20  and headgear  500 . Curtain  50  has been selectively and elastically wrapped around (a) body  506  of the headgear  500  and (b) the connected first and second elongate flexible members  34  and  38 . When so connected, curtain  50  comprises a downwardly hanging veil which protects the sides and back of the neck of the wearer. 
     FIG. 15 is a rear elevation view of a second embodiment of shield  20  and curtain  50 . This embodiment is identical to the embodiment of FIGS. 1-4 with the exception that first  46 , second  48 , third  52 , and fourth  54  curtain connectors are disposed in the same relative position on inward facing side  23  rather than on outward facing side  21 . In this fashion, curtain  50  is selectively and elastically wrappable around body  506  of headgear  500 , and first through fourth connection means attached to first through fourth curtain connectors respectively, so that curtain  50  resides inside rather than outside shield  20 . 
     FIG. 16 is a perspective view of curtain  50  installed on the second embodiment shield  20  and headgear  500 . It may be observed that in this embodiment shield  20  serves to retain curtain  50  in place on the wearer. 
     In terms of used, a method for protecting a person from ultraviolet radiation, comprises: 
     (1) providing headgear  500  having (a) a visor  502  having a center  504 , and (b) a body  506 ; 
     (2) providing a shield  20  including: 
     a sheet  22  which blocks at least some ultraviolet light and passes at least some visible light, the sheet  22  is shaped and dimensioned to be selectively attachable to the visor  502  and the body  506  of the headgear  500  in wrap around fashion, 
     the sheet  22  has a first end  24 , an opposite second end  26 , a top edge  28 , a bottom edge  30 , and a center  32 ; 
     a first flexible elongate member  34  attached to first end  24 , the first flexible elongate member  34  having a free end having a first connector  36 ; 
     a second flexible elongate member  38  attached to second end  26 , the second flexible elongate member  38  having a free end having a second connector  40 , the first  36  and second  40  connectors selectively connectable to each other; and, 
     a clamp  42  is disposed near top edge  28  at center  32  of sheet  22 , the clamp  42  is shaped and dimensioned to receive and selectively grasp visor  502  of headgear  500 ; 
     (3) fixedly attaching clamp  42  to center  504  of visor  502 ; 
     (4) wrapping first  34  and second  38  elongate members around body  506  of headgear  500 ; 
     (5) connecting first  36  and second  40  connectors together, so that shield  20  is attached to headgear  500 ; and, 
     (6) the person placing headgear  500  and attached shield  20  upon the person&#39;s head. 
     The method further including: 
     (7) the sheet  22  also having: 
     an outward facing side  21 ; 
     the outward facing side  21  having first  46  and second  48  curtain connectors for attaching curtain  50  to sheet  22 , the first curtain connector  46  disposed near top edge  28  and near first end  24  of sheet  22 , and the second curtain connector  48  disposed near top edge  28  and near second end  26  of sheet  22 ; 
     (8) providing a curtain  50  having: 
     a first end  64 , an opposite second end  66 , and a top side  68 ; 
     elastic  70  disposed along top side  68 ; 
     first connection means  72  disposed near first end  64  and top side  68  of curtain  50 ; 
     second connection means  74  disposed near second end  66  and top side  68  of curtain  50 ; 
     (9) wrapping curtain  50  around (a) body  506  of headgear  500  and (b) the connected first  34  and second  38  elongate flexible members; 
     (10) connecting first connection means  72  to first curtain connector  46 ; and, 
     (11) connecting second connection means  74  to second curtain connector  48 , wherein curtain  50  forms a downwardly hanging veil. 
     The preferred embodiments of the invention described herein are exemplary and numerous modifications, dimensional variations, and rearrangements can be readily envisioned to achieve an equivalent result, all of which are intended to be embraced within te scope of the appended claims.