Patent Publication Number: US-9839249-B2

Title: Cover system for caps and other headwear

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     The Applicants claim the benefit, under 35 U.S.C. §119(e), of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/630,882 filed Dec. 22, 2011, and entitled “Head and Face Coverings Attachable to a Hat.” The entire content of this provisional application is incorporated herein by this reference. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to attachments that can be added to baseball-style caps, hardhats, visors, or other types of hats with a bill or brim (hereafter collectively referred to as a “hat”), for the purpose of camouflage, weather protection, or general recreation. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     In the course of outdoor activities such as hunting, camping, attending outdoor sporting events, and other outdoor recreational activities, it may be desirable to wear head coverings for protection from the elements or insects, or for providing camouflage. With regard to hunting, the prior art includes camouflage face and head covers, or shields, which require the user to don the camouflage material as a full hood that fits over the entire head, or to wrap the material directly around the face and head creating substantial contact with the face and head. Prior art camouflage face coverings may include holes cut into the coverings for the eyes and mouth in order to prevent obstruction to the user&#39;s view and breathing. Drawstrings may be provided to bring the material tight around the user&#39;s face area. The prior art also includes caps having an integral face cover “sheath” at the front or back of the cap. When in use, the sheath rests on the user&#39;s face and when not in use, it is tucked inside the cap. Beyond coverings specifically for hunting, the prior art includes attachments to caps which are designed to protect the user&#39;s neck and ears from sunburn and/or from the cold. These attachments may connect to the cap with snaps, hook and loop material, or may be an integral to the cap. Of course the hood of a coat may also be used to provide protection to the head from cold weather conditions. 
     A consistent problem with prior face and head coverings is that the cover material rests substantially in contact with the user&#39;s face and/or neck. This contact with the user&#39;s face or neck is commonly uncomfortable to the user and can interfere with breathing when the cover material rests directly across the mouth and nostrils. Another problem with prior face and head coverings is that they are designed with eye and mouth openings which can readily become misaligned with the user&#39;s face causing obstruction and the need to realign the covering. Prior face and head coverings can also be disruptive to wearing prescription glasses and sun glasses, and can interfere with eating, drinking, or using hunting calls such as duck or goose calls. There remains a need in the art to provide a face and head covering system which overcomes these and other problems associated with the prior art. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention comprises a cover material system which may be used with a hat to overcome the above problems and others associated with prior head and face covering devices. The invention includes an apparatus for attaching cover material to a hat and to a hat fitted with the attaching apparatus and cover material. 
     An apparatus embodying one form of the invention includes a left receiver base and a right receiver base, each receiver base including a respective receiver adapted to provide an attachment point for an elongated cover support member. Each receiver base is also associated with a respective hat connector, which may be a spring-action clipping device, to allow the respective receiver base to be connected to a hat, especially the brim of a hat. The elongated cover support member has a connector preferably at each end which is adapted to be releasably secured to a respective one of the receivers. The cover support member includes at least configurable sections which are bendable into a desired shape and retain that desired shape when released. In some forms of the invention, the cover support member may comprise a length of plastic coated metal wire which is readily bendable into a desired configuration. A cover sheet is included in the system and is adapted to be secured along at least a portion of the length of the first cover support member. The cover sheet hangs down from the cover support member to provide the desired covering function. 
     Some forms of the present invention may accommodate a second cover support member for providing support for a second sheet of cover material. These forms of the invention may include an additional receiver on each receiver base to provide connection points for the second cover support member. Additional cover sheets may also be used with the present invention as will be described in the description of illustrative embodiments below. 
     The arrangement of connectors and elongated cover support members according to various embodiments of the present invention allow the cover sheet material to be positioned well away from the user&#39;s face to provide superior comfort to the user. The bendable and shape retaining features of the elongated cover support members allows the cover sheet material to be adjusted to suit the user, and to be moved out of the way temporarily to allow the user to eat, drink, or use devices such as duck calls. Also, the invention may be used with many different types of hats, and may be moved from one hat to another for different uses. 
     These and other advantages and features of the invention will be apparent from the following description of illustrative embodiments, considered along with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a left side view of a ball cap-type hat on which an apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention is mounted, less the cover sheets so as to expose the underlying mounting structure. 
         FIG. 2  is a right side view of the hat and apparatus shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is an enlarged front perspective view showing one receiver base in a connected position on a hat. 
         FIG. 4  is a view similar to  FIG. 3 , but showing elongated cover support members on the hat. 
         FIG. 5  is a view in perspective of an anchor point device according to an embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 6  is a diagrammatic view of a cover support member and anchor point device according to a form of the invention. 
         FIG. 6A  is an end view of an end of the cover support member shown in  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 7  is a front view of a hat on which a device according to the invention is mounted, but without cover material sheets. 
         FIG. 8  is a front view of a hat on which two anchor point devices are connected. 
         FIG. 9  is a back view of an anchor point device according to one form of the invention. 
         FIG. 10  is a front view of the anchor point device in  FIG. 9 . 
         FIG. 11  is a diagrammatic representation showing a lug connection according to one form of the invention. 
         FIG. 12  is a front view of an anchor point device according to one form of the invention. 
         FIG. 13  is a left side view of a hat having an upper face attachment according to one form of the invention. 
         FIG. 14  is a left side view of a hat with a lower face cover according to one form of the invention. 
         FIG. 15  is a left side view of a hat with a side and back cover attached according to an embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 16  is a left side view of a hat having the side and back cover, the lower face cover, and upper face cover attached. 
         FIG. 17  is a diagrammatic representation showing an alternative cover support member connector according to an embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 18  is an end view of the alternate connector shown in  FIG. 17 . 
         FIG. 19  is a view in perspective of the alternate connector shown in  FIG. 17 . 
         FIG. 20  is a side perspective view of an alternate anchor point device according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 21  is a bottom perspective view of the anchor point device shown in  FIG. 20 . 
         FIG. 22  is an end view of the alternate anchor point device in an installed position on a hat. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1-3 , a headwear cover system according to certain forms of the invention includes left and right anchor point devices shown generally at  100 . The anchor point devices  100  shown in  FIGS. 1-3  provide connection points for three separate elongated cover support members, a lower face cover support member  101 , an upper face cover support member  102 , and a side/back cover support member  103 . The cover support members  101 ,  102 , and  103  are each adapted to support sheets of cover material such as the cover material sheets  106 ,  107 , and  108  shown in  FIGS. 13-16  and described further below. 
     In the example of  FIGS. 1-3 , each anchor point device  100  includes a receiver base  110 , and one receiver for each cover support which may be used with the cover system.  FIGS. 1-3  show the respective receiver base  110  residing in a respective operating position on the brim of a hat  115 . The receivers each comprise an opening in this particular embodiment, namely, receiver openings  111 ,  112 , and  113  in each receiver base  110 . Each of the receiver openings  111 ,  112 , and  113  is adapted to receive an end portion of the respective cover support member  101 ,  102 , or  103  in a frictional engagement to releasably connect the respective cover support member to the respective receiver base  110 . 
     Each illustrated anchor point device  100  also includes a hat connector which connects the respective receiver base  110  to the hat  115  with which the cover system is used. In the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1-3 , the hat connector for each receiver base  110  includes a slot opening  118  (shown in  FIGS. 9 and 10  for example) adapted to receive an edge of hat  115 , an elastic tether  119  which is shared between the two receiver bases, and a respective pin  120  in position to bite into the edge of the hat received in the respective groove structure. An alternate hat connector is illustrated in  FIGS. 20-22 , and includes a spring material clip  122 , which is adapted to clip on an edge of a hat and form a frictional connecting engagement by the spring force of the clip material. 
     In the embodiments shown in both  FIGS. 1-3  and in  FIGS. 20-22 , the receiver base  110  includes an attachment surface comprising the surface which faces and contacts the brim of the hat  115  when the receiver base is in the operating position such as the position shown in  FIGS. 1-3 . This attachment surface  114  is shown particularly in  FIGS. 9, 10, and 22 . 
     The drawings illustrate three different types of receivers which may be used to connect to a respective cover support member  101 ,  102 , or  103 . A lug type receiver is shown in several of the figures, but perhaps best in  FIG. 11 . The lug-type receiver is adapted to receive an end of a cover support member which has the form of a resilient tube material  124  in  FIG. 11 , and includes a receiver opening  125  in the receiver base  110  and a lug/bolt opening in the opposite side of the receiver base concentric with the receiver opening  125 . In operation, the end of the tubing  124  is inserted into receiver opening  125  and then an appropriately sized lug/bolt  127  is threaded into the lug/bolt opening. As the distal end of lug/bolt  127  threads into the open end of tubing  124 , it causes the resilient tubing material to expand sufficiently to provide a good frictional engagement at least with the threads of the lug/bolt and perhaps also with the wall of receiver opening  125 . Tubing  124  is retained in place by the frictional engagement between the tubing material and the threads of the lug/bolt  127  and perhaps by frictional engagement between the tubing  124  and the wall of receiver opening  125 . 
     Another type of receiver is shown in several of the figures, but perhaps best in  FIG. 6 . This type of receiver is adapted to be used particularly with wire-type cover support members which will be described below, although it may also be used with tubing-type cover support members (such as tubing  124  in  FIG. 11 ). The alternate type of receiver shown in  FIG. 6  comprises simply an appropriately sized receiver opening  130  extending partially through receiver base  110 . Receiver opening  130  is sized so that it has a transverse dimension slightly smaller than a transverse dimension of the end  131  of the cover support member  101 . Thus when the end  131  of the cover support member is inserted into receiver opening  130 , the resilient material at that end  131  deforms to fit in the opening and presses against the wall of the opening to provide a good frictional engagement. 
       FIGS. 20-22  illustrate another alternate receiver which comprises simply a receiver opening  134  ( 3  in  FIGS. 20-22 ) which extend all the way through the receiver base  110 . This alternate type of receiver opening functions similarly to a receiver opening which extends only partially through the receiver base  110 , except that the end of the cover support member may be inserted all the way through the receiver base to provide a measure of adjustability for the respective cover support member (not shown in  FIGS. 20-22 ). 
     The drawings also illustrate different types of cover support members which may be used in various embodiments of the invention. A type of cover support member that is particularly suited for the lower face cover support member  101  is shown in  FIGS. 6 and 6A . This cover support member  101  includes a bendable and formable wire  136  extending the length of the cover support member. Wire  136  may be covered along its length with a plastic cover material. The end of cover support member  101  includes a length of resilient cover material  138  which includes a series of longitudinally-extending, resilient ribs  139 . This end cover material  138  with ribs  139  extending along at least a portion thereof form a connector at the end of cover support member  101 . This connector cooperates with a suitable receiver opening (such as  130  in  FIGS. 6 and 134  in  FIGS. 20-22 ) to provide a frictional engagement to releasably connect the cover support member  101  to the receiver base  110 . The wire  136  employed in cover support member  101  may be bent by the user into a desired configuration to support the cover material in a position desirable for the particular user. Although wire  136  is bendable, it has sufficient strength to retain its shape while supporting the cover material (such as cover material  106  shown in  FIGS. 14 and 16 ). The wire-type cover support member may be used for any of the cover support members employed in the present invention, and not just the lower face cover support member. 
       FIGS. 17-19  show another type of cover support member comprising a resilient tubing  142  having a length of wire  143  tightly received in the end of the tubing material. The wire  143  includes a resilient and ribbed cover material  144  so as to form a connector which functions similar to the covered wire-type connector shown in  FIG. 6A . 
     As noted above, a cover support member may include simply a length of resilient tubing material. In this case, the resilient tubing material forms a connector which cooperates with the receiver opening (and perhaps a lug/bolt  127  as described above) to releasably connect the tubing material to the respective receiver base  110 . 
     It should be noted that some cover support members may not rely on a resilient/frictional engagement with a receiver opening to releasably connect to receiver base  110 . For example, a cover support member may comprise a length of covered or uncovered bendable and formable wire sized so that the end of the wire may be inserted completely through a receiver opening such as opening  134  shown in  FIGS. 20-22 , and then bent back on itself around the outside of the receiver base  110  to retain the respective end of the cover support member on the receiver base. This sort of cover support member is particularly useful for the side/back cover support member  103  and the upper face cover support member  102 . 
     The anchor point devices  100  may be made of any suitable material (e.g., wood, plastic, metal, etc.). As illustrated, each anchor point device  100  may be in the form of simple “blocks” with a slot opening  118  designed to snugly receive the edge of a hat such as the bill of a typical baseball cap. Where anchor point devices  100  are made of plastic, such as by injection molding for example, a spring clip providing the function of clip  122  in  FIGS. 20-22  may be integrally formed with the remainder of the anchor point device. 
     The outer portion of an anchor point device  100  in the connected position on a hat should extend beyond the edge of the bill (for baseball-type caps) to the minimum extent needed to provide room to construct the receiver openings, while at the same time not extending beyond the edge of the cap to the extent that it would be disruptive to aiming a gun, or shooting a bow, or represent an unsightly configuration on the cap. In one preferred embodiment, the anchor point devices are held in place primarily by the slot opening  118  or wire clip  122  into which the edge of the cap is emplaced, an elastic tether that connects to the anchor point devices  100  together across the top of the bill of the cap, and pin  120  (shown in  FIG. 10 ) that penetrates slightly into the side of the brim of the cap so as to prevent slipping along the edge of the cap. The slot opening  118  or wire clip  122  can be of different dimensions in order to receive cap brims of different thicknesses. The anchor point devices  100  can also be held in place by forming the opening portion of the anchor point device to include a portion which is sized to be slightly smaller than the thickness of the bill of a typical baseball cap such that the “limbs” defined on either side of the opening are forced to spread slightly and the bill material is forced to “compress” slightly, as each anchor point device  100  is engaged. The resilient strength of the anchor point device limbs under “load”, and friction, will create the holding forces necessary to keep the connected cover support member and cover sheet properly in place during use. Another form of the anchor point devices could utilize bifurcated spring loaded limbs, the holding force of which is created by the strength of the spring and limbs. In these two alternate forms utilizing spring force to grip the hat, the elastic tether and/or pin may not be needed or desired. 
     For all of the illustrated anchor point device receivers ( 111 ,  112 , and  113 ), the receivers are openings into the receiver base material at the desired location. The receiver openings are sized to be slightly smaller than the outside diameter of the covered/coated wire segments (where wire-type connectors or cover support members are used) that are inserted into the receiver openings. The receiver openings may extend only part way into (not all the way through), the receiver base  110 . The cover support member connectors that are to be used for connection of the side/back tubing and the lower face cover support member are installed from the back of the receiver base  110 , oriented to align with the longitudinal axis of the cap (front to back). The cover support member connectors to be used for connection of the upper face cover support member are installed into the front of the receiver base  110 , also oriented in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the cap. 
     The formable wire-type lower face cover support member  101  is preferably covered or coated with a material for the purpose of making the formable wire more convenient and pleasurable to handle. The coating can be of a plastic, rubber, or other flexible synthetic material as desired. In a preferred embodiment, the covering or coating has the longitudinal ribs  139  which create a slightly larger outside diameter. To install this type of lower face cover support member on each anchor point device  100 , the respective end of the coated or covered wire is snugly pressed into the receiver opening. The installation force causes the ribs  139  to compress while being inserted and the compressed ribs help to create the frictional forces which prevent the structure from accidently being removed from the anchor point device. When its use is no longer desired, each wire end is simply physically pulled out of the respective receiver opening. 
     In one preferred embodiment, the structures that hold the upper face and the side/back sheets are made of individual lengths of a flexible tubing (such as tubing  124 ), which are connected at their ends to short segments of covered or coated wire as shown in  FIGS. 17-19 . The covered or coated wire segments are held in place at the ends of the tubing by sliding the segments approximately two to three inches into the open ends of the tubing. The dimensions of the outside diameter of the coated or covered wire, and the inside diameter of the flexible tubing, are such that the tubing/wire connection is tight so as not to be easily separated once installed. To install these tubing-type cover support members on the anchor point devices  100 , the exposed coated or covered wire segments are simply pushed snugly into the respective receiver opening. 
     The cover sheets may comprise a fabric cut into a preferred pattern that, when in use, comfortably conforms to the shape of the body with which it may contact. For instance, the cover sheet material can be shortened over the shoulder area, and lengthened in the front and back areas. For warmth when desired, the forward portions of the side/back cover sheets can be designed so as to wrap across the face/mouth to aid in warmth. 
     To install a cover sheet on the respective cover support member, the sheet material is folded back on itself to form a loop and sewn along the entire top length of the cover sheet. The loop is sized to allow the easy insertion of the cover support member. The cover support members are then inserted into the loop and sheet material is pushed onto the cover support member until the length of the cover sheet is long enough to fully span the length of the cover support member between the two ends of the cover support member. As desired, sufficient cover sheet material is provided between the ends of the cover support member so as to provide a corrugated or “curtain” appearance when in use. The length of the side/back material is such that the cover sheet material may entirely cover the user&#39;s neck. The lower face cover sheet is sufficient in length so as to allow the cover sheet material to be tucked into, or clipped onto, the user&#39;s clothing. By this design, the cover sheet material can be controlled in heavy winds. To prevent the cover sheet material from sliding along the cover support member, the cover sheet material may be held in place by placing a heavy thread through the both the cover sheet material and the cover support member. The thread is tied off which prevents the cover sheet material from sliding relative to the cover support member. This “tie-off” is preferably placed in close proximity to each of the ends of the cover support member. 
     Other embodiments of the present invention may include cover support members which may be directly attached to a hat. In these embodiments, one or more cover support members would be connected at their respective ends with a suitable connecting device such as a suitable clip. The clips could then be separately attached to an edge of the hat. 
     It is also within the scope of this invention that all of the cover support members may be made of a variety of materials, including wire instead of flexible tubing. 
     As indicated in  FIGS. 20-22 , forms of the present invention may include three receivers on a given receiver base, with each receiver comprised of an individual hole drilled entirely through the receiver base and sized in diameter to enable the snug fitting of the cover support member end. By this design, the receiver bases are completely symmetrical and, therefore, can be attached to the cap on either side. In addition, by drilling the receiver holes all the way through the receiver base, the cover support member ends are permitted to extend all the way through the receiver base, thus allowing further adjustment to the cover support member functional dimensions. 
     It is also possible within the scope of the present invention that the side/back cover sheet can be installed without any separate cover support member. In this embodiment, a connector would be attached to the two ends of the cover sheet at the upper edge thereof and the sheet material would then be attached to the receiver bases by way of the connectors. The sheet material length between the connectors would be slightly shorter than the circumference of the hat/head and, therefore, the cover sheet would be held in position by the hat/head. 
     In various embodiments described above two anchor point devices provide the structural support upon which cover support members are connected. The anchor point devices are essentially “blocks” with dimensional grooves (slots), or wire “clips”, sized to snugly receive the lateral edges of the hat bill or brim, and receivers are included to accept the flexible cover support members (tubing or coated/covered bendable wire), which holds the cover sheet material in the desired operating position. 
     In one or more embodiments, the anchor point devices are connected to each other by way of an elastic “tether”  119 . To aid in holding the anchor point devices in position on the bill or brim of a hat, the tether  119  is positioned across the top of the bill or brim so as to provide inward force on the two anchor point devices. The inward force is resisted by the bill of the cap. Beyond the slot or wire clip and the tether, there is no need for other means of temporarily connecting the anchor point devices to the hat, such as hook and loop material, screws, magnets, snaps, buttons, spring clips, or the like, however, any such mechanism may be used if desired. Embodiments of the present invention allow the cover system to be quickly and easily installed on a hat as desired, and quickly and easily removed from the hat when the device is not needed. In addition, this design allows for the cover system to be quickly and easily removed from one hat and placed on another. 
     In one or more embodiments, two individual lengths of flexible tubing act independently as cover support members to which covering sheets may be attached. The individual cover support members fasten to the anchor point devices separately to support the upper face cover material and the side/back cover material. The user can selectively choose to use one or both of the cover support members. 
     In one or more embodiments, the upper face cover support member and the side/back cover support member are comprised of individual lengths of flexible tubing of the desired material, length, and diameter. The ends of the tubing are connected to short segments of a covered or coated bendable wire, and the outer surface of the coated or covered wire has longitudinal “ribs”  139  which will compress to aid in creating a frictional holding force when the ends are attached into the receivers included in the anchor point devices. To connect the tubing to the coated or covered wire segments, the flexible tubing is stretched tightly over a few inches of the covered or coated wire segment. A length of approximately 1 inch of the covered or coated wire segment is left exposed. This portion of the cover support member is the means by which the tubing is connected to the anchor point devices. 
     To attach these tubing-type cover support members to the anchor point devices, the exposed covered or coated wire segment ends are pressed into the respective receivers. The receivers are sized to be slightly smaller in diameter than the covered or coated wire segment outside diameter. When inserted into the receiver opening, the ribs  139  of the coating or covering material are “crushed” to create a “holding” force so the cover support structure does not inadvertently separate from the anchor point device. To remove, the cover support members are simply pulled away from the receivers. 
     When in place, the tubing-type cover support elements serve as flexible “tracks” along which the cover sheets “drape.” For the upper face covering sheet material, once in place, the tubing-type cover support member rests on top of and across the top of the bill of the hat. The upper face cover sheet material that is held by the upper face cover support member drapes along and over the front edge of the bill and hangs in front of, but away from, the face so as to eliminate the uncomfortable feeling, disruption to breathing, disruption to wearing glasses, and providing for improved mosquito protection and for improved access to the mouth for eating/drinking and/or the use of hunting calls, whistling, etc. Because the upper face cover material hangs in front of the face, this material is preferably made of a see-through mosquito-net type fabric. 
     The tubing-type side/back cover support member wraps around the side and back of the head. The tubing length is sized to be slightly smaller than the “circumference” of the hat when being worn. By being sized slightly smaller, the side/back cover support member is supported and held in place by the hat/head. Being made of flexible tubing and fabric, when not in use, the tubing and cover fabric can be easily balled up and placed into one&#39;s pocket for later use. 
     In one or more embodiments, the lower face cover support member is comprised of a formable coated or covered wire. This wire-type cover support member may be attached to the anchor point devices in the same manner as described for the tubing-type cover support members (i.e., with the ends simply pressed into the receiver openings of the anchor point devices). The lower face cover material is draped onto the formable wire structure. The wire/fabric may be formed to the desire of the user, however, in a preferred embodiment the wire is shaped generally so as to create a “football face mask” type appearance. The top edge of the lower face wire-type cover support member is generally aligned to be at the bottom of the user&#39;s eye line. Formed in this manner, the lower face cover sheet material provides camouflage to the face, while being held away from the face in order to eliminate the discomfort caused by the contact with the skin. By resting below the user&#39;s line of sight, the user&#39;s vision is unobstructed. The amount of opening allowed for viewing is fully adjustable to the user&#39;s desire simply by forming the shape of the wire structure to allow more or less opening, as desired. 
     The material that may be used for the cover material sheets include a variety of materials depending on the intended use. For use as a face and head covering for hunting, bird watching or similar, the material could be a fabric in a camouflage pattern so as to blend into the natural cover conditions. For warmth, the materials could be of a heavier fabric (e.g., fleece, wool, fur, etc.). For coolness, the cover sheet materials could be lighter (e.g., cotton, netting, etc.). In addition, the cover sheet materials may be double printed, or two materials could be sewn together, so as to be reversible to give the user a choice with regard to the type of material, or pattern displayed, on the inside versus outside of the cover system. 
     The lower face cover material could be a heavier weight, non-see through material so as to provide additional camouflage or warmth, and/or minimize movement of the material in the wind. Because the lower face cover support member preferably comprises a formable wire structure designed to rest below the eye line of the user, the user&#39;s view remains unobstructed when only the lower face cover material is in use. Of course, in hot weather, a user could also use a lighter weight, or even see-through material, for the lower face covering if such was desired. When it is periodically desired to no longer use the lower face covering, the material may simply be lifted up and over the bill of the cap, and the cap positioned upward as necessary so as to move the lower face cover material and wire structure to a point above the eye line of the user. Alternatively, the formable wire structure and lower face cover material may be bent downward so as to remove the wire/cover material structure from the front of the face. 
     The upper face cover material may comprise relatively light-weight, see-through material such that the user&#39;s vision is not disrupted when the material is in use. The upper face cover material may be used when the user needs protection from flying/biting insects, or when the user anticipates coming into very close range of his game, at which time additional camouflage of the face may be preferred. To place the upper face covering into use, the user simply lowers the upper cover material down from the top of the hat. When no longer needed, the cover material is lifted and placed back to rest on top of the cap. 
     Like the lower face cover material, the side/back cover material could be of a heavier non-see through material (e.g., flannel, wool, etc.), for instances of cold weather where additional warmth is desired, or it could be of a lighter weight see-through material, for instances where additional air flow is desired. To use the side/back cover material, the cover material support member is placed onto the anchor point devices as described previously, and the cover material is allowed to fall along the user&#39;s side and back of the head. When its use is no longer desired, the side/back cover support member is removed from the receivers and the device can be balled up and conveniently stored in the user&#39;s pocket or other desired location. 
     In addition to using different types of materials, as described above, because the three covering structures are constructed and used independently of each other, each can be covered with a different patterned material. For instance, the upper face cover could utilize a mosquito netting, the lower face cover could be of a green-based camouflage pattern, and the side/back cover could be of a brown-based camouflage. In addition, the lower face and side/back covers could be printed differently on each side of the material such that, by simply removing and inverting the cover material, the opposite side of the cover material would be displayed. For instance, while turkey hunting, one side of the cover material could be in green camouflage pattern for the spring hunting season, and the other side could be in a Hunter&#39;s safety orange camouflage pattern. While walking to the blind, for safety purposes, the hunter could choose to display the orange side of the cover material so as not to be mistaken as game by other others in the area. Then after reaching the blind, the hunter could quickly and easily invert the lower face and side/back covers so as to hide the Orange and display the Green camouflage. Alternatively, for the recreational version, one material pattern may display a Christmas theme (e.g., Christmas colors), while the other material displays a New Year&#39;s Eve theme (e.g., fireworks). 
     In a recreational version of the device, the cover sheets could be made of a wider variety of materials, including a thin polyfoam, a heavy fabric (e.g., wool, flannel, etc.), or other material. The greater degree of variability in materials for the recreational version is due to the fact that attendance at a sporting event, or other recreational event, does not have the same degree of use considerations (e.g., aiming and shooting a rifle, the greater need for mosquito protection, etc.). One version of the side/back cover material could use a camouflage pattern on one side, and the user&#39;s favorite football team colors on the other side. When hunting, the device would display the camouflage pattern and while attending the football game the device would be constructed so as to display the colored side. 
     By constructing the cover support members and cover sheet materials as three separate pieces (i.e., upper face, lower face, and side/back), disruption to the side/back covering does not occur when lifting the separate face cover material. This makes moving the face cover material up and over the bill of the hat, or downward, easier than if the material was a single piece wrapping the sides and front of the user&#39;s head. As stated previously, this method of design and construction also allows for the use of different cover materials for the three different covering structures, as well as the option to use only the upper face, the lower face, the side/back covers, or all three at the same time. 
     As used herein, whether in the above description or the following claims, the terms “comprising,” “including,” “carrying,” “having,” “containing,” “involving,” and the like are to be understood to be open-ended, that is, to mean including but not limited to. Any use of ordinal terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” etc., in the claims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote any priority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another, or the temporal order in which acts of a method are performed. Rather, unless specifically stated otherwise, such ordinal terms are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having a certain name from another element having a same name (but for use of the ordinal term). 
     The above described preferred embodiments are intended to illustrate the principles of the invention, but not to limit the scope of the invention. Various other embodiments and modifications to these preferred embodiments may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention.