Patent Publication Number: US-2011072547-A1

Title: Protective Headwear

Description:
This application claims the benefit of priority from provisional Patent application No. 61/239,580 filed Sep. 3, 2009, the contents of which are incorporated herein in its entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     The following information is provided to assist the reader in understanding the technology, including protective headwear and related systems, devices and/or methods, disclosed below and the environment in which such protective headwear or related systems, devices and/or methods will typically be used. The terms used herein are not intended to be limited to any particular narrow interpretation unless clearly stated otherwise in this document. References set forth herein may facilitate understanding of the technology or the background. The disclosure of all references cited herein are incorporated by reference. 
     Protective headwear or helmets have been used in many environments to protect users from injury. For example, military and police helmets often include outer shells fabricated from ballistic resistant materials such as KEVLAR® materials available from DuPont. A webbing system is sometimes provided to suspend a helmet shell on the wearer&#39;s head. In a number of helmets, the suspension system is formed by moveable pads of different shapes and sizes that are positionable within the helmet in a configuration determined by the user (in accordance with the manufacturer&#39;s recommendation). Such a padding system is, for example, described in US Published Patent Application No. 2006/0260026, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     As illustrated in  FIGS. 1A through 1C  some helmets  100  such as the MSA Advanced Combat Helmet available from Mine Safety Appliances Company of Pittsburgh, Pa. are provided with a retention system or chinstrap system  110  that is attached to helmet shell  120  via bolts  130  which pass through helmet shell  120  and cooperate with nuts  132  (see  FIG. 1C ), Retention system  110  assists in properly retaining helmet  100  on the user&#39;s head. A thin, rubber edge trim or guard  140  surrounds the bottom edge of helmet shell  120  to protect and provide a finished surface to the bottom edge of helmet shell  120 . Accessories such as eyewear retention straps, lights and/or other accessories can also be attached to such helmets via bolts passing through helmet shell  120 . If bolts  130  and/or other bolts become loose or are lost in the field, it can be difficult to make adjustments or repairs in the field (particularly under battle conditions). Even if a repair can be made, such repairs are often made incorrectly (for example, using substitute hardware that may be incorrectly sized). If a repair is not made or made incorrectly, the helmet may not be correctly retained and/or positioned on the head of the user, resulting in increased risk of injury. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1C , specialized equipment may also be necessary for such adjustments or repairs. Moreover, great care must be taken during manufacture to ensure ballistic and/or structural integrity of helmet shell  120  in the areas through which bolts  130  pass. In that regard, drilling holes through helmet shell  120  can result in delamination of helmet shell  120  (which is typically formed from a plurality of layers of ballistic resistant materials) or weakening in the area of the holes. 
     The metal of bolts  130  can also present a danger. For example, if a primary projectile/bullet strikes one of bolts  130 , the projectile can fragment resulting in a shrapnel danger to the user of helmet  100  and individuals surrounding the user. Moreover, bolt  130  can fragment, resulting in a dangerous secondary projectiles. 
     It is desirable to develop protective headwear or helmets (or related systems, devices and/or methods) that reduce or eliminate problems associated with currently available protective headwear or helmets and/or otherwise provide improved performance. 
     SUMMARY 
     In one aspect, a helmet includes a shell having a lower edge, and an edge support extending around the lower edge of the shell. The edge support has a greater structural rigidity than the shell. The helmet can further include a retention strap system, and the edge support can include at least one attachment to attach the retention strap system to the helmet. The attachment can, for example, include a seating, and the helmet can, for example, further include an abutment member removably seatable within the seating. The abutment member can be attachable to a strap of the retention strap system. 
     The edge support can include a plurality attachments, wherein each of the attachments includes a seating, and the helmet can further include a plurality of abutment members. Each abutment member can, for example, be removably seatable within one of the seatings. Each abutment member can be attachable to one strap of the retention strap system. 
     Each of the abutment members can, for example, be designed to fail under load before the edge support fails. 
     Each of the attachments can, for example, include an opening in a lower portion thereof which is adapted to pass one strap of the retention strap system therethrough before the one strap is attached to one of the abutment members. The attachments can, for example, be positioned on an inner side of the edge support. 
     The helmet can further include at least one connector on an outer side of the edge support to attach an article to the helmet. 
     The edge support can, for example, be formed separately from the shell and be attached to the lower edge. 
     The edge support can, for example, be molded from a monolithic piece of polymeric material. 
     The shell can, for example, be formed of ballistic resistant material. The shell can be formed to include no passages therethrough. 
     The material for the edge support can, for example, have an Izod impact strength of at least 10 ft-lb/in, at least 20 ft-lb/in, at least 30 ft-lb/in, at least 35 ft-lb/in or higher. The material for the edge support can, for example, have a tensile modulus of at least 650,000 psi, at least 800,000 psi, at least 1,000,000 psi, at least 1,200,000, at least 1,300,000 psi or even higher. The material for the edge support can, for example, have a flexural modulus of at least 500,000 psi, at least 700,000 psi, at least 1,000,000 psi, at least 1,100,000 psi or even higher. The material for the edge support can, for example, have a flexural strength of at least 20,000 psi, at least 24,000 psi, at least 30,000 psi, at least 35,000, at least 37,000 psi or even higher. In several embodiments, the edge support was formed from glass—(that is, glass fiber- or fiberglass-) filled nylon having various weight percent of glass fill. In a number of embodiments, 30% glass-filled nylon was, for example, used for the edge support. 
     The edge support can, for example, be formed from a material having an Izod impact strength of at least 30 ft-lb/in 2 , a tensile modulus of at least 800,000 psi, a flexural modulus of at least 700,000 psi, and a flexural strength of at least 24,000 psi. The edge support can also be formed from a material having an Izod impact strength of at least 35 ft-lb/in 2 , a tensile modulus of at least 1,200,000 psi, a flexural modulus of at least 1,100,000 psi, and a flexural strength of at least 35,000 psi. The material for the edge support can, for example, be a glass-filled nylon such as a glass-filled nylon having at least 30% by weight glass fill. 
     In another aspect, a helmet includes a shell having a lower edge, and an edge support extending around the lower edge of the shell. The edge support includes a first or inner member or wall extending around an inner wall of the shell and a second or outer member or wall extending around an outer wall of the shell. The inner wall of the edge support includes a plurality of attachments to which a retention strap system is connected. The outer wall includes at least one connector for attachment of an article to the helmet. The shell can, for example, be formed of ballistic resistant material. The shell can, for example, be formed to include no passages therethrough. 
     In a further aspect, a helmet includes a shell having a lower edge, and an edge support extending around the lower edge of the shell. The edge support includes an inner wall extending around an inner wall of the shell and an outer wall extending around an outer wall of the shell. The inner wall of the edge support includes a plurality of attachments to which a retention strap system is connected. 
     The protective headwear or helmets, as well as related systems, devices and/or methods, along with the attributes and attendant advantages thereof, will best be appreciated and understood in view of the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1A  illustrates a bottom view of a currently available combat helmet. 
         FIG. 1B  illustrates a side view of the helmet of  FIG. 1A . 
         FIG. 1C  illustrates the procedure for attaching the retention strap system of the helmet of  FIG. 1A  to the helmet shell. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates a perspective of a protective helmet described herein. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates a perspective, exploded or disassembled view of the helmet of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4A  illustrates a bottom view of the helmet of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4B  illustrates a side view of the helmet of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4C  illustrates another perspective view of the helmet of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4D  illustrates an enlarged, perspective view of the circled portion of  FIG. 4C . 
         FIG. 5A  illustrates a perspective view of the edge trim or guard of the helmet of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 5B  illustrates an enlarged perspective view of the encircled portion of the edge trim of  FIG. 5A . 
         FIG. 6  illustrates a top plan view of the edge trim. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     As used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an”, and “the” include plural references unless the content clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “an abutment member” includes a plurality of such abutment members and equivalents thereof known to those skilled in the art, and so forth, and reference to “the abutment member” is a reference to one or more such abutment members and equivalents thereof known to those skilled in the art, and so forth. 
       FIGS. 2 through 4D  illustrate a protective helmet  200  including a generally dome-shaped helmet shell  210  and an edge trim  240  extending around a lower edge of helmet shell  200 . The helmet suspension is shown in  FIG. 4A , and can, for example, include pads  212  of a comfort padding system similar to or the same as that described in US Published Patent Application No. 2006/0260026. 
     Unlike edge trims on currently available helmets, edge trim  240  not only provides a finished surface to the bottom of helmet shell  210 , but also adds structural rigidity to helmet shell  210  under, for example, side or front/back compression. Use of structural supporting helmet base or edge support  240 , which can for example, be fabricated from high-strength, impact resistant polymeric material such as glass-filled or carbon-filled nylon, enables the use of a greater variety of materials for helmet shell  210  than is possible with currently available helmets. In that regard, the material for helmet shell  210  can, for example, have less structural strength than required of the materials for helmet shells of currently available helmets. In several embodiments, edge support  240  has greater structural rigidity than shell  210 . The material or materials for helmet shell  210  can, for example, be chosen to provide greater ballistic protection, to reduce weight and/or to reduce manufacturing costs as compared to helmet shell materials used in currently available helmets. Suitable materials for helmet shell  210  include, but are not limited to, “aramid” (which is short for aromatic polyamide) materials and ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene materials. Examples of suitable aramid materials include (i) KEVLAR® ballistic grade fibers/fabrics (formed from para-aramid synthetic fibers) available from E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company of Wilmington, Del. USA, (ii) GOLD FLEX® material, which is a roll product including four plies of unidirectional aramid fiber available from Honeywell, and (iii) TWARON® woven fabric (poly-paraphenylene terephthalamide) available from Teijin Aramid BV of Arnhem, The Netherlands. An example of a suitable ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene material is DYNEEMA® composite material available from DSM Dyneema of Geleen, The Netherlands. In several representative embodiments, ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene materials were used for helmet shell  210 . Helmet shell  210  can, for example, be formed in a mold from a plurality of layers of ballistic resistant materials. 
     The material for edge support  240  can, for example, have an Izod impact strength of at least 10 ft-lb/in, at least 20 ft-lb/in, at least 30 ft-lb/in, at least 35 ft-lb/in or higher. The material for edge support  240  can, for example, have a tensile modulus of at least 650,000 psi, at least 800,000 psi, at least 1,000,000 psi, at least 1,200,000, at least 1,300,000 psi or even higher. The material for edge support  240  can, for example, have a flexural modulus of at least 500,000 psi, at least 700,000 psi, at least 1,000,000 psi, at least 1,100,000 psi or even higher. The material for edge support  240  can, for example, have a flexural strength of at least 20,000 psi, at least 24,000 psi, at least 30,000 psi, at least 35,000, at least 37,000 psi or even higher. In several representative embodiments, edge support  240  was formed from glass-filled nylon having various weight percent of glass fill as set forth in Table 1 below. In a number of representative embodiment, 30% glass-filled nylon was, for example, used for edge support  240  with good results. 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 1 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                   
                 Glass fill % (by weight) 
                 15 
                 30 
                 40 
               
               
                   
                 Izod impact strength (psi) 
                 21 
                 38 
                 40 
               
               
                   
                 Tensile modulus (psi) 
                 810,000 
                 1,300,000 
                 1,620,000 
               
               
                   
                 Flexural modulus (psi) 
                 710,000 
                 1,160,000 
                 1,510,000 
               
               
                   
                 Flexural strength (psi) 
                 24,5000 
                 37,000 
                 40,600 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     Increased durability of the material for edge support  240  as compared to edge trims of currently available helmets (which are typically formed from rubber materials), also reduces the risk of delamination and/or other degradation as a result of infiltration of contaminant(s) into ballistic helmet shell  210  via the exposed lower edge thereof. Edge support  240  can also increase overall ballistic performance of helmet shell  210  by restricting movement of the shell near the lower end or edge thereof (for example, by constricting fiber movement of certain ballistic materials). 
     In the illustrated embodiment, edge support  240  has a generally U-shaped cross section dimensioned to seat or encompass the lower edge of helmet shell  210 . Edge trim  240  is show disconnected from helmet shell  210  in  FIGS. 5A through 6 . In that regard, edge support  240  includes an inner wall or abutment surface  242 , an outer wall or abutment surface  244  and a lower, transverse member or abutment surface  246  extending between and connecting inner wall  242  and outer wall  244 . As used here, terms such as “front”, “back”, “inner”, “outer”, “upper”, “lower”, and like terms refer to an orientation of helmet  200  (and components thereof) as worn by a user in an upright position. In several embodiments, edge support  240  is permanently attached to the lower edge of helmet shell  220  via, for example, an adhesive. 
     In addition to providing structural support to helmet shell  210 , edge support  240  can also be provided with attachments  250  formed on inner wall  242  to, for example, attach a retention strap or chin strap system or assembly  300 . In several embodiments, attachments  250  are formed as pockets or seatings into which an abutment member  310 , which is attached to one of four strap ends  320 , is slidably positionable. In that regard, strap end  320  is passed through an opening  252  in a lower end of attachment  250  and abutment member  310  is passed through a loop  322  formed at the end of strap end  320 . Strap end  320  is seated in a generally central region or notch  312  formed in abutment member  310 . The strap end/abutment member assembly is then slid into attachment  250  until the lower surface of abutment member  310  abuts a lower surface of attachment  250  on each side of abutment member  310 . 
     Abutment members  310 , which can be formed from a polymeric material such as nylon, are designed to fail under a certain load, before any damage to edge support  240  or to strap end  320 . Further, upon failure, an abutment member or members  310  is easily replaced in the field using the procedures described in the previous paragraph without the use of special tools. Previously available chin strap assemblies, which are attached via bolts passing through the helmet shell, have sometimes failed as a result of one or more bolts coming loose, requiring specialized tools to fix the problem as illustrated in  FIG. 1C . These specialized tools are not always available in the field. 
     In general, abutment members  310  and attachments  250  also require fewer parts than previous assemblies in which bolts have been used. The components of the system of  FIGS. 2-5  of the present invention are also less costly and less labor intensive to assemble than currently available systems. Likewise, there is less risk of incorrect assembly when field repairs and assembly are required. 
     An adjustment system such as a buckle  330  is attached to a lower end of each strap end  320  to cooperate with and attach to an upper strap end  342  of a lower portion  340  of strap system  300 , which cooperates with the user&#39;s head as known in the art. 
     As illustrated, for example, in  FIGS. 2 through 4C , outer wall  244  can include connectors  260  for attachment of various head-borne equipment and/or accoutrements. In the illustrated embodiment, two eyewear retention straps  400  are shown attached to two connectors  260  on a rearward end of edge guard  240 . The strap of goggles (not shown) can, for example, be passed through an upper loop  410  formed in holders  400 . In the illustrated embodiment, holders  400  are attached to connectors  400  via a lower loop  420 , which surrounds connector  260 , and is formed using a snap  430 . Various connectors or holders (not shown) can be attached to connector  260  to attach any number of items to helmet  200 . 
     Edge support  240  can, for example, be molded (for example, injected molded) separately from helmet shell  210  from a polymeric or polymeric composite (for example, glass-filled nylon) material as a monolithic, single piece. After formation of edge support  240 , edge support  240  can be attached to helmet shell  210  in any suitable manner such as by an adhesive. 
     The use of edge support  240  eliminates the requirement to form (for example, drill) holes or passages in helmet shell  210  and to pass connectors such as bolts  130  of  FIGS. 1A and 1B  through such passages in the helmet shell to attach retention strap systems and/or other equipment to helmet  200 . Edge support  240  thereby eliminates problems associated with maintaining ballistic and/or structural integrity of the helmet shell in the vicinity of such pass-through connectors. 
     The foregoing description and accompanying drawings set forth representative embodiments of technology, including protective headwear or helmets, as well as related systems, devices and/or methods. Various modifications, additions and alternative designs will, of course, become apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing teachings without departing from the scope hereof, which is indicated by the following claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes and variations that fall within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.