Patent Publication Number: US-2023136136-A1

Title: Protective helmet with a shell and a movable visor

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The invention relates to a protective helmet with a shell and with a movable visor. The visor is movable between a first position, in which the visor at least partially covers an open facial region of the shell into at least one second position, in which the visor lies on the shell substantially outside of the open facial region of the shell. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     Protection helmets for different kinds of activities, mainly sports and leisure activities, are known, such as bicycle and ski helmets. In recent years, protective helmets with visors gained in popularity, since such protective helmets are more convenient to use, as the eye protection may not be forgotten and there is a perfect mechanical and optical match between helmet and visor. 
     In order to connect a visor to a shell of a protective helmet different systems are known in the art. One example of such a system is the use of snap-fit elements which allow a releasable connection between a visor and a shell of a protective helmet. Further, some protective helmets use a system where brackets extending from the visor are slid into corresponding receptacles of the shell. While such an arrangement is simple, the attachment of the visor to the shell may be cumbersome and there is no possibility to store the visor on the shell when no eye protection is needed. 
     Another possibility is the use of magnets to keep a visor removably attached to a shell of a protective helmet. By inverting the visor it is possible to put the visor into a storage position if no eye protection is needed. However, is such systems the visor is not securely affixed to the shell of the helmet and may therefore be lost. Further, finding of the right position may be difficult, as such a system does not provide a guidance when moving the visor from a use position into the storage position. 
     A further solution is the use of pivot joints which connect a visor to a shell of a helmet. Pivot joints are commonly used in motorcycle helmets and are also found in many bicycle and ski helmets. While the movement of the visor is quite easy and there is no risk of losing the visor, the use of pivot joints make the protective helmet look rather bulky. Further, the clearance between the visor and a face of a user may not be adapted, such that the use of corrective glasses together with the protective helmet is sometimes difficult or even impossible. 
     Another solution is the use of elastic bands to connect a visor to a shell of a protective helmet. Such systems are for example described in patent applications DE 10 2013 209 564 and EP 3 169 174. Such systems have the disadvantage that the elastic bands reach their maximum tension during the transition between a riding position and a storage position of the visor, such that almost no reliable guidance may be provided for a user to find the storage or riding position of the visor. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the object of the invention to create a protective helmet pertaining to the technical field initially mentioned which allows for an easy transition of the visor between a riding position and a storage position. 
     The solution of the invention is specified by the features of claim  1 . According to the invention the protective helmet comprises a shell with an open facial region and a movable visor. The visor is movable between a first position, in which the visor at least partially covers said open facial region and at least one second position, in which said visor lies on said shell substantially outside of the open facial region. The visor comprises at least one first element of a detachable fastening means arranged on an edge of the visor. The shell comprises at least two second elements of the detachable fastening means arranged on the shell such that each of said second elements of the detachable fastening means may hold the visor in said first and said at least one second position, respectively, by forming a releasable connection with the first element of the detachable fastening means arranged on said visor. The visor is further attached to the shell by means of at least two flexible elements which are arranged on two opposing lateral sides of the visor. 
     The use of at least two second elements of the detachable fastening means allows for a secure removable connection of the visor in a first position, which preferably is a riding position where the visor covers a face of a user at least partially, and the at least one second position, which preferably is a storage position of the visor. Further, the use of the two flexible elements on the two opposing lateral sides of the visor provides for a reliable guidance during the movement of the visor, i.e. the transition between the first position and the at least one second position. Thus, a user of the protective helmet may very easily and reliably move the visor. Further, the two flexible elements attach the visor to the shell of the helmet such that the visor is not lost. 
     The protective helmet according to the present invention preferably is a protective helmet for a sports activity. More preferably, the protective helmet according to the present invention is a bicycle or ski helmet. However, the protective helmet according to the present invention may also be any further kind of protective helmet, such as e.g. a climbing helmet, motorcycle helmet or a professional protective helmet, such as a hard hat used on construction sites. The shell and the visor of the protective helmet are therefore shaped and sized according to the intended use of the protective helmet. 
     The shell has an inside which is formed to conform to the top of a head. The shell preferably comprises an outside layer of a rigid polymer, such as a thermoplast, as well as at least one inner layer of a foam material, such as expanded polystyrene (EPS) or expanded polypropylene (EPP). Preferably, the shell comprises further cushioning elements on the inside, such as foam pads or the like. 
     The shell may feature a closed outside surface. Preferably, however, the shell comprises several openings to allow air circulation and reduction of weight. The shell preferably further comprises means to be securely and removably attached on a head of a person, such as flexible bands with a buckle. 
     The shell is formed and dimensioned such that the shell protects substantially the entire top of a head of a user. The open facial region of the shell lies in the region of the face of the user when the protective helmet is used as intended such that the face, especially the eyes of the user are not covered by the shell. 
     The visor comprises a pane of transparent material, preferably made of a resilient polymer, such as e.g. polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA). In the first position, the visor at least partially covers the open facial region. This means that the visor at least partially covers and thus protects the face of the user of the protective helmet, especially the eyes, when the visor is in the first position. The term “partially” is understood herein as meaning that at least 30% of the surface of the open facial region of the shell is covered by the visor. 
     Preferably, the visor covers the entire open facial region of the shell in the first position. In some preferred embodiments, the visor additionally extends beyond the open facial region of the shell, preferably in a downward direction when the protective helmet is worn by a user, such that almost the entire face of the user is covered by the visor when the visor is in the first position. 
     In the second position the visor lies substantially outside of the open facial region. This means that less than 20% of the surface of the open facial region of the shell is covered by the visor. Preferably, the visor covers less than 10%, even more preferably less than 5% of the surface of the open facial region in said second position. Most preferably, the visor lies completely outside of the open facial region in the second position. 
     The detachable fastening means comprises first and second elements, which interact with each other in order to form a detachable connection. The detachable connection is strong enough to hold the visor in the first and the at least one second position. This means that the detachable connection is at least strong enough to hold the weight of the visor. Due to the fact that in some cases the helmet is temporarily stored by suspending it from the visor, it is preferable if the detachable connection is strong enough to hold the weight of the helmet. Preferably, the detachable connection also is able to withstand higher forces which may arise during the use of the protective helmet, e.g. by wind blowing onto said visor. 
     Preferably, all the first elements and all the second elements of the detachable fastening means are of a different kind, i.e. the first elements are of a first kind and the second elements are of a second kind, said first and said second kind interacting with each other in order to form the detachable fastening means. However, in certain embodiments, all of the first as well as all of the second elements of the detachable fastening means are of the same kind, i.e. all elements are identical. In this case the elements are shaped and dimensioned such that each element may form a detachable connection with any other element. In a further preferred embodiment, the first elements and the second elements are of a first and of a second kind, said first and said second kind interacting with each other in order to form the detachable fastening means, wherein a pre-determined number of both the first and the second elements are of the first kind and the reminder of the first and of the second elements are of the second kind. In this case, preferably, half of the first and second elements are of the first kind. The arrangement of the first and second kind of the first and second elements on the visor and on the shell may be selected such that the visor may be held in the first position only in one orientation, in this embodiment. 
     The detachable connection may be of the adhesion type or of the form-fit type. For example, a connection of the adhesion type may be realized by adhesive or magnetic forces between the first and second elements. Examples of form-fit type connections are hook-and-loop fasteners or snap fasteners. 
     Irrespective of the type of releasable connection used, the first element should be easily detachable from any second element by a user without the use of excessive force or tools. This means that the detachable fastening means allows a user to connect and detach a first element with a second element by hand. 
     In some embodiments, the visor may be moved to two or more different second positions. This allows putting the visor into two or more storage positions. The number of second elements of the releasable fastening means is thereby chosen according to the number of second positions. 
     In order to increase the strength of the connection, more than one first element of the detachable fastening means may be present on the visor and more than one second element of the detachable fastening means may be present on the shell to hold the visor in the first position and each of the at least one second position. 
     The visor preferably has a roughly longitudinal shape with two lateral sides and with an upper and a lower side. The upper and lower sides are longer than the lateral sides. The upper and lower side are preferably curved such that the visor has a curvature which conforms to the curvature of a human face. Typically, the visor abuts a rim of the shell at least with its upper side when the visor is in the first position. The lateral sides may be straight, but preferably the lateral sides of the visor have at least one bend, i.e. are not straight. Hence, the overall shape of the visor preferably is polygonal. Further preferably, the lower side comprises a curved or bent section which serves as clearance for a nose of a user of the helmet when the visor is in the first position. 
     The at least two flexible elements have a length which allows an unhindered movement of the visor between the first position and the at least one second position. However, the length of the at least two flexible elements is chosen such that the visor may not be moved too far from the shell. With this configuration, the at least two flexible elements serve as guides during the movement of the visor from the first position into the at least one second position, and vice versa. A user of the helmet thus has no difficulty to bring the visor into any of the first and at least one second position and to connect the at least one first element of the detachable fastening means with the at least one second element corresponding to the respective position. 
     Further, the at least two flexible elements also serve as additional attachment of the visor to the shell, such that the visor is not lost even in the case when the at least one first element of the releasable fastening means is inadvertently detached from the at least one second element. 
     Preferably, the protective helmet comprises two flexible elements. Alternatively, however, the protective helmet may comprise more than two flexible elements, especially four, six or more flexible elements. The flexible elements are preferably arranged in a symmetrical fashion on the visor relative to a symmetry axis dissecting the upper and lower sides of the visor in the middle. 
     The at least two flexible elements are each preferably equally flexible in all directions. 
     Preferably, the two flexible elements are two distinct elements which are each affixed to the visor and to the shell separately. Alternatively, however, the two flexible elements may constitute parts of a single flexible member which is partly arranged within the shell or the visor and which has two ends which are affixed to the visor or the shell, respectively. 
     Preferably, the at least two flexible elements are made of a non-elastic material. This enhances the guiding effect of the two flexible elements when moving the visor between the first position and the at least one second position. Generally, flexible elements made of a non-elastic material will be untensioned when the visor is in the first or second position, respectively, in order to allow easy manipulation of the visor. 
     However, in certain embodiments, an elastic material may be used for the at least two flexible elements. 
     Preferably, the at least two flexible elements are strings, ropes, cables or straps. The at least two flexible elements are preferably made of strands of natural or synthetic fibres which are twisted or woven together in order to form a string, rope or strap. Further, the at least two flexible elements may be made of several strands of thin metal wire twisted into a helix to form a cable. Further, the at least two flexible elements may also be made of a single strand of polymer which is extruded into a string or strap. 
     Preferably, said at least one first element and said at least two second elements of the detachable fastening means are magnets or a magnet and a ferromagnetic element. The use of magnets or a combination of magnet and ferromagnetic element provides for a very convenient, durable and simple detachable fastening means. 
     In the case that magnets are used, magnets used as the at least one first element and the at least two second elements have to be oriented such that their respective polarity allows for a connection of the visor with the shell in the first and the at least one second positions. 
     In the case that a combination of magnet and ferromagnetic element is used, the orientation of the magnet does not play a role. In this case, however, preferably all of the first elements present have to be either a magnet or a ferromagnetic element. The second elements are chosen accordingly, i.e. the at least two second elements are ferromagnetic elements in the case that the at least one first element is a magnet and vice versa. 
     The at least two second elements of the releasable fastening means preferably are magnets or ferromagnetic elements which are embedded in the shell. By embedding the at least two second elements into the shell it is possible to obtain a smooth surface of the shell. This inter alia improves the optical appearance of the protective helmet. 
     Preferably, the visor comprises two first elements of the detachable fastening means, said two first elements being arranged on opposite lateral edges of the visor. In this case, the shell comprises at least two pairs of second elements of the detachable fastening means, said at least two pairs of second elements being arranged on the shell such that a first pair of said at least two pairs of the second elements may form a releasable connection with the two first elements arranged on said visor when said visor is in the first position, and at least one second pair of said at least two pairs of second elements may form a releasable connection with the two first elements arranged on said visor when said visor is in the second position. 
     Such a configuration results in an increase of the holding force of the detachable fastening means, i.e. the visor is more securely held to the shell in the first and the at least one second position. Additionally, the arrangement of the two first elements on the lateral edges of the visor prevents the visor from being rotated. 
     The visor preferably comprises two additional first elements of the detachable fastening means arranged on an upper side of the visor, wherein the shell comprises two additional pairs of second elements of the detachable fastening means arranged on the shell, said at least two additional pairs of second elements being arranged on the shell such that a first additional pair of said at least two additional pairs of the second elements may form a releasable connection with the two additional first elements arranged on said visor when said visor is in the first position, and at least one second additional pair of said at least two additional pairs of second elements may form a releasable connection with the two additional first elements arranged on said visor when said visor is in the second position. 
     With such a configuration the holding force may be further increased. The upper side of the visor is the side which contacts an edge of the shell in the first position, i.e. the side of the visor which is directed upwards when the protective helmet is worn by a user. 
     Preferably, the visor comprises at least one first form-fit element and the shell comprises at least one second form-fit element, said at least one first form-fit element and said at least one second form-fit element being shaped and dimensioned such as to engage into a positive lock when the visor is in said first position. 
     Such an arrangement helps a user to find the first position when moving the visor from the at least one second position into the first position, as the correct placement of the visor in said first position is indicated by the positive engagement of the at least one first form-fit element with the at least one second form-fit element. 
     Preferably, said at least one first form-fit element is a bulge and said at least one second form-fit element is a notch, or vice versa, said bulge and notch being shaped and dimensioned to snuggly fit into each other. The bulge and notch are preferably in the shape of a cuboid, especially with rounded edges and corners. However, the bulge and notch may also be in any other shape, such as e.g. pyramidal or spherical. Further, the at least one first form-fit element and the at least one second form-fit element may also have another configuration as the aforementioned bulge and notch, as long as a positive lock may be established between the at least one first form-fit element and the at least one second form-fit element. 
     Preferably, the at least two flexible elements are removably connected to the shell and/or to the visor. This allows to replace the visor or shell independently, e.g. in the case of damages. 
     The at least two flexible elements preferably are each connected at one end to an anchoring element, said anchoring element being removably connected to the shell or to the visor. 
     The anchoring element preferably comprises a form-fit structure which allows the anchoring element to engage into a form-fit connection with a connection area of the shell, which preferably has a complementary form-fit structure. Suitable form-fit structures are e.g. hook-and-loop fasteners, snap fasteners or snap fits. Alternatively, the anchoring element may also be removably connected to the shell by means of a force-fit connection. 
     The present application also relates to a shell for a protective helmet, preferably a protective helmet as described above. The protective helmet has an open facial region which may at least be partially covered by a visor. The shell comprises two connection areas which may each be removably connected with an anchoring element through a form-fit or force-fit connection. Alternatively, the shell comprises at least two flexible elements, each having a first end and a second end, said two flexible elements being each permanently affixed on the shell at the first end and which each comprise an anchoring element at the second end. In the latter case, the anchoring element may be removably connected to the visor of the helmet by means of a form-fit or a force-fit connection. 
     The present application further relates to a visor for a protective helmet, preferably a protective helmet as described above. The visor comprises two flexible elements which are permanently affixed to the visor on two opposing lateral sides of the visor at a first end, said two flexible elements each comprising an anchoring element at a second end. Alternatively, the visor comprises two connection areas arranged on two opposing lateral sides of the visor, said connection areas being able to be removably connected each with an anchoring element by means of a form-fit or force-fit connection. 
     Other advantageous embodiments and combinations of features come out from the detailed description below and the entirety of the claims. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The drawings used to explain the embodiments show: 
         FIG.  1    an exploded view of an embodiment of a protective helmet according to the present invention; 
         FIG.  2    the protective helmet of  FIG.  1    where the visor is in the first position; 
         FIG.  3    a transition of the visor from the first position to the second position; 
         FIG.  4    the protective helmet according to  FIG.  1    where the visor is in the second position; 
         FIG.  5    a longitudinal cut of the protective helmet according to  FIG.  1   . 
     
    
    
     In the figures, the same components are given the same reference symbols. 
     PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       FIG.  1    shows an exploded view of an embodiment of a protective helmet  1  according to the present invention. The protective helmet  1  comprises a shell  2  as well as a visor  3  which is movable from a first position (see  FIG.  2   ) to at least one second position (see  FIG.  4   ). The shell  2  comprises a rigid outer layer as well as a dampening layer made of foam material which protects the head of a user of the protective helmet  1  from strokes. The shell  2  is formed and dimensioned such as to provide an optimal protection for the head of the user. The protective helmet  1  as shown in  FIG.  1    is designed as bicycle helmet. However a protective helmet  1  according to the present invention may also be designed to protect a user in different activities, such as climbing, skiing or motorcycling. In the first position, the visor  3  covers the face of the user at least partially and the eyes completely. The first position may therefore also be called riding position. 
     The shell  2  has an open facial region  8  which is at least partially covered by the visor  3  when said visor  3  is in the first position. The visor  2  comprises a frame  4  as well as a pane of transparent material  5  which is rigidly attached to the frame  4 . The frame  4  comprises a first pair of first elements  10 . 1 ,  10 . 2  of a detachable fastening means. Each element of the first pair of first elements  10 . 1 ,  10 . 2  is arranged on opposing lateral sides  6 . 1 ,  6 . 2  of the frame. Further, the frame  4  includes an additional pair of first elements  10 . 3 ,  10 . 4  which are also embedded in the frame  4  on an upper side  7  thereof. In the first position, the visor  3  snuggly abuts the rim  7  of the shell  2 . 
     The shell  2  comprises a first pair of second elements  11 . 1 ,  11 . 2  as well a first additional pair of second elements  11 . 3 ,  11 . 4  of the detachable fastening means, all embedded in a rim  9  of the shell  2  which borders the open facial region  8 . The second elements  11 . 1 - 11 . 4  are arranged on the rim  9  such as to match the position of the first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  in the frame  4  of the visor  3  when said visor  3  is in the first position. By interaction of the first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  with the first pair and first additional pair of second elements  11 . 1 - 11 . 4  of the detachable fastening means, the visor  3  is removably held in the first position. The first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  as well as the first pair and first additional pair of second elements  11 . 1 - 11 . 4  are magnets in the embodiment as shown. In order to provide a removable attachment of the visor  3  to the shell  2 , the magnets are oriented such that the magnets used as first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  are attracted to the magnets used as second elements  11 . 1 - 11 . 4 , i.e. by orienting the poles of the magnets accordingly. 
     The shell comprises a second pair of second elements  12 . 1 ,  12 . 2  as well as a second additional pair of second elements  12 . 3 ,  12 . 4  which releasably secure the visor  3  in a second position. In the second position, the visor  3  does not protrude into the open facial region  8  of the shell  2 . The second position is a storing position in which the visor  3  may be placed when no protection of the eyes or the face is needed or when the protective helmet is not in use. The second elements  12 . 1 - 12 . 4  of the second pairs are arranged in the shell  2  such as to match the position of the first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  of the visor  3  when said visor  3  is in the second position. 
     In order to facilitate the movement of the visor  3  from the first position into the second position, the visor  3  is connected to the shell  2  by means of two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2 . A first end of each of the flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  is connected to the frame  4  of the visor  3  at both lateral sides  6 . 1 ,  6 . 2  thereof. A second end of each of the two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  is connected to the rim  9  of the shell  3 . In the embodiment shown, the two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  are strings with a length that is sufficient to allow the visor  3  to be moved in a slide like motion over the shell  2  from the first position to the second position and vice versa. The provision of these two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  provides guidance for the users of the protective helmet  2  when moving the visor  3  between both positions as the two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  largely prohibit lateral movements of the visor  3 . Further, the two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  also prevent the accidental loss of the visor  3 . 
     In the embodiment shown, the second end of the two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  are each attached to an anchoring element  14 . 1 ,  14 . 2  which is releasably coupled to the shell  2 . With such a configuration it is possible to detach the visor  3  from the shell  2 , for example for cleaning purposes or to replace a broken visor  3  with a new one. 
       FIG.  2    shows the protective helmet  1  according to  FIG.  1   . The visor  3  is in the first position where it substantially completely covers the open facial region  8  of the shell  2 . In this position, the first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  of the detachable fastening means interact with the first pair and the first additional pair of second elements  11 . 1 - 11 . 4  in order to hold the visor  3  in the first position. The flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  are located beneath the visor  3  and lie under the rim  9  of the open facial region  8  of the shell  2 . The visor  3  abuts on the rim  9 . 
       FIG.  3    shows a transition of the visor  3  from the first position to the second position. The visor  3  is being moved in the direction of the arrow from the first position into the second position. The first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  of the detachable fastening means are detached from the first and first additional pair of second elements  11 . 1 - 11 . 4 . During the transition, the two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  are strained and limit the movement of the visor  3  in any direction other than the transition direction given by the arrow on the figure. Hence, the two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  act as guides for the movement of the visor  3  between the two positions. 
       FIG.  4    shows the protective helmet  1  according to  FIG.  1    where the visor  3  is in the second position. In this position, the first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  of the detachable fastening means are coupled to the second pair and to the second additional pair of second elements  12 . 1 - 12 . 4 . The two flexible elements  13 . 1 ,  13 . 2  are almost strained. Further, the visor  3  does not protrude into the open facial region  8  of the shell  2  but instead lies substantially completely on the shell  2 . 
       FIG.  5    shows a longitudinal cut of the protective helmet  1  according to  FIG.  1   . The visor  3  is in the first position according to  FIG.  2   . In this figure, the interaction of the first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  of the detachable fastening means with the first pair and with the first additional pair of second elements  11 . 1 - 11 . 4  is well visible. Note that the positions of the first elements  10 . 1 - 10 . 4  as well as the first pair and first additional pair of second elements  11 . 1 - 11 . 4  are indicated by dashed lines, as these elements would not be visible from the inside of the protective helmet  1 .