Abstract:
Securely attached to the front of a bicycle helmet is a minimally sized band of sufficiently strong material that is positioned to provide a face protective barrier that is less then 35 millimeters high for a length of more then 200 millimeters long. This minimally sized, face protective structure will not only protect a bicyclist&#39;s face in a crash but will also give the highest degree of visibility and ventilation for the bicyclist to avoid a crash and allow a great amount of fresh air flow to cool the bicyclist and provide ample oxygen for breathing while bicycling.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    This invention relates generally to a bicycle helmet that has an added minimally sized, face protection structure, to protect the bicyclist&#39;s face while providing a great amount of visibility and a great amount of ventilation, for increased safety and endurance. 
         [0002]    In the culture of general Road Biking and general Mountain Biking, a bicycle helmet is defined as being “Open Faced” meaning that it does not have any face protection. Bicycle helmets are very lightweight with a thin outer shell and also highly vented with numerous vent openings. Most bicyclists never wear a helmet that has face protection, as most bicyclists think that they can protect their face, in a crash, by putting their hands out. Bicycling is generally not thought of as a very dangerous activity, as bikes generally don&#39;t go over thirty miles per hour. As face protection is thought to limit a bicyclist&#39;s visibility and fresh air flow, most bicyclists and bicycle helmet designers dismiss the entire notion of using face protection, for general Mountain Biking and Road Biking, that it would seem counterproductive and unnecessary. Therefore, most bicycle stores only sell these Open Faced Bicycle Helmets and do not offer any sort of face protective bicycle helmets. 
         [0003]    Lacrosse, Hockey and Football helmets all use a metal grill of small metal bars as face protection, that do not let the ball or puck contact the player&#39;s face. Unlike many sports like Lacrosse, Hockey or Football, that are competitive, team games, where balls and sticks are being dangerously hurled around, bicycling does not have a combative nature that would make a person think to require face protection. And therefore, most bicyclists by comparison, do not ever feel the direct need for any face protection and never use a face protective helmet. 
         [0004]    Unlike general bicycle helmets, that are not thought to need face protection, there are many highly face protective Motorcycle helmets available for general motorcycle use, as the high speed that motorcycles travel at makes a person quickly realize the dangers that they are in. A motorcyclist realizes that putting their hands out, in a crash, while traveling at a high rate of speed would not be enough to stop their face from impacting the road. 
         [0005]    “Full Face Bicycle Helmets” are designed specifically for more daring and risk taking bicyclists who expect to possibly crash. These helmets have a highly protective look with a large face protective structure that is generally 75 millimeters high on the sides and 130 millimeters high in the front line of vision, that covers the lower half of the face, to best protect the bicyclist in a crash. “Full Face Bicycle Helmets” are generally only used by Mountain Bikers who are going to do more daring and risk taking bicycling, like “Downhill Mountain Biking” where the bicyclist travels down a rocky trail at a high rate of speed, or by bicyclists doing “Jump Riding”, where they fly their bikes off of large jumps. 
         [0006]    This 135 millimeters high, facially protective structure used in “Full Face Bicycle Helmets”, makes these daring bicyclists feel amply protected in a possible crash and also makes these bicyclists happy that their helmets make a statement that they are evidently brave and outgoing. 
         [0007]    Yet, for general bicyclists, these “full face bicycle helmets” make people worried that they won&#39;t have sufficient visibility, that they might hit a stick or a rock that they didn&#39;t see, to cause the cyclist to loose their balance and crash, which seems counterproductive and dangerous. Many bicyclists also say they feel claustrophobic wearing a helmet that has such a large face protective structure. Therefore, bicyclists generally have only been interested in buying “Open Face Bicycle Helmets”, motivating helmet designers to divide helmet design into the two separate categories of “Open Face Bicycle Helmets” for all general bicyclists and “Full Face Bicycle Helmets” specifically for daring bicyclists that set out expecting to crash. 
         [0008]    The outer, main shell structure of bicycle helmets have always been made out of plastic related material including fiberglass and carbon fiber, unlike Hockey, Lacrosse and Football helmets that are recognizable by their different styles of metal grill face protection that are bolted onto their helmets front surface. Bicyclists have come to associate full plastic exteriors with the definition of a bicycle helmet. This perception by bicyclists and designers alike has been partly responsible for the present face protection for “Full Face Bicycle Helmets” being made with large forms of plastic. The continuous, one piece, plastic outer shell found on “Full Face Bicycle Helmets” makes for a strong and reassuring connection between the main bicycle helmet and the face protective structure, where bolting on a face protective structure would seem less secure and add potentially dangerous bolt protrusions within the helmet. These large, 75 millimeters high to 135 millimeters high plastic face protective structures used on “Full Face Bicycle Helmets” are thought to be needed to be strong enough to protect the bicyclist&#39;s face during an impact from a crash. Yet, a minimally sized face protective structure for bicycle helmets should be just as strong as the taller face protection used on Full Face Bicycle Helmets by having a thicker plastic cross section, or the minimally sized face protective structure might also use a stronger secondary support structure made of a material such as steel, aluminum, or carbon fiber that is positioned within. Another main reason that bicycle helmet users and bicycle helmet designers have not thought to create a bicycle helmet with a minimally sized face protective structure is that Downhill Mountain Bike helmet designers have borrowed too many design elements from Off Road Motorcycle Helmet Design, which has led Road and Mountain Bike helmet designers to incorrectly think that large face protection would also be required for bicycle helmet face protection. Downhill Mountain Bikers were originally using Off Road Motorcycling Helmets for protection as the similarities in speed and terrain made these helmets seem like the best choice. Using Off Road Motorcycle Helmet designs as a base for Downhill Mountain Bike Helmet design became the norm as the similarity of speed and terrain made the bicyclists and Downhill Mountain Bike designers think that the helmets should be designed almost the same. Yet, there are some serious differences in what these two different helmets are needed to do. The first face protection for Off Road Motorcycles was actually not meant to protect the rider&#39;s face from a crash impact, but was positioned in front of the Off Road Motorcyclist&#39;s face to keep the mud, that was being flung off other Off Road Motorcycle tires, from getting into the riders nose and mouth. Designers of Full Face Downhill Mountain Bike Helmets have stuck with the highly protective look of Off Road Motorcycle Helmets without realizing that bicycles don&#39;t “Kick-Up” mud like a motorized vehicle does, so the large mud face guard feature of Off Road Motorcycle Helmets is excessive and not needed on Full Face Downhill Mountain Bike Helmets. Even a Downhill Mountain Biker would greatly benefit from a face protective helmet with as minimal a face protective structure as possible for increased visibility and increased ventilation, where flying mud protection is not needed. 
         [0009]    Since Downhill Mountain Biking is a form of biking, all other types of Road Bikers and Mountain Bikers have looked to these Full Face Downhill Mountain Bike Helmets as the option for a face protective bicycle helmet. Yet, this large, face protective structure, presented in Full Face Downhill Mountain Bike Helmets, has “put off” the designers of general Road Bike and Mountain Bike Helmets, who think these large protective structures must be needed for effective face protection, where the designers see high visibility and high ventilation as vital priorities for the general mountain biker and road biker. Yet, these large, mainly mud protective structures are not actually needed to protect a person&#39;s face from an impact, where a strong, minimally sized face protective band would be nearly equal in protection, that would also provide the valued visibility and ventilation that bicyclists need and want. 
         [0010]    Another main reason that bicyclists or bicycle helmet designers have not thought to create a bicycle helmet with a minimally sized face protective structure is that bicyclists and helmet designers are worried that during a facial type impact, the face protective structure must have enough area to cushion the face protection while being pressed back into the bicyclist&#39;s face. Yet, with the securing bicycle helmet strap firmly positioned under the bicyclist&#39;s jaw and a minimal face protective structure positioned lower and out in front of the bicyclist&#39;s chin, under a facial type impact a minimally sized face protective structure would actually rotate from the point where the bicycle helmet contacts the forehead, for the minimally sized face protective structure to rotate down and not make contact with the bicyclist&#39;s face whatsoever. 
         [0011]    Unlike Downhill Mountain Biking where a bicyclist is brought up a mountain by a chair lift and Motorcycling where a motor is used, general mountain biking and road bicycling involves a great deal of pedaling exercise for the bicyclist. People pedaling a bicycle usually need allot of fresh air to breath and will remove any face protection that limits the amount of oxygen they can get. Bicycling on hot days also makes a bicyclist want as much cooling, fresh air as possible, as bicyclists will also remove any large face protection that limits the amount of fresh air they need, that would make them feel overheated. 
         [0012]    Since bicyclists therefore do not like to wear these “Full Face Bicycle Helmets”, bicycle stores further tell people that “Open Face Bicycle Helmets”, which have no face protection, are sufficiently designed for general Mountain Biking and Road Bicycling in safety. Yet, most bicyclists and bicycle helmet designers alike have failed to recognize the problem that many people do often get serious injuries to their face from crashing on their bikes every year while using Open Faced Bicycle Helmets, where the use of a bicycle helmet with a minimally sized face protective structure would prevent facial injuries and maintain a high level of visibility to help avoid crashing. Both the bicyclists and designers alike, blame the bicyclist that injures their face in an accident, for not staying in control of their bike and blames the bicyclist for not having put their hands out to protect their face. To illustrate this point, a feature article in the September, 2015 edition of “Mountain Bike Action Magazine” asked ten pro bicyclists what their best advice was for how to safely crash without being injured. The advice was to stay with terrain that is not too challenging for a person&#39;s ability and then to keep an eye on the best route to travel to avoid hazards, and that if a person crashes, they need to be sure to put their hands out or tuck and roll when hitting the ground. The pro riders did not ever stop to realize that a bicycle helmet with a minimally sized face protective structure, that has a high degree of visibility, would make a bicyclist vastly safer in a crash. 
         [0013]    And so a new Face Protective, High Visibility Bicycling Helmet, for all types of bicycle riding, should use as small a face protective structure as possible, to provide a number of advantages. Such a bicycle helmet with a minimally sized, face protective structure will protect a bicyclists face, yet offer the most visibility and ventilation possible to avoid crashing and keep the bicyclist cool and provide enough oxygen. The minimally sized face protective structure should be built mainly from a plastic related material, including carbon fiber or fiberglass, that is the same or similar material as the outer shell material of the bike helmet, as a continuous extension to provide the strength, light weight and look that is needed. 
         [0014]    Kids ride their bikes, skateboards and scooters over giant cement formations at bike and skate parks. With the need for these kids to be able to see bellow themselves and out in front of themselves at the same time, so that they can maneuver through the quickly changing terrain and avoid dangerously crashing onto the cement, these various riders use Open Faced Helmets that give them the maximum in visibility. Yet, these riders do often fall and impact their face on the cement to gain serious facial injuries. Again, these riders and helmet designers have not recognized that these riders need face protection that still enables a high degree of visibility. But instead both riders and designers blame the rider for not maintaining control of their device and blame the rider for not putting their hands out to protect their face. These riders of bikes, scooters and skateboards need a bike/skate helmet with a minimally sized, face protective structure that will give them important face protection while still giving them a high degree of visibility. 
         [0015]    Young children that are just learning to ride a bike and are not yet accustomed to the idea of putting their hands out in a crash should be using a minimally sized, face protective helmet that allows the most visibility possible. Parents would surely prefer such a face protective, high visibility helmet for their small children to best enable them to see where they are going, that then protects their child&#39;s face from impacting a surface in a likely crash, to keep their children at their safest. 
         [0016]    As many people do crash on their bikes every year and get severe facial damage, a general Road Bicycling and Mountain Bicycling helmet should have some basic level of face protection, to protect a persons face from serious damage caused by a crash. 
         [0017]    A general bicycle helmet should at least have the most minimal amount of face protective structure to ensure the safety of the cyclist&#39;s face and the greatest amount of visibility for the cyclist, while looking past the helmet&#39;s face protective structure, to ensure that the cyclist does not accidentally hit a root, rock or pothole that could cause the bicyclist to loose balance and crash. 
         [0018]    A general bicycle helmet should have a minimal face protective structure to provide the greatest ventilation possible to get enough fresh air to the cyclist to breath and get enough fresh air to keep the cyclist cooler on hot days. 
         [0019]    A general bicycle helmet should have a minimal face protective structure to ensure the greatest visibility and ventilation, yet the facial protective structure must be made from a material that will also resist bending and braking while involved in an accident, to sufficiently protect the cyclists face in a crash. 
         [0020]    A general bicycle helmet should have the most minimal amount of face protective structure, to avoid making the wearer feel claustrophobic while still ensuring the safety of the bicyclist&#39;s face. 
         [0021]    A general bicycle helmet should have the most minimal amount of face protective structure, built mainly from a plastic related material, including carbon fiber or fiberglass, that is the same or similar material as the outer shell material of the bike helmet, to form a continuous extension from the helmet to the face protective structure, to provide the strength, reliability, safety and light-weight that a bicyclist is looking for. A stronger material such as steel, magnesium, aluminum or carbon fiber could be positioned within the face protective structure to further increase the strength of the face protective structure. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0022]    In accordance with the present invention, a general bicycle helmet also includes a minimally sized band of sufficiently strong material to form a face protective barrier that is less then 35 millimeters high for a length of more then 200 millimeters long, that is securely formed integrally to the front of the bicycle helmet to not only protect a bicyclist&#39;s face in a crash but also to give enough visibility and ventilation for the bicyclist to avoid a crash. 
       OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES 
       [0023]    An object and advantage of the present invention is a bicycle helmet that has a minimally sized face protective structure included, to protect the bicyclist&#39;s face in a crash and give the bicyclist the greatest amount of visibility possible to help the bicyclist avoid hitting objects that could destabilize the bike to cause the bike to crash. 
         [0024]    An object and advantage of the present invention is a bicycle helmet that has a minimally sized face protective structure included, to protect the bicyclist&#39;s face in a crash and give the bicyclist the greatest amount of ventilation, for the bicyclist to get enough needed fresh air to breathe while exercising. 
         [0025]    An object and advantage of the present invention is a bicycle helmet that has a minimally sized face protective structure included, to protect the bicyclist&#39;s face in a crash and give the bicyclist the greatest amount of ventilation, for the bicyclist to get enough flowing air on hot days, to keep the bicyclist from over heating. 
         [0026]    An object and advantage of the present invention is a bicycle helmet that has a minimally sized face protective structure included, that keeps the bicyclist from feeling claustrophobic and still protects the bicyclist&#39;s face in a crash. 
         [0027]    An object and advantage of the present invention is a bicycle helmet that has a minimally sized face protective structure included, that is built as a connected and continuous extension of the bicycle helmet, with both the bicycle helmet and the face protective structure made from a plastic related material, including fiberglass and carbon fiber, to make for a strong, reliable and light-weight connection. The continuous face protective structure being made strong enough to then protect a bicyclist&#39;s face from impacting a dirt path or paved road surface during a bicycle crash. 
         [0028]    An object and advantage of the present invention is a helmet meant for bicycling, skateboarding and scootering that has a minimally sized face protective structure included, to protect the rider&#39;s face in a crash and gives the rider the greatest amount of visibility possible to help the rider avoid hitting objects that could destabilize the bike, skateboard or scooter to cause them to crash. 
         [0029]    An object and advantage of the present invention is a bicycle helmet for small children learning to ride a bike, that has a minimally sized face protective structure included, to protect the child&#39;s face from impacting a surface in a crash and give a child the greatest amount of visibility possible to help them avoid hitting objects that could cause them to crash. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
         [0030]      FIG. 1  is a side elevational view of a bicycle helmet with minimally sized, face protective structure according to one embodiment of this invention; 
           [0031]      FIG. 2  is an exploded front elevational view of the bicycle helmet with the minimally sized, face protective structure illustrated in  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0032]      FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional front view of  FIG. 1  taken on lines  3 - 3 ; 
           [0033]      FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional front view of  FIG. 1  taken on lines  4 - 4 ; 
           [0034]      FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view similar to  FIG. 3 , that is another embodiment of the core strengthening structure; 
           [0035]      FIG. 6  is a view similar to  FIG. 5 , of another embodiment of the core strengthening structure; 
           [0036]      FIG. 7  is a view similar to  FIG. 5 , of another embodiment of the core strengthening structure; 
           [0037]      FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional view similar to  FIG. 3 , that is another embodiment of the invention; 
           [0038]      FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional view similar to  FIG. 4 , that is another embodiment of the invention; 
           [0039]      FIG. 10  is a side elevational view similar to  FIG. 1 , that is another embodiment of the invention; 
           [0040]      FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional view similar to  FIG. 4 , that is another embodiment of the invention; 
           [0041]      FIG. 12  is a side elevational view similar to  FIG. 1 , that is another embodiment of the invention; 
           [0042]      FIG. 13  is a cross-sectional view similar to  FIG. 4 , that is another embodiment of the invention; 
           [0043]      FIG. 14  is a side elevational view similar to  FIG. 1 , that is another embodiment of the invention; 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0044]    Referring now to the preferred embodiment of the invention shown in  FIGS. 1 through 4 , a new high visibility, high ventilation bicycle helmet with a minimally sized face protective band is presented and generally designated by the reference number  20 . The high visibility, high ventilation bicycle helmet with a minimally sized face protective band  20  generally comprises a general bicycle helmet  18  that has a minimally sized, face protective band  30  included. The general bicycle helmet  18  is made from a plastic related material such as fiberglass, or carbon fiber. 
         [0045]    This new bicycle helmet with a minimally sized face protective band  20  is worn by a bicyclist, while riding a bike, to protect their face and head during a possible crash. 
         [0046]    The face protective band  30  has a height of less then 35 mm for a length of more then 200 mm. The length of the face protective band  30  is measured along the face protective band  30  general exterior. The height of the face protective band  30  is measured vertically at any given vertical cross sectional point for over the length of the face protective band  30  while the entire bicycle helmet with a minimally sized face protective band  20  is positioned on a bicyclist&#39;s head while the bicyclist&#39;s face is facing forward, as bicycle helmets are generally designed to be positioned. 
         [0047]    The cross sectional height of less then 35 mm high at all points along the more then 200 mm long face protective band  30  gives the bicyclist is a wide field of vision, coupled with giving the bicyclist great visibility of objects far ahead and directly in front of them, to help the cyclist avoid hitting objects that could cause the bike to crash. 
         [0048]    Face protective band  30  is formed as a band of plastic related material with a core strengthening bar  40  made from a material such as steel, aluminum, magnesium, fiberglass or carbon fiber positioned within. The face protective band  30  is centered in front of the front opening  32 , with the face protective band  30  being positioned generally in front of the bicyclist&#39;s mouth, chin or neck. The face protective band  30  has a first connective portion  36  positioned at one end and a second connective portion  38  positioned and the opposite end. The first connective portion  36  is formed integrally with the bicycle helmet left side  26 . The second connective portion  38  is formed integrally with the bicycle helmet right side  28 . The first connective portion  36  and second connective portion  38  may have a cross sectional height that is greater then 35 mm. 
         [0049]      FIGS. 5, 6 and 7  show expanded views of alternative configurations for the core strengthening bar  40  shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 .  FIG. 5  shows a tubular, rounded rectangle core strengthening bar  42 .  FIG. 6  shows a solid round core strengthening bar  44 .  FIG. 7  shows a tubular, round core strengthening bar  46 . 
         [0050]      FIGS. 8 and 9  presents the same embodiment of the invention as presented in  FIGS. 1 through 4  except that the core strengthening bar  40  has been removed. An all-plastic related material, face protective band  50  is therefore positioned in front of the bicycle helmet  18 . 
         [0051]      FIGS. 10 and 11  present the same embodiment of the invention as presented in  FIGS. 1 through 4  except that the plastic related material of the bicycle helmet with a minimally sized face protective band  20  no longer extends out to form face protective band  30 , but instead a metal or carbon fiber secondary protective band  60  is used in the place of face protective band  30 . The secondary protective band  60  has a first band end portion  62  that is formed within the plastic related material of the bicycle helmet left side  26 . The secondary protective band  60  has a second band end portion  64  that is formed within the plastic related material of the bicycle helmet right side  28 . The secondary face protective band  60  also has a height of less then 35 mm for a length of more then 200 mm. The first end portion  62  and the second end portion  64  are formed to attach the secondary face protective band  60  to the general bicycle helmet  18 . The first end portion  62  and the second end portion  64  may have a cross sectional height that is greater then 35 mm. 
         [0052]      FIGS. 12 and 13  present the same embodiment of the invention as presented in  FIGS. 8 and 9  except that a third protective band  70  is attached to a modified bicycle helmet  68  by general fasteners  78 ,  78 ,  78 ,  78  such as screws, rivets or an epoxy. The third protective band  70  has a first end extension portion  72  that is positioned on the modified bicycle helmet  68  left side  74 . The third protective band  70  has a second end extension portion  76  that is positioned on the modified bicycle helmet  68  right side  86 . Helmet holes  80 ,  80 ,  80 ,  80  are positioned through the modified bicycle helmet  68  left side  74  and through the helmet&#39;s right side  86 . Band holes  82 ,  82 ,  82 ,  82  are formed through the third protective band  70  first end extension portion  72  and through the second end extension portion  76 . The band holes  82 ,  82 ,  82 ,  82  align with the helmet holes  80 ,  80 ,  80 ,  80  to allow the general fasteners  78 ,  78 ,  78 ,  78  to be passed through, that will hold the third protective band  70  to the modified bicycle helmet  68 . The third protective band  70  has a height of less then 35 mm for a length of more then 200 mm. The first end extension portion  72  and the second end extension portion  76  are formed to attach the third face protective band  70  to the modified bicycle helmet  68 . The first end extension portion  72  and the second end extension portion  76  may have cross sectional heights that are greater then 35 mm. 
         [0053]    The third Protective band  70  is set at an angle  90  that is in line with the bicycle helmet wearer&#39;s line of sight to further reduced the level of visual obstruction. 
         [0054]      FIG. 14  presents the same embodiment of the invention as presented in  FIGS. 12 and 13  except that a number of small metal bars that are welded together to form a wire form face protective band  100 . The angle  102  of the wire form face protective band  100  is set in line with the bicycle helmet front surface  110  to make the wire form face protective band  100  more likely to slide rather then catch in an accident. A stabilizing extension  104  is presented to further keep the wire form face protective band  100  securely attached to the helmet side  108  through using a supplemental common fastener  106 .