Patent ID: 7904971

Claim:
A pad for use in cushioning contact with a body comprising: at least one section of an outer layer of a flexible, resilient, energy absorbing material, the outer layer being adapted to pass fluids transversely through the outer layer with low resistance; and at least one section of an inner layer adjacent the section of the outer layer and positioned inside the section of the outer layer when worn on the body, the inner layer being of a flexible, resilient material and being less stiff than the outer layer, the inner layer being adapted to pass fluids therethrough with low resistance, the outer layer comprising a plurality of discrete beads of elastic, resilient material positioned adjacent one another and bonded together, wherein the beads elastically deform to absorb energy over multiple impacts to provide impact resistance, the beads having interstitial spaces therebetween through which fluids can pass so that fluids pass transversely through the outer layer with low resistance, the outer layer having a density no greater than 4 lb/ft 3 , the inner layer comprising a first layer, a second layer spaced from the first layer and a plurality of yarns connecting the two layers, the plurality of yarns provide a buckling effect to provide resilient compressibility.