Patent ID: 6886559

Claim:
A headset comprising: a mounting assembly adapted to be worn on a user's head; and a mask unit supported by said mounting assembly and including a mask body configured to cover at least the nose and mouth region of said user, said mask unit movable between a retracted position where the mask body is proximal to the crown of the user's head, and a deployed position where the mask body is adjacent said nose and mouth region; motive and control assembly means operatively coupled with said mask unit for automatic translatory movement of the mask unit from said retracted position to said deployed position without manual translatory movement of the mask unit by the user; and a detector for detecting a predetermined parameter external from said mask, said detector being operably coupled with said motive and control assembly means for automatically initiating movement of the mask unit from said retracted position to said deployed position in response to detection of the parameter and independent from any user input, said mask unit including a gas delivery passageway operable to deliver breathable gas to the mask body when the mask body is in said deployed position thereof.