Patent ID: 7043772

Claim:
A ratchet mechanism for a headband that has overlapping rear end portions, each such portion defining an elongated slot and associated rack gear, comprising: a housing, including an outer housing section joined to an inner housing section, thus defining an internal cavity for receiving the overlapping rear end portions of said headband; and a rotational element that has a one piece construction, including a pinion portion which is adapted to mate with and engage the respective rack gears of the overlapping rear end portions of said headband, and an adjustment knob portion extending from said housing and adapted to be grasped and rotated by a wearer to cause lateral movement of the overlapping rear end portions of said headband with respect to one another; wherein the outer housing section defines an opening therethrough, the rotational element being molded through said opening with the adjustment knob portion and the pinion portion positioned on opposite sides of the outer housing section; and wherein, because of the molding of the rotational element through said opening, neither the adjustment knob portion nor the pinion portion can be drawn through said opening, and as such, the rotational element remains engaged with and can not be separated from the outer housing section absent a catastrophic failure of the ratchet mechanism.