A protective helmet includes a plurality of fluid filled bladders, impact sensors, valves, and pumps wherein the helmet absorbs energy from an impact to protect a person wearing the helmet from traumatic brain injury. The bladders expel fluid in response to a triggering event such as energy from an impact detected as a pressure spike event and/or detected as an acceleration event. A selected bladder may expel fluid to other bladders, to a reservoir, to the environment outside of the protective helmet, or combinations thereof. In embodiments where the bladders need additional fluid after an impact, one or more pumps may refill selected deflated bladders. When a bladder is underinflated, an indicator light may emit light on an outer surface of the protective helmet to warn that the bladder is not yet ready to be placed in operation to absorb another impact.

This disclosure relates to a brain cooling and spinal cord cooling system, device or mechanism for use in military helmets, and in an adapted format in non-military helmets. The system is comprised of an inflatable pad, or a set of interconnected pads, attached to the interior surface of the helmet, together with a series of valves that allow cooling gases to be delivered from a high pressure canister. The use of different cooling gases permits the achievement and maintenance of cooling of the brain for 24 to 96 hours at a mild (36° C.) or moderate (33° C.-35° C.) brain hypothermia, which is 1.5° C.-4.5° C. below the core temperature.

A pad assembly is provided for use with a protective sports helmet in a contact sport, the helmet having an opening. The pad assembly includes a pad member within a pad housing, and a retainer having a projection that fits within the helmet opening. The pad assembly also includes a cap detachably coupled to the retainer, the cap including a base portion that fits within the helmet opening and a flange portion that fits within a countersunk recess disposed around the helmet opening, the cap detachably receiving the projection of the retainer. A protective sports helmet having a pad assembly is also provided.

The present invention is directed to a protective sports helmet including a helmet shell, a face guard and an internal padding assembly positioned within the helmet shell. The internal padding assembly includes a brow pad having first and second peripheral connection portions. The internal padding assembly also includes first and second jaw pads, each having an upper connection portion that mates with the first and second connection portions, respectively, of the brow pad. The internal padding assembly also includes a crown assembly with pad elements that include an internal separation layer that partitions the element into a first inflatable section and a section un-inflatable section. The connection portion of the jaw pads also mates with frontal pad elements of the crown assembly. The internal padding assembly further includes an occipital pad assembly that engages the helmet wearer's head below the occipital bone.

The Football Helmet of the present invention will lessen the Impact Force while also lessening the transfer of momentous inertia that carries on unchanged causing concussions. This is done with cushioning by Impact Bumpers located all around the Players Head repelling impacts as they collapse. The top of the Players Head and Neck is protected because the Outer Shield of the Helmet Collapses from top impact by cushioning while repelling that force by being suspended by Springs in Keeper Boxes and also by a Sponge Pad, and Strapped Pad limiting upward thrust of the Players Head and downward thrust of the Outer shield.

A sports helmet kit has a shell, attachable face guard, composite helmet liner, and fit pods to improve and customize the fit of the helmet to the wearer. The composite liner consists of a base liner and a selected group of fit elements, for example, fit pods, removably attached to the inner surface of the base liner (i.e., the surface of the base liner facing the wearer's head). The fit pods are selected from a set of fit pods having different properties, for example, different sizes, thicknesses, densities, and cross-sections. The selection of fit pods from the set may be aided by taking anatomical measurements of the wearer's head and analyzing the measurements with respect to the geometry of the helmet to produce a pressure map. The measurements may be taken by physical contact or by non-contact means. The fit pods may be selected to optimize a pressure map, and thus optimize the fit, for a given wearer of the helmet.

An inflatable helmet comprising a plurality of elongate members, each elongate member comprising at least one chamber wall defining an inflatable chamber; wherein at least two adjacent elongate members are in fluid communication with each other; and wherein the plurality of elongate members is inflatable so as to adjust the inflatable helmet from a collapsed state to an inflated state in which at least one pair of adjacent elongate members abut one other along at least a portion of their respective chamber walls.

An impact absorbing apparatus includes a first chamber including a first chamber wall and a first valve disposed in the first chamber wall. The impact absorbing apparatus includes a second chamber including a second chamber wall and a second valve disposed in the second chamber wall. A plurality of connecting pillars connects the first chamber to the second chamber. The plurality of connecting pillars is configured to shift position in response to a first impact. The first valve is configured to pass air in and out of the first chamber. The second valve is configured to pass air in and out of the second chamber.

The present invention comprises a helmet (1) intended to surround the skull of a user (10); wherein the helmet (1) comprises a storage chamber (14) in a rear portion of the helmet (1), and which contains a pressurized gas; an activation mechanism to expand the expandable gas; at least one sensor (5), to detect an imminent accident; a bag (13) housed in the back of the helmet (1), connected to the compressed gas; and a control device (3), for inflating the bag (13) with the expanded pressurized gas moments before an accident detected by the sensor or sensors (5); wherein the bag (13), once inflated (2), emerges from the rear portion of the helmet (1), intended to protect the lateral area of the neck, the cervical area and the base of the skull.

An inner buffering structure of a helmet comprising an air bladder, wherein the air bladder comprises a detachable inner-layer air bladder and an outer-layer air bladder, and the inner-layer air bladder is used for being in contact with a user's head; a plurality of ventilation openings is formed in the inner-layer air bladder and the outer-layer air bladder; the portions where the inner-layer air bladder and the outer-layer air bladder correspond to the ventilation openings are provided with inner convex edges extending towards the interior of the ventilation openings; a first air valve is arranged on the inner-layer air bladder, a second air valve is arranged on the outer-layer air bladder, and a reserved hole allowing the first air valve to pass through is formed in the outer-layer air bladder.