Articles including protective gear for a variety of sports and activities provide protection from one or both of linear and angular forces that either directly or indirectly impact the gear when it is donned. The articles include at least two layers of material that provide multimodal energy dissipation to minimize the extent of transmission of impact forces to tissue.

A protective helmet to be worn by a player engaged in a sport comprises a flexible outer shell and a multi-layer liner assembly disposed within the outer shell. The multi-layer liner assembly includes an inner-layer, a middle-layer and an outer-layer, and permits relative rotational movement between said layers when the helmet is worn by the player and receives an impact. The inner-layer is made from a first material with a first density and is mechanically coupled to the outer-layer without adhesive. The outer-layer is made from a second material with a second density that is greater than the first density of the inner-layer. The middle-layer is made from a third material that has a third density that is greater than the first density. The outer-layer also has a thickness that is greater than a thickness of the inner-layer and varies between a front region of the outer-layer and a crown region of the outer-layer.

A helmet can include a helmet body comprising an energy-absorbing layer and an outer shell disposed over the energy-absorbing layer. An electronic device can be integrated with the helmet body. A first electrical contact can be formed at an exterior of the outer shell and adapted to be in electrical communication with the electronic device. A helmet visor can be coupled to the helmet body with at least one visor arm, the helmet visor comprising controls integrated within the visor. A second electrical contact can be formed at an inner surface of the at least one visor arm and adapted to be in electrical communication with the controls integrated within the visor. The second electrical contact can be adapted to mateably couple with the first electrical contact such that the electronic device and the controls are adapted to be in electrical contact.

A helmet assembly includes an upper member, a lower member, and rigid or semi-rigid plates connected between the two members. The helmet may include a series of fluidly connected air compartments beneath the plates is disclosed. Embodiments of the helmet may dissipate impact energy in multiple ways including deformation of the plates, shifting of the plates, cushioning of the plates against a resilient compressible material present in the upper member, compression of air within the air compartments, movement of air within the air compartments, and/or expansion of air in non-impacted sections of the air compartments which causes the shifting of non-impacted plates. Springs with or without resilient, compressible inserts may be positioned between movable plates and a frame member. A spine including compressible material may extend along a top section of the helmet and connect plates on opposite sides of the helmet.

A helmet includes an outer shell with an inner and outer surface, a first impact mitigation layer of a first stiffness coupled to the inner surface of the outer shell, a supplemental shell coupled to the outer surface of the outer shell, and a second impact mitigation layer having a second stiffness positioned between the outer surface of the outer shell and an inner surface of the supplemental shell. The supplemental shell can flex from a first position to a second position upon impact to the supplemental shell. A difference between the first stiffness and second stiffness allows the first and second impact mitigation layers to absorb impacts of different impact force. The supplemental protection component can be optimized for protection against impacts experienced by a particular position, including the location on the helmet, shape, materials, and impact mitigation structures.

A helmet and method for forming a helmet having a multi-density impact liner may include forming a puck comprising an interface surface and at least one side is formed. The interface surface of the puck is placed in direct contact with a receiving surface of a cap located in an impact liner mold. Next, the interface surface of the puck is thermally fused directly to the receiving surface of the cap while contemporaneously an impact liner body is formed inside the mold. The impact liner body is fused to the at least one side of the puck, and to a majority of the receiving surface of the cap. The density of the puck may be greater than the density of the impact liner body. The puck and the impact liner body may be expanded polystyrene (EPS), and the cap may be polycarbonate (PC).

A helmet for protecting a wearer's head has a protective layer configured to, when the helmet is impacted by a force, absorb the normal component thereof by compression and rupture when the tangential component of the force exceeds a predefined threshold.

A helmet (10) comprising (i) an outer shell (12); (ii) an inner pad (14) configured to deform resiliently to cushion the head of a user; and (iii) a solid open-cell foam material (18) wherein the outer shell is spaced apart from the inner pad by the solid open-cell foam material and wherein the solid open-cell foam material is arranged to deform irreversibly in the event of an impact which applies a pressure greater than a selected threshold pressure to absorb the energy of the impact.

A helmet includes a segmented outer shell having an upper portion and a lower portion with an elongated segmented opening extending along an interface of the upper and lower portions. The helmet also includes outer and inner energy management layers that define openings and a channel that facilitates airflow through the elongated segmented opening to provide improved ventilation.

A football helmet is disclosed that includes a shell constructed of fiber reinforced epoxy resin, a liner made from expanded polypropylene, an impact absorbing layer situated between the liner and the shell, and a face guard. The impact absorbing layer is constructed from either expanded polypropylene or a viscoelastic polymer encased in a suitable thin yet resilient and elastic membrane. An optional impact absorbing band is also shown disposed around the inner periphery of the liner and encircling the player's head. The impact absorbing band serves to reduce impact forces occurring from side helmet impact with objects or players.