A hardhat with a protected overhead cooling fan comprises: a main hardhat body component having an upper aperture through which air is drawn and pulled down into a battery powered cooling fan; a fan cover component spaced at least about ¼ inch from and permanently adhered to the main hardhat body with a plurality of linear ridges; a battery pack for the cooling fan; and a plurality of connecting wires. A method of use is also disclosed.

A hardhat with a protected overhead cooling fan comprises: a main hardhat body component having an upper aperture through which air is drawn and pulled down into a battery powered cooling fan; a fan cover component spaced at least about ¼ inch from and permanently adhered to the main hardhat body with a plurality of linear ridges; a battery pack for the cooling fan; and a plurality of connecting wires. A method of use is also disclosed.

A device for protecting a microphone sensing surface, such as a diaphragm, from the detrimental effects of the ambient environment. The device incorporates a perforated surface to protect the microphone and in conjunction with a chamber volume creates an acoustic resonance in the 1 kHz to 20 kHz spectrum, which improves the microphone signal-to-noise ratio performance. The microphone is acoustically coupled to the chamber volume for sensing pressure of the ambient environment. There is no line of sight to the microphone sensing surface from the ambient environment, so that rain, wind and sand have no direct path to the microphone sensing surface. The perforations of the outer surface are small to prevent objects from contacting the microphone sensing surface via a direct path. Water drains from the chamber volume and does not become trapped if an embodiment of the invention is temporarily submerged so that the microphone returns to normal operation quickly.

An ear warming article that can be comprised of a C-shaped resilient band, an outer sleeve and a speaker or other electronic device is described. The outer sleeve is dimensioned to contain the resilient band, and includes two insulating, ear-receiving portions as well as a first opening through which the resilient band can be inserted or removed to yield an assembled or disassembled article, respectively. In a preferred embodiment, the article includes an electronic device having one or more speakers located at the ends of the resilient band; additional openings in the outer sleeve may exist for any control functionality associated with the electronic device(s). The outer sleeve can be comprised of a washable fabric material, particularly suitable as a means for interchangeable advertising (team logo, branding, etc.). In other embodiments, the ear warming article includes additional advertising and/or securing features.

A device for protecting a microphone sensing surface, such as a diaphragm, from the detrimental effects of the ambient environment. The device incorporates a perforated surface to protect the microphone and in conjunction with a chamber volume creates an acoustic resonance in the 1 kHz to 20 kHz spectrum, which improves the microphone signal-to-noise ratio performance. The microphone is acoustically coupled to the chamber volume for sensing pressure of the ambient environment. There is no line of sight to the microphone sensing surface from the ambient environment, so that rain, wind and sand have no direct path to the microphone sensing surface. The perforations of the outer surface are small to prevent objects from contacting the microphone sensing surface via a direct path. Water drains from the chamber volume and does not become trapped if an embodiment of the invention is temporarily submerged so that the microphone returns to normal operation quickly.