Sport helmet

Abstract

A helmet having a chin bar fastened at two points on each side of the shell. The shell is molded with recessed portions designed to receive the two branches of the chin bar on each side where they will be fastened to the shell so that the outer surfaces of the chin guard are flush with the shell at the locations of attachment to provide a smooth transition and reduce weight. An adjustment device to adjust the fit of the helmet to the user includes a star wheel on each side of the helmet attached to an arcuate flexible strip extending rearwardly around the occipital area of the skull. A sliding mechanism attached to the strip allows the strip to be moved forward and backward to allow it to be tightened or loosened, respectively, with respect to the player's head. A ratcheting lateral adjustment device is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A helmet for protecting a wearer's head, said helmet comprising: (a) a hard shell comprising left and right side portions terminating at front edges, the left side portion comprising a left side surface including a recessed part, the right side portion comprising a right side surface including a recessed part; (b) a chin bar fastenable to the shell for extending forward of the front edges and looping around in front of the shell, the chin bar comprising an inner surface configured to face the wearer's head and an outer surface opposite the inner surface; and (c) a face guard mountable to the shell and configured to protect the wearer's face; the recessed part of the left side surface of the shell and the recessed part of the right side surface of the shell being configured to receive the chin bar such that the outer surface of the chin bar is substantially flush with a part of the left side surface of the shell adjacent to the recessed part of the left side surface of the shell and a part of the right side surface of the shell adjacent to the recessed part of the right side surface of the shell.

2. The helmet of claim 1, wherein the face guard is mounted between said left and right side surfaces of the shell, the face guard having a lower portion fastened to said chin bar.

3. The helmet of claim 2, wherein said face guard comprises a cage including a plurality of generally horizontal and vertical bars, said horizontal and vertical bars crossing one another.

4. The helmet of claim 2, wherein said face guard includes left and right vertical bars fastened to said left and right side surfaces of said hard shell, each of said left and right vertical bars being fastened by a clip engaging an outer surface and an inner surface of said hard shell with said left and right vertical bars engaging the front edges of the left and right side portions respectively.

5. The helmet of claim 4, wherein each of said left and right vertical bars comprises a limit stop limiting movement of said face guard with respect to said hard shell.

6. The helmet of claim 5, wherein each limit stop comprises a knob.

7. The helmet of claim 6, wherein each knob is spherical.

8. The helmet of claim 1, wherein said helmet is a lacrosse or football helmet.

9. The helmet of claim 1, wherein the shell comprises an upper generally horizontal ledge extending between the front edges.

10. The helmet of claim 9, further comprising: (i) a back portion for facing at least partially an occipital region of the wearer's head; (ii) a flexible band extending from said left and right edges of said hard shell adjacent the wearer's left and right temples when said helmet is worn by the wearer and around said back portion for defining a loop; (iii) a locking means located on one of said left and right side portions of said hard shell, said locking means being accessible from outside said hard shell by at least one finger of the wearer for moving said locking means between a first locked position wherein movement of said band is precluded and a second position wherein movement of said band is allowed for adjusting a length of said loop relative to said locking means; and (iv) a slider having a slider portion and a gripping portion, said slider portion being at least partially in contact with said horizontal ledge of said hard shell and being slidable along said horizontal ledge and said gripping portion being at least partially accessible from outside said hard shell by at least one finger of the wearer for forward or rearward movement of said slider such that, in said second position of said locking means, said band is forwardly or rearwardly moveable with respect to one of said left and right side portions of said hard shell in order to facilitate adjustment of tightness of fit of said helmet on the wearer's head by varying said length of said loop relative to said locking means.

11. The helmet of claim 10, wherein said locking means is a left locking means, said helmet further comprising a right locking means located on said right side portion of said hard shell.

12. The helmet of claim 11, wherein said slider is a left slider with a left slider portion slidable along said horizontal ledge of said hard shell, said helmet further comprising a right slider with a right slider portion slidable along said horizontal ledge of said hard shell.

13. The helmet of claim 12, wherein said left and right slider portions have left and right slots for registering with the horizontal ledge.

14. The helmet of claim 13, wherein each of said left and right locking means comprises a threaded fastener extending through an opening in said band.

15. The helmet of claim 14, wherein said opening in said band comprises a slot, whereby when each locking means is in said second position, said slot may be moved with respect to said fastener.

16. The helmet of claim 13, wherein said left locking means comprises a left threaded fastener extending through a first opening in said band near said left slider and wherein said right locking means comprises a right threaded fastener extending through a second opening in said band near said right slider.

17. The helmet of claim 10, wherein said locking means comprises a star wheel.

18. The helmet of claim 12, wherein said left and right locking means are located rearwardly with respect to said left and right sliders.

19. The helmet of claim 1, wherein the chin bar comprises first and second branches on a left side of the chin bar and first and second branches on a right side of the chin bar, each of said first and second branches of the left side of the chin bar is separately fastened to the shell, and each of said first and second branches of the right side of the chin bar is separately fastened to the shell.

20. The helmet of claim 19, wherein the recessed part of the left side surface of the shell comprises a first recessed part and a second recessed part that are configured to receive the first and second branches of the left side of the chin bar, and the recessed part of the right side surface of the shell comprises a first recessed part and a second recessed part that are configured to receive the first and second branches of the right side of the chin bar.

21. The helmet of claim 1, wherein a thickness of a portion of the chin bar configured to be aligned with the recessed part of the left side surface of the shell is equal to a difference in height between the recessed part of the left side surface and the part of the left side surface of the shell with which the outer surface of the chin bar is substantially flush, and a thickness of a portion of the chin bar configured to be aligned with the recessed part of the right side surface of the shell is equal to a difference in height between the recessed part of the right side surface and the part of the right side surface of the shell with which the outer surface of the chin bar is substantially flush.

22. The helmet of claim 1, wherein the recessed part of the left side surface of the shell and the recessed part of the right side surface of the shell are configured to receive the chin bar such that the outer surface of the chin bar is substantially coplanar with the part of the left side surface of the shell adjacent to the recessed part of the left side surface of the shell and the part of the right side surface of the shell adjacent to the recessed part of the right side surface of the shell.

23. A helmet for protecting a wearer's head, the helmet comprising: (a) a protective shell defining a cavity configured to receive the wearer's head; (b) a chin protector fastenable to the protective shell such that a part of an outer surface of the chin protector is flush with a part of an outer surface of the protective shell; and (c) a face guard mountable to the protective shell.

24. The helmet of claim 1, wherein a material of the chin bar is different from a material of the face guard.

25. The helmet of claim 1, wherein the face guard comprises a plurality of bars, and the chin bar is wider than each of the bars of the face guard.

26. The helmet of claim 23, wherein the face guard is mounted between left and right side surfaces of the shell, the face guard having a lower portion fastened to the chin protector.

27. The helmet of claim 26, wherein the face guard comprises a cage including a plurality of generally horizontal and vertical bars crossing one another.

28. The helmet of claim 26, wherein the face guard includes left and right vertical bars fastened to the left and right side surfaces of the protective shell, each of the left and right vertical bars being fastened by a clip engaging an outer surface and an inner surface of the protective shell, the left and right vertical bars engaging front edges of left and right side portions of the protective shell respectively.

29. The helmet of claim 28, wherein each of the left and right vertical bars comprises a limit stop limiting movement of the face guard with respect to the protective shell.

30. The helmet of claim 29, wherein each limit stop comprises a knob.

31. The helmet of claim 30, wherein each knob is spherical.

32. The helmet of claim 23, wherein the helmet is a lacrosse or football helmet.

33. The helmet of claim 23, wherein the protective shell comprises left and right side portions terminating at front edges, and an upper generally horizontal ledge extending between the front edges.

34. The helmet of claim 33, further comprising: (i) a back portion for facing at least partially an occipital region of the wearer's head; (ii) a flexible band extending from the left and right edges of the protective shell adjacent the wearer's left and right temples when the helmet is worn by the wearer and around the back portion for defining a loop; (iii) a locking means located on one of the left and right side portions of the protective shell, the locking means configured to be accessible from outside the protective shell by at least one finger of the wearer for moving the locking means between a first locked position wherein movement of the band is precluded and a second position wherein movement of the band is allowed for adjusting a length of the loop relative to the locking means; and (iv) a slider having a slider portion and a gripping portion, the slider portion being at least partially in contact with the horizontal ledge of the protective shell and being slidable along the horizontal ledge, the gripping portion configured to be at least partially accessible from outside the protective shell by at least one finger of the wearer for forward or rearward movement of the slider such that, in the second position of the locking means, the band is forwardly or rearwardly moveable with respect to one of the left and right side portions of the protective shell in order to facilitate adjustment of tightness of fit of the helmet on the wearer's head when the helmet is worn by the wearer by varying the length of the loop relative to the locking means.

35. The helmet of claim 34, wherein the locking means is a left locking means, the helmet further comprising a right locking means located on the right side portion of the protective shell.

36. The helmet of claim 35, wherein the slider is a left slider with a left slider portion slidable along the horizontal ledge of the protective shell, the helmet further comprising a right slider with a right slider portion slidable along the horizontal ledge of the protective shell.

37. The helmet of claim 36, wherein the left and right slider portions have left and right slots for registering with the horizontal ledge.

38. The helmet of claim 37, wherein each of the left and right locking means comprises a threaded fastener extending through an opening in the band.

39. The helmet of claim 38, wherein the opening in the band comprises a slot, whereby when each locking means is in the second position, the slot may be moved with respect to the fastener.

40. The helmet of claim 37, wherein the left locking means comprises a left threaded fastener extending through a first opening in the band near the left slider and wherein the right locking means comprises a right threaded fastener extending through a second opening in the band near the right slider.

41. The helmet of claim 34, wherein the locking means comprises a star wheel.

42. The helmet of claim 36, wherein the left and right locking means are located rearwardly with respect to the left and right sliders.

43. The helmet of claim 23, wherein the chin protector comprises first and second branches on a left side of the chin protector and first and second branches on a right side of the chin protector, each of the first and second branches of the left side of the chin protector is separately fastened to the protective shell, and each of said first and second branches of the right side of the chin protector is separately fastened to the protective shell.

44. The helmet of claim 43, wherein the protective shell comprises left and right side portions terminating at front edges, the left side portion comprising a left side surface including a recessed part, the right side portion comprising a right side surface including a recessed part, the recessed part of the left side surface of the protective shell and the recessed part of the right side surface of the protective shell being configured to receive the chin protector such that the outer surface of the chin protector is substantially flush with a part of the left side surface of the protective shell adjacent to the recessed part of the left side surface of the protective shell and a part of the right side surface of the protective shell adjacent to the recessed part of the right side surface of the protective shell.

45. The helmet of claim 44, wherein the recessed part of the left side surface of the protective shell comprises a first recessed part and a second recessed part that are configured to receive the first and second branches of the left side of the chin protector, and the recessed part of the right side surface of the protective shell comprises a first recessed part and a second recessed part that are configured to receive the first and second branches of the right side of the chin protector.

46. The helmet of claim 43, wherein a thickness of a portion of the chin protector configured to be aligned with the recessed part of the left side surface of the protective shell is equal to a difference in height between the recessed part of the left side surface and the part of the left side surface of the protective shell with which the outer surface of the chin protector is substantially flush, and a thickness of a portion of the chin protector configured to be aligned with the recessed part of the right side surface of the protective shell is equal to a difference in height between the recessed part of the right side surface and the part of the right side surface of the protective shell with which the outer surface of the chin protector is substantially flush.

47. The helmet of claim 43, wherein the recessed part of the left side surface of the protective shell and the recessed part of the right side surface of the protective shell are configured to receive the chin protector such that the outer surface of the chin protector is substantially coplanar with the part of the left side surface of the protective shell adjacent to the recessed part of the left side surface of the protective shell and the part of the right side surface of the protective shell adjacent to the recessed part of the right side surface of the protective shell.

48. The helmet of claim 23, wherein a material of the chin protector is different from a material of the face guard.

49. The helmet of claim 23, wherein the face guard comprises a plurality of bars, and the chin protector is wider than each of the bars of the face guard.

50. The helmet of claim 23, wherein a given one of the protective shell and the chin protector comprises a recessed part configured for receiving the other one of the protective shell and the chin protector.

51. The helmet of claim 50, wherein the given one of the protective shell and the chin protector is the protective shell.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the helmet in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

(2) FIG. 2 shows a front view of the inventive helmet.

(3) FIG. 3 shows a side view of the inventive helmet.

(4) FIG. 4 shows a view similar to that of FIG. 3, but enlarged to show particular details.

(5) FIG. 5 shows a view similar to that of FIG. 3, but with structures separated from one another to show details.

(6) FIG. 6 shows a view similar to that of FIGS. 3 and 5 with portions removed to show details.

(7) FIG. 7 shows a top view of the inventive helmet.

(8) FIG. 8 shows a perspective view from the side and beneath the inventive helmet.

(9) FIG. 9 shows a view looking rearwardly into the inventive helmet with portions removed to show detail.

(10) FIG. 10 shows a perspective view from the front and right side of the inventive helmet.

(11) FIG. 11 shows a further side perspective view showing the inside of the shell with portions removed to show detail.

(12) FIG. 12 shows a bottom view of the present invention showing the location of mounting of an armature and padding structures.

(13) FIG. 13 shows the armature and padding structures of FIG. 12 separate from the helmet.

(14) FIG. 14 shows a portion of the armature and one set of tubes enlarged to show detail.

(15) FIG. 15 shows an enlarged side perspective view showing details of a variety of the inventive features of the inventive helmet.

(16) FIG. 16 shows a further perspective view with details of the occipital fit adjusting means shown.

(17) FIG. 17 shows a front right side perspective view with portions removed to show details of the occipital fit adjusting means.

(18) FIG. 18 shows further details of the occipital fit adjusting means.

(19) FIG. 19 shows details of the structure permitting the occipital fit adjusting means to be locked in a desired configuration.

(20) FIG. 20 shows a perspective view of a sport helmet including a further embodiment of a fit adjusting means.

(21) FIG. 21 shows a further perspective view of the helmet of FIG. 20 showing the inside of the helmet and the manner of mounting of a portion of the fit adjusting means.

(22) FIG. 22 shows a side view of a preferred construction of the fit adjusting means of FIGS. 20 and 21.

(23) FIG. 23 shows a further side view of the fit adjusting means from a side opposite to that which is shown in FIG. 22.

(24) FIG. 24 shows an exploded edge view of the inventive fit adjusting means.

(25) FIG. 25 shows a view similar to that of FIG. 24, but enlarged and with the parts assembled to show the manner of operation.

(26) FIG. 26 shows a view from a similar perspective to that of FIGS. 24 and 25, but with the legs of the parallelogram vertically spaced through operation of the device.

SPECIFIC DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

(27) With reference first to FIGS. 1-9, the inventive sport helmet is generally designated by the reference numeral 10 and is seen to include a shell 11 having a crown portion 13, vent openings 15, side portions such as the side portion 17 seen in FIG. 1, ear holes 19, a front ledge 21, a face guard 23 consisting of a cage, and a chin guard 25.

(28) With reference to FIGS. 12-14 and 16, the helmet 10 includes an inner surface of the shell 12 in which is mounted protective padding. In this regard, with reference to FIG. 13, an armature 30 is made of a thin flexible material and includes a plurality of branches or appendages, for example, 31, 33, 35, 37, 39, 41, 43, 45, 47, 49 and 51. Each of these branches or appendages includes one or more openings 53 for a purpose to be described in greater detail hereinafter. With reference to FIG. 14, a portion of the armature 30 is shown and is seen to releasably receive a modular cushioning device comprising a lateral displacement shock absorbing material 60 including a plurality of parallel tubes 61 held together by webbing 63. The tubes 61 are preferably configured in the manner particularly shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4 of Applicants' Assignee's prior U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/229,626, filed on Sep. 20, 2005, and for which a published patent application was published on Apr. 19, 2007, and assigned Publication No. US2007/0083965 A1.

(29) As seen in FIG. 14, the shock absorbing material includes a pair of tabs 65 and 67. As best understood from FIG. 14, a tab 65 is inserted through an opening 53 in the armature on each end of the material 60 to hold the material 60 in the position shown in FIG. 14 and in the positions shown in FIG. 13. The openings to which each cushioning device 60 is attached may be on separate respective branches or on the same branch. The material components 60 are installed on the armature 30 initially before the armature 30 and components 60 are installed in the helmet 10. Initially, the armature 30 lies flat. However, the pairs of holes 53 are spaced apart a slightly greater distance than the spacing between pairs of tabs 65, 67. As such, when the tabs 65, 67 are inserted into respective holes 53, the armature 30 adopts an arcuate configuration resembling the shape of the inner surfaces of the helmet 10 shell 11 into which it will be mounted.

(30) These sets of seven tubes, each comprising a lateral displacement shock absorbing material, are specifically located on the armature 30 such that when the armature 30 is installed within the inner surface 12 of the shell 11 of the helmet 10, they are located in positions of vulnerability for the skull of the user so that those areas of vulnerability are best protected. This is seen with particular reference to FIG. 12 which shows the armature 30 with a plurality of sets of lateral displacement shock absorbing material 60 mounted within the inner surface 12 of the shell 11 of the helmet 10. In the preferred embodiment, a thin layer of padding covers the armature 30 and the sets of shock absorbing material 60 to hide them from visibility while assisting in spreading forces imposed on the skull of the user as a result of impacts to be expected through playing a game such as lacrosse or hockey. The advantage of the use of the armature 30 is that the lateral displacement shock absorbing material made in sets of seven tubes as shown may be arranged on a flat surface for ease of assembly and then the entire armature unit with the shock absorbing material so installed may easily be attached inside the inner surface of the shell 11 of the helmet 10. The tabs 65 and 67, best seen in FIG. 14, facilitate ease of assembly and retention in assembled configuration.

(31) Each cushioning member 60 may comprise from 1 to 10 or more tubes held in parallel relation (where more than one tube is included) by webbing. Alternatively, the cushioning member may comprise any desired cushion or padding mountable on the armature.

(32) As disclosed in Published Application No. US2007/0083965 A1, in the preferred embodiment of the lateral displacement shock absorbing material 60, the material is made of any suitable material such as thermoplastic, for example, polypropylene urethanes and rubber, and may be made in an injection molding process in a pressure molding process by casting, drape molding or machining.

(33) As disclosed in Applicants' Assignee's prior Published Application No. US2007/0083965 A1, the side walls of the tubes 61 may be configured as best seen, for example, in FIG. 4 of the Published Application including use of double tapers, inside tapers, outside tapers or any combination thereof as applicable to the particular situation encountered. These configurations result in a softer initial resistance followed by an increase in crush resistance as the material is compressed so that it exhibits a somewhat uniform resistance throughout a wide range of crushing activity.

(34) With reference now to FIGS. 2, 4 and 10, the manner of mounting of the face guard or cage 23 to the shell 11 will now be described. As seen in FIG. 1, the shell has front edges 2 and 4 connected by ledge 21. With particular reference to FIG. 4, it is seen that the cage 23 includes a plurality of vertical and horizontal bars crossing one another including a generally vertical bar 24 that extends from the top to the bottom thereof. At one portion 26 of the cage 23, it is captured by a clip 70 which is seen to include an internal opening 71 which captures the portion 26 of the bar 24. However, with reference to FIG. 2, it is seen that the clip 70 extends both on the outside of the shell 11, engaging an outer surface thereof, and on the inside thereof, engaging an inner surface thereof, so that the bar 24, as best seen in FIG. 2, lies against the shell in assembly. This is to be contrasted with the prior art, as explained above, in which a P-shaped clip encloses the cage and is entirely on the outside of the helmet so that a side bar of the cage is spaced from the side surface of the shell by one-half the thickness of the P-shaped clip. Thus, by virtue of the teachings of the present invention, the cage 23 may be made slightly narrower and thus slightly lighter in weight because it does not have to be spaced from the shell by P-shaped clips that are not used in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. This is also seen with reference to FIG. 10. A suitable fastener extends through openings on the inner and outer halves of the clip 70 to hold the clip in place.

(35) With further reference to FIGS. 3, 4 and 10, in particular, it should be understood that the cage 23 may typically slide up and down in the directions of the arrow of the double-headed arrow 75 shown in FIG. 3. It is advantageous to preclude such movement from taking place because such movement cannot only harm the user, but can also cause premature wear and destruction of the helmet 10. In order to preclude such movement, as seen in these figures, a knob 77 is fastened to the bar portion 26 in any suitable manner such as, for example, by welding in the case of a metal knob 77 and a metal cage 23. With such a knob 77 in place, the knob 77 acts as a limit stop, limiting upward movement of the cage 23 with respect to the shell to only an extremely small distance, whereupon the knob 77 engages a portion 74 of the clip (FIGS. 4 and 10) to limit upward movement of the cage 23 with respect to the shell 11. The knob may be spherical, cylindrical or any other desired shape.

(36) With reference now to FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, in particular, improvements in the shell 11 and chin bar 25 will be better understood. With reference first to FIG. 3, the chin bar 25 is seen to include a chin guarding portion 80 and, on the right side of the helmet, two attachment members or branches 81 and 83. The left side of the chin bar 25 is symmetric with the right side, thus, each side of the chin bar has two attachment points or branches for attachment of the chin bar to the helmet. This is seen in greater detail with reference to FIG. 2.

(37) With reference to FIGS. 1 and 3, it is seen that the attachment point or branch 81 is attached to the helmet through the use of a fastener 85, while a fastener 87 is used to attach the second attachment point or branch 83 to the helmet.

(38) As best seen in FIG. 5, the shell 11 is molded to provide a thin area 89 and another thin area 91. The areas 90 and 92 adjacent the areas 89 and 91, respectively, are thicker with the difference in thickness being equal to the thickness of the chin guard 25. Thus, when the chin bar 25 is installed on the shell 11 as seen in FIG. 1, the branches 81 and 83 have outer surfaces that are coplanar with the surfaces 90 and 92 of the shell. Thus, there is a smooth transition between the branches 81 and 83 of the chin bar 25 and the shell 11 at the surfaces 90 and 92, respectively. This smooth transition is in stark contrast with the structures of prior art helmets in which the chin guards, where used, are attached on top of the shell, but with no recesses, thus causing the sides of the chin guard to outwardly protrude from the surfaces of the shell.

(39) As should be understood, the fact that the branches 81 and 83 are located in recessed portions on the shell 11 causes the chin bar 25 to be able to be made slightly narrower than is the case with prior art chin guards. This slightly reduces the amount of material employed in manufacturing the chin bar 25 and therefore reduces the weight of the helmet slightly.

(40) With reference now to FIGS. 11 and 15-19, a description will be add of an important aspect of the present invention concerning means permitting adjustment of the fit of the helmet to the user. With reference first to FIG. 15-19, it is seen on the right side of the helmet that a star wheel 82 has a central opening 84 through which a fastener 86 extends. With reference to FIG. 19, a threaded T-nut 88 threadably receives the fastener 86 so that rotation of the star wheel 82 in one direction tightens the fastener 86 within the T-nut 88 and rotation of the star wheel 82 in the opposite direction loosens the connection. In the preferred embodiment, clockwise rotation of the star wheel tightens the connection, whereas counterclockwise rotation loosens the connection.

(41) Also shown in FIG. 15 is a slider 95 provided for a purpose to be described in greater detail hereinafter. As best seen in FIG. 17, the slider 95 is integrally connected to a flexible band 94 that extends around the rear of the helmet at a location corresponding to the occipital portion of the skull of the user when the user is wearing the helmet 10. A slider 95 is provided on each side of the helmet mat each end of the band 94 and each of the sliders 95 has a gripping portion 97 that is accessible by the user from outside the shell 11 as best seen with reference to FIGS. 15 to 18. As best seen in FIG. 19, the T-nut 88 is mounted within a slot 96 formed in the band 94. The T-nut 88 is fixed in position within the shell 11 since its distance end extends into the opening 84 within the star wheel 82. Thus, as should be understood, the ends of the band 94 may be slid through engagement of the sliders 95 so that the band 94 may laterally move with respect to the T-nuts 88 by virtue of the grooves 96 wherein this movement should be understood to cause the band 94 to shorten and thereby tighten the band 94 about the head of the user when the sliders 95 are slid forward and wherein oppositely, when the sliders 92 are slid rearwardly, the band 94 is loosened, thereby allowing it to accommodate to the dimensions of a larger skull. Thus, with particular reference to FIGS. 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19, it should be understood that by turning the star wheels 82 on each side of the helmet counterclockwise, the connection between the fasteners 86 and the T-nuts 88 is loosened, thereby permitting the user to access the gripping portion 97 of each slider 95 and slide forward or backward each slider 95 to tighten or loosen, respectively, the band 94 about the head of the user. Once the band is moved to the position most comfortable and secure for the user, the star wheels 82 are rotated clockwise to tighten the connection between the fasteners 86 and T-nuts 88 to lock the position of the band 94 about the occipital region of the skull of the user. In this way, the user may easily adjust and re-adjust the fit of the helmet 10 on their head.

(42) In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the fastener 86 may have a coupling portion of any desired type such as a phillips head, hexagonal recess, or any other desired tool coupling. Furthermore, with reference in particular to FIG. 11, a pair of ribs 98 are located to either side of the fastener 86 and the opening 66 into which the T-nut is inserted. These ribs are provided so that when the T-nut is tightened, they act to help lock the position of the band 94 in a fixed position. It is also noted, with reference to FIGS. 16 and 18, that the slider 95 has a slider portion with a slot 99 so that it is properly guided and the slider 95 is retained in position along the edge 101 of the shell 11.

(43) The band 94 may be made of any desired material such as, for example, soft plastic or leather. The cage 23 is preferably made of metal bars welded together, but could also be made of another material such as hard plastic, KEVLAR, carbon fiber and the like. The chin bar 25 is preferably molded out of hard plastic, but could also be made of a lightweight metal such as, for example, aluminum. The shell 11 is preferably made of molded plastic.

(44) With reference now to FIGS. 20-25, a further aspect of the present invention will now be described consisting of a lateral adjustment means for a sport helmet. With reference first to FIGS. 20 and 21, a sport helmet is generally designated by the reference numeral 110 and is seen to include a hard shell 111. As shown in FIGS. 20 and 21, rectangular openings 112 and 113 are provided on opposed sides of the helmet for a purpose to be described in greater detail hereinafter.

(45) With reference now to FIGS. 22-25, a lateral adjustment device is generally described by the reference numeral 120 and is seen to include a parallelogram portion 121 and a separate leg 123.

(46) With further reference to FIGS. 22-25, the parallelogram portion 121 includes two legs, a first leg 125 and a second leg 127. The first leg 125 terminates at an end 129 having an opening 131 designed to receive, for example, a threaded fastener intended to fix the end 129 within the helmet 110. The opening 131 is also seen in FIG. 21. The second leg 127 terminates at an adjustment mechanism or ratchet mechanism 133 to which is connected the third leg 123 which terminates distally of the parallelogram portion 121 at an end 135 having an opening 137. The opening is provided to facilitate fixation of the end 135 in the helmet by virtue of a fastener such as the fastener 114 seen in FIG. 20. The fastener 114 extends through an opening 116 in the helmet 110 as seen in FIG. 21.

(47) With particular reference to FIGS. 22 and 23, the parallelograms are defined by the legs 125 and 127 as well as by the additional legs 139, 141 and 143, also described as connecting leg portions. As seen in FIGS. 22 and 23, the leg 139 has a first end 145 connected to the leg 125, and a second end 147 connected to the leg 127. The leg 141 has a first end 149 connected to the leg 125, and a second end 151 connected to the leg 127. The leg 143 has a first end 153 connected to the leg 125, and a second end 155 connected to the leg 127.

(48) As should be understood with reference, for example, to FIG. 23, with the end 129 of the leg 125 made immovable through the use of a fastener (not shown) extending through the opening 131, and with the leg 127 reciprocated in the direction of the arrow A, movements of the leg 127 with respect to the leg 125 causes pivoting at the respective ends of the legs 139, 141 and 143 to thereby cause the leg 127 to lift up with respect to the leg 125 from a position at which the legs 125 and 127 are substantially co-planar to a position at which they are vertically spaced from one another in substantially parallel planes, thereby increasing the thickness of the device 120 in the direction of the dimension X as shown in FIG. 24. This configuration of the device 120 is also seen in FIG. 26.

(49) In order to facilitate use of the inventive lateral adjustment device in the sport helmet 110, the leg 127 includes an actuating tab 159 (FIGS. 22 and 25) that is seen in FIG. 20 extending through the slot 112 in the helmet 110. The leg 123 includes a plurality of teeth 161 best seen in FIGS. 24 and 25. With reference to FIGS. 24 and 25, the leg 127 includes a flexible pivoting member 165 on which a tooth 167 is provided that is sized and configured to enter any one of the teeth 161 on the leg 123. As should be understood from FIG. 25, the directional arrow A corresponds to the directional arrow A in FIG. 23. With the leg 123 fixed in position in the helmet 110 by virtue of the fastener 114 (FIGS. 20 and 25), movements of the leg 127 in the direction of the arrow A will cause successive ones of the teeth 161 to ride up on the tooth 167 and move past it with the configurations of the teeth 161 and the tooth 167 precluding reverse movement in the direction of the arrow B. As such movements occur, with the leg 125 also fixed by virtue of a fastener (not shown) extending through the opening 131 and fastened to the helmet 110, the connecting leg portions 139, 141 and 143 will pivot toward the position shown in FIG. 26 to expand the thickness of the device 120 in the direction X shown in FIG. 24. In this way, the device 120 will tighten the fit of the helmet about the head of the user.

(50) As also evident from FIGS. 24 and 25, in particular, the leg 123 has an end 124 that extends through an opening 171 of the leg 127 to one side of the tooth 167, and another opening 173 on the leg 127 at an opposite side of the tooth 167.

(51) With the device 120 moved to the position shown in FIG. 26, it may subsequently be desirable to facilitate collapse of the parallelograms back toward the configuration shown, for example, in FIG. 24. In order to do so, reference is made to FIG. 25. When such collapse is desired, the user may pivot the tab 159 in the direction of the arrow 175. Such pivoting causes the leg 127 to bend at approximately the location of the lead line extending from the reference numeral 177. With the leg 123 captured within the openings 171 and 173 and being relatively rigid as compared to the leg 127, this pivoting motion of the tab 175 and bending of the leg 127 causes the tooth 167 engaging the tooth 161 to lift off from the tooth 167, thereby permitting movement of the leg 127 in the direction of arrow B (FIG. 25), to thereby facilitate collapse of the parallelograms.

(52) In the preferred embodiment of the lateral adjustment device 120, the components thereof are made of a suitable molded plastic. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, two devices 120 are provided, one on each side of the helmet 110.

(53) The present invention has been disclosed in terms of its applicability as a sport helmet for players in the games of lacrosse and hockey. While these are preferred environments of contemplated use, the teachings of the present invention are also applicable in other environments and applications. These include in motor sports such as motorcycle riding and in driving of automobiles and other vehicles; animal riding activities such as horseback riding, rodeo riding, polo playing; water activities such as swift water boating, knee boarding, kite boarding, sailing, surfing, wind surfing; construction, safety and occupational helmets such as hard hats, firefighter helmets, riot helmets, law enforcement helmets; aviation helmets such as those used in skydiving and by smoke jumpers, airplane pilots and airplane crew members, military and otherwise; rescue helmets such as those used in swift water rescue, and those used in confined spaces; snow activity helmets such as those used in skiing, snowboarding, sledding, sliding, snowmobiling; military helmets such as ballistic helmets and those used by soldiers; climbing and caving helmets; pole vaulting helmets; non-motorized wheeled activity helmets such as those used in cycling, inline skating, and skateboarding; medical helmets; martial arts helmets; and helmets used in other sports such as football, baseball, softball, boxing, and others.

(54) Accordingly, an invention has been disclosed in terms of preferred embodiments thereof which fulfill each and every one of the objects of the invention as set forth hereinabove, and provide a new and useful improved sport helmet of great novelty and utility.

(55) Of course, various changes, modifications and alterations in the teachings of the present invention may be contemplated by those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the intended spirit and scope thereof.

(56) As such, it is intended that the present invention only be limited by the terms of the appended claims.