HELMET AND MANUFACTURING METHOD

Abstract

A helmet comprises a crown and a neckband having a body. Right attachment point and left attachment point attach the neckband to the lateral parts of the crown. The body is installed movable between a use position where the body is salient from the crown and a stowed position where the body is installed in the cavity. The inner face of the body is facing the rear inner face of the crown in the stowed position. The body is of curved shape and moves between the positions by turning elastically. The body is connected to the right attachment point and the left attachment point by a flexible attachment formed by a flexible textile element or a strip of elastomer material. The flexible attachment is elastically deformable in three-dimensional manner.

Claims

1. Helmet designed for working at heights and for mountaineering comprising: a crown defining a cavity designed to receive a user's head; a neckband having a body defining an inner wall designed to come into contact with an occipital region of the user's head; a right attachment point attaching the neckband with a right lateral part of the crown and a left attachment point attaching the neckband with a left lateral part of the crown; a rear attachment point attaching the neckband with a rear part of the crown; wherein the body is installed movable between a stable first position where the body is salient from the crown to define a use position and a stable second position where the body is installed in the cavity to define a stowed position, the inner wall of the body being facing a rear inner face of the crown in the stowed position; wherein the body defines a hard point when the body moves between the first position and the second position, the neckband having a restoring force for moving the body into the use position when the body is between the use position and the hard point and moving the body into the stowed position when the body is between the stowed position and the hard point, wherein the body is of curved shape and moves between the first position and the second position deforming elastically and reversing the radius of curvature of the curved shape; wherein the body is connected to the right attachment point and to the left attachment point by a flexible attachment formed by a flexible textile element or a strip of elastomer material, the flexible attachment being elastically deformable in three-dimensional manner between the body and each of the right attachment point and the left attachment point.

2. Helmet according to claim 1 wherein said flexible textile element or said strip of elastomer material has an elongation at break of less than 10% in the longitudinal direction.

3. Helmet according to claim 1 wherein said flexible textile element or said strip of elastomer material has an elongation at break of more than 50% in the longitudinal direction.

4. Helmet according to claim 3 wherein the flexible attachment is formed by said flexible textile element.

5. Helmet according to claim 3 wherein the body is made from plastic material and said flexible textile element has an elongation at break at least twice as great as an elongation at break of the plastic material forming the body.

6. Helmet according to claim 1 wherein the flexible attachment is formed by said flexible textile element chosen from a webbing, a rope, a fabric or a braid.

7. Helmet according to claim 1 wherein the body is connected to the rear attachment point by a flexible textile element or a strip of elastomer material to form a flexible attachment elastically deformable in three-dimensional manner.

8. Method for manufacturing helmet comprising the following steps: providing a crown defining a cavity designed to receive a user's head and a neckband having a body defining an inner wall designed to come into contact with an occipital region of the user's head; attaching the neckband with the crown by means of a right attachment point attaching the neckband with a right lateral part of the crown, a left attachment point attaching the neckband with a left lateral part of the crown and a rear attachment point attaching the neckband with a rear part of the crown, wherein the body is installed movable between a first position where the body is salient from the crown to define a use position and a second position where the body is installed in the cavity to define a stowed position, the inner wall of the body being facing a rear inner face of the crown in the stowed position, wherein the body is of curved shape and moves between the first position and the second position deforming elastically and reversing the radius of curvature of the curved shape; wherein the body is connected to the right attachment point and to the left attachment point by a flexible textile element or a strip of elastomer material to form a flexible attachment elastically deformable in three-dimensional manner between the body and each of the right attachment point and the left attachment point; and wherein the body defines a hard point when the body moves between the first position and the second position, the neckband having a restoring force for moving the body into the use position when the body is between the use position and the hard point and moving the body into the stowed position when the body is between the stowed position and the hard point.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Other advantages and features will become more clearly apparent from the following description of particular embodiments and implementation modes of the invention given for non-restrictive example purposes only and represented in the appended drawings, in which:

[0027] FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a perspective view of a helmet provided with a neckband in a stowed position;

[0028] FIG. 2 schematically illustrates a perspective view of a helmet provided with a neckband in a use position;

[0029] FIG. 3 schematically illustrates a perspective view of a neckband;

[0030] FIG. 4 schematically illustrates a perspective view of a neckband deformed to represent the use position;

[0031] FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a perspective view of a neckband deformed to represent the stowed position;

[0032] FIG. 6 schematically illustrates a side view of a helmet with the neckband in the stowed position.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0033] FIGS. 1 to 6 represent different configurations of a helmet 1, preferentially a helmet for mountaineering and working at heights. The helmet 1 comprises a crown 2 designed to receive a user's head and a neckband 3.

[0034] The crown 2 is manufactured from a material that is unable to fold onto itself. The crown 2 can be made preferentially from plastic material, for example from polycarbonate or injected-moulded ABS or from polystyrene or expanded polypropylene, or from any other plastic material, in particular from injection-moulded, thermoformed or foam plastic material.

[0035] The crown 2 defines a crown surface that represents the surface of the median plane of the crown in the thickness direction. The crown surface is a curved surface that is approximately a half-sphere. The cavity defined by the crown 2 is designed to receive a part of the user's head.

[0036] The helmet 1 also comprises a neckband 3 that is attached to the crown 2 by three attachment points, a right attachment point 4, a left attachment point 5 and a rear attachment point 6. The right attachment point 4 attaches the neckband 3 with a right lateral part of the crown 2. The left attachment point 5 attaches the neckband 3 with a left lateral part of the crown 2. The attachment point 6 attaches the neckband 3 with a rear part of the crown 2. The right and left parts represent the right and left sides of the user wearing the helmet 1. The rear part of the crown 2 corresponds to the part closest to the occipital bone whereas the front part corresponds to the part closest to the forehead.

[0037] The neckband 3 can be attached directly to the crown 2 or it can be attached to an intermediate part attached to the crown 2. In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the neckband 3 is attached to the right part and to the left part of the crown 2 by means of an adjustment system 7 configured to adjust the circumference of the headband. Advantageously, the adjustment system 7 enables the right attachment point 4 and the left attachment point 5 to be moved with respect to the crown 2. The attachment point 6 is preferentially fixed directly to the crown 2.

[0038] The neckband 3 has a body 3a defining an inner wall designed to come into contact with the occipital region of the user's head. The body 3a is installed movable between a first position where the body 3a is salient from the crown 2 to define a use position (FIG. 2) and a second position where the body 3a is installed in the cavity of the crown 2 to define a stowed position (FIG. 1). In the stowed position, the inner face of the body 3a is facing the rear inner face of the crown 2. In the same way as for certain configurations of the prior art, it is particularly advantageous to have a body 3a that can be C-shaped, i.e. having a curved shape, and that deforms to move from the use position to the stowed position.

[0039] During its deformation, the body 3a can define a hard point that enables two distinct stable positions to be defined, the stowed position or the use position. The body 3a is of curved shape and moves between the first position and the second position deforming elastically and reversing the radius of curvature of the curved shape. Reversal of the radius of curvature is observed along a radius that extends from the centre of the curve and first enters the outer face or the inner face thereby enabling radii of curvature of opposite signs to be defined. In other words, the body defines a concave or convex surface depending on whether the reference face is the inner face or the outer face for the above-mentioned two positions. The body 3a is a rigid element with a certain elastic stiffness. The body 3a is preferably a polymer material. When the body 3a is between the use position and the hard point, the neckband 3 has a restoring force that moves the body 3a to the use position. When the body 3a is between the stowed position and the hard point, the neckband 3 has a restoring force that moves the body 3a to the stowed position. A stable position is defined as a position in which the neckband 3 remains in the absence of external stress, irrespective of the orientation of the helmet 1. To leave the stable position, the user applies a force to the body 3a to deform the body 3a to the hard point. The force is directed to oppose the restoring force. Once the hard point has been passed, the applied force and the restoring force of the body 3a are directed in the same direction to place the body 3a in the other stable position. The hard point is not a stable position.

[0040] To facilitate deformation of the body 3a, without overstressing the other components of the helmet 1, it is advantageous not to use hinges as was the case in the prior art configuration.

[0041] The body 3a is connected to the right attachment point 4 and to the left attachment point 5 by a flexible textile element or a strip of elastomer material to form a flexible attachment elastically deformable in three-dimensional manner between the body 3a and each of the right attachment point 4 and the left attachment point 5. The use of a flexible textile element or a strip of elastomer material enables a highly deformable area to be had between the body 3a and the right attachment point 4 and the left attachment point 5, thereby facilitating deformation of the body 3a of the neckband 3 with respect to the attachment point 6.

[0042] This embodiment is particularly advantageous when the helmet 1 is equipped with an adjustment system 7 to adjust the circumference of the headband and that acts on the position of the right and left attachment points. When the right and left attachment points shift, this has the effect of deforming the body 3a of the neckband 3 to take account of the distance separating the two attachment points, i.e. the distance in the right-left direction or the lateral direction YY. As the neckband 3 is deformed, the deformation kinematics to switch from the stowed position to the use position also change. As a result, the stresses applied on the hinges can be considerably modified depending on the adjustment applied on the headband. To avoid having to form stronger hinges, i.e. that are bulkier and heavier, which is not acceptable for equipment that is worn on the head for several hours, it is advantageous to use a right flexible attachment 8 and a left flexible attachment 9.

[0043] Whereas the hinge defines a single pivot axis, the strip of elastomer material and the flexible textile element allow relative movements in the three dimensions, thereby enabling deformation of the body 3a to be accommodated better when switching between the stowed position and the use position.

[0044] It is also apparent that using a strip of elastomer material and a flexible textile enables a compact structure to be kept or even makes it possible to gain in compactness. The thicknesses of the strip of elastomer material and of the flexible textile element can be identical or smaller than the thicknesses of the body 3a while being able to withstand the applied stresses. In addition, the strip of elastomer material and the flexible textile element are elements that can deform in contact with the user's head thereby reducing the risks of injury.

[0045] It is particularly advantageous for the strip of elastomer material and the flexible textile element to facilitate deformation in the lateral direction YY, i.e. the direction perpendicular to the median sagittal plane. The lateral direction YY corresponds to the left-right axis, i.e. an axis that extends from the right attachment point 4 to the left attachment point 5. Deformation in the lateral direction YY results in the stresses on the right attachment point 4 and the left attachment point 5 being reduced, which is particularly advantageous when the attachment points are movable by means of the adjustment system 7 as it enables a compact adjustment system 7 to be kept.

[0046] It is particularly advantageous for the strip of elastomer material and the flexible textile element to facilitate deformation in a transverse direction ZZ illustrated in FIG. 6. What is meant by transverse direction ZZ is a vertical direction when the helmet 1 is worn, and the direction that is parallel to the median sagittal plane and to the median coronal plane of the person wearing the helmet 1. The median coronal plane separates the front part and the rear part of the crown 2. In other words, the strip of elastomer material and the flexible textile element can move towards or away from the plane representing the peak of the crown 2 and the plane representing the bottom part of the crown 2. There again, preferential deformation of the strip of elastomer material and of the flexible textile element reduces the stresses on the attachment points, which is particularly advantageous when the attachment points are connected to an adjustment system 7 as it enables the compactness of the adjustment system 7 to be preserved. The front-rear direction is illustrated by the XX axis.

[0047] The strip of elastomer material and the flexible textile element at each end of the neckband 3 are able to deform independently from one another, thereby enabling the deformation and stresses applied to be better managed.

[0048] In particularly advantageous manner, the strip of elastomer material and the flexible textile element are able to deform elastically in extension in the longitudinal direction, i.e. the direction that connects the two right and left attachment points, passing through the attachment point 6. Deformation in extension can increase the value of the circumference of the headband or deform the strip of elastomer material and the flexible textile element to apply a reasonable stress on the head when performing the adjustment phase. Deformation in extension of the strip of elastomer material and of the flexible textile element enhances the ease of adjustment to the morphology of the back of the head.

[0049] In preferential manner, the strip of elastomer material and the flexible textile element are able to undergo considerable deformations, for example the flexible textile element or the strip of elastomer material has an elongation at break of more than 50% in the longitudinal direction. The high degree of deformability of the right flexible attachment 8 and of the left flexible attachment 9 facilitates deformation of the body 3a.

[0050] What is meant by textile element is an element that can be woven, braided or knitted. The textile material is preferentially chosen from a webbing, a fabric, a braid, or a tangle of threads or fibres of any kind. The braid can be a flat braid and/or a tubular braid. The webbing can be a flat webbing and/or a tubular webbing. The fabric can comprise a single layer or several layers.

[0051] Depending on the materials used, it is possible to have a textile material that presents a great flexibility in the transverse direction and in the lateral direction in both directions, and that only allows a very small extension in the longitudinal direction or even does not allow any extension in the longitudinal direction. The textile material can be a rope or a hyperstatic strap, i.e. with an elongation at break percentage of less than 4%. It is also possible to have a dynamic strap or rope, i.e. with an elongation at break percentage of less than 15% or even less than 10%. It is advantageous to use the same materials as for climbing ropes, for example polyamide or polyester. In view of the materials used, the forces in play to adjust the neckband 3 to the user's head mean that the deformation is nil or very slight. In this embodiment, adjustment to the morphology of the head is almost entirely performed by the adjustment system 7, and the flexibility of the textile material or of the elastomer material enables a highly deformable attachment to be achieved to facilitate deformation of the body between the stowed position and the use position.

[0052] In a preferential embodiment, the body is made from plastic material, preferably from the same materials as those used in the prior art to form a deformable body. The flexible textile element has an elongation at break at least twice greater than an elongation at break of the plastic material forming the body. Elongation of the flexible textile element or of the elastomer material makes adjustment to the user's head easier by limiting the length of the textile element or of the elastomer material.

[0053] In an alternative embodiment, the body 3a is made from plastic material and the flexible textile element has an elongation at break at least twice lower than the elongation at break of the plastic material forming the body 3a. When the neckband 3 is stressed to adjust the latter to the morphology of the user's head, the textile material does not deform in the longitudinal direction and the body 3a deforms to fit the shape of the head better.

[0054] Depending on the configurations, the body 3a can be connected to the rear attachment point 6 by a flexible textile element or a strip of elastomer material to form a flexible attachment that is deformable in three-dimensional manner, or it can be connected by a hinge 10 that defines a pivot axis of the body with respect to the crown 2.

[0055] The use of a flexible textile element or a strip of elastomer material enables a movement of the body 3a to be had with respect to the crown 2 in three distinct directions. This facilitates deformation of the body 3a between the use position and the stowed position.

[0056] These embodiments are particularly advantageous as they facilitate deformation of the body 3a between the stowed position and the use position.

[0057] In the stowed position, the body 3a is installed inside the crown 2 and is attached by means of the three attachments that comprise at least two flexible attachments. The weight of the body 3a is small so that it does not allow a deformation or a large deformation of the textile element or of the elastomer strip that would have the effect of making the body 3a hang outside the crown 2.

[0058] As the body 3a can deform more easily between the stowed position and the use position, it is possible to use a body 3a that is more encompassing, i.e. a body 3a having a radius of curvature that is closer to the radius of curvature of the crown 2 and/or a body 3a of greater length. The length of the body 3a is measured in the circumference direction. For example, the neckband 3 extends over at least 30% of the circumference of the crown 2, preferentially at least 40% and even more preferentially at least 50%. As the body 3a can be larger, the body 3a can extend over at least 20% of the circumference of the crown 2, preferentially at least 30% and even more preferentially at least 40%.

[0059] The use of a flexible textile element or an elastomer strip that allows an elongation in the longitudinal direction, and preferentially an elongation of more than 50%, enables the length of the flexible textile element and of the elastomer strip to be reduced. The body 3a can extend over a larger distance, thereby providing a better support of the rear part of the head.

[0060] The length of the body 3a is considerably greater than the distance between the right attachment point 4 and the left attachment point 5. Advantageously, the length of the body 3a is greater than the sum of the distance between the right attachment point 4 and the left attachment point 5, of the length of the left flexible attachment 9 and of the length of the right flexible attachment 8. The greater length of the body 3a enables a stable stowed position and a stable use position to be had. FIG. 3 illustrates a neckband 3 in a flat configuration. FIG. 4 illustrates the same neckband 3 deformed to represent the stowed position whereas FIG. 5 illustrates the use position.

[0061] In the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, the neckband 3 is a monolithic element that has a body 3a extended at each end by a flexible textile element or an elastomer strip and then by an attachment termination. Preferentially, the sum of the length of the body 3a and of the flexible textile elements or elastomer strips is equal to or slightly smaller than the circumferential distance separating the right attachment point 4 and the left attachment point 5. For example, the value of the sum is less than 5% to 10% of the circumferential length.

[0062] In advantageous manner, the flexible textile element or the elastomer strip has a first end fixed to the body 3a and a second end fixed to an attachment termination 11. The two attachment terminations 11 are fixed to the crown 2 or to the adjustment system 7.

[0063] The neckband 3 is preferentially provided with an additional attachment termination that secures the neckband 3 to the crown 2 to form the rear attachment point 6.

[0064] The method for manufacturing the helmet 1 can be presented in the following manner. A crown 2 is provided defining a cavity designed to receive a user's head. A neckband 3 is also provided having a body 3a defining an inner wall designed to come into contact with the occipital region of the user's head.

[0065] The neckband 3 is attached to the crown 2 by means of a right attachment point 4 attaching the neckband 3 with a right lateral part of the crown 2, a left attachment point 5 attaching the neckband 3 with a left lateral part of the crown 2, and a rear attachment point 6 attaching the neckband 3 with a rear part of the crown 2.

[0066] The body 3a is installed movable between a first position where the body 3a is salient from the crown 2 to define a use position and a second position where the body 3a is installed in the cavity to define a stowed position. The inner face of the body 3a is facing the rear inner face of the crown 2 in the stowed position. The body 3a is of curved shape and moves between the first position and the second position deforming elastically and reversing the radius of curvature of the curved shape.

[0067] The body 3a is connected to the right attachment point 4 and to the left attachment point 5 by a flexible textile element or a strip of elastomer material to form a right flexible attachment 8 or a left flexible attachment 9 elastically deformable in three-dimensional manner between the body 3a and each of the right attachment point 4 and the left attachment point 5.

[0068] In use, the body 3a is deformed to impose a curvature in one direction or the other. When deformation of the body 3a takes place, the body 3a applies a deformation on the flexible textile element or the elastomer strip, which facilitates deformation of the body 3a in spite of the three attachment points to the crown 2.

[0069] The flexible textile element and the elastomer strip allow a three-dimensional deformation which facilitates deformation of the body 3a.

[0070] In the illustrated embodiment, the adjustment system 7 is equipped with knob 7a that adjusts the circumference of the headband and that can if necessary shift the lateral attachment points of the neckband 3.