US20100132096A1

US20100132096A1 - Structure for safety helmet

Info

Publication number: US20100132096A1
Application number: US12/327,810
Authority: US
Inventors: Tsan-Jee Chen
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2008-12-03
Filing date: 2008-12-03
Publication date: 2010-06-03

Abstract

A structure for a safety helmet comprising an extendable/retractable visor. The visor is connected on each side by a connective part to a slotted moveable seat having a saw-tooth shaped position-limiting slot engaging a protrusion to control the position of the visor. The moveable seat is connected to a connective portion having a shaft with one or more protrusions engaging a connective hole with one or more indentations on the moveable seat. A seating unit having one or more engagement elements for affixation to the helmet is connected via a slot to a protrusion on the inside of a push seat. The protrusion has a threaded hole which engages the connective hole of the connective portion and is fastened thereto, e.g. by a screw. Upon assembly and fixation to the helmet, the visor may be extended or retracted by pushing on the push seat.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to a structure used for a safety helmet. More particularly, the invention relates to a safety helmet structure which provides a retractable visor that may be fitted onto a safety helmet to block the sunlight.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Most of the visors fitted on the safety helmets on the market are transparent to allow riders to see clearly. If the sunlight becomes too strong or shines directly on the eyes, many riders would wear sunglasses to weaken the sunlight; alternatively, some riders may replace the transparent visor with a light-reflective visor or a colored visor.
Though either way may weaken the sunlight, a rider can not take out his sunglasses from his bag when his motorcycle is in motion. Also, though a colored visor can effectively block the sunlight; such visor would make it difficult for him to see clearly during the nighttime and may even cause an undesirable accident to take place.
From the above, we can see that the safety helmet of the prior art has many disadvantages and needs to be improved.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is to provide a retractable visor that may be fitted onto a helmet to block or weaken the sunlight.
The safety helmet structure of the present invention comprises a visor, two moveable seats, a connective portion, a seating unit and a push seat. A connective part is disposed on each side of the visor. A protruding connective element is disposed on each connective part. The two moveable seats are connected with the connective parts through the slots. A position-limiting slot is provided on the outer side of the moveable seat. Each position-limiting protrusion is held in the corresponding position-limiting slot of each moveable seat. A connective hole is provided at a position posterior to the position-limiting slot. Several indentations may be provided on the connective hole. A hole is provided on the rear part of the moveable seat. The moveable seat may be connected with the helmet through the hole. At least one protrusion is disposed on the connective portion. A connective hole is provided on the posterior end of the connective portion. The connective portion may be connected with the connective hole of the moveable seat by means of the shaft. The seating unit is fixedly held on the outer side of the helmet through the fastening protrusion. A protrusion is disposed on the central part of the inner side of the push seat and may engage with the slot of the seating unit. At least one engagement element is disposed near the end of the protrusion and may fixedly hold the push seat in position. Also, the front part of the protrusion may be inserted into the connective hole of the connective portion, and a fastener used to affix it. Therefore, the connective portion may be connected with the protrusion. Then, the assembled components are fitted to a safety helmet. By pushing the push seat forward or backward, a user may extend or retract the visor through the inter-linking of the components.
The features and advantages of the present invention will be fully understood and appreciated from the following detailed description of the accompanying Drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the safety helmet structure of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the safety helmet structure of the present invention in an assembled condition.

FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate how the safety helmet structure of the present invention is used after fitting to a safety helmet.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the safety helmet structure of the present invention comprises a visor 1, two moveable seats 2, a connective portion 3, a seating unit 4 and a push seat 5.
A connective part 11 is disposed on either side of the visor 1. A protruding connective element 111 is disposed on each connective part 11.
A slot 21 is disposed on the front side of each moveable seat 2. A hole 22 is provided adjacent to the slot 21. A position-limiting slot 23 is disposed on the outer side of the moveable seat 2. The inner part of the position-limiting slot 23 has a saw-toothed shape. A connective hole 24 is provided at a position posterior to the position-limiting slot 23. At least one indentation 241 is provided on the connective hole 24. A hole 25 is provided on the rear part of the moveable seat 2. Therefore, the slot 21 may engage with the corresponding connective part 11 of the visor 1, and the protruding connective element 111 may mate with the hole 22. A position-limiting protrusion 61 of a helmet may be held inside the position-limiting slot 23. See FIGS. 3A and 3B.
A shaft 31 is disposed on the inner side of the connective portion 3. At least one protrusion 311 is disposed on the shaft 31. The shaft 31 may engage with the corresponding connective hole 24 and the protrusion 311 may mate with the at least one indentations 241. A connective hole 32 is provided on the posterior end of the connective portion 3.
At least one fastening protrusion 41 is disposed on the inner side of the seating unit 4. A slot 42 is provided on the central part of the seating unit 4. Each seating unit 4 is affixed to the helmet by means of the at least one fastening protrusion 41.
A protrusion 51 is disposed on the central part of the inner side of the push seat 5. A threaded hole 511 is provided on the end of the protrusion 51. At least one engagement element 512 is disposed at the end of the protrusion 51. The protrusion 51 may engage with the slot 42 of the seating unit 4, and the engagement element 512 may press against the slot 42; therefore, the push seat 5 may connect with the seating unit 4. Also, the front part of the protrusion 51 may be inserted into the connective hole 32, and a fastener (not shown) may be used to affix it with the threaded hole 511. Therefore, the connective portion 3 may be connected with the protrusion 51. The said fastener may be a screw.
The aforementioned components are first assembled, and then the assembled components are fitted to a safety helmet.
Now referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, which show how the structure of the present invention is used. When a user wants to extend the visor 1, he only has to push the push seat 5 forward. Because the protrusion 51 is linked with the connective portion 3, the connective portion 3 is moved forward. Also, because a hole 25 which is at the rear part of each moveable seat 2 is affixed to the inner surface of the helmet 6, the visor 1 is pushed downward by the connective portion 3, as illustrated in FIG. 3A. Now the visor 1 is extended and the sunlight may thus be blocked by the visor 1. When the user wants to retract the visor 1, he only has to push the push seat 5 backward. Because the protrusion 51 is linked with the connective portion 3, the connective portion 3 is moved backward. Furthermore, because a hole 25 which is at the rear part of each moveable seat 2 is affixed to the inner surface of the helmet 6, the visor 1 is pushed upward by the connective portion 3, as illustrated in FIG. 3B. Now, the visor 1 is retracted into the helmet 6.
A position-limiting protrusion 61 is disposed on either side of the helmet 6. Each position-limiting protrusion 61 is held in the corresponding position-limiting slot 23. Because the inner part of the position limiting slot 23 has a saw-toothed shape, several positions may be selected for each position-limiting protrusion 61 of the helmet 6.
Many changes and modifications in the above described embodiment of the invention can, of course, be carried out without departing from the scope thereof. Accordingly, to promote the progress of science and the useful arts, the invention is disclosed and is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A structure for a safety helmet, comprising:

a visor having a connective part disposed on each side thereof and a protruding connective element disposed on each connective part;

two moveable seats, each corresponding to one of the connective parts of the visor, a slot being disposed on the front side of each moveable seat to engage the corresponding connective part of the visor, a hole being provided adjacent to said slot to mate with the protruding connective element of the corresponding connective part, a position-limiting slot whose inner part has a saw-toothed shape disposed on the outer side of each of the two moveable seats, a connective hole having at least one indentation disposed at a position posterior to the position-limiting slot, and a hole disposed on the rear part of each of the two moveable seats;

a connective portion having a shaft disposed on the inner side thereof for engagement with the corresponding hole of the moveable seat, at least one protrusion disposed on said shaft, and a connective hole disposed at the posterior end of the connective portion;

a seating unit having at least one fastening protrusion disposed on the inner side thereof and a slot disposed on a central part of the seating unit, wherein the at least one fastening protrusion is for affixing the said seating unit to the helmet; and

a push seat having a protrusion disposed on a central part of the inner side thereof to engage with the slot of the seating unit, a threaded hole provided on an end of the protrusion, at least one engagement element disposed near the end of the protrusion to press against the slot of the seating element to connect the push seat with the seating unit, the end part of the protrusion being inserted into the connective hole of the connective portion, and a fastener for affixing the push seat to the connective portion by means of the threaded hole.

2. The safety helmet structure of claim 1, wherein the at least one fastening protrusion is fitted to a safety helmet so as to allow the upward and downward motions of the visor.

3. The safety helmet structure of claim 1, wherein a position-limiting protrusion of a helmet is affixed inside the position-limiting slot.

4. The safety helmet structure of claim 1 wherein a plurality of indentations are provided on the connective hole and a plurality of protrusions are provided on the shaft of the connective portion so that the plurality of indentations of the connective hole are respectively engaged with the plurality of the protrusions of the shaft.

5. The safety helmet structure of claim 1 wherein the fastener is a screw.