AP400A

AP400A - A shin pad with achilles tendon protection.

Info

Publication number: AP400A
Application number: APAP/P/1993/000483A
Authority: AP
Inventors: Anthony Eunan Henson
Original assignee: Albion Hat & Cap Company Pty Ltd
Priority date: 1992-01-23
Filing date: 1993-01-13
Publication date: 1995-08-21
Also published as: ZA9328B; AP9300483A0; US5301370A; ZA9338B; JPH05345061A; EP0552804A1

Abstract

A shin pad includes a front pad (21)for protecting a wearer's shin and a rear pad (22)for protecting the wearer's achilles tendon. The front pad (21)has a bight (23)located between two lobes (24, 25)which each cover one of the two ankle bones which protrude in opposition directions at the wearer's ankle. The rear pad (22)takes the form of a miniature shin pad having a reversed orientation. The lower edge of the rear pad (22)is provided with a bight (33). Located one to either side of the longitudinal axis of the rear pad (22)is one slit of a pair of slits (36). Passing through the slits (36), and a corresponding pair of slits (30)on the front pad (21), is an ankle strap (37)which is provided with a releasable velcro fastener (38)to enable the two pads to be connected together around the wearer's shin

Description

The present invention relates to shin pads and, in particular, to a shin pad with Achilles tendon protection.

In many sports such as football (in all its various codes), hockey, and so on, it is known to provide protection for the shin of a player by means of a shin pad. Whilst the protection afforded by shin pads covers the front facing portion of the player's legs, it is also possible for players to receive a blow from either the boot, hockey stick, or ball on the Achilles tendon. This is particularly painful. However, hitherto most shin pads have not provided any protection for the Achilles tendon.

In recent times at least two attempts have been made to provide some io protection for the Achilles tendon area, however, this protection has been in the form of an anklet or sock which envelops the entire ankle region and which is worn under the normal socks worn by all competitors in the game. Accordingly, such protection is extremely uncomfortable in that a great deal of perspiration is generated within the sock or anklet.

is It is known from US Patent No. 4,982,447 (assigned to the present applicant) to provide shoulder pads, shin pads and arm pads formed from foamed plastics material which include a number of protrusions, grooves and apertures which facilitate the movement of air over the player's body. In this way the player is kept relatively cool notwithstanding the wearing of the pad(s).

The object of the present invention is to provide a shin pad with Achilles tendon protection and which, in its preferred embodiment, is able to be fabricated in accordance with the general principles underlying the disclosure of the above mentioned US patent.

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According to the present invention there is disclosed a sporting shin pad with achilles tendon protection for a sport playing wearer, said shin pad comprising:

a first flexible elongate pad having a longitudinal extent sufficient to cover the shin of the wearer, said first pad further having a pair of first lobes and a first bight located between the lobes at the lower end thereof, said lobes being positioned to cover the ankle bones of the wearer;

a second flexible elongate pad having a longitudinal extent sufficient to cover the achilles tendon of the wearer, said second pad further having a pair of second lobes and a second bight located therebetween at the lower end thereof, said first and second pads having a plurality of bosses extending from the outer surfaces thereof, and a plurality of protrusions extending from the inner surfaces thereof to bear against the wearer's skin, said bosses being delineated by an array of intersecting grooves, said protrusions being distributed over said inner surfaces, and a plurality of through apertures located at some of the intersections of said grooves and extending through is said pads and spaced between said protrusions, the arrangement of protrusions, apertures, bosses and grooves defining a plurality of air communicating passages between the skin of the wearer's leg with the outer surfaces of said pads; and a releasable securing strap retaining said first pad and said second pad as a unitary structure and for commonly securing said first pad and said second pad to the wearer's leg.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings in which;

Fig. 1 is a front perspective view of a first prior art shin pad with limited Achilles tendon protection.

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Fig. 2 is a front perspective view of a second, generally similar, prior art oat,

Fig. 3 is a front perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the shin pad of the present invention showing the shin pad as worn, is a front perspective view of the shin pad alone, is a front view of the shin pad of Fig. 4, is a right side view of the of shin pad of Fig. 4, is a rear view of the shin pad of Fig. 4, and

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Fig.

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the shin pad of Fig. 4.

As seen in Fig. 1, the first form of prior art shin pad takes the form of a shin pad 1 which is secured to an ankle sock 2 the arrangement being held in place by a calf strap 3 and a stirrup strep 4 , The ankle sock 2 is formed frcm two layers of elasticised material between which is located a soft pad. Accordingly the ankle sock 2 is very close fitting and therefore extremely hot. The sock 2 causes a great deal of perspiration when used.

A second prior art attempt to provide Achilles tendon protection is illustrated in Fig. 2. Here again an ankle sock 12 is provided having a stirrup strap 14. Again the ankle sock 12 is formed from two layers of elastic fabric between which are located various forms of padding (not illustrated). In this particular arrangement the padding takes the form of two dome shaped protectors which cover the points of the ankle bone and a further layer of padding arranged between the two layers of material and covering the Achilles tendon in use. Again, the ankle sock 12 is extremely hot and therefore relatively uncomfortable for the player.

As best seen in Figs. 3 and 6, the preferred arrangement of the present invention takes the form of two pads namely a front pad 21 and a rear pad 22. The front pad 21 has a bight 23 located between two lobes 24, 25 which each cover one of the two ankle bones which protrude in opposition directions at the wearer's ankle.

At the lowermost end of each of the lobes 24, 25 is located a slit 25 through which passes a stirrup strap 27 having a releasable VELCRO (Registered Trade Mark) fastener. The stirrup strap 27 enables the front pad 21 to be maintained in position against upwardly urging vertical forces. As best seen in Fig. 3, a second pair of slits 28 is provided so as to enable the optional use of a calf strap 29, if desired.

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As best seen in Figs. 6 and 7, the rear pad 22 takes the form of a miniature shin pad having a reversed orientation. The lower edge of the rear pad 22 is provided with a bight 33. Located one to either side of the longitudinal axis of the rear pad 22 is one slit of a pair of slits 36. Passing through the slits 36. and a corresponding pair of slits 30 on the front pad 21. is an ankle strap 37 which is again provided with a releasable VELCRO fastener 38.

Distributed over the front surfaces of both pads 21 and 22 are bosses 40 formed by a number of intersecting grooves 41 in the outer surface of the pads 21, 22. At the intersection of the grooves 41 are located through apertures 42. Similarly, the inner surfaces of the pads 21 and 22 are preferably provided with protnisions 44 which are generally similar to the bosses 40.

The bosses 40. protrusions 44. grooves 41 and apertures 42 combine to enable a degree of airflow to be achieved so that air can pass between the pads 21 and 22 and the skin of the wearer. In this way, the air can evaporate perspiration so as to cause a cooling effect brought about through the action of latent heat.

Each of the pads 21 and 22 is preferably formed from foamed moulded plastics such as close cell polyethylene foam or close cell ethyl vinyl acetate (EVA) foam. This material is arranged in three layers. The outer layer is a relatively tough skin formed using pressures to produce a density of the layer within the range of from 180 to 350 (preferably 220) kg/cubic metre. The next, middle, layer is slightly less hard being formed with pressures to produce a density of the layer in the range of from 60 to 120 (preferably 100) kg/cubic metre. Finally, the innermost layer which contacts the body of the wearer is the softest and is formed from pressures to produce a density of the layer of from 40 to 60 (preferably 45) kg 'cubic metre. The outer layer is approximately 4mm thick, the middle layer is about 3mm thick and the inner layer is approximately half of the total thickness. The grooves 41 are approximately 4mm wide and 10mm deep whilst the apertures 42 are approximately 4mm in diameter.

The foregoing describes only one embodiment of the present invention, and modifications obvious to those skilled in the art can be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example the stirrup strap 27 can be made optional like the calf strap 29 of Fig. 3.

Claims

CLAIMS.

1. A sporting shin pad with achilles tendon protection for a sport playing wearer, said shin pad comprising:

a first flexible elongate pad having a longitudinal extent sufficient to cover the s shin of the wearer, said first pad further having a pair of first lobes and a first bight located between the lobes at the lower end thereof, said lobes being positioned to cover the ankle bones of the wearer;

a second flexible elongate pad having a longitudinal extent sufficient to cover the achilles tendon of the wearer, said second pad further having a pair of second lobes o and a second bight located therebetween at the lower end thereof, said first and second pads having a plurality of bosses extending from the outer surfaces thereof, and a plurality of protrusions extending from the inner surfaces thereof to bear against the wearer's skin, said bosses being delineated by an array of intersecting grooves, said protrusions being distributed over said inner surfaces, and a plurality of through i s apertures located at some of the intersections of said grooves and extending through said pads and spaced between said protrusions, the arrangement of protrusions, apertures, bosses and grooves defining a plurality of air communicating passages between the skin of the wearer's leg with the outer surfaces of said pads; and a releasable securing strap retaining said first pad and said second pad as a

20 unitary structure and for commonly securing said first pad and said second pad to the wearer's leg.
2. A shin pad according to claim 1, further comprising a stirrup strap connected between the lobes of said first pad to restrain said first pad and therefore also

25 said second pad against longitudinal upward movement on the leg of the wearer.
3. A shin pad according to claim 2, wherein each of said lobes of said first pad is provided with a slit through which the stirrup strap passes.

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4. A shin pad according to any preceding claim, wherein said releasable securing strap is a loop and hook fastener.
5. A shin pad according to any preceding claim, wherein said first and second pads are each provided with a pair of longitudinal slits either side of the

35 longitudinal axis of the corresponding pad and said releasable securing strap passes through the slits to fasten the first and second pads to the leg.
6. A shin pad according to claim 5, wherein said grooves are approximately 4mm wide and 10mm deep.

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7. A shin pad according to claim 6, wherein said apertures are approximately 4mm in diameter.

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8. A shin pad according to any preceding claim, wherein one or both of the first and second pads are formed from foamed moulded plastics material.
9. A shin pad according to claim 8, wherein the plastics material is closed cell polyethylene foam.
10. A shin pad according to claim 8, wherein the plastics material is closed cell ethyl vinyl acetate foam.
11. A shin pad according to any one of claims 8, 9 or 10, wherein the

15 plastics material is arranged with a relatively hard outer layer, a relatively soft inner layer and an intermediate hardness middle layer.
12. A shin pad according to claim 11, wherein said outer layer is approximately 4mm thick.
13. A shin pad according to either claim 11 or claim 12, wherein said middle layer is approximately 3mm thick.
14. A shin pad according to any one of claims 11, 12 or 13, wherein said 25 inner layer is approximately 9-10mm thick.

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ABSTRACT

A shin pad includes a front pad (21) for protecting a wearer's shin and a rear pad (22) for protecting the wearer's Achilles tendon. The front pad (21) has a bight (23) located between two lobes (24, 25)

5 which each cover one of the two ankle bones which protrude in opposition directions at the wearer’s ankle. The rear pad (22) takes the form of a miniature shin pad having a reversed orientation. The lower edge of the rear pad (22) is provided with a bight (33). Located one to either side of the longitudinal axis of the rear pad (22) is one

10 slit of a pair of slits (3S). Passing through the slits (36), and a corresponding pair of slits (30) on the front pad (21), is an ankle .strap (37) which is provided with a releasable VELCRO fastener (38) to enable the two pads to be connected together around the wearer^ shin.