- 1 IMPROVED REFLECTIVE AND ILLUMINATED SAFETY HELMET AND SAFETY SYSTEMS COMPRISING THE SAME FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to safety equipment, in particular, a reflective safety helmet and systems comprising the same. The safety helmet of the present invention includes special safety features adapted specially for, but not limited to, the mining and construction industry and more particular to mining and construction sites with low lighting conditions. BACKGROUND ART Mining and construction personnel working in low-light or no-light conditions, such as in underground mines, are exposed to considerable safety risks due to poor visibility. This is especially the case as heavy machinery, vehicles and tools are required during the mining or construction process. While most work sites adopt stringent safety conditions, there are still an alarming number of mining/construction related accidents and/or fatalities that are commonly associated with operators using heavy machinery in the vicinity of workers, who are unaware of the workers in their vicinity. The present state of the art is primarily only concerned with providing for head protection, and while these helmets do in fact provide impact protection, they afford little in the way of visibility. This is the case even though it is common practice to attach a single forward facing lamp to the helmet to provide illumination in front of the worker. Unfortunately, however, a worker having a retrofitted helmet-lamp that is facing away from an operator of machinery or vehicles will still go unnoticed in low-light conditions. Moreover, while some helmets presently do include reflective strips on the side or back of the helmets, such are commonly adapted as an accessory to the helmet (i.e. sticker or the like) and thus fade and peel with time leading to costly and time consuming upkeep by designated work site safety professionals. In addition to the above, helmets that are commonly used during mining and/or construction situations are unventilated and uncomfortable, and have no means for fastening securely to the person wearing the item. Lastly, presently available helmets are -2 used in conjunction with cumbersome ear and eye protective peripherals, and commonly only provide a short visor that is insufficient to provide full protection to a wearer's face. As such, there is a need in the art to provide an improved safety helmet that overcomes the above limitations of the prior art. In this regard, the present invention is a completely reflective safety helmet having a suitable constant or intermittent light source atop for significantly improved visibility, and which combines eye and ear protection members to form a single and complete protective unit. OBJECT OF THE INVENTION It is the object of the present invention to ameliorate the limitations of the prior art, which comprises the use of commercially established head protection equipment, or to at least provide the public with a useful alternative. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In one aspect, the invention resides in an illuminated and reflective safety helmet comprising: a rigid headpiece having reflective properties; an illumination attachment piece configured to be removably attached to the headpiece and comprising a plurality of longitudinally disposed light sources and a forward facing light source; and at least one power source configured to power the plurality of longitudinally disposed light sources and the forward facing light source. Preferably, in all embodiments, the reflective property of the headpiece is provided by a reflective material impregnated in the headpiece during manufacture thereof. Alternatively, the reflective property of the headpiece is provided by a reflective material applied to the surface of the headpiece. Preferably, in all embodiments, the plurality of longitudinally disposed light sources and the forward facing light source are incandescent light sources or light emitting diodes (LEDs).
-3 More preferably, the illumination attachment piece further comprises at least one connection means that engage with at least one respective connection means provided on the headpiece so as to secure the illumination attachment piece to the headpiece. Preferably, the safety helmet of the present invention further comprises an internal harness that is adjustable to fit substantially all head sizes, wherein when the safety helmet is worn by a person, the person's head is separated from the inner peripheral surface of the headpiece by a gap. Preferably, at least one power source is a plurality of rechargeable batteries that connect to an electrical system that is incorporated into the headpiece by at least one housing formed in the gap between the internal harness and the inner peripheral surface of the headpiece. More preferably, the safety helmet comprises a power source on either side of the internal spine of the headpiece. Preferably, the safety helmet further comprises an electrical connection means disposed within the gap, that is configured to connect to a mains power source to facilitate recharging of the at least one power source. Preferably, the safety helmet further comprises a strap that is configured to be adjusted to secure the headpiece to a person. Preferably, the safety helmet further comprises ear protection members, which in preferable embodiments can also include a speaker system. Preferably, the safety helmet further comprises a microphone and communication device. Preferably, the safety helmet of the present inventive comprises a fatigue alarm system configured to sound an alarm through an incorporated speaker system after a predetermined period of time. Preferably, the safety helmet further comprises a pivoting eye-glass protection member that is incorporated in an extended visor of the headpiece. In a second aspect of the present invention, the invention resides in a safety system that comprises: -4 a reflective safety helmet comprising: i. a rigid headpiece having reflective properties; and ii. an illumination attachment piece configured to be removably attached to the headpiece, and comprising a plurality of longitudinally disposed light sources and a forward facing light source; and a reflective vest comprising a plurality of power sources incorporated therein. In the second aspect of the present invention, the power sources of the vest are configured to provide electrical power to the plurality of longitudinally disposed light sources and the forward facing light source of the safety helmet though a linked connection. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In order for the invention to be better understood and put into practice, reference will now be made to the following drawings: Figure 1A shows a perspective view of an exemplary reflective and illumination safety helmet of the present invention, where the illumination attachment piece and headpieces are not connected to one another; Figure 18 shows a perspective view of an exemplary reflective and illumination safety helmet of the present invention; Figure 2 shows a perspective view of an exemplary reflective and illumination safety helmet of the present invention, highlighting additional features to those shown in Figures 1A and 1B. Figure 3 shows a perspective view of an exemplary safety system of the present invention; Figure 4 shows an perspective view of the underside of an exemplary reflective and illumination safety helmet of the present invention.
-5 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS it will be understood that terms such as "front, "back", "base", "top", "side", "bottom", "left", "right", "end", "head", "tail", "horizontal", etc. refer to the orientation or configuration of a reflective safety helmet used according to the illustrations and to assist in indicating points of reference when viewing the accompanying Figures. These terms are not intended to limit the present invention to any specific orientation or configuration. Moreover, the terms "comprising" and "containing" shall be understood to have a broad meaning similar to the term "including" and will be understood to imply the inclusion of a state integer or step of group of integers or steps but not the exclusion of any other integer or step or group of integers or steps. The definition also applies to variations on the terms "comprising" and "containing" such as "comprise", "comprises", "contain" and "contains". Referring now to Figure 1A, which shows a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the safety helmet is shown to include a headpiece (10) and an illumination attachment piece (20). As shown in Figure 1A, the illumination attachment piece (20) is configured to be detachable from the headpiece (10), but when the safety helmet of the present invention is in use, the illumination attachment piece (20) is securely attached to the headpiece (10), as best shown in Figure 1B and Figure 2. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the material, size and dimensions of the headpiece (10) is not overly limited, as such can be adapted to suit a particular work environment and to the head size of the person who intends to wear the headpiece (10). It is important, however, that the headpiece (10) is to be manufactured according to any applicable jurisdictional safety standards that may apply in the particular country of interest. In a preferable embodiment, the headpiece (10) is composed of a hard-plastic moulded headpiece (10) having a completely reflective surface or property, thus adding to the visibility features of the safety helmet of the present invention. In other embodiments, however, the headpiece can be a conventional headpiece that has already be designed and tested to meet relevant safety requirements, but can be further adapted to include the -6 additional novel safety features of the present invention that will be described in further detail throughout the Detailed Description below. Materials that are employed in manufacture of the headpiece are not overly limited, and are well known to those skilled in the art. Moreover, techniques for the impregnation or incorporation of reflective materials in or onto the surface of plastics are well known in the common general knowledge. As shown in Figure 1B, the headpiece (10) can also include a strap (30), that is can be appropriately tightened to secure the headpiece (10) to a person. Moreover, while it is not illustrated, the headpiece (10) can include several air vents strategically formed in the headpiece. As is the case with conventional headpieces, the headpiece (10) of the present invention is attached to an internal harness (40) (shown best in Figure 4), preferably at at-least 6 distinct points, and is adjustable to suit substantially all head-sizes and to provide comfort to the wearer. While not wishing to be bound by theory, the harness primarily serves to cushion heavy impacts to the headpiece (10) from the wearer, and in normal operation ensures that the inner peripheral surface of the headpiece (10) is not in direct contact with the wearer's head. Materials used for the production of the strap (30) and internal harness (40) of the present invention are well known in the common general knowledge, by way of example however, can include terylene or equivalent high shock absorptive soft-plastic. As shown in Figures 1A and 1B, illumination attachment piece (20) comprises a plurality of longitudinally disposed light sources (12) and a forward facing light source (22), the latter being attached to one terminal end of the illumination attachment piece (20). The light sources (12, 22) can be any powered light emitting source, including but not limited to, a incandescent light bulb/s or a plurality of Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) commonly used in flashlights. In the most preferred embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of longitudinally disposed light sources (12) and forward facing light source (22) comprise a plurality of LEDs (preferably, but not limited to, blue light LEDs) that are powered by at least a one external source that is connected via an incorporated electrical wiring system (not shown) in both the headpiece (10) and illumination attachment piece (20). In should be understood that in the context of the present invention, "longitudinally disposed" is not meant to limitedly refer to a plurality of light sources provided along the longitudinal axis, as -7 any pattern spanning the length of the attachment piece (20) is intended to be included within the scope of the present invention. In preferred embodiments, the forward facing light source (22) is primarily provided to illuminate the work area of the wearer, and to facilitate visible working conditions in low light sites, such as for ground workers on an underground mine site. The longitudinally disposed light sources (12) of the present invention, however, has at least two primary functions, one being to provide additional illumination to the worker and the second being to facilitate visibility of the ground worker to surrounding personnel. For example, when in use, e.g. by a ground worker of an underground mine site, the powered longitudinally disposed light sources (12) provide constant or intermittent illumination that can be clearly observed by other workers from various angles and positions, especially from elevated positions. For instance, operators of heavy machinery and large vehicles in underground mine sites, as well as night shift workers on major construction projects, rely on their visibility from elevated positions to be aware of the ground workers, and thus merely providing a light source that shines or illuminates in a single direction to impart visibility for the ground worker (i.e. a forward facing light source) does little to improve the visibility of the ground worker to other mine personnel. Therefore, it has been advantageously found that a plurality of clearly visible light sources, such as the longitudinally disposed light sources (12) of the present invention that can be clearly observed from various angles and/or positions, significantly reduces the number of fatalities occurring due to a worker not being adequately visible to personnel operating heaving machinery or vehicles. As previously indicated, the illumination attachment piece (20) is configured to be detachable from the headpiece (10). The detachable position of the illumination attachment piece (20) is shown best in Figure 1A. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of attachment means (25) and (26) are provided on the illumination attachment piece (20) and the headpiece (10), respectively, that engage each other to secure the illumination attachment piece to the headpiece. Those skilled in the art will readily comprehend that any known method of securing two items in a removably connectable manner would fall within the scope of the present invention without departing from the spirit thereof.
-8 As will be appreciated from the above description, the combination of the reflective properties of the headpiece (10), the longitudinally disposed light sources (12) and the forward facing light source (22) of the safety helmet of the present invention, provides both superior illumination and visibility to the wearer of the safety helmet but also significantly enhances the visibility of the wearer to other workers deployed at various positions, orientations and elevations respective to the worker. In addition to the above preferable features, the present invention can include a plurality of additional features as will explained in further detail with reference to Figures 2-4. Referring now to Figure 2, the safety helmet of the present invention also includes moulded reflective ear protection members (50), which are shown to be intergrated members of the headpiece (10) and are thus less intrusive when compared to conventional ear muffs used by workers. In a preferred embodiment, the moulded reflective ear protection members (50) can be formed from a similar plastic material to that used to fabricate the headpiece. To ensure that the wearer of safety helmet has the discretion to deploy the ear protection members (50) or to leave such in an un-deployed state, hinge member (52) shown in Figures 2 and 3 are provided. These hinge members (52) permit each ear protection member (50) to easily transition from the un-deployed state (shown in Figure 2) to the deployed state (shown in Figure 3) so as to cover and protect the wearers hearing. In a more preferred embodiment, the ear protection members (50) can also incorporate a micro-speaker system (not shown), where in conjunction with a small microphone and radio transmitter incorporated into the safety helmet, can ensure that the wearer of the helmet is in constant radio contact. Those skilled in the art would appreciate that this would be advantageous to the safety of the workers, as the safety helmet does not have to be removed for the worker to transmit a radio signal back to base or to other workers. Moreover, the workers hands are kept free during radio transmission, as there is no need to hold a transmission device. In this preferred embodiment, the present invention provides an advantageous safety helmet that enables the workers to be immediately notified of any emergency or hazard that may exist on the work site.
-9 In an additional preferred embodiment, the safety helmet of the present invention can be adapted to also include a fatigue alarm system (not shown), which is programmable. In this embodiment, the speaker system provided in the safety helmet is configured to sound an alarm after a predetermined period of time via an activation signal provided by the alarm system. In particular, it is envisaged that the alarm system provides a time delayed activation of the alarm circuit, such as after a prolonged period of the worker wearing the helmet to warn of fatigue. This would be advantageous in many situations, including but not limited to, where the wearer is the operator of heavy machinery or a vehicle, where many of the accidents that occur on work sites are fatigue related. Electronic components and circuitry for use in the fatigue alarm system of the present invention are well known in the art. Moving now to Figure 4, an additional feature of the safety helmet of the present invention is the inclusion of an internal pivoting eye-glass protection member (90) that is incorporated in the extended visor (90) of the headpiece (10). The pivoting eye-glass protection member (80) allows for safety glasses to be pivoted into position, and eliminates fogging up associated with conventional eye protection apparel. The pivoting eye-glass protection member does not, however, exclude the use of conventional "closed off" protective goggles, which could still be worn where the wearer is exposed to, for example, harmful splashes and debris. As also shown in Figure 4, in preferred embodiments of the safety helmet of the present invention, battery packs (100) can be inserted into a housing provided in the gap between the inner peripheral surface of the headpiece (10) and the internal harness (50). The battery packs (100) when inserted into their respective housing, each provide an external power source to the longitudinally disposed light sources (12) and a forward facing light source (22), via an integrated electrical wiring system of the safety helmet (not shown). It will be appreciated that the number of battery packs (100) included is not overly limited, but most preferably include about 1-10 separate battery packs, more preferably about 2-5. It will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the power provided by the battery packs (100) can also provide power to an internal communication system when and if incorporated into the safety helmet of the present invention, as previously discussed above.
-10 The battery packs (100) of the present invention can be any known type of battery available to those skilled in the art, such as but not limited to, Lithium Batteries and Nickel Cadmium Batteries (NiCad*). Moreover, the battery packs (100) are preferably capable of being re charged using any readily known technique available to those skilled in the art. In the latter embodiment, the safety helmet of the present invention also includes an electrical connection means (130) that facilitates recharging of the battery packs (100) through an external electrical supply (i.e. mains power; not shown) conducted via cable (120) whose terminal end is configured to electrically engage with electrical connection means (130). In addition to the forgoing embodiments, the present invention also includes a safety system that is best shown with reference to Figure 3. As shown in Figure 3, the safety system includes a safety helmet having headpiece (10), an illumination attachment piece (20); a reflective safety vest (60); and, connection cable (70). While a number of additional safety features are shown in Figure 3 to be incorporated into the safety helmet (i.e. pivoting eye glass protection member (80) and ear protection members (50)), it is to be understood that such features can be present alone or in any combination and thus adapted where appropriate. The safety helmet of the safety system of the present invention is similar to that previously described with reference to Figures 1, 2 and 4, but has been adapted to exclude battery packs (100) housed in the gap between the inner peripheral surface of the headpiece (10) and the internal harness (50). Alternatively, in the safety system of the present invention, a connection cable (70) is preferably provide to electrically connect the respective connectors provided on the safety helmet and the reflective safety vest (60). Preferably, in this embodiment, battery packs (not shown), which provide power to the longitudinally disposed light sources (12) and the forward facing light source (22), as well as any other electrical device incorporated into the safety helmet (i.e. communication system or the like), are incorporated into pockets (150) provided on the safety vest (60) at any appropriate location. Those skilled in the art would appreciate that, in addition to the advantages of the safety helmet described above, the safety system provides the additional advantage of distributing the weight needed to be carried by the worker. In particular, rather than the battery packs being incorporated into the safety helmet itself, which can add additional weight to the helmet, such can alternatively be incorporated into the vest. Moreover, as the vest can also - 11 have various reflective and illuminating properties, it also acts to enhance the visibility of the worker to other personnel on the site. While the foregoing has been given by way of illustrative example of the preferred embodiments of the present invention, it will be appreciated that all such and other modifications and variations thereto as would be apparent to persons skilled in the art are deemed to fall within the scope and ambit of the present invention as is herein set forth.