EP2956026B1

EP2956026B1 - Personal protective equipment for protecting a user

Info

Publication number: EP2956026B1
Application number: EP14725764.6A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Gérard THEVENOT; Alexandre QUARREY; Emmanuelle BEGUE; Benjamin MARNIER
Original assignee: Helite SAS
Current assignee: Helite SAS
Priority date: 2013-02-15
Filing date: 2014-02-17
Publication date: 2017-01-11
Anticipated expiration: 2034-02-17
Also published as: WO2014125368A3; WO2014125368A2; GB201302666D0; EP2956026A2; GB2510859B; GB2510859A

Description

The invention relates to a personal protective equipment for protecting a user.
Passive personal protective equipments, such as that of document FR 2 594 653 , have been used to provide a protection of the user. Such passive personal protective equipments provide the same protection whichever the situation is, including situations where no protection is required.
To provide better protection only when required while enabling the user to move freely otherwise, active personal protective equipments have been developed. Such active personal protective equipments generally comprise:

a garment adapted to cover at least the user's bust, the garment comprising an inner surface intended to be directed towards the user, and an outer surface intended to be directed opposite to the user,
an airbag system comprising an inflatable chamber conformed to protect at least a part of the user's bust, and an actuation device, the inflatable chamber presenting an inactive state in which said inflatable chamber is deflated, and an active state in which said inflatable chamber is inflated, the actuation device being adapted to pass the inflatable chamber from the inactive state to the active state upon occurrence of a risk involving situation.

Such active personal protective equipment is used to provide a direct protection of the user against severe injuries in occurrence of an accident, a fall or any risk involving situation imparting a high acceleration to the body of the user. The active personal protective equipment finds many applications not only in known risk involving activities but also more generally in many sport activities, work activities and even daily activities. For example, the active personal protective equipment finds particular applications in sliding activities such as skiing or kite-surfing, in free flight activities, such as ultra-light aircraft flight, delta wing flight or paragliding, in mechanical sports, such as motorcycling or snowmobile riding, in horse riding, in professional activities, such as workers on scaffoldings.
A known personal protective equipment of this active type which provides full satisfaction is described in document WO 2011/148353 .
Nevertheless, the invention aims at providing a personal protective equipment of the aforementioned active type, further improved especially in terms of manufacturing simplicity.
A personal protective equipment of the aforementioned active type further comprising a lining adapted to cover at least a part of the inner surface of the garment (namely, the inner most surface of the garment), the lining including internally the inflatable chamber, the actuation device being secured to the lining, the personal protective equipment comprising an attaching system adapted to removably attach the lining to the garment, the garment and the lining being adapted to enable the inflatable chamber to pass from the inactive state to the active state is described in the document US 2004/0111790 .
Airbag systems integrated into separate linings are known from WO 2014/001189 and EP 2 671 463 , which are prior art under Article 54(3) EPC.
The invention relates to personal protective equipment according to claim 1.
The airbag system is integrated to a detachable lining, separate from the garment.
These provisions simplify the manufacturing of the personal protective equipment by enabling to work separately on the lining and the integration of the inflatable chamber, on the one hand, and on the garment, on the other hand.
The lining can thus be optimised as regards its integrated protective function and standardized to be mounted in a simple while reliable manner on different kinds of garments.
The manufacturing of the personal protective equipment is further eased since the inflatable chamber can be directly conformed to a suitable final shape. This differs from the active personal protective equipments of the known prior art in which the inflatable chamber had first to be conformed to an intermediate mounting shape enabling the inflatable chamber to be mounted within the garment before being conformed to its suitable final shape.
These provisions also provide modularity to the personal protective equipment by enabling a combination of different linings with different garments. Such modularity is especially useful to enable the replacement of the garment without the need of replacing the lining with the integrated inflatable chamber.
In addition to fast and simple attachment, the attaching system ensures proper positioning of the inflatable chamber and accurate control of the actuation of the airbag system, including upon inflation of the inflatable chamber.
On the user's side, the user may remove the lining from the garment to use the garment when no specific protection is required. The lining can then be attached again to the garment without the risk of misplacement thanks to the attaching system. These provisions have further advantages regarding cleaning of the personal protective equipment, since the lining and the inflatable chamber can be removed from the garment for cleaning the garment.
The lining may have a border and the attaching system may comprise first and second attaching members adapted to be removably attached to each other, the first and second attaching members being secured respectively to the lining and the garment, at least a part of the first attaching member of the attaching system extending along at least a part of the border of the lining.
The garment may have a border, the border of the lining being arranged at vicinity of the border of the garment when the lining is attached to the garment, at least a part of the second attaching member of the attaching system extending along at least a part of the border of the garment.
The garment may comprise at least a back covering portion intended to cover the user's back, and two front covering halves intended to cover the user's breast, and the lining may comprise at least a back lining portion and two front lining halves adapted to cover respectively the inner surfaces of the back covering portion and of the two front covering halves when the lining is attached to the garment, the attaching system being adapted to attach at least the front lining halves of the lining to the front covering halves of the garment.
Such conformation of the lining provides shape stability which further ensures proper positioning of the airbag system and accurate control of its actuation.
The inflatable chamber may comprise a back protecting portion arranged within the back lining portion of the lining and two front protecting portions arranged each within the two front lining halves of the lining.
The garment may have a collar intended to be arranged around the user's neck, the collar having a base towards the rest of the garment, and a free edge opposite to the base, the collar comprising inner and outer folds overlapping each other, the inner fold being intended to be directed towards the user, the attaching system extending along at least a part of the inner fold, the inner and outer folds being connected to each other only by a fold line along the free edge of the collar, no connection between the inner and outer folds being provided close to the base of the collar, so as to enable the collar to be deployed when the inflatable chamber is in the active state.
At least one of the garment and the lining may have at least one elastically deformable portion arranged in correspondence with a portion of the inflatable chamber.
For example, the elastically deformable portion may be made of an elastically deformable fabric.
In an embodiment, the elastically deformable fabric may comprise threads made of elastically deformable material.
In another embodiment, the lining may extend along a central axis between a lower border intended to be arranged at vicinity of the user's waist and an upper border intended to be arranged at vicinity of the user's neck, the elastically deformable fabric comprising first and second threads arranged perpendicularly with each other, the first and second threads being shifted of an angle between 35 and 55°, preferably between 40° and 50°, with respect to the central axis so as to enable the fabric to elastically extend upon occurrence of a biais pulling effort along the central axis.
In an alternative or complementary manner, at least one of the garment and the lining may have at least one separable portion arranged in correspondence with a portion of the inflatable chamber, the separable portion comprising two edges delimiting a slit, the edges being moveable with respect to each other between a closed state in which said edges are substantially parallel and close to each other, and an opened state in which said edges are spaced apart from each other.
The lining has an internal surface directed towards the inflatable chamber and an external surface opposite to the inflatable chamber, the actuation device being secured to the external surface of the lining.
The lining has an outer part facing the inner surface of the garment when the lining is attached to the garment, and an inner part, the inflatable chamber extending between the outer and inner parts of the lining.
In one embodiment, the inflatable chamber may be delimited by an airtight envelope and the outer and inner parts of the lining may define an internal space accommodating the envelope of the inflatable chamber.
In another embodiment, the outer and inner parts of the lining may have at least airtight portions arranged to define the internal chamber. The lining itself may form the inflatable chamber, thereby lightening the personal protective equipment.
In either of these embodiments, the outer and inner parts of the lining may be delimited by edges, the outer part being sized to entirely cover a surface of the inner part, the outer and inner parts being superimposed with the edges fixed to one another, the attaching system extending along the edges of the outer and inner parts.
Alternatively, the outer and inner parts of the lining may be delimited by edges, the outer part being sized to cover only in part a surface of the inner part to shape the inflatable chamber, the outer part being superimposed on one or several separated portions of the inner part with the edge of the outer part fixed to the surface of the inner part, the attaching system extending along the edge of the inner part.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will emerge from the following disclosure of particular embodiments of the invention given as non limitative examples, the disclosure being made in reference to the enclosed drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a view of a front side of a personal protective equipment of the invention, the personal protective equipment comprising a garment and a lining removably attached to an inner surface of the garment, an inflatable chamber being integrated to the lining, the garment being closed and the lining being illustrated in transparency of the garment by dashed lines,
Figure 2 is a view in cross-section along line referenced II-II on Figure 1, illustrating the structure of the garment and the arrangement of the lining on the inner surface of the garment,
Figure 3 is a view of the front side of the personal protective equipment of Figure 1, the garment being opened to illustrate a border of the lining removably attached to a border of the garment,
Figure 4 is a view of a front side of the lining of the personal protective equipment of Figure 1 according to a first embodiment of the invention, the lining being separated from the garment, an internal space between inner and outer parts of the lining accommodating the inflatable chamber in the form of an airbag, a front side of the airbag being illustrated in transparency of the lining by dashed lines,
Figure 5 is a view of a back side of the lining of Figure 4, the lining being partly opened and the airbag being illustrated in transparency of the lining by dashed lines, an actuation device for inflating the airbag being secured to an external surface of the lining,
Figure 6 is a view in cross-section along line referenced B-B on Figure 4, illustrating the internal space of the lining accommodating the airbag,
Figure 7 is a view similar to that of Figure 6 of a lining of the personal protective equipment of Figure 1 according to a second embodiment of the invention, inner and outer parts of the lining itself defining the inflatable chamber, the outer part being conformed to cover only portions of the inner part,
Figures 8a and 8b are enlarged views of the detail referenced C on Figure 7, illustrating a separable portion of the garment arranged in correspondence with a portion of the inflatable chamber, respectively in a closed state when the inflatable chamber is in an inactive state and in an opened state when the inflatable chamber is in an active state,
Figures 9a and 9b are views in cross-section along line referenced D-D on figure 3, illustrating a collar comprising inner and outer folds when the inflatable chamber is in the inactive state and in the active state, respectively,
Figures 10 and 11 are side views of a user riding a motorbike and wearing the personal protecting garment of Figure 1, illustrating the inflatable chamber respectively in the inactive state and in the active state upon occurrence of an accident.

On the Figures, the same reference numbers refer to the same or similar elements.
Figures 1 to 3 illustrate an embodiment of a personal protective equipment 1 designed for protecting a user 2 against severe injuries, or at least for lowering the gravity of the injuries, in occurrence of an accident, a fall or any situation imparting a high acceleration to the body of the user 2. In a particular example illustrated on Figures 10 and 11, the personal protective equipment 1 is designed to be worn by a biker 2 riding a motorcycle 3. Nevertheless, the invention finds many other applications in which the risk of occurrence of an accident at high speed and/or high acceleration exists. The invention can, for example, be advantageously used in many sport activities, among which horse riding, snowmobile riding, ultra-light aircraft flight, delta wing flight or paragliding. The invention can also be used in work or domestic activities.
The personal protective equipment 1 comprises a garment 5 designed to be worn by the user 2 so as to cover at least his bust, including the upper part of the body from the waist to the neck.
In the illustrated embodiment, the garment 5 is tailored as a coat or a jacket made of several superimposed layers, three as shown on Figure 2, adapted to protect the user 2 against bad weather conditions such as cold, wind or rain. The garment 5 comprises a back covering portion 6 for covering the user's back, two front covering halves 7 arranged on either sides of the back covering portion 6 for covering the user's breast, and two sleeves 8 arranged each between the back covering portion 6 and one of the front covering halves 7 for covering the user's arms. The back covering portion 6 and the two front covering halves 7 have a length, measured between an upper border 10 intended to be arranged close to the user's neck and an opposed lower border 11 intended to be arranged close to the user's waist, such that the garment 5 may cover the user's bust. The two front covering halves 7 further have respective longitudinal borders 12 extending between the upper 10 and lower 11 borders. As can be seen on Figures 1 and 3 and further illustrated on Figures 9a and 9b, the garment 5 has a collar 80 intended to be arranged around the user's neck. The collar has a base 81 adjacent to the upper border 10 of the garment 5, and a free edge 82 opposite to the base 81. On an outer surface 5a of the garment 5 intended to be directed opposite to the user 2, the two front covering halves 7 may be provided with pockets 19.
The longitudinal borders 12 of the two front covering halves 7 are provided with a reversible attaching system 15 enabling the two front covering halves 7 to be removably attached to one another to close or open the garment 5. The attaching system 15 is, for example, a zipper comprising first 16 and second 17 bands secured respectively to the longitudinal borders 12 and having respective coupling elements adapted to be reversibly interlocked with each other upon passage of a cursor 18.
Depending on the application, the garment 5 may have different shapes and include different portions to cover the appropriate parts of the user's body. For example, in other embodiments, the garment 5 may have a length adapted to cover the user's hips or may be deprived of sleeves 8.
As represented in transparency of garment 5 by dashed lines on Figure 1 and as visible on Figure 3, the personal protective equipment 1 also comprises a lining 25 adapted to cover partly or entirely an inner surface 5b of the garment 5 intended to be directed towards the user 2.
The inner surface 5b of the garment 5 is the inner most surface of the garment 5. On Figure 2, as previously mentioned, the garment 5 is a multilayer garment comprising an outer layer 5A arranged outwards, namely apart from the user when the garment 5 is worn, an inner layer 5B arranged inwards, namely close to the user when the garment 5 is worn, and an intermediate layer 5C arranged between the inner and outer layers. The inner surface 5b of the garment 5 is the surface of the inner layer 5B directed towards the user. Alternatively, the garment 5 may be deprived of any intermediate layer or comprise several intermediate layers 5C, the inner surface 5b of the garment 5 still being the surface of the inner layer 5B directed towards the user. Alternatively, the garment 5 may comprise only one sole layer, the inner surface 5b of the garment 5 being surface of the sole layer directed towards the user.
In the illustrated example, the lining 25 comprises a back lining portion 26 and two front lining halves 27 adapted to cover respectively the inner surfaces of the back covering portion 6 and of the two front covering halves 7. The lining 25 also has two holes 28 arranged to be placed respectively in correspondence with openings of the sleeves 8 on the inner surface 5b of the garment 5. The lining 25 has upper 30 and lower 31 borders extending on the back lining portion 26 and the two front lining halves 27, and intended to be arranged towards the user's neck and towards the user's waist, respectively. The lining 25 also has two longitudinal borders 32 extending respectively on the front covering halves 27 between the upper 30 and lower 31 borders. The lining 25 is sized so as to cover an essential portion of the inner surface 5b of the garment 5. The upper 30, lower 31 and longitudinal 32 borders of the lining 25, defining globally a border of the lining 25, are then arranged at vicinity of the upper 10, lower 11 and longitudinal 12 borders of the garment 5, defining globally a border of the garment 5. Such lining 25 in the form of a vest presents suitable shape stability.
Again, depending on the application, the lining 25 may have different shapes and include different portions to cover the appropriate portions of the inner surface 5b of the garment 5. For example, in other embodiments, the lining 25 may have a smaller size or may comprise sleeves.
As can be seen of Figures 2 and 3, an attaching system 35 is provided to removably attach the lining 25 to the garment 5. The attaching system 35 comprises first and second attaching members adapted to be removably attached to each other. The first attaching member is secured to the lining 25 and the second attaching member is secured to the garment 5 so as to appropriately position and maintain the lining 25 with respect to the garment 5 when the first attaching member is attached to the second attaching member.
In the illustrated embodiment, the attaching system 35 extends along, i.e. on or at the vicinity of, upper 10, 30 and longitudinal 12, 32 borders of the garment 5 and the lining 25 to removably attach the back lining portion 26 and the front lining halves 27 of the lining 25 to the back covering portion 6 and the front covering halves 7 of the garment 5. The attaching system 35 is, for example, a zipper comprising first 36 and second 37 bands, as first and second attaching members, secured respectively to the border of the lining 25 and to the border of the garment 5 and having respective coupling elements adapted to be reversibly interlocked with each other upon passage of a cursor 38.
As shown on Figures 4 and 5, the lining 25 is detachable and can be separated from the garment 5 so that the personal protective equipment can be repeatedly and easily changed between an assembled state in which the lining 25 is attached to the garment 5, and a separate state in which the lining 25 is separated from the garment 5. Besides, such attaching system 35 arranged at the periphery of the lining 25 ensures proper positioning and further stability to the lining 25 when attached to the garment 5.
In other embodiments, the personal protecting equipment 1 can be provided with any other continuous attaching system, such as hook-and-loop tapes, or discontinuous attaching system, such as buttons and especially snap-buttons. Besides, the attaching system 35 may be arranged on any other suitable portion of the lining 25 and of the garment 5. For example, the first and second attaching members of the attaching system 35 may be arranged only along, i.e. on or at the vicinity of, a part of the border of the lining 25, such as its longitudinal borders 32, and a part of the border of the garment 5, such as its longitudinal borders 12. Depending on the shape of the separate lining 25 to be attached to the garment 5, the first attaching member may extend along, i.e. on or at the vicinity of, parts of border of the lining 25, preferably equally distributed, or the whole border of the lining 25, whereas the second attaching member is arranged on the inner surface of the garment 5 to enable the lining 25 to lie against the inner surface of the garment 5. In an alternative or complementary manner, the first and second attaching members of the attaching system 35 can extend on facing surfaces of the lining 25 and the garment 5.
According to the invention, the personal protecting equipment 1 has an airbag system 40 comprising:

an inflatable chamber reversibly deformable between an inactive state in which the inflatable chamber is deflated, and an active state in which the inflatable chamber is inflated, and
an actuation device 70 adapted to pass the inflatable chamber from the inactive state to the active state upon occurrence of a risk involving situation.

In a first embodiment illustrated on Figures 4 to 6, the inflatable chamber is delimited by a flexible airtight envelope of an airbag 45.
On Figures 4 and 5, the airbag 45, shown in dashed lines, is conformed in a suitable final shape to protect at least a part of the user's bust. Examples of a suitable airbag 45 are given in documents WO 2011/148350 and WO 2011/148354 .
In particular, the airbag 45 has two front protecting portions 47 adapted to protect the user's breast, an upper back protecting portion 46a adapted to protect the user's neck and cervix, a lower back protecting portion 46b adapted to protect the user's spine and side protecting portions 49 adapted to protect the user's waist and possibly the user's hips.
In particular, the two elongate front protecting portions 47 each extend longitudinally between a top end 47a intended to be arranged at vicinity of the user's shoulder, and bottom end 47b intended to be arranged at vicinity of the user's waist. Each front protecting portion 47 widens from the bottom end 47b to the top end 47a. The upper back protecting portion 46a extends transversally between the top ends 47a of the front protecting portions 47. The lower back protecting portion 46b consists, in the illustrated embodiment, in two elongate parts intended to be arranged on either sides of the spine. Each part of the lower back protecting portion 46b extends longitudinally from the upper back protecting portion 46a towards the bottom ends 47b of the front protecting portions 47. The side protecting portions 49 extend transversally respectively between the lower back protecting portions and the bottom ends 47b of the front protecting portions 47.
Preferably, the airbag 45 defines a single closed chamber with the different portions in fluid communication, where needed, through passages adapted to inflate the different portions in an appropriate sequence with an appropriate timing.
The invention is, however, not limited to such airbag 45 providing a full protection of the user's bust. In other embodiments, the airbag 45, and more generally the inflatable chamber, may have only one or several portions arranged appropriately to protect one or several portions of the body, and especially of the bust but also the neck, the head, the hips and others.
According to the invention, the inflatable chamber is integrated to the removable lining 25. To that end, the lining 25 has an outer part 25a intended to face the inner surface 5b of the garment 5 when the lining 25 is attached to the garment 5, and an inner part 25b. The inflatable chamber extends between the inner 25b and outer 25a parts.
In the first embodiment represented on Figures 4 to 6, the outer 25a and inner 25b parts have internal surfaces facing each other and defining an internal space 50 adapted to accommodate the airbag 45 at least in the inactive state. In the illustrated embodiment shown on Figure 2, the outer 25a and inner 25b parts, each made of one or several superimposed layers, the inner part 25b of the lining 25 is sized to cover only in part the surface of the outer part 25a. The inner part 25b comprises one or several portions respectively superimposed on one or several separated portions of the outer part 25a with the edge of the inner part 25b fixed to the surface of the outer part 25a. Alternatively, as shown on Figure 6, the outer 25a and inner 25b parts may have similar shapes delimited by edges 51 and are superimposed with the edges fixed to one another and defining the border of the lining 25. The internal space 50 of the lining 25 has two front receiving portions 57 extending respectively in the front lining halves 27 and a back receiving portion 56 extending in the back lining portion 26. The front receiving portions 57 accommodate respectively the front protecting portions 47 of the airbag 45. The back receiving portion 56 accommodates the upper 46a and lower 46b back protecting portions of the airbag 45. The side protecting portions 49 of the airbag 45 extend partly in the front receiving portions 57 and in the back receiving portion 56.
In the first embodiment, the receiving portions of the internal space 50 of the lining 25 have larger dimensions than that of the protecting portions of the airbag 45, the airbag 45 being secured in any appropriate manner to the lining 25 so as to ensure maintenance of the protecting portions at the appropriate locations.
Thanks to the arrangement of the inflatable chamber within the lining 25 separable from the garment 5, the inflatable chamber can be directly conformed into its above disclosed suitable final shape since no specific mounting strains is to be overcome.
The garment 5 and the lining 25 are adapted to enable the airbag 45 to pass from the inactive state to the active state and, if necessary, to control the inflation of the airbag 45 by shaping its envelope appropriately. In the illustrated embodiment, the garment 5 and the lining 25 are elastically deformable. Such provisions not only enable the airbag 45 to expand but also improve the positioning of the airbag 45 and the comfort of the user 2. In the illustrated embodiment, inner and outer parts of the pockets 19, fixed to one another for example by sewing, are elastically deformable, thereby preventing restriction of the airbag inflation.
As shown on Figure 4 in relation with the lining 25, the lining 25 and/or the garment 5 are made of an elastically deformable fabric. In particular, the lining 25 extends along a central axis A between its lower 31 and upper borders 30. The elastically deformable fabric comprises first 61 and second 62 threads arranged perpendicularly with each other. Conversely to the common arrangement of warp threads extending along the length of the fabric and yarn threads extending perpendicularly to the length of the fabric, the first 61 and second 62 threads are shifted of an angle α between 35 and 55°, preferably between 40° and 50°, with respect to the central axis A. These provisions enable the fabric to elastically extend upon occurrence of a biais pulling effort F along the central axis A.
Alternatively, the elastically deformable fabric can comprise threads made of elastically deformable material. Besides, in other embodiments, the lining 25 and/or the garment 5 need not to be fully elastically deformable. For example, only portions of the garment 5 and/or of the lining 25 arranged in correspondence with the protecting portions of the airbag 45 can be elastically deformable.
The arrangement of the inflatable chamber within the lining 25 which is in turn attached to the garment 5, covering the inner surface of the garment 5, the inflatable chamber can be interposed between the user and possible passive personal protection members, such as rigid pads, integrated within the garment. Such sequence of rigid pads arranged on the outside and inflatable chamber arranged on the inside ensures an optimum protection of the user.
In a second embodiment illustrated on Figures 7, 8a and 8b, the outer part 25a' of the lining 25' is sized to cover only in part the surface of the inner part 25b'. The outer part 25a' comprises one or several portions respectively superimposed on one or several separated portions of the inner part 25b' with the edge of the outer part 25a fixed to the surface of the inner part 25b. In the illustrated second embodiment, the outer part 25a' comprises two front portions extending respectively on the front lining halves 27' of the lining 25' and two back portions extending on the back lining portion 26' of the lining 25'. The outer part 25a' can easily be shaped according to the desired shape of the inflatable chamber.
In this respect, in the represented second embodiment, the portions of the outer 25a' and inner 25b' parts facing each other are made of an airtight material and define directly the inflatable chamber. The outer 25a' and inner 25b' parts may be made partly or entirely of a fabric treated to provide tightness, for example by coating of polyurethane layer, the edges of the outer part 25a' being secured, for example by welding, to the inner part 25b'. The lining 25' itself forms an airbag. On figure 7, the inner 25b' and outer 25a' parts of the lining 25' define two elongate front protecting portions 47' and two elongate back protecting portions 46b'. Any other suitable protecting portion, including those previously described in relation to the first embodiment and others, could be provided. Preferably, the lining 25' is partly or entirely made of a deformable fabric as previously disclosed.
As can be seen on Figures 8a and 8b in relation to the garment 5' of the second embodiment to which the lining 25' can be removably attached, the garment 5' can have one or several separable portions 90 arranged in correspondence with one or several portions of the inflatable chamber. In the illustrated example, a separable portion 90 is arranged in correspondence with one of the front protecting portions 47' of the inflatable chamber. The separable portion 90 comprises two edges 91, 92 delimiting a slit 93. On Figure 8a, the edges 91, 92 are such that when the inflatable chamber is in the inactive state, they remain in a closed state in which they are substantially parallel and close to each other. In the illustrated embodiment, the edges 91, 92 in the closed state overlap each other and can be removably fixed to each other in any suitable manner, for example by means of hook and loop bands. On Figure 8b, when the inflatable chamber is in the active state, the edges 91, 92 are moveable with respect to each other to an opened state in which they are spaced apart from each other. The inflatable chamber may then expand through the slit 93.
Alternatively, the lining 25' could be provided with a separate airbag arranged between the inner 25b' and outer 25a' parts. The lining 25' may then have separable portions 90. Also, such separable portions 90 can be combined with elastically deformable portions on the garment 5' and/or the lining 25' as disclosed in relation to the first embodiment. It should also be noted that these separable portions 90 could be implemented in the garment 5 and/or the lining 25 of the first embodiment.
As shown on Figures 9a and 9b, specific provisions may also be provided at the collar 80 of the garment 5 to enable the inflatable chamber to inflate and to offer an appropriate protection.
The collar 80 comprises inner 83 and outer 84 folds overlapping each other and connected to each other by a fold line 85 at the free edge 82. The outer fold 84 extends from the back covering portion 6 of the garment 5 to the fold line 85. The inner fold 83 is folded inwardly on the user's side and extends from the fold line 85 to a free border 86 on which one of the band of the zipper 35 extend for removable attachment with the lining 25. The fold line 85 forms the only connection between the inner 83 and outer 84 folds. In particular, at the base 81, the collar 80 is deprived from any connection between its inner 83 and outer 84 folds.
As can be seen on Figures 9a and 9b, the collar 80 is able to be deployed so that the inner 83 and outer 84 folds are spaced apart from each other, when the upper protection portion 46a of the inflatable chamber is in the active state.
Examples of a suitable actuation device 70 comprise a mechanical actuation device such as that disclosed in document WO 2011/148351 , pyrotechnic actuation device or other.
In particular, the actuation device 70 comprises a reservoir 71 of compressed gas and a socket 75 fixedly connected to the external surface of the outer part 25a of the lining 25. The socket 75 is adapted to put the reservoir 71 in fluid communication with the inflatable chamber to inflate the inflatable chamber.
For operating the actuation device upon occurrence of a risk involving situation such as an accident or a fall, the actuation device 70 has an operating element, in the form of a link 100 having one end connected to the socket 75. To enable actuation of the airbag system 40 on the lining 25 through the garment 5, the garment 5 comprises a passage between its outer 5a and inner 5b surfaces. In the illustrated embodiment, as can be seen on Figure 1, the socket 75 is fixed to a location of the lining 25 corresponding to one of the pockets 19 of the garment 5. The pocket 19 has an opening on the inner surface 5b of the garment 5 and a slit 9 on the outer surface 5a of the garment 5. The link 100 extends to the outside of the garment 5 through the opening and the slit 9.
In use, as shown of Figures 10 and 11, the user 2 wears the personal protecting equipment 1 with the inflatable chamber in its deflated inactive position. The user 2 connects a free end 101 of the link 100 to his motorcycle 3. Upon occurrence of an accident, a pulling action is exerted on the link 100 and transmitted to the actuation device to inflate the inflatable chamber to its active state.

Claims

Personal protective equipment (1) for protecting a user (2), comprising:
- a garment (5; 5') adapted to cover at least the user's bust, the garment (5; 5') comprising an inner surface (5b) intended to be directed towards the user (2), and an outer surface (5a) intended to be directed opposite to the user (2),

- an airbag system (40) comprising an inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47') conformed to protect at least a part of the user's bust, and an actuation device (70), the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47') presenting an inactive state in which said inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47') is deflated, and an active state in which said inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47') is inflated, the actuation device (70) being adapted to pass the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47') from the inactive state to the active state upon occurrence of a risk involving situation,
said personal protective equipment further comprising a lining (25; 25') adapted to cover at least a part of the inner surface (5b) of the garment (5; 5'), the lining (25; 25') including internally the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47'), ,
the personal protective equipment comprising an attaching system (35) adapted to removably attach the lining (25; 25') to the garment (5; 5'), the garment (5; 5') and the lining (25; 25') being adapted to enable the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47') to pass from the inactive state to the active state,
wherein the lining (25; 25') has an outer part (25a; 25a') facing the inner surface (5b) of the garment (5; 5') when the lining (25; 25') is attached to the garment (5; 5'), and an inner part (25b; 25b'), the inflatable chamber extending between the outer (25a; 25a') and inner (25b; 25b') parts of the lining (25; 25'),
wherein the lining (25; 25') has an internal surface directed towards the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47') and an external surface opposite to the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47'),
characterised in that
the actuation device (70) is secured to the external surface of the outer part (25a) of the lining (25; 25').
Personal protective equipment (1) according to claim 1, wherein the lining (25; 25') has a border and the attaching system (35) comprises first (36) and second (37) attaching members adapted to be removably attached to each other, the first (36) and second (37) attaching members being secured respectively to the lining (25; 25') and the garment (5; 5'), at least a part of the first attaching member (36) of the attaching system extending along at least a part of the border of the lining (25; 25').
Personal protective equipment (1) according to claim 2, wherein the garment (5; 5') has a border, the border of the lining (25; 25') being arranged at vicinity of the border of the garment (5; 5') when the lining (25; 25') is attached to the garment (5; 5'), at least a part of the second attaching member (37) of the attaching system (35) extending along at least a part of the border of the garment (5; 5').
Personal protective equipment (1) according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the garment (5; 5') comprises at least a back covering portion (6) intended to cover the user's back, and two front covering halves (7) intended to cover the user's breast, and the lining (25; 25') comprises at least a back lining portion (26; 26') and two front lining halves (27; 27') adapted to cover respectively the inner surfaces of the back covering portion (6) and of the two front covering halves (7) when the lining (25; 25') is attached to the garment (5; 5'), the attaching system (35) being adapted to attach at least the front lining halves (27; 27') of the lining (25; 25') to the front covering halves (7) of the garment (5; 5').
Personal protective equipment (1) according to claim 4, wherein the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47') comprises a back protecting portion (46a, 46b; 46b') arranged within the back lining portion (26; 26') of the lining (25; 25') and two front protecting portions (47; 47') arranged each within the two front lining halves (27; 27') of the lining (25; 25').
Personal protective equipment (1) according to any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the garment (5; 5') has a collar (80) intended to be arranged around the user's neck, the collar (80) having a base (81) towards the rest of the garment (5; 5'), and a free edge (82) opposite to the base (81), the collar (80) comprising inner (83) and outer (84) folds overlapping each other, the inner fold (83) being intended to be directed towards the user, the attaching system (35) extending along at least a part of the inner fold (83), the inner (83) and outer (84) folds being connected to each other only by a fold line (85) along the free edge (82) of the collar (80), no connection between the inner (83) and outer (84) folds being provided close to the base (81) of the collar (80), so as to enable the collar (80) to be deployed when the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47') is in the active state.
Personal protective equipment (1) according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein at least one of the garment (5; 5') and the lining (25; 25') has at least one elastically deformable portion arranged in correspondence with a portion of the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47).
Personal protective equipment (1) according to claim 7, wherein the elastically deformable portion is made of an elastically deformable fabric.
Personal protective equipment (1) according to claim 8, wherein the elastically deformable fabric comprises threads made of elastically deformable material.
Personal protective equipment (1) according to claim 8, wherein the lining (25; 25') extends along a central axis (A) between a lower border (31) intended to be arranged at vicinity of the user's waist and an upper border (30) intended to be arranged at vicinity of the user's neck, the elastically deformable fabric comprising first (61) and second (62) threads arranged perpendicularly with each other, the first (61) and second (62) threads being shifted of an angle (α) between 35 and 55°, preferably between 40° and 50°, with respect to the central axis (A) so as to enable the fabric to elastically extend upon occurrence of a biais pulling effort (F) along the central axis (A).
Personal protective equipment (1) according to any of claims 1 to 10, wherein at least one of the garment (5; 5') and the lining (25; 25') has at least one separable portion (90) arranged in correspondence with a portion of the inflatable chamber (45; 46b', 47'), the separable portion (90) comprising two edges (91, 92) delimiting a slit (93), the edges (91, 92) being moveable with respect to each other between a closed state in which said edges (91, 92) are substantially parallel and close to each other, and an opened state in which said edges (91, 92) are spaced apart from each other.
Personal protective equipment (1) according to any of claims 1 to 11, wherein the inflatable chamber (45) is delimited by an airtight envelope and the outer (25a) and inner (25b) parts of the lining (25) define an internal space (50) accommodating the envelope of the inflatable chamber (45).
Personal protective equipment (1) according to any of claims 1 to 11, wherein the outer (25a') and inner (25b') parts of the lining (25') have at least airtight portions arranged to define the internal chamber (46b', 47').
Personal protective equipment (1) according to any of claims 1 to 13, wherein the outer (25a) and inner (25b) parts of the lining (25) are delimited by edges (51), the outer part (25a) being sized to entirely cover a surface of the inner part, the outer (25a) and inner (25b) parts being superimposed with the edges (51) fixed to one another, the attaching system (35) extending along the edges (51) of the outer (25a) and inner (25b) parts.
Personal protective equipment (1) according to any of claims 1 to 13, wherein the outer (25a') and inner (25b') parts of the lining (25') are delimited by edges, the outer part (25a') being sized to cover only in part a surface of the inner part (25b') to shape the inflatable chamber (46b', 47'), the outer part (25a') being superimposed on one or several separated portions of the inner part with the edge of the outer part (25a') fixed to the surface of the inner part (25b'), the attaching system (35) extending along the edge of the inner part (25b').