GB2102670A - Visored hat construction - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a visored hat construction offering various advantages over known designs. The construction has an outwardly projecting visor A which comprises a substantially flat section of open cell configuration which substantially prohibits the transmission of overhead frontal and lateral rays of light direct to the eyes of the wearer without inhibiting the wearers lateral vision. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Visored hat construction This invention relates to a visored hat construction. In its basic form, it may be constructed without any crown portion, but in other modified forms it may be made with a full or partial crown portion of any desired design, style or construction without having to modify to any substantial degree the basic combination of elements which is the subject of the present invention.

.According to the invention, a hat construction includes an outwardly projecting visor with an upper and a lower side, which visor comprises a section of material having an open cell configuration defining a plurality of cells, the cells permitting the partial direct transmission of light through the visor from the upper to the lower side, but prohibiting such direct transmission to a region adjacent the inward end of the visor and the lower side thereof. The open cellular visor construction can be exploited to offer relatively little wind resistance as compared to the non-cellular cloth or plastic conventional sports caps.

The visor portion of the hat may be made in the form of a light weight open cellular configuration. Thus, a hat with a relatively large effective sun shade area may be made extremely light weight, and, in preferred embodiments of the invention, s on the order of five (5) to ten (10) times lighter than the more conventional cotton or light weight visored sports hats in common use today.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention the projecting visor is substantially planar or flat (as distinguished from the arched or curved visors commonly employed). With this feature, the wearer has virtually total and unobstructed lateral vision.

The thickness of the cellular visor, the nomi nal diameter of the cells or openings and/or the angular orientation of the cells can be related in such a manner as to provide a direct sun ray or light cut-off angle to provide virtually complete shading of the eyes from the direct rays of the sun over the head.

However, the open cells can also permit a filtered or lattice type of sun ray penetration to the face of the wearer, which is a feature not provided by the opaque or solid type visor of conventional sports caps. This feature in conjunction with the preferred inner headband portion of the present hat (to be described hereinafter) permits the user to wear a visor of the present design in prolonged periods of sunlight without creating telltale lines of sunburned or suntanned areas on or across the wearer's face.

The invention also provides a novel head band which is constructed to form a sinusoi dal inner surface defining inwardly projecting nodes and alternate grooves, whereby when the hat is properly adjusted to fit lightly and comfortably on the head of the wearer, the weight of the hat is supported on the head principally at the points where the nodes gently rest upon and contact adjacent portions of the wearer's head, particularly the forehead. The sinusoidally formed headband is preferably made of relatively soft, non-absorbant, soft textured foam plastic material. Because such a hat is supported only at relatively widely spaced and specific contact points around the user's head and because the material is substantially non-absorbant, there is eliminated the continuous sweat band type structure which induces perspiration.Further, because such foam material can be substantially non-absorbant, there need be no substantial tendency for the headband to absorb perspiration and become perspiration stained.

A A visored hat construction according to the present invention can be made adjustable as to hat size to fit the majority of heads, thereby making it feasible to economically product either only one, or a limited few number, of hat sizes to adjustably fit all normal child and adult head sizes as for example, from about 6 1/2 to 7-3/4 hat sizes.

The invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which the same numbers represent corresponding parts in each of the several views and wherein: Figure 1 is a schematic view of a user's head shown in phantom lines with a hat embodying the present invention in normal position thereon and showing the manner by which direct rays of sunlight penetrate through the cellular visor to certain portions of the wearer's face but with the eyes shaded from such direct rays; Figure 2 is a view in side elevation of an embodiment of the invention Figure 3 is the top and/or plan bottom plan view of an embodiment of the invention; Figure 4 is a fragmentary top or bottom plan view of the honeycomb visor portion of the hat shown in Fig. 2;; Figure 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of a modified form of hat construction showing the axes of the honeycomb cells disposed from perpendicular to the plane of the visor; Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the device shown in Fig. 5; Figure 7 is a top plan view of a further embodiment of the invention; Figure 8 is a side elevational view of same.

Referring now to Figs. 1 to 6 of the draw ings, the visor portion of the hat is indicated generally at A and at B. Fig. 3 of the draw ings shows the construction as comprising a continuous outer hat band 1, an inner hat band 2, a cellular honeycomb visor portion 3 and an inner sinusoidally configured head band 4.

As shown in Fig. 3 the outer hat band 1 defines the outer boundaries or perimeter of the cellular honeycomb visored portion 3 of the hat, and said hat band 1 continues to extend rearwardly from both sides of the visor portion to back of the hat whereat the respec tive ends 1 a and 1 b of the hat band overlap to provide a means for making the hat adjus table in size to accomodate varying head sizes. More specifically, as shown in Fig. 3, the terminal extremities 1 a and 1 b of the headband are divided with coacting, releasa ble securing means indicated at 6 such as conventional barbed nylon elements com monly referred to as "Velcro" fasteners.One element of the Velcro fastener indicated generally at 6b is adhered to the outer surface of the end extremity 1 b of the hatband, whereas the second and coacting part 6a of the Velcro fastener is affixed as by bonding to the inner surface of extremity 1 b of the hat.

As shown in phantom lines, and in order to adjust the hat to make it of larger or smaller diameter to individually fit a wearer s head, the extremities 1 a and 1 b are merely pulled apart from each other and, when moved to relative desired longitudinal positioning for the proper head fitting, are simply pressed together, whereupon the Velcro fastener will hold the hat at that particular size.

The rearward extremities of the inner sinusoidally curved headband 4 terminate as at 4a and 4b, short of the overlapping end extremeties 1 a and 1 b of the hat band to permit head size adjustment to be made as aforesaid without interference from the inner headband 4.

The inner hat band 2, which defines the inner curved periphery of the visor portion 3, is integrally secured as by adhesive bonding at points 2a and 2b to the outer hat band 1. The inner headband 4, in turn, is securely fastened as by bonding to the inner surface of hat band 2, as well as to the inner adjacent surfaces of outer hat band 1.

The honeycomb cellular construction as specifically shown in Fig. 2 comprises alternate bonded layers of corrugated sheet material 3a and planar sheets or strips of sheet material 3b. The nodes of the outer or forward-most layer of corrugated strips 3a are bonded to adjacent contacting points to the outer hat band 1 and likewise whenever the honeycomb material 3 comes in contact with either outer hat band 1 or with inner hat band 2, the honeycomb is bonded to said hat bands at the contact points to make the entire visor portion 3 an integrally bonded and semi-rigid structure.

The interior headband 4 is preferably formed generally in the form of a corrugated or sinusoidal configuration defining alternate inwardly projecting nodes 7 and grooves 8.

The headband is preferably made of a relatively fine cell, substantially non-absorbant, soft textured expanded or foamed plastic material such as a cellular vinyl or polyethelene foam.

When the outer hat band 1 is adjusted to proper size in the manner hereinabove described, the hat, if properly fitted, can be worn in substantially horizontal position on the head of the user (substantially as shown in Fig. 1) with only the weight of the hat holding it in position, and with only the spaced nodal points 7 of the interior headband contacting the forehead and other portions of the hair and head of the wearer. As earlier indicated, the inherent light weight of the cellular construction of the hat makes it extremely comfortable and also, as above indicated, because of its open cellular visor construction, the hat will not blow off even at relatively high wind velocities.

When properly constructed, the hat of the present design and construction should at all times keep the wearer's eyes shaded from direct rays of the sun, yet strike lower portions of the user's face to provide for more or less uniform suntanning if that be so desired. In this latter connection, it is apparent that the continuous normal motions of the user's head in conjunction with the ever changing angles of the sun rays directed toward and through the cellular visor will operate to varyingly but substantially uniformly distribute the direct sunlight rays over the user's face without leaving a visible and telltale sunburn border around the forehead that is often common to the wearing of conventional opaque visor hats.Further, and in the same connection, because the inner headband 4 is sinusoidally formed leaving the grooves 8 as open spaces between the user's forehead and the headband, such areas of skin are subject to exposure of sun rays which further eliminates or minimizes the non-uniform suntanning of even those portions of the forehead which the headband engages and overlies.

In designing a visored hat embodying the invention in such a way as to provide complete shading of the eyes from direct sunlight rays (indicated at 10 in Fig. 1), while making the visor of substantially open cell construction, there are four primary factors which should be taken into account and correlated to provide the desired objective. The first three factors involve the relationship between the thickness of the visor (the depth or height of the cell openings), the nominal cell and the angle of the axes of the cells to the plane of the visor diameter. The thicker the visor and the smaller the cell openings, the greater the light cutoff angle and the greater will be the total area provided under the visor. Conversely, the thinner the visor in terms of height of the cells and the larger the cell openings will result in a larger light cut-off angle and less shade area. Thirdly, by slanting the axes of the cells (as shown in Fig. 5), the light cut-off angle of the sun rays in reference to the thickness of the structure can be varied.

Optimally, the present hat construction should be designed so that complete shading against direct sunlight rays to the eyes is insured while at the same time making the visor as open celled and as lightweight as possible.

The fourth factor which has been taken into consideration in designing the optimum construction is the fact that within the range of human physical normalcy the eyes within their sockets are disposed inwardly from and are protected and shaded in part by the overhanging brows of the wearer. In short, it is possible and desirable to take into account the normal and usual fact that the brows and eyebrows of the normal individual provide to some degree natural sunshade protection. Accordingly, and as indicated in Fig. 1 of the drawings, the angles of sunlight rays show that in the optimum construction the rays may strike the user's brows and also areas immediately below his eyes, but rays do not enter at such a wide or slanted angle as to directly strike the user's eyes themselves.

Referring more specifically to Figs. 7 and 8, there is disclosed a visor section 202 which can be formed by die cutting openings from a single integral section of low density, cushiony, relatively non-absorbent, plastic foam material, such as, for example, 3/8" thick, 2 Ib./cub.ft. density, cross-linked polyethylene foam. The openings shown in the visor embodiment of Figs. 7 and 8 are arcuate elongate, and indicated generally by the reference numeral 200. The visor in Figs. 7 and 8 is reinforced and stiffened by one or more beam portions 201, which, if formed by die cutting, as above suggested, would simply consist of uncut portions of the plastic foam material.

Fig. 7 also shows the inclusion of a sinusoidal headband portion formed interval with the visor section and defining alternate nodes and valleys 207 and 208, respectively.

Embodiment of Figs. 7 and 8 shows the visor tapered toward outer extremities. For example, if the maximum thickness of the visor is 3/8", it may be tapered outwardly to thickness of around 3/16". Utilizing a maximum thickness of 3/8", the preferred maximum width of each arcuate opening 200 should not exceed the maximum of approximately 1/2" and preferably somewhat less to provide an adequate light cut-off angle to the eyes of the user.

The visor section of Figs. 7 and 8 may, like the previously described embodiment, be utilized as a visor for the conventional cap, or it may be provided with a hat band (not shown) similar in nature to the hat band as shown and described in reference to Figs. 1-3.

The uniqueness and functionality of the present invention can be understood by reference to the fact that the combination of a single die cut (or otherwise fabricated) section of a flat section of commercially available cushiony foam material (such as a 3/8" thick section of 2 to 4 Ibs./cu.ft. desnity cross-link polyethylene) in conjunction with a simple hatband ribbon or strip (preferably adjustable) provides a sunshade or visored hat structure which has each and all of the following features and functional attributes.

(1) Extraordinary light weight. A complete visored hat can be fabricated to weight approximately 6 grams or 0.21 ounces, which is five to ten times lighter in weight than the majority of popular open top cotton visored hats of which I am aware.

(2) Unobstructured lateral vision. Because the visor portion of the present invention is flat or nearly flat, rather than severly arched, a wearer is permitted unobstructed lateral vision. As above noted, this feature in conjunction with the extreme light weight of the hat gives the unique sense of almost complete freedom from wearing any hat.

(3) Low wind resistance. As already explained, the largely open cell visor offers very little wind resistance, especially compared to conventional solid or non-perforated visors.

(4) Perspiration and stain proof. Because the hat is supported at ventilated contact points of non-absorbant foam material around the forehead, there is no sweat band to either induce or absorb perspiration.

(5) Although the cell configuration of the visor is designed to shade the wearer's eyes from direct sunlight, the cells or openings permit filtered rays to be cast on the face of a wearer, which provides for gentle sun tanning without leaving a tell-tale sunburn border around a person's forehead, which is often observed with people using the usual cloth or opaque visors in conditions of prolonged hot sun exposure.

(6) Hat size adjustability. As above indicated, the rearward extensions of the hat band are provided with interlocking adjustable fastener means (such as a Velcro type fastener) to enable the hat to be custom fitted to most adult sizes ranging for example, from 6-1/2 to 7-3/4 hat size.

(7) The present visor, although being made of a very lightweight, resilient and cushiony plastic foam, has sufficient integrity and plastic memory to maintain itself in the desired flat or planar configuration during wear. However, when not in wear, it is capable of withstanding very rough handling and abuse without permanently deforming, wrinkling or ruptureing.

Claims (6)

1. A hat construction including an outwardly projecting visor with an upper and a lower side, which visor comprises a section of material having an open cell configuration defining a plurality of cells, the cells permitting the partial direct transmission of light through the visor from the upper to the lower side, but prohibiting such direct transmission to a region adjacent the inward end of the visor and the lower side thereof.

2. In a hat construction of the type including an outwardly projecting visor, the improvement comprising: said visor comprising a substantially flat section of relatively low density material and having a thickness of not substantially less than 1/4" and not substantially greater than 5/8"; said section formed generally in an open cell configuration defining a plurality of relatively large cell openings extending through the thickness of the section substantially uniformly distributed throughout a majority of the entire area of the visor section; the size and angular inclination of said cell openings and the thickness of said visor section being related to one another to substantially prohibit transmittal of direct rays of sunlight through the cellular visor to the eyes of a user and to thereby shade the user's eyes from overheat frontally and laterally directed rays of light transmitted through said visor.

3. The combination of Claim 2 and wherein said visor section is formed from an integral section of substantially opaque, cushiony, non-water absorbent, foamed material of not greater than about 6 Ibs./cu.ft. density.

4. The combination of Claim 3 and wherein said visor section includes a headband portion of said foamed material which defines the interior perimeter of said visor section for engaging the forehead of a user only at spaced contact points.

5. The combination of Claim 4 and wherein said headband portion of said integral visor section of foamed material is formed generally in a concave arcuate configuration to fit the forehead of a user, and wherein said arcuate headband defines an undulating wave band of alternate nodes and grooves whereby said headband contacts the forehead of said user only at said spaced nodal points of said headband.

6. A hat construction substantially as described herein with reference to Figs. 1 to 4, Figs. 5 and 6, or Figs. 7 and 8 of the accompanying drawings.