GB2564447B

GB2564447B - Bridles

Info

Publication number: GB2564447B
Application number: GB1711099.0A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Lesley White Margaret
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2017-07-10
Filing date: 2017-07-10
Publication date: 2019-11-20
Anticipated expiration: 2037-07-10
Also published as: GB201711099D0; GB2564447A

Description

BRIDLES

The present invention relates to bridles. More particularly, the present invention relates to improvements in or relating to bridle nosebands. A typical bridle for a horse is shown in Figure 1 and includes a headpiece 10 which passes over the horse's head just behind the ears 11; a browband 12 which passes across the forehead just under each ear; and a throatlatch 13 which runs from just below each ear under the horse's throat. A cheekpiece 14 runs from the browband 12 along each cheek to a respective bit ring 15, to which the bit (not shown) and the reins 20 are attached. A noseband 21 encircles the nose of the horse, passing around the area of the bridge of the nose and under the lower jaw of the horse; and primarily acts to keep the horse's mouth closed. The noseband 21 may be attached to the main headpiece 10 of the bridle or, as is traditional in English riding, it may have its own headpiece 22 (obscured).

Typically, the bridle is made from leather straps and includes buckles for adjustment (omitted for clarity). The noseband is also typically made from leather.

Under Federation Equestre Internationale regulations, the primary task of a noseband is, as already stated, to keep the horse's mouth closed. As a result, competitors commonly overtighten the noseband. Whilst this does not present any problems where the noseband passes over the horse's nose, this is not the case at the sides, where the overtightened noseband presses against the sides of the jaw and against the horse's teeth. Indeed, at the point on the horse's head where the noseband is positioned, the upper and lower rows of molar teeth tend to project outwardly compared with the lines defined by the bones of the jaw. Pressure from the overtightened noseband at this point leads to discomfort for the horse and can also lead to dental problems. Stewards at events now check that the noseband is not overtightened because the teeth can cut the inside of the cheeks, which can cause long-term damage.

The present invention aims to overcome these problems.

In its broadest sense, the present invention provides a noseband for a horse, the noseband comprising a band having adjustment means to adjust the length of the band; and comprising a frame and a frame cover to cover the frame; wherein the band is adapted to apply, in use, pressure between the bridge of the nose of an animal and the underside of the lower jaw of the animal; wherein the frame has generally symmetrical left and right sides each of which has a generally arcuate or bow shape; and wherein the frame includes a generally flattened or planar portion positionable, in use, below the lower jaw of the animal and includes, at both left and right sides, a first portion which curves or bows outwardly by a first distance sufficient to provide a lower degree of contact or pressure, in use, with the sides and/or teeth of the lower jaw of the animal compared with that between the bridge of the nose and the underside of the lower jaw; and a second portion which curves or bows operatively outwardly by a second distance sufficient to provide a lower degree of contact or pressure, in use, with the cheekbone, cheek flesh and/or teeth of the upper jaw of the animal compared with that between the bridge of the nose and the underside of the lower jaw.

The frame is formed of a resilient material. The resilient material may possess a degree of flexibility but is of a nature that, when flexed, the frame will return to its original shape.

The frame is shaped to substantially avoid applying pressure to the sides of the skull of the animal.

Preferably, the cover is fabricated from leather.

Preferably, the resiliently flexible material of the frame is a carbon fibre reinforced polymeric material. Suitably, the polymeric material is a nylon.

Preferably, each side of the frame follows a generally B-spline or basis-spline curvature.

The frame may be a unitary element formed as a single component or formed from separate frame elements joined by means of a connector plate.

Preferably, the connector plate has a generally regular-trapezoidal or isosceles-trapezoidal shape.

Preferably, the connector plate has a dimension dimensioned to correspond with a width of the lower jaw of the animal.

Preferably, the connector plate includes a projection or lug extending longitudinally from each corner and parallel with each parallel side of the plate and outwardly from a plane of the plate, wherein each pair of projections or lugs associated with each non-parallel side is spaced by an amount corresponding to a width of the frame such that the projections or lugs prevent rotation of the separate frame elements with respect to the plate.

Preferably, the frame has a generally tapering or frusto-conical form conforming to the profile of the skull of the animal.

Preferably, the band is formed as two demountable components.

Preferably, the noseband comprises a lower noseband assembly and an upper noseband assembly wherein the frame is formed with the lower noseband assembly.

Preferably, the lower noseband assembly includes a stud, preferably a Sam Browne stud, associated with each side limb of the frame, preferably mounted to the side limb of the frame; wherein the upper noseband assembly is formed having an elongate pad having a strap extending from each end thereof, each strap having a series of perforations; and wherein each stud is adapted to engage and retain a respective perforation of a respective strap.

The present invention also provides a bridle comprising a noseband as defined above and further comprising a headpiece, browband, throatlatch, cheekpiece and reins.

The above and other aspects of the present invention will now be described in further detail, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:

Figure 1 is a view of a prior art bridle with noseband worn by a horse;

Figure 2 is a front and side perspective view of an embodiment of a noseband of the present invention;

Figure 3 is a plan view of the noseband of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a partially perspective plan view of the noseband of Figure 2 in a partially disassembled configuration;

Figure 5 is a plan perspective view of the noseband of Figure 2 in a partially disassembled configuration with padding removed;

Figure 6 is a plan perspective view of the noseband of Figure 2 in a fully disassembled configuration;

Figure 7 is a plan perspective view of the profiles of the embodiment of Figure 2 together with a set of fixing plates; and

Figure 8 illustrates selection of an appropriate size of fixing plate for correctly sizing the noseband of Figure 2 to a horse.

As discussed above, Figure 1 illustrates a conventional noseband 21 mounted on the head of a horse. As can be seen, the noseband runs close to an area 30 of the head of the horse where the molars of the upper jaw project outwardly from the jawline. The lower jaw molars also project outwardly from the lower jawline (obscured by cheekpiece 14). An ill-fitting noseband, when overtightened, can apply pressure to these areas of the horse's face, causing discomfort to the horse and potentially causing damage to the inside of the cheeks of the mouth. Additionally, an overtightened noseband can apply pressure to the parotid duct, the facial artery, the superior labial artery and/or the facial nerve on each side of the head.

The noseband of the present invention seeks to overcome the problems with the prior art nosebands and provide a noseband which, even if it were to be overtightened, would not apply undue pressure to those parts of the horse's head mentioned above.

Accordingly, with reference to the accompanying figures, a preferred embodiment of a noseband of the present invention includes a resiliently flexible, generally U-shaped, frame 30 (Figure 5). The frame is resiliently flexible in the sense that it will return to its original shape when flexed. The frame has right and left frame profiles 31,32 (corresponding to the right and left sides of the skull of the horse) coupled by a fixing plate 33 (Figures 5 and 6) which, in the assembled noseband will be positioned below the horse's jaw. Frame profile 31, 32 are formed of any suitable material, providing a degree of sideways (with respect to the horse's head) flexibility but resilience in upward and downward directions. Carbon fibre-reinforced polymeric materials are particularly suitable, such as carbon-fibre reinforced nylon. Bidirectional 3k carbon fibre having a built-up thickness of around 1.5mm - 2mm in six to eight layers has been found to be especially suitable.

Fixing plate 33 is formed of a flexible material, to allow flexing of the two frame profiles with respect to each other, primarily to aid fitting of the noseband over the nose of the horse. Suitably, the flexible material is a sheet polymeric material such as polypropylene of 3mm thickness. A set of fixing plates having a depth of about 40mm - 50mm depth with lateral widths of 70mm, 80mm, 90mm and 100mm would suit most horses.

In the assembled noseband, plate 33 is provided with a cover pad 34, formed of a pad of a foamed plastic material with a cover of leather, held in place by strips of a hook and loop fastening, such as Velcro (registered trade mark).

The noseband is completed by a nose strap 35 which includes a central elongate portion 40 with an attachment strap 41, 42 to each side. The attachment straps 41, 42 each include a row of apertures 43 for attachment, in use, to a respective mounting point 44,45 provided to each outer side of frame profiles 31, 32 in a conventional manner. Suitably, each mounting point 44,45 is formed by a Sam Browne stud. As will be immediately apparent, the combination of attachment straps and mounting points allows adjustment of the noseband to suit different depths of skull.

The nose strap 35 is also provided with a pad 50 to at least the operatively inner face thereof, either as a separate component mountable to the nose strap or (as shown) formed integrally with the strap.

The noseband is further provided with a pair of supplementary straps or cheek pieces 51 (not shown), one attached to each side of the noseband with a respective cuff or retaining ring 52 (not shown), allowing the supplementary strap to slide along its respective frame profile. The retaining ring 52 (not shown) can also act to retain the tail of respective attachment strap 41,42. With modification, the supplementary straps may be adapted to achieve different tasks, such as hanging the noseband from the horse's head rather than using a separate loop; or attaching to the bit, which would provide additional stability.

As can be seen most clearly in Figures 5 to 7, frame profiles 31,32 are suitably formed as a matched pair of mirror-image undulating bars. They could, however, be formed as unmatched pairs, adapted to fit horses with a non-symmetrical bone structure. The frame profiles are shaped to follow the outline of a horse's head around the area where the noseband will sit. In other words, following the outline of the profiles from the bottom (shown in Figure 7 as area A, and corresponding to the area where, together with fixing plate 33, the noseband sits underneath the lower jaw of the horse), the profile extends laterally outwards to a point B at which it bends upwardly to follow the line of the lower jaw. The profile then bends outwardly from a point C, lying below the lower molars and other anatomical elements of the horse's head highlighted above, bowing outwardly a sufficient distance to space the profiles, in use, from the horse's head. The spacing need only be minimal, to avoid pressure being applied by the noseband to the head in these sensitive areas. The profile curves outwardly to a point D sufficiently above the anatomical features to avoid pressure being applied to those features. At that point, the profile curves inwardly to follow the outline of the upper part of the horse's skull.

As a consequence of this construction, the curvature of the profiles follows the curvature of the skull such that pressure is only applied to the upper surface of the horse's skull, in other words, between the upper surface of the skull and the lower surface of the lower jaw, thereby closing the horse's mouth as required by FEI regulations, but avoiding lateral pressure to the teeth and sensitive elements of the anatomy of the horse's skull. Mathematically, the profiles have the shape of a B-spline or basis spline.

Thus, it can be seen that the frame includes a generally flattened portion positionable, in use, below the lower jaw of the animal and the frame follows, in turn and at both sides, a line defining a first portion which curves or bows outwardly by a first distance sufficient to provide a lower degree of contact or pressure, in use, with the sides and/or teeth of the lower jaw of the animal compared with that between the bridge of the nose and the underside of the lower jaw; and a line defining a second portion which curves or bows operatively outwardly by a second distance sufficient to provide a lower degree of contact or pressure, in use, with the cheekbone, cheek flesh and/or teeth of the upper jaw of the animal compared with that between the bridge of the nose and the underside of the lower jaw.

In preferred embodiments, the noseband is provided with a set of connector or fixing plates 33 of different lengths. The different lengths allow the noseband to be fitted comfortably to different widths of lower jaw. A set of fixing plates 33', 33", 33'", 33'" is illustrated in Figure 7. As illustrated in Figure 8, the correct fixing plate is sized to a particular horse by holding the plate 33 laterally underneath the horse's jaw between the thumb and a finger of the fitter. If both the thumb and finger contact lower surfaces of the respective sides of the lower jawbone then the plate 33 is of the correct size. If one of the thumb and forefinger fall outside or inside the jawbone then the plate is not the correct size.

It will be observed from Figures 6 and 7 in particular that each fixing plate 33 has the general shape of a regular or isosceles trapezium. The parallel sides form the operatively upper and lower edges to the fixing plate. The plate 33 has projections or lugs 51 (not shown) extending laterally from each corner, longitudinally spaced to correspond with the width of the frame profiles 31,32. The projections 51 (not shown) act to prevent rotation of the frame profiles 31,32 with respect to the plate 33. The taper provided by the inclination of the non-parallel sides imposes a corresponding taper to the frame profiles, the taper corresponding to the natural taper of the horse's skull towards the mouth of the horse, thereby causing the frame profiles to lie substantially flat against the skin of the horse's skull underneath the noseband. The effect is to give the frame a generally frusto-conical shape.

Claims

1. A noseband for a horse, the noseband comprising a band having adjustment means to adjust the length of the band; and comprising a frame and a frame cover to cover the frame; wherein the band is adapted to apply, in use, pressure between the bridge of the nose of an animal and the underside of the lower jaw of the animal; wherein the frame has generally symmetrical left and right sides each of which has a generally arcuate or bow shape, arranged such that the frame generally follows the contours of the head of the animal on which, in use, the noseband is to be worn; and wherein the frame includes a generally flattened or planar portion positionable, in use, below the lower jaw of the animal and includes, at both left and right sides, a first portion which curves or bows outwardly by a first distance sufficient to provide a lower degree of contact or pressure, in use, with the sides and/or teeth of the lower jaw of the animal compared with that between the bridge of the nose and the underside of the lower jaw; and a second portion which curves or bows operatively outwardly by a second distance sufficient to provide a lower degree of contact or pressure, in use, with the cheekbone, cheek flesh and/or teeth of the upper jaw of the animal compared with that between the bridge of the nose and the underside of the lower jaw.

2. A noseband as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cover is fabricated from leather.

3. A noseband as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the frame is formed of a carbon fibre reinforced polymeric material.

4. A noseband as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein the frame is formed as a single component.

5. A noseband as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein the frame is formed of separate frame elements joined by means of a connector plate.

6. A noseband as claimed in claim 5, wherein the connector plate has a generally regular or isosceles trapezoidal shape.

7. A noseband as claimed in claim 5 or claim 6, wherein the connector plate is dimensioned to correspond with a width of the lower jaw of the animal.

8. A noseband as claimed in any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein the connector plate includes a projection or lug extending longitudinally from each corner and parallel with each parallel side of the plate and outwardly from a plane of the plate, wherein each pair of projections or lugs associated with each non-parallel side is spaced by an amount corresponding to a width of the frame such that the projections or lugs prevent rotation of the separate frame elements with respect to the plate.

9. A noseband as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the frame has a generally tapering or frusto-conical form conforming to the profile of the skull of the animal.

10. A noseband as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the band is formed as two demountable components.

11. A noseband as claimed in claim 10, comprising a lower noseband assembly and an upper noseband assembly wherein the frame is formed with the lower noseband assembly.

12. A noseband as claimed in claim 11, wherein the lower noseband assembly includes a stud, preferably a Sam Browne stud, associated with each side limb of the frame, preferably mounted to the side limb of the frame; wherein the upper noseband assembly is formed having an elongate pad having a strap extending from each end thereof, each strap having a series of perforations; and wherein each stud is adapted to engage and retain a respective perforation of a respective strap.

13. A bridle comprising a noseband as claimed in any preceding claim and further comprising a headpiece, browband, throatlatch, cheekpiece and reins.