US2365656A

US2365656A - Protective headgear

Info

Publication number: US2365656A
Application number: US473733A
Authority: US
Inventors: George M Lamsa
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1943-01-27
Filing date: 1943-01-27
Publication date: 1944-12-19
Anticipated expiration: 1961-12-19

Description

Patented Dec. 19, 1944 SIJA'I'ESV I PATENT 'OFFICIS I 1 l y 2,365,656. l `1 raorno'rlvn HEADGEAn George M. Lamsa, Philadelphiara. Application January 27, 1943,.,s`eria1Ne. 473,733

` vl'cl.v 2 4) 4 Claims.

The present invention relates to newt and im-- proved means for protecting the face andfhead Worn with a minimum of discomfort and which may' effect 4its intended, function;` of' protectingA thef'wearer-l-efg. afsoldi'er in tropical countries where troublesome insects abound-during theday or while the wearer: is `engaged'in his work as well as duri-ng the night while the wearerA is asleep. i l

A further. object. ofthe invention isv to provi-de a relationship of parts'freefof metallicl or sim.- ilar parts which may interfere with the wearers comfort as, for example, when he is' asleep,y and which shall be readily'foldable into compact form,`when not in use,'for.` readytransportation and/or storage, v

Further objects and advantages of the relationship of parts according to this invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which it pertains, from the detailed description which hereinafter follows` e The aforementioned objects and` advantages are realized by the-newl and improved protecting 4means which, according to the invention, imay consist essentially of a fabric or the likes cap portion adapted to rest upon the. wearers# head, a fabric or the likel skirt portion dependingfrom the cap portion'A andessentially encompassing the upper partof the'wea-rer including his head, neck and shoulders, an inflatable netting or screen supporting frame attached to saldi capI and skirt portions andfoutlining a face opening inf theI latter, and netting orv screeningmaterial secured to said portions and extending over saidl supporting frame'.` i i A presently-preferredembodiment of the in'- .protecting means. of the said; type which can be may be essentially circolari-n. shape, i. e. a sort of skull cap, andthe thickness lof the material thereof may be suchas `to assure againstpenetration by the sting of an insect.V The material of the cap portion may be rubberized, resin-im` pregnated. or otherwise treated,.if desired, to en hanceitsimpenetrability. y e M I Depending from rthey outer periphery of the' cap portion l0. is alskirt portion Il.also preferably made ,of insect-impenetrable textile material which, if desired,` may be further treated,` as

above suggestedto increase the impenetrability thereof. VSkirt |\Imayxbesecured to cap I0 in any suitable l and/ orl desirableI manner,` as for eX-` ample by stitching and/or cementing and the like. Skirt lll is preferablyof suiiicient length to extend down-,vas,lshown,. over the wearersneck and shoulders. If desired, a tie `I2 `may be provided -around thejoneck` portion to assure `close contact'at thispoint betweenthefneck and skirt, sothat insects may not penetrate upwardly under the; latter. l 3 L .Thevfront of the skirtportion ll is preferably cut away to providea faceopening which may essentiallyextend, as shown, from the wearers forehead to his chin in. the vertical direction and from cheekbone tocheekbone the horizontaldirection.` f

Secured to the edgesfof 'thematerial dening the said face openingis a supporting member which isf indicated per se by reference numeral I3', Fig. u "lhisV supporting member may conveniently assumeI any essentially rectangular coniiguration and may comprise top and bottom elevention.` is shown. on. the. accompanying:` sheet of drawings. It is to be understood;Y however, that this showing is intended to be merely illustrative, and not limitativa-in character, the invention being limited only to the scope of 'the terms of 4the claims hereunto appended.

On the aforesaid sheet of drawings,v

Fig. 1 is a general View of the device according to the present invention, in use; and

Fig. 2 is a plan View, with portions broken away, of the inflatable supporting member.

As shown more particularly in Fig. 1, the device may comprise a cap portion I0, made of fabric or the like and adapted to be seated on the top of the wearers hat. The cap portion l0 ments l# and l5- and. side elements I6 and l'l,v as well as an intermediate transverse element '13: The topand bottom elementsV willrest across the wearersforehead to1 chin, respectively, while the side elements will lie along. the wearers cheeks. The cross piece I-8 maybe disposedto bear against the bridge ot the wearers nose'. l

Supporting member; I4 is preferably tubular in construction'and is thereforev capable of bei-ng inflated.` Forthis purpose, an iniiating tube `I9 may be provided in the bottom element I5 or at any other suitable point on the supporting member. To innate the supporting member, the wearer blowsy into the tube yI9 until the desired degree of inflation has been attained. The tube I9 is then bent over at its center (see Fig. 1) and retained in place by a suitable securing member or clip 20. The ination is effected prior to donning the protective headgear.

It is preferred to inflate the supporting member I3 to such extent as to provide an outer supporting surface for gauze netting or the like 2| which is substantially removed from the wearers face. On the other hand, it is preferred not to fully inflate the member I3 but rather to underinlate it somewhat. The reason for this is that when the wearers cheek rests on side member I6 or as when the wearer is lying or sleeping on his side, the side element will yield to the pressure of the wearer's face, and the air in such side element will be displaced to the remainder of the member |3. This yielding or attening of the side element makes it possible to wear the protector and sleep on ones side with a minimum of discomfort.

The tubular supporting member may be made of any suitable and/or desirable material, Thus, for example, it may be made of thin rubber tubing or of tubing of rubberized or other fabric. The tubular member may conveniently .be made of tubing made of silk or rayon, which may be suitably coated and/or impregnated if desired. The tube portions or elements of member I3 may be cemented or vulcanized or sewn or Votherwise joinezd together toform the structure shown in 1g.

Structure |3 may be secured to the adjacent edges of the material of theprotector in any suitable manner, as by cementing, vulcanization, sewing (loops encompassing the tubular portions) etc. 'The protector may be made ofseveral standard sizes to t different head sizes.

Netting or screening material 2|, which overlies the support I3v may be secured to the latter or to the fabric material and/or I I in any suitable and conventional way', as by sewing through the intermediary of an edge binding strip 23. The material 2|, as is manifest, permits the wearer to see, breathe and speak therethrough, but effectively keeps insects out. To enhance the wearers hearing capacity while wearing the device I the skirt may be provided with eyelet-tted openings 22 at the parts in juxtaposition to the wearers ears. 'Ihese openings are preferably covered by netting material 2|. If desired, the netting 2I covering the face opening may be provided with eye-openings covered with transparent material, such as Cellophane or the like, in conventional manner, in order to further facilitate looking through the device.

The protector is easily put on and taken off over the head. It is very light and readily foldable in compact size, due to the absence of rigid non-foldable members,.such as wire or rmetal frame members.

The device according to the present invention is particularly useful for soldiers use in tropical countries and in northern countries where, during certain seasons at least, insects such as mosquitoes and the like are a nuisance and a threat to the soldiers well-being and efllciency.

It will be apparent that various changes may be made in the details of the construction, 1as above described, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims. Thus, for example, parts III and may be of one and the same sheet of material, instead of being formed of two separated but integrated elements. Moreover, another medium than air may be employed within the tubular frame I3.

What is claimed is:

1. Non-metallic protective head-gear comprising insect-excluding material and an inflatable hollow framework upon which said material is arranged, whereby in use said framework is interposed between said material and the wearer, said framework being collapsible at any point thereof under the influence of pressure applied at such point and comprising portions adapted to extend across and in substantial contact with the wearers forehead and chin, respectively, and side elements adapted to extend along and in substantial contact with the wearers cheeks, respectively, said head-gear being foldable into compact form.

2, Non-metallic protective head-gear comprising insect-excluding material and an inflatable hollow framework upon which said material is arranged, whereby in use said framework is interposed between said material and the wearer, said framework being collapsible at any point thereof under the influence of pressure applied at such point and comprising portions adapted to extend across and in substantial contact with the wearers forehead and chin, respectively, and side elements adapted to extend along and in substantial contact with the wearers cheeks, respectively and a transverse portion adapted to extend between said side elements intermediate said portions and in substantial contact-with the wearers nose, said framework being collapsible at any point thereof under the influence of pressure applied at such point, whereby the head-gear may be worn while thewearer is lying or sleeping on his side or face.

'3'.Non-metal1ic protective head-gear of the character described comprising a covering for the head, neck and shoulders of the wearer, said covering being of insect-impermeablematerial, a

netting-supporting frame attached to said covering and defining a face opening therein, said frame being collapsible at any point thereof under the influence of pressure applied atsuch point. nettingrnaterial extending over said frame, and means for securing said netting material in position, whereby said head-gear may be worn while the wearer is lying yor sleeping on his side or face. i

4. Non-metallic protective head-gear of the character described, which is foldable into compact portable form and comprises a netting-supporting frame, said frame being collapsible at any .point thereof under the iniiuence of pressure applied at such point, and netting materialextending over and secured to said frame, whereby said head-gear may be worn while the wearer is sleeping.

GEORGE M. LAMSA. o