US3162862A - Protective headgear vizor mechanism - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 29, 1964 J. c. MILLER PROTECTIVE HEADGEAR VIZOR MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 27, 1963 INVENTOR. JOHN C. MILLER Dec. 29, 1964 J. c. MILLER 3,162,362

' PROTECTIVE HEADGEAR VIZOR MECHANISM Filed June 27, 1963 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

JOHN C. M/ZLER ATTOR/VEVS.

Dec. 29, 1954 J. c. MILLER PROTECTIVE HEADGEAR VIZOR MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed June 27, 1963 JOHN C. MILLER BY wwwflwww.

ATTORNEYS,

United States Patent 3,162,862 PRQTEG'EWEHEAD GEAR VIZQR. MECHANISM John: Miller; Pittsbnrgh, Pa-,. assign: to. Mine Safety-- Appliances Company, Pittsburgh, Pin, a corporation.

of. Pennsylvania- Filed'June, 27; l9 63, Ser..No..290,Q63. Claims. (.61. 2-6) This invention relates toprotective head-gear thatencloses the head andface, and more particularly to a retractable transparent vizor therein.

It. is among the objects of this invention to provide protective headgear witha vizor which can easily be raised and lowered, which can be, tightly sealed in operative position, which can be moved into sealing position and released therefrom by means that are not exposed, and which. can be held in its raised position by; the same mean that. moves it into operative position.

In accordance with this invention a helmet shell for enclosing the head has a downwardly extending front portion provided with an open window; Secured to the inner surface, of the shell around the window isa sealing gasket. Behind this gasket is a horizontally curved transparent vizor having rearward extending and portions. Also, inside the shell there are'trackmembers that are secured to it at opposite sides of the window. These members are provided with forwardly opening vertical guide slots that slidingly receive the end portions of the vizor to permit upward and forward and backward movement thereof. Manually operable means are mounted in the shell behind the lowered vizor for engaging its ends to force the vizor forward into sealing engagement with the gasket. The manually operable means most suitably include cams and operating handles completely inside the helmet but operable through a flexible sleeve that connects the bottom of the helmet with the neck of a protective suit.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a side view of the headgear;

FIG. 2 is a front view;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged longitudinal section with parts broken away and showing the vizor in operative position;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view, similar to FIG. 3 but showing the vizor released;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 4 showing the vizor in its upper position;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary horizontal section, with the inner hat removed, taken on the line VI-VI of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary vertical cross section taken on the line VIIVII of FIG. 6. 7

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings, a rigid hat 1 contains a conventional liner or suspension (not shown) for supporting the hat on the head. A helmet shell 2 fits over the hat and is spaced from it and supported by it. The shell extends down below the hat to cover the ears and to provide in front of the face a front portion, in which there is a large window opening 3. Sealed to the lower edge of the helmet shell is the upper end of a flexible sleeve 4 that is designed to extend down around the neck and that has a lower end adapted to be connected to a protective suit (not shown) around the neck opening therein.

Inside of the front portion of the helmet shell is a transparent vizor 7 for closing window opening 3. This vizor is curved transversely as shown in FIG. 6 so that its ends extend rearwardly along the opposite sides of the helmet. Preferably, the vizor also is curved vertically to about the same extent as the shell. Secured to the inner surface of the shell around the window opening "Ice there is as flexible sealing-- gasket 8. When the'vizoris in operative position, the inner surface ofthis gasket is engaged by the front marginal area of the vizor as shown in FIG. 3. The front of the'vi'zor is supported in its lower position byacenter block 9 attached by a screw 10 or the like to the inside of the shell. below the center of the window opening:

For holding the ends of the-vizor in place. and guiding it= when-itis raised and lowered, a pair of track membersare provided; These members are forwardly-bowed elongated blocks- 12- standing on end and secured in any suit-- able manner to the inside of the shell atopposite sides of thewindowopening. Each block is providedv with a forwardly opening guide slot- 13 extending from topto bottom, with substantially the lower half of the slotalso opening rearwardly. so that the-lower half ofthe block' is forked. These tracks are so positioned in-the'helmetthat when the vizor is pressed forward against thewindow gasket the-ends of the vizor extend only a short distance back into the guide slots. The backs of the track members maybe provided with transverse notches 14' for receiving shoulders on the hat rtohelp position itin the shell.

In order to press the vizor in itslower position tightly against the sealing gasket, manually operable means for that purpose are associated with the two track members. Preferably, each of such means includes a cam 15, most suitably shaped like a lever, that is rotatably mounted in the forked lower portion of a track member on a pivot pin 16 screwed into the track and extending across the guide slot 13. Each cam lever, when disposed substantially horizontally, has a vertically curved front end 17 that engages the adjoining concave end of the vizor to hold the vizor in its forward sealing position against the gasket. The cam lever extends backward out of the guide slot and has a stiff handle 18 pivotally suspended from its rear end by a screw 19.

As long as the two cams are pressing against the vizor, it is held tightly against the gasket and the helmet is sealed. When it is desired to raise the vizor to a retracted position above the window opening, the wearer of the headgear grasps the lower ends of the two handles 18 in his fingers through the flexible sleeve after first raising the sleeve a little. He then pulls down on the sleeve and handles together and thereby causes the front ends of the cam levers to swing upward away from the vizor. This releases the pressure of the cams against the vizor, which can then move backward in the track guide slots to separate it from the gasket as shown in FIG. 4. By pushing upward on the front of the released vizor with the fingers, the vizor can be swung or slid upward in the tracks until it strikes an arresting block 21 secured to the inside of the helmet some distance above the window. While the vizor is held in this position with one hand, the wearer of the headgear uses his other hand to raise a handle 18 in order to lift the rear end of the adjoining cam lever and thereby swing its front end downward to press forward against the adjoining rear edge of the lower part of the vizor to press the vizor against the upper part of gasket 8. A shoulder 20 on top of the cam will strike the back of the track member as shown in FIG. 5 to prevent the cam from being turned too far. The other cam then can be pressed against the vizor in the same way. This will support the vizor in its upper position until it is desired to lower the vizor. All that is necessary then is to pull down on the raised handles, which will swing the front ends of the horizontal cam levers upward, whereupon the vizor will drop down to its lowered position. Then both handles are raised to cause the two cams to push the vizor forward into sealing engagement with the window gasket.

According to the provisions of the patent statutes, I

have explained the principle of my invention and have illustrated and described what I now consider to represent its best embodiment. However, I desireto have it understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described.

I claim: 7

1.. In protective headgear; a helmet shell for enclosing the head and having a downwardly extending front portion provided with an open window, a sealing gasket secured to the inner surface of the shell around said window, a horizontally curved transparent vizor in the shell adapted to engage said gasket around the Window and having rearwardly extending end portions, track members inside the shell secured thereto at opposite sides of said window and provided with forwardly opening vertical guide slots slidingly receiving said end portions of the vizor to permit upward and forward and backward movement thereof, and manually operable means mounted in the shell behind the lowered vizor for engaging its ends and sliding them forward in said slots to force the visor forward into sealing engagement with said gasket.

2. In protective headgear according to claim 1, said manually operable means including a cam pivotally connected to each track member on a substantially horizontal axis behind the adjoining end of the lowered vizor, and means for rotating the cams into a predetermined position to force'the vizor ahead.

3. In protective headgear according to claim 1, said 4 a manually operable means being shaped to slide said end portions forward in said slots to force the vizor forward 7 against said gasket when the, vizor is in its upper position. 4

4. In protective headgear according to claim 1, said manually operable means including a cam lever disposed in each of said slots and projecting rearwardly therefrom, means pivotally connecting the cam levers to the track members behind the adjoining ends of the lowered vizor, and a stifi operating handle pivotally suspended from the back of each camlever for swinging the back of the earn up, the cam levers being shaped to force the vizor forward when their fronts are swung down.

5. In protective headgear according to claim 4, the cam levers and vizor being so related that said levers force the lower part of the vizor forward against the upper part of said gasket when the vizor is raised.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Italy Sept. 20, 1955

Claims (1)

1. IN PROTECTIVE HEADGEAR, A HELMET SHELL FOR ENCLOSING THE HEAD AND HAVING A DOWNWARDLY EXTENDING FRONT PORTION PROVIDED WITH AN OPEN WINDOW, A SEALING GASKET SECURED TO THE INNER SURFACE OF THE SHELL AROUND SAID WINDOW, A HORIZONTALLY CURVED TRANSPARENT VIZOR IN THE SHELL ADAPTED TO ENGAGE SAID GASKET AROUND THE WINDOW AND HAVING REARWARDLY EXTENDING END PORTIONS, TRACK MEMBERS INSIDE THE SHELL SECURED THERETO AT OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID WINDOW AND PROVIDED WITH FORWARDLY OPENING VERTICAL GUIDE SLOTS SLIDINGLY RECEIVING SAID END PORTIONS OF THE VIZOR TO PERMIT UPWARD AND FORWARD AND BACKWARD MOVEMENT THEREOF, AND MANUALLY OPERABLE MEANS MOUNTED IN THE SHELL BEHIND THE LOWERED VIZOR FOR ENGAGING ITS ENDS AND SLIDING THEM FORWARD IN SAID SLOTS TO FORCE THE VISOR FORWARD INTO SEALING ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID GASKET.

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