WO2002009545A1

WO2002009545A1 - Safety hat

Info

Publication number: WO2002009545A1
Application number: PCT/IB2001/001359
Authority: WO
Inventors: Walters Francois Du Toit
Original assignee: Walters Francois Du Toit
Priority date: 2000-07-31
Filing date: 2001-07-30
Publication date: 2002-02-07
Also published as: AU2001276585A1

Abstract

The invention provides for a safety hat (10) of the type used on construction sites and in underground mines for protecting the top of a wearer's head from impacts. The safety hat (10) includes a protective covering (12) which is designed to cover the top of a wearer's head and a brim (14) which extends from the protective covering. The brim (14) includes a transparent section (16) adjacent an operatively front portion (18) of the protective covering (12) which allows the wearer to view objects through the front of the brim (14).

Description

SAFETY HAT

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

THIS invention relates to a safety hat and more specifically to a safety hat of the type generally used on construction sites and in underground mines.

Conventional safety hats for construction sites and underground mines have a covering for protecting the top of a wearer's head and a brim which extends around the base of the covering. The covering and the brim are moulded from an opaque plastics material so that often objects such as steel brackets, temporary support members and the like are concealed by the brim when the wearer rises or moves forward. Although conventional safety hats generally protect the wearer's head when contacting such an object, they do not guard against consequential jarring of the wearer's neck. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention there is provided a safety hat for protecting the top of a wearer's head from impacts, the safety hat including:

a protective covering which is designed to cover the top of a wearer's head; and

a brim which extends from the protective covering and which is transparent along at least a portion thereof so as to allow the wearer to view objects through the brim or a portion of the brim.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the brim includes a transparent portion adjacent an operatively front section of the covering.

The transparent portion may be removably attachable to the brim so that it can be replaced if damaged.

In one arrangement, the transparent portion is slidably engageable with the brim.

In another arrangement, the safety hat is arranged so that the transparent portion can be clipped onto the brim.

Alternatively, the transparent portion may be formed integrally with the brim or it may be fixed to the brim.

Typically, the covering is formed from an opaque plastics material with a high resistance to impacts, for example a high density polyurethane or a fibre- reinforced plastics material, and the transparent brim or portion of the brim is formed from a polycarbonate sheet such as one of the LEXAN® polycarbonate sheets produced by General Electric Plastics B. V. Structured Products Europe.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described in more detail, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a safety hat according to one embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2 shows a perspective view of a safety hat according to another embodiment of the invention; and

Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional view along the line 3-3 in Figure 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Figure 1 of the drawings illustrates a safety hat 10 according to the present invention. As can be seen, the safety hat includes a covering 12 for protecting the top of a wearer's head (not shown) and a brim 14.

The brim extends around the base of the protective covering 12, as shown, and includes a portion 16 adjacent an operatively front section 18 of the protective covering which is formed from a transparent material. In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 1, the protective covering 12 is formed from an opaque plastics material which has a high resistance to impacts, typically a high density polyurethane or a fibre-reinforced plastics material, and the transparent portion 16 is formed from one of the LEXAN® polycarbonate sheets produced by General Electric Plastics B. V. Structured Products Europe, typically LEXAN® 9034 or LEXAN® ST-5000.

The transparent portion 16 is fixed to the brim 14 so as to form an integral part of the brim. However, the portion 16 may be removably attachable to the brim, if desired, so as to be replaceable if damaged. In the Figure 1 embodiment, the portion 16 includes formations (not illustrated) which are arranged to engage corresponding formations (also not illustrated) on lateral edges 20 of a cutout 22 in the brim 14 so that the portion 16 can be slid into the cutout and secured in position with a suitable adhesive. It will be appreciated that the portion 16 could also be moulded together with the protective covering 12 and the brim 14.

Figures 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawings illustrate a safety hat 110 according to another embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the covering 112 and the transparent portion 116 are formed from similar materials to the covering 12 and the transparent portion 16 of the first embodiment of the invention, but unlike the first embodiment, the portion 116 is secured to the brim 114 with conventional rivets 124. In this regard, the portion 116 is moulded separately from the protective covering and brim, and includes a connection flap 120 (see Figure 3) on each side thereof. The flaps 120 are designed to pass through slits 122 in the brim 14 so as to extend below the brim, and the rivets 124 secure the flaps 120, and hence the transparent portions 116, to the brim 114 in the manner illustrated in Figure 3. The brim 114 could be specially moulded so as to include the pair of slits 122 and the cutout 128, or alternatively the brim of a conventional safety hat could simply be punched so as to include the pair of slits and the cutout.

A major advantage of the safety hat according to the embodiments of the invention described above is that the transparent portion of the brim allows a wearer to view objects which otherwise would not be visible through the brim. Accordingly, the transparent portion on the safety hat increases a wearer's vision substantially so that collisions with objects which normally would not be visible with a conventional safety hat can be avoided.

Although the safety hat of the invention has been described above with reference to a brim which includes a transparent portion at the front of the safety hat, it should be appreciated that the brim could also be formed entirely from a transparent material. It will also be appreciated that the exact shape and/or size of the brim is not an important feature of the invention and could be varied, if desired.

Claims

1. A safety hat for protecting the top of a wearer's head from impacts, the safety hat including:

2. A safety hat according to claim 1 , wherein the brim includes a transparent portion adjacent an operatively front section of the covering.

3. A safety hat according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the transparent portion is formed integrally with or is fixed to the brim.

4. A safety hat according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the transparent portion is removably attachable to the brim.

5. A safety hat according to claim 4, wherein the transparent portion is slidably engageable with the brim.

6. A safety hat according to claim 4, wherein the transparent portion is arranged to clip onto the brim.

7. A safety hat according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the protective covering is formed from a high density polyurethane or a fibre-reinforced plastics material, and the transparent brim or portion of the brim is formed from a polycarbonate sheet.

8. A safety hat substantially as herein described with reference to either of the two illustrated embodiments.