WO2004016122A1

WO2004016122A1 - Protective garment

Info

Publication number: WO2004016122A1
Application number: PCT/AU2003/000916
Authority: WO
Inventors: John Di Giovanni
Original assignee: Di Giovanni, Frances, Grace
Priority date: 2002-08-16
Filing date: 2003-07-17
Publication date: 2004-02-26
Also published as: AU2002950828A0

Abstract

A hat (10) having an insert (30) and an insert (30) for a hat (10) which is formed from a sheet of energy absorbing material and which is adapted to lie around the periphery of the hat so that if the wearer is struck by a games ball or the like some, at least of the energy is dissipated by the energy absorbing material. Preferably the sheet of energy absorbing material has a number of spaced leaves (34) extending generally radially outwardly from the central portion (33) thereof and which are deformed to be located within the periphery of the hat and which may be held in position by the ends being placed beneath the band (25) of the hat.

Description

PROTECTIVE GARMENT

This invention relates to a protective garment and in particular to a hat or cap which provides protection to a wearer's head but which has the appearance of a completely conventional hat or cap. In this specification we shall refer to the article as a hat and use this term quite generically.

There are some sports, such as golf, which are not normally considered to be dangerous to players as, say, cricket or baseball where balls are directed at players. However, many golf balls are hit erratically and there is always a likelihood that a player can be hit inadvertently by one of these erratically struck balls and, if a player is hit on the head by such a ball, it can be very painful and even cause substantial injury.

The object of the invention is to provide a hat which can minimise damage to a player or minimise injury to a player under such circumstances and it is also an object to provide an insert for a hat which, when used, will provide some protection to the player's head.

The invention includes a hat having an insert which may be formed from a sheet of energy absorbing material and which is adapted to lie around the periphery of the hat.

Preferably the sheet of energy absorbing material has a number of spaced leaves extending generally radially outwardly from the central portion thereof and which are deformed to be located within the periphery of the hat.

The invention also includes an insert for a hat made from a sheet of material which is so formed as to be able to be received and held within the head portion of a hat.

The material may be provided with slots, apertures or the like to permit air passage there through. In order that the invention may be more readily understood it shall be described in relation to the accompanying drawings when applied to a hat of the type known as a baseball cap.

In these drawings:

Fig 1 shows a perspective view of a hat incorporating the invention

Fig 2 shows a plan view of an insert for use with a cap of the type shown in Fig 1 ;

Fig 3 shows a section of the insert along line 3-3 of Fig 2;

Fig 4 shows an underneath plan view of the cap of Fig 1 showing the insert in position;

Fig 5 shows a lateral section of the cap of along line 5-5 of Fig 4; and

Fig 6 shows a transverse section of the cap along line 6-6 of Fig 4j.

These caps 10 have a body portion 11 which normally is made from a number of shaped fabric members 12 and which is adapted to fit relatively closely over the top of a user's head and has a forwardly directed peak or bill 13 which acts to shade the user.

Many such hats either have adjustment means 20 around the lower periphery thereof which may be associated with a cut out back portion 21 whereby the one sized cap can fit persons with a wide range of head sizes. Alternatively, the cap can have an elastic band around the periphery.

In each case there is an inturned sweat band 25 which extends about a substantial part of the periphery. The insert 30 of the present invention can be of two layers 31,32 the inner 31 of which may be made of a shock absorbing material and this could be a relatively thin sponge like material and the outer 32 may be of a relatively hard plastics material. The layers can be bonded or could be co-extruded or otherwise formed.

In the illustrated form of the invention the insert 30 may be made from a flat sheet of material or it could be moulded to have a shape as described.

The shape, is such as to fit generally within the body of a cap and it may have a central portion 33 which is the crown and locates under the centre of the cap and extending therefrom a number of leaves or flaps 34.

These may be located generally radially of the crown portion and may be spaced so that on deformation edges of adjacent leaves can lie closely adjacent one to another. Also, if required, the back leaf 35 can be shorter than the remaining flaps as will be described hereinafter.

To ensure that air can pass through the cap substantially as it would normally do, we provide a number of slots 36 through the outer layer 32 of the insert. The inner layer could be of a pervious material.

In one form of the invention we can provide a number of elongated slots effectively centrally of each leaf and a number of diagonally located slots on either side thereof and in the crown portion we can incorporate a number of radial slots around the centre of this.

The arrangement of the insert 30 is such that it can be placed inside the cap with the crown brought into close contact with the crown of the cap and each of the leaves can be passed into the sweat band 25 around the periphery of the cap.

In some caps this band is effectively open upwardly and others not and depending upon the arrangement so the flaps can be located accordingly. The rear, shorter leaf 35 is adapted to enable access to the size adjustment of the cap. This may either be a band which passes through a pocket around the periphery of the flap or could be simply a pair of straps 20 which are connected at each side of the open portion 21 at the back of the cap and which may be interconnected by Velcro (Registered Trade Mark) connectors to provide adjustment for the size of the head of the wearer.

Alternatively connexion may be achieved by extensions from one strap entering holes in the other strap or by an adjustable buckle or the like.

As mentioned earlier, the shorter leaf is basically arranged to lie above the open portion adjacent to the adjustment.

It will be seen that when the insert is located in the cap it lies closely adjacent to the body of the cap and the cap can then be worn by a user, possibly with some minor adjustment of the size, but to all purposes the cap looks identical to a cap which does not have the insert.

Because of the slots or apertures in the insert the wearer's head can breath in a satisfactory manner and the cap is no hotter to wear than would be a standard cap.

However if the wearer is struck on the head by a golf ball, instead of there being only a relatively thin layer of fabric between the ball and the wearer's head, the insert provides an energy absorbing and distributing arrangement so that the effect of the blow on the user is very much less than would be the case if the ball struck the unprotected head.

The degree of protection will of course depend upon the thickness and the shock absorbing qualities of the material of the insert, whilst the appearance of the device tends to depend, adversely, on the same properties, as the thicker the material of the insert the more likely it is to change the appearance of the cap when worn. In making the insert there is thus a compromise between these parameters and, as mentioned earlier, it is quite possible to produce a cap having an insert of the invention therein which does not look different from a normal cap.

The invention is not designed to provide a safety helmet as such but purely a means whereby the likelihood of injury to a wearer when struck by a golf ball is reduced.

Whilst we have described a particular form of the invention as applied to a baseball cap, it will be appreciated that similar devices could be provided for different forms of hats worn by golfers such as shaped straw hats or even beanies. For each different type of hat being used, the actual shape of the insert will have to be varied to enable it to be associated with the hat but any such variations, together with variations in the material and the particular formation of the insert, are deemed to be within the scope of the invention.

Claims

We claim:

1. A hat having an insert which is formed from a sheet of energy absorbing material and which is adapted to lie within the hat with its outer edge around the periphery of the hat.

2. A hat as claimed in claim 1 wherein the sheet of energy absorbing material has a number of spaced leaves extending generally radially outwardly from the central portion thereof and which are deformed to be located within the body of the hat.

3. A hat as claimed in claim 2 wherein the free ends of the leaves are located within the sweat band of the hat. ^'

4. A hat as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 wherein the insert has at least two layers the inner one of which is of a resilient material and the outer one of which is of a harder material.

5. A hat as claimed in claim 4 wherein the outer layer of the insert has ventilation slots therethrough.

6. An insert for a hat made from a sheet of energy absorbing material which is so formed as to be able to be received and held within the head portion of the hat.

7. An insert as claimed in claim 3 wherein the sheet of energy absorbing material has a number of spaced leaves extending generally radially outwardly from the central portion thereof and which are capable of deformation to be located within the body of the hat.

8. An insert as claimed in claim 6 or claim 7 wherein the insert has at least two layers the inner one of which is of a resilient material and the outer one of which is of a harder material.

9. An insert as claimed in claim 8 wherein the outer layer of the insert has ventilation slots therethrough.

10. An insert as claimed in claim 5 wherein the leaves are of such a length that when the sheet of energy absorbing material is located within a hat, the ends of the leaves may be located beneath the sweat band of the hat.

11. A hat as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 wherein the insert has at least two layers the inner one of which is of a resilient material and the outer one of which is of a harder material.

12. A hat as claimed in claim 4 wherein the outer layer of the insert has ventilation slots therethrough.