WO2020075047A1

WO2020075047A1 - Headgear and method for manufacturing the same

Info

Publication number: WO2020075047A1
Application number: PCT/IB2019/058536
Authority: WO
Inventors: Roberto DE LUNA QUIROZ; Christian A. DE LUNA MARQUEZ
Original assignee: De Luna Quiroz Roberto; De Luna Marquez Christian A
Priority date: 2018-10-09
Filing date: 2019-10-08
Publication date: 2020-04-16
Also published as: US20210267297A1; MX2021004178A; ES2829473A2; ES2829473R1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a new headgear for protecting the head of a person, the new headgear comprising: a base body; a plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements embedded or adhered to the base body; a cover element that surrounds the base body and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements; a pair of adjustment pieces partially embedded or adhered to the low portion of the base body; and an adjustment band or strap that joins both adjustment pieces; wherein the base body is made of a material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements are made of a material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts. The present invention further relates to a method for producing a new headgear.

Description

HEADGEAR AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE SAME

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to the field of headgears. More specifically, the present invention provides a new headgear for full contact sports and medical uses, more specifically, for: soccer, flag football, rugby, full contact fighting sports, and also for medical applications such as for those persons suffering from autism, epilepsy and chronic traumatic encephalopathy or any other affection that might put them in risk of hitting their heads. The present invention provides a new headgear with technical features that increase impact absorption and reduce head and brain injuries risks. Likewise, the present invention further refers to the method for manufacturing the new headgear.

Background of the Invention

People who practice sports are in risk of suffering an injury. In full contact fighting sports, e.g.. taekwondo, there is the risk of suffering head and brain injuries due to the impact caused by either a punch, kick or a fall, which could cause a concussion. A concussion occurs when an impact on the head is severe enough to cause brain injury because of the brain hitting against the hard walls of the skull as a consequence of sudden acceleration and deceleration forces.

According to a document entitled“Effects of taekwondo kicks on head acceleration and injury potential” by Fife, O’Sullivan, Pieter & Kamisnki, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has called the sport- related concussions a“silent epidemy” with 1 .5 million traumatic brain injuries and 300,000 concussions in the United States annually. The full contact fighting sport of taekwondo, with over 80 million participants worldwide has concussion incidence rates ranging from 5.5 to 50.2 per 1 ,000 athlete- exposures, nearly four times greater than the reported in American Football. Therefore, it is necessary to enhance the features of the protective headgear to reduce the effects of a head impact.

In order to reduce the probability of suffering a concussion, many analyses have been developed to determine parameters that provide information of the effects of a head impact and determine the limits to reduce the risks. Now-a-day, the most used parameters to evaluate brain injuries and prevent them are the linear acceleration, the rotational acceleration and the head injury criterion.

The document entitled“Biomechanics of the head for Olympic Boxer Punches” by T. J. Waliko, D C Viano, C A Bir, illustrates the effects of the linear acceleration and the rotational acceleration. In order to explain these effects, the Figure 1 of such document or of the present application? shows a boxer’s punch applying a force to a head form. In said Figure 1 , the horizontal axis represents the direction of equilibrium of forces. The boxers fist applies a force to the head form. At the same time, a shear force is applied to the neck in an opposite direction to the force of the fist. Due to these forces, the head-form is under a linear acceleration and a rotational acceleration. The linear acceleration is the acceleration that pulls the center of mass in any linear direction according to the sum of forces. The rotational acceleration is the acceleration that makes the head rotate relating to the center of mass.

On the other hand, in 1961 the Gadd Severity Index (GSI) was proposed. To determine the Severity Index (SI), an impact is represented in a rectangular coordinate system, wherein the X-axis corresponds to the impact period and the Y-axis represents the acceleration of the head. Taking into consideration the above, the SI is calculated by integrating the whole waveform. Therefore, a relatively long duration, low acceleration impact could give the same GSI value as a short duration, high acceleration impact. Due to this, several objections were raised against this criterion.

As result, Versace’s developed a new criterion in 1971 , called Flead Injury Criterion (HIC). The HIC addresses the shortcomings of the SI, providing comparable head injury tolerance values irrespective of the waveform shape. The HIC considers the more injurious portion of the impact waveform, the peak and the close peak sections, and excludes the less injurious sections, therefore, giving a more accurate head injury tolerance level. The HIC is defined as:

1000

In order to determine the human head tolerances, in the documents “State-of-art Human Tolerance” by Synder and “Injury and Skeletal Biomechanics” by Goswani it is proposed that the limits can be stablished using two criterions: Linear Acceleration and H 1C. Based on these criterions, the following tolerances were proposed:

TABLE 1

TABLE 2

Those limits are probabilistic, i.e., the closer to the inferior limit, the probability is low, and it increases until it gets to 100% (upper limit). To understand this, the FIG. 2 shows an expansion of the previous table 2, where the real probability of injury is shown. Furthermore, the FIG. 3 shows the correlation between the AIS (Abbreviated Injury Scale) with fatalities.

Taking into consideration these criterions, the inventors of the present application determined the head speed, the head acceleration and the HIC when the head receives an impact due to a kick or a fall that are shown in the TABLE 3. To determine the head speed, the head acceleration and the HIC when the head receives a kick, the inventors relied on the disclosure of the document“Effects of taekwondo kicks on head” by Gabriel P Fife, et. Al. For the head speed, the head acceleration and HIC when the head receives an impact due to a fall, the inventors calculated these values from a kinematic analysis.

TABLE 3

Furthermore, according to the document entitled“Biomechanics of the head for Olympic Boxer Punches” by Waliko et al, the fist produces the values shown in the TABLE 4. when it impacts the head:

TABLE 4

As can be seen, the above data shows that there is a need to provide the appropriate equipment which reduce the HIC and the head acceleration in order to reduce the probability of a head injury. For this, a lot of headgears have been developed, which are designed to absorb the impact caused by either a kick, punch or fall.

One example is the U.S. Pat. No. 4, 706, 305 by Soo S. Cho, which describes a headgear fabricated by polyurethane foam, which is a conformable and resilient material that is capable of absorbing energy when contacted and deformed by a blow. The headgear protects the forehead, the back of the head and the sides of the head and include ear protectors.

Another example is the Utility Model No. ON 204395396 U by XU Xiaohu, which discloses a protective headgear body made of polyurethane incorporating reinforcing sheets and elastics bands, wherein the reinforcing sheets are placed in the lower part of the protective helmet to reinforce the connecting section, in such a way that the helmet better absorbs the external impact energy.

However, when the headgear receives an impact, there are present both low frequency impacts and high frequency impacts. The headgears disclosed by the U.S. Pat. No. 4, 706, 305 and the Utility Model Nr. CN 204395396 U can absorb impacts, but their performance in absorbing high frequency impacts is poor.

The U.S. Pat. Appl. No. 2014/0090153 A1 by Siklosi discloses a headgear comprising a plurality of plates that can be attached and detached by means of adjustable straps, each of the plates comprise an inner layer, an outer layer and a trauma plate between the inner and the outer layers. The inner and outer layers are made of a resilient material like Ethylene-Vynil Acetate (EVA). The trauma plate comprises a rigid material capable of impact dispersal like rigid plastic.

In the U. S. Pat. No. 5, 177, 815 by Andujar, specify a protective headgear constructed of a base member of resilient foam, namely, polyvinylchloride and a plurality of pad members made of a foam of harder composition, namely, EVA. The pad members are secured to the top surface of the base member.

Although the headgears disclosed by Siklosi and Andujar provide another layer of material to give an extra protection to the wearer, Ethilene- vynil Acetate is not enough to attenuate or reduce high frequency impacts. Furthermore, the members of the headgear disclosed by Siklosi are removable. This can result in a movement or detachment of the members of the headgear, causing that the fighters need to take time for rearranging the headgear, which is not desirable for the spectators that are enjoying the match. On the other hand, the headgear disclosed by Andujar has the downfall that the pads easily break off from the base member.

Therefore, there is the need of providing a headgear able to attenuate both low frequency and high frequency impacts to reduce the probability of suffering a concussion and which provide an enhanced arrangement to maintain the pieces of the headgear in their place after receiving an impact.

According to the present normative ASTM F1446-15b Standard Test Methods for equipment and procedures used in evaluating performance characteristics of Protective Headgear and ASTM F2397-04a standard specification for Protective Headgear used in Martial Arts in the free fall test:

• An impact velocity of 3.0 ± 0.15 [m/s] shall report an acceleration measurement that cannot exceed 100-G

· An impact of velocity of 4.0 ± 0.2 [m/s] shall report an acceleration measurement that cannot exceed 300-G

Summary of the Invention

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new protective headgear for absorbing both low and high frequency impacts.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a new protective headgear to reduce the variations of accelerations produced by an impact.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new headgear with a hair exit, thus allowing long hair users comfort and a better headgear performance while using it.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new headgear which incorporates a system allowing air to escape from the ear if the side of the head is struck, thus preventing additional damage to the eardrum due to trapped air.

Moreover, it is another object of the present invention providing a new headgear for sports, such as soccer, flag football, rugby, full contact fighting sports, and medical use such as autism, epilepsy and chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new headgear which houses loosing up and tighten elements for adjustment of the new headgear which are adequate to support the force exerted by a person, by distributing the shear force through the base body material.

The base body may comprise a plurality of cavities or a smooth surface, wherein each one of the pluralities of high frequency impact absorbing elements is placed within a respective one of the plurality of cavities or adhered to a smooth base body.

The base body further comprises an inner cavity and an opening in the front of new headgear, wherein the inner cavity and the opening are made from anthropometric measurements. The base body further comprise two portions adapted to cover the ear of the user. Each of the portions covering the ear of the user may comprise a system that allow air to escape from the ear. The system that allow air to escape from the ear comprises two holes through which the air escapes. The system may further comprise protruded EVA pieces in the cover element that decrease the probability of trapping the air between the ear and the headgear.

The adjustment pieces may comprise of but not limited to two plates of plastic having a plurality of holes. The adjustment band or strap passes through the holes of the plates.

The adjustment strap may be a band or strap with hook and loop fastener or side release buckle.

The cover element may be made of a spandex fabric, polyester, TPU, synthetic leather, leather, vinyl paint, or any thermoformable material.

Likewise, a further object of the invention is provide a method to manufacturing a new Fleadgear claimed in this invention.

Brief Description of the Figures

Figure 1 , shows a boxer’s punch applying a force to a head form; Figure 2, is a graphic showing the probability of an injury against HIC score;

Figure 3, is a graphic showing the H IC-Fatality showing AIS;

Figure 4, is a graphic showing the Flead acceleration result peak for different headgears obtained by laboratory tests;

Figure 5, is a graphic showing the Flead Injury Criterion for different headgears obtained by laboratory tests;

Figures 6 a-c are showing the FI 1C resultant points at 2m/s, 3m/s and 4m/s for different headgears obtained by laboratory tests;

figure 7, shows a front view of the headgear of the present invention;

Figure 8, shows an upper perspective view of the headgear of the present invention;

Figure 9, shows an exploded front view of the headgear of the present invention; Figure 10, shows an exploded perspective view of the headgear of the present invention;

Figure 1 1 , shows a perspective view of a back protector of the new headgear of the present invention;

Figure 12, shows a perspective view of a forehead protector of the new headgear of the present invention;

Figure 13, shows a perspective view of a lateral protector of the new headgear of the present invention;

Figure 14 shows a perspective view of a jaw protector of the new headgear of the present invention;

Figure 15, shows a perspective view of a nape protector of the new headgear of the present invention;

Figure 16, shows a perspective view of a parietal protector of the new headgear of the present invention;

Figure 17, shows a perspective view of a temple protector of the new headgear of the present invention;

Figure 18, shows a perspective view of a side protector (jaw protector and lateral protector combination) of the new headgear of the present invention;

Other advantages and features will be apparent from the following description and the claims.

Description of the Invention

The present invention relates to a new headgear comprising a base body, a plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements embedded or attached to the base body, a cover element that surrounds the base body and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements, a pair of adjustment pieces partially embedded or adhered to the low portion of the base body and an adjustment band or strap that joins both adjustment pieces; wherein the base body is made of a material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts such as (EVA) Ethilene Vynil Acetate, (EVA/V2), (PE/EVA), and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements are made of a material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts such as. (D30, Koroyd®, Purple®, Poron® XRD®, Artilage®, NBR, VN, PVC) The term“high frequency” shall be understood as the presence of a low-rise time which results a higher settling time due to a large overshoot. The term“low frequency” shall be understood as the presence of a high-rise time which results a lower settling time is in a shorter period.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the drawings as shown by the FIGS. 6(a)-(c) to 18. The present invention comprises a new headgear indicated by the numeral 100, the new headgear comprises a base body or main body 1 10 comprising a hollow portion for introducing the head of a user. The front part of the base body 1 10 is open in such a way that the eyes, nose and mouth of the user are not covered by the base body 1 10 (open face), the base body 1 10 can also cover the cheek area offering cheek protection (Mexican style), furthermore the base body 1 10 can have a rigid bar going across the face protecting the nose offering full face coverage (face saver).

The base body 1 10 is designed from anthropometric measurements based on SLIMDESIGN^® company database, providing a set of three- dimensional models of different sizes of a head, which results in an ergonomic design that perfectly fits to a higher percentage of the users.

During a battle, the fighter’s vision is very important in terms of defense. It is a human factor concept that visibility access may increase user performance in the discipline. Having a full visual function and thus able to see your surroundings can help avoid injuries. A study carried by Peering Michael F. entitled“The Limits of Human Vision” determined that the Human Eye vision is of 220° for the lateral field of view (-59° to +1 10° for each eye) and 56° for the upward field of view ( -70° to +56° vertically). The opening of the base body 1 10 of the present invention (open face) reaches higher values, allowing the fighters a normal vision range. The opening reaches the values of 230° for the lateral field of view and 53° for the upward field of view.

The base body 1 10 is made of a material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts. In one embodiment of the invention, the material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts of this new headgear is Ethylene and Vinyl Acetate/V2 (elastomeric polymer property of Vulcan Pro Tech) (EVA compound with V2 shock absorbing blend). Compound specially developed to improve the impact absorption of the base body 1 10, however, other materials that attenuate low frequency impacts can be used to manufacture the base body 1 10 (Cross-Linked Polyethylene/EVA, PE/EVA, EVA) These materials absorb less impact and resist less abrasion and tear. The material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts may present at least one of the following features: being a hypoallergenic, antibacterial, antimicrobial, UV rays resistant, scented and/or a material that prevents fungal formation.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the base body 1 10 comprises a plurality of openings that provide an adequate ventilation. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, there is an opening at the upper part of the base body 1 10, which provides a hair exit allowing long hair users comfort and better headgear fit and performance while using the new headgear.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the base body 1 10 comprises a plurality of cavities for housing a plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120. The plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 are made of a material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts. The plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 are configured to dissipate and absorb energy produced by an impact and attenuating the variations of the accelerations produced by an impact, which reduce the damage caused by the impact.

In one embodiment, the material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts may be made from one selected of the following materials: D30, Koroyd®, Purple®, Poron® XRD®, Artilage®, NBR, VN, PVC. It is important to mention that the material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts is not limited to the above-mentioned material and other kind of materials which absorb high frequency impacts may be used.

The plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 are placed in specifics position of the base body to protect specific zones of the head. Specifically, the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 comprises a back protector 121 , a forehead protector 122, two lateral protectors 123 that protects the ears, two jaw protectors 124, two nape protectors 125, two parietal protectors 126 and two temple protectors 127. Likewise, each one of the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120; may be obtained by, i.e., die cutting a plate of a material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts; however, the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements may be obtained by other cutting methods are configured to match the cavities of the base body 1 10.

In the portions of the base body 1 10 that covers the ears are configured to receive the lateral protectors 123. Both the base body 1 10 and the lateral protectors 123 on each side of the head are configured to provide a system that allow air to escape from the ear if the side of the head is struck, preventing additional damage to the eardrum due to trapped air. In one embodiment of the invention, the system that allow air to escape comprises two holes that pass through both the base body 1 10 and the respective lateral protector 123. Additionally, the holes may be placed in different planes.

In an additional embodiment of the invention, the system that allows air to escape may further comprise protruded EVA pieces on the base body that decrease the probability of trapping the air between the ear and the new headgear

At each side of the base body 1 10, there are two adjustment elements 140 that are adhered or partially inserted in the lowest portion of the base body, more specifically, the adjustment elements 140 are partially inserted or adhered in the lower jaw zone. The adjustment elements 140 may be two plastic plates comprising a plurality of holes that distribute the shear forces in the material of the base body 1 10. The plurality of holes of the adjustment elements 140 are located at the portion that is inserted into the base body 1 10. The adjustment elements 140 are designed to resist the forces exerted by a person in order to prevent the adjustment elements from breaking. The adjustment elements 140 may be made from a thermoplastic elastomer.

The portions of the adjustment elements 140 that are not inserted or adhered to the base body 1 10, comprise at least one groove through which can pass an adjustment band or strap to loosen or tighten the new headgear 100. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the adjustment band may be a band with a hook and loop fastener; however, other kind of elements may be used for the adjustment of the new headgear.

Both the base body 1 10 and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 are enclosed by a cover element 130. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the cover element comprises a fabric made of spandex with a specific pattern, which provides an elegant look. It should be understood that different materials may be employed for the cover element i.e. plastic covers, paint, leather, synthetic leather, etc.

As an alternative embodiment of the invention, the new headgear may further comprise an absorbing element placed in the inner forehead of the new headgear which absorbs the sweat. In an exemplary but not limitative embodiment, the absorbing element may be made of rayon/polypropylene or viscose/polyester. Due to the combination of the foregoing features, the new headgear of the present invention is able to reduce the thickness and the weight of the new headgear, without compromising its performance for absorbing low frequency impacts and high frequency impacts due to the combination of the material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts and the material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts, reducing by this way the probability of suffering severe head and brain injuries.

In order to manufacture the new headgear 100 of the present invention, the steps of the method of the present invention are described below:

molding the base body with an EVA compound which has the following proportion of Vinyl Acetate (VA) and Ethylene (E)

A. between 15% to 35% of VA

B. between 85% to 65% of E;

V2 (elastomeric polymer property of Vulcan Pro Tech previously mentioned) shock absorbing compound, Once molded, the base body 1 10, will have a hardness of 40-50 asker C, being capable of absorbing low frequency impacts in order to form a base body 1 10. , while molding, the material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts, a pair of adjustment elements 140 is placed into the base body 1 10 in the portion that will protect the lower jaw of the user, in such a way that the adjustment elements 140 partially protrude from the base body 110;

providing a pair of adjustment elements 140;

providing a plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120; placing each one of the pluralities of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 into a corresponding cavity or smooth surface of the base body 1 10;

providing a cover element 130; placing a cover element 130 over the base body 1 10 to cover the base body 110 and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120;

providing an adjustment band or strap; pass the adjustment band or strap through a plurality of grooves of the adjustment elements 140;

packaging the new headgear 100. In a preferred embodiment of the method, the base body 1 10 may be placed on a mannequin and an adhesive applied to the outer surface of the base body 1 10.

In a preferred embodiment of the method, the step of providing the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 comprises:

providing a plate of a material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts; applying an adhesive over the both sides of the plate;

covering both sides of the plate with a nonstick material; and die cutting the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120; wherein the shape of the high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 corresponds to the shape of the cavities formed in the base body 1 10.

The step of placing each one of the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 into a corresponding cavity or smooth surface of the base body 1 10 further comprises removing the nonstick material from one side of one of the high frequency impact absorbing elements 120; applying an activating solvent on the one side of the high frequency impact absorbing element 120; and placing the high frequency impact absorbing element 120 into a corresponding cavity or smooth surface of the base body 1 10.

In a preferred embodiment of the method, wherein the high frequency impact absorbing elements may have any shape and be adhered to a smooth base body 1 10. Placing this shape in a smooth surface of the base body 1 10 further comprises removing the nonstick material from one side of one of the high frequency impact absorbing elements 120; applying an activating solvent on the one side of the high frequency impact absorbing element 120; and placing the high frequency impact absorbing element 120 into a smooth surface of the base body 1 10.

In a preferred embodiment of the method, the step of providing a cover element 130, further comprises: providing a plate of thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material; cutting the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material according to the measurements of the new headgear; placing decals by heat transfer over the surface of the cover material; placing the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material on a thermoforming machine; heating the surface of the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material; thermoforming the plate of thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material by placing the plate of thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material on a male mold; generating a vacuum or compressing the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material so the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material take the shape of the male mold; cooling the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material; removing the excess of material; and applying an adhesive to the inner of the thermoformed plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material.

In a preferred embodiment of the method, the step of placing a cover element 130 over the base body 1 10 to cover the base body 1 10 and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements 120 further comprises: applying an activating solvent over the external surface of the base body 1 10; and sticking the cover element 130 over the new headgear 100.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the step of providing a pair of adjustment elements 140 further comprises: manufacturing the adjustment elements by injection.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the step of packaging the new headgear 100 further comprises: placing instructions on the adjustment elements 140; wherein the instructions contain indications for placing the adjustment band into the adjustment elements 140 and wherein the instructions are attached to the adjustment elements using a plastic arrow.

Alternatively, the instructions may contain information regarding the improvements of the new headgear.

The step of packaging the new headgear may further comprise packaging the headgear into a bag; introducing the bag into a box and sealing the box; wherein the bag may be a bag with the shape of a head.

The molding process used during the method for manufacturing described in the present application, encompasses any of the following molding process:

Powder metallurgy plus sintering

Compression molding

Extrusion molding

Injection molding Laminating

Reaction injection molding

Matrix molding

Rotational molding (or Rotomolding)

Spin casting

Transfer molding

Thermoforming

Vacuum forming.

The present invention will be illustrated by the following examples in detail. The examples of the present invention are merely intended to describe the technical solution of the present invention, and should not be considered as limiting the spirit and scope of the present invention.

IMPACT TEST :

In order to achieve the claimed technical features of the invention, the present invention presents a new headgear comprising a base body, a plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements embedded in or adhered to the base body, a cover element that surrounds the base body and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements; a pair of adjustment pieces adhered or partially embedded in the low portion of the base body and an adjustment band or strap that joins both adjustment pieces; wherein the base body is made of a material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements are made of a material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts.

Methodology

Custom R&D Contract testing to the general requirements of ASTM F1446-2015b“Standard Test Methods for Equipment and Procedures Used in Evaluation the Performance Characteristics of Protective” per Vulcan Pro Tech’s Test Methodology / per Moon Projects Test Methodology and ASTM F2397-2009 (Reapproved 2015)“Protective Headgear Used on Martial Arts per Vulcan Pro Tech’s specifications/ per Moon Projects specifications. Procedures:

Testing protocols were made by the ICS Laboratories Inc. in line with good laboratory practice were employed unless otherwise specified, for all tests.

Testing requirements as specified within Section 12 of ASTM F1446-2015b and ASTM F2397-2009 were followed.

Samples were stored for a minimum period of 24 hours at constant temperature 17°C to 27°C and a relative humidity of 20% to 80%.

Equipment:

Twin Wire apparatus was used to perform all impacts, Cadex CCS system was employed for data acquisition, K1 A Magnesium Headformsfs_Epjl” MEP calibration pad was employed for system checks Cadex Impact Software V6.9U

Laboratory test were done to compare the different headgear in the market. As shown in TABLE 5 and TABLE 6, only NEW HEADGEAR fulfills the normative requirements, and surprisingly reduces the risk of minor brain injury 5 times as much vs MACHO SPARTEC^® and even more surprisingly more than 10 times vs COMMON HEADGEAR^® in 3 m/s. The minor brain injury risk is reduced by half as compared to all the other headgears in 4 m/s, the major brain injury risk is reduced 20 times vs COMMON HEADGEAR^® and major brain injury risk reduces 16 times vs MACHO SPARTEC^®, the critical brain injury risk is reduced from 65% with a COMMON HEADGEAR^® to a null percentage with NEW HEADGEAR and critical brain injury risk is reduced from 12.5% with MACHO SPARTEC^® to a null percentage with NEW HEADGEAR Fatal brain injury risk is reduced from 25% with COMMON HEADGEAR^® to a null percentage with New Headgear.

TABLE 5

TABLE 6

TABLES 5 & 6 show the results obtained for 3 m/s and 4 m/s in the 5 free fall impact test, in these results it is possible to see that new Headgear incredibly reduces the damage taken due to the construction of the headgear: The high frequency impact absorbing elements 120; of the outside material reduces the impact until it gets in the low impact attenuation range of the inside material element 1 10, achieving as a result the best attenuation, and 10 maintaining the same level of attenuation no matter the impact energy (FIGS.

5-6)..

The devices and method discussed herein are merely illustrative of specific manners in which to make and use this invention and are not to be interpreted as limiting in scope. While the devices and method of the invention have been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is to be noted that many modifications may be in the details of the construction and the arrangement of the devices and components without departing from the spirit and scope of this disclosure. It is understood that the devices and methods are not limited to the embodiments set forth herein for purposes of exemplification.

Claims

CLAIMS What is claimed is:

1.- A headgear for protecting the head of a person, the headgear comprising:

- a base body;

-a plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements embedded in or adhered to the base body;

- a cover element that surrounds the base body and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements as well as comprises a fabric made of spandex with a specific pattern;

-a pair of adjustment elements partially embedded in or adhered to the low portion of the base body; and

-an adjustment band or strap that joins both adjustment pieces;

wherein the base body is made of a material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements are made of a material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts; wherein the headgear further comprises a sweat absorbing element placed in the inner forehead of the headgear.

2. -The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the base body comprises a hollow portion for introducing the head of a user.

3.- The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the front part of the base body can be open face, full face (face saver) or have cheek protection.

4.- The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the base body is designed from anthropometric measures.

5.- The headgear of claim 4, wherein the anthropometric measures are obtained by database with a three-dimensional model of a head according to the headgear size.

6.- The headgear of claim 3, wherein the opening of the front part of the base body having an open face provides a lateral field of view of 230° and an upward field of view of 53°.

7.- The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the base body further comprises a plurality of openings to provide an adequate ventilation.

8.- The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the base body further provides a hair exit, located at the upper part of the base body.

9.- The headgear of Claim 1 , wherein the pair of adjustment pieces are partially inserted in or adhered to the lower jaw zone.

10.- The headgear of Claim 1 , wherein the adjustment pieces further comprise a plurality of holes that distribute the shear forces in the material of the base body.

1 1.- The headgear of Claim 10, wherein the plurality of holes of the adjustment elements are located at the portion that is inserted into the base body.

12. The headgear of Claim 1 , wherein the adjustment band comprises a band with a hook and loop fastener

13. The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the adjustment elements comprise at least one groove through which can pass an adjustment band or strap to loosen or tighten the headgear.

14. The headgear of claim 12, wherein the adjustment band may be a band with a hook and loop fastener; however, other kind of elements may be used for the adjustment of the headgear.

15.- The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the base body further comprise a plurality of cavities for housing the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements.

16.- The headgear of claim 15, wherein each one of the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements is shaped to match a corresponding one of the plurality of cavities of the base body.

17. The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the cover element comprises a fabric made with at least spandex, polyester, TPU, synthetic leather, leather, vinyl paint, or any thermoformable material with or without a specific pattern.

18.- The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts is not limited a specific of materials which absorb high frequency impacts may be used.

19.- The headgear of claim 18, wherein the material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts can be a D30, Koroyd^®, Purple^®, Poron^® XRD^®, Artilage^®, NBR, PVC, or Vinyl Nitrile, material.

20.-. The headgear of Claim 1 , wherein the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements comprises a back protector, a forehead protector, two lateral protectors that protects the ears, two jaw protectors, two nape protectors, two parietal protectors and two temple protectors

21. The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts is Ethylene and Vinyl Acetate/V2 (EVA compound with V2 shock absorbing blend).

22- The headgear of claim 1 , wherein the material capable of absorbing low frequency impacts may present at least one of the following features: hypoallergenic, antimicrobial, antibacterial, UV rays resistant, scented and/or a material that prevents fungal formation

23.- The headgear of Claim 22, wherein the base body and the lateral protectors on each side of the head are configured to provide a system that allows air to escape from the ear.

24.- The headgear of Claim 23, wherein the system that allows air to escape comprises of two holes that pass through both the base body and the respective lateral protector.

25.- The headgear of Claim 24, wherein the holes may be placed in different planes.

26.- The headgear of Claim 1 , wherein the pair of adjustment pieces are partially inserted in or adhered to the lower jaw zone.

27.- A method for manufacturing a headgear, comprising the steps of:

- molding the base body with an EVA compound which has the following proportion of Vinyl Acetate (VA) and Ethylene (E)

-manufacturing, by molding, a base body, wherein a pair of adjustment elements are placed during or after the molding process;

- providing a plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements;

- placing each one of the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements into a corresponding cavity or smooth surface of the base body;

-providing a cover element: -placing a cover element over the base body and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements;

- providing an adjustment band or strap; and

- passing the adjustment band or strap through a plurality of grooves of the adjustment elements.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein in the step of molding, the base body molded with an EVA compound which has the following proportion of Vinyl Acetate (VA) and E:thylene (E):

between 15% to 35% of VA

between 85% to 65% of E;

V2 shock absorbing compound, once molded the base body with this blend the base body will has a hardness of 40-50 asker C.

29. The method of claim 27, wherein the step molding used any of the following molding process:

Powder metallurgy plus sintering

Compression molding

Extrusion molding

Injection molding

Laminating

Reaction injection molding

Matrix molding

Rotational molding (or Rotomolding)

Spin casting

Transfer molding

Thermoforming

Vacuum forming.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the step molding specifically could be injection molding or laminating.

31.- The method of Claim 27, wherein the step of providing a pair of adjustment elements further comprises manufacturing the adjustment elements by injection.

32.- The method of Claim 27, further comprising the steps of placing the base body on a mannequin and applying an adhesive over the outer surface of the base body between the steps of manufacturing the base body and providing the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements.

33.- The method of Claim 27, wherein the step of providing the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements further comprises:

-providing a plate of a material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts;

-applying an adhesive over the both sides of the plate; covering both sides of the plate with a nonstick material; and

-die cutting the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements, impact absorbing elements can be provided by injection.

34.- The method of Claim 33, wherein the shape of each one of the high frequency impact absorbing elements correspond to the shape of a respective one of a plurality of cavities formed in the base body.

35.- The method of Claim 33, wherein the step of placing each one of the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements into the corresponding cavity of the base body further comprising:

-removing the nonstick material from one side of one of the high frequency impact absorbing elements;

-applying an activating solvent on the one side of the high frequency impact absorbing element; and

-placing the high frequency impact absorbing element into a corresponding cavity of the base body.

36.- The method of Claim 33, wherein the step of providing a cover element further comprises:

-providing a plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material; -cutting the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material according to the measurements of the headgear zone where is going to be placed;

-placing decals by heat transfer over the surface of the cover material; -placing the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material on a thermoforming machine;

-heating the surface of the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material;

-thermoforming the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material by placing the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material on a male mold;

-generating a vacuum or compressing the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material so the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material takes the shape of the male mold desired zone;

-cooling the plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material;

-removing the excess of material; and

-applying an adhesive to the inner part of the thermoformed plate of a thermoformable material laminated or not laminated with a cover material

37- The method of Claim 33, wherein the step of placing a cover element over the base body and the plurality of high frequency impact absorbing elements further comprises:

-applying an activating solvent over the external surface of the headgear; and

-sticking the cover element over the corresponding zone of the headgear.

38.- The method of Claim 33, wherein packaging the headgear further comprises:

-placing instructions on the adjustment elements, wherein the instructions contain indications for placing the adjustment band into the adjustment elements and wherein the instructions are attached to the adjustment elements using a plastic arrow.

39.- The method of Claim 38, wherein the instructions contain information about the improvements of the headgear

40.- The method of Claim 33, wherein the step of packaging the headgear further comprises:

-introducing the headgear in the bag into a box; and

-sealing the box.

41.- The method of Claim 40, wherein the bag is a bag with the shape of the head.

40.- The headgear of Claim 1 , wherein the material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts is a material configured for attenuating high frequency impacts by reducing damping.

41.- The headgear of claim 27, wherein the material capable of absorbing high frequency impacts is a NBR, D30, Koroyd^®, Purple^®, Poron^® XRD^®, Artilage^®, PVC or Vinyl Nitrile material.