Patent Application
20200015539
The present disclosure relates to face masks or face guards used in various sports to prevent injury, and more particularly, to a face mask or face guard operable for use in softball or baseball by an infielder, outfielder or other defensive player that comprises a bill or visor that is removably attached to the upper portion of the face mask or face guard to shield a player's vision from the sun or other light source.
In softball and baseball a primary concern of players, parents and coaches is to avoid injuries that can result when a player is struck by an errantly pitched, hit or thrown ball. The hardness of regulation softballs and baseballs combined with the high ball speeds achieved present a substantial threat of serious injury in cases where a player is struck in a vulnerable area, particularly the head and face. To reduce the risk of head and face injuries in general, most softball and baseball leagues recommend or require the use of an impact resistant helmet, at least during batting activities and while running the bases. In addition, especially in softball leagues, a face guard is recommended or required to provide an impact resistant shield to protect against facial, dental and eye injuries.
A variety of face guards have been developed during the long history of softball and baseball that serve to deflect hit or thrown balls from contacting a players face while also allowing the player an unobstructed view of the playing filed. The design of these face guards generally includes a stiff guard member that rigidly attaches to the players head via a combination of straps extending around and over the player's head or that attach to a hard helmet worn on the player's head. Some representative examples of various types of face guards are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,886,596; 4,633,531; 5,661,849; 6,598,243; and 7,430,763 and U.S. Published Patent Application Nos. 2012/0210482 and 2014/0020153. The face guards may be constructed with a variety of materials, including plastics (i.e., polycarbonate, polyester, polyvinyl chloride etc.), nylon, steel, cast aluminum and other rigid, impact resistant materials. The face guards may also be constructed with combinations of the foregoing rigid impact resistant materials.
A problem with most softball and baseball face guards is that they are designed to attached to or accommodate a player's helmet, hat or visor. For example, U.S. Published Patent Application No. 2014/0020153 has an opening in the upper portion of the face guard designed to allow the bill of a player's hat to pass through opening and allow the bill of the typical baseball cap to shield the player's eyes from the sun or lights during play. The positioning the bill of the hat through the opening of the face guard is a time consuming and cumbersome process. Further the rigid structure of the face guard through which the bill passes will limit the player's ability to mold or form the bill to a desired shape such as an arch to provide optimal sun or light protection.
If the face guard is not equipped with an opening to accommodate the bill of a player's hat or visor, the player will need to forego the sun and light protection offered by the bill of the hat or visor which can lead to the player losing sight of the ball causing unnecessary errors and/or injuries. If the face guard is not equipped with an opening to accommodate the bill of a player's hat or visor, attempts have been made to wear a hat or visor over the face guard. These efforts are generally not favored by the player because the hat will need to be oversized to accommodate the face guard and its attaching straps or if a visor is employed it requires another set of cumbersome straps surrounding a players head.
In view of the above problems, a need exists in the art for a face guard that provides reliable protection against facial injuries from errant softball or baseball impacts, imposes minimal interference with visibility during play while also providing effective shielding of the players eyes from sun and lights during play.
The present invention overcomes these drawbacks and fills these and other needs.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a face mask or face guard with a removably attached bill or visor. The removably attached bill or visor will shield a player's eyes from the sun and light as would the bill of a typical softball visor or baseball cap.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a face mask or face guard with a removably attached bill or visor wherein the removable bill or visor can be molded or formed to a player's desired shape to provide optimal sun and light protection depending on the player's preference and/or unique facial shape.
It is further object of the present invention to provide a face mask or face guard with a removably attached bill or visor wherein the removable bill or visor can be attached to the face mask or face guard in a plurality of positions allowing the player to adjust the location of the bill or visor to provide optimal sun and light protection depending on the player's preference and/or unique facial shape.
One embodiment of the present invention comprises a face mask or face guard comprising a face protecting frame and a removably attached bill or visor. The face protecting frame comprises a lower frame region, an upper frame region and side frame regions wherein the lower frame region protects a player's chin, mouth and nose area from contact with a softball or baseball, the upper frame region protects a player's eyes and forehead area from contact with a softball or baseball and the side frame regions protect a player's check, jaw and temple area from contact with a softball or baseball. The face protecting frame also comprises an opening between the lower frame region and upper frame region that allows a player to see through the face protecting frame but is sized to prevent the player's eyes from contact with a softball or baseball. The face mask or face guard further comprises a means for attaching the face protecting frame to a player's head.
The removably attached bill or visor is releasably attached to the upper frame region of the face protecting frame. The term releasably attached as used herein means that the bill or visor maybe attached to the face protecting frame in a manner that allows the bill or visor to remain attached to the face protecting frame in a position selected by the player during normal use of the face mask or face guard in a game or practice situation, however, the player may remove the bill or visor during storage, to adjust the position and/or shape of the bill or visor or to replace one bill or visor for a different bill or visor with minimum effort.
In certain embodiments the means for attaching the face mask or face guard to a player's heads comprises a set of straps or bands, preferably comprising at least one rear strap that extends from the side frame regions and around the rear of the player's head and at least one top strap that extends from a portion of the upper frame region over the player's head and attaches to the rear strap. In certain embodiments the top strap may attach directly to the rear strap, or the top strap may connect to one or more retaining straps that connect the top strap to the rear strap.
The straps may be elastic, non-elastic or a combination thereof. The straps may also be adjustable in length to allow the player to tighten or loosen the straps to securely and firmly attach the face mask or face guard to their head.
The removably attached bill or visor is similar to a bill or visor of a typical softball visor or baseball cap, i.e. similar size and shape, however, it has a means for releasably attaching the removable bill or visor to the upper frame region of the face protecting frame.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the detailed description which follows, and in part will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from that description or recognized by practicing the invention described herein, including the detailed description which follows, the claims, as well as the appended drawings.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description present example embodiments of the invention and are intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and character of the invention. The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated into and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate various embodiments of the invention, and together with the detailed description, serve to explain the invention.
The appended drawings are only for purposes of illustrating example embodiments and are not to be construed as limiting the subject matter.
The following is a detail description of exemplary embodiments for the face guard in accordance with the present invention with reference to
As used herein the terms “face mask” and “face guard” will and can be used interchangeably.
As used herein the terms “bill” and “visor” will and can be used interchangeably.
As used herein the meaning of “a”, “an”, and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used herein the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
The face guard of the present invention will desirably incorporate structural concepts developed based on the distinct ball size for the sport in which the face guard will be used or worn. The face guard should provide a structural barrier that prevents either a softball or baseball from direct contact with a player's face including but not limited to the player's mouth, teeth, nose, eyes, forehead, check bones and jaw. The face guard should be constructed of a light weight material and strategically reinforced and designed to minimize visual obstruction and reduce material and manufacturing costs. Likewise, the face guard should be constructed of strong materials that resist distortion under heavy impact, but which is inexpensive and convenient to use in manufacturing the face guard. Common materials for construction of the frame or barrier elements of the face guard include metal, plastics or a combination thereof.
The face guard of the present invention may also incorporate padding or foam material on the interior portion of the face mask or face guard, i.e, the area closest to the player's face to provide for a comfortable and secure fit. The padding or foam material will also serve to cushion and/or reduce the impact force when a softball or baseball contacts the face guard and may help to absorb or remove sweat from the player's face and head. For example, as shown in
Under certain circumstances, it may also be desirable for a player to adjust the position of the padding or foam material or to interchange the padding or foam material of varying shapes, sizes, styles, etc. on a face guard so as to obtain a custom fit, for sanitary purposes, or for any other purpose.
As shown if
The face protecting frame 10 may be formed from metal, plastic or a combination of metal and plastic materials. The face protecting frame 10 may be formed in a single unitary construction such as by injection molding or in separate pieces that were permanently connected or bonded together. The face protecting frame 10 and its individual structural components or regions, i.e lower frame region 130, upper frame region 140 and side frame regions 150a and 150b may be of any commonly known shape or structure such as bars, grids, solid or perforated panels provided the construction allows the player to breath and see the field of play while simultaneously protecting the player's face from direct contact with a softball or baseball.
As shown in
In one embodiment as shown in
The means for attaching the face protecting frame 10 to the player's head may further comprise a top head strap 202 that extends from a portion of the upper frame region 140 and attaches to the rear head strap 201. In one embodiment, not shown, the top head strap 202 is a single strap that extends from the upper frame region 140 and attaches to the rear head strap 201. The top head strap 202 extends over the top of the player's head when worn. In one embodiment, as shown in
The removably attachable bill or visor 300 may be attached to the upper frame region by any releasable and reusable means known in the art such as snaps, buttons, adhesive (i.e. glue or double sided tape), hook and loop material or combinations thereof. In one embodiment the removably attachable bill or visor 300 has a releasable and reusable attachment means 301, preferably a hook or loop material on either a top or bottom surface of a portion of the bill or visor 300 and the corresponding hook and loop material on the upper frame region 140 of the face protecting frame 10. In one embodiment, the upper frame region 140 may comprise a structure that projects outwardly from the outer surface of the upper frame region 140 to which the removably attached bill or visor 300 attaches. Alternatively, the removably attached bill attaches to the top surface of the upper frame region 140. These embodiments preferably employs the removably attached bill shown in
In another embodiment, the upper frame region 140 comprises a smooth or substantially smooth surface to which the removably attachable bill or visor 300 attaches. This embodiment may employ the removably attached bill shown in
In a still further embodiment, the removably attached bill may be a combination of the embodiments shown in
In one embodiment, outer surface of the upper frame region 140 comprises a smooth, flat or substantially smooth and/or flat and the removable bill or visor 300 comprise a “T” shaped flange 303 as shown in
As shown in
In addition to allowing the player to adjust the removably attachable bill or visor 300 to the desired or optimal shape and placement on the face protecting frame, the present invention further allows the removably attachable bill or visor 300 to be changed for different colored bill or visors 300 thereby allowing the player to use the same face guard when playing on different teams during the course of a seasons such as a school team and a travel or community team. It also allows the player to customize the bill or visor 300 to the team color from season to season.
The present invention also allows the player to easily and quickly replace a bill or visor 300 to accommodate a particular condition or position. For example, on a very bright sunny day the player may wish to use a bill or visor that is larger, i.e. longer to provide better sun or light protection.
The invention illustratively described herein suitably may be practiced in the absence of any element or elements, limitation or limitations which is not specifically disclosed herein. Thus, for example, in each instance herein, any of the terms “comprising,” “consisting essentially of” and “consisting of” may be replaced with either of the other two terms. The terms and expressions which have been employed are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention in the use of such terms and expressions of excluding any equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, but it is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention claimed. Thus, it should be understood that although the present invention has been specifically disclosed by preferred embodiments and optional features, modification and variation of the concepts herein disclosed may be resorted to by those skilled in the art, and that such modifications and variations are considered to be within the scope of this invention as defined by the claims.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Applications No. 62/696,531 filed on Jul. 11, 2018, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62696531 | Jul 2018 | US |
