Patent Application
20230082409
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The disclosure relates to sizing devices and more particularly pertains to a new sizing device for adjusting the size of a helmet. The device includes a plurality of helmet liners, each being stackable within one another. A selected number of the helmet liners can be positioned in a helmet to reduce the size of the helmet. In this way the helmet can be worn by a user whose head is too small for the helmet. The prior art discloses a modular helmet that includes an impact core that is insertable into a helmet.
The prior art relates to sizing devices including a variety of helmets that include a padded interior and which includes a sizing element for tightening around a user's head. The prior art discloses an impact absorbing liner that is integrated into a helmet and which includes an adjustment for adjusting the size of the liner. The prior art discloses a helmet that includes at least two energy management liners that are positioned in the helmet and are fixed in place with penetrating fasteners.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a plurality of helmet liners that each has a dome shape to conform to an inside of a helmet. The plurality of helmet liners has a sequentially increasing size ranging between a minimum size and a maximum size. In this way a selected number of the plurality of helmet liners can be stacked inside each other to accommodate a variety of head sizes. Each of the helmet liners is comprised of a resiliently compressible material to facilitate the user's head to be protected from impact energy when the user wears the helmet.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
Each of the helmet liners 12 is comprised of a resiliently compressible material, including but not being limited to ethylene-vinyl acetate foam, to facilitate the user's head to be protected from impact energy when the user wears the helmet 14. Each of the helmet liners 12 has an inside surface 16, an outside surface 18 and a perimeter edge 20 extending between the inside surface 16 and the outside surface 18. The outside surface 18 is convexly arcuate with respect to the perimeter edge 20, and the inside surface 16 is concavely arcuate with respect to the perimeter edge 20. Each of the helmet liners 12 may have a thickness of approximately 2.0 mm between the inside surface 16 and the outside surface 18. Additionally, the diameter of each of the helmet liners 12 may differ by approximately 0.375 inches, and the helmet liners 12 may range in size between small, medium, large and extra large.
The small helmet liner 12 may have a diameter ranging between approximately 21.625 inches and 22.0 inches. The medium helmet liner may have a diameter ranging between approximately 22.375 inches and 22.875 inches. The large helmet liner may have a diameter ranging between approximately 23.25 inches and 23.625 inches. The extra large helmet liner may have a diameter ranging between approximately 24.0 inches and 24.375 inches.
Each of the helmet liners 12 has an opening 22 extending through the outside surface 18 and the inside surface 16, and the opening 22 is aligned with an apex of the outside surface 18. In this way the opening 22 facilitates the user's head to be ventilated when one or more of the helmet liners 12 are worn on the user's head. The perimeter edge 20 has a forward portion 24 and a rearward portion 26. Additionally, the inside surface 16 of each of the helmet liners 12 has a diameter that is sufficient to conform to the outside surface 18 of a smaller one of the helmet liners 12. Each of the helmets liners 12 has an outer layer 27 that is bonded to the outside surface 18 and the outer layer 27 completely covers the outside surface 18. The outer layer 27 is comprised of a rip inhibiting material to protect the outside surface 18 from damage. As is most clearly shown in
A largest one of the helmet liners 12 has a strap 28 that is coupled to and extends away from the rearward portion 26 of the perimeter edge 20 of the largest helmet liner 12. The strap 28 is centrally positioned on the rearward portion 26 and the strap 28 has a distal end 30 with respect to the perimeter edge 20, a first surface 32 and a second surface 33. Furthermore, the outer layer 27 on the largest one of the helmet liners 12 completely covers the strap 28. A pair of mating members 34 is each coupled to a receptive first surface 32 and second surface 33 of the strap 28. A respective one of the mating members 34 is positioned adjacent to the distal end 30 and a respective one of the mating members 34 is positioned adjacent to the perimeter edge 20 of the largest helmet liner 12. The strap 28 can be wrapped around all of the helmet liners 12 when the helmet liners 12 are stacked inside of each other for storage. Additionally, the strap may have a length ranging between approximately 12.0 inches and 18.0 inches.
In use, one or more of the helmet liners 12 is positioned in the helmet 14, depending on the difference between the size of the user's head and the size of the helmet 14. In this way the user can comfortably wear the helmet 14 that would otherwise be too large to wear. Thus, a passenger on a motorcycle, for example, can wear an extra helmet provided by the driver of the motorcycle when the extra helmet is too large for the passenger. Additionally, the helmet liners 12 facilitate the helmet 14 to protect the user's head from impact injury even though the helmet 14 may be too large for the user.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
