PROTECTIVE FACE SHIELD

Abstract

A new design protective face shield is described. The protective face shield includes a support assembly characterized in having an X-shaped portion at the front providing a clearance between the forehead of the wearer and the visor to be mounted thereto. The support assembly comprises protrusions designed to mount a top piece, a rear piece, and the visor, each comprising apertures adapted to cooperate with the protrusions to be mounted thereto. According to an aspect, the protective face shield includes a rotatable visor assembly adapted for being moved between a raised position and a lowered position. The protective face shield may be stored on a described base and may be complemented with accessories through use of a bracket.

Description

FIELD

The present subject matter disclosed generally relates to protection devices. More particularly, the subject matter disclosed relates to face protection devices adapted to shield the face of the user from projection of air particles, liquids, light foreign bodies, and the like.

BACKGROUND

Nowadays exists a variety of protective face shields and particularly protective face shields for medical use. However, the known medical protective face shields present drawbacks such as they are not very comfortable to wear, the visor of the known protective face shields being difficult to install or to replace when worn out, they are designed with low circulation of air in front of the face of the wearer resulting in the visor of the protective face shield fogging up rapidly, they are heavier than necessary, and there is no easy solution to store the protective face shield once the wearer has removed the protective face shield.

There is therefore a need for a new protective face shield that resolves at least some, and potentially all the drawbacks of known protective face shields.

SUMMARY

It would thus be desirable to provide a novel protective face shield.

The embodiments described herein provide in one aspect a protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising:

• • a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of a circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising:
    • a peripheral portion; and
  • a front portion comprising front arms extending frontward to connect to the peripheral portion, and a forehead abutting portion rearward to the front arms; and
  • a visor adapted to be mounted to the support assembly.

Also, the embodiments described herein provide in another aspect a kit comprising a protective face shield, and a base comprising a curved channel adapted to receive the visor of the protective face shield through an edge thereof.

Furthermore, the embodiments described herein provide in another aspect a kit comprising a protective face shield, and an accessory bracket adapted to mount an accessory thereto, wherein the accessory bracket comprises a channel to be mounted to the front arms of the forehead abutting portion of the support assembly.

Furthermore, the embodiments described herein provide in another aspect a base adapted to be mounted to a receiving surface, the base being adapted to receive a protective face shield comprising a support assembly and a visor, comprising:

• • legs extending parallel to the receiving surface;
  • a body connected to the legs, comprising a curved channel adapted to be open away from a receiving surface; and
  • a pair of hooks extending from the legs, distant from the receiving surface,
  • wherein the protective face shield is adapted to be stored on the base by inserting an edge of the visor in the channel, and
  • wherein the protective face shield is adapted to be stored on the base when installed on a non-horizontal receiving surface by hanging the support assembly over the hooks.

Furthermore, the embodiments described herein provide in another aspect a protective face shield comprising:

• • a support assembly comprising:
  • a first piece having two arc-shaped portions connected through a front portion comprising a forehead abutting portion and front arms extending frontward to connect to the arc-shaped portions, and a pair of rear extremities;
  • a top piece connectable to the first piece at the forehead abutting portion and about the rear extremities; and
  • a rear piece connectable to the first piece about the rear extremities;
  • and
  • a visor adapted to be mounted to the first piece.

Furthermore, the embodiments described herein provide in another aspect a protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising:

• • a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising:
    • a peripheral portion; and
  • a forehead abutting portion; and
  • a visor mounted to the support assembly;
  • and
  • a pair of trunnions each located at an opposed side of the peripheral portion, and wherein the protective shield comprises a rotatable visor assembly to be mounted to the trunnions and adapted to mount the visor thereto,
  • wherein the rotatable visor assembly is adapted to be moved between a lowered position in front of the face of the wearer, and a raised position above the head of the wearer.

Furthermore, the embodiments described herein provide in another aspect a protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising:

• • a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising:
    • a peripheral portion; and
  • a forehead abutting portion; and
  • a visor mounted to the support assembly;
  • and
  • a pair of side protrusions each located at an opposed side of the peripheral portion, and a third protrusion located in front of the side protrusions, wherein the visor is adapted to be mounted to the side protrusions and the third protrusion.

Furthermore, the embodiments described herein provide in another aspect a protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising:

• • a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising:
    • a peripheral portion; and
  • a forehead abutting portion; and
  • a visor mounted to the support assembly;
  • and
  • a rear piece connected to the peripheral portion, comprising a plurality of queued hollow components that are deformable to exert tension over the peripheral portion.

Furthermore, the embodiments described herein provide in another aspect a protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising:

• • a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising:
    • a peripheral portion; and
  • a forehead abutting portion; and
  • a visor mounted to the support assembly, the visor comprising openings adapted to cooperate with protrusions, and wherein at least one of the openings is an oblong opening.

Furthermore, the embodiments described herein provide in another aspect a protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising:

• • a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising:
    • a peripheral portion; and
  • a forehead abutting portion; and
  • a visor mounted to the support assembly, the visor comprising a bottom edge, and a colored portion about at least a portion of the bottom edge.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the embodiments described herein and to show more clearly how they may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example only, to the accompanying drawings, which show at least one exemplary embodiment, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a protective face shield in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a support assembly of the protective face shield of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3 to 6 are respectively a top plan view, a front view, a side view, and a rear view of the support assembly of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 7 to 10 are respectively a perspective view, a top plan view, a side view, and a front view of an alternative top piece of the support assembly of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 11 and 11A are respectively a perspective view and a close-up perspective view of section 11A identified on FIG. 11 of a protective face shield in accordance with another exemplary embodiment, with the visor in a lowered position;

FIGS. 12 and 12A are respectively a top plan view and a close-up top plan view of section 12A identified on FIG. 12 of the protective face shield of FIG. 11;

FIGS. 13 and 13A are respectively a perspective view of a rear portion of the protective face shield of FIG. 11 and a close-up a perspective view of the section 13A identified on FIG. 13, with the visor in a raised position;

FIGS. 14 and 14A are respectively a rear view and a close-up rear view of section 14A identified on FIG. 14 of the protective face shield of FIG. 11;

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a first piece of the support assembly of FIG. 11;

FIGS. 16 to 18 are respectively a top plan view, a front view, and a side view of the first piece of FIG. 11;

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of a base to be used with any one of the protective face shield of FIG. 1 and the protective face shield of FIG. 11;

FIGS. 20 and 21 are respectively a front view and a side view of the base of FIG. 19 in a horizontal use with part of a protective face shield mounted thereto;

FIG. 22 is a front view of the base mounted vertically with the support assembly of any one of the protective face shield of FIG. 1 or the protective face shield of FIG. 11 mounted thereto;

FIG. 23 is a rear view of the base mounted vertically with the protective face shield of FIG. 11 having its face visor raised mounted thereto;

FIGS. 24 to 28 are respectively a perspective view, a top plan view, a front view, a side view, and a bottom view of an accessory bracket adapted to be mounted to any one of the protective face shields of FIGS. 1 and 11;

FIG. 29 is a perspective view of a complemented protective face shield comprising the protective face shield of FIG. 1 with the accessory bracket of FIG. 24 mounted thereto, wherein the accessory bracket is shown with a light accessory and a magnifier accessory mounted thereto;

FIGS. 30 and 30A are respectively a side view and a close-up side view of section 30A identified on FIG. 30 of the complemented protective face shield of FIG. 29; and

FIGS. 31 and 31A are respectively a top plan view and a close-up side view of section 31A identified on FIG. 31 of the complemented protective face shield of FIG. 29.

It will be noted that throughout the appended drawings, like features are identified by like reference numerals.

DESCRIPTION OF VARIOUS EMBODIMENTS

The realizations will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying figures, in which realizations are illustrated. The foregoing may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the illustrated realizations set forth herein.

With respect to the present description, references to items in the singular should be understood to include items in the plural, and vice versa, unless explicitly stated otherwise or clear from the text. Grammatical conjunctions are intended to express any and all disjunctive and conjunctive combinations of conjoined clauses, sentences, words, and the like, unless otherwise stated or clear from the context. Thus, the term “or” should generally be understood to mean “and/or” and so forth.

The use of all examples, or exemplary language (“e.g.,” “such as”, or the like) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the exemplary realizations and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the realizations. The use of the term “substantially” is intended to mean “for the most part” or “essentially” depending on the context. It is to be construed as indicating that some deviation from the word it qualifies is acceptable as would be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art to operate satisfactorily for the intended purpose.

The words “coupled” and “connected” are meaning the joining of two members directly or indirectly to one another. Such joining may be stationary in nature or movable in nature. Such joining may be achieved with the two members or the two members and any additional intermediate members being integrally formed as a single unitary body with one another or with the two members or the two members and any additional intermediate members being attached to one another. Such joining may be permanent in nature or alternatively may be removable or releasable in nature.

In the following description, it is understood that terms such as “first”, “second”, “top”, “bottom”, “above”, “below”, and the like, are words of convenience and are not to be construed as limiting terms.

The terms “top”, “up”, “upper”, “bottom”, “lower”, “down”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “interior” and “exterior” and the like are intended to be construed in their normal meaning in relation with normal installation of the protective face shield.

Referring now to the drawings and, more particularly, to FIG. 1, a protective face shield 100 includes a visor 110 and a support assembly 120 adapted to be worn by a user over his/her head such as having the visor 110 taking place in front of the eyes, the nose, and the mouth of the wearer and being very comfortable to wear. Typically, the protective face shield 100 is intended to be worn with the support assembly 120 pressing against the top of the head of the user and a portion of the circumference of the head of the user.

The protective face shield 100 provides an improved comfort over the existing protective face shield through its lightweight conception, the improved clearance, particularly on top, between the shield 110 and the wearer for air circulation, and the improved adaptability of the protective face shield 100 to heads of variable sizes and shapes.

According to realizations, the protective face shields comprise either a static visor 110 (see protective face shield 100 of FIG. 1) or a rotatable/pivotable visor 110 (see protective face shield 200 of FIG. 11).

Referring now to FIGS. 2 to 6, the support assembly 120 comprises a first piece 122, a front-top piece 124 and a rear-top piece 126 and a rear piece 128. The front-top piece 124 and the rear-top piece 126 assembled define a head-top assembly 130 adapted to rest atop the head of the wearer.

The front-top piece 124 is attached to the first piece 122 substantially at the front of the support assembly 120. The front-top piece 124 and the rear-top piece 126 are attached to each other, substantially in the middle. According to a realization, the front-top piece 124 and the rear-top piece 126 are attached using a belt-ring type method, wherein the end of e.g., the front-top piece 124 featuring uneven width operates as a belt-type manner while a portion of the rear-top piece 126 operates as a belt-ring manner. By inserting the extremity of the front-top piece 124 in openings 132 of the rear-top piece 126, the front-top piece 124 is wedged in place, with the uneven width of the front-top piece 124 cooperating in the wedging. Thereby, the user defines a length for the head-top assembly 130.

The rear-top piece 126 having a Y-like shape is attached to the first piece 122 about its rear at two locations. Therefore, the head-top assembly 130 defines a three-anchor structure providing good stability to the head-top assembly 130 over the head of the wearer. The head-top assembly 130 allows the protective face shield 100 to be comfortably worn by the user even if the first piece 122 and the rear piece 128 are adjusted with light pressure on the user's head. Without the head-top assembly 130, the first piece 122 and the rear piece 128 need to apply more pressure on the user's head for the protective face shield 100 to remain in position thereon. With the head-top assembly 130, the protective face shield 100 lies in position atop the user's head, using gravity.

Referring additionally to FIGS. 7 to 10, the rear extremities of the rear-top piece 126 each define a series of apertures 134 cooperating with button-type protrusions 136 (see shape depicted on FIG. 15) wherein, by inserting the button-type protrusion 136 in a selected one of the apertures 134, the user may customize the length of the rear portion of the head-top assembly 130. Accordingly, the head-top assembly 130 may be customized for any shape and size of heads by adjusting the assembly of the front-top piece 124 with the rear-top piece 126 and adjusting the length of the rear portion of the head-top assembly 130 through the selection of an aperture 134 to cooperate with a button-type protrusion 136.

Referring particularly to FIGS. 2 to 6, the support assembly 120 comprises the symmetrical rear piece 128, in the described realization symmetrical relative to a plane dividing the space in a right side and a left side and relative to a horizontal plane. The rear piece 128 is attached, relatively aligned with the general structure of the first piece 122, to the first piece 122. The rear piece 128 comprises two extremities featuring a series of apertures 138 adapted to cooperate with hook-shaped protrusions 140 (also depicted on FIGS. 15-18) having their open portion facing frontward. Accordingly, selection of the apertures 138 in which the hook-shaped protrusions 140 are inserted defines the circumference of the support assembly 120, for customizable user comfort.

According to a preferred mounting, the rear piece 128 is mounted on each side to both the button-type protrusion 136 and the hook-shaped protrusions 140, wherein this dual attachment helps in keeping the rear piece 128 aligned with the first piece 122.

It worth noting that preferred mounting of the rear-top piece 126 and rear piece 128 to the support assembly 120 consists in mounting first the rear-top piece 126 to the button-type protrusion 136 and afterwards mounting the 128 to both the button-type protrusion 136 and the hook-shaped protrusion 140. Thereby, the rear-top piece 126 is wedged between the outer face of the support assembly 120 and the inner face of the rear piece 128. Once aligned in the correct position, such mounting configuration maintains the alignment of the rear-top piece 126 regardless of movement and repetitive wearing and removing of the protective face shield 100.

The symmetry of the rear piece 128 allows to balance the pressure over the back portion of the head of the user as the tension over the first piece 122. By selecting respective apertures 138, the user may customize the circumference while maintaining the discussed balance.

The rear piece 128 further includes, in-between the two series of apertures 138 about the extremities, a series of hollow-center lozenge-shaped features 142 wherein the lozenge-shaped features 142, through their deformable characteristics, provide elasticity to the rear piece 128, allowing the length of the rear piece 128 to be slightly extended and to retract to its default length. Accordingly, one wearer preferring a support assembly 120 being more compressing over the circumference may adjust the support assembly 120 to a smaller circumference than the circumference of their head, and when putting on the support assembly 120, the lozenge-shaped features 142 would deform to increase the circumference of the support assembly 120, thereby generating a light tension in the support assembly 120 helping in keeping the protective face shield 100 in place.

The first piece 122 further includes an X-shaped portion 144 on which is attached the front-top piece 124. The X-shaped portion 144 includes two front arms 146 connected to the circumferential portion 148 of the first piece 122 about its front. The X-shaped portion 144 includes two back arms 150, having a curved shape, having their rear face forming an abutting face 152 on which abuts the forehead of the user when wearing the protective face shield 100.

The first piece 122 features a break (an interruption) 154 up front allowing the shape of the first piece 122, under pressure from e.g., abutment of the forehead over the abutting face 152, to easily adapt to the different customizations of the support assembly 120 and the movements of the wearer of the protective face shield 100. For instance, the break 154 allows the space associated therewith to increase upon the abutting face 152 applying frontward force over the X-shaped portion 144, resulting in a frontward displacement of the crossing portion of the X-shaped portion 144 and the sideway displacement of the extremity of the two front arms 146.

Referring additionally back to FIG. 1, the first piece 122 includes two front protrusions 156 and two side protrusions 158 (one on each side), adapted to cooperate with four top apertures 112 located about the top edge 114 of the visor 110. The visor 110 further feature a side edge 118 close to the top edge 114 and a curved bottom edge 116.

Installation of the visor 110 on the four protrusions 156 and 158 is typically performed through mounting of the side apertures 112 to the side protrusions 158 with the visor 110 facing up, and afterwards rotating the visor 110 faceward and downward until the central apertures 112 are aligned with the two front protrusions 156, wherein the two front protrusions 156 enter by themselves the central apertures 112.

Removal of the face shield from the support assembly 120 follows the same process. Firstly, it consists in pushing rearward the two front protrusions 156 until they exit the central apertures 112. Then, it consists in rotating (pivoting) the visor 110 upward. The final step consists in deforming the visor 110 and, one side after the other, pushing the support assembly 120 close to the side protrusion 158 inward until the side protrusion 158 exits the aperture 112.

The first piece 122 further features on each side a wing 160 extending frontward and outward from the general outward surface of the support assembly 120. The wing 160 extends about or frontward from the two side protrusions 158, providing a small clearing between the inward portion of the wing 160 and the side protrusion 158 to insert the visor 110, to insert the side protrusion 158 in the corresponding top aperture 112 and to help secure the side protrusion 158 in the top aperture 112 when using the protective face shield 100.

According to a preferred realization, the wings 160 are inwardly biased, thus by default abutting or about abutting the side protrusions 158. The wings 160 are deformable to spread a space in-between to provide clearance to place the visor 110. Once the external force is removed, the wings 160 resume to their original position, securing the visor 110 in place.

According to a realization, the wings 160, having their root backward and about the side protrusion 158, help in preventing the visor 110 to slide backward. Thus, this structure ensures a good attachment of the visor 110 to the support assembly 120.

It should be noted that, in addition to providing customization, the break 154 helps in aligning and mounting the visor 110 to the protrusion 156 and 158, and particularly to the two front protrusions 156. On the other hand, the visor 110, when mounted thereto, improves rigidity of the first piece 122.

According to a realization, the two side ones of the top apertures 112 are horizontally oblong. According to another realization, all four apertures 112 are oblong. According to a realization, the direction of the oblong apertures 112 differ depending on them being located on front or on the side of the visor 110.

It should further be noted that none, some, or all the protrusions described herein (protrusions 136, 140, 156 and 158) as depicted may have e.g., a dome-like head or another shape having according to at least one side or one dimension a head base of a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of the body (or in other words extending slightly outwardly from the body) joining the support surface to the head. The base of a diameter is typically about the size of the smaller size of the cooperating aperture. Thereby the head provides resistance against the securing of e.g., the visor 110 to be broken and a portion of the visor 110 hanging free from attachment to the support assembly 120.

Referring now to FIGS. 7 to 10, according to a realization, a unibody top piece 184 may be used instead of the assembly of the front-top piece 124 and rear-top piece 126 discussed hereinbefore. The unibody top piece 184 still includes the similar apertures 134 at the back and an aperture 186 at the front permitting to releasably attach the unibody top piece 184 to the support assembly 120 and to customize the dimension for the wearer.

Referring now to FIGS. 11 to 18, another protective face shield 200 includes a rotatable visor assembly 190 movable between a lowered position (as depicted in FIGS. 11 to 12A) and a raised position (as depicted in FIGS. 13 to 14A).

Like the protective face shield 100, the protective face shield 200 includes a support assembly 180 which is, relative to the features involved in being worn by a user, mostly like the support assembly 120 of the protective face shield 100. The differences, as will be detailed hereinafter, are relative to the features allowing to attach the rotatable visor assembly 190 to the support assembly 180.

Back to the design of FIGS. 11 to 14, the support assembly 180 operable with the rotatable visor assembly 190 includes a pair of rear-facing wings 162 and a pair of protrusions 164 frontward from the rear-facing wings 162 on which are mounted visor brackets 166. A pair of elastic bands 168 attached at one end to the rear-facing wings 162 and at the other end to the rotatable visor assembly 190 generate a rearward traction on the rotatably mounted rotatable visor assembly 190 and thereby having the rotatable visor assembly 190 stable in two positions: the lowered position and the raised position. In-between, the rotatable visor assembly 190 is unstable with the elastic bands 168 forcing the rotatable visor assembly 190 toward one or the other of the lowered position and the raised position.

It should be noted that according to a realization the rotatable visor assembly 190 can be used without the use of the elastic bands 168; the visor assembly 190 remaining in place in the raised position and the lowered position without the necessity of using the elastic bands 168.

The rotatable visor assembly 190 includes an arched top piece 192 featuring protrusions 194 designed to cooperate with the central two of the four top apertures 112 of the visor 110, like the protrusions 156 of the support assembly 120 (see FIG. 2).

The visor 110 can be mounted to and dismounted from the arched top piece 192 in a similar fashion to the mounting and dismounting of the visor 110 to the support assembly 120 described previously.

According to a realization, the arched top piece 192 features slits 204 (see FIG. 22) about the protrusions 194 easing the action of pushing rearward the protrusions 194 to exit them from the central protrusions 112. Such slits 204 are designed to allow easy rearward displacement of the protrusions 194 while them restoring to their original position as soon as free of external forces.

The visor brackets 166 feature two trunnions 196 designed to cooperate with the side top apertures 112. The rotatable visor assembly 190 is rotatably mounted to the two trunnions 196 of the visor brackets 166. The two trunnions 196 act together as a pivot axis on which the rotatable visor assembly 190 is movable between the lowered position (e.g., FIG. 11) and the raised position (e.g., FIG. 13).

The two trunnions 196 extend farther sideways and feature a channel 198 to house the front extremity of the elastic band 168.

The visor brackets 166 each include a wing 170 designed to abut the side edge 118 of the visor 110, which limits the downward displacement of the visor 110. The wings 170 further feature the advantages of preventing the visor 110 to slide outward, thus securing additionally the visor 110 from undesired deformation or dismounting.

The visor brackets 166 are releasably mounted to the rotatable visor assembly 190. The visor brackets 166 each feature a channel 188 on their bottom face designed to house the portion of the rotatable visor assembly 190 in front of the root of the wings 160. The Y shape of that portion of the rotatable visor assembly 190 provides a location to mount the visor brackets 166 without the visor brackets 166 being able to slide frontward or backward. The channels 188, through their abutments to the inside face of the support assembly 180, prevents the visor brackets 166 from being accidentally dismounted.

A lip 172 completes securing each visor bracket 166 in place. The lip 172 is dimensioned to have its longitudinal edge abutting the bottom edge of the support assembly 180 when the visor 110 is in a lowered position and its extremity (depicted down in FIG. 14A) abutting the top edge of the support assembly 180 when the visor 110 is in a raised position. In-between, the visor bracket 166 is slightly deformed about the lip 172 for the lip 172 to slip over the inner face of the support assembly 180. A notch 174 (see FIGS. 11A and 13A) in each visor bracket 166 abutting the top of the support assembly 180 completes the elements defining the raised position of the rotatable visor assembly 190.

The support assembly 180 depicted differs also from the support assembly 120 in that the support assembly 180 does not extend substantially frontward from the root of the X-shaped portion 144, providing additional clearance, in other words an extra wide break or gap, for the displacement of the rotatable visor assembly 190 in front thereof.

Thereby, the protective face shield 200 features a rotatable visor assembly 190 that the user may easily raise when desired.

According to a realization, some components of the protective face shield 100/200, e.g., the support assembly 120/180 and the visor 110 are made of polycarbonate, while some components, e.g., the front-top piece 124, the rear-top piece 126, the unibody top piece 184, and the rear piece 128 are made of polyurethane. According to a realization, the visor 110 has a thickness of between 0.02 mm and 0.04 mm and the total weight of the protective face shield 100/200 is under or about one hundred (100) grams.

According to a realization (not mandatory and not depicted), the protective face shield 100/200 may comprise a pair of removable sleeves that may be slipped over the two back arms 150 to, e.g., facilitate the sterilization of the protective face shield 100/200. The removable sleeves are typically designed such that they are elastically enlarged (stretched) when placed over the two back arms 150, which permits the sleeves to remain in place until removed.

According to a realization, the removable sleeves include compressible material, e.g., foam, which may improve a marriage between the shape of the two back arms 150 and the shape of the forehead they abut with.

According to realization, marriage-improving components mountable to the two back arms 150 may consist in several ring-shaped components made of, e.g., compressible material to be slipped thereover. Other alternatives not described here are also contemplated therethrough; the shape of the back arms 150 providing options to mount these components without them providing hindrance against the installation of the visor 110 or the course of a rotatable face shield 110.

According to a realization, the visor 110 features a coloration, e.g., a colored edge or a colored bottom area, providing an aid to the wearer against forgetting that they are wearing the protective face shield 100/200 and thereby decreasing the risks of the visor 110 hitting a structure when worn.

Referring now to FIGS. 19 to 23, the protective face shield 100/200 may be provided with a stand 210 as a kit. The base includes a central body 216 comprising a channel 212 having a curved shape having a radius of curvature corresponding to the radius of curvature of the visor 110 once mounted to the protective face shield 100/200. The protective face shield 100/200 has a depth designed for being able to receive and maintain the visor 110 vertical when inserted in the channel 212.

The stand 210 includes a support structure comprising a pair of legs 214 extending from the central body 216. The legs 214 end with nonslip pads 218. A central suction cup 222 adapted to be stuck over a surface is also present about the center of the central body 216.

For mounting to a vertical surface where the suction cup may not grip adequately, the user may pierce the central suction cup 222 and use a fastener such as a screw to fix the stand 210 to the vertical surface.

The present description also contemplates alternative solutions for attaching the stand 210 to e.g., a vertical surface such as a guide piece mounted to the central body 216 instead of the central suction cup 222. Such guide piece would be designed to maintain the appropriate distance between the under face of the central body 216 and the mounting surface. Such a guide piece would define a hole for a screw (or other suitable fastener) to pass therethrough and be secured to the mounting surface.

Each of the legs 214, at one of their extremities, features a hook 220 providing together a hooking structure usable when the stand 210 is mounted e.g., vertical.

Referring particular to FIGS. 20 and 21, when the stand 210 is mounted to e.g., a horizontal surface, the protective face shield 100/200 may be stored over the stand 210 by simply wedging the bottom portion of the curved bottom edge 116 (see FIG. 1) in the channel 212. Sizes, dimensions, and radius of curvature of the channel 212 and the visor 110 allow the protective face shield 100/200 to remain stably stored thereon.

It is worth noting that the protective face shield 100/200 may be mounted to the stand 210 by wedging the visor 110 with the stand 210 being installed either horizontally or vertically.

Referring particularly to FIGS. 22 and 23, when the stand 210 is mounted to e.g., a vertical surface, such as a window, the protective face shield 100/200 may be stored over the stand 210 by simply putting down the protective face shield 100/200 with its raised position over the two hooks 220. As depicted, the distance between the hooks 220 is designed to match the distance between the frontmost portion of the rotatable visor assembly 190, providing a stable configuration to hang the protective face shield 100/200.

According to a realization, the clearance between the rear extremities of the support assembly 120/180 combined with the width of the rear piece 128 about these extremities allows to easily hang the protective face shield 100/200 both in a front up position (see FIGS. 23 and 24) and a front down position (not depicted).

According to a realization (not depicted), the curved bottom edge 116 may feature a notch, preferably a rounded or curved notch, and the channel 212 may feature a lug extending upward that may relatively marry (mate with) the shape of the notch. Cooperation between the notch and the lug increases the easiness to install the protective face shield 100/200 centered and straight over the stand 210.

Referring now particularly to FIGS. 24 to 31, the protective face shield 100/200 may be provided with an accessory bracket 230 as a kit allowing to customize the protective face shield 100/200. Accordingly, the protective face shield 100/200 is adapted for the accessory bracket 230 to be releasably able to be mounted thereto. The accessory bracket 230 is adapted to be slid down over the front V-shaped portion of the X-shaped portion 144 (see FIG. 31A). The accessory bracket 230 includes a pair of non-aligned downward channels 232 adapted to receive the designated portion of the support assembly 120/180 whereby, not in contact with the forehead of the wearer, and a back channel 246 providing clearance for the front-top piece 124. The accessory bracket 230 is thus designed to remain in central front position of the protective face shield 100/200 without contacting the forehead of the wearer.

The accessory bracket 230 includes a back 236 and a front 234 wherein a top fitting 250 and a bottom fitting 238 frontwardly extend therefrom.

According to the depicted realization, the fittings 238 and 250 features a horizontal hole 248 for mounting an accessory or an accessory assembly.

According to a realization, the fittings 236/238 are adapted to connect an extremity of an accessory arm 240 connected to an accessory, for example a light accessory 242 and a magnifier 244 through e.g., a securing mechanism such as a screw or a pin.

Thereby, a complemented protective face shield 100/200 is provided. The complemented protective face shield 100/200 provides the wearer, e.g., a dentist, with an option to use up to e.g., two accessories to ease the task at hand to perform.

It is to be noted that the X-shaped portion 144 of the support assembly 120/180 provides the necessary structure and clearance allowing to install additional features to the protective face shield 100/200, including, but not limited to, the described accessories and the described accessory bracket 230, without contacting the forehead of the user, and accordingly providing no hindrance against the installation of the visor 110 or the course of a rotatable visor assembly 190. It should further be noted that the described installation of accessories keeps them safe behind the visor 110 while subject to good air circulation.

While preferred embodiments have been described above and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it will be evident to those skilled in the art that modifications may be made without departing from this disclosure. Such modifications are considered as possible variants comprised in the scope of the disclosure.

Claims

1. A protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising: a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of a circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising: a peripheral portion; anda front portion comprising front arms extending frontward to connect to the peripheral portion, and a forehead abutting portion rearward to the front arms; anda visor adapted to be mounted to the support assembly.

2. The protective face shield of claim 1, wherein the support assembly comprises a pair of trunnions each located at an opposed side of the peripheral portion, and wherein the protective shield comprises a rotatable visor assembly to be mounted to the trunnions and adapted to mount the visor thereto, wherein the rotatable visor assembly is adapted to be moved between a lowered position in front of the face of the wearer, and a raised position above the head of the wearer.

3. The protective face shield of claim 2, wherein the support assembly and the rotatable visor assembly are connected with an elastic band mounted thereto that exert the rotatable visor assembly away from a position between the lowered position and the raised position.

4. The protective face shield of claim 3, wherein the support assembly comprises on each side a rear facing hook rearward relative to the trunnions, and wherein each one of the elastic bands is adapted to be mounted to one of the hooks.

5. The protective face shield of claim 1, wherein the support assembly comprises a pair of side protrusions each located at an opposed side of the peripheral portion, and a third protrusion located in front of the side protrusions, wherein the visor is adapted to be mounted to the side protrusions and the third protrusion.

6. The protective face shield of claim 1, wherein components of the protective face shield are symmetrical.

7. The protective face shield of any one of claims 1 to 6 wherein the support assembly comprises a rear piece connected to the peripheral portion, comprising a plurality of queued hollow components that are deformable to exert tension over the peripheral portion.

8. The protective face shield of claim 7, wherein the hollow components are shapes having at least for sides.

9. The protective face shield of claim 7, wherein the peripheral portion comprises on each side two protrusions disposed in a front/rear fashion, the rear piece comprises two extremities, wherein about each one of the extremities are a series of openings, and wherein the rear piece is adapted to be mounted to the peripheral portion of the support assembly, on each side, by inserting the two protrusions in two of the openings.

10. The protective face shield of claim 1, wherein the visor comprises openings adapted to cooperate with protrusions, and wherein at least one of the openings is an oblong opening.

11. The protective face shield of claim 1, wherein the visor comprises a bottom edge, and wherein the visor comprises a colored portion about at least a portion of the bottom edge.

12. The protective face shield of claim 1, comprising a front and a rear, and further comprising a top piece adapted to be connected at the front about the forehead abutting portion and at the rear to the peripheral portion.

13. The protective face shield of claim 12, wherein the top piece comprises a belt-like attachment adapted to adjust its length.

14. The protective face shield of claim 1, wherein the peripheral portion extends frontward beyond its connections to the front arms, and wherein the peripheral portion comprises a break between the connections.

15. The protective face shield of claim 1, wherein the forehead abutting portion and the front arms generally define a X-shaped portion.

16. The protective face shield of claim 1, further comprising a protrusion on a central front face of the forehead abutting portion.

17. A kit comprising the protective face shield of any one of claims 1 to 16, and a base comprising a curved channel adapted to receive the visor of the protective face shield through an edge thereof.

18. A kit comprising the protective face shield of any one of claims 1 to 16, and an accessory bracket adapted to mount an accessory thereto, wherein the accessory bracket comprises a channel to be mounted to the front arms of the forehead abutting portion of the support assembly.

19. A base adapted to be mounted to a receiving surface, the base being adapted to receive a protective face shield comprising a support assembly and a visor, comprising: legs extending parallel to the receiving surface;a body connected to the legs, comprising a curved channel adapted to be open away from a receiving surface; anda pair of hooks extending from the legs, distant from the receiving surface,

20. A kit comprising the base of claim 19 and a protective face shield having a support assembly having two V shapes separated by a first distance, wherein the hooks have the first distance between them.

21. The kit of claim 20, wherein the base comprises anti-slip pads and a suction cup.

22. The kit of claim 20, wherein the channel and the visor feature a lug and notch designed to complement each other, wherein aligning notch and the lug eases placement of the visor in the channel.

23. A protective face shield comprising: a support assembly comprising:a first piece having two arc-shaped portions connected through a front portion comprising a forehead abutting portion and front arms extending frontward to connect to the arc-shaped portions, and a pair of rear extremities;a top piece connectable to the first piece at the forehead abutting portion and about the rear extremities; anda rear piece connectable to the first piece about the rear extremities;

24. The protective face shield of claim 23, wherein the first piece comprises protrusions over its external face, and wherein the top piece, the rear piece and the visor comprises apertures designed to receive the protrusions to be mounted to the first piece.

25. A protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising: a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising: a peripheral portion; anda forehead abutting portion; anda visor mounted to the support assembly;

26. A protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising: a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising: a peripheral portion; anda forehead abutting portion; anda visor mounted to the support assembly;

27. A protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising: a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising: a peripheral portion; anda forehead abutting portion; anda visor mounted to the support assembly;

28. A protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising: a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising: a peripheral portion; anda forehead abutting portion; anda visor mounted to the support assembly, the visor comprising openings adapted to cooperate with protrusions, and wherein at least one of the openings is an oblong opening.

29. A protective face shield to be worn over the head of a wearer, comprising: a support assembly adapted to interface with a portion of the circumference of the head of the wearer, the support assembly comprising: a peripheral portion; anda forehead abutting portion; anda visor mounted to the support assembly, the visor comprising a bottom edge, and a colored portion about at least a portion of the bottom edge.