Patent Application
20210219646
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The disclosure relates to hat assemblies and more particularly pertains to a new hat assembly for enhancing safety and comfort of a user.
The prior art relates to hat assemblies. Prior art hat assemblies generally comprise a hat that includes a single element, such as deployable safety glasses, deployable earplugs, or cooling pads, that enhance either one aspect of comfort or one aspect of safety. Prior art hat assemblies do not teach specific combinations of safety elements and comfort elements as provided herein.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a hat that is configured to be selectively sizable to a head of a user. The hat has a brim coupled thereto. The hat is configured to be positioned on the head of the user with the brim extending over a forehead of the user. In one embodiment, the hat is rigid and thus configured to protect the head of the user from an impact force. In another embodiment, the hat comprises resilient plastic, or other resilient material, such as cloth, canvas, and the like.
A pair of safety glasses is slidably engaged to the hat. The safety glasses are selectively positionable in a stowed configuration within the hat and a deployed configuration, wherein the safety glasses are positioned over and configured to protect eyes of the user. An earplug is engaged to and selectively extendible from the hat. The earplug is configured for insertion into a respective ear canal of the user to protect hearing of the user. A set of pads is engaged to and positioned within the hat and is configured to cushion the head of the user.
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
A pair of safety glasses 18 is slidably engaged to the hat 12. The safety glasses 18 are selectively positionable in a stowed configuration within the hat 12, as shown in
An earplug 20 is engaged to and selectively extendible from the hat 12. The earplug 20 is configured for insertion into a respective ear canal of the user to protect hearing of the user. As shown in
A spool 30, which is spring loaded, is axially coupled to an inner face 32 of the shell 22. A cord 34 is coupled by a first end 36 to the spool 30. The cord 34 is wound around the spool 30 so that the cord 34 is selectively extensible from the shell 22. The earplug 20 is coupled to a second end 38 of the cord 34 so that the earplug 20 is selectively extendible from the shell 22, positioning the user to insert the earplug 20 into the respective ear canal. The earplug 20 is conically shaped, thus defining a base 40 and apex 42 of the earplug 20. The base 40 has a tab 44 coupled thereto and extending therefrom. The tab 44 has a hole 46 positioned therethrough. The second end 38 of cord 34 is reversibly engaged to the tab 44, via the hole 46, so that the earplug 20 is replaceable.
A set of pads 48 is engaged to and positioned within the hat 12 and is configured to cushion the head of the user. The set of pads 48 comprises at least one of refrigerant gel and phase change material so that the set of pads 48 is configured to cool the head of the user. If cooling during use of the hat 12 is desirable, the hat 12 would be stored in a cold environment, such as a freezer, prior to use.
The hat 12 has a slot 50 positioned therein and extending from proximate to the brim 14 toward a top 52 of the hat 12, as shown in
The knob 54 is configured to be gripped in digits of a hand of the user, enabling the user to selectively position the safety glasses 18 in the stowed configuration and the deployed configuration. As shown in
The knob 54 is selectively couplable to the hat 12 with the safety glasses 18 in the deployed configuration. A spring 58 is coupled to the hat 12 proximate to the brim 14, and to the knob 54 so that the spring 58 is compressed as the safety glasses 18 are positioned in the deployed configuration. The spring 58 is positioned to rebound upon decoupling of the knob 54 from the hat 12 to return the safety glasses 18 to the stowed configuration.
A lighting unit 60 is engaged to the brim 14 and is configured to illuminate an area proximate to the user. The lighting unit 60 may be configured for intermittent illumination of the area proximate to the user.
The lighting unit 60 comprises an illumination housing 62 that defines an interior space 64. A battery 66 is positioned in the interior space 64. The battery 66 may be rechargeable. A set of bulbs 68 is coupled to the illumination housing 62 and is configured to illuminate the area proximate to the user. Each bulb 48 may comprise a light emitting diode 70, as shown in
A first connector 74 is coupled to the brim 14 and a second connector 76 is coupled to the illumination housing 62. The second connector 76 is complementary to the first connector 74 so that the second connector 76 is positioned to selectively couple to the first connector 74 to removably engage the illumination housing 62 to the brim 14. The second connector 76 and the first connector 74 may comprise a snap connector 120, as shown in
In one embodiment, as shown in
A plate 78 is coupled to and extends between the top 52 of the hat 12 and the brim 14 so that the hat 12 and the plate 78 define an internal space 80, as shown in
A ring 82 is positioned in the hat 12 proximate to a bottom 84 of the hat 12. Each of a plurality of connectors 86 is coupled to and extends between the hat 12 and the ring 82, as shown in
A disc 92 is coupled to the set of head straps 88 so that the disc 92 is positioned equally distant from the opposed ends 90 of each head strap 88. The set of head straps 88 and the disc 92 are configured to dissipate the impact force that is applied to the hat 12.
In this embodiment, the set of pads 48 comprises a first pad 94 that is coupled to a forward section 96 of the ring 82, a second pad 98 that is coupled to a rearward section 100 of the ring 82, and a third pad 102 that is coupled to the disc 92.
Each of a pair of side straps 104 is coupled to and extends from the ring 82, as shown in
In another embodiment, as shown in
The hat 12 has a cutout 108 positioned in a back 110 thereof and extending from the bottom 84 toward the top 52. Each of a pair of tightening straps 112 is coupled by a first terminus 114 to the hat 12 proximate to the cutout 108. Each tightening strap 112 has a fastener 116 coupled proximate to a second terminus 118 thereof. The fasteners 116 are selectively mutually couplable to tighten the hat 12 to the head of the user. The fasteners 116 may comprise an elastic band, hook and loop fasteners, snap closures, and the like.
In use, the hat 12 is donned by the user with the brim 14 extending over the user's forehead. The pads 48 cushion the head of the user and, if prechilled, provide cooling for the head. The set of bulbs 68, the safety glasses 18, and the earplugs 20 are available to the user as needed for illumination, eye protection, and ear protection, respectively.
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 elements is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
