Football helmet

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9131744-B2
Application number	US-201213526077-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 18, 2012
Priority date	Jun 18, 2012
Publication date	Sep 15, 2015
Grant date	Sep 15, 2015

Abstract

A football helmet with shell, faceguard, padding and comfort liner system, has replaceable nose bumpers for connecting a top center of the faceguard to the shell, button and keyhole connectors connecting the liner to an inner surface of the padding and T-nut connectors for connecting the padding to an inner surface of the shell. Front portions of the comfort liner have harder foam cushions than other portions of the liner to improve impact absorption. Selected areas of the padding system contain pads with inner and outer molded thermoplastic urethane parts of different durometer, each including a sheet with plural alternating hollow protrusions. The faceguard has an upper bar with raised ends above a lower edge of the front portion of the shell that form a face opening and on either side of the nose bumper.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A football helmet ( 10 ) comprising:
a rigid shell ( 12 ) adapted to cover the head of a wearer, the rigid shell having an outer surface and an inner surface, the inner surface having selected concave curvatures at various portions of the shell, the shell having a front portion ( 14 ), a crown portion ( 16 ), a pair of opposite side portions ( 18 ), and a back portion ( 20 );
a plurality of impact absorbing pads spaced apart on, and removably attached to the inner surface of the rigid shell, said plurality of pads comprising:
a front pad ( 32 ) removably attached at the front portion ( 14 ) of the shell;
a crown pad ( 34 ) removably attached at the crown portion ( 16 ) of the shell;
a pair of side pads ( 36 ) removably attached at the respective side portions ( 18 ) of the shell; and
a back pad ( 38 ) removably attached at the back portion ( 20 ) of the shell;

each of the plurality of pads having at least one portion made of two parts of molded thermoplastic urethane that are bonded together and comprising:
an outer part ( 42 ) made of thermoplastic urethane of a first durometer and comprising an outer sheet ( 42 a ) having the selected curvature of the rigid shell adjacent the portion of the inner surface at which the pad is removably attached; and
an inner part ( 44 ) made of thermoplastic urethane of a second durometer that is harder than the first durometer for at least some of the pads, the inner part comprising an inner sheet ( 44 a ) that is substantially parallel to and spaced inwardly from the outer sheet to define a space between the inner and outer sheets that is open around a perimeter of the inner and outer sheets;
each of the inner and outer sheets have a plurality of spaced apart hollow protrusions extending to the other sheet, the protrusions of one sheet alternating with the protrusions of the other sheet to form an impact absorbing pattern of alternating protrusions in the space between the sheets;
each protrusion ( 42 b , 44 b ) having an open larger diameter base ( 42 c , 44 c ) at the sheet from which it extends, a smaller diameter peak ( 42 d , 44 d ), and a side wall ( 42 b , 44 b ) that tapers from the base to the peak for each protrusion, each base being one piece with the sheet from which it extends and each peak being fused to the sheet of the other part of the plurality of pads, so that, upon an impact on the outer surface of the rigid shell and a resulting relative movement of the helmet with respect to the head of the wearer, the small diameter peaks of the outer part of the plurality of pads in an area of the impact, having the first lower durometer, collapse more easily than the peaks of the inner part of the pad in the area of impact, to dissipate the impact with reduced pressure on the head of the wearer; and

a comfort liner assembly removably attached to inner surfaces of the inner sheets of at least some of the plurality of pads, the comfort liner assembly comprising:
a front liner ( 62 ) at an inner surface of the front pad ( 32 );
a crown liner ( 64 ) at an inner surface of the crown pad ( 34 ); and
a lateral liner comprising a pair of side cushion assemblies ( 66 ) at inner surfaces of the respective pair of the side pads ( 36 ) and a back cushion assembly ( 68 ) at an inner surface of the back pad ( 38 ).

2. The football helmet of claim 1 , wherein the first durometer is between about 80 and 95 Shore-A and the second durometer is between about 90 and 95 Shore-A, the back, side and crown pads have inner parts with durometer that is from between about 5 to 10 Shore-A harder then the outer parts.

3. The football helmet of claim 1 , wherein the back, side and crown pads have inner parts with durometer that are from between about 5 to 10 Shore-A harder then the outer parts.

4. The football helmet of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the plurality of pads are removably attached to the inside surface of shell by mechanical fasteners ( 50 ) extending through the shell.

5. The football helmet of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the plurality of pads are removably attached to the inside surface of shell by mechanical fasteners ( 50 ) extending through the shell, the mechanical fasteners ( 50 ) comprising T-nuts having flange nut ( 51 ) with threaded tube for engaging a hole on one of the plurality of pads and for extending through the shell, and an treaded screw ( 53 ), treaded to the threaded tube and extending from an outer surface of the shell.

6. The football helmet of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the plurality of pads have, in their inner sheet ( 44 a ), at least one keyhole ( 52 ) with a large diameter portion ( 52 a ) and a small diameter portion ( 52 b ) communicating with the large diameter portion, the liners that are at said at least some of the plurality of pads, having a button ( 54 ) with a stem ( 56 ) for engaging each respective keyhole, each button having a diameter for being received in a respective large diameter portion of a respective keyhole and each stem having a diameter for being received in a respective small diameter portion of a respective keyhole.

7. The football helmet of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the plurality of pads have, in their inner sheet ( 44 a ), at least one keyhole ( 52 ) with a large diameter portion ( 52 a ), a small diameter portion ( 52 b ) communicating with the large diameter portion, and a constricted passage ( 52 c ) between the large and small diameter portions that is smaller then the small diameter portion, the liners that are at said at least some of the plurality of pads, having a resilient button ( 54 ) with a resilient stem ( 56 ) for engaging each respective keyhole, each button having a diameter for being received in a respective large diameter portion of a keyhole and each stem having a diameter that is larger then the constricted passage ( 52 c ) and of a size for being received in a respective small diameter portion of a respective keyhole so that each button is removably trapped at a respective keyhole.

8. The football helmet of claim 1 , including a faceguard ( 80 ) comprising cage of metal bars having a pair of side bar parts ( 82 ) connected by side connectors ( 100 ) to respective side portions ( 18 ) of the shell, and an upper portion ( 84 ) having a center bar part ( 86 ) connected by a nose bumper ( 90 ) to the front portion ( 14 ) of the shell, the upper portion of the faceguard including a pair of side bar parts ( 88 ) that are each bent upwardly with respect to the center bar part ( 86 ) by at least a multiple of a diameter of the center bar part, and then extend downwardly toward each respective side bar part for create a raised eyebrow area on either side of the front portion of the rigid shell to dissipate impacts at the front portion ( 14 ) of the shell.

9. The football helmet of claim 1 , including a faceguard ( 80 ) comprising cage of metal bars having a pair of side bar parts ( 82 ) connected by side connectors ( 100 ) to respective side portions ( 18 ) of the shell, and an upper portion ( 84 ) having a center bar part ( 86 ) connected by a nose bumper ( 90 ) to the front portion ( 14 ) of the shell, the upper portion of the faceguard including a pair of side bar parts ( 88 ) that are each bent upwardly with respect to the center bar part ( 86 ) by at least a multiple of a diameter of the center bar part, and then extend downwardly toward each respective side bar part for create a raised eyebrow area on either side of the front portion of the rigid shell to dissipate impacts at the front portion ( 14 ) of the shell, each side connector ( 100 ) including a loop connector engaging around a respective one of the side bar parts and a mechanical fastener

Assignees

• Erb Robert
• Warmouth Cortney
• Long Vince
• Vanhoutin Louis Anthony
• Kranos Ip Corp

Inventors

• Erb Robert
• Warmouth Cortney
• Long Vince
• Vanhoutin Louis Anthony

Classifications

• A42B3/128

  with zones of different density · CPC title

• A42B3/20 Primary

  Face guards, e.g. for ice hockey (A42B3/22 takes precedence) · CPC title

• A42B3/127 Primary

  with removable or adjustable pads · CPC title

• A42B3/124 Primary

  with at least one corrugated or ribbed layer · CPC title

• A42B3/125

  with a padded structure, e.g. foam · CPC title