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(11) | EP 0 056 883 B1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT SPECIFICATION |
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| (54) |
Cap, provided with protecting members, particularly for water-polo players Kappe mit Schutzteilen für Wasserballspieler Bonnet muni d'éléments protecteurs, en particulier pour joueurs de water-polo |
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| Note: Within nine months from the publication of the mention of the grant of the European patent, any person may give notice to the European Patent Office of opposition to the European patent granted. Notice of opposition shall be filed in a written reasoned statement. It shall not be deemed to have been filed until the opposition fee has been paid. (Art. 99(1) European Patent Convention). |
[0001] The present invention relates to a cap, particularly for water-polo players, of the general type specified in the preamble of claim 1.
[0003] As it is known, water-polo players have to wear, for rule, during a game, a cap of different colour from that of the competing team, the cap having printed thereon a number effective to mark the player.
[0004] Presently these caps are generally made of a very thin fabric and, accordingly, they are not capable of suitably protecting the players. More specifically, several head parts of the players are exposed and susceptible to impacts and the like.
[0005] A very dilicate zone is that of the pavilion, because impacts and water sprays can cause dangerous obstructions of the ears. Another delicate zone is that of the orbital arches which, upon impact, are easily susceptible to painful and dangerous wounds.
[0006] US-A-3454962 discloses a cap in which ear guards are provided in the form of bowl shaped members which have outwardly bent peripheral flanges for fastening to cap flaps. The bowl shaped members provide protection for the ear region of the players, however the outwardly bent peripheral flanges define a projecting edge all around the bowl shaped members which can cause injury to the players.
[0007] Furthermore, the riveted pins provided for fastening the flanges to the cap flaps have heads projecting both outside of the flanges and inside the cap flaps. The heads of the pins may be subjected to impacts with foreign bodies during playing and these impacts would then be transmitted to the head of the players by the pins, causing local annoying compressions onto the head of the players.
[0008] Another drawback of the known cap of US-A-3454962 is that the outwardly bent peripheral flanges increase the dimensions of the bowl shaped ear guards, making wearing more unsatisfactory because the flanges have a planar extension while the cap have to be fitted over a head where the region around the ears is not very planar.
[0009] Protecting ear guards are also known from US-A-2758304 and USA-3628191, however these ear guards form an integral part respectively of a rigid helmet and a headgear for wrestlers and are not provided on a semielastic cap like a cap for water polo players.
[0010] The task of the present invention is that of overcoming the above drawbacks by providing a cap particularly for water polo players which suitably protects the players reducing annoying compressions and the danger of injury for the wearer.
[0012] Owing to the fact that the contour of the bowl shaped members overlies the respective flanges all around the periphery thereof, except in the region of the draining opening, the external dimensions of the bowl shaped members can be held satisfactorily large to allow unhindered entering and escape of water, while the planar flanges contact a smaller region around the ears which is substantially planar and thus they do not cause undesired trouble during wearing. Furthermore, the pins remaining inside the peripheral recesses of the bowl shaped members are no longer subjected to impacts with foreign bodies and therefore they do not transmit to the wearer's head annoying compression stresses. The inwardly bent flanges do no longer provide a projecting peripheral edge which could cause injury to the players.
[0013] Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of a cap particularly for water-polo players, illustrated by way of an indicative and not limitative example in the accompanying drawings, where:
Fig. 1 is a perspective schematic view of the cap;
Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the zone of the cap where the bowl shaped members are provided; and
Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the bowl shaped members and the fixing means therefor
[0014] With reference to the aforesaid figures, a cap according to the present invention comprises a body 1, made of a semielastic material, free of any seams, and produced by means of a hot molding process effective to impart thereto the conventional shape of a cap while affording the possibility of a perfect fitting to different size and shapes of players heads. This characteristic does not require time consuming and expensive operations for seaming and shaping the cap. Moreover for satisfying all of the needs it is not necessary to provide for the making of a lot of different sizes.
[0015] At the edges of the body 1 there is seamed, as is conventional, a band 2 to which fixing cords 3 are fastened.
[0016] In the region corresponding to the ears of the players, the body 1 has lateral portions provided with protecting members, consisting of bowl shaped members 10, made of substantially rigid material and acting to protect the pavilions from possible impacts among players. The bowl shaped members 10 are moreover effective to suitably protect the players ears from water splashes, which would obstruct the pavilions.
[0017] The bowl shaped members 10 comprise each a bowl shaped portion 11, ending with a peripheral flange 12.
[0018] The bowl shaped members 10 are each provided, at an intermediate portion thereof, with a plurality of through holes, in such a way as not to hinder the hearing capabilities of the player. At the lower portion the members 10 have each a draining opening 13, effective to prevent undesired water stagnations from occurring in the inside of the bowl shaped members 10.
[0019] In order to fasten the bowl shaped members 10 to the body 1 there are provided counterflanges 20, which are located in the inside of the body 1, at respective openings formed in the body 1, and have integral pins 21, for penetrating corresponding holes 22 of the flanges 12. The pins 21 are then riveted on the flanges 12. In this manner, a firm coupling of the bowl shaped members 10 to the cap is obtained. This type of coupling, moreover, affords the possibility of not stretching the semielastic material forming the body 1, and it does not require time consuming and expensive operations for applying the bowl shaped members 10.
[0020] As visible in the drawings, the contour of the bowl shaped members 10 overlies the respective flanges 12 all around the periphery thereof except in the region of the draining opening 13, whereby recesses are defined in the peripheral portion of the bowl shaped members 10 for receiving the riveted pins 21 such that the latter do not project from the contour of the bowl shaped members 10.
1. A cap particularly for water polo players, comprising a body (1) of semielastic
material for fitting over the head of a player and bowl shaped members (10) on lateral
portions of the body (1) in a region corresponding to the ears of the player, said
bowl shaped members (10) each having a plurality of through holes and draining opening
(13) and a peripheral flange (12) for fastening to the body (1) by means of riveted
pins (21), characterized in that said bowl shaped members (10) are made of a rigid
material in a manner known per se, and in that the contour of the bowl shaped members
(10) overlies the respective flanges (12) all around the periphery thereof except
in the region of the draining opening (13), whereby recesses are defined in the peripheral
portion of the bowl shaped members (10) for receiving said riveted pins (21) such
that the latter do not project from the contour of the bowl shaped members (10).
2. A cap as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said flanges (12) are fastened
to the body (1) by cooperation with respective counterflanges (20) arranged inside
the body (1) and having integral pins (21) penetrating holes (22) of said flanges
(12) being riveted thereon.
3. A cap as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that it has an elongated protecting
member (23) in the front region for protecting the eybrow region of the player, said
protecting member (23) being made of a profile of closed cell rubber.
1. Käppchen, insbesondere für Wasserpolospieler, bestehend aus einem körper (1) aus
einem halb-elastischen Werkstoff zur Anpassung auf dem Kopf eines Spielers und becherartigen
Elementen (10) auf seitlichen Abschnitten des Körpers (1) in einem den Ohren des Spielers
entsprechenden Bereich, wobei jedes becherartige Element (10) eine Vielzahl von Durchgangslöchern
und eine Ablassöffnung (13) sowie einen Umfangsflansch (12) zur Befestigung am Körper
(1) durch genietete Bolzen (21) aufweist, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass die becherartigen
Elemente (10) in an sich bekannter Weise aus einem steifen Werkstoff ausgebildet sind
und dass die Kontur der becherartigen Elemente (10) den jeweiligen Flanschen (12)
rings herum ihren Umfang ausgenommen im Bereich der Ablassöffnungen (13) überlappt
ist, wobei Ausnehmungen im Umfangsbereich der Becherartigen Elemente (10) zur Aufnahme
der genieteten Bolzen (21) ausgebildet sind, so dass die letzteren aus dem Umfang
der becherartigen Elemente (10) nicht herausragen.
2. Käppchen nach Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass die Flansche (12) am Körper
(1) in Zusammenwirkung mit jeweiligen innerhalb des Körpers (1) angeordneten Gegenflanschen
(20) befestigt sind, an welchen Zapfen (21) angeformt sind, die durch Löcher (22)
der Flansche (12) hindurchgreifen und an diesen angenietet sind.
3. Käppchen nach Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass ein langgesctreketes abstehendes
Stück (23) im stirnseitigen Bereich zum schützen des Bereiches der Augenbrauen des
Spielers vorgesehen ist, wobei das abstehende Stück (23) aus einem Gummiprofil mit
geschlossener Zellstruktur besteht.
1. Chapeau, particulièrement pour joueurs de polo aquatique, comprenant un corps (1)
en matière demi-élastique apte à être adapté sur la tête d'un joueur et des éléments
(10) à forme de calotte sur des portions laterales du corps (1) dans une zone correspondante
à les oreilles du joueur, chaqun desdits éléments à calotte ayant une pluralité de
trous passant et une ouverture de drainage (13) et un flasque periphérique (12) pour
la fixation au corps (1) au moyen de tourillons rivetés (21 ), caractérisé en ce que
lesdits éléments à calotte (10) sont réalisés en matière rigide d'une manière connue,
et en ce que le profil des éléments à calotte (10) est superposé sur les flasques
respectifs (12) autour de toute la periphérique de ces derniers à l'exception de la
zone de l'ouverture de drainage (13), de manière que des encoches sont definies dans
la portion periphérique des éléments à calotte (10) pour recevoir lesdits tourillons
rivetés (21) de manière que ces derniers ne sont pas en saillie du profil des éléments
à calotte.
2. Chapeau selon la revendication 1, caractérisé en ce que lesdits flasques (12) sont
fixés au corps (1) au moyen de la coopération avec des counter- flasques respectifs
(20) disposés à l'intérieur du corps (1) et ayant des tourillons intégraux pene- trant
dans des trous (22) desdits flasques (12) et étant rivetés sur ces derniers.
3. Chapeau selon la revendication 1, caractérisé en ce qu il est pourvu d'un élément
de protection allongé (23) dans la région frontale pour protéger la région des sourcils
du joueur, ledit élément de protection (23) étant réalisé par un profilé en caoutchouc
à cellules fermées.