System for adjusting and closing the visor of a crash helmet

Abstract

 A system for adjusting and closing the visor of a crash helmet (1), the helmet comprising a chin guard (3) pivotally attached, by means of pins (4), to the side walls of the outer shell (2) of the helmet, so as to be able to be raised and lowered by turning around the axis of the pins (4), the visor being pivotally attached, by means of pins (7), to the side parts of the chin guard (3), the adjustment system comprising two adjustment devices (50) disposed respectively on the two side parts of the outer shell (2) of the helmet, each adjustment device comprising a connecting rod (51) pivotally attached, by means of a pin (52), to the visor (6), and the connecting rod (51) comprising a slot (53) which receives a pin (60) fixed to the outer shell (2) of the helmet.

Description

[0001] The present invention refers to a system for adjusting and closing the visor of a crash helmet.

[0002] Widely available on the market at present are various types of crash helmets for motor cycles and other vehicles which provide a visor of transparent material disposed in the front part to shield the user's eyes from friction by the airflow and at the same time allow the user good visibility.

[0003] There also exist openable visors, pivotally attached to the side walls of the helmet. These visors can assume a closed position in which they are lowered over the user's eyes and an open position in which they are raised above the helmet.

[0004] The main problem of visors is that they are difficult to combine with openable chin guards, that is to say chin guards that in turn can be lowered into a closed position and raised into an open position. For this reason precise adjustment of the visor proves complex. Moreover, at times some visors do not have sufficiently safe and reliable closing systems. In fact some closing systems fail to lock the visor perfectly in position when it is subject to the force of the airflow when the user of the helmet is on a moving vehicle.

[0005] The object of the present invention is to provide a system for adjusting and closing the visor of a crash helmet that is safe, practical, versatile and simple to make.

[0006] This object is achieved in accordance with the invention with the characteristics listed in appended independent claim 1.

[0007] Advantageous embodiments of the invention are apparent from the dependent claims.

[0008] The system for adjusting and closing the visor of a crash helmet comprises two visor adjusting and closing devices disposed in the side walls of the outer shell of the helmet. Each adjusting and closing device comprises a connecting rod hinged in the side part of the visor beneath the pin around which the visor turns.

[0009] The connecting rod is provided with a slot in which is located a pin fixed in the outer shell of the crash helmet. The connecting rod can thus slide and be guided by the fixed pin of the outer shell. Said slot provides seats in which the fixed pin of the outer shell can be received in snap engagement. In this manner the visor can assume different positions in accordance with the seat of the connecting rod in which the fixed pin is received.

[0010] From this brief description the advantages of the system for adjusting and closing the visor of a crash helmet according to the invention are apparent. Said system permits various functions.

[0011] The user can snap adjust the opening of the visor in the position most congenial to him/her.

[0012] Moreover, when the chin guard is raised, closing of the visor is recalled thanks to the connecting rod to prevent the visor from offering a dangerous aerodynamic brake during travel.Furthermore, when the chin guard reaches the maximum opening stop, the connecting rod acts as a lock for the chin guard, avoiding accidental lowering of the chin guard which could be dangerous.

[0013] Further characteristics of the invention will be made clearer by the detailed description that follows, referring to a purely exemplary and therefore non-limiting embodiment thereof, illustrated in the appended drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side view of a crash helmet with its chin guard in the lowered position, illustrating the adjustment system for the visor according to the invention, in which the visor in the open position is shown with a dashed line;

Figure 2 is a view, like Figure 1, illustrating the adjustment system of the visor in which the chin guard in the raised position is shown with a solid line and the chin guard in the lowered position is shown with a dashed line;

Figure 3 shows a connecting rod of the system for adjusting and closing the visor according to the invention.

[0014] The system for adjusting and closing the visor of a crash helmet will be described with the aid of the figures.

[0015] A crash helmet, indicated as a whole with reference numeral 1, comprises an outer shell 2 made, for example, of injection moulded ABS. Situated beneath the outer shell, in a substantially per se known manner, is an inner shell formed of foam polystyrene which is lined with a padding of polyurethane foam and fabric suited to come into contact with the user's head.

[0016] A chin guard 3 is pivotally attached to the outer shell 2, by means of pins 4 fixed to the two opposite sides of the outer shell 2, substantially level with the ears of the user wearing the crash helmet 1. In this manner, by pushing upward on the bottom part of the chin guard 3, the chin guard 3 is raised, turning around the axis of the pins 4.

[0017] An opening is defined between the bottom front edge of the outer shell 2 and the top front edge of the chin guard 3 to allow visibility for the user wearing the helmet. The profile 5 of said opening is covered by a seal and the opening is covered by a visor 6 of transparent material, such as injection-moulded polycarbonate for example. The visor 6 is pivotally attached to the chin guard 3 by means of two pins 7, disposed laterally, substantially level with the user's temples.

[0018] In the bottom edge of the visor 6 two protruding lunettes 8 are provided which face two flared parts 9 provided in the chin guard 3, so as to facilitate raising of the visor 6 by the user who can exert pressure on the protruding lunettes 8, positioning his fingers in the flared parts 9. In this manner, with an upward pressure exerted on the protruding lunettes 8, the visor 6 is raised, rotating around the axis of the pins 7.

[0019] A device 50 for adjusting and closing the visor 6 is provided in the gap between each side wall of the outer shell 2 of the crash helmet 1 and the respective inner side wallof the chin guard 3. The adjusting and closing device 50 comprises a connecting rod 51 consisting of a substantially rectangular plate with rounded ends, made, for example, of acetal resin. In the drawing, for seek of clarity, the connecting rod 51 is shown in view, also if it is arranged between the shell 2 and the chin guard 3, therefore it is covered by chin guard 3. The connecting rod 51 is pivotally attached to the visor 6, by means of a pin 52 disposed beneath the pin 7 for raising/lowering the visor 6. The pin 52 is short enough, so that it does not interfere with the chin guard 3. The connecting rod 51 has a longitudinal slot 53 which receives a pin 60 fixed to the outer shell 2. The pin 60 is short enough not to interfere with the chin guard 3.

[0020] As better shown in Figure 3, the longitudinal slot 53 of the connecting rod 51 comprises three adjustment seats, 54, 55, 56 and a locking seat 57.

[0021] As shown in Figure 1, when the visor and the chin guard are lowered, the pin 60 fixed to the outer shell is situated in the first seat 54 starting from the end of the connecting rod which receives the pin 52 that connects the connecting rod to the visor.

[0022] When the user raises the visor 6 causing it to turn around the axis of the pins 7, the pin 52 which restrains the connecting rod 51 and is integral with the visor makes a counter clockwise rotation drawing the connecting rod 51 into linear translation, consequently the pin 60 will be received in the second seat 55. In this situation the visor 6 is in an intermediate position between completely raised and completely lowered.

[0023] On exerting a further upward pressure, the connecting rod 51 will undergo another translation and thus the pin 60 will be housed in the third adjustment seat 56.

[0024] When the user raises the chin guard 3, as shown in Figure 2, the chin guard rotates around the axis of the pins 4. Consequently the visor 6 also rotates integrally with the chin guard 3. Thus the pin 52 that connects the visor 6 to the connecting rod 51 turns together with the visor 6, drawing the connecting rod 51 in translation. Because of this the pin 60 fixed in the outer shell 2 of the crash helmet is received in the last seat 57 of the slot 53 of the connecting rod 51.

[0025] It is important to note that during opening of the chin guard 3 the visor 6 is recalled by the connecting rod 51 so that the bottom edge of the visor 6 remains in contact with the top edge of the chin guard. In this manner accidental opening of the visor 6, which would offer a dangerous aerodynamic brake when the chin guard 3 is raised, is avoided.

[0026] Moreover, in the position in which the chin guard is completely raised, the pin 60 is locked in the locking seat 57, thus allowing a mechanical safety restraint which prevents accidental lowering of the chin guard.

[0027] When the chin guard 3 is lowered, the visor 6 remains locked in the closed position on the chin guard, thanks to locking due to the fact that the fixed pin 60 is received in the seat 54 of the connecting rod 51 and thanks to a further mechanical restraint conferred by hooking of the inner lip of the lunette 8 of the visor with the seal profile 5 of the chin guard 3.

[0028] Numerous variations and modifications of detail within the reach of a person skilled in the art can be made to the present embodiment of the invention, without departing from the scope of the invention set forth in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A system for adjusting and closing a visor of a crash helmet, the crash helmet (1) comprising a chin guard (3) pivotally attached, by means of pins (4), to the side walls of the outer shell (2) of the crash helmet, so as to be able to be raised and lowered turning around the axis of the pins (4), the visor being hinged by means of pins (7) to the side walls of the chin guard (3), the adjustment system comprising two adjustment devices (50) disposed respectively on the two side parts of the outer shell (2) of the crash helmet, each adjustment device comprising a connecting rod (51) pivotally attached, by means of a pin (52) to the visor (6), and said connecting rod (51) comprising a slot (53) which receives a pin (60) fixed to the outer shell (2) of the crash helmet.

2. An adjustment and closing system according to claim 1, characterized in that said connecting rod is in the form of a substantially rectangular plate with the ends rounded.

3. An adjustment and closing system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said pin (52) which pivotally attaches the connecting rod (51) to the visor (6) is disposed at the end of said connecting rod and said slot (53) is formed longitudinally in the connecting rod (51).

4. An adjustment and closing system according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said slot (53) of the connecting rod (51) comprises seats (54, 55, 56, 57) to receive in snap engagement said pin (60) fixed to the shell of the crash helmet, in accordance with the movements of said visor and said chin guard (3).

5. An adjustment and closing system according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that provided in the bottom edge of the visor (6) is at least one protruding lunette (8) which abuts against the upper sealing profile (5) of the chin guard (3) above a flared part (9) of the chin guard (3), said protruding lunette (5) allowing a hold for raising of the visor by the user and providing a certain mechanical restraint between the visor and the chin guard.

Drawing