Split helmet

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a helmet capable of storing a split body of the helmet, while having high reliability of protection of a user's head, and preventing the split body from unexpectedly coming off during use. [Solution] A split helmet capable of deforming to a use state and a storage state by dividing a cap-like material into a lower base and a split body, the split helmet being characterized by having a split body engagement piece having an opening part arranged in the split body, and a lock engagement piece having an engagement part engaged with the opening part arranged on the base, and having a lock holding part for holding a state where the engagement part is engaged with the opening part.

Description

Split helmet

[0001] The present invention relates to a split helmet that can be split and transformed into a storage state and a use state.

[0002] As shown in Patent Document 1, there have been helmets in which the crown portion is separated from the base and can be stored in the base. In particular, the helmet shown in Patent Document 1 is a helmet in which the crown portion (the shell) is stored inverted.

[0003] Patent No. 6568837

[0004] The helmet disclosed in Patent Document 1 is designed so that the divided portion of the helmet, which is the crown portion, can be separated from the base and transformed into a usable state or a stowed state. However, there is a risk that the locking portion of the cap body that separates when in use may come loose. In particular, there is a possibility that the lock may come loose unexpectedly in an unexpected event, such as the user falling, causing the divided portion of the helmet to stand up. Therefore, there is a need for a helmet that can provide reliable head protection for the user.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a helmet that can store helmet segments and that provides highly reliable head protection for the user, as well as to prevent the segments from accidentally coming off during use.

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the split helmet of the present invention is a split helmet that can be transformed between a use state and a storage state by dividing a hat-like object into a lower base and a split body, and is characterized in that it has a split body engagement piece with an opening portion that is placed on the split body, and a lock engagement piece with an engagement portion that is placed on the base and engages with the opening portion, and has a lock retaining portion for maintaining the state in which the engagement portion is engaged with the opening portion.

[0007] Furthermore, it is preferable that the lock retaining portion has a retaining portion main body that slides along the lock engaging piece and is provided on the lock engaging piece, and that the retaining portion main body covers the engaging portion and the partition engaging piece when the engaging portion is engaged with the opening portion.

[0008] It is also preferable that the segment engagement piece has a slide groove covered by the holding portion body, and the engagement portion of the lock engagement piece has a groove-shaped restricting portion covered by the holding portion body.

[0009] It is also preferable that the mask has a chin strap that is connected to the chin strap connection portion of the split body, and that the chin strap is connected to the split body at the chin strap connection portion below the vertical center position of the split body when viewed from the side, and passes through the inner surface of the base when in use.

[0010] Furthermore, it is preferable that the chin strap connection parts have a front chin strap connection part located forward of the center position of the cap body in the front-to-back direction and a rear chin strap connection part located rearward, on each side, and that the chin straps extending from the rear chin strap connection parts on both sides reach opposite sides via a rear crossing part.

[0011] The invention of claim 1 makes it possible to provide highly reliable head protection for the user by preventing the segments from accidentally coming apart during use. That is, a locking mechanism can be provided that maintains the unseparated state by engaging a segment engagement piece arranged on the segment with a lock engagement piece arranged on the base, and further, by providing a lock retention part that maintains the locked state, it is possible to prevent the lock from being released unexpectedly and changing from the unseparated state to the separated state.

[0012] Furthermore, according to the invention described in claim 2, the retaining body main body covers the engaging portion and the divided body engaging piece while the engaging portion is engaged with the opening portion, thereby preventing the divided body from accidentally coming off during use, thereby making it possible to provide highly reliable head protection for the user.

[0013] Furthermore, according to the invention described in claim 3, the segment engagement piece has a sliding groove covered by the holder body, and the engagement part of the lock engagement piece has a groove-shaped restricting part covered by the holder body, which not only functions as a guide for sliding the lock holder, but also prevents the lock holder from shifting left or right while maintaining the locked state and accidentally releasing the held state, thereby making it possible to provide highly reliable head protection for the user.

[0014] Moreover, according to the invention described in claim 4, a jaw strap connecting portion for attaching a jaw strap to the divided body is provided, and the jaw strap is connected below the divided body and passes through the inner surface side of the base, so that even if the lock is accidentally released during use, the divided body itself is tied to the user's head, and it is possible to maintain a state of protecting the top of the user's head.

[0015] Moreover, according to the invention described in claim 5, the jaw straps cross at the rear, so that a rear strap exists so as to wrap around the back of the user's head, and it is possible to hold the helmet so that it does not fall off from behind the user during use.

[0016] It is an overall perspective view of the usage state of the split helmet according to the present embodiment. It is an overall perspective view of the state where the divided body is lifted from the state of FIG. 1 with the jaw strap omitted. It is an overall perspective view of the state where the divided body is inverted from the state of FIG. 2. It is an overall perspective view of the storage state where the divided body is stored in the storage space in the base from the state of FIG. 3. It is a perspective view only of the base of the present embodiment. It is a perspective view of the state where the base of the present embodiment is provided with a rotating panel. It is a partially enlarged perspective view of the split body engaging piece of the present embodiment. It is a partially enlarged perspective view of the lock engaging piece provided with the lock holding portion of the present embodiment. It is a cross-sectional view taken along line D-D of FIG. 8. It is a partially enlarged perspective view of the state where the lock engaging piece is engaged with the split body engaging piece. It is a partially enlarged perspective view of the state where the lock holding portion is covered from the state of FIG. 10. It is a left side view of the entire split helmet showing the jaw strap of the present embodiment. It is a front view of the entire split helmet showing the jaw strap of the present embodiment. It is a rear view of the entire split helmet showing the jaw strap of the present embodiment. It is a bottom view of the entire split helmet showing the jaw strap of the present embodiment. It is a plan view showing the storage state of the split helmet of the present embodiment. It is shown by the cross-sectional line in FIG. 16, where (a) is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A, (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B, and (c) is a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C.

[0017] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The divided helmet 1 of this embodiment is not an industrial helmet equipped with a hammock or headband, but an athletic helmet used when riding a bicycle, etc. Although not shown in the drawings, the base 2 may be equipped with an adjuster that can be adjusted to fit the user's head size. It may also be used in a safety helmet equipped with a hammock or headband.

[0018] The following describes the basic storage method of the split helmet 1 of this embodiment. As shown in Figures 1-4, the split helmet 1 of this embodiment is composed of a base 2 and a split body 3, and is a single hat-shaped helmet divided into upper and lower halves, with the lower half being the base 2 and the upper half being the split body 3.

[0019] The divided body 3 is not limited to that of this embodiment. It is also possible to use multiple divided bodies above the base 2, or to divide the section from the occipital to the parietal area separately from the temporal area. Any helmet that is partially separated from the headband-shaped base 2 and that needs to prevent the divided helmet from being accidentally unlocked during use is acceptable.

[0020] The base 2 is formed in a headband-like, annular shape, and has a space inside it that serves as the storage position S (see FIG. 2). It has a base exterior part 11 made of a hard resin material that forms the outer shell of the base 2, and a base interior part 12 made of a cushioning material such as foam resin inside the base exterior part 11. In this embodiment, the base 2 itself is a single headband-like object, but this does not exclude the possibility of the base 2 being divided into two parts or other shapes.

[0021] In this embodiment, the segment 3 has a hat-like shape with a convex outward (upward) curved top. When in use, it covers the user's forehead and top of the head, and is approximately semicircular in side view. This approximately semicircular shape resembles a dish formed by cutting off about one-third of a sphere. The segment 3 includes a segment exterior portion 31 made of a hard resin material that forms the outer shell of the segment 3, and a segment interior portion 32 made of a cushioning material such as a foamed resin inside the segment exterior portion 31. The segment exterior portion 31 is hat-shaped, but has a rear wall 33a that rises steeply at the rear, and the central portion of the rear wall 33a in the left-right direction forms a segment connection portion 33b that protrudes rearward and connects to the pivoting panel 4, which will be described later.

[0022] The following describes the transformation of the divided body 3 of this embodiment between the storage state and the usage state. As shown in Figure 5, the upper rear portion of the base exterior part 11 of the headband-shaped base 2 has a notched portion 13, and two raised portions 14, 14 are formed on both sides of this notch 13, gradually rising from the upper edge of the base exterior part 11. The raised portions 14, 14 have first horizontal pivot shafts 15, 15 protruding from their side ends.

[0023] As shown in Figure 6, the pivoting panel 4 has bearing holes 41, 41 at its base end that receive the first pivot shafts 15, 15 of the base 2, allowing it to pivot up and down by the first pivot shafts 15, 15. It also has a second pivot shaft 42 that protrudes in the front-to-rear direction at its tip end. A partition body connecting portion 33b at the rear end of the partition body 3 is rotatably connected to this second pivot shaft 42 (see Figure 12).

[0024] The first pivot shafts 15, 15 have their axial direction in the horizontal direction, so that the pivot panel 4 that receives the first pivot shafts 15, 15 can be pivoted up and down, and the divided body 3 connected to the pivot panel 4 can be erected or tilted from the erected state to be put into a storage state or a use state. In addition, the second pivot shaft 42 has its axial direction in the front-to-rear direction, so that the divided body 3 that receives the second pivot shaft 42 can be rotated and turned upside down.

[0025] As a result, the divided body 3 is rotated and raised by the first rotation shafts 15, 15 (see FIG. 2), and the raised divided body 3 can be inverted upside down by the second rotation shaft 42 (see FIG. 3). Then, from the inverted state, the divided body 3 can be further rotated in the direction opposite to the rising direction around the first rotation shafts 15, 15 as a fulcrum, thereby storing the divided body 3 in the storage position S of the base 2 (see FIG. 4).

[0026] Next, a locking mechanism for engaging the divided body 3 with the base 2 in the use state will be described. As shown in Figure 2, the locking mechanism of the first embodiment locks the use state by engaging a key-shaped lock engagement piece 7 located at the front center of the base 2 with a divided body engagement piece 6 that protrudes downward from the front center of the divided body 3 and has an opening. Furthermore, a lock retention portion 8 slidably provided on the lock engagement piece 7 maintains the locked state by the lock engagement piece 7 and prevents accidental unlocking. After sliding the lock retention portion 8 exposed from the lower edge of the base 2 to release the restriction, the user can swing the lock engagement piece 7 to unlock. An elastic body (spring) (not shown) is provided on the lock engagement piece 7 to bias it into the locked state.

[0027] The partition engagement piece 6, the lock engagement piece 7, and the lock retaining portion 8 will now be described in detail. As shown in Figure 7, the partition engagement piece 6 protrudes downward from the front portion of the lower edge 34 of the partition 3, and is U-shaped with an opening 6a in the center for engaging with the lock engagement piece 7, which will be described later. The main body portion of the partition engagement piece 6 has a groove-like shape that continues vertically, and has a sliding groove 6b that serves as a guide groove that descends one step from the bottom toward the opening 6a, allowing the lock retaining portion 8, which will be described later, to be guided into the opening 6a.

[0028] As shown in Figures 8 and 9, the lock engagement piece 7 has a main body portion whose upper side is generally tilted backward, and a left-right axis 7a that crosses the vertical center of this main body portion in the horizontal direction. Both sides of the left-right axis 7a are rotatably supported on the base 2, so that the lock engagement piece 7 itself is provided on the base 2 so as to be rotatable about the left-right axis 7a. Specifically, when the lower part of the lock engagement piece 7 is pushed backward, it rotates so that the upper part faces forward, and when the lower part is pushed forward, it rotates so that the upper part faces backward. The upper edge of the lock engagement piece 7 has an engagement portion 7b that protrudes in a key-like shape on the surface, and a restriction portion 7c is formed by cutting out a portion of the lower protruding edge of the engagement portion 7b.

[0029] The engaging portion 7b has a hook-like shape in which the entire upper edge of the lock engaging piece 7 projects toward the surface, and the projecting surface is inclined so that it becomes thicker toward the bottom. The lower edge of the engaging portion 7b has a rising wall that projects toward the surface of the lock engaging piece 7, and the protruding edge that forms the corner between the lower edge of the inclined surface of the engaging portion 7b and the rising wall is cut out to form the restricting portion 7c.

[0030] Each of the left and right lock engagement pieces 7 has an elastic body mounting portion 7d on one side for engaging an elastic body, and an elastic body (not shown), such as a spring, is provided in the elastic body mounting portion 7d to urge the lock engagement piece 7 to rotate so as to maintain the state in which the lock engagement piece 7 is engaged with the segment engagement piece 6. In addition, the center below the left and right shafts 7a of the lock engagement piece 7 is open, and the lock holding portions 8 are slidably mounted in this open area. The portions of the left and right shafts 7a where the lock holding portions 8 are mounted are also notched, and the left and right shafts 7a also form guide walls along which the lock holding portions 8 slide.

[0031] The lock retaining portion 8 is attached so as to be slidable up and down on the surface of the lock engaging piece 7, and maintains the engagement between the lock engaging piece 7 and the segment engaging piece 6. The lock retaining portion 8 has a disk-shaped gripping portion 8a located below, and a retaining portion main body 8c made of a substantially rectangular metal plate with an elongated hole 8b inside, located above the gripping portion 8a. The lock retaining portion 8 is attached at the left-right center position within the guide wall of the left-right shaft 7a of the lock engaging piece 7, with a screw-type sliding fixing portion 8d inserted into the elongated hole 8b, and is arranged so as to be slidable up and down using the elongated hole 8b as a guide.

[0032] Next, the engagement between the lock engagement piece 7 and the segment engagement piece 6, and the maintenance of the locked state by the lock retaining portion 8 will be described with reference to Figures 10 and 11. As shown in Figure 10, the engagement portion 7b of the lock engagement piece 7 is inserted from the rear side of the opening portion 6a of the segment engagement piece 6 to engage. In this engagement, the segment 3 is pushed down onto the base 2 to assume the cap state with the lower portion pushed forward so that the engagement portion 7b of the lock engagement piece 7 rotates rearward by the left and right shafts 7a, and when the lower portion is returned to the rear so that the engagement portion 7b of the lock engagement piece 7 rotates forward by the left and right shafts 7a, the hook-shaped engagement portion 7b engages with the opening portion 6a from the back side (user side) of the cap.

[0033] 11, a lock retaining portion 8 can be used to maintain the engagement between the segment engagement piece 6 and the lock engagement piece 7. That is, when the lock retaining portion 8 is slid upward with the engagement portion 7b and the opening 6a engaged, the metal plate retaining portion main body 8c is positioned to cover the surface of the slide groove 6b of the segment engagement piece 6 and the surface of the restricting portion 7c of the engagement portion 7b, thereby maintaining the locked state. Because the lock retaining portion 8 is attached to the lock engagement piece 7, it is not possible to rotate only one of them, and if an attempt is made to rotate the engagement portion 7b of the lock engagement piece 7 rearward, the lock retaining portion 8 restricts the rotation.

[0034] To release the lock, first slide the lock retaining portion 8 downward to release the lock retaining state, then push the lower part of the lock engaging piece 7 forward and rotate the upper engaging portion 7b backward using the left and right shaft 7a, thereby releasing the engagement between the engaging portion 7b and the opening portion 6a and releasing the state of the cap body in which the partition body 3 and the base 2 are combined.

[0035] In this way, the lock retaining portion 8 covers the segment engaging piece 6 and the lock engaging piece 7 while they are engaged, as if the lock engaging piece 7 and the lock retaining portion 8 were surrounding the segment engaging piece 6, preventing the locked state from being released unexpectedly. Also, when unlocking, the user must first use the grip portion 8a of the lock retaining portion 8 to slide it to release the retained state, and then release the lock; this is a so-called two-stage lock, preventing unexpected unlocking.

[0036] Next, the chin strap 5 of this embodiment will be described. As shown in Figures 12 to 15, the chin strap 5 of this embodiment is connected to the divided body 3, hangs down from the divided body 3, passes along the inner surface of the base 2, and reaches the bottom of the divided helmet 1. When the user is wearing the divided helmet 1, the chin strap 5 passes under the chin. This ensures that the divided body 3 is positioned over the user's head and parietal region, and maintains as much protection as possible for the user's head and parietal region, even if the locked state between the divided body 3 and the base 2 is suddenly released due to an impact, such as a fall.

[0037] A specific configuration of the chin strap 5 will now be described. In this embodiment, the chin straps 5 are disposed on both sides of the divided body 3, and are connected to the divided body 3 below the vertical center in a side view, and on the front and rear sides of the front-to-rear center. The vertical center is the line indicated by imaginary line X in Figure 7, and the front-to-rear center is the line indicated by imaginary line Y.

[0038] More specifically, the base ends of the front strings 5a, 5a of the chin strap 5 are connected to the front chin strap connecting parts 51, 51 of the segment 3, and the base ends of the rear strings 5b, 5b of the chin strap 5 are connected to the rear chin strap connecting parts 52, 52 of the segment 3. These connections are made by connecting the front strings 5a, 5a and the rear strings 5b, 5b on the inner side of the segment exterior part 31 and then connecting them from the outside of the segment exterior part 31 with fasteners such as rivets.

[0039] The front chin strap connecting portions 51, 51 are located on the front side in the front-to-back direction in a side view, and are located to the side of the dividing lines Z1, Z2 (middle lines), and Z3 on both sides when dividing the mask into four parts in a front view (see FIG. 8). This position corresponds to the vicinity of the user's ears.

[0040] The rear chin strap connection parts 52, 52 are arranged on the rear wall 33a of the divided body 3, which rises steeply at the rear, and when three dividing lines Z4, Z5 (middle lines), and Z6 are drawn vertically to divide the body into four parts when viewed from the rear (see Figure 9), the rear chin strap connection parts 52, 52 are located on both dividing lines Z4, Z6 or slightly towards the center.

[0041] The tips of the front straps 5a, 5a and the rear straps 5b, 5b of the chin strap 5 all pass through the inner surface of the base 2, reaching below the base 2, and are connected by front and rear strap connecting parts 53, 53. Furthermore, the front strap 5a and the rear strap 5b are gathered together so that they overlap at the front and rear strap connecting parts 53, 53 on both sides, forming a double lower strap 5c that runs from the front and rear strap connecting part 53 on one side to the front and rear strap connecting part 53 on the other side. This lower strap 5c is passed under the user's chin, and can be maintained under the user's chin by the connecting parts 54, 54 at the tips. In this embodiment, the connecting parts 54, 54 consist of a hook and a hook receiver, but other connecting means may be used.

[0042] The front and rear string connectors 53, 53 hang down from the inverted storage helmet so as to be positioned below the user's ears when in use, but are not limited to this configuration. Also, in this embodiment, the front strings 5a, 5a and the rear strings 5b, 5b are doubled up to form the lower strings 5c, 5c, but the front and rear strings and the lower string may be separate strings.

[0043] Furthermore, in the above-described positions, the rear straps 5b, 5b of this embodiment do not extend from the rear chin strap connection portion 52 on one side to the front and rear strap connection portion 53 on the same side, but rather pass near the back of the user's head and connect to the front and rear strap connection portion 53 on the other side. Also, the rear straps 5b, 5b extend from the rear chin strap connection portion 52 on the other side and connect to the front and rear strap connection portion 53 on one side, passing near the back of the user's head. In this manner, the rear straps 5b, 5b are connected to the front and rear strap connection portions 53 on the opposite sides via intersection portions 55 where they intersect at the back of the user's head. Having this intersection portion 55 where they intersect at the back of the user's head makes it possible to prevent the split helmet 1 from accidentally slipping off from the rear to the front.

[0044] The following describes how the chin strap 5 of this embodiment functions as a retaining member in the storage state when used in the split helmet 1 that is divided into an inverted storage type. In the usage state, the chin strap 5 is connected to the split body 3 at the front chin strap connection parts 51, 51 and the rear chin strap connection parts 52, 52 as described above, hangs down, and is located below the base 2.

[0045] As shown in Figure 4, when the split helmet 1 is stored in an inverted state, the split body 3 is inverted, allowing the chin strap 5 to be open and point upward. From the inverted stored state, the chin strap 5 is hung so that it passes over the outside of the base 2 and is connected at the connecting parts 54, 54 of the lower strap 5c, making it possible to maintain the inverted stored state by wrapping it around. In this way, when the split helmet is an inverted storage type in which the split body is stored in an inverted manner, the chin strap 5 can function as a retaining member that maintains the stored state.

[0046] Next, the base 2 and the divided body 3 in the stored state of this embodiment will be described. As shown in Figures 2 and 3 as well as Figures 16 and 17, the base 2 has a base intermediate section 16 where the upper edge of the base exterior section 11 protrudes inward, and a base interior section 12 is disposed inside the base exterior section 11. The base interior section 12 has an inclined surface 17 that slopes from the inner edge of the base intermediate section 16. The base interior section 12 is made of a foam resin to protect the side of the user's head during use, and is formed peripherally along the base exterior section 11.

[0047] The base interior portion 12 has an inner peripheral surface formed with an inclined surface 17 that slopes from the outside to the inside in the vertical range from the upper edge of the base intermediate portion 16 to approximately the middle position in the vertical direction, and a head inclined surface 18 that slopes from the inside to the outside is formed from the lower end of the inclined surface 17. These inclined surfaces 17, 18 may not only be linearly inclined, but also curved.

[0048] The inclined surfaces 17 support the outer surfaces of the segments 3 during storage. The inclined surfaces 17 are angled to match the shape of the segment exterior parts 31 of the segments, with the inclined surface on the right side of Figure 12 being inclined at an angle of approximately 40 to 60 degrees. In the inverted storage type segmented helmet 1, the inclined surfaces 17 support the segment exterior parts 31 of the segments 3, which has prevented conventional storage helmets from being scratched by vibrations caused by carrying the helmet while stored. The inclined surfaces 17 of the base interior part 12, made of a foam resin, support the segments 3 from below during storage, providing cushioning and preventing damage to the segments 3. This allows for stable storage of the segments 3, and using the chin strap 5 as a retaining member can prevent scratches on the segments 3 while stored.

[0049] DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1...Separate helmet, 2...Base, 3...Separate body, 4...Pivoting panel, 5...Chin strap, 6...Separate body engagement piece, 6a...Opening portion, 6b...Sliding groove, 7...Lock engagement piece, 7a...Left and right grooves, 7b...Engagement portion, 7c...Restriction portion, 7d...Holder body mounting portion, 8...Lock holding portion, 8a...Grip portion, 8b...Elongated hole, 8c...Holder body main body, 11...Base exterior portion, 12...Base interior portion, 13...Notch portion , 14...rising portion, 15...first pivot axis, 16...base intermediate portion, 17...inclined surface, 18...head inclined surface, 31...dividend exterior portion, 32...dividend interior portion, 33a...rear wall, 33b...dividend connection portion, 34...lower edge, 35...dividend engagement piece, 36...lock engagement piece, 41...bearing hole, 42...second pivot axis, 51...front chin strap connection portion, 52...rear chin strap connection portion, S...storage space.

Claims

1. A split helmet that can be changed between a used state and a stored state by dividing a hat-like object into a lower base and a split body, characterized in that it has a split body engagement piece with an opening that is placed on the split body, and a lock engagement piece with an engagement part that is placed on the base and engages with the opening part, and also has a lock retention part for maintaining the state in which the engagement part is engaged with the opening part.

2. A split helmet as described in claim 1, characterized in that the lock retaining portion has a retaining portion main body that slides along the lock engaging piece and is provided on the lock engaging piece, and the retaining portion main body covers the engaging portion and split engaging piece when the hook-shaped engaging portion is engaged with the opening portion.

3. A split helmet as described in claim 2, characterized in that the split engagement piece has a sliding groove that is covered by the holding part main body, and the engagement part of the lock engagement piece has a groove-shaped regulating part that is covered by the holding part main body.

4. A split helmet as described in claim 3, characterized in that it has a chin strap that is connected at the chin strap connection portion of the split body, the chin strap being connected to the split body at the chin strap connection portion below the vertical center position of the split body in a side view, and passing through the inner side of the base when in use.

5. A split helmet as described in claim 4, characterized in that the chin strap connection parts have a front chin strap connection part on each side that is forward of the center position in the fore-and-aft direction of the helmet body, and a rear chin strap connection part that is rearward, and the chin straps extending from the rear chin strap connection parts on both sides reach opposite sides via a rear crossing part.

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