Hockey Helmet Face Guard Elliptical Wire Grid Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing face guards for hockey helmets are obstructive to vision due to their large diameter wires, which are necessary for strength and impact resistance, compromising visibility for the wearer.
Innovation Solution
A face guard with a curved grid design using stainless steel wires, featuring an elliptical cross-section and a matte inner surface with a shiny outer surface, which reduces obstruction to vision while maintaining strength and impact resistance, by having a ratio of minor to major axis between 0.4 and 0.8 and weighing between 170 grams and 220 grams.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If wires are made with larger diameter to meet strength and impact resistance requirements, then strength and impact resistance are improved, but visibility of the wearer deteriorates due to increased obstruction
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the geometric parameters of the wire cross-section from circular to elliptical, with specific minor-to-major axis ratios (0.4 to 0.8), to optimize the balance between structural strength and visual obstruction. This parameter modification allows the wire to maintain adequate strength while reducing its apparent size in the wearer's field of view.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies a composite surface treatment combining a matte inner surface coating with a shiny outer surface. This composite surface structure reduces light reflection and glare from the wire surfaces, thereby improving visibility and reducing obstruction to the wearer's vision while maintaining the structural integrity of the stainless steel wires.
2Strength
If wires are made with larger diameter to meet strength requirements, then impact resistance is improved, but the weight of the face guard increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the wire cross-sectional geometry to an elliptical shape with optimized dimensions, which allows for reduced material usage while maintaining structural strength. This geometric optimization reduces the overall weight of the face guard while preserving impact resistance through proper wire arrangement and grid configuration.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention provides a face guard for a hockey helmet. The face guard comprises a contour wire and a plurality of wires made of stainless steel. The plurality of wires are arranged as a curved grid having a concave side for facing a face of a wearer, the plurality of wires comprising first, second, third and fourth vertical wires intersecting first and second horizontal wires, each of the first, second, third and fourth vertical wires and first and second horizontal wires having a portion to be at least partially located within a field of view of the eyes of the wearer, each of the first, second, third and fourth vertical wires and first and second horizontal wires having an inner surface facing the face of the wearer and an outer surface opposing the inner surface, wherein the inner surface is mat and the outer surface is shiny. Each of the first, second, third and fourth vertical wires and first and second horizontal wires may have an elliptical cross-section with a major axis and a minor axis, the major axis being oriented to generally converge towards the eyes of the wearer, wherein a ratio of the minor axis to the major axis is between 0.4 and 0.8, and wherein the face guard weighs between 170 grams and 220 grams.