HELMET SYSTEM

摘要

A protective helmet for successive impacts includes a head cap adapted to surround and move with a wearer's head and an outer shell which surrounds the head cap. An energy absorbing flexible liner predominantly comprised of radially oriented foam columns is attached to both the head cap and outer shell. The liner establishes a preset initial relative position and spacing between the head cap and the outer shell and compliantly absorbs energy imparted to the outer shell during a helmet impact to enable the outer shell to move linearly and angularly relative to the head cap during the helmet impact and to be returned to the initial relative position with the head cap following the impact.

主权项

1. An energy absorbing element comprised of a flexible liner spaced between two relatively inflexible generally parallel surfaces, surface one and surface two, the liner being comprised of a plurality of side-by-side individual and independent flexible foam columns having longitudinal axes, the column axes having an orientation generally perpendicular to surface one and surface two, said foam columns having a top surface directly attached to surface one and a bottom surface directly attached to surface two, and side surfaces situated side-by-side in unattached slidable direct contacting engagement with side surfaces of adjacent columns, said foam columns having an average slenderness ratio between 3 and 30 and a cross-sectional shape selected from the group consisting of a generally triangular shape and a combination of generally triangular shapes, the columns and surface one and surface two having a pre-impact relative position and an impact relative position, wherein in the pre-impact relative position the column axes are in a generally unbent condition, and in the impact relative position during which an impact force has displaced a portion of surface one with respect to a corresponding portion of surface two in a direction generally perpendicular to the pre-impact axes of the foam columns therebetween, those foam columns in the impact relative position being in a generally bent configuration and generally in the form of an S curve, whereby first and second adjacent foam columns generally in the form of an S curve with a contacting side surface of the first adjacent column having a longitudinally stretched area and a longitudinally compressed area and a contacting side surface of the second adjacent column in slidable contact with the side surface of the first adjacent column having a longitudinally compressed area adjacent to the longitudinally stretched area of the first side surface and a longitudinally stretched area adjacent to the longitudinally compressed area of the first side surface.