U.S. patent number 3,805,298 [Application Number 05/290,695] was granted by the patent office on 1974-04-23 for ear protector.
Invention is credited to Yrjo Aho.
United States Patent |
3,805,298 |
Aho |
April 23, 1974 |
EAR PROTECTOR
Abstract
An ear protector comprising a pair of cup-like ear members and
means connecting said ear members for maintaining the ear protector
on the ear position, said ear members having an inner cushion-like
packing, a film of plastic material for maintaining said packing in
the members, and a slot along an outer circle of the ear pieces
into which the hem is fitted, said slot having a depth twice its
breadth, whereby when the hem is fitted into the slot the inner
circle of the hem is stretched substantially to the maximum degree
when it is compelled to come away from the slot.
Inventors: |
Aho; Yrjo (Westend,
SF) |
Family
ID: |
8507445 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/290,695 |
Filed: |
September 20, 1972 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
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|
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Sep 27, 1971 [SF] |
|
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2686/71 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
2/209;
181/129 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61F
11/14 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A61F
11/00 (20060101); A61F 11/14 (20060101); H04r
001/10 () |
Field of
Search: |
;2/209,6,182
;179/182,156 ;215/38R ;161/160,161 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Franklin; Jordan
Assistant Examiner: Nerbun; Peter
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. An ear protector comprising a pair of cup-like ear members and
means connecting said ear members for maintaining the ear protector
on the ear position, said ear members having an inner cushionlike
packing, a hem of plastic material for maintaining said packing in
the members, said hem having a peripheral portion which is folded
back upon itself to form a double width thereof and being
substantially V-shaped in form, a cone-shaped slot along an outer
circle of the ear pieces, said slot having a depth at least twice
its breadth, the breadth of said slot being only slightly larger
than the width of said V-shaped hem portion whereby when the hem is
fitted into the slot the inner circle of the hem at the folded
portion is stretched substantially to the maximum degree when it is
compelled to come away from the slot.
2. The ear protector of cclaim 1, further including a non-elastic
thread disposed around the V-shaped portion of the hem in the
throat thereof.
Description
The present invention may be used in conjunction with any prior art
ear protector such as described in applicant's co-pending
application Ser. No. 264,854 filed June 21, 1972.
This invention relates to an ear protector having a means for
fastening the packing of the ear protector to the ear pieces
comprising a hem belonging to the packing made of a plastic
membrane and on the circle of the cup-like ear pieces there is
provided a slot cooperating with the hem.
A soft ring-shaped cushionlike packing between the ear pieces of
the ear protector and the skin is generally made of a plastic
memberane of about 0.2-0.4 millimeters thick by seaming different
pieces and which is filled with plastic foam or liquid.
Sometimes the packing is fastened by means such as glue to its
base, a ring-shaped bottom part of the ear pieces, but to make
easier for the removal of broken and dirty packings it has become
common practice to supply the packing with an outside hem, which is
stretched out on the edge of the ear piece and keeps the packing in
its place.
Ear protectors are often used under such circumstances that sudden
loosening forces are directed against the packing so that the hem
slips from the edge of the ear piece and the whole packing gets
loose. If the user of the ear protector works out of doors in
winter time and has mittens on his hands, it is very awkward to
thrust the packing in its place again.
Consequently, because of the stretching quality of plastic
membrane, the hem of the packing although tightened the first time
on the circle of the ear piece, soon looses its tension and in its
stretched state can no longer in the same way as before resist the
loosening forces. The extending occurrence proceeds approximately
to the same end result during a relatively short time independent
on the original tightness of the hem.
An object of this invention is to provide an ear protector having
at reasonable expenses an essentially more secure fastening method
for the packing than prior art means.
The main characteristic of the invention is that the depth of the
slot on the circle of the ear piece is at least twice its breadth,
in consequence of which the hem fitted in the slot gets into such a
position that the inner circle of the hem has to stretch out as
much as possible, when it is compelled to remove it from the
slot.
The single accompanying drawing is a partial cut-away view of one
of the ear pieces of this invention.
As shown in the drawing the ear pieces of the ear protector has its
bottom part la fastened to it such as with glue or cement. On the
outer circle of the ear piece, there is a deep cone-shaped slot 2.
The hem 4 of the packing 3 is formed so that its inner circle is so
short that it comes down to the bottom of the slot 2 and so that a
sudden force is necessary to extend the hem so much that it can be
moved out from the slot 2.
The remaining portion of the hem 4 as been further improved by
making it twofold so that the cone-shaped slot 2 is very narrow and
only slightly wider than the twofolds of the hem received therein.
The hem membrane is made of any soft material which will adhere to
the walls of the slot 2 and which promotes its staying in place and
preferably being of plastic material.
Preferably, a thinning furrow 4a is made in the hem 4 so that it
may be doubled or folded back upon itself. As the last
precautionary measure against loosening there may be bound in the
ring-shaped deepening formed by the furrow 4a a non-elastic thread
5, from under which the upper fold 4b of the twofold hem has to
slip before the packing gets loose. The force necessary for this is
already so great that the packing does not loosen even by drawing
unless the thread breaks off or the hem 4 tears at the thinning
furrow 4a.
Obviously, the embodiment shown is exemplary only and a wide
variety of embodiments may be devised without departing from the
spirit and scope thereof.
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