GB2544686A - Safety helmet card holder - Google Patents

Safety Helmet Card Holder

The present invention relates to card holders for safety helmets.

There are many situations in construction environments and the like where it useful for workers to have some form of visible identification/information. This can range from a name tag to more detailed information, such as position, first aid training status, or security/emergency-related details. As many environments require wearing of safety helmets/hard hats for safety reasons, it is known to include this type of identification/information on helmets. In a simple form this can include writing a person’s name using a marker or the like on the helmet, or using stickers. However, this is unsatisfactory because the information can degrade over time or due to water, etc.

Known solutions to these problems include producing transparent plastic envelopes or bags that are fixed to the front of safety helmets and intended to hold cards with identification/information. Typically, the transparent envelope is permanently fixed to the helmet by welding or adhesive. Disadvantageously, it can be difficult to inset/replace cards in these types of envelopes/bags and in many cases they are not waterproof, meaning that the card/information can become water damaged. Another known solution is to manufacture a safety helmet with at least one special formation for receiving a card or card holder. In one example, such a formation includes a pair of slots in the front of the helmet into which the lower corners of a card are inserted. However, this arrangement is not waterproof and there is a strong risk of the card accidentally blowing away or falling out. Further, manufacturing these types of special formations requires new tooling to be created and modifications to helmet designs. Additionally, where such special formations include slots or the like, the performance of the modified helmet in safety tests, such as a lateral deformation test, can be degraded.

Embodiments of the present invention are intended to address at least some of the abovementioned problems.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a safety helmet card holder including or comprising: a first component configured, in use, to releasably hold and display at least part of a card; a second component configured, in use, to releasably hold at least part of the first component, and a fixing arrangement for, in use, fixing the second component to a safety helmet.

The fixing arrangement may include at least one releasable device, such as a push rivet. The at least one releasable device may be insertable, in use, through at least one corresponding aperture in the second component and the safety helmet. The safety helmet may only require at least one aperture (and no other special formation) in order to fix the second component using the fixing arrangement. A location of the at least one aperture may correspond with a location of an aperture in the safety helmet used to fix other items, e.g. a lamp bracket. It will be understood that the design can be varied to provide more ‘universal’ compatibility with other JSP Ltd and/or other manufacturers’ helmets. For example, the back plate part of the second component may generally be moved further out from the front wall of the helmet shell to fit on, and around, various helmet shapes.

The first component may include at least one partially transparent area for, in use, displaying at least part of the card. In some cases, the first component may be wholly or partially formed of at least partially transparent material.

The second component may include a rear surface having two opposed side edges, each said side edge including a formation where, in use, corresponding side edges/formations of the first component engage with the formations of the second component.

The second component may include a lower edge, projecting outwardly from the rear surface, the lower edge including at least one formation. The first component may include at least one lower formation that, in use, engages with a corresponding said lower edge formation of the second component. In some embodiments, the lower edge formation of the second component may comprise a slot and the lower formation of the first component may include a projection with a barb. In use, the barb may releasably snap-fit into the slot. The projection with the barb may be positioned centrally along a width of the first component. Some embodiments include two further lower projections, arranged either side of the centrally-positioned projection with the barb, the lower edge of the second component further including two corresponding slots. The at least one lower formation can include a series of spaced-apart bumps, which, in use, tighten a locking relationship between the first component and the second component.

At least one side, upper and/or lower edge of the first component may be closed and, in use, open edge(s) of the first component abuts a portion of the second component, thereby preventing exposure of edges of the card held in the first component. For example, top and sides edges of the first component may be closed and, in use, a lower edge of the first component abuts a lower edge of the second component. A rear surface of the second component may include at least one formation (e.g. a recess or upstanding portion) to help prevent, in use, build-up of moisture between the card holder and the safety helmet. The at least one portion or formation on the rear surface of the second component may include at least one formation that, in use, interlocks with a gap between corresponding formations on the first component.

The first component may include a cut-out portion to assist, in use, with inserting/removing a card. The cut-out portion may include a first cut-out portion located at a bottom of a rear surface of the first component and a further narrower, elongate cut-out portion extending upwardly from the first cut-out portion. In some embodiments, the cut-out portion may include a semi-circular portion centrally located at a bottom of the rear surface of the first component. A further elongate cut-out portion may extend upwardly from a central upper location of the semi-circular cut-out portion. The upper end of this elongate portion may be curved.

The first and/or the second component may include at least one ridge to increase structural strength and/or can provide finger grip in use. Embodiments can be formed entirely of non-metal components.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a safety helmet including a fixing arrangement for use in connecting a card holder substantially as described herein.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention there is provided a kit including a safety helmet and a card holder substantially as described herein.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention there is provided a kit including a card holder substantially as described herein and at least one card.

According to an alternative aspect of the present invention there is provided a safety helmet card holder including or comprising: a card displaying component; a receiving component for receiving the card displaying component, and a fixing arrangement for, in use, fixing the receiving component to a safety helmet by means of at least one aperture through the safety helmet.

Whilst the invention has been described above, it extends to any inventive combination of features set out above or in the following description. Although illustrative embodiments of the invention are described in detail herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to these precise embodiments. As such, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the art. Furthermore, it is contemplated that a particular feature described either individually or as part of an embodiment can be combined with other individually described features, or parts of other embodiments, even if the other features and embodiments make no mention of the particular feature. Thus, the invention extends to such specific combinations not already described.

The invention may be performed in various ways, and, by way of example only, embodiments thereof will now be described, reference being made to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figures 1A to 1F are front, back, side, bottom perspective, top perspective and isometric views, respectively, of an example first component of the card holder;

Figures 2A to 2F are front, back, side, bottom perspective, top perspective and isometric views, respectively, of an example second component of the card holder;

Figure 3 is an assembly view of the card holder components, fixing arrangement and an example safety helmet;

Figure 4 shows the card holder fixed to the safety helmet, and

Figure 5 shows a front view of an alternative embodiment of the first component, including a modified locking formation.

Referring to Figures 1A to 1F, an example first component 102 of a card holder is generally rectangular in shape and includes a front surface 104 with upper 106A and lower 106B edges and two opposed side edges 108A, 108B. In the example, the first component is formed, by an injection moulding process, of Polycarbonate, such as PC-122U, WONDERLITE® by CHI MEI CORPERATION, that is at least partially/semi, and normally fully transparent. However, it will be appreciated that in other embodiments the component could be formed of one or more other material and include a portion/window of at least partially material on its front surface 104. Further, a first component formed of more flexible and durable material could withstand potential knocks and scrapes. An advantage of embodiments of the card holder described herein is that many different types of plastics can be used for the first component; as it is not in direct contact with the surface of the safety helmet, there is no concern regarding it chemically bonding with the helmet. The side edges in the example are formed with a plurality of horizontal ribs/slots 103. These can function as finger grips to aid pushing/sliding the cartridge/first component in use, otherwise as the Polycarbonate surface forming the top of the cartridge is very smooth, it can be difficult to grip.

As best seen in Figure 1B, the first component 102 further includes a rear surface 105, spaced apart from the front surface 104 by around 4 mm or less. As best seen in Figure 1D, there is a gap 107 between the bottom of the rear surface and the bottom of the front surface, which, in use, allows a card (not shown) to be inserted to the space between the two surfaces. The internal space has a width of around 9 cm and a height of around 5.1 cm, which correspond to the common dimensions of UK business cards, but it will be appreciated that the dimensions and design of the first component can be varied to hold and display different types of cards, which can be formed any flexible material, such as paper, card or plastic..

The rear surface 105 further includes a set of three ridges 109A - 109C extending downwardly from the top of the surface. The first ridge 109A is spaced apart from the adjacent side edge 108B by 25mm and the third ridge 109C is also spaced apart from its adjacent side edge 108A by the same distance. These ridges have a length of around 53mm. The ridge 109B is located centrally along the width of the first component and has a length of around 19mm. These ridges can increase the structural strength of the rear wall and can provide some finger grip in use. They can also potentially align with a channel/recess on the back plate of an alternative embodiment the second component to aid further guide and secure the cartridge/first component in place.

The rear surface 105 of the first component 102 further includes a cut-out formation 111 including a semi-circular portion 111A centrally located at the bottom edge 106B of the rear surface. From a central upper location of this portion 111A an elongate cut-out portion 111B extends upwardly. The upper end of this elongate portion is curved and is spaced apart from the bottom of the central slot 109B by a few millimetres. The cut-out formation 111 can help a user, in use, push a card in and out of the slot 107 (e.g. using a pen or the like) and again can reduce the overall weight of the first component and improve flexibility. In a particular example, the diameter of the semi-circular portion 111A diameter is 30mm, which is larger than the average width of a human thumb.

The side edge 108A of the first component 102 can include at least one formation. In the illustrated example there is an upper side formation 110A that has a curved upper edge and a height of around 13mm. There is a central side formation 110A’ that is spaced apart from the bottom of the upper formation 110A by around 2-3mm and has a length of around 27mm. There is also a lower side formation 110A” that is again, spaced apart from bottom of the central side formation by around 2-3mm and has a curved lower edge. The gaps between these side formations can serve to remove a very small amount of unnecessary material from the cartridge. The opposite side edge 108B also includes a set of three corresponding side formations 11 OB, 11 OB’, 11 OB”. As will be described below, in use, the side formations fit into formations on a second component of the card holder, but it will be appreciated that other means of fitting the first component to the second component are possible.

The lower edge 106B of the first component 102 can include at least one locking formation. In the illustrated example there is a central locking formation having a width of around 19mm and a height of around 10mm. As best seen in Figure 1C, the formation includes a thinned portion 112’ that connects a thicker, barb-shaped formation 112 to the lower edge. The front of the thinned portion projects downwardly from, and is generally flush with, the front surface 104, but the barbed formation 112 projects outwardly with respect to the front surface. The illustrated example further includes two more lower edge formations, which project downwardly from the rear surface 105. A first of these is located around 21 mm from the side edge 108A and has a width of around 11 mm and a height of around 3mm. The formation includes a lower portion 114A with an angled surface and is connected to the bottom of the rear surface 105 by means of a flat portion 114A’. A generally identical lower formation with portions 114B, 114B’ is located around 21mm from the opposed side edge 108B. As will be described below, in use, the lower formations releasably fit into formations on a second component of the card holder, but it will be appreciated that other means of releasably locking the first component to the second component in this way are possible.

Referring to Figures 2A to 2F, an example second component 202 of the card holder comprises a generally rectangular plate of around 4-5mm thickness and having a front surface 204 and a rear surface 205, with upper 206A and lower 206B edges and two opposed side edges 208A, 208B. In the example, the second component is formed, by an injection moulding process, of Nylon 6/6, but it will be appreciated that any suitable rigid or semi-rigid material, such as wood or metal could be used (although there are electrical insulation benefits of not using metal).

The side 208A, 208B and lower 206B edges extend outwardly with respect of the front surface 204 of the second component 202, thereby defining side walls and a lower edge having a thickness of around 3mm. The front of each side edges includes at least one formation that extends across the width of the second component, generally towards is centre and parallel to the front surface 204. In the illustrated example, the side edge 208A includes a first side formation 210A, spaced from the upper edge 206A by around 5mm and having a height of around 15mm. That side edge further includes a second side formation 210A’, spaced apart from the lower edge 206B by around 12mm and also having a height of around 15mm. The opposed side edge 208B includes substantially identical side formations 210B, 21 OB’.

The lower edge 206B of the second component 202 includes a first formation 212 in the form of a central rectangular aperture having a width/length of around 6 x 20mm. The lower edge also includes a first further formation 214A, spaced apart from the side edge 208A by around 22mm and having dimensions of about 4 x 6mm. There is also a further identical formation, spaced apart from the opposed side edge 208B by around 22mm.

The rectangular plate including the front 204 and rear 205 surfaces of the second component 202 can include at least one formation for receiving an arrangement for fixing the component, in use, to a safety helmet. In the illustrated example, there the formations include a first circular aperture 211A having a diameter of around 6mm and being spaced apart from the side edge 208A by around 33mm. A portion of the upper edge 206A of the second component directly above the aperture is formed so as to generally follow the contour of an upper section of the aperture, with a space of a few millimetres existing between the top of the upper edge and the top of the aperture. There is also a second generally identical aperture 211B located around 33mm away from the opposed side edge 208B. There is also a third substantially identical aperture 211C located centrally at the lower edge of the plate. The apertures can all include flexible formations that allow the fixing of stud rivets, as will be described below.

Referring in particular to Figure 2B, it can be seen that the rear surface 205 can include one or more upstanding formation that can be used to create a gap between the rear surface and an adjacent surface of a safety helmet to which the second component 202 is fixed in use. In the illustrated example, there is a first, roughly L-shaped, recessed formation 215A spaced apart from the side edge 208B by around 10mm and spaced apart from the upper edge 206A by around 8mm and having a portion that extends beyond the inner edge of the adjacent aperture 211B. There is also a second recessed formation 215B that is a mirror-image of the formation 215A. There is also a further recessed formation 217A, spaced apart from side edge 208B by around 10mm and spaced apart from the lower edge 206B by around 8mm. This formation is roughly rectangular, but with its bottom right-hand comer being generally contoured to correspond to the adjacent formations on the rear surface, such as the surround of slot 214B and aperture 211C. There is also a further recessed formation 217B that is a mirror-image of the formation 217A. The rear surface further includes four more recessed formations 219A, 219B, 219A’, 219B’ which generally correspond in position and size to the formations/tabs 210A, 21 OB, 210A’, 21 OB’. In use, when the second component is fixed to a safety helmet, these upstanding formations can help produce a capillary action so that moisture between the rear surface of the second component and the helmet can drain away, thereby reducing the risk of water damage. In an alternative embodiment, the recesses 219A - 219B’ can include formations, e.g. centrally-located pips (not illustrated), that can fit into the gaps between the side formations 110A, 110A’ and 110B, 11 OB’ of the first component 102 in use, thereby improving the locking function.

Turning to Figure 3, this shows the first component 102, the second component 202 and a safety helmet 302. Examples of a suitable safety helmets include ones in the Evo (TM) and Evolite (TM) ranges produced by JSP Limited, but it will be understood that other helmets could be modified/designed to work with the card holder. A front portion of the helmet includes three apertures (upper two, 304A, 304B, visible only). In the illustrated embodiment, these are in the same positions as apertures used for receiving known lamp bracket fixings, such as those produced by JSP Limited. In the example, the card holder is to be fixed to the front of the helmet, which allows ear defender attachments and visor face-shields to be used without modification. In use, a card (not shown) including identification or other information is inserted into the first component 102 via the slot 107, with the information on the card being visible through the transparent front surface 104. This can be done completely independently of other parts of the assembly and so can assist with re-use of the card holder components.

During assembly, the second component 202 is positioned so that its three apertures 211A - 211C are substantially aligned with the three apertures 304 in the safety helmet. Three push rivets 306A - 306C can then be inserted from inside the helmet and through the apertures in the helmet and the second component, thereby securely fixing the second to the front of the helmet. Examples of suitable rivets include P2130058B from Moss Express Limited. It is possible to remove the push rivets without damaging the card holder and the helmet and so the card holder can be considered removeably fixed to the helmet. Therefore, if the card holder becomes damaged, for example, then the holder can be replaced without the need to replace the helmet as well.

The first component 102, including the card, can be inserted into the second component (typically after that has been fixed to the helmet). The side formations 110 of the first component side behind the side formations 210 of the second component to guide the first component into the second. When the first component has been pushed sufficiently downward, the lower formation 112 engages with the central slot 212, followed by the lower formations 114A, 114B engaging with slots 214A, 214B, thereby releasably locking the first component in the second.

Figure 4 shows the card holder 102, 202 fixed to the helmet 302. When the first component is to be released from the second component, it is possible to undo the locking engagement by pushing back the barbed portion 112 of the central formation, allowing the first component to be pushed up and out of the second component.

Figure 5 shows an alternative embodiment of the first component 102. The main additional feature of this embodiment is formation 502 on the thinned portion 112’ that leads to the barb-shaped formation 112. In the illustrated example, the additional formation comprises a series of spaced-apart raised elongate (vertical) bumps, which, in use, tighten the lock feature when the first and the second 202 components are fitted together. It will be understood that the design of this additional formation could vary, whilst still providing similar improved locking functionality.

It will be understood that many further variations to the card holder described herein are possible. For instance, the first component 102 can be fitted to the second component 202 by means other than the side formations 110, 210, e.g. inter-engaging slots/projections, or a rail/channel arrangement, on the rear surface 105 of the first component and the front surface 204 of the second component, or at locations other than the side edges. Further, the first component can be releasably locked with respect to the second component by different means, e.g. a pivotable hook arrangement or by means of a pin or the like, which need not be at the lower edges of the components. Instead of, or in addition to, the clip 112, a hinged “door” or sealing lid type arrangement on the first component could provide quick access and fitting of a card.

The fixing arrangement for fixing the second component to the helmet can vary from the push rivet and aperture arrangement shown too, e.g. different types of rivets or fixing means could be used. It will also be appreciated that the card holder could be fixed to a different portion of the helmet, e.g. side, and that the number, type and locations of fixing arrangements can differ.

Embodiments of the card holder described herein can be manufactured from readily-available material at relatively low cost. The use of a releasable fixing arrangement, such as the push rivets and apertures, allows the entire card holder to be completely removed/re-used, whilst having the second component 202 securely fixed to the helmet allows different first components 102 to be fitted to the same helmet if desired. This fixing arrangement can also help prevent water from leaking into the helmet. It will be appreciated that in alternative versions, the design of the holder could be varied, but still provide these beneficial effects, e.g. an upper edge of the first component may be open and slid upwardly to close with an upper edge of the second component. Embodiments can be formed without any metal components, which can have safety benefits in terms of electrical insulation. Further, as the top and sides edges of the first component 102 are closed and the lower edge abuts the lower edge of the second component 202 in use, such embodiments can be substantially waterproof and prevent the card from falling out or being damaged in normal use. A gasket or sealing cover could potentially be designed to further “waterproof” the card by way of blocking up any small gap along the top edge of the first component. Similarly, a gasket or cover along the bottom edge could seal against rising moisture. An overmoulded/dual material of plastics and rubber would be an alternative solution.

As the design of the helmet does not require significant modification to work with embodiments of the card holder, its performance in safety tests, such as a lateral deformation test, is not compromised. Design features of the card holder components, such as the left/right hand side formations, the rear surface formation 111, etc, also mean that bowing is reduced in the event of a fall.