Apparel – Head coverings – Combined with diverse article
Reexamination Certificate
2000-11-22
2001-10-30
Calvert, John J. (Department: 3741)
Apparel
Head coverings
Combined with diverse article
C002S010000, C002SDIG001
Reexamination Certificate
active
06308336
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to headgear. More specifically, it relates to headgear wherein the brim or sunshade portion of the hat is not connected directly to the front portion of the hat proximate the user's forehead, but is only attached at the sides of the hat, i.e. proximate the user's ears. This shading portion of the hat is angled to provide both protection from the sun and to prevent the cap or hat from being dislodged by the wind.
2. Description of the Prior Art
One of the primary disadvantages of current hats or caps is their tendency to be blown off during periods of high wind. The brim of the hat, or the portion designed to protect the user's eyes and forehead from the wind, creates a lifting surface that tends to lift the hat off the head. One of the comic standards of the silent film era is that of the hatless man chasing the errant item of apparel down the street during a windstorm, coming tantalizingly close before nature again blows the hat out of reach.
A common solution to this problem, especially in the case of women's headgear is the hatpin, that attaches the item to the user's hair. In the case of a man's shorter hair, or hair that is not sufficiently thick or piled up on the head, this will not work. Bands or cords that are tied or are elastically connected under the user's chin have also been used to address the problem, as in the case of many “cowboy hats”.
The present invention presents a novel solution to this problem, as it shields the eyes and forehead of the user from the sun, but this novel visor or brim is generally planar and a space is left between the body of the cap and the bill/visor The leading and trailing edges of the brim are set at such an angle as to exert force on the cap in a downward direction; i.e. to press the cap more firmly onto the user's head. The angle is set between 25° and 65°, with the optimum angle being 45°.
During a search at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, a number of relevant patents were uncovered and they will be discussed below.
First is U.S. Pat. No. 2,874,387 issued to Constance Bannister et al. on Feb. 24, 1959 discloses a visor cap in which a plurality of slats or panels is provided to redirect the flow of air, thus preventing the cap from being blown off by the pressure of the wind. Unlike the present invention, there is no teaching of the brim being substantially completely detached from the front portion of the cap body, creating a large single space or passage to direct the airflow.
Next is U.S. Pat. No. 5,487,191 issued to Robert L. Ridley on Jan. 30, 1996. This discloses a vented visor cap that is unlike the present invention in that the bill or brim of the Ridley cap is clearly attached to the body of the cap itself proximate the front thereof.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,778,454 issued on Jul. 14, 1998 to Scott E. Oxman there is disclosed a visor cap having a cross-section that, from the front end to the rear end, resembles an inverted airfoil. This, like the Ridley patent above, is dissimilar from the present invention in that there is no teaching of the bill or visor being attached only at the sides of the body of the cap as is seen in the instant invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,898,935 issued to Michael B. Davis on May 4, 1999 discloses a cap having an adjustable and interchangeable visor. The novel construction of the visor or brim seen in the instant invention is not seen in this patent.
Lastly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,943,704 issued on Aug. 1, 1999 to Scott E. Oxman, being a divisional case of the '454 patent, above discloses a visor cap. This is an attachment to a visor cap that is itself an airfoil in cross-section. As in all the other patents discussed here, this also does not teach the unique structure of applicant's brim, which is located such that an air space is created between the brim and the cap body.
Thus, while the foregoing overview of prior art indicates it to be well known to modify or shape visor bills or brims to allow air to flow through them, or to be deflected via an airfoil to prevent the hat from being blown off in a high wind, none of the inventions discussed above, either alone or in combination, describe the instant invention as claimed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
To achieve the foregoing and other advantages, the present invention, briefly described, provides a visor or cap brim that prevents the pressure of the wind from blowing the cap off of the user's head. The visor portion is a generally planar surface that is held out away from the front of the cap portion that sits on the user's head. This creates a single large passage between the visor/bill and the cap and the visor/bill is held at such an angle that it acts a “spoiler” to press the hat down more firmly on the user's head in a high wind while at the same time shading the eyes and forehead from the sun. The visor portion of the cap is removably attached to a semi-rigid headband that encircles the base of the main body of the cap. This attachment is accomplished by either a resilient clip or a mortise taper connection at the terminal ends of a pair of arms attached to the visor portion.
Thus it is a principal object of the invention to provide an article of headgear having airflow characteristics that overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an article of headgear having airflow characteristics wherein the brim or visor portion is a generally planar, rectangular surface.
Still yet a further object of the invention is to provide a an article of headgear having airflow characteristics wherein the visor or brim portion is held in a spaced off relationship is respect to the main body of the cap creating a single air directing channel therebetween.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a an article of headgear having airflow characteristics that, in the first embodiment of the invention, the brim or visor portion is removably attachable to the main body of the cap through a pair of arms that terminate in resiliently deformable clips that snap into place on the sides of the main body of the cap.
Still yet another object of the invention is to provide an article of headgear having airflow characteristics that, in the second embodiment of the invention, the brim or visor portion of the is removably attachable to the main body of the cap through a similar pair of arms as discussed above, but wherein the arms terminate in a mortise taper connection.
And still yet another object of the invention is to provide an article of headgear having airflow characteristics wherein the alms attaching the brim or visor portion of the cap are attached to a semi-rigid headband portion that encircles the base of the main body of the cap.
These together with still other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there are illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention.
REFERENCES:
patent: 264574 (1882-09-01), Shone
patent: 1832747 (1931-11-01), Spoljarich
patent: 2874387 (1959-02-01), Bannister et al.
patent: 3605115 (1971-09-01), Bohner
patent: 4179753 (1979-12-01), Aronberg et al.
patent: 5373583 (1994-12-01), Birum
patent: 5473778 (1995-12-01), Bell
patent: 5487191 (1996-01-01), Ridley
patent: 5778454 (1998-07-01), Oxman
patent: 5898935 (1999-05-01), Davis
patent: 5943704 (1999-08-01), Oxman
patent: 6216282 (2001-04-01), Marzec
patent: 6237159 (2001-05-01), Martin
Dickerson William
Stephenson Michael
Calvert John J.
Moran Katherine
Papan Devnani Esq.
Shroff C. C.
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