US3530506A - Sugar cane goggles - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 29, 1970 a. R. HOFFMASTER 3,530,506

SUGAR CANE GOGGLES Filed Jan. 12. 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 p 1970 G. R. HOFFMASTER 3,530,506

SUGAR CANE GOGGLES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 12. 1968 United States Patent 3,530,506 SUGAR CANE GOGGLES George R. Holfmaster, Reading, Pa., assignor to ESB Incorporated, Reading, Pa. Filed Jan. 12, 1968, Ser. No. 698,684 Int. Cl. A6113 9/02 US. Cl. 2-14 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A safety goggle having a readily attachable and replaceable lens formed of wire mesh or similar material to make it especially useful in tropical climates where greater ventilation and protection of the eyes is needed when the wearer is engaged in tasks such as cutting sugar cane, pineapples, etc.

This invention relates to a safety goggle. More spesifically, this invention relates to a goggle having a ventilated lens to make it suitable for protection of the eyes in tropical climates, such as when cutting sugar cane and the like.

An outstanding disadvantage of industrial safety goggles when used to protect the eyes of tropical climate workers, such as sugar cane cutters, is that their lack of ventilation of the lenses makes it uncomfortably hot to wear and the lenses, when made of either glass or plastic material, will readily break such as when struck forcibly by a falling sugar cane stalk.

An object of the present invention is to obviate the abovenamed disadvantages by providing a simple, efficient and inexpensive goggle which can be quickly and easily fitted with a unitary ventilated lens of 'wire mesh or similar material by means of a very simple and single fastening means.

Another object of the invention is to provide a goggle which can easily and selectively receive either a plastic lens or a wire mesh lens by detaching and attaching a single fastener.

Other objects and advantages will become more apparent from a study of the following description of the invention when taken with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view showing goggles embodying the ventilated safety lens of the present invention and with a portion of the rim shown broken away;

FIG. 2 is a front, elevational view of the ventilated lens shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary, cross-sectional view taken along line III-III of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4, 5, and 6 are front, top and side views, respectively, of a modification of the invention; and

FIG. 7 is a perspective, exploded view of the modification shown in FIGS. 4, and 6.

Referring more particularly to FIG. 1 of the drawing, numeral 1 generally denotes a safety goggle having a rigid one piece frame generally denoted by numeral 2, of plastic or other suitable flexible or semi-flexible material. An integral, flanged feathered portion 11 forming a shield extends along the upper and lower portion of the gOg le so as to conform and closely engage the eye surrounding contour of the forehead, cheeks and nose of the wearer.

A lens 7 is made of a wire mesh, preferably a or to mesh, calendered, anodized aluminum wire screen, although the screen may be made of galvanized steel or other suitable metal or woven plastic material. For use 53,53,506 Patented Sept. 29, 1970 in cutting pineapples, it is preferable to use a 15 mesh .015" wire calendered black, anodized aluminum wire screen. The perimeter of lens 7 is embedded in a plastic rim 8, as seen more clearly in FIG. 3, having a thickness T. Rim 8 is supported in a groove of U shape between flaps or flanges 3 bounded by perimetrical base portion 4. The lens assembly of FIG. 2 is generally denoted by numeral 5.

A plurality of integral, dovetail-shaped tabs 9 are provided along the top front edge of the frame 2 to correspond with similar shaped indentions or cut out portions 10 in lens element 8 (see FIG. 2) so as to provide an interlocking fit between the lens and the frame.

The lens is attached and further secured to the frame by means of a single snap fastener element having a front portion 6 which protrudes through a hole in the wire mesh to cooperate with a rear snap fastener portion 6' of any well known type. In this way, the removable lens 7 is easily and quickly attached and secured to frame 2 by the use of only one small snap fastener element 6, 6'. The combination of the snap fastener element and the dovetail indentations serve to hold the lens securely in place.

FIGS. 4 to 7 inclusive show a modification of the invention wherein the wire screen lens 7a does not have a rim 8, although it should be understood that such rim may be added if desired. Instead of using a snap fastener to attach the lens 7a to the goggle, a stay 12, of metal or plastic material, is used instead. The stay has an enlarged end portion 12b which fits into a correspondingly shaped groove contained within an integral tab 13. The opposite end portion 12a of the stay extends through correspondingly shaped holes formed in the nosepiece portion 14 so that the stay forms a connection between the top central and nosepiece portion of the frame 2.

Lens 7a may be made of metal or perforated or woven transparent plastic material. The side shield may be made of suitable flexible material, such as polyethylene and may be perforated for ventilation if desired.

In the embodiments shown in either ZFIGS.13 or 4-7, an integral thin flexible nose surrounding piece may be added to the nosepiece portion of frame 2 if desired.

Thus it will be seen that I have provided an eflicient goggle having a removable and readily detachable and replaceable wire screen lens to provide ventilation and protection to the eyes when the worker is in tropical climates engaged in tasks such as cutting sugar cane or doing any other task involving the danger of falling stalks or elements that might tend to break or fracture the ordinary glass or plastic lens generally used in goggles.

While I have illustrated and described several embodiments of my invention, it will be understood that this is by way of illustration only, and that various changes and modifications may be made within the contemplation of my invention and within the scope of the following claim.

I claim:

1. A safety goggle, comprising a One-piece frame of flexible plastic material having a rim portion including a nose-surrounding portion and a pair of substantially radially inwardly, extending, closely spaced integral parallel flaps extending throughout the entire periphery, the top portion of said rim portion having integral downwardly projecting tabs between said flaps, a removable unitary lens of mesh screen of black anodized wire of between 10 and 20 mesh inserted into and surrounded by said rim portion, a plastic rirn embedding the perimeter of said screen and conforming to the rim portion of said frame, said plastic rim having a hole therein above the nose surrounding portion of said screen, the top portion of said plastic rim of said screen having slotted grooves which fit into said tabs which are correspondingly shaped, and cooperating snap fastening elements attached to the nose-surrounding portion of said flaps, one of said elements extending through said hole in said plastic rim and engaging with the other of said elements for securing the screen to said flaps and constituting the sole fastening means along the bot- 10 tom portion of said rim portion for detachably fastening said lens to said frame between said flaps.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS McConihay 214.6 Rickerd 2-12 Ring 2-14.4 Parmelee 214.4 Taylor et a1. 2-14.4 Gongoll 2-148 Young 2-14.8 Danowski 2-9 H. HAMPTON HUNTER, Primary Examiner

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