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This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/009,535, filed Dec. 31, 2007, which application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to protective visors, and more particularly to a protective visor in the form of a splash-shield for protecting a person's face, eyes, nose and ears from water and soap and other liquids or hairdressing preparations.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In addition to the discomfort and annoyance of having water splash or trickle on the face and clothes, various hair and scalp treatments may involve the use of certain liquids and substances that can cause significant irritation to skin, eyes, nose, and ears of the person who is being treated. In the past, a number of devices have been suggested to overcome these problems. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,481,680 to Mason et al. discloses a visor with a gutter to channel water away from the face and neck. The problem with this and similar devices is that water can still splash over the rim and run down the face or on clothing, because the rim slopes downwardly and is relatively small. Another device, U.S. Pat. No. 7,310,827, to Ciesinski et al., discloses a device that must be held in place by means of an integral handle. This device does not allow practical use by the person whose hair is being washed or treated, because of the need for one hand to hold the device in place.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a splash-shield to protect the user's skin, eyes, nose, and ears from water and soap and other liquids or hairdressing preparations.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a splash-shield that effectively keeps water, soap, and other irritating hairdressing preparations out of the face, eyes, nose, and ears of the person who is being treated.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a splash-shield that is economical to manufacture, flexible, and easy to use by either the wearer or an assistant.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a splash-shield that is particularly well suited to use by children, the elderly, or infirmed, thereby avoiding the difficulties often encountered by these individuals.
The above-mentioned objectives are met by providing a soft, flexible, generally crescent-shaped splash-shield body having two opposed, arcuate edges, one edge defining the top, the other edge defining the bottom, that encircle and conform to the wearer's head, which is fastened behind the ears, just above the base of the neck. A bowl-shape, flared upwardly, is thus created, when the splash-shield is fastened around the wearer's head, having a tapered profile from front to back, with the tallest wall or portion above the forehead, and the lateral walls tapering toward the back of the head, above the ears. A seal comprised of a narrow, flexible strip is affixed along the inside, bottom edge, centered just above the wearer's forehead, and extending to points just above the ears, thus preventing liquid from passing between the area of contact between the splash-shield and the wearer's head.
The visor, or tallest wall portion, of the splash-shield of this invention projects substantially straight upward, rather than outward or downward as is usually the case in prior art devices.
A means of fastening is provided to secure the splash-shield to the wearer's head, and to provide sufficient pressure at the area of contact to create a liquid-tight seal.
The invention is a protective piece worn on the head to protect the user from water, shampoo and other solutions getting into the eyes, face and ears. The splash-shield is particularly useful for infants and children, but is also useful for adults, especially elderly or handicapped persons who need assistance to wash their hair or receive other hair treatments. It is placed on the head just above the eyes and held secure by two straps connected by Velcro strips. The height of the splash-shield projecting upward, provides sufficient space and protection to wash the hair and then rinse, by tipping the head backward to allow the liquid to run down the individual wearer's back. Because the splash-shield fit is firmly secured to the wearer, the parent or attendant has both hands free to perform the wash and/or treatment.
The present invention may be better understood by reading the detailed description of the preferred embodiment with reference made to the drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 is a flattened, orthogonal, profile view of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a rear, perspective view of the present invention depicting the positioning on, and method of attachment to, the wearer's head.
FIG. 3 is a side-profile view of the present invention attached to the wearer's head.
With reference to the drawings, the following detailed description is of the preferred embodiment of carrying out the invention. This description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for illustrating the general principles of the invention.
Referring now to FIG. 1, the splash-shield 1 (inside view) consists of a soft, elastic material that is substantially crescent-shaped when lying flat. This crescent-shape is defined along the top by a convex edge 2, and along the bottom by a concave edge 3. In the present embodiment, the splash-shield 1 is composed of ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) foam. A sealing strip 4, composed of similar material to the main body of the splash-shield 1, is affixed by sewing it to the bottom, inside of concave edge 3 edge of the body of splash-shield 1. Other means may be sued to affix sealing strip 4, such as an adhesive.
This sealing strip 4, compresses around the head of the wearer when the splash-shield 1 is in use, forming a liquid-tight seal. At the apices 5 of the splash-shield 1, extend one long strap 6, and one short strap 7. Affixed to these straps 6 and 7 are fastening means, consisting of rectangular pieces of hook-and-loop fasteners 8 and 9. In the preferred embodiment, the loop-type fastener 8 is affixed to the long strap 6, and hook-type fastener 9 is affixed to the short strap 7 to minimize contamination of the hook-type fastener 9 with lint, hair, or other debris. Additionally, the long strap allows the splash-shield 1 to be fitted firmly to heads of different sizes and shapes.
Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, in use, the sealing strip 4 along the inside bottom edge 3 of the tallest portion 10 of the splash-shield 1 is placed against the wearer's forehead, while the splash-shield 1 is wrapped around the circumference of the head, above the ears 11. The straps 6 and 7 are then drawn together firmly above or below the hair at the back of the head 12, depending upon length thereof, with the longer strap 6 overlapping the shorter strap 7. The straps 6 and 7 are then pressed together, thus creating a liquid-tight seal around the wearer's head.
FIG. 3 illustrates splash-shield 1 attached to a wearer in side-profile. It can be seen that the tallest portion 10 of the splash-shield 1 is above the forehead, preventing liquid from splashing into the wearer's face, while the tapered walls 13 above the ears, protect the ears against liquid or other substance from entering them. As liquid or other substance accumulates above splash-shield 1, it drains out the back 14 of splash-shield 1.
The presently disclosed embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims, rather than the foregoing description, and all changes that come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.