Helmet with partial turn faceguard mounting

A protective helmet, comprising:

• a helmet shell (12) having opposite sides (28) and a crown (30) with front edges defining a front opening for exposing the face of a wearer of the helmet, the opposite sides and the crown each containing a hole (32) through the helmet shell and adjacent the front opening;
• a faceguard (16) comprising a plurality of elongated wire segments (18) that are connected to each other, the faceguard extending across the opposite sides and downwardly from the crown of the helmet shell for covering at least a portion of the front opening;
• a first loopstrap (24) engaged around one wire segment (76) of the faceguard that has at least a portion that is adjacent one side (28) of the helmet shell (12) on one side of the front opening;
• a second loopstrap (25) engaged around one wire segment of the faceguard that is adjacent an opposite side of the helmet shell on an opposite side of the front opening;
• a third loopstrap (20) engaged around one wire segment (76) of the faceguard that has at least a portion that is adjacent the crown (30) of the helmet shell at a top of the front opening;
• each loopstrap having a curved loop (50) for receiving the wire segment to hold the loopstrap to the faceguard, and first (52) and second (54) elongated straps extending parallel to each other and from the loop (50), the straps (52, 54) each containing an aperture (56) spaced from the wire segment that is received in the loop, the apertures being aligned with each other, the first strap (52) lying adjacent the helmet shell (12) and the second strap (54) being spaced from the helmet shell, each of the aligned apertures of one loopstrap being over and aligned with one of the holes (32) of the sides or crown of the helmet shell;
• and
• a fastener extending through each set of the aligned apertures and helmet shell holes for connected the faceguard to the helmet shell;
• at least the fasteners extending through the loopstrap apertures and helmet shell hole of the opposite sides of the helmet shell comprising:
• a nut (72) extending from an inside of the helmet shell out into the hole and into at least the aperture of the first strap (52);
• a stud (70) removably connected to the nut and extending from an outside of the helmet shell, into the aperture of the second strap (54) and into the nut (72);
• partial turn means between the nut and the stud for locking the stud to the nut when the stud is rotated by less than one half a revolution of the stud about its axis;
• at least a portion of the outer surface of nut being non-circular and being closely engaged to an inner surface of the aperture of the first strap which is also non-circular so that the nut will not rotate in the aperture of the first strap when the stud is rotated;
• and
• a tension spring (90) between the stud and the nut for urging the stud away from the nut when the stud is rotated to unlock the stud from the nut for facilitating a quick removal of the stud from the nut and a quick disconnection of the loopstrap from the helmet shell;
• the partial turn means being a quarter turn means and the fasteners of all of the loopstraps being of the same type;
• each stud comprising an axial shaft (71) and the nut comprising a barrel having an interior for receiving the shaft of the stud;
• the quarter turn means comprising a locking pin (74) extending across the nut interior and the stud having a 90 degree helically twisting and radially extending channel (73) that opens at a free end (75) of the shaft for receiving the locking pin and twists in a partial turn in the shaft in a first axial direction away from the free end of the shaft to a blind base of the channel (77) where the channel forms a seat for the locking pin (74) that extends in a second opposite axial direction, the tension spring urging the locking pin to remain in the blind base of the channel, the stud having an enlarged head (78) connected to the shaft for engaging the second strap to fix a position of the stud in the aligned apertures of the loopstrap, and the nut having a head (79) connected to the barrel of engaging the helmet shell to fix a position of the nut in the helmet shell hole, the stud head (78) having an outer surface opposite for the free end with at least one screw-driver engaging opening (80, 82) therein.

A protective helmet, comprising:

• a helmet shell (12) having opposite sides (28) and a crown (30) with front edges defining a front opening for exposing the face of a wearer of the helmet, the opposite sides and the crown each containing a hole (32) through the helmet shell and adjacent the front opening;
• a faceguard (16) comprising a plurality of elongated wire segments (18) that are connected to each other, the faceguard extending across the opposite sides and downwardly from the crown of the helmet shell for covering at least a portion of the front opening;
• a first loopstrap (24) engaged around one wire segment (76) of the faceguard that has at least a portion that is adjacent one side (28) of the helmet shell (12) on one side of the front opening;
• a second loopstrap (25) engaged around one wire segment of the faceguard that is adjacent an opposite side of the helmet shell on an opposite side of the front opening;
• a third loopstrap (20) engaged around one wire segment (76) of the faceguard that has at least a portion that is adjacent the crown (30) of the helmet shell at a top of the front opening;
• each loopstrap having a curved loop (50) for receiving the wire segment to hold the loopstrap to the faceguard, and first (52) and second (54) elongated straps extending parallel to each other and from the loop (50), the straps (52, 54) each containing an aperture (56) spaced from the wire segment that is received in the loop, the apertures being aligned with each other, the first strap (52) lying adjacent the helmet shell (12) and the second strap (54) being spaced from the helmet shell, each of the aligned apertures of one loopstrap being over and aligned with one of the holes (32) of the sides or crown of the helmet shell;
• and
• a fastener extending through each set of the aligned apertures and helmet shell hole for connected the faceguard to the helmet shell;
• the fasteners each comprising:
• a nut (72) extending into the hole;
• a stud (70) removably connected to the nut and extending at least into the aperture of the second strap (54) and into the nut (72);
• quarter turn means between the nut and the stud for locking the stud to the nut when the stud is rotated by less than one half a revolution of the stud about its axis;
• and
• a tension spring (90) between the stud and the nut for urging the stud away from the nut when the stud is rotated to unlock the stud from the nut for facilitating a quick removal of the stud from the nut and a quick disconnection of the loopstrap and faceguard from the helmet shell.