# US 2014/0150168 A1 · Pivoting Dual Chin Strap Snap Feature for Football Helmet > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2014/0150168 A1 - Document ID: US20140150168A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 13/691,083 - Filed: 2012-11-30 - Published: 2014-06-05 - Earliest claimed: 2012-11-30 - Assignees: Kranos IP Corporation - Applicants: Kranos IP Corporation - Inventors: Robert ERB; Cortney WARMOUTH; Vincent R. LONG; Louis Anthony VANHOUTIN - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140150168A1 ## CPC - A42B 3/08: Chin straps or similar retention devices - A42B: HATS; HEAD COVERINGS (headbands A41D20/00; head-scarves A41D23/00) ## Abstract A football helmet having a shell, and having a chin protector with chin cup and chin straps, has dual snaps on its chin strap buckles and dual snaps on each side of the helmet shell for improving the snap connection between the chin straps and the helmet to reduce the chances the helmet wearer will loose the helmet during play. Dual snaps on the sides of the helmet are carried on pivoting snap carriers to allow the chin protector to rotate with respect to the helmet shell. ## Claims ### Claim 1 In a football helmet combination (10) having a rigid plastic shell (12) adapted to cover the head of a wearer and a chin protector (30) adapted to cover the chin of the wearer and to hold the shell to the wearer's head, the rigid shell having an outer surface with a front portion (14), a crown portion (16), a pair of opposite side portions (18), a back portion (20), and a face mask (80), the chin protector having a chin cup (32) and at least one pair of chin straps (34) connected to the chin cup and extending to the opposite side portions of the shell, the improvement comprising: a plurality of buckles (40) each having connector means (42) for connecting each buckle at a location along a length of one of the chin straps (34), each buckle having a pair of first snaps (44), each snap of the pair of first the snaps (44) being selected from the group consisting of a male type and female type; at least one snaps set (50) on each of the opposite sides (18) of the shell, each of the snaps set (50) adapted for snapping connection to one of the buckles, each snap set comprising a pair of second snaps (54) being spaced the same distance apart as a pair of first snaps on the buckle to be engaged, each of the pair of the second snaps being selected from the group consisting of a male type and a female type and being adapted to snap to a respective first snap on the buckle to be engaged; wherein each snaps set (50) is rotatably attached to the rigid plastic shell (12) by a pivoting connector (56); and wherein the first snaps (44) and second snaps (54) are adapted for securely and reversably snap connecting each chin strap (34) to a side portion (18) of the shell (12) via a buckle (40) and a snaps set (50). ### Claim 2 A football helmet combination comprising: a rigid plastic shell (12) comprising a front portion (14), a crown portion (16), a pair of opposite side portions (18), and a back portion (20); a face mask (80); a chin protector (30) having a chin cup (32) and at least one pair of chin straps (34) connected to the chin cup and extending to the opposite side portions (18) of the shell (12); a plurality of buckles (40), each buckle having connector means (42) for connecting to a chin strap (34), each buckle having a pair of first snaps (44), each snap selected from one of a male type and a female type; each shell side portion (18) comprising at least one pair of second snaps (54) adapted for reversably connecting to a pair of first snaps (44) on a buckle (40), each pair of second snaps (54) being adapted to thereby reversably connect a single chin strap (34) to the shell (12) via a buckle (40); wherein each of the second snaps (54) is selected from one of a male type and a female type selected to snap to a respective first snap of the buckle. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The football helmet combination of claim 2, wherein each side portion (18) of the rigid plastic shell (12) comprises at least one snaps set (50), each snaps set comprising a pair of the second snaps (54) adapted for reversably connecting to a pair of the first snaps (44). ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The football helmet combination of claim 2, wherein each side portion (18) of the rigid plastic shell (12) comprises at least one snaps set (50) which is rotatably attached to the rigid plastic shell (12) by a pivoting connector (56). ### Claim 5 (depends on 3) The football helmet combination of claim 3: wherein each side portion (18) of the rigid plastic shell (12) comprises two snaps sets (50). ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The football helmet combination of claim 5: wherein the chin protector (30) comprises four chin straps (34) each chin strap (34) being engaged to one of four buckles (40); and wherein each of the four buckles is adapted for reversible engagement with one of the snaps sets (50) using first snaps (44) and second snaps (54). ### Claim 7 (depends on 5) The football helmet combination of claim 5, wherein each side portion (18) of the rigid plastic shell comprises at least one snaps set (50) which is rotatable with respect to the shell. ### Claim 8 (depends on 4) The football helmet combination of claim 4: wherein the pivoting connectors (56) each comprise a screw (61), a washer (62), and a nut (60), the screw passing through the thickness of the helmet shell (12) and a snaps set (50); and wherein the pivoting connectors are adapted to allow their respective snaps sets (50) to rotate about the axis of the screw (61). ### Claim 9 (depends on 4) The football helmet combination of claim 4, wherein the snaps sets (50) are rotatable and each comprise two second snaps, the second snaps being provided on opposite sides of the pivoting connector (56), and the pivoting connector being between the two second snaps. ### Claim 10 (depends on 2) The football helmet combination of claim 2, wherein the distance between the snaps in each set of first snaps (44) is the same as the distance between the snaps in each set of second snaps (54). ### Claim 11 (depends on 4) The football helmet combination of claim 4, wherein the distance between the snaps in each set of first snaps (44) is the same as the distance between the snaps in each set of second snaps (54). ### Claim 12 (depends on 4) The football helmet combination of claim 4, wherein each set of first snaps (44) comprises two female type snaps, and wherein each set of second snaps (54) comprises two male type snaps. ### Claim 13 (depends on 4) The football helmet combination of claim 4, wherein each set of first (44) snaps comprises two male type snaps, and wherein each set of second snaps (54) comprises two female type snaps. ### Claim 14 (depends on 4) The football helmet combination of claim 4, wherein each set of first (44) snaps and each set of second snaps (54) each comprise both one male type snap, and one female type snap. ### Claim 15 (depends on 4) The football helmet combination of claim 4, wherein the connector means (42) of the buckles (40) comprise slots for slidably receiving chin straps (34). ### Claim 16 (depends on 4) The football helmet combination of claim 4: wherein the connector means (42) of the buckles (40) each comprise slots for slidably receiving chin straps (34), the buckles being adapted to slide along the chin straps (34) and thereby adjust the location of the buckles (40) along the chin straps (34); wherein all snaps set (50) are rotatable with respect to the helmet shell (12); and wherein a position of the chin cup (32) relative to the helmet shell (12) is adjustable by sliding the buckles (40) along the chin straps (34) to control the distance between the snaps set (50) and the chin cup (32), and by rotating the snaps sets (50) and chin straps (34) engaged thereto to rotate the chin cup (32) with respect to the helmet shell (12). ### Claim 17 (depends on 2) The football helmet combination of claim 2, wherein the connector means (42) of the buckles (40) comprises slots for slidably receiving chin straps (34).