Importance

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Abstract

A helmet that is custom-fitted to a wearer's head, and methods of making the helmet, are provided A method includes the steps of positioning a shape-forming means over the wearer's head, and hardening the shape-forming means to provide a hardened headform that substantially conforms to the shape of the wearer's head. The shape-forming means can be a stretchable beanie cap that is coated or impregnated with a curable polymeric material, a heat-softenable plastic sheet, or a strip or plurality of strips of curable tape that are wrapped about the wearer's head to provide a headwrap. Once the hardened headform has been made, it can be used to cast a hardened plaster fixture for use as the 'male' member in a mold for casting an energy absorbing foam liner for a helmet which has an inner surface substantially conforming to the shape of the wearer's head. Alternatively, the hardened headform can itself be used as the 'male' member of the liner casting mold. In a further alternative, the hardened headform can be digitized to produce computer-readable data from which a suitable machine, such as a CNC router, can machine a pre-made energy absorbing liner 'blank' so as to provide an inner surface thereof having a complementary contour to the wearer's head.

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First Claim