This invention relates generally to an illumination system for a safety helmet and, more particularly but not necessarily exclusively, to an illumination system for a safety helmet for use in potentially hazardous environments such as construction sites, roadwork sites, and the like.

Operatives working in potentially hazardous environments, such as construction sites and the like, are required by statute in most jurisdictions worldwide to wear a safety helmet or 'hard hat' to prevent severe head trauma in the event of an accident. Numerous different types of such safety helmets are widely known and extensively used throughout various industries.

Various light emitting devices and systems have been proposed and used in relation to safety helmets. For example, headlamps of various sizes and configurations have been provided, wherein an operative can mount such a headlamp to their safety helmet so as to provide a focused beam of light which not only provides a source of light to facilitate certain tasks, but also improves their visibility within the working environment.

Indeed, there is an ongoing desire and need to improve visibility of operatives within certain potentially hazardous sites, that operate throughout the night in busy and hazardous conditions. Serious, sometimes fatal, accidents have been known to occur on such sites and lack of visibility is believed to have been a major contributing factor in many cases.

A significant drawback of the above-described, helmet-mounted headlamps in relation to operative visibility is that the brightness of the source may glare and be too blinding for other operatives to face the wearer directly.

Various types of personal protective equipment (PPE) exist for enhancing user visibility, whereby reflective strips/stickers may be provided on garmets worn on-site by an operative, including their safety helmet. The reflective strips reflect light from an external source such that they appear illuminated and improve the wearer's visibility. However, such systems are, of course, passive systems that rely on an external light source to illuminate reflective portions thereof and provide limited personal illumination in terms of intensity and scope. Furthermore, illumination created by the use of reflective strips cannot be controlled in any way. US Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0043795A1 describes a light emitting system for headgear. The system comprises a ring or 'halo' of LEDs designed to be mounted around the base of a safety helmet. The use of a plurality of LEDs in this manner is intended, not only to provide a user with 360° visibility, but also provide enhanced lighting within their personal workspace to facilitate certain tasks. However, as a result, the system adds a significant weight to a user's headgear, that may become uncomfortable over time.

Furthermore, a relatively large power supply is required to operate numerous LEDs continuously or a useful period of time, which further increases the overall weight of the system, as well as the cost. It is an object of aspects of the present invention to address at least some of these issues and, in accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an illumination system for a safety helmet, said illumination system comprising at least one generally tubular light guide formed of a light transmissive fibre-optic material, said light guide being configured to be mounted on a safety helmet so as to have a proximal wall adjacent a surface of said safety helmet and an opposing distal wall, the illumination system further comprising at least one light emitting device coupled at an input to said light guide, wherein an inner surface of said proximal wall of said light guide is provided with at least one refractive portion configured to converge light incident thereon from said light emitting device onto said distal wall so as to create a discrete illuminated portion thereon, in use. In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the system may comprise at least two generally tubular light guides with a light emitting device coupled at a respective input of each of said light guides, wherein each light guide is configured to be mounted on a respective side of a safety helmet and has a respective refractive portion on the inner surface of a proximal wall thereof. The system may further comprise a power supply module coupled to said light emitting devices. Optionally, the system may further comprise a housing in which said power supply and light emitting devices are housed, and from which said light guides extend. The housing may be configured to be mounted, removably or otherwise, on a rear surface of said safety helmet such that said light guides extend around respective sides of said safety helmet, in use, toward an opposing front surface thereof. Thus, in one exemplary embodiment of the invention, the system comprises a pair of fibre-optic light guides, wherein each light guide has a light source at its input and, in use, extends around a respective side wall of a safety helmet (either from the back to the front or vice versa). This is particularly advantageous, as it reduces the path length that the light from the light emitting devices has to travel (by half) in order to provide a complete ring or 'halo' around the base of a safety helmet. Thus, the size/power of the required light emitting devices can be significantly reduced, without loss of brightness. In an exemplary embodiment of the system, the or each light guide may have a plurality of refractive portions provided on the inner surface of its proximal wall, said refractive portions being arranged in spaced apart relation along its length such that, in use, a plurality of discrete illuminated portions are created on a distal wall of a respective light guide. Thus, rather than providing a continuous fibre-optic strip of lighting, or a set of aligned LEDs, the present invention proposes the use of one or more light guides configured to use a single light emitting device to create one or more illuminated portions, giving the impression of discrete light sources, but without the power and weight overhead otherwise required.

The system may further comprise a control module for effecting intermittent illumination of the or each light emitting device. The control module may be configured to enable the or each light emitting device to be operated in one of a plurality of operating modes. Such operating modes may include continuous, slow flash and fast flash. The control module may include a manually operable selection device for enabling a user to select an operating mode. A system according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention may be configured to be removably mounted for use on a surface of a safety helmet. In an exemplary

embodiment, an outer surface of said proximal wall of the or each light guide and/or an adjacent surface of said safety helmet may be provided with a reflective portion for reflecting light incident thereon toward a distal wall of a respective light guide. The or each light emitting device may be a light emitting diode, and optionally an orange or amber LED, on the basis that orange/amber light is generally more visible to the human eye.

In an exemplary embodiment, the or each discontinuity provided on a respective inner surface of the proximal wall of a respective light guide may comprise an engraved portion. The engraved portion may be in the configuration of a logo, shape or word, such that the respective illuminated portion created, in use, at a distal wall of a respective light guide corresponds substantially with the logo, shape or word of said engraved portion.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a safety helmet having mounted thereon an illumination system substantially as described above.

In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a kit of parts comprising a safety helmet and an illumination system substantially as described above configured to be removably mounted on a surface of said safety helmet.

These and other aspects of the present invention will be apparent from the following specific description, in which embodiments of the present invention are described, by way of examples only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic rear view of a safety helmet having an illumination system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention mounted thereon;

Figure 2 is a schematic perspective side view of the safety helmet of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a schematic front view of the safety helmet of Figures 1 and 2;

Figure 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a fibre-optic cable of an illumination system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 5 is a schematic illustration of an illumination system according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; and

Figure 5 A is an enlarged schematic illustration of the portion marked A in Figure 5.

Referring to Figures 1 to 5 of the drawings, an illumination system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may, advantageously, be removably mounted on a safety helmet or 'hard hat' 10. A hard hat 10 is routinely used in the construction industry, for example, to protect a user's head from falling objects or other impacts. A hard hat is typically a rigid structure having a crown portion 12, that defines a head receiving cavity, and a brim 14 extending from a lower peripheral portion 16. Various projections, ridges and other structures may be formed in the hard hat 10 to provide additional rigidity or other functionality. For example, a set of raised ribs 20 may be provided generally centrally across the top of the crown portion 12 (extending from the rear), having side edges in which are defined ventilation holes 22. Additionally, although not shown, it is common to provide connector members at the lower peripheral portion 16 of the hard hat 10, to enable an internal strap/harness assembly to be affixed for use within the head receiving cavity of the crown portion 12.

An illumination system 18 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention comprises a housing 22 within which is provided a power supply (not shown), such as a USB rechargeable Lithium Polymer (LiPo) battery, a pair of orange or amber light emitting diodes (LEDs) (not shown) oriented to emit light into the fibre optic cables (24a, 24b to be described hereinafter), and a third LED directed downwardly to provide an illumination light for the charging port of the battery. Although other battery types could be used and the present invention is not necessarily intended to be limited in this regard, the LiPo battery is considered to be advantageous as it enables a relatively very lightweight battery box to be provided, and is largely resistant to physical trauma.

Extending from the housing 22, there is provided a pair of generally tubular light transmissive fibre-optic cables 24a, 24b. Such cables may be formed of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) with a high UV stability specification (to mitigate degradation or 'yellowing' due to exposure to UV radiation). Each cable 24a, 24b extends from a respective one of opposing side edges of the housing. The (proximal) end of each fibre-optic cable 24a, 24b, located within the housing 22, is its input end, which is coupled to a respective LED. The distal ends of the cables 24a, 24b may be connected to a releasable connector member 26, such as a clasp, catch or clip member, to form a closed loop in use. When in use, the fibre optic cables may terminate at respective sides of the helmet, close to the front section (i.e. at the connection with the connector member 26. The terminated ends of the fibre-optic cables may be provided with a mirror cap (i.e. a reflective end portion) that acts to reflect any unused light back down the fibre-optic cable, to enhance the luminosity output of the system and increase the useful visibility distance of thereof. The terminated ends are located within the respective portions of the connector member so the mirror cap may be provided as a coating on the inner or outer surface of the end of the fibre-optic cable itself, or at a convenient location within the respective connector member portion.

The illumination system 18 is removably mounted on the hard hat 10 by affixing the housing 22 to the rear surface of the hard hat 10, at or near the rear lower peripheral edge, arranging the fibre-optic cables 24a, 24b around respective sides of the hard hat 10, and then securing the distal ends of the cables at the front of the hard hat 10 using the connector member 26 to close the loop. Small portions of adhesive could be used to secure the illumination system directly to the helmet or to small clips provided thereon for this purpose, or releasable clips or clasps could be employed to retain the illumination system on the helmet for use, but this is not necessarily essential. The hard hat 10 may be provided with a recess that extends around the periphery of the crown portion 12 at or near its lower peripheral edge 16. Such a recess may be shaped and configured to receive and retain a respective fibre-optic cable 24a, 24b therein when the system is mounted for use on the hard hat 10. However, in alternative exemplary

embodiments, no recess is necessary, and the illumination system can be provided on existing helmet designs, without modification. The cross-section of the fibre-optic cable may be substantially circular, but may advantageously be substantially semi-circular, with a flat 'rear' surface (against the surface of the helmet, in use) and a convex opposing front surface, as illustrated schematically in Figure 4A of the drawings. Thus, in use, when mounted on the hard hat, the flat surface lies substantially flush against the outer surface of the hard hat.

As shown additionally in Figure 5 of the drawings, the rear surface of each fibre-optic cable 24a, 24b is provided with a plurality of refractive portions 30 in spaced apart relation along its length. The refractive portions 30 are illustrated as raised portions in Figure 5, but this is purely for clarity and, whilst not essential, it is envisaged that the refractive portions 30 may, in fact, be formed by engraving a pattern on the inner surface of the fibre-optic cable 24a, 24b. Such engraving may, for example, take the form of a logo, word, letter, number, symbol, shape, picture, etc but the present invention is in no way intended to be limited in this regard. In an exemplary embodiment, the engravings may be substantially 12mm wide, 3mm high and 30mm apart, which is considered to provide an advantageous surface area coverage for extensive light refraction to occur, and provide highly visible illumination all the way along each fibre-optic cable.

The refractive portions 30 are provided on the inner surface of the wall 3 la of the fibre-optic cable that is immediately adjacent the hard hat surface when the system is mounted thereon for use (hereinafter referred to as the 'proximal wall'). In use, and referring additionally to Figure 5A of the drawings, light 32 from a respective LED travels along a respective fibre-optic cable until it reaches a refractive portion 30. A portion of the light 32 is refracted by each respective refractive portion 30, and converged onto the opposing distal wall 3 lb of the fibre-optic cable so as to create a discrete visible illuminated portion which may correspond in appearance to the configuration of the respective refractive portion 30. A reflective coating (not shown), e.g. a silver coloured reflective sticker, may be provided on the outer surface of the proximal wall 3 la of each fibre-optic cable (immediately adjacent the outer surface of the hard hat, in use), and/or such a layer or coating may be provided on the surface of the hard hat 10 (immediately adjacent the proximal wall of the fibre-optic cables, in use), in order to further enhance the brightness of the resultant illuminated portion by reflecting any light that escapes through the proximal wall of the fibre-optic cable back toward the opposing distal wall.

It is envisaged that the housing 22 may have therein a control module (not shown, comprising a microcontroller and a toggle switch or other selection means, wherein the microcontroller is coupled to the LEDs to control their operation between a plurality of selectable modes of operation. For example, there may be three selectable modes of operation, each accessible in turn by repeated manual actuation of the toggle switch. The first mode of operation might be ' Slow flash', i.e. the LEDs are intermittently operated, with a relatively long 'off period between flashes. This mode might be used to provide a maximum battery life (possibly up to 100 hours). A second mode of operation might be 'Fast flash', wherein the LEDs are once again intermittently operated, but with a much shorter 'off period between flashes, to provide a battery life of said 40 hours. Finally, a third mode of operation may be termed 'static', whereby the LEDs are permanently on for the entire period of use of the system, giving a limited battery life of, say, 10 hours or so.

The luminous intensity range provided by a system employing orange/amber LEDs and including a silver coloured reflective sticker at the proximal wall of the fibre-optic cables may be 0.24 to 1.23 mcd, and the borderline visibility distance provided in 'slow flash' mode might be 60metres, in 'fast flash' mode around 70 metres, and in constant mode around 80 metres, whereas the useful visibility distance in darkness for the same three modes might be 28, 33 metres and 40 metres respectively. Advantageously, the entire system may be substantially waterproof, to enable it to function effectively in poor weather conditions and/or wet environments. The entire system can be made relatively low weight, at around 50 grams, due to the configuration and small number of light weight components required to be used, and in direct contrast to prior art systems that may provide similar functionality in an entirely different way. The above-mentioned control module may be used to provide some additional functionality to the system, as required. For example, a motion detection sensor may be provided and the signals therefrom used to control the mode of operation of the LEDs.

Purely as an example, if the sensor detects that the user is moving, one of the flash modes may be selected, whereas if it is detected that the user is stationary, the static mode may be selected. Alternatively, the motion sensor signals may give rise to different flash patterns of the LEDs, depending on whether the user is in motion or stationary. In some exemplary embodiments, additional LEDs of different colours may be provided, and the control module may be configured to operate different LEDs depending on certain conditions. For example, a warning signal might be a different colour to those used during normal operation. The control module may be configured to switch the LEDs off after a predetermined period of inactivity. A low battery warning light or signal may be provided. An additional light emitting device may be provided that is operable to indicate when the battery is charging. A mode of operation may be defined to provide an indication/warning if the hard hat is determined to have been subjected to a severe impact. Finally, an SOS mode of operation may be defined, wherein the LEDs are configured to flash the Morse code for SOS or similar.

It will be appreciated by a person skilled in the art, from the foregoing description, that modifications and variations can be made to the described embodiments, without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.