Develop History of Helmet

Develop History of Helmet

Miners' helmets and caps in the U.S. were initially used more for the utilitarian purpose of having a place to hold a lamp while the miner worked. They were later developed into a safety device to protect the miner from falling objects. Prior to the 1920s, miners wore a soft cap made of cloth or canvas with a leather brim and lamp bracket to hold their light.

The first hard hat was developed by Edward D. Bullard of San Francisco, California in1919.

The helmet was made of canvas, glue, and black paint, and given the trademarked name “Hard Boiled” because of the steam used in the manufacturing process. The helmet could carry a regulation bracket for a carbide lamp, and could be ordered in any size.

Skullgard Bakelite helmet was the first safety helmet which designed by Jack Lewis in 1930, and manufactured by MSA.

The hat is made of Bakelite plastic with a leather and metal lamp bracket is attached to the front of the helmet, which probably would have held an electric lamp.

In 1935 MSA registered their trademark for the Comfo-Cap and continues to produce the Skullgard and Como-Cap into the 21st century. Both MSA-manufactured helmets are represented in the mining collection in the Division of Work and Industry.

Aluminum became a standard for hard hats around 1938, except for electrical applications, which was considered very durable and reasonably lightweight for the time.

“Even today, a few clients still have their 25-year-old aluminum hard hat,” said Bullard. “These hats have one serious drawback, aluminum is a great conductor of electricity.”

Thermoplastics took over in the 1950s, as they are easy to mold and shape with heat and cost less to manufacture. In 1952, MSA offered the Shockgard Helmet to protect electrical linemen from electrical shock of up to 10,000 volts. The first polycarbonate hard hat was released by MSA in1961. And brought the V-Gard Helmet in1962, which today is the most widely used hardhat in the United States .

In 1997 ANSI allowed the development of a ventilated hard hat to keep wearers cooler. Accessories such as face shields, sun visors, earmuffs, and perspiration-absorbing lining cloths could also be used; today, attachments include radios, walkie-talkies, pagers, and cameras.

Throughout the view of develop history of helmet, we can learn that hard hats are made from durable materials, originally from metal, then fiberglass, and most-commonly (from the 1950s onward) rigid plastic. But today most of hard hats are made from high-density polyethylene (HDPE) or advanced engineering resins.

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