3m Innovative Properties Company

Jeffrey L Hamer

Kenneth F Teeters

Ravi Thomas

Alan R Seville

James P Endle

Paul D Henry

William P Atwood

Robert Nicolo Falco

Andrew Linton

Tim Stern

Jacob H Ely

Mark White

Robert C Coffin

Yi-Chi Huang

Feng Cai

Ken F Teeters

Andrew R Linton

Timothy J Stern

System control unit

Various embodiments of a hearing protection device and a method of forming such device are disclosed. The hearing protection device includes a first hearing protector, a second hearing protector, and an elongated connector including a first end that is connected to the first hearing protector and a second end that is connected to the second hearing protector. The device further includes a frangible attachment element disposed between a first portion of the elongated connector and a second portion of the elongated connector that temporarily connects the first portion to the second portion such that the elongated connector is in a compact configuration. The elongated connector is adapted to be disposed in an elongated configuration when the frangible attachment element is broken.

Hearing protection device and method of forming same

Battery

A method of making personal protective equipment, such as a push-in earplug, is disclosed. The method includes the steps of covering a substrate with an outer layer that includes an unactivated foaming agent, positioning at least a portion of the outer layer in a mold, and activating the foaming agent such that a portion of the outer layer expands.

Method of making a personal protective article

A push-in earplug including an elongate core and outer layer is disclosed. The outer layer includes a sound attenuating portion having a first average density and a stem portion having a second average density, and the second average density is greater than the first average density.

Push-in earplug

The present description provides an earplug. One exemplary earplug described herein includes a stem and a sound attenuating body attached to the stem. The sound attenuating body includes a leading end, a base end, a tip region positioned rearward of the leading end, and a longitudinal axis extending between the leading end and the base end. An array of cavities is positioned within the tip region and spaced around the longitudinal axis and provides a collapsible volume.

Push-to-fit earplug having an array of cavities

Hearing protection devices, e.g., push-to-fit earplugs, having a tip cavity in the sound attenuating body and methods of manufacturing the hearing protection devices are described herein.

Earplug with tip cavity and methods of manufacturing the same

Earplug

Growing community of inventors

Springville, IN, United States of America

Jeffrey L Hamer