Leg guard

Claim 2

A leg guard comprising: a relatively rigid shin piece which is contoured to protect the wearer''s shin; a padding material attached to the shin piece and disposed behind it so that the padding material is presented toward the wearer''s shin; flexible padding attached to the shin piece and having connected front and rear segments between which the lower end of the shin piece fits; and a flexible end flap connected to the front segment of the flexible padding at the lower end of the shin piece but not to the rear segment; the flap being further connected in such a manner that the flap can be moved between an inwardly folded position wherein the flap extends upwardly beyond the lower margin of the shin piece and overlies that face of the shin piece normally presented toward the wearer''s shin and a position extended from the lower end of the shin piece wherein the flap extends generally downwardly from the shin piece as a continuation thereof and without doubling back upon itself.

Claim 3

A leg guard according to claim 1 wherein the front and rear segments of the flexible padding are formed integral to one another and are connected through a fold in the padding.

Claim 4

A leg guard according to claim 2 wherein the flap is further connected to the padding adjacent to the fold in the padding.

Claim 5

A leg guard according to claim 3 wherein the flap is connected to the front segment of the padding by a run of stitching and to the fold of the padding by another run of stitching.

Claim 6

A leg guard according to claim 2 wherein the sides of the front and rear segments are stitched to one another anD the front and rear segments are attached to the shin piece by rivets located near the side margins of the shin piece.

Claim 7

A leg guard according to claim 4 wherein the flap is formed from a padding material.

Claim 8

A leg guard comprising: a relatively rigid shin piece contoured to protect the shin; a relatively rigid knee cap located above the shin piece to protect the wearer''s knee; a padding material located behind the shin piece and knee cap and having a pair of laterally spaced slits therein; and auxiliary padding along the padding material at the knee cap and extended through the slits therein, the auxiliary padding being positioned at the sides of the wearer''s knee joint when the leg guard is worn for providing additional protection in that area.

Claim 9

A leg guard comprising: a relatively rigid shin piece contoured to protect the shin; a relatively rigid knee cap located above the shin piece to protect the wearer''s knee; a padding material located behind the shin piece and knee cap and having a pair of laterally spaced slits therein; and auxiliary padding along the padding material at the knee cap and extended through the slits therein, the auxiliary padding being positioned at the sides of the wearer''s knee joint when the leg guard is worn for providing additional protection in that area.

Claim 10

A leg guard according to claim 7 wherein the padding material attached to the knee cap has flaps which project generally laterally beyond the sides of the knee cap; and wherein the auxiliary padding is presented along the inside faces of those flaps to prevent the two condyles of the wearer''s knee from opening.

Claim 11

A leg guard according to claim 7 wherein the padding material attached to the knee cap has flaps which project beyond the sides of the knee cap; wherein the pair of laterally spaced slits are disposed behind the knee cap; and wherein the auxiliary padding comprises a pair of enlarged end portions presented along the inside faces of the flaps and a reduced connecting portion interconnecting the end portions and extending through the slits, whereby the auxiliary padding is retained in place on the padding means.

Claim 12

A leg guard comprising: a relatively rigid shin piece contoured to extend over and protect the wearer''s shin; padding attached to the shin piece and extending over the back face thereof so as to be interposed between the wearer''s shin and the shin piece; attaching means secured to the shin piece at the lower end thereof; and an end flap connected to the shin piece by the attaching means such that it can be moved between inwardly folded and downwardly extended positions, the end flap being doubled back upon itself and extended over the back face of the shin piece when in its inwardly folded position so as to provide additional protection for the wearer''s shin, the end flap being extended downwardly from the lower end of the shin piece without doubling back upon itself when in the downwardly extended positions so as to overlie the wearer''s instep and provide additional protection therefor, the end flap beyond the attaching means being nonrigidified and further being flexible both transversely and longitudally so that it can conform to the general contour of the back face of the shin piece and to the contour of the wearer''s instep.

Claim 13

A leg guard comprising: a relatively rigid shin piece contoured to extend over and protect the wearer''s shin; padding attached to the shin piece and extending over the back face thereof so as to be interposed between the wearer''s shin and the shin piece; attaching means secured to the shin piece at the lower end thereof; and an end flap connected to the shin piece by the attaching means such that it can be moved between inwardly folded and downwardly extended positions, the end flap being doubled back upon itself and extended over the back face of the shin piece when in its inwardly folded position so as to provide additional protection for the wearer''s shin, the end flap being extended downwardly from the lower end of the shin piece without doubling back upon itself when in the downwardly extended positions so as to overlie the wearer''s instep and provide additional protection therefor, the end flap beyond the attaching means being nonrigidified and further being flexible both transversely and longitudally so that it can conform to the general contour of the back face of the shin piece and to the contour of the wearer''s instep.

Claim 14

A leg guard according to claim 10 wherein the lower edge of the padding is above the lower edge of the shin piece; and wherein the end flap when in its inwardly folded position extends above the lower edge of the padding so that the end flap can be tucked in between the padding and the shin piece.