EP1437949A2

EP1437949A2 - Constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket

Info

Publication number: EP1437949A2
Application number: EP02799382A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Alberto Cesar Hodara
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2001-09-25
Filing date: 2002-09-24
Publication date: 2004-07-21
Also published as: MXPA04002794A; BR0104789B1; JP2005502542A; US20050042956A1; WO2003026449A2; BR0104789C1; BR0104789A; WO2003026449A3

Abstract

The present invention refers to a constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket particularly designed for nautical, aquatic or aerial activities over areas covered by water or swampy regions, said jacket comprising areas of two or more lumens or compartments (01) strategically positioned in a number of positions in order to maintain the head of the person wearing the jacket out of the water. These lumens or compartments may be filled with compressed gas, or a gas produced by a chemical reaction, or by a foam having a lower density than that of the water activated by sensors of manually activated (04) in order to allow a positive floating of the person wearing the jacket even when the user finds it difficult to maintain the floating action due to exhaustion, panic, muscular fatigue, muscular cramps, lack of air, heart failure, mal-de-mer, drowsiness, loss of consciousness or any other motive which may place the user in eminent danger.

Description

CONSTRUCTIVE ARRANGEMENT FOR A MANUAL OR AUTOMATIC LIFE-SAVING

JACKET

Background of the Invention Field of the Invention

The present invention refers to a new alternative constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving clothing article of the type described in Brazilian patent application No. PI 0104789-2, filed on September 25, 2001, particularly designed for nautical, aquatic or aerial activities, over areas covered with water or swampy regions, with guaranteed effectiveness due to floating devices that are manually or automatically activated.

Description of the Prior Art

The present invention refer to an alternative constructive arrangement applied to the inventive concept of the life-saving jacket described, where a new model of life-saving device was designed, which can be used as complement to common use bathing costumes such as: bermudas, swimming trunks, bathing suits or bikinis; or even of a belt, ankle strap or wrist strap, which can be worn together or separately, and can be worn over any already existing clothing.

The use of life-saving devices in the practice of sports and other activities over areas that may offer risk of drowning is of fundamental and great importance in the actual context .

The occurrence of drowning involving persons wearing life-saving jackets is very common because people jump into deep waters without knowing how to swim, or wearing a badly adjusted life-saving jackets and/or due to the fact that sometimes they are unconscious and, therefore, not able to maintain their heads out of the water. In many cases, accidents simply just take place and in other situations, bodies are found at the bottom of the water. Therefore, there is a growing need for new and improved equipment and techniques that will help towards the prevention of this kind of accident .

Summary of the Invention

The present invention aims to propose an alternative solution to the above problems, and it was designed with unique subsidies which will be described hereinafter.

An object of the present invention is to present technical and functional subsidies to the current problems, and to solve these problems a clothing article was designed which is equipped with portions of two or more lumens or compartments strategically positioned in such a way as to maintain the head of the person wearing the life-vest out of the water.

The lumens or compartments may be filled either with compressed gas or a gas produced by a chemical reaction, or by a foam having a density lower than that of the water in order to provide a positive floating of this person wearing the life-vest even in a situation where the person finds it difficult to maintain the floating action, due to exhaustion, panic, muscular fatigue, muscular cramps, lack of air, heart failure, mal-de-mer, drowsiness, loss of consciousness or any other motive which may place the person in eminent danger. The life-vest according to the present invention may be manufactured from any material such as a knitted fabric or a stretching and impervious material. Also, when a knitted fabric is used, it is even possible to inject the water-proofing, catalyzed foam within the cavities of the porous fabric, in a manner similar to the foams used to fill up and seal pneumatic tires.

The life-vest according to the present invention can be manually activated or automatically activated by sensors operating in conjunction or separately when in contact with water, depth sensors, immersion time sensors or by transcutaneous oxymetry (equipment used to measure the amount of oxygen in the blood stream that currently has the approximately the size of a wrist watch) sensors that will automatically activate the system, in order to inflate the life-vest and force the individual up to the surface of the water, therefore avoiding an irrecoverable drowning resulting from an excessive period of time under the water, thereby allowing the individual to be found and saved.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention, and together with the description serve to explain a basic and preferred embodiment developed by the applicant .

However the present invention shall not be limited to this unique form of embodiment and characterization, as other possible forms of manufacturing may be considered, as shown by life-saving models by the Figures 4 and 5. All these embodiments are considered to be within the scope of what is originally claimed.

Fig. 1 is a first perspective view of a life-vest according to the present invention, showing its front portion; Fig. 2 is a second perspective view of a life-vest according to the present invention, showing its back;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view, in an enlarged scale, of the life-vest according to the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing the proposed alternative embodiment of the life-vest according to the present invention; and

Fig. 5 is a schematic view illustrating the activation of the alternative embodiment .

Description of the Invention

For better illustrating the points discussed above, the present invention will be described hereafter in connection with its preferred embodiment shown in the attached drawings . As it can be seen in the drawings, the present invention refers to a life-saving jacket manufactured from any suitable material, such as a knitted fabric or a stretching and impervious material that provides thermal protection, said jacket being provided with a series of lumens or compartments 1 uniformly and internally positioned close to the neck opening along its frontal and back portions . Said lumens or compartments 1 are designed to retain a special gas 2 derived from a chemical reaction and are provided with an inner film 3 made from any material used to block up holes in order to make them impervious .

Sensors 4 are positioned in the back portion of the life-jacket, which will activate a system to release the gas 2 into said compartments 1, inflating them in such a way as to cause positive floating.

The jacket may also be inflated by a valve to be filled without the use of other means of the compartments 1 therefore inflating them in such a way as to cause positive floating. It is also possible to activate the system through a pin 5 positioned over the shoulder area of the life-saving jacket.

An oxygen gas chamber 6 activated by a closed circuit 7 is positioned in the back portion of the life-jacket to release oxygen through a small diameter pipe 8 and with a mask 9 at its distal end for an eventual supply of oxygen.

The inventive concept may be applied in the alternative embodiment of the life-saving jacket 10 provided by a jacket 11, folded, manually or automatically activated 12, inflated from the gas cylinder 13, provided by the lock 14. In this manner, the manual or automatic life-saving clothing article for nautical, aquatic or aerial activities, over areas covered with water or swampy regions according to the present invention, as it is evident from the conducted analysis, has new features which in an ultimate analysis, brings greater safety for the users, thus deserving the legal protection being claimed herewith.

Claims

What is claimed is :

1. A constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket, characterized by being as described in the specification and as shown in attached Figures 1, 2 and 3 which illustrate a manual or automatic life-saving jacket particularly designed for nautical, aquatic or aerial activities, over areas covered by water or swampy regions, manufactured from any suitable material such as a knitted fabric or a stretching, impervious material that provides thermal protection, said jacket being provided with a series of lumens or compartments 1 uniformly and internally positioned close to the neck opening along its frontal and back portions . Said lumens or compartments 1 are designed to retain a special gas 2 derived from a chemical reaction and are provided with an inner film 3 made from any material used to block up holes in order to make them impervious, sensors 4 being positioned in the back portion of the life-jacket, to activate a system that will release gas 2 into said compartments 1 to inflate them to a positive floating, means for blowing air into said compartments or a pin 5 provided to activate the system, with an oxygen gas chamber 6 in the back portion which is activated by a closed circuit 7 that releases oxygen through a small diameter pipe 8 having a mask 9 at its distal end.

2. The constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket according to claim 1 and as described in the specification and shown in attached Figures 4 and 5, characterized in that the a life-saving model (10) provided by a jacket (11) , folded, manually or automatically activated (12) , being inflated from the gas cylinder (13) .

3. The constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that it is inflated by being blown at or manually or automatically activated by the action of sensors such as: staying time under the surface (pre adjusted); alterations in vital standards such as: cardiac beating, breathing or oxygen content in the blood stream, monitored by external sensors; activated by very strong physical impact; lack of canceling the time mechanism.

4. The constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that the jacket has an extra layer of air blown within all its extension with the aim of increasing the clothing floatability as well as helping the thermal isolating thereby avoiding hypothermia.

5. The constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that there are lumens in any place, such as in the jacket, the belt, the wrist, the collar, the ankle or in any place which upon inflating it will help the persons' floatability.

6. The constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that it is blown up, inflated with gas from a small pipe or pipes, filled with foam or even by gases or catalyzed foam resulting from a desired chemical reaction.

7. The constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that it is a complement of common bathing clothing such as: swimming trunks, bermudas, bathing suits or bikinis, or in a simple belt, ankle strap or wrist strap which would be worn over any already existing clothing.

8. The constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that it contains a closed system of air with oxygen and iodized whitewash and mask to breathe for a period of time under water or in an environment filled with smoke or dust, which allows for the breathing action.

9. The constructive arrangement for a manual or automatic life-saving jacket according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that it is manufactured from several suitable materials and in many forms for each desired end-use and type.