GB2162129A

GB2162129A - Life jackets

Info

Publication number: GB2162129A
Application number: GB08412741A
Authority: GB
Inventors: George Williams
Original assignee: WILLIAMS NEIL ROBERT
Current assignee: WILLIAMS NEIL ROBERT
Priority date: 1984-05-18
Filing date: 1984-05-18
Publication date: 1986-01-29
Also published as: GB8412741D0; GB2162129B

Abstract

A life jacket has a conventional jacket part (1) and a hood (3), with an inflatable structure (5, 11) supporting the hood which has at least one transparent section (15, 17, 19, 21). The inflatable structure (5, 11) is formed by four inflatable tubes (5) each of which is connected both to the jacket part (1) and to a collapsible and extendable ring (11). When stored, the tubes (5) and hood (3) are collapsed with the ring (11) extended. The life jacket can then be put on by a user, with his head through the extended ring (11). Then by inflating the tubes (5) the ring (11) collapses due to a cord arrangement (6a, 6b) within the tubes (5) and ring (11); the hood protecting the user's head and the ring (11) forming a small breathing tube. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in and relating to life jackets The present invention relates to a life jacket for use in aiding a person floating in water.

One known type of life jacket comprises an inflatable jacket which is worn by a person and is inflated either orally and/or usually by means of compressed air or gas. Other types of life jacket include those which comprise a permanently buoyant material and which therefore do not need to be inflated.

Life jackets are worn over the torso and allow the user to remain buoyant in water. They do not, however, provide any means of protection to the head of the user. The lack of protection for the head has been found to be especially dangerous in rough and stormy seas where a person can be subject to a continuous battering of sea water against the face. Such continuous battering lends to a premature onset of exposure, salt caking on the face and continuous breathing being difficult.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a life jacket wherein means are provided for protecting the head of the user.

In accordance with the present invention there is provided a life jacket comprising a jacket part and a hood, said hood comprising an inflatable structure for supporting a cover at least a portion of which cover is transparent.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention the inflatable structure comprises four elongate, inflatable, plastics tubes two of which have one end securely attached to the front of the jacket part of the life jacket and two of which have one end securely attached to the back of said jacket part. At least one of the ends of the tubes attached to the life jacket has a cylinder of compressed gas fixed to it for inflating the tubes.

The other end of each tube is attached to a flexi ble, hollow tubular ring such that the inside of each tube is accessible from the inside of the other tubes via the inside of the tubular ring.

The ring is expanded or contracted by means of two cords one of which runs through one front tube, around the inside of the ring and through the other front tube. The other cord runs similarly through the two back tubes and around the inside of the ring. The ends of the cords are fixed to the life jacket in the region of those ends of the tubes which are attached to the jacket part of the life jacket.

The said cover is preferably made from sections of transparent plastic sheet which are fixed between adjacent tubes. Each section of the cover has a bottom edge which is heat welded to the jacket part of the life jacket, side edges heat welded to the adjacent tubes, and a top edge which is fixed to the circumference of the ring so that the only means of entry into the hood is by the centre of the ring and by the gap in the life jacket for the head. The centre of the ring acts as a breathing hole or air gap. Whilst all of the cover sections are preferably transparent, it is only strictly necessary for the cover section in front of the wearer's face to be transparent or to include a transparent panel.

When the life jacket is stored, it is in a deflated condition with the tubes collapsed down the cords leaving more cord for the ring and allowing the ring to be expanded. Then when the life jacket is to be used it can be secured to a person's torso with a persons head projecting through the expanded ring. When required e.g. when a person is floating in the sea, the tubes are inflated so that they are forced along the cords moving the ring upwards above the persons head; the ring thus contracting to present merely a small breathing hole above the persons head.

Thus the present invention provides a life jacket with an inflatable hood to thus improve the life expectancy of a person in rough waters.

The invention will now be further described hereinafter, by way of exam ply, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a life jacket constructed according to the present invention showing the hood in an inflated condition.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the embodiment of Fig. 1.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the embodiment of Fig. 1 but showing the hood in a deflated condition.

Figure 4 shows the arrangement of the cords in the tubes when inflated; and Figure 5 shows the arrangement of the cords in the tubes when deflated.

Figs. 1 to 3 of the accompanying drawings illustrate one embodiment of the present invention comprising a conventional jacket part designated 1, to which an inflatable hood 3 is attached.

The jacket part 1 will not be further described as it is immaterial to the present invention and alternative known life jackets can be substituted.

The hood 3 comprises four inflatable tubes 5, preferably made of a plastics material. Each tube 5 has one of its ends securely attached to the jacket part 1; two tubes being attached to the front 7 of the jacket part 1 and two to the back 9. The other ends of the tubes 5 are each sealingly attached at equal distances around the outside edge of a flexible plastics tubular ring 11 such that the inside of each tube 5 communicates with the inside of all the other tubes 5 through the tubular ring 11. A cord 6a (Figs. 4 and 5) has one end fixedly attached inside the bottom end of one front tube 5 and as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, runs through that tube, through and around that part of the ring 11 furthest from the two front tubes and through the other front tube 5 at whose bottom end the other end of the cord is fixedly attached.A similar cord 6b (Figs. 4 and 5) runs through the two back tubes 14 and through and around that part of ring 11 furthest from the two back tubes.

A small cylinder 13 of compressed air or gas is provided for inflating the tubes 5. Alternatively or additionally, other means may be attached to the tubes 5 for manually inflating them, by mouth for example.

As best seen when inflated (see Fig. 1), the tubes 5 support a cover which is made of four sections 15, 17, 19 and 21, of transparent plastics sheet material. Whilst, in the illustrated embodiment, all four sections are transparent, front section 15 or part thereof need only be transparent. Each cover section is secured e.g. heat sealed, to two adjacent tubes 5, to the jacket part 1 and to the ring 11.

Thus the cover section and supporting tubes 5, when inflated, provide a protective compartment for a wearer's head; the ring 11 forming a breathing hole 23.

In the inflated condition shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the cords 6a and 6b assume the positions shown in Fig. 4, the ring 11 being constructed to define the small breathing hole 23. When the hood is deflated (see Fig. 3), the cords 6a and 6b can take up the positions shown in Fig. 5, the tubes 5 having contracted and the ring 11 having expanded.

With the hood 3 in a deflated condition (see Fig.

3) secured around the neck part of the jacket part 1, the flexible ring 11 is now in its stretched out position so that the head can protrude freely through the gap 25 in the jacket part 1. When it is necessary to inflate the hood 3 the gas cylinder(s) 13 is opened by for example pulling a cord attached to the cylinder for that purpose or if there are no cylinders, the hood is blown up by mouth.

As air enters the tubes 5 they begin to inflate and open out taking up the cords 6a, 6b. Because the length of cord 6a, 6b is fixed and because the tubes 5 are continually expanding and using up the cords 6a, 6b the ring 11 is forced to contract until the tubes 5 have expanded to their fullest extent.

At this stage the ring 11 has contracted to the extent that its centre is now the small breathing hole 23.

In order that the breathing hole 23 is not too small that it does not allow sufficient air to enter or too large that it allows excessive sea water to enter the hood 3, the materials used for the tubes 5 and the ring 11 are chosen such that the tubes 5 are made of a stronger material than the ring 11 so that a hole of about 5cm in diameter is left in the centre of the ring 11 as the breathing hole 23.

The life jacket of the present invention gives excellent protection to the head in stormy and rough seas and is very easy to use. If the hood is used with an inflatable life jacket a simple cylinder of gas may be used to inflate both the hood and life jacket simultaneously. However the above described hood may be used with any type of life jacket which covers the torso.

Claims

1. A life jacket comprising a jacket part and a hood, said hood comprising an inflatable structure for supporting a cover at least a portion of which cover is transparent.

2. A life jacket as claimed in claim 1, in which the inflatable structure comprises four elongate, inflatable plastics tubes, two of which have one end region securely attached to the front of the jacket part, and two of which have one end region securely attached to the back of said jacket part, the other end region of each tube being attached to a flexible, hollow tubular ring.

3. A life jacket as claimed in claim 2, in which the inside of each tube connects with the inside of the tubular ring.

4. A life jacket as claimed in claim 3, in which one cord extends through one front tube around the inside of the rear portion of the tubular ring and through the other front tube, and another cord runs similarly through the back tubes and through the front portion of the tubular ring, the end regions of said cords being secured to the said jacket part.

5. A life jacket as claimed in any one of claims 2, 3 and 4, in which said cover is made from sections of flexible plastics sheet, which are fixed between adjacent tubes, each section of the cover having a bottom edge secured to said jacket part, side edges secured to adjacent tubes, and a top edge secured to the tubular ring.

6. A life jacket as claimed in claim 5, in which at least one section of the cover is transparent.

7. A life jacket as claimed in claim 5 or 6, in which said sections of the cover are heat welded to the jacket part, tubes and tubular ring.

8. A life jacket as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 7, in which the said hollow tubes are constructed of a more rigid material than the said hollow tubular ring.

9. A life jacket as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 8, in which the hollow tubes and the hollow tubular ring are inflatable by mouth.

10. A life jacket as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 9, in which the hollow tubes and hollow tubular ring are inflatable by a compressed gas cylinder.

11. A life jacket constructed substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.