Buoys – rafts – and aquatic devices – Water rescue or life protecting apparatus – Personal flotation device
Reexamination Certificate
2001-06-04
2003-12-09
Morano, S. Joseph (Department: 3617)
Buoys, rafts, and aquatic devices
Water rescue or life protecting apparatus
Personal flotation device
C441S098000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06659825
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to floatation devices for the safety of children, particularly self-inflating devices that can keep a child afloat in a safe position for an acceptable amount of time to assist in rescuing the child.
2. Background of the Art
Flotation devices have long been used for providing buoyancy for a person in the water. Flotation devices have been inflatable by a person's breath, or by pump means. Personal flotation devices are utilized for users, or particularly children, to prevent accidental drownings in swimming pools or other bodies of water, and as swimming aids. Many such flotation devices are bulky and not easily worn by the user.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,252,842 to Richardson relates to a life preserver attached about the neck, chest and back of a user by a strap arrangement. U.S. Pat. No. 3,308,494 to Licher relates to an inflatable life preserver having two portions disposable about the neck of a user, and having an automatic inflator device producing pressurized gas to inflate the life preserver. U.S. Pat. No. 4,379,705 to Saotome relates to a life belt with a tubular body and a compressed gas capsule for inflation. U.S. Pat. No. 3,952,355 to Bardebes discloses an inflatable buoyancy aid including an elongate inflatable member, gas-producing means for inflation, and securing means for fastening the buoyancy aid about the trunk of a user.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,840,591 describes an exercise device comprising a flotation jacket worn by an exerciser in water which enables the exerciser to float in an upright position while exercising and without contact with the bottom or sides of the enclosure holding the water. The jacket is fabricated from a fabric with pockets sewn in the fabric for insertion of segments of flotation material. The size and location of the segments result in equal buoyant forces at the front and back and at the sides of the exerciser to assure that the exerciser remains upright while floating in water. The fabric is such that the friction between the flotation jacket and the exerciser is increased when the fabric is immersed in water thereby preventing the jacket from riding up under the armpits of the exerciser. The flotation jacket can be fabricated easily and at low cost by using standard materials and production techniques without the need for expensive molding equipment. A buoyant support system for use in exercising is also disclosed which enables the exerciser wearing the flotation device and a harness to be supported by cables in a tank attached to the exercising device while the exerciser is floating and exercising in water placed in the tank.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,184,968 describes a one-piece swimsuit having a floatation member incorporated therein comprising a lower pants component and a two-ply upper component having neck and arm openings and a rear opening having detachable closure means, said two-ply upper portion having peripheral edges secured to each other and to said lower portion to define a closed compartment between the plies and a one-piece floatation member disposed in said compartment which extends only over the upper chest, shoulders and upper back of a wearer, said one piece floatation member having a U-shaped configuration with front and rear portions extending downwardly to an equal extent from shoulder portions and extending laterally to the same extent and having a uniform thickness, with a division in the middle of the back portion of the floatation member thereby providing greater buoyancy in the front than in the rear such that the wearer cannot remain in a prone or face down position.
Prior art Type II—Near Shore Buoyant Vests are well known. The most common are bright orange in color and have an inverted U-shape or horse shoe-shaped configuration. Frequently referred to as “life preservers” in the past, Type II vests of this type have conventionally included three connected tubular or cylindrical flotation segments or lobes. The separate lobes include a horizontal top or upper cross piece adapted to be placed behind the head and two spaced apart vertical lobes hingedly attached to opposed ends of the top piece. The front vertical lobes are adapted to pass from behind the head across the shoulders forwardly and downwardly along the chest to about the wearer's waist. A waist strap or belt connected at one end to one of the vertical lobes is passed around the wearer's waist. The free end of the belt is threaded through a belt loop provided on the other vertical lobe and fastened, usually by means of a spring clip to a belt ring provided on the other vertical lobe. The belt length usually includes a cinch buckle adjustment to shorten or lengthen the belt. A pair of aligned tie straps are usually provided at about chest height on each of the vertical lobes for forming a chest tie which effectively brings the vertical lobes together to define a neck hole or opening. These tie straps are usually made of a woven, non-slip fabric material such as cotton. More than one pair of tie straps may be provided along the front portions of the vest. In these conventional Type II flotation vests, the flotation or buoyancy is provided by a filling of flotation material filling in each of the lobes. The filling may be a closed cell foam material in chopped, molded or sheet form. Conventional life vests of this type have proven themselves useful and are perfectly adequate for most adult uses on or near the water. Nevertheless, special difficulties arise with Type II vests of this common style when the wearer is a small child or possibly a person with special needs. More particularly, each of the belt securement and tie strap structures are provided along the front of the vest which is a serious shortcoming. The frontal placement of the straps and belts permits a young child to intentionally or unintentionally undo them in use which may be very dangerous particularly in an in-the-water panic situation. The vests can only be effective if they are worn and if once properly installed they will remain in proper position on the wearer under various circumstances likely to be encountered in use.
A Type II flotation vest design generally includes a front or chest flotation portion secured to the wearer's upper body which is provided with sufficient flotation material to cause most wearers falling face first into the water to roll over into a chest-raised, back float position. The behind-the-head flotation lobe portions are intended to raise the head, face and ears of the wearer out of the water, to permit a person to remain in the water for a long period of time without becoming exhausted or drowning.
Efforts to improve upon the traditional U-shaped Type II flotation vest for children, have included providing a full vest configuration including front and back panels provided with a top neck hole and arm holes. A currently, commercially available embodiment includes a front zipper closure which separates the front flotation panel into left and right front flotation halves. These halves are bulky and in use they tend to make it difficult to install the vest on a wriggling two year old. In addition, the slide fastener hardware is placed in the front. This is a disadvantage because, the vest may tend to ride up in use, causing the zipper parts to contact the wearer's face and chin which is uncomfortable. The front placement of the closure provided on this device is also a distinct disadvantage because it can be unfastened by a young wearer.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,038,713 another personal flotation device is described. The flotation vest described in this patent is of a Type II style and includes wrap-around front and back body panels with a rear tie closure. Front and rear flotation panels are provided in a collar structure which forces the wearer into a head-up, upright position in the water. The side portions of the vest body overlap but are open and although they define armholes, a struggling child may slip their arms in through the open sides of the vest. Moreover, a tie attach
Mark A. Litman & Assoc. P.A.
Morano S. Joseph
Vasudeva Ajay
LandOfFree
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