Apparel – Guard or protector – Body cover
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-28
2001-01-30
Vanatta, Amy B. (Department: 3741)
Apparel
Guard or protector
Body cover
C002S081000, C002S102000, C002S171200, C062S259300, C607S108000, C607S110000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06178562
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This present invention relates to temperature control apparatus for parts of a human or other animate body and, more particularly, to thermal contact components of an animate body heat exchanger that assure quite good thermal contact with associated body parts.
Active cooling arrangements for humans and other animate bodies (live bodies, except for the live bodies of plants) are known. They either are used, or contemplated for use, in physical therapy, pre-game conditioning, minor injury care, etc. In general, the body heat exchanging component(s) of such an apparatus has a pair of layers defining a flexible bladder through which a liquid is circulated. This liquid is maintained at a desired temperature. Generally, the desired temperature is lower than the temperature expected for the body part, and typically is achieved, at least in part, by passing the liquid through a “passive” heat exchanging medium, such as by passing the same through an ice bath.
It is quite important in many arrangements of this nature that the amount of heat exchange be carefully controlled. This means that the temperature to which the body part is subjected must be kept constant. Moreover, for some uses it is important that all of the surface area covered by a heat exchange component be subjected to the temperature control.
Various improvements have been made in the past in an effort to obtain the desired known temperature control. For example, units are made which are quite thin and flexible to facilitate conforming to the complex shape of a body part to be subjected to temperature control. Pressurized air bladders are also used to press a flexible fluid bladder into intimate contact with an associated body part. Matrices of point (dot) connections and fences (flow directing devices) are also included in many fluid bladders to provide the fluid mixing and flow pattern needed to obtain the desired constant flow of liquid having a constant temperature through a heat exchange component.
The above measures have been taken to assure that a heat exchange component design remains quite thin and does not buckle when it conforms to complex shapes, so as to remain in good thermal contact with a body part. Moreover, the shape of the fences and bladder edge contours are selected to inhibit the formation of eddies, again in an effort to assure proper flow for a constant and controlled temperature differential with a body part.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to two innovations which are quite important in designing heat exchange components for body parts that provide known, repeatable and uniform thermal conductance with such body parts.
In basic terms, one of the such innovations is providing a configuration for adjacent side edges of a bladder shaped to generally conform to a body part, such as a head, so that such edges will intermesh lengthwise with one another. This intermeshing is facilitated by furnishing the border of each of the adjacent edges with curvilinear ripples, each of which has a length considerably shorter than the total length of the side edge to be intermeshed.
The side edge intermeshing facilitates providing a structure which assures that the portion of the body part underlying the junction between the two sides is subjected to the temperature differential provided by the temperature control fluid within the bladder. In this connection, as mentioned earlier one of the major criteria for some uses of the invention is to assure that all covered surface areas of the body part is subjected to the control temperature provided by the component.
The intermeshing configuration is preferably selected to eliminate any straight line flow of the fluid, typically a liquid, along such junction. This aids in assuring that the intermeshing function is not circumvented by temperature controlled fluid “bypassing” the intermeshing. Moreover, such configuration is preferably selected to prevent eddy flow. The curvilinear ripple of the preferred embodiment of the invention provide such a configuration.
The other innovation of the invention incorporated into a heat exchange component has to do with assuring that the amount of contact pressure between a body part and the heat exchange component and, hence, the amount of energy transferred therebetween, is repeatable from one use to another. This innovation includes providing an adjustment mechanism in the component for setting the distance between sides which are contiguous (near, but not touching) with one another lengthwise as well as including in the component, a separate opening and closing mechanism for use in applying the component to the body part. The provision in one component of both of these mechanisms assures that the setting used at one time can also be used at a later time, i.e., the amount of pressure provided by the garment is repeatable since it is a separate mechanism used for applying the component to the body part.
Most simply, lacing along the contiguous sides provides the desired relatively permanent adjustment. The separate opening and closing mechanism, can be a zipper or buttons, such as at the front in a vest garment. In this connection, a vest is a type of component for which this innovation is particularly applicable.
A combination of the innovations of this invention with other aspects of a heat exchanger component results in an overall arrangement which has significantly improved performance. Other features and advantages of the invention either will become apparent or will be described in connection with the following, more detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention and variations.
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Coolsystems, Inc
Vanatta Amy B.
Zimmerman C. Michael
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