Surgery – Respiratory method or device – Draw-type snorkel
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-19
2001-10-02
Weiss, John G. (Department: 3761)
Surgery
Respiratory method or device
Draw-type snorkel
C128S201260, C128S201270, C128S201280, C128S201290, C128S200290, C128S206290, C405S186000, C405S187000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06295983
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to snorkel used by scuba divers at the beginning and at the end of a diving session with air tanks, that is to say, when getting into and out of the water.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Snorkels of the known type consist of a cylindrical element which is normally bent on its lying plane, mainly made of a mouthpiece on its lower end and an air intake hole on its upper end; moreover, they are connected, by means of hooks or the like, to the strap of the diving mask. A tube of this kind has a certain length in its lying and folding plane so that, at the end of its use, for instance at the stage when the scuba diver gets into the water, it is encumbering and difficult to place, whether the scuba diver decides to leave it attached to the mask strap or wants to put it for instance into a pocket of his jacket or of his wet suit.
As is known there are the so-called telescopic systems, consisting of coaxial tubes allowing to shortening of the snorkel so as to make it smaller once the scuba diver has gone into the water. However, with such systems at least a portion of the snorkel has to be straight, so as to have an area where said coaxial tubes of the snorkel move and the stroke made by such systems is limited only to the straight portion; moreover, coaxial tubes necessarily create either an inner section which is too small or an outer diameter which is aesthetically abnormal, since the inner section should have a diameter which is physiologically acceptable as far as breathing is concerned.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention aims at achieving a snorkel which overcomes the disadvantages of the known systems mentioned above and giving the possibility to be practically reduced to half its length rapidly, and be put, once the scuba diver has gone into the water, into a pocket of his jacket or of his wet suit or into suitable loops by the scuba diver and which can be moreover easy to find and to refit when the diver begins to get out of the water.
Such purpose is achieved in the present invention by means of an snorkel provided on its lower end with a mouthpiece and on its upper end with an air intake hole, such snorkel consisting in its length of two or more tubular elements which are connected in such a way that the tube can be folded two or more times on itself.
According to a feature of the present invention such snorkel consists of a lower tubular element including on its lower end said mouthpiece and of an upper tubular element including on its upper end said air intake hole, the upper end of the lower tubular element and the lower end of the upper tubular element being reciprocally connected, in a configuration of use as a single tube, through retaining means, said means allowing the rotation of one of said tubular elements so as to fold onto to the other in a substantially perpendicular direction to the lying plane of the tube, thus obtaining a configuration of non-use or with tubular elements one beside the other, in which the lower and upper ends of the lower tubular element are respectively beside the upper and lower ends of the upper tubular element.
According to preferred embodiments of the present invention the retaining means are comprise hinges which ensure both the sealing and the locking of the two elements in each configuration, both of use as a single tube and of non-use with tubular elements one beside the other, in the latter the length of the snorkel being practically half its normal use size, thus making the snorkel easy to store.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4878491 (1989-11-01), McGllvray, III
patent: 5199422 (1993-04-01), Rasocha
patent: 5906199 (1999-05-01), Budzinski
patent: 6079410 (2000-06-01), Winefordner et al.
patent: 1 515 610 (1968-06-01), None
patent: 2 609 962 (1988-07-01), None
Larson & Taylor PLC
Patel Mital
Scubapro Europe S.r.l.
Weiss John G.
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