Refrigeration – With vehicle feature – Ship
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-14
2001-08-14
Tapolcoi, William E. (Department: 3744)
Refrigeration
With vehicle feature
Ship
C062S259400, C062S314000, C261S117000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06272874
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND ART
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to personal cooling devices, and in particular, to personal cooling devices that utilize fans and water mist.
2. Description of Related Art
Personal cooling devices utilizing fans and water mist have been used in hot-weather conditions for some time. The combination of a fine spray mist and increased air flow facilitates evaporation from the skin and, in turn, lowers the skin and body temperature of persons in the immediate fan environment. Large box-type fans were outfitted with drip systems or mist nozzles to create an additional cooling effect. Such cooling devices are used at athletic events to help cool both the athletes and spectators in hot weather. Although these devices can be used to cool several people at once, they are bulky and take up a large amount of space.
The concept of combining spray mist with a fan was scaled down to the individual level by equipping small, hand-held pump-spray bottles with small electrical fans. The fan blades on these devices are relatively small and often made of soft plastic or foam rubber to prevent injury to the user. Although these devices are portable, their capacity is limited because the volume of the spray bottle must be kept low due to the weight of the water. If the volume of the spray bottles exceed a quart or so, the bottle becomes too heavy to carry conveniently. In addition, these hand-held devices are usually powered by low-power batteries, thereby limiting the operational life of the devices.
During the summer, the decks of commercial and recreational watercraft can be unbearably hot. Unfortunately, the above devices offer little or no relief for watercraft passengers. The large box-type fans with drip or mist systems cannot fit into the limited space on the deck of these watercraft, and the small hand-held devices simply do not have adequate capacity, as measured by either the volume of water available, or by their electrical operational lives to keep the passengers cool.
Therefore, although these devices represent significant development in the area of personal cooling devices, significant shortcomings remain, particularly in the area of passenger cooling devices for use on commercial and recreational watercraft. This is especially true in the case of watercraft with large, flat exposed passenger decks which craft are anchored for significant periods of time in use, such as with the modern bass boat.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
There is a need for a passenger cooling device for use on a watercraft, the passenger cooling device being powered by the watercraft's existing electrical power supply and having a large water capacity.
Because such a need exists, it is an object of the present invention to provide a passenger cooling device for use on a watercraft, the passenger cooling device being connected to the watercraft's existing electrical power supply, the passenger cooling device having a fan member, a mist assembly operably associated with the fan member, and a pump member that pumps water from an available source such as from the body of water in which the watercraft is afloat through the mist assembly.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a passenger cooling device for use on a watercraft, the passenger cooling device being connected to the watercraft's existing electrical power supply, the passenger cooling device having a fan member, a mist assembly operably associated with the fan member, a pump member that pumps water from the body of water in which the watercraft is afloat through either the mist assembly or into a reservoir on the watercraft, and a switch valve for selectively determining whether the pump member pumps water through the mist assembly or the into the reservoir.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a passenger cooling device for use on a watercraft, the passenger cooling device being connected to the watercraft's existing electrical power supply, the passenger cooling device having a fan member, a mist assembly operably associated with the fan member, a pump member that pumps water from a separate reservoir on the watercraft in the vicinity of the pump through the mist assembly.
The above objects are achieved by providing a passenger cooling device that detachably connects to an existing electrical receptacle on a watercraft, such as a receptacle for a detachable running light. The passenger cooling device has an electrical fan member carried by an adjustable mast and a mist assembly featuring an atomizing nozzle. The mist assembly is operably associated with the fan member. The passenger cooling device has a pump member that draws water from the body of water in which the watercraft is afloat and pumps the water through the atomizing nozzle. In an alternate embodiment, a switch valve is added to allow an existing pump member to supply water to either the passenger cooling device or an existing reservoir on the watercraft, such as a live well. In another embodiment, the pump is used to pump water directly from a reservoir on the boat to the atomizing nozzle.
The present invention provides significant advantages. The passenger cooling device can cool several people at once and has an unlimited water capacity because, in a preferred embodiment, it draws water from the body of water in which the watercraft is afloat. Because the passenger cooling device of the present invention is powered by the watercraft's existing high-power, electrical power supply, it has a relatively long operational life. Under typical conditions, the passenger cooling device can provide a cooling effect of approximately 20° F.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent in the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
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patent: 2628483 (1953-02-01), Garnier
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patent: 4549406 (1985-10-01), Ebner et al.
patent: 5046449 (1991-09-01), Nelson
patent: 5299960 (1994-04-01), Day et al.
patent: 5613371 (1997-03-01), Nelson
patent: 5752662 (1998-05-01), Hsu
patent: 6112538 (2000-09-01), Strussion
Bracewell & Patterson, LL
Tapolcoi William E.
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