Hydraulic and earth engineering – Diving – Suit or accessory therefor
Reexamination Certificate
2001-02-16
2002-12-31
Bagnell, David (Department: 3673)
Hydraulic and earth engineering
Diving
Suit or accessory therefor
C405S185000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06499913
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention refers to hydrostatic balancing jackets, and in particular to a hydrostatic balancing jacket provided with removable ballast.
For a long time hydrostatic balancing jackets have been part of the normal equipment of a diver.
Normally, the balancing jackets include a dorsal element from which project two abdominal pectoral parts and two strap pieces, connectable with each other. Generally, the pectoral abdominal parts or the dorsal element are inflatable and allow the floating of the diver, who can adjust the inflation pressure to change his depth level.
This equipment has developed both from the point of view of the wearability and the functionality. Its development has somewhat required the adjustment of other equipment; in fact it proves to be rather uncomfortable to wear, together with the jacket of the type now on the market, the lead weight belt which for a long time has been the diver's ballast. The easiest solution is to place the ballast on the jacket so that it can be removed.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,641,247 there is described a balancing jacket provided with at least one pocket proper to contain a weight; the weight in turn preferably contained within a bag having a shape and size proper for its insertion into said pocket.
This solution provides for an easy ballast system adjustable according to the jacket and not having the usual ballast supporting means, such as belts or the like. Nevertheless, there is a strong dependence on the size and shape of the pocket designed to house the weight and the bag containing it.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,667 there is described a jacket provided with at least one pipe, and at least one container provided with stiffening means able to support at least one weight for the insertion and the removal of said container in said pipe. In this case also, even if the insertion of the ballast is guided, and thus more controlled, the reciprocal sizes of the pipe and the container proper to contain the weight have remarkable importance.
The aim of the present invention is then a balancing jacket to which could be connected a ballast independently of the shape or the size of the jacket.
An object of the present invention is then to provide a hydrostatic balancing jacket including coupling means between at least one of the jacket walls and one ballast wherein said coupling means include complementary means reciprocally removable respectively placed on the jacket wall and on the ballast, being provided with locking means for said coupling.
An embodiment of the coupling means includes a guide connected to the jacket wall, co-operating with a cursor projecting from the ballast. The ballast can include a container able to house one or more weights, or can be formed by the weights themselves, made in the most proper way for this purpose.
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patent: 5664716 (1997-09-01), Nuckolls
patent: 5913640 (1999-06-01), Bortner
patent: 6145171 (2000-11-01), Hoshino
patent: 2 671 047 (1990-12-01), None
patent: 0826594 (1998-03-01), None
Bagnell David
HTM Sport S.p.A.
Larson & Taylor PLC
Singh Sunil
LandOfFree
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