CA1285828C - Man overboard retrieval apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract Man Overboard Retrieval Apparatus A life buoy 1 in the form of an inflatable ring with a floor 10 has a textile, invert cone keel 11 filled with water and held open by a ballast mass 14. Around the keel hangs an open mesh textile sea anchor 25. Steps 18, braced 20 to the keel, assist a man overboard in entering the life buoy.
The life buoy is detachably provided with a sling 30, having a lifting eye 31 for lifting the man overboard from the life buoy, Figure 3.

Description

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MAN OVERBOARD RETRIEVAL APPARATUS
_ The present invention relates to man overboard retrieval apparatus.

Background of the Invention Retrieval of a man overboard from a yacht or other vessel is a severe problem. Various apparatuses exist for assisting in the problem from the conventional circular or horseshoe shaped life buoy to nets and lifting slings for assisting the man back aboard.
There are three specific areas of difficulty in the problem:-Firstly, a man overboard requires support whilst in the water. The colder the water - the severer the weather - and the more difficulty the man has in swimming, the more support the man requires, and the quic]cer he requires it.
Secondly~ sight of a man overboard from a yacht is remarkably easily lost; accordingly the search for the man may take longer than it should and can too easily fail altogether.
Thirdly, once a yacht is alongside a man overboard, lifting him aboard the yacht can require use of a halyard or topping lift, especially in adverse conditions where the man is weakened to the extent that he cannot help himself.

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The ob~ect of the presen-t invention is to provide man overboard retrie~al apparatus which in one apparatus addresses these three problem areas at least.

The Invention The man overboaxd .retrieval apparatus of -the invention comprises:-an inflatable life buoy with a configuration having anupper part which is downwardly concave - when floa-ting in a use position - and is of a size to at least partially accommodate the torso of a man; and a sling for lifting the man arranged at the upper part of the life buoy, the sling having one or more man supporting members and a lifting eye to which the supporting member(s) are secured;
the eye being so carried by the life buoy as to be easily detached therefrom for lifting of the man with the supportlng member(s) extending down from the eye to liftingly support the man.
The apparatus of the invention alleviates the problem areas:- .
firstly by holding up the man once he has boarded the buoyt secondly by being considerably more prominent than the man due to its greater size; and ' ~5~ 8 thirdly by providing the means for liftin~ the man back aboard the yacht or other vessel.
The configuration is conveniently given by an inflatable tubular ~ing with a floor. Preferably it is longer than it is wide -to fi-t a man's torso. Irregular pentagonal shape is convenient, especially with the tube sections at one end apex being o~ larger diameter than that at the opposite end.
In the preferred embodiment, the sling is detachable from the life buoy on lifting. To provide automatic disposition of the suppor-ting members below the man once he has boarded the life buoy, they are preferably arranged to extend laterally across the upper part of the life buoy. Conveniently three supporting members are provided, one positioned to be drawn up across the man's back at his shoulder blades, the second at his back side and the third behind his knees.
Preferably the supporting members are secured in the life buoy by detachably fastening means such as hook and loop fastening strips sold under the Registered trade mark VELCRO. Such arrangement requires no conscious effort on the part of the man to arrange the support member~ about him nor any buckling of the supporting members.
Preferably ~he supporting members will be interconnected by woven textile material. Indeed the entire sling - other than the eye - could be of such material~
It is envisaged that the sling migh-t not be detachable .
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from the buoy but be an intesral part of it, but this is no-t preferred.
Another problem area is that of the man overboard reaching the apparatus. In a high wind, a life buoy can be blown away faster tharl the man can swim. Accordingly the apparatus is preferably fitted with a ballasted keel which also serves to preven-t the liEe buo~ being blown upside down by the wind.
The preferred keel is an invert cone attached~to the floor, or tubular ring, and provided with ballast at or below the apex. Where such a cone is of woven fabric, it can be made semi-rigid by providing that it has water ingress apertures adjacent its tip only. Thus it fills with water to the virtual exclusion of air on deployment.
To facilitate filling the apertures may be large and provided with non-return valves.
~ther rigid, telescopic keels are envisaged.
The keel is preferably augmeted in preventing wind drift by the provision of a sea anchor. Whilst a conven~ional drogue could be usedj its line would be liable to foul propellers. Accordingly the preferred sea anchor is a curtain of textile material hung down from the inflatable ring to the level of the ballast.
Yet another problem area can be the a~ility of a man overboard -to help himself - due to cold etc. The apparatus -' , - . ~
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of the invention reguires the man's effort only in first reaching it and then boarding it. To assist in the latter, the life buoy is provided with steps. ~n ordinary rope ladder has a tendency for its rungs to swing away ~rom the user. To obviate this, at least some of the rungs~of the ladder are preferably provided with rigid brace(s) ko 'che keel to hold the ladder spaced from the keel. Opposite from the ladder, the life buoy is preferably provided with a water pocket which tends to be lifted from the water on climbing of the ladder by the man.

The Drawings To help understanding of my invention, three specific embodiments thereof will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-Figure 1 is a plan view of a first man overboard retrieval apparatus of the invention inflated for use;
Figure 2 is a side view of the apparatus of Flgure 1 in use;
Figure 3 is a cross-side view on line III-III in Figure 1, similar to Figure 2 but showing a man being lifted from the apparatus;
Figure 4 is a side view of a stowage cover for thP
apparatus of Figure 1, showing in outline components of the life buoy packed inside it;

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Figu.re 5 is an end view of the cover;
Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 3 of a second man overboard retrieval apparatus of the invention;
Figure 7 is two cross-sectional detail views of the telescopic leg of the apparatus of Figure 6;
Figure 8 is a detail plan view of a cloth sea anchor detached from the life buoy of Figure 6;
Figure 9 is a side view of a launching mechanism for the apparatus of Figure 6;
Figure 10 is a cross-sectional plan view of the launching mechanism of ~igure 9;
Figure 11 is a view similar to Figure 6 of a third apparatus of the invention with its sling removed; and Figure 12 is a view similar to Figure 8 of the cloth sea anchor for the apparatus of Figure 11.

The First Embodiment The apparatus of Figures 1 to 3 comprises a miniature life raft or life buoy 1 having an irregular pentagon shape defining a "bow" 2 and a "transom" 3. The buoy is given its shape by a po~yether-coated, nylon woven textile inflatable tube of circular cross-section when inflated and comprised of five generally straight sections 4,5,6,7,8 angularly joined together. In the simplest arrangemen-t, the tube is arranged as a single compartment inflated from a pressurized .. . . .
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gas bottle 9 on launch of the buoy. A pressure relief valve - not shown - is provided. In use, it is over the transom section 6 where a man overboard climbs, whilst the bow sections 4,8 assist in supporting him semi-upright once aboard. Accordingly the -transom section 6 has a smaller diameter whilst the bow sec-tions 4,8 have a larger diameter.
The intervening sections 5,7 taper between the larger and smaller diameters.
Connecting between the lowermost (in the normal floating position) portions of the sections is a 100r 10 o~ the same material as the tube. Below the Eloor is a connected invert cone 11 of similar, though lightly coated fabric, which forms a keel. It is provided with water ingress apertures 12 at its tip and is otherwise closed, in particular at its widest, upper part by being connected to ~he floor by welding, except that three small breather holes 13 are provided at the tip for drainage of water from the cone on retrieval of the buoy. Below the tip hangs a mass 1~
having a fixed length or telescopic rigid rod 15 inter-connecting the cone tip and the mass. The rod is rigid toensure that on launch the mass remains outside the buoy and ultimately falls to its suspended position.
The purpose of the mass is to extend the cone on launch. This causes the water to enter the cone through the apertures 12. ~hese have inside, non-return valve, .
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flaps 16 which act to pre~ent water egress as might o-ther-wise occur if wind or waves were to lift the buoy above its normally floating height. The arrangement thus opera-tes as a semi-rigid keel. (Water egress through the breather holes 13 is mlnimal during the huoyls movement in ridlncJ
waves.) To assist a man overboard in climbing onto the life buoy it is provided with a ladder hanging from the transon section 6. The vertical parts 17 of the ladder are of rope. The two rungs 18 are rigid. A pair of lines 17' connect the lower rung to the mass 14 to ensure that the rungs are pulled down on launch. To brace the rungs against being swung away from a man trying to climb them, their mid points are rigidly connected to points 19 on the cone by rods 20. Handles 21 are provided on the sections 5,7.
The man's weight on the ladder will tend to lift the bow 2. To counteract this a water pocket 22 which is triangular in cross-section is secured to the underside of the floox at the bow. It has water ingress apertures towards the top of its sidewalls 23, fore and aft ones of which are closed together laterally of the buoy. Chain ballast 24 causes the pocket 22 to deploy for filling with water. When the man climbs the ladder, water in the pocket is lifted above the ambient water level and its weight tends 1~5B~8 g to counterbalance the weight of the man.
The buoy is provided wi-th a drogue or sea anchor skirt 25 of open knitted nylon ma-terial. The skirt is in the ~orm of a tube shackled to points 26 around the buoy and hanging down therefrom. The bo-ttom of the skirt is gathered to a lightly weighted ring 27. A downwards extending opening in the skirt is provided at the steps 18 and the edges of the opening are attached to the ropes 17, whereby the skirt does not impede the ladder. The purpose of the drogue skirt is to assist the keel in preventing the buoy from being blown away from the man overboard before he can board it.` The drogue skirt has a small cut out 25' at the bow to clear the wa-ter pocket 22 and the rope 33 (described below).
As described the cone is circular in horizontal cross-section and supported in this shape by upper and lower rigidrings 28,29 secured inside the cone. Other configurations are envisaged to be possible.
The buoy is provided with a detachable sling 30 having a lifting eye 31 from which extend three webbing supports 40,41,42 to pass across the man's back at his shoulder blades, under his back side and behind his knees during lifting as shown in Figure 3. Between the webbing supports woven textile panels 43,44 are provided. VE~C~O (~egistered trade mark) fastening strips 38, which normally retain the sling in position in the buoy, are provided on the sling and .

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~5~ 8 on the inflatable tube in positions shown in Figure 3.
In use, the life buoy 1 is launched,from a rigid cover 36. This is shown in Figures 4 and 5 and has two moulded plast.ics material par-ts 237,238. The outer one 237 of -these has a stepped lip 239 which accommodates the lip 240 o the other 238. A stainless steel bracket 241 support~ the cover prior to use of the apparatus on a yacht's "pushpit" rails 242,243. The bracket 241 has a generally L-shaped plate, the . foot 245 of which carries the weight of the cover and engages the lip 23~ at it~ lowest portion. The upright portion 246 of the plate carri.es a downwardly open hook 247 which engages over the lower rail 242. Towards its top edge 248, the portion 246 carries two welded-bnj upright tubes 2~9 in which are accommodated the arms of an invert U rod 250. The U rod carries an upwardly open hook 251 which engages under the upper rail 243. The hooks 247,251 are held apart for gripping the rails 242,243 by screw knobs 252 threadedly engaging the arms of the U rod 250 through the tubes 249.
The cover 36 is held back against the upright portion 246 of the L plate 244 by a strap 253 passing through a slot in the inner cover .part 238 and secured to a bar 254 provided inside the outer cover part 237. The strap 253 has a buckle fitt.ing 255 in which a tongue 256 of a release catch 257 engages. The tongue 257 projects in from a centrally pivoted catch lever 258~ a spring biassing the tongue to - : '. ,. .: , . ' .
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remain engaged. For launch of the life buoy, the tongue 257 is withdrawn by a second lever 259 bearing on the end of the lever 258 opposlte from the tongue. The second lever is also spring biassed and centrally pivoted. It has a .
release pull ring 2~0 secured to its end opposite ~rom the lever 258. Thus pulling of the ring 260 away from the cover 36 moves the tongue 257 away and releases the buckle fitting 255.
A gas release cord 261 passes out of an opening in the inner cover part 238 and is secured to the lower rail 242.
On launch of the apparatus, the entire cover 36 falls away from the bracket 241 and hence its weight on the cord 261 withdraws a release pin (not shown) from the gas bottle 9.
The cover is opened by initial expansion of gas into the tube 4,5,6,7,8. The packing of the buoy into the cover 36 is such that the mass 14 falls free at an early stage and causes the invert cone keel 11 to deploy. The parts 237,238 of the cover remain attached together and come to hang via a line 262 below the mass 14. The keel 11 is packed with negligible air within it and consequently fills substantially entirely with water. Thus the steps 18 are deployed below the "stern" tube 6.
The man overboard swims to the buoy and clambers aboard it, lies with his feet over the "stern" tube 6 and his head and shoulders supported on the "bow" tubes 4,8. The sling .
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30 extends beneath him. For visibility the buoy has a self-erec-ting mas-t and flag 37.
Once the man is on -the buoy i-t cont.inues to drift only slowly due to the action of -the drogue skirt and in due course the vessel returns. It attaches a line 32 to ~ rope 33 hanging between two points 26 at the bows and a further line 34 to the sling's lifting eye 31. The latter is detachably mounted on the tube section 4 and on hoisting on the line 34, the sling is pulled around the man who can be thus swung aboard the vessel.
When he is thus safely rescued, the line 34 is connected to a ring 35 on the floor 10 for lifting of the buoy from the water. ~lthough the relatively small water pocket 22 remains full, the larger cone 11 drains slowly from the breather holes 13. To relieve -the cone of the weight of the mass 14 on lifting, a line 39 is provided between the eye 35 and the upper end of the rod 15.

Second Embodiment Referring to Figures 6 to 10, the life buoy 101 is manufactured from a strong, waterprooE and airtight fabric~
The basic shape is of a tubular inflated ring formed into an overall egg shape, one end being narrower than the other.
The actual size of the buoy is determined by the minimum size required to support -the intrinsic weight, plus a man in -.

28S8;~8 wet clothing, but could be larger for use, say, on ships.
For safety the inflatable is divided into -three or more buoyancy tanks 109 r see Figure 7, each with their own non-return air valves. The 100r 110 o-f the buoy is a rigid section of the same shape as the inflatable ring 101.
Incorporated in -this floor is a chamber for the gas canister 111 and the Eirst section of a rigid sea anchor leg 112.
Also incorporated is a hollow floor section 113 that houses the inflation tubes from the gas canister to each of the inflatable sections. VELCR0 tape 114 is attached to several places inside the buoy, these correspond to tape attached to the survival bag 115 described later. At the narrower or bow end of the buoy ~the head end) is attached on the outside a rubber type housing 116 into which the audio-visual aid pole 117 is firmly inserted. At the wider part ~the feet end3 are attached handles 118 which aid a man to climb into the buoy using the steps 119 that are in-corporated in the water pockets 221 described later. All around the buoy are hand holds.
The inflatable ring folds onto and around the rigid floor, and is inflated automatically when the rip-cord attached to the gas canister is pulled.
For use, the buoy is packed into a rigid casing 100 divided into two parts, see Figure 9. The inner part is attached securely to a vertical bracket hinged at the base - , . ', ~..... : -~35~

which in turn is attached securely to the side of the boa-t (the most ef~ective position is likely to be over -the transom). The hinged bracket is spring loaded and is kept vertical by a fixed pole 102, see Figures 9 and 10. The fixed pole incorpora-tes a handle release mechanism lQ3 and use o~ this will resul-t in the launching o~ the buoy. Thc outer casing is held in place by two catches, one at either side and these are activated by turning a handle 104. This handle is automatically turned by a sliding arm as the bracket falls away from the vertical position. The handle has an extension bar 105 protruding from one side of it.
There are two opposite grooves in the moving bracket 106 into which is fitted a sliding cross-bar which is integral to an arm, bent in -the middle to avoid fouling the casing, and which is hinged at the bottom 107. The hinge on this arm is sited in front of the main bracket hinge so that when the bracket moves downwards the cross-bar is pushed up the groove and comes into contact with the extension bar 105 on the handle; the handle is turned by this action By the time the bracket and casing is approaching the horizontal position the two catches have fully opened and the outer casing, being ballasted, ~alls away into the water taking with it the inflatable buoy. The rip-cord for activating the gas canister(s), which in turn inflate the buoy, is attached to the inner casing which stays with the . , , : ~
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boat and is therefore pulled as the buoy falls away. The inner casing can be removed from the bracke-t whilst in an upright posi-tion by releasing a catch ancl lif-ting it o~f.
The bracket and casing have an interlocking wedge shape to hold them together.
The life buoy 101 has a Eour sec-tion keel/sea anchor structure: a rigid inner spine or telescopic leg, ballast, a cloth sea anchor that is designed to offer the maximum resistance in water when in the 'open' position, and a series of water pockets that hang beneath the inflatable buoy. The pockets incorporate steps on one side to aid a person climhing into the buoy.
The purpose of the water pockets is to keep the buoy sitting in the water. ~s wave action exposes one side of the buoy the wind cannot easily get underneath and lift it out because the outer skirt acts as a wall. Also as it is lifted, the water in the pockets is raised above sea level at that point and, water being heavier than air, it is pulled back downwards keeping the buoy stable and firmly in the water.
The telescopic leg is made up of several tubes of equal length that slide and fit into one another. The top tube 112 is rigidly attached, or indeed can be integral to, the floor 110. The other tubes 121, each diminishiny in diameter form the telescopic leg. The bottom tube is .~
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rigidly attached to the ballasted casing 100. To reduce friction each tube is in fact a loose Ei-t wi-thin -the other but lips 122, integral to each tube, one at the top on the outside and one at the bo-ttom in -the inside, form a sliding fit between each successive tube and also act as a stop when each tube is fully extended. To reduce Eriction even further each lip is grooved longitudinally around lts sliding face, see Figure 2, cross-section A-A. The third tube down is blanked-off at the top 123. An inflatable 'piston' 124 is inflated along with the buoyancy tanks and forces down the first three sections of the telescopic leg by pushing against the plate 123 on top of tube number 103.
With the extension of the first three tubes, the ballast is also exten~ed and the buoy is therefore sel~ righting and will always float the correct way up. The tube 112 is longer than the other tubes in that it enters into the floor 11~ box section to allow enough room at the top for the inflatable piston 1?~4 to be stowed when the telescopic arms are in the closed position.
Ballast is actually integral to the outer casing 101 into which a-t least half of the buoy is encased when stowed.
The bottom leg of the telescopic arm is securely attached to the inside of the casing. The casing is made oE non corrosive material and has fixing points around the inside for attaching a cloth sea anchor.

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The cloth sea ancho~ 125 is made up o~ several sheets of suitable cloth (waxed canvas, nylon or plasticised material) that should weather well in sea water. Each sheet is an identical shape, see Figure 8. The outline shape is that o~ the plan shape oE ~he buoy, (wider a~ one end than the other and rounded). The si~e of each sheet is the same as, or sligh-tly larger than, the buoy floor (this simply avoids problems in packing). The centre of each sheet is cut out in the same shape as the outside edge.
This is to house the central telescopic leg 112,121 and also the smaller diameter canister holder 111.
The sheets of cloth are strongly stitched together in the following way. If six sheets are used, they are divided into three pairs, Each oE the pairs are stitched together along radial lines 126. The top and bottom sheets o~ each pair are s itched together along the short lines 127. Cloth straps are stitched to the top and bottom sheets ln the same place 127. These straps are attached to the anchor ring 128 at the top and the ballasted casing at the bottom. ~7hen the cloth anchor is folded the pieces lie flat, one on top of the other. When it is opened, or extended, the stitching pattern causes a pocketed concertina that ofers considerable resistance to movement when immersed in water.
The water pockets 221 are made of watertight material.

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They are securely attached -to the inflatable section 109 and hang all round the buoy. There is an inner 129 and an outer 130 skirt and a cloth floor tha-t takes the plan shape of the inflated buoy. At intexvals around the pockets are stitched weighted hars 131 in a radial fashion. These help to open the pockets aEter the buoy has inflated and riyhted itself in the water. ~lso in a radial fashion are stitched several inside walls between the inner and outer skirt.
Several pockets are therefore formed which prevent water flowing freely around the 'sack'.
Water enters the pockets through holes reinforced with rigid rings 132 situated at the top of each pocket. The bottom of the pockets are held in shape by a weighted ring 128 which takes the shape o~, and is just larger than the buoy floor. The ring is fastened to the inner skirt.
At the wider end of the buoy (the feet end) are incorporated steps 119 to help a person climb into the buoy. The upper two steps are incorporated in ~he outer skirt of the water pockets, the third (and subsequent steps if required) is suspended from a rope at either side and attached to the ends of the second step. ~11 the steps have some weight and do not float, so that they maintain their position.
The water pocket behind the steps is narrower because the outer skirt is nearer to the inner one to allow enough space for a person to easily locate them and also to provide a .
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space for his feet when climbing in.

Third ~mbodiment The emhodimen-t oE Figures 11 and 12 is similar to that of Figures 6 to 10 exGept tha-t instead Oe a telescopic leg this embodimen-t uses hingecl arms 133. Each arm is hinged at the ends. The top arm and the bottom arm are half the length of the middle arms so that when they fold up against and alongside each other they stretch from one side of the rigid buoy floor 110 to the other without overhanging. The top and bottom arms are attached -to the middle of the buoy floor 110 and the ballasted casing lQ0 respectively, though these can be repositioned to coincide with the centre of balance if this is not in the middle. The hinges incorpo-rate a ratchet device that pre~ents the axm from foldingback on itself as it extends downwards. When fully extended the arms become vertical, and with the ratchet system, form a rigid leg between -the flGating buoy and the submerged ballast. The number o~ arms employed depends upon how deep you wish the sea anchor to go.
The gas canister casing 111 is repositioned horiæon-tally under the buoy floor 110 and alongside and parallel to the hinged arms. This allows the floor to be packed closer to the bottom of the ballasted casing 100.
The cloth sea anchor is made of the same type of fabric .
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~L285~3~8 as described for the telescopic leg method earlier, but the shape of the cent~e hole needs to be modified to give a clear passage to -the hinged a.rms that re~uire a slot ra-ther than a hole. The cloth sea anchor takes the same outer shape as previously described and .is oE the same outer dimensions. ~gain there are several sheets cut to the same shape. ~ slot 134 is cut out o -the sheets up the centre lengthways, the slot being wide enough to house the folded legs. At each end of the slot are attached straps 135 10 which hold the two halves together. The sheets are stitched :
together in exactly the same way as previously described, except there are short stitches 127 to be made on the inside. These are to join the same pieces of cloth as do the outer ones 127.
The number of sheets usea to make the sea anchor depends upon how deep the whole unit is required to go and how many arms are used to make up the rigid length. There will be an optimum size for the sea anchor in relation to the size of the inflated buoy.
Both the second and third embodiments have a sling/
survival hag, having two purposes. Firstly it is to wrap around the man in the buoy to protect him from the weather, and secondly to form a hammock like sling with one large lifting eye at its apex, so that when the unit is lifted it forms a secure bag so that a man in it cannot fall out.

, ~8~8~3 To achieve -this there are -two par~s to the 'bag'.
The first ~art forms the lifting sling, see Figu~e 6.
It is made of strong nylon Eabric and is reinforced at its outer edges and in the middle with strong webbing that converge upon the strong ri~id lifting eye at the apex.
When lifted the sling Eorms a hammock shape that is lower in the middle and higher at the ends. The ends lift a ~an's legs and head higher than his torso, which remains in t'ne 'hollow' of the sling. In this position it is not possible for him to fall out. At the bottom of the sling are Velcro strips 114 that allow it he firmly secured to the buoy, the bottom of the sling following the contours of the inside of the buoy. The sides of the sling are laid lengthways along the sides of the buoy with the lifting eye at the head end.
lS This is held in place by Velcro strips.
The man enters the buoy from the water at the feet end, collapses into the buoy and rolls over to assume a half sitting, half lying position within the contours of the buoy, the walls of the inflatable giving support to the back and legs. The lifting eye is at this stage in a prominent position behind the man's head. When it is lifted the Velcro strips along the edges give way and the sling assumes the hammock shape. As the unit is lifted higher the whole unit comes detached from the buoy, as shown in Figure 6.
The man is now lifted aboard safely and easily, leaving the , ' ;' , ' . .: : -.

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~22-weighted buoy in the water. After use the bag is slmply put back in position usiny the Velcro strips. It is -then folded with the de~lated buoy ready for use once more.
The second part of the bag deals with the protective 5 covering that shelters the man from the elemen-ts. In effect it is a wrap-around bag oE suitable material~ and forms the inner part of a bag within a bag. The base of the inner bag is sewn into the outer sling and therefore its base follows the same contours as the outer sling. The inner bag is long enough to cover a large man and incorporates in the head end an elasticated hood. The sides are loosely held open for a man to climb in by Velcro tape. The man, once in the buoy, wraps the sides around himself. ~gain Velcro tape is used to keep the bag 'shut'.
~ocation devices 136 are situated on top of a short mast 117 which is firmly held in a vertical position ~when the buoy is inflated) by a rubber type holder on the outer side of the inflatable section at the head end. The actual siting of the mast is not critical, but must not be fouled 2~ by a man climbing int~ the craft.
The first location aid is a flashing strobe light which will benefit both the vessel and the man in the water, especially at night. The second device is an audible sound emitter that could help a vessel in fog and also a man in the water who loses sight of ~he buoy periodically due to .

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choppy seas. The third aid is a radio bleep transmitter that can be tracked using the hoat's radio direction findin~
equipment. These aids are brand items bought on the market and lncorporated in the mas-t. ~lowever, they can be modified to be powered from one common battery pack also incorpora-~ed in the mast and all activa-ted by one ontoEf swit~h. '~'he on/off switch can be activated by gravity as the mast assumes its vertical position, or a small rip-cord method can be used.
After the man has been brought aboard using the de-tachable sling the buoy is brought aboard in a similar fashion. Another large li~-ting eye lying in the bottom of the buoy floor is exposed by the removal of the sling.
Each of three ropes attached to this passes through one of three holes positioned at three equidistant points around the edges of the buoy floor. They each enter -the top of the water poc~ets via the inner water inlet holes, and proceed down to the ring 128 used to hold the water pockets relative to each other. Each rope is attached to this ring. The ropes are taken down the inside of the water pockets to avoid fouling the keel mechanism. When the buoy lifting ring is raised using the same extended boom or derrick used to lift the man aboard, the ring 128 is lifted and this has the effect of reducing the size of the water pockets whilst in the water and expelling water from them :

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~8S~3~8 -2~-out of the same holes it previously en-tered.
Once the ring engages with the buoy floor the lifting effort now acts on -the buoy itself. It is raised out of -the water and laid on the deck. ~ecause the water pockets have been emptied of a lot of their water the whole uni-t is lighter than it would have been.
After use the keel section is olded irst into the ballasted casing. The survival bag is repositioned before the buoy is deflated. The buoy is now deflated using the release valves. Using a 'repacking kit' the batteries and gas canister are replaced and the release valves are re-sealed. The launching bracket is brought back to its vertical position and the inner casing removed. The buoy is packed into both casings, the rip-cord attached and the whole unit re-positioned on the launching bracket ready for use once more.

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Claims (21)

1) Man overboard retrieval apparatus comprising an inflatable life buoy (1,101) with a configuration having an upper part (4,5,6,7,8,10; 109,110) which is downwardly concave when floating in a use position and is of a size to at least partially accommodate the torso of a man; and a sling (30;115) for lifting the man arranged at the upper part of the life buoy, the sling (30;115) having one or more man supporting members (40,41,42) and a lifting eye (31) to which the supporting member(s) (40,41942) are secured;
the eye (31) being so carried by the life buoy (1;101) as to be easily detached therefrom for lifting of the man with the supporting member(s) extending down from the eye to liftingly support the man, said sling being detachable from said life buoy to separate same as the man is lifted in the sling without lifting the life buoy.

2) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the life buoy (1;101) comprises an inflatable tubular ring 94,5,6,7,8;109) with a floor (10;110).

3) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the tubular ring (4,5,6,7,8) is of irregular pentagonal shape.

4) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the tubular ring (4,5,6,7,8) has bow sections (4, 8) of a larger cross-section than a transom section (6) for semi-upright support of the man with his back resting against the bow sections (4, 8) and his legs over the transom section (6).

5) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the sling (30; 115) is detachably secured by hook and loop fastening means (38; 114).

6) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the supporting member(s) (40,41,42) are arranged to extend laterally across the upper part of the life buoy (1; 101).

7) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 1, wherein a plurality of supporting members (40,41,42) are provided interconnected by textile material panels (43,44).

8) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 6 or Claim 7, wherein three supporting members are provided one (40) positioned to be drawn up across the man's back at his shoulder blades, the second (41) at his back side and the third (43) behind his knees.

9) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the life buoy (1; 101) is provided with a ballasted keel (11,14; 112,121,100; 133,100).

10) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 9, wherein the keel is extensible in a rigid form (112, 121; 100) and the life buoy has a rigid floor (110).

11) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 9, wherein the keel is of flexible sheet material and depends as an invert cone (11) from the life buoy.

12) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 11, wherein the invert cone keel (11) is open to the surrounding water at its tip only, whereby it fills with water to the virtual exclusion of air.

13) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 12, wherein the keel (11) has water ingress aperatures (12), with non-return valves (16), for filling of it with water.

14) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 13, wherein the keel (11) has breather holes (13) at its tip for emptying of water.

15) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in any one of Claims 11 to 13, wherein the invert cone keel (11) has rigid stiffening rings (28, 29).

16) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 1, including a sea anchor (25; 221,125) attached to the life buoy to hang in the water below it in use.

17) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 16, wherein the sea anchor is a skirt (25) of textile mesh.

18) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 16, wherein the sea anchor is a sleeve (221, 125) of water pockets.

19) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 1, including steps (18; 119) suspended, in their use position from the life buoy for assisting the man in boarding the life buoy.

20) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 19, further including a water-pocket (22) suspended in its use position from the life buoy (1) on the opposite side from the steps, the water pocket being arranged to lift water in it above the ambient water level on a man's weight being placed on the steps to counter-balance his weight.

21) Man overboard retrieval apparatus as claimed in Claim 19 or Claim 20, including means (20) for bracing the steps (18) against the keel (11).