CA2027353C - Breathing mask - Google Patents
Breathing mask Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- CA2027353C CA2027353C CA002027353A CA2027353A CA2027353C CA 2027353 C CA2027353 C CA 2027353C CA 002027353 A CA002027353 A CA 002027353A CA 2027353 A CA2027353 A CA 2027353A CA 2027353 C CA2027353 C CA 2027353C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- heat exchanger
- mask
- heat
- exchanger portion
- wearer
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Lifetime
Links
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A41—WEARING APPAREL
- A41D—OUTERWEAR; PROTECTIVE GARMENTS; ACCESSORIES
- A41D13/00—Professional, industrial or sporting protective garments, e.g. surgeons' gowns or garments protecting against blows or punches
- A41D13/05—Professional, industrial or sporting protective garments, e.g. surgeons' gowns or garments protecting against blows or punches protecting only a particular body part
- A41D13/11—Protective face masks, e.g. for surgical use, or for use in foul atmospheres
- A41D13/1161—Means for fastening to the user's head
- A41D13/1169—Means for fastening to the user's head using adhesive
- A41D13/1176—Means for fastening to the user's head using adhesive forming a complete seal at the edges of the mask
Landscapes
- Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
- General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
- Physical Education & Sports Medicine (AREA)
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Textile Engineering (AREA)
- Respiratory Apparatuses And Protective Means (AREA)
Abstract
The invention relates to a breathing mask comprising a mask portion of an elastic material covering the wearer's mouth and nose and a heat exchanger portion of a heat-retaining material, fixed to the mask portion, wherethrough inhalation and exhalation air have been arranged to flow to recover the heat and moisture contained in the exhalation air and to transfer them to the inhalation air. To provide a mask having good usability, the heat exchanger portion has been formed as a flexible, shapeable unit substantially retaining its desired form so that the entity constituted by the heat exchanger portion and the mask portion can be shaped by forming the heat exchanger portion to be suited to the form of the wearer's face.
Description
Breathing mask The invention relates to a breathing mask com-prising a mask portion of an elastic material cover-s ing the wearer ° s mouth and nose and a heat exchanger portion of a heat-retaining material, fixed to the mask portion, wherethrough inhalation and exhalation air have been arranged to flow to recover the heat and moisture contained in the exhalation air and to transfer them to the inhalation air.
When one works in the cold in winter conditions or generally when one is staying in very cold condi-tions, for instance in the arctic regions, one has to breathe in large amounts of cold and dry air. Not only is this disadvantageous for health reasons, but it also substantially increases one's consumption of heat, as the body strives to heat the inhaled air to body temperature and this quantity of heat is trans-mitted from the body with the exhaled air. Further-more, dry inhalation air has a disadvantageous effect on the normal moisture condition of the mucous mem-branes of the respiratory tract.
Several different breathing masks are previous ly known which are intended to be used when working in cold weather, in which situation the purpose of the mask is to enable the recovery of heat and mois-ture from the exhaled air and the transmission there-of into the inhaled air. As examples of said known breathing masks may be mentioned the solutions dis-closed in Finnish Patents 49 241 and 52 019.
The solutions described in the above-stated patent publications perform fully faultlessly in principle, but their usability is not the best pos-sible. A factor impairing the usability of said breathing masks is their impractical design, since their form deviates substantially from the form of the face. The form of the mask, strongly protruding from the face, essentially :i.mpairs its usability. A
further drawback in some solutions is their weight, 5 which is a result r.~f the disadvantageous shape of the heat exchanger portion, in some cases requiring the use of a rather large-sized mask portion.
The object of the invent:i.on is to provide a breathing ma~;k with which the disadvantages of the 10 prior art can be eliminated. ':C'his has been achieved with a breathing mask accordi..ng to the invention which is characterized in that the heat exchanger portion has been formed as a flexible, shapeable unit substantially reta i.ni ng its de:>iref~ form so that the 15 entity constituted by the rnf~at exchanger portion and the mask portion can be shaped by forming the heat exchanger portion to be suited to the form of the wearer's face.
The advantage of the invention is above all its 20 simplicity and versatility, wlv~erek>y one achieves a well-fitting and well.-funci:uon~.ng breathing mask for various uses by means of a solution which is simple and economical in ~niew of the manufacturing costs.
In accordance with one aspect of the present 25 invention there is provideca a breathing mask comprising a mask portion of an elastic material covering the wearer's mouth and nose and a heat exchanger portion of a heat--retaining material, fixed to the mask port ion, whe:retlarough inhalation and 30 exhalation air iuave been arranged to flow to recover the heat and moisture contained in the exhalation air and to transfer them to the inhalation air, wherein the heat exchanger portion teas been formed as a flexible, shapeable unit s7..rbstantially retaining its 2a desired form so that the entity constituted by the heat exchanger portion and thFa mask portion can be shaped by forming the heat exchanger portion to be suited to the form of the wearer's face.
5 The invention will be explained in the following by means of an advantageous embodiment illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figures 1 to 3 :~l.lustrate a breathing mask according to the invention as views from different 10 directions, and Figure 4 illustrates a breathing mask according to the invention fitted on the face of the wearer.
Figures 1 to 9 show ~cc:hematically a breathing mask of the invention. The breathing mask comprises a 15 mask portion 1 made of an el.ast:ic material and a heat exchanger portion 2 fixed thereto and formed of a ~~~<~''~'~~~~~
When one works in the cold in winter conditions or generally when one is staying in very cold condi-tions, for instance in the arctic regions, one has to breathe in large amounts of cold and dry air. Not only is this disadvantageous for health reasons, but it also substantially increases one's consumption of heat, as the body strives to heat the inhaled air to body temperature and this quantity of heat is trans-mitted from the body with the exhaled air. Further-more, dry inhalation air has a disadvantageous effect on the normal moisture condition of the mucous mem-branes of the respiratory tract.
Several different breathing masks are previous ly known which are intended to be used when working in cold weather, in which situation the purpose of the mask is to enable the recovery of heat and mois-ture from the exhaled air and the transmission there-of into the inhaled air. As examples of said known breathing masks may be mentioned the solutions dis-closed in Finnish Patents 49 241 and 52 019.
The solutions described in the above-stated patent publications perform fully faultlessly in principle, but their usability is not the best pos-sible. A factor impairing the usability of said breathing masks is their impractical design, since their form deviates substantially from the form of the face. The form of the mask, strongly protruding from the face, essentially :i.mpairs its usability. A
further drawback in some solutions is their weight, 5 which is a result r.~f the disadvantageous shape of the heat exchanger portion, in some cases requiring the use of a rather large-sized mask portion.
The object of the invent:i.on is to provide a breathing ma~;k with which the disadvantages of the 10 prior art can be eliminated. ':C'his has been achieved with a breathing mask accordi..ng to the invention which is characterized in that the heat exchanger portion has been formed as a flexible, shapeable unit substantially reta i.ni ng its de:>iref~ form so that the 15 entity constituted by the rnf~at exchanger portion and the mask portion can be shaped by forming the heat exchanger portion to be suited to the form of the wearer's face.
The advantage of the invention is above all its 20 simplicity and versatility, wlv~erek>y one achieves a well-fitting and well.-funci:uon~.ng breathing mask for various uses by means of a solution which is simple and economical in ~niew of the manufacturing costs.
In accordance with one aspect of the present 25 invention there is provideca a breathing mask comprising a mask portion of an elastic material covering the wearer's mouth and nose and a heat exchanger portion of a heat--retaining material, fixed to the mask port ion, whe:retlarough inhalation and 30 exhalation air iuave been arranged to flow to recover the heat and moisture contained in the exhalation air and to transfer them to the inhalation air, wherein the heat exchanger portion teas been formed as a flexible, shapeable unit s7..rbstantially retaining its 2a desired form so that the entity constituted by the heat exchanger portion and thFa mask portion can be shaped by forming the heat exchanger portion to be suited to the form of the wearer's face.
5 The invention will be explained in the following by means of an advantageous embodiment illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figures 1 to 3 :~l.lustrate a breathing mask according to the invention as views from different 10 directions, and Figure 4 illustrates a breathing mask according to the invention fitted on the face of the wearer.
Figures 1 to 9 show ~cc:hematically a breathing mask of the invention. The breathing mask comprises a 15 mask portion 1 made of an el.ast:ic material and a heat exchanger portion 2 fixed thereto and formed of a ~~~<~''~'~~~~~
heat-retaining material. The mask portion 1 covers the wearer's mouth and nose in a use situation. The mask portion 1 is fitted on the face in the above-stated manner in a use situation so that the wearer's inhalation and exhalation air flow through the heat exchanger portion 2 fixed to the mask portion, where-by the heat and moisture in the exhalation air can be retrieved into the heat exchanger portion 2 and whereby the inhalation air, when flowing through the heat exchanger portion 2, is heated and moistened on account of the heat and moisture stored in the heat exchanger portion. The placing of the device accord-ing to the invention in a use situation has been dis-closed in Figure 4.
The mask portion 1 may be manufactured of any elastic material; for instance the use of a plastic material has proved advantageous.
In accordance with the invention, the heat ex changer portion 2 has been formed as a Flexible unit substantially retaining its desired shape, whereby the entity constituted by the heat exchanger portion 2 and the mask portion can be shaped to be suited to the form of the face of the wearer in question. The breathing mask according to the invention can thus be constructed by shaping in the desired manner, i.e. by suitably flexing the heat exchanger portion 2 so that the heat exchanger portion is given the desired shape, whereby the heat exchanger portion, as it remains in said shape, causes a desired shape to be achieved for the entire structural unit, thus ensur ing a good fit of the mask on the wearer's face. The idea is that the shapeability of the heat exchanger portion and the ability thereof to retain said des ired shape also brings about the desired shape for the mask portion.
n~ ~'~ 3~~
The mask portion 1 may be manufactured of any elastic material; for instance the use of a plastic material has proved advantageous.
In accordance with the invention, the heat ex changer portion 2 has been formed as a Flexible unit substantially retaining its desired shape, whereby the entity constituted by the heat exchanger portion 2 and the mask portion can be shaped to be suited to the form of the face of the wearer in question. The breathing mask according to the invention can thus be constructed by shaping in the desired manner, i.e. by suitably flexing the heat exchanger portion 2 so that the heat exchanger portion is given the desired shape, whereby the heat exchanger portion, as it remains in said shape, causes a desired shape to be achieved for the entire structural unit, thus ensur ing a good fit of the mask on the wearer's face. The idea is that the shapeability of the heat exchanger portion and the ability thereof to retain said des ired shape also brings about the desired shape for the mask portion.
n~ ~'~ 3~~
The desired shapeability of the heat exchanger portion 2 as well as the above-stated form retention are achieved for instance by constructing the heat exchanger portion 2 of a heat-retaining material which as such is a flexible and form-retaining mater-ial. E.g. a steel wire mesh can be mentioned as an example of such a material. The heat exchanger por-tion 2 can be manufactured by stacking a desired num-ber of substantially rectangular pieces of steel wire mesh and by fixing said stack of pieces of mesh e.g.
by means of an adhesive material to an aperture prov-ided in the mask portion 1. Thus the heat exchanger portion 2 formed in the above-stated manner serves as a bearing part of the structure of the breathing mask and, furthermore, the shape of the entire mask can be modified in the manner desired by the wearer in ques-tion by flexing the stack of meshes. Such a shaping is a simple and rapid operation and may be carried out e.g. by manual flexing.
The efficiency of the heat exchanger portion 2 constructed in the above-stated manner may be modi-fied by adding or diminishing the number of pieces of steel wire mesh to be superimposed in a manner known per se. When the invention is utilized, said ad~ust-ment of the effect of the heat exchanger portion can be advantageously carried out by producing e.g. a series of breathing masks which have heat exchanger portions 2 adapted to different temperature ranges, that is, a series of masks is produced wherein the number of pieces of mesh in the heat exchanger por-tion is different. The wearer may then select a breathing mask adapted to the temperature in ques-tion.
The retention of the breathing mask of the in-vention in place may be secured by fixing means 3.
'? ~ 's ~~ ~J ~.~ ,,3 -.) ~?
Said fixing means may be e.g. an adhesive strip, a press-stud or soma other suitable means wherewith the mask can be affixed for instance to a scarf wrapped round the face or a head cover 4 protecting the en-5 tire head, which is shown in Figure 4.
The above-stated working example is by no means intended to restrict the invention, but the invention may be modified with full freedom within the scope of the claims. Thus it is evident that the mask of the invention or the details thereof need not be exactly as presented above, but solutions of other kinds are possible as well. The heat-retaining material used for constructing the heat exchanger portion need not necessarily be a mesh, but it is possible to use for instance various grid materials. Shapeability and form retention for the mask may also be achieved otherwise than as stated in the foregoing. It is pos-sible for instance to manufacture for the heat ex-changer portion a frame portion or support portion of a material which can be shaped and which is form-retaining. In such a case, equally high requirements need not be set on the form retention of the actual heat-retaining material as in connection with the example presented in the figures.
by means of an adhesive material to an aperture prov-ided in the mask portion 1. Thus the heat exchanger portion 2 formed in the above-stated manner serves as a bearing part of the structure of the breathing mask and, furthermore, the shape of the entire mask can be modified in the manner desired by the wearer in ques-tion by flexing the stack of meshes. Such a shaping is a simple and rapid operation and may be carried out e.g. by manual flexing.
The efficiency of the heat exchanger portion 2 constructed in the above-stated manner may be modi-fied by adding or diminishing the number of pieces of steel wire mesh to be superimposed in a manner known per se. When the invention is utilized, said ad~ust-ment of the effect of the heat exchanger portion can be advantageously carried out by producing e.g. a series of breathing masks which have heat exchanger portions 2 adapted to different temperature ranges, that is, a series of masks is produced wherein the number of pieces of mesh in the heat exchanger por-tion is different. The wearer may then select a breathing mask adapted to the temperature in ques-tion.
The retention of the breathing mask of the in-vention in place may be secured by fixing means 3.
'? ~ 's ~~ ~J ~.~ ,,3 -.) ~?
Said fixing means may be e.g. an adhesive strip, a press-stud or soma other suitable means wherewith the mask can be affixed for instance to a scarf wrapped round the face or a head cover 4 protecting the en-5 tire head, which is shown in Figure 4.
The above-stated working example is by no means intended to restrict the invention, but the invention may be modified with full freedom within the scope of the claims. Thus it is evident that the mask of the invention or the details thereof need not be exactly as presented above, but solutions of other kinds are possible as well. The heat-retaining material used for constructing the heat exchanger portion need not necessarily be a mesh, but it is possible to use for instance various grid materials. Shapeability and form retention for the mask may also be achieved otherwise than as stated in the foregoing. It is pos-sible for instance to manufacture for the heat ex-changer portion a frame portion or support portion of a material which can be shaped and which is form-retaining. In such a case, equally high requirements need not be set on the form retention of the actual heat-retaining material as in connection with the example presented in the figures.
Claims (2)
1. A breathing mask comprising a mask portion of an elastic material covering the wearer's mouth and nose and a heat exchanger portion of a heat-retaining material, fixed to an aperture provided in the mask portion, wherethrough inhalation and exhalation air have been arranged to flow to recover the heat and moisture contained in the exhalation air and to transfer them to the inhalation air, wherein the heat exchanger portion has been formed as a flexible, shapeable unit substantially retaining its desired form so that the entity constituted by the heat exchanger portion and the mask portion can be shaped by forming the heat exchanger portion to be suited to the form of the wearer's face.
2. A breathing mask as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat-retaining material of the heat exchanger portion is flexible and shapeable.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| FI895044A FI101679B (en) | 1989-10-24 | 1989-10-24 | Respirator |
| FI895044 | 1989-10-24 |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2027353A1 CA2027353A1 (en) | 1991-04-25 |
| CA2027353C true CA2027353C (en) | 2005-04-12 |
Family
ID=8529212
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002027353A Expired - Lifetime CA2027353C (en) | 1989-10-24 | 1990-10-11 | Breathing mask |
Country Status (4)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA2027353C (en) |
| FI (1) | FI101679B (en) |
| NO (1) | NO904509L (en) |
| SE (2) | SE510916C2 (en) |
Families Citing this family (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US5836303A (en) * | 1996-09-17 | 1998-11-17 | Thermal Air Products, Inc. | Respirator apparatus |
| US7721732B2 (en) | 2002-04-04 | 2010-05-25 | Qxtec, Inc. | Respiratory heat exchanger |
-
1989
- 1989-10-24 FI FI895044A patent/FI101679B/en active IP Right Grant
-
1990
- 1990-10-10 SE SE9003230A patent/SE510916C2/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 1990-10-10 SE SE9003230D patent/SE9003230L/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 1990-10-11 CA CA002027353A patent/CA2027353C/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1990-10-18 NO NO90904509A patent/NO904509L/en not_active Application Discontinuation
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| FI895044A0 (en) | 1989-10-24 |
| SE9003230L (en) | 1991-04-25 |
| CA2027353A1 (en) | 1991-04-25 |
| SE510916C2 (en) | 1999-07-05 |
| FI101679B1 (en) | 1998-08-14 |
| NO904509L (en) | 1991-04-25 |
| SE9003230D0 (en) | 1990-10-10 |
| FI101679B (en) | 1998-08-14 |
| NO904509D0 (en) | 1990-10-18 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| EEER | Examination request | ||
| MKLA | Lapsed | ||
| MKEC | Expiry (correction) |
Effective date: 20121202 |