GB2077198A

GB2077198A - Safety Apparel for Use on Water-borne Vessels

Info

Publication number: GB2077198A
Application number: GB8101947A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1980-05-27
Filing date: 1981-01-22
Publication date: 1981-12-16
Also published as: NO811454L; AU6796381A; DE3120678A1; JPS5711196A; SE8103197L; DK231381A; FR2483353A1

Abstract

Safety apparel includes a number of different wearable articles such as a scuba vest or jacket, a safety harness or a wet suit. Each of these wearable articles (such as the safety harness 10 of Fig. 2) is provided with a pair of connectors 26 that are spaced apart across the wearer's chest. The wearable article 10 is also provided with a pair of similar, second connector devices 28 spaced apart across the wearer's back in the vicinity of the shoulder blades, a buoyant collar 30 of flexible material, which is inflatable and of generally inverted U- shape, has connector devices 32, 34 that are spaced transversely of the collar 30 correspondingly to the transverse spacing of the connectors 26, 28 provided upon the front and back of the wearable article so that the buoyant collar is separably attachable to or detachable from any of the wearable articles. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Safety Apparel for Use on Water-borne Vessels This invention relates generally to the field of safety apparel for wear by passengers or crewmen, principally of waterborne craft.

During normal activities on a vessel, a passenger or crewman will often be wearing any of a number of different items of survival or recreational gear, such as safety harnesses that are buckled on in heavy seas to prevent the wearer from being washed overboard or at least to aid recovery if the wearer falls overboard.

Further, scuba gear may be worn on deck in preparation for diving, or simply for the purpose of protection from the elements. It is also common to wear vests having pockets or equivalent support devices for flashlights, emergency food rations, etc.

To wear these items, and also to wear a life jacket, is uncomfortable, and prevents the wearer from actively performing his duties as a crewman, or from freely enjoying planned recreational activities. Even when a life preserver is worn without additional items of survival gear or recreational apparel, the life jacket itself may interfere substantially with the activities of the crewman or passenger.

Hitherto, those working in the art have not, so far as is known, considered utilizing a separable buoyant collar as a module that is attachable to any of a plurality of diverse, known items, of survival or recreational gear. Life preservers have been built into jackets as basic parts of the jackets, and it is known, for example, to incorporate buoyant means in suspender straps, to serve with the straps in a permanently attached or integral arrangement. However, as noted the highly desirable concept of utilizing a modular form of buoyancy element having widely spaced connectors and attachable to or detachable from at the pleasure of the wearer - mating connectors found on a wide variety of wearable items, has heretofore not suggested itself to those working in the art.Thus, the prior art so far as is known does not include the concept of a basic, buoyancy module which is independently attachable to or detachable from differing wearable articles such as a safety harness, a scuba diving jacket, a survival vest, or a windbreaker.

The present invention aims to bridge the gap between life preservers per se and articles worn by passengers or crewmen of a vessel. The invention provides the combination, with a plurality of articles wearable by the crew and passengers of a vessel and differing from one another in function and appearance, of a life preserver module comprising: a) a buoyancy element shaped to be worn collar-fashion by a user; b) first connector members on said element; and c) second connector members on each of said wearable articles, the second connector members being complementary to those on said element and being adapted for quick attachment to and detachment from the first connector members.

In a preferred embodiment, the buoyancy element is initially fashioned in a horseshoe or inverted U-shape. Preferably, it is of the inflatable type, using a container of pressurized gas which is releasable into the buoyancy element in an emergency. Normally, however, the envelope of inverted U-shape lies completely flat against the wearable article to which the element is separably attached.

The life preserver or buoyancy element preferably has a plurality of separable connectors on its underside and these may be snap hooks or other types of separable fasteners. It is important that the fasteners be of a type in which separation cannot occur accidentally.

The buoyancy element is a module, in the sense that any of a wide variety of wearable items, though differing from each other in function and structure, will have connector elements located and formed to attach to the complemenary connector members attached to the underside of the buoyancy element.

When wearing one of the wearable articles, the buoyancy element may be attached or detached, at will. Further a single buoyancy element can be used with a complete set of survival or recreational gear, the buoyancy element being attached to a chosen article of clothing or survival gear when the latter is required for use.

The invention will now be further described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a front view of a safety harness worn by crewmen of fishing vessels or yachts while working on deck in heavy seas, with a buoyant module attached thereto, Figure 2 is an enlarged, exploded perspective view of the safety harness and module shown in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a front view of a scuba diving jacket or "wet suit", with a module attached thereto, one end of the module being separated from the jacket to show the details of the separable attachment, Figure 4 is a front view of a survival vest, with a module being illustrated in chain-dotted outline as it appears when attached thereto, Figure 5 is an enlarged plan view of the module alone in a deflated, flattened condition, Figure 6 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially on the line 6-6 of Figure 5, Figure 7 is a side view of the module as seen looking from the right-hand side of Figure 5, and Figures 8 and 9 are side views showing the module in deflated and inflated conditions, respectively, when worn on the jacket of a wet suit.

Hereinafter, reference will be made on many occasions to articles worn by the user, as for example a safety harness, a wet suit or the jacket thereof, a survival vest, etc. The term "wearable article" shall be understood as encompassing all of these, and any other articles of clothing, working, or survival gear that may be worn on board a fishing vessel, pleasure boat, or the like.

Hereinafter, the modular concept by means of which a buoyancy characteristic is imparted to all of these items at the option of the wearer will be described with specific reference to a safety harness, scuba jacket and survival vest. The concept could, as will be apparent hereinafter, be applied with equal facility to rain jackets or foul weather gear, coveralls, and the like.

Referring to Figure 1, designated generally at 10 is a wearable article which in this instance is a safety harness which is itself conventional in form, comprising a belt 12 and shoulder straps 14 which are secured at one end to the belt, and which cross at the back and are there stitched or otherwise permanently secured to the back part of the belt 12. The belt 12 is provided with a separable belt buckle 1 5 (Figure 2), which secures the harness about the body of the wearer, and which also provides means for detachably connecting one end of a tether or safety rope 20.

At its other end, the tether or safety rope 20 is generally and conventionally provided with a snap hook or loop 22 attachable to a ring 24 on the mast M or other part of the superstructure of a vessel.

A harness of this type is worn by crewmen of fishing vessels or yachts in heavy seas so that they can be pulled back aboard ship if washed overboard.

Referring particularly to Figure 2, the harness is provided, on the front portions 25 of the shoulder straps 14, with pivoted D-rings 26 or equivalent connector elements. Similarly, on the crossed back portions 27 of the straps 14 there are provided, in close proximity to the upper ends of said back portions 27, D-rings 28.

Thus, it will be seen that the wearable item 10 includes spaced connector members 26, 26 transversely aligned across the chest of the wearer when the article 10 is being worn, and further includes correspondingly transversely spaced and aligned connector members 28, 28, which would be spaced across the back of the wearer of the harness at the opposite sides of and slightly below the wearer'sneck.

Regardless of the specific nature of the wearable article, whether it be the safety harness 10 or the wet suit jacket 36 of Figure 3, or the survival vest 42 of Figure 4, the front connector members and the back connector members will always be in the same locations, that is, they will always be transversely aligned in spaced relation across the chest of the wearer, and correspondingly transversely aligned in spaced relation across the upper back of the wearer.

The quickly attachable or detachable buoyancy module has been generally designated 30, and is of a flexible material throughout, in the general form of a horseshoe or inverted U. The module, in the illustrated example, is of the inflatable type. It is believed to be within the scope of the invention, however, that it be inherently buoyant, rather than inflatable, for the purpose of imparting buoyancy to the module 30. Thus, the buoyancy module may comprise a flexible evelope, pre-packed with inherently buoyant, flexible material.

The buoyancy module is of a size such as to permit it to be worn collar fashion and, when using an inflatable module, it will normally lie completely flat against the wearable article. Thus, in Figure 2, it may be observed that the parallel front or leg portions 31 are of wide, generally flattened shape and overlie the upper parts of the front portions 25 of the shoulder straps 14.

Adjacent the distal extremities of the legs 31, connector elements 32 are pivotally attached to the undersides of the leg portions 31, that is, to the rearward face of the legs which, as noted, lie flat against the shoulder straps 14 of the safety harness 10. The connector elements 32 are in the form of spring clasps which in use, will be transversely aligned and spaced in direct correspondence with the spacing of the front connector members 26 of the article 10, so that the clasps 32 are quickly attachable to or separable from the connector members 26.

The buoyancy module 30 includes a bight or collar portion 33 which interconnects the leg portions 31 and extends across the space between the upper parts of the crossed back portions 27 of the shoulder straps 14, as shown in Figure 1. The collar portion 33, on its underside, has transversely aligned and spaced connector members 34, 34, which are also in the form of spring clasps. These are readily attachable to or detachable from the D-rings 28, 28 provided upon the crossed back portions 27 of the shoulder straps 14.

The safety harness 10 can be worn without the buoyancy module 30. In very rough weather, the buoyancy module can be attached to the safety harness, so that when the harness is worn it becomes part of a life preserver means, in that it serves as the means for securing the buoyancy module about the body of the wearer in the same position that a conventional life preserver of the collar type would be mounted.

Referring to Figure 3, the wearable article here comprises a wet suit 36. This is itself completely conventional, except for the provision of D-rings 38 that are transversely aligned in spaced relation upon the front or chest portion of the wet suit,in exactly the same spaced, transversely aligned relation as the D-rings 26 of the safety harness 10 shown in Figures 1 and 2. Similarly, the wet suit is provided, on its back, with transversely spaced connectors in the form of D-rings 40, which are also aligned in transversely spaced relation. These are disposed in exactly the same position as the Drings 28 of the safety harness 10. Thus, they are connectable to the connector members 34 (which may be snap loops) of the buoyancy element, in the same way that the snap loops or clasps 32 are connectable to the D-rings 38.Thus, at the option of the user, the buoyancy module 30 can be attached to a wet suit, which is often worn on deck either between dives or to protect oneself against the elements.

In Figure 4 there is illustrated a survival vest.

This also may be basically conventional in construction. A vest of this type is often fashioned of a mesh material, and in the illustrated example, the vest 42 has the transversely aligned connector elements in the form of D-rings 44, spaced across the chest portion of the vest, while D-rings 46 are transversely aligned in spaced relation across the back of the vest near the upper end thereof. As a result, the buoyancy module 30 can be attached to the vest if desired, with the spring clasps 32 engaging the D-rings 44, and the clasps 34 engaging the D-rings 46.

The survival vest has spaced cloth bands 48, 50 provided with rows of gripper fastener elements 52, so that there can be attached such items as emergency food rations, first aid supplies, flashiights, etc.

Figures 5 to 7 show a typical buoyancy module that can be used to advantage. The module 30 illustrated is of the inflatable type and is fashioned from superposed, flexible, thin sheets 56, 58 each of which is formed to a horseshoe or inverted Ushape. The sheets are disposed in register and the edges thereof are completely sealed, to provide a correspondingly U-shaped envelope 57. A suitable gas cylinder 59 is adapted to release a gas under pressure upon pulling of the control valve handle element 60. Normally, the envelope is completely flat, as shown in Figure 7, so as to not interfere with normal use of any of the wearable articles 10 described above.

In Figures 8 and 9, the module is illustrated in deflated and inflated conditions, respectively. It may be noted that the buoyancy module 30 illustrated in Figure 8 is shown by way or example as it appears when attached to a scuba diving jacket of the type illustrated in Figure 3. When so attached, the buoyancy module lies flat against the material of the jacket, and does not interfere with normal activities on deck. Nor, for that matter, does the device interfere with normal diving activities.

When, however, under an emergency condition it is necessary to inflate the module 30, it appears as in Figure 9 and becomes a buoyant element extending about the neck of the user. In these circumstances, the scuba jacket becomes the means for holding the buoyancy module in proper position relative to the user, providing high buoyancy about the back of the neck or collar area, as well as on the wearer's torso. This positions the head of the user above water in a comfortable, safe position known to the manufacturers of survival equipment as being an optimum position until rescue is effected.

Of importance is the fact that survival gear of the type illustrated and described herein is realtively expensive. Yet, it is desirable that crewmen of commercial vessels, as well as the crew and passengers of vessels used for recreational purposes, be provided with a proper set of survival and recreational gear, including harnesses, vests, jackets, and the like. And it is also essential that there be life preservers for the passengers and crew. The buoyancy module illustrated and described herein can be swiftly and easily attached to a wide variety of wearable articles, the modules then becoming a part of any wearable article that may be selected.

Detachment of the buoyancy module is accomplished with equal facility, if the wearer desires to wear a vest, jacket or safety harness without the life preserver module. When the module is being worn, it is light, compact, and lies flat against the material of the wearable article.

Thus, it offers no interference to normal activities, especially if it is of the inflatable type illustrated by way of example herein.

When it becomes necessary to use the module as a life preserver, however, the wearable article becomes the means for holding the life preserver to the body of the wearer in a position that is of greatest effectiveness in keeping the wearer's head above water.

Claims

1. The combination, with a plurality of articles wearable by the crew and passengers of a vessel and differing from one another in function and appearance, of a life preserver module comprising: a) a buoyancy element shaped to be worn collar-fashion by a user; b) first connector members on said element; and c) second connector members on each of said wearable articles, the second connector members being complementary to those on said element and being adapted for quick attachment to and detachment from the first and connector members.

2. A combination according to Claim 1, wherein said module is generally U-shaped.

3. A combination according to Claim 2, wherein the U-shape of said module defines a pair of legs adapted to overlie the chest of the user, and further defines a collar portion integral with and interconnecting the legs and adapted to extend across the upper part of the user's back in close proximity to the neck of the user.

4. A combination according to Claim 3, wherein the first connector members include at least one pair of front connector members, the members of said one pair being aligned transversely of the buoyancy element, one on each leg of said buoyancy element.

.

5. A combination according to Claim 3 or 4, wherein said first connector members further include at least one pair of rear connector members, said rear connector members being aligned transversely of the buoyancy element and being disposed at opposite ends of the collar portion.

6. A combination according to Claim 5, wherein the second connector members on each of the several wearable articles are arranged in front and rear pairs, the members of each pair of second connector members being positioned upon each wearable article in a transverse alignment and spacing corresponding to the spacing of the paired first connector members.

7. A combination according to Claim 6, wherein one of said wearable articles is a safety harness having a pair of shoulder straps on which the second connector members are mounted.

8. A combination according to Claim 6 or 7, wherein one of the wearable articles is a jacket, the second connector members being attached to the jacket in pairs at the front and back thereof, in positions to register with and be connectable to the several first connector members.

9. A combination according to any of Claims 6 to 8, wherein one of the wearable articles is a vest having means for supporting a plurality of survival items, the second connector members being disposed above said means, and being arranged in pairs at the front and back of the vest, in positions registering with the first connector members for quick attachment and detachment of the buoyancy element.

10. A combination according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the buoyancy element is of the inflatable type.

11. A combination according to Claim 10, wherein the buoyancy element comprises thin, flexible, superposed sheets and edges of which are in registration and are sealablyjoined to provide an envelope, said buoyancy element including means for directing a gas into said envelope for inflating the buoyancy element.

12. A combination according to Claim 11, wherein the sheets include a front sheet and a back sheet, the first connector members being secured to the back sheet.

1 3. A combination according to Claim 1, substantially as herein particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings.