GB2537174A - Improvements in and relating to a swimming pool system - Google Patents

Abstract

The swimming pool 100 has an apertured movable floor element 112 that partitions the pool into upper 102a and lower 102b volumes. Holes 114 are located on the upper surface 113 of the floor element and provide liquid communication between the two basin portions. A controller 120 manages a floor actuation mechanism 116 to alter the depth of the pool by varying the floor height. The floor may be a mesh having apertures, and can have a default height that provides a shallow pool depth. A motion sensor 126, may communicate with the controller. The controller may arrange lighting elements 130 to output a predetermined lighting sequence, and a monitor in the floor element may be used to time a user during the sequence. The controller may also include user authentication to prevent operation by unauthorised users. Also claimed are an illuminated swimming pool system and a submersible lighting device.

Description

Improvements In and Relating To A Swimming Pool System The present invention relates to a swimming pool system which is designed to limit the risk of drowning when not in use, and to a method of mitigating the risk of drowning in such a swimming pool system. The invention further relates to an illuminated swimming pool system and to a submersible lighting device for use with such a swimming pool system. Finally, the invention relates to a method of providing a swimming challenge using an illuminated swimming pool system.

Swimming pools can he hazardous places; the pools themselves are formed as hard and solid basins filled with water. The risks therefore include slipping over and injuring oneself on the basin due to the impact, or drowning due to submersion in the water. The latter risk is particularly great for children and adults unable to swim, since they may have no means of extracting themselves from the pool.

Adults are more able to extract themselves from shallow pools, since they will generally be able to stand upright in a shallow end of the pool such that their head remains above the waterline. However, this may not be possible for a child, greatly increasing the risk of drowning.

Unattended pools are particularly dangerous, since the poolside may be dark, and stranded children in the pool may not be found until beyond the point of rescue.

The swimming experience can also he relatively uninteresting for children due to the repetitive nature of swimming back and forth in lengths. This means that children may quickly become bored or disinterested in a swimming environment, and/or may seek within the swimming pool more dangerous activities, such as jumping in, and wrestling or fighting with others.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a swimming pool system which limits 25 the depth of the swimming pool when not in use to minimise the risk of drowning, and also to provide an illuminated swimming pool system able to provide an enhanced swimming experience to a user of the system, in particular for children.

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a swimming pool system comprising: a pool basin having a basin base and at least one side wall extending upwardly therefrom; an apertured movable floor element which overlies at least a majority of the basin base to partition the pool basin into a volume-adjustable upper basin portion and a volume-adjustable lower basin portion, the floor element having a plurality of liquid-flow apertures spread across an upper surface thereof for liquid communication between the upper basin portion and the lower basin portion; a floor actuation means for adjusting at least a vertical position of the floor element within the pool basin whereby volumes of the upper and lower pool basin portions are adjustable whilst the pool basin remains filled with liquid; and a controller for controlling the floor actuation means.

By providing a floor element within the pool basin which can be actuated whilst the pool is filled, rather than drawing the pool water into holding tanks whilst the mechanism is operating, the floor dement can he raised or lowered rapidly, for example, in response to the absence of an adult acting in a supervisory role. This advantageously limits the likelihood of a child coming to harm near an unattended pool.

Preferably, the floor element may be formed as a mesh having the said plurality of apertures through which water may pass. Each of the said plurality of apertures may he no wider or have a greatest dimension of no more than 10 mm, and preferably no 20 greater than 5 mm.

By providing apertures through which water may pass, but through which a child may not fall or becomes entrapped, the best compromise between safety and fluid flow through the floor element can be achieved.

Optionally, a default condition of the swimming pool system may be a shallow condition in which the volume of the upper pool basin portion is minimised. The invention then may further comprise a user sensing means for detecting the presence of a user, the user sensing means being in communication with the controller, the controller setting the vertical position of the floor clement into the default condition via the floor actuation means if no user is detected by the user sensing means, which may be a motion sensor and/or heat-signature detector, for example.

By being able to detect the presence of a user at or adjacent the poolside, it is possible to set the floor element to he moved to a default shallow condition when the pool is unattended, ensuring that, for example, a child running towards the pool will not or is less likely to accidentally fall in and drown if unsupervised.

The system may preferably further comprise lighting means for illuminating at least part of the swimming pool system, and the controller may be arranged to activate the lighting means in at least a default condition of the swimming pool system. Ideally, the lighting means may comprise a plurality of integrated floor and/or wall lighting elements, and the controller preferably may be arranged to control an output of the lighting means in accordance with a predetermined activity lighting sequence Lighting the pool in the default condition ensures that users are aware of the edge of the pool in the dark. However, by providing a submerged illumination means, it becomes possible to turn the swimming pool into a far more entertaining area, particularly if the lighting is controlled in accordance with a predetermined activity lighting sequence.

In a preferred embodiment, the system may further comprise a user authentication means for determining the presence of an authorised user, the user authentication means being in communication with the controller, the controller preventing actuation of the floor element via the floor actuation means in the absence of an authorised user. The user authentication means may comprise a wireless identification device communicable with the controller, which may be a radio-frequency identification key.

By providing a secondary authentication means, it is possible to ensure that the swimming pool system remains in the safe, shallow default condition in all circumstances except those in which an authorised user is able to override the default condition.

The floor actuation means may comprise a hydraulic lifting apparatus, and/or may be arranged to adjust a slope of the floor element. This provides a strong and safe means of changing the height and/or angle of the floor element.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of mitigating the risk of drowning in a swimming pool, the method comprising the steps of: a] providing a swimming pool system, preferably in accordance with the first aspect of the invention; and b] actuating the movable floor dement into a default shallow condition under predetermined conditions. The said default shallow condition may engage in the absence of adult supervision of the swimming pool system.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there may be provided an illuminated swimming pool system comprising: a pool basin; a floor element defining a depth of the pool basin; lighting means for providing illumination at or adjacent to the pool basin and/or floor element; and a controller communicable with the lighting means for controlling an output of the lighting means in accordance with a predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence.

By providing an illuminated swimming pool system, in which the lighting means is operable in accordance with a predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence, the entertainment value of the swimming experience can be vastly increased.

In a preferred embodiment, the floor element may be formed as a mesh having a plurality of apertures therein, the lighting means comprising a plurality of integrated floor lighting elements preferably engagable with or located on or in at least some of the plurality of apertures.

The provision of integrated floor lighting elements allows for the above-mentioned moveable floor element to be retrospectively upgraded with the illuminating system.

The advantage of having a multitude of tightly spaced apertures within a unit area results in the floor lighting elements being beneficially tightly spaced, allowing for intricate patterns or images, such as underwater scenes and imagery, to be generated or projected from the surface of the floor element. Equally, such lighting elements may be additionally or alternatively integrated as part of the walls of the swimming pool.

The lighting means may comprise a plurality of standalone submersible lighting devices, and each of the plurality of submersible lighting devices may include a user interface, the output of the submersible lighting device changing upon user interaction with the user interface, which may include a pressure-sensitive or touch-sensitive element. Preferably, each submersible lighting device may include a plurality of different light-emitting elements.

Such submersible lighting elements can make the predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence far more interesting; different types of lights are more interesting to users, and interactive elements can allow for far more interaction so as to enable a suitable active game to be played.

The controller may comprise at least one individual control unit housed in at least one of the plurality of submersible lighting devices, and preferably each submersible lighting device may have such a control unit, each control unit being in wireless communication with the other control units.

By providing integrated controllers with the submersible lighting devices, each device may communicate with the others, which may in turn allow for more interesting health or fitness lighting sequences to be generated which are responsive to user interaction.

Optionally, the predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence may be part of an exercise sequence, or may be defined according to the rules of a game. The controller may include at least one default predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence, and may be user-settable to define a custom predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence.

The predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence could advantageously be used as an aid to exercising in a swimming pool, the user swimming between rapidly changing lighting elements and/or following a specific path through the pool. This could be extended so as to be integrated into the rules of a game. For instance, children could follow the lighting sequence, and attempt to interact with the lighting elements before the lighting sequence changes. Alternatively, submersible lighting elements could he dropped into a pool for a swimmer to chase to the bottom as part of a diving exercise or game.

The controller may preferably comprise a mobile computing device, the predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence being controllable from an application on the mobile computing device.

By integrating the control of the predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence with a smartphone application or other mobile computing device software programme, an authorised adult can readily control the play of children utilising the illuminated swimming pool system.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided a submersible lighting device for use in an illuminated swimming pool system, the submersible lighting device comprising: a water-impermeable body; at least one lighting element mounted to the water-impermeable body; and a wireless communication means for receiving control commands to operate the or each lighting element.

The submersible lighting device allows the illuminated swimming pool system to be customised in such a way so as to allow for a number of games or exercise regimes to be performed, at the user's discretion.

Preferably, a plurality of different lighting dements may he provided, and each of the plurality of different lighting elements may be independently operable via the 15 commands received from the wireless communications means.

Depending on the desired predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence may mean that the submersible devices ought to be operable independently or simultaneously. By providing wireless communication between the devices and a controller, the illuminated swimming pool system can be readily customised.

The submersible lighting device may further comprise a weighting element to prevent or limit floating, a floatation element to encourage floatation of the submersible lighting device, and/or may further comprise a mounting element engagable with a surface of a swimming pool basin. The device may also comprise a user interface, the output of the submersible lighting device changing upon user interaction with the user interface.

There are several ways in which a submersible lighting device could be utilised in a swimming pool situation. A weighted device might sink to the bottom of the pool and come to rest there, after which the user could dive into the pool to interact with it, and a floating device might be used to encourage surface play; either option could be used as part of a mine-sweeping type game, in which the user either had to collect or avoid all of the submersible lighting devices in the pool. A mounted device could be used as part of a more structured game, in which the relative position of the submersible lighting elements was more critical. Even if only intended to float on a surface of the water, the lighting device is still submersible and thus able to operate whilst submerged, as required.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of providing a swimming challenge, the method comprising the steps of: a] providing a plurality of submersible lighting devices, preferably in accordance with the fourth aspect of the invention; b] providing a controller, communicable with the submersible lighting devices, programmed with a predetermined activity lighting sequence; and c] activating the plurality of submersible lighting devices in accordance with the predetermined activity lighting sequence to provide a swimming challenge for a user to engage with. The method may preferably further comprise step d] of being responsive to a user interaction with at least one of the submersible lighting devices.

A typical swimming challenge might involve a user swimming from one submersible lighting device to another before the lighting output changes, and interacting with the device in order to change the output and begin the next part of the sequence. This advantageously results in a more entertaining swimming experience for the user.

The invention will now he more particularly described, by way of example only, with 20 reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a side view of a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of a swimming pool system in an in-use condition, in accordance with the first aspect of the invention; Figure 2 shows a side view of the swimming pool system of Figure 1 in a default shallow condition; Figure 3 shows a side view of a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of an illuminated swimming pool system, in accordance with the third aspect of the invention; and Figure 4 shows a perspective diagrammatic representation of one embodiment a submersible lighting device, in accordance with the fourth aspect of the invention.

Referring firstly to Figure 1, there is shown globally a swimming pool system at 100 in a standard in-use condition; that is, arranged so as to permit a user to enter the water contained within the pool basin 102.

The swimming pool system 100 comprises the aforementioned pool basin 102, here shown as a substantially cuboidal recess in the ground, defined by upstanding walls 104 and a basin base 106, with a pool surround 108 being positioned at ground level. The pool basin 102 is fillable with water 103 in which a user may swim, here represented by a child 110.

The illustrated pool basin 102 is merely shown for illustrative purposes; swimming pools of all shapes and dimensions are known, and could be applied to the present invention.

Receivable within the pool basin 102 is a floor element 112 which is here illustrated as a planar sheet having an upper surface 113 with a plurality of apertures 114 therethrough, spread across the upper surface 113. The upper surface 113 of the floor element 112 thereby defines the usable depth of the pool basin 102, separating the pool basin 102 into upper and lower basin portions 102a, 102b. In Figure 1, the floor element 112 is positioned at such an angle to the pool basin 102 so as to define a sloping base for the pool basin 102.

The floor element 112 is here formed as a preferably rigid or substantially rigid mesh; the illustrated apertures 114 being only indicative of their true size and/or separation. Critically, the apertures 114 are sized in such a fashion so as to not permit a child 110 to fall through or become stuck in an aperture 114. Each aperture 1 1 4 may therefore he less than or equal to 100mm wide or with a major dimension which is less than or equal to 100 mm More preferably, the width or major dimension is no more than 10 nun Optionally, the width or major dimension may be no more than 5 mm The mesh of the floor element 112 could be, as mentioned, rigid, or could be flexible, akin to a net.

The floor dement 112, whilst shown as being planar, could feasibly he contoured, such as convex or concave, so as to provide a correspondingly contoured base for the pool basin 102, and this should therefore not be seen to be a limitation on the structure of the floor element 112.

The floor element 112 is supported by a floor actuation means, which in the depicted embodiment is illustrated as a hydraulic lifting apparatus 116 comprising a plurality of hydraulic lifting devices 118, such as rams. The hydraulic lifting apparatus 116 sets the vertical position of the floor element 112 relative to the pool basin 102, and could also be used to set the slope of the floor element 112. As shown in Figure 1, the vertical position of the floor element 112 can be set by extending the hydraulic lifting devices 118 to different degrees, thereby setting a slope across the extent of the floor element 112.

By setting the vertical position of the floor element 112, it is possible to adjust the relative volumes of the upper and lower basin portions 102a, 102b. As shown hi Figure 2, it will be apparent that one or other of the upper and lower basin portions 102a, 102b could have tern volume in a given configuration of the floor element 112. For example, the illustrated configuration shows the floor element 112 is flush with the pool surround 108.

It will be apparent that the floor actuation means could comprise any number of mechanical devices which are capable of changing at least the vertical position of the floor element 112. A single hydraulic lifting device 118 could for example be used, or the floor element 112 could be linked to a ratchet and pinion mechanism, for instance. A worm gear mechanism could also be considered. Similarly, the floor actuation means need not necessarily support all or the entirety of floor element 112; the floor element 112 could he cantilevered from one end for example, or the floor actuation means could engage with the floor element 112 from above.

The vertical position of the floor element 112 is set by the hydraulic lifting apparatus 116, based on controls transmitted from a controller 120. The controller 120 may be in wired or wireless communication with the hydraulic lifting apparatus 116.

In its most basic form, the invention is designed to operate such that the floor element 112 is actuatable between at least one in use condition, such as the sloping condition shown in Figure 1, and a default condition, such as that shown in Figure 2, which is entirely shallow. When the swimming pool system 100 is in use, the controller 120 can instruct the hydraulic lifting apparatus 116 to lower the floor element 112 so as to create a relatively deep upper basin portion 102a in an in use condition, in which a user 110 is able to swim. In this case, the entire floor element 112 may he lowered such that the upper surface 113 is parallel or substantially parallel with the basin base 106, as required.

However, when the swimming pool system 100 is not in use, the floor element 112 can he raised so as to he in a shallow, default condition, with the volume of the upper basin portion 102a being minimised, with the volume of the lower basin portion 102h increased accordingly. The upper surface 113 of the floor element 112 could be flush or substantially flush with the pool surround 108, or sufficiently shallow to allow a user 110 to exit the pool without difficulty. In this condition, the entire floor element 112 is preferably horizontal or substantially horizontal, and thus parallel or coplanar with an upper surface of the water 103.

Because the floor element 112 is formed as a mesh-like structure, in other words being permeable, the upper and lower basin portions 102a, 102h being in liquid communication with one another, water can flow through the spread-apart apertures 114, allowing the floor element 112 to be raised or lowered without needing to drain the pool basin 102. This reduces the energy requirement of the swimming pool system 100, since no extra fluid pumps are required to transfer the pool water in order to actuate the floor element 112.

In this sense, the floor dement 112 could therefore he formed from any water permeable material, allowing the floor element 112 to be readily raised or lowered by the floor actuation means.

The control of the hydraulic lifting apparatus 116 could be controlled remotely by an authorised user 122, depicted as an adult in Figure 1, for instance, via an application on a smartphone 124 or other suitable, preferably mobile or portable, computing device, 30 being in preferably wireless communication with the controller 120. The smartphone 124 itself could even act as the controller itself, thereby removing the need for a dedicated separate controller 120.

This scenario would allow for the authorised user 122 to control the depth of the floor element 112 via the floor actuation means so as to be safely positioned for the activity of the swimming pool user 110.

Additionally or alternatively, there could be provided a user authentication means for determining the presence of the authorised user 122. In the scenario depicted in Figure 1, the smartphone 124 held by the authorised user 122 may act as a user authentication means, for example, by presenting an REID key which can be authenticated by the controller 120. The controller 120 only pennits actuation of the hydraulic lifting apparatus 116 when the smartphone 124 is in communication with the controller, or when the authorised user 122 sends an activation command. In the absence of an authorisation signal from the authorised user 122, the controller 120 will ensure that the hydraulic lifting apparatus 116 automatically reverts the floor element 112, or remains in, its default, shallow condition.

This could be taken further by providing a user sensing means, here shown as a motion sensing device 126 which can detect the presence of a person in the vicinity of the swimming pool system 100, and, in the absence of a detected person, sending a command to the controller 120 so as to revert the vertical position of the floor element 112 via the hydraulic lifting apparatus 116 into the default, shallow condition.

Preferably, the motion sensing device 126 is arranged so as to only activate upon detection of the authorised user 122, so as to only trigger upon detection of the authorised user 122, that is, a competent adult, and not on the detection of other users 110, such as children. This could, for example. be achieved by sensing around the swimming pool system 100 only above a predetermined height, 1500mm, for instance.

This is illustrated in Figure 2; the motion sensing device 126 does not detect the presence of the child 110 and therefore the floor element 112 remains in the default, shallow condition.

Other user sensing means could he utilised, such as pressure sensitive plates in the pool surround 108 which only activate when the weight of a user is detected, or some form of thermal sensor capable of detecting persons around the pool basin 102. Such user sensing means are listed for illustration only, and other sensing means will he apparent to the skilled person. Biometric activation, and/or a keypad passcode, along with heat-signature identification can also be considered alone or in combination in order to identify a competent adult.

The swimming pool system 100 may also he provided with illumination means, here represented by LED lighting elements 128 positioned at or adjacent the pool surround 108, and integrated floor lighting elements 130 attached at or adjacent the floor element 112.

The LED lighting elements 128 could be activated by the user 110 or authorised user 122, but will preferably he linked to the condition of the floor element 112. If the floor element 112 is in the default, shallow condition, then this is likely to be an unsupervised condition of the swimming pool system 100, since the authorised user 122 is likely to be absent, as in Figure 2. As such, it may be beneficial for the controller 120 to activate the LED lighting elements 128 so as to illuminate the pool basin 102. This can alert a user 110 to the position of the pool basin 102, making it less likely that they will fall into the pool basin 102 and/or slip on the pool surround 108.

The integrated floor lighting elements 130 may be associated with the apertures 114 of the floor element 112 so as to illuminate the pool basin 102 from the bottom. However, because the floor element 112 can be provided as a mesh, with a plurality of closely spaced apertures 114, it may be possible to provide a sufficiently high density of integrated floor lighting elements 130 so as to be able to create intricate or relatively intricate patterns or shapes on the floor element 112.

The integrated floor lighting elements 130 may he controllable by the controller 120, or any other suitable control device, so as to produce either static or moving images on the floor element 112, visible to users 110 of the swimming pool system 100. This can be used to create a soothing or therapeutic swimming experience for users 110 of the system 100.

Alternatively, a predetermined health or fitness activity lighting sequence could be provided to provide an entertainment or exercise route, for example, by allowing the user 110 to follow or chase a particular moving lighting sequence. In this case, a preset time may be settable by the user, or set automatically by a base unit controller, whereby the user has a predetermined time to move between one light or a group or cluster of lights, which may he in a pattern or shape. To indicate time depletion to reach the required target or goal, the light or lights may start to dim and/or extinguish, indicating time running out. Additionally or alternatively, each light or group of lights may include a user monitor which monitors the arrival of the user, such as a, typically waterproof, switch, pressure pad or optical receiver. The time therefore that a user moves between required lights or groups of lights can thus be monitored, and calorific usage and other health statistics can be fed back to a base unit and/or controller, such as a user's, typically mobile, computing device.

The lighting sequence may show shapes or patterns, as mentioned above, and for example, these may he swimming fish or a shoal of fish. These shapes or patterns could be projected from the floor element 112.

It will be apparent that the moveable nature of the floor element 112 and the integrated floor lighting dements 130 could he provided separately; it is possible to provide a swimming pool system having only a moveable floor clement 112 with no integrated floor lighting elements 130, or a swimming pool system having integrated floor lighting elements 130 with a static floor element 112.

One embodiment of an illuminated swimming pool system is shown globally in Figure 3 at 200. Similar or identical features are referred to using similar or identical reference numerals as those in the previously-described swimming pool system 100 and further

detailed description will be omitted for brevity.

The pool basin 202 is shown having a floor element 212 in one in use condition, creating a swimming pool in which it is sufficiently deep for a user 110 to swim. Whilst the swimming pod is shown as having a moveable floor element 212 supported by a hydraulic lifting apparatus 216, it will he apparent that the present invention could he utilised in static swimming pools or traditional fixed-volume swimming pools.

Within the pool basin 202 is provided an illumination means, which in Figure 3 is represented by three submersible lighting devices 250. An exemplary submersible lighting device 250 is shown in detail in Figure 4.

The submersible lighting device 250 comprises a preferably water-impermeable body portion 252, an outward-facing portion of which may be transparent or translucent 254.

Inside the body portion 252 is provided at least one, and shown here, three, lighting elements 256, mounted to an electronic control circuit 258 which is in communication with a wireless communication means, such as the illustrated receiver 260. A pool mounting means, such as the depicted suction pad 262 may also be provided, and/or the device 250 could he weighted so as to prevent it from floating in the pool basin 202, or could be provided with a floatation aid to help the device 250 to float in the pool either on the surface or suspended between the surface and the basin base or movable floor element. The floatation aid may be adapted to take on water or mass over a predetermined time period to allow it to initially float before then slowly sinking to a holding position on the basin base or floor dement, or suspended partway between the water surface and the basin base or floor element.

The receiver 260 is able to receive commands from a central controller 220, such as the mobile computing device such as the smartphone 224 shown in Figure 3, and control the output of the lighting elements 256. The lighting elements 256 may be provided so as to be different, for example, being different colours, or having pulsed or flashing outputs, or may be identical to one another. This may advantageously assist in the construction of health or fitness games, the user 110 swimming to one submersible lighting device 250 of one colour, and then to the next submersible lighting device 250 which is then subsequently illuminated in the same colour. Furthermore, each lighting element 256 may be independently operable.

The controller 220 can be used to provide a predetermined health or fitness activity lighting sequence to the submersible lighting devices 250, for example, to provide a challenge or game to play for the user 110. The predetermined health or fitness activity lighting sequence could involve illumination of the submersible lighting devices 250 in sequence, for the user 110 to attempt to swim towards in a given time period; the calorific output of such an activity could he monitored and displayed on a smartphone 224 application, for instance. The predetermined health or fitness activity lighting sequence may he user-controllable at the controller 220, the user setting, for instance, the period of illumination, or colour emitted by the lighting elements 256.

Whilst the controller 220 is illustrated as a smartphone 224 in Figure 3. it will be appreciated that the submersible lighting device 250 could have an onboard controller.

One submersible lighting device 250 could include a main control unit, from which the predetermined health or fitness lighting sequence is activated, or each submersible lighting device 250 could have an individual control unit, with each device 250 being in wireless communication with the other devices 250. In this manner, the submersible lighting device 250 can he arranged so as to interact, simplifying the requirements for a system which is responsive to user interaction.

The submersible lighting devices 250 could also he responsive to user interaction; for example, the outward-facing portion 254 could be formed as a compressible portion which is pressure-sensitive and therefore responsive to the touch of a user 110.

Interaction with the outward-facing portion 254 could therefore result in a change of the output of the lighting elements 256, and one possible predetermined health or fitness activity lighting sequence could therefore be for the user 110 to attempt to change the output of each of the submersible lighting devices 250 within a certain timeframe. This could feasibly be part of an exercise sequence or part of the rules of a game.

It will be apparent that the illumination means of the illuminated swimming pool system 200 could be provided as the integrated floor lighting elements 130 as previously described, and/or as any appropriately submersible illumination device or devices.

The words 'comprises/comprising' and the words 'having/including' when used herein with reference to the present invention are used to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components or groups thereof.

It is appreciated that certain features of the invention, which are, for clarity, described in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the invention which are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

The embodiments described above are provided by way of examples only, and various other modifications will be apparent to persons skilled in the field without departing from the scope of the invention herein described and defined.