US2255751A

US2255751A - Body conditioning apparatus suit

Info

Publication number: US2255751A
Application number: US309636A
Authority: US
Inventors: Paul A Bancel
Original assignee: Ingersoll Rand Co
Current assignee: Ingersoll Rand Co
Priority date: 1939-12-16
Filing date: 1939-12-16
Publication date: 1941-09-16
Anticipated expiration: 1958-09-16

Description

BODY CONDITIONING APPARATUS SUI'I' Filed Deo. 1e, 41959 INVENTOR Pau&.Banl

Hfs ATTORNEY Patented i Sept. 16, 1941 l* UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEl BODY CONDITIONING APPARATUS SUIT Paul A. Bancel, Upper Montclair, N. J., assignor to Ingersoll-Rand Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey Application December 16, 1939, Serial No. 309,636

(Cl. 12s-144) 6 Claims.

This invention relates to air ventilating apparatus and, more particularly, itrelates to a suit continually supplied to the space in order to ventilata it.

A further object is to provide a suit having a ventilated space about the wearers body in which air is introduced in such a manner that it travels over the entire body of the wearer before escap.

ing from the suit.

These and other objects will be apparent from 'the following disclosure of which the drawing bient temperature may be in the neighborhood of y 100 F. and consequently, such a person is also at such a temperature. Furthermore, the humidity is so high that a person can get no relief by the evaporation of body moisture or perspiration with the result that he suilfers considerably. If the metabolic heat couldbe absorbed or removed from such a person, he would be cooled and enabled to work although the ambient temperature was high.

In orderl to remove the metabolic heat, I propose subjecting the persons body to an atmosphere of air at ambient or body temperature which is dry enough to absorb the metabolic heat solely by evaporation of moisture from the wearers body. Dry air, or air of low relative humidity for such a purpose, may be produced conveniently in some localities by expanding vcompressed air which has been cooled to ambient temperature -and dried at about 100 pounds gage pressure to substantially atmospheric pressure.

Accordingly, it is an object ofthe present invention to provide a method and means to cool and ventilate a persons body.

It is an object of the present invention to provide means whereby the metabolic heat of a per-7 son may be removed by use of air of low relative humidity.

Another object is to provide means whereby a person may be cooled by the evaporation of body moisture into a medium of low relative humidity.

Still another object is to provide means whereby compressed air may be expanded and employed tocool and ventilato a persons body.

It is an additional object of this invention to provide a suit or garment wherein a ventilated space is provided around the wearers body.

It is also an object to provide a suit having a ventilated space about the wearers body which permits freedom of movement by the wearer.

Yet another object is to provide a suit having a space about the .wearers body wherein air is forms a part and in which c Figure 1 shows a sectional view of the present invention, Figure 2 is a view partly in elevation and partly in section of the present invention,

. With reference to the drawing, it will be seen that the body is covered by a close tting absorbent inner garment, such as a woolen garment, in order to absorb any moisture or perspiration and to provide a uniform dispersion of such mois-Q ture into the surrounding air. With such a garment, the cooling eifect is uniformly spread over the wearers skin, and, at the same time, the garment acts as a "buffer" in that it prevents direct contact-between the wearer and the warm inner surface of the suit 2 which completely envelopes the wearers body except for the head, hands and feet. The suit 2 is made of some material which is impervious tov air and' appropriate seals 3 are providedat the wearers ankles to prevent any leakage between the suit andthe ankles. Similar seals 5 are placed at the 'wearers kwrists and,

for the same purpose, a seal 'I surrounds the l wearers neck.

The suit may be donned by opening the "zipper 8 at the front of the suit and the belt Il which viously, the air supplied directly by the compressor is at a high pressure.u By expanding this air in the manner explained hereinafter the pressure is reduced to a pressure slightly greater than atmospheric pressure. The conduit I3 is Y u ankles.

supported at the wearers backon a hook I clamped to the belt II and the suit 2 by rivet I1.

From the back of the s uit the conduit I3 extends to the front of the suit where it is coupled by means of coupling ||3 to another conduit 2|.

As shown in Fig. 4, the end of conduit I3 is provided with a bushing 23 having a central 1 channel 25 and provided with threads 21. The

bushing. 23 is designed to cooperate with the -member 23. The conduit 2| is supplied at the open end thereof with the nipple 3| having bayonet points 33 adapted to be inserted through the slots 35 in the rear wall 31 of the member I3. Adjacent the open end of the nippleA 3| a partition wall33 extends acrossthe bore 4I of the nipple and has an oriiice 43 centrally located therein'. When the air supplied by the compres'- sor at a high pressure passes through the orilnce, it expands substantially by the irreversible adiabatic process with the result that, as theA pressure decreases and the volume increasesthe relative humidity of the air is greatly lowered, while the temperature is substantially unchanged. Within the member I3 is placed a guide wall 45 on which the nipple 3| rests when it is iny serted in the member. The nipple is held within the member`l3 by the co-action of the bayonet points 33 and the rear wall 31.

Between the bushing 23 and the guide wall 45 a rubber washer 41 is placed which surrounds the en d of the nipple 3| This washer acts as the bushing 23 and the nipple 3|.

The check valve is provided with holes 5| of suflicient diameter so that they will not be entirely covered by the end oi' the nipple 3| when that nipple pushes the check valve away froml the seat or washer 41. Since the member 23 is connected tothe bushing 23 by threads 21, the member 29 will be continually secured to the conduit I3. Ii the nipple 3| is not held in the member I3, the air pressure supplied through conduit I3 will hold vthe check valve 43 on the seat provided by 'washer 41 and thus prevent escape of air from the conduit I3. However,-

when the nipple 3| is inserted into the member I3, it will remove the valve 43 from its seat,

' permitting the passage of airaround the valve v The fitting 53 is provided with appropriatepas- -a cushion for the check valve 43, lying'between v Beil, located adjacent the wearers-wrists, must be provided in order that 'there will be a circubelt shall not prevent the passage of air by the i wearers waist, corrugations 63, .10, 1| and 13, formed of the same material as the suit, are provided within the suit. It will thus be seen that a Ventilating suit has been provided which enables dehumidied air totravel freely over the wearers body in order that the wearer may be cooled.

I claim: v

1. In a Ventilating suit for a human body comprising at least one layer of ilexible material impervious to air forming an enclosure about the body, seals on the legs; arms and neck of the suit, a belt on the suit, a coupling on the belt adapted iorvconnection to a source of air under pressure, a conduit connected to the coupling and extendlng around said lbelt, channels formed inside the suit extending down the-pants legs of thev suit, connections between the conduit and the channels, ports in the channels to discharge'air from the channels to the enclosure, and ports in the sleeves to discharge air from the enclosure to the atmosphere.

2. In a Ventilating suitfor a human prising at least one layer of a ilexble material impervious to air and providing a space between the body and the suit, a belt on the suit, a coupling on the belt adapted to be connected toa source of air under pressure, a conduit on the coupling to convey air around the waist of the suit, a channel formed on either side of the suit inand independent of the air space and extendmeans to connect the conduitto said channels, ports in the channels adjacent the bottom of the suit through which air may enter said space from the conduits, and exhaust ports adjacent the outer end of the .suit sleeves to discharge air from the suit to atmosphere.

3. In a Ventilating suit for a human body com- I prising at least one layer of a flexible lmaterial impervious to air and providing a space between vthe Ibody and the suit, means to supply air to A the suit, a channel to receive the air supplied sages to permit the air from `the conduit 2i to l enter the channel 55 formed within the suit by a flap 51 of the'same material as the suit. From the tting 53 a conduit 53 extends around the Asuit to the opposite side thereof and connects with another iltting 6|, similar in design to the fitting 53 which'serves the same purpose in that it supplies airv to therchannel 33 formed within the suit.I The channels 55 and 83 are sealed from thedns'lde ofthe suit and extend to the wearers are formed in the walls of the channel so that through and into the space between the suit Adjacent the wearers ankles ports 55 .v

and-the wearer to thereby inilate the suit to a certain extent. Since theair supplied is slightly g above atmospheric pressure and since it cannot -escape -at elthernthe vwearers ankles, neck or wrists. some means, such as the exhaust portsl and conduct it down a leg of the suit, a port in the conduit to discharge air into the suit air space, and an exhaust port in a sleeve of the suit to discharge air from the air space to atmosphere. 4 a

4. In a Ventilating suit for a human body comprising a layer oi.' exible material impervious to air adapted upon inilation to remain out of contact with the body, means to seal the suit adjacent the neck, hands and feet of the suit against the escape of air from the suit, means to supply air to the suit, sealed channels formed of said y suit material on the suit having ports communieating with the enclosure formed by the suit and adapted to conduct air supplied to the suit to the ports, and exhaust ports .provided on the the air from the comprising a suit made of at least one layer of` l exible material impervious to air forming an enclosure about the body, seals on the legs, arms body comand neck of the suit, a belt on the suit, a compressor adapted to supply air under'pressure at ambient temperature, a coupling on the belt adapted Iorconnection to the compressor, an oriilce associated with the coupling to expand and 5 lower the relative humidity of the air supplied by the compressor, a conduit connected to the, coupling and extending around said belt, channels formed inside the suit extending down the pants legs of the suit, connections between the 10' conduit and the channels, ports in the channels to discharge air from the channels to the enclosure, and ports in the sleeves to discharge air from the enclosure to the atmosphere. l

6. In apparatus of the character described. a moisture absorbent garment for a persons body, a suit ot air impervious material forming an enclosure for the body, a compressor to supply dehumidiiled air under pressure at ambient tem'- perature, a belt on the suit, a coupling on the belt connected to the compressor, an orifice in the coupling to expand and lower the relative humidity of the air supplied by the compressor, means in the suit to introduce the dehumidiiied air adjacent the wearer's ankles, and means on the suit to discharge air yfrom the suit adjacent the wearers wrists. v

PAUL A. BANCEL.