US2363639A - Life preserver - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 28,- 1944. 3 L BROWN 2,363,639

' LIFE PRESERVER Filed Jan. 1, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet l yr INVENTOR. fi 3 29 5 fldQ/MLQQ Brow/L BY M #627 Nov. 28, 1944.

' F. L. BROWN LIFE PRESERVER Fil ed Jan. 1, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 llllllllll|llllllll|lililllll/ l l l l l l l l t il llllllllllllllA nvu INVENTOR. jflaaemalee Emu/z BY M4;

Patented Nov. 28, 1944 a UNITED; PATENT "OFFICE r r assure 1 1 i v nriri rrmsmtvnrt Frederick Lee Brown, Greenfield, Ohio, assignor to The American Pady& Textile Company, Greenfiel d Qhio a. corporation of Ohio Y; 5. A plication January 1, 1942, Serial iv 425,280

' 8Claims. (ore-:20) a My invention relates 'to lifepreservers andmore particularly to life preservers of the vest or jacket type. Several devicesof this general nature are known and areusually intended for continuous Wear by persons exposed to the hazard ofdrown ing, but these devicesin general proved rather unsatisfactory, particularly in that the construc- 1- -1 or Fig. 3; and

tion and dispositionof the buoyant material has made these devices uncomiortable to such a deree that the temptation of the wearer to remove the device is great. Furthermore, these devices have alsointerfered with freedom of action by the wearer, either in or out offthe water.

i It is an object of ins/"invention to overcome these objectionable ieatures andto provide a life preserver of the vest type constructed and arranged for comfortable wear, which permits access to pockets and other articles of clothing as well as freedom of moVementQeither in orout of. the water.

Another object oflthe invention is toiprovide an improved life saving vest which embodies the features just mentioned and is reversible so that the features and operation of the vest is in no: 25

vest is donned. A i

.A further object of theinventionisto provide a vest, incorporating the above ieafturesj which is of universal size,fitting substantially any perway changed or impaired regardless of how the son regardless of height orrweight so that the vest can be used as a standard item where life.

preservers may or may not be required.

Further'objects of my invention are to provide allife preserving vest having the buoyant material arranged therein in such amanner as to unconscious and will cushion impact of the :wearer with the water, but willalso permit theweare'r to swim orotherwise moveqwith relative ease.

Fig.5 is a seci'iional view taken along the line 6+6 ofFigr3: a r 1 Fig. 71s a :sectionalview taken along the line Fig. 8 is a] perspective illustration showing the action of my vest in water. a

Referring to thefldrawingsFigs. 1, 2 3 and8 disclose various aspects of my life preserver which is constructed in the former a vest and is hereinafter referred to as such. The vest is formed v of twolayerstzl andI22 of suitable flexible covering material such as a closely Woven cotton cloth stitched together or otherwise joined around form an envelope and dethe rnarginal edges to fining armholeszi;

For convenience of description, the vest may be considered as including two front sections 24 having meeting {edges 25, two shouldersections a 26,,two 'frcntskirts 21, a back section 28, and a. 20

backskirt 29, mm is understood that these sections' are definedonly as areas for descriptive purposes and arelnot necessaril separate units the drawings relatingthereto, and the claims. v

Referring tothe drawingsr Fig. l is a perspective view illustrating a pre when n Fi 3 is a front viewof the vest with the front 01710115 Opened; i i i i V Fig. 4 is a sectional viewvtalren along the line 4- 4 of Fig. 3 v t Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken 5 5 OfFig.3;

along the line adapted forassembly.

, Each oftheabove mentioned sections and skirts contain a quantity or kapok 3i distributed accordingto predetermined thicknesses and confined tothe desiredposition in the upper portions between the inner and outer fabric layers, preferablyby quilting, to avoid shifting and bunchihg. Buoyant material in the skirts 21 and 29 is'held in place by transverse rows of stitching 32 forming a pluralityof elongated pockets. The uppergline of the stitching 32 defining the upper extremities of the skirts, isdispose d atsubstantially waist level or slightly'above and cooperating therewith, and parallel theretmis provided a spaced line of Stitching 33 to define a shirr tube,

the walls otwhich are formed of the inner and outer layers of fabric 2] and 22 receiving the 40* These and otherobiects oi the invention will become apparent from the following description,

draw string 34. The draw string 34 is anchored at theback to prevent removal by stitching or othersuitable means, as indicatedat 36substantially in the center of theback section 28. It is importantjtothe proper operation of my vest thatthis' drawstring-or tape 34 be secured at this point only, iorthemnction of this string is to gather the vest around the torso of the wearer, thereby I insuring a snug fit regardless of the waistline'of the user.

In confining the buoyant material 3i in the upper front sections 24, vertica11y extending lines of stitchingfii arejemployedpreferablyafteria substantial vthici zness of kapok is in p1ace,and

L these quilt lines of stitching'extend from the line i of stitching 33 upwardly to the top or the vest,

preferably past the chest level, which is to be understood as a level approximately midway between the top and bottom of the armholes 23. A transverse row of stitching 38 extends across the vest at the chest level from the armholes to the edge of the vest to form a quilt line permitting a bending of the vest at this point to accommodate the arm sizes of various wearers and permitting the top of the vest to bendfreely into place over the shoulder for comfort. The lines of stitching in the shoulder portions are tailored to curve around the armholes in such manner as to predispose the section to conform to the curvature of the body regardless of which side of the vest is out when itis put on. The line of stitching 38 assists in this regard so that if the'vest is worn with one side out for any length of time" of the wearer. As thus constructed, the skirt portions 21 and 29 flex independently of each other, and, therefore, the size of the hips of the person wearing the vest is immaterial. Furthermore, these notches as disposed directly beneath the armholes and over the trouser pockets permit the wearer to have access to the pockets while wearing the vest out of the water.

, As a further feature of my invention, it will be noted that the skirts 21 and 29 act, upon immersion, to move the center of buoyancy upwardly i as shown in Fig. 8, and as more particularly described in my Patent No. 2,331,301, reference to which is hereby made. The buoyancy of the material within these skirts causes them to flex "upwardly around the wearers body. This contributes materially to stabilizing the wearer in the tendency to shape that way is lessened and the .vest is readily capable of use with the other side out.

Tapes 42 are secured to both edges adjacent the transverse line of stitching 38 between. the two layers of fabric 21 and 22 of the vest as by means of the line of stitching that joins the marginal edges of the fabric layers. Thereby, the tape will always be in the same position relative to the body of the wearer regardless of which surface of the vest is outward.

The back section 28 is stuffed with buoyant material 3| which is confined tolongitudinally disposed pockets 43 by substantially longitudinal rows of stitching 44. In this section, the buoyant material extends laterally to the armholes 23 and I the marginal rows of stitching 46 are curved'to conform to the curvature of the armhole. The pockets 43 extend upwardly substantially to the neck of the vest and are closed by a transverse line of stitchin 41. The upper terminal portions of 'the side pockets 43, may, if desired, be closed by the lineof stitching M which also closes the upper end of the pockets in the shoulder section 26. ,It is to be noted that the buoyant material in the back is carried upwardly well towards the neck portion of the vestto furnish as much protection for the back of the neck. as is comfortably possible and to provide support for the wearers head when the vest shifts slightly upward under buoyancy as it is bound to do in water. tofa controlled limited extent. pockets 43 are defined by atransver'se line of stitching '38 disposed a substantial distance above the line of stitching 33' and somewhat below the by lines of stitching 5| extending downwardly beneath the armholes 23 well towardsthe front of the vest. Thus, the area' 49 containing no buoyant material, for one of many reasons to be mentioned, is such that substantially no buoyant material is interposed between the wearers body.

and his arm when the arm is hanging naturally at his side. This not only greatly increases the comfort, but also permits free use of the arms and eliminates the possibility of chafing. I

The skirt portions 29 and 2'! do not abut each other but are severed from each other by notches indicated at 52. These notches are disposed to come directly over the hips and trouser pockets The lower limits of the .have within the jacket sufficient buoyant material to support a 16% pound dead weight after forty-eight hours of immersion. The amount of material required, therefore, will depend, on the specific gravity, water absorption and'other characteristics of the buoyant material employed.

I prefer to employ kapok, as I have found it to bethe most suitable material for this purpose.

and a total of 20 ounces of kapok disposed in the manner described is ample to support the desired dead weight. It is essential to the purposes of my invention, however, that th e'quantity of kapok disposed in the front and shoulder sections of my vest aggregate atleast twice the amount disposed in the back section in order that the center of buoyancy will not only be relatively close to the wearers shouldersbut also nearer the chest side of the wearer, so that as the wearer is. floating with the body relaxed in the water, the vest will at all times tend to keep the chest up and to elevate the chest a distance sufiicient to insure that the wearers face, even if he should be uncone scio'us, will not be immersed. Normally the upper portion of the shoulder sections will not be immersed and thereby provides a reserve of buoyancy sufficient to carry the wearer over a wave, rather than partially through it, without the necessity of disposing the center of buoyancy at a dangerously low level.

In this connection it is well to note that the back portions are so constructed and arranged as to cooperate with the front part in keeping the face up. The back portion 29 under buoyancy fits in the area 49' to dispose its buoyancy directlyagainst and in the small of the back of the wearer so as not tocounteract theeffect .of the overlapping front portions in tipping the wearer slightly backward in the water, but effectively adds itsbuoyancy for support once the wearer is so tipped. v I

As previously mentioned, other vests of this nature have not been entirely satisfactory in -that they arefso uncomfortable that the wearer will often yield to the temptation of removal. .One of the principal sources of discomfort hasbeen the tendency of the vest to force itself upwardly around the wearer when in a sitting position, due

to the rigidity imparted to the vest by virtue of drlidculty "by providing a line offlexure between the front' sections and shoulder sections {by the line 0f stitching38, as wellas by thecorrespond ,ing line' of flexure formed byuthe line of stitching {H.j Thisconstruction, coupled with the absence (if-buoyant material from the lower portion -of the back section imparts to the wearer a sufficient I assesses the quilted construction. a I? have overcome this degree of comfort to overcomethe temptation to remove the vestl For example, when the wearer is sitting, the skirts 2l and29 may; under strain,

flex upwardly by virtue of the fiexibleweb connectionbe'tween the skirts and the corresponding front or -back section. If thi flexure is not suf. ficient and the legs or other portions 0f the body tendto force the vestupwardly, the line of stitch-.

ing 38 permits my vest to bulge forwardly and putw'ardly rather than place a direct strainon, any'portion of the wearersbody, therebycon-f tributing greatly to his comfort. l H To form a vest whichcanbe truly said to be of universal size; it isfnecessary to consider that,

certain people are shorterthanothers and, thereforethe distance from the shoulder to the waistline will 1 vary. Other vests of the general type described cannot, therefore, be said to fulfill the requirements of a universal size inasmuch as a vest large enough to accommodate a large person would extend upwardly around a smallpersons neck when the waist securing means is tightened In my construction, however, the line of flexure- 38 permits the vest to bulge forwardly slightly under extreme conditions, shortening thedistance between theshoulder and the waistline thereby making the position of the waistline relative to the shoulder substantially immaterial. r

a holes by a flexible web, said web extending down-'- wardlyto waist level, and means forsecuring the It should also be noted that my vest is truly,

reversible inasmuch as the position of the draw I string 34 andthe tape 42 are always the same relative to the wearers body and exert their binding actionin substantially the same way and in the same direction regardless of which side or the vest is innermost.

It is recognized, of course, that various minor modifications may be made in the structure with- I out departing from the scope and I do not, therefore, wish to be limited to the precise form herein described, butonly by the scopeof the appended claims. I

What is claimed is:

1. In a life preserving vest, inner and outer flexible coverings forming aback sectionand two front sections joined together at, the shoulders and at the sides and provided with armhole open ings, buoyant material confined between the cov erings by lines of stitching, a stitching between the front and shoulder-sections, and means between the front and shoulder sections for securing the vest to the body... the aggregate displacement of the buoyant material in the front sections and shoulder sections being, more than twice the displacement-of the buoyant material in the,

back section. 2. In a reversible life preserving vest, inner outer coverings forming a back section and two the lower. edge of said life preserving member, the portion's of lsaidlife preserving member ex-- tending overthe hips being in segments whereby in deep water said segmentswillb reversed for insuring the upright position of the wearer.

4. Areversible life preserving vest comprising inner, and outer coverings forming ,a back section and two front sections, said sections beingjoined i together and provided with armholes, buoyant material. in the sections confined by lines of stitchinginto elongated pockets, the frontand back'lsections being connected below, the armvestto a wearerfs body, the vest being characterized by having the pock'etssymmetrically. ar- I ranged on opposite sides i of the central plane of the corresponding sections, whereby said vest is reversible without altering its function. or affecting its application to the body of the wearer.

5. A life preserver for an adult of average size, comprising two layers offabric tailored to be worn as a vest, having a back portion and two front portions extending to a level below the waistline, said front portions being joined to the back portion by loose fabric below and, to the rear of the armholes in the upper part of the vest and between the armholes and notches over the side pants pockets of the wearer in the lower edge of the vest, kapokl disposed between layers of the upper part of the front portions extending from slightly above the waist to the shoulders, means for securing the kapok in placeincluding stitches predisposing the upper part to flex readily to follow the contour of the torso and the shoulders, kapok disposed between the layers in the lower parts, means for securing the kapok in place in the lower parts including horizontal stitching arranged to allow the lower parts to flex upwardly without crushing the kapok when the front sections, said sections being joined to define tween the coverings, a draw string between the coverings at waist height and secured only at one point to the back section, and tape means secured to the meeting edges of the front section at substantially chest level midway between the inner and outer coverings of said front sections wheremeeting edges at theshoulders and sides of said vest and forming armholes, buoyant material berear portion having its lower edge disposed above the level of the lower edge of the upper front intermediate its ends. r

6. A life preserver comprising upper and lower wearer is sitting, the stitching along the lower,

end of the kapok in the upper part of the front portions and the stitching along the top of the kapok in the lower front portions providing a shirr tube between the fabric, said fabric at said shirr tubepermitting the lower parts to flex away from the body and up when the wearer is in the water, kapok disposed inthe top half of the back portion, means for securing the kapok in place, .kapok disposed in the bottom portion below the levelof said shirr tube, and means for securing th free edges onthe front portions together identically with either side of the vest out including a draw string anchored in said shirr tube portions at the front and back connected to:

gethensaidupper portion forming a body fitting garment, buoyant material carried, by each of said portions, the buoyant material of the upper portion, means between said upper and lower portions for securing the lower part of said upper portion snugly around the trunk of the wearer, said lower portion being in depending segments, whereby said segments will reverse and extend upwardly for buoying the upper portion of the body of the wearer with the front portions super posed on each other and the lowerrear portion disposed belowthe upper rear portion, so that his nose and mouth will be supported above the water level in deep water.

7. A' life preserving vest including inner and outer flexible coverings tailored to provide aback section and two front sections joined to theback section at the shoulders and at the sides to provide armhole openings, buoyant material: disposed between the coverings and confined by lines of stitching intotelongated pockets arranged in vertically spaced buoyant portions in each section, horizontalxstitching at approximately the waist line forming a flexure line I between the buoyant portions in each section, the lower portionsin the front sections/being movable independently of the lower portion in the back section, said back section comprising an upper buoyant portion disposed across the shoulders of the wearer a substantial distance above the horizontal stitching and a lower portion which flexes about said line ofsstitching to move upwardly intocontact with the body of the wearer below the upper buoyant portion when immersed, the buoyant portions in the front sections being movable intos uperposed positions under the influence of; water to shift the effective center of buoyancy of the vest upwardly and frontwardly when immersed.

8. In a reversible life preserving vest, inner and outer flexible coverings forming a back section and two front sections joined together at the shoulders and at the sides and provided with armhole openings, buoyant material between said coverings confined by vertical lines of stitching to vertically elongated pockets extending from the shoulders downwardly to the waist line at the front, means at the lower edge of said pockets for securing the vest to the wearer, a normally dependent buoyant portion attached to certain ofsaid sections at points spaced from the armhole openings and movable to a position to overlap the upper portion of the vest when immersed in water so as to shift the center of buoyancy upwardly, and a horizontal line of stitching at approximately chest level between the front and shoulder sections providing a line of flexure between the front sections and the shoulder sections.

FREDERICK, LEE BROWN.

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