WO2021236136A1 - Protective facemask with access aperture - Google Patents

Abstract

The disclosed device represents the preferred embodiment of the invention and contains a face shield that a user attaches to his/her face using straps that loop around wearer's earlobes or by using straps that wind around a wearer's head. The disclosed device is a face mask, which contains a small opening that is securely and protectively covered by a flap. The flap may be lifted to expose an opening, or a slot, or a combination thereof. These openings in the face shield of the facemask can be used to hydrate the wearer directly from a beverage bottle or container, or enable the wearer to partake of smoking activity or ingestions of medicines, all without completely removing or displacing the protective mask.

Description

Protective Facemask with Access Aperture

Inventors:

Michael Kelson

Claim of Priority

This application claims priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63028557 filed on May 21^st, 2020, the contents of which are fully incorporated herein by reference.

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a personal protective equipment namely a personal facemask covering one’s nasal and oral openings.

Background of the Invention

A facemask is intended to protect the wearer and those around the wearer. The wearer is protected from droplets and viruses exhaled by those around the wearer. Those around the wearer are protected from the droplets and viruses exhaled by the wearer. For this reason, conventional protective masks form a bi-directional shield. To serve as bi-directional shields, facemasks must be made from lightweight, semi-permeable fibrous materials such as cloth and paper.

While the mask is on, the wearer is able to breath, albeit with some additional effort. Wearing a mask for extended periods of time will usually result in face perspiration, itchiness, and soreness in an around facial skin. These downsides are usually accepted tradeoffs to an increased actual and perceived safety of a wearer. The facemasks presently known in the art cut off access to nasal and oral cavities while a mask is worn. These areas cannot be accessed easily without substantially or completely removing a mask. A mask must be removed for a wearer to take a drink from a container or straw, or to take a drag from a smoking device or a medicinal aerosol device. The masks that presently exist in the art disclose apertures in masks. However, these are intended to increase ventilation and are not intended to actually serve as egress apertures. In other cases, openings that can be sealed and reopened at will, are intended for attachment of hoses and other accessories and therefore require a mask having a certain level of stiffness in the face shield construction to support an attachment of such a hose without collapsing. These are usually specialized masks, such as a gas mask or a diving mask.

Summary of the Invention

The present invention is a personal protective mask that is worn by a user and forms a protective filter membrane around wearers nasal and oral openings. Loops on both ends of the mask are looped around a wearer’s ears to affix the mask to a user’s face. Straps can be used instead of loops.

A sealable slot is fashioned at approximately the center of the mask surface, which is calculated to be even with a wearer’s mouth. The slot is covered by a peel-away lid. The exterior perimeter of the slot contains at least one coupling means to securely close the slot after each time it is opened. The coupling means may be a hook and loop attachment or a flange and slot attachment, or a combination thereof.

The slot may be in a form of a single wide, but short slot, coinciding with the oral cavity of the wearer. It may also be one or more small openings to admit a straw or an inhaler portion of a smoking device or an aerosol spray. It is an object of the present invention to provide a protective facemask enabling a wearer to hydrate, eat, smoke and take medications without removing the facemask.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figs 1 & 2 demonstrate the front perspective view of the disclosed device. Fig. 3 is the disclosed device being worn by a user.

Fig. 4 is the reverse side of the flap surface shown in fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is an alternative embodiment of the present invention.

Figs. 6 & 7 feature the front and back of an alternative closing flap shown in fig. 4.

Description of the Preferred Embodiments The preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. Identical elements in the various figures are identified with the same reference numerals.

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiment of the present invention. Such embodiments are provided by way of explanation of the present invention, which is not intended to be limited thereto. In fact, those of ordinary skill in the art may appreciate upon reading the present specification and viewing the present drawings that various modifications and variations can be made thereto.

Figs 1 and 2 demonstrate the face mask 2 having a face shield 8 and affixing means 4. The affixing means 4 are shown as loops that are tucked behind earlobes of a wearer, as shown in fig. 3. The face shield 8 further comprises a slot 16 that can be hermetically covered by a flap 10. The slot 16 is substantially in the center of the face shield 8, such that it is substantially opposite a wearer’s oral cavity.

The flap 10 can be pealed back to expose the slot 16 and then replaced to cover the slot 16. The flap 10 is preferably attached at one point 10. When removably sealing the slot 16, the flap 10 is held in place using the fastener means 12 and a corresponding means 14 on the flap 10. The fastener means employed may be hook and loop fastener, a plastic zipper or a restickable surface corresponding with a course surface. To explain the concept in a greater detail, for a hook and loop scenario, the entire edge perimeter 12 would contain the loop portion and the entire edge perimeter 14 would contain a plurality of hooks. In a restickable surface example, the entire edge perimeter 12 would contain a mild adhesive which would correspond to the course and better sticking surface along the entire edge perimeter 14. Similarly, in a plastic zippers, parallel guide rails along the entire edge perimeter 12 would be interlocking with a coupling rail along the entire edge perimeter 14. In all above examples, the perimeter 12 is completely sealed when the flap 10 is replaced over the slot 16. Furthermore a combination of coupling means may be provided such as a surface containing a plurality of loops and parallel rails along the entire edge perimeter 12, which would correspond to a plurality of hooks and an interlocking rail along the entire edge perimeter 14. Additionally, at least one pull-away tab 11 may be placed along the edge perimeter 14 to ease the peel and replacement process of the flap 10. Fig. 3 demonstrates the wearer 24 with the disclosed facemask device 2. The slot 16 is located just below the nasal openings 26, thus appreciably even with a mouth cavity of the wearer 24. The facemask 2 is looped around ear lobes 26 using loops 4.

Fig. 4 demonstrates the rear view of the disclosed facemask 2 having a face shield 8 and a slot 16. The reverse side 13 of the flap 10 is shown as partially removed and therefore partially exposing the slot 16. The width 17 of the slot 16 is preferably between ½ of an inch and 2 inches, with the height 19 being between 1/8 of an inch and ¾ of an inch, with all imperial values having corresponding metric values. The slot 16 may have a bridge 15 separating the slot 16 into two separate slots, which for example would enable a limited, partial exposure of the slot 16. Figs. 5, 6 and 7 demonstrate several alternative embodiments. In fig 5, the slot is replaced by a singular elliptical or round opening 28, diameter of which may be slightly bigger than the diameter of a soft drink straw or a diameter of a conventional cigarette. Figs. 6 and 7 demonstrate an elliptical but a more elongated opening 30, together with a downward peeling flap 10. The slot 16, the elliptical opening 28 and an elongated opening 30 may be combined into several openings, covered a single or individual flaps 10. These may be disposed opposite nasal and oral cavities, to for example, permit a passage of a swab device to be inserted into a nasal passage for testing or cleaning purposes without exposing the other cavities of the face. The border 6 preferably contains embedded bend memory materials that would conform the face shield 8 to the contours of a wearer’s face.

Although this invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is to be understood that the present disclosure has been made only by way of illustration and that numerous changes in the details of construction and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention.

Claims

What is claimed:

1. A personal protective device comprising a face shield, said face shield covering a wearer’s nasal and oral cavities, said face shield made of flexible materials that are intended to filter air being inhaled and exhaled by said wearer; a securing means said securing means attached to distal ends of said face shield, said securing means removably attaching said face shield to a face of said wearer; and an aperture; an opening in said face shield, wherein said opening is securely openingly covered by a flap.

2. The personal protective device of claim 1, wherein said flap is removigly secured to said face shield using a hook and loop fastener, an interlocking rail fastener, or a resticable surface, or a combination thereof.

3. The personal protective device of claim 2, wherein said opening is a slot.

4. The personal protective device of claim 2, wherein said opening is elliptical.

5. The personal protective device of claim 4, wherein said opening is sufficiently large to admit a drinking straw or a smoking apparatus, or a medicinal aerosol dispenser.

6. The personal protective device of claim 3, further comprising an additional opening, wherein said additional opening is a slot or an elliptical opening.

7. The personal protective device of claim 6, wherein said opening and said additional opening are covered by a single flap.

8. The personal protective device of claim 6, wherein each said opening and said additional opening are covered by a flap.