GB2460063A

GB2460063A - Lifejacket adapted to support a wearers head

Info

Publication number: GB2460063A
Application number: GB0808785A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Simon Davey-Evans
Original assignee: COSALT PLC
Current assignee: COSALT PLC
Priority date: 2008-05-15
Filing date: 2008-05-15
Publication date: 2009-11-18
Anticipated expiration: 2028-05-15
Also published as: GB0808785D0; GB2460063B

Abstract

A lifejacket 11 has a front section 14 for location on a wearer's chest and a head support section 16 for location behind a wearer's head with an aperture 26 for a wearer's neck being defined between them. In one aspect, a region of the front section 14 surrounding the neck aperture is deformable to define a variable dimension recess (27, Figs. 4a and 4b) for engagement with a wearer's neck. In an alternative aspect, the jacket 11 is configured such that in use when supporting a wearer in water, the buoyancy of the head support section 16 presses a wearer's head toward the front section 14 such that their chin is pressed into contact with an outer surface of the front section surrounding the recess. The lifejacket 11 may have a synthetic outer casing 12 in which blocks of expanded foam (13, Fig 3a) are located to provide buoyancy.

Description

Lifejacket The present invention relates to a personal buoyancy aid and particularly, but not exclusively, to a lifejacket.

It is known to provide a lifejacket comprising an outer casing made of a synthetic fabric in which blocks of buoyant material, such as expanded foam, are housed. One such arrangement is illustrated in Figure 1, which is a schematic view of the known lifejacket 1 in use supporting a wearer 2 in water. The known lifejacket I has a front section 3 which is positioned on a wearer's chest and a head support section 4 that locates behind the wearer's head. The front section 3 typically comprises two portions, a right front portion and a left front portion (only the left portion can be seen in Figure 1), both of which are connected with the head support section. The two front portions can be separated when the jacket is put on but in use are held together in close proximity on the wearer's chest.

With the known lifej acket arrangement, the front section 3 supports the wearer face up in the water with the chest slightly higher than the legs. The head support section 4 is partially submerged in the water and supports the wearer's head, preventing it from falling back into the water even if the wearer falls unconscious or following entry into the water from a height. However, there are some deficiencies in the known design. The head support section 4 tends to bob up and down in the water altering the face plane angle of the wearer's head. The "face plane angle" is the angle a plane taken roughly from a wearer's chin to their forehead makes with the water.

Furthermore, the wearer's head is free to pivot from side to side. This has the effect of varying the distance between the wearer's mouth and the water, which is referred to as the "mouth freeboard". When the wearer's head is positioned centrally and faces upwardly, the mouth freeboard is at its greatest. However, if the wearer's head pivots to one side, the distance between the wearer's mouth and the water is reduced. This is a particular problem if the wearer losses consciousness, is weak and so unable to hold their head centrally, or following entry into the water from a height. It is also possible with the known jacket for a wearer's head to slip through the neck aperture between the head support section and the front section.

There is a need, therefore, for an improved lifejacket which overcomes or at least mitigates the short comings of the known lifejacket.

In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a lifejacket comprising a front section for location on a wearer's chest and a head support section for location behind a wearer's head, the head support section and the front section defining between them an aperture for a wearer's neck, in which a region of the front section surrounding the neck aperture is deformable to define a variable dimension recess for engagement with a wearer's neck.

Other features of the first aspect of the invention are set out in the claims dependent on claim 1.

In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a lifejacket comprising a front section for location on a wearer's chest and a head support section for location behind a wearer's head, the head support section and the front section defining between them an aperture for a wearer's neck with a region of the front section surrounding the neck aperture defining recess for engagement with a wearer's neck, in which the jacket is configured such that in use when supporting a wearer in water, the buoyancy of the head support section presses a wearer's head toward the front section such that their chin pressed into contact with an outer surface of the front section surrounding the recess.

Other features of the second aspect of the invention are set out in the claims dependent on claim 2.

With a lifejacket in accordance with the first aspect of the invention, the variable dimension neck engaging recess enables the jacket to accommodate wearers having a range of neck sizes whilst providing good support of the head and neck With a jacket in accordance with the second aspect of the invention, the wearer's head is held in contact with the front portion due to the design and buoyancy of the head support section, with their neck located in the neck receiving recess. This arrangement holds the wearer's head centrally in an upright position helping to maintain a steady face plane angle and mouth freeboard. The arrangement also prevents the wearer from slipping through the neck hole.

Advantageously, the first and second aspects of the invention can be combined to provide a life jacket which provides improved support for a wearer without placing undue pressure on the wearer's neck.

In accordance with a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a buoyancy aid comprising an outer casing housing a buoyant foam material, the aid having right and left front portions for location on a wearer's chest and a head supporting portion for location behind a wearer's head, the head support portion and the two front portions defining between them a neck aperture for a wearer's neck, buoyant material in each of the right and left front portions having a resiliently deformable spur movable between a resiliently biased position in which the neck aperture is at a minimum and an inwardly deformed condition in which the neck aperture is enlarged.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the remaining drawings in which: Figure 2 is a perspective view of a lifejacket in accordance with the invention taken from the front and to one side; Figures 3a and 3b are perspective views of the buoyancy material forming part of a front section of the jacket of Figure 2, illustrating how resiliently deformable sections of the material move to vary the dimension of the neck aperture; Figures 4a and 4b are schematic views of a variable dimension neck aperture region of the jacket of Figure 2, showing the neck aperture at its smallest and largest respectively.

Figure 5 is a schematic plan view of a block of buoyancy material forming part of a right side front portion of the jacket of Figure 2; Figure 6 is a view of the inside edge of the block of buoyancy material of Figure 5; Figure 7 is a view similar to that of Figure 1 illustrating schematically the lifejacket of Figure 2 supporting a wearer in water; Figure 8 is a partial side view of the lifejacket of Figure 2 in accordance with the invention; Figure 9 is a view similar to that of Figure 8 but showing the known lifejacket of Figure 1; and, Figure 10 is view of part of a right hand front portion of the lifejacket of Figure 2 showing details of a recessed pocket for a buddy line.

A lifejacket 11 in accordance with the invention has an outer casing 12 in which a buoyant material 13 is housed. The outer casing 12 is made of synthetic material which is not affected by water, such as nylon, whilst the buoyant material may be expanded foam. It will be appreciated that any suitable materials can be used for the casing and to provide buoyancy.

The jacket has a front section 14 which locates on the chest of a wearer 15 and a head support section 16 which locates behind the head of a wearer. As can be seen best in Figure 2, the front section 14 includes a front right portion 17 which locates on the right side of the wearer's chest and a front left portion 18 which locates on the left side of the wearer's chest. Each of the front portions 17, 18 is connected with the head support section 16 at an upper end 19 by the outer casing.

The front portions 17, 18 each have a rear surface 20 which is directed toward a wearer in use, a generally opposing front surface 21 which is directed away from a wearer in use and an inner side surface 22. The front portions 17, 18 can be separated to assist a wearer in putting the jacket on but when the jacket is correctly fitted to a wearer, the inner side surfaces 22 lie in close proximity to each other and will usually abut one another as shown in Figure 2. In the present embodiment, regions of hook and loop fastener (not shown) are positioned on the inner surfaces 22 of the front portions to hold them together when fitted. The front portions 17, 18 are also held together by means of a quick release buckle strap 23 and an adjustable belt like strap 24 which passes through a loop 25 on the outer casing and which can be passed around the wearer to secure the front portion in place.

A neck aperture 26 is defined between the head support section 16 and the front portions 17, 18. Part of the neck aperture 26 is formed by means of a neck receiving recess 27 which is defined between the inner surfaces 22 of the right and left front portions 17, 18. In accordance with one aspect of the invention, the neck receiving recess 27 is variable in dimension so that the jacket can accommodate wearers having a range of different neck sizes.

The construction of the variable dimension neck receiving recess 27 can best be understood with reference to Figures 3a & 3b, 4a & 4b, 5 and 6. Figure 5 is plan view of a block 28 of buoyant material 13 which forms part of the right front portion 17 of the jacket 10. A similar block 29 of buoyant material forms part of left front portion 18. The left front block 29 is essentially a mirror image of the right front block 28, except for the position of a recess 30 which accommodates a pocket as will be described in more detail later.

The right front block 28 is generally rectangular in plan having tapered lower 31 and upper 32 end regions. A groove or recess 33 extends inwardly from the inner side surface 34 of the block so as to partially surround a spur or projection 35 of the buoyant material. The expanded foam material from which the block 29 is made is resiliently deformable so that the spur tends to adopt an outwardly, resiliently biased configuration as shown in Figure 5, in which the free end of the spur is spaced from the remainder of the material. However, the spur can be pushed inwardly closing the recess 33 between the free end of the spur and the rest of the block. A corner of the spur 35 is chamfered at 35a to form half of a V shaped neck receiving recess 27.

Figures 3a and 3b are perspectives views showing the blocks of buoyant material 28, 29 which form part of the right and left front portions 17, 18 positioned next to one another as they would be when the jacket is in position on a wearer. In these views, the tapered upper and lower end regions 31, 32 are omitted for clarity.

Figure 3a shows the blocks 28, 29 with the resiliently deformable spurs 35 in their initial resiliently biased configurations in which they define a small V shaped recess 27 in which a wearer's neck engages. Figure 3b shows how the spurs 35 can be deflected inwardly to increase the size of the neck recess 27 in response to pressure applied to the spurs 35 in the direction of the arrows in Figure 3a. Figures 4a and 4b illustrate the neck aperture region of the jacket with the spur 35 and recess 33 in the blocks of buoyant material 28, 29 shown as hidden detail in dashed lines. In Figure 4a, the spurs 35 are in their initial resiliently biased configurations such that the neck receiving recess 27 and hence the neck aperture 26 is at a minimum. In Figure 4b, the spurs are shown deformed inwardly so that the neck receiving recess 27 and the neck aperture 26 are enlarged. The outer casing of the front portions in the region of the neck receiving recess is flexible so that the spurs can be deformed inwardly to vary the size of the neck aperture as required.

In use when the jacket is fitted to a wearer and the front portions 17, 18 secured together, the wearer's neck locates in the neck aperture 26 between the head support section 16 and the front portions 17, 18. The front of the wearer's neck engages in the neck receiving recess 27 contacting the front portions 17, 18 adjacent the deformable spurs. If the wearer's neck is larger than can be accommodated in the minimum sized neck aperture 27, the spurs 35 are deformed inwardly so that the neck aperture is enlarged whilst remaining a snug fit about the wearer's neck. In the present embodiment, the neck aperture is arranged to fit neck sizes from 3 00mm in diameter up to 5 10mm diameter or more. It will be appreciated though the range of neck sizes which can be accommodated can be varied by appropriate design and will be selected so that the jacket can be worn by an appropriate range of the population. Different sized jackets having different ranges of neck aperture can also be provided. For example, the jacket may be dimensioned for use with children, as well as small, medium or large adults for example.

In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, the head support section 16 is configured so that when it is buoyantly supported in water it presses the wearer's head and neck forward so that the wearer's neck remains firmly engaged in the neck receiving recess 27 with the wearer's chin in contact with the tapered upper end regions 36 of the front portions about the recess 27. This ensures that the wearer's head remains centrally positioned with the face uppermost, where the mouth freeboard is at its maximum. The face plane angle is also increased when compared with the prior art as can be seen by comparing Figure 7 with Figure 1. Because the wearer's head is effectively clamped between the head support section 16 and the front section 14, there less freedom for it to move so that the head plane angle arid mouth freeboard are maintained generally constant, even if the wearer becomes unconscious or following entry into the water from a height.

The head support section 16 has a head support surface 37 which extends between a rear face 38, which is directed generally toward the wearer in use, and an opposing front face 39. To help position the wearer's head correctly in accordance with the invention, the head supporting surface 37 slopes towards the front section 14, when considered in a direction from the rear face 38 to the front face 39, when the head support section 16 and the front portions 17, 18 are positioned so that their rear faces 20, 38 are generally aligned in a common plane, as shown in Figure 8. By comparison, Figure 9 illustrates a conventional lifejacket in which the head supporting surface slopes away from the front section to form a wide V shape between the front and head supporting sections.

The head support surface 37 is contoured to fit the back of a wearer's head and neck, having a concave region 37a in which the back of the wearer's head and neck locates. This not only makes the jacket more comfortable but also helps in holding the wearer's head in a central position. The concave region is tapered, getting shallower towards the front surface 39 and so has a truncated semi-conical shape.

The lifejacket 10 is equipped with a light 40 and has recessed pockets 41, 42 for holding a buddy line 43 and a whistle 44 respectively. The recessed pockets 41, 42 are provided on the inner surfaces 22 of the right and left front portions 17, 18 respectively. As shown in Figures 5 & 6, a semi-circular recess 30 is formed in the inner surface 34 of the block 28 of buoyant material which forms part of the right front portion 17 to accommodate the pocket 41 for the buddy line. A similar recess is formed in the inner surface 34 of the block of material 29 for the left front portion to accommodate the pocket 42 for the whistle 44. The pockets 41, 42, and hence the recesses 30, can be offset. As can be seen in Figure 10, an opening to the pocket 41 is formed in a seam of the casing and the material for the pocket lining is attached to the casing. The pocket 42 for the whistle 44 is formed in a similar manner and so is not shown in detail.

The provision of recessed pockets is advantageous as there is less chance of the buddy line or whistle snagging or deploying accidentally. The pocket 42 for the whistle 44 is dimensioned so that the whistle is firmly retained without the need for an additional closure. Recessed pockets may be provided for holding other articles on the Iifej acket if required.

Whereas the invention has been described in relation to what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed arrangements but rather is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent constructions included within the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, it will be appreciated that the head support section can be configured in a variety of ways in order to bias the wearer's head forwardly so that their neck engages in the neck receiving recess and their chin contacts the surface of the front section. Accordingly, the invention is not to be understood as being limited to the specific arrangements described in the single embodiment but to encompass any configuration which achieves the desired aim.

Those skilled in the art will have no difficulty in devising numerous alterative configurations based in the teaching in this document.

Claims

Claims 1. A lifejacket comprising a front section for location on a wearer's chest and a head support section for location behind a wearer's head, the head support section and the front section defining between them an aperture for a wearer's neck, in which a region of the front section surrounding the neck aperture is deformable to define a variable dimension recess for engagement with a wearer's neck.
2. A lifejacket comprising a front section for location on a wearer's chest and a head support section for location behind a wearer's head, the head support section and the front section defining between them an aperture for a wearer's neck with a region of the front section surrounding the neck aperture defining recess for engagement with a wearer's neck, in which the jacket is configured such that in use when supporting a wearer in water, the buoyancy of the head support section presses a wearer's head toward the front section such that their chin pressed into contact with an outer surface of the front section surrounding the recess.
3. A life jacket as claimed in claim 1 and claim 2, in which jacket is configured such that in use when supporting a user in water, the buoyancy of the head support section presses a wearer's head toward the front section such that their neck engages in the recess, the deformable region of the front portion being configured to deform as necessary to accommodate the wearer's neck.
4. A lifejacket as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, in which the front section comprises a left front portion and a right front portion, each of which are connected with the head support section, the neck recess being defined between the right and left portions.
5. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 4, in which the right and left front portions each have a rear surface which is directed toward a wearer in use, a generally opposing front surface which is directed away from a wearer in use and an inner side surface, in which the neck recess is defined between the inner side surfaces of the right and left front portions.
6. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 5, in which the inner side surfaces of the right and left front portions lie in very close proximity to one another.
7. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 5, in which the inner side surfaces of the right and left front portions abut one another in use.
8. A lifejacket as claimed in any one of claims 4 to 7, in which each of the right and left front portions and the head support section comprises a casing not affected by water containing a buoyant material.
9. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 8, in which the buoyant material is expanded foam.
10. A lifejacket as claimed in any one of the previous claims, in which the neck engaging recess is defined by means of corresponding resiliently deformable regions of the right and left front portions, the deformable regions being movable between an initial resiliently biased condition in which the neck engaging recess is at its smallest and a deformed condition in which the neck engaging recess is at its largest.
11. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 10 when dependent on claim 8, in which each of the resiliently deformable regions comprises a resiliently deformable region of the buoyant material.
12. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 11, in which the outer casing of the right and left front portions in the region of the neck engaging recess is flexible so as to enable a wearer's neck to deflect the deformable regions of the buoyant material from their initial resiliently biased condition towards the deformed condition.
13. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 11 or claim 12, in which the resiliently deformable region of the buoyant material in each of the right and left front portions comprises a spur of the material partially surrounded by a recess into which the spur can be pressed.
14. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 2 or any of claims 3 to 13 when dependent on claim 2, in which the head support section comprises a head support surface for engagement with the back of a wearer's head, the head support surface being angled such that a wearer's head is pressed toward the front section in use to hold the wearer's neck in the neck engaging recesses and to press the wearer's chin into contact with an outer surface of the front section surrounding the neck engaging recess.
15. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 14 when dependent on claim 5, in which the head support section comprises a rear surface which is directed generally toward a wearer in use and an opposing front surface which is directed generally away from a wearer in use, the head support surface extending between the rear and front surfaces, in which the head support surface is angled such that when the rear surfaces of the right and left front portions and the head support surface are arranged substantially in-line, the head support surface is inclined toward the right and left front portions when considered in a direction from the rear surface towards the front surface of the head support section.
16. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 14 or claim 15, in which the head support surface has a concave region for receiving the back of a wearer's head and neck.
17. A lifejacket as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which the jacket comprises at least one recessed pocket.
18. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 17 when dependent on claim 8, in which the buoyant material in one of the right and left front portions defines a recess to accommodate the at least one pocket.
19. A lifejacket as claimed in claim 18 when dependent on claim 5, in which the at least one recessed pocket is provided in the inner side surface of one of the right and left front portions.
20. A lifejacket substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to and as illustrated in Figures 2, 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 10 of the accompanying drawings.
21. A buoyancy aid comprising an outer casing housing a buoyant foam material, the aid having right and left front portions for location on a wearer's chest and a head supporting portion for location behind a wearer's head, the head support portion and the two front portions defining between them a neck aperture for a wearer's neck, buoyant material in each of the right and left front portions having a resiliently deformable spur movable between a resiliently biased position in which the neck aperture is at a minimum and an inwardly deformed condition in which the neck aperture is enlarged.