WO2008037012A1

WO2008037012A1 - Aquatic safety device

Info

Publication number: WO2008037012A1
Application number: PCT/AU2007/001430
Authority: WO
Inventors: Rhett Holt
Original assignee: CIVILISED PLAYGROUND Pty Ltd
Current assignee: CIVILISED PLAYGROUND Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2006-09-26
Filing date: 2007-09-26
Publication date: 2008-04-03
Anticipated expiration: 2009-03-26
Also published as: AU2007302612A1

Abstract

The present invention generally relates to an aquatic safety device and more particularly a safety device that can be located near a boundary between an aquatic environment and a land environment in order to deter individuals from entering the aquatic environment. The aquatic safety device generally includes a deterrent body which is located in use in the aquatic environment, the deterrent body having a visible section which extends above the water surface when in use in the aquatic environment. The visible section is configured to make the deterrent body appear to be at least partially submerged to an individual located on the adjoining land environment.

Description

AQUATIC SAFETY DEVICE

Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to an aquatic safety device and more particularly a safety device that can be located near a boundary between an aquatic environment and a land environment in order to deter individuals from entering the aquatic environment. The invention is particularly applicable as a safety device for a swimming pool and it will be convenient to hereinafter disclose the invention in relation to that exemplary application. However, it is to be appreciated that the invention is not limited to that application and could be used as a safety device for other aquatic environments such as rivers, canals, moats, dams or the like.

Background of the Invention

The following discussion of the background to the invention is intended to facilitate an understanding of the invention. However, it should be appreciated that the discussion is not an acknowledgement or admission that any of the material referred to was published, known or part of the common general knowledge as at the priority date of the application.

Aquatic environments are popular recreational areas. Every year parents and their children spend afternoons, weekends, and their holidays at residential pools, spas, beaches, rivers, lakes and other similar aquatic styled holiday destinations. While these aquatic environments can provide a relatively safe and relaxing place for teenagers and adults, the same environment can be very dangerous for younger children in terms of drowning.

Drowning accounts for 20% of all childhood deaths in Australia. Of these drownings, 80% of the children are less than 4 years old. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistic, from 1998 to 2002, 242 children under the age of four died from accidental drowning. These deaths accounted for 48% of infant mortality in this period. The direct costs attributed to infant drowning were estimated at $14.2 million per annum for this period, with a estimated further $125 million per annum attributable to indirect costs associated with infant drowning.

Given these dangers, numerous safety devices have been developed to prevent unsupervised children from entering aquatic environments. Most prevalent is the legislated requirement to erect a fence around aquatic environments such as pools.

However even with a fence, once an unsupervised child is within the fenced off area, the aquatic environment typically does not have any further safety device or deterrent to prevent that child entering the aquatic environment. In this regard, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows that the rate of infant drowning has increased by 33% (i.e., 1.5 per 100,000 to 2 per 100,000) since the implementation of compulsory fencing legislation. Contributing factors to this increase are thought to be the result of the time lag between a child's supervisor being alerted to a drowning situation and then accessing the fenced off area to reach the pool.

It would therefore be desirable to provide an aquatic safety device which could be used insitu in the aquatic environment to deter an individual such as a child from entering the aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment.

Summary of the Invention

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an aquatic safety device for deterring individuals from entering an aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment, including: a deterrent body which is located in use in the aquatic environment, the deterrent body having a visible section which extends above the water surface when in use in the aquatic environment, the visible section being configured to make the deterrent body appear to be at least partially submerged to an individual located on the adjoining land environment. The present invention therefore provides a deterrent body positioned in an aquatic environment that is readily visible to an individual from an adjoining land environment. The deterrent body has a configuration that provides a visible warning and more preferably a psychological warning to an individual viewing the deterrent body from an adjoining land environment that the aquatic environment is dangerous and should not be entered.

While not wishing to be limited to any one theory, it is thought that the appearance of a deterrent body that is at least partially submerged and in some cases fully submerged in a body of water (aqueous environment) provides visual evidence to that individual that the surface of the body of water is not solid surface. Consequently, that individual is able to recognise that if the body of water is entered that individual may be partially or fully submerged in a similar manner as the deterrent body. In particular, this type of aquatic safety device is thought to be a particularly effective perceptual barrier for deterring children, and in particular infants, from entering an aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment.

Various different visible section configurations can be used to show that the deterrent body is partially submerged in the aquatic environment. In some instances a simple shape such as a cone, oval, sphere or other body would be suitable.

In one embodiment, the deterrent body includes a submerged three point windmill apparatus which includes three balls of varying size located at on a distal end of different blades of the windmill. In this embodiment, water causes objects to look bigger when they are submerged, effectively short circuiting depth perception. Therefore, it is thought that by using established perceptual illusions, to influence visual illusions children can be repelled from investigating the aqueous environment.

However, simple shapes may not be easily recognised by younger individuals, such as children and infants, as being a submerged object, but may rather be simply attributed as being a feature of the aquatic environment. In this sense, younger individuals may not have developed enough familiarity with the normal shape of the object to provoke an object permanence reaction. It is therefore preferable that the visible section is configured in a shape or form which would be more easily recognised by these younger individuals. More preferably, the visible section is configured in a shape or form which would create an object permanence reaction in the younger individual perception. In this respect, the shape or form should preferably be one that a younger individual would recognise as having missing sections or appear visually altered when sections of that object are submerged below the surface of the aquatic environment. Examples of suitable objects include toys such as teddy bears or dolls and animals such as cats, dogs or the like.

In one preferred embodiment, the visible section has a generally human like form. It is preferable that the human like form appears to be at least partially submerged to at least waist height when viewed from the adjoining land environment. As can be appreciated, most young individuals such as infants and children recognise a human form from a young age, and the common attributes of the basic human form such as legs, arms, torso, neck, head, face and the like. The young individual should therefore be able to recognise when certain elements of this perceived human form are missing. Accordingly, in those embodiments where the visible section includes at least the upper torso section of a human like form, the visible section is positioned in the aquatic environment with the upper torso extending out of the waters surface from at least waist height. A young individual should be able to recognise that the leg and waist sections are missing or are at least visually distorted by the aqueous environment, and conclude that the human form is partially submerged in the aqueous environment.

The detail of the features of the generally human like form of the visible section can have as much detail or as little detail as desired. In some embodiments, the visible section has a simple rough human like form which provides a basic silhouette of a human shape to a individual located on the adjoining land environment. In other embodiments, the visible section is a more detailed replica of a human form having an upper torso which includes arms, a neck and a head. In yet other embodiments, the human like form has a mannequin type arrangement, in which sections of the mannequin are articulated to allow the mannequin to be posed in different positions. In these embodiments, the arms of the upper torso can in some arrangements be configured in a gesture conveying danger and/or distress. These gestures can provide further visual warnings to an individual that there is danger in entering the aquatic environment.

In some embodiments in which the visible section has a human like form, the visible section includes a head that has facial features. Of course, these facial features can be modelled in a number of poses to provoke different responses in an individual viewing the visible section of the deterrent body. In some embodiments, the facial features of the face could have a neutral pose. In other forms, the facial features of the face could have an emotional pose such as happiness, anger, sadness or the like. More preferably however, the face is configured with facial features that provide an appearance of distress and/or fear. Again, such facial feature configurations can provide further visual warnings to an individual that there is danger in entering the aquatic environment.

The deterrent body preferably includes a stand arrangement that locates the visible section substantially above the waters surface of the aquatic environment. In some embodiments, this stand arrangement can comprise a supplementary structural arrangement to the visible section under the surface of the water. In other embodiments, this stand arrangement substantially comprises an underwater structure of the deterrent body. In this respect, the stand provides a support element which extends from a base or floor of the aquatic environment substantially to the water's surface. The visible section is secured on top of the stand at a height at which it extends generally upwardly from a location slightly below or at the waters surface.

The stand can have any desired arrangement. In some forms, the stand has a human form, comprising a rigid or fixable lower torso and leg portion of a human form. The leg portions include weighted sections which anchor the legs to the floor or base of the aquatic environment. In other forms, the stand has a non-human type configuration. Generally, a stand has a base which includes a weight section to anchor the deterrent body to the floor or base, a fastening section, which supports and fastens the visible section and a strut which extends between the base and fastening section to support the fastening section a predetermined distance above the floor or base of the aqueous environment.

Of course, the height between a floor of an aquatic environment and the water's surface can be different in different aquatic environments. It is therefore preferable that the stand arrangement has an adjustment section that allows the height of the visible section to be adjusted relative to a base of the stand arrangement. Preferably, in those embodiments in which the stand includes a strut, the adjustment section is formed in the strut. Suitable adjustment sections include screw arrangements, telescopic arrangements, folding structures, interconnected sliding structures and the like.

In other arrangements, the stand arrangement can include a base having a cone like shape. For example, when used in a pool environment, a cone base would allow the use of an automated pool cleaner. In this arrangement, the cone base would provide a more curved contact with a pool cleaner and therefore provide less of an obstruction to the functioning of the pool cleaner.

In other embodiments, the stand can comprise a floating structure.

Of course, the deterrent body need not be a physical body. In some embodiments, the deterrent body is formed by a hologram which with the help of a holographic apparatus provides the appearance of a body being partially submerged in the aqueous environment. In one particular embodiment, the holographic apparatus is a computer generated pool paint coating that generates image of partially submerged human in the aquatic environment and preferably for 360 degrees around the horizontal plan of the aquatic environment when viewed from the land environment. In other embodiments, the deterrent body comprises depth related pictures rendered on a surface having a portion submerged in the aqueous environment. In this embodiment, common pictures (for example of teddy bears) are located at progressively lower depths with increasing size on the surface. In one embodiment, in which the aqueous environment is a swimming pool, the pictures are rendered on the side of the pool, at the deepest section. It is thought that the progressive series of pictures compensate for water magnification and therefore depth will be effectively demonstrated to an individual viewing the series of pictures, such as for example a human infant.

While the visible section provides a visual deterrent for an individual, there are some cases where an individual may ignore, not observe or even accidentally fall in to the aquatic environment. Some embodiments of the safety device can therefore include an alarm system which is triggered when a body enters the aquatic environment. A number of suitable alarms are presently generally available such as for example water disturbance alarms, light sensors, motion detectors, audio detectors (aquatic microphones) or the like. In one embodiment, the alarm system is triggered by audible signals from an individual that enters the aquatic environment.

One preferred application of the safety device of the present invention the aquatic environment that the deterrent body is immerse in is a swimming pool, more preferably a residential swimming pool. In this embodiment, the land environment is the land surrounding the pool. In such an embodiment, the safety device could be a stand alone device which can be located in the swimming pool, a device which is attached to another device such as for example an automated pool cleaner, or in a preferred embodiment formed as part of a pool cover.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of deterring individuals from entering an aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment, the method including: locating a deterrent body in an aquatic environment, the deterrent body having a visible section which extends above the water surface when in use in the aquatic environment, the visible section be configured to make the deterrent body appear to be at least partially submerged to an individual located on the adjoining land environment.

It is preferable that the deterrent body is positioned in the aquatic environment relative the adjoining land environment such that the visible section is clearly visible to an individual located at a boundary between the aquatic environment and the adjoining land environment.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The present invention will now be described with reference to the figures of the accompanying drawings, which illustrate particular preferred embodiments of the present invention, wherein:

Figure 1 is an upper perspective representation of a pool area as viewed from adult height.

Figure 2 is a side cross-section of the pool area shown in Figure 1 with an aquatic safety device according to the present invention immersed therein.

Figure 3 is an upper perspective view of the set up shown in Figure 2 from adult height.

Figure 4 is an upper perspective view of the set up shown in Figure 2 from child or infant height.

Figure 5 is a copy of photograph showing one preferred embodiment of a safety device according to the present invention.

Detailed Description

Referring to Figure 1 , there is shown a top perspective view of a pool area 10 which includes a swimming pool 11 which encloses a body of water 12. The illustrated aquatic environment is representative of pool 11 areas that can be found within a fenced off area in a number of residential backyards in Australia and around the world. The illustrated pool 11 is defined by a cubic recess (Fig 2) sunk in a land environment 14 having a planar surface. This provides a square shaped water surface 16 surrounded on four sides by land 14, as shown by the checker patterned surface. The boundary 18 between the aquatic environment of the pool 11 is shown as a wooden textured frame which extends completely around the perimeter of the pool 11.

Referring to Figure 2, there is shown a cross-sectional side view of the same aquatic pool 11 shown in Figure 1. This view clearly shows that the pool 11 has a floor 19 and four side walls 19A (three of which are shown in the view shown in Figure 2). As can be observed, a generally human shaped deterrent body 20 is shown immersed in the body of water 12 contained in the pool 11. The deterrent body 20 is essentially an aquatic mannequin having two arms 21 , two legs 22, a torso 23, a neck 24 and a head 25. The head 25 of the illustrated deterrent body 20 has very basic features that include a nose 26, two eyes 27 and two ears 28. These features provide a general human facial structure, although it must be noted that in the illustrated example the rough approximation the face has an almost dog-like appearance. It is to be understood that the representation of the swimming pool 11 and deterrent body 20 shown in Figures 2 to 4 are rough graphical representations which are used here for illustration purposes only. It should be appreciated that an actual pool area 10 and swimming pool 11 would typically have much larger dimensions relative to the dimensions of the deterrent body 20, and would normally have a more elaborate shape that the generic square pool 11 shape shown. Furthermore, the actual deterrent body 20 would typically have a more pleasing aesthetic design than the rough approximation shown in figures 2 to 4, and would generally have facial features that better approximate those of a typical human. One such example is shown in Figure 5.

The deterrent body 20 is shown in Figures 2 to 4 positioned in the pool 11 in a location where is can be utilised as a safety device according to the present invention. In this respect, the deterrent body 20 is immersed in the pool 11 to almost to shoulder height, with its lower torso 23, arms 21 and legs 22 submerged in the body of water 12. The deterrent body 20 is kept immersed in this position through the use of two weights 29 affixed to the base of each foot 30 of the legs 22. The weights 29 have sufficient mass to hold each foot 20 of the deterrent body 20 on the floor 19 of the pool 11. The legs 22 and torso 23 of the deterrent body 20 are substantially rigid and therefore enable the deterrent body 20 to stand in a generally upright position as shown in Figure 2. Similarly, the arms 21 are fixed in position so as to keep them submerged in the illustrated position. It should however be understood that the arms and legs 22 and other sections of the deterrent body 20 could include points of articulation which would allow a user to pose the deterrent body 20 in a desired configuration.

The deterrent body 20 provides the visual appearance of a human form submerged in the pool 11 in the position shown in Figure 2. In this sense, the deterrent body 20 acts an 'aquatic scarecrow' where a stationary 'human look' mannequin is positioned in an aquatic environment to ward off infants from an aquatic edge or boundary 18. The combination of the human form of the deterrent body 20 and partial submersion of the deterrent body 20 in the pool 11 provides a perceptual barrier that deters children, and in particular infants, from having potentially dangerous encounters with the aquatic environment.

Without wishing to be limited by any one theory, the applicant believes that the deterrent function of the aquatic scarecrow is based primarily on two psychological principals; object permanence as theorised by Jean Piaget and the visual cliff experiments as researched by Gibson & Walk.

According to Jean Piaget, a Swiss psychologist (1896 - 1980) object permanence is an ability to know that an object exists even though that person cannot see it. This skill is important in the early development of infants, who rapidly develop object permanence skills. Once children have developed this skill, they are quickly able to determine the full form of an object even when only shown parts or sections of the whole. Gibson and Walk (1960) designed a "visual cliff' to test the perceptual skills of infants. The visual cliff is a glass-top table having a check pattern positioned close to the glass under one half of the table (the "shallow" side) and a distance away from the glass under the other half of the table (the "deep" side). It was found that infants between the ages of 6 1/2 months and 12 months would not crawl over the edge of the visual cliff from the shallow side of the table to the deep side even if encouraged by their mothers. The visual cliff experiments indicate that infants have at least some basic form of depth perception. Furthermore, the visual cliff experiments indicate that it is rare for a child to ignore visual cue, and to wander or crawl over a visual cliff.

The applicant believes that there are inherent similarities between a swimming pool edge and the original visual cliff apparatus. In this respect, one would expect that an infant at the edge of a body of water such as the edge of a swimming pool would recognise the body of water as a virtual cliff, because like a glass topped table, the floor of the pool is some distance away from the surface of the water. However, it is thought that the cross stimulus of the surface of the water and the inconsistency of depth viewed through liquid is enough to fool the limited experience of an infant, and that the infant may actually perceive the waters surface as being a solid surface. In comparison, an adult's experience would prompt caution from the same indicators.

By contrasting these two ideas, the applicant reasoned that it should be possible to create a depth gauge for children by using everyday objects which provoke object permanence recognition. More specifically, by submerging a familiar form such as for example a human shape in water at a specific height, the infant would be provided with the correct stimulus to perceive the aqueous environment as a virtual cliff and therefore pose a perceptual barrier reaction much like was found in the original virtual cliff experiments of Gibson and Walk. In this respect, the object permanence skill of the infant would allow the infant to reason that the human shape is missing sections or at least has sections that are visually distorted (due to the refractive index of the aqueous environment), and that therefore these sections must be submerged below the waters surface. This should be a clear indicator the surface of the water is not solid and provides a cliff which the child should not traverse. Furthermore, as children typically use their parents size (or a standard adults size) to relate their own size to that of an object's, in a rudimentary way to assess risk, the child should be able to assess that the aquatic environment is dangerous due to the extent of submersion of the human shape.

The applicant's observations of swimming instructors teaching preschool aged children how to swim substantiate this theory. The applicant has observed that most children under the age of four will reject an invitation to enter a pool when the adult is substantially submerged in the water of the pool. This reaction occurs even if the children have had previous experience and training in an aquatic environment such as a swimming pool.

Figures 3 and 4 visually illustrate this theory in relation to the pool 11 and deterrent body 20 shown in Figures 1 and 2. Figure 3 shows the deterrent body 20 and pool 11 of Figure 2 when viewed at an adult's eye height close to the boundary 18 between the body of water 12 and land 14. In contrast, Figure 4 shows the deterrent body 20 and pool 11 of Figure 2 when viewed at an infants eye height close the boundary 18 between the body of water 12 and land 14.

As shown in Figure 3, a typical adult views the pool 11 and waters surface 16 from a height of between 1.5 to 2 meters above the ground. From this perspective the body of water 12 is transparent allowing the adult to see through the waters surface 16 and observe the details of the submerged sections of the deterrent body 20 and also the sidewalls 19A and floor 19 of the pool 11. The transparency is due to the angle of viewing, the reflective index of the body of water 12 and the close proximity of the deterrent body 20 to the boundary 18. An adult's experience of these environments and these visual clues would indicate that the pool 11 contains a body of water and that caution should be used.

In contrast, the infant view of the pool 11 shown in Figure 4 is at a much lower height relative to the surface of the water 16. An infant therefore has a very different perspective that that viewed at adult height as shown in Figure 3. From this perspective, the reflective index of the body of water 12 and the close proximity of the deterrent body 20 to the boundary 18 makes the waters surface 16 less transparent and in some cases reflective. As shown by the water's surface 16 in Figure 2, an infant may not be able to see through the waters surface 16 and observe the details of the submerged sections of the deterrent body 20 or the sidewalls 19A and floor 19 of the pool 11. To an infant, the waters surface 16 may appear to be a solid surface, and with their limited experience the infant may conclude that such a surface would be safe to traverse.

The presence of an object in the waters surface 16 breaks up this continuity and provides extra visual stimuli for the infant to make decisions. As previously discussed, the submerged human form of the deterrent body 20 prompts the infant to use its object permanence skills to determine that part of the human form is missing and conclude that the human form must in fact be partially submerged. The infant should therefore realise that the water surface 16 in front of them is masking a virtual cliff and this should prompt a psychological reaction preventing them from attempting to traverse the waters surface 16.

The human form of the deterrent body 20 typically has more aesthetically pleasing features than the rough approximation shown in Figures 2 to 4. Accordingly, Figure 5 shows a more refined embodiment of the deterrent body 20. The illustrated deterrent body 30 includes an upper visual section 31 which has a human mannequin form comprising an upper torso section 32, arms 34, neck 35 and head 36. The head 36 has detailed and clearly identified features including two ears 37, and facial features such as eyes 38, a nose 39, a mouth 40 and eyebrows 41. The visual section 31 is also clothed with a checked shirt 42 and a cap headwear 44. Accordingly, the overall general appearance of the visual section 31 is that of a typical human adult. The deterrent body 30 also includes a lower stand section (not illustrated) which can be attached below the visual section 31 and is designed to support the visual section, to raise the visual section 21 to a fixed height above the ground or floor on which it is supported. When immersed in a pool 11 as for example illustrated in Figure 1 , the stand would be configured to support the visual section 31 and raise it to a sufficient height so that at least part of the visual section 31 extends out of the body of water 12. Preferably, the stand would support the visual section 31 so that at least the shoulders 47 of the torso section 32 and head 25 project through the waters surface 16, in a similar configuration as the deterrent body 20 shown in Figures 2 to 4.

The stand (not illustrated) can be any structure capable of supporting the mannequin form of the visual section 31. In its most basic form, the stand comprises a weighted ground engaging base, a support platform positioned at a height above the base which secures and supports the visual section 31 and a generally vertical strut which extends between the base and support platform. The weighted base has a mass selected to keep the relevant sections structure of the deterrent body 30 (visual section 31 and base) submerged in the body of water 12.

In other forms, the support structure may form part of an existing pool 11 apparatus. For example, in one embodiment, the deterrent body 30 could be formed as part of a pool 11 cover (not illustrated). This would provide a mannequin type visual section 31 which would help avert infant pool 11 engagement equipped with a pool 11 blanket covering the surface. In other forms, the deterrent body 30 could be attached to an automated pool 11 cleaner (not illustrated) such as the well known creepy crawly type used in Australia. The deterrent body 30 would move with the automated cleaner.

The mannequin visual section 31 shown in Figure 5 has an articulated shoulders 47, elbows 48 and neck 35. The visual section 31 can therefore be posed in different configurations including warning poses with the arms 34 outstretched and palms out, and other poses signally distress or fear. In other embodiments, the look of distress or fear of the visual section 31 could be enhanced by using make up or particular facial features configurations which show these emotions. This could be provided by permanent configuration of the features on manufacture, make-up techniques or interchangeable heads or masks for the head 36. Other safety systems can also be housed or fitted to the deterrent body 20, 30 shown in the figures. For example in one embodiment, a sub-surface alarm (not illustrated) and/ or aquatic alarm such as for example an underwater microphone (not illustrated) could be fitted to visually and/or audible alert an supervisor that an infant has fallen into the body of water. This could occur through an accident caused by surprise or the child simply missing the deterrent body 20, 30 by walking backwards into the pool 11. Other forms of alarms possible include an underwater hearing device equipped with sound recognition to identify submersed humans and trigger siren (not illustrated). In yet other embodiments the deterrent body 20, 30 includes a surface disturber (not shown), which includes a submerged vibration unit that disturb consistency of aquatic environment to avert infant aquatic engagement.

Example

A safety device incorporating the deterrent body 30 shown in Figure 5 was set up at the centre of a swimming pool with the deterrent body 30 immersed up to its waist to provide the appearance of a partially submerged human adult in the swimming pool. The safety device was positioned so that it was clearly visible from a test edge of the pool.

Five children with limited aquatic experience were selected and individually placed under closely supervised conditions near the test edge of the pools. The reactions of the children to the aquatic environment of the pool and to the safety device were observed.

In each case it was found that the safety device served as an effective deterrent to interaction of the children with the aquatic edge and water in the pool. Each child observed the presence of the safety device in the pool, and thereafter did not place a part of their body near or in the water of the pool. Given the children's limited aquatic experience, it is thought that this response was independent of individual capacity with aquatics among students regarded as incapable swimmers. Considering the effectiveness that the safety device according to the present invention has in deterring children under four years old from interacting with an aquatic environment in which the safety device is placed, it is thought that if the safety device is implemented worldwide, it could prevent the drowning of thousands of infants each year.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention described herein is susceptible to variations and modifications other than those specifically described. It is understood that the invention includes all such variations and modifications which fall within the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Throughout the description and claims of the specification the word

"comprise" and variations of the word, such as "comprising" and "comprises", is not intended to exclude other additives, components, integers or steps.

Claims

Claims:

1. An aquatic safety device for deterring individuals from entering an aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment, including: a deterrent body which is located in use in the aquatic environment, the deterrent body having a visible section which extends above the water surface when in use in the aquatic environment, the visible section being configured to make the deterrent body appear to be at least partially submerged to an individual located on the adjoining land environment.

2. An aquatic safety device according to claim 1 , wherein the visible section has a generally human like form.

3. An aquatic safety device according to claim 2, wherein the human like form appears to be at least partially submerged to at least waist height when viewed from the adjoining land environment.

4. An aquatic safety device according to claims 2 or 3, wherein the visible section includes at least the upper torso section of a human like form.

5. An aquatic safety device according to claim 4, wherein the upper torso extends out of the waters surface from at least waist height.

6. An aquatic safety device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the upper torso includes arms, a neck and a head.

7. An aquatic safety device according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein the arms of the upper torso are arranged in a configuration conveying a danger and/or distress gesture.

8. An aquatic safety device according to any one of claims 2 to 7, wherein the head of the human like form has facial features.

9. An aquatic safety device according to claim 8, wherein the facial features are configured so that the human form appears to be in distress and/or fear.

10. An aquatic safety device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the deterrent body includes a stand arrangement which positions the visible section substantially above the waters surface of the aquatic environment.

11. An aquatic safety device according to claim 10, wherein the stand arrangement has an adjustment section allowing the height of the visible section to be adjusted relative to a base of the stand arrangement.

12. An aquatic safety device according to claim 10 or 11 , wherein the stand arrangement includes a base having a cone like shape.

13. An aquatic safety device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the deterrent body includes an alarm system which is triggered when a body enters the aquatic environment.

14. An aquatic safety device according to claim 13, wherein the alarm system is triggered by audible signals from an individual that enters the aquatic environment.

15. An aquatic safety device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the aquatic safety device is configured to deter infants from entering an aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment.

16. An aquatic safety device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the aquatic environment is a swimming pool and the land environment is the land surrounding the swimming pool.

17. An aquatic safety device according to claim 16, wherein the deterrent body is formed as part of a pool cover.

18. An aquatic safety device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the deterrent body comprises depth related pictures rendered on a surface having a portion submerged in the aqueous environment.

19. An aquatic safety device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the deterrent body includes a submerged three point windmill apparatus which includes three balls of varying size located at on a distal end of different blades of the windmill.

20. A method of deterring individuals from entering an aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment, the method including: locating a deterrent body in an aquatic environment, the deterrent body having a visible section which extends above the water surface when in use, and is visible to an individual located on the adjoining land environment wherein location of the deterrent body in the aquatic environment provides a psychological warning to the individual that the aquatic environment should not be entered.

21. A method of deterring individuals from entering an aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment according to claim 20, wherein the deterrent body is located in the aquatic environment relative the adjoining land environment such that the visible section is clearly visible to an individual located at a boundary between the aquatic environment and the adjoining land environment.

22. A method of deterring individuals from entering an aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment according to claim 20 or 21 using a deterrent body according to any one of claims 1 to 19.

23. An aquatic safety device substantially as herein described in accordance with the accompanying drawings.

24. A method of deterring individuals from entering an aquatic environment from an adjoining land environment substantially as herein described in accordance with the accompanying drawings.