US1112186A - Life-belt. - Google Patents

Description

G. M. ANDERSEN.

LIFE BELT.

APPLIcAToN FILED N0v.15,1913.

Patented Sept. 29, 1914.

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GULLOW M. ANDERSEN, 0F CHICAGO, ILLIOIS.

LIFE-Buur.`

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 29, 1914.`

Application filed November 15, 1913. Serial No. 801,294.

To all whom t may concern sEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of illinois, have invented certainnew useful Improvements in Life-Belts, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relatesto a belt or appliance worn by a person for the purpose of preventing drowning, and is in the nature of a life preserver. .i

The objects of the invention are topro vide an appliance of a nature which enables it'to be worn by the user beneath the ordinary clothing without producing any bulg ing or other unseemly configuration ofthe clothing; to provide'means for inflat-ing the belt or preserver which will act automatically when subjected to the action of water; and to provide a belt or appliance which is cheap and simple of construction, and which will be certain of operation when necessity arises.

The invention further consists inthe fea-` tures of construction and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In `the drawings: Figure 1 is an elevation of the belt or preserver of the present invention with portions thereof broken out; Fig. Q is a cross section showing by means of dotted lines the belt or preserver in in- Hated condition, and showing the' conduit through which the gas-producing substance is placed in the belt in closed condition; Fig. 3 is a cross section of the character ofv Fig. 2, showing the conduit in open position for the purpose of inserting a charge of gasproducing substance; and Fig. 4 is a detail section taken on line 4 4 of Fig. 1.

The present invention relates, as above stated, to a belt or appliance which is adapted to act as a life preserver when persons are cast in water. Use is made in the present invention of a certain chemical com* position which, when subjected to the action of water, acts quickly to generate and pass off a gas. This gas is utilized for the purpose cf inflating the body of the appliance, giving to the same the buoyant quality necessary to keep the person aiioat on top of the water.

Referring to the' drawings, and particularly to Fig. 1, the device consists of la body or bag portion 5 which is made of waterpervious material, and preferably of afabric and woven grade of cotton. The `bag or body portion has extending therefrom a neck G, and the body and neck, as a` whole, are formed of two sections of material, each of close weave, as, for instance, a tightly Be 1t known that I, GULLow M. ANDER-v similar' in configuration, which `are joined together' bysuitable stitching 7. Within the interiorof this bag or body portion is` a sackS which actsas a retainer for a chemical composition, which composition, when 4subjected to the action .of water, generates and passes oif a gas.

fl do not limit the present invention for use with `any particular form of chemical composition. One composition which would be adapted for this purpose is a mixture of bi-carbonate of soda and tartaric acid in proportions of 1 quantity of bicarbonate of soda to 2of tartaric acid. This composi tion, when subjected to the action of water,

will quickly generate and pass off gas, and,

in fact, it has been found that a composition of this i nature will produce suflicient gas withina period of about ten to fifteen seconds .to iniate a bag `sufficiently to hold a person afloat andvprevent drowning. This composition 9 is placed within the retainer 8,

and this retainer is also of a water-pervious character, and preferably made of a fabric of a more open weave than the weave of the body or bag portions 5, so that, when the water passes through the body portion, itl

will quickly enter and act upon the substance within the retainer. As heretofore stated, the body or bag portion is provided with a neck 6. This neck serves as a con- ,duit to permit of the insertion of a charge of gas-producing substance within the retainer S. The neck is attached `at its free end to a belt or band 10 which is embodied in the means for attaching the appliance to the body of the wearer. kThe method of attachment is such as to provide an open yend 11 for the pouring ofl the gasproducing mixture thereinto. This will be clearly understood by referring to Fig. 3, and this neck, as also shown in Fig. 3, as well as in Fig. 1, leads to or communicates with a neck S extending from the retainer '8, the neck Sa, in fact, extending into the neck 6, whereby, when the substance is poured into the neck 6, into the retainer. Vhen the retainer is charged, the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 3, but after the charging operation,

it readily passes the open end of the neck is closed by turning the strap 10, thus wrapping the neck about the strap in the manner shown in Fig. 2, and thus the open end of the neck is closed and the escape of gas upwardly and out of the open end of said neck is prevented. Means are provided for holding this neck in this wrapped condition, which, as shown, consists of a strap 12 held in place by a button or other suitable fastening means 13. By this arrangement, a very simple and inexpensive construction is provided to enable the placing of a fresh charge of gas-producing substance within the retainer. When the device is in non-acting condition, that is, when the charge has been placed in the retainer, but has not been subjected to the action of water, it is in a at condition, as shown in full lines in Fig. 2, and will be of a nature whereby it can be attached to the wearer beneath the outer clothing without producing any unseemly configuration or disorder of the clothing, and as the device is light-weight, no discoi fort of any nature will be entailed by placing the same upon the wearer. By the use of fabric of this nature, the need of an interlining of rubber or other similar substance is eliminated, and thus the article can be produced at a much lower cost than would be if an interlining were used. Owing to the fact, however, that .the device is worn close to the body of the wearer, I have provided a strip 111 of sheet rubber or other moisture-proof material, which is positioned between the receptacle 8 and that portion of the bag 5 which lies neXtto the wearer. This is to prevent the moisture from the body of the wearer entering the bag 5 and affecting the chemical composition in a manner to cause the generation of gas and inflation of the device while it is being worn by the wearer and before any necessity for inflation arises, if it is the intention to only have the gas generated and the bag inflated when the wearer becomes immersed in water.

By the use of the composition heretofore referred to, namely, bi-carbonate of soda and tartaric acid, sufficient gas can be generated to inflate the bag to the necessary extent to serve as a life preserver, within ten to. fifteen seconds after the wearer has been immersed in water, which, of course, would be amply quick to prevent drowning.

Although the device has been described with particularity, variances in the details of construction may be made, and it is not, therefore, intended to limit the scope of the invention other than by the terms of the appended claims.

As will be seen from Fig. 1, the bag or body portion is suspended from the belt by means of tapes. This allows the body portion freedom of movement when expanding,

and thus allows of the maximum expansion without restraint and without any binding upon any of the other parts.

I claim:

1. A life saving appliance comprising a bag-like body portion of water-pervious material, a water-pervious receptacle for a gasproducing substance within said body and having its interior in direct communication with the interior of the body solely by reason of the porosity of the receptacle. means for permitting the charging of said receptacle with gas-producing substance, and means for attaching the appliance to the body of the wearer, substantially as described.

2. A life saving appliance comprising a bag-like body portion of woven fabric, a woven-fabric receptacle for gas-producing substance within said body and having its interior in direct communication with the interior of the body solely by reason of the porosity of the receptacle, means for permitting the charging of said receptacle with gas-producing substance, and means for attaching the appliance to the body of the wearer, substantially as described.

3. A life saving appliance comprising a bag-like body portion of close-weave fabric, a woven-fabric receptacle for a gas-producing substance within said body and of a more open weave than the weave of the fabric comprising the body ofthe appliance and having its interior in direct communicationv 'with the interior of the body solely by reason of the porosity of the receptacle, means for lpermitting; the charging of said receptacle 4with gas-producing substance, and means for attaching the appliance to the body of the wearer, Substantially as described.

4. A life saving appliance comprising a bag-like body portion of water-pervions material, a water-pervious receptacle for gasproducing substance within said body, a section of moisture-resisting material arranged to prevent passage of moisture from the body of the wea-rer to the gas-producing substance within the receptacle with gasproducing substance, and means for attaching the appliance to the body of the wearer, substantially as described.

5. A life saving appliance comprising a bag-like body portion of woven fabric, a woven-fabric receptacle for gas-producing` substance within said body, a section of moisture-resisting material arranged to prevent the passage of moisture from the body of the wearer to the gas-producing substance within the receptacle` means for permitting the charging of said receptacle with gasproducing substance, and means for attaching the appliance to the body of the wearer, substantially as described.

6. A life saving appliance comprising a ,bag-like body portion of close-weave fabric,

a woven-fabric receptacle for a gas-producing substance Within said body and of more open Weave than the Weave of fabric comprising the body of the appliance, a section of moisture-resisting material arranged to prevent the passage of moisture from the body of the wearer to the gas-producing substance Within the receptacle, means for permitting the charging of said receptacle with gas-producing substance, and means for attaching the appliance to the body of the wearer, substantially as described.

7. A life saving appliance comprising a bag-like body portion of Water-pervious material, a Water-pervious receptacle for a gasproducing substance Within said body, a

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing Washington, ID. C.

neck extending from said body and providing a conduit leading to said receptacle to enable the charging thereof with gas-proy ducing substance, means for securing the appliance to the body of the wearer, including a band-like section, said neck being attached to said band-like section, and said neck being adapted to be folded about said band to close the open end thereof, and means for maintaining said neck kin folded position, substantially as described.

GULLOW M. ANDERSEN.

Witnesses:

WM. P. BOND, THOMAS A. BANNING, Jr.

tlie Commissioner of Patents.

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