Untitled record

FRENCH REPUBLIC

PATENT

MINISTRY OF INDUSTRY

- PV n ° 786.668 N ° 1.472.902

SERVICE International classification: B 63 b of INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY _

New buoy device.

Mr. André T0URN0N residing in France (Seine).

Requested on February 13, 1959, at 3 p.m.¹¹ 21^m, in Paris.

Issued by order of February 6, 1967.

(Official bulletin of industrial property, n ° 11 of March 17, 1967.) (Patent of invention whose delivery was deferred in execution of article 11, § 7, of the law of July 5, 1844 modified by the law April 7, 1902.)

The invention relates to a new buoy or other float device, usable for lifting people or objects into the water; it aims in particular at a new lifesaver and buoy device for the recovery of injured divers.

Known life-saving appliances are not intended for operation at depth, they are therefore unsuitable for the use of divers. The latter generally use inflatable vests with compressed gas cylinders; it is a fairly expensive solution, complicated by the necessary operations for refilling the pressure bottles. The mechanisms of existing devices are sensitive to corrosion in water, especially at sea, hence a certain insecurity in their use.

Known devices used by divers also have the defect of not holding the head of the diver sufficiently out of the water. When it comes to larger devices, their size and weight quickly become annoying.

The present invention eliminates the drawbacks of the aforementioned devices, while making it possible to extend the application of the same buoy device, or other floats, to various uses, other than rescue, such as probing, refloating wrecks, exploration or fishing. underwater, etc.

The new device, according to the invention, allows instant operation, at any depth. It is not subject to deterioration by corrosion, and can be kept in water for as long as desired. Its operation does not present risks of failures, and it is possible to know - at any time - if it is ready for use. When used in rescue, it has the important advantage of holding the head of the saved well out of the water. The new device is easily assembled with inexpensive, robust and easily interchangeable parts.

210134 7

Booklet price: 2 francs

The device of the invention comprises, connected to one or more inflatable floats, one or more enclosures having at least two separate compartments, adapted to be put in communication at any time, said compartments containing reagents capable - by mutual contact - of giving gas release.

The reagents contained in said separate compartments may consist of solid and / or liquid substances, such as, for example, an acid and a carbonate, an acid and a metal, attackable by this acid, an alkaline detergent and a metal. that it is likely to attack, metal carbide and water, etc. Thus one can enclose, in one compartment, a solution of acetic acid, hydrochloric, sulfuric, etc., and, in another, calcium carbonate, sodium, etc., when the communication is established between the two compartments , the reagents act on each other, giving C0₂ which goes into the empty float to inflate it.

Another example is the use of zinc or aluminum powder in one compartment, and acid or soda in the other.

A particularly economical and practical way is to use calcium carbide in one of the compartments, while the other simply contains water. The extremely rapid release of acetylene, when the water comes into contact with the carbide, ensures instant operation of the device.

In the simplest embodiment of the present invention, the device is provided with a single enclosure comprising two separate compartments, which can be brought into communication, quickly, by an appropriate means, such as valve, tap, valve, valve, membrane, window or break point, etc. It is understood that the device, depending on the use for which it is intended, may include a certain [1,472,902] - number, more or less large, of such enclosures. These can be made of very diverse materials, metallic, plastic or others.

A particularly practical embodiment consists in using an enclosure made of flexible material, such as rubber or plastic, in which a sealed glass bulb is placed. The ampoule constitutes one of the reagent compartments: it contains, for example, calcium carbide. The second compartment is then formed by the very interior of the rubber enclosure, that is to say the space surrounding the glass bulb.

The device according to the invention can be easily made automatic: the walls of the bulb, or the element separating the two compartments, can be calibrated, so as to yield under a determined pressure. Communication between the compartments then occurs automatically, when the device is at the determined depth in the water.

In order to illustrate the invention, an embodiment is described thereof, by way of nonlimiting example.

The attached drawing schematically represents this particular embodiment.

Figure 1 is, in longitudinal section, an overview of the device all assembled, before use.

Figure 2, also in longitudinal section, shows only the enclosure and the bulb it contains.

Figure 3 shows the ampoule loaded with reagent.

The enclosure a is a sleeve, of rubber or sufficiently flexible plastic material, closed at one of its ends. At the other end, the sleeve has a stopper e, crossed by the tube g connecting the inside of the sleeve with the inside of the buoy 1, which can be initially flattened and folded.

The collars i and h provide a very solid attachment between the sleeve a and the buoy 1. The sleeve contains water shown in f. The sealed glass bulb b contains the calcium carbide c, preferably in not too fine grains. Glass wool d is intended to form a buffer, easily traversed by gases, but preventing solids (lime, carbide) from being entrained in buoy 1.

To operate the device, it is sufficient to bend or tighten laterally ie elastic sleeve a, to the point of breaking the bulb b: the water f then comes into contact with the carbide c, and the acetylene formed, released by g , will inflate the buoy 1.

The device is extremely light and compact, since approximately 3 grams of calcium carbide and 1 gram of water are required per liter of gas produced (measured at 0 ° C under 1 atm.).

By varying the thickness of the rings k, which support the tube b inside the elastic sleeve a (fig. 2) we can adjust the automatic breakage of the bulb b at a pressure - therefore depth in the water - wanted. Indeed, the crushing of the walls of b, under the action of the walls of a, deformed along j, occurs all the sooner as the rings k are thinner.

The description and the drawings show only the members for producing the gas, and the buoy, but it is understood that the device may include other elements or members. It can in particular be provided with fixing, gripping or lifting means, such as hooks, jaws, baskets, belts, clamps, hooks or the like, making it possible to use the buoy or the float, with the device of the invention, to the ascent from the depths to the surface of the water, of all objects, plants or animals, as well as of people.