Controllable ballast for underwater diving equipment

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As is well known, most prior art diving suits and equipment includes weighted members, such as belts or shoes, which provide sufficient mass to cause the diver to submerge easily and quickly. However, when such weighted members are used, some means must be provided for re- 30 turning the diver to the surface. This may be achieved, for example, by means of a winch line extending to the surface, or by some means whereby the diver may disengage the weighted members and leave them on the bottom. 35

The improved assembly of the present invention has the feature in that it provides self-controlled buoyancy for the diver, and which permits him to descend or ascend at will, and at any desired rate. The assembly of the invention is advantageous in that it is relatively in- 40 expensive, and it is easy to operate. Moreover, the assembly is absolutely safe, and it provides the diver with a buoyancy control which cannot be duplicated with the prior art equipment. In addition, the assembly is simple in its concept and requires virtually no maintenance. 45

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A controllable ballast assembly for underwater diving equipment is provided which is used, for example, in conjunction with a pressurized air cylinder normally in- 50 eluded in such equipment. The assembly comprises an additional cylinder or tank which is coupled to the air cylinder, and a controllable valve for causing compressed air or water selectively to enter the tank, so as to control the buoyancy of the diver and his equipment. 55

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIGURE 1 is a representation of a diver having a pack on his back which includes the usual pressurized air cylinders, and which also includes the improved assembly of 60 the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the aforesaid pack, showing the manner in which the tank, or tanks, of the assembly of the present invention may be mounted together with the compressed air cylinders, on the pack; 65

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view of a valve which may be used to control the ballast assembly of the invention;

FIGURES 4 and 5 are schematic representations showing the manner in which the improved ballast assembly of the invention operates; and 70

FIGURE 6 is a perspective section of the tank which is included in the ballast assembly of the invention, and illustrates the transverse partitions in the tank, whose function and purpose will be described.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENT

In the representation of FIGURE 1, a diver 10 has a usual diving helmet 12 on his head, together with a face mask 14. The diver receives oxygen, for example, from a pair of air cylinders 16 and 18 which are supported in a pack, the pack being suspended from the back of the diver, for example, by straps such as the strap 20.

In the practice of the present invention, and insofar as the illustrated embodiment is concerned, a pair of additional tanks 22 and 24 (FIGURE 2) are supported in the aforesaid pack between the air cylinders 16 and 18, the tanks and air cylinders being held together as a rigid assembly by means, for example, of a rigid strap 26. The tanks 22 and 24, as shown in FIGURE 2, may also have an elongated cylinder configuration, similar to the cylinders 16 and 18. As is well known the cylinders 16 and 18 contain compressed air, which is controllably fed to the face mask 14 in accordance to well established practice, to provide breathing air for the diver.

In order to carry out the concepts of the present invention, the tanks 22 and 24 are coupled to the outlet of the air cylinders 16 and 18 through, for example, an air line 30. A valve 32, as will be described, may be turned to cause either water or compressed air from the air cylinders 16 and 18 selectively to enter the tanks 22 and 24. In this way, and merely by turning the valve 32, the buoyancy of the diver and his equipment may be controlled, by controlling the amount of air or water in the tanks 22 and 24.

Details of one embodiment of the valve 32 are shown in FIGURE 3. As shown, the valve may include a central member 50 in the form of an elongated stem, and which is turnable in a sleeve. The stem 50 is sealed in the sleeve by O-ring 54, and it has an aperture 50α extending through it. The stem 50 is turned to a first angular position in which the aperture 56 is aligned with the air line 30 so as to permit compressed air from the air cylinders 16 and 18 to enter the tanks 22 and 24. Alternately, the stem 50 may be turned so that the aperture 56 is aligned with a water inlet 60 so as to permit water to enter the tank.

As shown in the schematic representations of FIGURES 4 and 5, the valve 32 may be turned to a first position (FIGURE 4) in which water enters through the line 60 and into the tanks 22 and 24. Then, the valve 32 may be turned to a second position (FIGURE 5) in which air from the air cylinders 16 and 18 may enter through the air line 30 and into the tanks 22, 24, to displace the water in the tanks through a one-way valve 68, for example, at the bottom of the tank.

As shown in FIGURES 4, 5 and 6, for example, the tanks 22 and 24 have a series of transverse partitions 70 therein. These partitions, as shown in FIGURE 6, have openings 70α therein, which are misaligned with respect to one another from one partition to the next. The purpose of the partitions 70 and the openings 70α is to prevent the free flow of water from one end of each of the tanks 22, 24 to the other, with the resulting instability of load with respect to the diver. The partitions provide a substantially even distribution of water throughout the tanks 22, 24 regardless of their inclination. The openings 70α preferably define a helical path along the length of the tank, as indicated by the dotted line, for example, in FIGURE 4. As stated above, the partitions 70 inhibit the sloshing of water within the tank, and provide a measure of stability to the assembly.