INFLATABLE HARNESS CREW MASK

• US 20080236586A1
• Filed: 02/05/2008
• Published: 10/02/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BE Intellectual Property, Inc. (Raytheon Technologies Corporation d/b/a RTX)
• Original Assignee: BE Intellectual Property, Inc. (Raytheon Technologies Corporation d/b/a RTX)
• Inventors: McDonald, Thomas K., DeBald, Keith R., Rogers, Bryan N., Veach, Mike W., Frogley, Kirsten
• Granted Patent: US 8,151,796 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 128/205.24
• CPC Class Codes: A62B 18/084 Means for fastening gas-masks to heads or helmets

Abstract

The inflatable harness crew mask includes an inflatable harness with a compressed gas supply system connected to the inflatable harness independent of oxygen supplied to the mask from an oxygen regulator. The mask includes a valve connector with an exhalation and inhalation valve and an inflation valve connected to a pressurized gas inflation supply assembly including a container portion for a compressed gas cartridge, and a regulator portion connected to provide pressurized gas from the cartridge to an inflation gas supply tube connected to the inflation valve, which is manually operable by the user.

Claims

1. An inflatable harness crew mask, comprising:

a mask portion including a face seal molding formed to fit around the periphery of the face of the wearer;

an inflatable harness including at least one inflatable tube connected to the face seal molding;

an inflation valve connected in fluid communication to said inflatable harness and configured to control inflation of the harness; and

a pressurized gas inflation supply assembly configured to supply pressurized gas to the inflation valve to inflate the inflatable harness.

2. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 1, wherein said mask portion includes a valve connector housing, and further comprising an exhalation and inhalation valve disposed in said valve connector housing and connected in fluid communication with the mask portion, said exhalation and inhalation valve having an inlet configured to be connected to a source of oxygen for providing breathable oxygen to said mask portion.

3. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 2, wherein said inflation valve is disposed in said valve connector housing.

4. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 1, wherein said inflation valve comprises an inflation valve housing having a first end and a second end, an inlet port and an outlet port, an inflation valve poppet slidably disposed in said inflation valve housing, a plunger pin slidably disposed in the first end of inflation valve housing and abutting the inflation valve poppet, said plunger pin being biased to a closed position, a gas release button pivotally connected to the valve connector housing and disposed adjacent to the plunger pin allowing a user to press against the gas release button to open the inflation valve poppet to release pressured gas through the inflation valve outlet port.

5. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 4, wherein said inflation valve comprises a pressure adjusting assembly including a pressure adjusting screw threadably mounted in the second end of the inflation valve housing, a compression plate member disposed in the inflation valve housing and abutting a base of the inflation valve poppet to bias the inflation valve poppet closed, and a main compression spring disposed between the pressure adjusting screw and the compression plate member.

6. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 1, wherein said inflatable harness comprises first and second inflatable tubes configured to fit over the head of a user.

7. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 6, wherein said inflatable harness comprises at least one connecting strap connected between said first and second inflatable tubes.

8. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 7, wherein said at least one connecting strap is adjustable.

9. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 1, wherein said pressurized gas inflation supply assembly comprises a pressurized gas inflation supply cylinder including a container portion having an interior chamber for removably receiving a main body portion of a compressed gas cartridge, and a regulator portion, said regulator portion having a first end and a second end, said first end of said regulator portion being removably connectable to said container portion, and said first end of said regulator portion having an interior plenum configured to removably receive a neck portion of a compressed gas cartridge.

10. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 9, wherein said compressed gas cartridge comprises a carbon dioxide compressed gas cartridge.

11. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 9, wherein said compressed gas cartridge is configured to provide sufficient compressed gas for multiple inflations of the inflatable harness.

12. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 9, wherein said second end of said regulator portion of said pressurized gas inflation supply cylinder is connected to said inflation valve by an inflation gas supply tube.

13. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 12, wherein said first end of said regulator portion comprises a piercing lance member having a conical pierce point inlet and an outlet end, said conical pierce point inlet being configured to pierce a septum of the neck portion of the compressed gas cartridge, and said piercing lance member including an interior aperture configured to allow gas flow extending therethrough from the gas cartridge to said outlet end of the piercing lance member.

14. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 9, wherein said regulator portion comprises a regulator valve adjacent to the outlet end of the piercing lance member.

15. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 14, wherein said regulator valve comprises a regulator valve chamber, and a ball member disposed in the regulator valve chamber.

16. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 15, wherein said second end of the regulator comprises a gas pressure adjusting assembly configured to regulate the pressure of the gas released from the compressed gas cartridge to a desired lower harness inflation tube pressure.

17. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 16, wherein said gas pressure adjusting assembly comprises a pressure adjusting screw threadably mounted in the second end of the regulator, a main compression spring disposed between the pressure adjusting screw and a compression plate member, and a pin disposed between the ball member and the compression plate member configured to transfer pressure from the pressure adjusting screw to bias the ball member open against the valve closing pressure of the regulator valve closing compression spring, for controlling gas released from the gas cartridge to a desired lower harness inflation tube pressure.

18. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 13, wherein said regulator portion comprises a gas outlet port connected to said outlet end of the piercing lance member, and said gas outlet port of the regulator is connected to said inflation gas supply tube.

19. The inflatable harness crew mask of claim 15, further comprising a pressure charge indicator assembly mounted in fluid communication with said regulator valve chamber.