Bag with air distributor and ozone generator

• US 6,134,806 A
• Filed: 08/03/1999
• Issued: 10/24/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Holte Management Group Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Holte Management Group Incorporated
• Inventors: Dhaemers, Gregory L.
• Primary Examiner(s): WILSON, PAMELA ANNE
• Application Number:
  US09/365,793
• Time in Patent Office: 448 Days
• Field of Search: 34/60, 34/72, 34/404, 34/418, 34/427, 34/437, 34/443, 34/467, 34/487, 34/516, 34/618, 34/619, 34/621, 34/622, 34/202, 34/218, 34/233, 34/235, 34/511, 422/5, 422/28, 422/32, 422/33, 422/186.07, 422/186.09, 422/291, 422/294
• US Class Current: 34/404
• CPC Class Codes: A43D 3/1491 with means for sweaty feet, e.g. with disinfecting or deodorant means cleaning of a footwear A47L23/20
• CPC Class Codes: A45C 15/00 Purses, bags, luggage or other receptacles covered by groups A45C1/00 - A45C11/00, combined with other objects or articles A45C1/08, A45C3/14, A45C11/321, A45C13/28 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A45C 2003/007 Sport bags
• CPC Class Codes: A45C 9/00 Purses, Luggage or bags convertible into objects for other use sacks or packs carried on the body and convertible into other articles A45F4/02; trunk-wardrobes A47B61/06; trunk-beds A47C17/82
• CPC Class Codes: F26B 21/00 Arrangements or duct systems, e.g. in combination with pallet boxes, for supplying and controlling air or gases for drying solid materials or objects F26B9/10 takes precedence; systems for vehicle body drying B60S3/002 ; air conditioning or ventilation in general F24F
• CPC Class Codes: F26B 9/006 Removable covering devices, e.g. pliable or flexible

Abstract

A portable sport equipment bag having an air distributor is connected with a hose to blower and ozone generator operable to move air and ozone under pressure into the air distributor. The air distributor has one or more manifolds located within the bag. The manifolds have a plurality of holes to allow air and ozone in the manifolds to flow into the bag to dry sport equipment and objects within the bag and destroy bacteria, molds and fungus in the bag. One or more air filters mounted on the bag remove odors and foreign matter from the air flow from the bag into the environment adjacent the bag.

Claims

1. An apparatus for drying objects and negating bacteria, molds and fungus comprising:

a bag having an interior chamber for accommodating objects, ozone generator means for creating ozone, timer means connected to the ozone generator means for controlling the duration of operation of the ozone generator means to limit the amount of ozone created by the ozone generator means, said air distributor means located within the interior chamber of the bag, means connected with the ozone generator means and the air distributor means for moving air and ozone to the air distributor means, said air distributor means having chamber means for accommodating air and ozone, first means in communication with the chamber means to allow air from the means for moving air and ozone into the chamber means, second means to allow air and ozone to flow from the chamber means into the interior chamber of the bag to dry objects in the interior chamber and negate bacteria, molds and fungus in the interior chamber, and third means mounted on the bag to allow air to flow from the interior chamber of the bag to the environment adjacent the bag.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

the bag has a bottom wall, said air distributor means being located on said bottom wall with said second means directed away from the bottom wall to direct air and ozone upward into the interior chamber of the bag, and closure means secured to the bag operable to provide access to the interior chamber of the bag.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

the first means is a tubular member open to the chamber means, said tubular member having a portion extended through the bag and connected to the means for moving air and ozone.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 including:

blower means operable to generate a stream of air, said ozone generator means being associated with the blower means to provide ozone for the stream of air, and means connected to the blower means and tubular member to carry air and ozone from the blower means to the tubular member and chamber means of the air distributor.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

the air distributor means has a wall facing the interior chamber of the bag, said second means comprising holes in said wall to allow air and ozone to flow from the chamber means of the air distributor to the interior chamber of the bag to dry objects in the bag.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

the air distributor means has at least two manifolds, means for movably connecting the manifolds to allow movement of the manifolds relative to each other, and means to carry air and ozone between the manifolds, said second means including holes in the manifolds to allow air and ozone from the manifolds into the interior chamber of the bag.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

the bag includes pocket means having pocket chambers for accommodating objects to be dried, said second means including tubular means for carrying air and ozone from the chamber means into the pocket chambers to dry objects located within the pocket chambers.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 including:

wheel means secured to one end of the bag for supporting the bag on a surface, and handle means secured to the other end of the bag to facilitate transport of the bag on said surface.

9. An apparatus for drying objects comprising:

a container having an interior chamber for accommodating objects, a device for generating ozone, control means connected to the device for regulating the duration of operation of the device for regulating the duration of operation of the device to limit the amount of ozone generated by the device, air distributor means located within the interior chamber of the container, said air distributor means having chamber means for accommodating air and ozone, first means to allow air from a supply of air and ozone from the device to flow into the chamber means, second means to allow air and ozone to flow from the chamber means into the interior chamber of the container to dry objects in the interior chamber and destroy bacteria, molds and fungus in the interior chamber, and means to allow air to flow from the interior chamber of the container to the environment adjacent the container.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein:

the container has a bottom wall, said air distributor means being located on said bottom wall with said second means directed away from the bottom wall to direct air and ozone upward into the interior chamber of the container and closure means secured to the container operable to provide access to the interior chamber of the container.

11. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein:

the first means is a tubular member open to the chamber means, said tubular member having a portion extended through the container.

12. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein:

the air distributor means has a wall facing the interior chamber of the container said second means comprising holes in said wall to allow air and ozone to flow from the chamber means of the air distributor to the interior chamber of the container to dry objects in the bag.

13. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein:

the air distributor means has at least two manifolds, means for movably connecting the manifolds to allow movement of the manifolds relative to each other, and means to carry air and ozone between the manifolds, said second means including holes in the manifolds to allow air and ozone from the manifolds into the interior chamber of the container.

14. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein:

the container includes pocket means having pocket chambers for accommodating objects to be dried, said second means including tubular means for carrying air and ozone from the chamber means into the pocket chambers to dry objects located within the pocket chambers and destroy bacteria, molds and fungus in the pocket chambers.

15. An apparatus for drying objects comprising:

a bag having a bottom wall, an interior chamber for accommodating objects, operable to provide access to the interior chamber of the bag, ozone generator means creating ozone, timer means connected to the ozone generator means for controlling the duration of operation of the ozone generator means to limit the amount of ozone created by the ozone generator means, air distributor means in the interior chamber located on said bottom wall for directing air and ozone into the interior chamber, blower means connected to the ozone generator means and air distributor for moving air and ozone into the air distributor means, said air distributor means having a top wall facing said interior chamber and chamber means for accommodating air and ozone tubular means extended upwardly from the top wall for supporting an object in the interior chamber, said tubular means having a passage open to the interior chamber of the bag and the chamber means for allowing air and ozone to flow from the chamber means to the object supported on the tubular means and the interior chamber of the bag, means mounting the tubular means on the top wall of the air distributor means whereby the top wall and tubular means support the object in the interior chamber of the bag, first means connected to the means for moving air to allow ozone and air under pressure to flow into the chamber means, the ozone and air in the chamber means flows through the passage of the tubular means to the object on the tubular means to dry said object and the interior chamber of the bag and destroy bacteria, molds and fungus in the bag and objects in the bag, and second means to allow air to flow from the interior chamber of the bag to the environment adjacent the bag.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein:

said top wall of the air distributor means has a plurality of holes to allow air and ozone to flow from the chamber means into the interior chamber of the bag to dry objects located in the interior chamber of the bag.

17. The apparatus of claim 15 including:

wheel means secured to one end of the bag for supporting the bag on a surface, and handle means secured to the other end of the bag to facilitate transport of the bag on said surface.

18. The apparatus of claim 15 including:

straps secured to the bag providing handles to manually carry the bag containing the objects.

19. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein:

the means to allow ozone and air to flow from the interior chamber of the bag includes filter means mounted on the bag to remove odors from the air flowing through the filter means to the environment adjacent the bag.

20. The apparatus of claim 19 wherein:

the filter means includes charcoal means and porous material for removing odors, particulates and foreign materials from the air flowing through the charcoal means and porous material.

21. A method of removing moisture and odors from objects and storing the objects in a bag having an enclosed interior chamber and an air distributor having chamber means for accommodating air and providing passages to allow air to flow from the chamber means into the interior chamber of the bag comprising:

confining the objects within the enclosed interior chamber of the bag,

generating ozone,

controlling the duration of generating ozone,

introducing air and ozone into the chamber means of the air distributor,

dispensing air and ozone from the air distributor into the interior chamber through the passages of the air distributor to remove moisture and odors from the objects located in the chamber, and destroy bacteria, molds and fungus in the chamber of the bag and objects in the chamber,

exhausting air from the chamber into the environment,

filtering the air exhausting from the interior chamber to remove foreign matter from the air exhausted into the environment,

storing the dried objects in the interior chamber of the bag, and

transporting the bag with the stored dried objects to selected location.

22. The method of claim 21 including:

heating the air introduced into the chamber means of the air distributor.

23. The method of claim 21 including:

storing an object in a second chamber in the bag separated from the enclosed interior chamber, and directing air and ozone from the passage of the air distributor into the second chamber to remove moisture and odors from the object in the second chamber, and exhausting air from the second chamber.

24. The method of claim 23 including:

filtering the air exhausting from the second chamber to remove odors from the air exhausting from the second chamber.

25. The method of claim 21 including:

supporting an object on a tubular member mounted on the air distributor and extended into the interior chamber of the bag, and directing air and ozone from the chamber means through the tubular member to the object on the tubular member to dry the object on the tubular member.