Abstract:
A buoyancy compensator vest for providing adjustable buoyancy at various underwater depths by having a back portion for supporting an air tank and an air bladder for inflating and deflating, a portion of the air bladder of which is situated in the arms which surround the waist of the wearer. The improvement of an adjustment strap which can provide continuous variation within limits, of the reach of each of the inflatable arms of the vest whereby the girth of the vest can be continuously and uniformly adjusted to accommodate a wide range of body sizes, in particular waist sizes.

Description:
This application has the benefit of Provisional Application No. 60/723,618 filed Oct. 22, 2005. 

   FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   In the underwater diving sport/industry aka SCUBA Diving, there is a requirement for the use of a buoyancy compensating device, particularly when the diver is wearing an environmental or exposure suit, either a wetsuit or drysuit or the like and carrying one or more tanks of compressed air. Neutral buoyancy of the diver and its equipment is first obtained at sea level. After a diver descends a few feet below sea level, neutral buoyancy is lost and the diver becomes negatively buoyant due to the increase of atmospheric pressure causing compression of the diver&#39;s body, equipment and any suit or protection device he is carrying. A relatively recent development of the past few decades has been an inflatable device which serves the purpose of adjustably compensating for the weight of the diver and the diver&#39;equipment. This equipment has as its principal purpose to permit the diver to achieve neutral buoyancy at any depth and to assist the diver to selectively achieve levels of either positive or negative buoyancy as desired. In this regard, a commonly used device has developed in the form of a vest known as a buoyancy compensation device aka a BCD which the diver wears and which is capable of inflation and deflation as desired. 
   DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
   At the present development of the art, a BCD is made of an elastomeric material configured in the form of a jacket or a vest which has a waist or arm portion designed to surround a diver&#39;waist, a front portion carrying a variety of straps and attachments and a backpack portion which carries mounting equipment upon which an air tank and related equipment are affixed. The vest is composed of one or more air chambers or pockets which are inflatable compartments situated either in the front portion of the vest, the arms and/or as a bladder on the back of the vest surrounding the backpack and air tank. A typical BCD in addition to carrying the mounting plate on the backpack for the air tank, accommodates the carrying of numerous other equipment attachments, such as the first stage pressure compensator affixed to the outlet of the air tank, various air hoses and/or other communication devices to provide the diver with information concerning the conditions of his equipment, and of his dive. In addition, some BCD&#39;s carry or are provided with attachments to carry detachable lead weights to offset the positively buoyant effect of the air of the tank and the positively buoyant effect of a wetsuit. In other situations, instead of part of a BCD vest, a diver may wear a separate weight belt which consists of a belt to which are attached a number of lead weights. The BCD vest configuration also includes shoulder straps and typically a front closing waist or belt fastener for ease of securing the buoyancy compensation device and for carrying the various equipment mentioned herein. 
   As may be anticipated, there is a need to match body shapes and sizes to a buoyancy compensation vest. A loose fitting vest reduces performance and control by the diver. A tight fitting vest could be considered a safety hazard due to the possibility of respiratory restrictions should the vest become over inflated. It has been the custom of the industry to provide, as in the garment industry a number of size or ranges of sizes from extra small, small, medium, large, and extra large, and occasionally sizes in XXS and XXXL as well. It has long been a desire in the industry to provide a universally adjustable buoyancy compensation vest. The reasons are financial and administrative. Given the need for a properly fitting buoyancy compensator vest, it has been typical to have the numerous sizes mentioned. For the manufacturer, this presents a financial dilemma and at the consumer level causes higher costs and lower usage rates. Equipment rental shops are required to carry a wide range of sizes in order to accommodate customers and dive boat operators and dive shop suppliers likewise must carry a wide inventory of sizes to accommodate their customers. A similar scenario presents itself where friends and families wish to share and/or pass along their equipment to other members or with dive teams such as the military and Coast Guard, fire departments and search and rescue teams. The same is true for young divers who have not yet achieved full adult growth size and must either rent or sell and resell equipment of different sizes over the period of time of their body growth. In view of this stated need, a number of solutions have been proposed. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 5,346,419 issued to Karl Kaiser (Kaiser &#39;419) for a buoyancy compensator device with backpack and adjustable harness. The Kaiser device is an example of many similar buoyancy compensators which have sought to solve the problem of different waist or body girth sizes by providing a form of cummerbund or waistband. Kaiser &#39;419 discloses a torso band having two adjustable elastic connection bands which connect at their distal extremities by means of a hook and pile fastener arrangement and the posterior portions of these bands are securely fastened to the inside wall of the buoyancy compensator body by adjustable buckle devices. By adjusting the buckle connections, the length of one or both of the torso bands can be lengthened or shortened to thereby adjust the vest to accommodate the girth of the diver. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 5,662,433 issued to Scott P. Seligman similarly discloses a waist or girth adjustable BCD. In this reference, the waist size is incrementally adjusted by means of pins affixed to the interior of the back panel of the vest. The pins are fitted into one of several slots formed on the sides of each of the two waistbands. The two waistbands join together in the front again in a cummerbund fashion by overlapping hook and pile fasteners. In this manner, this reference teaches a degree of waist size or girth adjustment. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 6,881,011 issued to Robert Manuel Carmichael similarly seeks to provide for an adjustment of the waist size. This reference teaches that this adjustment can be accomplished by utilizing a three part construction consisting of two side belts that pass through a wire-loop fixture and return against the inside of the belt which is secured at its outer ends by hook and pile fastener. The back looped portion of the belt is secured and locked in place by the compression created by wearing the device. 
   In U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,451,121 and 5,562,513 similarly teach the provision of buoyancy compensation device having adjustable or variable adjustments for waist size by varying the length of a waistband. 
   Each of these designs suffer the deficiency that the methodology for providing an adjustable waist size can provide only a limited range of adjustment. This is due in significant part to the fact that these vests are made of heavy fabric and are thus somewhat bulky and inflexible. A vest well fitted to an adult male who wears, for example, a size 46 jacket, could not be made to properly fit an adult female who typically wears a size 8 dress size by employing the waistband adjustment schemes of the prior art. The range of adjustment is not sufficient. And while most of these references also teach the provision of an elastic section in the waist belt or waist band, an elastic section serves only to maintain a pre-adjusted securement to compensate for compression changes in body size as a result of the depth at which a diver is located at any one time. The elastic sections in these belts as taught by the prior art do not provide a means of adjusting the girth of the device. 
   In spite of the development of the devices set forth in the prior art and other similar devices, it remains a requirement of equipment providers and manufacturers to provide buoyancy compensation vests in a wide range of sizes from extra small to extra large. This is so because of the requirement for a very good fit between the diver and his buoyancy compensation vest. 
   It is an object of the present invention to provide a buoyancy compensation device in the form of a vest which is universally adjustable about of the waist of the diver&#39;s body and which can vary in girth or diameter from extra small to extra extra large. 
   It is a further object of the present invention to provide a buoyancy compensation device which is continuously variable and adjustable to accommodate the different girth sizes of a diver. 
   Yet a specific object of the present invention is to provide a buoyancy compensation device in which the waist can be adjusted by adjusting the size of the inflatable arms of the device. 
   It is a further object of the present invention to provide a buoyancy compensation device which can accommodate different body sizes of divers independently of adjustment of the waist band or cummerbund attachments typical of prior art devices. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In summary, this invention is directed to a buoyancy compensation (sometimes also called “compensator”) device (BCD) having a typical shell consisting of a body portion having an inside wall and an outside wall forming an inflatable member with a typical backpack portion which includes a securing band adapted for securing an airtank to the backpack. The BCD is in the form of a vest consisting of a back portion and lateral arms which are intended to be secured at the waist of the wearer and affixed in the front in the typical manner such as by buckles, snap tabs or hook and pile fasteners. There are various ways set forth in the prior art for affixing the terminal ends of the arms together in the front of the wearer. There are two variations of the typical vest, one in which the shell of the vest is made of a heavy canvas-like material which has been impregnated with urethane so that it may be inflated and will hold air under pressure against leakage. In another basic embodiment, the shell is fitted to accommodate internal bladders formed of sealable urethane. These bladders are inserted inside the arms and/or the back portions of the vest and are communicated to a source of low pressure air for inflation. In that embodiment, it is the internal bladders which carry the air to inflate the vest rather than the shell of the vest as in the first embodiment. 
   The invention involves a mechanism for varying the reach of the arms by selectively collapsing the material in the arms so that when the arms are joined together in the front of the wearer, they will fit a wide range of body sizes or waist sizes. This mechanism includes a strap affixed through a intermediate pouch to an additional strap or straps inside the enclosure of the arms so that they can be pulled inwardly or let outwardly to adjust to a desired waist size. The retraction of the strap pulls the shell of the arm by applying tension on the inner surface of the shell, collapsing the material of the shell. Appropriate supporting baffles situated in the enclosure of the arms or in the bladders inserted in the enclosure of the arms, avoid lateral enlargement of the arms upon inflation. Subsequent inflation of the adjusted arms smoothes out the collapsed material of the arms and achieves a smooth adjusted size for each of the arms so that precise adjustment to each individual wearer can be achieved. This adjustment system is designed to promote a secure attachment to the wearer of the BCD and a precise adjustment of size to the particular body configuration of almost any wearer. Thus at the water&#39;surface or at significant depths, the vest will be form fitting and comfortable for the diver. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a front plan view of the buoyancy compensator device of the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a partial perspective view of one of the arms of the buoyancy compensator device showing a first embodiment of the present invention. 
       FIGS. 3A and 3B  are partial sectional views taken along line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 2 .  FIG. 3A  demonstrates the intermediate pouch when the arm is in an extended position and  FIG. 3B  is a cross-sectional view showing the intermediate pouch when the adjustment mechanism is fully retracted. 
       FIG. 4  is a partial perspective view of an arm of the BCD in a retracted configuration prior to inflation thereof. 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective plan view of the buoyancy compensator device of the present invention after the arms have been retracted and the vest has been inflated. 
       FIG. 6  is a partial perspective view of the buoyancy compensator device employing features of the second embodiment of the present invention. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     FIG. 1  discloses a dive vest laid out in a planar fashion showing the arms  10  and the back portion  10   a . This is a type of BCD which is termed “back inflatable”, which also has inflatable arms. Shown in dotted lines not relevant to the present invention, are the overpressure relief valve (OP) and the entry valve (RE), which is the connection to the low pressure portion of the dive system which provides low-pressure air to inflate the vest. Relief valve (RE) is usually also a selective dump valve. Shown in dotted lines is an illustration of the range of adjustment afforded the arms, as demonstrated by the lateral arrows, indicating the relocation of the ends and/or enlargement of the arms by adjustment. 
     FIG. 2  is a partial sectional view of one of the arms  10  showing the adjustment mechanism of a first embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the shell of vest arm  10  includes upper and lower panels  11  and  12  which are sealably attached around the periphery at  13  so as to provide an airtight enclosure. As indicated by the arrows in  FIG. 1 , the adjustment mechanism of the present invention comprises a structure for pulling in the arms  10  in order to decrease the girth of the vest. In this regard, reference to  FIG. 2  discloses in greater detail a first embodiment of a mechanism for pulling in or conversely letting out the length of the arms. This mechanism consists primarily of strap which extends from outside the shell into the enclosure of arm  10  through a first aperture  14  and through a second aperture  16  in first baffle  17 . Strap  15   a  is then formed into a Y or yoke having arms  18  and  19 . The extremities of arms  18  and  19  are welded to the upper panel  11  and lower panel  12  of arm  10  as indicated by the circular embossments at  20  and  21 , respectively. Baffle  17  is welded in a manner well-known in the industry to the upper and lower portions of arm  10  at  17   a  and  17   b  as shown in  FIG. 2 . A second baffle  23  is similarly welded at upper and lower portions  23   a  and  23   b.    
   Strap  15  must be accessible at the exterior of inflatable arm  10  to set the adjustment in buckle  30 ; however, in order to most effectively collapse the size of arm  10 , strap  15  should be able to communicate with the interior enclosure of arm  10  to withdraw the upper and lower panels  11  and  12 . The problem is how to do this without leaking air from the enclosure, or conversely leaking water into the enclosure. This is accomplished by the intermediate pouch  27 . While a preferred embodiment of the invention employs the feature of affixing the adjustment strap in the interior of the enclosure, it is within the scope of this invention to alternatively affix the strap simply to an outer surface of the arm. It is believed that the concept of the present invention broadly encompasses the shortening of the inflatable shell portion of a vest as the means of obtaining a broad range of adjustment of the girth, as distinguished from the waistband approach. While an exteriorly mounted strap can accomplish this goal, a strap located on the outside of the shell of the vest may become snagged or entangled with other parts of the divers gear. For this and for cosmetic reasons, it is preferred that the strap be affixed inside the enclosure. 
     FIG. 3A  shows a sectional representation of the adjustable BCD and, in particular, shows greater detail of the intermediate pouch  27 . Pouch  27  has an aperture  14   a , which is welded to aperture  14  of top panel  11 . Pouch  27  is thus totally situated within the enclosure of the shell and, while aperture  14  is open to the outside atmosphere, pouch  27  is entirely sealed and in communication with the interior enclosure of arm  10 . Adjustment strap  15  extends through apertures  14  and  14   a . Adjustment strap  15  extends to the distal end of pouch  27  and is weldably fixed thereto at point  29 . Point  29  is in turn weldably affixed to an extension of strap  15 , i.e., strap  15   a , which extends through aperture  16  and then is divided into upper and lower yoke members  18  and  19 , which are respectively affixed by appropriate weldments  20  and  21  to the upper and lower surfaces of the arm  10 , specifically, the under-surfaces of panels  11  and  12 , respectively. 
     FIGS. 3A and 3B  provide a graphic representation of further features of the pouch  27  shown in  FIG. 2 . The intermediate pouch  27  is made of quite flexible material. It is shown in  FIG. 3A  with the arm  10  in its most extended position. Reduction of the length of arm  10  from its most extended position is accomplished by pulling strap  15  to the left and fixing it with the buckle  30 . As strap  15  is pulled inwardly, the intermediate pouch  27  is pulled inwardly as well and collapses without compromising the sealed integrity of the interior enclosure of arm  10 . As strap  15  is pulled more and more inwardly, the weldment section  29  on pouch  27  can be pulled through apertures  14 ,  14   a  so as to achieve the maximum withdrawal and therefore foreshortening of arm  10 . It is contemplated that the range of movement of strap  15  from its outermost extension to its innermost withdrawal can be on the order of about twice the dimension between aperture  14  and weldment  29 , indicated at “X” in  FIG. 3A . If, for example, the pouch were constructed such that dimension “X” were six (6) inches, adjustment of arm  10  could achieve a range of about twelve (12) inches. 
   Referring now to  FIG. 4 , it will be seen that upon a substantial withdrawal of strap  15 , the material of arm  10  becomes folded or crumpled in a seemingly unsuitable fashion in that, in particular, the area between the points of affixation of strap  15   a  at weldment  20  collapses as strap  15  is pulled to the left, and even more so if weldment  29  is pulled through aperture  14 . It would thereupon seem that the inflatability of the adjusted vest is compromised; inasmuch as there is now a bulk of material still a part of arm  10  that has been foreshortened, collapsed and, accordingly, of questionable inflatable utility. However, because the arm and back portion of the BCD are an integral inflatable structure, the collapse of the material in arm  10  permits that material upon inflation to move into the back portion of the vest. The width of the arms do not increase laterally because baffles  17  and  22  limit lateral expansion of arm  10 , and further assist in urging the collapsed materials of arm  10  to migrate to other areas of the shell.  FIG. 5  shows a fully inflated vest with the adjustment straps of both arms fully withdrawn to shorten the arms to the minimum. The vest fully inflates and the arms and the collapsed material are fully extended without increasing the width or diameter of the arms. The material of the foreshortened portions of panels  11  and  12  has moved elsewhere into the back portion of the vest so that when the vest is fully inflated, the arms as shown in  FIG. 5  fully and smoothly inflate to form a competent and comfortable buoyancy control device. 
   It is in particularly preferred embodiment of this invention to employ the features of the intermediate pouch  27  which comprises the means of communication between the interior of the inflated enclosure of arm  10  and the exterior or atmospheric side of the device. This collapsible pouch of material allows strap  15  to be fully withdrawn inwardly towards the posterior of the BCD until the strap  15  may be pulled through to the full extent of the length of the pouch. By this means, it is possible to construct an adult size BCD having a continuously variable waist size from what is commonly called in the garment industry as extra, extra large (XXXL) to extra small (XS). This permits a change in girth from typically 48″ to approximately 26″ in circumference. This is facilitated by the extreme flexibility of intermediate pouch  27  which can extend all the way from the position shown in  FIG. 3A  until it is pulled through aperture  14  for maximum withdrawal as shown in  FIG. 3B . 
   Second Embodiment of the Present Invention 
   The second embodiment of the present invention accommodates the type of BCD vest wherein the shell does not provide the inflatable air retention pockets of the device, but rather separate bladders made of air impervious urethane material is used as the air container of the first instance. In this configuration, the material of the shell can be a lighter weight material, but may also be impregnated with urethane material so as to provide a secondary protection against leakage, if desired.  FIG. 6  shows the present invention adapted to a dual bladder, or inner bladder version of BCD. Here arm  100  has upper and lower panels  110  and  111  sealably attached at the edges  113  to form an enclosure. This arm  100  is provided with zipper  114  to provide access to the interior of arm  100  for the insertion of bladder  115 . Bladder  115  is provided with interior baffles  116  and  117 , which limit lateral expansion of the bladder upon inflation similar to the function of baffles  17  and  22  in the single bladder embodiment. In the double bladder configuration, the retraction system is similar, in that an intermediate pouch  120  is employed, substantially like pouch  27  of the first embodiment. The adjustment strap  118  is coupled at one end to buckle  121  and extends through aperture  122  into the interior enclosure of pouch  120 . At the distal end of pouch  120 , strap  118  is welded at  123 . Another portion  124  of the adjustment strap is fixed in similar manner to an outer portion of pouch  120  immediately adjacent weldment  123  at the distal end of pouch  120 . In this embodiment, strap  124  extends into the enclosure, over the bladder  115  to an intermediate portion of the upper panel  110  of arm  100  and is welded to the interior panel as shown at weldment  125 . While  FIG. 6  shows strap  124  attached to the upper panel  110 , it is equally contemplated to attach it to the lower portion  111  of arm  100 . Similarly, as related in the description of the single bladder version, it is contemplated that the strap here could be simply attached to an outside surface of the arm and accomplish the purpose of shortening the arm; however, as stated, this may not work as efficiently as the interior attachment. Furthermore, the cosmetics are not as aesthetically pleasing, and an exterior strap could become snared or entangled by the divers other equipment, and thus is not such an efficacious design as the interior attachment regime. 
   In this embodiment, strap  118  functions in a similar way to that of strap  15  in that retracting or moving strap  118  to the left (in  FIG. 6 ) pulls strap  124  to the left, pulling weldment  125  towards aperture  122 . Similar to what is shown in  FIG. 3B , full retraction of the adjusting strap contemplates pulling the distal end of pouch  120  through its own aperture  122 . Full retraction of the adjustment strap  118  in the dual bladder version can be accomplished in a manner similar to that shown in  FIG. 3B . Hence, in use, obviously prior to the full inflation of bladder  115 , strap  118  may be adjusted and held in place by buckle  121  while the continuous retraction of strap  118  achieves the proper waist adjustment for the vest. 
   It is contemplated that elastic portions in straps  118  or  15  may also be employed to permit slight size variations in the pre-adjusted sizing of the arms. Elastic portions accommodate changes in body size due to compression. The vest maintains the pre-adjusted sizing accomplished prior to immersion in the water, thereby accommodating changes in the body of the diver and of his equipment at greater depths below sea level, while maintaining the same pre-fit and adjusted sizing of the vest made prior to diving. This maintains a good fit of the vest on the diver throughout the dive. 
   The second embodiment can thus provide in a manner similar to that of the first embodiment a means of adjusting the size of the arm  100  so as to accommodate a range of sizes continuously adjustable from a very small waist size typically of about 26 inches in diameter to approximately 48 inches in circumference or more. The range of adjustment provided strap  118  can provide a continuous and finely adjustable variation for the size of arm  10  to accommodate sizes anywhere from extra, extra large to extra small, speaking of garment sizes, so that the buoyancy compensator device may be worn by different people of substantially different size and shape and yet provide a proper and snug fit that is neither too loose nor too tight. 
   While particular embodiments and preferred designs have been shown and described herein, it is contemplated that various modifications and/or variations of the invention are contemplated and can be resorted to by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention which is defined by the following claims.