Patent Publication Number: US-2021178205-A1

Title: Compact rescue apparatus and method

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     The present disclosure claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/949,071 filed Dec. 17, 2019, the contents of which are hereby incorporated herein in entirety. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     The present disclosure relates to an apparatus to assist with search and rescue and more specifically with an apparatus that can be implemented on a compact off-road vehicle. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     Search and rescue teams are often called to remote areas that are very difficult to access. Often, a team of search and rescue personnel must hike or otherwise travel over difficult terrain. Once the team reaches the person in need they must either carry the person out or wait for an air-lift to remove the person in need. This can be very time consuming and difficult when an air-lift is not available. 
     SUMMARY 
     One embodiment is a compact rescue kit. The kit includes a base section, a caregiver seat assembly coupled to the base section, a basket section configured to receive and secure a patient basket, and a cylinder support configured to carry a compressed gas. Further, the base section is configured to be secured to a compact off-road vehicle. 
     In one example of this embodiment, the caregiver seat assembly includes a support section and a seat section. In one aspect of this example, the cylinder support is coupled to the support section. 
     Another example of this embodiment includes a bag support extension coupled to the base section. Yet another example includes an anchoring assembly on the base section, wherein the anchoring assembly is configured to secure the base section to the compact off-road vehicle. 
     In yet another embodiment, the basket section has a first wall and a second wall spaced from one another to partially receive a basket assembly therebetween. In one aspect of this example the first wall and the second wall have a couplers thereon configured to selectively couple the basket assembly to the base section. In yet another aspect of the seat section example the seat section has a seatbelt to selectively secure the caregiver to the seat section. 
     In another example of this embodiment, the cylinder support has at least one cylinder strap coupled thereto to selectively secure a cylinder to the cylinder support. In yet another example, the cylinder support has an upturned edge configured to partially cradle a cylinder between the upturned edge and the caregiver seat assembly. In another aspect of the bag support extension example, the bag support extension is reconfigurable between a full length configuration and a reduced configuration. 
     In one example of this embodiment, the basket section is sized so a fully assembled basket will extend off of the base section. In one aspect of this example, the basket section has support straps to secure the fully assembled basket thereto wherein the basket is sufficiently secured to the base section when the basket is in the fully assembled configuration and a person is positioned therein. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The above-mentioned aspects of the present disclosure and the manner of obtaining them will become more apparent and the disclosure itself will be better understood by reference to the following description of the embodiments of the disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein: 
         FIGS. 1-7  illustrate various views of a compact rescue kit either coupled to a compact off-road vehicle or isolated therefrom. 
     
    
    
     Corresponding reference numerals are used to indicate corresponding parts throughout view. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The embodiments of the present disclosure described below are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms in the following detailed description. Rather, the embodiments are chosen and described so that others skilled in the art may appreciate and understand the principles and practices of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , a compact rescue kit  100  is illustrated coupled to a compact off-road vehicle  102 . The vehicle  102  may be any all-terrain vehicle configured for off-road use. In one non-exclusive example, the vehicle  102  may be a “side-by-side” type vehicle such as the one described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,434,244, the contents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference. However, any vehicle with a cargo bed is considered herein. Accordingly, trucks, ATVs, tractors, and any other vehicle that may have a cargo bed to receive the compact rescue kit  100  are considered herein. 
     The compact rescue kit  100  may have a base section  104  that is sized to at least partially fit in a cargo bed  106  of the compact off-road vehicle  102 . The base section may be formed of metal, plastic, or any other type of material that is sufficiently strong to provide a support for the components of the compact rescue kit  100 . In one aspect of this example, the compact rescue kit  100  is secured to the compact off-road vehicle  102  via one or more anchoring assembly  202  of the base section  104 . The anchoring assembly may provide a location to selectively mechanically couple the base section  104  to the compact off-road vehicle  102 . In one aspect of this disclosure, the anchoring assembly  202  may be fasteners or the like that secure the base section  104  to a structural portion of the compact off-road vehicle  102  such as the chassis. Regardless of the type or location of the anchoring assembly  202 , the anchoring assembly  202  may selectively couple the base section  104  to the cargo bed  106  to ensure the compact rescue kit  100  remains securely therein during off-road travel. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , the compact rescue kit  100  is illustrated separated from the compact off-road vehicle  102 . More specifically, a basket section  204  is illustrated coupled to the base section  104 . The basket section  204  may be sized to receive and secure a basket assembly  206  to the base section  104 . In one non-exclusive example, the basket section  204  may have a first wall  208  and a second wall  210  coupled to the base section  104 . The first and second wall  208 ,  210  may be spaced from one another to allow the basket assembly  206  to fit at least partially there between. Further, the first and second walls  208 ,  210  may also have couplers  212  thereon to selectively couple the basket assembly  206  to the walls  208 ,  210  and in turn to the base section  104 . 
     In one aspect of this disclosure the compact rescue kit  100  may receive a segmented basket assembly  206  therein. The segmented basket assembly  206  may have a reduced size and a use size. In one non-limiting example, the basket assembly  206  may be formed of two portions that can be selectively oriented in the use size or stacked on one another in the reduced size. When the compact rescue kit  100  is being deployed on a compact off-road vehicle  102  to a rescue site, the basket assembly  206  may be coupled to the base section  104  in the reduced size configuration to make the compact off-road vehicle  102  more compact as the vehicle  102  travels to the rescue site. In the reduced size configuration, the couplers  212  may hold the basket assembly  206  to the base section  104  in the basket section  204  in the reduced size. 
     Once the vehicle  102  reaches the rescue site, the coupler  212  may be removed and the basket assembly  206  converted to the use size to accommodate the injured party. The injured party may be positioned in the basket assembly  206  in the use size and the basket assembly  206  may be placed back in the basket section  204  of the compact rescue kit  100 . Then, the couplers  212  may couple the basket assembly  206  to the base section  104  to ensure the basket section  204  and the injured party are securely coupled to the vehicle  102 . In one embodiment of this disclosure, the basket assembly may extend past the base section  104  in the use size. In this configuration, the couplers  212  also sufficiently support the basket assembly  206  to ensure it does not fall off the base section  104  in spite of extending at least slightly past the base section  104 . 
     The base section  104  may also have a bag support extension  214  coupled thereto. The bag support extension  214  may be configured to elevate a medical bag that contains a solution meant for intravenous therapy. The bag support extension  214  may hold the medical bag above the basket section  204  to allow medicine, nutrients, and the like to flow therefrom into the injured party. In one aspect of this disclosure, the bag support extension  214  may have a plurality of looped ends for coupling one or more medical bag thereto. Further still, in one aspect of this disclosure the bag support extension  214  may be reconfigurable between a raised position and a lowered position. In this example, the bag support extension  214  may be in the lowered position when the compact off-road vehicle  102  is travelling to the injured party to ensure the vehicle  102  remains as compact as possible while travelling through rough terrain. Once the vehicle  102  reaches the injured party, the bag support extension  214  may be reconfigured to the raised position and medical bags can be hung therefrom when the injured party is placed in the basket section  204  to dispense medicament thereto as the vehicle  102  transports the injured party to a more conventional treatment area. 
     In another aspect of this disclosure, a caregiver seat assembly  216  may be coupled to the base section  104  as well. The caregiver seat assembly  216  may have a seat section  218  coupled to a support section  220 . Further, the support section  220  may be coupled to the base section  104  to ensure that the seat section  218  remains relatively fixed thereto. The seat section  218  may be configured to receive a caregiver therein. More specifically, the seat section  218  may have a back coupled to a bottom portion wherein the caregiver can sit and tend to an injured party in the basket section  204 . Further, the seat section  218  may have a seatbelt or harness  222  that ensures the caregiver remains in the seat section  218  as the vehicle  102  traverses rugged terrain. 
     The support section  220  may elevated the seat section  218  from the base section  104  so the caregiver may sit therein with their knees at least partially bent. Further, the base section  104  may also provide a mounting location for a cylinder support  224 . The cylinder support  224  may extend from a side of the support section  220  and provide a location to secure an oxygen bottle or the like  226  to the compact rescue kit  100 . The cylinder support  224  may have an upturned edge  228  and one or more cylinder strap  230  thereon to secure the bottle  226  of compressed gas thereto. More specifically, the upturned edge  228  may be an outermost edge of the cylinder support  224  that runs longitudinally along the bottle  226 . This configuration allows the upturned edges  228  to create a cavity within which the bottle  226  is at least partially cradled. To further ensure the bottle  226  remains in the cylinder support  224  the cylinder straps  230  may keep the bottle within the cavity created by the upturned edge  228  and the remaining portions of the cylinder support  224 . Further, in one aspect of this disclosure the cylinder support  224  has a back end  232  that defines a backmost position for the bottle  226 . 
     In use, the compact rescue kit  100  may easily be installed in a vehicle  102  simply by coupling the base section  104  to the vehicle  102  with the anchoring assembly  202 . Further, once the base section  104  is coupled thereto the vehicle  102  may be used to travel to injured parties with a caregiver in the seat assembly  216  and the basket assembly  206  may be in the reduced size and coupled to the walls  208 ,  210  with the couplers  212 . Once the vehicle  102  reaches the injured party, the couplers  212  may be released and the basket assembly  206  may be reoriented into the use size. The injured party may then be placed in the basket assembly  206  and the injured party and basket assembly  206  may be returned to the basket section  204 . Once back in the basket section  204 , the couplers  212  may couple the basket assembly  206  thereto to ensure the injured party remains safely positioned next to the caregiver in the seat assembly  216 . The caregiver may utilize the bag support extension  214  in the raised position to flow fluid from a medical bag to the injured party. Further, the caregiver may access oxygen from the cylinder  226  in the cylinder support  224  to further provide the injured party with oxygenated air. Once the injured party is safely in the basket assembly  206  and secured to the base section  104 , the vehicle  102  may transport the injured party through the rough terrain to a more suitable treatment area. 
     While embodiments incorporating the principles of the present disclosure have been described hereinabove, the present disclosure is not limited to the described embodiments. Instead, this application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the disclosure using its general principles. Further, this application is intended to cover such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which this disclosure pertains and which fall within the limits of the appended claims.