A float device for use in a body of water includes a float configured to transform between a deflated state and an inflated state. The float includes at least one internal chamber. The float includes a manual inflation value configured to provide a passageway for adding gas to the at least one internal chamber and a deflation valve configured to provide a passageway for releasing gas from the at least one internal chamber. A float attachment member is attached to the float, such that when the float is placed in the body of water, the float attachment member is underwater.
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1. A float assembly for supporting an inlet end of a hose in a body of water, comprising:
a float configured to transform between a un-inflated configuration, wherein the float has a first dimension and an inflated configuration, wherein the float has a second dimension, the second dimension being greater than the first dimension;
a plurality of internal chambers located within an outer surface layer of the float each of the plurality of internal chambers being fluidly coupled to each other and wherein the plurality of internal chambers include an inner chamber, a middle chamber, and an outer chamber, wherein the outer chamber surrounds the middle chamber and the middle chamber surrounds the outer chamber;
a mechanism for quickly inflating the float into the inflated state, wherein the mechanism is configured to fluidly couple a source of compressed gas to the plurality of internal chambers;
a manual inflation valve accessible from an exterior of the float and being configured to provide a fluid passageway to the plurality of internal chambers; and
an attachment member secured to the outer surface layer of the float, wherein the inflated configuration to prevents a vortex from drawing air into the inlet end of the hose when it is supported below a bottom surface of the outer surface layer of the float when the float is floating in the body of water.
19. A method for quickly inflating a float from an un-inflated state to an inflated state and locating an inlet end of a hose below a surface of a body of water and preventing a vortex from forming between the surface of the body of water and the inlet end of the hose, the method including:
releasing an amount of pressurized gas from a reservoir secured to the float by actuating a quick fill mechanism fluidly coupled to the reservoir and a plurality of internal chambers of the float, wherein the amount of pressurized gas inflates the plurality of internal chambers to inflate the float from the un-inflated state to the inflated state, wherein the un-inflated state has a first dimension and the inflated state has a second dimension, the second dimension being greater than the first dimension and wherein the plurality of internal chambers are located within an outer surface layer of the float and each of the plurality of internal chambers being fluidly coupled to each other and wherein the plurality of internal chambers include an inner chamber, a middle chamber, and an outer chamber, wherein the outer chamber surrounds the middle chamber and the middle chamber surrounds the outer chamber;
locating the inflated float in the body of water; and
attaching the inlet end of the hose to an attachment member of the float located below the surface of the body water, wherein the second dimension is greater than a dimension of the vortex, and wherein the float further comprises a manual inflation valve accessible from an exterior of the float and being configured to provide a fluid passageway to the plurality of internal chambers.
11. A system for pumping water from a body of water, the system comprising:
a float assembly comprising:
a float configured to transform between a un-inflated configuration, wherein the float has a first dimension and an inflated configuration, wherein the float has a second dimension, the second dimension being greater than the first dimension;
a plurality of internal chambers located within an outer surface layer of the float each of the plurality of internal chambers being fluidly coupled to each other and wherein the plurality of internal chambers include an inner chamber, a middle chamber, and an outer chamber, wherein the outer chamber surrounds the middle chamber and the middle chamber surrounds the outer chamber;
a mechanism for quickly inflating the float into the inflated state, wherein the mechanism is configured to fluidly couple a source of compressed gas to the plurality of internal chambers;
a manual inflation valve accessible from an exterior of the float and being configured to provide a fluid passageway to the plurality of internal chambers; and
an attachment member secured to the outer surface layer of the float, wherein the inflated configuration prevents a vortex from drawing air into the inlet end of the hose when it is supported below a bottom surface of the outer surface layer of the float when the float is floating in the body of water;
a hose attachment member fixed to a first end of a hose and configured to be releasably secured to the float attachment member such that the float device supports the first end of the hose; and
a water pump fluidly connected to a second end of the hose, the water pump being configured to pump water drawn from the first end of the hose when it is located in the body of water.
2. The float device according to
3. The float device according to
4. The float device according to
a deflation valve configured to allow fluid to be released from the plurality of internal chambers.
6. The float device according to
7. The float device according to
8. The float device according to
9. The float device according to
10. The float assembly according to
12. The system for pumping water according to
13. The system for pumping water according to
14. The system for pumping water according to
15. The system as in
16. The system as in
17. The system as in
18. The system as in
20. The float device as in
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This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 61/582,679 filed on Jan. 3, 2012, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference.
This invention relates generally to a float, more particularly, to a float attachment for supporting an end of a hose in a body of water.
Firefighters occasionally rely on open bodies of water, such as a pond, lake, or stream for example, as a water source in an emergency situation. A hose is placed into the water source and an adjacent pump connected thereto draws water through the attached hose. During operation, debris such as leaves and twigs can interfere with the functionality of the pump thereby causing problems with the delivery of the water. Floating devices designed for use with a firefighting hose are known and have been used by firefighters for decades. However, such assemblies are considerable in size and weigh up to approximately 50 pounds. Space on a firefighting vehicle is very limited; consequently many of these float assemblies have been removed such that when an open body of water must be used as a water source, the problem of the hose clogging from debris reoccurs.
Therefore, there is a need for a floating device that is lightweight and requires a limited amount of space on a firefighting vehicle when not in use. Also, it is desirable to provide such a float that is quickly and easily inflatable.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a float device for use in a body of water includes a float configured to transform between a deflated state and an inflated state. The float includes at least one internal chamber. The float includes a manual inflation value configured to provide a passageway for adding gas to the at least one internal chamber and a deflation valve configured to provide a passageway for releasing gas from the at least one internal chamber. A float attachment member is attached to the float, such that when the float is placed in the body of water, the float attachment member is submerged.
According to another embodiment of the invention, a system for pumping water from a body of water is provided including a float device for use in a body of water includes a float configured to transform between a deflated state and an inflated state. The float includes at least one internal chamber. The float includes a manual inflation value configured to provide a passageway for adding gas to the at least one internal chamber and a deflation valve configured to provide a passageway for releasing gas from the at least one internal chamber. A float attachment member is attached to the float, such that when the float is placed in the body of water, the float attachment member is submerged. A hose attachment member fixed to a first end of a hose is coupled to the float attachment member such that the first end of the hose is supported by the float. A pump means connected to the second end of the hose draws water through the hose.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, a method of pumping water from an open body of water is provided, the method comprising the steps of inflating a float. A strainer and a hose attachment member are attached to a first end of a hose. The first end of the hose is connected to the float. The inflated float is placed in the body of water so that the first end of the hose is submerged in the water. Water is then pumped through the hose.
In yet another embodiment, a float assembly for supporting an inlet end of a hose in a body of water is provided, the float including: a float configured to transform between a un-inflated configuration, wherein the float has a first dimension and an inflated configuration, wherein the float has a second dimension, the second dimension being greater than the first dimension; at least one internal inflatable chamber located within the float; a mechanism for quickly inflating the float into the inflated state, wherein the mechanism is configured to fluidly couple a source of compressed gas to the at least one internal chamber; a manual inflation valve accessible from an exterior of the float and being configured to provide a fluid passageway to the at least one internal chamber; and an attachment member secured to the float, wherein the inflated configuration is sized to prevent a vortex from drawing air into the inlet end of the hose when it is supported in the body of water by the float.
In yet another embodiment, a system for pumping water from a body of water is provided, the system having: a float configured to transform between a un-inflated configuration, wherein the float has a first dimension and an inflated configuration, wherein the float has a second dimension, the second dimension being greater than the first dimension; at least one internal inflatable chamber located within the float; a mechanism for quickly inflating the float into the inflated state, wherein the mechanism is configured to fluidly couple a source of compressed gas to the at least one internal chamber; a manual inflation valve accessible from an exterior of the float and being configured to provide a fluid passageway to the at least one internal chamber; and an attachment member secured to the float, wherein the inflated configuration is sized to prevent a vortex from drawing air into the inlet end of the hose when it is supported in the body of water by the float; a hose attachment member fixed to a first end of a hose and configured to be releasably secured to the float attachment member such that the float device supports the first end of the hose; and a pump means connected to a second end of the hose for drawing water through the hose.
In yet another embodiment, a method for quickly inflating a float from an un-inflated state to an inflated state and for locating an inlet end of a hose below a surface of a body of water and for preventing a vortex from forming between the surface of the body of water and the inlet end of the hose is provided, the method including the steps of: releasing an amount of pressurized gas from a reservoir secured to the float by actuating a quick fill mechanism fluidly coupled to the reservoir and at least one internal chamber of the float, wherein the amount of pressurized gas inflates the at least one chamber to inflate the float from the un-inflated state to the inflated state, wherein the un-inflated state has a first dimension and the inflated state has a second dimension, the second dimension being greater than the first dimension; locating the inflated float in the body of water; and attaching the inlet end of the hose to an attachment member of the float located below the surface of the body water, wherein second dimension is greater than a dimension of the vortex, wherein the float further comprises a manual inflation valve accessible from an exterior of the float and being configured to provide a fluid passageway to the at least one internal chamber.
The above-described and other features and advantages of the present invention will be appreciated and understood by those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, drawings, and appended claims.
Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
Reference is made to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,579,917; 1,621,413; 2,597,728; 2,957,579; 3,109,812; 3,782,552; 3,794,446; 4,017,394; 4,024,063; 4,179,379; 4,310,423; 4,647,374; 4,797,063; 4,973,405; 5,052,855; 5,113,889; 5,820,751; 6,076,994; 6,251,266; 6,361,691; 6,949,198; 7,222,638; 7,501,058; 7,575,677; 7,794,589; 7,892,438; and U.S. Patent Application Nos: U.S. 20040164031A1; U.S. 20100059432A1; and U.S. 20110042323A1, the contents each of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
A float assembly is disclosed herein. The float assembly is capable of being quickly deployed from an un-inflated state to an inflated state, wherein the size of the assembly increases and is configured to support an end of a hose in a body of water in a manner wherein the hose is prevented from resting on the bottom of the body of water and the float assembly prevents a vortex from drawing air into the hose. The float is also lightweight and easily managed by a single person whether it is in the inflated or deflated state.
Referring now to
In the inflated state, the float 22 is buoyant in a body of water. When placed in a body of water, a top surface 23 of the float 22 is above the surface of the body of water, and a bottom surface 24 of the float 22 is adjacent to, or slightly below, the surface of the body of water. A float attachment device 40, such as an eyelet for example, is mounted to the bottom surface 24 of the float 22 and is configured to support an end of a hose below the surface of the body of water. In one non-limiting alternative embodiment, the float attachment device is attached to a reinforcement layer 43 secured to the bottom surface 24 (e.g., outer layer 29 or outer layers of the inflatable chambers) of the float 22. Reinforcement layer 43 may comprise an additional layer of material that may be the same as that of the rest of the float (e.g., vinyl fabric, polyurethane coated nylon fabric, rubbers, elastomers, canvas, etc. and equivalents thereof or alternatively may comprise a more rigid material) to provide additional strength to the area proximate to the attachment device 40.
In one, non-limiting exemplary embodiment, the at least one internal chamber may comprise a plurality of internal chambers, such as concentric outer chamber 26, middle chamber 28, and inner chamber 30 as illustrated in
In an alternate embodiment, each internal chamber may be inflated separately with its own inflation mechanism and there are no openings or one way valves as each chamber is sealed from each other.
In one embodiment, the float 22 is made from a flexible material such that when the float 22 is in a deflated state, the overall size of the float 22 is reduced, such as by folding or rolling for example (See at least
The float includes at least one valve for inflating and deflating the float 22. In an exemplary embodiment, a manual inflation valve 38 is connected to an internal chamber of the float 22 and provides a pathway for a gas to enter the internal chamber. This manual inflation valve 38 may be similar to a valve used in standard tire application. (See at least
In one embodiment, the automatic inflation valve or mechanism 32 employs a replaceable automatic fill system, wherein a replaceable and/or refillable container 35 of the mechanism contains a reservoir of compressed gas such as a carbon dioxide or any other gas and the container is fluidly coupled to the valve 32 such that upon actuation of an actuation mechanism 37 the reservoir of the container becomes fluidly coupled to the valve 32 such that the float 22 can be quickly inflated through actuation of mechanism 37. In other words, once mechanism 37 is activated, the compressed gas of the container 35 is released and the float assembly is inflated. One non-limiting type of inflation mechanism is the type commercially available from Halkey-Roberts Corporation. One non-limiting example is the V86160 Pro 3F Inflator available from Halkey-Roberts Corporation. One device or mechanism is also illustrated in, U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,605, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto. Of course, any other equivalent means for quick inflation may be employed.
Accordingly and through the use of mechanism 37, the container of the compressed gas is capable of rapidly inflating the float 22. Use of the automatic fill system coupled to automatic inflation valve 32 to inflate the float 22 is more efficient than using the manual valve 38. For example, the manual inflation valve 38 may be generally intended for use when the automatic fill system has been previously used and the replaceable and/or refillable container 35 needs to be replaced or refilled or has malfunctioned.
In an alternative embodiment and as illustrated in at least
In one embodiment, the float device 20 is also equipped with a deflation valve 36, which may be located adjacent to the top surface 23 of float 22 or in any other suitable location. Suitable deflation valves are also commercially available from Halkey-Roberts Corporation. In one embodiment, the deflation valve 36 and the manual inflation valve 38 may be the same valve such that gases can be introduced and released from the float in order to allow inflation and deflation of the same. By opening the deflation valve 36, the gas within the internal chambers is released to the external atmosphere and the float assembly may be returned to the un-inflated state. In one non-limiting embodiment, the deflation valve may simply be a cap, cover or screw that is removed from an opening so that the inflatable chamber may be deflated.
In one embodiment, the float device 20 may additionally include an over pressure valve 34. In instances where the float 22 becomes over inflated or where the automatic inflation system accidentally inflates the float 22 while stored in a folded configuration and in a location that does not allow for the folded float to expand during accidental inflation, the over pressure valve 34 will release some of the gas from the internal chambers to prevent damage to the float device 20. Non-limiting examples of over pressure valves are also commercially available from Halkey-Roberts Corporation. In one alternative, embodiment the over pressure valve may be combined with anyone of, the manual, deflation or automatic inflation valve. An example of a combined inflation and relief valve is described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,021,326, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto. In one non-limiting exemplary embodiment all of the contemplated valves are located on the inflation system platform 25.
Referring now to
During a pumping operation, water moving into the strainer 42 or hose 50 may create a vortex (illustrated by the dashed lines 51 in
The diameter of the top and bottom surfaces 23, 24 of the float 22 is wide relative to the distance between the top and bottom surfaces 23, 24. For example, the float may have a diameter in the range of approximately 18 to approximately 48 inches, and a height in the range of about 4 inches to about 12 inches. Accordingly, the inflated float will have a wide foot print with a low profile in order to cover a large surface area. Additionally, in embodiments where the float 22 includes a plurality of concentric internal chambers, the volume of the outer chamber 26 is larger than the other internal chambers, which ensures that the bottom surface 24 of the outer internal chamber 26 will remain in contact with the water 10. This will ensure that the bottom surface of the outermost chamber remains in contact with the surface of the water in order to prevent the formation of a vortex funnel. In an embodiment where the float 22 includes a plurality of internal chambers, the volume of the outer chamber 26 may be approximately 1.2 to 1.5 times the volume of any of the other internal chambers. This difference in volume ensures that the bottom surface of the outermost chamber remains in contact with the surface of the water in order to prevent the formation of a vortex funnel. In other words, by having a larger outer chamber volume in combination with inflated inner chambers, the weight of the hose being secured to attachment feature 40 will not cause the float to fold or crumple upon itself in a manner that would allow a vortex to be formed such that air would be drawn into the hose. In one embodiment, this larger volume is provided by having the outer wall of the outer chamber sufficiently spaced from the wall separating the outer chamber and the inner chambers. Still further, this larger volume may be achieved by configuring the outer chamber to have a larger height and width than any of the other inner chambers. Alternatively, only the height of the outer chamber is higher. Of course, the aforementioned ranges and configurations are provided as examples and the numerous embodiments of the present invention are not intended to be so limited unless specifically claimed.
In yet another alternative, the outer chamber 26 may have a height and width greater than the inner chambers 28 and 30 and chamber 28 may have a height greater than that of chamber 30. In yet another configuration chamber 30 may have a width greater than chamber 28.
In yet another configuration, the chambers 26, 28 and 30 are slightly spaced from each other and are surrounded by outer layer 29. In this embodiment, fluid coupling is provided via one way valves 27 which may or may not include a portion of a conduit between respective chambers. Alternatively and as mentioned above, each of the chambers may be fluidly isolated from each other and have their own respective inflation system platform 25 that may include any combination of the aforementioned valves.
Still further and in yet another alternative embodiment, the outermost chamber may be configured to be the only chamber that make direct contact with the surface of the water in order to prevent the vortex from drawing air into the hose. In another configuration, the outer chamber is higher and wider than the inner chamber or chambers in order to prevent the vortex and the chambers are surrounded by the outer skin 29. Alternatively, no outer skin employed.
In any of the aforementioned embodiments, the float may have an un-inflated or deflated configuration of less than 14 inches in width and less than 6 inches in height. Of course, the aforementioned ranges are provided as examples and the numerous embodiments of the present invention are not intended to be so limited unless specifically claimed.
While the invention has been described in detail in connection with only a limited number of embodiments, it should be readily understood that the invention is not limited to such disclosed embodiments. Rather, the invention can be modified to incorporate any number of variations, alterations, substitutions or equivalent arrangements not heretofore described, but which are commensurate with the spirit and scope of the invention. Additionally, while various embodiments of the invention have been described, it is to be understood that aspects of the invention may include only some of the described embodiments. Accordingly, the invention is not to be seen as limited by the foregoing description, but is only limited by the scope of the appended claims.
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