Asset Protection Method and Apparatus

Abstract

A method for removing accumulated snow, ice, or other solid material from the exterior of an asset protection apparatus is disclosed. The asset protection apparatus comprises at least one interior layer contacting an asset surface; a first inflatable layer affixed to said interior layer, a second inflatable layer affixed to said first inflatable layer, wherein said first and second inflatable layers each contain a plurality of inflatable cells mechanically and fluidly connected to one another, and wherein each cell is capable of inflation and expansion and deflation; and at least one exterior layer affixed to said second inflatable layer; wherein said first inflatable layer is inflated and expanded to fragment and remove a substance accumulated on said exterior layer. Alternatively, the second inflatable layer may be inflated and expanded to fragment and remove a substance accumulated on said exterior layer.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]Applicant states that this utility patent application claims priority from U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11 / 108,595 under 35 U.S.C. § 120 and is a divisional application of said utility patent application, which was filed on Apr. 18, 2005 and is incorporated by reference herein.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention relates to methods and apparatuses to cover and protect assets, including aircraft, motor vehicles, marine vehicles, and stationary assets. The method and apparatus eliminates many safety and environmental hazards associated with aircraft, marine vehicles, and motor vehicles parked or tied down and exposed to the elements, pests, and intruders. The asset protection apparatus described herein may be attached to a ground surface for protection of stationary assets and articles under the apparatus, or it may be attached to only the asset itself.STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT[0003]No ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0020]An exterior layer may be employed wherein the exterior layer forms the outermost surface of the apparatus. The exterior layer may consist of several different materials to achieve the functional characteristics the user desires. For example, the exterior layer may be made a material that is water resistant, UV reflective, heat resistant, abrasion resistant, and oil resistant. However, if no one material possesses all the properties the user desires, several different materials may be secured together and oriented to achieve the characteristics the user desires, thereby creating an exterior layer that possesses all the characteristics needed. In many applications the material in the exterior layer should be sufficiently flexible to allow for easy installation and removal of the apparatus, and sufficiently durable and strong to resist damage and / or penetration from hailstones, or other elements that could damage the asset. In applications where the apparatus is form fitted to a specific asset or in applications where the apparatus is fashioned as a blanket for protecting stationary assets, the exterior layer does not need to be flexible.

[0021]The different layers described above, when selected according to the needs of the user and secured together in the orientation and number appropriate for the particular application, comprise an individual module. Individual modules may be secured to other modules so that the inflatable layer, interior layer, exterior layer, and / or thermal layer from one module communicate with the respective layer of another module. Individual modules may be sized and shaped to fit specific assets, and, depending on the particular application, the apparatus may be fabricated to protect the asset from all the possible damaging elements previously identified.

[0022]The particular layers and / or modules of any one embodiment may be secured to other respective layers and / or modules so that the different layers and / or modules may be easily separated for other layers and / or modules. This ensures that one layer of a module may be removed and / or repaired without the need to replace or discard the other layers comprising that module; and it also ensures that one module of the asset protection apparatus may be repaired or replaced without the need to replace or discard the other layers. Alternatively, in a different embodiment, the layers may be laminated together so they may not be separated, thereby requiring the replacement of all layers of a particular module if one layer should fail.

Problems solved by technology

Many vehicles, including aircraft, are expensive and vulnerable to deterioration and / or damage from exposure to the elements and destructive weather phenomena.

Vehicles stored outdoors are exposed to at least four separate and distinct weather concerns that may cause instant damage or long-term deterioration to the vehicle.

Exposure to the elements without protection may lead to at least one of the following: (1) an increase the risk of unsafe operation; (2) damage to the vehicle and its components; (3) reduction in the value of the vehicle; and, (4) contamination of the fuel supply.

Valuable assets such as aircraft, land and marine vehicles, and stationary assets are also susceptible to theft.

Ultraviolet (“UV”) rays from the sun damage paint surfaces, glass, Plexiglas, and exterior appendages such as antennas, lights, and lenses.

An unprotected vehicle exposed to UV rays for any period of time will experience subtle but expensive UV deterioration, which reduces the vehicle's value.

The constant thermal change caused by the heating and cooling during the normal daily, weekly, and / or yearly temperature variations that is subsequently imparted to the metal, composite material, carbon fiber, paint, or other material introduces stress to the exterior of the vehicle or stationary asset, fades the paint, and reduces the integrity and life of the asset.

Thermal changes may cause expensive deterioration and damage to any asset, whether vehicles or stationary assets.

This extreme heat may damage and / or reduce the functional life of the avionics and other equipment, cause the interior to fade, and reduce the value of the aircraft.

The negative consequences of exposure to heat are amplified with simultaneous exposure to sunlight, which may also shorten the life of the sophisticated and expensive navigational equipment and fade the interior of any vehicle left unprotected due to the UV rays.

The UV and thermal damage to vehicles or stationary assets may be dramatic and expensive to repair.

Unprotected assets are also subject to damage and deterioration from thunderstorms and hailstorms.

Specifically, the exterior of an aircraft is typically constructed with materials that are lightweight, such as aluminum, which may be less durable than other materials when subjected to the impact of hailstones or other stimuli during thunderstorms.

Thunderstorms are unpredictable and may culminate in a short time, and the damage a thunderstorm or hailstorm may inflict upon an asset may damage it beyond repair in a matter of moments.

Many times hail damage renders aircraft unsafe for flight and / or greatly reduces the value of the aircraft.

Furthermore, hailstorm damage to an aircraft changes the aerodynamics of the aircraft.

This situation is unsafe and introduces numerous opportunities for accident, injury, and death.

Also, thunderstorms and hailstorms may damage the windscreen, radar dome, radar unit, antennas, and other appendages that are necessary for safe flight.

The cost of repair or replacement is extremely expensive, and until the aircraft is repaired, it must be removed from service.

Similar damage may occur to other vehicles or stationary assets stored outdoors when subjected to hailstorms or thunderstorms.

Exposure to precipitation increases the possibility of rain water leaking past the fuel filler caps and migrating into the fuel tanks.

Rain water contamination of the fuel tanks is a serious and persistent problem that may result in catastrophic failure of engine components.

Animal nests and bird droppings not expediently removed may cause deterioration of painted surfaces and corrosion of the structural elements of the asset, and may restrict the proper movement of the controls and control surfaces of vehicles.

Nesting materials also pose a fire hazard as the material is often flammable.

Freezing rain, frost, ice, and snow are also detrimental to many assets.

For example, flying an aircraft with freezing rain, frost, ice, or snow on the wings, fuselage, or the horizontal and vertical stabilizers is contrary to federal regulations and may result in injury or death due to an accident.

Operating outside the limitations established by the pilot's operating handbook is unsafe and introduces numerous opportunities for accident, injury, and death.

Freezing rain, frost, ice, or snow on the aircraft may restrict the aircraft from generating the necessary lift required to take off and maintain altitude.

It is costly and time consuming to remove the freezing rain, frost, ice, or snow from the aircraft.

However, if the aircraft is towed into a heated building or left in the sun to melt the substance, unless all the water is removed, it may refreeze at altitude, which could render the controls inoperable.

Besides causing dangerous flight conditions, heavy snow loads on the wings or fuselage of an aircraft may cause structural damage to the aircraft.

Also, extreme cold weather may render the control cables and moving parts, which affect the control surfaces, rigid and difficult to move, introducing excessive wear and the possibility for damage to the control mechanisms of the aircraft.

Because the reflective material is on the inside of the window, a great deal of heat may build up between the reflective material and the inside of the window, causing great stress to the window and reducing its life.

No product addresses the safety and protection of assets exposed to the elements of sunlight, heat, thunderstorms, hail, rain, fuel contamination, bird and animal nesting and droppings, freezing rain, frost, ice, snow, environmental hazards, vandalism, and extreme cold conditions.