Filtering face-piece respirator having welded indicia hidden in pleat

Abstract

A filtering face-piece respirator 10 that comprises a harness 14 and a mask body 12 that has a pleats 21. The mask body 12 has an indicia 19 located within the pleat 21 in at least a partially non-visible location when the pleat 21 is folded. The indicia 19 is made from a weld pattern and is fully visible when the pleat 21 is unfolded. The fully visible indicia 19 provides an indication to the wearer that the mask body is in its proper unfolded condition. The indicia 19 also includes welded lines that extend normally across the pleat to improve collapse resistance.

Description

[0001]The present invention pertains to a filtering face-piece respirator that has a welded indicia hidden in a pleat of the filtering structure. The welded indicia becomes visible when the pleat is opened into its in use configuration.BACKGROUND[0002]Respirators are commonly worn over a person's breathing passages for at least one of two common purposes: (1) to prevent impurities or contaminants from entering the wearer's respiratory system; and (2) to protect other persons or things from being exposed to pathogens and other contaminants exhaled by the wearer. In the first situation, the respirator is worn in an environment where the air contains particles that are harmful to the wearer, for example, in an auto body shop. In the second situation, the respirator is worn in an environment where there is risk of contamination to other persons or things, for example, in an operating room or clean room.[0003]A variety of respirators have been designed to meet either (or both) of these p...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0008]The present invention is beneficial in that the fully visible indicia provides an indication to the wearer that the mask body is in its properly unfolded condition. When the indicia is hidden or non-visible, the wearer is, in effect, notified that the mask body is not in its proper open configuration for use. The wearer can then make adjustments to the mask body to cause the pleat to become fully opened so that the full surface area of the mask body can be available for filtration. The indicia, because it is welded into the pleated filtering structure also assists in keeping the pleat in its open configuration once expanded. The weld pattern can provide a beam-type affect across the pleat which assists in keeping it open.Glossary

Problems solved by technology

These respirators therefore cannot be folded flat for storage and shipping.

If the mask is so opened properly, for example, if some of the pleats remain closed, the respirator may not make full use of its available surface area for filtering.

Such a situation could cause an increase in pressure drop or a decrease in product service life.

The mask body also may not be fully spaced from the wearer's face, making the respirator touch the wearer's face, causing comfort issues.

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