Integrated Hood Mask with Tether for Quick Donning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional face masks are inconvenient as they need to be carried separately and can be easily lost or forgotten, leading to inadequate protection against airborne pathogens and unexpected weather conditions, especially in situations requiring quick donning.
Innovation Solution
A hooded garment with a built-in or attachable mask portion that includes a breathable filtration layer and tethering system, allowing it to be worn as both a hood and a mask, eliminating the need for a separate mask and enabling quick conversion between configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional face masks are carried separately, then protection against airborne pathogens is provided, but the masks can be easily lost or forgotten
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines a face mask with a hooded garment to create a single integrated article. The mask portion is constructed as part of the hood, eliminating the need to carry a separate mask. This merging ensures the mask is always available when the hood is worn while removing the burden of separate mask carrying and the risk of forgetting or losing it.
Solution Approach 2:
The hooded garment is designed to serve multiple functions: it can be worn as a traditional hood for head coverage and protection from elements, or converted into a face mask by positioning the mask portion over the nose and mouth. This multi-functionality allows one article to replace both a hood and a separate face mask, improving reliability of protection while maintaining ease of operation.
2Productivity
If a separate face mask is carried, then protection is available when needed, but quick access is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
By merging the mask and hood into a single integrated article, the patent eliminates the need to separately carry and quickly retrieve a mask. The mask portion is already attached to the hood, so when the hood is worn, the mask is immediately positioned and ready for use, enabling quick donning without the complexity of managing separate articles.
Solution Approach 2:
The mask portion is pre-attached to the hood in a position that allows it to be quickly positioned over the nose and mouth. This preliminary arrangement of the mask on the hood means that when protection is needed, the user simply needs to don the hood, and the mask is already in place, eliminating the time required to separately handle and position a mask.
3Reliability
If the hood is designed with a built-in mask portion, then constant mask availability is achieved, but the hood structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the mask portion directly into the hood structure, combining two protective articles into one. This merging achieves constant mask availability when the hood is worn while managing structural complexity by using the existing hood materials and construction methods, adding only the necessary mask layer and attachment features.
Solution Approach 2:
The hood is designed with multi-functionality, serving both as head coverage and as a face mask. By making the hood itself capable of dual use, the patent avoids adding excessive complexity while achieving reliable mask availability. The same garment structure provides both hood and mask functions through deliberate design of the mask portion and its attachment.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides constant availability and quick access to a protective mask, reducing the risk of losing or forgetting protection and addressing the need for immediate mask use in various situations, enhancing safety and convenience for both adults and children.
Implementation Method 1
The mask portion can include a breathable filtration layer. The breathable filtration layer can include one or more layers of the hood and/or a filtration material.
Data Source
AI summary
A hooded garment including a tether that enables the hood to be secured in place in a mask configuration with a breathable filtration material disposed over the nose and mouth area of a wearer's face and secured in place with a tether attached to the ear of the wearer.