Life Jacket with Automatic Sensor-Activated Inflatable Buoyancy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing life jackets and swimming aids often fail to provide sufficient automatic emergency buoyancy, especially for unconscious individuals, leading to discomfort and restricted movement due to their rigid design and unreliable activation mechanisms, which can result in inadequate support during emergencies.
Innovation Solution
Integration of an additional rescue device within life jackets or buoyancy aids that uses sensors to automatically activate inflatable body elements, providing increased buoyancy exceeding 150N without manual operation, ensuring the head remains above water and maintaining stability through a collar construction, with a control unit managing the inflation based on predefined limit values.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If life jackets use rigid solid buoyancy aids, then maximum buoyancy is provided, but the design becomes large and restricts movement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by transitioning from static solid buoyancy aids to dynamic inflatable body elements. The life-saving device uses inflatable structures that can be deployed when needed, allowing the garment to adapt its buoyancy characteristics dynamically rather than maintaining constant rigid buoyancy, thus providing both reliability and movement freedom.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements parameter changes by using inflatable body elements whose volume and buoyancy can be changed from a deflated state to an inflated state. This allows the buoyancy parameter to be adjusted based on emergency conditions, providing maximum buoyancy when required while maintaining flexibility and comfort during normal wear.
2Reliability
If automatic sensor activation is used, then emergency response is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the self-service principle by incorporating sensors that automatically detect emergency conditions and trigger inflation without requiring user intervention. The system monitors itself and activates the rescue function autonomously when predefined criteria are met, ensuring reliable emergency response while minimizing the complexity of manual operation systems.
3Ease of operation
If inflatable body elements are used, then comfort and movement freedom are improved, but automatic activation reliability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback by using sensors that continuously monitor conditions and provide information to the control system. This feedback mechanism ensures that the inflatable body elements are activated only when actual emergency conditions are detected, maintaining high reliability while allowing the use of comfortable inflatable structures instead of rigid buoyancy aids.
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 ensures automatic, emergency-safe buoyancy, keeping the person afloat and head above water without user intervention, while minimizing discomfort and allowing for greater freedom of movement, as the inflatable elements are designed to provide necessary support without being immediately activated upon water contact.
Implementation Method 1
which are only triggered automatically by a sensor element on contact with water
Implementation Method 2
A compressed gas is provided for this purpose, which is released into the body element upon triggering
Implementation Method 3
providing increased buoyancy exceeding 150N
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
The invention addresses the basic problem of providing a lifesaving means 1 for a life jacket RW, wherein said life jacket offers a higher degree of buoyancy in an emergency. This is achieved in principle by inserting an additional lifesaving means 1 into a life jacket RW and activating the additional lifesaving means 1 via sensors S in conjunction with a control unit 9 or by manual actuation, such that the buoyancy is greater overall than that of the life jacket RW itself. Buoyancy that is reliable in an emergency is present if the body of a person can be kept above water without additional movement by the person. Depending on the clothing worn, the buoyancy is greater than 150N. Triggering preferably occurs automatically.