Emergency escape breathing apparatus

Claim 1

In an emergency escape and throw-away breathing apparatus adapted to be supported by and freely depend from the head of the wearer, the improvement comprising in combination: (a) a convexly-curved mask having head band means for attachment around the head of the wearer and of relatively rigid and transparent plastic to form a sealed chamber with the face of the wearer and being adapted to receive a breathable atmosphere containing elemental oxygen and having pressure-relieving valve means in the mask communicating with the ambient atmosphere; (b) a breathable atmospheric source comprising a pressurized container of an elemental oxygen-containing gas; (c) a gas flow control assembly connected thereto and in axial alignment therewith and including a pressure-reducing, stress-resisting and regulating gas reservoir bag having an inlet at the lower axial end and an outlet at the axial top, and further including a valve structure at the lower axial end affixed to and normally closing gas flow from the mouth of said pressurized container and at the upper axial end affixed and for gas flow to the inlet of said reservoir bag so as with said container to present a fixed, permanently open and straight gas flow path, said valve structure including rupturable valve closure means therewithin and external and visible finger-accessible and finger-engagable operating means intermediate the gas container and said reservoir bag and adapted to serve as the operative element for rupture of said valve closure means for valve opening and gas feed to said inlet of the reservoir bag; and (d) a flexible and kink-proof hose section connecting said face mask adjacent the lower axial end thereof to said reservoir bag at the outlet thereof and adapted to feed gas into the said gas mask chamber, said kink-proof hose section serving to act as a yieldable folding area when the apparatus is in inoperative and folded and stored position whereby the gas flow-path retains its open and unrestricted condition, said kink-proof hose section further serving to act when the apparatus is operational so as to render the gas flow path yieldable to override ensnaring obstacles during wear and also to contribute to the unidirectional and substantially straight-line gas flow-path to the mask and to the substantially incompressible structure of said flow path.