US3507321A - Clothing for cooling or heating body - Google Patents

Description

April 21, 1970 J. R. PALMA 3,507,321

CLOTHING FOR COOLING 0R HEATING BODY Filed March 22, 1968 INVENTOR.

JAMES R. PALMA.

BY F162 6 5 United States Patent US. Cl. 165-46 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Clothing for a part or all of a human being from the neck down having built-in heating coils for heating the body and built-in cooling conduits for cooling the body. Separate heating coils may be provided in different zones of the article of clothing so that a selected heating coil may be energized to heat a portion only of the body, and separate cooling conduits may similarly be provided in different zones of the article of clothing so that a selected cooling conduit may receive coolant to cool a portion only of the body. Temperature sensors, a temperature con troller, an electrical supply and a coolant source are associated with the heating coils and coolant conduits.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In the field of medicine, it is sometimes desirable to selectively heat or cool a portion of the body of a patient. For example, such selective heating or cooling may be needed to prepare a patient for surgery or to aid recovery from surgery, to break a high fever, or for treatment of arthritis to name a few examples. Selective heating or cooling of portions of the body may also be useful in space work, and other applications not yet Visualized.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an article of clothing having built-in heating coils and coolant conduits and means for selectively energizing the same. In a preferred embodiment, a full suit for covering all of the body from the neck down is provided, and separate heating coils and coolant conduits are built into difierent zones of the suit; for instance a heating coil and coolant conduit in each arm, one coil and conduit in each leg, one coil and conduit in the chest region, etc. The coils may be connected to a supply of electrical energy and the conduits may be connected to a source of coolant. Temperature sensors may be provided in each zone of the suit and connected to a temperature controller which actuates the electrical supply or coolant source ,as required. Switches may be provided in circuit with the coils for selecting a given coil to be energized, and valves may be provided in circuit with the conduits for selecting a given conduit to be actuated. Of course, the clothing need not cover the entire body for some applications. Thus, it is possible to provide just an arm covering with built-in heating and cooling means, or just a chest covering with built-in heating and cooling means, etc. However, it is believed that the use of a complete suit will be more practical for hospitals than stocking individual parts of a suit.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an article of clothing having built-in heating coils and cooling conduits.

Another object of the invention is to provide heating coils and cooling conduits in a suit with one coil and conduit being provided in each of several zones of the suit for selective heating and cooling of portions of a body.

A further object of the invention is to provide controls for automatically controlling the temperature of a particular zone of a suit having heating and cooling means in each of several zones thereof.

3,507,321 Patented Apr. 21, 1970 Other objects of this invention will appear in the following description and appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming apart of this specification wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views.

On the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a schematic diagram of a suit similar to underwear having built-in heating coils and cooling conduits along with an electrical supply for the heating coils, a coolant source for the conduits, a temperature controller and various connecting means; and

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary view of a small portion of the suit of FIGURE 1 showing how the heating coils and cooling conduits may be incorporated in the suit along with a temperature sensor. 1

Before explainingthe present invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, since the invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

As shown on the drawings:

An article of clothing in the form of a suit 10 similar to underwear is shown in FIGURE 1. This suit is shaped to fit the body of a human being and to completely cover the body from the neck down. Suit 10 may be provided with flaps 12 as shown extending down the arms and legs and extending through the pelvic and trunk regions up to the neck. Obviously, the flaps 12 can be opened to facilitate the donning of the suit by a person. Buttons 14 and button holes (not shown) may be provided along the flaps 12 for closing the flaps. It may be possible to use zippers rather than buttons for closing and opening the flaps.

Suit 10 has heating coils and cooling conduits built into it, and by way of example, this may be accomplished in the manner shown inFIGURE 2. A small portion 16 of suit 10 is shown in FIGURE 2 consisting of an inner layer 18 and an outer layer 20 of cloth. Between layers 18 and 20, there is padding material 22 which may be spun fibers. Embedded in the padding 22 between layers 18 and 20 are a plurality of flexible heating coils 24 and also a plurality of flexible cooling conduits 26, the ,coils and conduits being arranged in alternation as shown in FIGURE 2. Coils 24 are adapted to be energized electrically to produce heat for heating the body of the wearer, and conduits 26 are adapted to conduct coolant fluid through the suit to cool the body of they wearer. Either the coils or the conduits are selectively actuated at any given time.

Also. embedded in the padding material 22 is a temperature sensor 28 which in this embodiment is a thermistor. Sensor 28 has lead wires 30 for connecting it to a temperature controller as will be explained.

Referring again to FIGURE l, the suit 10 is divided into zones with each zone having a heating coil and a cooling conduit and at least one temperature sensor. The zones are right foot 32, left foot 34, right leg 36, left leg 37, pelvic region 38, trunk region 401, right arm 42,

left arm( 44, right hand 46, ,left hand 48 and neck region 50. Thus, it is possible to select a particular region and either heat that region or .cool it as required. For example, if it is necessary to heat the right *leg 36, the heating coil 24 incorporated within region 36 v is energized electrically and produces heat to heat up the right leg of the wearer. Obviously, if cooling of the right leg is desired, coolant fluid is supplied through the coolant conduit 26 in right leg region 36 in order to cool the right leg of the wearer.

" Electricity is supplied to the'heatingcoils in the various regions of the suit from an electrical supply 52. Coolant fluid is supplied to the conduits 26 of the various regions from a coolant'source 54. An example of suitable connections between the'co'ils and'conduits in the suit and the electrical supply '52 and coolant source 54 has been illustrated in FIGURE 1 by way of example, but it is to be understood that the "particular arrangement of connections is illustrative only. Electrical'supply 52' is connected by lines 56 and 58 to two buses 60 and 62. Lines 64 and 66 lead respectively from buses 60 and 62 to the heating coil 24 in the neck region 50." Line 64 includes a switch 68 which may be operated to make or break the circuit for energizing the heating coil in neck region50. Identical' lines 64 and 66 and switches 68 lead from buses 60 and 62 to the other regions 32-48 of suit 10. Thus, the switch 68 for any one ofthe'se regions may be selectively closed to complete the energizing circuit for that region.

' Referring to the provisions for cooling, lines 70 and 72 lead from coolant source 54 to a junction box 74 which is constructed to provide connections between lines 70 and 72 and the various branch lines leading to the individual zones of suit 10. Considering neck region 50 of suit 10 by way of example, lines 76 and 78 are connected at one end to junction box 74 and at the other end to the cooling conduit 26 in neck region 50. A valve 80 is provided in line 7 6 to allow opening and closing of the circuit represented by lines 76 and 78 together with the cooling conduit 26- in neck region 50. Identical lines 76 and 78 lead from junction box 74 to the cooling conduits 26 in'the'other regions 32-48 of suit 10, and valves 80 are provided for each of these circuits. Thus, it is possilile to select any one of these regions and supply coolant to it by opening the corresponding valve 80.

A temperature controller 82 is connected by line 84 to' coolant' source 54 and is connected by line 86 to electrical supply 52. The temperature controller acts like a thermostat, and actuates either the electrical supply or coolant source to produce heating or cooling of one of the zones of suit 10 as required. The temperature controller may be set for any temperature within a prede- 'terrnined range, say from 32 F. to 100 F., and will maintain the temperature of the selected zone at the preset temperature.

I Temperature controller 82 is connected by lines 88 and 90 toa pairof. buses 92 and 94. Considering again the neckv region 50 of suit 10 by way of example, a pair ofbranch lines 96 and 98 lead from buses 92 and 94 to the temperature, sensor 28 provided in neck region 50. Line Q 96 includes-a switch 1 which may be opened or closed to break or. make the temperature sensing circuit for neck region 50. Identical lines 96a'nd 98 and switches mm provided for each of the other regions 32-48. of the suit .10. Thus, by closing theswitch 100 for the particular-region of the suit which is to be heated or cooled,.and;by setting the temperaturevcontrol 82 for the desired,ternperature, the controller 82 will maintain the selected region at thedesired tenip'erature; 1

Obviously, ,ior some applications instead of making a complete suit as thesuit 10, it would be possible to make separate suit portions such as an arm, a leg, a foot etc.

provided with built-in heating and cooling means, and

use only thedesired portion. depending on What part of the body is to be heated oncooled. Howeventhis would require stocking of several different parts, and it is believed-more practical to make a complete suit which can electrical heating coils aflixed to layer means in said clothing means for heating the body portion covered by said clothing means, a supply of electricity, means for electrically connecting said heating coils to said supply of electricity, cooling conduits aflixed to layer means in said clothing means for conducting coolant through said clothing means to cool the body portion covered by said clothing means, a source of coolant, means for connecting said cooling conduits to said source of coolant, temperature control means including an electrical temperature sensor afiixed to layer means in said clothing means, a temperature controller, means for electrically connecting said temperature sensor to said temperature controller, and means for electrically connecting said temperature controller to said supply and said source to actuate said supply and said source in accordance with the heating or cooling needs of the body.

2. The article as claimed in claim 1 in which said clotl1 ing means fits substantially the entire body of a human being from the neck down.

3.. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which said heating coils comprise a plurality of different electrically separate heating coils provided respectively in different zones of said clothing means, said first-named electrical connecting means is adapted to energize said heating coils separately so that a selected heating coil may be energized to heat a portion only of the body, said cooling conduits comprise a plurality of difierent separate cooling conduits provided respectively in diiferent zones of said clothing means, and said conduit connecting means is adapted to supply coolant to said conduits separately so that a selected conduit may receive coolant to cool a portion only of the body.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3 in which each of said zones of said clothing means has a temperature sensor therein for connection by said electrical connecting means therefor to said temperature controller for regulating the temperature in said selected zone.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4 in which said electrical connecting means for said heating coils includes switch means in circuit with each of said coils for selectively making and breaking the same. 7 6.. The apparatus as claimed in claim 5 in which said electrical connecting means for said sensors includes switch means in circuit with each of said sensors for selectively making and breaking the same.

7; The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which said clothing means includes an inner cloth layer, an outer cloth layer, and padding between said layers with said heating coils and said cooling conduits embedded in said padding.

- 8. Apparatus for heating or cooling a selected zone of the body of a human being, comprising clothing means shaped to fit substantially the entire human body from the neck down, a plurality of electrically separate heating coils provided respectively in difierent zones of said clothing means and aflixed to layer means of said clothing means, a supply of electricity, means for electrically connecting-said heating coils in parallel to said supply for separate energization of said heating coils so that a selected heating coil may be energized to heat a portion only of the body, a plurality of different separate cooling conduits provided respectively in said different zones in said clothing means and affixed to layer means of said clothing means, a source of coolant fluid, means for connecting said cooling conduits in parallel to said coolant source so that said connecting means is adapted to supply coolant to said conduits separately to cool a portion only of the body, an electrical temperature sensor in each of said ditferent zones in said clothing means and ailixed to layer means of said clothing means, a temperature controller, means for electrically connecting said temperature sensors in parallel to said temperature controller so that temperature may be sensed in said selected zone and means 5 for electrically connecting said temperature controller to said supply and said source to actuate said supply and said source in accordance with the heating or cooling needs of the body in said selected zone.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6 3,007,473 11/1961 Jackson et al 128400 3,074,410 1/1963 Foster 126-210 X 3,132,688 5/1964 NoWak 126204 X 0 MEYER PERLIN, Primary Examiner T. W. STREULE, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

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