Fluent material dispensing apparatus and method of use

BACKGROUND

Extinguishing an automobile engine fire can be a very difficult and nerve-wracking task. Difficult because the fire may be burning under the closed and latched hood of the vehicle so spraying water or other fire retardant on the surface of the vehicle is ineffective to douse the flames. Nerve-wracking because of the financial loss and the possibility of imminent explosion if the burning is allowed to continue. Moreover, such fires often occur because of engine overheating while the vehicle is being driven on a busy thoroughfare, such as a freeway. The motorist is forced to pull over to the side of the highway in a dangerous location, is usually helpless to extinguish the fire, and must nervously await the arrival of the fire truck.

Upon arrival at the scene, the fire personnel must first gain access to the area under the hood before the fire can be controlled. Since the hood is usually down and latched, the fire makes manually releasing the latch very difficult and perhaps impossible. In the past, therefore, the firefighter has used an ax to chop an opening in the hood through which the nozzle of a fire hose can then be inserted and retardant released. This multi-step operation naturally delays the end objective of spaying fire retardant on the blaze, further exposing the firefighter and others to danger and allowing the fire to continue its damage.

Certain of the above described problems are experienced in fighting fires in inaccessible areas other than under the hood of a vehicle. Some of these problems exist when fires occur within the passenger compartment of a locked vehicle or a locked trunk; in a locked mobile home or truck trailer; in an aircraft; and even more commonly in a building where a fire is burning between walls of the building. Several patents disclose equipment for smothering a fire in such inaccessible areas. However, none of the known devices is sufficiently compact, portable and self-contained to make it ideal for extinguishing a serious but small fire burning in an automobile engine under the closed hood of the vehicle.

SUMMARY

A portable apparatus and method for dispensing fire retardant or other materials into relatively inaccessible areas are provided. The apparatus and method are particularly suited for releasing an extinguishing agent on a fire that is burning under the hood of a vehicle or behind a wall or other barrier separating the fire from the firefighter or for dispensing other materials into other inaccessible areas. The apparatus includes a tank and a nozzle rigidly attached to the tank. The attachment may be either separable by securing the nozzle to a jacket that fits around the tank, or integral by welding the nozzle to the tank. The tank, which conveniently may be the tank of a standard portable fire extinguisher that contains a fluent fire retardant, or another tank containing another fluent material, and has an outlet through which the material can be dispensed. The nozzle extends from the tank and provides a penetrating end, a fluid-conducting passageway having an outlet opening through the penetrating end, and an inlet connected to the outlet of the tank. In use to extinguish a fire, the nozzle is manually thrust through the sheet metal of the vehicle's hood, or other barrier, using the weight of the tank to penetrate the barrier with the nozzle and to place its outlet in the region of the fire, or other inaccessible area, whereupon a valve on the tank is opened to release fire retardant onto the fire or to dispense the other material into the area.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for dispensing fire retardant and other materials in relatively inaccessible areas.

Another object is provide a method and apparatus for extinguishing automobile fires.

A further object is to lessen the physical dangers and loss of property associated with fighting a vehicle fire.

An additional object is to provide a compact, portable and self-contained apparatus for fighting an engine fire burning under the closed hood of a vehicle.

Yet another object is to provide a method and apparatus that allows conventional portable fire-fighting equipment to be used to extinguish a serious but relatively small fire behind a barrier.

A still further object is to provide an apparatus that adapts a conventional portable fire extinguisher tank so that the tank can be used to assist in thrusting a retardant-emitting nozzle through a barrier behind which a fire is burning so that retardant may be sprayed onto the fire.

Yet an additional object is to provide a method and apparatus for extinguishing fires in relatively inaccessible areas that allows a conventional, portable, fire extinguisher to be quickly adapted for penetrating barriers, such as a vehicle hood, behind which a fire, such as an engine fire, is burning, but allows the fire extinguisher to be otherwise used in the usual manner for other types of fires.

A further object is to provide a holder for a conventional fire extinguisher that facilitates use of the extinguisher in many fire-fighting tasks.

Another object is to dispense fire retardant or other materials behind or underneath a barrier with a portable dispenser that can punch a hole in the barrier and simultaneously insert a dispensing nozzle on the opposite side of the barrier from the user.

A feature of the present invention is a fluid-conducting, barrier-penetrating nozzle attached to a fire extinguisher tank.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reference to the following description, accompanying drawings, and appended claims.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1

is an isometric side elevation of one embodiment of a fire extinguishing apparatus in accordance with the principals of the present invention.

FIG. 2

is a somewhat enlarged, isometric side elevation of the fire extinguishing apparatus of

FIG. 1

looking at the apparatus from a position at the left of FIG.

1

.

FIG. 3

is a side elevation of the fire extinguishing apparatus of

FIGS. 1 and 2

at the scale of

FIG. 1

but looking at the apparatus from a position at the right of

FIG. 1

or the left of FIG.

2

.

FIG. 4

is a side elevation of the fire extinguishing apparatus of

FIGS. 1-3

looking at the apparatus from a position at the left of FIG.

3

.

7

FIG. 5

is a somewhat enlarged, top plan view of the apparatus shown in

FIGS. 1-4

, as viewed when looking down on the apparatus from a position at the right of

FIG. 3

or the front of FIG.

4

.

FIG. 6

is a somewhat reduced, bottom plan view of the embodiment of the apparatus shown in

FIGS. 1-5

.

FIG. 7

is somewhat reduced, isometric computer-generated wire-frame view of the holder including the jacket, handles and penetrating nozzle of the apparatus shown in

FIGS. 1-6

without the fire extinguishing tank fitted within the jacket, and since it is a wire-frame drawing showing interior features of the holder although such features would be normally hidden from view.

FIG. 8

is a side elevation of the holder as viewed from the right side of FIG.

7

and as viewed from the same angle as

FIG. 3

although on a scale reduced from FIG.

3

.

FIG. 9

is a computer-generated wire-frame view of a side elevation of the holder as viewed from the right of FIG.

8

and shown as transparent to see internal details.

FIG. 10

is a side elevation on a reduced scale of another embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention, showing internal features in dashed lines.

FIG. 11

is an enlarged side elevation of a variation of the embodiment of FIG.

10

.

FIG. 12

is a side elevation of an automobile schematically indicating the existence of a fire burning under the closed hood of the vehicle and showing the fire extinguishing apparatus of the first embodiment of the present invention resting on the hood with the penetrating nozzle projected through the hood and spraying fire extinguishing material into the area of the fire.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

One embodiment of a portable fire extinguishing apparatus incorporating the principles of the present invention is generally indicated by the numeral

20

in

FIGS. 1-4

. In general, the apparatus of the first embodiment includes a fire extinguisher

22

, a jacket

24

, and a penetrating nozzle

26

. Each of these elements of the apparatus and their relationship will now be described in more detail.

The fire extinguisher

22

(

FIGS. 1-5

) is a conventional portable fire extinguisher that may use various types of fire extinguishing agents. Although not so limited, one such conventional fire extinguisher that may be used with the present invention is made by Ansul Incorporated of Marinette, Wis., sold under the trademark ANSUL® SENTRY®, containing ten pounds of FORAY® multi-purpose dry chemical extinguisher. Whether the fire extinguisher

22

is of the ANSUL brand, or of another brand, it includes a tank

30

, having a circular bottom wall

32

, a cylindrical side wall

34

, a frusto-conical top wall

36

, and a neck

38

terminating in a upper opening. By way of example and not limitation, and insofar as the ANSUL fire extinguisher is concerned, the side wall is approximately 5⅝″ in diameter and approximately 14½″ in length. Although similar dimensions as these are common for this conventional fire extinguisher, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to any particular dimensions and that such dimension are given herein only by way of providing a specific example of one embodiment of the invention.

The conventional fire extinguisher

22

(

FIGS. 1

,

2

and

5

) also includes a valve

46

having a fitting

48

that is threaded on the neck

38

of the tank

30

and an outlet

50

. The valve also includes a stationary valve handle

52

and a pivotally moveable valve handle

54

. A pressure gauge

56

is conventionally connected to the valve. A flexible hose

60

has an upper end

62

that is threaded into the outlet of the valve and a lower end

64

.

The tank

30

is filled with a dry chemical fire extinguishing material or other fire extinguishing agent, not shown in

FIGS. 1-4

but indicated as being ejected from the nozzle

26

in FIG.

12

. When so filled with the extinguishing or fire retardant agent, the fire extinguisher weighs approximately 10 to 15 pounds. Again, the invention is not limited to this or any other particular weight, although the weight of the fire extinguisher does enhance the use of the apparatus, as will be described.

The jacket

24

of the first embodiment of the fire extinguishing apparatus

20

is shown assembled with the fire extinguisher

22

in

FIGS. 1-6

but is shown separated from the fire extinguisher in

FIGS. 7-9

, to which attention is now directed. This jacket may also be referred to as a container or a housing or simply as a mounting device for the fire extinguisher

22

and the penetrating nozzle

26

. The jacket is of rigid construction, preferably metallic and preferably of 300 series stainless steel having a 0.87 inch thickness, although the invention is not limited to stainless steel and other rigid fire resistant materials may be employed. The jacket has a flat circular bottom wall

70

preferably providing a rim

72

. A side wall

74

extends upwardly from the bottom wall along the generatrix of a cylinder. The side wall has a front surface

76

, rear side

78

, side surfaces

80

, a top edge

82

terminating in an upper opening

84

. As used with the specific fire extinguisher

22

made by the Ansel Corporation, the side wall has a length of approximately 12¼ inch measured from the bottom wall to the top edge of the side wall. Furthermore, the upper opening has a diameter of approximately 6 inches. Again, the invention is not limited to these particular dimensions, although it is to be noted that the diameter of the upper opening and thus the side wall must be large enough to accommodate a sliding fit of the tank

30

. Furthermore, the length of the side wall is preferably slightly shorter than the length of the side wall

34

of the tank.

In order to reduce the weight of the jacket

24

, the side wall

74

has a cut-away indicated at

90

(

FIGS. 1

,

2

and

5

-

8

) at the rear and side surfaces

78

and

80

. A T-shaped front insulating pad

97

is secured to the inside front surface of the jacket with upper portions of the pad extending partially around the upper mounting segment and with a lower portion extending downwardly into part of the lower mounting section of the jacket. Also, a bottom insulating pad

98

is adhered to the inside surface of the bottom wall

70

of the jacket

4

. This cut-away divides the jacket into an upper section

92

and a lower section

94

. The upper section is split at the rear surface

78

of the side wall thereby providing a gap

96

. In contrast, the lower section is continuous circumferentially of the side wall.

The penetrating nozzle

26

(

FIGS. 1

,

2

, and

5

-

8

) is an elongated rigid tube that is securely fastened, as by welding, to the front surface

76

of the jacket

24

. As thus seen in

FIG. 7

, the nozzle has an intermediate attaching portion

100

that is rigidly secured, as by welding, to the front surface of the jacket adjacent to the bottom wall

70

. The nozzle also includes a penetrating end potion

102

projecting downwardly from the bottom wall

70

and the rim

72

in perpendicular relationship to the bottom wall. This penetrating end portion terminates in a sharp conical tip

104

. In a preferred embodiment of the nozzle, the tip of the penetrating end portion is approximately 3¼″ from the bottom wall, although the invention is not limited to this spacing. The nozzle also includes an upper coupling end portion

106

that is preferably slightly bent outwardly from the attaching portion so as to be in slightly spaced relation to the front surface

76

of the jacket.

The nozzle

26

(

FIGS. 1

,

2

. and

5

-

8

) includes an internal longitudinal fluid passageway extending from the coupling end portion

106

to the tip

104

of the penetrating end portion

102

. The nozzle provides a plurality of outlet apertures

112

located circumferentially of the nozzle adjacent to the tip and communicating with the passageway. Furthermore, the coupling end portion terminates in an inlet

114

. A quick-connect or other suitable coupling

120

includes a female part connected to the coupling end portion

106

in communication with the inlet

114

and a male part

19

connected to the lower end

64

of the hose

60

.

Bracket-shaped handles

130

(

FIGS. 1

,

2

,

7

and

8

) have upper and lower mounting segments

132

and

134

rigidly secured, as by welding, to the opposite side surfaces

80

of the upper and lower sections

92

and

94

, respectively, of the jacket

24

. The handles also include intermediate holding segments that join their respective upper and lower mounting segments and bridge the space resulting from the cut-away

90

. As best shown in

FIGS. 2

,

5

and

6

, the handles thus project outwardly from the opposite side surfaces of the jacket and slightly rearwardly therefrom. In the embodiment of the jacket

24

used with the Ansel type of fire extinguisher

22

, the weight of the jacket, the pads

97

and

98

, the nozzle

26

, and the handles

130

is approximately 5 to 8 pounds. Again, this particular weight is not a limitation on the invention.

The fire extinguisher

22

and the jacket

24

are assembled to provide the fire extinguishing apparatus

20

, as shown in

FIGS. 1-5

. An adjustable band

140

is fitted around the upper section

92

of the jacket

24

, and a threaded fastener

142

interconnects opposite ends of the bands; alternatively, an over-center buckle may be used to provide for rapid assembly or disassembly of the extinguisher and the jacket. As such, the fire extinguisher is slidably fitted within the side wall

74

of the jacket through the upper opening

84

with the hose

60

hanging downwardly in front of the jacket. The tank is slid into the jacket until the rim

33

on the bottom wall

32

rests on the bottom insulating pad

98

. It is to be noted that the split upper section may be slightly expanded to accommodate insertion of the fire extinguisher tank

30

. The coupling

120

is connected so that the hose is in communication with the nozzle

26

. After the fire extinguisher is thus properly fitted within the jacket, the fastener

142

is tightened so that the tank is snugly held within the jacket. Thus, the jacket together with the nozzle, handles, and band, as a separate unit, may be considered as a holder or housing for the fire extinguisher, such holder or housing being generally indicated by the number

145

.

A second embodiment of the subject fire extinguishing apparatus is generally indicated by the number

150

in

FIGS. 10 and 11

. In this embodiment, both the fire extinguisher and the holder are combined into one self-contained unit. Thus, the second embodiment includes a tank or holder or housing

152

, all in one, containing a fire extinguishing agent, as before, and having an upper opening which is closed by a threaded cap

154

to facilitate refilling of the tank. A refill valve

156

is incorporated in the threaded cap, and a protective cap

158

is provided over the refill valve. A force-activated discharge valve

160

is provided in the lower end of the tank adjacent to its bottom wall.

An elongated penetrating nozzle

164

extends axially endwardly from the bottom wall of the tank and terminates in a sharp conical tip

166

. A stop plate

168

(

FIG. 10

only) projects radially outwardly from the nozzle intermediate the tank and the tip. The nozzle has a plurality of apertures

170

located in the portion of the nozzle between the stop plate and the tip. The nozzle also has a fluid passageway

172

extending longitudinally therethrough and in communication with the tank

152

when the discharge valve

160

is opened. A handle (

FIG. 10

only) or handles

180

(

FIG. 11

only) projects or project outwardly from the tank.

OPERATION AND METHOD OF USE

The subject fire extinguishing apparatus

20

or

150

may be part of the equipment used by a fire department, may be used by other trained fire-fighting personnel, or especially because of the simplicity of its construction, may even be owned and used by individual laypersons in ways similar to the ways ordinary portable fire extinguishers are used. In the description that follows, reference is made to use by a fire department, but this is by way of example only, it being understood that the invention lends itself to use by many other persons, as suggested above.

If the first embodiment

20

is used, the fire department may choose to maintain the apparatus in the assembled condition shown in

FIGS. 1-6

, or it may choose to keep the fire extinguisher

22

and the jacket

24

separate since they can be readily assembled if needed. If separate, the conventional fire extinguisher is available as always for use on small fires other than those burning in inaccessible areas such as under the hood of a vehicle. Of course, even if assembled, the fire extinguisher is available for such other uses, but then the extra weight of the holder

145

may not be desired. If the second embodiment

150

of the apparatus is used, it will of course already be fully assembled since it is a self-contained unit not intended for disassembly. In describing the method of using the apparatus, it will be assumed that the first embodiment is to be employed and that the tank

30

is kept separate from the jacket

24

when these two elements are not in use.

With particular reference to FIG.

12

. an automobile

200

is shown to illustrate the existence of a fire

202

burning in the engine

204

under the hood

206

of the vehicle. When the fire department receives the alarm that a vehicle is on fire, the firemen jump onto a fire truck and race to the scene. As the fire truck is traveling toward the burning vehicle, the fire extinguisher

22

is quickly assembled with the holder

145

in the manner described above, assuming their storage in disassembled condition. Thus, upon reaching the vehicle, the fire extinguishing apparatus

20

is in the condition shown in

FIGS. 1-6

and read), to use.

At the scene of the fire, the fireman grasps the handles

140

and carries the apparatus to the burning automobile

200

. Standing next to the hood

206

, the fireman lifts the apparatus over his head with the nozzle

26

pointed downwardly toward the hood. The fireman then thrusts the apparatus rapidly downwardly causing the tip

104

of the nozzle to penetrate or punch through the hood and the bottom wall

70

of the jacket

24

lo come to rest against the top of the hood. In this position, the apertures

112

of the nozzle are under the hood in the area of the fire. At that point, the fireman grasps the valve handles

52

and

54

and opens the valve

46

. This causes the fire extinguishing agent to be propelled under pressure from the tank

30

, through the hose

60

, into the penetrating nozzle

26

and out of the apertures

112

, as illustrated in FIG.

12

. As such, the fire retardant material is sprayed all over the area underneath the engine causing the material to smother the fire.

If the second embodiment

150

of the subject fire extinguishing apparatus is used, the handle

180

is grasped and the apparatus is swung downwardly causing the nozzle

164

to penetrate the hood of the vehicle, in a manner similar to that with regard to the first embodiment

20

. If the

FIG. 10

version is used, the stop

168

limits penetration of the nozzle. The impact of the nozzle against the hood causes the discharge valve

60

to open thereby releasing the fire retardant material through the nozzle and out of the apertures and into the area of the fire, in a manner similar to that discussed above with regard to the first embodiment.

Several advantages of the subject fire extinguishing apparatus

20

or

150

are to be noted. First, the apparatus is portable and integrated. either as the assembled extinguisher

22

and holder

145

of the first embodiment or the self-contained unit

150

of the second embodiment. Although the first embodiment needs to be assembled before used, such assembly can be accomplished in a matter of seconds. If not assembled, the conventional fire extinguisher is available for use in the normal manner. Thus, the holder

145

allows a conventional fire extinguisher to be readily adapted for use in extinguishing vehicle fires.

A significant advantage is also realized by combining a conventional fire extinguisher, as

22

, with the subject holder

145

. That is, a predetermined force is of course necessary to thrust the nozzle

26

through the sheet metal of the vehicle hood

206

. The subject invention allows the weight of the conventional fire extinguisher to be used in achieving the mass necessary to cause the nozzle to penetrate the hood. Although the precise weight of the disclosed embodiment is not limiting to the invention, the combined weight of the fire extinguisher and the holder is approximately 15 to 20 pounds. This weight can readily be lifted by the fireman or other firefighting person, raised above his or her head, then thrust downwardly whereupon this extra weight assists in projecting the nozzle through the vehicle hood.

With the assembled apparatus

20

or the self-contained apparatus

150

, the fire extinguishing method is carried out in one step. That is, with prior methods, either a hole for inserting a nozzle first had to be chopped in the hood with an ax before the nozzle could be inserted or, alternatively, a nozzle with a penetrating point first had to be thrust into the hood and thereafter connected to a source of fire extinguishing material. In the present invention, the tank and the nozzle are combined into one unit so that when the nozzle is punched through the hood, it is already connected to the tank and immediately ready to dispense fire retardant, the weight of the tank being used to assist in penetrating the vehicle hood.

Although the invention has been described above and is especially suited for fighting a vehicle fire, it will be understood that it may be used for extinguishing fires behind barriers other than the described vehicle hood, such as in a closed compartment of a vehicle or otherwise or behind a wall or under a floor of a building. In general, use of the subject apparatus in such applications minimizes danger to the firefighter and others and helps to minimize property loss because it saves valuable time in the ever-present task of applying fire retardant on a fire just as quickly as possible.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, various modifications, substitutions and equivalents may exist without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the present invention has been described by way of illustration and not limitation.