Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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This invention relates to decontamination units and
in particular a mobile decontamination unit which can be
readily transported to an emergency site which involves ~-
hazardous materials. This invention also relates to methods
for decontaminating persons using a mobile decontamination
unit.
With the wide spread use of hazardous chemicals, it
is increasingly important to provide a mobile unit that can be
readily transported to an emergency situation and can be
easily used. Further, it may be necessary in the future to
have a decontamination unit for any fire since many building
materials contain toxic substances and accordingly it may be
important for the fire and rescue personnel to go through a
decontamination process before returning to their respective
stations. It will be appreciated that the decontamination unit
might also be used by police departments, ambulance services, ;~
hydro companies, gas companies, work departments,
environmental agencies or transportation agencies since their
personnel may also become exposed in emergency or even routine
situations.
Some prior art references have recognized the need
of decontaminating personnel. For instance, U.S. Patent No.
4,796,311 issued January 10, 1989 to Shankman shows an intake
facility for use in conjunction with a hospital emergency
room. The facility i~ to provide a system to decontaminate
indlviduals prior to an individual mixing with the existing
emergency room facilities. This intake facility includes a
room for bagging the patient's clothing, a first shower room
where the patient is sprayed with a mixture of water and `~
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detergent, a second shower room where the patient is sprayed
with water, a drying room and a triage room.
Another device for decontaminating equipment and
personnel is shown in U.S. Patent No. 4,858,256 issued August
522, 1989 to Shankman. This patent shows a mobile
decontamination unit having a compartment for decontaminating
personnel and a separate compartment for decontaminating
equipment. The compartment for decontaminating personnel
includes an area for the personnel to strip off their clothes
10and store them in bins, a shower area and a drying off area.
Taken alone or in combination none of these prior
art patents show a decontamination unit which is mobile and
whlch lncludes a plurallty of compartments including a shower
compartment having a means for maintaining the shower
15compartment at a negative pressure so that the flow of
contaminated air out of the shower compartment is reduced.
The sub~ect inventlon provides a mobile
decontamination unit having at least one shower compartment,
a waiting compartment, and means for maintaining the one or
20more shower compartments at a negative air pressure.
In one aspect of the invention, there is provided a
mobile decontamination unit which includes a shower
compartment. The shower compartment has means for spraying
water onto a user and a drain located therein. There are
25means for providing water to spraying means and a storage tank
connected to the drain to store contaminated water from the
shower compartment. There is a waiting compartment connected
by a passageway to the shower compartment so as to permit the
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user to move from the shower compartment to the waiting room
without leaving the unit. There are means for maintaining the
shower compartment at a negative air pressure for reducing the
amount of contaminated air that leaves the shower compartment.
According to another aspect of the invention, a
mobile decontamination unit includes a plurality of
interconnected shower compartments each having means for
spraying water onto a user and a drain located therein, means
for providing water to said spraying means, a storage tank
connected to the drains, and means for maintaining the shower
compartments at a negative air pressure for reducing the
amount of contaminated air that leaves the shower
compartments.
In a preferred version, a changing section adjacent
the first shower compartment provides an area for removal of
clothing and/or equipment after a user has showered and left
the first shower compartment. The second shower compartment
i~ connected by a passageway to this changing section so as to
permit the user to move from the changing section to the
second shower compartment without leaving the unit.
According to a further aspect of the invention,
there is provided a method of decontaminating a person wearing
clothing using a mobile decontamination unit having at least
first and second shower compartments each provided with means
for spraying water onto a person, said unit having means for
providing water to said spraying means and means for
collecting water from said shower compartments, said method
comprising the steps of entering said first shower compartment
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wearing clothing and showering therein while still wearing
said clothing so as to remove possible contaminants from said :~
clothing; removing at least some of said clothing and storing
the removed clothing; entering said second shower compartment ~ -
and showering therein so as to remove possible further ::
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contaminants from the person; and drying the person after
removal of all clothing and contaminants in a dry off
compartment of said decontamination unit.
According to still another aspect of the invention,
there is provided a method of decontaminating a person who is
wearing clothing or equipment that may be contaminated in a
mobile decontamination unit having first and second shower
compartments each with a shower portion provided with means
for spraying water onto said person, at least said first
shower compartment having an adjacent changing portion having
means for storing clothing or equipment, the shower portion of
the second compartment being completely separated by a wall
from the shower portion of the first compartment, said method
comprising the steps of causing said person to enter said
first shower compartment wearing clothing or equipment and to
shower therein while still wearing said clothing or equipment
80 as to remove possible contaminants from said clothing or
equipment; then removing said clothing or equipment from said
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person in said changing portion and storing the removed
clothing or equipment in said ~toring means; then causing said
per~on to enter said second shower compartment and to shower
therein 80 as to remove possible further contaminants from
said person; and causing said person to dry off after removal
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of all clothing and equipment, in a dry off aréa of said
decontamination unit. ~
A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be ~ ;
described by way of example only, with reference to the ~ -
accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1 is a plan view of the mobile :
decontamination unit;
Figure 2 is a sectional view of the mobile
decontamination unit taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1; and
10Figure 3 is a plan view of the ceiling showing the
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distribution of the air through the mobile decontamination
unit of Figure 1.
A preferred embodiment of the mobile decontamination
unit of the sub;ect invention will now be described with
reference to Figures 1 through 3. Mobile decontamination unit
10 is divided into 4 areas, namely, the shower area 12, a
drying compartment 14, a waiting compartment 16 and a
facilities compartment 18.
Shower area 12 includes three or more shower
compartments 20, 22, 24. Shower compartment 20 has an
entrance 28 at one end thereof and accordingly it is the first
shower compartment that a contamlnated individual would enter.
The 8hower compartment i8 dlvided into a shower portion 30 and
a changing portion 32 by doorway 34. The shower po tion
contains means for spraying water onto a user which can take
the form of shower heads 26 of known construction or a number
of spray nozzles. In a preferred version, the spraying
devices provide overlapping sprays so as to provide thorough
spraying resulting in maximum decontamination. Shower portion
30 has a floor which slopes downwardly towards a pair of
drains 36. Changing portion 32 has a floor which slopes
! ' ' downwardly towards a drain 37. The doorway 34 has a raised
lower portion 38, as can best be seen in Figure 2, to prevent
contamlnated water from enterlng the changing portion 32. The
doorway 34 may also have a dropped top 33 llke a submarine
bulkhead, if desired. The changing portion is provided with
bins 40 and/or bags for storing contaminated outer clothing.
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Shower compartment 22 is adjacent and interconnected
to shower compartment 20 and is arranged in a similar fashion.
It is divided into a shower portion 42 and a changing portion
44. One way of separating these portions is by a pair of
doorways 46. Shower portion 42 may be divided into two
sections by an optional wall 48. Shower portion 42 is
provided with a pair of drains 50 and the floor slopes
downwardly thereto. Changing portion 44 has a floor which
slopes downwardly towards drain 51. Each doorway 46 has a
raised lower portion 52 and a dropped or lowered top 53 (see
Figure 2). The changlng portion 44 is provided with bins 54.
If deslred, a bulkhead-type doorway (not shown) can be
provided between the changlng portion 32 and the second
changlng portlon 44.
Slmllarly, shower compartment 24 is ad~acent and
lnterconnected to shower compartment 22 and is arranged in a
slmllar fashlon. It ls divided into a shower portlon 54 and
a changing portion 56 by a pair of doorways 58. Shower
portion 54 may be divided into two sections by an optional
wall 60. Shower portlon 54 is provided with a pair of drains
62 and the floor slopes downwardly thereto. Changing portion
56 has a floor which slopes downwardly towards drain 63. Each
doorway 58 has a raised lower portion 64 and a dropped or
lowered top 65. The changlng portlon 56 ls provlded wlth a
bln 66. In a preferred verslon, the showerlng nozzles ln each
of compartments 20, 22 and 24 provide overlapping sprays to
obtain a maximum decontamination of the user of the facility.
Again, if desired, a bulkhead-type doorway (not shown) can be
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provided between the changing portion 56 and the changing
portion 44.
Drying off compartment 14 is adjacent and
interconnected to shower compartment 24. It is provided with
bins 67, a bin 69 for towels and a seat 68. The floor of
compartment 14 slopes downwardly towards drain 70 provided
therein. An optional bulkhead-type door can be provided
between the changing portion 56 and the drying off compartment
14.
Waiting compartment 16 is ad;acent to drying off
compartment 14. It i8 provided with lockers 72 and preferably
shelves and seating. An exit 73 is provided in waiting
compartment 16. The waiting room is preferably maintained at
a posltive pressure to help reduce the possibility of
contamination in thiæ room. The positive air pressure is
malntalned ln the waltlng compartment 16 by means of the air
clrculatlon fan of known constructlon that is part of a forced
alr heatlng system 76. It will be understood that the furnace
or heater of the system 76 is only on when heating is required
but the fan is on normally at all times to maintain the
desired positive alr pressure. Suitable known instrumentation
to measure alr pressure is provlded in the unit to ensure that
the de8ired alr pre88ures are maintalned. An optional ante
room ~not shown) can be provided between the drying off
compartment 14 and the walting room 16 and this ante room can
also be maintained under positive pressure, again to help
reduce the possibility of contamination in this area.
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Facilities compartment 18 includes a diesel fired
hot water heater 74, the aforementioned forced alr heating
system 76, a water storage tank 78, a diesel generating system
80, a circulating pump and pressure control 82 and diesel fuel
tank 84. There are also means in the unit for tempering the
water before it reaches the shower head. These would comprise
a standard adjustment valve (also called a tempering valve) of
known construction to adjust the mix of hot and cold water for
each shower stall. In this way it is possible to provide a
different water temperature in each shower. Inlet 86 is
attached to storage tank 78 so that water can be pumped into
the storage tank. Similarly an inlet 88 is attached to a
diesel fuel tank 84 so that this may be filled. In one
preferred embodiment, an air conditioning or air circulating
system (not shown) is provided to cool this room 18 which
otherwise might become ~uite warm because of the equipment
therein. This system may comprise a ventilation system with
a HEPA filter mounted in the intake.
The ventilation system and air circulation system is
shown schematically in Figure 3. Forced air heating system 76
is connected to each area 12, 14 and 16 respectively and each
area has an air supply register 90. An exhaust fan 92 is
attached to exhaust air registers 94 in shower compartments
20, 22 and 24 and dry-off compartment 14. Exhaust alr is
passed through an~air washer or scrubber and a HEPA fllter to
clean the contaminated air before being released from the unit
10. Exhaust fan 92 and exhaust air registers are a means for
maintaining shower areas 20, 22 and 24 and dry off compartment
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14 at a negative pressure. It will be understood that the air
is removed by this system at a faster rate than the air is
supplied by the forced air furnace fan in order to achieve
this negative pressure. Again, known pressure reading
instrumentation can be provided to ensure the required
negative pressures in these areas. By maintaining these
compartments at a negative pressure, the contaminated air in
tXese compartments will not mix freely with adjacent
compartments.
In a preferred embodiment, the system provides about
20 air changes per hour at a rate of 500 cfm. This will occur
in both the clean walting area and the decontamination area.
Alr ls supplled from a diesel fired, 100% fresh air, make-up
air unit and is supplied to the waiting area to keep it under
a positive pressure. The aforementioned exhaust fan exhausts
air at a rate of 500 cfm and also provides 20 air changes per
hour. The negative air pressure will induce air flow from the
clean waitlng area through ductwork and cracks, etc.
Shower heads 26 are attached to the circulating pump
and pressure control 82 and hot water heater 74 through
conventional piping. Drains 36, 50, 62 are attached to
storage tank 96. Storage tank 96 is provided with an
lnspection manhole 98. Instead of a slngle storage tank 96,
there can be several such tanks, l.e. one for each shower
compartment. The use of several tanks wlll reduce the a~ount
of contamination present ln the second, third or subse~uent
tanks.
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In operation, the decontamination unit 10 would be
brought to an emergency site. As fire and other emergency
personnel become contaminated they would enter the
decontamination unit 10 through entrance 28 and go through the
showers in compartment 20 with their emergency gear on. They
would strip their emergency gear and put that gear into bins
40 and then proceed into compartment 22. They would go
through the showers in compartment 22 with their street
clothes on and then remove their street clothes, put them into
bins 54 and then proceed into compartment 24. They would then
shower naked ln compartment 24 and proceed into dry off
compartment 14 where they would be provided with towels in
blns 67. They would then proceed into waiting area 16 where
they could dress ln clothes stored in lockers 72 and then
leave the decontamlnation unit through exit 73.
It will be appreciated by someone skilled in the art
that a number of modifications could be made without ~eparting
from the spirit of the invention. For instance, for certain
appllcations the number of shower stalls could be varied. In
warm climates it may not be necessary to include the hot water
heater. Further, the features of this unit could be on a
trailer or installed in a truck. Further, other features may
be added to the moblle decontamlnatlon unlt such as a remotely
actlvated shower valve to limit the time of each shower, or
the provision of air under pressure for use by the personnel
who are waiting to use the unit. Further compartments can be
added to the decontamination unit if desired. For instance,
the first shower compartment 20 can be expanded to provide an
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additional room or area for the removal of chemical suits.
This additional room (not shown) can be a wet or dry area but
it would be drained. ~ ~
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