Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
216380~
EMERGENCY EVACUATION KIT
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the field of emergency preparedness and, in
particular, to a kit for emergency evacuations.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In some emergency situations, it is necessary for people to evacuate a vessel
such as an aircraft or watercraft, vehicle such as a train or bus, or building. For
example, in the case of an emergency landing or crash of an aircraft, passengers must
leave the vessel and await the arrival of a rescue team. If the crash occurs on land,
passengers may be spread out over a relatively large area and/or some passengers may
stray from the group. In water, passengers may drift from the group, for example, by
current or wave action or by attempting to swim to shore.
In both cases, rescuers may have difficulty in finding bodies, both living and
dead, at the emergency site. It would therefore be desirable to have some means of
locating evacuees andlor victims quickly.
Such emergency situations may also occur in water vessels, trains, buses, as well
as buildings, such as apartments and office buildings. There are instances where the
safe evacuation of the premises is hindered by darkness, for example by electrical
blackouts, and smoke, for example in the case of fire. It would therefore be desirable to
have a portable kit for emergency situations which includes a light source to enable
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evacuees to find their way and/or enable evacuees to find each other to assist in
evacuation.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a kit for use in emergency
evacuations to assist rescuers in locating evacuees.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an emergency
evacuation kit comprising an envelope col~t~ il-g an arm band having a light source and
an audible signal means attached thereto.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In drawings which illustrate embodiments of the present invention,
Figure 1 is a front elevational view of an emergency evacuation kit according tothe present invention; and
Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the contents of the emergency evacuationkit of Figure 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring to Figure 1, a portable emergency evacuation kit 10 according to the
present invention is a bag or envelope 12 cont:~ining an arm band 14 with a light source
16 and an audible signal means, such as a whistle 18, attached or connected thereto.
The envelope 12 is preferably provided with a tamper-resistant closure as
illustrated in the embodiment shown in Figure 1. The tamper-resistant closure allows
for a visual inspection of the emergency evacuation kit 10, for example by air safety
crew, to determine whether the kit 10 has been tampered with. However, other closure
mech~ni~m~ may be used instead of a tamper-resistant closure.
A suitable tamper-resistant closure is a tear strip 22 stitched, bonded or otherwise
attached to the envelope 12. In the embodiment shown in Figure 1, the tear strip 22 is
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partially sewn to the envelope 12, leaving an unattached portion 24 of the tear strip 22
to provide a grip for opening the envelope 12.
The shape of the envelope 12 with tab 26 is a particularly suitable design for use
in conjunction with the unattached portion 24 of the tear strip 22. When it is desired to
open the envelope 12 for access to the contents of the kit 10, the tab 26 is gripped in
one hand while the lm~ çhed portion 24 of the tear strip 22 is gripped in the other
hand. The tab 26 and the lm~ hed portion 24 are then torn apart with respect to each
other to open the envelope 12 along the seam.
Preferably, the envelope 12 is at least partially transparent or opaque so that the
contents of the kit 10 can be readily seen. The envelope 12 is advantageously water-
resistant or water-proof.
The arm band 14 is preferably at least partially elastic to enable a person to
readily don the arm band 14 using one hand. The elastic material selected for the arm
band 14 is advantageously selected to provide from a small diameter for a bare arm of a
child to a large diameter to accommodate layers of clothing on a large adult arm. The
elastic is also preferably selected so as not to cut off the circulation of the user. In a
preferred embodiment, the arm band 14 is provided with fluorescent, phosphorescent
andlor reflective strips or patches to further assist in the identification and/or location of
an evacuee or victim.
Attached or otherwise connected to the arm band 14, is the light source 16. In
the embodiment shown in Figure 2, the light source 16 is attached to the arm band 14
with a clip 28.
In the embodiment shown in Figure 2, the light source 16 is a chemiluminescent
light stick which is activated by a trigger mech~ni~m. An example of a suitable light
stick is a PML~ personnel marker light stick m:~nllf~ctured by Omniglow Corporation of
Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
The light source 16 may also be a chemical light stick activated by bending,
snapping or ~h~king The light source 16 may also be an incandescent light sourcepowered by a battery, for example.
Preferably, the light source 16 is water-resistant andlor water-proof.
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An audible means for ~ign~lling is also attached or otherwise connected to the
arm band 14. In the embodiment shown in Figure 2, the audible signal means is a
whistle 18. The whistle 18 is shown in the drawings as being attached to the arm band
14 via the clip 28 which also attaches the light source 16 to the arm band 14. The
whistle 18 however may be attached in another manner to the arm band 14, for example
in spaced-apart relation to the light source 16.
Preferably, the whistle 18 is attached to the arm band 14 with an elastic strap or
band to allow a user to use the whistle 18 without removing the arm band 14 by
stretching the elastic band or strap. The connecter does not however have to be elastic.
Preferably, the whistle 18 is a high decibel whistle such as the Fox 40TM whistle
manufactured by Fortron International Inc. of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Advantageously, the whistle 18 has a fluorescent body.
The audible signal means may also be, for example, a buzzer (not shown) which
is electrically activated by depressing a resilient metal contact. Such an audible signal
means could be sewn directly on the arm band 14 or otherwise attached or connected
thereto.
The portable emergency evacuation kit 10 of the present invention is
advantageously supplied at the seat of each passenger, for example in an aircraft. The
kit 10 could be supplied under the seat with a life vest or other flotation device.
Alternatively, the kit 10 could be supplied in the overhead co~llpa l~lent or in another
accessible location.
The envelope 12 is advantageously supplied with a writable surface, for example
so that the date of last inspection by safety crew can be indicated on the envelope 12.
The kit 10 may also be provided with written information on the inner (in the
case of a transparent or opaque envelope) or outer surfaces of the envelope 12. The kit
10 may also be supplied with an insert with the written information visible through the
envelope 12. The written information may include warnings about tampering with the
kit, expiry dates and/or instructions for use.
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In the event of an emergency, a person intending to evacuate a vessel, a vehicleor building opens the envelope 12 by tearing the tear strip 22 off the envelope 12 by
grasping and pulling apart the tab 26 and the unattached portion 24 of the tear strip 22.
The user activates the light source 16 and dons the arm band 14 and proceeds to
evacuate the premises. The light source could be used, for example, by the aircraft or
boat crew, to lead evacuees to safety. While some emergency lighting may be provided,
for example on the floor of aircraft, to lead passengers to emergency exits in the event
of an emergency, it would be more desirable to provide evacuees with their own light
source for use once the evacuee has left the premises with the emergency evacuation kit
of the present invention.
The light source also enables evacuees to be readily identified from other
rescuers.
Once outside the aircraft, evacuees can periodically activate the audible signal to
signal rescuers arriving at the scene.
