MODULAR LONG TERM PATIENT CARE MATTRESS

MATELAS MODULAIRE DE SOINS DE LONGUE DUREE AUX MALADES

English Abstract

A modular long-term patient care mattress designed to assist health care
workers in effectively
treating patients with bedsores or severe burns. The mattress system is made
up of identical
interlocking sections, which are designed to allow conditioned air to be blown
through their
internal structure to contact the patient's body. The modular sections, when
fitted together, are
designed to be placed on top of any standard hospital bed and flex in consort
with the bed
adjustment system. The entire apparatus is designed to be dismantled and
cleaned in existing
hospital washing facilities. The airflow supply is provided by its own heating
and cooling
system, which also includes a germicidal UV light to sanitize the airflow
prior to being blown
towards the mattress and patient.

Claims

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE PROPERTY
OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:



1. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress for the prevention and
cure of bedsores
and the improved comfort of burn patients, consisting of identical sections or
pads that
hook together to provide one continuous treatment surface.

2. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which is designed to be
placed on the
surface of a standard single patient hospital bed and flex with the comfort
adjustments of
any manual, semi-automatic, or automatic bed.

3. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which provides a sterile
flow of
conditioned air to the patient from its own dedicated heating and
refrigeration airflow
unit.

4. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which has on the surface
of each
modular section a rectangular comfort pad constructed of a silicon gel-like
substance
providing extreme flexibility to reduce skin abrasion.

5. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 4, which is
perforated
through with 3/8" diameter holes, every 3/8 of an inch spacing to allow
airflow to come up
from the pad and contact the patient, maintaining a dryer environment for the
patients
skin.

6. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 4, which has
a flexible
nylon fabric encasing the gel within the pad as well as the walls of the
perforations
penetrating through the gel pad.

7. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 4, which has
a series of
female end snap closures fixed to the underside of the pad along the long axis
of the
rectangular shape providing a secure attachment to the surface below, being
the
encasement for the airflow sleeves.

8. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 1, which has
a rectangular
lower casing comprising of a high-density polymer that is enclosed on three
sides and
open on one of the short lengths of the rectangle.

9. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 1, which has
its upper
surface perforated through with 1/2" holes spaced 1/4" apart to allow air to
flow upwards
through the comfort pad section as in claim 5.

10. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 1, which has
the male end of
the fastening snap closures fixed to the upper surface along the long axis of
the



1




rectangular casing spaced approximately 8" apart to secure the upper comfort
pad in
place.

11. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which on its lower
casing has an
indentation along one long axis designed to accommodate the bulbous rail
attached to the
opposite edge along the long axis of the adjacent modular mattress section.

12. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which has on its lower
casing along the
bulbous rail and within the casing a hinge attachment, allowing the bulbous
rail to flex up
and down a total of approximately 60 degrees, thus allowing the modular
sections to align
to the adjustment of the hospital bed.

13. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 1, which has
a hollow
interior of sufficient size to contain a series of airflow sleeves and airflow
feed tube to
evenly distribute conditioned air through the pads.

14. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which has a series of
airflow sleeves
that snap together at one end and are held together by their connection to the
air feed tube
to provide one continuous section of airflow tubes fitted into the lower
casing.

15. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 14, which
have airflow
sleeves comprised of high-density polymer and created in two sections (upper
and lower)
to facilitate easier construction and easier disassembly for cleaning.

16. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 14, whose
two part airflow
sleeves are constructed in such a fashion as to prohibit any foreign material
or liquid from
entering the sleeve from above, thereby maintaining a more sanitary
environment.

17. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 14, whose
two part airflow
sleeves has an opening at one end of the lower section to facilitate
connection to the
airflow feed tube located at one end of the lower casing.

18. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 14, whose
lower casing has
a snap on cover on the open end through which the air flow feed fitting passes
to supply
conditioned air to the whole pad.

19. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which has a control
valve attached to
the airflow feed fitting on the outside of the snap cover for the open end of
the lower
casing.

20. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which has a flexible
corrugated
polymer airflow hose with fittings to supply three pads at a time with
conditioned air.


2




The corrugation allows the airflow hose to flex with the modular pads as they
conform to
the adjustments of the hospital bed.

21. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which utilizes a yoke
attachment to
evenly supply airflow to each three-module section that makes up a complete
mattress.

22. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 3, which
comprises an upper
heating unit utilizing electric high resistance wiring to heat the airflow as
it is passed
through the units air chamber by the heating units fan.

23. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 3, which has
a lower
refrigeration unit with its own dedicated blower fan and air chamber insulated
from the
heating unit chamber.

24. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress as in claim 3, which has
a detachable
heat dissipating rack with extended flexible coil tubing lines to allow the
heat dissipating
coils to be placed in a container of water to substantially increase the
efficiency of the
cooling unit.

25. I claim a detachable unit, which contains an air filter and a low
wavelength UV light
known as a germicidal light to sanitize the air as it is drawn through the
chamber that
contains the light.

26. I claim a safety electrical attachment on the germicidal unit, which
requires the insertion
of a pin, attached below the electrical outlet on the air conditioning unit to
be inserted into
an opening just below the electrical connection on the germicidal unit to
close the circuit
and activate the UV light. Therefore no ordinary extension cord attachment
will be able
to activate the light and potentially damage the eyesight of someone
inspecting the light
through the air outflow opening.

27. I claim spring loaded snap down covers for the airflow ports on the
outlets of the heating
and cooling unit of the air conditioning unit. This ensures that only
sanitized air can be
drawn into the unit through the proper opening in the air conditioning unit.

28. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which has a valve and
threaded end
fitting on the airflow line prior to entering the pad to allow the addition of
medicated air
or mist to be added to the airflow current into the individual modular
section.

29. I claim a modular long-term patient care mattress, which on its lower
casing has a
bulbous rail along the long axis of the modular section on the opposite edge
to the
indentation on the same section. This bulbous rail is designed to fit into the
indentation
on the adjacent modular section.


3

Description

CA 02535560 2006-02-02

MODULAR LONG-TERM PATIENT CARE MATTRESS

This invention provides an improved long-term patient care mattress to aid in
the prevention and
cure of bedsores, and assist in the care of burn victims.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

There have been many attempts at producing a bed or mattress designed to
alleviate or prevent
the occurrence of bedsores in long-term care patients. The main problem with
bedsores has been
through the lack of circulation of blood vessels at the skin surface where
there are pressure
points. Coupled with the hot moist clammy conditions that allow a bacterial
growth to take place.
This develops into a zone of ever increasing dead tissue which progresses to
deeper and deeper
tissue layers and eventually to the bone itself.
Some of the previous attempts at producing a viable invention to deal with
this problem are:
Cited documents: CA2188811 YAMADA
CA2360231 SHIMADA
US6581225 IMAI KAZUMICHI
US4057861 HOWORTH
W02005120295 STATHAM
W003090585 JOSE LLANES
WO0184982 SCHMID

There are common difficulties attributed to all of these inventions that have
kept them from
going into full production and benefiting long-term care patients. These
difficulties are solved by
this current application.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention is of a modular long-term patient care mattress designed to
assist health care
workers in the prevention and cure of bedsores as well as to assist in the
comfort and treatments
of burn victims. The modular system is designed to be placed on top of any
standard hospital
patient care bed. The mattress is constructed with a built in hinge on every
sectional pad that
allows the assembled mattress to flex as needed to accommodate the contour
adjustments of an
automatic or semi-automatic hospital bed. All the internal and external
components within each
sectional pad can be easily disassembled and placed in any current hospital
washing machine
facilities for sanitization. Additionally, should one or more sections become
soiled, they can
easily be replaced without lifting the patient off of the bed by replacing
only one section at a
time. The silicon gel surface pad, which is perforated through with at least
3/8" diameter holes
has extreme flexibility to reduce skin abrasion of the patient who is lying on
the mattress. The
airflow can be controlled in many ways for the comfort of the patient. It can
be heated or cooled
with its own dedicated air conditioning unit. The air can also be filtered and
sanitized with the
addition of the germicidal unit attached to the air intake side of the air
conditioning unit.
Additionally, since each pad has its own air control valve, each section can
deliver a controlled
amount of conditioned air with the addition of another single airflow line.
Both the heating unit
and the refrigeration unit on the air conditioning apparatus can be used at
the same time. As an
example, the top %2 of the bed may require cool air to deal with bedsores,
where as the bottom %2
of the bed could be kept warm so the patient does not become chilled. Also
built into each
section airflow line, just below elbow B-3, is a threaded male end with its
own dedicated control


CA 02535560 2006-02-02

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION (continued)
valve. This attachment is designed to facilitate the addition of medicated
vapor or mist to the
sectional pad. This would be useful in concentrating the medical treatment to
a specific portion
of the patient's body, while the other pad sections simply supply a warm dry
air.
The uses of this modular long-term patient care mattress are not restricted to
only long-term care
patients. The need to slowly raise the body temperature or hypothermic
patients can be readily
accomplished by placing them on a modular mattress and warming the entire body
by slowly
increasing the warm air applied to the patient. Additionally patients who are
suffering from
dangerously high body temperature could be treated by supplying very cold air
to sections of the
body without the need to immerse them in ice water or surround them with ice
packs or
additional oral medication. By submersing the remote heat dissipating coil
rack in cold water, it
dramatically increases the efficiency of the refrigeration unit. By blowing
temperature
controlled cold air on all or some parts of the body it is less traumatic for
the patient than either
ice packs or cold-water immersion and is less stressful on the patient's
heart.


CA 02535560 2006-02-02

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The modular long-term patient care mattress is described in three primary
sections. The parts of
the interlocking pads that form the mattress are indicated with an "A". The
parts of the airflow
apparatus are indicated with a "B". The heating and cooling air conditioning
unit is indicated
with a "C".

A-1 indicates the top cushioned pad from each section, comprised of extremely
flexible silicon
gel. Each pad is encased in a flexible nylon fabric to aid in maintaining the
original shape. The
pad is perforated through with at least 3/g" diameter holes spaced 3/g" apart
to allow airflow to
pass up through the pad to contact the patient. The wall surface of the
perforations is also lined
with a non-absorbent nylon fabric to keep silicon gel from squeezing into the
cavity while under
pressure from body weight.
A-2 indicates the lower, shell-like, hollow section made from high-density
polymers, which has a
closed bottom and three closed sides and one open side. The top surface of
this lower section is
perforated with Y2" holes spaced '/" apart to allow the air to flow through
the shell to the
cushioned pad (A-1) above. A-2 is open on one end to allow the insertion of a
series of airflow
sleeves.
A-2a indicates the indentation designed to receive the tab A-3a located on the
upper edge of the
cover A-3.
A-2b indicates the indentation designed to receive the tab A-3b located on the
bottom edge of the
cover A-3.
A-3 indicates the snap on cover, which attaches on to the open side of A-2,
enclosing A-2 and
forcing airflow upward into A-1.
A-4 indicates the bulbous rail attached to A-2, which slides into item A-5 on
the adjacent pad
locking them together into a flexible cohesive unit. A-4 also is a hinge which
allows the
connecting joint to flex up and down.
A-5 indicates the indentation located along one connecting edge of the pad,
which will allow
another pad to be attached by sliding item A-4 into A-5.
A-6 indicates the snap fitting, which is used to attach the silicon gel pad (A-
1) to the lower
section (A-2). Snaps are placed every 8" along the top edge of item A-2,
parallel to items A-4
and A-5.
A-7 indicates the two part airflow sleeve sections, which allow the air to
flow evenly throughout
the pad. It also provides structural support to the perforated upper surface
(A-2) to withstand
body weight.

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CA 02535560 2006-02-02
A-7a indicates upper'/2 of section A-7.
A-7b indicates lower %2 section of A-7.
A-8 indicates the air tube, which is used to feed airflow to each airflow
sleeve section. The tube
has circular openings spaced regularly to allow attachment to each airflow
sleeve section. It is
closed at the opposite end from the air entry opening.
A-9 indicates the front opening on each airflow sleeve section to allow air to
enter the sleeve.
A-10 indicates the short connecting tube attached to item A-8 and designed to
fit into the
opening A-9 to allow airflow into item A-7.
A-I 1 indicates the indentation of the lower edge of item A-7b, which is
designed to receive a tab
located on an adjacent item A-7b in order to connect the airflow sleeves
together.
A-12 indicates the tab located on the airflow sleeve on the opposite side from
item A-I1. Item
A- 12 is designed to fit into the indentation A-11 on an adjacent airflow
sleeve to attach them
together. This allows all of the airflow sleeves to be removed at once from
section A-2 by
pulling on the first one closest to the open side of A-2.
A- 13 indicates the airflow channel, which is designed to direct the air
movement through item A-
7 in a downward direction before moving up through item A-2. The airflow
sleeve is shaped in
its current fashion to prohibit any foreign materials or liquids from entering
the air flow channel
of item A-7.
A-14 indicates the air space remaining inside of the lower section (A-2) of
the mattress pad, once
the series of airflow sleeves are in place.
A-15 indicates the direction of airflow within the airflow sleeves (A-7).

B-1 indicates the opening through the cover A-3, which item A-8 fits into to
facilitate airflow
into casing A-2.
B-2 indicates the airflow control valve, which allows each pad to be adjusted
independently from
any other pad.
B-3 indicates the connecting elbow used to direct airflow through the valve B-
2.
B-4 indicates the fitting between sections B-3 and B-7, which contains a valve
attachment (B-6).
B-5 indicates the valve handle on fitting B-4.
B-6 indicates the threaded end for attaching another air feed line to section
B-3.
B-7 indicates the threaded male end from which the airflow supply can be
detached to allow
removal of airflow sleeve sections for cleaning.
B-8 indicates the threaded female end of the air supply hose, which connects
to B-7.
2


CA 02535560 2006-02-02

B-9 indicates the flexible corrugated hose designed to feed air into all B-8
fittings. There are two
items B-9 each supplying air to three pads (A-1).
B-10 indicates the opening on item B-9 through which airflow enters B-9.
B-11 indicates the yoke fitting designed to connect onto item B-10 on both
sections of B-9
providing airflow to all sections of the modular mattress pad.
B-12 indicates the airflow line from the air conditioning unit, which attaches
to the lower
connection port of the yoke B-11.

C-1 indicates the exterior casing of the air conditioning unit designed to
provide conditioned air
to the modular long-term patient care mattress pads.
C-2 indicates the exterior casing of the germicidal unit attached to the air
conditioning unit C-1.
C-3 indicates the control panels on unit C-1 for both the heating and cooling
unit.
C-3a indicates the control panel for the heating unit.
C-3b indicates the control panel for the cooling unit.
C-4 indicates the spring loaded hinged cover for the airflow outlet of the
heating unit designed to
receive airflow line B- 12 to move air up to the mattress pads.
C-5 indicates the electrical power outlet cord for the unit (C-1).
C-6 indicates the opening on unit C-2, which receives the air filter unit (C-
10) and allows air to
enter the unit (C-2).
C-7 indicates the male electrical connection on the germicidal unit (C-2)
designed to connect to
the air conditioning unit (C-1).
C-8 indicates the germicidal UV light tube designed to kill all
bacteriological agents in the air
prior to it entering into the air conditioning unit (C-1).
C-9 indicates the opening on unit C-2, which allows the sanitized air from
unit C-2 to enter the
airflow chamber of unit C-1.
C-10 indicates the air filter fitted into the opening C-6 of the germicidal
unit (C-2).
C-11 indicates the notch on the bottom of unit C-2 designed to fit on top of
item C-12 of unit C-1
as a support.
C-12 indicates the tab on the bottom edge of unit C-1, designed to provide a
support to unit C-2,
once item C-11 is placed on top of item C-12.
C-13 indicates the connecting sleeve, which fits into item C-9 to provide an
airtight flow of air
from unit C-2 to unit C-1.

3


CA 02535560 2006-02-02

C-14 indicates the air chamber of C-1 to which air enters prior to being moved
through the unit's
heating or cooling units.
C-15 indicates the air chamber on unit C-2, within which the germicidal UV
light (C-8) is
located and sterilizes air prior to it flowing into the unit C-1.
C-16 indicates the female electrical connection on unit C-1, designed to
receive the male
electrical connection C-7 from unit C-2.
C-17a indicates the fan blades, which move air through the heating unit.
C-17b indicates the fan blades, which move air through the cooling unit.
C-18a indicates the pulley wheel attached to the shaft, which drives fan
blades C-17a.
C-18b indicates the pulley wheel attached to the shaft, which drives fan
blades C-17b.
C-19a indicates the pulley wheel attached to the electrical drive motor C-20a.
C-19b indicates the pulley wheel attached to the electrical drive motor C-20b.
C-20a indicates the electrical drive motor, which supplies power to turn the
fan C-17a to move
air through the heating unit.
C-20b indicates the electrical drive motor, which supplies power to turn the
fan C-17b to move
air through the cooling unit.
C-21 indicates the heating coils, which heat the air moving past them through
the heating unit.
C-22 indicates the air chamber through which the air is heated and flows
through the heating
unit.
C-23 indicates the insulated wall between the heating unit (C-21) and the
cooling unit (C-24).
C-24 indicates the aluminum cooling coils, which allows expanded refrigerant
gas to pass
through thereby cooling the air as it passes through the cooling unit.
C-25 indicates the electrical junction box within the air conditioning unit
through which power is
directed to the control panels.
C-26 indicates the section of the aluminum refrigeration tubing, which
transports compressed
refrigerant liquid from the compressor to the heat dispensing coils on the
exterior of the air
conditioning unit.
C-27 indicates the section of the aluminum refrigeration tubing, which
transports expanded.
Refrigerant gas from the evaporation unit to the cooling coils (c-24) within
the air-cooling
chamber (C-32).
C-28 indicates the refrigerant liquid expansion unit, which turns cooled down
refrigerant liquid
into a gas prior to it moving through to the air-cooling chamber (C-32).

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CA 02535560 2006-02-02

C-29 indicates the section of aluminum refrigerant tube, which transports
cooled down
refrigerant liquid from the heat dissipating coils to the gas expansion unit.
C-30 indicates the section of aluminum refrigerant tube, which transports cold
refrigerant gas
from the cooling chamber to the gas compressor unit.
C-31 indicates the compressor unit, which turns the refrigerant gas into a
liquid prior to it
moving into the heat dissipating coils.
C-32 indicates the air cooling chamber, which contains the refrigerant cooling
coils through
which the air passes and is cooled prior to entering the transport tubes on
its way to the modular
mattress pads.
C-33 indicates the ballast unit for the germicidal UV light tube.
C-34a indicates the V-belt, which connects to the pulley from the electrical
drive motor (C-19a)
to the pulley (C-18a) for the heating chamber fan.
C-34b indicates the V-belt, which connects to the pulley from the electrical
drive motor (C-19b)
to the pulley (C-18b) for the cooling chamber fan.
C-35a indicates the upper support bracket, which holds the top edge of the
heat dissipating coil
rack.
C-35b indicates the lower support bracket, which holds the bottom edge of the
heat dissipating
coil rack.
C-36a indicates the suspension brackets designed to support the flexible
extension coils on the
exterior of unit C-1 through which refrigerant liquid passes on its way to the
heat dissipating
coils.
C-36b indicates the suspension brackets designed to support the flexible
extension coils on the
exterior of unit C-1 through which refrigerant liquid passes on its way from
the heat dissipating
coils to the expansion unit.
C-37a indicates the connection where the exterior flexible refrigerant coils
attach to the interior
aluminum refrigerant coils as the refrigerant liquid leaves unit C-1.
C-37b indicates to connection where the exterior flexible refrigerant coils
attach to the interior
aluminum refrigerant coils as the refrigerant liquid re-enters unit C-1.
C-38 indicates the handle attached to the top of the heat dissipating coil
rack to allow it to be
picked up and moved from the support brackets.
C-39a indicates the clamps used to attach the aluminum coils to the upper edge
of the dissipating
coil rack.



CA 02535560 2006-02-02

C-40 indicates the rigid aluminum heat dissipating coils, which form the
remote section of the
heat dissipating rack.
C-41 indicates the rack used to support the aluminum heat dissipating coils
for the remote unit.
C-42 indicates the flexible heat dissipating coils, which transport the
compressed refrigerant
liquid from the compressor unit to the remote heat dissipating rack.
C-43 indicates the flexible heat dissipating coils, which transport the
compressed refrigerant
liquid from the remote heat-dissipating unit to the expansion unit.
C-44a indicates the clamps used to hold the section of the remote aluminum
heat dissipating
coils where it attaches to the flexible coils (C-43).
C-44b indicates the clamps used to hold the section of the remote aluminum
heat dissipating
coils where it attaches to the flexible coils (C-42).
C-45 indicates the fitting used to connect the remote heat dissipating coil
rack and the flexible
heat dissipating coils as the refrigerant travels from the remote unit back
into unit C-1.
C-46 indicates the connecting fitting between the remote heat dissipating
coils and the flexible
heat dissipating coils as the refrigerant travels from the unit C-1 to the
remote heat dissipating
coil rack.
C-47 indicates the pin attached on the bottom portion of the electric
receptacle used to activate
the circuit in the germicidal unit.
C-48 indicates the opening on the germicidal unit, which is designed to
receive the pin (C-47)
from the electric receptacle and push on the lever within C-7 to activate the
light.
C-49 indicates the lever and hinge mechanism, which is designed as a safety
feature to keep the
UV light from being activated without being attached to the air conditioning
unit.
C-50 indicates the tension spring used to ensure that the activation safety
lever disconnects once
the unit (C-2) is removed from the air conditioning unit (C-1).
C-51 indicates the spring loaded hinged cover for the airflow outlet of the
refrigeration unit.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Figure 1. A side view of 6 modules assembled to form a complete mattress
showing the
individual sections connected, the snap on covers that contain the air flow
sleeves within
the shell (A-3), their control valves (B-2), the flexible corrugated tubing (B-
9) that
provides the conditioned airflow to the mattress pads, and also the yoke
connection
leading from the air conditioning unit.

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CA 02535560 2006-02-02

Figure 2. A top view of 6 modules assembled to form a complete mattress
showing the
individual sections connected, their control valves and the flexible
corrugated tubing that
provides the conditioned airflow to the mattress pads. Additionally a cut away
portion in
the upper left corner indicating: the top and largest section (A-1) of pad
being the
perforated silicon gel encased in flexible nylon fabric, the second largest
section (A-2)
being the top surface of the perforated polymer shell containing the airflow
apparatus, the
third and smallest cut away (A-8 and A-10) showing the partial strips of
airflow sleeves
and the airflow feed tube supplying air to each sleeve.
Figure 3. Shows a frontal view of the air conditioning unit, with individual
control panels
for the heating and cooling unit as well as the germicidal (low wavelength UV)
unit (C-2)
attached to the right-hand side.
Figure 4. Shows a side view of a modular section, looking in from the open
edge where the
snap on cover has been removed.
Figure 5. Shows a cut away portion of the end view of a modular section,
looking at the end
of the airflow sleeves without the airflow feed tube in place.
Figure 6. Shows the end view of one airflow sleeve indicating directional
airflow channels
(A-13) within the sleeve.
Figure 7. Shows the side view of one open end of an airflow sleeve with the
airflow feed
tube (A-8) attached.
Figure 8. Shows a representation of a cut away of a silicon gel pad (similar
material in
elasticity to the ergonomic injury prevention gel pads for wrists of people
while using a
computer keyboard).
Figure 9. Shows a representation of a cutaway of the polymer shell with the
1/h" perforations
on the top surface, which contains the airflow sleeves.
Figure 10. Shows a series of airflow sleeves, joined together and the airflow
feed tube (A-8)
ready to attach to the sleeves.
Figure 11. Shows a representation of the valve (B-2) and additional air feed
connection (B-4
and B-6) as well as connections used to control airflow into the airflow tube
(A-8) in the
cut away edge.
Figure 12. Shows the indentations on the open side of the polymer shell
designed to receive
the snap in fittings from the cover.
Figure 13. Shows a face view of the snap in fittings on the cover as well as
the control valve
and fittings.
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CA 02535560 2006-02-02

Figure 14. Shows the face of the air conditioning unit (C-1) with the inner
workings of the
air conditioning unit, as well as the germicidal attachment (C-2) onto the end
of the unit.
Figure 15. Shows the end view of the detachable germicidal unit (C-2) and the
air filter.
Figure 16. Shows an end view of the air conditioning unit (C-1) exposing the
removable heat
dissipating coils and rack on the back of the air conditioning unit.
Figure 17. Shows a representation of the rigid heat dissipating coils,
assembled into a
removable rack.
Figure 18. Shows a side view of the connections from the flexible coils to the
rigid coils.
8

Representative Drawing