Interlock vessel for hyperbaric transfer system

Abstract

An interlock vessel having an air-tight body with opposing ends. A portion of the body is designed to fit into a decompression (hyperbaric) chamber, wherein a diver or a patient undergoing a decompression treatment is positioned. The opposing ends are closed by pivotally moveable doors and locking assemblies that retain the doors in a closed position until the pressure inside the decompression chamber and the exterior of the chamber can be equalized. The outer door has two locking systems: (a) an interlock system and (b) a safety/delay locking system. Both locking assemblies are manually operated.

1 . A decompression chamber in an environment having an interior comprising:
 an air tight transfer vessel fluidly connected to the interior of the chamber;   the transfer vessel having an interior with first and second ends and openings at each end, wherein a peripheral ring is attached to the first end, said ring having an outer periphery;   an outer door detachably and rotatably mounted in the peripheral ring, said outer door having one or more locking projections that must align with said recesses before said outer door can be closed;   a lock having a locking member operatively connected to the outer door, the locking member including a pin sliding between locked and unlocked states, wherein when moving from the locked state to the unlocked state, the locking member moves from a said recess and away from a said recess,   wherein when in a locked state, rotation of the outer door is restricted by the locking member in a first direction,   a valve operatively connected to the lock and fluidly connected to the interior of the vessel, said valve having a valving member that is movable between opened and closed positions,   manually operable linkage that simultaneously:   1) moves the locking member pin to slide between locked and unlocked states responsive to a manual movement of the linkage; and   2) moves the valving member between the closed and opened positions   wherein when the linkage moves the locking pin from the locked to the unlocked state, the restriction to rotation of the outer door in the first direction by the locking member is removed, and the valving member is simultaneously moved to the open position, connecting the interior of the transfer vessel to the environment.   
     
     
         2 . The chamber of  claim 1 , wherein the outer door is rotationally mounted on a support, and the support is pivotally movable in relation to the first end of the vessel, the rotational movement being rotatable about a rotation axis, the pivotal movement being pivotal about a pivotal axis, and the rotation axis being about 90 degrees offset from the pivoting axis. 
     
     
         3 . The chamber of  claim 2 , wherein the support includes an arcuate slot with first and second arcuate ends, the outer door includes a rotation stop, and the interaction between the rotation stop and the first and second arcuate ends restrict the extent of rotational movement between the outer door and the support in first and second rotational directions. 
     
     
         4 . The chamber of  claim 1 , wherein the peripheral ring has a plurality of ring locking tabs, and where at least one of the ring locking tabs is in contact with at least one of the locking projection, pivotal movement between the outer door and the vessel is restricted. 
     
     
         5 . The chamber of  claim 4 , wherein when a plurality of locking tabs are in contact with at least one of a plurality of locking projections, the outer door is seals the interior of the vessel from the environment. 
     
     
         6 - 8 . (canceled) 
     
     
         9 . The chamber of  claim 1 , wherein a second lock includes a second locking member operatively connected to the outer door, the second lock having locked and unlocked states, the second lock comprising a piston and cylinder fluidly connected to the interior of the chamber and operatively connected to the second lock's locking member, so that as the pressure of the interior rises the second lock moves from to a locked state. 
     
     
         10 . The chamber of  claim 9 , wherein when the pressure of the interior of the vessel decreases, the second lock moves to the unlocked state. 
     
     
         11 . The chamber of  claim 9 , wherein when the second locking member moves from the unlocked state to the locked state, the second locking member moves farther away from the inner door. 
     
     
         12 . The chamber of  claim 9 , wherein when the second locking member moves between locked and unlocked states, the second locking member slides parallel to a hypothetical centerline of the interior of the vessel. 
     
     
         13 . The chamber of  claim 12 , wherein the peripheral ring has a peripheral groove guiding rotation of the outer door along with a geometric plane bisecting the peripheral groove, and the second locking member has a front tip, and when the second locking member moves from locked to unlocked or vice versa the tip of the second locking member passes through the geometrical bisecting plane. 
     
     
         14 . The chamber of  claim 1 , wherein the inner door is pivotally connected to the vessel, and a latch is operatively connected to the inner door, the inner door having at least two states: (a) a latched state wherein the latch limits the amount of pivotal movement between the inner door and the vessel and (b) open wherein the latch is disconnected from the inner door. 
     
     
         15 . The chamber of  claim 14 , wherein when in the latched state, the inner door fluidly seals the interior of the chamber with respect to the interior of the vessel when there exists a higher pressure in the interior of the chamber compared to the interior of the vessel. 
     
     
         16 . The chamber of  claim 14 , wherein when in the latched state, the inner door can fluidly vent the interior of the vessel to the interior of the chamber where there exists a small differentially higher pressure in the interior of the vessel compared to the interior of the chamber. 
     
     
         17 . The chamber of  claim 1 , further comprising a safety lock operationally connected to the outer door and preventing rotational movement of the outer door before pressure inside the vessel is equalized with pressure outside of the vessel. 
     
     
         18 . The chamber of  claim 17 , wherein the safety lock includes a piston chamber in air communication with the inside of the vessel, a piston slidably moveable inside the piston chamber, and a safety lock pin operationally connected to the piston and engageable with the peripheral to prevent rotational movement of the outer door in the first direction. 
     
     
         19 . The chamber of  claim 18 , wherein the safety lock further includes a compression spring normally urging the piston into a retracted position, and moving the safety lock pin out of engagement with the locking ring. 
     
     
         20 . (canceled) 
     
     
         21 . A decompression chamber apparatus, comprising:
 a) a chamber having an interior surrounded by a chamber wall;   b) a transfer vessel attached to the chamber wall and in fluid communication with the chamber interior;   c) the transfer vessel having an interior with first and second ends wherein a peripheral ring is attached to the vessel;   d) an outer door rotatably mounted in the peripheral ring;   e) cooperating recesses and projections that form an interface between said peripheral ring and said outer door wherein said outer door is not able to be opened or closed when a said projection does not align with a said recess;   f) an inner door mounted at the second end;   g) a lock having a sliding locking pin operatively connected to the outer door, the locking pin being movable with linkage that includes a handle between locked and unlocked positions and responsive to manual operation of the handle;   h) wherein when in the locked position, rotation of the outer door is restricted by the locking pin occupying a said recess;   i) a valve operatively connected to the lock and fluidly connected to the interior of the transfer vessel, said valve having a valving member that is movable between opened and closed positions,   j) a handle mounted to the outside of the transfer vessel, said handle being rotatable between first and second positions; and   k) wherein rotation of the handle from the first to the second position effects simultaneous movement of:   1. the locking pin between locked and unlocked positions; and   2. the valving member between the closed and opened positions.   
     
     
         22 . The chamber of  claim 21  wherein the handle is manually operable. 
     
     
         23 . The chamber of  claim 21  wherein the sliding pin slides along a linear path. 
     
     
         24 . The chamber of  claim 21  wherein the valving member is a rotating member.