Hand-carried hydration bladder

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11357314-B2
Application number	US-201816205716-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 30, 2018
Priority date	Jun 3, 2016
Publication date	Jun 14, 2022
Grant date	Jun 14, 2022

Abstract

A hydration bladder according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a flexible body having a first stiffness. A port is coupled to the flexible body. A liquid chamber is formed by the flexible body. The liquid chamber is configured to carry a liquid therein and in is communication with the port. A reinforcement member is coupled to the flexible body. The reinforcement member having a second stiffness, and the second stiffness is greater than the first stiffness. The reinforcement member includes a first width, a second width greater than the first width, and a third width disposed on an opposite of the second width than the first width. The third width is less than the second width.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A hydration bladder comprising:
a collapsible and flexible body having a first stiffness and forming an internal liquid chamber configured to carry a liquid therein, the body having a longitudinal axis extending between an opening portion and an end portion opposite the opening portion, the body further including an elongated portion extending along the longitudinal axis of the body between the opening portion and the end portion;
a port coupled to the opening portion of the body and in communication with the internal liquid chamber;
a reinforcement member chamber coupled to the body, wherein the opening portion and the end portion of the body are disposed externally from the reinforcement member chamber and the liquid chamber of the body is disposed externally from the reinforcement member chamber;
a reinforcement member non-removably disposed within the reinforcement member chamber and substantially angularly aligned with the longitudinal axis of the body, the reinforcement member having a second stiffness, the second stiffness being greater than the first stiffness, the reinforcement member comprising:
a first width in a width direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis;
a second width in the width direction, the second width being greater than the first width; and
a third width in the width direction, the third width disposed on an opposite of the second width than the first width, and the third width being less than the second width.

2. The hydration bladder of claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement member comprises a global maximum width, the global maximum width being the second width.

3. The hydration bladder of claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement member is symmetric over a plane intersecting with the width direction and extending in a thickness direction, the thickness direction being substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and the width direction.

4. The hydration bladder of claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement member is symmetric over a plane intersecting with the longitudinal axis and extending in a thickness direction, the thickness direction being substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and the width direction.

5. The hydration bladder of claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement member has a concave surface facing toward the longitudinal axis of the body.

6. The hydration bladder of claim 1 , wherein the first width is from 55 percent to 85 percent of the second width.

7. The hydration bladder of claim 6 , wherein the third width is from 55 percent to 85 percent of the second width.

8. A hydration bladder comprising:
a flexible body having a longitudinal axis extending between an opening portion and an end portion opposite the opening portion, and the flexible body having a first stiffness;
a port coupled to the opening portion of the flexible body;
a liquid chamber formed by the flexible body, the liquid chamber configured to carry a liquid therein and in communication with the port; and
a reinforcement member chamber coupled to the flexible body;
a reinforcement member non-removably disposed within the reinforcement member chamber, the reinforcement member having a second stiffness, the second stiffness being greater than the first stiffness, the reinforcement member terminating apart from the opening portion of the flexible body, and the reinforcement member further comprising:
a length in a length direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis;
a first width in a width direction substantially perpendicular to the length direction;
a global maximum width in the width direction;
a third width in the width direction, the third width disposed on an opposite side of the global maximum width than the first width, and the third width being less than the global maximum width.

9. The hydration bladder of claim 8 , wherein the reinforcement member is symmetric over a plane intersecting with the width direction and extending in a thickness direction, the thickness direction being substantially perpendicular to the length direction and the width direction.

10. The hydration bladder of claim 8 , wherein the reinforcement member is symmetric over a plane intersecting with the length direction and extending in a thickness direction, the thickness direction being substantially perpendicular to the length direction and the width direction.

11. The hydration bladder of claim 8 , wherein the reinforcement member has a concave surface facing toward the longitudinal axis of the body.

12. The hydration bladder of claim 8 , wherein the global maximum width is from 14 percent to 44 percent of the length.

13. The hydration bladder of claim 8 , wherein the first width is from 55 percent to 85 percent of the global maximum width.

14. The hydration bladder of claim 13 , wherein the third width is from 55 percent to 85 percent of the global maximum width.

15. The hydration bladder of claim 8 , wherein the opening portion and the end portion of the body are disposed externally from the reinforcement member chamber.

Assignees

• Shock Doctor Inc

Inventors

• Karl Iv Adam Peter
• Lanza Benjamin Casey
• Frazier James Creath
• Fishkin Bradley Philip
• Piotrowski Faith LeAnn

Classifications

• A45F3/166

  Hydration systems incorporated in a backpack · CPC title

• A45F3/16 Primary

  Water-bottles; Mess-tins; Cups · CPC title

• A45F3/18

  of rigid material · CPC title

• A45F3/20 Primary

  of flexible material; Collapsible or stackable cups · CPC title

• A45F2003/166

  Human Necessities · mapped topic