The present invention is related to a mask, and in particular, to a novel airtight protective mask.
In recent years, due to the rapid development of industries and cities, waste gases are exhausted by various factories, coal-fired power plants and large amount of vehicles and motorcycles, causing serious air pollution. The haze (fine suspended particles PM2.5), pollen and dust in the environment are able to enter human bodies via respiratory tracks, leading to decrease of human immunity and various types of diseases, such that the human health is significantly affected. In particular, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced in 2013 that among the top ten causes of death, seven of such causes were closely related to air pollution, promoting countries around the world to enhance their prevention against haze while stimulating the general public to wear various types of masks. The WHO further published a report on Oct. 29, 2018, indicating that about 93% of the world's population, equivalent to 1.8 billion children under the age of 15, were exposed to air pollution, and this was a stunning news to all sectors around the globe.
In view of the serious health hazards caused by haze PM2.5, China formulated and published national standards for haze preventive masks in 2016/2017 in accordance with the standards for U.S. N95 series of masks and European FFP dust masks. However, according to the test method of D2 tightness of China National Standards CNS14774 and 14755 protective masks (N95/FFP), the mask tightness must be able to reach 100. However, according to the one-hundred-people test from the Taiwan Institute of Labor (Institute of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health), the average tightness values of the two types of N95 masks available in the market are 13.9 and 21.8 respectively, while the average value of general planar surgical masks is 3.10 only, equivalent to the air leakage rate of 32.3% (i.e., the tightness is 67.7%), meaning that the bacterial filtration efficiency (BFE) is 67.7% only. Normally when the standard test for N95 is applied to surgical masks with BFE of 99%, meaning that 85 L is used instead of 32 L for the wind speed test, and the efficiency of filtering haze (PM2.5) is approximately 60% only; and if the air leakage rate is taken into consideration, the overall protection effect is approximately 40.6%. With the progress of production technology in recent years, the salt mist filtration efficiency of N95 dust masks is able to reach more than 99%; however, excellent masks still require to be equipped with the characteristics of proper tightness and low pressure difference. Nevertheless, the pressure difference (respiration resistance) of conventional N95 series of masks is relatively high such that they are not suitable for long-term wear, and such masks are particularly not suitable to the use by three groups of children, pregnant women and people with lung illnesses. As a result, even if the condition of haze is severe, they are still not suitable for wearing.
Furthermore, in recent years, various bacterial viruses and influenza have continuously attacked humans in the living environment, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), avian influenza (H7N9), swine influenza (H1N1), etc., are severe hazards to human health, which also indicates that high-quality masks, and especially masks with excellent tightness and low pressure difference, are extremely important to the protection of human health.
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In the aforementioned published patent, for the formation of the mask side area sections A32, the upper and lower ends of the side insulation strap 31 are fused to the first mesh seal A17 and the second mesh seal A24 first and then secured to the upper and lower sides of the mask main body A10/Next, the side strap A30 is used to cover one side of the side insulation strap A31 and the mask main body A10, which is then subsequently fused for completion. Consequently, the formation of the mask involves numerous steps and the manufacturing process is complicated. Moreover, the method of covering the side tape A30 onto the side insulation strap A31 and the mask main body A10 side adopted can also cause waste of the mask raw materials and increase the production cost.
Regarding the aforementioned drawbacks, an objective of the present invention is to provide a novel airtight protective mask, utilizing an airtight sheet to cover one side of a mask body and fixedly attached to an outer layer and an inner layer in order to achieve a single-pass formation. As a result, the manufacturing process and structure of the airtight protective mask of the present invention are simple and its manufacturing cost is low.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide an airtight protective mask, using upper and lower fixation areas in an L shape for the fusion of the lanyards. During the fusion of the lanyards at the two ends, it is able to prevent the problem of the entire rear section of the lanyards being fused completely.
To achieve the aforementioned objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solution: a novel airtight protective mask, characterized in that, comprising: a mask body sequentially having at least an outer layer, a middle layer and an inner layer; at least two airtight sheets fixedly attached to two sides of the mask body respectively; each one of the aright sheets comprising a fixation portion and a sealing portion extending from the fixation portion; the fixation portion configured to cover one side of the mask body and fixedly attached to the outer layer and the inner layer; the sealing portion arranged corresponding to a direction of the inner layer; two fixed attachment area sets, and each one of the fixed attachment area sets connected to the airtight sheets and the mask body; the fixed attachment area set comprising an upper fixation area and a lower fixation area; the upper and lower fixation areas fused to the mask body corresponding to two upper and lower ends of the sealing portion respectively; and a lanyard set, comprising two lanyards; the two lanyards connected to the two sides of the mask body respectively.
Furthermore, the airtight sheet is a single-layer structure or a multi-layer structure.
Furthermore, a fold cross section of the mask body is of an Ω shape or a zigzag shape.
Furthermore, the lanyard set is positioned on the outer layer or the inner layer and is arranged to face toward an inner side direction of the mask body.
Furthermore, the airtight protective mask further comprises an upper airtight sheet fixedly attached to an upper side of the mask body.
Furthermore, the airtight protective mask further comprises a lower airtight sheet fixedly attached to a lower side of the mask body.
Furthermore, the mask body is formed of two longitudinal folds.
Furthermore, the airtight protective mask further comprises an exhalation valve installed on the mask body.
Furthermore, the airtight protective mask further comprises an embedded nose pad arranged on a top portion of the mask body and between the inner layer and the outer layer.
With the adoption of the aforementioned technical solution, the present invention is able to achieve the following advantages: 1. The perimeter of the mask is able to fit to the face properly, and the two left and right sides as well as the bottom edge of the mask are able to attach to the face tightly. The contact surface is evenly distributed around the mouth and nose, thereby reducing any gap and preventing dust and particles from infiltrating through the gap. Consequently, the mask tightness is significantly increased, it is also able to achieve greater safety and comfort of the wearing of the mask. 2. The upper anti-fog airtight patch has an increased area to effectively block uprising fog, thereby preventing lenses above the mask from fogging. 3. The embedded nose bridge press strip is close to the nose bridge in order to effectively prevent dust and particles from infiltrating through the gap of the nose bridge. 4. Soft ear lanyards are provided to achieve comfortable wearing on the ears, such that the ears would not feel pain or discomfort after a long period of wearing of the mask. 5. The double-fold Ω three-dimensional structure is able to keep the mask at a distance from the lip such that the wearer would not feel any obstruction during breathing, and a comfortable mouth and nose spaces can be maintained while reducing the feeling of stuffiness and discomfort. 6. The mask has a special diamond shaped three-dimensional structure, and it is comfortable and appealing for wearing. During the wearing of the mask, the mask is not attached to the mouth and nose of the wearer, such that the wearer is able to breathe smoothly and to talk naturally without having any lip print on the mask, and perfect facial appearance can be maintained. 7. Medical grade filter material is used, and the mask body has 0.1 μm submicron particle filtration efficiency (Particulate Filtration Efficiency, PFE)≥99.9%, and bacterial filtration efficiency (Bacterial Filtration Efficiency, BFE)≥99.9%, complying with the standard for medical grade masks. 8. The filtering efficiency of the airtight sheet can reach above 95%, such that it is able to effectively block more than 95% of particles of size less than 0.1 μm (i.e., unit: micrometer) suspended in the air. It is also applicable to N95 grade anti-haze masks. Furthermore, depending on different filter materials of the mask, the airtight sheet used can also comply with the American standards for N95/N99/N100 series of dust masks, the EU standards for FFP1/FFP2/FFP3 series of masks or other specifications and standards of equivalent grade. 9. The mask is able to effectively prevent pollen, high-density dust, sand, smog and haze pollution and other harmful substances from inhaling by human bodies. In addition, the mask is able to effectively block PM 2.5 and achieve the isolation effect of isolating 99.9% of germs and air particles in the air. The mask can also be used as a protective means for cold, sneezing, flu and pollen, etc. Moreover, the mask is the first choice for smog and haze.
In the drawings: 10—mask body; 11—outer layer; 13—middle layer; 15—inner layer; 16—horizontal fold; 17—longitudinal fold; 19—nose bridge piece; 20—airtight sheet; 21—fixation portion; 23—sealing portion; 30—fixed attachment area set; 31—upper fixation area; 33—lower fixation area; 40—lanyard set; 41—lanyard; 43—fastening strap; 50—upper airtight sheet; 60—lower airtight sheet; 70—exhalation valve; 80—embedded nose pad; 81—nose bridge strip; 811—iron wire; 812—plastic member; 83—elastic member.
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The present invention is further described below in conjunction with specific embodiments. It can be understood that the embodiments are provided to illustrate the present invention such that they shall not be treated as limitations to the scope of the present invention. In addition, it can be understood that after reading the disclosure of the present invention, person skilled in the art in the field of the present invention may make any changes or modifications to the present invention; however, all equivalent changes and modifications shall be considered to fall within the scope defined by the claims of the present application.
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The mask body 10 is sequentially formed of a plurality of horizontal folds 16, and its internal includes at least an outer layer 11, a middle layer 13 and an inner layer 15. The outer layer 11 can be a water-repellent layer, such as a water-repellent nonwoven fabric (or a nonwoven fabric equipped with water-repellent function), capable of preventing infiltration of moisture and liquid. The middle layer 13 can be a filter layer, such as an electrostatic high-density meltblown nonwoven fabric (or electrostatic high-density meltblown nonwoven fabric) capable of blocking haze, virus and bacteria. The inner layer 15 can be a hydrophilic layer, such as hydrophilic ultra-fine composite fiber nonwoven (or hydrophilic ultra-fine composite fiber nonwoven fibric) that is soft and comfortable and is capable of absorbing moisture effectively. The horizontal folds 16 of the mask body 10 has a cross sectional shape of an Ω shape (as shown in
The at least two airtight sheets 20 are fixedly attached to the two sides of the mask body 10 respectively. Each one of the airtight sheets 20 comprises a fixation portion 21 and a sealing portion 23 extending from the fixation portion 21 (as shown in
For the two fixed attachment area sets 30, each one of the fixed attachment area sets 30 is connected to the airtight sheets 20 and the mask body 10. The fixed attachment area set 30 comprises an upper fixation area 31 and a lower fixation area 33. The upper fixation area 31 and the lower fixation area 33 are fused to the mask body 10 corresponding to two upper and lower ends of the sealing portion 23 respectively.
The lanyard set 40 comprises two lanyards 41 (such as ear straps), which can be ear-wearing type and fixed to the two left and right sides of the mask body 10 respectively. One end of the lanyards 41 is fixedly attached to the upper end of the mask body 10 and another end is fixedly attached to the lower end thereof. The lanyards 41 can be ear straps, fastening straps or head straps; however, the present invention is not limited to such types of straps only.
When a user wears the mask of the present invention, as shown in
Furthermore, the airtight sheets 20 cover one side of the mask body and are fixedly attached to the outer layer 11 and the inner layer 15 to achieve single-pass formation; therefore, the manufacturing process and structure of the mask are simple, and the production cost thereof is low.
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It shall be noted that the airtight sheet 20 may also be provided with an activated carbon layer, capable of absorbing ozone and organic odors. Alternatively, it may use an air impermeable material or film, etc., in order to block dust, particles and dirty air from entering the sides of the mask.
The mask of the present invention is able to effectively prevent harmful substances of pollen, high-density dust, sand, smog and haze pollution, etc. from being inhaled by human bodies; therefore, it is able to effectively filter out PM 2.5 and is the priority choice necessary for protection against smog and haze weather. Furthermore, the mask of the present invention is also suitable for colds, sneezing, flu, pollen and other means of protection, as well as means for preventing infections in places such as offices, public transit of mass rapid transit (MRT) and buses, or it may also be used as a means of protection for hospitals.
In view of the above, in comparison with the known art, the present invention has the following characteristics: Since the airtight sheets 20 cover one side of the mask body 10 and are fixedly attached to the outer layer 11 and the inner layer 15 in order to achieve single-pass formation, consequently, the manufacturing process and structure of the mask are simple, and its production cost is low.
In addition, the present invention also includes other features: The two left and right sides, bottom edge and upper edge of the mask are able to fit to the face closely and tightly such that the tightness of the mask is significantly improved. The double-fold Ω three-dimensional structure is able to maintain a certain distance between the mask and the mouth. Accordingly, during breathing, the wearer would not have any feeling of obstruction, and a comfortable mouth and nose space can be maintained, thereby reducing any feeling of stuffiness and discomfort. Furthermore, the soft ear lanyards provide comfortable wearing at the ears, and the mask can be worn for a long time without feeling any ear pain or discomfort.
The above describes preferred embodiments of the present invention only and such embodiments shall not be used to limit the scope of the present invention. The structure, dimension, arrangement location and shape of all parts can be changed and modified. However, all improvements and equivalent transformations of any parts of the present invention based on the principle of the present invention shall be considered to be within the scope of protection of the present invention.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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201821908473.1 | Nov 2018 | CN | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/CN2019/114279 | 10/30/2019 | WO | 00 |