Automatic diver recovery system

Padowan

There was a couple of posts in another thread about the idea of an automatic recovery system that would bag a diver up after XXhrs - so that in the event of an incident th body could be recovered (assuming it's not stuck inside something or tangled up)

I had a really simple solution to this that doesn't need and timers or anything (which I add, I'm not gonna try). Simple fit a KISS type valve to the BCD/wing, that trickles a tiny amount of gas into the wing all the time. Under normal use, the diver can manage this and vent the gas, but if they become incapacitated for one reason or another, the gas would build up and send them up automatically....

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decoweenie

A few scenario where it won't work...

• Only work if loop isn't flooded. If the DSV is dropped or loop flooded, I don't think there will be enough lift.
• Also won't work if O2 is already depleted.

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Joseph Grech

The valve would be better injecting into the wing, so that even if flooded diver would still float.

decoweenie

...then you constantly have to discharge air from the wing every few minutes to maintain neutral buoyancy...

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Deep Thought

I am in favor of KISS - Keep It Simple Sailor....the less complication a system has the less there is to go wrong. My rig(s) already have enough leaks, not to mention the calibrated leaks to add O2 to the loop.

As a proposal to ease the burden of engineering a new system, how about diving with a responsible buddy who can assist you to the surface? If you choose to dive solo, and I have no problems with that...you risk not having a back up.

just an idea...

ron

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Andy M

He means a KISS style trickle valve on the WING. Do you really dive without sufficient buoyancy to surface if the loop is flooded???

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decoweenie

I missed the part on original post about injecting into the wing. My bad! Thus the reply...

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onetime

This method, of course, requires that the diver not be OOG. While it probably wouldn't be too difficult to deal with, I just don't like the highly possible potential for runaway inflation or the continued need to vent gas. Obviously the latter could be minimized by making the flow really low.

As an alternative, what about a timed release of gas from a secondary cylinder. Say, 4 hours after descent (or whatever time might work for most divers) if the timer isn't turned off or reset by surfacing, gas from a spare air or similar tank would inflate your wing?

PCDiver

I don't like it when something external can inflate my wing automatically. Things can go wrong with timing devices and poeffff you're at the surface before you know it, missing deco steps after a rapid ascent. A DSMB with 150 meters of rope is something else.

Mdemon

Interesting idea Si!

I don't think I would go for it because of the affect on buoyancy - it would annoy me! Also, I would object to all the hundreds of pence wasted in gas fills...

I think another interesting solution would be an automatic deployment based on run time. You tell the system how long you will be on the bottom for. When that time has elapsed, you get an alarm. If you don't shut it off, it fires the gas (solenoid in loop or wing) and up you go. Hopefully you will be in the region of your boat and ....rescue? Hmmm...

As somebody once said, "Insurance companies like to have a body..."

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It's as easy as abc;

a) "Carry adequate bailout"

b) "If in doubt, bail out"

c) "Always know your PO2"

If you find that hard, stick to crochet.

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