The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 15, 2002
Filed:
Oct. 02, 2001
Billy Courson, Panama City Beach, FL (US);
John Shelburne, Lynn Haven, FL (US);
The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy, Washington, DC (US);
Abstract
A portable, diver-operated cryogenic freezing unit cleans surfaces underwater. A housing has a first chamber that contains cryogenic liquid, such as liquid nitrogen, and a second chamber is disposed adjacent to an end portion that fits about contaminating matter on a surface underwater. A valve vents cryogenic liquid from the first chamber to expand as gas in the second chamber. The vented cryogenic liquid and gas freeze a slug of water and the contaminating matter on the surface within the end portion. The housing is bent, twisted or otherwise displaced to break or pry-away and remove the frozen slug of water and contaminating matter from the surface to thereby clean it. A method of cleaning a surface underwater using the cryogenic freezing unit is described.