In-Line Water reservoir for human or livestock or vegetation survival during natural or other disaster

Abstract

A continuously refreshing in-line water reservoir system for use in the event of a loss of water source due to a natural disaster or otherwise is disclosed. The in-line water reservoir system may comprise a reservoir for holding water, a water inlet line through which water flows into the reservoir, e.g. water flows into the reservoir from a community water supply, and a water outlet line though which water flows out from the reservoir and to a point of use during normal operation. Moreover, the system is configured in-line between a water supply and a point of water extraction. For example, any time water is extracted from a point of use water pressure from the community water supply forces at least some new water into the reservoir thereby at least partially replenishing the reserve of potable water for emergency use.

Description

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to disaster preparedness and, more particularly, to a continuously refreshing in-line water reservoir system for use in the event of a loss of water source.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Often times in the event of a disaster, natural or otherwise, there exists a need for a potable water source other than the generally functioning community water source. For example, disasters such as earth quakes and hurricanes easily have the potential to cause a community water source to fail thereby making it imperative that alternate water sources be utilized to sustain the life of humans, livestock, and even vegetation until either assistance arrives with bottled water or the community water source is restored. However, bottled water does generally have an expiration date and, resultantly, bottled water must be periodically replenished with new bottles to maintain a safe alternate water source with proves to be cumbersome and oftentimes forgotten. So far as applicant is aware, most water holding tanks have a shelf life of 90 days before replenishment is advised.

[0003] For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for an independent alternate water source which both maintains a sufficient amount of potable water for disaster preparedness purposes and is continuously refreshing so as to not require manual replenishment.

SUMMARY

[0004] The present disclosure relates generally to disaster preparedness and, more particularly, to a continuously refreshing in-line water reservoir system for use in the event of a loss of water source due to a natural disaster or otherwise.

[0005] In some embodiments, the in-line water reservoir system comprises a reservoir for holding a predetermined amount of water, a water inlet line through which water flows into the reservoir, e.g. water flows into the reservoir from a community water supply, and a water outlet line though which water flows out from the reservoir and to a point of use during normal operation. Moreover, the fluid reservoir system is configured in-line between a water supply and a point of water extraction. For example, any time water is extracted from a point of use water pressure from the community water supply forces at least some new water into the reservoir thereby at least partially replenishing the reserve of potable water for emergency use.

[0006] An exemplary use of the continuously refreshing in-line water reservoir system, for example, would be in apartment buildings, commercial buildings, public transportation buildings, civil defense cites, airports, and military installation. Of course, all of these cites typically have a great amount of people present at any given time and, therefore, in all probability people will be present and in need of a potable water supply immediately following a disaster.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present disclosure will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings. The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Also, the drawings included herein are considered by the applicant to be informal.

[0008] FIGS. 1.A-1.F show various views of an in-line water reservoir system in accordance with a first embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0009] FIGS. 2.A-2.F show various views of an in-line water reservoir system in accordance with a second embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0010] FIGS. 3.A-3.F show various views of an in-line water reservoir system in accordance with a third embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0011] FIGS. 4.A-4.F show various views of an in-line water reservoir system in accordance with a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0012] The present disclosure relates generally to disaster preparedness and, more particularly, to a continuously refreshing in-line water reservoir system for use in the event of a loss of water source due to a natural disaster or otherwise. Specific details of certain embodiments of the system are set forth in the following description and FIGS. 1.A-4.F to provide a thorough understanding of such embodiments. The present invention may have additional embodiments, may be practiced without one or more of the details described for any particular described embodiment, or may have any detail described for one particular embodiment practiced with any other detail described for another embodiment. For example, the shape of the reservoir is not limited to those depicted in the several drawings but instead could be spherical in shape without departing from the scope of the continuously refreshing in-line water reservoir system.

[0013] Referring now to the Figures, it can be appreciated that the continuously refreshing in-line water reservoir system comprises a fluid reservoir for holding a predetermined amount of water. For example, in some embodiments the reservoir may be sized with a volume sufficient for holding 125 gallons of potable water for use in the event of an emergency. As used herein, the term "reservoir" is any part of an apparatus or system configured for holding a fluid. Moreover, the continuously refreshing in-line water reservoir system further comprises both a water inlet (labeled in FIGS. as "water main into tank") and a water outlet (labeled in FIGS. as "out of tank") thus allowing for water to flow continuously through the reservoir as water is extracted at a point of use downstream from the reservoir. Preferably, both the water inlet and outlet are 0.75 inches in diameter to provide for adequate flow volume. In some embodiments, the system comprises at least one point of projection (labeled in FIGS. as "strap to wall") for strapping a system component, e.g. the reservoir, to the wall. In a preferred embodiment, the system comprises a spigot for extracting water manually in the event that the community water source is suspended for whatever reason.

[0014] While preferred and alternative embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, as noted above, many changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is not limited by the disclosure of these preferred and alternate embodiments. Instead, the invention should be determined entirely by reference to the claims that follow.

Claims

1. (canceled)

2. A fluid reservoir system comprising: a reservoir for holding a predetermined amount of water; a water inlet line through which water flows into the reservoir; and a water outlet line though which water flows out from the reservoir, wherein the fluid reservoir system is configured in-line between a water supply and a point of water extraction.

3. The fluid reservoir system of claim 1, further comprising a base stand configured for supporting the reservoir.

4. The fluid reservoir system of claim 1, wherein the reservoir further comprises a spigot for selectively extracting water from at least one of the reservoir, the water inlet, and the water outlet.

5. The fluid reservoir system of claim 1, further comprising a means for securing the reservoir to a surrounding environmental structure.

6. The fluid reservoir system of claim 1, wherein the water inlet line in configured for injecting water roughly six inches from the bottom of the reservoir.

7. The fluid reservoir system of claim 1, wherein the reservoir is generally cylindrical.

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