Swimming pool with dry access for users with motor disability.

The present patent application relates to an off-ground swimming pool with dry access for users with motor disability.

The peculiarities and advantages of the present invention will become evident after a short description of the prior art.

As it is known, in case of traditional swimming pools, users enter into the water by means of concrete steps or metal ladders.

A similar condition occurs both in buried swimming pools, in which the edge of the swimming pool is flush with the ground, and in the so- called off-ground swimming pools, in which the edge of the swimming pool is disposed at a certain height from the ground.

In view of the above, it appears evident that only users with full motor capability can easily enter into and come out of the water.

For users with walking difficulties, the aforementioned operations are practically impossible and this prevents them from entering into a swimming pool.

Such a hindrance especially impairs users who need to carry out rehabilitation activities in the water of a swimming pool.

In order to overcome such a problem, some swimming pools, and especially those of medical or rehabilitation centers, are provided with a crane that supports a sling worn by the patient.

In this way the patient is lifted from the edge of the swimming pool and immersed into the water, and the same operation is repeated in inverse order to get the patient out of the water.

Starting from such a prior art, the specific purpose of the present invention is to devise an "off-ground" swimming pool that allows users with walking difficulties to access and exit the swimming pool comfortably, without using said anti-aesthetic cumbersome lifting systems for users with impaired mobility. Such a purpose has been achieved by providing the new swimming pool of the invention with a small access chamber separated from the main pool, which can be put in communication with the latter.

More precisely, the peculiarity of the access chamber consists in the fact that it can be selectively emptied and filled with water.

In order to empty the access chamber, the water is pumped towards the main pool, after activating a hydraulic insulation between the access chamber and the main pool by means of a watertight bulkhead that entirely occupies a passage section comprised between the main pool and the access chamber.

On the contrary, in order to flood the access chamber, it is simply necessary to remove the hydraulic insulation. In this way, the water from the main pool is instantaneously poured into the access chamber because of the physical principle of communicating vessels until it is completely filled.

Such a filling and emptying cycle of the access chamber can be used to allow users with motor disability to comfortably access and exit the swimming pool, without requiring the use of lifting means.

In order to illustrate the use of the swimming pool of the invention, and more expressly of its access chamber, it must be noted that the swimming pool of the invention is of "off-ground" type. Moreover, its access chamber is provided with a watertight entrance door that puts it into communication with the outside, i.e. the lowered area that surrounds the swimming pool.

The access chamber must be emptied to allow the disabled user to enter the swimming pool.

Then the disabled user can be comfortably introduced in the access chamber - even while sitting on a wheel chair - through the door and sit on a seat suitably provided inside the chamber.

When the user is sitting in the access chamber, the watertight door is closed and the access chamber is flooded with water by removing the watertight bulkhead that provides hydraulic insulation between the access chamber and the main pool.

In view of the above, the user is immersed in the water that fills the access chamber and from there he/she can comfortably move to the main pool through the passage section where the watertight bulkhead operates in working position.

When his/her permanence in the water has finished, the user returns to the access chamber (which is still flooded) and sits again on the seat, while waiting to get out of the swimming pool.

In order to do that, the watertight bulkhead that separates the access chamber and the main pool is brought back into operating position and immediately afterwards the water contained in the access chamber is poured into the main pool.

In view of the above, the access chamber is emptied again and the watertight door is opened to provide a passage that allows the user to return to the area that surrounds the swimming pool, either walking or riding in a wheelchair.

For explanatory reasons, the description of the invention continues with reference to the attached drawing, which only has an illustrative, not limiting value, wherein figures 1 to 4 are diagrammatic views of the configuration and use of the swimming pool of the invention.

With reference to the aforementioned figures, the presence of water in either space of the swimming pool of the invention (P) is indicated with letter "A".

Referring to Fig. 1 , according to the swimming pool (P) of "off- ground" type of the invention, the main pool (1 ) is provided with an access chamber (2).

The access chamber (2) is provided with a watertight entrance door (2a) that puts it in communication with the lowered area that surrounds the swimming pool (P).

Between the access chamber (2) and the main pool (1 ) a vertical passage section is provided, where a watertight bulkhead (3) operates. The access chamber (2) is provided with a water pumping system that forcedly and suddenly conveys the water contained in said chamber (2) towards the main pool (1 ).

Fig. 2 shows the condition of the swimming pool (P) in which the user can comfortably access the access chamber (2), as long as the access chamber (2) is totally emptied.

In such a situation, the bulkhead (3) is maintained in its operating side in order to prevent the spontaneous flow of the water (A) of the main pool (1 ) towards the access chamber (2); at the same time, however, the entrance door (2a) of the access chamber (2) is maintained in its opening position, in such a way to provide a comfortable passage to the user who is about to enter the swimming pool (P).

As soon as the user has entered said access chamber (2), the swimming pool (P) must be brought sequentially in the position shown in Fig. 3, closing the entrance door (2a) of the access chamber (2) and opening the bulkhead (3) in order to free the passage section between the access chamber (2) and the main pool (1 ).

So, the water of the main pool (1 ) can instantaneously penetrate the access chamber (2) and flood it completely, without being poured onto the surrounding area of the swimming pool because of the opposition created by the door (2) in closing position.

It must be noted that, in such a condition, the user can use the intermediate passage section which has been freed by the bulkhead (3), to be comfortably transferred from the access chamber (2) to the main pool (1 ), while remaining immersed in the water and therefore using the "bearing" action exerted on the body by the water.

As mentioned above, the intermediate passage section can be used by the user also to return to the access chamber (2) when he/she want to exit the main pool (1 ).

Then, the bulkhead (3) is brought back into operating position, without opening of the entrance door (2), as shown in Fig. 4. Now, the pumping system of the access chamber (2) is activated in order to completely pour the water (A) that is still contained in the access chamber (2) towards the main pool (1 ).

When this operation is completed, after completely emptying the chamber (2), the entrance door (2a) can be opened again, as shown in Fig. 2, thus allowing the user to go out and access the area that surrounds the swimming pool.

For the best operation of the swimming pool (P) the access chamber (2) is provided, preferably on the bottom wall, with one or more holes through which the water contained inside it can be forcedly pumped by said pumping system into the main pool (1 ) by means of a suitable connection pipe.

Finally, it must be noted that although in the attached figures the entrance door (2a) and the watertight bulkhead (3) are of swinging type, they can also be given a different configuration, possibly like a shutter.

Likewise, the opening and closing operations of the door (2a) and bulkhead (3) can be done manually or powered by suitable actuators operated from the outside and/or the inside of the swimming pool (P) of the invention.