Adaptive Equipment

 JV's Adaptive Scuba Diving and Snuba Diving Gear  

   Aquatic therapy is very beneficial for people with disabilities because the water is an equalizer that allows them to move around more easily than on land. People with disabilities like Cerebral Palsy often have trouble holding a traditional mouthpiece for scuba diving or snuba diving in their mouth. They can use a full-face dive mask, but these masks also increase buoyancy making it difficult to dive below the surface without assistance which is especially limiting for snuba diving. An adapted full face mask will make it easier for them to keep the mouthpiece in their mouth and prevent the intake of water when scuba diving or snuba diving. Furthermore, the adapted full face mask has less buoyancy allowing the user to dive down by themselves more easily when snuba diving.

The primary objective is to be able to maintain a horizontal position in the water without any extra equipment such as arm floats, a wetsuit, or flippers.

Current solutions like a full-face dive or snorkel mask have airspace that increases the buoyance of your head but the rest of your body sinks which makes it difficult to be horizontal without equipment that increases the buoyancy of the lower portion of your body.

My adapted full face mask for scuba diving and snuba diving will be better because it will have no empty air space allowing the user to go into a horizontal face down swimming position without the need of a wetsuit and/or flippers.

The secondary objective is to allow the user to dive down headfirst from a horizontal position without the need for weights or other equipment.  In short, to allow a user that does not have the usual control of their muscles to have more freedom in the water like someone with normal muscle control.