History
In 1957, F. G. Jensen and Willard F. Searle, Jr began testing methods for manual and automatic buoyancy compensation for the United States Navy Experimental Diving Unit (NEDU). In their early tests, they determined that manual systems were more desirable due to the size of the automatic systems. Later that year, the Walter Kiddie and Co. sent a prototype buoyancy compensating tank for use with two cylinders to NEDU for evaluation. The valves of this aluminium tank system leaked and testing was delayed until 1959 when it was recommended for field testing.
The ABLJ was developed by Maurice Fenzy in 1961. Early versions were inflated by mouth underwater. Later versions had their own air inflation cylinder. Some had carbon dioxide inflation cartridges (a holdover, for surface use, of the Mae West flyer's lifejacket). This was abandoned when valves that allowed divers to breathe from the BC's inflation bag were introduced. Since 1969 most modern BCs have used inflation gas from one of the diver's main gas cylinders, in addition to an oral inflation tube which is used at the surface in the event the diver has no high pressure gas left (oral inflation can also be used at depth, in cases where a BC inflator hose develops a leak or problem and requires disconnection). In 1972 Watergill developed the Atpac wing, the first wing style BC and in 1978, ScubaPro released the Stabilizer Jacket, the first Vest BC.
More recent innovations for jacket BCs include weight pouches to adjust attitude underwater, putting the weights on the BC rather than on a weightbelt, integrated regulators, heavily reinforced 1050 denier ballistic nylon. Innovations for backplate and wing include redundant bladders, stainless steel backplates, lightweight soft nylon backplates, and 85 lb lift bladders.
Dive Rite pioneered the first wing for diving twin cylinders in 1985. Competitors in tech diving include Ocean Management Systems. Other SCUBA manufacturers include Sherwood, Zeagle, Scubapro, and Cressisub.
Read more about this topic: Buoyancy Compensator (diving)
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