The inflatable clean room is meant to be a simply and rapidly deployed structure that provides maximum isolation/containment or isolation/protection from viral, bacterial, or chemical agents that could be encountered in areas where protection measures cannot be provided by conventional institutional facilities. This includes remote medical or safety environments such as battlefields and third world locations, as well as, emergency environmental settings and situations. Therefore the potential markets for the inflatable clean rooms could be military, humanitarian, and emergencies medical organizations. The structure is meant to be erected in a rapid and simple fashion using a minimal amount of tools and equipment and by personnel who have minimal training and expertise in clean room environments. The inflatable clean room differs from current systems in that it is an inflatable structure that derives its rigidity from air pressure rather than heavier steel, aluminum or plastic support components. This makes the overall structure lighter and more transportable. In addition, the inflatable clean room is totally encapsulated thereby maintaining a better sterile environment during erection than could be achieved by conventionally constructed clean rooms.
The inflatable clean room is based on three key components. This includes internal encapsulated inflatable structural members, plastic zipper access doors, and an attachable compressor, filter, and resource transfer unit (CFRtU). The internal inflatable structural members provide the structural strength. These components are similar to the features found in inflatable children’s play structures seen at parties, fairs, or carnivals. The plastic zipper access doors utilize the same simple technology as that found in zipper seal food storage bags. The compressor, filter, and resource unit is responsible for inflating the structure. The unit also acts as the air filtering system for air that is transferred between the inside and outside environments. Under extreme conditions the filtering component could be bypassed and self contained oxygen or oxygen enriched air supplies could be provided through the system. The CFRt unit also would act as a transfer portal for power, communications, and water. It should also be noted that during the manufacturing of the inflatable clean rooms additional plastic zippers could be attached to the exterior edges of the structures, additional zipper access doors inserted, along with the addition of a number of CFRtUs thus allowing multiple clean rooms to be attached together thus creating a clean room complex.
The inflatable clean room would be built in an ultra sterilized facility that could maintain a higher degree of cleanliness and sterilization over conventional clean room manufacturing facilities. The construction of the inflatable clean room would utilize pre-existing manufacturing procedures, equipment, and techniques which are simpler and cleaner than processes and resources needed to fabricate current facilities that utilize metal or styrene plastic fabricated components. In addition, the materials that makeup the inflatable clean room (vinyl plastics, plastics, and rubberized materials) are lighter and cheaper than materials making up conventional clean room structures made of metals, styrene plastic, or glass.