Catapult Air Beam With Permanently Affixed Laceloops

• US 20070271854A1
• Filed: 05/18/2007
• Published: 11/29/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Johnson Outdoors, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Johnson Outdoors, Inc.
• Inventors: Reyen, James G., Wiegand, Joseph G.
• Granted Patent: US 7,716,876 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 52/2.110
• CPC Class Codes: E04H 15/20 inflatable, e.g. shaped, strengthened or supported by fluid pressure
• CPC Class Codes: E04H 2015/201 with inflatable tubular framework, with or without tent cover

Abstract

An inflatable air beam having a laceloop assembly affixed thereto, a structure utilizing same and a method of constructing a structure is provided. In the structure, the fabric is laced to a structural support, typically, an air beam to position and properly tension the fabric thereon. The laceloop assembly includes spaced apart adjacent laceloops that are interconnected to secure the fabric panel to the structural support. In practicing the method, the laceloops are passed through fabric panels and through adjacent laceloops to interconnect the adjacent laceloops and secure the fabric panels to the structural support.

Claims

1. An air beam, comprising:

an inflatable bladder; and

a plurality of fasteners affixed along a length of the inflatable bladder.

2. The air beam of claim 1, wherein the fasteners are laceloops affixed to the inflatable bladder.

3. The air beam of claim 2, wherein the laceloops are attached to an elongated strip of base material forming a laceloop assembly, the laceloop assembly being affixed to the inflatable bladder affixing the laceloops to the inflatable bladder.

4. The air beam of claim 3, wherein each laceloop is formed from an individual lace having opposed ends, the opposed ends being attached proximate one another to the base material to form an enclosed loop.

5. The air beam of claim 3, further comprising an outer sleeve surrounding the inflatable bladder, the strip of base material being affixed to the outer sleeve.

6. The air beam of claim 5, wherein the strip of base material is chemically bonded to the sleeve.

7. The air beam of claim 3, wherein the base material is a polyester mesh, the mesh having a width between about 1 inch to 3 inches, each laceloop extending a first distance from the base material, the first distance being at least equal to a second distance being the distance between adjacent laceloops;

and wherein all of the laceloops are formed from a continuous length of laceloop material intermittently secured to the base material.

8. The air beam of claim 1, wherein the fasteners are snaps.

9. A structure, comprising:

at least one structural support member having a plurality of fasteners affixed thereto;

at least one fabric panel; and

wherein the fasteners secure the at least one fabric panel to the structural support member in a plurality of locations along a length of the at least one structural member. Do we say one beam to give us as much coverage as possible? Theoretically you could install a structure with one beam but in most cases it will have two or more.

10. The structure of claim 9, wherein the fasteners are a plurality of laceloops.

11. The structure of claim 9, wherein the structural support member is a rigid structural support member.

12. The structure of claim 10, wherein the plurality of laceloops are formed in a laceloop assembly, the laceloop assembly including a base material in the form of webbing, the plurality of laceloops secured to the base material.

13. The structure of claim 12, wherein the at least one structural support member includes a plurality of inflatable air beams, each air beam having a laceloop assembly.

14. The structure of claim 13, wherein the at least one fabric panel includes a plurality of fabric panels and wherein adjacent fabric panels overlap one another proximate one of the structural support members, the laceloop assembly of the proximate structural support member securing both fabric panels to the structural support member.

15. The structure of claim 14, wherein the plurality of fabric panels include a plurality of apertures, wherein each aperture of a first overlapping portion of a first fabric panel aligns with a corresponding aperture of a second overlapping portion of a second fabric panel, each set of aligned apertures receives a corresponding laceloop therethrough.

16. The structure of claim 15, wherein the plurality of the laceloops includes at least one last laceloop and each laceloop except for the at least one last laceloop receives a single adjacent one of the laceloops through the loop formed by the laceloop.

17. The structure of claim 9, wherein the fasteners includes a plurality of snaps, each snap sized to pass through a corresponding aperture of the at least one fabric panel and including a flange that extends radially beyond the aperture to secure the fabric panel to the at least one structural support member.

18. A method of constructing a structure, comprising the step of lacing a first fabric panel to a structural support member to form the structure.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of lacing includes passing at least one laceloop through the first fabric panel.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the step of lacing includes passing a plurality of laceloops through the first panel and interconnecting a first string of the laceloops by passing a subsequent laceloop in the first string of laceloops through a preceding laceloop of the first string of laceloops until all of the laceloops in the first string of laceloops are interconnected, wherein no more than one laceloop is passed through any given laceloop.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the step of lacing further includes overlapping a second portion of a second fabric panel over a first portion of the first panel and passing the plurality of laceloops through the overlapping portions of the first and second panels.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising the step of anchoring a last laceloop in the string of laceloops to prevent the string of laceloops from unlacing.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein anchoring includes working the laceloop back up the string of laceloops and tying-off the last laceloop.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein the step of lacing includes interconnecting a second string of laceloops by passing a subsequent laceloop in the second string of laceloops through a preceding laceloop of the second string of laceloops until all of the laceloops in the second string of laceloops are interconnected, wherein no more than one laceloop is passed through any given laceloop.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the first and second strings of laceloops are formed by a single laceloop assembly and the first string includes a first portion of laceloops of the laceloop assembly and the second string includes a second portion of laceloops of the laceloop assembly, and wherein each string of laceloops is laced in a direction extending away from the other string of laceloops and towards an end of the laceloop assembly.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein the first and second strings of laceloops are formed by a single laceloop assembly and the first string includes a first half of laceloops of the laceloop assembly and the second string includes a second half of laceloops of the laceloop assembly, and wherein each string of laceloops is laced in a direction extending toward the other string of laceloops, further comprising anchoring the last laceloop of the first and second strings to one another.