Illuminating balloon inflatable with air

• US 7,611,395 B2
• Filed: 11/30/2005
• Issued: 11/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intercomm SRL
• Original Assignee: Intercomm SRL
• Inventors: Bonsembiante, Andrea
• Primary Examiner(s): LEGESSE, NINI F
• Application Number:
  US11/289,482
• Publication Number:
  US 20070123140A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,434 Days
• Field of Search: 446/219, 446/220, 446/221, 446/222, 446/225, 446/226, 362/34, 362/96, 362/97, 362/363, 473/570
• US Class Current: 446/220
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 2027/1008 Anchoring means or weights
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 2027/1025 Fabrication methods or special materials therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 27/10 Balloons connection of valves to inflatable elastic bodies B60C29/00; other than toy aspects B64B1/40
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 6/005 with a lamp housing maintained at a distance from the floor or ground via a support, e.g. standing lamp for ambient lighting
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 3/026 being inflatable

Abstract

The present invention concerns a balloon inflatable with air and containing a light source (lamp) inside. The balloon (1) consists of a plurality of segments (5, 5′, 5″, etc.) made from polyester or polyamide (nylon), which along a meridian line (6, 6′, 6″, etc.) are mutually connected. This connection according to the invention is effected by high frequency (HF) welding, which other than sewing technologies ensures that owing to the melting of at least one intermediate layer of thermoplastic material absolute air-tightness of the connecting zone of the neighboring segments, and thus of the whole balloon (1), can be obtained.

Claims

1. An inflatable balloon inflatable with compressed air, comprising:

an illumination light source at a center of the inflatable balloon;

an essentially spherical body comprising a plurality of segments forming meridians and which segments are mutually interconnected, wherein the segments are composed of a particularly air-impermeable fabric;

a connecting rod;

a connecting disc at a lower pole of the essentially spherical body to which all of the plurality of segments merge and which connects the inflatable balloon in substantially airtight manner with the connecting rod;

seams comprising at least one of a connecting zone and an overlapping zone of two adjacent segments; and

at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer structured and arranged to form an airtight connection at the seams between the two adjacent segments,

wherein the seams mutually interconnect the segments along a meridian line of the inflatable balloon.

2. The inflatable balloon of claim 1, wherein the seams are structured and arranged for welding using a high frequency (HF) welding process.

3. The inflatable balloon of claim 1, wherein the at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer is structured and arranged to form the airtight connection through a high frequency (HF) welding process.

4. The inflatable balloon of claim 1, wherein the particularly air-impermeable fabric is a polyester or polyamide (nylon) fabric.

5. The inflatable balloon of claim 1, wherein the at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer:

is arranged lining the particularly air-impermeable fabric of the inflatable balloon on its inside; and

comprises a polyurethane film.

6. The inflatable balloon of claim 5, wherein the at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer provides a high light reflection property.

7. The inflatable balloon of claim 1, wherein the at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer:

comprises a polyester welding strip coated at least on one of its sides with a polyurethane film; and

is arranged between fabric layers of the two adjacent segments along at least one of the connecting zone and the overlapping zone.

8. The inflatable balloon of claim 1, wherein the at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer:

comprises a polyester welding strip coated with a polyurethane film at least on an outer side oriented outwards away from the inflatable balloon; and

is arranged on an outside of fabric layers of the two adjacent segments along at least one of the connecting zone and the overlapping zone.

9. The inflatable balloon of claim 1, wherein the at least one of the connecting zone and the overlapping zone of the two adjacent segments comprises a width of between approximately 1 cm and 3 cm.

10. The inflatable balloon of claim 9, wherein the width is 2 cm.

11. The inflatable balloon of claim 1, further comprising a compressor structured and arranged to feed air into the inflatable balloon via the connecting rod and the connecting disc, wherein air inside the inflatable balloon is maintained under constant pressure with the compressor.

12. The inflatable balloon of claim 11, wherein the compressor is structured and arranged to feed air into the inflatable balloon one of continually and intermittently.

13. The inflatable balloon of claim 11, wherein the constant pressure ranges between 8 and 15 millibar.

14. The inflatable balloon of claim 1, wherein the illumination light source comprises an electric lamp.

15. A method of making the inflatable balloon of claim 1, comprising:

positioning the at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer within the at least one of the connecting zone and the overlapping zone of the two adjacent segments; and

high frequency (HF) welding the at least one of the connecting zone and the overlapping zone to melt the at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer,

whereby a solidification of the at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer forms the airtight connection.

16. An inflatable balloon inflatable with compressed air, comprising:

an illumination light source at a center of the inflatable balloon;

an essentially spherical body comprising a plurality of segments forming meridians and which segments are mutually interconnected, wherein the segments are composed of a particularly air-impermeable fabric;

a connecting rod;

a connecting disc at a lower pole of the essentially spherical body to which all of the plurality of segments merge and which connects the inflatable balloon in substantially airtight manner with the connecting rod;

at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer along at least one of a connecting zone and an overlapping zone of two adjacent segments; and

welded seams comprising the at least one thermoplastic intermediate layer within the at least one of the connecting zone and the overlapping zone of the two adjacent segments providing an airtight connection along the welded seams to mutually interconnect the segments along a meridian line of the inflatable balloon.