Patent Publication Number: US-7588477-B2

Title: Balloon assembly

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates generally to amusement devices and, more particularly, to inflatable toys. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   Automobile dealers frequently tie helium-filled balloons to cars that they are offering for sale to attract the interest of passersby and to generate a festive atmosphere for conducting business. Unfortunately, helium-filled balloons leak over time and sag to the ground, producing a less than cheerful impression in potential car buyers. Automobile dealers, therefore, must frequently replace balloons—a costly undertaking since neither manpower nor helium is inexpensive. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In light of the problems associated with the constant replacement of balloons by automobile dealers seeking to attract buyers onto their lots, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a balloon assembly that simulates the look of a helium-filled balloon on a string but which requires minimal maintenance. Since the assembly is not appreciably affected by typical periods of wind, rain, or snow, it can be employed year-round. 
   It is an additional object of the invention to provide a balloon assembly of the type described that can support either a durable, air-filled bladder resembling a balloon or a conventional, air-filled balloon at a fixed height above a support. Both the bladder and the balloon can be detached from the balance of the assembly for the purposes of storage, inflation and replacement. 
   It is an object of the invention to provide a balloon assembly for the purposes described that is lightweight in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, and fully dependable in use. 
   Briefly, the balloon assembly achieves the intended objects by featuring pedestal and inflatable portions that can be easily attached to, and detached from, one another. In use, the pedestal portion is secured atop an automobile window and the inflatable portion is clipped atop the pedestal portion—a process requiring mere seconds to complete. (Detachment is just as fast.) So, in the event of an impending storm of a severe nature, or prior to occasions when an automobile dealership will be closed for prolonged periods, the inflatable portion can be gathered up to prevent their potential loss and stored in a secure place for reuse at a later time. 
   The balloon assembly also features an inflatable portion having a bladder that can be easily filled with air rather than expensive helium. The pedestal portion, being relatively rigid, prevents the inflatable portion from sagging to the ground in the manner of a leaky helium-filled balloon. Thus, the balloon assembly reduces the need for an automobile dealer to replace balloons about his property. 
   Further, the balloon assembly features an inflatable portion having a bladder that is not easily popped. The bladder is formed, in part, from a heavy-gauge vinyl sheeting that is not prone to tears or punctures. This material has a useful life that is many times that of the thin rubber employed in conventional balloons. 
   The balloon assembly of the type described that features an inflatable portion having a bladder with a nozzle that admits air by way of a user&#39;s mouth or mechanical pump. A user can fill one or one hundred balloons with equal ease. 
   It is another object of the invention to provide a balloon assembly of the type described that can be set up with minimal instruction and without resort to any tools. The balloon assembly is intuitive to use. 
   The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The present invention may be more readily described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a balloon assembly in accordance with the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a front view of a cup and a cap shown mated together. The cup and cap are upper parts of the assembly of  FIG. 1  and connect the pedestal portion and inflatable portion of the balloon assembly together. 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the connection between the pedestal portion and inflatable portion of the balloon assembly. 
       FIG. 4  is an perspective view of the top of the pedestal portion and the bottom of the disconnected, inflatable portion. 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the connection between the pedestal portion and the inflatable portion with parts of the pedestal portion and inflatable portion being removed to reveal details thereof. 
       FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the pedestal portion carrying a conventional, air-filled balloon. 
   

   Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the accompanying drawings. 
   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   Referring now to the FIGS., a balloon assembly in accordance with the present invention is shown at  10 . Assembly  10  includes a pedestal portion  12  that is attachable to an upright support such as an automobile window (not shown). An inflatable portion  14  is fastened to pedestal portion  12 . Together, pedestal portion  12  and inflatable portion  14  effectively simulate the look of a helium-filled balloon yet lack its drawbacks. 
   Pedestal portion  12  includes a mounting bracket  16  adapted for attachment to the top of a support. Bracket  16  includes a hook  18  resembling an inverted “L” extending from a block  20 . Between hook  18  and block  20  is a downwardly opening slot  22  for snugly receiving the top of window or other supporting surface (not shown). 
   A flexible rod  24  projects upwardly from mounting bracket  16 . For the sake of simplicity, the bottom of rod  24  is shown as being permanently affixed to block  20 . Nonetheless, it must be appreciated that rod  24  can be made removable from mounting bracket  16 . One manner of making rod  24  removable from block  20  is illustrated in my co-pending utility patent application Ser. No. 10/838,257, incorporated by reference for all purposes herein. 
   Rod  24  is formed of carbon fiber composite, fiberglass, plastic, aluminum or any other suitable material. Rod  24  is provided with dimensions adequate to simulate the string that is typically tied to a helium-filled balloon employed as a toy. It is expected that rod  24  would likely measure about one meter in length and a few millimeters in diameter. With such dimensions, rod  24  will sway from side-to-side in light breezes, shoring up the illusion that balloon assembly  10  is, in fact, a helium-filled balloon on a string. 
   A cup  26  is affixed to the top of rod  24 . Cup  26  has a conical side wall  28  that tapers in diameter to a narrowed bottom from which a stem  30  extends downwardly to receive the top of rod  24  in a socket  32  positioned therein. Side wall  28  and stem  30  are reinforced about their sides by a number of spaced-apart ribs  34  that extend downwardly from the top of side wall  28  to the bottom of stem  30 . Side wall  28  is further reinforced about its top by an enlarged lip  36 . Lip  36  has a sufficient size to receive the bottom of inflatable portion  14  and hold inflatable portion  14  upright in normal weather conditions. 
   Side wall  28  is provided with a pair of opposed slots  38  for receiving a pair of tabs  40  of corresponding size that project downwardly from inflatable portion  14 . Slots  38  are rectangular in outline, their tops being substantially parallel to lip  36 . So as to not weaken cup  26 , slots  38  are positioned between ribs  34 . 
   Located between a pair of ribs  34  remote from slots  38  is an aperture  42  for receiving the nozzle  44  of a conventional, air-filled balloon  46 . Aperture  42  includes a principal lobe  48  having a relatively large size and three, smaller, secondary lobes  50 ,  52  and  54  that branch from principal lobe  48 . Secondary lobes  50 ,  52  and  54  are separated by a pair of T-shaped fingers  56  and  58  upon which nozzle  44  can be wound to secure an air-filled balloon  46  to pedestal portion  12  and prevent the deflation of balloon  46  while sitting atop cup  26 . 
   Stem  30  is a cylinder with a longitudinal socket  32  for receiving the top of rod  24 . The length and diameter of stem  30  are adequate to provide a strong connection between cup  26  and rod  24  and withstand expected wind loads on either inflatable portion  14  or balloon  46 . Stem  30  is preferably integrally formed with side wall  28  but, if desired, can be separately made and fastened with adhesives or other suitable means to the bottom of side wall  28 . 
   Inflatable portion  14  includes an air-filled bladder  60  resembling, in terms of appearance, a helium-filled balloon. Bladder  60  is constructed in the manner of a manually inflated beach ball and is made up of a number of vinyl panels  62  joined side-by-side by impermeable seams  64 . Unlike a beach ball, however, one or more of panels  62  define a conical projection  66  at the bottom of bladder  60  that is sized for positioning within cup  26 . 
   A cap  68  is fitted over projection  66 . Cap  68  includes a conical side wall  70  dimensioned for snug positioning within cup  26 . Side wall  70  tapers in diameter from its top to a point at its bottom. Side wall  70  is reinforced about its top by a downwardly projecting rim  72  that defines an annular recess  74  around side wall  70 . Lip  36  can be fitted into recess  74  when inflatable portion  14  is pressed downwardly onto pedestal portion  12  to provide a strong connection between portions  12  and  14  capable of withstanding maximum wind loadings. 
   Tabs  40  extend downwardly from opposite sides of side wall  70  for positioning within slots  38  in cup  26 . Proximate their midpoints, tabs  40  have outwardly projecting shoulders  76  that catch upon side wall  28  at the tops of slots  38  when cup  26  and cap  68  are mated together. Since tabs  40  are integrally formed with side wall  70  and rim  72  from a resilient material, shoulders  76  can be selectively disengaged from side wall  28  simply by squeezing the free ends of tabs  40 . With shoulders  76  disengaged from side wall  28 , cup  26  and cap  68  can, of course, be easily disengaged from one another. 
   A retaining ring  78 , preferably formed of the same vinyl sheet material from which panels  62  are cut but possibly formed from another suitable material, holds cap  68  over conical projection  66 . As shown, ring  78  is provided with an outer diameter that is somewhat greater than that of projection  66  so that rim  72  can be positioned between projection  66  and the periphery of ring  78 . Furthermore, the opening  80  provided at the center of ring  78  is carefully sized and is large enough for the bottom of cap  68  and tabs  40  to project downwardly through it yet is sufficiently small so as to prevent the passage of rim  72 . 
   Retaining ring  78  is secured to bladder  60  and cap  68  by any suitable means. These means may include the application of heat and pressure to ensure that the surface contours of ring  78  in the finished inflatable portion  14  closely follow those of cap  68 . 
   The use of balloon assembly  10  is straightforward. First, pedestal portion  12  and inflatable portion  14  are connected by pressing cap  68  into cup  26  while making sure that tabs  40  are aligned with slots  38 . After shoulders  76  of tabs  40  “snap” into place against conical side wall  28  of cup  26 , hook  18  is engaged with a support like the top of an automobile window. Finally, the window is closed against its seal, either by rolling up the window or closing the automobile door of which window forms a part, locking assembly  10  locked in place. Passersby are likely to obtain a favorable impression of both the automobile supporting assembly  10  and the owner of the automobile. 
   Should foul weather threaten, inflatable portion  14  can be detached from pedestal portion  12 , leaving pedestal portion  12  in place. To do this, a user need only squeeze tabs  40  together to release shoulders  76  from conical side wall  28  of cup  26  and, then, push upwardly on tabs  40 . Inflatable portion  14  can now be moved to a secure place for later reuse. The light weight and small size of inflatable portion  14  permits it to be transported and stored practically anywhere. 
   To enhance the attractiveness of inflatable portion  14 , panels  62  may be provided with bright and contrasting colors. Furthermore, panels  62  can be provided with printed indicia in the form of logos, slogans, trademarks, advertisements and artworks of various sorts. If panels  62  are formed of a transparent material, it is contemplated that advertising displays or toys could be secured inside bladder  60  completely shielded from the weather. 
   A user can employ pedestal portion  12  with a conventional air-filled balloon  46  rather than inflatable portion  14  if he so desires. To accomplish this, air-filled balloon  46  is first secured to cup  26  by extending nozzle  44  downwardly through principal lobe  48  of aperture  42 . Then, nozzle  44  is pulled into one of the secondary lobes  50 ,  52  or  54  of aperture  42  and is wound around one or both of fingers  56  and  58  as illustrated in  FIG. 6 . Next, hook  18  is clasped upon the top of a support. From a distance, air-filled balloon effectively mimics a helium-filled balloon but possesses few of its drawbacks. 
   While balloon assembly  10  has been described with a high degree of particularity, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that modifications can be made to it. Therefore, it is to be understood that the present invention is not strictly limited to the balloon assembly described above, but encompasses any and all products within the scope of the following claims.