Patent Publication Number: US-6991510-B2

Title: Swivel air passing joint for an inflatable mannequin

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to a joint mechanism for use in an inflatable mannequin, and more particularly to a swivel air passing joint mechanism that allows full omni-directional articulation of the doll&#39;s limb members while permitting air to freely pass through the joint mechanism. 
   2. Prior Art 
   Inflatable dolls, mannequins, and other air filled toys that are designed to resemble actual human beings are well known in the art. Often it is desirable that inflatable dolls and mannequins be life like and resemble actual human anatomy and limb articulation. It is also desirable that the inflation of the dolls and mannequins be accomplished quickly and efficiently through a single air inlet located along the torso section of the doll for allowing simultaneous inflation of the entire doll including the limb members. However, current inflatable dolls and mannequins that are inflatable from a single air inlet valve are not capable of resembling and mimicking actual human anatomy and limb articulation. The main cause of this problem relates to the prior art joint mechanisms that attach the limb members to the doll&#39;s torso. 
   In order to allow for full omni-directional articulation of the limbs the inflatable mannequin must include a ball and socket type joint connecting the limb to the torso of the doll. However, while a conventional ball and socket joint allows for full omni-directional articulation it does not allow for air to freely pass between the limb members and the torso. This occurs because the prior art ball and socket joint is a solid structural element which prevents the flow of air from the torso to the limbs. Since air cannot flow from the torso to the limbs dolls, prior art ball and socket joints must include an air inlet on the torso of the doll and separate air inlets on each of the respective limb members which increases the amount of time needed to inflate and deflate the doll. 
   Prior art inflatable mannequins have also been proposed that allow for both movement of the limb members relative to the torso and allow air to freely flow between the torso and limb members. These dolls have limb members with limited limb articulation that feature ball and socket joints which allow for air to pass through them. However, these dolls utilize ball and socket joints that must be aligned in a specific manner for air or fluid to flow through the ball and socket joint between the torso and each individual limb member. 
   For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,322 to Myers discloses a liquid filled doll comprising a single reservoir having fluid flow communication between the doll&#39;s torso, arms, and legs. One of the connecting elements for the limbs features a ball and socket joint having a passageway for liquid to pass through the ball and socket joint. However, the Myers reference requires that liquid flow through two opposing holes placed within the ball and socket joint that must be properly aligned. In fact, the two opposing holes must be properly aligned in registry with one another in order for liquid to flow through the ball and socket joint. However, when the limb members of Myers are articulated in an omni-directional manner the opposing holes are placed out of registry, therefore liquid is not able to flow through the ball and socket joint of Myers which seriously hinders the effectiveness of the flow and limits the articulation of the limb members relative to the torso. 
   Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 2,731,768 to Harrowe discloses an inflatable mannequin that allows air to freely pass between the torso and the limbs of the doll. The Harrowe patent utilizes a cylindrical tube member that acts as a passageway for air to travel between the limbs and torso of the doll. The reference also discloses a connector element having a hollow sleeve member that defines serrated grooves adapted to be secured to internal grooves formed along the torso and limb, respectively. However, the cylindrical tube disclosed in the Harrowe patent is rigid and therefore cannot be adapted to accommodate a ball and socket joint. Since the device disclosed by Harrowe is incapable of including a ball and socket joint the limbs of the doll are only capable of forward and backward motion. Accordingly, the limb members of the Harrowe doll are not capable of full omni-directional articulation, and thus the reference does not satisfy the need in the art for a mannequin that is able to closely duplicate actual human limb movement while permitting air to freely pass between the limb members and torso at all limb articulations. 
   Therefore, there appears a need in the art for a swivel air passing joint mechanism for use with an inflatable mannequin that includes a ball and socket joint arrangement having a flexible tubular air passageway element that provides full omni-directional articulation of limb members, while permitting air to freely pass between the torso and limb members regardless of the particular articulation of the limb members. 
   OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONS 
   Accordingly, the primary object of the present invention is to provide a swivel air passing joint for use in an inflatable mannequin that is capable of omni-directional limb movement while acting as a conduit for allowing air to freely pass through the joint at any limb articulation. 
   Another object of the present invention is to provide a ball and socket joint arrangement with a hollow, flexible tubular air passageway element traversing through the entire ball and socket joint arrangement while allowing the joint arrangement to have a normal articulating function. 
   A further object of the present invention is to provide an inflatable mannequin with swivel air passing joint mechanisms connecting the limb members to the torso in order to allow for both omni-directional movement of the limbs while permitting air to flow through the joint mechanism regardless of the limb&#39;s orientation relative to the torso. 
   Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a ball and socket joint arrangement with a flexible, hollow tubular element traversing through the ball and socket joint arrangement that is capable of permitting air flow through the tubular element irrespective of the position of the ball and socket joint arrangement. 
   These and other objects of the present invention are realized in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, described by way of example, and not by way of limitation, which provides for a swivel air passing joint mechanism for use with an inflatable mannequin which allows for omni-directional articulation of limb members and further includes a hollow flexible tubular air passageway element for permitting air to freely pass between the torso and limb members during inflation regardless of the particular articulation of the limb member. 
   In brief summary, the present invention overcomes and substantially alleviates the deficiencies in the prior art by providing a swivel air passing joint mechanism including a cup member engageable with a ball member and socket member to form a ball and socket joint arrangement having a conduit formed therethrough. A tubular air passageway element traverses through the conduit of the ball and socket joint arrangement which is connectable between the torso and each respective leg and arm member. The flexible tubular air passageway element allows air to pass between the torso and any one of the limb members regardless of the limb member&#39;s orientation because of the flexible nature of the tubular air passageway element ensures continuous fluid flow communication between all portions of the doll body. 
   This combination of a tubular air passageway element and a ball and socket joint arrangement is advantageous as it allows air to pass from the torso directly through the ball and socket joint arrangement while allowing full omni-directional articulation of the limb members. Furthermore, air can continue to freely pass through the swivel air passing joint mechanism no matter what position the limb member is articulated relative to the torso of the mannequin body. Another advantage of the present invention is that the entire mannequin&#39;s body can be inflated through one single air inlet valve. The single air inlet valve allows for fast and efficient inflation of the mannequin because both the torso and limb members can be inflated through a single inlet in fluid flow communication with the tubular air passageway element of each respective ball and joint arrangement. This permits inflation of the arm and leg members without having to separately inflate each respective member. 
   Additional objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will be set forth in the description that follows, and will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following more detail description and drawings in which like elements of the invention are similarly numbered throughout. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the inflatable mannequin depicting the locations of the swivel air passing joint mechanisms according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the tubular air passageway element and the swivel air passing joint mechanism according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 3  is a side view of the fully assembled swivel air passing joint mechanism according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 4  is a cross sectional view of the swivel air passing joint mechanism taken along line  4 — 4  of  FIG. 3  according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the tubular air passageway element according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 6  is partial cross sectional view of the swivel air passing joint mechanism with the tubular air passageway element traversing through the swivel air passing joint mechanism according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view depicting the limb and the socket member of the swivel air passing joint mechanism during assembly with the tubular air passageway element being inserted through the socket member but not yet inserted through the ball member according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 8  is a perspective view depicting the limb and the socket member of the swivel air passing joint mechanism during assembly with the tubular air passageway element completely inserted though the socket member but not yet inserted through the ball member according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 9  is a perspective view of the limb member with the socket member and tubular air passageway element attached thereto during assembly of the swivel air passing joint mechanism according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 10  is a perspective view depicting the swivel air passing joint mechanism fully assembled and inserted into a limb member but not yet inserted into the torso of an inflatable mannequin during assembly of an inflatable mannequin according to the present invention; and 
       FIG. 11  is a side view depicting the swivel air passing joint mechanism shown in phantom fully assembled and which connects the limb to the torso of an inflatable mannequin according to the present invention. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   Referring to the drawings, the preferred embodiment of the swivel air-passing joint mechanism for an inflatable mannequin is illustrated and generally indicated as  10  in  FIGS. 1–11 . Swivel air-passing joint mechanism  10  allows an inflatable mannequin  12  to have limb members  18  with full omni-directional movement while providing a flexible air passageway between the limb members  18  and the body of the inflatable mannequin  12 . 
   Referring to  FIGS. 1–2 , and  9  inflatable mannequin  12  includes a torso  14  forming the body of inflatable mannequin  12  with an air inlet  16  to allow air to enter and exit when inflatable mannequin  12  is being inflated or deflated. Torso  14  is engaged to a head member  17  and respective limb members  18  to give inflatable mannequin  12  a realistic, life-like appearance. As further shown, each limb member  18  is designed to resemble human limbs and include an aperture  19  for engaging one end of swivel air passing joint mechanism  10  which enables limb members  18  to be attached to torso  14 . Limb members  18  are attached to torso  14  by a swivel air-passing joint mechanism  10  that is engaged to apertures  15  formed along respective sites along torso  14  corresponding to where the appropriate limb member  18  should be attached. 
   As depicted in  FIG. 2 , swivel air-passing joint mechanism  10  allows limb members  18  to have full omni-directional movement simulating the life-like articulation of human arms and legs. Swivel air-passing joint mechanism  10  comprises a ball and socket joint arrangement  20  and a tubular air passageway element  22  traversing through the ball and socket joint arrangement  20  in order to provide a means for unrestricted air flow between the torso  14  and limb members  18  regardless of the particular articulation of members  18 . 
   Referring to  FIGS. 3–5 , ball and socket joint arrangement  20  comprises a ball member  26  rotatably received within a socket member  24  having a cup member  30  interconnecting ball member  26  to socket member  24 . Socket member  24  is cup shaped element with a rear side  23  and a front side  25 . As further shown, front side  25  is in direct contact with ball member  26  and shaped to receive ball member  26  in the preferred embodiment of the invention. Socket member  24  also includes a lip  27  to secure socket member  24  to limb member  18  during assembly, as shall be explained in greater detail below, which is located along rear side  23  of socket member  24  and surrounds the entire radius of the socket member  24 . 
   In assembly, ball member  26  has a spherical body that is sized and shaped to be rotatably received inside socket member  24 . Ball and socket joint arrangement  20  further includes a conduit  28  that is formed through ball member  26  to provide access for tubular air passageway element  22  to pass through the entire ball and socket joint arrangement  20  during assembly. Conduit  28  includes an opening  28 A which is located immediately adjacent front side  25  of socket member  26  when the swivel air passing joint mechanism  10  is assembled and an opening  28 B which is located on the opposite side of ball member  26  adjacent to cup member  30 . To complete the assembly of the ball and socket joint arrangement  20 , cup member  30  is securely interconnected the socket members  24  to ball member  26 . 
   As further shown, cup member  30  comprises a bottom side  29  and a top side  31  with a raised edge  30 A enabling cup member  30  to surround and conceal ball member  26  when engaged thereto. At least one or more tabs  32  are located on socket member  24  with a corresponding set of recesses  34  on the top side  31  of cup member  30  which lock ball member  26  to socket member  24  during assembly as shall be explained in greater detail below. Once tabs  32  are placed within recesses  34  during assembly, ball member  26  is securely mounted within socket member  24  and permits limb members  18  to have full omni-directional movement when attached to torso  14 . 
   As noted above, tubular air passageway element  22  allows for air to freely pass through ball and socket joint arrangement  20  irrespective of the orientation of limb member  18  relative to torso  14 . Referring to  FIG. 5 , tubular air passageway element  22  includes a flexible tube  36  which forms a conduit for air to pass through ball and socket joint arrangement  20  with first and second openings  38 A and  38 B formed on opposing ends of flexible tube  36 . Two sheath members  40 A and  40 B are also attached to flexible tube  36  adjacent openings  38 A and  38 B, respectively, which secure flexible tubular air passageway element  22  to ball and socket joint arrangement  20 . 
     FIG. 6  depicts flexible tubular air passageway element  22  traversing though ball and socket joint arrangement  20  which forms the swivel air passing joint mechanism  10  of the present invention. When fully assembled, flexible tube  36  is disposed within conduit  28 , ball member  26  is surrounded by and attached to cup member  30  and disposed within socket member  24 , thereby securing socket member  24  by the interlocking of tabs  32  to recesses  34 . Sheath  40 B of tubular air passageway member  22  extends outwardly from conduit  28  from opening  28 B and covers top portion  31  of cup member  30  located within torso  14 . Finally, sheath  40 A extends outwardly from opening  28 A and covers the rear side  23  of socket member  24 . 
     FIGS. 7–11  depict the assembly of swivel air-passing joint mechanism  10  which illustrates the steps for connecting limb member  18  to torso  14 . In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, inflatable mannequin  12  has a swivel air passing joint mechanism  10  for each respective limb member  18 . Each assembly is identical and for simplicity only one assembly of swivel air-passing joint mechanism  10  for one respective limb member  18  will be explained herein. 
   To assemble, first opening  38 A of flexible tubular air passageway element  22  is inserted and pulled through socket  24  to allow sheath  40 A to cover the rear side  23  of socket member  24 . In the preferred embodiment, flexible tube  36  of tubular air passageway element  22  will be pulled taut so that sheath  40 A will tightly cover rear side  23  of socket member  24  providing both an air tight seal and strength to swivel air-passing joint mechanism  10 . Preferably, sheath  40 A is secured to the rear side  23  of socket member  24  by a high frequency welding process or other well known securing methods. 
   Socket member  24  with flexible tubular air passageway element  22  attached thereto is then inserted into aperture  19  of limb member  18 . The lip  27  of socket member  24  has a larger diameter than aperture  19  which secures socket  24  to limb member  18  after being forced through aperture  19  during assembly. Aperture  19  of limb member  18  as well as aperture  15  located along torso  14  are malleable during this step in the assembly process due to its deflated state; thereby, allowing larger lip member  27  to be forced through the smaller aperture  19 . After mannequin  12  is inflated, aperture  19  becomes rigid and lip member  27  cannot be withdrawn through aperture  19  which provides a secure fit between limb member  18  and torso  14 . 
   After socket member  24  is engaged to limb member  18 , opening  38 B of tubular air passageway element  22  is attached to ball member  26  which is then secured to socket member  24 . As depicted in  FIG. 7 , at this stage in the assembly process, ball member  26  is attached to cup member  30  by known means in the art. Opening  38 B of tubular air passageway element  22  is then inserted and pulled through and out from conduit  28  at opening  28 A in order to allow sheath  40 B to properly cover top side  31  of cup member  30 . A high frequency welding process is then used to securely attach sheath  40 B to top side  31 . 
   Referring now to  FIGS. 8–9 , tubular air passageway element  22  traverses through both the socket member  24  and ball member  26 . At this stage in the assembly process, the ball and socket joint arrangement  20  must be assembled to complete swivel air-passing joint mechanism  10  which connects limb member  18  to torso  14 . Ball member  26  is placed within socket member  24  and tabs  32  located on socket member  24  are aligned with recesses  34  on cup member  30  and locked together. Limb member  18  is now securely attached to torso  14  and an air tight seal is formed therebetween. In the preferred embodiment, this process would be repeated until all of limb members  18  were properly attached to torso  14  of inflatable mannequin  12  in accordance with the present invention. 
   Inflatable mannequin  12  is now ready for inflation. Once inflated, the limb members  18  attached to torso  14  by swivel air passing joint mechanism  10  are capable of full omni-directional articulation similar to actual human movement. Further, air is able to flow freely between torso  14  to limb members  18  through the swivel air-passing joint mechanism  10  irrespective of the limb member&#39;s  18  orientation relative to torso  14 . This allows inflatable mannequin  12  to be quickly and easily inflated through a single air inlet  16  located on torso  14 . 
   It should be understood from the foregoing that, while particular embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, various modifications can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it is not intended that the invention be limited by the specification; instead, the scope of the present invention is intended to be limited only by the appended claims.