Carry bag having inflatable protective wall

Abstract

A carry bag is formed of a flexible plastics material and has an outer wall, an inner wall defining a receiving space and being sealed to the outer wall to form an inflatable volume between the walls. There is a valve in the outer wall, and an opening through which articles can be inserted/retrieved into/from the receiving volume. There is a strap at the bag opening having a pair of fasteners at each of its ends. The fasteners can be attached to one another to form a handle.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to carry bags. More particularly, although not exclusively, the invention relates to a carry bag having protective walls that can be inflated to provide protection for contents of the bag.

Handbags or carry bags, or even suitcases and luggage cases often have thin or hard walls that provide inadequate protection for bag contents. Where internal padding is applied, this encroaches on the carrying capacity, or otherwise adds to the bulk of the bag itself

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to overcome or substantially ameliorate the above disadvantage and/or more generally to provide a carry bag having an inflatable wall.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

There is disclosed herein a carry bag comprising:

• • a flexible outer wall,
  • a flexible inner wall defining a receiving space and being sealed to the outer wall to form an inflatable volume therebetween,
  • a valve in the inner or outer wall, and
  • an opening through which articles can be inserted/retrieved into/from the receiving space.

Preferably the carry bag further comprises a flexible rib extending between the inner and outer walls.

Preferably there is provided at the opening a strap having a pair of fasteners at each end thereof.

Preferably the inner wall is sealed to the outer wall at a position space from the opening to enable the outer wall to be rolled down toward the inner wall.

Preferably the fasteners can be attached to one another to form a handle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A preferred form of the present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective illustration of an inflatable carry bag prior to inflation,

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional elevation of the carry bag of FIG. 1 taken at II-II,

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective illustration of the carry bag of FIG. 1 after inflation,

FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional elevation of the carry bag of FIG. 3 taken at IV-IV,

FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective illustration of the carry bag having its opening rolled closed, and

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective illustration of the carry bag having its opening strap buckled closed to form a carry handle.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In the accompanying drawings there is depicted schematically an inflatable carry bag 10 typically formed of flexible plastics material such as PVC or PTU plastics The plastics material might be opaque or light-transmissive—translucent or transparent.

The bag 10 comprises an outer wall 11 and an inner wall 12. Walls 11 and 12 are typically plastics-welded to one another at 21 in an airtight manner. A pair of flexible ribs 13 extend between the outer wall 11 and inner wall 12. Each rib might have a pair of flanges 14 by which attachment to the walls 11 and 12 is achieved—say by plastics welding about the respective flange peripheries. At the bottom of the bag there is a valve 15 through which air can be blown to create a pressurized “padding” space 16 between the outer wall 11 and inner wall 12 as shown in FIG. 4. Air may be blown through the valve 15 by mouth or by pump.

At the top of the bag there is an opening 17 through which articles can be inserted into the bag interior 18. Attached to one side of the opening 17 is a strap 19 with buckle parts 20 at both of its ends.

In use one simply inflates the space 16 by blowing through the valve 15 and then places his or her articles through opening 17 into the interior space 18. The top part of the bag including the opening 17 can then be rolled down into the configuration depicted in FIG. 5 with the buckle parts 20 projecting from each end of the rolled-down portion of the outer wall 11. This rolling-down action might increase air pressure within the space 16 to provide an improved padding effect, especially the rolled-down portion of the outer wall extend beyond the plastics welding 21 where the inner wall 12 joins the outer wall. To form a handle 22 (FIG. 6), one simply attaches the buckle parts 20 together while folding the rolled-down portion 11 toward a closed loop.

Air can be exhausted after use of the bag by squeezing the valve 15 to open a flap or slit therein.

It should be appreciated that modifications and alterations obvious to those skilled in the art are not to be considered as beyond the scope of the present invention. For example, the buckles might be replaced by ties (i.e. laces), press studs, buttons or other fasteners.

Claims

1. A carry bag comprising: a flexible outer wall, a flexible inner wall defining a receiving space and being sealed to the outer wall to form an inflatable volume therebetween, a valve in the inner or outer wall, and an opening through which articles can be inserted/retrieved into/from the receiving space.

2. The carry bag of claim 1 further comprising a flexible rib extending between the inner and outer walls.

3. The carry bag of claim 1 wherein there in provided at the opening a strap having a pair of fasteners at each end thereof.

4. The carry bag of claim 3 wherein the inner wall is sealed to the outer wall at a position space from the opening to enable the outer wall to be rolled down toward the inner wall.

5. The carry bag of claim 4 wherein the fasteners are attached to one another to form a handle.