Patent Application
20210355705
The present invention relates to a method and device for securing a light-weight temporary structure.
Light-weight, temporary structures, such as inflatable structures are used in a wide variety of instances for quick set-up and easy dismantling. Inflatable structures include children's play houses and lawn toys, such as slides, as well as tents used in recreational settings as well as military purposes and emergency shelter. These structures are generally held in place on the ground by ropes or wires held in place by spikes or jugs of sand. However, in strong winds, these structures have a tendency to become airborne and can cause catastrophic injury or death to anyone inside the structure once airborne.
Therefore, a method is needed to help prevent such structures from destruction during strong winds.
The present invention is directed to a method and device for securing a light-weight, temporary structure from issue related to wind. In a preferred embodiment the structure is an inflatable structure, however, other slight-weight temporary structures such as sheds may also be secured by the present invention.
In an embodiment of the present invention, an inflatable structure is protected from wind issues through the use of a flap or flaps that extend from the outer wall of the base of the inflatable structure forming a seam. The flaps are then secured to the ground. In a preferred embodiment, the inflatable structure is a child's bounce house, however, the inflatable structure can be any inflatable structure such as, but not limited to a slide or a tent.
In a further embodiment the flaps extend from at least two sides of the inflatable structure. If the inflatable structure is irregular or spherically shaped, the flaps should extend from at least 50% of the base of the structure, preferably 75%-100%. The larger the area of the base of the inflatable object consisting of flaps, the more secure the inflatable structure is from wind.
The flaps of the present invention may be manufactured into the production of the inflatable structure, or may be attached after manufacture. For flaps attached during manufacture of the inflatable structure, the flaps may be made of the same material as the bounce house, such as nylon, polyester, polyester oxford (oxford cloth), PVC, vinyl or any suitable durable material. These flaps may be seamlessly part of the inflatable structure or attached by stitching, clamps, fasteners, zips, ties, glue, adhesive, heat bond or other means of attachment.
For flaps attached after manufacture, the attachment may be permanent or the flaps may be removeable. These flaps may be made of the same material as the bounce house, such as nylon, polyester, polyester oxford (oxford cloth), PVC, vinyl or any suitable durable material. These flaps may be attached to the inflatable structure by stitching, clamps, fasteners, zips, ties, heat bond or other means of attachment.
In a further embodiment, the flaps should ideally extend to at least ⅓ of the height of the inflatable structure. The further the flaps extend, the more secure the inflatable structure is against the wind.
Once the inflatable structure is inflated and the flaps are extended, the flaps are secured on the ground with at least one weighted device. In a preferred embodiment the weighted devices are weighted moveable objects such as sandbags, however, it is understood that any weighted object may used, including, but not limited to water-filled bags (or other suitable containers such as cans and jugs), soil-filled bags, or other heavy objects. The sandbags are then placed along the length of the seam between the flap and the inflatable structure. In a preferred embodiment, the weighted objects extend at least 50% of the length of the seam, preferably 75-100%. In a further embodiment, additional rows of sandbags may be added. The sandbags may be in a linear manner, staggered, stacked, or a combination thereof. Alternatively, a flap may be secured by one sandbag that extends the length of the seam with the base of the inflatable structure. The flaps may further be secured by ties, pins, ropes, tacks or similar securing method.
In a further embodiment, one or more flaps may consist of a barrier around the perimeter forming a reservoir. In this embodiment, the weighted devices can be the weighted objects or weighted material such as sand or water can then be placed on the flap and contained by the barrier. The barrier may be permanently attached to the flap or removable. The barrier may be further partitioned to form several reservoirs on the flap.
In a further embodiment, the flap may contain a bladder that can be filled with weighted material such as water or sand. The bladder may have a port, nozzle, or other opening to allow for ease in filling the bladder and securing the weighted material within. In a preferred embodiment, the bladder has a threaded port to allow for attachment of a hose for filling the bladder with water. A threaded cap can then be placed on the port to secure the water in the bladder.
