Balloon inflation system

This invention relates to apparatus and a method for inflating a balloon and keeping it inflated whilst the balloon is filled with a substance.

It has been proposed in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,141,941 to provide apparatus for inflating a balloon and maintaining it in an inflated state whilst providing access to the interior of the balloon so that an object such as a stuffed toy can be placed through the neck and into the balloon. The neck of the balloon can then be sealed off with the object inside the balloon. The purpose of such a procedure is to use the balloon as novelty packaging for the object.

In U.S. Pat. No. 6,141,941, the balloon is positioned inside a container. Air is blown into the neck of the balloon by means of an integral blower. As the balloon is inflated, air is displaced from the container into which the balloon expands. One possibility mentioned is that this may be through a one-way valve. The displacement of air from the container through the one way valve results in a reduced pressure within the container, this serving to maintain the balloon in the inflated state even with the neck of the balloon open and exposed to the atmosphere so that an object can be inserted into the balloon.

The present invention is particularly, but not exclusively, concerned with a system that is adapted for introducing a flowable substance into the balloon. Such a substance could be a liquid such as water, or a flowable particulate material such as rice, flour, beans, sand and so forth, or a mixture of substances. Balloons filled in such a manner may used for a number of purposes, such as stress balls, juggling balls, water bombs and stress head characters.

Viewed from one aspect, the present invention provides apparatus for inflating a balloon and keeping the balloon inflated whilst a substance is introduced into the balloon, comprising a container having a lid with an opening arranged such that a balloon can be placed in the container with its neck open, aligned with the opening and in sealing engagement with the lid; and a non return valve to permit gas to be displaced from the space in the container outside the balloon whilst the balloon is inflated by urging gas under pressure through the opening into the neck of the balloon; characterised in that valve means are provided to permit controlled introduction of gas into the space in the container outside the balloon once the substance has been introduced into the balloon, so as to permit controlled contraction of the balloon around the substance.

In this manner, the balloon can contract to an appropriate size around the desired quantity of substance which has been introduced into the balloon, and there will be no sudden contraction of the balloon that could result in unwanted expulsion of the substance. Such a problem does not arise with a system such as that in U.S. Pat. No. 6,141,941 where the balloon is left inflated in a taut condition spaced from the object that has been introduced.

Viewed from another aspect, the present invention provides a method of inflating a balloon and introducing a substance into a balloon, comprising inserting the balloon into a container having a lid with an opening, so that the balloon has its neck open, aligned with the opening and in sealing engagement with the lid; urging gas under pressure through the opening into the neck of the balloon and permitting gas to be displaced through a non return valve from the space in the container outside the balloon whilst the balloon is inflated; introducing the substance into the balloon through the open neck; sealing the neck of the balloon with the substance inside; and removing the balloon from the container; characterised in that the substance is a flowable substance, and in that valve means are operated to permit controlled introduction of gas into the space in the container outside the balloon once the flowable substance has been introduced into the balloon, so as to permit controlled contraction of the balloon around the substance before the neck of the balloon is sealed.

It will be appreciated that in some cases it may not be necessary to have valve means to permit controlled introduction of gas into the space in the container outside the balloon, and that the balloon may simply be permitted to contract naturally at its own rate around the substance. Thus, viewed from a further aspect, the present invention provides a method of inflating a balloon and introducing a substance into a balloon, comprising inserting the balloon into a container having a lid with an opening, so that the balloon has its neck open, aligned with the opening and in sealing engagement with the lid; pumping gas through the opening into the neck of the balloon and permitting gas to be displaced through a non return valve from the space in the container outside the balloon whilst the balloon is inflated; introducing the substance into the balloon through the open neck; sealing the neck of the balloon with the substance inside; and removing the balloon from the container; characterised in that the substance is a flowable substance, and in that gas is introduced into the space in the container outside the balloon once the flowable substance has been introduced into the balloon, so as to permit contraction of the balloon around the flowable substance before the neck of the balloon is sealed.

The valve means used to control deflation of the balloon around the substance in accordance with the first two aspects of the invention may be incorporated into the non-return valve. Thus, there may be a single valve which acts as a one way valve until a component is operated to permit reverse flow. Preferably, and for ease of construction, there are two separate valves.

The non-return valve and the valve means used to control deflation need not be conventional valves. For example, the non return valve could be provided by distortion of the lid and container with respect to each other to permit gas to escape from inside the container. Controlled deflation may be provided, for example, by controlling the manner in which the lid is opened after the balloon has been filled, so that only a restricted flow of gas into the container is permitted initially. Preferably though, and for ease of construction, conventional types of valve are used.

In a preferred arrangement, the non-return valve is associated with the lid, as is the deflation control valve if provided. This means that the container body can be of simple construction, with the lid being the only component requiring details. The non-return valve need not be mounted on the lid as such, but can be associated with it by being connected to an aperture in the lid via a suitable conduit.

Associating the non-return valve with the lid improves the ease of manufacture. However, a problem may arise in terms of ensuring that air can be displaced from the container throughout the period that gas is being pumped into the balloon. The balloon will expand widthways as well as longitudinally away from the neck, which is received by the lid. If the balloon engages the sides of the container before the balloon has expanded fully in the longitudinal direction, then the gas in the lower part of the container, below the engagement of the balloon with the sides of the container, will be impeded from escaping via the non-return valve. Accordingly, in a preferred embodiment there is provided a conduit extending from an opening in the lid to a region adjacent the end of the container remote from the lid. The non-return valve may be provided in the lid or at any point along the conduit. The conduit will be of a material that will resist the compressive force on the balloon so as to ensure that there is a free passage for gas from the remote end of the container as the balloon is inflated.

Accordingly, viewed from another aspect the present invention provides apparatus for inflating a balloon and keeping the balloon inflated whilst an object or substance is introduced into the balloon, comprising a container having a lid with an opening arranged such that a balloon can be placed in the container with its neck open, aligned with the opening and in sealing engagement with the lid; and a non return valve to permit gas to be displaced from the space in the container outside the balloon whilst the balloon is inflated by urging gas under pressure through the opening into the neck of the balloon; characterised in that a conduit extends from an aperture in the lid to a region of the container which is remote from the lid, the non-return valve being provided in the conduit.

Preferably, the conduit extends from the lid to beyond half way towards the end of the container remote from the lid.

In normal use, the gas referred to for all aspects of the invention will be air although it might for example be possible to inflate the balloon with a gas such as helium. This may be of use in aspects of the invention in which the balloon has an object placed inside, and is maintained substantially fully inflated around the object.

Inflation of the balloon may be by any suitable means for producing gas under pressure, such as a hand pump, foot pump, electrical pump, cylinder of compressed gas and so forth. Preferably the lid is provided with a connector for receiving the outlet of the means for producing gas under pressure so that gas can be passed through the opening in the lid and through the neck of the balloon to inflate the balloon. The lid could be provided with a tube into which a person could blow to inflate the balloon.

Once a balloon has been filled extra balloons can be stretched around it to provide strength and also to produce multi-coloured balls and toys. Stick-on eyes or other features, and wool for hair may be added to filled balloons to create balloon characters.

In preferred embodiments of some aspects of the invention, there is provided an easy way of filling balloons and making balls and toys. The system is simple and easy to use and child safe. The preferred system provides apparatus for a fun arts and craft activity which has benefits of repetitive play. The system provides an educational toy which teaches about valves, vacuums, pressures and pumps, and which can be used as visual demonstration to prove these theories. The preferred embodiment provides a system which can be manufactured and mass produced at a low cost by incorporating simple components. In the preferred system, a balloon may be controllably inflated and deflated.

It will be appreciated that the various embodiments of the invention may be combined together in operative combinations.

The container and lid can both be of a suitable material such as plastics, metal, wood, glass, or a combination of these materials. The lid may be permanently attached to the container and be openable, or for example may be removable from the container. Thus the lid may screw on to the container or for example may clip to the container. The lid should form a sealing engagement with the container. In one preferred embodiment both the container and lid are of plastics, and the lid snaps on to the container, compressing a seal.

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