INFLATABLE GAME STRUCTURE
A game apparatus including at least one rebound surface upon which a player can jump, flexible material extending substantially vertically up from the at least one rebound surface dividing the at least one rebound surface into at least two individual play areas having the at least one rebound surface as a floor, an opening between the play areas a preset distance above the rebound surface to allow a play object to move between play areas includes an inflatable flexible material mounting frame supporting the flexible material. An inflatable rebound surface mounting frame can also be provided for supporting the rebound surface.
Priority is claimed to copending U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/266,077 filed Dec. 2, 2009, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND1. Field of the Invention
The invention is in the field of game apparatus including a trampoline and structure above the trampoline for playing games while jumping on the trampoline.
2. Related Art
In the early eighties I invented a game, with several variations, which utilized one or more trampolines and structure above the trampoline surface or surfaces. These game apparatus are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,433,838 and 4,569,515, and are available commercially under the trademarks AEROBALL and HIBALL from Maze, Inc., Springville, Utah. The HIBALL game apparatus includes a single trampoline with single dividers and goals. Two or four players participate in the game. The AEROBALL game apparatus includes two or four separate trampolines with double dividers and goals. Both games include flexible material, such as flexible mesh material, forming netting around the rebound surface of the trampoline or trampolines to ensure that the players jumping on the trampoline do not fall off the rebound surface and which divide the play area into individual cells with a cell forming and individual play area for each player. The netting also keeps a play object, such as a ball, within the game cells. Goals are provided in the cells into or through which players throw or hit the play object. The frames which support the trampoline or trampolines and which support the netting are steel and are assembled by connecting a number of steel framing pieces together and then mounting the rebound surface or surfaces and the netting to the frames. Improvements in the game structures are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 7,762,927.
The play apparatus as shown in cited U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,433,838, 4,569,515, and 7,762,927 generally work well but the steel frames make them time consuming to set up and take down, making the game structures difficult to set up for temporary use, such as for use just during parties.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAccording to the invention, a game apparatus including at least one rebound surface upon which a player can jump, flexible material extending substantially vertically up from the at least one rebound surface dividing the at least one rebound surface into at least two individual play areas having the at least one rebound surface as a floor, and having an opening a preset distance above the rebound surface between the play areas to allow a play object to move between play areas is constructed using an inflatable flexible material mounting frame supporting the flexible material, thereby eliminating the steel flexible material frame and the assembly associated therewith. Further, the flexible material supported by the inflatable flexible material mounting frame is generally attached to and forms an integral part of the flexible material mounting frame so that complete assembly of the flexible material mounting frame and of the flexible material to define the individual play areas is accomplished by inflation of the inflatable flexible material mounting frame. The flexible material mounting frame can be completely sealed and inflated with a pump through a valve which is closed when the frame is inflated to maintain the inflation indefinitely, or the inflatable flexible material mounting frame may be inflated by a blower which operates on a continuous basis during use of the game apparatus to maintain the inflation during such use.
In addition, while the inflatable flexible material mounting frame can be used with an at least one convention trampoline rebound surface and rebound surface mounting frame supporting the at least one rebound surface, the invention can provide at least one convention trampoline rebound surface with an at least partially inflatable rebound surface mounting frame or can provide an inflatable at least one rebound surface and rebound surface mounting frame. This further eases assembly and disassembly of the game apparatus.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the detailed description which follows, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which together illustrate, by way of example, features of the invention; and, wherein:
Reference will now be made to the exemplary embodiments illustrated, and specific language will be used herein to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTSAlso, as shown in
When the inflatable flexible material mounting frame is permanently and integrally attached to the base as shown for the embodiment of
With the embodiment shown in
To enclose the individual play areas 16, mesh material 40, such as a vinyl coated nylon mesh material, not shown in
To enable players to enter and exit the individual play areas 16, doors 50 are provided in the mesh material forming one or both sides or the end of the enclosed play areas. The doors may take the form of flaps openable around three sides to swing open to allow a player to enter or leave a play area through a resulting door opening, or may be completely removable from the door opening. The flap or completely removable door can be held in closed position by any suitable means such as by hook and loop fastener material on the door and the mesh material surrounding the door opening, or by ties which hold the doors in closed position.
In many games played using the apparatus of the invention, goals are provided at the end of each individual play area through which a player in the opposing play area tries to throw a play object, such as a ball. In the embodiment of
As indicated above, rebound surface 14 can be sloped slightly upwardly at its ends as shown in the end areas 20,
While the game structure may be made in various sizes, structures providing individual play areas about four feet wide, five to six feet long, and about nine feet high are customary. With the structure of
In this embodiment, which provides two separate rebound surfaces, each of the inflation chambers providing a separate rebound surface is separately inflated. While a specific embodiment of separate rebound surfaces is shown in
In any of the embodiments, additional inflatable vertical, horizontal, or other members may be provided as needed to provide a flexible material support frame or rebound surface support frame to hold the flexible material and/or rebound surface as desired. Doors can be sized and positioned as desired. It has been found that debris can collect inside the play areas of the structure. A small opening along the bottom of the play area, such as a two inch by three inch opening through the mesh material at a lower corner of each play area, can be provided so that collected debris can be blown from the play areas.
A ball satisfactory for use in the game apparatus of the invention can be between about six inches to ten inches in diameter, made of a durable soft cloth material, such as denim or valour, and filled with a stuffing material, such as batting or urethane. The ball is soft and has pinched seams so is easy to grip.
While the forgoing examples are illustrative of the principles of the present invention in one or more particular applications, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that numerous modifications in form, usage and details of implementation can be made without the exercise of inventive faculty, and without departing from the principles and concepts of the invention. Accordingly, it is not intended that the invention be limited, except as by the claims set forth below.
Claims
1. A game apparatus comprising:
- at least one rebound surface upon which a player can jump;
- flexible material extending substantially vertically up from the at least one rebound surface dividing the at least one rebound surface into at least two individual play areas having the at least one rebound surface as a floor;
- an opening between the play areas to allow a play object to move between play areas, said opening being a preset distance above the rebound surface;
- a rebound surface mounting frame supporting the at least one rebound surface; and
- an inflatable flexible material mounting frame supporting the flexible material.
2. A game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inflatable flexible material mounting frame includes inflatable vertical columns and inflatable end and side members extending between the inflatable vertical columns.
3. A game apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the flexible material is mesh material and is secured to at least one of the inflatable vertical columns, the inflatable end members, and the inflatable side members.
4. A game apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the inflatable flexible material mounting frame is secured to the rebound surface mounting frame.
5. A game apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the rebound surface mounting frame provides an inflatable base supporting the at least one rebound surface.
6. A game apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the inflatable flexible material mounting frame is secured to the rebound surface mounting frame by securing the inflatable vertical columns to the inflatable base.
7. A game apparatus according to claim 6, wherein flexible material supported by the flexible material mounting frame surrounds the individual play areas, and the flexible material includes at least one door providing access to each of the play areas.
8. A game apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the inflatable flexible material mounting frame includes inflatable vertical central side columns and a horizontal central member extending between the inflatable vertical central side columns to divide individual play areas, said horizontal central member having opposite sides, and includes mesh material extending between the rebound surface and the sides of the horizontal central member to create a divider between play areas having spaced sides.
9. A game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one rebound surface is a single rebound surface.
10. A game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the single rebound surface is formed by a single inflation chamber.
11. A game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the rebound surface mounting frame is inflatable and contains a single inflation chamber forming a single rebound surface.
12. A game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one rebound surface is a plurality of rebound surfaces.
13. A game apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the rebound surface mounting frame is inflatable and contains a plurality of inflation chambers forming a plurality of rebound surface.
14. A game apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the rebound surface mounting frame includes an inflatable base forming a plurality of spaces for mounting a rebound surface in each of the plurality of spaces.
15. A game apparatus according to claim 14, wherein an inflation chamber forming a rebound surface is positioned in each of the plurality of spaces.
16. A game apparatus according to claim 12, wherein there are two individual play areas and the plurality of rebound surfaces is two rebound surfaces.
17. A game apparatus according to claim 12, wherein there are four individual play areas and the plurality of rebound surfaces is four rebound surfaces.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 2, 2010
Publication Date: Jun 9, 2011
Inventor: Donald W. Gordon (Springville, UT)
Application Number: 12/959,344
International Classification: A63B 63/00 (20060101);