The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 11, 2001
Filed:
Jul. 05, 1999
Richard A. Saputo, Tarzana, CA (US);
Hua Hsiang Lin, Kowloon, HK;
Intex Recreation Corp., Long Beach, CA (US);
Abstract
An internal air pump for charging inflatables with air and method therefore is disclosed which is directed to an air pump mounted internal to an inflatable device for injecting air therein. The inventive air pump is a thin-walled, lightweight, highly elastic, flexible plastic construction which is easily packaged within the inflatable device and can be used to inflate the device to a desired air pressure. In its most fundamental embodiment, the internal air pump comprises a construction including an outer shell layer having a continuous sidewall, a roof layer and a floor layer for defining an enclosed inner pump chamber. An inner sandwich layer is positioned adjacent to the outer shell layer and includes a resilient component. At least one air intake valve is mounted within the roof layer for admitting air into the inner pump chamber. One or more exhaust ducts are mounted in the outer shell layer for discharging air from the inner pump chamber to an inflatable device. An external force applied to the air pump forces air from the inner pump chamber to the exhaust ducts. The resilient component enables the air pump to self-adjust after the external force is removed.