US20060232014A1

US20060232014A1 - Balloon bursting game with air pump

Info

Publication number: US20060232014A1
Application number: US11/370,726
Authority: US
Inventors: William Holsten; Janet Holsten
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2005-04-18
Filing date: 2006-03-07
Publication date: 2006-10-19

Abstract

A balloon bursting game. The game apparatus mainly comprises an air pump, a tube connecting a balloon and the air pump, and a frame-like member with a plurality if sharpened members. The air pump is manually operated to gradually inflate the balloon. The frame-like member and the balloon are disposed on a stand-like member. The frame-like member is designed and positioned such that the outer surface of a sufficiently inflated balloon presses against the plurality of sharpened members. The balloon will burst when pressed with sufficient force against the plurality of sharpened members. A plurality of game apparatuses may be placed in proximity and a player is assigned to each of the game apparatuses. The player who is the fastest to inflate and burst the balloon is declared as the winner.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPPLICATION

This is a utility patent application which claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/672,369, filed Apr. 18, 2005, which is hereby incorporated by reference as if set forth in full herein.

FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH

Not Applicable

SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAM

Not Applicable

STATEMENT REGARDING COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL

Portions of the disclosure of this patent document contain material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates generally to a game apparatus, and more particularly to a balloon bursting game apparatus.
Many games that involve bursting balloons are known in the art. A variety of apparatuses, methods and playing procedures have been adopted for these games. Typically, the game apparatuses of such games include a balloon and some type of balloon-piercing structure. In general, the primary object of these games is to either prevent the balloon from bursting, or to be the first player to burst the balloon.
Several balloon-bursting games have been developed in art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,201,387 to Revermann discloses a balloon buster game. The game device includes a game board on which playing pieces travel along a path from a start to a goal. The game device also includes a screw operated balloon press for bursting a balloon, which determines the distance to be traveled by a game piece on the board.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,169,593 to Wood discloses a balloon bursting game, which comprises a box divided into multiple chambers by means of partitions. An inflated balloon is placed in a chamber having a top with a hole. An elastic partition is supported above the chamber having a plurality of needles fixed to it such that the needles extend perpendicularly into the hole. A partition with a plurality of mutually spaced holes is positioned on top of the elastic partition. A plurality of marbles are dropped by the players through the holes. When sufficient number of marbles rest on the elastic partition, it is stretched downward to force the needles through the hole in top of the chamber, thereby piercing the balloon.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,713,656 to Cooper discloses a balloon game system, which comprises an opaque box with an open bottom. The top surface of the box provides a playing surface, which includes a plurality of mutually spaced pre-cut nail-receiving perforations. The game system further comprises a plurality of needles, a hammer for driving the needles into the top surface of the box through the pre-cut nail-receiving perforations, a plurality of inflated balloons that are placed inside the box and a chance device to determine the number of nails. Each player must attempt to drive these nails into the pre-cut nail-receiving perforations without bursting the balloons.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,113,261 to Sims discloses a game that includes a gameboard, on which tokens are moved through a number of obstacles in accordance with the number cast on the dice. The game also comprises a three dimensional fish having jaws, a tail and a dorsal fin. By rotating the dorsal fin, which in turn is coupled to a threaded actuator assembly, the upper jaw of the fish is moved upwards or downwards depending on the direction of rotation of the dorsal fin. An inflated balloon is placed inside the mouth of the fish. While playing the game, players are required to rotate the dorsal fin when their tokens land on particular game board spaces. A player is penalized when the balloon bursts as a result of its contact with the upper jaw of the fish.
Although the above games involve bursting of the balloons, the game apparatuses are substantially different from the present invention in that they fail to incorporate a manually actuated pumping device feature into the game. Moreover, the present invention aims at providing a balloon bursting game, wherein game play is a vigorous activity for the players.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new balloon bursting game.
A further object is to provide a balloon bursting game, which utilizes an air pump to inflate a balloon.
A further object is to provide a balloon bursting game, which includes a balloon piercing frame-like member to burst the balloon when inflated by the air pump.
Finally, it is an object of the present invention to provide a balloon bursting game, which is suited for testing the competitiveness, speed and strength of the players, serving amusement as well as competitive purposes. These and other objects of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the appended Summary, Description, and Claims.

SUMMARY

The present invention is a balloon bursting game. The game apparatus mainly includes an air pump, a balloon, a tube connecting the air pump and the balloon, a balloon stand and a frame-like member with a plurality of sharpened members. The air pump is enclosed in a housing. The game apparatus also includes a stand-like member on which the frame-like member and the balloon are disposed. The frame-like member is located such that the outer surface of a sufficiently inflated balloon will press against the plurality of sharpened members.
In order to play the game, the air pump is operated to gradually inflate the balloon. The balloon finally bursts when it presses with sufficient force against the sharpened members. The object of the game is to be the fastest to inflate and burst the balloon.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIGS. 1A and 1B are illustrations of perspective views of two embodiments of the balloon bursting game apparatus in accordance with the present invention.
FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate side views of the air pump.
FIG. 3A is an illustration of a side view of the balloon stand in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 3B is an illustration of a perspective view of the balloon stand in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 4A is an illustration of the front view of the balloon stand with the frame-like member-and partially inflated balloon.
FIG. 4B is an illustration of the front view of the balloon stand with the frame-like member and the inflated balloon that is about to burst.
FIG. 5 is an illustration of a perspective view of the outcome of the balloon bursting game in accordance with the present invention.

FIGURES—REFERENCE NUMERALS

10 . . . Air Pump
11 . . . Balloon Stand
12 . . . Tube
13 . . . Balloon
14 . . . Frame-Like Member
15 . . . ‘T’-shaped Handle
16 . . . Piston Member
17 . . . Hollow Cylinder
18 . . . Pump Hose
19 . . . Outer Housing
20 . . . Connector
21 . . . Nozzle
22 . . . Opening
23 . . . Sharpened Member

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to the drawings, the preferred embodiment of a balloon bursting game apparatus is illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 5. The present invention is a balloon bursting game apparatus that mainly includes an air pump 10, a balloon stand 11, a tube 12 connecting the air pump 10 and a balloon 13, and a frame-like member 14 disposed on top of the balloon stand 11.
Referring to FIG. 2A, the air pump 10 includes a ‘T’-shaped handle 15, a piston member 16, a hollow cylinder 17, a pump hose 18 and a rigid outer housing 19. The piston member 16 is connected at the bottom of the ‘T’-shaped handle 15. The piston member 16 is enclosed in the hollow cylinder 17 and it can slide along the length of the hollow cylinder 17 by reciprocating the ‘T’-shaped handle 15. The tube 12 is connected to the pump hose 18 by means of a connector 20. The hollow cylinder portion of the air pump 10 is enclosed in the rigid outer housing 19.
Referring still to FIG. 2B, when the ‘T’-shaped handle 15 is pushed downwards, the piston member 16 forces the air out of the cylinder through the pump hose 18. This process may be repeated several times by reciprocating the handle member 15.
Referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, the balloon stand 11 is a hollow vertical structure. The balloon stand 11 shown in the figures is for illustrative purposes only and it may comprise many other suitable designs. A nozzle 21 is attached on top surface of the balloon stand 11. A first end of the tube 12 is connected to the pump hose 18 of the air pump 10 and a second end is connected to the nozzle 21. A balloon 13 is secured on top of the nozzle. The balloon stand 11 also includes an opening 22 for the tube 12 to pass through and reach the nozzle 21 on the top surface of the balloon stand 11.
Referring to FIG. 1A, the frame-like member 14 mainly includes a plurality of sharpened members 23. The frame-like member 14 is mounted at suitable location on the balloon stand 11. Alternately, the balloon stand 11 and the frame-like member 14 may be integrated and made as a single piece, as shown in FIG. 1B. The frame-like member 14 may comprise many designs. The main criterion in the design and position of the frame-like member 14 is that the outer surface of a sufficiently inflated balloon must come in contact with the plurality of sharpened members 23.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, in order to play the game, a balloon 13 is secured on the nozzle 21. The air pump 10 is then used to inflate the balloon 13. The balloon 13, is gradually inflated and finally bursts when its outer surface presses with sufficient force against the sharpened members 23. In a competitive/amusement setting, a plurality of game apparatuses may be placed in proximity and a player is assigned to each of the game apparatuses. The player who is the fastest to inflate and burst the balloon is declared as the winner.
All features disclosed in this specification, including any accompanying claims, abstract, and drawings, may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.
Any element in a claim that does not explicitly state “means for” performing a specified function, or “step for” performing a specific function, is not to be interpreted as a “means” or “step” clause as specified in 35 U.S.C. §112, paragraph 6. In particular, the use of “step of” in the claims herein is not intended to invoke the provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 112, paragraph 6.
Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, various modifications and substitutions may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the present invention has been described by way of illustration and not limitation.

Claims

1. A balloon bursting game comprising;

an air pump;

a housing for the air pump;

a tube connecting a balloon and said air pump, said tube includes a nozzle at one of its ends to conveniently attach different types of balloons, said balloon is inflated using said air pump;

a frame-like member with a plurality of inwardly pointing sharpened members, said frame-like member and said balloon disposed on a stand-like member;

wherein said balloon, in its deflated state, is positioned between said plurality of sharpened members such that said balloon will burst while it is being gradually inflated and pressed with sufficient force against said plurality of sharpened members.

2. The balloon bursting game of claim 1, wherein the frame-like member is of suitable design and size such that the balloon, when sufficiently inflated, presses against said plurality of sharpened members.

3. The balloon bursting game of claim 1, wherein the frame-like member, stand-like member and housing for the air pump comprise different designs and sizes.

4. The balloon bursting game of claim 1, wherein the stand-like member and the

frame-like member are integrated and made as a single piece.

5. The balloon bursting game of claim 1, wherein the frame-like member and the nozzle are disposed on top of the stand-like member.

6. The balloon bursting game of claim 1, wherein the balloon, in its deflated state, may contain confetti, flour or the like to provide visual excitement at the time of bursting.

7. A balloon bursting game comprising: an air pump; a tube connecting a balloon and said air pump, said balloon is inflated using said air pump; a frame-like member with a plurality of sharpened members, wherein said balloon, in its deflated state, is positioned between said plurality of sharpened members such that said balloon will burst while it is being gradually inflated and pressed with sufficient force against said plurality of sharpened members.

8. The balloon bursting game of claim 7, wherein the frame-like member is of suitable design and size such that the balloon, when sufficiently inflated, presses against said plurality of sharpened members.

9. The balloon bursting game of claim 7, wherein the frame-like member comprises different designs and sizes.

10. The balloon bursting game of claim 7, wherein said game further comprises a housing for the air pump.

11. The balloon bursting game of claim 7, wherein a first end of the tube connects to the air pump and a second end of the air tube connects to the balloon.

12. The balloon bursting game of claim 11, wherein the second end of the tube includes a nozzle to conveniently attach different types of balloons.

13. The balloon bursting game of claim 7, wherein said game further comprises a stand-like member for mounting the frame-like member and the balloon.

14. The balloon bursting game of claim 13, wherein one of the ends of the tube includes a nozzle to conveniently secure different types of balloons, said nozzle is mounted on top of the stand-like member.

15. The balloon bursting game of claim 7, wherein said game further comprises a stand-like member, said stand-like member and the frame-like member are integrated and made as a single piece.

16. The balloon bursting game of claim 7, wherein the balloon, in its deflated state, may contain confetti, flour or the like to provide visual excitement at the time of bursting.