Inflatable parachute for use as escape or sporting device

Claim 2

An escape or sporting parachute device comprising a parachute canopy having a body harness means suspended therefrom and attachable to the body of a user, an inflatable flexible tubing frame underlying said canopy and opening and supporting the canopy in a use position when inflated, said tubing frame including a pair of ring-like tubing elements beneath the parachute canopy, interconnecting tubing struts between the ring-like tubing elements, a suspended ring-like tubing element of reduced size spaced below the canopy to receive the waist of a user and in inflatable communication with the lowermost of said pair of ring-like tubing elements, and said tubing frame including an inflatable component which extends below said suspended ring-like tubing element and is bendable into contact with a verticle wall or the like to form a spring prelaunching positioning means for the device.

Claim 3

An escape or sporting parachute device comprising a parachute canopy having a body harness means suspended therefrom and attachable to the body of a user, an inflatable flexible tubing frame underlying said canopy and opening and supporting the canopy in a use position when inflated, said tubing frame including a pair of ring-like tubing elements beneath the parachute canopy, interconnecting tubing struts between the ring-like tubing elements, a suspended ring-like tubing element of reduced size spaced below the canopy to receive the waist of a user, and said tubing frame including plural circumferentially spaced downwardly converging tubing sections inflatably interconnecting the suspended ring-like tubing element and the lowermost of said pair of ring-like tubing elements.

Claim 4

An escape or sporting parachute device comprising a parachute canopy having a body harness means suspended therefrom and attachable to the body of a user, an inflatable flexible tubing frame underlying said canopy and opening and supporting the canopy in a use position when inflated, said tubing frame including a pair of ring-like tubing elements beneath the parachute canopy, interconnecting tubing struts between the ring-like tubing elements, a suspended ring-like tubing element of reduced size spaced below the canopy to receive the waist of a user, and said tubing frame including plural circumferentially spaced downwardly converging tubing sections inflatably interconnecting the suspended ring-like tubing element and the lowermost of said pair of ring-like tubing elements.

Claim 5

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 2, and an inflatable member secured to one of said converging tubing sections and extending longitudinally therebelow and below the suspended ring-like tubing element and serving to assist in properly positioning the parachute for launching, and also serving to store energy, when bent into angular shape, for assisting in the launching of the device.

Claim 6

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 2, and each converging tubing section consisting of a cluster of side-by-side tubes having their ends connected into and communicating with said suspended tubing element and the lower ring-like tubing element of said pair.

Claim 7

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 4, and another cluster of side-by-side tube sections anchored to the side of one of said converging clusters and being in internal communication therewith and projecting longitudinally therebelow and below the elevation of the suspended ring-like tubing element and having a lower terminal end.

Claim 8

An escape or sporting parachute device comprising a parachute canopy having a body harness means suspended therefrom and attachable to the body of a user, an inflatable flexible tubing frame underlying said canopy and opening and supporting the canopy in a use position when inflated, said tubing frame including a pair of ring-like tubing elements beneath the parachute canopy, interconnecting tubing struts between the ring-like tubing elements, a suspended ring-like tubing element of reduced size spaced below the canopy to receive the waist of a user and in inflatable communication with the lowermost of said pair of ring-like tubing elements, a plurality of shroud lines connected with said parachute canopy and depending therefrom and carrying said body harness means adjacent to the suspended ring-like tubing element, and an inflatable bendable positioning extension adapted to be pressed against a building wall carried by said tubing frame at the lower end thereof.

Claim 9

An escape or sporting parachute device comprising a parachute canopy having a body harness means suspended therefrom and attachable to the body of a user, an inflatable flexible tubing frame underlying said canopy and opening and supporting the canopy in a use position when inflated, said tubing frame including a pair of ring-like tubing elements beneath the parachute canopy, interconnecting tubing struts between the ring-like tubing elements, a suspended ring-like tubing element of reduced size spaced below the canopy to receive the waist of a user and in inflatable communication with the lowermost of said pair of ring-like tubing elements, a plurality of shroud lines connected with said parachute canopy and depending therefrom and carrying said body harness means adjacent to the suspended ring-like tubing element, and an inflatable bendable positioning extension adapted to be pressed against a building wall carried by said tubing frame at the lower end thereof.

Claim 10

An escape or sporting parachute device comprising a canopy, a body harness means connected with and suspended from the canopy, a flexible inflatable expansion and support frame for said canopy underlying and extending below said canopy, and a lower end extension on said inflatable frame adapted to engage a building side wall to position the device for launching by inflation thereof, said inflatable frame comprising plural circumferentially spaced tubular beams having corresponding upper ends attached to the skirt portion of the canopy, said tubular beams after inflation of the frame converging downwardly and being joined near their lower ends to provide a cluster of inflated parallel substantially contacting beam extensions.

Claim 11

An escape or sporting parachute device comprising a canopy, a body harness means connected with and suspended from the canopy, a flexible inflatable expansion and support frame for said canopy underlying and extending below said canopy, and a lower end extension on said inflatable frame adapted to engage a building side wall to position the device for launching by inflation thereof, said inflatable frame comprising plural circumferentially spaced tubular beams having corresponding upper ends attached to the skirt portion of the canopy, said tubular beams after inflation of the frame converging downwardly and being joined near their lower ends to provide a cluster of inflated parallel substantially contacting beam extensions.

Claim 12

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 7, and means joining the beam extensions of said cluster near their lower ends and placing the interiors of the tubular beams in communication, a first inflation valve means on one of said beams to allow inflating all of the beams substantially simultaneously, a separately inflatable structure including a second inflation valve means joined to said beams above their points of joining to provide said cluster, whereby said frame may first be inflated through the first inflation valve means and then expanded to spread the canopy by the separate inflation of said structure through said second inflation valve means.

Claim 13

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 8, and wherein said separately inflatable structure comprises an array of communicating short inflatable tubes joined end-to-end with each other in communication and also joined to said beams in non-communicating relation to the interiors of the beams.

Claim 14

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 9, and said beams being three in number and spaced apart equidistantly, and said array of inflatable tubes being a triangular array.

Claim 15

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 10, and the tops of said inflatable beams being bonded directly to the skirt portion of the parachute canopy, and the joining means for the beams at the tops of the extensions forming said cluster consisting of a belt element surrounding the beams snugly.

Claim 16

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 11, and said means joining the beam extensions near their lower ends and placing their interiors in communication comprises tubular flexible fittings secured within apertures formed in the walls of the beam extensions.

Claim 17

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 7, and a binding belt means carried by one of said tubular beams in its upper end adapted to secure the device in a compact collapsed state prior to inflation of said frame with the parachute canopy folded inwardly of and confined between said beams.

Claim 18

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 13, and a manual release means for the binding belt means operable to release said beams from said collapsed state following inflation of the beams.

Claim 19

An escape or sporting parachute device comprising a parachute canopy, plural circumferentially spaced inflatable beams having corresponding ends attached to said canopy and converging downwardly therefrom when inflated, means joining the beams near their lower ends and placing their interiors in communication, a first inflation valve on one of said beams, and a separately inflatable structure attached to the beams near and above their joined lower end portions and having a second inflation valve, whereby the beams may first be inflated and subsequently expanded by the inflation of said structure of spreading said canopy to a use position.

Claim 20

An escape or sporting parachute device comprising a parachute canopy, plural circumferentially spaced inflatable beams having corresponding ends attached to said canopy and converging downwardly therefrom when inflated, means joining the beams near their lower ends and placing their interiors in communication, a first inflation valve on one of said beams, and a separately inflatable structure attached to the beams near and above their joined lower end portions and having a second inflation valve, whereby the beams may first be inflated and subsequently expanded by the inflation of said structure of spreading said canopy to a use position.

Claim 21

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 15, and wherein said separately inflatable structure comprises an array of communicating short inflatable tubes joined end-to-end with each other in communication and also joined to said beams in non-communicating relation to the interiors of the beams.

Claim 22

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 16, and said beams being three in number and spaced apart equidistantly, and said array of inflatable tubes being a triangular array.

Claim 23

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 15, and the tops of said inflatable beams bonded to the skirt portion of the parachute canopy, said means joining said beams including a belt element embracing the beams intermediate their lower ends and said separately inflatable structure.

Claim 24

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 18, and said means joining the beams near their lower ends including flexible tubular fittings bonded to the beam side walls and placing their interiors in communication.

Claim 25

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 15, and a binding belt means carried by one of said beams near its upper end and adapted to secure the beams and said canopy in collapsed relation prior to inflation of the beams with the canopy folded inwardly of and between the beams.

Claim 26

An escape or sporting parachute device as defined by claim 20, and a manual release means for said binding belt means operable to release the beams from their collapsed state following inflation of the beams.

Claim 27

In an inflatable type life saving or sport parachute for ejecting from a support, said parachute having a canopy with a body harness suspended therefrom, an inflatable flexible tubing frame underlying said canopy, said canopy having a skirt portion attached to said frame to extend said canopy when said frame is inflated and straightened, the improvement comprising: said inflatable tubing frame being in a substantially completely folded position enveloped by said canopy, means to preinflate said folded tubing frame with a gas, a retaining device to maintain said tubing frame in said folded position enveloped by said canopy when preinflated such that said frame accumulates potential energy, and ejection means comprising: release means to substantially instantaneously release said retaining device and use said potential energy to eject said parachute from said support by permitting said preinflated tubing frame to straighten substantially instantaneously thereby expanding said canopy and moving said canopy away from said support.

Claim 28

In an inflatable type life saving or sport parachute for ejecting from a support, said parachute having a canopy with a body harness suspended therefrom, an inflatable flexible tubing frame underlying said canopy, said canopy having a skirt portion attached to said frame to extend said canopy when said frame is inflated and straightened, the improvement comprising: said inflatable tubing frame being in a substantially completely folded position enveloped by said canopy, means to preinflate said folded tubing frame with a gas, a retaining device to maintain said tubing frame in said folded position enveloped by said canopy when preinflated such that said frame accumulates potential energy, and ejection means comprising: release means to substantially instantaneously release said retaining device and use said potential energy to eject said parachute from said support by permitting said preinflated tubing frame to straighten substantially instantaneously thereby expanding said canopy and moving said canopy away from said support.

Claim 29

A device according to claim 22 wherein said retaining device is a flexible band means which retains said canopy and tubing frame folded to accumulate said potential energy.

Claim 30

A device according to claim 22 which includes suspension lines attached to the canopy's skirt at the extremities or vertices of said tubing frame.

Claim 33

A method according to claim 25 wherein said support is a vertical surface.

Claim 34

A method according to claim 25 wherein said support is an aircraft.

Claim 35

A method according to claim 25 wherein said frame is substantially completely folded and enveloped by said canopy prior to ejection.