| 摘要 |
The invention comprises a pin shaped repair plug for sealing the bladder valve of an inflatable ball such as a football, soccer ball, basketball, etc. The plug is inserted and removed with a special tool. The plug is retained substantially inside the bladder valve with little or no protrusion from the exterior surface of the valve and ball. The plug grips the inside wall of the valve passage frictionally. The gripping action is sufficient to prevent dislodgment of the plug despite the most demanding use of the ball. As an example, the plug was tested for a full season of practice including punting by a college level football team. The plug is substantially cylindrical in shape with either an externally or an internally threaded head integrally formed thereon. The tool for inserting and removing the plug from the bladder valve includes either a complementary internally threaded or externally threaded end attachable to the plug head. The internally threaded version of the tool includes an external bevel or chamfer tapering from the outside diameter of the tool to the end of the tool. The bevel or chamfer on the tool assists in separating the bladder valve wall from the threaded end of the externally threaded plug.
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