| 摘要 |
<p>METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR INFLATING BALLOONS AND FOR DEPLOYING A LOAD SUSPENDED THEREFROM This invention relates to a combination balloon-inflation and load-lowering device connectable to a pressurized source of a lighter-than-air gas such as helium and which comprises an inverted cup-shaped member closed at its upper end and open at its lower end containing one or more side-opening ports operative when covered by the neck of a balloon to cooperate therewith and form a one-way valve effective to automatically close and trap the lifting gas inside the balloon once the latter is inflated and the inflation pressure released. The combination device carries spaced-parallel disk-supporting arms hanging therebeneath that journal the shaft mounting a notched disk that forms a part of a load-letdown device detachably connectable for rotation therebetween. The load-letdown device is automatically operative with a load suspended therebeneath to slowly lower the latter to the end of a tether. The invention further comprises the method of deploying a load suspended beneath a balloon which includes the steps of inserting an inverted generally cup-shaped inflation device with a side-opening port and a pair of disk-supporting arms therebeneath into the neck of a balloon and fastening same therein, inflating the balloon through the open end of said cup-shaped device by applying sufficient inflation pressure thereto to expand the neck of the balloon and uncover the port, removing the pressure from the balloon allowing the expanded neck thereof to collapse against said port and seal the pressurizing gas therein, attatching the ends of a shaft mounting a notched disk for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis between said arms, attaching one end of a load-supporting tether to the shaft wrapping the tether clockwise one or more turns around the shaft on one side of the disk, then passing the tether through the notch and taking one or more turns anti-clockwise around the shaft on the opposite side of the disk, and alternately repeating the aforementioned sequence until the free end of the tether terminates adjacent the disk, and attaching n load to the free end of the tether such that upon release of the load to fall freely it will pull upon the tether and cause the disk to flip-flop back and forth to slowly unwind off the shaft and lower the load.</p> |
