Inflatable top

摘要

An inflatable top is described having an attached manual rotation mechanism. The rotating body portion of the top includes an inflatable, plastic enclosure which expands to a desired shape when inflated with a gas. The rotation mechanism converts a linear force applied to the top, parallel to its vertical axis, into a rotation around its axis of the top and the rotation mechanism. The mechanism includes a helical member mounted for reciprocal movement into and out of a housing secured within the top. The helical member threads through a clutch element rotated by the linear motion of the helical member. The clutch element causes the top to rotate when the force applied to the helical member is in one direction and is disengaged and does not cause the top to rotate when the force applied to the helical member is in a different direction.