2,743,510
`May 1, 1956
`P. MAUNEY ET AL
`INFLATABLE FABRIC SEGMENT OF CURVED CONFIGURATION
`AND THE METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME
`Filed Oct. 19, 1953
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`FIG. I
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`15
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`FIG. 2
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`18
`
`COATING
`16,
`FABRIC OF UNTREATED
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`L-?;9~1\~~~~\~~~~~~~~~~~~~..} SYNTHETIC THREADS
`.....-?'TIE THREADS
`
`- / -FIG. 3
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`FIG. 5
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`FIG. 4
`INVENTOR.
`PAUL MAUNEY
`CHARLES J. FORD
`/L~
`/('ATTORNEY
`
`BY
`
`INTEX EXHIBIT 2011, Pg. 1
`Bestway v. Intex; PGR2017-00003
`
`

`

`United States Patent Office
`
`.
`
`.
`
`2,743,510
`Patented May 1,. 195.6,,
`
`1
`2,743,510
`INFLATABLE FABRIC SEGMENT OF CURVED·
`CONFIGURATION AND THE' METIIOD OF
`MAKING THE SAME
`PaUl: Mauney, Kings Monnt:.in, N. C., and Charles. 1;
`Ford,· Lake Cable, Canton, Ohio, assignors, by mesne·
`assignments, to The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Com·
`pany, a corporation of Ohio
`Application October 19; 1953; Serial No, 386,830
`3 Claims. (CI. 28,-74)
`
`5
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`2
`curved: fabric segment embodying• ·the teachings. of the
`present invention.
`Fig: 3 is an enlarged· fragmentary section corresponding
`generally to. that shown in Fig. 1.
`Fig; 4 is: a fragmentary plan view of the top ply of.
`the.fabric segment.
`Fig; 5 corresponds to Fig. 4, but illustrates. the bottom.
`fabric ply of the fabric segment.
`In Fig; 1 of the dra.wings is shown one form of fabric
`10 segment,. indicated generally by the reference numeral!,
`constructed from two spaced plies of fabiic 2. and 3. which .
`are joined together in the weaving operation by means of
`a plurality of drop or tie:threads 4: The fabric segment
`1 is conveniently formed into an envelope by joining the
`ends and edges of the fabric plies 2 and 3 as by means
`of the tapes 5 and 6 which are securely cemented'in place
`about the entire periphery of the fabric segment 1.
`The· outer or exposed surfaces of. the fabric plies 2 and
`3 . are customarily coated with some suitable gas"imper"
`vious coating· such, for example, as natural or· synthetic
`rubber and the like. The tapes 5 and 6 which cooperate
`with the fabric plies 2 and 3 to form an envelope are
`made from a fabric which has been previously coated·
`with rubber or impregnated with a material which will
`serve to retain gas under pressure in the chamber 7 of
`the fabric segment 1. Although many other coating
`and· impregnating materials, are known and could. be used
`for, the purpose of rendering the walls of the fabric segc
`ment impervious. to gas under pressure, the: coating which
`possesses: all the desired characteristics and has been
`chieflyemployed is rubber and may be of eitlier. natural·
`orsynthetic origin.
`For many: purposes, the flat form of fabric segment 1
`has· certain· disadvantages as we have already seen. To
`overcome these disadvantages, the fabric segment 8 of·
`Fig. 2, comprising a top fabric ply 9 and a bottom fabric
`ply 10; has been devised. The fabiic segment 8 allows
`for extensibility. of the top ply 9 alorig the larger radius
`of the curved section and is characterized· by a smoothly.
`curVed: configuration upon inflation with the degree or
`extent· of. curvature being readily controllable. Here-
`tofore, in order to produce a curvature in a flat fabric
`segment such as the segment 1, it has been the practice
`to take a series of folds or tucks in the fabric ply 3 along
`the smaller radius of the desired curved section. Such
`folding or tucking creates a break line in the fabric seg-
`ment 1, tending to weaken it and frequently interferes
`with the freedom of the tie threads 4 and, as a result, does
`not produce a satisfactorily smooth curved section.
`Referring to the fabric segment 8 of Fig. 2, the fabric
`top ply 9 is woven from warp and weft threads 11 and
`12, respectively, which are of untreated synthetic origin
`such, for example, as raw nylon which has not been
`tensilized, so that· when subjected to heat and tension,
`will extend or stretch. The fabric bottom ply 10 is
`55 woven from threads 13 and 14 which are of tensilized
`nylon and have been rendered substantially inextensible
`before being converted i.t1.tO the fabric. The bottom ply
`10 which is joined to the top ply 9 in the weaving opera-
`tion by a large number of drop or tie threads 15 which
`60 are also substantially inextensible.
`After the fabric top and bottom plies 9 and 10 joined
`by the tie threads 15 have been fabricated, the outer sur-
`faces of the plies are coated with some suitable gas-
`impervious coating 16, 17 such, for example, as natural
`or synthetic rubber and the like. Next, the edges and
`ends of the fabric segment B are joined together by the
`tapes 18 and 19 of coated or rubber impregnated fabric
`to form a gas-impervious envelope enclosing the chamber
`20 as shown in Fig. 2. . Many different forms of coating
`and impregnating material may be used for the purpose
`of rendering the walls of the completed fabric segment 8
`substantially completely impervious to gas under pressure.
`
`The ptesent ·invention pertains to an inflatable fabric 15
`segment o:r structural element arid the process for· making·
`the: same. More particularly, the invention. is concerned
`with a· method of fabrication as well as a form of inflate
`able: structure made in. accordance with the method en-
`tirely from fabric which has been coated or treated to 20
`render·it impervious to gas and which is capable of assum-
`ing a curved configuration upon inflation.
`For certain specific uses of more or less temporary
`nature; structures fabricated from water-proofed canvas
`orrubberized fabrics and having the ability to be quickly. 25
`and easily. constructed and dismantled have proven highly
`advantageous, Such conventional structures, however,
`usually require some means by which the canvas or. fabric
`is:suspended or supported in the form which it is· to as-
`sunie, depending upon the use to which it is put. These 30
`supports are usually rigid and often quite bulky, as a
`result• of which they are exceedingly difficult to handle,
`store, and transport.
`In addition, such supporting·or sus~
`pension means present obstructions whether disposed
`interiorly 01'• exteriorly of the· structure·when. constructed. 35
`The present invention contemplates a form of struc-
`tural element which will incorporate not only the frame-
`work or supporting structure, but· also the confining walls
`as well in a single unit. This novel construction provides
`a structural member which eliminates virtually all of the 40
`problems encountered in the aforementioned conventional
`structures. Moreover, the product of the present inven-
`tion possesses the features of rigidity and ease of storage
`and erection not found in the ordinary forms of struc-
`ture.
`There are many places where not only avoidance of 45
`rigid supporting means is desirable, but also curved or
`cylindrical surfaces can be employed to better advantage
`than flat or planar surfaces which must necessarily be
`angularly joined together to form most structures. The
`curved configuration of the fabric segment or structural 50
`element disclosed herein is highly advantageous in avoid-
`ing sharp or angular joints. The curved configuration
`of the fabric segment moreover affords a highly advan-
`tageous structural shape which possesses greater strength
`characteristics.
`Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide
`a form of inflatable fabric segment or structural element
`which possesses the aforementioned attributes by reason
`of its ability to assume a curved configuration upon in-
`flation.
`It is a further object of the present invention to provide
`a method of forming an inflatable fabric segment or struc-
`tural element characterized by a curved configuration on
`inflation.
`Other objects and advantages of the product of the 65
`invention will become apparent as a detailed description
`of one embodiment of the invention proceeds.
`Fig. 1 of the drawings represents a vertical cross-
`section through an inflated flat fabric segment illustrating 70
`a form of conventional structural element.
`Fig. 2 illustrates a vertical section through a typical
`
`INTEX EXHIBIT 2011, Pg. 2
`Bestway v. Intex; PGR2017-00003
`
`

`

`2,748,510
`
`4
`partially into each of the plies for restricting the extent
`of separability of the plies, one of said plies being woven
`from untreated raw nylon threads and the other being
`woven from treated and pre-stressed nylon such that on
`5 being subjected to heat and pressure, the first ply will
`be stretched and the other will remain unaffected; and
`a vulcanized rubber coating applied to the outermost
`surfaces of each ply.
`2. The method of making an inflatable fabric segment
`10 capable of assuming a curved configuration upon inflation
`comprising the step of weaving a double ply fabric in
`which the plies are disposed in substantially superposed
`relation, being joined together by a plurality of substan-
`tially inextensible tie threads woven partially into each
`15 of the plies, one of said plies being formed of threads
`which, when subjected to heat and tension, will stretch
`to a predetermined extent and the other being formed
`from prestretched threads incapable of further extension;
`coating the outermost surfaces of each ply with a gas
`20 impervious coating; and inflating the double ply fabric
`segment and subjecting to heat while inflated to set the
`coating and simultaneously stretch the previously un-
`stressed ply of fabric, whereby a segment of curved con-
`figuration is formed.
`3. The method of making an inflatable fabric segment
`capable of assuming a curved configuration upon inflation
`comprising the step of weaving a double ply fabric in
`which the plies are disposed in substantially superposed
`relation, being joined together by a plurality of substan-
`30 tially inextensible tie threads woven partially into each
`of the plies, one of said plies being formed of untreated
`and unstretched nylon threads and the other being formed
`of prestretched nylon; coating the outermost surfaces of
`each ply with a vulcanizable rubber; and vulcanizing the
`35 coating and simultaneously subjecting the nylon to heat
`and tension, whereby a segment of curved configuration
`is formed.
`
`25
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`3
`Rubber of either natural or synthetic origin has proven
`most satisfactory as a coating material.
`The completed fabric segment 8 is then inflated and
`subjected to heat in the range of approximately 275 to
`300 degrees Fahrenheit, at which the coating material,
`in this instance, rubber, is set or vulcanized. This tem-
`perature range corresponds generally to the softening
`point for the untreated synthetic threads 11 and 12 from
`which the top ply 9 of the fabric segment is fabricated.
`Thus, the temperature and pressure coact to soften the
`untreated threads 11 and 12 and cause them to extend
`or stretch while the treated threads 13 and 14 in the
`bottom ply 10 of the fabric segment 3 remain unaffected.
`With the anchoring effect produced by the fabric con-
`struction embodying the substantially inextensible threads
`13 and 14 of the bottom ply 10 and tie threads 15, the
`extension of the top ply 9 will cause the fabric segment 8
`to assume the smooth curved configuration illustrated in
`Fig. 2. The fabric segment 8 is capable of assuming the
`predetermined degree of curvature originally imparted to
`it. Tt may be originally formed into a cylinder or any
`intermediate arcuate form of structure, if desired. These
`forms of fabric segments afford greater rigidity and
`strength characteristics without sacrificing the adaptabil-
`ity of the material.
`Whenever the gas is released from chamber 20 of the
`fabric segment 8 through a tube or conventional valve
`unit (not shown) which may take the form of a tire
`inflating valve, the entire element will collapse into a
`conveniently small and compact bundle. This structure
`with its curved configuration is capable of extensive use
`in all types of temporary buildings, shelters, forms, flota-
`tion elements, supporting structures, and the like.
`While certain representative embodiments and details
`have been shown for the purpose of illustrating the inven-
`tion, it will be apparent to those skilled in this art that
`various changes and modifications. may be made therein
`without departing from the spirit or scope of the inven-
`tion.
`We claim:
`I. An inflatable fabric segment capable of assuming
`a curved configuration upon inflation, said fabric seg-
`ment comprising a double ply construction in which the
`plies are substantially superposed and joined together by
`a plurality of substantially inextensible tie threads woven 45
`
`40
`
`References Cited in the file of this patent
`UNITED STATES PATENTS
`Miles ------------------Apr. 23, 1940
`Schultz----------------- Jan. 18, 1949
`Schultz ---------------- June 21, 1949
`Ford ------------------- Nov. 3, 1953
`
`2,197,896
`2,459,545
`2,474,124
`2,657,716
`
`INTEX EXHIBIT 2011, Pg. 3
`Bestway v. Intex; PGR2017-00003
`
`