US3023982A - Balloon load harness - Google Patents

Description

March 6, 1962 w. F. HUCH 3,023,982

BALLOON LOAD HARNESS Filed Aug. 28, 1959 4O a. Wz'Zlz'amFHlwh, 30 3mm United States Patent M 3,023,982 BALLOON LQAD HARNESS Wiliiam F. Huch, St. Paul, Minn, assignor, by nresne assignments, to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy Filed Aug. 28, 1959, Ser. No. 836,836 3 Claims. (Cl. 244-31) This invention relates to high altitude plastic balloons of the bottom-appendix type, and is concerned more particularly with an improvement in the suspension of the load.

The load often imposes severe stresses on the bottom of such a balloon. It has been the custom to employ a number of strings, usually six, uniformly spaced circumferentially, taped to the open bottom of the truncated cone of plastic material of the balloon, and secured to a load ring, to suspend the load. Because of the strings, the balloon material was subjected to localized, rather than even, stressing, and, unless applied with extreme care, the taping could tear the balloon material.

It is an object of the invention to provide a balloon constructed to support a load in such a manner that the load does not locally stress the balloon fabric.

Another object is to provide a plastic balloon with a bottom load attachment having a valving opening and so constructed as to relieve the plastic of any local stresses which might tend to arise from the load.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear as the description proceeds.

The invention will be better understood on reference to the following description and the accompanying more or less schematic drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a fully inflated balloon system constructed in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged elevational view showing features of the invention in detail.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view, partly in elevation, taken as indicated by the line 3-3 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 shows a first step in a method of making the harness.

FIG. 5 shows a panel resulting from the second step.

FIG. 6 shows a cylinder formed from the panel of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 shows the cylinder being taped to the bottom of the balloon plastic.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, disclosing an illustrative embodiment of the invention, there is shown at 10 a high altitude balloon system comprising a balloon 12 of plastic such as polyethylene or Mylar having, when, inflated, an inverted frusto-conical bottom portion 14. An inverted cone 16 of light close-mesh cloth, such as mosquito netting or curtain material, with the mesh biased, as shown at 18, is suspended from the bottom portion 14, and a load line 20, carrying a load 22, is suspended from the cone.

The cone 16 in accordance with the invention may be made from a cylinder 26 formed by cutting unbiased mesh cloth from a bolt 28 of suitable wdith at suitably spaced 45 diagonals 30 to form a parallelogram panel 32 and suitably seaming together the other two edges 34, as at 36, the edges 30 thus constituting the ends of the cylinder, and the mesh being now biased, as seen at 18. The panel 32 is dimensioned so that the cylinder diameter conforms to that of the rim 38 of the balloon portion 14.

An end 30 of the cylinder 26 is now connected to the 3,023,982 Patented Mar. 6, 1962 rim 38 as by means of a tape 40 from a roll 42 and the application of heat to provide a firm juncture at 44. The upper end of the load line 28 is then knotted to provide a head 46 which is inserted in the lower end of the cylinder 26, whereupon the lower part of the cylinder is gathered so as to closely embrace the line below the head and there securely tied as at 48.

With this construction it is apparent that the load stress is transmitted by the bias-mesh cone 16 evenly to the circumference of the balloon rim, so that the balloon plastic cannot be subject to local stress, and thus a frequent cause of balloon failure on high altitude flights is eliminated.

The cone 16 has the additional property, by reason of its porosity, of providing a bottom opening for the balloon. A standard or other suitable skirt type appendix (not shown) is used.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the invention are possible in the light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

I claim:

1. A high altitude balloon system comprising a plastic balloon having an inverted frusto-conical bottom portion, a perforated inverted cone of bias-mesh woven fabric secured at its base to the lower edge of said bottom portion, the apex portion of the cone being open, a load line closely embraced by the apex portion of the cone, and a load suspended from the line, the line having within the cone a terminal head engaging the cone and of a size such that it will not pass through the apex portion of the cone, whereby the cone will transmit load stress uniformly to the circumference of said bottom portion.

2. A high altitude balloon system comprising a plastic balloon having an inverted frusto-conical bottom portion, a skirt of the same girth as and sealed throughout its upper circumference to the bottom margin of the balloon plastic, said skirt having a mosquito netting mesh with the threads biased to the ends of the skirt, and a load line having a head in and engaging the skirt, the bottom of the skirt being gathered and secured about the line below the head and positively preventing the head from escape therethrough.

3. In a high altitude balloon system, a plastic film balloon having an inverted frusto-conical bottom portion, a bias-mesh netting skirt whose upper end is continuously sealed to the entire circumference of the open bottom margin of said portion, a load line terminating at its upper end in a knot within the skirt, the lower end of the skirt being gathered and tied about and against the line below the knot and engaging the bottom of the knot and positively preventing the knot from passing therethrough, the entire load carried by the balloon being suspended from the line.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,336,030 Gammeter Apr. 6, 1920 2,728,540 Ebneter Dec. 27, 1955 2,771,256 Ryan Nov. 20, 1956 2,880,946 Froehlich Apr. 7, 1959 2,900,147 Huch Aug. 18, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 538,414 France Mar. 18, 1922

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