Market novelty: Inflatable projection screens
One of the main problems with projection outdoors is the cost and time involved with installing a suitable projection screen. An outdoor screen is essentially a huge “sail” and a rigid frame screen has the potential of being a major accident waiting to happen if it is not installed and secured correctly. Burbank, Ca. based company Blimpscreen manufactures an inflatable video and projection screen, used primarily for outdoor usage.
In essence an outdoor screen has to be “over-engineered” for the worst case scenario in terms of what the weather will bring. This means over building, over securing and over ballasting the frame just in case! This all translates into increased time and installation expense, which often may end up bringing the screen over budget for a particular event.
The Blimpscreen solves all of these problems as it can be inflated or deflated at will. So an operator will have the option of bringing the screen down if inclement weather hits. In a worst case scenario, the screen and frame will not damage itself nor anyone or anything if it comes down unsecured.
The Blimpscreen ships with a perforated Textalene screen surface which is about 20% air transparent, allowing the screen to breathe in light winds. The frame is made of a laminated vinyl similar that used in inflatable boats, so is extremely strong, weather proof, UV proof and can be easily washed with soap and water to clean off sand, dust and debris from outdoor locations.
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| The inflatable screen was set up. Spectators are waiting for darkness... |
Summer evening outdoor movie on inflatable screen in the park |
The screen uses a permanent high pressure blower for inflation and so punctures are not an issue. Once laid out, the screen is attached to the clips on the frame and inflation takes about 2 minutes. The tethers are then adjusted. Once set the screen can be inflated and deflated in the same position without the need to readjust the tethers, making it also useful as a temporary video “reveal”. There are two blower inputs for redundancy in case one unit malfunctions or loses power. The frame weighs in at about 100 lbs and so can easily be wrangled by one person and be transported in a small car or pick up.
The most popular size is the 20 ft wide unit. The opening in the frame is 20 ft x 20ft and the viewing screen can be configured for any format by adjusting the lower drape area. With a 15x20 (3:4) format the bottom of the screen begins at a 5ft height and using the wide format at about 9 ft. The frame has numerous D rings from which to attach vertical and horizontal promotional and advertising banners. A 24 ft wide screen is also available and smaller screens down to 9 ft x 12 ft. The frame can be special ordered in almost any color. The standard black 15x20 unit is available from stock.
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| Inflatable screen is waiting for the sun to go down in Santa Paula, Ca. under the Brooklyn Bridge |
Inflatable outdoor movie screen on the beach Long Beach (Miami) |
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| Blimpscreen inflatable screen was set up in 30 minutes | Two different styles - Blimpscreen on the left and Blimpsign on the right |
The Blimpscreen ships with everything needed to get the frame installed including heavy duty steel stakes, tethers, screen, storage bags and blower. Sound and video packages are also available, as are road cases and necessary lighting accessories. The huge resurgence in recent years of Outdoor Cinema and Movies in the Park has created a big demand from communities, cities and movie fans for portable video screens. With a growing number of rental houses now making the Blimpscreen available to these customers we have introduced Blimpnet – a national Blimpscreen referral network for customers looking for outdoor screens.
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| Swimflix! Inflatable screen. | These units were never used and ready to go |
