Bounce Houses

Inflatable structures are structures made of a flexible outer membrane or fabric that is filled with gas, such as air or helium. The gas gives shape and strength to the structure.

Uses include roofs and covers, mock castles and games, sails, airships, furniture, aerospace structures, boats, escape slides, security mattresses, swimming pools, coverings, buildings and pavilions, and air bags.

Inflatable castles
"Bouncy castle" redirects here. For the cryptography software, see Bouncy Castle (cryptography).
The name given to such structures varies. In playground terms: in the United States, East Coasters refer to them as a "moonbounce" while West Coasters stick to the generic name of "inflatable playground". They have been marketed with such names as Moon Bounce, Astrojump, Moonwalk, Jolly jump, Bounce house, SpaceWalk, in the US. It should also be noted that the term 'Jolly Jumps' is often used to describe the inflatable playground structure (or moonbounce) in rural areas and notably some areas in the Western US. Bouncy castle or inflatable castle are terms used in Ireland, the UK and parts of Australia, and as jumping castles in Arizona, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa. The term "moonwalk" has evolved as the generic term for enclosed inflatable trampolines in the US.

Inflatable structures are rented for functions, school and church festivals and village fetes. Although they are aimed at children, adult castles can be hired in the UK. Because of liability concerns, moonwalks are rarely rented to adults in the US.

The growth in popularity of moonwalks has led to an inflatable rental industry which includes inflatable slides, obstacle courses, games, and more. Inflatables are ideal for portable amusements because they are easy to transport and store.

History
The first inflatable structure was designed and invented in 1959 by John Scurlock in Shreveport, Louisiana who was experimenting with inflatable covers for tennis courts when he noticed his employees enjoyed jumping on the covers. John also previously worked for Nasa on the Saturn 5 program however that did not have anything directly related to the Invention of the first Inflatable. He was a Mechanical engineer and liked Physics. John was also a pioneer of Inflatable Domes, Inflatable Tents, Inflatable Signs and his greatest achievement was the Invention of the Safety Air Cushion that is used by Fire and Rescue departments to catch people jumping from buildings or high heights. [1] The first Space Walk manufacturing company was in New Orleans in a leased warehouse that also sewed horse pads. His wife Frances started the first Inflatable rental company in 1968 and in 1976 they built a custom facility for the production and rental of the various products. They market the Space Walks to various children's events such as birthday parties, school fairs and company picnics. Their son Frank Scurlock expanded their rental concept throughout the United States under the brand name Space Walk and Inflatable Zoo. They have more than 100 locations and can visited at www.herecomesfun.com Frank also founded the first all Inflatable Indoor Play Park called Fun Factory on Thanksgiving Day 1986 in Metairie, Louisiana. A second unit was opened in Memphis Tennessee called Fun Plex in 1987. Both locations closed after the value of the property become to great for the operations. The first Inflatable was an open top mattress with no sides and called a Space Pillow. In 1967 a pressurized Inflatable Top was added however it required 2 fans and it got very hot in the Summer like a green house. That version was called Space Walk and adopted as the company name. In 1974 to solve the heat problem, a new product line called Jupiter Jump was created that has Inflated Columns that supported netting walls which allowed the air to pass thur. Further enhancements of this style were developed such as a line of Castles and several Animals which are refereed to as the Inflatable Zoo. In the early 90's Frank created the first commercial Inflatable Water Slide called the Aqua Tunnel. Space Walk was the first company to bring a Inflatable to the IAAPA convention, Showmen's Club and the American Rental Association. Space Walk is the premier Inflatable company in the World and sells Worldwide with its headquarters located in Kenner, Louisiana. John Scurlock died in September 2008 and his legacy continues bringing smiles and enjoyment to children throughout the World.