Patent Application
20210121756
The present general inventive concept relates to a racquet sport, and more particularly, to a ball game using a racquet designed for multiple player configurations, including one-on-one, two-on-two, and three-on-three.
There are many forms of ball games that have been previously developed. These ball games typically include a flat surface on which balls are designed to bounce off
Further, there has been a ball game that was developed that players use racquets to strike a rubber ball onto a centrally placed disc. However, since this disc has a concave surface, the rubber ball can bounce off in many random directions without being slowed down and, as a result, the outer perimeter of the playing court needs to be surrounded by a net.
In addition, typical racquets used in these types of games generate a tremendous amount of torque on the players wrist and joints, which often causes injury to the players.
Therefore, what is desired is a ball game apparatus and method using a racquet designed to control the ball speed and direction and which reduces the risk of injury to the player.
The present general inventive concept provides a ball game apparatus using a racquet designed to control the ball speed and direction of the ball member.
The foregoing and/or other aspects of the present general inventive concept are achieved by providing a ball game using a racquet including a centerpiece apparatus member having an outer frame member, an inner frame member, and a raised platform surface disposed within the inner frame member, a plurality of shaped members coupled between the outer and inner frame members, and a ball member configured to bounce off the raised platform surface and the plurality of shaped members.
The outer frame member and the inner frame member may be formed in a polygonal shape.
The outer frame member and the inner frame member may be formed in a hexagonal shape.
The plurality of shaped surfaces may be angled with respect to the raised inner surface.
The plurality of shaped surfaces may be formed in a trapezoid shape.
The raised inner surface may be formed in a hexagonal shape.
The outer and inner frame members may be formed in a hexagonal shape.
The foregoing and/or other aspects of the present general inventive concept are achieved by also providing a ball game apparatus including a centerpiece apparatus member having an outer frame member, an inner frame member, and a raised platform surface disposed within the inner frame member, a plurality of shaped members coupled between the outer and inner frame members, at least one sensor coupled to the centerpiece apparatus, a light emitting member coupled to the at least one sensor, and a ball member configured to bounce off the raised platform surface and the plurality of shaped members, wherein the light emitting member emits a first colored light when the at least one sensor detects contact by the ball member on the raised platform surface or the plurality of shaped members and a second colored light when the at least one sensor detects contact by ball member on a vertical face of the outer frame member.
Additional aspects and/or advantages of the general inventive concept will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the general inventive concept.
These and/or other aspects of the present general inventive concept will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:
Reference will now be made in detail to the exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The exemplary embodiments are described below in order to explain the present general inventive concept by referring to the figures.
Referring to
In the present embodiment, the centerpiece apparatus 110 includes a hexagonally shaped outer frame member 112, a hexagonally shaped inner frame member 114 disposed within the outer frame member 112, and a hexagonally shaped raised platform surface 116 coupled to the inner frame member 114. The centerpiece apparatus 110 further includes a plurality of shaped members 118 formed in a trapezoidal shape coupled in an angled position between the inner and outer frame members 114, 112.
The ball member 120 is designed and/or configured to bounce off each of the surfaces of the centerpiece apparatus 110 including the plurality of shaped members 118 and the hexagonally shaped raised platform surface 116.
Referring to
In exemplary embodiments, the plurality of shaped members 118 are angled from the outer frame member 112 toward the inner frame member 114 at about 2 degrees to about 85 degrees and are coupled to the inner frame member 114 a few inches beneath a bottom surface 116a of the raised platform surface 116. As such, the plurality of shaped surfaces 118 may be angled with respect to the raised platform surface 116. However, the present general inventive concept is not limited thereto.
In exemplary embodiments, the plurality of shaped members 118 may be formed in a trapezoidal shape. However, the present general inventive concept is not limited thereto.
In exemplary embodiments, the centerpiece apparatus 110 may be constructed in various shapes and sizes, having at least two planar edges and/or surfaces. The centerpiece apparatus 110 may be constructed from wood, plastic, or the like. However, the present general inventive concept is not limited thereto.
That is, in exemplary embodiments, the outer frame member 112 and/or the inner frame member 114 may be formed in various polygonal shapes.
Referring to
In alternative embodiments, the one or more elastic members 119 may include a spring mechanism (not illustrated) designed and/or configured to control bounce characteristics of the ball member 120 when bounced off the plurality of shaped members 118 of the centerpiece apparatus 110.
In the present embodiment, the racquet member 130 is formed with a trapezoidal shaped frame 132 and a generally planar string bed 134 formed by longitudinal strings 136a and transverse strings 136b. The trapezoidal shaped frame 132 includes a handle 138 along one side of the frame 132 designed to be gripped by a user 10 (e.g., a player).
In the present embodiment, the trapezoidal shaped frame 132 may be constructed from wood, plastic, or the like. However, the present general inventive concept is not limited thereto. That is, in alternative embodiments, the trapezoidal shaped frame 132 may be constructed from a composite material having fibers and resin.
In the present embodiment, the floor markings 140 also referred to as “hopswatches” are zones placed on the floor. There are three hopswatches having a first shape 142 placed near the centerpiece apparatus 110 and three hopswatches having a second shape 144 placed further away from the centerpiece apparatus 110. There are service hashes 142a placed behind each hopswatch having the first shape 142. In the present embodiment, the first shape may include an arc shape and the second shape may include a trapezoid shape. Also, in the present embodiment, the first shape may be different than the second shape. However, the present general inventive concept is not limited thereto.
The game or routine begins at operation 202 by dividing the players into two teams of equal players. The routine can be played in various configurations including one player versus one player, two players versus two players, or three players versus three players.
At operation 204, each player on a team stands behind hopswatches having the same shape and/or distance away from the centerpiece apparatus 110. For example, a first team stands behind the first-shaped hopswatches 142 placed at a first distance D1 away from the centerpiece apparatus 110 and a second team stands behind the second-shaped hopswatches 144 placed at a second distance D2 away from the centerpiece apparatus 100. The first distance D1 being shorter than the second distance D2. Further, the hopswatches alternate from a first-shaped hopswatch 142 placed at the first distance D1 to a second-shaped hopswatch 144 placed at the second distance D2 in a circular direction centered about the centerpiece apparatus 110.
In exemplary embodiments, the first shaped hopswatches 142 may have a width W1 of about 12 inches to about 60 inches and the second shaped hopswatches 144 may have a height H1 of about 12 inches to about 60 inches. The second shaped hopswatches 144 may have a long base length L1 of about 48 inches to about 145 inches and a short base length L2 of about 45 inches to about 145 inches. The first distance D1 may be about 24 inches to about 60 inches and the second distance D2 may be about 60 inches to about 145 inches. However, the present general inventive concept is not limited thereto.
At operation 206, each member of the first team 10a takes turns serving from the service hash 142a (i.e. hitting the ball member 120 using the racquet 130) toward the second team 10b.
At operation 207, the ball member 120 must strike the raised platform surface 116 during only the serve and then bounce within an opposing hopswatch, in a single bounce. That is, during the serve, the ball member 120 must strike the hexagonally shaped raised platform surface 116. However, if the serve fails to bounce within the opposing hopswatch, this results in a fault. The players are given two opportunities to serve without faulting.
At operation 208, the player on the second team 10b (i.e., opponent) must return the ball member 120 after allowing a single bounce on the floor within a hopswatch. Using the racquet member 130, the opponent must send the ball member 120 to bounce off any face of the centerpiece apparatus 110, except for its vertical faces 112a, and then onto any hopswatch on the floor, excluding the hopswatch directly in front of the racquet member 130. During the serve, no player can step into any hopswatch 142, 144. However, after the serve, all players may step into any second shaped hopswatches 144, without faulting.
At operation 210, in an embodiment, during play in a one-on-one configuration, the hopswatches on either side of the racquet member 130 are out of bounds.
In the present embodiment, players must never step within the first shaped hopswatches 142 during play. Also, the players must never step within the second shaped hopswatches 144 during a serve, as doing so would result in a fault.
In the present embodiment, the ball member 120 is considered out of play if it strikes a player during the game. If the serving team hits the ball member 120 and it strikes the opposing team, the serving team loses its serve to the opposing team. If the opposing team hits the ball member 120 and it strikes the serving team, the serving team wins a point.
Further, when the ball member 120 goes out of play, the serving team (i.e., first team 10a) scores a point when the second team 10b causes the fault or the service changes to the opposing team (i.e., second team 10b) when the first team 10a causes the fault.
In alternative embodiments, for instance two-on-two or three-on-three configurations, the server must change hands the next time side out brings service back to the team (e.g., the players rotate).
In operation 212, a typical scoring system for this game is up to 21. The team reaching 21 point is considered the winner of the game. However, the present general inventive concept is not limited thereto. That is, in alternative embodiments, the scoring system may be modeled after the scoring system used in various other games, including tennis.
Referring to
Referring to
A ball game using a racquet is provided. The ball game apparatus using a racquet includes a centerpiece apparatus, a ball member, a racquet member, and a floor marking layout, including a plurality of hopswatches. The ball game includes a polygonal centerpiece apparatus supporting a raised planar platform having a polygonal shape. The raised planar platform may be the same or a different shape than the centerpiece apparatus.
The centerpiece apparatus is formed with an outer frame having at least two edges which supports a plurality of movable or flexible platform members disposed around the raised planar platform. In an embodiment, the outer frame is formed in a hexagonal shape, the movable or flexible platform members are formed in a trapezoid shape, and the raised planar platform is formed in a hexagonal shape. However, the present general inventive concept is not limited thereto.
The centerpiece apparatus is positioned in the center of floor markings referred to as “hopswatches” that are zones placed on the floor. There are three hopswatches having a first shape placed near the centerpiece apparatus and three hopswatches having a second shape different than the first shape placed further away from centerpiece apparatus.
The centerpiece apparatus includes a plurality of elastic members within the outer frame and in contact with the plurality of movable trapezoid platform members. The plurality of elastic members may be formed in a spherical shape designed to allow the movable trapezoid platform members to flex and spring back when a ball member is bounced off an upper/outer surface of the trapezoid platform.
In exemplary embodiments, the amount of flex and spring back of the platform members may be controlled by controlling an amount of air disposed within the plurality of elastic members. That is, by increasing the amount of air within the plurality of elastic members, the amount of flex and spring back of the platform members is reduced.
Although a few exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept have been illustrated and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these exemplary embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the general inventive concept, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims and their equivalents.
