Claims
- 1. A ball for use in baseball or softball comprising:
(a) an inner sphere, (b) an outer shell of a foamed material, covering the inner sphere, and (c) a material covering the outer surface of the shell.
- 2. The ball of claim 1 wherein the inner sphere is solid.
- 3. The ball of claim 1 wherein said sphere comprises a mixture of a polymer and pieces of cork.
- 4. The ball of claim 3 wherein the polymer comprises rubber.
- 5. The ball of claim 1 wherein the outer shell comprises a polymer selected from the group consisting of polyurethane, EVA, and mixtures thereof.
- 6. The ball of claim 1 wherein the material covering the outer surface of the shell comprises two panels of material that are stitched together.
- 7. The ball of claim 1 wherein the material covering the outer surface of the shell is selected from the group consisting of genuine leather, fabric, rubber, PVC, PU, and TPU.
- 8. The ball of claim 7 wherein the two panels comprise sheets of fabric material with an EVA foam backing.
- 9. The ball of claim 8 wherein the two panels are bonded by an extra knitted fabric along the edges and stitched together to provide a high seam effect.
- 10. The ball of claim 1 wherein said material covering the outer surface of the shell comprises a layer of rubber molded and vulcanized over the surface.
- 11. A method of making a ball for use in softball or baseball, comprising the steps of:
a) blending a core polymer with pieces of cork to form a blended mixture; b) molding and heating the blended mixture to form a sphere; c) injecting a foamable polymer into a mold under conditions so that the polymer will form a foam shell; and d) applying the foam shell to the sphere.
- 12. The method of claim 11 wherein the sphere is solid.
- 13. The method of claim 11 further comprising (e) molding and heating the sphere and the shell to form a core suitable for use in a ball.
- 14. The method of claim 11 wherein the applying step includes applying an adhesive to a surface of the solid sphere.
- 15. The method of claim 11 wherein the core polymer comprises rubber.
- 16. The method of claim 15 wherein the molding step further comprises vulcanizing the rubber.
- 17. The method of claim 11 wherein the injecting step includes forming two hemispherical shell portions.
- 18. The method of claim 13 further comprising wrapping said core with a cover.
- 19. The method of claim 18 wherein said wrapping step comprises wrapping said ball material with two panels of fabric material with EVA foam backing.
- 20. The method of claim 19 further comprising bonding the panels by an extra knitted fabric along the edges and stitching together to provide a high seam effect.
- 21. The method of claim 18 wherein said wrapping step comprises wrapping said ball material with a rubber layer.
- 22. The method of claim 21 further comprising vulcanizing said rubber layer.
Parent Case Info
[0001] This application calims benefit from U.S. Provisional Applciation No. 60/440,518, filed Jan. 16, 2003.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60440518 |
Jan 2003 |
US |