Baseball/softball equipment bag

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6732863
  • Patent Number
    6,732,863
  • Date Filed
    Friday, February 7, 2003
    21 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, May 11, 2004
    20 years ago
Abstract
A baseball equipment bag having an elongated bag portion of flexible material and a substantially planar interior shelf within the elongated bag portion. The interior shelf is permanently secured to the elongated bag portion. A removable panel is capable of being removed to substantially fully expose the interior shelf. The removable panel can be removed from the bag to facilitate the application of commercial printing thereon. The equipment bag includes a bat compartment which allows a bat to be accessed from either of two openings. The equipment bag is capable of collapsing to a substantially flat configuration when not in use.
Description




STATEMENTS REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT




Not applicable.




REFERENCE TO A SEQUENCE LISTING




Not applicable.




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of the Invention




The present invention relates to baseball/softball equipment bags, and more particularly to bags adapted to hang from a fence.




2. Description of the Related Art




Due to the ever popular sports of baseball and softball, a variety of equipment bags have been made and marketed to store, carry and transport an individual player's baseball or softball equipment to and from a player's house to the playing field.




Baseball equipment bags have become more sophisticated with time. The early prior art bags were typically an elongated duffel or roll-type bag having a zippered opening and an elongated storage compartment for storing the player's equipment. This type of bag is popular because of its soft-sided feature which makes it easy to store and transport. The player's equipment typically includes at a minimum a bat, a ball glove, one or more balls, a cap, and playing shoes. Many players will also carry additional equipment, as for example a batting glove, glasses, a scorebook or pine tar, to name but a few. Additionally, it may be desirable to carry the player's shirt, pants and a towel in the bag for convenience. Thus, a variety of items may typically be carried in the player's bag. The plain elongated duffel or roll-type bag with one elongated compartment fails to keep the various items in any semblance of organization in the equipment bag making it difficult for the player to keep items segregated and inconvenient for the player to find things within the bag.




The problems associated with segregating the items and finding things within the bag have been partially resolved by including pouches and/or pockets attached to the inside and/or outside of the bag. Typically, the pouches or pockets have an opening which closes by means of a zipper, elastic or VELCRO hook and loop fasteners. VELCRO is a registered trademark of Velcro Industries B.V. The present baseball equipment bags typically include a segregated and separate bat compartment for housing one or more bats with access to the bats being provided solely by means of a zippered bat opening. Additionally, the present bags typically include a clip at one end of the elongated bag for hanging the bag from a chain link fence. The hanging feature allows the player to store the bag off of the dirt or ground during the ball game.




While the present baseball equipment bags do provide segregation and more convenience than the early single compartment duffel bags, it is desirable to have a baseball equipment bag having interior shelves to provide quick and convenient access to stored items when the bag is hanging vertically from a chain link fence. It is further desirable that the baseball equipment bag be flexible to provide convenient storage or transport of the bag. It is also desirable that the baseball equipment bag have a removable panel to provide substantial exposure of the shelves when hanging from a fence. It is further desirable to have a removable panel which can be removed from the bag to facilitate the application of commercial printing thereon. It is also desirable to have a bat compartment which allows the bat or bats to be accessed from either of two openings.




BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The baseball equipment bag of the present invention has interior shelves to provide quick and convenient access to stored items when the bag is hanging vertically from a chain link fence. The baseball equipment bag is flexible to provide convenient storage or transport of the bag. The baseball equipment bag has a removable panel to provide substantial exposure of the shelves when hanging from a fence. The removable panel can be removed from the bag to facilitate the application of commercial printing thereon. The bag further includes a bat compartment which allows a bat or bats to be accessed from either of two openings.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS




In order to more fully understand the drawings referred to in the detailed description of the present invention, a brief description of each drawing is presented, in which:





FIG. 1

is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the baseball/softball equipment bag according to the present invention;





FIG. 2

is a front elevation view of the baseball/softball equipment bag hanging from a chain link fence, the dashed lines showing two bats with the right bat being inserted into or removed from the equipment bag with the removable panel partially unzipped from the equipment bag;





FIG. 3

is a sectional view taken along line


3





3


of

FIG. 2

;





FIG. 4

is a sectional view similar to

FIG. 3

showing in dashed lines a bat being inserted into or removed from the equipment bag through an upper opening with the removable panel in place on the equipment bag;





FIG. 5

is a top view taken along line


5





5


of

FIG. 4

;





FIG. 6

is a sectional view similar to

FIGS. 3 and 4

showing the pivotal movement of the second shelf and the removable panel stored in the bat compartment; and





FIG. 7

is a plan view of the removable panel showing a team name printed thereon.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION




Referring now to the drawings in greater detail, the baseball/softball equipment bag, generally designated as


100


, includes an elongated bag portion


10


having a front


12


, a back


14


, a top end


16


, a bottom end


18


, and left and right sides


20


and


22


, respectively.




Preferably, the baseball equipment bag


100


has a length of approximately 36 inches to accommodate baseball or softball bats B which are typically less than 36 inches long. In the preferred embodiment, the elongated bag portion


10


is lightweight and made out of a flexible fabric such as nylon.




Referring to

FIG. 1

, the equipment bag


100


includes a pair of straps


24


attached to the sides


20


and


22


of the bag


100


. The straps


24


are capable of extending beyond the front


12


of the bag


100


and provide a means for carrying the equipment bag


100


. Preferably, the straps


24


are flexible and made of nylon. As shown in

FIG. 1

, preferably the straps


24


include a buckle means


25


for adjusting the length of the strap


24


for the convenience of the ball player.




Referring to

FIGS. 1-4

and


6


, an exterior pocket


26


is formed on the bottom end


18


of the bag


100


. The exterior pocket


26


includes an outer flap


28


which extends down over the opening of the exterior pocket


26


. In the preferred embodiment, the outer flap


28


closes the exterior pocket


26


by means of hook and loop type fasteners


30


such as VELCRO fasteners. VELCRO is a registered trademark of Velcro Industries B.V. It is to be understood that the exterior pocket could be closed with other closure means, as for example a zipper. It is additionally to be understood that one or more exterior pockets may be attached to the equipment bag


100


.




Referring to

FIGS. 1-4

and


6


, the equipment bag


100


includes one or more hanging straps


32


attached to the back


14


of the bag


100


at the top end


16


. In the preferred embodiment, a pair of hanging straps


32


are attached to the bag


100


. A clip or hook


34


is attached to the end of each hanging strap


32


. Referring to

FIG. 2

, the clip


34


is adapted to clip onto a fence F, such as a chain link fence, to vertically hang the bag


100


.




Referring to

FIGS. 1-4

and


6


, the equipment bag


100


includes a lower interior compartment


36


having a zippered opening


38


. In the preferred embodiment, the lower interior compartment


36


is formed by the left side


20


, right side


22


, front


12


, bottom end


18


, a first shelf


40


and a rear panel


42


.




In the preferred embodiment, the first shelf


40


is substantially planar and rigid. Preferably, the first shelf


40


is permanently secured to the bag


100


, as for example by sewing. The perimeter of the first shelf


40


is fully sewn to the left and right sides


20


and


22


, respectively, the rear panel


42


and the front


12


. The zippered opening


38


of the lower interior compartment


36


extends substantially the length of the lower interior compartment


36


, i.e. from approximately the first shelf


40


to the bottom end


18


.




Referring to

FIGS. 2-4

, an upper portion


44


of the bag


100


is divided into a top compartment


46


and an intermediate compartment


48


. In the preferred embodiment, the bag


100


includes a second shelf


64


which is permanently secured to the rear panel


42


and also secured to the left and right sides


20


and


22


, respectively, of the bag


100


. It may be desirable to attach the second shelf


64


to the sides


20


and


22


with VELCRO fasteners


68


as shown in FIG.


6


. The VELCRO fasteners


68


permit the second shelf


64


to be pivoted upwardly or downwardly about the rear panel


42


if desired to form a single upper compartment rather than top and intermediate compartments


46


and


48


, respectively. Preferably, the second shelf


64


is substantially planar and rigid.




It is to be understood that the first and second shelves


40


and


64


, respectively, are preferably covered with a fabric and include generally peripheral lips


66


which are either upturned or downturned as shown in

FIGS. 2-4

and


6


. The lips


66


are fabric and permit stitching of the lips


66


to the fabric sides


20


and


22


, rear panel


42


or front


12


.




In the preferred embodiment, the rear panel


42


is flexible and preferably made of fabric. As shown in

FIGS. 3

,


4


and


6


, the rear panel


42


is generally parallel to the back


14


and extends continuously from the second shelf


64


to the bottom end


18


. Referring to

FIG. 2

, the rear panel


42


extends across the bag


100


from the left side


20


to the right side


22


.




It is to be understood that the preferred embodiment of the present invention does not include any rigid framing or supports for the first and second shelves


40


and


64


, respectively. In the preferred embodiment, the first and second shelves


40


and


64


, respectively, are substantially planar and rigid although it may be desirable to make one or both of the shelves non-planar or non-rigid. The equipment bag


100


is capable of collapsing to a substantially flat configuration about the planar, rigid shelves


40


and


64


when not in use.




Referring to

FIGS. 1-3

, a removable panel


50


is removably secured to the elongated bag portion


10


. In the preferred embodiment, the removable panel


50


includes VELCRO hook and loop type fasteners


56


at the upper and lower edges


52


and


54


, respectively, of the removable panel


50


. Mating VELCRO hook and loop type fasteners


56


are attached to the top end


16


and at the exterior surface of the bag


100


proximate to the first shelf


40


. The left and right edges


58


and


60


, respectively, of the removable panel


50


are preferably attached to the elongated bag portion


10


by zippers


62


.




In

FIG. 1

, the removable panel


50


is shown fully secured to the bag


100


to secure and conceal the contents in the top and intermediate compartments


46


and


48


, respectively.

FIG. 1

shows the typical configuration of the equipment bag


100


in a horizontal position during transport or storage. Referring to

FIG. 2

, the pair of edge zippers


62


have been unzipped and the VELCRO fasteners


56


along the lower edge


54


of the removable panel


50


have been unfastened. As shown in

FIG. 3

, the removable panel


50


is entirely removed by unfastening the VELCRO fasteners


56


along the upper edge


52


of the removable panel


50


.




As shown in

FIGS. 2 and 3

, the removable panel


50


can be positioned so as to substantially fully expose the first and second shelves


40


and


64


, respectively. As shown in

FIG. 6

, the removable panel


50


can be taken from the position as shown in FIG.


2


and forcibly inserted between the rear panel


42


and the back


14


if desired.




Referring to

FIG. 7

, the removable panel


50


can be fully removed from the bag


100


. The removed panel


50


will lie flatly upon a flat, planar surface. This greatly facilitates the application of printing by standard commercial printing techniques to the panel


50


by such printing techniques as screen printing. As shown in

FIG. 7

, team names or logos or the player's name can easily be printed on the removable panel


50


of the equipment bag


100


.




Referring to

FIGS. 3

,


4


and


6


, a bat compartment


70


is formed between the rear panel


42


and the back


14


. The bat compartment


70


extends along the entire length of the bag


100


. As shown in

FIG. 3

, the bat or bats B will rest against the bottom end


18


when the equipment bag


100


is hanging upright against a fence F. The upper end of the bat B will extend above the second shelf


64


as shown in

FIGS. 2 and 3

.




In use, the bats B are stored in the bag


100


with the bat handle up and the barrel down as shown in

FIGS. 2-4

, or in the inverted position, if desired.




The bats B can be inserted into or removed from the bat compartment


70


of the equipment bag


100


in at least two ways. Referring to

FIGS. 4 and 5

, the bat B can be inserted into or removed from the bag


100


in any bag position by unfastening the VELCRO fasteners


56


at the upper edge


52


of the removable panel


50


and the top end


16


of the bag


100


to form a bat opening


72


large enough to reach in and grab the upper end of the bat B and pull the bat B out. In addition, the bat opening


72


is large enough to insert the lower end of the bat B through the bat opening


72


and direct the bat B into the bat compartment


70


.




Alternatively, the zippers


62


can be unzipped along the left and right edges


58


and


60


, respectively, of the removable panel


50


and the lower VELCRO fasteners


56


unfastened to allow access to the upper portion of the bats B. The bats B can be inserted into or removed from the bag


100


by accessing the bats B from the front opening


74


of the top compartment


46


. It is to be understood that the bats B can also be accessed with the removable panel removed from the bag


100


(

FIG. 3

) or inserted in the bat compartment


70


(FIG.


6


).




The equipment bag


100


of the present invention uniquely provides a usable and functional equipment bag


100


which is designed to be used during a ballgame in addition to transporting equipment to and from the ballpark. The hanging equipment bag


100


of the present invention serves as a locker for the player during, prior to and after the ballgame. For example, typically the removable panel


50


is removed or tucked into the bat compartment


70


during the ballgame. The first and second shelves


40


and


64


, respectively, are fully accessible from the front of the equipment bag


100


. The shelves


40


and


64


can be utilized to store the player's ball glove, cap, glasses, or other accessories when not being used by the player during the ballgame.




The foregoing disclosure and description of the invention is illustrative and explanatory thereof, and various changes in the size, shape, and materials, as well as in the details of illustrative construction and assembly, may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.



Claims
  • 1. A dual purpose sports equipment bag comprising:a flexible, elongated bag having a top, bottom, left and right sides, front and rear forming an enclosure, said elongated bag having a length defined between said top and bottom, a shelf positioned within said enclosure and extending substantially between said left and right sides; a first configuration comprising said flexible, elongated bag having a bag opening to insert articles of sports equipment into said elongated bag, said first configuration including a carrying strap attached to said elongated bag for transporting said elongated bag in a substantially horizontal position in which said elongated bag length is substantially horizontal; and a second configuration further comprising a fence clip attached to said elongated bag, said fence clip adapted to clip to a fence to vertically hang said elongated bag in a vertical position in which said elongated bag length is substantially vertical, said shelf horizontally positioned within said elongated bag in said second configuration and said bag opening having an open position adapted to frilly expose the sports equipment placed on said shelf.
  • 2. The sports equipment bag of claim 1, wherein said elongated bag is flexible between said top and said bottom.
  • 3. The sports equipment bag of claim 1, wherein said shelf is substantially rigid.
  • 4. The sports equipment bag of claim 2, wherein said shelf is substantially rigid.
  • 5. A method of converting a sports equipment bag into a transportable sports equipment locker at a sports field, the sports equipment bag including a flexible, elongated bag enclosure having a top and a bottom and a bag length defined between the top and bottom, the method comprising the steps of:providing the flexible, elongated bag enclosure with a carrying strap for transporting the elongated bag enclosure in a horizontal position in which the bag length is horizontal; subdividing the internal volume of the bag enclosure with a shelf to form a first compartment and a second compartment; forming a first opening to access the first compartment and a second opening to access the second compartment; and attaching a fence clip to the elongated bag enclosure to allow the elongated bag enclosure to hang vertically from a fence via the fence clip such that the bag length is vertically positioned; wherein the first opening is a large opening formed by partially removing a panel of the bag enclosure to substantially fully expose an upper surface of the shelf and sports equipment placed thereon.
  • 6. The method of claim 5, wherein said shelf is horizontal when the elongated bag enclosure hangs vertically.
  • 7. The method of claim 6, wherein said shelf is substantially rigid.
  • 8. The method of claim 6, wherein said shelf is vertical when the elongated bag enclosure is transported using the carrying strap.
  • 9. The sports equipment bag of claim 1, wherein said shelf is substantially planar.
  • 10. The sports equipment bag of claim 2, wherein said shelf is substantially planar.
  • 11. The sports equipment bag of claim 1, wherein in said first configuration said shelf is substantially vertically positioned.
  • 12. A dual purpose sports equipment bag comprising:a flexible, elongated bag having left and right sides, a front, a rear, a top end and a bottom end, said flexible, elongated bag having a length defined between said top and bottom ends, a width defined between said left and right sides, and a depth defined between said front and rear, said length being substantially greater than said width and said depth to form said elongated bag, said elongated bag having an interior space and a bag opening formed in said front to permit insertion and removal of sports equipment in the interior space of said elongated bag, a carrying strap attached to said elongated bag, a fence clip attached to said elongated bag, and a shelf positioned in the interior space within said elongated bag; a first configuration wherein said flexible, elongated bag is adapted to be transported by said carrying strap in a first position in which said length of said elongated bag is in a substantially horizontal position; and a second configuration wherein said flexible, elongated bag is adapted to hang vertically via said fence clip in a second position in which said length of said elongated bag is in a substantially vertical position and said shelf is in a substantially horizontal position within said elongated bag, and said bag opening having an open position adapted to expose the sports equipment placed on said shelf.
  • 13. The sports equipment bag of claim 12, wherein said shelf extends between said left and right sides.
  • 14. The sports equipment bag of claim 12, wherein said shelf is secured to said left and right sides.
  • 15. The sports equipment bag of claim 12, wherein said elongated bag is flexible along the length of said bag.
  • 16. The sports equipment bag of claim 12, wherein said shelf is substantially planar.
  • 17. In a sports equipment bag including a bag enclosure having a front, a back, a left side and a right side, a top end and a bottom end, and a fence clip at said top end for hanging said bag enclosure therefrom, said bag enclosure having a length defined between said top end and said bottom end, the improvement comprising:said bag enclosure further comprising a panel adapted to form an opening to insert articles of sports equipment into said bag enclosure, and a carrying strap attached to said bag enclosure; the sports equipment bag adapted for use in first and second configurations, said first configuration includes transporting said bag enclosure in a substantially horizontal position via said carrying strap, said bag length being in a substantially horizontal position in said first configuration; and said second configuration comprises hanging said elongated bag to a fence by said fence clip, said bag length being in a substantially vertical position in said second configuration, in said second configuration said panel is opened and a substantially horizontal shelf adapted to support sports equipment is exposed extending generally from said front towards said back and between said left and right sides.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/433,988, filed Nov. 4, 1999, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/775,336 filed Dec. 18, 1996, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,009,995 on Jan. 4, 2000, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/522,542 filed Sep. 1, 1995, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 5,588,529 on Dec. 31, 1996, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/247, 327 filed May 23, 1994, now abandoned.

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Number Date Country
Parent 08/775336 Dec 1996 US
Child 09/433988 US
Parent 08/522542 Sep 1995 US
Child 08/775336 US
Parent 08/247327 May 1994 US
Child 08/522542 US