Patent Application
20110030182
During a game of golf, golf tees are commonly broken. For removal of golf tees, players typically use their fingers to pick out the golf tee. Unfortunately, using a finger is troublesome.
Devices such as U.S. Pat. No. D362,480 to Reaves issued Sept. 19, 1995 may assist as a Golf Tee Placement and Removal Aid. A variety of devices have been constructed for repairing divots, setting tees, but it is desired to have a device for removal of broken golf tees.
A variety of household tools can be used for retrieving golf tees, however these household tools are not suitable for travel on a golf course. Thus, what is needed is a specialized lightweight broken golf tee remover that is usable by the general playing population.
The present embodiment of the broken tee extractor has a bulbous handle portion terminating in a pair of tweezer arms. The pair of tweezer arms are optionally made of plastic or metal and have a pair of inward pointing tips. The pair of tweezer arms preferably have a pair of points that point inward which touch each other in the closed position. In open position, the pair of tweezer arms are preferably parallel to each other.
The handle portion has a neck terminating on a platform. The platform supports a tee pulling member which forms a notch between a pair of hook arms. Optionally, the tee pulling member may be mounted on a pivot allowing rotation relative to the platform.
The hook arms can be made as a circular profile pair of arms opposing an abutment extending from an opposite side of the pivot. The circular profile appears as a section of a cylinder from the side view. A single hook arm can also be used for pulling at a golf tee.
The neck preferably has a circular cross-section profile while the handle portion is a more rectangular with a rounded and bulbous profile. A circular cross-section profile would have a symmetry around an axis parallel to the and passing through the handle portion.
The tips preferably extend inward, but can also extend outward. A gap approximately the diameter of the neck and the platform defines the distance between the pair of tweezer arms. The pair of tweezer arms may continue to extend through the handle portion. The pair of tweezer arms may be made of a single piece of metal lodged within handle portion. Handle portion can be made as a hollow rubber sleeve, or a solid elastomeric or plastic molding over the pair of tweezer arms. The handle portion has an extension of a shoulder over the neck to allow a pulling grip when pulling a tee out of the ground. The second embodiment is a lightweight version which does not have a large handle portion with a neck. The second embodiment has long pair of tweezer arms and has a more narrow V shaped gap.
To use the broken tee extractor, a user may use the tweezer arms to grasp at a stem of a golf tee that is embedded in the ground. A user may also use the pair of hook arms for grasping a partially broken head or at a stem of a golf tee that is embedded in the ground. The V shaped notch may also be used for grasping a partially broken golf tee.
The following call a list of elements is used consistently herein for describing the elements of the drawings.
The present embodiment of the broken tee extractor has a bulbous handle portion 15 terminating in a pair of tweezer arms 12. The pair of tweezer arms are optionally made of plastic or metal and have a pair of inward pointing tips. The pair of tweezer arms preferably have a pair of points that point inward which touch each other in the closed position. In open position, the pair of tweezer arms are preferably parallel to each other.
The handle portion 15 has a neck 18 terminating on a platform 21. The platform supports a tee pulling member 22 which forms a notch 25 between a pair of hook arms 26. Optionally, the tee pulling member 22 may be mounted on a pivot 28 allowing rotation relative to the platform 21.
The hook arms 26 can be made as a circular profile pair of arms opposing an abutment 29 extending from an opposite side of the pivot 28. The circular profile appears as a section of a cylinder from the side view. A single hook arm can also be used for pulling at a golf tee.
The neck preferably has a circular cross-section profile while the handle portion 15 is a more rectangular with a rounded and bulbous profile. A circular cross-section profile would have a symmetry around an axis parallel to the and passing through the handle portion.
The tips preferably extend inward, but can also extend outward. A gap approximately the diameter of the neck and the platform defines the distance between the pair of tweezer arms. The pair of tweezer arms may continue to extend through the handle portion 15. The pair of tweezer arms may be made of a single piece of metal lodged within handle portion 15. Handle portion 15 can be made as a hollow rubber sleeve, or a solid elastomeric or plastic molding over the pair of tweezer arms. The handle portion 15 has an extension of a shoulder over the neck 18 to allow a pulling grip when pulling a tee out of the ground. The second embodiment as shown in
To use the broken tee extractor, a user may use the tweezer arms to grasp at a stem of a golf tee that is embedded in the ground. A user may also use the pair of hook arms for grasping a partially broken head or at a stem of a golf tee that is embedded in the ground. The V shaped notch may also be used for grasping a partially broken golf tee.
