Patent Application
20060135272
This invention relates to an apparatus in which participants are challenged to walk or scale various elements while elevated above the ground, which can test the participant's skills such as confidence or group problem solving.
Challenge courses are structures that allow a person or team to challenge themselves by participating in various events such as walking along swinging ropes or planks, at elevated heights. These courses are also used to train military personnel. These courses are also used at recreational parks or other such centers that have go-carts and miniature golf.
The invention is a challenge course that is not required to be secured to the earth, although it can be utilized in such a manner.
There further exists a need for a challenge course in which the participant is secured to the safety cable before reaching the activity height, such as at the ground level.
There further exists a need for a deployable or portable challenge course that can be disposed on a flat-bed trailer, hauled behind a motor vehicle, or otherwise be mobile and deployable, and re-deployable.
There also exists the need to increase the flow and capacity of participants to allow for increased traffic flow.
Multiple embodiments of the system are disclosed herein. It will be understood that other objects and purposes of the invention, and variations thereof, will be apparent upon reading the following specification and inspecting the accompanying drawings.
The present invention enables people to have fin by participating in the challenge course by challenging themselves to do something they have never done before, walk along and otherwise dangerous terrain and elevated heights, while being safely secured to a safety cable.
The invention allows for a high volume of participants.
The inventions allows for elevated confidence building, and elevated team building activities.
The invention allows for participants to be secured before reaching the height at which the activity is performed.
The invention allows participants to choose from an array of challenging elements to traverse while elevated away from the ground, and while secured to a tracking system that enables the participant to be secured above the element.
The challenge course is not required to be secured directly to the earth. The challenge course can be moved and deployed at various locations. This can be done by being hauled by a motor vehicle.
Certain terminology will be used in the following description for convenience and reference only, and will not be limiting. For example, the words “upwardly,” “downwardly,” “rightwardly,” and “leftwardly” will refer to directions in the drawings to which reference is made. The words “inwardly” and “outwardly” will refer to directions toward and away from, respectively, the geometric center of the system and designated parts. Said terminology will include the words specifically mentioned, derivatives, and similar words.
The frame 20 has a substantially horizontally oriented track beam 30, a vertically oriented column 60 fixed to and extending downwardly from said substantially horizontally oriented track beam 30, said vertically oriented column 60 terminating in a bottom portion that is fixed to a substantially oriented foundation 40.
A horizontally oriented platform 170 is fixedly disposed to widthwisely opposed vertically oriented column 60 bottom portion 61.
An element 300 is fixed at two ends between two lengthwisely adjacent bottom portions (61).
The track 120 integral with a horizontally oriented track beam 30, said track 120 adapted to receive safety cable throughout said track 120.
The track 120 has an interchange 126 that enable the user to change direction and move from a lengthwise lane 122 to a widthwise lane 124. Although the lanes 122, 124 are shown to be parallel and perpendicular to one another, they can be curved, or serpentine shaped.
As the participant is traversing across the platforms 170 and elements 300, there is enough slack in the safety cable 350 causing no load on the track 120. In one embodiment, the maximum slack is about 12 inches.
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
The moveable member 360 can enter and exit the channel 150 through a track slot 125, as shown in
In one embodiment, there is only one track slot 125 located near the ground, which is also near the bottom of the access means 220 (not shown). It is also at this location that the participant is secured in the safety harness 600. In this embodiment, the participant is secured relative to the track 120 from the moment they begin to ascend upwards from the ground, to the point of return at ground level.
The frame 20 of challenge course 10, the frame 20 is fabricated of components constituting steel tubes, angle rods and connecting nipples, L's and T's which are readily available with low maintenance cost, reducing greatly the cost of production of the invention. In one embodiment the frame 20 a track 120 extends 53 feet in length and 8 feet in width and has three or more bays 230. A shorter version has two bays 230 (not shown). The two-bay 230 version would be convenient for hauling behind smaller vehicles, such as pick-up trucks.
In a further embodiment, the challenge course 10 is able to ascend and descend via a biasing unit 400. In this embodiment the challenge course 10 can be deployed and re-deployed. The challenge course 10 can be biasly disposed on a flat bed trailer. Then it can be driven to a location. At this location an access means 220 can be hingedly attached by a hinge member or hinge mechanism 222. Then the challenge course 10 can be biased upwardly via the biasing unit 400. Further, it can be moved from one location by another by a truck, as shown in
Some of the elements 300 are comprised of combination rope-cable. This provides for less displacement due the weight of the participant.
In accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention an access means 220, such as a staircase (as shown in
In a further embodiment, in operation, at the start and end of each bay 230 are large platforms 240 for group congregation in team plays. In one embodiment, in which there are constructed three lengthwise parallel tracks 120, each platform 240 has three or more interchangeable elements 300 on the course 10 with total of nine or more elements.
The safety cable 350 is fastened to the overhead tracking system or track 120 and slides along with the user to each element 300.
The bay 230 and track 120 configuration as shown in
Although the invention has been described in terms of specific embodiment in the foregoing specification, however, the invention which intended to be protected is not to be construed as limited to the particular embodiment disclosed any variation and modification that are equivalent in scope to the claims fall within the scope of the present invention.
