Patent Application
20070049428
L-frame pitching screens, or “L-screens,” and similar devices have long been used to protect pitchers from being struck by batted balls during batting practice. A typical L-screen includes a tubular frame in the shape of a capital “L,” and includes netting for blocking balls batted toward the pitcher. The L-screen is typically placed near the front of the pitcher's mound or other pitching area so that the pitcher may stand behind the L-screen while pitching batting practice (or while feeding balls into a pitching machine). The pitcher typically stands behind the L-screen and throws pitches over the “short” portion, or lower section, of the L-screen. The pitcher may stand behind the “tall” portion of the L-screen while pitching (except for the pitcher's throwing arm), or the pitcher may move behind the tall portion of the L-screen after throwing the pitch. When a ball is hit toward the pitcher, the L-screen protects the pitcher from being struck by the batted ball.
While L-screens have been effective at protecting pitchers from being struck by batted balls, they are often cumbersome to store and to transport from place to place. Some improvements, such as the addition of permanent wheels, have been made to L-screens to make them easier to transport, but these L-screens are still generally large and cumbersome. In an effort to reduce storage and transport size, L-screens have also been developed including a frame that may be broken down into smaller components. The process of assembling and breaking down these L-screens, however, is often very time-consuming, and can be frustrating because the netting on the L-screen can become knotted and/or tangled. Thus, a need exists for an L-screen that is easy to quickly set-up and to readily make compact for transport and storage.
An L-screen for protecting a baseball pitcher includes a plurality of screen sections pivotally connected to one another. The screen sections are pivotable, relative to one another, from a collapsed configuration in which the screen sections at least partially overlap one another, to a deployed configuration in which the screen sections optionally form an L-shape.
Other features and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafter. The features of the invention described above can be used separately or together, or in various combinations of one or more of them. The invention resides as well in sub-combinations of the features described.
In the drawings, wherein the same reference number indicates the same element throughout each of the views:
Various embodiments of the invention will now be described. The following description provides specific details for a thorough understanding and enabling description of these embodiments. One skilled in the art will understand, however, that the invention may be practiced without many of these details. Additionally, some well-known structures or functions may not be shown or described in detail so as to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the relevant description of the various embodiments.
The terminology used in the description presented below is intended to be interpreted in its broadest reasonable manner, even though it is being used in conjunction with a detailed description of certain specific embodiments of the invention. Certain terms may even be emphasized below; however, any terminology intended to be interpreted in any restricted manner will be overtly and specifically defined as such in this detailed description section.
Turning now in detail to the drawings, as shown in
The L-screen 10 may alternatively include a greater or lesser number of screen sections. For example, an L-screen 10 may include six screen sections, with all or some of the screen sections pivotally connected to neighboring screen sections. As another example, the L-screen 10 may include only two screen sections, such as a “tall” screen section pivotally connected to a “short” screen section, or a “wide” screen section pivotally connected to a “narrow” screen section. In such a case, the L-screen would not be as compactly foldable or collapsible as would an L-screen including three or more pivotally connected screen sections. For ease of description, an L-screen 10 including first, second, and third screen sections 12, 14, 16 will be described herein.
The frames 20 of the first, second, and third screen sections 12, 14, 16 may be tubular or otherwise suitably shaped, and may be made of steel, aluminum, plastic, PVC, and/or any other suitable material. The frames 20 may be hollow or solid. The L-screen 10 is preferably relatively lightweight, having a total weight of approximately 15 to 30 pounds, or 20 to 25 pounds. The L-screen 10 may, of course, be heavier or lighter depending on the material composition of the frames 20 of the screen sections 12, 14, 16 and the other materials that make up the L-screen 10.
Each of the first, second, and third screen sections 12, 14, 16 includes netting 22, canvas, and/or another sturdy fabric or similar material attached to and located within its frame 20 for deflecting baseballs or softballs hit toward the L-screen 10. If netting 22 is used, it may be made of nylon® (polyamide), polyester, or any other material suitable for preventing a batted ball from passing through the netting. The netting 22 or other material may be tied, bonded, clamped, and/or otherwise fastened or attached, either removably or fixedly, to the frames 20 of the first, second, and third screen sections 12, 14, 16.
The first, second, and third screen sections 12, 14, 16 may be rectangular or may have any other suitable shape, and preferably each have the same, or approximately the same, dimensions. One or more of the screen sections 12, 14, 16 may, however, have different dimensions than the other respective screen sections 12, 14, 16. Each of the first, second, and third screen sections 12, 14, 16 may have approximate dimensions of 3 to 4 feet by 3 to 4 feet, or 3.5 feet by 3.5 feet, or may have any other suitable dimensions.
In general, the “tall” portion of the L-screen 10 (i.e., the portion including the first and second screen sections 12, 14) is preferably tall enough to protect people of varying heights, and the “short” portion (i.e., the portion including the third screen section 16) is preferably short enough that a person (or pitching machine) can readily throw or otherwise deliver a ball over the short portion. In one embodiment, the first, second, and third screen sections 12, 14, 16 form, or substantially form, a coplanar “L”-shape when the L-screen 10 is in its deployed or working configuration. It is contemplated, however, that the L-screen 10 may take on other shapes or forms in its deployed configuration.
As shown in
The legs 25 may be attachable to the L-screen 10 via holes or other openings in the bottom of the frames 20 of the first and/or third screen sections 12, 16. The connecting portions 29 of the legs 25 may include push pins or spring-loaded pins or protrusions that snap into corresponding openings in the frame members 20 when the legs 25 are inserted a predetermined distance into the frames 20, or the legs 25 may be attached via a friction or interference fit, or via any other suitable manner or mechanism.
In an alternative embodiment, the legs 25 may be permanently attached to the L-screen 10, and may optionally include hinges or similar elements that allow portions of the legs 25 to pivot or fold up near or against the L-screen 10 for ease of transport and/or storage. For example, the outwardly extending base portions 27 of the legs 25 may be pivotally connected to their respective connecting portions 29 so that the base portions 27 may be pivoted or folded up to a position near or in contact with the frame 20 or netting 22 of the L-screen 10, to facilitate transport and storage.
As shown in
As shown in
In an alternative embodiment, the one or more wheel mechanisms 30 may be permanently connected to the L-screen 10. In such a case, one or more of the legs 25 may be attachable into one or more openings in the frames 20 of the screen sections 12, 14, 16, or may be attachable to the frames 20 via screws, bolts, clamps, clips or other suitable devices, in any suitable manner. Thus, it is contemplated that one or more legs 25 and/or wheel mechanisms 30 may be detachably or fixedly attached to the L-screen 10 via any suitable manner.
As is best shown in
The groove 46 may be straight, or it may be curved or angled to aid in holding the locking pin 42 in the open and/or locked position. The locking pin 42 may additionally or alternatively snap or click into place in the locked and/or unlocked positions, and/or may be held in place via gravity or via any other suitable manner. Any other suitable locking device or mechanism, such as spring-loaded hinge(s) and/or permanent stop(s), may additionally or alternatively be included on the L-screen 10 to lock or otherwise maintain the L-screen 10 in its deployed or working position.
As indicated by arrows in
Once all of the locking mechanisms 40 have locked, or otherwise secured, the L-screen 10 into its deployed or working position, one or more legs 25 may be attached to the first and/or third screen sections 12, 16, as shown in
The frames 20 of the three screen sections 12, 14, 16 may perfectly overlap and come into contact with one another, as shown in
The collapsible L-screen 10 described herein is readily deployable and collapsible via hinges or other pivotal connections. Thus, the L-screen 10 may be quickly set up for use, and/or folded up into a compact configuration for transport or storage, without the need to disassemble the screen sections 12, 14, 16 that make up the L-screen 10. Furthermore, because the netting 22 or other protective material of the L-screen 10 is preferably fixedly attached within the screen sections 12, 14, 16, it does not become tangled or knotted when the L-screen 10 is deployed or collapsed. As a result, the L-screen 10 is very efficient to use, store, and transport.
While several embodiments have been shown and described, various changes and substitutions may of course be made, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Importantly, several of the steps described above may be performed in any suitable order, and not necessarily in the order described herein. The invention, therefore, should not be limited, except by the following claims and their equivalents.
