The present invention relates to a curling broom head for improved ice surface heating and curling performance.
Curling brooms influence a curling rock's trajectory as it slides over the ice toward a desired position. The broom or brush is used to ‘sweep’ or brush the ice immediately in front of the rock to heat the ice surface above the ambient temperature. Sweeping also clears unwanted debris out of the path. By heating the ice surface the friction between the rock and the ice is reduced, making the rock run farther on its current path and straighter. The effectiveness of sweeping depends on the amount by which the ice surface is heated via the friction of the sweeping broom: more heat, more effect.
A curling broom consists of a shaft or handle, a receptacle, and a removable, replaceable head as shown in
Since one of the roles of the curling broom head is to heat the surface of the ice, it would be very advantageous to provide a curling broom that has a broom head that can increase the heat flow into the surface of the ice.
The present invention provides a curling broom head for improved ice surface heating and curling performance. This curling broom disclosed herein significantly increases the amount of ice surface heating for the same sweeping effort.
An embodiment of the invention includes a curling broom head attachable to a curling broom shaft, comprising:
an attachment plate having a connector for connecting the broom head to an end of a curling broom shaft;
and an outer fabric layer secured to a bottom surface of said attachment plate, wherein an outer surface of said outer fabric layer contacts an ice surface during sweeping motion by the user sweeping an ice surface with the broom; and
a reflective constituent selected to reflect infrared radiation incorporated into said curling broom head and located such that when said broom head is swept across the ice surface, infrared radiation generated by said user sweeping the ice is reflected by the reflective constituent back towards said ice surface for further heating up of the ice surface.
The curling broom head may include a foam pad attached to the bottom surface of said attachment plate. The reflective constituent may comprise the outer fabric layer being metalized. The outer fabric being metalized may comprise the outer fabric incorporating metalized powder. The outer fabric being metalized may comprise the outer fabric having a reflective sheet attached to an inner surface thereof.
The reflective constituent may comprise the foam pad being metalized. The foam pad being metalized may comprise the foam pad incorporating metalized powder. The foam pad being metalized may comprise the foam pad having a reflective sheet attached to a bottom surface thereof.
The reflective constituent may comprise a reflective sheet attached to one or both of the bottom surface of the attachment plate and an inner surface of the outer fabric layer.
The reflective constituent may comprise a reflective sheet attached to one or both of a bottom surface of the foam pad and an inner surface of the outer fabric layer.
The foam pad may have a thickness in a range from about 2 mm to about 50 mm.
The attachment plate may have a shape selected from the group consisting of rectangular, circular, elliptical, boomerang and ovoid shapes.
When the attachment plate is ovoid shaped it may have a long axis of about 220 mm, and a short axis of about 65 mm and a thickness of about 10 mm.
The reflective layer may be selected from the group consisting of metal foil or metalized polymer sheet.
The reflective layer may be selected from the group consisting of aluminum foil, silver foil, magnesium foil, gold foil, aluminized Mylar, gold-sputtered Mylar, metalized tape and aluminized polymer sheeting.
The reflective layer may reflect more than about 50% or more of the infrared radiant heat shining upon it.
The curling broom head may be attached to an elongate shaft having opposed first and second ends, the first end being graspable by a sweeper and the second end being releasably attachable to the broom head attachment plate. In this respect the curling broom head may be attached to the broom head attachment plate by any one of a rigid connection, an adjustable pivot joint and an adjustable universal joint.
An embodiment of the present invention provides a curling broom, comprising;
an elongate shaft having opposed first and second ends, the first end being graspable by a sweeper and the second end being attached to a curling broom head for sweeping an ice surface;
a curling broom head including
The curling broom head may be attached to the attachment plate by any one of a rigid connection, an adjustable pivot joint or an adjustable universal joint.
A foam layer may optionally be located between the reflective layer and the base section.
A further understanding of the functional and advantageous aspects of the invention can be realized by reference to the following detailed description and drawings.
The embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to the attached figures, wherein:
Generally speaking, the systems described herein are directed to a curling broom head for improved ice surface heating and curling performance. This invention enables curlers to use less abrasive materials than otherwise are typically used to produce heat with the sweeping motion. These less abrasive materials will reduce the amount damage being inflicted on the ice surface with current designs. As required, embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein. However, the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary, and it should be understood that the invention may be embodied in many various and alternative forms.
The Figures are not to scale and some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular elements while related elements may have been eliminated to prevent obscuring novel aspects. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention. For purposes of teaching and not limitation, the illustrated embodiments are directed to curling broom head for improved ice surface heating and curling performance.
As used herein, the phrases “reflective sheet”, “metalized powder”, “reflective constituent” all refer to material, whether sheets or powder particles that reflect infrared radiation.
When it is disclosed that a component is metalized it can be accomplished by any one of several ways, incorporating metalized powder, adding a conductive polymer to it, attaching reflective sheets etc. to mention a few.
Curling broom 10 is comprised of a shaft 12 and a removable, replaceable broom head 14. The shaft 12 is held by the curler (not shown) at a first end portion and a broom head attachment plate 18 is attached to the second end portion of the shaft 12. The attachment plate 18 may be attached to the shaft 12 either via a rigid connection, an adjustable pivot joint or an adjustable universal joint (none of which are shown in
The heads of the bolts 16 sit atop the attachment plate 18. Referring to
The curling broom forming the present invention includes a reflective constituent, such as reflective layer 30 as shown in
The reflective layer 30 can be made of metal foil or metalized polymer sheet, just to mentioned a few non-limiting examples. The material selected for the reflective layer 30 should reflect more than 50% of the infrared spectrum light (radiant heat) shining upon it. Non-limiting examples of the reflective layer as a separate sheet include aluminum foil, silver foil, magnesium foil, gold foil, aluminized Mylar, gold-sputtered Mylar, metalized tape and aluminized polymer sheeting.
The reflective layer 30 improves broom performance by reflecting infrared (heat) radiation generated by the friction of the sweeping action back onto the ice surface. Since the heat easily passes through the woven fabric, the reflective layer can be hidden inside the head. This makes the design more robust since the more delicate reflective material of reflective layer 30 is protected from the friction of sweeping by the more durable woven fabric layer 24. By reflecting the heat back onto the ice surface, for the same sweeping exertion by the player, the ice surface is heated more above its ambient temperature than with a conventional curling broom head without the reflective layer 30. Or conversely, the same amount of ice surface heating is possible with the improved curling broom head design disclosed herein for less effort than with a conventional curling broom head. Less abrasive woven fabrics may be used to reduce damage to the playing surface of the ice.
It will be understood the broom head does not need to be an ovoid shape, but could other shapes such as rectangular, elliptical, boomerang or circular just to mention a few non-limiting examples.
It will also be appreciated that the reflective layer does not need to be a separate stand alone sheet. For example, the bottom surface of the foam pad may be metalized with an infrared reflective layer such as silver thread or incorporated into the outer fabric which contacts the ice to give a few non-limiting examples. Also, the foam could be metalized with an infrared reflective constituent, layer or particles embedded in the foam.
As used herein, the terms, “comprises” and “comprising” are to be construed as being inclusive and open ended, and not exclusive. Specifically, when used in this specification including claims, the terms, “comprises” and “comprising” and variations thereof mean the specified features, steps or components are included. These terms are not to be interpreted to exclude the presence of other features, steps or components.
The foregoing description of the preferred embodiments of the invention has been presented to illustrate the principles of the invention and not to limit the invention to the particular embodiment illustrated. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by all of the embodiments encompassed within the following claims and their equivalents.
This patent application relates to, and claims the priority benefit from, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/295,045 filed on Jan. 14, 2010, in English, entitled CURLING HEAD FOR CURLING BROOM, and which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
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