Patent Application
20080083363
A new era of sports is built around the ability to tow a person from a stationary point at a reasonable speed to perform a sporting activity with the participant on a glide, such as a board, ski, skate or a sled. The activity can be performed, for example, on water, snow or a relatively smooth hard surface. A specially designed stationary winch can be used to pull the person. The winch generally has a motor to drive a spool around which a rope is wound as the person is pulled. In this way, a wide range of conventional sports can be performed at locations where the sport would not have been otherwise available, and a range of new sports can be performed that were not possible without the specially designed tow device. In some embodiments, the winch is portable for easy transport to a selected location, while in other embodiments, the winch is anchored for long term use at a particular location.
A wide range of sports can be performed using the human towing device described herein. A selected sport is performed on a course aligned with the towing device such that the towing device pulls the person along the course. The course provides a suitable surface for the person to glide. A wide range of glide structures can be suitable, which should be selected to be appropriate for the course. The participant uses their balance to direct themselves along the course as they are pulled. Examples of suitable water activities include, for example, water boarding, water skiing, snow skiing, surfboarding, wakeboarding, wake skating, snowboarding, kite boarding, skim boarding, mountain boarding, skate boarding or kayaking. Similarly, a person can be pulled in a wheel chair to extend the sporting experience to disabled individuals.
An operator can control the towing device. In general, the operator can control the speed of the device, which can be adjusted appropriately to accelerate the person safely according to the expectation of the particular sport. In some embodiments, the person is pulled at speeds of at least 10 miles per hour during a portion of the activity, and in other embodiments at least about 20 miles per hour, although a person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that additional ranges of speed within these explicit ranges are contemplated and included herein. Also, the operator generally controls a brake so that the rope pulling the person can be stopped. The brake provides a safety device, for example, to avoid dragging a fallen person, as well as to stop the person before the reach the tow device.
In some embodiments, the sporting activity is performed with the person propelled along a water course. The water course can be a natural stream bed, a man-made water course, a small body of water or a section of a larger body of water. A man-made water course can be formed, for example, with a trench lined with a thick plastic sheet and filled with water or with an above ground water structure, although any other suitable approach can be used to form a man-made water course. A small body of water can be used that is too small for the safe operation of a motor boat. Also, a section of a larger body of water can be used since the towing device can provide a less expensive alternative to a motor boat as well as a different sporting experience relative to being pulled by a motor boat. Suitable glides for water include, for example, surf boards, water skis, water boards, wake boards, skim boards, kite boards, kayaks or the like.
In other embodiments, the sporting activity is performed with the person propelled on a course covered with snow. The snow can be natural snow, artificial snow or a combination thereof. The snow can be along the natural lie of the land, or the snow can be pilled on a man-made platform. Similarly, the snow may or may not be contoured to form a different experience. The towing device replaces the need to have a hill to propel the person. In some snow embodiments or other embodiments, the average incline along the course is no more than about 10 degrees and in further embodiments no more than about 5 degrees, and the maximum incline may be no more than about 15 degrees and in further embodiments no more than about 10 degrees. A person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that additional ranges of inclines within the explicit ranges are contemplated and are within the present disclosure. Suitable glides for snow sports include, for example, snow boards, snow skis, mountain boards, sleds, luge or the like.
In general, a range of sports can be adapted for new types of sports based on the towing device. A range of sports are intended to be performed on hard surface using the strength of the participant to propel the person at least for portions of the activity. For example, ice skating, roller skating, roller blading, skate boarding and the like generally involve the participant propelling themselves forward. In at least some of these activities, the surface may be contoured so that the performer can due tricks and use gravity for a portion of the time to increase their speed. The course can comprise a corridor formed from ice, wood, concrete, asphalt or other suitable construction material. The corridor can be flat or contoured and level or slightly sloped. In some embodiments, the overall grade of the course is no more than about 10%, in other embodiments no more than about 5% and in further embodiments no more than about 3%, although a person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that additional ranges within these explicit ranges are contemplated. These sports can be adapted to use the towing device to propel the person. The course can be appropriately adapted for pulling the person along the course with the tow device.
The human towing device generally is fixed at a stationary position for operation and uses a rope to transfer power to the person on a glide. Referring to
Towing device 100 comprises a frame assembly 110, a motor 112, a spool assembly 114, transmission 116, and rope 118. In general, frame 110 holds spool 114 stationary but free to rotate during the performance of the sporting activity. If the frame has wheels, the frame can be attached to a more massive structure such as a stationary vehicle or an anchor to hold the frame in place during the activity. Thus, in some embodiments, the tow device is portable. In other embodiments, the wheels can be removed, locked or otherwise disengaged so that the frame does not roll when the motor is engaged. In some embodiments, the frame can be anchored with pins or brackets to the ground or a platform after being place at a desired location. Frame 110 has a rope guide 120 to direct the rope in a stable position past the front of the frame as well as to facilitate proper rolling up of the rope during use. Rope guide 120 can have one or more rollers with bearings or other low friction mounts so that the rope can feed through the rope guide without significant friction. The rope guide can be attached to the frame to hold the rope guide from about 2.5 feet to about 6 feet from the ground when the tow device is positioned for operation.
Motor 112 can be an internal combustion engine such as a gasoline engine or a diesel engine. However, significant developments in the automotive industry of electric motors and fuel cells can lead to the availability of alternative motor formats that would be suitable replacements for a gasoline engine. In general, it is desirable for the engine to have a power of at least about 5 horse power, in further embodiments at least about 6 horse power and in other embodiments at least about 6.5 horse power. A person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that additional ranges of motor power within the explicit ranges above are contemplated and are within the present disclosure.
Spool 114 is appropriate to hold rope 118 as the rope is wound by the motor. The size of spool 14 should be consistent with the size of rope 118. For example, in some embodiments, the core of the spool can be from about 4 inches to about 16 inches, although a person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that additional ranges within this range are contemplated. In general, the size of the spool is influenced by the length of the rope. The spool has a rotating mount to secure spool 114 to frame 110 while allowing spool 114 to rotate. Spool 114 also has a connection 122 for attachment to transmission 116. Connection can be a gear for connection to a chain, a wheel for connection to a drive belt or the like. Spool 114 is also generally attached to a brake, such as a disk brake.
Transmission 116 is used to transfer power from motor 112 to spool 114. Suitable transmissions include both manual and automatic transmissions. For example, suitable manual transmissions include, for example, a centrifugal clutch that engages the clutch to power the gears once the rpm of the motor reaches an appropriate value. Thus, at idle speed of the motor, the spool can be rotated freely since the clutch is disengaged. Suitable automatic transmissions include, for example, continuously variable transmission. The continuously variable transmission can be adapted to change from a 1 to 90 ratio at startup to a 1 to 1 ratio in the transmission once a threshold in rpm is reached. Commercially available continuously variable transmissions are available from Comet™.
The transmission controls power delivery from the motor to the spool. In some embodiments, this power delivery involves rotation of a gear that rotates a chain that drives another gear attached to the spool. For these embodiments, the gear ratio can be selected between the drive gear sprocket and the spool gear sprocket to provide the appropriate power, acceleration and ultimate speed for the tow rope. The gears and chain can be replaced with drive wheels and a belt or with directly meshed gears or with any other suitable drive mechanism.
Rope 118 is attached at a first end to spool 118, and the second end of rope 118 has a handle 130 or harness to connect to the sport participant. A suitable handle can be used that can be gripped by a person. In some embodiments, handle 130 has a tube 132 over the rope with a gripping surface. Any suitable harness can be used. A wide range of harnesses are available such as the harness disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,700 to Cox, entitled “Safety Harness,” incorporated herein by reference. However, suitable harnesses do not necessarily have a leg component since the harness generally does not fully support the weight of the person. The rope can be selected to have a suitable length for the particular sport, and the other components can be designed to match the needs for a selected rope length. In general, the rope can have a length greater than about 500 feet, and in other embodiments, the rope can have a length greater than 1000 feet.
A first specific embodiment is shown in
Spool assembly 154 comprises spool 190, axle 192, gear sprocket 194 and disk brake 196. Axle 192 is fixedly attached to spool 190 and engages bearing assemblies 180, 182 at its respective ends so that the axle can be supported by frame 152 while having the ability to rotate relative to frame 152. Gear sprocket 194 is fixedly attached to axle 192 with 65-74 teeth. Brake disk 196 fixedly attached to axle 192. Brake element 198 is welded to the frame at extension 200 and engages brake disk 196. Movement of brake lever 202 actuates brake element 198 to engage the brake. Brake disk and brake element 198 are parts of a Weldman™ brake assembly from Azusa, part 8236, which is adapted for this use.
Motor 154 is a 6.5 horse power Briggs & Stratton™ gasoline engine with a drive shaft that engages drive assembly 158, motor 154 comprises a manual throttle 204. Drive assembly 158 comprises a centrifugal clutch 210, a sprocket, and a drive chain 212. Drive chain 212 connects the sprocket of drive assembly 158 with gear sprocket 194.
A second specific embodiment is shown in
Bottom platform 270 supports the other components. Side panels 272, 274 are attached to bottom platform 270 and surround the moving components from the side of the device. Side panel 272 has a slot 282 through which the brake lever extends. Front panel 274 connects with side panels 272, 274 as well as bottom platform 270. A rope guide 284 is attached to front panel 274. The rope guide is a roller fairlead. Back panel 278 attaches to side panels 272, 274 and to bottom platform 270. Back panel 278 shields the back of tow device 250, and hitch attachment 286 extends from bottom platform 270 back beyond back panel 278. Hitch attachment 286 is welded or otherwise securely connected to bottom platform 270. Hitch attachment 286 provides for attachment to a vehicle tow hitch. Top lid 280 is attached with hinges 288, 290 so that top lid 280 can be opened to provide access to the drive and spool for maintenance or checking of the operation of the device. Bearing assemblies 292, 294 are attached to the interior of side panels 272, 274 with bolts. Bearing assemblies 292, 294 engage spool assembly 254 to provide low friction rotation of the spool.
Spool assembly 254 comprises spool 300, axle 302, sprocket 304, and brake disk 306. Axle 302 fixedly attached to spool 300, which engages bearing assemblies 292, 294 at its respective ends so that the axle can be supported by frame 252 while having the ability to rotate relative to frame 252. Gear sprocket 304 is also fixedly attached to axle 302 with 65-74 teeth, and brake disk 306 fixedly attached to axle 302. Brake element 310 is welded to side panel 272 and engages brake disk 306. Movement of brake lever 312 actuates brake element 310 to engage brake disk 306. Brake disk 306 and brake element 310 are parts of a Weldman™ brake assembly from Azusa, part 8236, which is adapted for this use.
Motor 256 is a 7.0 horse power gasoline engine with a manual throttle 320. Motor 256 has a drive shaft that engages drive assembly 258. Drive assembly 258 comprises a Tva Comet™ Torque Converter 322 with a 12 tooth sprocket 324 and a drive chain 326. Torque Converter 322 has a built in automatic clutch 328. Drive chain 326 engages gear sprocket 304 to rotate spool 300.
Tow device 250 has several improvements over tow device 150, although tow device 150 functions safely and more than adequately in many applications. Tow device 250 has a covered spool and drive assembly to reduce the risk of injury, a larger spool to hold more rope and a more powerful engine.
As noted above, the winch can be made portable, or the winch can be anchored at a particular location for long term use. It may be particularly desirable to anchor the device at a location where a corresponding course is set up for use by a steady group of participants. In general, a course comprises a winch and a corridor in which the corridor is traveled by the user when pulled by the winch. A particular, facility can comprise a plurality of courses which may or may not be of the same type. For example, some of the facilities can be water based activities while others are on a hard surface. For commercial operations, one or more approaches can be used for charging patrons, such as a charge per run, a charge for limited or unlimited use for a day or a charge for specific levels of usage over a year or season.
A course 400 is schematically shown in
For water-based activities, a corridor can be set up by digging a trench or other hole or by building an above ground facility. The trench or other structure can be lined with a water proof material such as a plastic sheet, tar, asphalt or other suitable material. For snow-based activities, the corridor can be positioned along natural ground contours are the ground can be contoured to form the corridor. Furthermore, for snow-based activities, the corridor can be positioned along a built up structure. Suitable snow making machines can be placed in appropriate locations to deposit snow along the corridor. Similarly, hard surface corridors can be formed using conventional building approaches. A hard surface corridor may or may not be flat and may or may not be level.
In general, the winch is positioned to pull the person along the corridor. In general, the winch can be positioned near the end of a straight path down the corridor. The path down the corridor can veer around a straight path as the person transits down the path due to contours in the surface or purposeful motions of the participant.
The embodiments above are intended to be illustrative and not limiting. Additional embodiments are within the claims. In addition, although the present invention has been described with reference to particular embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that changes can be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Any incorporation by reference of documents above is limited such that no subject matter is incorporated that is contrary to the explicit disclosure herein.
