Patent Application
20240207709
Embodiments of the invention relate to racquet games and more particularly to the equipment used to play a badminton yard game.
Badminton is a racquet sport played with 2 (singles) or 4 players (doubles), where a racket is used to hit a shuttlecock back and forth across a net that divides a court in half. Badminton is often played as a casual outdoor activity in a yard or on a beach, while formal games or matches are played on a rectangular indoor court. Points are scored by striking a flying implement called a shuttlecock with a racquet and landing it within the opposing side's half of the court without them striking it back. A shuttlecock (often abbreviated to shuttle; also called a birdie) is a high-drag projectile with an open conical shape. A shuttlecock cone is formed with numerous (e.g. sixteen) overlapping feathers (from a duck or goose, traditionally) embedded into a rounded cork (or rubber) nose that may be spherical or oblong. The cork nose is covered with a thin leather or synthetic material cover. The shuttlecock's shape makes it extremely aerodynamically stable. Regardless of initial orientation, it will turn to fly cork-end first, and remain in the cork-first orientation. Synthetic (e.g., plastic) shuttles are often used by recreational players to reduce their costs, as real-feathered shuttles break and/or deteriorate rapidly with use. Synthetic nylon shuttles may be constructed with either a natural cork or synthetic foam base and a plastic skirt. The “shuttle” part of the name is derived from its back-and-forth motion during the game, resembling the shuttle of a 14th-century loom, while the “cock” part of the name is derived from the resemblance of the feathers to those on a rooster.
To ensure satisfactory flight properties, it is considered preferable when using real feathers use feathers from a bird's right or left wings only in each shuttlecock, and not to mix feathers from different wings, as the feathers from different wings are shaped differently overall. Badminton companies make shuttlecock corks by sandwiching polyurethane between corks and/or using a whole piece of natural cork. With the first method, the cork becomes misshaped after use, while the cork in the latter method changes very little after use. This is because the structure of the shuttlecock is more durable when made with a single piece of natural cork.
Since a shuttlecock's feathers are naturally brittle, shuttlecocks break easily and often need to be replaced several times during a game. For this reason, synthetic shuttlecocks have been developed that replace the feathers with a plastic skirt. Players often refer to synthetic shuttlecocks as “plastics” and feathered shuttlecocks as “feathers”. Feathered shuttles need to be properly humidified for at least 4 hours prior to play in order to fly a desired appropriate or “correct” distance at the proper speed and to last longer. Properly humidified feathers are known to flex more during play, enhancing the shuttlecock's speed change and durability. On the other hand, dry feathers are brittle and break easily, causing the shuttlecock to wobble in flight. Water-saturated feathers are known to be ‘mushy’, making the feather cone narrow too much when strongly hit, which causes the shuttle to fly overly far and fast. Typically, a humidification box is used, or a small moist sponge is inserted in the feather end of a closed, shuttle tube container, thereby avoiding any water contact with the cork of the shuttle. Shuttles are tested prior to play to make sure they fly true and at the proper speed and cover the proper distance. Different weights of shuttles are used to compensate for local atmospheric conditions. Both humidity and height above sea level affect shuttle flight. World Badminton Federation Rules say the shuttle should reach the far doubles service line plus or minus half the width of the tram. According to manufacturer's data, a proper shuttle will generally travel from the back line of the court to just short of the long doubles service line on the opposite side of the net, with a full underhand hit from an average player.
The cost of good quality feathers is similar to that of good quality plastics, but plastics are far more durable, typically lasting many matches without any impairment to their flight. Feather shuttles are easily damaged and should be replaced every three or four games or sooner if they are damaged and do not fly straight. Damaged shuttles interfere with play as any impairment may misdirect the flight of the shuttlecock. Most experienced and skillful players greatly prefer feathers, and serious tournaments or leagues are always played using feather shuttlecocks of the highest quality.
The playing characteristics of plastics and feathers are substantially different. Plastics fly more slowly on initial impact, but slow down less towards the end of their flight. While feathers tend to drop straight down on a clear shot, plastics never quite return to a straight drop, falling more on a diagonal. Feather shuttles may come off the strings at speeds in excess of 320 km/h (200 mph) but slow down faster as they drop.
Previous attempts to solve this problem have resulted in a number of different ways to improve the shuttlecock's lifetime. (1) The shuttlecocks can be exposed to steam, which can be difficult and dangerous to control. Also, a steamed shuttlecock may have absorbed too much water, thereby rendering them useless for a certain period of time. (2). A water-containing humidifying add-on device can be used to increase the relative humidity of a shuttlecock storage container. However, over a period of 3-6 months these devices are prone to mold development, thereby increasing health risks to the players. (3) Hand-wet the shuttlecocks and let them dry in the open air. However, this always decreases the performance of the shuttlecock, and cannot be a sustainable solution when shuttlecocks are required in large numbers.
This summary is provided to introduce a variety of concepts in a simplified form that is disclosed further in the detailed description of the embodiments. This summary is not intended to identify key or essential inventive concepts of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended for determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.
This invention allows badminton shuttlecocks to be stored in a controlled humidifying environment that enhances the life of shuttlecock. A plurality of nested shuttlecocks are stored inside an storage tube or barrel that has removable (e.g., screwable) caps covering both ends of the tube. There can be two removable caps, one at each end of the tube. One cap can be long enough to hold a perforated container (i.e., puck) that contains a humidifying material (e.g., water-containing propylene glycol, or water-containing salts); while the other (opposing) cap is long-enough to contain a battery-powered, electronic hygrometer (which is used to measure the relative humidity inside the shuttlecock's storage tube). Ideally, the relative humidity inside the storage tube ranges from 50% to 85%. The storage tube can be made of a plastic material that is relatively-impermeable to water transport through the wall of the tube.
The humidifying material used in the storage tube is similar to humidifying materials developed for use inside of humidors (sealed boxes that contain cigars at an elevated relative humidity in order to better preserve the cigars). This device will save a lot of trees being felled that would have been used for making cardboard tubes to store and transport shuttlecocks. This device will also save a lot of birds (ducks and goose) being killed for their feathers to make shuttlecocks, since a shuttlecock stored at an elevated relative humidity is less prone to failure and has a longer playing lifetime. This invention creates an enhanced sense of satisfaction to the player from saving trees and birds by enhancing the lifetime of a shuttlecock and have a secure place to store them that has a constant humidity.
A more complete understanding of the embodiments, and the attendant advantages and features thereof, will be more readily understood by references to the following detailed description, when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
The specific details of the single embodiment or variety of embodiments described herein are set for in this application. Any specific details of the embodiments are used for demonstration purposes only, and no unnecessary limitation or inferences are to be understood therefrom.
Before describing in detail exemplary embodiments, it is noted that the embodiments reside primarily in combinations of components related to the system. Accordingly, the device components have been represented where appropriate by convention symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present disclosure so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.
