Patent Application
20130012341
Lacrosse stick heads, or lacrosse heads, typically include a socket for receiving a stick shaft, a base region adjacent to the socket, and a pair of sidewalls extending from the base region that terminate in a scoop. The sidewalls in many lacrosse heads include an upper rail and a lower rail. A ball rest or ball stop extends between the sidewalls adjacent to the base region. Some lacrosse heads, such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,393,294, which is incorporated herein by reference, include a flexible cartridge or joint positioned between the socket and the base for providing increased or variable flexibility to the lacrosse head.
Eyelets or other openings are included in the lacrosse head through which netting is strung to form a pocket in the lacrosse head. The eyelets typically extend along the scoop, along lower rails of the sidewalls, and along a lower region of the ball stop. The netting weaves in and out of the interior of the lacrosse head, including in the ball stop region. Further, the eyelets in the ball stop region are oriented in a direction substantially parallel to a longitudinal direction of the lacrosse head.
A lacrosse head includes a socket, a base region adjacent to the socket, and a pair of sidewalls extending from the base region to a scoop. A ball stop extends between the sidewalls adjacent to the base region. Eyelets or other openings through which netting may be strung to form a pocket in the lacrosse head are included in external regions of the sidewalls near the ball stop such that the netting does not interfere with a ball positioned in the ball stop.
A stringing element including an opening that is substantially transverse to a longitudinal direction of the lacrosse head is included adjacent to the ball stop to allow netting to be strung in a transverse direction near the ball stop region. The stringing element optionally secures the netting outside of the ball stop region so the netting does not interfere with a ball positioned in the ball stop. Other features and advantages will appear hereinafter. The features described above can be used separately or together, or in various combinations of one or more of them.
In the drawings, wherein the same reference number indicates the same element throughout 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.
Where the context permits, singular or plural terms may also include the plural or singular term, respectively. Moreover, unless the word “or” is expressly limited to mean only a single item exclusive from the other items in a list of two or more items, then the use of “or” in such a list is to be interpreted as including (a) any single item in the list, (b) all of the items in the list, or (c) any combination of items in the list.
Turning now in detail to the drawings, as shown in
In one embodiment, the ball stop 34 is spaced from the socket 12 such that a cavity is formed between them. A flexible member or cartridge 36 may be positioned in the cavity and attached to the ball stop 34 and the socket 12, via a screw 38 or another suitable attachment device. The flexible cartridge 36 may be made of a compressible, resilient rubber material, or of another suitable material. A flexible cartridge 36 of this nature is described in incorporated U.S. Pat. No. 7,393,294.
The screw 38 may be tightened, which compresses the flexible cartridge 36 and adjusts the throwing angle—or the angle between an upper surface of the upper rail 20 and an upper surface of the socket 12—to meet a given player's preferences. The throwing angle may be adjusted in the opposite direction by loosening the screw 38. Tightening or loosening the screw 38 may also adjust the flexibility and feel of the head 10.
Stringing holes, such as eyelets 26 or other openings, through which netting 28 or another pocket material may be strung or otherwise connected, are included in the lower rails 22 and in the scoop 18. In one embodiment, a portion of the lower rails 22 includes an inner, pocket-adjacent wall 23 and an outer wall 25 spaced apart from the inner wall 23, at least near the ball stop 34. In this embodiment, eyelets 26 are included in the outer wall 25 such that the netting 28 does not enter the interior of the lacrosse head 10 in this region. Accordingly, the netting 28 does not interfere with a ball in the ball stop region. In one embodiment, the inner wall 23 is devoid of openings. In another embodiment, the inner wall 23 may include openings to provide an alternative stringing location for users.
In one embodiment, the portion of each of the sidewalls including an inner wall 23 and an outer wall 25 extends from the ball stop region approximately to a longitudinal midpoint of the sidewall. In another embodiment, this portion of each of the sidewalls extends from the ball stop region to a location at approximately one-third the length of the sidewalls. Accordingly, a ball resting in the ball stop 34 will be free from interference from the netting 28. The portion of each of the sidewalls including an inner wall 23 and an outer wall 25 alternatively may extend over any other suitable length, up to the entire length of the sidewalls.
In one embodiment, the inner and outer walls 23, 25 form channels 40 in the lower rails 22. Support ribs 42 optionally extend from the outer wall 25 of each channel 40 to the inner wall 23 of the channel 40. In the embodiment shown, the support ribs 42 form a truss pattern. The support ribs 42 may alternatively be oriented in any other suitable manner, as described, for example, in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/095,749, filed on Apr. 27, 2011, which is incorporated herein by reference.
In one embodiment, when the adjustment screw 38 is tightened, the lower rails 22 near the ball stop 34 pinch or deflect inwardly as the flexible cartridge 36 is compressed. This inward deflection provides increased lateral stiffness in the lacrosse head 10, while reducing the width in the ball stop region. This narrowing in the ball stop region may facilitate better ball control and ball retention. In the embodiment in which the stringing holes 26 are included in the outer wall 25, the inner wall may remain smooth such that the netting 28 will not interfere with a ball in the ball stop region. Accordingly, the head 10 may be pinched to a greater degree than a head in which netting interferes with the ball stop region.
A stringing element 50, such as a tab or one or more outwardly extending arms, is attached to or integral with the ball stop 34. The stringing element 50 includes one or more openings—oriented substantially transverse to the longitudinal direction of the lacrosse head 10—through which a portion of the netting may be strung. In an alternative embodiment, the stringing element 50 may include one or more substantially transverse holes through the ball stop 34 itself, or through the flexible cartridge 36.
In one embodiment, the stringing element 50 projects away from the ball stop 34 to secure netting outside of the ball stop area. For example, as shown in
By securing the netting away from the ball stop 34, the transverse stringing element 50 also provides for an easier adjustment to the depth of the pocket. For example, the transverse stringing element 50 allows a user to readily arrange the netting 28 into a substantially open, generally round shape at the bottom of the netting 28. Such a configuration may help a user to better locate the ball during play. The transverse stringing element 50 allows a user to readily arrange the pocket in other desired configurations, as well.
Any of the above-described embodiments may be used alone or in combination with one another. Furthermore, the lacrosse head may include additional features not described herein. 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. The invention, therefore, should not be limited, except by the following claims and their equivalents.
