Patent Application
20060019777
The present invention relates generally to lacrosse sticks.
In the game of lacrosse, players use sticks to receive and shoot a ball. Lacrosse sticks generally include an elongated shaft and a head frame. The player grips a handle located toward the butt end of the shaft, and utilizes the head frame, which includes mesh, to receive and shoot the ball during play.
Decades ago, some lacrosse sticks were manufactured as one-piece, integral wooden structures. Such sticks were not only difficult and costly to fabricate, but owing to their unitary mechanical properties, also limited the maneuvers that a player could execute. For example, the stiff wood, while necessary for shaft strength, was poorly suited to the head frame; the lack of flexibility would, for example, limit the player's ability to scoop up the ball from the ground or make it more difficult for a player to receive a hard pass without feeling excessive vibrations.
As a result, it has become commonplace to fabricate lacrosse sticks using a shaft element formed of straight grained wood, or wood laminate, or a tough, lightweight metallic or reinforced plastic tubular element and to affix to the forward end of the shaft a flexible head frame (composed, for example, of a tough synthetic thermoplastic material such as high impact-strength nylon). Indeed, most lacrosse sticks today are sold as separate head and shaft portions.
A typical head frame for a lacrosse stick includes a socket to receive the forward end of the shaft. The shaft is then coupled to the head frame by a fastener, such as a screw. One problem with such a construction is that the connection between the head frame and shaft may loosen during play, compromising the player's ability to effectively control his stick. Worse, in some instances the head frame may detach entirely from the shaft.
Some lacrosse sticks exist that reinforce the connection between the head frame and the shaft to prevent disengagement of the head frame from the shaft. Unfortunately, regardless of reinforcement or attachment techniques, the head frame may still loosen or become detached over time. What is needed, then, is a lacrosse stick that integrates a head frame and a shaft into a unitary construction that does not become loosened or disengaged, but still retains flexibility in the head frame and rigidity in the shaft.
The invention provides a novel lacrosse stick having a rigid shaft with a terminal end, which may be forked or otherwise flared in certain embodiments. A flared end provides a larger area of contact with the molded flexible head frame than was possible with prior art devices. In fact, in one embodiment, the contact area may increase dramatically by overmolding the head frame directly onto the flared end of the shaft, thereby creating a unitary structure. Because of its structure, the lacrosse stick of the present invention is more durable than prior art devices, while still retaining the desirable rigidity in the shaft and flexibility in the head frame.
In one aspect, the invention relates to a lacrosse stick having a rigid terminal end, and a flexible head frame adapted to receive a mesh thereon, a portion of the head frame being overmolded onto the terminal end. The terminal end may be forked or otherwise flared. A forked end typically includes at least two tines, the head frame at least partially surrounding the tines so as to resist disengagement. A forked end may include at least one shoulder portion, the head frame at least partially surrounding the shoulder portion. Each tine may include a base, the head frame at least partially surrounding each base. Other embodiments of the stick further include a shaft, either forming a unitary structure with the forked end, or the mechanically engaging the forked end. Even in embodiments including a mechanical joinder, the problems of the prior art are avoided by, for example, ensuring that the throat of the fork is as rigid as the shaft it engages.
In another aspect, the invention relates to a lacrosse stick having a rigid forked end, and a head frame adapted to receive a mesh thereon, at least a portion of the forked end engaging at least a portion of the head frame. In certain embodiments, the head frame is mechanically joined to the forked end or overmolded onto the forked end to form a unitary structure. The head frame further includes a flexible distal end and a proximal end, wherein at least a portion of the forked end engages at least a portion of the proximal end of the head frame. The head frame may be symmetrical on opposite sides of an axis extending from the distal end to the proximal end, and forked end generally includes at least two tines diverging from the axis and positioned on opposite sides thereof. Other embodiments also include a shaft, such that the shaft the forked end are mechanically joined, and may include a sheath surrounding the joint of the shaft and the forked end. Such a sheath may be integral with the head frame. In another embodiment, the shaft and the forked end form a unitary structure.
In yet another aspect, the invention relates to a method of making a lacrosse stick, the method including the steps of providing a rigid element having a forked end, and overmolding a flexible head onto the forked end. The method may further include overmolding the connection of the rigid element and a second rigid element. The method may be utilized to overmold the flexible head onto tines and/or shoulder portions of the forked end. The base of the tines may also be overmolded.
In the drawings, like reference characters generally refer to the same parts throughout the different views. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead generally being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention. In the following description, various embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to the following drawings, in which:
Referring first to
Coupled to the butt end of the shaft 12 is a handle (not shown) which a player grips during use of the lacrosse stick 10. A variety of handles can be used in accordance with the invention. For instance, in one embodiment, the handle is a hollow rubber knob that slides onto and caps the butt end of the lacrosse stick 10. In another embodiment, the handle is an injection-molded plastic grip that slides onto the lacrosse stick 10 and has grooves designed to accommodate a player's fingers. Similarly, another handle may be located proximate the forked end 16 of the stick 10. Exact placement of the handle or handles may be determined by particular user needs or preferences, and the handle is not limited to those described; rather, it can be any handle that is typically used in a lacrosse stick or a hockey stick.
The forked end 16 includes at least two tines 22a, 22b that diverge from the terminal end of the shaft 12, forming a generally U-shaped or V-shaped opening 24. The tines 22a, 22b extend a predetermined distance from the shaft 12 and terminate at flat, pointed, round, or blunt ends 26a, 26b. The lengths of the tines 22a, 22b may vary, but generally should extend a sufficient distance to provide an adequate area of contact with the head frame 18, but not so far as to adversely effect the flexibility of the head frame 18. The thicknesses of the tines 22a, 22b may also vary with the distance from the base 28 of the tines 22a, 22b, or the tines 22a, 22b may have a uniform thickness along their entire lengths. The forked end 16 also may include one or more raised shoulders 30 at or near the base of the U-shaped opening 24. The shoulders 30 follow the contour of the frame 18 and aid in retaining an overmolded head frame, as described below.
As shown in
The upper rim 42 of the head frame 18 defines a mouth 50 in which a lacrosse ball is received into and shot from the lacrosse stick 10. The mouth 50 is generally divisible into two functional portions. The first is a throat portion 52 adjacent the juncture of the wall member 32 with the forked end 16. The mesh suspended from the throat 52 of the head frame 18 defines a pocket 54, where the lacrosse ball resides during the player's retention of the ball in the lacrosse stick 10. The throat portion 52 of the head frame 18 terminates in an arcuate contour 56, the radius of curvature of the contour 56 being selected to define an accommodating surface against which the lacrosse ball rests while retained in the pocket 54. Typically, the contour 56 is lined with a soft, resilient padding which assists a player in maintaining the ball in the throat portion 52.
The mouth 50 also includes a receiving and shooting portion 58 defined by the portion of the mesh distal to the throat portion 52 and extending to the nose element 38 of the head frame 18. The receiving and shooting portion 58 where the lacrosse ball is initially received and entrapped by the player and from which the ball is ultimately passed or shot.
The nose element 38 of the head frame 18 has a generally flexible wall portion 42; for example, the wall portion 42 may be thinner than other portions of the wall member 32. The wall portion 60 is angled such that the upper rim 42 of the head frame 18 protrudes distally of the lower rim 44. The angle α (see
The lacrosse stick of the present invention utilizes a large contact area between the forked end 16 and the head frame 18 to increase the connection strength between those two elements. In one embodiment, the two contacting elements, the forked end 10 and the head frame 18, are manufactured separately. Once manufactured, the proximal end 40 of the head frame 18 is inserted into the U-shaped opening 24 of the forked end 16. The sizes of the two elements, coupled with the complementary curvatures of the proximal end 58 and U-shaped opening 24, provide for contact along at least a portion of the length of the tine 22a, around the curvature of the U-shaped opening 24, and along at least a portion of the length of the second tine 22b. Naturally, if a V-shaped opening 24 is utilized, contact with the proximal end 40 of the head frame 18 may be limited, but sufficient contact area will still be present along the lengths of the tines 22a, 22b to prevent disengagement of the two elements 16, 18. To secure to the forked end 16 to the head frame 18, any suitable mechanical connectors such as screws, bolts, and the like may be utilized, but such connectors should be countersunk within the head frame to avoid interference with the lacrosse ball during play. Increasing the number of such mechanical connectors will increase the strength of the overall device, as will utilizing an epoxy or other similar means of adhesion. Alternatively, an epoxy of sufficient holding strength may be utilized alone, in lieu of mechanical connectors.
Another embodiment of the lacrosse stick utilizes a head frame 18 overmolded onto the forked end 16 as depicted in
Alternatives to the forked end 16 are also possible. For example, as shown in
Although the embodiment depicted in
The head frame 18 may be made, for example, from a flexible plastic such as polyethylene or copolymers of polypropylene, or a durable synthetic thermoplastic material such as high impact-strength nylon. Materials such as ZYLON or ZYLON-based materials also display sufficient properties. Regardless of which material is used, generally, the head frame 18 material should be more flexible than the shaft 12, to allow the user to properly control the lacrosse stick 10 during play.
As indicated above, the particular configuration of the terminal end of the shaft allows for a greater area of contact between the head frame and the shaft, providing a more secure connection than that available in prior art lacrosse sticks. One embodiment of the invention utilizes overmolding to ensure adequate connection strength between those two components. The overmolding process generally includes placing a first finished component (here, a rigid shaft) into a second mold (here, a head frame mold). By molding the flexible plastic material over the terminal end of the more rigid shaft, a single unitary device made of two different materials is produced. This overmolding process mechanically traps the rigid end of the shaft within the flexible head frame once the head frame material cools and cures. This creates a strong structural bond, free of traditional mechanical fasteners such as screws, bolts, or adhesives, that securely joins the two components together. This process allows the head frame to effectively trap any shaft, regardless of terminal end configuration. The geometry of the two components, coupled with the overmolding, produces a final device that is difficult to separate into component parts. Also, because the two components are may be made of different materials, a unitary device having different properties is produced.
While there have been described herein what are to be considered exemplary embodiments of the present invention, other modifications of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the teachings herein. The particular methods of manufacture and geometries disclosed herein are exemplary in nature and are not to be considered limiting. It is therefore desired to be secured in the appended claims all such modifications as fall within the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, what is desired to be secured by Letters Patent is the invention as defined and differentiated in the following claims.
