Patent Application
20180049428
This invention relates to a new type of friction call used for turkey hunting. Its construction involves a thin laminate member of man-made or organic material bonded to the working edge or one or both sides of a friction box call . . . .
A box-type game call, typically a turkey call, generally includes a box including elongated sidewalls, opposing end walls connected to the ends of the elongated sidewalls, and a bottom, all made of wood. Box calls can be milled from solid blocks of wood or can be assembled from wood components. An actuator or striker, also made of wood, is pivotally mounted to one to the end walls such that it may be manipulated to rub across the upper edge of one of the side walls to produce a sound. Many variations are known, however, known competitive products use various grades and types of wood to produce proper sound quality. The quality and efficacy of such competitive products are limited to the quality of the wood and are at the mercy of any particular lot of wood stock available in constructing the box and striker.
One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a box call that is capable of a reproducible call. In greater particularity, one object of the invention is to provide a box call whose material composition is less susceptible to variation and thereby more likely to reproduce the desired call with reliable efficiency. Yet another object of the invention is to make a box call that is water resistant such that the sounds can be more readily produced in rainy conditions.
Referring to the drawings which are appended hereto and which form a portion of this disclosure, it may be seen that:
Referring to the
Because wood varies in quality from lot to lot and because wood changes its tonal properties when wet, we have elected to attach a sounding laminate member 22 onto the box call side walls 11 and 13. The laminate member 22 may be formed on either or both sidewalls and may be made from the same or a dissimilar material. By way of example, the box may be initially made from one type wood and the laminate member 22 may be of a different wood which is less susceptible to variation in tone and less affected by moisture. In addition to wood, the materials that may be used as the laminate member 22 include stainless steel, iron, brass, copper, aluminum, magnesium, titanium, solid surface materials such as Corian®, slate, ceramic, polycarbonate, acrylic, all rigid man made polymers, glass, crystal, fiber glass, para-aramid synthetic fiber such as Kevlar®, and carbon fiber materials. When laminated these materials onto the working edge of a wood box call by varying the width and thickness of the laminate member 22, we can control the sound quality. Not only does this provide the desired contact surfaces, but by varying the width and thickness of the laminate member 22, it is possible to control the sound quality.
The laminate member 22 is inlaid into the side walls 11 and 13 such that the laminate member extends slightly above the top of the sidewalls 11, 13 and is therefore contacted by the striker plate 21 to create the yelps and purrs depending on the skill of the user.
In yet another embodiment the box call 10 is made from a man-made material and may not have the inherent sound qualities of a wooden box call. In this embodiment the laminate member 22 does have the desired tonal qualities and the man made material has to be selected to as to enhance the qualities. For example, soft plastic would tend to deaden or mute the vibrations induced in the laminate member, whereas a rigid man made material would not do so, thus certain acrylic or ceramic materials may serve as a box onto which the laminate member 22 may be inlaid. Likewise, the striker plate 21 may be of a similar man-made material with a wood or other material inlay 24 secured thereto such that the chosen materials can be brought into contact to create the yelps and purrs.
While in the foregoing specification this invention has been described in relation to certain embodiments thereof, and many details have been put forth for the purpose of illustration, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is susceptible to additional embodiments and that certain of the details described herein can be varied considerably without departing from the basic principles of the invention.
