Basketball goals are frequently used in areas outside of professional basketball arenas. These basketball goals are typically mounted to a pole or wall, and may include a mechanism to adjust the height of the goal. One such mechanism may be an actuator defining an opening through which a pin may be inserted, thereby coupling a handle to the actuator. The handle may be manipulated to raise or lower the goal to a desired height. Thereafter, the pin may be removed, thereby decoupling the handle from the actuator and fixing the goal at the desired height.
Although the handle may be decoupled from the actuator, it has been found that the height of the goal may still be impermissibly adjusted via a screwdriver, rod, or other like device being inserted into the opening of the actuator and rotated in the desired direction by an individual. In cases in which the basketball goal is impermissibly lowered by the individual, the goal may be more susceptible to vandalism by the individual or others.
What is needed, therefore, is a locking mechanism configured to prevent an individual from impermissibly adjusting the height of a basketball goal.
Embodiments of the disclosure may provide a locking apparatus for an adjustable basketball goal. The locking apparatus may include a center plate, a sleeve, a first side plate, and a second side plate. The center plate may define a center plate opening. The sleeve may extend from the center plate and define a bore extending therethrough. The bore may terminate at the center plate opening, and the sleeve may further define a pair of apertures disposed opposite one another. The first side plate may extend from a first end portion of the center plate. The second side plate may extend from a second end portion of the center plate.
Embodiments of the disclosure may further provide an actuator assembly for an adjustable basketball goal. The actuator assembly may include an actuator, a crankshaft, a locking apparatus, and a lock. The actuator may include a rotatable rod having a head portion defining an opening extending therethrough. The actuator may be configured to adjust a height of the adjustable basketball goal based on a rotation of the rotatable rod. The crankshaft may be detachably attachable to the rotatable rod and configured to rotate the rotatable rod. The locking apparatus may include a center plate, a sleeve, a first side plate, and a second side plate. The first side plate and the second side plate may each extend from the center plate. The sleeve may extend from the center plate and define a bore extending therethrough. The bore may be configured to receive the head portion of the rotatable rod when the crankshaft is detached from the rotatable rod. The sleeve may further define a pair of apertures. The lock may include a shackle and a locking body. The shackle in a locked position with the locking body may be configured to extend through the pair of apertures and the opening defined by the head portion. In the locked position, the first side plate and the second side plate may be configured to prevent rotation of the rotatable rod and adjustment of the height of the adjustable basketball goal.
Embodiments of the disclosure may further provide an adjustable basketball goal. The adjustable basketball goal may include a backboard, a rim assembly, a plurality of support arms, a post, and an actuator assembly. The rim assembly may be configured to couple to the backboard. The plurality of support arms may be configured to couple to the backboard. The post may be configured to couple to the plurality of support arms. The actuator assembly may be configured to couple to the post and the plurality of support arms. The actuator assembly may include an actuator, a locking apparatus, and a lock. The actuator may include a rotatable rod having a head portion defining an opening extending therethrough. The actuator may be configured to adjust a height of the adjustable basketball goal based on a rotation of the rotatable rod via a crankshaft. The locking apparatus may include a center plate, a plurality of side plates, and a sleeve. The plurality of side plates may extend from the center plate. The sleeve may define a bore extending therethrough and a pair of apertures. The lock may have a locking body and a shackle. The shackle in a locked position may be configured to extend through the pair of apertures and the opening extending through the head portion. In the locked position, the plurality of side plates may be configured to prevent the rotatable rod from rotating and adjusting the height of the adjustable basketball goal.
The present disclosure is best understood from the following detailed description when read with the accompanying Figures. It is emphasized that, in accordance with the standard practice in the industry, various features are not drawn to scale. In fact, the dimensions of the various features may be arbitrarily increased or reduced for clarity of discussion.
It is to be understood that the following disclosure describes several exemplary embodiments for implementing different features, structures, or functions of the invention. Exemplary embodiments of components, arrangements, and configurations are described below to simplify the present disclosure; however, these exemplary embodiments are provided merely as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Additionally, the present disclosure may repeat reference numerals and/or letters in the various exemplary embodiments and across the Figures provided herein. This repetition is for the purpose of simplicity and clarity and does not in itself dictate a relationship between the various exemplary embodiments and/or configurations discussed in the various Figures. Moreover, the formation of a first feature over or on a second feature in the description that follows may include embodiments in which the first and second features are formed in direct contact, and may also include embodiments in which additional features may be formed interposing the first and second features, such that the first and second features may not be in direct contact. Finally, the exemplary embodiments presented below may be combined in any combination of ways, i.e., any element from one exemplary embodiment may be used in any other exemplary embodiment, without departing from the scope of the disclosure.
Additionally, certain terms are used throughout the following description and claims to refer to particular components. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, various entities may refer to the same component by different names, and as such, the naming convention for the elements described herein is not intended to limit the scope of the invention, unless otherwise specifically defined herein. Further, the naming convention used herein is not intended to distinguish between components that differ in name but not function. Additionally, in the following discussion and in the claims, the terms “including” and “comprising” are used in an open-ended fashion, and thus should be interpreted to mean “including, but not limited to.” All numerical values in this disclosure may be exact or approximate values unless otherwise specifically stated. Accordingly, various embodiments of the disclosure may deviate from the numbers, values, and ranges disclosed herein without departing from the intended scope. Furthermore, as it is used in the claims or specification, the term “or” is intended to encompass both exclusive and inclusive cases, i.e., “A or B” is intended to be synonymous with “at least one of A and B,” unless otherwise expressly specified herein.
As the backboard 104 and the rim 106 may be more susceptible to “dunking” or “slamming” of the basketball (not shown) through the rim 106 at a lowered position (
A rim assembly 112 including the rim 106 and a mounting plate 114 may be coupled to the backboard 104. In particular, in one or more embodiments, the mounting plate 114 may be coupled to the backboard support frame 110 using bolts, adhesives, welds, or other similar means. In other embodiments, the mounting plate 114 may also be coupled to the panel using bolts or adhesives. In some embodiments, a cloth or chain net 115 may be attached to the rim 106.
The rim assembly 112 may be a fixed type rim assembly with the mounting plate 114 and the rim 106 rigidly coupled together. In other embodiments, the rim assembly 112 may be a collapsible style rim assembly. A collapsible style rim assembly may allow the rim 106 to flex independently of the mounting plate 114, allowing the rim assembly 112 to absorb some of the force when the rim 106 is pulled during or after “dunking” or “slamming” the basketball therethrough.
The adjustable basketball goal 100 may further include a post 116, a plurality of support arms 118, 120 coupling the post 116 to the backboard 104, an actuator mounting bracket 122, and an actuator assembly 124. The post 116 may be anchored to the ground 108 and extend substantially vertically therefrom. In one or more embodiments, the post 116 may be anchored to the ground 108 via concrete and a plurality of fasteners such as screws or bolts (not shown). In at least one embodiment, the post 116 may be rectangular in cross section; however, in other embodiments, the post 116 may be square, circular, or oval in cross section. The post 116 may be at least partially covered in padding (not shown) constructed from foam or other like material.
The backboard 104 may be coupled to the post 116 via the plurality of support arms 118, 120. The plurality of support arms 118, 120 may include a pair of upper support arms (one shown 118) pivotably attached to the post 116 and a pair of lower support arms (one shown 120) pivotably attached to the post 116 and vertically spaced from the pair of upper support arms 118. Each of the upper support arms 118 and the lower support arms 120 may be pivotably attached to the post 116 using one or more bolts or pins 126. In one or more embodiments, each of the pair of upper support arms 118 and the pair of lower support arms 120 may include one or more cross members (not shown) extending therebetween to provide structural support thereto.
Respective end portions (one shown 128) of the pair of lower support arms 120 may be coupled to the actuator assembly 124, as shown in
Referring now to
The actuator 132 of the actuator assembly 124 may include a housing 300 having a longitudinal axis 302, a plurality of springs (not shown) disposed within the housing 300, the shaft 130 (
As shown in
For example, the rotation of the rotatable rod 304 in the clockwise direction may result in the length of the shaft 130 extending from the housing 300 increasing. Conversely, the rotation of the rotatable rod 304 in the counter-clockwise direction may result in the length of the shaft 130 extending from the housing 300 decreasing. Accordingly, as the shaft 130 is extended further from the housing 300, the backboard 104 and rim 106 are lowered correspondingly, thereby decreasing the height 102 of the rim 106 above the ground 108. Conversely, as the shaft 130 is retracted further into the housing 300, the backboard 104 and rim 106 are raised correspondingly, thereby increasing the height 102 of the rim 106 above the ground 108.
The rotatable rod 304 may be rotated via the opening 308 defined therethrough. Accordingly, in one or more embodiments, the actuator assembly 124 may further include a crankshaft (see
To prevent foreign objects (e.g., screwdrivers) from being inserted into the opening 308 defined by the rotatable rod 304, rotating the rotatable rod 304, and impermissibly adjusting the height 102 of the adjustable basketball goal 100, the actuating assembly 124 may further include a locking apparatus 318 installable on the actuator 132 to prevent the rotation of the rotatable rod 304 and thus the adjustment of the height 102 of the adjustable basketball goal 100.
The locking apparatus 318 may be installed over the head portion 306 of the rotatable rod 304 after the crankshaft 138 has been removed. The locking apparatus 318 may be further secured in place via a lock 320, as illustrated in
Turning now to
The locking apparatus 318 may further include a plurality of side plates 330, 332 extending from opposing end portions of the center plate 326. As illustrated in
The locking apparatus 318 may further include a sleeve 334 extending from the center plate 326 and defining a bore 336 extending therethrough and terminating at the opening 328 of the center plate 326. As installed on the actuator 132, the rotatable rod 304 may extend through the opening 328 defined by the center plate 326 and into the bore 336 of the sleeve 334. The sleeve 334 may further define a plurality of apertures 338 configured to align with the respective ends of the opening 308 extending through the rotatable rod 304. The lock 320 (
The description herein uses terms such as ‘lower’, ‘upper’, etc., that are relative in nature. Those skilled in the art and having the benefit of this disclosure will appreciate that these terms are used relative to the orientation of the adjustable basketball goal 100 and components thereof with respect to the ground 108, as in, for example,
The foregoing has outlined features of several embodiments so that those skilled in the art may better understand the present, disclosure. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they may readily use the present disclosure as a basis for designing or modifying other processes and structures for carrying out the same purposes and/or achieving the same advantages of the embodiments introduced herein. Those skilled in the art should also realize that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure, and that they may make various changes, substitutions and alterations herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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1683649 | Belote | Sep 1928 | A |
3843173 | Harrell | Oct 1974 | A |
4732024 | Nagy | Mar 1988 | A |
5215112 | Davison | Jun 1993 | A |
6302811 | Topham | Oct 2001 | B1 |
8087268 | Pruitt | Jan 2012 | B1 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20190076712 A1 | Mar 2019 | US |