Claims
- 1. A bowling lane surface eliminating discontinuities between separate synthetic plastic lane surface sheets comprising:
- (a) a unitary synthetic plastic sheet having a width substantially equal to the full playing width of a bowling lane and a length substantially equal to the full playing length of the lane,
- (b) such synthetic plastic sheet having a thickness of at least three-sixteenths of an inch, and an upper surface suitable for passage thereover of bowling balls
- (c) overlap-type structural interengagement means disposed along both sides of the bowling lane contiguous with the lateral edges of the synthetic plastic sheet and interengaging with the edges of said synthetic sheet,
- (d) said interengagement means being resiliently biased against the lateral sheet edges of said synthetic plastic sheet to allow for expansion and contraction of said sheet and having essentially the same thickness as said sheet, and
- (e) the ends of said sheet being adapted for longitudinal movement along the lane proportional to expansion and contraction of the sheet longitudinally along the lane due to temperature changes of the sheet,
- (f) said synthetic plastic sheet having a lower surface which will freely slide longitudinally over any underlying contacting structures without constriction.
- 2. A bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 1 additionally comprising:
- (f) a vacuum application system adjacent the lower side of said sheet acting to bias the lower surface of said sheet against a lower support surface thereunder while allowing longitudinal sliding movement of the synthetic plastic sheet over underlying bowling lane support structure.
- 3. A bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 2 additionally comprising:
- (g) a series of protrusions extending upwardly from the lower support surface to establish a series of adjacent points against which a lower surface of said sheet may be stabilized and supported when biased against said protrusions by the effects of the vacuum.
- 4. A bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 1 wherein the synthetic plastic sheet is provided with interspersed low points and high points on one side thereof constituting an oiless bowling lane surface at least on the upper side of the sheet, the high points and low points being interspersed, with the high points being spaced sufficiently closely so that a bowling ball passing across the said surface will contact only the apexes of the high points without any substantial up-and-down movement.
- 5. A bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 4 wherein the synthetic plastic sheet is provided on both sides with the interspersed low points and high points.
- 6. A bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 4 wherein the interspersed low points and high points are regularly arranged with respect to each other.
- 7. A bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 4 wherein the low points and high points on the synthetic plastic sheet are substantially randomly arranged with respect to each other.
- 8. A method of providing a lane surface on a bowling lane wherein the lane surfaces is provided on a synthetic plastic sheet having a substantial thickness comprising:
- (a) prefabricating a synthetic plastic sheet having a width substantially equal to the playing width of a bowling lane and a length at least equal to the playing length of the lane and a thickness greater than three-sixteenths of an inch,
- (b) reeling said sheet onto a reel having a diameter related to the thickness of the sheet such that reeling said plastic sheet upon the reel does not provide a substantially permanent curvature to the plastic sheet subsequent to removal from the reel,
- (c) transporting the plastic sheet upon the reel to a bowling lane site,
- (d) unreeling the plastic sheet from the reel to the lane,
- (e) mechanically engaging the sheet along its sides with a resilient interengagement means contacting the sides and upper surfaces of the sheet to hold down the sheet upon the lane while allowing transverse movement due to expansion and contraction, and
- (f) allowing the opposite longitudinal ends of the sheet unrestricted sliding movement with respect to longitudinal expansion and contraction of the sheet.
- 9. A method of providing a bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 8 wherein the synthetic plastic sheet is cut or sheared to the length of the lane upon which it is to be mounted prior to reeling.
- 10. A method of providing a bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 9 wherein the synthetic plastic sheet is initially prefabricated with an embossed surface having interspersed high points and low points.
- 11. A method of providing a bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 8 wherein the sheet after unreeling onto the lane surface is maintained in a flat condition by a relative vacuum applied to the underside of the sheet.
- 12. A method of providing a bowling lane surface in accordance with claim 10 wherein the sheet is prefabricated with a pattern of interspersed high points and low points on at least one side designed to provide an oiless bowling lane surface on such side by embossing and the sheet is unreeled with the pre-embossed side upwardly.
- 13. A method of providing a bowling lane surface in accordance with 12 wherein the sheet is prefabricated by embossing upon both sides and after an initially upwardly oriented side becomes worn, the sheet is reversed with respect to the upper and lower surfaces on the lane to bring the unworn side to the top.
- 14. An apparatus for holding a bowling lane surface material upon a bowling lane comprising:
- (a) a laterally and longitudinally extended base applied to a bowling lane structure, said extended base incorporating a series of spaced flat top protuberances extending upwardly from said extended base,
- (b) a sealing material disposed upon the top of the base parallel to the edges thereof adapted to seal at least along the edges of the lower portion of a sheet carrying upon its upper surface a bowling lane surface when said sheet is supported upon the flat top protuberances.
- (c) means for generating a reduced air pressure connected via orifice means to the space between the laterally and longitudinally extended base material and the sheet carrying a bowling lane surface, said means for generating a reduced air pressure being capable of drawing sufficient vacuum to retain a sheet having a bowling surface securely against the flat top protuberances.
- 15. An apparatus in accordance with claim 14 additionally comprising:
- (d) interengagement means disposed adjacent the outer edges of the base adapted to resiliently interengage with the edges of a sheet carrying upon its surface a bowling lane surface.
- 16. An apparatus in accordance with claim 15 wherein the interengagement means comprises a side strip having a tongue on the side adapted to fit in a groove in a side of the sheet carrying the bowling lane surface.
- 17. An apparatus in accordance with claim 16 wherein the interengagement means is arranged and adapted to interengage with a sheet carrying a bowling lane surface which has a length substantially coextensive with the length of the playing surface of the bowling lane.
- 18. An apparatus in accordance with claim 17 wherein the sealing material between the base sheet having upwardly extending protuberances and a sheet carrying upon its surface a bowling lane surface comprises at least one O-ring.
- 19. An apparatus in accordance with claim 18 wherein the sealing means comprises a series of O-rings each defining a vacuum space between the base and a sheet carrying a bowling lane surface and having a connection to a vacuum source.
RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 07/815,387, filed Dec. 31, 1991, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,316,521; from which priority is claimed.
US Referenced Citations (15)
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry |
"Bowling", First All Synthetic Lane Surface Approved by ABC for Sanctioned Play, Jan. 1977, p. 6. |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
815387 |
Dec 1991 |
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