Patent Application
20200367486
Not applicable to this application.
Not applicable to this application.
Example embodiments in general relate to a moving decoy support system that is easier to set up and use, and creates life-like decoy motion.
Any discussion of the related art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such related art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.
Waterfowl and other large-bird decoys have been in use for many years to help hunters attract birds such as turkeys, geese and ducks to a favorable hunting location. Decoys are available in a number of types, with varying degrees of realism and motion. Further, some decoys are made to float on water, while others are made for placement on land. Regarding those designed for use on land, for example, some may have openings that allow for mounting on stakes that allow the wind to move the decoys.
Past designs for decoys may have mechanisms that only allow for limited motion, such as rotation without any wobble, which simulates feeding behavior. Other designs allow for rotation over 360°, which in some circumstances results in unrealistic action. In addition, some decoys have enough friction between the stakes and the decoy body so that there is little or no motion in very light wind. Further, the openings of the decoys, into which the stakes are inserted, may be small and thus cause difficulty when a hunter attempts to place the decoy on the stake in the dark.
An example embodiment is directed to a moving decoy support system. The moving decoy support system includes a motion cone for the decoy, and the motion cone has a first end, a second end, and a cavity extending into the first end toward the second end, the cavity comprising an opening proximate the first end and an upper surface proximate the second end. The motion cone is mountable in the bottom of the decoy body, such as in an opening in the bottom. The motion cone may also have a cylindrical portion proximate the second end and a funnel-shaped portion proximate the first end, wherein a cross sectional area of the cavity decreases along the funnel-shaped portion in relation to a distance from the opening toward the cylindrical portion. The upper surface of the motion cone may be shaped and positioned within the decoy to movably support the decoy on a stake end, and the decoy is rotatable relative to the stake end.
The motion cone may further comprise tabs for mounting the motion cone on a bottom of the decoy, and may further be used to mount the cone so that the opening of the cone is flush or substantially flush with the bottom of the decoy. In another example embodiment, the upper surface of the motion cone may comprise a concave portion, or may be entirely concave. Some embodiments of the motion cone may further comprise a flange or a plurality of flanges extending into the cavity that engage the stake end (e.g., ribs on the stake end) to limit rotation of the decoy.
Some embodiments of the moving decoy system further comprise a plurality of flanges in the motion cone that extend into the cavity that engage with one or more ribs on the stake end to limit rotation of the decoy.
In another example embodiment of the moving decoy system, the stake end comprises a ring-shaped upper surface that contacts the upper surface of the motion cone, which reduces the friction between the stake end and the upper surface of the motion cone, allowing for motion even in very slight breezes.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, some of the embodiments of the moving decoy support system in order that the detailed description thereof may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional embodiments of the moving decoy support system that will be described hereinafter and that will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the moving decoy support system in detail, it is to be understood that the moving decoy support system is not limited in its application to the details of construction or to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The moving decoy support system is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of the description and should not be regarded as limiting.
Example embodiments will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below and the accompanying drawings, wherein like elements are represented by like reference characters, which are given by way of illustration only and thus are not limitative of the example embodiments herein.
An example moving decoy support system generally comprises a moving decoy 10, such as a full-body decoy having a decoy body 12. The moving decoy support system includes a motion cone 30 for the decoy, and the motion cone 30 has a first end 31, a second end 33, and a cavity 35 extending into the first end 31 toward the second end 33, the cavity 35 comprising an opening 39 near or at the first end 31 and an upper surface 38 at or near the second end 33. The motion cone 30 is mountable in the bottom 14 of the decoy body 12, such as in an opening in the bottom 14. The motion cone 30 may also have a cylindrical portion 32 proximate the second end and a funnel-shaped portion 34 proximate the first end, wherein a cross sectional area of the cavity 35 decreases along the funnel-shaped portion in relation to a distance from the opening 39 toward the cylindrical portion 32. The upper surface 38 of the motion cone 30 may be shaped and positioned within the decoy 10 to movably support the decoy on a stake end 22, and the decoy 10 is rotatable relative to the stake end 22.
The motion cone 30 may further comprise tabs 36 for mounting the motion cone 30 on a bottom 14 of the decoy 10, and may further be used to mount the cone 30 so that the opening 39 of the cone 30 is flush or substantially flush with the bottom 14 of the decoy 10. In another example embodiment, the upper surface 38 of the motion cone 30 may comprise a concave portion, or may be entirely concave. Some embodiments of the motion cone 30 may further comprise a flange 37 or a plurality of flanges 37 extending into the cavity 35 that engage the stake end 22 (e.g., ribs 26 on the stake end 22) to limit rotation of the decoy 10.
In another example embodiment of the moving decoy system, the stake end 22 comprises a ring-shaped upper surface 24 that contacts the upper surface 38 of the motion cone 30. Due to the concave upper surface 38 and the ring-shaped surface 24, there is reduced friction between the stake end 22 and the upper surface 38 of the motion cone 30, allowing for motion even in very slight breezes.
In the decoy system, stakes 20 are placed in the ground wherever a decoy is desired. The stakes 20 include stake ends 22, which may be molded on, or formed, as part of each stake 20, or the stake ends 22 may be made to be inserted on the stakes, which, without stake ends 22, may be in the form of rods, such as fiberglass rods. The stake ends 22 may have a number or ribs 26, or even a single rib 26, extending radially from the stake end near the top end. In an example embodiment, a stake end 22 may have three ribs 26 spaced 120° apart around the top of the stake end 22.
As mentioned above, the decoy 10 may have a motion cone 30 mounted in its bottom, and in some embodiments the cone 30 may be substantially flush with the bottom 14 of the decoy. The motion cones 30 can include a funnel-shaped portion 34 at the open end 39, so that the opening is larger than the cylindrical portion 32 of the cone 30. The funnel shape and larger opening size makes it easier to set each decoy 10 on a stake 20, and the flush mount helps too, so that decoys 10 may be more easily placed on the stakes at night, for example. However, the cylindrical upper portion of the cone's interior helps control the motion of the decoy on the supporting stake 20. Specifically, the ribs 26 on the stake ends may fit fairly tightly within the cylindrical portion of the motion cone 30, which still allows for realistic motion of the decoy but prevents problems that could result from a fit between the stake end 22 and the motion cone 30 that is too loose.
As best shown in
As also shown, the motion cone 30 may include tabs 36 for attaching the cone to an opening in the bottom 14 of a decoy body 12 using screws 40. The motion cone 30 may be sized to fit closely in an opening in the bottom 14 of the decoy 10, so that it may be secured in the decoy body 12 with the cone opening 39 being substantially flush with the bottom 14 of the decoy 10.
The motion cone 30 is mountable in the bottom 14 of the decoy body 12, such as in an opening in the bottom 14. The motion cone 30 may have a cylindrical portion 32 at the top, inside the decoy, and may also have a funnel-shaped portion 34 at the first end 31 of the cone 30. The cross sectional area of the cavity 35 decreases along the funnel-shaped portion in relation to the distance from the opening 39 toward the cylindrical portion 32 of the cone 30. In other words, due to the funnel shape of the bottom of the cone, the cone has a larger opening 39, which tapers to the cylindrical portion 32 at the opposite end of the cone. The motion cone 30 may be shaped so that the inner surface is substantially smooth and continuous from the opening 39 of the cone 30 at the first end 31, to the upper support surface 38 at the second end 33. This shape allows for the decoy 10 to be guided onto the stake end 22 as the decoy is dropped onto the stake 20, even though in its final position, the stake end 22, including ribs 26, fits closely within the cavity 35 of the cone.
The upper surface 38 of the motion cone 30 is positioned so that the decoy is well balanced on the supporting stake 20. The upper surface 38 supports the decoy above its center of gravity, so that the decoy may readily rock or wobble on the stake end 22, as well as rotate. As shown in
As mentioned briefly above, all or part of the upper surface 38 may be concave. This shape results in reduced friction between the upper surface 38 and the stake end's upper surface 24. This reduced friction in turn allows the decoy to move very easily, both rotationally and by tilting, in the presence of even a slight breeze. The concave shape may also help keep the decoy 10 balanced and centered on stake end 22.
As best shown in
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In use, a number of decoys 10 may be placed in a desirable hunting location in a decoy spread to simulate a natural gathering of waterfowl or other game birds, as shown in
Typically, a hunter may set up a decoy spread by first placing multiple stakes 20 in the ground in a pattern, for placement of multiple decoys 10 in the area. Further, the stakes may be placed some time ahead of when the decoys will be used, or may be left in place for some time. Accordingly, a hunter may need to place decoys on stakes 20 at night, or in low-light conditions. As shown in
The opening of the motion cone 30 is considerably larger than the cylindrical interior portion 32 of the cone 30, which must be smaller in diameter to create a relatively close fit of the ribs 26 on stake end 22, which prevents the decoy from becoming incorrectly positioned on the stake 20. The funnel shape of the cone 30 at the first end 31 serves to guide the decoy onto the stake 20 as the decoy is dropped onto the stake 20, and the stake end 22 is guided onto the smaller diameter cylindrical portion 32 of the motion cone as it is lowered to its final position, due to the relatively smooth, continuous inner surface of the motion cone 30, which may be seen in
As discussed briefly above, the rounded tips of ribs 26 also facilitate easy placement of a decoy 10 on a stake 20, as does the fact that the motion cone 30 is mounted to be flush with the bottom 14 of the decoy 10. Due to this flush mount, there is no lip or edge of the motion cone 30 extending below the bottom 14 for the stake end 22 to catch on. The flush mount can be seen in
As shown the figures, and especially
The flanges 37 on the interior of the motion cone 30, in cooperation with the ribs 26 on stake end 22, limit the amount of rotation of decoy 10 when the wind blows. This is desirable because a hunter may wish to orient the decoys in a certain direction, within limits, while still allowing for some rotation and motion. For example, a hunter may wish to place decoys so that some or most of them are facing in the general direction of the wind, or at least place them in a desired orientation according to wind or other conditions.
As best shown in
Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Although methods and materials similar to or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of the moving decoy support system, suitable methods and materials are described above. All publications, patent applications, patents, and other references mentioned herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety to the extent allowed by applicable law and regulations. The moving decoy support system may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof, and it is therefore desired that the present embodiment be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Any headings utilized within the description are for convenience only and have no legal or limiting effect.
