Patent Application
20250153018
The present disclosure relates to a piece of equipment that is attached to a stick allowing one arm to have more control and agility to use the stick accurately. More particularly, the invention is a way to attach one arm with multiple points of contact to a stick allowing for leverage and control otherwise unavailable by only using your hand.
This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Activities using a stick or other piece of sports equipment that need to manually articulated have been traditionally built for the use of two hand/arms. One hand is placed in the first location, and the other is placed in a location that acts as a fulcrum point for a lever. The stick or other item of sports equipment can then use these multiple points of contact to create more force and/or control.
However, these sticks are created with a disadvantage to anyone trying to only use one arm/hand at a time. The loss of the fulcrum point creates a loss of force and control. The results in the stick not being used up to its fullest potential.
A need exists in the field for a device that allows the use of one hand/arm to use these sticks with the proper force and accuracy.
This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features.
The present disclosure provides a product allowing multiple points of contact with a stick to allow for the proper amount of force and control of the stick to achieve desired results. These points of contact are achieved with a removable handle and forearm attachment. The handle and forearm attachment can be moved and secured to the desired location by the end user, allowing for the most comfort and proper use of force and control.
In some embodiments, the invention will include a handle and a forearm cradle attached to the stick with user preferred comfortable spacing. It can be quickly removed and securely attached. In particular, according to the various embodiments, the attachment can be used on different types of sticks allowing increased force and control without limiting the range of motion or directional use of the stick.
Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. For purposes of the description hereinafter, it is to be understood that the embodiments described below may assume alternative variations and embodiments. It is also to be understood that the specific articles, compositions, and/or processes described herein are exemplary and should not be considered as limiting. In the description, relative terms such as “lower,” “upper,” “horizontal,” “vertical,”, “above,” “below,” “up,” “down,” “top” and “bottom” as well as derivative thereof (e.g., “horizontally,” “downwardly,” “upwardly,” etc.) should be construed to refer to the orientation as then described or as shown in the drawing under discussion. These relative terms are for convenience of description and do not require that the apparatus be constructed or operated in a particular orientation. Terms concerning attachments, coupling and the like, such as “connected” and “interconnected,” refer to a relationship wherein structures are secured or attached to one another either directly or indirectly through intervening structures, as well as both movable or rigid attachments or relationships, unless expressly described otherwise.
Although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms may be only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Terms such as “first,” “second,” and other numerical terms when used herein do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the example embodiments.
In the present disclosure the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include the plural reference, and reference to a particular numerical value includes at least that particular value, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. When values are expressed as approximations, by use of the antecedent “about,” it will be understood that the particular value forms another embodiment. As used herein, “about X” (where X is a numerical value) preferably refers to +10% of the recited value, inclusive. For example, the phrase “about 8” preferably refers to a value of 7.2 to 8.8, inclusive. Where present, all ranges are inclusive and combinable. For example, when a range of “1 to 5” is recited, the recited range should be construed as including ranges “1 to 4”, “1 to 3”, “1-2”, “1-2 & 4-5”, “1-3 & 5”, “2-5”, and the like. In addition, when a list of alternatives is positively provided, such listing can be interpreted to mean that any of the alternatives may be excluded, e.g., by a negative limitation in the claims. For example, when a range of “1 to 5” is recited, the recited range may be construed as including situations whereby any of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 are negatively excluded; thus, a recitation of “1 to 5” may be construed as “1 and 3-5, but not 2”, or simply “wherein 2 is not included.” It is intended that any component, element, attribute, or step that is positively recited herein may be explicitly excluded in the claims, whether such components, elements, attributes, or steps are listed as alternatives or whether they are recited in isolation.
A single arm stick attachment apparatus may have 2 main points of contact. One is a handle and the other is a forearm cradle. Both of these items are movable to accommodate the different sizes needed by end users. It is designed to be a light-weight, strong, and removable device allowing for continued use on several different sticks.
The handle section is designed with an ergonomic angle to feel more natural when being held. It is constructed so that additional gripping tape or material can be added to preference. It is movable and removable to find the desired location. The size of both the handle and stick attachment section will vary based upon the size of the user's hand and the size of the stick.
The cradle is built to help hold the forearm snugly in place without becoming too difficult to remove when needed. It is large enough for the forearm to move in and out, yet snug enough to ensure comfort when using. It is movable when determining the position on the stick and easily fastened when location is determined. The size of the cradle and the stick attachment section will vary based on the size of the user's forearm and the stick.
Referring now to
The channel 104 may be positioned at a direction relative to the grip 102 so that the channel extends in a longitudinal direction at an angle from the grip 102. The channel 106 may be open on one side so that the channel 104 may be fit over the item of sporting equipment. The item of sporting equipment may be a stick, such as a hockey stick, field hockey stick, lacrosse stick, golf club, racquet, or other manually-operated sporting equipment. The walls of the channel 104 may define an opening 106 into which the item of sporting equipment may be placed before securing the channel 104 to the item of sporting equipment. The channel 104 may be sufficiently long so that the channel 104 may exert a suitable force on the item of sporting equipment manipulates the grip 102. In some examples, the channel 104 may be in a range of about 8 inches long to about 18 inches long. In other examples, the channel 104 may have other lengths.
Turning now to
The cradle 202 may have a suitable rounded shape and be elongated and fixed to the channel 204 so that the inner portion of the cradle 202 is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the channel 204. The cross-sectional shape and size of the cradle 202 may be different on various implementations of the cradle section. As can be appreciate, users may have different size forearms so that the cradle may have different sizes to accommodate different users. In other examples, the cradle 202 may be made of flexible material or thin flexible material. The cradle 202 may be wrapped around a user's arm to allow different size users to adjust the fit of the cradle to the forearm of the user. In such examples (not shown), the cradle 202 may include straps, snaps, hook and loop attachments, or other adjustable strips to allow the cradle 202 to wrapped and secured to a user's arm.
Referring now to
The cradle section 200 and the handle section 100 may coupled to the item of sporting equipment using any suitable attachment method. The attachment may be made, for example, using attachment straps with hook and loop fasteners. In other examples, the cradle section 200 and the handle section 100 may be coupled to the item of sporting equipment using sports tape. In still other examples, the cradle section 200 and the handle section 100 may be coupled using fasteners such as screws, nails, rivets, etc. In yet other examples, the cradle section 200 and the handle section 100 may be coupled using adhesive.
The handle section 100 and the cradle section 200 may be made of various suitable materials. In one example, the handle section 100 and the cradle section 200 are made of a suitable plastic material. In other examples, the handle section 100 and the cradle section 200 may be made of a wood, metal, alloy, or composite material.
The handle section 100 and the cradle section 200 are preferably removable from the item of sporting equipment. This may allow the handle section 100 and the cradle section 200 to be easily attached and detached. This allows the attachment to be used on existing items of sporting equipment without special modification to the item of sporting equipment.
The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure. Individual elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure.
