Patent Application
20240302124
The present invention generally relates to balls which are thrown and/or caught between users/players. More particularly, the present invention relates to a ball (e.g., baseball) which is launched by a slingshot by the thrower/pitcher and then can still be caught by a receiver/catcher.
The applicant/inventor of the current application has experience with the following other inventions described and shown in the following listed U.S. applications the contents of which are fully incorporated herein by these references: application Ser. No. 13/046,089 filed on Mar. 11, 2011 (generally referred to as the Jetball); application Ser. No. 14/261,563 filed on Apr. 25, 2014 (generally referred to as the Raptor Football); application Ser. No. 14/846,772 filed on Sep. 6, 2015 (generally referred to as the Halo Football); and application Ser. No. 15/080,505 filed on Mar. 24, 2016 (generally referred to as the HLG football). Rather than repeating the information of these applications herein, it is understood that all of the lesson learned and concepts disclosed in these previous applications are now applicable to the present invention. Furthermore, the applicant has kept consistency between the numerals and wording of application Ser. Nos. 13/046,089, 14/261,563 and 15/080,505 with now the current application such that uniformity between these applications are maintained.
The applicant is always looking to develop novel and unique flying products and/or toys that are innovative in design and have outstanding performance. The inventor realized that it could be possible to launch a specially designed football (or baseball) from a slingshot and then be caught by a second person a long distance away. The second person could then launch the football (or baseball) back to the first person if they also had a slingshot.
Accordingly, the applicant realized a need existed for a novel and unique play pattern combining footballs/baseballs and slingshots. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides other related advantages.
An exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a launching and/or catching toy kit having a football and at least one slingshot. The football includes: (a) a generally elongated spheroidal body defined as including a longitudinal axis, where a length of the body along the longitudinal axis between a front end of the body to a back end of the body is longer than an equatorial diameter; (b) a support non-movably attached to the body, where a first end of the support is disposed within the body and a second end of the support extends beyond the back end of the body; (c) a tail attached to the second end of the support; (d) a first and a second elastic band catch oppositely disposed about the longitudinal axis and attached to the body and/or the support. The slingshot is associated with the football. The slingshot is configured to launch the football from a first user to a second user. The slingshot includes: (a) a handle configured to be gripped by the first user; (b) a pair of prongs connected and/or extending from a top of the handle, wherein the pair of prongs form an opening wherein the opening is at least as wide as a maximum width of the football; (c) at least one elastic band connected to each prong of the pair of prongs. Each of the at least one elastic band is releasably captured by its respective first or second elastic band catch/receiver/hook/extension on the football during launching by the first user.
In other embodiments the tail may include a twisted shape configured to induce a spin of the football after launching. The tail may extend outwardly in a vertical plane aligned along the longitudinal axis which is generally perpendicular to a horizontal plane which is aligned along the longitudinal axis but also extends through the first and second elastic band catch. The tail may include a finger grip feature configured to be easily grasped by the first user when launching.
A wrist lasso may be attached to a bottom of the handle, wherein the wrist lasso is configured to be wrapped and/or placed around a wrist of the first user.
The pair of prongs may be pivotably/rotatably connected to the handle. At least one spring may be disposed between the pair of prongs and the handle biasing the pair of prongs to move out of the path of the football when released by the first user during launching.
The support may not be disposed through the front end of the body.
The equatorial diameter may be at least 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5 or 4.0 inches.
At least a portion of the front end of the body may include a Shore A durometer hardness substantially equal to or less than 25.
At least the front end of the body may be football shaped.
An overall weight of the football may be less than 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350 or 400 grams. The lighter the football the better as it will be easily accelerated upon launch.
The support may comprise a hollow aluminum tube. The aluminum tube may be at least 15 mm or greater in diameter. The aluminum used may be 7075-T6.
A lift-generating wing may be non-movably attached to the support. The lift-generating wing may disposed behind a center of the body in relation to along the longitudinal axis or wherein an outside contiguous envelope of the body does not coincide with any portion of an outside contiguous envelope of the lift-generating wing or wherein the body and lift-generating wing are separately disposed.
A floor stand may be attached to a bottom of the body, where the floor stand is configured to stabilize the football in a fixed position when the football is placed upon a generally horizontal surface.
The lift-generating wing may comprise a dihedral angle of at least 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30 degrees.
A horizontal stabilizer may be disposed behind the lift-generating wing attached to the support and/or the tail. The horizontal stabilizer may comprise a downward force producing horizontal stabilizer which creates a nose-up pitch of the football in flight. A manual adjuster may be associated with the horizontal stabilizer, the manual adjuster controlling a shape of the horizontal stabilizer, where the manual adjuster is mechanically engaged between the horizontal stabilizer on one side and the support or tail on the other side. The manual adjuster may comprise a hand-turnable threaded fastener.
The lift-generating wing may comprise a generally convex upper surface opposite a generally concave lower surface, where the upper and lower surfaces define a wing thickness. The wing thickness may be less than 0.10 of an inch. The lift-generating wing may comprise an injection molded, non-foamed, polymer wing.
The body may be comprised of a front section abutting a rear section, where the front section and rear section comprise different materials and where a rear section volume is at least double a front section volume.
At least one divot may be disposed within the body behind the first or second elastic band catch.
An exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a launching and/or catching toy kit having a football and at least one slingshot. The football includes: (a) a generally elongated spheroidal body defined as comprising a longitudinal axis, where a length of the body along the longitudinal axis between a front end of the body to a back end of the body is longer than an equatorial diameter; (b) a support non-movably attached to the body, where a first end of the support is disposed within the body and a second end of the support extends beyond the back end of the body; (c) a vertical tail attached to the second end of the support; (d) a horizontal tail attached to the support; (e) a lift-generating wing non-movably attached to the support; (f) an elastic band catch oppositely disposed about a bottom of the body and attached to the body and/or the support. The slingshot is associated with the football. The slingshot is configured to launch the football from a first user to a second user. The slingshot includes: (a) a handle configured to be gripped by the first user; (b) a pair of prongs connected and/or extending from a top of the handle, wherein the pair of prongs form an opening wherein the opening is at least as wide as a maximum width of the football; (c) at least one elastic band connected to at least one prong of the pair of prongs. The at least one elastic band is releasably captured by the elastic band catch on the football during launching by the first user.
An exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a launching and/or catching toy kit including a baseball and a slingshot. The baseball includes: (a) a spherical body; (b) a support non-movably attached to the body, where a first end of the support is disposed within the body and a second end of the support extends beyond the back end of the body; (c) a tail attached to the second end of the support; and (d) at least one elastic band catch attached to the body and/or the support. The slingshot is associated with the baseball, where the slingshot is configured to launch the baseball from a first user to a second user. The slingshot includes: (a) a baseball glove attachment feature configured to be attached to a baseball glove worn by the first user; (b) a pair of prongs connected and/or extending from the baseball glove attachment feature, wherein the pair of prongs form an opening; and (c) at least one elastic band connected to the pair of prongs. The at least one elastic band is releasably captured by the elastic band catch on the baseball during launching by the first user.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following more detailed description, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of the invention.
The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention. In such drawings:
As shown in
A support 302 is non-movably attached to the body 306, where a first end 303 (best shown in FIG. 6 of application Ser. No. 15/080,505) of the support 302 is disposed within the body 306 and a second end 305 of the support extends beyond the back end of the body 306. As discussed in the previous applications, the support 302 may be made from a variety of materials. Here, the support 302 may comprise a hollow aluminum tube. The aluminum tube may be at least 15 mm or greater in diameter. The aluminum used may be 7075-T6 aluminum alloy. It is typical for the support 302 to end within the body 306 such that the support may not be disposed through the front end 311 of the body 306, or the support may be attached to the back end of the football body.
Not shown in this application, but taught in application Ser. Nos. 15/080,505 and 14/261,563, an impact transfer surface 364 of an impact transfer part 365 may be attached to the first end 303 of the support 302. Furthermore, the body 306 may be broken up into a front section 308 and a rear section 310. It is then easily facilitated that at least a portion of the front end of the body may include a Shore A durometer hardness substantially equal to or less than 25. A soft front end of the body 306 helps to reduce shock loads to the rest of the football while also reducing chance of injury to the users.
A tail (i.e., vertical tail) 366 is attached to the second end of the support. As shown in
Another feature shown as part of the tail 366 is a finger grip feature 391 configured to be easily grasped by the first user when launching. The finger grip feature 391 can take on many forms. For example, the finger grip feature can be raised or lowered features embedded and/or integrated into the design of the tail 366. The finger grip feature 391 can include textured adhesives or the like that allow one to get a strong grip onto the tail 366.
A first elastic band catch 390a and a second elastic band catch 390b are oppositely disposed about the longitudinal axis 312 and are attached to the body and/or the support. As shown herein, the catches 390 are disposed along the body 306 of the football 300.
The slingshot 388 is associated with the football and is used to launch the football 300. Typically, a football is thrown manually by the user/thrower/quarterback. However, the applicant believes that a football 300 can be designed such that it can be launched even further by a slingshot 388. Therefore, the slingshot 388 is configured to launch the football 300 from a first user to a second user. When the second user/receiver also has a second slingshot 388, the receiver can then become the thrower and launch the football back to the first user. In this manner two people (or more) can be launching footballs back and forth there between simulating the game of catch.
The slingshot 388 includes a handle 392 configured to be gripped by the first user. The handle 392 can be made of plastic, composites, wood or the like. The handle 392 can also include a foam cover to provide a comfortable grip to the user. A pair of prongs 393a and 393b are connected and/or extending from a top 394 of the handle. The pair of prongs 393 form an opening 397 wherein the opening 397 is at least as wide as a maximum width 398 of the football 300. At least one elastic band 389 is connected to each prong of the pair of prongs.
It is understood by those skilled in the art that the bands 389 can be made from rubber, elastic material or the like. The material used can be similar or the same to the material used for current slingshots on the market today. It is understood that these bands are flexibly resilient and store energy when pulled taught and release energy when let go. In this way one is able to create a launching action with the present invention.
The opening 397 has to be at least as large as the maximum width 398 of the football 300 such that it can easily be launched by the user. To aid in a smooth launch, each of the at least one elastic band 389 is releasably captured by its respective first or second elastic band catch 390 on the football during launching by the first user. As can be seen when comparing
A wrist lasso 396 may be attached to a bottom 395 of the handle 392. The wrist lasso 396 is configured to be wrapped and/or placed around a wrist of the first and/or second user. The lasso 396 serves an important purpose, as it allows a user the ability to quickly drop the slingshot 388 and prepare to catch the football when the football is being launched in return. Otherwise, the user would need to put down the slingshot 388 or place the slingshot 388 into one's pocket or the like. The lasso 396 allows quick release and regrip of the slingshot 388 such that increased play is facilitated.
As shown in
The smaller the equatorial diameter 309 of the football 300 is, the less drag it will experience in the air. However, this also means the football 300 will be harder to catch. Therefore, a balance between the two must be achieved. Therefore, the equatorial diameter may be at least 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5 or 4.0 inches.
At least the front end 311 of the body may be football shaped. Alternatively, other shapes can be used such as missiles, rockets, torpedoes and the like.
The lighter the football is the easier and farther it will be launched. Therefore, an overall weight of the football may be less than 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350 or 400 grams.
A floor stand 342 may be attached to a bottom 317 of the body 306, where the floor stand 342 is configured to stabilize the football 300 in a fixed position when the football is placed upon a generally horizontal surface.
The lift-generating wing may comprise a dihedral angle 332 of at least 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30 degrees as previously taught in the prior mentioned applications.
A horizontal stabilizer 346 may be disposed behind the lift-generating wing 304 attached to the support 304 and/or the vertical tail 366. As shown in
The horizontal stabilizer 346 may comprise a downward force producing horizontal stabilizer which creates a nose-up pitch of the football in flight. More specifically, a manual adjuster 350 may be associated with the horizontal stabilizer. The manual adjuster 350 controls a shape of the horizontal stabilizer, where the manual adjuster is mechanically engaged between the horizontal stabilizer on one side and the support or tail on the other side. The manual adjuster may comprise a hand-turnable threaded fastener that engages into a nut or threads into the horizontal stabilizer itself.
The lift-generating wing 304 may comprise a generally convex upper surface 360 opposite a generally concave lower surface 362, where the upper and lower surfaces define a wing thickness. The wing thickness may be less than 0.10 of an inch. The lift-generating wing may comprise an injection molded, non-foamed, polymer wing. These features were covered extensively in the previously mentioned applications.
The body 306 may be comprised of a front section 308 abutting a rear section 310, where the front section and rear section comprise different materials and where a rear section volume is at least double a front section volume. These features were covered extensively in the previously mentioned applications.
For clarification, the references in this application to “football” are referring to American football and not the game of soccer.
While all of the embodiments shown herein are football like in nature, it is also understood by those skilled in the art that the body 306 may be shaped like a baseball and the ball 300′ could function in a very similar manner.
In another embodiment not shown, the lift-generating wings 304 and horizontal stabilizer 346 may be attached to the baseball versions such that now the balls 300′ can achieve true flight.
In another embodiment not shown, the support 302 can be configured to telescope such that after launching, the support shrinks in overall length. This then would allow a shorter overall ball to fly through the air better simulating either the traditional football or baseball profiles.
In another embodiment, the body 306, the support 302 and the tail 366 can be made as one single part from the same material. For example, the body, support and tail may be injected molded as a foam part such as EPS or EPP. The advantage of this is that the foam is extremely light while still being sufficiently rigid. The low weight would aid in achieving fast velocities upon launch. To reinforce the foam, stickers can be placed along the outside of the structure such that the stickers add tensional strength to the football during launch and prevent abrasions to the surface of the foam when landing or crashing. The elastic band catches 390 can be integrated into the foam structure or alternatively formed from a separately manufactured injection molded plastic that is then attached to the foam body.
Although several embodiments have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications may be made to each without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited, except as by the appended claims.
This divisional application claims priority to divisional application 17,929,738 filed on Sep. 5, 2022, which itself claims priority to non-provisional application Ser. No. 15/130,161 filed Apr. 15, 2016, which itself claims priority to the following U.S. provisional applications: provisional application 62/147,604 filed on Apr. 15, 2015; provisional application 62/149,500 filed on Apr. 17, 2015; and provisional application 62/151,845 filed on Apr. 23, 2015. The entire contents of all applications identified herein are fully incorporated with these references.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62147604 | Apr 2015 | US | |
| 62149500 | Apr 2015 | US | |
| 62151845 | Apr 2015 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 17929738 | Sep 2022 | US |
| Child | 18668164 | US | |
| Parent | 15130161 | Apr 2016 | US |
| Child | 17929738 | US |
