The present invention relates to swinging implements (e.g., baseball bats) having ergonomic handles and knobs, and methods of making the swinging implements.
Baseball bats are well known in the art. For example, baseball bats can be turned from a single hard-wood billet, either composite or solid, or from a composite assembly of wood, having a round cylindrical barrel, tapering down to a smaller diameter handle then slightly tapering up to a greater diameter knob at the handle end. The knob is intended to prevent the bat from slipping from the hands of a batter during a swing. This configuration has been the standard of Major League Baseball (MLB) and other baseball governing bodies for quite some time. In another example, baseball bats of similar shape and size are constructed of other materials, such as metal (e.g., aluminum), and combinations of materials. The present invention may be applied to baseball bats constructed in any manner from any material, or materials.
In recent times, batters have been specifying thinner bat handles with tapered-out knobs rather than handles ending with a more abrupt transition from handle to knob. The construction of thinner handles and tapered knobs is thought to be at least partially responsible for bats breaking off just above the hands and slipping from the batter's hands during the swing, even with batting gloves designed to increase batter grip.
Recently, Major League Baseball mandated that bat manufacturers carry a substantial insurance policy to cover potential legal actions resulting from a bat leaving the playing field, either from slipping from the hands of the batter or breaking, which may result in hitting and injuring a fan, bystander, or player. When a bat breaks, typically it is either from striking a pitched ball on the free end of the bat, from striking a pitched ball too close to the handle, or from improper alignment of the hands with the grain of the bat. In some instances of broken bats, the estranged bat barrel can be propelled past the base paths on the field or even into the stands. In some cases the broken end of the barrel can be sharp and pointed, making it a dangerous projectile in the field of play, sidelines, and stands. For example, right-handed batters may accidentally lose their grip and throw a bat down the third base line when swinging for and missing a pitch. In another example, right-handed batters may accidentally lose their grip and throw a bat down the first base line after swinging for an outside pitch where they reach, or fully extend their arms. Left-handed batters operate generally as a mirror image, accidentally throwing bats in the alternate direction of right-handed batters.
Solutions to increase the effective grip of a bat, which have been employed and are known in the art, include wrapping the handle with various kinds of tapes, and molded substances, rubbing the handle with pine tar, or other sticky substances, covering the handle with chemical compounds mixed with various durable abrasives, and wearing batting gloves with various gripping properties. While there are many applications to improve grip, few solutions include actual structural changes to the bat handle. In one case, Stan Musial of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball club, from 1941 to 1963, cut parallel grooves into the handle of his baseball bat to improve grip and performance, resulting in a non-smooth bat handle. This practice was accepted by MLB and never challenged by officials. According to the rules of MLB, reproduced in part below, the handle is the only part of the bat that can be covered or treated to improve grip.
Although MLB infrequently approves baseball bat design innovations, the most recent innovation approved for use by baseball regulating organizations in bat evolution is the “cupping” of the end of the bat, also covered in the Major League Baseball Bat regulations reproduced in part below. This innovation is employed to reduce barrel weight of the bat, extend the length of the “sweet spot” of the hitting area of the bat, and decrease the weight of the barrel from the “cupping,” resulting in increased bat-speed and thus driving the pitched ball with more force.
Professional-level baseball players commonly have their baseball equipment custom made by the manufacturer to their specific preferences of fit, color, finish, features, and their own physical attributes. The equipment being tailored to the player includes gloves, shoes, uniforms, and bats. The variables available to batters in bat configuration include, color, barrel size, length, weight, taper of handle, and taper of knob. Each manufacturer of bats has slight variations in the final bat product, including the way the wood is chosen, graded, dried, tested, and finished.
Moreover, many major manufacturers of bats are focused on developing technologies for metal alloy bats and composite wood bats, rather than working within the current rules structure, to develop innovations to the solid composite or one-piece baseball bat. With the evolution of new technologies in three-dimensional imaging and four-point milling, new improvements in shaping and turning of baseball bats are possible.
In at least one alternate embodiment of this invention, an implement may be constructed to maintain conformity to the core intent of United States baseball rules and regulations, known in the art, regarding the manufacture of solid, single piece, wood bats and composite bats required and proposed for use in many levels of baseball play. The Major League Baseball Bat Regulations state, in part, as follows:
Major League Baseball Bat Regulations
Aspects of this invention address the shortcomings currently existing with baseball bats described above. These shortcomings include the grip, safety, and responsiveness provided by the current art of bat design and construction. Because every batter has their own bat size and shape preference, method of gripping a bat, and further preferences (e.g., differently size hands, knuckles, and fingers), many batters would prefer and/or benefit from a bat handle configured to their individual ergonomic attributes, method of gripping the bat, and swing. Embodiments of the invention include several features, including methods for capturing a batter's anatomical grip pattern. Such anatomical grip patterns may be either batter-specific or of general use for many batters. Other embodiments of the invention are further directed to the manufacture of a baseball bat with a grip that is ergonomically designed to be superior to the existing art. One embodiment of the invention displaces the cubic volume of a thicker, more substantial bat handle to accommodate a batter's natural ergonomic grip, without thinning the handle beyond the structural integrity of the bat handle.
Unlike other ergonomic grip applications known in the art, this invention is uniquely applied to handles for bats, clubs, and implements for use in baseball, cricket, golf, and the like where the bat or club is gripped not in the palm of the hand but rather with the fingers.
In another embodiment of the invention, a process first captures the inverse anatomical shape of a batter's grip by employing a bat on which a narrow dowel handle is covered with a moldable, clay-like material. The batter's hands grip the bat in proper alignment with the grain of the bat, as known in the art. The grip of the hands is held firm until the gripped handle is held comfortably by the batter, resulting in a molded bat handle model. This molded handle model is used as the master model and is applied to a pre-milled bat created with a larger diameter handle than a standard blank bat handle. The remainder of the bat handle and barrel has already been turned, as known in the art, to form the final barrel and initial taper leading to the handle. Using existing digital three-dimensional image capturing technology, known in the art, a three-dimensional image of the molded handle is imported into a CAD-CAM program, as known in the art, which is converted into a three-dimensional digital model. The digital three-dimensional model is then mapped, as known in the art, to the partially turned bat with an un-milled/unfinished bat handle. The mapped image is then milled, using four-point milling, as known in the art, from the unfinished handle, resulting in an ergonomic baseball bat handle that ergonomically matches the batter's unique hand grip and properly aligns the batter's hands with the grain of the bat.
Unlike standard bat handles, which are round and smooth and sometimes covered with grip enhancements, this ergonomic bat grip exactly interlinks with the fingers and folds of the batter's hands. This substantially increases the surface area contacting the batter's hands over a standard bat handle. This increased surface area contact with the bat handle results in the following beneficial results:
improved grip of the bat by the batter's hands;
reduced likelihood of a bat slipping from the batter's hands during a swing in a game, practice, or warm-up;
improved responsiveness of the bat in the hands of the batter;
proper alignment of the batter's hands with the horizontal axis of the wood grain of the bat; and
improved grip comfort.
Added considerations of ergonomics are employed in embodiments of this invention by removing a portion of the conventional knob of the bat and smoothing the transition between the handle and the removed portion of the knob, thereby creating a slight concave space for the palmaris brevis and abductor digiti minimi muscles of the bottom gripping hand in the knob at the end of the bat handle. During the swing of a typical baseball bat, the wrists roll during the swing, top hand over bottom hand, just prior to making contact with the ball. During this roll of the wrists, the knob of a conventional baseball bat, which has a larger diameter than the bat handle, severely presses into the palmaris brevis and abductor digiti minimi muscles of the hand. Without being bound to any particular theory, it is believed that this pressure decreases the ability of the palmaris brevis and abductor digiti minimi muscles to maintain themselves it their contracted, or shortened, states, because the knob presses into the muscles, thereby increasing their respective lengths and decreasing their ability to maintain their contracted state. This decrease in muscle contraction may cause the batter to loosen his supporting grip of the bat handle. The resulting de-stabilized grip of the bottom hand increases the probability that the bat will slip from the hands of the batter during the swing. A manifestation of this knob phenomenon is demonstrated by empirical evidence showing that batters often wear out their batting glove on the bottom hand palm first. This wear is caused by the knob constantly rubbing the palmaris brevis and abductor digiti minimi muscles during each swing.
In contrast, it is believed that embodiments of this invention allow for much improved grip stability and increased accuracy through all phases of the swing of the bat because the smooth transition between the handle and knob cooperate to evenly support the palmaris brevis and abductor digiti minimi muscles, rather than destabilizing the muscles as with conventional knobs.
One or more embodiments of this invention provide for custom milling of the handle-end of the wood bat to precisely match the unique grip of either a specific batter or a general group of batters.
Other embodiments of this invention provide for a substantially improved batter grip to inhibit the bat from slipping from a batter's grasp during or after a swing of the bat.
Still other embodiments of the invention increase the surface area of the bat handle contacting the hands of the batter to provide more responsive performance and accurate placement of the bat during the swinging motion.
Other embodiments of the invention reduce the vibration felt by a batter (e.g., when a baseball is struck either to close to the handle or too close to the end of the bat).
Various refinements exist of the features noted in relation to the above-mentioned aspects of the present invention. Further features may also be incorporated in the above-mentioned aspects of the present invention. These refinements and additional features may exist individually or in any combination. For instance, various features discussed below in relation to any of the illustrated embodiments of the present invention may be incorporated into any of the above-described aspects of the present invention, alone or in any combination.
Many of the drawings included herein are those of a right-handed grip and resulting ergonomic handle. As would be understood by one skilled in the art, the processes, embodiments, and resulting bats of the present invention may be applied to bats for left-handed batters as well. For simplicity, many of the figures and much of the description are directed to bats positioned for a right-handed batter, but are readily applicable to a left-handed batter.
Corresponding parts are designated by corresponding reference numbers throughout the several views of the drawings.
With reference to the drawings, the invention will now be described in detail. In general, the invention depicted in
To create the bat 9 of
The details of the ergonomic grip 10 of the bat 9 are shown in detail in
The particular external shape of the barrel 11 of the bat 9 including the taper, diameter, and length is a matter of choice on behalf of the batter as it relates to the rules and guidelines of various baseball governing bodies. The grip of the batter on the bat 9 is typically aligned with the grain of the wood such that when in use, the x-axis, as illustrated in
Referring now to
After the moldable material 6c is applied, the molding bat 13 is ready to capture the batter's grip, as shown in
Referring to
More particularly, with a conventional bat having a typical knob, the destabilizing mechanics of a typical grip and swing occur as follows. First, the batter grips the bat so that the fifth digit (i.e., the pinky) wraps around the bat and is butted up against the abrupt transition between the bat handle and the knob, while the heel of the palm of the hand presses firmly against the knob. The batter adjusts the position of the bat to an upright, or ready, position and prepares for swinging the bat. At this point, the batter's wrists and forearms are substantially perpendicular to the handle of the bat. When the swing begins, the hands begin to move forward toward the incoming ball with little change to the relationship of hands, wrists, and forearms relative to the bat handle. As the hands move around the batter toward the front of the batter's body, the batter extends the bat outward and laterally away from the body, positioning the wrists in an ulnar deviation. It is at this point that the knob of a conventional bat begins to compress the palmaris brevis and the abductor digiti minimi muscles. As the barrel of the bat crosses the plate and midline of the batter, the top hand gripping the bat begins to roll over the bottom hand while both wrists increase their ulnar deviation, further exerting pressure on the palmaris brevis and the abductor digiti minimi muscles. At this point in the swing, the centripetal forces exerted on the bat by the batter to keep the bat moving in its arcuate path around the batter further increase knob pressure on the palmaris brevis and the abductor digiti minimi muscles. As the bat reaches optimal striking position with the ball, the top hand continues to roll over the bottom hand, thereby maximizing the forces exerted on the palmaris brevis and the abductor digiti minimi muscles. At this point in the swing, potential grip failure is at its peak. Potentially forcing the grip to fail while either reaching for an outside pitch, thereby releasing the bat down the opposite field from the batter, or missing the ball, thereby releasing the bat down the pull-side of the field.
Once the batter is satisfied with the shape of the moldable material 6c of the grip, a three-dimensional image of the moldable material is captured using three-dimensional photography, as known in the art. The captured image is then mapped to a pre-milled bat handle 40 (see
Using 4-point milling, as known in the art, the three-dimensional image map is milled into the handle 40 (see
As would be understood by one skilled in the art, not all features of the exemplary bat 9 of FIGS. 1 and 12-19 or the other embodiments disclosed herein need be present in one particular bat to embody features of the present invention. In particular, the various features discussed herein in relation to any of the illustrated embodiments of the present invention may be incorporated into any other embodiments of the invention, alone or in any combination. For example, one exemplary bat may include the ergonomic grip 10 without the support surface 31, without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. In another example, a bat may include the support surface 31 without the ergonomic grip 10, without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. Other combinations of features are also contemplated as within the scope of the claimed invention.
Referring now to
Turning now to
Referring now to
As with the previous embodiments, the support surface 331 provides a gradual transition between the handle 330 and knob 320, thereby providing support for the palmaris brevis and abductor digiti minimi muscles without destabilizing the muscles during a swing of the bat 309. Thus, grip strength is maintained throughout the swing. In one exemplary embodiment, no portion of the support surface 331 extends at an angle greater than about 45 degrees from the handle 330. In another exemplary embodiment, at least a portion of the support surface 331 extends at an angle of less than about 30 degrees from the handle 330. In still another exemplary embodiment, at least a portion of the support surface 331 extends at an angle of less than about 15 degrees from the handle 330. These relatively shallow, acute angles provide a gradual transition between the handle 330 and the knob 320. In still another embodiment, the radius of curvature of the support surface 331 is at least as large as the radius of the generally cylindrical handle 330. This large radius of curvature provides a support surface 331 with a smooth, gentle slope for supporting the hands of the batter.
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
The sleeve 551 further includes a support surface 531, generally as disclosed above, for supporting the palmaris brevis and abductor digiti minimi muscles throughout the swing of the batter. The sleeve 551 is shaped and sized to create the support surface 531 and an upper flange 527, both generally as set forth above with respect to the bat embodiments of
The sleeve 511 may be constructed of any number of elastic or pliable materials, such as rubber or silicone. The sleeve 511 may also be constructed of a non-pliable material, such as wood or metal, which would require assembly of sleeve portions (e.g., two, three, or more portions) about the handle 530 to form the sleeve.
It is therefore apparent that the present invention discloses an ergonomically superior bat of unique character and performance, which has several features not shown with conventional bats.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60734059 | Nov 2005 | US | |
60706283 | Aug 2005 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 12063292 | Mar 2008 | US |
Child | 12823693 | US |