Patent Application
20110275459
Currently, most tennis players have difficulty with their serve, more specifically the ball toss. The ball toss is an important part of any serve. Tennis players may practice their toss, but without a target to gauge the ball height and position of the toss, the tennis players may never develop a consistent and properly positioned toss. As a result, many tennis players unfortunately fault on their serve. A more efficient training tool is needed.
Consequently, a need exists for a training device that assists tennis players in mastering the proper way to toss and serve a tennis ball. The device of the present invention provides a target for a tennis player tossing a tennis ball as part of his or her serve, which allows the player to visually determine if his or her toss is adequate. The training device can be used by all tennis players, amateur and professional, regardless of age or physical characteristics such as height, and can be readily and easily transported from storage to practice area and vice versa.
The following presents a simplified summary in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the disclosed innovation. This summary is not an extensive overview, and it is not intended to identify key/critical elements or to delineate the scope thereof. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.
The subject matter disclosed and claimed herein, in one aspect thereof, comprises a tennis ball toss and serve training device. The training device comprises a base with a top and a bottom surface. Typically, there are four castors or wheels secured to the bottom surface of the base and telescoping sections of pipe secured to the top surface of the base. Additionally, a generally horizontal member extends outwardly from at least one of said telescoping sections of pipe, and a tennis ball or other target is secured by a rope or other means to generally horizontal member. Specifically, the target tennis ball is preferably positioned approximately 12-15 inches above a user's racquet when a user's arm is fully extended in an upward direction.
Furthermore, in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the training device comprises three telescoping sections of pipe secured to the top surface of the base for setting the desired height of the generally horizontal member and the target tennis ball attached thereto. Typically, a slit is cut into the target tennis ball for attachment to the rope, though virtually any target could be used without affecting the overall concept of the invention.
To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, certain illustrative aspects of the disclosed innovation are described herein in connection with the following description and the annexed drawings. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles disclosed herein can be employed and is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. Other advantages and novel features will become apparent from the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the drawings.
The innovation is now described with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding thereof. It may be evident, however, that the innovation can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to facilitate a description thereof.
Most tennis players have difficulty with their serve. Specifically, most tennis players have difficulty with the ball toss used in performing a tennis serve. The ball toss is an important part of any serve. A training device that assists tennis players in mastering the proper way to toss a tennis ball would help improve a tennis player's overall game and, in particular, the player's serve.
Accordingly, the disclosed tennis training device provides a target for tennis players, which allows them to visually determine if their toss is adequate in terms of height and overall ball positioning, and also allows the players to experience the effect of a proper toss. The training device can be used by all tennis players, amateur and professional, regardless of physical characteristics (e.g., height) or age, and can be readily transported from storage to practice area and vice versa. Further, the training device can be positioned at various heights, angles and positions for the tennis players, and can be moved and adjusted to provide the correct target location for any type of serve a tennis player is executing.
Referring initially to the drawings,
Base 102 further comprises a top surface 104 and a bottom surface 106. The top and bottom surfaces 102, 104 are preferably circular, but could be any suitable shape such as square, rectangle, oval, etc. as is known in the art without affecting the overall concept of the present invention. Typically, base 102 is comprised of polyvinylchloride but could be made of any other suitable weather resistant material as is known in the art, such as wood, metal or plastic without affecting the overall concept of the present invention.
Furthermore, training device 100 preferably comprises at least one castor 108 secured to the bottom surface 106 of base 102 for easily positioning training device 100 in a desired location. More preferably, training device 100 has four castors 108 or wheels for stability, but the training device 100 could have any number of castors 108 as is needed for stabilizing and easily transporting the training device 100 without affecting the overall concept of the present invention. Typically, the castors 108 have a 360 degree rotation to allow the training device 100 to be easily maneuvered and positioned on the service line of a tennis court or other practice area, or moved to and from storage. The training device 100 can be easily collapsed for storage. Further, the castors 108 are approximately between 4 inches to 6 inches in diameter, and are typically made of rubber. However, any other suitable material could be used as is known in the art without affecting the overall concept of the present invention. Any suitable hardware as is known in the art is used to secure the castors 108 to base 102.
Post 110 is preferably comprised of multiple telescoping sections of weather resistant pipe (111, 112, 113), and is secured to the top surface 104 of base 102 by any suitable means such as welding, bolt, fasteners or the like. For additional support, bracing 119 of a type commonly known in the art can be used to further secure post 110 to base 102 as shown in
In a preferred embodiment, sections of pipe (111, 112, 113) are anodized aluminum pipe, however the sections of pipe can be comprised of any other suitable weather resistant material as is known in the art, such as wood, plastic and the like, without affecting the overall concept of the present invention. Further, the sections of pipe measure approximately ⅞ of an inch to 2¼ inches in diameter, and rubber caps (not shown) can be used to close any open ends of the sections of pipe (111, 112, 113).
Member 115 is also preferably constructed of anodized aluminum pipe, however, member 115 can be comprised of any other suitable weather resistant material as is known in the art, such as wood, plastic and the like, without affecting the overall concept of the present invention. Member 115 is removably attached to post 110 by any means that is known in the art, such as clamps, bolts, etc., and extends outwardly from post 110 as shown in
Target 116, which is preferably a tennis ball, can be suspended from member 115 by any suitable means such as a rope 118. Rope 118 is typically a braided nylon rope but could be comprised of any suitable material as is known in the art without affecting the overall concept of the present invention. Rope 118 preferably measures approximately 18 inches to 24 inches in length and approximately 2/16 of an inch to ¼ inches in diameter. Typically, the target ball 116 has a slit 122 cut into it to secure the target 116 to the rope 118. The training device 100 can then be adjusted by telescoping one or more of sections of pipe (111, 112, 113) to position the target ball 116 to be approximately 12 inches to 15 inches above a user's racquet when the user's arm is fully extended in an upward direction. The user then practices tossing a standard tennis ball (not shown) up towards the target ball 116 to position the tennis ball in a target zone 201 directly under the target 116 or within 12 inches to 15 inches beneath the target 116. After a user has learned the proper toss technique, a user can then practice his or her serve using a tennis ball that is visually in the proper target zone 201, i.e. directly under the target 116 or within 12 to 15 inches beneath the target 116. The training device 100 can be moved and adjusted to provide the correct target zone 201 for any type of serve a user is executing.
Referring to
At 602, a target ball 116 of the tennis training device 100 is adjusted such that target ball 116 is 12-15 inches above a user's racquet when user's arm is extended in an upward direction. The training device 100 also comprises a post 110 that further comprises sections of pipe (111, 112, 113) that can be telescopically collapsed or extended to position the training device at the proper height, angle and position for the user. Training device 100 can then be adjusted to position the target ball to be approximately between 12 to 15 inches above a user's racquet when the user's arm is extended in an upward direction. And at 604, a tennis ball is tossed directly under target ball 116. The user then practices tossing a tennis ball up towards target ball 116 to consistently position the tennis ball directly under the target ball 116 or within 12 to 15 inches beneath the target ball 116. Thus, the training device 100 provides a target for the user. Specifically, the device allows a user to visually determine if their toss is adequate and allows the user to experience the effect of a proper toss.
What has been described above includes examples of the claimed subject matter. It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes of describing the claimed subject matter, but one of ordinary skill in the art may recognize that many further combinations and permutations of the claimed subject matter are possible. Accordingly, the claimed subject matter is intended to embrace all such alterations, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that the term “includes” is used in either the detailed description or the claims, such term is intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as “comprising” is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim.
This application claims priority from Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/331,430 filed May 5, 2010.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61331430 | May 2010 | US |
