U.S. patent application number 11/548998 was filed with the patent office on 2007-08-09 for turkey call apparatus.
Invention is credited to William D. Zearing.
Application Number | 20070184752 11/548998 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 38334650 |
Filed Date | 2007-08-09 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070184752 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Zearing; William D. |
August 9, 2007 |
Turkey Call Apparatus
Abstract
A box call with improved sound quality is provided. The box call
is comprised of a pair of longitudinally extending walls, a front
wall, a back wall and a base defining a sounding chamber. At least
one wall of said pair of longitudinally extending walls is a
striking wall that is comprised of a plurality of wooden plies with
each ply having a grain that runs substantially perpendicular to
adjacent plies. The box call also has a paddle or lid that is
rotatably affixed to the back wall so that a user can slidingly
contact a lower surface of the paddle with an upper edge of the
striking wall, wherein the upper edge is convex widthwise and
arcuate lengthwise.
Inventors: |
Zearing; William D.;
(Halifax, PA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
THORP REED & ARMSTRONG, LLP
ONE OXFORD CENTRE, 301 GRANT STREET, 14TH FLOOR
PITTSBURGH
PA
15219-1425
US
|
Family ID: |
38334650 |
Appl. No.: |
11/548998 |
Filed: |
October 12, 2006 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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60771220 |
Feb 7, 2006 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
446/418 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A01M 31/004
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
446/418 |
International
Class: |
A63H 5/00 20060101
A63H005/00 |
Claims
1. A box call comprising a pair of longitudinally extending side
walls, a front wall, a back wall and a unitary base, together
defining a sounding chamber; wherein at least one wall of said pair
of longitudinally extending walls acts as a striking wall
comprising a plurality of wooden plies that terminate at an upper
edge; and a paddle having a lower surface for engaging said upper
edge.
2. The box call of claim 1, wherein each of the wooden plies has a
grain that runs substantially perpendicular to the grain of each
adjacent ply.
3. The box call of claim 1, wherein at least one of the wooden
plies has a grain that runs substantially perpendicular to the
grain of at least one of the wooden plies adjacent to it.
4. The box call of claim 1, wherein at least one of said wooden
plies has a grain that runs substantially vertically.
5. The box call of claim 1, wherein at least one of the wooden
plies consists of a different type of wood than any ply that is
adjacent to it.
6. The box call of claim 1, wherein each of said wooden plies has a
grain that runs substantially perpendicular to the grain of each
adjacent ply.
7. The box call of claim 1, wherein the striking wall consists of
three plies of wood.
8. The box call of claim 7, wherein the middle ply has a grain that
runs vertically.
9. The box call of claim 8, wherein the two outer plies of wood
have a grain that runs substantially perpendicular to the center
ply.
10. The box call of claim 8, wherein the center ply comprises a
center cut of wood.
11. The box call of claim 1, wherein the lower surface of the
paddle is convex.
12. The box call of claim 1, wherein the paddle is arcuate.
13. The box call of claim 1, wherein the paddle is arcuate
laterally.
14. The box call of claim 1, wherein the plurality of wooden plies
are connected to each other by a connection means.
15. The box call of claim 14, wherein the connection means
comprises glue.
16. The box call of claim 14, wherein the connection means
comprises lamination.
17. The box call of claim 1, wherein the paddle is rotatably
fastened to the back wall,
18. A box call comprising a pair of longitudinally extending walls,
a front wall, a back wall and a unitary base, together defining a
sounding chamber; wherein at least one wall of said pair of
longitudinally extending walls comprises an inner ply, a middle ply
and an outer ply, together defining a striking wall, wherein the
inner ply and the outer ply have a grain that runs substantially
horizontally, the middle ply having a grain that runs substantially
vertically; an upper edge of the striking wall being convex and
longitudinally arcuate; and a paddle rotatably fastened to the back
wall in order to slidingly contact the upper edge of the striking
wall, the paddle further comprising a concave upper surface and a
convex lower surface.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The application claims priority to U.S. Provisional
Application Ser. No. 60/771,220, filed on Feb. 7, 2006, which is
hereby incorporated into this disclosure in its entirety.
BACKGROUND--FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] This invention relates to devices used to call animals in
the wild, namely turkeys. Turkey calls have been known in the art
previously and generally come in several different configurations:
mouth calls, pot calls and box calls. The turkey call apparatus set
forth in the instant invention contains improvements to the box
variety of turkey calls.
[0003] Box calls are typically composed of wood and generally
comprise a rectangular box and a lid. The lid to the box, which is
also called a paddle, is rotatably connected to one end of the box
via a fastener and spring such that the paddle can be rotated about
an axis drawn through the fastener and slidingly moved against an
upper edge of one of the sides of the box in order to create the
sound of a turkey call. In the art, it is seen that the upper edges
of the sides of the box, and especially the striking surface on one
of the edges, are bowed longitudinally to produce an arcuate
surface across which the lid or paddle is drawn across in the
presence of chalk or a similar substance, in order to create a
sound similar to the one that turkeys make.
[0004] The paddle itself is also laterally bowed to present a
laterally concave arcuate shape. In this configuration, the lateral
center of the paddle comes into contact with an area at or near the
longitudinal center of the upper arcuate edge of the box. The
majority of the surfaces of the paddle are laminated for protection
from the elements and durability; however, a small portion of the
lower surface of the paddle is left untreated so that chalk will
stick to the wood when it is applied and the appropriate sound can
be created by rubbing or scraping the paddle against the upper edge
of the box call.
[0005] The sound produced by the box type of turkey call must be
extremely close to a real turkey call in order to get birds in the
wild to approach the photographer, hunter or enthusiast.
Unfortunately, previous box calls suffer from a lack of richness,
variance and tonal quality of the sounds produced. It is desirable,
therefore, to improve the quality and range of sound achieved by a
box call.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present
invention, one of the longitudinally extending walls of the box
comprises three plies of wood that are connected in parallel
fashion or "sandwiched" such that they become a single unitary
striking wall. The two outer pieces of wood that make up the
striking wall are positioned such that the grain of the wood is
parallel to a longitudinal axis running through the rectangular
call. The two outer pieces sandwich an inner piece that is
positioned such that its grain runs vertically or perpendicular to
the grain of the two outer pieces. When they are glued together or
otherwise attached face to face, the upper edge of all three pieces
becomes a unitary piece and results in the striking surface to be
rubbed or scraped by the paddle. The inner vertical grain core
piece of wood, in conjunction with the two outer pieces that
creates additional resistance to the lateral movement of the paddle
across the edge and results in a heretofore unseen true-to-life
turkey sound. Also in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the
instant invention, the paddle is comprised of a single piece of
wood that is warped about a longitudinal axis such that its
resultant shape is arcuate laterally. It has been found that this
shape ensures that the proper weight distribution is applied to the
striking surface through the entire yelp when the call is employed.
While it is known in the art to have a concave lower surface of the
paddle, existing paddles are not made from a single piece of wood
or do not have a matching concave upper surface and are thus
weighted differently.
[0007] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the
instant invention will be apparent in the following detailed
description of the preferred embodiment thereof when read in
conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a
box call of the present invention.
[0009] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the box call of FIG. 1
illustrating the movement of the paddle in relation to the sounding
chamber.
[0010] FIG. 3 is an end view of the box call of FIG. 1.
[0011] FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the box call of FIG. 1 with
the paddle exploded therefrom illustrating a preferred embodiment
of the fasteners and springs used.
[0012] FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the striking wall of the box
call of FIG. 1 illustrating the preferred orientation of the grain
of each wood piece in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the
instant invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0013] The present invention is a device useful for assisting a
hunter, photographer or other enthusiast in calling turkeys.
Referring to FIG. 1, a perspective view of a box call 10 of the
instant invention is shown with the paddle 20 resting against a
non-striking side wall 15 in a closed position. When operated, the
paddle is rotated about a fastening means 30 by grasping the handle
40 of the paddle 20 distal to the fastening means 30. The fastening
means 30 may preferably comprise a screw or any other mechanism
that permits the paddle 20 to be freely rotated about the fastening
means 30.
[0014] FIG. 2 shows the box call 10 in an open position. As seen
therein, the upper surface 21 of the paddle 20 preferably is
concave. A thick front wall 22 and back wall 24, a sturdy
non-striking side wall 15, a striking wall 50 and an upper surface
26 of a unitary base piece 110 define a sounding chamber 28 when
constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the
invention. In order to operate the box call 10, the paddle 20 is
moved toward the striking wall 50 which terminates in an upper edge
60. The sound of a turkey is created when the paddle 20 is moved
laterally against the upper edge 60 of the striking wall 50.
[0015] Referring now to FIG. 3, the call of the instant invention
is shown from the back wall 24 of the box call 10 that houses the
fastening means 30. It can be seen from this vantage point that the
paddle 20 preferably has an upper surface 21 that is concave and a
lower surface 120 that is convex. This shape can be created by
warping or bending the paddle 20 about a longitudinal axis, or by
any other method known to those skilled in the art, and results in
a preferred weight distribution to be used in combination with the
striking wall 50 of the instant invention in addition to creating
the proper angle of engagement between the lower surface 120 of the
paddle 20 and the upper edge 60 of the striking wall 50. It is
further seen in FIG. 3 that the striking wall 50 comprises, in a
preferred embodiment, an outer ply 80, a middle ply 90 and an inner
ply 100 that have been laminated, glued, or fastened together in
some other way known in the art. Although the illustrated
embodiment shows a 3-ply striking wall 50, a striking wall
comprising any number of plies greater than one generally will
accomplish the intended result in accordance with the instant
invention. The box call 10 also has a unitary base piece 110
defining a channel 115, which preferably receives the striking wall
50 therein for added overall strength and improved sound quality.
In this preferred embodiment, chalk is applied to the lower surface
120 of the paddle 20 so that the sound of a turkey is created as
the lower surface 120 of the paddle 20 is moved across the upper
edge 60 of the striking wall 50.
[0016] FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the box call 10 of the instant
invention. The paddle 20 is connected to the box call 10 at the
back wall 24 via a fastening means, such as a screw, 30 threaded
into an aperture 140. Optionally, a spring 150 may be inserted
between the paddle 20 and the aperture 140 to enable smooth
movement of the paddle 20 laterally across the upper edge 60 of the
striking wall 50. As shown in FIG. 4, the three plies of wood 80,
90, and 100 are glued, laminated or otherwise fastened side by side
to form the striking wall 50. The upper edge 60 of the striking
wall 50 is longitudinally arcuate, in a convex manner, to
facilitate the generation of calls of consistently good
quality.
[0017] As illustrated in FIG. 5, the striking wall 50 is preferably
created by gluing, laminating or otherwise fastening the outer ply
80, the middle ply 90 and the inner ply 100 together in plywood
fashion. Preferably, the inner ply 100 and the outer ply 80 have
their wood grain oriented horizontally whereas the woodgrain for
the middle ply 90 preferably runs vertically. It is seen that this
arrangement of woodgrains creates a call that is more realistic
that those that exist currently.
[0018] Throughout the specification, the term "comprising" is used
inclusively, in the sense that there may be other features and/or
steps included in the invention not expressly defined or
comprehended in the features or the steps specifically defined or
described. What such other features and/or steps may include will
be apparent from the specification read as a whole.
[0019] Since many modifications, variations and changes in detail
can be made to the described preferred embodiment of the invention,
it is intended that all matters in the foregoing description and
shown on the accompanying drawings be interpreted as illustrative
and not in a limiting sense. It will be readily apparent to those
skilled in the art that the apparatus of the instant invention can
easily be modified to be used with other box call designs as well.
The scope of the invention should be determined by the claims and
their legal equivalents.
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