U.S. patent application number 12/347334 was filed with the patent office on 2009-07-02 for toy bat and ball set.
This patent application is currently assigned to RHINO TOYS, INC.. Invention is credited to David E. Silverglate.
Application Number | 20090170643 12/347334 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 40799193 |
Filed Date | 2009-07-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090170643 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Silverglate; David E. |
July 2, 2009 |
Toy Bat and Ball Set
Abstract
A toy bat and ball set is provided. The bat may include a shell
having a proximate portion formed as a handle, and a distal portion
formed in the shape of a barrel with an outer hitting surface, the
distal portion including an opening on a distal end leading to a
void formed in an interior region of the shell of the bat, the
opening being bounded at least partially around a perimeter of the
opening by a lip. The ball may be a resiliently deformable ball
able to be deformed to a reduced diameter that is smaller than the
opening, such that the ball can be inserted through the opening
into the void in the shell of the bat, and expanded within the
void, to thereby be secured within a ball-receiving region of the
void by the lip.
Inventors: |
Silverglate; David E.;
(Santa Cruz, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
ALLEMAN HALL MCCOY RUSSELL & TUTTLE LLP
806 SW BROADWAY, SUITE 600
PORTLAND
OR
97205-3335
US
|
Assignee: |
RHINO TOYS, INC.
Santa Cruz
CA
|
Family ID: |
40799193 |
Appl. No.: |
12/347334 |
Filed: |
December 31, 2008 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61018478 |
Jan 1, 2008 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
473/567 ; 446/69;
473/612 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B 2210/50 20130101;
A63B 59/54 20151001; A63B 39/00 20130101; A63B 59/58 20151001; A63B
43/00 20130101; A63B 2102/18 20151001; A63B 2039/003 20130101; A63B
2208/12 20130101; A63B 60/38 20151001; A63B 59/50 20151001; A63B
59/56 20151001 |
Class at
Publication: |
473/567 ;
473/612; 446/69 |
International
Class: |
A63B 59/06 20060101
A63B059/06; A63B 39/00 20060101 A63B039/00; A63B 43/00 20060101
A63B043/00 |
Claims
1. A toy bat and ball set, comprising: a bat including a shell
having a proximate portion formed as a handle, and a distal portion
formed in the shape of a barrel with an outer hitting surface, the
distal portion including an opening on a distal end leading to a
void formed in an interior region of the shell of the bat, the
opening being bounded at least partially around a perimeter of the
opening by a lip extending a distance into the opening from a
sidewall of the barrel of the shell, such that the opening has an
opening diameter that is smaller than an inner diameter of the
barrel of the distal portion bordering the void; and a resiliently
deformable ball being able to be deformed from an original diameter
that is larger than the opening diameter to a reduced diameter that
is smaller than the opening diameter, such that the ball can be
inserted through the opening into the void in the shell of the bat
when deformed to the reduced diameter, and expanded within the void
to an expanded diameter that is larger than the opening diameter,
to thereby be secured within a ball-receiving region of the void by
the lip.
2. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the original
diameter of the ball is smaller than the inner diameter of the
barrel bordering the void, and wherein the expanded diameter is
substantially equal to the original diameter of the ball.
3. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the resiliently
deformable ball is one of a plurality of resiliently deformable
balls of the bat and ball set, and the bat is configured to
simultaneously store the plurality of resiliently deformable balls
in the ball-receiving region of the void.
4. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the lip extends
around substantially an entire inner perimeter of the opening.
5. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein one or more gaps
are formed in the lip around the opening.
6. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the lip is formed
at a distal end of the sidewall of the barrel.
7. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the opening is
formed in the distal end of the barrel so as to open toward a top
side of the bat.
8. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the resiliently
deformable ball is made of a material having durometer hardness
between 70 A and 90 A.
9. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the bat is at least
partially made of a vacuum-formed plastic.
10. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the inner diameter
of the barrel is between about 3.9 and 4.7 inches, adjacent a
ball-receiving region of the void.
11. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the opening
diameter defined by the lip of the bat is between about 3.6 and 4.4
inches.
12. The toy bat and ball set of claim 1, wherein the resiliently
deformable ball includes a mesh including a plurality of loop
structures, each loop structure having a curved inside perimeter
surface, the loop structures forming the surface of the ball.
13. A toy bat, comprising: a shell with a proximate portion formed
in the shape of a handle and a distal portion formed in the shape
of a barrel with an outer hitting surface; an opening formed in a
distal end of the barrel so as to open toward a top side of the
bat; a void formed in an internal region of the shell in
communication with the opening; and a lip formed at least partially
around the opening, and extending a distance into the opening from
a sidewall of the barrel.
14. The toy bat of claim 13, wherein the void is sized to
accommodate at least one resiliently deformable ball, and the lip
is sized to constrain passage of each ball into and out of the void
by deforming the ball as the ball passes over the lip, to thereby
releasably retain the ball in the void in the shell.
15. The toy bat of claim 13, wherein the lip extends around
substantially an entire inner perimeter of the opening.
16. The toy bat of claim 13, wherein one or more gaps are formed in
the lip around the opening.
17. The toy bat of claim 13, wherein the lip is formed at a distal
end of the sidewall of the barrel.
18. The toy bat of claim 13, wherein the void is sized to receive a
plurality of resiliently deformable balls constrained from exiting
the shell by the lip.
19. The toy bat of claim 18, wherein the void is sized to receive
three resiliently deformable balls constrained from exiting the
shell by the lip.
20. The toy bat of claim 16, wherein the shell includes reinforcing
ribbing in the handle and/or on the outer hitting surface of the
barrel.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. .sctn.119
to U.S. provisional patent application, Ser. No. 61/018,478,
entitled A BAT AND BALL SET, filed on Jan. 1, 2008, the entire
disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Bat and ball sports can benefit a child's development by
improving their hand and eye coordination. One problem with
conventional bat and ball sets is that the bats and the balls are
relatively hard and can be dangerous if they hit a person or an
item that may be easily damaged. Another problem is that the bats
and the balls are relatively heavy, making them difficult to handle
by a young child. An additional problem is that the bat of a
conventional bat-and-ball set may be too narrow for a beginner,
such as a toddler, to easily hit a ball with. A further problem is
that a bat and the ball may often be separated from each other
during storage, making it difficult to find a complete bat and ball
set once the individual pieces are stored or played with. Another
problem is related to the effort required to bend over to pick up a
ball by hand.
SUMMARY
[0003] A toy bat and ball set is provided. The bat may include a
shell having a proximate portion formed as a handle, and a distal
portion formed in the shape of a barrel with an outer hitting
surface, the distal portion including an opening on a distal end
leading to a void formed in an interior region of the shell of the
bat, the opening being bounded at least partially around a
perimeter of the opening by a lip. The ball may be a resiliently
deformable ball able to be deformed to a reduced diameter that is
smaller than the opening, such that the ball can be inserted
through the opening into the void in the shell of the bat, and
expanded within the void, to thereby be secured within a
ball-receiving region of the void by the lip. Loop patterns of
reinforcing ribbing may be provided on the barrel and handle of the
bat to provide the bat with a visual similarity to the ball, and to
make the bat sufficiently strong in the handle and barrel, even
with the opening formed in the distal portion.
[0004] This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of
concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in
the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify
key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter,
nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed
subject matter. Furthermore, the claimed subject matter is not
limited to implementations that solve any or all disadvantages
noted in any part of this disclosure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] FIG. 1 illustrates a toy bat and ball set according to one
embodiment of the invention.
[0006] FIG. 2 is a schematic drawing of the toy bat of the bat and
ball set of FIG. 1, showing a plurality of balls fit into a void in
the bat.
[0007] FIG. 3 is a detail partial cross sectional view taken as
indicated in FIG. 2, showing details of an opening of a distal
portion of the bat with a ball positioned therein.
[0008] FIG. 4 is a partial cross sectional view of another
embodiment of a lip of the distal portion of the bat of FIG. 1.
[0009] FIG. 5 is a top view of the bat of FIG. 1, showing the
opening in the distal end of the bat, without any balls positioned
therein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0010] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a bat and ball set 100
according to the present disclosure. The toy bat and ball set 100
may include a bat 102 including a shell 106 having a proximate
portion formed as a handle 108, and a distal portion formed in the
shape of a barrel 110 with an outer hitting surface 108. As shown
in FIG. 2, the distal portion may include an opening 112 on a
distal end leading to a void 114 formed in an interior region of
the shell 106 of the bat 102. As shown in detail in FIG. 3, the
opening 112 may be bounded at least partially around a perimeter of
the opening by a lip 118 extending a distance into the opening 112
from a sidewall 113 of the barrel 110 of the shell 106, such that
the opening 112 has an opening diameter A that is smaller than an
inner diameter C of the barrel 110 of the distal portion bordering
a ball-receiving region 115 of the void 114.
[0011] Returning to FIG. 2, the ball-receiving region 115 of the
void 114 is typically sized to accommodate at least one resiliently
deformable ball 104, and the lip 118 is sized to constrain passage
of each ball 104 into and out of the void 114 by deforming the ball
104 as the ball passes over the lip 118, to thereby releasably
retain the ball 104 in the ball receiving region 115 of the void
114 in the shell 106.
[0012] As shown in FIG. 3, the resiliently deformable ball 104 may
be able to be deformed from an original diameter B that is larger
than the opening diameter A to a reduced diameter D that is smaller
than the opening diameter A, such that the ball 104 can be inserted
through the opening 112 into the void 114 in the shell 106 of the
bat 102 when deformed to the reduced diameter D, and expanded
within the void 114 to an expanded diameter that is larger than the
opening diameter A. In this manner, the ball 104 may be secured
within the ball-receiving region 115 of the void 114 by the lip
118. In the depicted embodiment, the original diameter B of the
ball 104 is smaller than the inner diameter C of the barrel 110
bordering the void 114, and the expanded diameter is substantially
equal to the original diameter B of the ball 104. Alternatively,
the original diameter A of the ball 104 may be larger than the
inner diameter C, and once inserted into the void 114 the ball may
expand to contact the inner surface of the sidewall 113 of the
shell 106. In this case, the expanded diameter of the ball may be
substantially equal to the inner diameter C.
[0013] As shown in FIG. 2, the resiliently deformable ball may be
one of a plurality of resiliently deformable balls, illustrated at
104, 104A and 104B, of the bat and ball set 100, and the bat 102
may be configured to simultaneously store the plurality of
resiliently deformable balls 104, 104A, and 104B in the
ball-receiving region of the void. For example, two, three, or
more, balls may be received in the void of the shell and
constrained from exiting the shell by the lip. A lower end of the
barrel 110 may include a tapered region 117 that tapers inward,
resulting in a reduction of an inner diameter of the sidewall of
the shell 106 from the ball-receiving region 115 to the handle 108.
As a result, the inward most ball 104A is constrained from further
ingress by the tapered region 117 of the shell 106, the outward
most ball 104B is constrained from egress by the lip 118, and the
inward most ball 104A and outward most balls 104B and are
resiliently biased against each other, the lip, the tapered region,
and any intermediate balls, to be snugly secured within the void
114. Since the balls 104 are not free to rattle around within the
void 114, such a configuration may promote a secure hold on the
balls when constrained, so that they do not unintentionally come
out.
[0014] As shown in FIG. 5, the opening 112 is typically formed in
the distal end of the barrel so as to open toward a top side of the
bat 102. The lip 118 may extend around substantially an entire
inner perimeter of the opening 112, and may be a continuous
structure. Alternatively, as shown in dashed lines, a lip 118B may
be provided with one or more gaps 125 are formed in the lip around
the opening.
[0015] As shown in FIG. 3, the lip 118 may be formed to extend from
a distal end of the sidewall 113 of the barrel 110. Alternatively,
as shown in FIG. 4, a lip 118A may be provided that extends into
the opening 112 from an inner surface of a sidewall 113 of the
barrel 110.
[0016] A wide variety of materials may be used for the ball 104 and
bat 102. For example, the resiliently deformable ball 104 may be
made of a material, such as plastic, rubber or foam. The material
of the ball 104 may have a durometer hardness between about 70 A
and 90 A, allowing the ball 104 to be crushed or deformed to the
reduced diameter by the hand of even a child. Further, the bat 102
is typically formed of a plastic. Specifically, the bat 102 may be
at least partially made of a vacuum-formed plastic such as
polyethylene. For example, the bat 102 may be vacuum-formed from a
single piece of plastic and then a hole may be cut in the end to
form opening 112, making it relatively inexpensive to
fabricate.
[0017] The bat 102 and ball 104 may be produced in a wide variety
of sizes. In one example, the inner diameter C of the barrel 110 is
between about 3.9 and 4.7 inches, adjacent a ball-receiving region
115 of the void 114. The inner diameter A defined by the lip 118
may be sized to be large enough to allow the resiliently deformable
ball 104 to enter the void 114, yet small enough to be able to
secure the resiliently deformable ball 104 within the void 114.
Thus, in one example, the opening diameter A defined by the lip 118
of the bat 102 may be formed to be between about 3.6 and 4.4
inches. The outer diameter of the barrel 110 of the shell 106 may
be relatively wide, making it easier for a beginner or a toddler to
hit a ball. Thus, in some embodiments, the outer diameter of the
barrel 110 of the bat 102 may be between about 4.6 and 5.6 inches
adjacent the ball receiving region 115 of the void, but other
embodiments are not so limited. Further, in some embodiments, the
overall longitudinal length of the bat may be between about 22 and
28 inches, or about 25 inches, but other embodiments are not so
limited. Such a length enables a taller child or parent, for
example, to pick up the resiliently deformable balls 104 using
opening 112 on the distal end of the bat 102 without having to bend
over as far otherwise would be required to retrieve the ball
104.
[0018] Regarding the properties of the resiliently deformable balls
104, the resiliently deformable ball 104 is formed of a structure
that may change in shape and substantially or completely return to
an original shape. For example, resiliently deformable ball 104 may
be crushed by a hand, and after the hand releases the ball 104, the
ball may return to its previous shape. In the depicted embodiment,
the resiliently deformable ball 104 includes a mesh including a
plurality of loop structures 121, each loop structure having a
curved inside perimeter surface, the loop structures forming the
surface of the ball. The plurality of loop structures may have
cooperative mating surfaces 123 disposed at least partially around
an outer perimeter of each loop structure. The plurality of loop
structures 121 typically have substantially curved inside perimeter
surfaces, to facilitate gripping by the hand, for example, of a
child. The cooperative mating surfaces 123 of adjacent loop
structures are configured to couple together for a distance along
their lengths. It will be appreciated that the loop structures form
the surface of the ball 104 when the cooperative mating surfaces
123 are coupled with each other. Examples of suitable balls that
may be used with the subject bat and ball set 100 are described in
U.S. Pat. No. 6,729,984, entitled TOY BALL APPARATUS, which issued
May 4, 2004, the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated
by reference. It will be appreciated that other resiliently
deformable balls 104, such as foam balls or rubber balls may also
be used with the bat 102.
[0019] As shown in FIG. 1, the shell 106 may include reinforcing
ribbing 119 in the handle 108 of the proximate portion and/or on
the outer hitting surface 108 of the barrel 110 of the distal
portion. In the depicted embodiment, in the handle 108 the
reinforcing ribbing is formed in horizontally stacked loops 119B
that are coaxial with an axis of revolution of the shell of the
bat, and in the barrel 110 a loop mesh 119A adorns the outer
hitting surface of the bat and an axis of revolution of the loops
in the loop mesh 119A is orthogonal to the axis of revolution of
the bat. This pattern of reinforcing ribbing 119 provides
structural reinforcement to prevent buckling or deformation of the
shell 106 of the bat 102 during use, even with the hole cut in the
end of the bat 102 to form opening 112. The pattern of reinforcing
ribbing 119 also improves the appearance of the toy bat 102.
Further, when used with a resilient deformable ball 104 having loop
structures 123, the circular loop shapes 119A in the reinforcing
pattern of the bat 102 provide a visual cue to the user that the
bat 102 and ball 104 are a set meant to be used together.
[0020] In one example use of the toy ball 104 and bat 102 set, it
will be appreciate that a user may swing the bat 102 to cause the
ball 104 to exit the void 114 in the bat 102. In such embodiments,
the lip 118 may be sized such that if enough momentum is imparted
to the resiliently deformable ball 104 in the void 114 during a
swing of the bat, the ball 104 can overcome the gripping strength
of the lip 118 and exit the opening 112 of the bat 102 in a desired
direction.
[0021] In another example use of the toy ball and bat set, the
resiliently deformable ball 104 may be pitched from one player to a
second player with a second bat 102. A game similar to tennis may
be played with two (or more) players, each with their bat 102,
where the resiliently deformable ball 104 may be struck by the
second player after it is pitched from the bat 102 of the first
player. The resiliently deformable ball 104 may be returned by the
second player hitting the resiliently deformable ball 104 with the
bat 102 to the first player either before it hits the ground (a
"volley") or after it has bounced off the ground.
[0022] The above described toy ball and bat set may be used for
solo play or group play as described above, and further offers the
advantages of convenient storage of balls within the bat and ease
of picking up of balls with the bat for taller users.
[0023] It should be understood that the embodiments herein are
illustrative and not restrictive, since the scope of the invention
is defined by the appended claims rather than by the description
preceding them, and all changes that fall within metes and bounds
of the claims, or equivalence of such metes and bounds thereof are
therefore intended to be embraced by the claims.
* * * * *