U.S. patent application number 12/456152 was filed with the patent office on 2009-12-17 for fishing rod rack.
This patent application is currently assigned to Locan Properties, LLC. Invention is credited to Gary L. Byers.
Application Number | 20090308822 12/456152 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41413797 |
Filed Date | 2009-12-17 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090308822 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Byers; Gary L. |
December 17, 2009 |
Fishing rod rack
Abstract
A rack for storing or displaying rod blanks, fishing rods and
fishing rod-reel combinations in an upright vertical position or
for a rod/tackle box combination. The rack is generally spherical
in configuration and comprises top and bottom sections which may be
separated in order to open the bottom section for insertion of
ballast or other weights.
Inventors: |
Byers; Gary L.; (Columbia
Falls, MT) |
Correspondence
Address: |
DOWREY RICKARDS
19119 NORTHCREEK PARKWAY, SUITE 106
BOTHELL
WA
98011
US
|
Assignee: |
Locan Properties, LLC
|
Family ID: |
41413797 |
Appl. No.: |
12/456152 |
Filed: |
June 11, 2009 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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61131940 |
Jun 12, 2008 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
211/85.7 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B 81/005 20130101;
A47F 7/0028 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
211/85.7 |
International
Class: |
A47F 7/00 20060101
A47F007/00 |
Claims
1. A substantially spherical shaped rod rack for holding rod items
for display or storage comprising in combination; upper and lower
pivotally connected hemispherical body sections allowing access to
the interior of said rack, said lower body section including a
contact area adapted for contacting a support surface, at least one
rod receptacle located in said upper body section and having a
downwardly extending wall structure with a bottom wall for
supporting a rod item in a substantially upright position.
2. The rod rack of claim 1 including a plurality of said rod
receptacles spaced around the periphery of said upper body
section.
3. The rod rack of claim 2 wherein; each said rod receptacles
includes a receptacle opening located in the surface of said upper
body section, said receptacle opening having a receptacle rim
conforming to the surface configuration of said upper body
section.
4. The rod rack of claim 3 wherein said upper body section and said
rod receptacles comprise a monolithic structure.
5. The rod rack of claim 3 wherein said upper body section includes
a plurality of spaced openings about the periphery thereof, said
rod receptacles comprise separate structures received in said
spaced openings.
6. The rod rack of claim 3 including a ballast compartment in said
lower body section for stabilizing said rack on a support
surface.
7. A substantially spherical shaped rod rack for holding rod items
for display or storage comprising; upper and lower pivotally
connected hemispherical body sections allowing interior access,
said sections including mating rim areas and latch means on said
rim areas for selectively latching said sections, at least one rod
receptacle located in said upper body section and having a
downwardly extending wall structure with a bottom wall for
supporting a rod item in a substantially upright position.
8. The rod rack of claim 7 including a plurality of said rod
receptacles spaced around the periphery of said upper body
section.
9. The rod rack of claim 8 wherein; each said rod receptacles
includes a receptacle opening located in the surface of said upper
body section, said receptacle opening having a receptacle rim
conforming to the surface configuration of said upper body
section.
10. The rod rack of claim 8 wherein said upper body section and
said rod receptacles comprise a monolithic structure.
11. The rod rack of claim 9 wherein said upper body section
includes a plurality of spaced openings about the periphery
thereof, said rod receptacles comprise separate structures received
in said spaced openings.
12. The rod rack of claim 9 including a ballast compartment in said
lower body section for stabilizing said rack on a support
surface.
13. A support rack for holding elongated rod items in a stationary
substantially upright position for display or storage comprising; a
substantially spherical shaped rack body, said rack body including
upper and lower hemispherical sections having mating rim areas and
hinge means for pivotally connecting said sections for movement
between a closed position and an open position for allowing access
to the interior of said rack body, latch means on said mating rim
areas for selectively latching said sections when in the closed
position, said lower hemispherical section including a contact area
on the bottom surface thereof for contacting a support surface to
maintain said rack body in a supported position, and said upper
hemispherical section including a lift handle structure for lifting
the rack from the support surface, at least one rod receptacle
structure in the wall of said upper hemispherical section for
receiving one end of a rod item and holding said item in a
substantially upright position when said rack is in the supported
position, said rod receptacle extending downwardly from an opening
in the wall of said upper hemispherical section a limited distance
sufficient to permit said rack body sections to be moved to the
open position, said rod receptacle including a bottom wall and
tubular side walls, whereby, an end of a rod item may be inserted
into said receptacle, supported by the bottom wall thereof and held
in a substantially upright position when said rack is in the closed
position and supported on a support surface.
14. The rod rack of claim 13 including a plurality of said rod
receptacles spaced around the periphery of said upper body
section.
15. The rod rack of claim 14 wherein; each said rod receptacles
includes a receptacle opening located in the surface of said upper
body section, said receptacle opening having a receptacle rim
conforming to the surface configuration of said upper body
section.
16. The rod rack of claim 15 wherein said upper body section and
said rod receptacles comprise a monolithic structure.
17. The rod rack of claim 15 wherein said upper body section
includes a plurality of spaced openings about the periphery
thereof, said rod receptacles comprise separate structures received
in said spaced openings.
18. The rod rack of claim 15 including a ballast compartment in
said lower body section for stabilizing said rack on a support
surface.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(e)
of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/131,940 filed
Jun. 12, 2008.
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Field
[0003] The present disclosure relates to a rod rack and more
particularly to a rack for holding multiple fishing rods or rod and
reel combination units either as a display, storage unit or a rod
holder/tackle box combination.
[0004] 2. Prior Art
[0005] There are many rack or support stand systems and designs in
use for supporting fishing rods, rod and reel combinations, rod
blanks or other rod like items for storage or for display in
sporting goods shops and the like. Such items are normally either
placed side-by-side on a specially adapted ledge or shelf at a
convenient level, simply stood upright on the floor or held in
multiple-slotted retaining racks. Some displays are merely placed
in various types of pails or buckets or the like containers. The
problem of storage and display, of course, is augmented when the
individual rods are presented with attached reel mechanisms as a
combination package. It is also desirable in certain circumstances
to present the rod and/or rod-reel combination in an attractive
display or theme display presentation for sales and marketing
promotion. Additionally, the elongated rods and/or rod-reel
combinations are cumbersome to handle and hold upright during
display, requiring some sort of stabilized structure and/or
weighted base to maintain them secure in the upright position. The
present structure provides a solution to the problems described by
providing a sturdy optionally weighted base which maintains
multiple rod and rod-reel combination items in an upright position
for display and inspection or for storage while presenting the
items in a promotional display mode such as a fishing gear
theme.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0006] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the fishing rod rack with
fishing rod and reel combinations being illustrated in dotted lines
as mounted in the rack;
[0007] FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the rod rack taken along
lines 2-2 of FIG. 3;
[0008] FIG. 3 is top plan view of the rod rack; and
[0009] FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the rod rack.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0010] A rod rack according to the present disclosure may be
utilized to mount a multiplicity of rods or fishing rod-reel
combinations securely held in an upright position while at the same
time presenting a fishing gear theme in the nature of a well-known
fishing bobber configuration. The rod rack or holder 1 may be
constructed in generally spherical overall shape as viewed in FIG.
1 which includes a top hemispherical section 2 and a bottom
hemispherical section 3. The bottom section 3 is provided with a
circular base 4 which may be either a flat solid section as shown
in FIG. 2 or possibly a circular ring configuration. In any event,
the base 4 will be designed to provide a stable flat base for
seating the spherical body 1 on a floor surface or the like.
[0011] The top section 2 is designed to be mounted on the bottom
section 3 and includes an annular rim 6 for engaging the top rim
surface of the bottom section 3 as shown in FIG. 2. The bottom
section 3 includes a hinge plate 7 for mating with the hinge
extensions 8 carried by the top section 2. A suitable hinge pin 9
connects the hinge members 7 and 8 in a conventional manner so as
to allow the top section 2 of the sphere to be pivoted upwardly,
giving access to the interior portion of the bottom section 3 for a
purpose to be described. The top section 2 further includes a
handle mounting structure 11 which may be cylindrical in shape
giving the overall appearance of a conventional fishing bobber to
the spherical rack 1. The handle mount will include the lifting
handle 12 with the handle mount 11 providing a recess for seating
the handle 12 in its lowered or released position. The handle 12
includes a downwardly directed shaft 13 and stop member 14 affixed
thereto in such a manner that the handle 12 normally rests within
the recess in the handle mount 11. The handle may be raised in such
a manner that the stop 14 seats against the top wall 16 of the
mount 11 for lifting the entire rack or pivoting the top section 2
about the pivot pin 9 to access the interior portion of the bottom
section 3. Any form of keeper, such as a slidable friction bar or
pivoted latch, may be utilized, as shown schematically at 17, to
engage the rim 6 and hold the sections of the rack body together in
the closed position for lifting.
[0012] Referring to FIG. 2, the top section 2 is formed with
downwardly extending tubular receptacles 18, which may be
identical, with eight such receptacles being shown in the
illustrated embodiment. It will be understood however that the
number of receptacles may be varied depending on the size of the
rack and/or the number of rods to be held in place. Although the
exact dimensions and cross sectional configuration of the
receptacles 18 may be varied, each receptacle 18 will include the
side walls 19 and bottom wall 21. The receptacles 18 will be sized,
of course, to allow the receptacles to clear the rim and
sidewall(s) and the upper rim of the bottom section 3 of the rack
when top section 2 is pivoted to open the rack. Each receptacle 18
is designed to receive the handle end of a fishing rod as
illustrated in FIG. 1 with the insertion of the rod handle being
limited by the bottom 21 of the receptacle. In this manner, the
rods 22 and rod handles 23 are held in the upright display position
as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 1. The spacing of the receptacles
18 may be chosen so as to accommodate a fishing reel unit 24 on one
or more of the rods as desired. The tubular configuration of the
receptacles 18 will serve to hold the rods in the upright position
as shown. Although the receptacles 18 are illustrated as being
molded into the body of the upper section 2, it would also be
possible to fabricate the receptacles separately and mount them in
suitable openings in the section wall, held either by a snug or
snap fit or adhesive. Depending on the total weight of the rack 1,
it may be necessary to store ballast such as sand or gravel or
other material in the bottom section 3, as shown in FIG. 2, to
weight the rack against tipping. This is accomplished by first
opening the top section 2 and then partially filling the bottom
section 3 with such ballast as shown at 26 in FIG. 2. In the
alternative, the bottom section may be secured to the deck, by
screws or any suitable mechanical fastener.
[0013] The rod rack of the present disclosure may be conveniently
manufactured by presently known methods of injection molding such
as to form the top and bottom sections 2 and 3 independently
including the hemispherical shape of the bottom section 3 and hinge
plate 7. Likewise the top section 2 may be a monolithic structure
including the tubular walls 19, bottom walls 21 and the hinge
extension 8. The handle mount structure 11 may be a part of the
monolithic structure of the top section 2 with the handle 12, shaft
13 and stop 14 being added after molding. Likewise the hinge pin 9
is added after molding in order to complete the structure. The
latches shown at 17 may be constructed of a variety of
configurations, parts of which may be monolithic with the bottom
and top sections or attached subsequent to molding. The overall
spherical rack 11 may be finished or colored in red and white
configurations which, along with the handle mount 11, give the
overall impression of a giant fishing bobber. This approach allows
a fishing pole rack to function as an eye catching fishing gear
theme. As aforementioned, the rack may also function as a rod
holder/fishing tackle box combination.
[0014] Although the present embodiment has been described in
considerable detail with reference to certain structural details
and configurations, other embodiments are possible.
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