U.S. patent application number 14/467034 was filed with the patent office on 2015-02-26 for kit for adapting a tennis court of one size to a court of smaller size.
The applicant listed for this patent is Gary Ehasoo. Invention is credited to Gary Ehasoo.
Application Number | 20150057114 14/467034 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 52480883 |
Filed Date | 2015-02-26 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150057114 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Ehasoo; Gary |
February 26, 2015 |
KIT FOR ADAPTING A TENNIS COURT OF ONE SIZE TO A COURT OF SMALLER
SIZE
Abstract
An adaptation kit is used for adapting a standard tennis court
into at least one tennis court of a smaller size. The kit has a
hook for attachment to the center strap anchor of the standard
tennis court and a hook for attachment to a link in a fence
bounding the standard court. The kit includes a net suspension line
extendible between the hooks, and a pair of posts, each post having
a foot for engagement with the ground and a support element at its
top for supporting the net suspension line. The kit includes a net
suspended from the net suspension line. The kit can include a
cross-strap extending between the attachments, the cross strap, in
use, extending at ground level directly between the center strap
anchor and the link.
Inventors: |
Ehasoo; Gary; (Etobicoke,
CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Ehasoo; Gary |
Etobicoke |
|
CA |
|
|
Family ID: |
52480883 |
Appl. No.: |
14/467034 |
Filed: |
August 24, 2014 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61869755 |
Aug 25, 2013 |
|
|
|
61914933 |
Dec 11, 2013 |
|
|
|
61950184 |
Mar 9, 2014 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
473/492 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B 2208/12 20130101;
A63B 61/02 20130101; A63B 61/003 20130101; A63C 19/00 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
473/492 |
International
Class: |
A63B 61/02 20060101
A63B061/02; A63B 61/00 20060101 A63B061/00 |
Claims
1. An adaptation kit for adapting a standard tennis court into at
least one tennis court of a smaller size comprising a first
attachment piece for attachment to the center strap anchor of the
standard tennis court, a second attachment piece for attachment to
a link in a fence bounding the standard tennis court, a net
suspension line extending between the first and second attachments,
first and second posts each post having a foot for engagement with
the ground to support the posts, each post having a support element
at its top for supporting the net suspension line, and a net
suspended from the net suspension line.
2. An adaptation kit as claimed in claim 1, the adaptation kit
further comprising a cross strap extending between the second
attachment piece and the first attachment piece, the cross strap
deployable to extend directly at ground level between the center
strap anchor and the link.
3. An adaptation kit as claimed in claim 2, the line including a
first line part forming a first cross strap portion for extending
at ground level from one of the first and second attachment pieces,
and a second line part for extending from a first junction point at
the end of the first line part remote from said one attachment
piece to the support element at one of the posts.
4. An adaptation kit as claimed in claim 2, the cross-strap and the
or each foot having respective formations thereon, which formations
are interengageable to prevent relative lateral movement between
the or each foot and the cross strap.
5. An adaptation kit as claimed in claim 3, the line further
including a third line part forming a second cross strap portion
for extending at ground level from the other of the first and
second attachment pieces, and a fourth line part for extending from
a second junction point at the end of the third line part remote
from said other attachment piece to the support element at the
other of the posts.
6. An adaptation kit as claimed in claim 2, the cross strap being
of web form.
7. An adaptation kit as claimed in claim 2, the cross strap having
apertures therein to enable pinning of the cross strap to the
ground.
8. An adaptation kit as claimed in claim 3 in which the junction is
a stitched junction.
9. An adaptation kit as claimed in claim 1, each of the posts
inclined to the plane of its respective foot.
10. A standard tennis court adapted by the use of an adaptation kit
to provide at least one tennis court of a smaller size than said
standard tennis court, the standard tennis court having a first
attachment piece of the kit attached to the center strap anchor of
the standard tennis court, a second attachment piece of the kit
attached to a link in a fence bounding the standard tennis court, a
net suspension line of the kit extending between the first and
second attachments, first and second posts of the kit, each post
having a foot engaging the ground to support a respective post and
having a support element at its top for supporting the net
suspension line, a net suspended from the net suspension line
between the respective posts and a line adjuster mounted in the
line.
11. A court as claimed in claim 10, further comprising a cross
strap extending directly at ground level between the center strap
anchor and the link.
12. A court as claimed in claim 11, the line including a first line
part forming a first cross strap portion extending at ground level
from one of the first and second attachments pieces, and a second
line part extending from a first junction point at the end of the
first line part remote from said one attachment piece to the
support element at one of the posts.
13. A court as claimed in claim 11, the cross-strap and the or each
foot having respective formations thereon, which formations are
interengageable to prevent relative lateral movement between the or
each foot and the cross strap.
14. A court as claimed in claim 12, the line further including a
third line part forming a second cross strap portion extending at
ground level from the other of the first and second attachment
pieces, and a fourth line part extending from a second junction
point at the end of the third line part remote from said other
attachment piece to the support element at the other of the
posts.
15. A court as claimed in claim 11, the cross strap being of web
form.
16. A court as claimed in claim 11, the cross strap having
apertures therein at which the cross strap is pinned to the
ground.
17. A court as claimed in claim 12, the junction being a stitched
junction.
18. A court as claimed in claim 10, each of the posts inclined to
the plane of its respective foot.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENTS
[0001] The present application claims priority under 35 USC 119(e)
to the provisionally filed applications entitled "KIT FOR ADAPTING
STANDARD TENNIS COURT" having Ser. No. 61869755, filed on Aug. 25,
2013, "KIT FOR ADAPTING A TENNIS COURT OF ONE SIZE TO A COURT OF
SMALLER SIZE" having Ser. No. 61914933, filed on Dec. 11, 2013, and
"KIT FOR ADAPTING A TENNIS COURT OF ONE SIZE TO A COURT OF SMALLER
SIZE" having Ser. No. 61950184, filed on Mar. 9, 2014, the contents
of which applications are incorporated herein by reference
thereto.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] This invention relates to tennis courts and particularly to
tennis courts adapted for children's tennis play.
DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART
[0003] A standard singles tennis court measures 78 feet long and 27
feet wide. These dimensions have been adopted to fit the adult game
but are ill suited for children who lack the height, reach and
strength to cover such a large area of court. For children's tennis
smaller courts are needed. It would be advantageous to use features
and equipment commonly present at standard tennis facilities to
permit rapid conversion to multiple smaller, yet serviceable,
tennis courts.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0004] For simplicity and clarity of illustration, elements
illustrated in the following figures are not drawn to common scale.
For example, the dimensions of some of the elements are exaggerated
relative to other elements for clarity. Advantages, features and
characteristics of the present invention, as well as methods,
operation and functions of related elements of structure, and the
combinations of parts and economies of manufacture, will become
apparent upon consideration of the following description and claims
with reference to the accompanying drawings, all of which form a
part of the specification, wherein like reference numerals
designate corresponding parts in the various figures, and
wherein:
[0005] FIG. 1 is a plan view of a standard tennis court.
[0006] FIG. 2 is a plan view of one side of the court of FIG. 1,
but showing the deployment of an adaptation kit according to one
embodiment of the invention.
[0007] FIG. 3 is a side view of the one side of the court of FIG.
2.
[0008] FIG. 4 is a plan view of part of a standard tennis court
showing the deployment of an adaptation kit according to another
embodiment of the invention.
[0009] FIG. 5 is a side view of the part of the court of FIG.
4.
[0010] FIG. 6 shows a plan view of part of a standard tennis court
showing the deployment of an adaptation kit according to yet
another embodiment of the invention.
[0011] FIG. 7 shows a side view of one side of a court according to
another embodiment of the invention.
[0012] FIG. 8 shows a side view of one side of a standard tennis
court showing the deployment of an adaptation kit according to a
further embodiment of the invention.
[0013] FIG. 9 shows an end view of a minicourt showing a post and
foot arrangement according to an embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION INCLUDING THE PRESENTLY
PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0014] Referring in detail to FIG. 1, there is shown in plan view a
standard tennis court. The court has, singles play sidelines 10,
doubles play sidelines 11, a net 12, service lines 14, center
service line 16, baselines 18 and center marks 20. As is well
known, a tennis game is played in such a way that, other than at
service, each player tries to land the ball after clearing the net
in the area of the opposing player's half court extending between
two of the sidelines (10 or 11, depending on whether a singles or
doubles match) and between the net 12 and the baseline 18 of that
half court.
[0015] One half of a standard singles tennis court measures 39 feet
long and 27 feet wide. Someone standing in the center of his or her
half court would have to move about 24 feet to get to the furthest
corners of the half court. The court dimensions have been adopted
to fit the adult game but are ill adapted for children who lack the
height, reach and strength to cover such a large area of court.
[0016] Referring to the plan view of FIG. 2, there is shown one
half of a standard court in which there is highlighted a minicourt
22 being an area for children to play tennis. This minicourt
extends across the standard court. One half court of the minicourt
extends in the length direction between the doubles sidelines 11 of
the standard court and extends in the width direction between the
baseline 18 and the service line 14 of the standard court. Someone
standing in the center of his or her half of the minicourt would
have to move about 12 feet to get to the furthest corners of the
half court. This is half the corresponding distance of the standard
court and is clearly better adapted for children's play.
[0017] Most tennis courts have a boundary fence as shown at 24.
Such a fence might completely surround a single standard court with
enough room for a player to play effectively around the court.
Alternatively, a fence might extend around less than the four sides
of the court. However, most courts will include a boundary fence at
least at the front and back of the court spaced a reasonable
distance from the respective baselines 18 in order to stop missed
balls and so save players from having to walk back a long distance
to retrieve missed balls. Such boundary fences are usually of chain
link form.
[0018] Most tennis courts have a center strap anchor 26 at center
court. This has an anchor point set into the tarmac, grass or clay
of the court to which is attached one end of a tie strap. The strap
goes over the top of the cord and is attached at its other end to
the center strap anchor. The strap is used to set the height of the
net at its center (usually 3 feet) somewhat lower than the height
(usually 3.5 feet) of the net at left and right posts where the net
is supported at the sides of the court.
[0019] A tennis conversion kit according to one embodiment of the
invention is shown in its deployed condition in FIGS. 2 and 3. The
kit includes a pair of hooks or shackles 28, such as carabiners,
between which extends a net suspension line 30 from which is
suspended a tennis net 32. The suspension line 30 can be a separate
line onto which the net 32 is threaded or otherwise attached.
Alternatively, the suspension line 30 forms an integral part of the
net 32. The suspension line 30 is supported at sheaves or pulleys
34 mounted at or near the top of respective posts 36 with the
suspension line 30 retained within grooved surfaces of the sheaves
34. The sheaves rotate in bearings mounted at or near the top of
the posts 36. The posts have integral feet 38 which are flat plates
welded to the bottom end of the posts 36. The feet can
alternatively be formed as spikes (not shown) for insertion into a
grass or clay court. In yet other alternative, the feet are
detachable from the posts or attached as foldable elements to the
posts. Close to one of the shackles 28 is an adjustment mechanism
40 by means of which (a) the length of the suspension line 30 can
be adjusted and (b) a line 30 of a particular length can be
tensioned. The adjustment mechanism 40 can be of any suitable form
using, for example, principles of operation found in mechanisms to
adjust and tension automobile seat belts. The kit can alternatively
include separate adjustment devices: one to enable the length of
the suspension line to be altered and the other being a fine
adjustment device to set tension in the line.
[0020] To deploy the kit, the adjustment mechanism 40 is operated
to adjust the a length of the suspension line 30 to be somewhat
longer than the distance between the chain link fence 24 and the
center strap anchor 26, such distance measured along the center
service line 16. The carabiners 28 are then used to snap tie one
end of the line 30 at a lower link of the fence 24 and to snap tie
the other end of the line 30 at the center strap anchor 26. The
posts 36 are then erected as shown and the line 30 is supported in
the sheaves 34. The adjustment mechanism 40 is then operated to
tension the line 30 over the sheaves 34 and to strengthen the
engagement of the posts with the ground.
[0021] As shown in FIG. 3, the posts 36 each have a telescopic
structure with a spring mounted locking button 42 in an upper
telescopic piece 44 selectively seatable in one of a series of
holes 46 in the lower telescopic piece 48, so allowing the height
of the post 36, and thus the height of the minicourt net 32, to be
adjusted. The net 32 is also fixed at the bottom of each post using
any convenient means such as an integral eye on the post and a cord
hanging from the net. In addition, to provide a more authentic
aspect to the net, further ties from the center top of the net to
the bottoms of the posts allow the center of the net to be held at
a height slightly lower than the ends of the net.
[0022] As shown in the plan view of FIG. 2, the sides of the
minicourt are the baseline 18 and service line 14 of one half of
the standard doubles court. Similarly, the ends of one half of the
minicourt are a doubles court sideline 11 and the kit net 32. This
makes a minicourt half which is 18 feet square. This may be
perfectly adequate for a certain setup for children's tennis play
and has the advantage of using lines of the standard doubles court.
There are other lines of the standard singles and doubles court
which might alternatively be used to establish a court of different
area, length, width, or length-to-width ratio, while still using
the principle of the invention in anchoring a net suspension line
between the boundary fence 24 and a standard court center strap
anchor 26.
[0023] A minicourt which is specifically tailored to provide a
certain area, length, width and/or aspect (length to width) ratio
is alternatively obtained using boundary tape which is nailed
through grommets to the court surface or which is fixed by
adhesive, in each case to provide a boundary line which is easily
seen and is not easily dislodged during play, but which can be
removed from the larger court when the children's play period is
ended. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, such a boundary tape can be fixed
to the court in a position where it functions as a minicourt
sideline 50 (FIG. 4). In this particular embodiment, an extended
kit is deployed having two pairs of posts to establish two
minicourts, each minicourt extending across a standard singles half
court, the two minicourts spaced along the length of the standard
half court. As shown in FIG. 6, the boundary tape is fixed to the
court in a position where it can function as the minicourt
baselines 52. It will be appreciated that although the illustrated
embodiments of the invention show a standard dimensioned court
which is adapted to provide one or more smaller courts, the kit of
the invention can be used to form minicourts on any larger court.
In this respect, the use of the word standard is not intended to be
limiting and should in this specification be understood to mean
merely a larger court which can be adapted to provide one or more
minicourts.
[0024] Referring in detail to FIG. 7, there is shown a side view of
a further embodiment of the invention. The standard court
conversion kit illustrated in FIG. 3 has been deployed but with a
blocking line 54 extending from the chain link fence 24 to the
standard court net 12. The blocking line 54 extends from anchor
points 56, 58 at the chain link fence 24 and the main net 12 which
are at roughly the height of the top of the minicourt net 32. The
blocking line 54 has a length adjustment mechanism 60 which is used
to shorten or lengthen the blocking line to have it extend
reasonably tautly from the fence 24 to the standard court net 12.
The line 54 has shackles or other tie means at each end to enable
the blocking line to be fixed to the fence and the standard court
net at the anchor points 56, 58. To ensure that the blocking line
tracks generally along the top of the minicourt net 32 when the kit
is deployed, a quick fasten retainer 64 is used to hold the two
lines 30, 54 and together.
[0025] In use, the parts of the blocking line 54 outside the
minicourt net 32 prevent someone from walking between the left hand
end of the net 32 and the fence 24, and from walking between the
right hand end of the net 32 and the main net 12. The blocking line
therefore helps to prevent distraction and interference. Depending
on how busy the court environment, the blocking line may be limited
to one or other of the blocking net parts 66, 68. In this case, the
blocking line might close off one side of the minicourt but not the
other. Such a short blocking line can be fixed to the appropriate
post 36 or minicourt net 32, or could alternatively be fixed such
as by splicing to the net suspension line 30. Such a short blocking
line preferably extends horizontally but can also slope downwardly
or upwardly to the fence or main net as desired. The blocking line
can be brightly coloured or can support a flag of some kind to show
more clearly that the way past the minicourt is intended to be
barred.
[0026] Referring to FIG. 8, some tennis clubs may not want to have
the overall tennis playing area crossed by net suspension lines 30
(shown in broken line) if they prevent club members from walking
along the side of the chain link fence 24 in the area shown as 70.
For the embodiment of FIG. 8, an court adaptation kit further
includes a cross strap 71 which, in use, extends at ground level
directly between the chain link fence 24 and the center strap
anchor 26. The cross strap has a first part 72 for extending
between the chain link fence 24 and a union 74 and a second part 76
for extending between the union 74 and the center strap anchor 26.
The cross strap 71 is of web form whereby the web will naturally
tend to rest flat against the ground. An adjustment and clamp
mechanism 78 is used to trim the length of the cross strap 71 to
the distance between the center strap anchor 26 and the chain link
fence 24.
[0027] The cross strap part 72 actually forms a first part of the
net suspension line 30, with a second part of the net suspension
line extending from the union 74 over the sheave 34 on the near
post 36. The union 74 can be a shackle and ring arrangement, a
stitched arrangement, or any functionally similar union. In use,
the cross strap, if tightly tensioned between shackles or other
attachment members at ground level at the chain link fence and the
centre strap anchor, will tend to hold the junction 74 to the
ground. This means, in turn, there is no length of net suspension
line 30 positioned at an inconvenient height between the chain link
fence 24 and the position of junction 74.
[0028] Several variations of the FIG. 8 embodiment are possible. In
one variation, the web form cross strap 71 is nailed through
grommets to the court surface or is fixed to the court surface by
adhesive. In both cases, this assists in the cross strap being held
against the court surface. In another variation, to allow access
along the side of the minicourt adjacent the net 12, the net
suspension line 30 and the cross strap part 72 have a configuration
and union similar to the union 74.
[0029] In the embodiment of FIG. 8, the cross strap 71 passes under
the feet 38. In a further variation, the cross-strap, where it
passes under each foot 38, has an anchoring piece engaging with the
foot so as to prevent relative lateral movement, both along and
across the minicourt, of the feet relative to the cross strap. In
another variation, the cross strap consists of multiple lengths
such as a first length for extension between the chain link fence
and the bottom of one of the posts, a second length for extending
between the bottoms of the two posts, and a third length for
extending between the center strap anchor and the bottom of the
other post. In another variation, the cross strap length adjustment
and clamp mechanism is formed at one end of the cross strap so that
length adjustment is implemented at the chain link fence or at the
center strap anchor. In this variation, the cross strap is a
continuous single length extending between the center strap anchor
and the chain link fence.
[0030] Referring to FIG. 9, there is shown a further embodiment of
the invention in which each of the posts 36 extends at an angle to
the foot 38 which is not a right angle. As illustrated in FIG. 9,
the result of applying tension in the net suspension line 30 is
that a force T is applied to the top of the post 36 along the part
of the net extension line attached to the bottom of the chain link
fence 24. This force has a component Tcos.theta. acting
horizontally to the left and a force Tsin.theta. acting vertically
downward. A force T acts along the part of the net extension line
over the net tending to drive the top of the post to the right. If
the post is vertical, the difference between horizontal forces T
acting to the right and Tcos.theta. acting to the left fence causes
the post to be subjected to a clockwise moment of force about the
point of engagement of the bottom of the post and the ground. The
moment, which might tend to cause the post to topple in the absence
of any balancing force, is negated by having the post inclined at
an angle .theta./2 to the vertical as shown in FIG. 9. The angle of
attachment between the foot 38 and the post 36 can be a fixed
attachment with the angle designed to compensate for the expected
angle .theta. when the adaptation kit is installed. Alternatively,
the attachment can be of hinge form offering a range of possible
angles .theta. to enable specific adaptation to the dimensions of
the playing area in which the adaptation kit is deployed, the hinge
adjustment including a clamping mechanism for clamping the post 36
and its attached foot 38 at the desired angle.
* * * * *