U.S. patent application number 17/175882 was filed with the patent office on 2021-08-05 for polygonal basketball hoop arrangement.
This patent application is currently assigned to Brego 360 Holdings, LLC. The applicant listed for this patent is Brego 360 Holdings, LLC. Invention is credited to Shane Brey, Anthony Gomez.
Application Number | 20210236896 17/175882 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005527026 |
Filed Date | 2021-08-05 |
United States Patent
Application |
20210236896 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Brey; Shane ; et
al. |
August 5, 2021 |
POLYGONAL BASKETBALL HOOP ARRANGEMENT
Abstract
A basketball hoop arrangement includes three basketball
backboards and hoops commonly connected to the upper end of a
support structure. The backboards are arranged such that respective
top and bottom edges thereof form triangles with respective front
surfaces of the three basketball backboards facing outwards and
respective rear surfaces of the three basketball backboards facing
inwards. Each hoop is connected to a different one of the
respective front surfaces and extends outwardly therefrom. A lower
end of the support structure is configured to support the support
structure and the three basketball backboards on an underlying
surface. A basketball game is played by moving a basketball in a
playing area extending around all of the at least three backboards,
and scoring points by putting the basketball through any one of the
at least three hoops.
Inventors: |
Brey; Shane; (Sanford,
FL) ; Gomez; Anthony; (Sanford, FL) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Brego 360 Holdings, LLC |
Lake Mary |
FL |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Brego 360 Holdings, LLC
Lake Mary
FL
|
Family ID: |
1000005527026 |
Appl. No.: |
17/175882 |
Filed: |
February 15, 2021 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
16661984 |
Oct 23, 2019 |
10918922 |
|
|
17175882 |
|
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|
62749455 |
Oct 23, 2018 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B 2071/026 20130101;
A63B 71/023 20130101; A63B 2243/0037 20130101; A63B 2225/093
20130101; A63B 63/083 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A63B 63/08 20060101
A63B063/08; A63B 71/02 20060101 A63B071/02 |
Claims
1. A basketball hoop arrangement comprising: three basketball
backboards arranged such that respective top and bottom edges
thereof form triangles with respective front surfaces of the three
basketball backboards facing outwards and respective rear surfaces
of the three basketball backboards facing inwards; three basketball
hoops, each hoop connected to a different one of the respective
front surfaces and extending outwardly therefrom; and a support
structure connected to the three basketball backboards for
supporting the support structure and the three basketball
backboards above an underlying surface.
2. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 21, wherein the support
structure includes three support arms extending outwardly from the
upper end of the support structure, each of the support arms
connected to a different one of the respective rear surfaces.
3. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 21, wherein the support
structure includes a central post extending between the upper end
and the lower end.
4. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 3, wherein the support
structure further includes three support arms extending outwardly
from the central post at the upper end, each of the support arms
connected to a different one of the respective rear surfaces.
5. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 3, wherein the central
post includes telescoping upper and lower post sections, such that
a distance between the upper end and lower end of the support
structure can be changed to alter a height of the three basketball
hoops relative to the underlying surface.
6. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 5, further comprising a
drive motor operable to raise and lower the upper post section
relative to the lower post section.
7. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 21, further comprising
a padding arrangement arranged around the support structure at the
lower end and extending at least part way to the upper end.
8. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 21, wherein the lower
end of the support structure is configured to be fixedly mounted to
the underlying surface.
9. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 21, wherein the lower
end of the support structure includes a carriage assembly supported
by a plurality of casters.
10. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 9, wherein each of the
plurality of casters is a locking caster.
11. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 9, wherein the
carriage assembly includes a first vertical stud configured to
receive at least one weight plate thereon.
12. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 11, wherein the
plurality of casters includes three casters arranged in a triangle
commonly oriented with the triangles formed by the top and bottom
edges of the three basketball backboards.
13. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 12, wherein the first
vertical stud is located adjacent to a first of the three casters
and the carriage assembly further includes second and third
vertical studs arranged, respectively, adjacent to a second and
third of the three casters.
14. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 13, wherein the
support structure includes a central post extending between the
upper end and the lower end.
15. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 14, further comprising
a padding arrangement arranged around the support structure at the
lower end and extending at least part way to the upper end, the
padding arrangement including a lower padding section covering the
carriage assembly and an upper padding section covering at least
some of the central post above the carriage assembly, the lower
padding section having a greater diameter than the upper padding
section.
16. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 15, wherein the
central post includes telescoping upper and lower post sections,
such that a distance between the upper end and lower end of the
support structure can be changed to alter a height of the three
basketball hoops relative to the underlying surface.
17. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 16, further comprising
a drive motor operable to raise and lower the upper post section
relative to the lower post section.
18. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 16, wherein the upper
padding section ends below a junction of the upper and lower post
sections.
19. A method of playing a basketball game using a basketball hoop
arrangement having at least three basketball backboards arranged
such that respective top and bottom edges thereof form polygons
with respective front surfaces of the at least three backboards
facing outwards and respective rear surfaces of the at least three
basketball backboards facing inwards, a single basketball hoop
extending outwardly from each of the respective front surfaces, and
a support structure holding the at least three backboards above an
underlying surface, the method comprising: moving a basketball in a
playing area extending around all of the at least three backboards;
and scoring points by putting the basketball through any one of the
at least three hoops.
20. The method of claim 19, wherein the basketball hoop arrangement
is portable and the method comprises an initial step of placing the
basketball hoop arrangement on the underlying surface.
21. The basketball hoop arrangement of claim 1, wherein the support
structure has an upper end connected to the three basketball
backboards and a lower end for supporting the support structure and
the three basketball backboards on the underlying surface.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. Non-provisional
patent application Ser. No. 16/661,984 filed on Oct. 23, 2019,
which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application
Ser. No. 62/749,455, filed on Oct. 23, 2018, the contents of which
applications are herein incorporated by reference in their
entirety.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to basketball equipment, and
more particularly, to basketball hoops, backboards and support
equipment.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The conventional basketball court arrangement includes two
hoops and backboards supported or suspended above the ground at
opposite ends of the court. Many courts, like courts frequently
found in school gymnasiums, will include additional
hoops/backboards along sides of the court, allowing smaller
practice areas to be carved out of a large full court. While such
arrangements are useful, they are often quite expensive to
implement, and remain relatively limited with respect to the number
of competitors that can usefully practice or play
simultaneously.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a
basketball hoop arrangement includes three basketball backboards
and hoops commonly connected to the upper end of a support
structure. The backboards are arranged such that respective top and
bottom edges thereof form triangles with respective front surfaces
of the three basketball backboards facing outwards and respective
rear surfaces of the three basketball backboards facing inwards.
Each hoop is connected to a different one of the respective front
surfaces and extends outwardly therefrom. A lower end of the
support structure is configured to support the support structure
and the three basketball backboards on an underlying surface.
[0005] According to an aspect of the present invention, a height of
the support structure is variable. According to another aspect of
the present invention, the lower end of the support structure
includes a carriage assembly with a plurality of casters allowing
the basketball hoop arrangement to be easily moved between desired
locations.
[0006] According to a method aspect, a basketball game is played
using a basketball hoop arrangement having at least three
basketball backboards arranged such that respective top and bottom
edges thereof form polygons with respective front surfaces of the
at least three backboards facing outwards and respective rear
surfaces of the at least three basketball backboards facing
inwards. A single basketball hoop extends outwardly from each of
the respective front surfaces, and a support structure holds the at
least three backboards above an underlying surface. The method
includes moving a basketball in a playing area extending around all
of the at least three backboards, and scoring points by putting the
basketball through any one of the at least three hoops.
[0007] These and other objects, aspects and advantages of the
present invention will be better appreciated in view of the
drawings and following detailed description of preferred
embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a basketball hoop
arrangement, according to an embodiment of the present
invention;
[0009] FIG. 2 is a top view of the basketball hoop arrangement of
FIG. 1;
[0010] FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view of the basketball hoop
arrangement of FIG. 1, taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2;
[0011] FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view of a support structure
of a basketball hoop arrangement, according to an alternate
embodiment of the present invention, with padding removed to show
internal details;
[0012] FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view of the support
structure of FIG. 4, partially cutaway to show internal details;
and
[0013] FIG. 6 is a plan view of a plurality of basketball hoop
arrangements arranged for use on an underlying surface.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0014] Referring to FIGS. 1-3, according to an embodiment of the
present invention, a basketball hoop arrangement 10 includes three
basketball backboards 12 carried by a support structure 14. The
three backboards 12 are arranged such that their top and bottom
edges 16, 20 form triangles with their front surfaces 22 facing
outwards and their rear surfaces 24 facing inwards. A basketball
hoop 26 extends outwardly from each front surface 22.
[0015] The support structure 14 extends between an upper end 30,
which carries the backboards 12, and a lower end 32 configured to
support the arrangement 10 on an underlying surface. At the upper
end 30, three support arms 34 extend from a cap 36. Each support
arm 34 connects to a mounting frame 40 on the rear surface 24 of a
respective one of the backboards 12. Angle brackets 42 connect
adjacent sides of the mounting frames 40.
[0016] The cap 36 is attached to a central post 44 at the upper end
30. A flange 46 at the lower end 32 has a plurality of slots 50
through which the support structure 14 can be bolted to the
underlying surface. The support structure 14 can be made of any
suitable material, with non-limiting examples including steel,
aluminum and ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMW).
Likewise, the backboards 12 and hoops 26 can also be made of any
suitable material, with non-limiting examples of backboard
materials including acrylic and aluminum. The hoops 26 can attach
to the backboards 12 with fixed or breakaway mountings.
[0017] The lower end 32 of the support structure 14 depicted in
FIGS. 1-3 is configured to be fixed to an underlying surface.
Advantageously, the basketball arrangement 10 can also be made
portable. Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, in an alternate embodiment of
the support structure 14A, a carriage assembly 52A is connected at
the lower end 32A. In the description of this alternate embodiment,
similar components will be given the same reference number followed
by an "A" (e.g., 32, 32A). It will be appreciated that the upper
end of the hoop arrangement 10 remains as shown and described in
connection with the foregoing embodiment.
[0018] The carriage assembly 52A includes a plurality of casters
54A. The casters 54A are preferably locking casters to immobilize
the hoop arrangement 10 temporarily when placed in a desired
location. Advantageously, the carriage assembly 52A includes three
casters 54A connected by a carriage frame 56A so as to form a
triangle. The triangle formed by the casters 54A is preferably
commonly oriented with the triangles formed by the top and bottom
edges 16, 20 of the backboards 12 (see, e.g., dashed lines in FIG.
2).
[0019] To provide additional stability to the hoop arrangement, the
carriage assembly 52A includes one or more vertical studs 60A that
are dimensioned to receive the central aperture of weight plates.
Preferably, there are three vertical studs 60A, each of which is
located adjacent to a respective one of the casters 54A.
[0020] For added safety, at least a portion of the support
structure 14 extending upwardly from the lower end 32 is covered
with a padding assembly 62A. In the embodiment of FIGS. 4 and 5,
with a carriage assembly 52A, the padding assembly 62A includes a
lower section 64A which extends up high enough to cover the
carriage assembly 52A and any weight plates on the vertical studs
60A. An upper section 66A has a smaller diameter than the lower
section 64A and extends upwardly therefrom to cover more of the
central post 44A.
[0021] Advantageously, the height of the support structure 14, and
thus the height of the backboards 12 and hoops 26, can be made
variable. In the support structure 14A, the central post 44A
includes telescoping upper and lower sections 70A, 72A. By raising
and lowering the upper section 70A relative to the lower section
72A in the directions of arrow 74A, the overall height the hoop
arrangement is varied. A drive motor 76A, preferably located
internally, is operable to raise and lower the upper section 70A.
Although particularly advantageous in connection with the portable
support structure 14A, it will be appreciated that a variable
height support structure could readily be employed with a support
structure configured for fixed attachment to an underlying
surface.
[0022] Referring to FIG. 6, it will be appreciated that a plurality
of hoop arrangements 10 (or 10A) can be located on an underlying
surface 80, allowing multiple playing areas 82 to be realized in a
relatively limited space. Within each playing area 82, multiple
players can be involved in drills and other games in which a
basketball 84 is moved around all of the multiple backboards 12;
for example via passing (long dashed lines) and dribbling (short
dashed lines). Points can be scored by shooting or otherwise
putting the basketball 84 through any of the hoops 26 (e.g.,
long-short dashed lines).
[0023] The foregoing is provided for illustrative and exemplary
purposes; the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto.
Rather, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various
modifications, as well as adaptations to particular circumstances,
are possible within the scope of the invention as herein shown and
described and of the claims appended hereto.
* * * * *