Subj ect of Invention

The subject of the invention is a panel assembly of a sports field board, wherein the panel assembly is a constituent part of a sports field board defining and delimiting a sports field and separating it from the rest of the space.

Technical Problem

A technical problem solved by the present invention is how to design such panel assembly of a sports field board that will on the one hand be a constituent element of a sports field board and on the other hand offer an unlimited area for an information field intended to display any information by way of an information display and all this in a way to maintain the continuity of the sports field board both in its solidity and visual appearance, wherein the mounting of the panel assembly should be simple, economically acceptable and integratable into an already existing sports field board without any considerable changes.

Prior Art

Normally, team sports are played in a confined space having a limited size. In certain sports, the limits of a sports field are defined by vertically arranged board elements, the assembly of which forms a fixed sports field board having a sufficient stability to withstand intentional or unintentional impacts of players, impacts of sports requisites and at the same time prevents a player or a sports requisite to leave the sports field. This type of sports field board is used especially in learn sports like ice hockey, indoor hockey, indoor football and others. Regardless of the type of sport, each sports field board must meet the fundamental requirements for stability and safety. A sports field board is an assembly of panels and support piles that support panels. The panels are usually made from wood or a suitable plastic, whereas the support piles are usually made of metal. For safety reasons, the inner surface of the board facing a sports field must be smooth and without any projections. The inner surface of a sports field board must be prevailingly white in order to offer a better overview of a sports requisite like a puck or a ball. The light smooth inner surface of a sports field board is a huge potential surface for a display of information, especially advertisements, since a game is watched by a certain number of spectators. The inner surface of a sports field board is therefore additionally equipped with a thin board of a transparent plastics, under which a piece of information is inserted in the form of a printed sheet. The space for information is limited to the inner surface of a sports field board and since there is a considerable need for the quantity of displayed information, the latter needs to be changed. To be able to do that, the transparent information board needs to be removed, new information inserted and the transparent board replaced, which is certainly a time consuming task. Moreover, certain information remain displayed for at least the duration of one game. Such type of providing information to the audience is very time consuming and even more importantly, the number of information is limited to a relatively small number depending on the size of information and the sports field board as the available space.

For the above reasons, there have been attempts to display information on a display of a known type, e.g. an LCD monitor, a LED monitor, inserted into the opening in a sports field board, fastened to the sports field board and computer controlled. The quantity of information per unit length in a certain time interval, like the duration of one game, is thus considerably increased. The display is protected by a transparent plastic board protecting it from mechanical damages in case a player or a sports requisite comes in direct contact with the display. Although the display is arranged on the sports field board at a distance from the transparent board, the transparent board often gets elastically deformed when a player or a sports requisite impacts the transparent board, comes in contact with the display and consequently damages it. A disadvantage of such type of information display lies in the fact that a display is embedded in the opening of a sports field board, which destroys the continuity of a board and the required stability thereof. If a monitor is switched off when information are not displayed for saving or other reasons, the white continuity of a sports field board is discontinued, which is disturbing both for player and spectators who cannot follow a sports requisite. In order to maintain the colour continuity, the monitor should be switched on all the time and must contain information in the form of a white surface.

Solution to the Technical Problem

The described technical problem is solved by a panel assembly of a sports field board comprising a support board fastened to a base frame of the assembly and a protective board parallel offset and distanced from the support board. Apart from these two elements, the panel comprises at least one U-shaped profile support fastened by means of screws to the upper part of a frame and comprising at least one longitudinal cut-out receiving a fastening element, preferably a stud with a nut, onto which a display of a known type is fastened, e.g. an LCD monitor or a LED monitor, in a way that the display freely hangs on the stud at the external side of the sports field board and is spaced from the support wall for a certain distance. An existing centring pin on the display is used to connect the display and the stud. The fastening element provides for regulation of the display in height, whereas longitudinal regulation is provided by a longitudinal displacement of the fastening element along the profile support cut-out. The gap between the support board and the protective board is occupied by a perforated white film fastened at one of the opposed surfaces of the support board or protective board. Both the support board and the protective board are manufactured from transparent plastic, preferably polycarbonate. In case of a need for a larger information field than offered by one display, several displays of the same type can be connected into one panel assembly in a known way, wherewith the display area is increased. Each display is connected to one control unit controlling the exchange of information within an information field.

Adequate stability of the panel assembly is ensured by an additional internal frame arranged on the base frame, which at the same time delimits the display(s), yet is not connected with it(them). Dimensions of the panel assembly correspond to those of the panels integrated into a certain sports field board. Therefore the panel assembly can be assembled in the same way into a sports field board. The panel assembly and thus the sports field board is fastened to the ground in a known way.

The concept of the panel assembly of a sports field board of the invention provides for a reliable operation of the display without mechanical damages, especially of LEDs, because the profile support allows a spacing between the display and the support board and the display freely hangs on the profile support in the upper section of the panel assembly. In case a player impacts the panel assembly, the latter deflects as to its vertical axis. The flexible connection profile support / fastening element allows the display to swing from its basic position due to gravity and to shift from the support board. As the display(s) has (have) a certain mass and inertia, the display reassumes its zero position more slowly than the remaining part of the panel assembly, this is why the support board and the display or its illumination elements do not come in direct contact with the support board. A possibility of a display being subject to damages is practically nil.

When the display is not active, the display function is assumed by the white film giving an impression that the entire surface, i.e. the support wall, of the panel assembly is white. Simultaneously, the perforation of the film is large enough not to cause distorted or defective information when the latter are displayed. As the dimensions of the panel assembly of the invention correspond to those of panel assemblies of known type, the panel assembly of the invention can be integrated into any sports field board under construction in a very simple way. In case of an already erected sports field board, a part of the sports field board is removed and replaced by the panel assembly of the invention.

A further advantage of such information panel assembly is that each display arranged in a certain panel assembly can be connected via control unit with displays of other panel assemblies in the same sports field to achieve harmonised functioning. Moreover, several displays on separate locations can be interconnected and controlled via central control unit.

The invention will now be described in more detail by way of a description of an embodiment and the enclosed drawings, wherein

Fig. 1 shows a schematic longitudinal cross-section of a panel assembly of a sports field board of the invention;

Fig. 2 shows a top view of a profile support of the display.

A panel assembly 1 of the invention of a sports field board comprises a metallic base frame 2, on which a support panel 4 is vertically fastened, preferably screwed. A lean ledge 6 is arranged on the upper longitudinal edge of said support panel 4 and an a repulsive ledge 7 is arranged on the opposite bottom inner part of said support panel 4. The base frame 2 is furnished with an additional internal frame 3 fastened on said base frame 2, which ensures the fundamental stability of the board. The support panel 4 is a panel made of plastics, preferably polycarbonate, of a prescribed strength and thickness to absorb part of energy upon a player's impact and does not break. It is transparent. A transparent protective panel 5 is arranged on the inner side of the board at a distance from said support panel 4 and parallel with it, so a gap 10 is formed, in which a self-adhesive perforated film 11 is placed on one of oppositely lying surfaces of both panels 4, 5.

At least one U-shaped profile support 8 is fastened to the frame, preferably the base frame 2 of said panel assembly 1 for fastening a display 9. Said profile support 8 is provided with webs 14', 14" and a central section 16, wherein said central section 16 is provided with at least one longitudinally shaped cut-out 12 in longitudinal direction of said profile support 8 for receiving a fastening element 13. One web 14' extends over the entire length of said profile support 8, whereas the other web 14" extends only over the central length of said profile support 8 in a way that terminal sections 15', 15" are formed at each end of said profile support 8, said terminal sections 15', 15" being arranged in the flat part of said central section 16 and comprising fastening holes 17. The profile support 8 is provided in its central portion with at least one, preferably two, along the longitudinal axis extending cut-outs 12 for receiving said fastening element 13, which carried said display 9. The fastening element 13 in the embodiment is conceived as a stud 13' with a nut 13". The profile support 8 of said display 9 is fastened to a frame, preferably said base frame 2, for instance with screws. To this purpose, the profile support 8 is provided on its shorter web 14" and on terminal sections 15', 15" with fastening holes 17 for receiving a screw, with which said profile support 8 is fastened to said base frame 2.

Said profile support 8 is made of metal. When in a deployed shape, the profile support 8 is actually a rectangular having a notch 20a, 20b on one of its longitudinal sides at each end, said notches 20a, 20b allowing to bend the web 14" of said profile support 8.

The panel assembly 1 of the invention is inserted into a series of known panel assemblies or several panel assemblies 1 of the invention are arranged next to each other and fastened to a sports field board in a way that the metallic frame 2 is arranged outside the sports field delimited by the sports field board, i.e. at the external side of the sports field board. The display 9 arranged within a certain panel assembly 1 is controlled by a control unit 18 that controls also all the remaining displays on a certain sports field. Several displays on separate locations can also be mutually connected and controlled via central control unit 19.

It is understood that a man skilled in the art may design other embodiments based on the above disclosure without circumventing the essence of the invention defined in the appended patent claims.