BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

FIELD OF THE INVENTION:

[0001] This invention relates generally to bags, and more particularly to a sports bag adapted to holding sports equipment.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART:

[0002] Sports equipment is typically carried in large duffel bags, or a wide variety of other traditional bags. It is desirable to have a sports bag that can be opening completely to a flat configuration for placing the sports equipment on the large planar sheet, and then folding the sheet over to form a bag for carrying the sports equipment.

[0003] To be completely flat, it is necessary that the fasteners on the side disconnect from each other so it can lay completely flat. It is also desirable that the bag be made of mesh or other suitable material, and have suitable reinforcement straps. The mesh allows the bag to breath and allow evaporation of sweat and other moisture, while the straps enable to bag to be strong enough to carry heavy equipment without tearing. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] The present invention teaches certain benefits in construction and use which give rise to the objectives described below.

[0005] The present invention provides a sports bag has a sheet body comprising a first edge, a second edge, and a pair of side edges. A fold point traverses the sheet body, between the first and second edges, separating the sheet body into a first panel and a second panel. A pair of zipper fastening mechanisms are each disposed along one of the pair of side edges, and comprise interlocking attachment strips extending in opposite directions from the fold point. The interlocking attachment strips of each zipper fastening mechanism are initially entirely disconnected from each other so that the sheet body may be positioned completely flat, but the interlocking attachment strips may be fastened together so that the first and second panels are connected together at the side edges to form an inner chamber between the first and second panels. Furthermore, at least one handle is attached to the elongate sheet body for carrying the sports bag.

[0006] A primary objective of the present invention is to provide a sports bag having advantages not taught by the prior art.

[0007] Another objective is to provide a sports bag that can be opened and laid completely flat. [0008] A further objective is to provide a sports bag that enables adequate ventilation, while still being strong enough to carry heavy sports equipment.

[0009] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following more detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] The accompanying drawings illustrate the present invention. In such drawings: [0011] FIGURE 1 is a top perspective view of a sports bag according to one embodiment of the present invention and shown positioned flat with sports equipment on top of the sports bag;

[0012] FIGURE 2 is bottom plan view of the sports bag, without the sports equipment;

[0013] FIGURE 3 is an up-close view showing one of a pair of zipper fastening mechanisms of the sports bag;

[0014] FIGURE 4 illustrates the sports bag being folded, and the zipper fastening mechanism being attached together; and

[0015] FIGURE 5 illustrates the sports bag when each of the pair of zipper fastening mechanisms are fully interlocked to form an inner chamber for holding the sports equipment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] The above-described drawing figures illustrate the invention, a sports bag that may be unzipped such that it can be positioned flat.

[0017] FIGURE 1 is a top perspective view of a sports bag 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention and shown positioned flat with sports equipment 12 on top of the sports bag 10. FIGURE 2 is bottom plan view of the sports bag 10, without the sports equipment 12. As shown in Figs. 1-2, the sports bag 10 comprises a sheet body 20 having a top surface 21a and a bottom surface 21b, a first edge 22a and a second edge 22b, and a pair of side edges 24, and a fold point 26 that traverses the sheet body 20, between the first and second edges 22, that separates the sheet body 20 into a first panel 28 and a second panel 29. In this embodiment, the sheet body 20 is constructed of a mesh material, though any suitable materials may be used, e.g. a natural or synthetic knit, a sheet constructed of plastic, rubber, etc., a mixture of these, or any other desired materials.

[0018] As shown in Figs. 1-2, the sports bag 10 further comprises at least one handle 30 attached to the sheet body 20 for carrying the sports bag 10. In this embodiment, the at least one handle 30 is in the form of a first handle 31a located adjacent the first edge 22a of the sheet body 20, and a second handle 31b located adjacent the second edge 22b. In other embodiments, the at least one handle 30 may be in the form of a single handle attached at two points to the sheet body 20, or a drawstring handle, or any other form of handle deemed acceptable by the manufacturer. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the first and second handles 31 are each in the form of a fabric strap having ends 32 that are attached to the sheet body 20. However, in alternative implementations, the first and second handles 31 may each also include a rigid portion, or the handles 31 may be tubes instead of straps, and/or the handles 31 may be connected only at one end. While one example is shown in Figs. 1-2, any potential form of handles for carrying a sports bag 10 may be used, and the present invention is not limited to the embodiment disclosed herein.

[0019] As shown in Figs. 1-2, in this embodiment, the first and second ends of the first and second handles 31 are connected to each other via first and second reinforcement straps 34 that extend the length of the sheet body 20. As illustrated, the first and second reinforcement straps 34 may be spaced from each other a first distance DI that is greater than a second distance D2 between each of the first and second reinforcement straps 34 and its respective side edge 24. However, in some embodiments, the reinforcement straps 34 may be structured differently than the example of Figs. 1-2 (e.g., having an additional reinforcement strap(s) across the first and second reinforcement straps 34, etc.), or the reinforcement straps 34 may be excluded from the sheet body 20.

[0020] As shown in Figs. 1-2, the sheet body 20 further comprises a pair of zipper fastening mechanisms 36 each disposed along one of the pair of side edges 24. In this embodiment, the zipper fastening mechanisms 36 each comprise a pair of interlocking attachment strips 38 extending in opposite directions from the fold point 26 and each including a top stop 40 adjacent the first and second edges 22 of the sheet body 20. The interlocking attachment strips 38 may be further from or closer to the fold point 26 and/or first and second edges 22 than illustrated, depending on the desired points of attachment. The zipper fastening mechanisms 36 are best shown in Fig. 3 and discussed in further detail below.

[0021] FIGURE 3 is an up-close view showing one of the pair of zipper fastening mechanisms 36 of the sports bag 10. As shown in Figs. 1-3, in this embodiment, one of each of the pairs of attachment strips 38 includes a zipper slider 42 having a puller 44 and a retainer box 46 adjacent the fold point 26. The other of each attachment strips 38 includes an insertion pin 48 for engagement with the zipper slider 42. As illustrated, the attachment strips 38 of each zipper fastening mechanism 36 can be entirely disconnected from each other so that the first and second panels 28 and 29 of the sheet body 20 may be positioned completely flat. Therefore, the first and second panels 28 and 29 must be pulled upwardly to connect the insertion pin 48 and the zipper slider 42, shown in the following Figures and discussed below.

[0022] For the purposes of this application, “flat” is defined as a position wherein the sports bag 10 is generally flush with and conforming around the surface beneath it; it is understood that surfaces such as the ground or a table may not be precisely horizontal or level mathematically speaking, and such surfaces should be considered within the scope of the present invention.

[0023] FIGURE 4 illustrates a person connecting the zipper fastening mechanisms 36 together, and FIGURE 5 illustrates the sports bag 10 when the each of the pair of zipper fastening mechanisms 36 are fully interlocked to form an inner chamber 50 for holding the sports equipment 12. As shown in Figs. 4-5, the interlocking attachment strips 38 may be fastened together so that the first and second panels 28 and 29 are connected together at the side edges 24 to form the inner chamber 50 between the first and second panels 28 and 29.

[0024] In use, as shown in Figs. 1-5, the sheet body 20 of the sports bag 10 may be laid flat on a surface such as the ground, wherein items that the user wants to carry within the bag 10 are placed on the top or bottom surfaces 21 of the sheet body 20, in the present example the top surface 21a. In the present example, the sports bag 10 is being used to carry the sports equipment 12, but any desired equipment or other items may be carried (e.g., housewares, picnic items, construction tools, etc., or any other desired items), depending on the size and material of the sports bag 10. Next, the insertion pin 48 of each of the pair zipper fastening mechanisms 36 is inserted into the zipper slider 42, wherein the zipper slider 42 may be pulled upwardly via the puller 44 to join the pair of interlocking attachment strips 38 together, thereby pulling the first and second panels 28 and 29 upwardly from the fold point 26 to form the inner chamber 50. In this configuration, the top surface 21a is on the inside of the sports bag 10, and the bottom surface 21b is on the outside. Obviously, in the case of placing the sports equipment 12 on the bottom surface 21b prior to joining the pair of zipper fastening mechanisms 36 would result in the bottom surface 21b being on the inside of the sports bag 10.

[0025] In this embodiment, once the pair of attachment strips 38 are interlocked, the first and second edges 22 of the sheet body 20 are generally adjacent. In some embodiments, an additional fastener such as a press stud, clasp, tie, hook-and-loop fastener, etc., may secure the first and second edges 22 together. Alternatively, the first edge 22a may overlap the second edge 22b, depending on the location of the fold point 26. [0026] The title of the present application, and the claims presented, do not limit what may be claimed in the future, based upon and supported by the present application. Furthermore, any features shown in any of the drawings may be combined with any features from any other drawings to form an invention which may be claimed. [0027] As used in this application, the words “a,” “an,” and “one” are defined to include one or more of the referenced item unless specifically stated otherwise. The terms “approximately” and “about” are defined to mean +/- 10%, unless otherwise stated. Also, the terms “have,” “include,” “contain,” and similar terms are defined to mean “comprising” unless specifically stated otherwise. Furthermore, the terminology used in the specification provided above is hereby defined to include similar and/or equivalent terms, and/or alternative embodiments that would be considered obvious to one skilled in the art given the teachings of the present patent application. While the invention has been described with reference to at least one particular embodiment, it is to be clearly understood that the invention is not limited to these embodiments, but rather the scope of the invention is defined by claims made to the invention.