TECHNICA FIELD

The invention pertains to the general field of hand-held sports equipment such as tennis rackets, golf clubs, hockey sticks and baseball bats and more parti¬ cularly to a weighted assembly that is temporarily wrapped around the sports equipment during the warm-up or practice phase of the game.

BACKGROUND ART

It is a well established act that by attaching a weighted assembly to hand-held sports equipment, such as tennis rackets and golf clubs, and by practicing with the weighted equipment, the sportsman is aided to loosen-up, tone muscles and generally improve timing and rhythm. By practicing with weighted equipment there is also a tendency to correct incoordination problems in the various muscular movements required during a swing¬ ing movement. For example, in the game of golf most high handi¬ cap players do not swing rhythmically but rather just hit the ball with no thought being given to following through after impact with the ball. In the absence of follow-through, the ball literally bounces off the head of the club rather than being driven, thus sacrificing both direction and distance. By practicing with a weighted club, the golfer is assisted to encourage the habit of forming a smooth, continuous follow-through motion for a proper stroke. Likewise, by practicing

with a weighted tennis racket the critical muscles in the arm are developed and strengthened leading to an improved shot.

Most prior-art weighted assemblies are designed to be used on a specific type of sports equipment.

Thus, they are not easily adaptable for use other than for the equipment for which they were designed. Many of the assemblies are also difficult to store when not in use and are not easily attached or removed - some are attached in such a manner that they will scratch or otherwise damage the equipment. Additionally, many of the prior art assemblies are held in place by means of spring clips or elastic material in such a manner that the assembly may come loose during use and thus present a hazard.

A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention. However, the following U.S. patents are considered related and indicative of the prior art: PATENT NO. INVENTOR ISSUE DATE

4,364,560 Ge mel 21 December 1982

4,213,614 Philippi 22 July 1980

4,142,721 Faleck 6 March 1979

4,052,061 Stewart 4 October 1977 4,045,034 Thomas 30 August 1977

4,000,893 Evans 4 January 1977

The Gemmel patent discloses a practice weight that is attached to a hockey stick shaft or handle. The weight is comprised of a U-shaped clamp and a flex- ible cover attached to one side of the clamp. The clamp is slipped over the hockey stick and clamped by a screw. The flexible cover overlaps the clamp screw and is held in place by a friction fastener such as VELCRO.

The Philippi patent discloses a combination golf club head cover and weight attachment for increasing

the weight of the wood club head during practice swings. The cover consists of an upper compartment having a zippered bag that rests on the upper surface of the club head, an open lower compartment that accommodates the ^* club head, and a collar that holds the cover in place. Lead pellets are placed in the zippered bag to add weight to the cover.

The Faleck patent discloses a tennis training aid consisting of a weight and belt assembly that is strapped along the shaft of a tennis racket. The assembly consists of a weighted plate having a pair of parallel slots and a flexible belt which is threaded through the slots to support the plate. A buckle loop is attached to one end of the belt where the other end of the belt has a tab. Formed on the outer end of the tab are hook-shaped fibers which constitutes the male components of a fabric fastener, and formed along the same face of the belt are dispersed fibers creating the female component of the fastener. To strap the assembly to the shaft, the plate is pressed against the shaft and the tab is pulled through the buckle loop and is folded over to cause the male component to engage the female component, thereby holding the assembly tightly on the shaft. The Stewart patent discloses a racket weight increasing device for use with any racket having a shaft with a throat connected to a frame. The device includes a non-continuous flexible member adapted to be wrapped at least one time around the throat of the racket. The weight is integrally located within the flexible member and hooks are provided to attach the device to the racket.

The Thomas patent discloses a golf club weighted attachment formed of a flexible sheet that is wrapped near the hosel of the golf club. The sheet includes a weighted mass and means, such as mating VELCRO

surfaces or snaps, to hold the attachment in place. The weighted mass may be flat pliant members or granular material that is carried in pockets formed in the sheet. The Evans patent discloses a weight holder that adds weight to a tennis racket. The weight holder is comprised of a flexible material havxng two spaced pockets containing a weight in each pocket. The holder includes means to fasten the ends of the flexible material after it has been wrapped around the racket handle.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The universal wrap-around weighted assembly is designed to be temporarily attached to most types of hand-held sports equipment. This equipment includes rackets such as used for tennis, racquetball, etc., golf clubs, hockey sticks and baseball bats. The assembly adds weight to the respective sports equipment during practice to help the player loosen-up, tone muscles, and generally help establish timing and rhythm prior to competition.

The assembly is configured to allow the sportsman to quickly and easily attach and remove the assembly from the equipment. The design also allows for easy storage in a shirt pocket or sports bag when not in use. The assembly is comprised of a flexible pocket into which is inserted a measured amount of ballast, preferably in the form of lead shot. A flexible locking tab is also inserted into the end of the pocket and is firmly attached by stitching the pocket with strong thread. The material of the pocket and locking tab are lock compatible, that is, when the two respective surfaces are pressed together, a firm but temporary bond is established. The locking tab has a small lift tab attached to its end to prevent the end from attaching _*

Thus, defining a grip area from where the lift tab is grasped when the assembly is removed from the sports equipment. Since the assembly is made of non-abrasive material there is no danger that it will in any way scratch, mar or otherwise damage the equipment.

To use the assembly, the flexible pocket is laid flat on the palm of the hand to allow the lead shot to be evenly distributed throughout the pocket. The assembly is then folded at the center of the pocket and wrapped around the sports equipment, i.e., the shaft of a golf club or the throat of a tennis racket. The locking tab is then tightly wrapped around the pocket and locked in place by pressing the locking tab against the pocket. The fastened assembly is designed to remain attached during any swinging motion or other practice movements.

In addition to providing a weighted assembly that allows a sportsman to loosen-up, tone muscles, and establish timing and rhythm, it is also an object of the invention to provide an assembly that; o develops footwork, balance and flexibility, o allows body weight to be transferred to the center of the swing, o forces the sportsman to ollow-through on a swing, o eliminates stiffness prior to competition, o is reliable and safe to use, o is easy to attach and to store when not in use, and o is cost-effective in terms of manufacturing.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the claims taken in conjunc¬ tion with the accompanying drawings.

OMPI

^' BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ^" DRAWINGS

The details of the invention are described in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective overall view of the assembly shown in a partly wrapped-around configuration.

FIGURE 2 is a cutaway top view of an assembly having a single flexible locking tab.

FIGURE 3 is a partial top view of an assembly having multiple flexible locking tabs.. FIGURE 4 is a cutaway side view of the assembly.

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view showing the assembly attached to the shaft of a golf club.

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view showing the assembly with the multiple locking tabs attached to the frame of a tennis racket and an assembly with a single locking tab attached to the throat of a tennis racket.

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view showing the assembly attached to a baseball bat.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

The universal wrap-around weighted assembly 10, as shown in FIGURE 1, is designed to allow a sportsman, during warm-up or while practicing to temporarily attach the assembly to a golf club or hockey stick 30, a tennis racket 32 or a baseball bat 34 as shown in FIGURES 5, 6, and 7 respectively. Although the assembly 10 can be used with many types of rackets, i.e., tennis, racquet- ball, badminton, etc. only the tennis racket is referred to in the discussion. Thus, the term "tennis racket" is intended to apply to all types of rackets.

OMPI

The additional weight provided by the assembly 10 allows the sportsman to make practice swings with weighted sports equipment prior to competition. By using the assembly 10 in this manner a golfer, for example, will be aided to establish a smooth, continu¬ ous follow-through motion for a proper stroke.

The assembly 10, as shown in FIGURES 1, 2, 3 and 4 is comprised of five major elements; a flexible pocket 12,.a ballast 14, a flexible locking tab 16 and a lift tab 18.

The flexible pocket 12, as shown best in FIGURES 2 and 4 is comprised of a flexible material that in the preferred embodiment consists of a rectangular piece of fabric 12a incorporating a knitted loop surface 12b on its outer sides. The knitted loop material is sold under the trademark VELCRO a product of VELCRO USA INC., New York, New York, USA. When the rectangular fabric 12a is folded at its longitudinal center line 12c and the twolongitudinal sides 12d are attached a pocket is formed having an open end 12e. The two longitudinal sides 12d may be attached by either stitching with a strong thread 12f or by an adhesive 12g; the stitching method is preferred.

The size of the flexible pocket is dependent upon the type of sporting equipment on which the inven¬ tion 10 is to be used. For use on golf clubs 30 and tennis rackets 32, the pocket has a length of 4.0 inches (10.2 cm) and a width of 2 inches (5.1 cm). For use on baseball bats 34, the length will vary depending on the diameter of the bat. Generally the length is from 8 to 10 inches (20.3 to 25.4 cm) and the width is from 2 to 3 inches (5.1 to 7.6 cm) .

The ballast 14 inserted into the open end of the flexible pocket 12 provides an optimum weight for the sportsman to take practice swings prior to competition.

The material used for the weight can be either lead shot, ball bearings or scrap metal with the lead shot preferred. The amount of weight inserted is dependent upon where and by whom the assembly is to be used. For example, for use on golf or tennis a 0.25 lb (0.11 kg) weight is preferred; for baseball the amount of weight is dependent on the level and skill to the players. The following weights are suggested:

LEVEL/SKILL WEIGHT Professional, College or High School 0.5 to 1 lb

(0.23 to 0.34 kg)

Little League 0.25 to 0.5 lbs

(0.11 to 0.23 kg)

The flexible locking tab 16, as best shown in

FIGURES 1, 2 and 4, provides the means by which to lock the assembly 10 in place after it is tightly wrapped around the sporting equipment. The tab 16 is comprised of two embodiments: the first is a single tab 16a that is primarily attached to assemblies 10 that are used on golf clubs and hockey sticks 30, baseball bats 34 and around the throat of wooden tennis rackets 32; the second embodiment is divided into a plurality of inde¬ pendent tabs 16b, with three tabs preferred, that is attached around the main strings at the upper frame 32a of a tennis racket 32. In both embodiments, the tab 16 is comprised of a lexible material that has a woven hook surface on its outer side, that is lock compatible with the knitted loop surface of the flexible pocket 12. The woven hook material is also sold under the trademark VELCRO.

The size of the locking tab 16 is dependent on the type of assembly 10 used. • For the assembly used on golf clubs 30 and some tennis rackets 32, the single

tab has a length of 3.5 inches (8.8 cm) and a width of 1 inch (2.5 cm) . The multiple tab embodiment is the same size except that the tab is divided into three equal independent tabs 16b as shown in FIGURE 3. For the assembly used for baseball bats, the locking tab has a suggested length of three-forths the length of the flexible pocket and a width of 1 inch (.2.5 cm) .

One end of the tab 16, which in the case of the second embodiment is the end opposite the split tabs 16b is inserted into and attached to the open end of the flexible pocket 12.

Attached to the far end of the attachment side of the locking tab 16 is a ^" lift tab 18 as best shown in FIGURES 1, 2 and 4. The lift tab 18 has on one side a knitted loop surface 18a that is lock compatible with the woven hook surface of the locking tab 16. The lift tab has a.length of 0.25 inches (0.64 cm) and a width equal to the width of the single tab 16a or in the case of the split tabs 16b equal to the width of each split tab. When the lift tab 18 is attached, the end of the locking tab is prevented from locking onto the surface of the flexible pocket 12. Thus, the locking tab 16 can be easily grasped and unlocked when the assembly is removed from the sporting equipment. As an alternative method to prevent the end of the locking tab 16 from attaching to the surface of the flexible pocket 12, the end of the locking tab can be folded over and sewn in place.

To assembly the assembly 10, the flexible rectangular material 12a with the knitted loop surface 12b on its outer side is cut to size and bend at its center so that the two outer ends come together. The suggested sizes are presented supra. The longitudinal sides 12d are then sealed so that a flexible pocket 12 is formed. The sealing means is accomplished by either

stitching with a strong thread 12f or by applying an adhesive 12g with the- stitching method preferred.

After the flexible pocket 12 is formed a weighted quantity of ballast 14 is inserted into the pocket by conventional means. The suggested weight and composition of the ballast is presented supra. After the ballast is inserted one end of the flexible locking tab 16 is inserted into the open end 12e of the pocket 12 and the open- end is stitched closed. The final step in the assembly is to attach to the second (outer) end of the flexible tab 16 the lift tab 18. The assembly is then ready for attachment to the sports equipment and subsequent use.

To attach and use the assembly 10, the flexible pocket 12 is laid flat on the palm of the hand to allow the ballast 14 to be evenly distributed throughout the inside of the pocket 12. The assembly is then folded at the center of the pocket 12 and is then tightly wrapped around the sporting equipment and locked in place by pressing the locking tab 16 against the surface of the flexible pocket 12. The sportsman then takes practice swings until it is time to compete, at which time the assembly 10 is removed and placed in the sportsman shirt pocket or sports bag. Although the invention has been described in complete detail and pictorially shown in the accompany¬ ing drawings, it is not to be limited to such details, since many changes and modifications may be made to the Universal Wrap-Around Weighted Assembly for Sports Equipment without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Hence, it is described to cover any and all modifications and forms which may come within the language and scope of the claims.