The present invention relates to a water sport board suspender. More particularly but not exclusively it relates to surfboard suspender to suspending a surfboard from a bar, beam or hook from an overhead location in a showroom or storage region.

BACKGROUND

Owners of water sport boards are frequently faced with the problem of finding suitable ways of storing these devices when not in use. In particular in cases where multiple water sport boards need to be stored, for example in a shop environment, space restrictions may lead to a situation where conventional ways of stacking the boards becomes impractical or annoying.

In addition, while storing the boards in an upright position would be desirable in many situations, this is unsafe unless a way of securing the boards in this position is provided.

Most owners refrain from retrofitting permanent mounting structures to their boards to facilitate storing thereof, like mounting lashes or hooks, or drilling holes. Such measures may negatively affect the integrity of the board and may also be aesthetically unattractive.

In this specification, where reference has been made to external sources of information, including patent specifications and other documents, this is generally for the purpose of providing a context for discussing the features of the present invention. Unless stated otherwise, reference to such sources of information is not to be construed, in any jurisdiction, as an admission that such sources of information are prior art or form part of the common general knowledge in the art.

For the purposes of this specification, the term "plastic" shall be construed to mean a general term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic polymerization products, and generally consisting of a hydrocarbon-based polymer.

For the purpose of this specification, where method steps are described in sequence, the sequence does not necessarily mean that the steps are to be chronologically ordered in that sequence, unless there is no other logical manner of interpreting the sequence. It is an object of the present invention to provide a water sport board suspender which overcomes or at least partially ameliorates some of the abovementioned disadvantages or which at least provides the public with a useful choice.

STATEMENTS OF INVENTION

In a first aspect the present invention may be said to broadly consist in a water sport board suspender for suspending a water sport board, that includes a safety leash plug that presents a cross bar at where a safety leash can secure, from a rail or anchor or hook or the like secured to a building structure, the suspender comprising a main body that presents; i. at a first end thereof at least one of (a) an aperture therein (b) an aperture therethrough, (c) a loop formation (d) a hook formation, by which the suspender can releasably engage to and become suspended by the rail or anchor or hook or the like, ii. at a second end thereof, that is opposite to the first end, a bayonet fitting that is configured to secure to the water sport board at the safety leash plug using the cross bar to secure the water sport board in a releasable manner to the suspender.

In one embodiment, the bayonet fitting is insertable into the plug and configured to be rotated at least 20 degrees about a notional axis parallel the insertion direction to secure with the cross bar.

In one embodiment, the bayonet fitting is movable relative to the main body between a first position in which the bayonet fitting can be engaged with or disengaged from the cross bar by rotating the bayonet fitting, and a second position in which such rotation is prevented when the bayonet fitting and the cross bar are engaged.

In one embodiment, the bayonet fitting is movable between the first position and the second position in a direction parallel to the insertion direction.

In one embodiment, the main body comprises a first surface facing the water sport board when the suspender is engaged with the water sport board, and a second surface opposite the first surface, and wherein the bayonet fitting forms a head portion of an elongate member insertable through the main body via a through hole in the main body and extending over the first surface and the second surface, substantially parallel to the insertion direction.

In one embodiment, the elongate member comprises a threaded portion opposite the head portion, the threaded portion comprising a male thread, and wherein the elongate member is configured to extend over both the first surface and the second surface when inserted into the through hole.

In one embodiment, the suspender comprises a nut member comprising a female thread, the female thread being configured to receive the male thread of the threaded portion when screwed on the elongate member from the second surface.

In one embodiment, the threaded portion and the through hole comprise corresponding cross-sectional shapes configured to prevent a rotation of the elongate member relative to the main body when the elongate member is inserted in the through hole, such that when the elongate member is inserted in the through hole and the nut member is screwed on the elongate member and engages the second surface, a rotation of the nut member effects the movement of the bayonet fitting relative to the main body depending on a direction of the rotation of the nut member.

In one embodiment, the corresponding cross-sectional shapes each comprise a circular peripheral portion along which the male or, respectively, the female threads are formed, and a straight portion forming a circular tendon in relation to the circular peripheral portion.

In one embodiment, a rotation of the nut member, when the bayonet fitting engages the cross bar, effects the movement of the bayonet fitting between the first position and the second position, wherein in the second position the head portion is pulled towards the first surface by the nut member to transfer a clamping force via the nut member to the main body, by which clamping force a frictional engagement between the first surface and a surface of the water sport board that comprises the safety leash plug is effected.

In one embodiment, the head portion of the elongate member comprises a cross sectional shape that prevents the bayonet fitting from moving into the through hole when the elongate member is inserted in the through hole. In one embodiment, the first surface comprises a material that promotes friction between the main body and the water sport board when exposed to a clamping force perpendicular to the first surface, such as a rubber material.

In one embodiment, a friction pad is arranged on the first surface in an area adjacent to or around the through hole, configured to promote friction between the main body and the water sport board when exposed to a clamping force perpendicular to the first surface, such as a rubber material.

In one embodiment, the bayonet fitting comprises a groove configured to receive the cross bar, and undercut portions configured to engage the cross bar when the bayonet fitting is rotated about the notional axis parallel the insertion direction.

In one embodiment, the undercut portions are arranged substantially perpendicular to the groove, such that a relative rotation between the bayonet fitting and the cross bar of approximately 90 degrees about the notional axis effects that the cross bar engages with the undercut portions.

In one embodiment, the nut member comprises a substantially circular, discshaped body accommodating the female thread in a central portion thereof, and a grip portion configured to be grasped by a user, the grip portion and the female thread being arranged on opposite sides of the disc-shaped body.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a water sport board suspender for suspending a water sport board, that includes a safety leash plug that presents a cross bar at where a safety leash can secure, from a rail or anchor or hook or the like secured to a building structure, the suspender comprising a main body that presents; i. at a first end thereof at least one of (a) an aperture therein (b) an aperture therethrough (c) a loop formation (d) a hook formation, by which the suspender can releasably engage to and become suspended by the rail or anchor or hook or the like, ii. at a second end thereof, that is opposite to the first end, a fitting that can secure to the safety leash plug using the cross bar to secure the water sport board in a releasable manner to the suspender by being insertable into the plug and turned at least 20 degrees about a notional axis parallel the insertion direction to secure with the cross bar. According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a water sport board suspender for suspending a water sport board, that includes a safety leash plug that presents a cross bar at where a safety leash can secure, from a rail or anchor or hook or the like secured to a building structure, the suspender comprising a main body that presents; i. at a first end thereof at least one of (a) an aperture therein (b) an aperture therethrough (c) a loop formation (d) a hook formation, by which the suspender can releasably engage to and become suspended by the rail or anchor or hook or the like, ii. at a second end thereof, that is opposite to the first end, a fitting that can secure to the safety leash plug using the cross bar in a twist and lock manner to secure the water sport board in a releasable manner to the suspender.

Other aspects of the invention may become apparent from the following description which is given by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As used herein the term "and/or" means "and" or "or", or both.

As used herein "(s)" following a noun means the plural and/or singular forms of the noun.

The term "comprising" as used in this specification [and claims] means "consisting at least in part of". When interpreting statements in this specification [and claims] which include that term, the features, prefaced by that term in each statement, all need to be present but other features can also be present. Related terms such as "comprise" and "comprised" are to be interpreted in the same manner.

The entire disclosures of all applications, patents and publications, cited above and below, if any, are hereby incorporated by reference.

This invention may also be said broadly to consist in the parts, elements and features referred to or indicated in the specification of the application, individually or collectively, and any or all combinations of any two or more of said parts, elements or features, and where specific integers are mentioned herein which have known equivalents in the art to which this invention relates, such known equivalents are deemed to be incorporated herein as if individually set forth.) The invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the drawings in which:

Figure 1: shows a first perspective view of a water sport board suspender according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2: shows a second perspective view of a water sport board suspender according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 3: shows a side view of a water sport board suspender according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 4: shows a perspective view of a bayonet fitting of a water sport board suspender according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 5: shows a perspective view of a water sport board suspender according to an embodiment of the invention, attached to a water sport board;

Figure 6: shows a perspective view of a detail of the water sport board suspender shown in Figure 2;

Figure 7: shows a perspective view of a safety leash plug that may be used with embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference to the above drawings, in which similar features are generally indicated by similar numerals, a water sport board suspender according to a first aspect of the invention is generally indicated by the numeral 1000.

The water sport board suspender 1000 is configured to be used on a water sport board 5000, shown in Figure 5, including a safety leash plug that presents a cross bar 5400 at where a safety leash can secure. Such safety leash plugs comprising cross bars 5400, as shown in Figure 7, are known to the skilled person and exhibit widely standardised dimensions and shapes.

As can be seen in Figure 5, the suspender 1000 can be secured to the water sport board 5000 e.g. at a stern end 5100 thereof accommodating the safety leash plug which in Figure 5 is concealed by the second end 1120 of the suspender 1000.

The safety leash plug 5300 as seen in Figure 7 comprises a body 5310 that can be set flush with the deck 5150 of the water sport board 5000. The safety leash plug 5300 defines a cup region 5320 that has a cross bar 5400 extending across from one side of the cup region 5320 to the other. The cross bar 5400 generally extends parallel the board surface 5200 of the deck of the surfboard 5000 at where the safety leash plug 5300 is installed. A longitudinal axis of the cross bar 5400 is indicated at y.

During use of the water sport board 5000, a safety leash 6000 may be attached to the safety leash plug 5300.

In one embodiment now described in relation to Figure 1, the water sport board suspender 1000, which in the following will also be referred to as a suspender 1000, comprises a main body 1100 that presents at a first end 1110 thereof at hook formation 1200, by which the suspender 1000 can releasably engage to and become suspended by a rail or anchor or hook or the like structure secured to a building structure.

In alternative embodiments, the first end 1110 comprises alternative or additional structural elements to releasably engage the suspender 1000 to a building structure, including an aperture in the main body 1100, for instance a blind hole, an aperture therethrough, or a loop formation.

At a second end 1120 of the main body 1100, that is opposite to the first end 1110, the main body 1100 presents a bayonet fitting 2100, shown in Figure 3, which is configured to secure to the water sport board 5000 at the safety leash plug 5300 thereof using the cross bar 5400 of the plug 5300 to secure the water sport board 5000 in a releasable manner to the suspender 1000.

The bayonet fitting 2100 is insertable into the safety leash plug 5300 of the water sport board 5000 and configured to be rotated at least 20 degrees and preferably 90 degrees about a notional axis parallel the insertion direction, indicated "x" in the figures, to secure with the cross bar 5400.

In the embodiment shown in figures, the bayonet fitting 2100 forms a head portion 2110 of an elongate member 2000 which is insertable through the main body 1100 via a through hole 1300 in the main body 1100. As can best be seen in Figures 2 and 3, the elongate member 2000, when inserted into the through hole 1300 which in Figure 3 is shown in dotted lines, extends beyond the main body 1100 on two opposing sides thereof, defined by a first surface 1410 and a second surface 1420, substantially parallel to the insertion direction x. For the purpose of illustration, an extension 2200 of the elongate member 2000 is shown in Figures 3 and 4.

The bayonet fitting 2100 is preferably movable relative to the main body 1100 in a direction parallel to the insertion direction x within the through hole 1300, between a first position in which the bayonet fitting 2100 can be engaged with or disengaged from the cross bar 5400 by rotating the bayonet fitting 2100, and a second position in which such rotation is prevented when the bayonet fitting 2100 and the cross bar 5400 are engaged.

As will be explained in more detail below, in the embodiment shown in the figures, such movement between the first and second position is facilitated by the interaction of the elongate member 2000 and a nut member 3000.

Turning to Figure 4, the elongate member 2000 comprises a threaded portion 2300 opposite the head portion 2110, the threaded portion 2300 comprising a male thread. The male thread is configured to extend beyond the second surface 1420 when inserted into the through hole 1300 from the first surface 1410.

While the skilled person will appreciate that the threaded portion 2300 has a cross sectional dimension that allows it to be inserted in the through hole 1300, the head portion 2110 of the elongate member 2000 comprises a cross sectional shape that prevents the bayonet fitting 2100 from moving into the through hole 1300 when the elongate member 200 is inserted in the through hole 1300. In the embodiment shown in figure 4, the head portion 2110 has a cross section that is considerably wider than a cross section of the threaded portion 2300. In the figure, this is represented by the cross-sectional measurements D1 and D2, where Dl, indicating a width of the head portion 2110, is greater than Dl, indicating a with of the threaded portion 2300. Accordingly, the elongate member 2000 can only be inserted in the through hole 1300 until the head portion 2110 engages the surface surrounding the through hole 1300.

As can be seen in Figures 1-3, the suspender 1000 comprises a nut member 3000 comprising a female thread 3100 (shown in Figure 3), the female thread 3100 being configured to receive the male thread 3100 of the threaded portion when screwed on the elongate member 3000 from the second surface.

As will be appreciated, the extension 2200 of the elongate member 2000 is configured such that, when the elongate member 2000 is inserted through the through hole 1300 from the first surface, the head portion 2110 extends beyond the first surface 1410 to an extent that allows it to engage with the cross bar 5400, while the threaded portion 2300 extends beyond the second surface 1420 to an extent that it can engage with the female thread 3100 of nut member 3000, as can be seen in Figure 3, for example. The threaded portion 2300 and the through hole 1300 comprise corresponding cross-sectional shapes configured to prevent a rotation of the elongate member 2000 relative to the main body 1100 when the elongate member 2000 is inserted in the through hole 1300. In the embodiment of Figure 4, the threaded portion 2300 of the elongate member 2000 has a cross-sectional shape that comprises a circular peripheral portion 2310 along which the male thread is formed, and a straight portion 2320 forming a circular tendon in relation to the circular peripheral portion 2310.

The skilled person will appreciate that in the embodiments shown in the figures, the through hole 1300 has a corresponding cross-sectional shape that comprises a circular peripheral portion along which the female thread is formed, and a straight portion forming a circular tendon in relation to the circular peripheral portion of the through hole 1300, such that the threaded portion 2300 of the elongate member 2000 can be inserted into the through hole 1300.

This way, when the elongate member 2000 is inserted in the through hole 1300 and the nut member 3000 is screwed on the elongate member 2000 and engages the second surface 1420, a rotation of the nut member 3000 effects the movement of the bayonet fitting 2100 relative to the main body 1100.

Herein, the direction of the relative movement depends on the rotational direction of the nut member. If the corresponding male and female threads of the elongate member 2000 and the nut member 3000 are configured as a right-handed thread, a rotation of the nut member 3000 in a clockwise direction when viewed from the second surface 1420 effects a relative movement of the bayonet fitting 2100 towards the first surface 1410, while an anti-clockwise rotation effects a relative movement of the bayonet fitting 2100 away from the first surface 1410.

Accordingly, when the bayonet fitting 2100 engages the cross bar 5400 of the safety leash plug of the water sport board 5000, a rotation of the nut member 3000 effects the movement of the bayonet fitting 2000 between the first position and the second position. Again assuming that a right-handed thread is used for the threaded portion 2300 and the nut member 3000, a clockwise rotation of the nut member 3000, when viewed from the second surface 1420, pulls the head portion 2110 towards the first surface 1410, thereby decreasing the distance between the cross bar 5400 and the first surface 1410 of the main body 100. Once the first surface 1410 contacts a surface 5200 of the water sport board 5000 surrounding the safety leash plug, further clockwise rotation of the nut member 3000 creates a tensile force in the elongate member 2000. This way, a clamping force is transferred via the nut member 3000 to the main body 1100 of the suspender 1000 between the first surface 1410 and the surface 5200 of the water sport board 5000.

It will be appreciated that, in order to fixate the position of the suspender 1000 relative to the water sport board 5000, in embodiments of the invention the first surface 1410 comprises a material that promotes friction between the main body 1100 and the water sport board 5000 when exposed to a clamping force perpendicular to the first surface 1410, such as a rubber material.

In the embodiment shown in the figures, a friction pad 1430 is arranged on the first surface 1410 in an area adjacent to or around the through hole 1300, configured to promote friction between the main body 1100 and the water sport board 5000 when exposed to a clamping force perpendicular to the first surface 1410. The friction pad may comprise any suitable surface material that promotes friction, such as a rubber material.

Further details of the bayonet fitting 2100 are shown in Figures 4 and 6. As shown in the figures, bayonet fitting 2100 comprises a groove 2500 configured to receive the cross bar 5400, and undercut portions 2600 configured to engage the cross bar 5400 when the bayonet fitting 2100 is rotated about the notional axis parallel the insertion direction. The undercut portions 2600 are arranged substantially perpendicular to the groove 2500, such that a relative rotation between the bayonet fitting 2100 and the cross bar 5400 of approximately 90 degrees about the notional axis effects that the cross bar 5400 engages with the undercut portions 2600 in a bayonet-like fashion, and is hence secured to the bayonet fitting 2100 in a direction parallel to the insertion direction, which in the embodiment of Figure 4 corresponds to a longitudinal axis z of the elongate member 2000.

Figure 6 shows the interaction between the bayonet fitting 2100 and the cross bar 5400, which in Figure 6 is represented by two distinct positions of the longitudinal axis of the cross bar 5400 at y, or y', respectively, in more detail. The skilled person will appreciate that in a configuration where the longitudinal axis is oriented along y', i.e. parallel to the groove 2500, the bayonet fitting 2100 can be inserted in the safety leash plug 5300, with cross bar 5400 sliding into the groove 2500.

When the main body 1100 and the cross bar 5400 are rotated 90 degrees relative to each other such that the longitudinal axis of the cross bar 5400 rotates according to arrow R in Figure 6, adapting the position indicated y, the cross bar 5400 engages the undercut portions 2600 as described above.

With a view to Figures 1 and 2, the nut member 3000 comprises a substantially circular, disc-shaped body 3200 accommodating the female thread in a central portion thereof, and a grip portion 3300 configured to be grasped by a user, the grip portion 3300 and the female thread being arranged on opposite sides of the disc-shaped body 3200.

As shown in Figure 2, the main body 1100 may be formed of a moulded or extruded material such as plastic material, and comprise web-like structures 1450 at least partially forming the first 1410 or second 1420 surface, which web-like structures 1450 allow for a light-weight yet robust built of the main body 1100.

In alternative embodiments, the main body 1100 is formed of a solid piece of material, e.g. plastic material, laminated timber, or aluminium.

With many water sport boards having a safety leash plug 5300 installed on its centreline near the stern 5100 of the water sport board 5000, the ability for the suspender 1000 of the present invention to couple to the centrally located safety leash plug 5300 allows for the water sport board to be suspended in a vertical manner, with its centreline extending in a vertical plane. This can be visually appealing especially in a showroom of a retail shop where an array of water sport boards may be suspended from an overhead rail each using a suspender of the present invention.

Where in the foregoing description reference has been made to elements or integers having known equivalents, then such equivalents are included as if they were individually set forth.

Although the invention has been described by way of example and with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that modifications and/or improvements may be made without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention.