GB2457938A

GB2457938A - A training device for clubs or bats

Info

Publication number: GB2457938A
Application number: GB0803810A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Kevin Mcgreskin
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2008-02-29
Filing date: 2008-02-29
Publication date: 2009-09-02
Also published as: GB0803810D0

Abstract

A training aid for golf putters or cricket bats comprises spaced vertical members P1, P2 mounted to backing plate 12. The backing plate 12 has a central aperture 13 between the vertical members, and is removably attached to the striking face 16 of a club/bat 21 such that a ball 20 may strike the club/bat through the aperture and therefore travel in a desired direction X when a shot is correctly executed, or may strike one of the vertical members P1, P2 and therefore travel in a non-desired direction Y1, Y2 when a shot is incorrectly executed. The backing plate 12 preferably includes adhesive (15, fig. 2) for attaching to the club/bat face 16. The distance D between members P1, P2 is preferably slightly greater than the width S of the ball perimeter in the vicinity of the front edges of members P1, P2. In use, the centre C of aperture 13 is preferably located over the sweet spot of the striking face 16, and the members P1, P2 are preferably equidistant from the centre C of the aperture. The members P1, P2 may have triangular, square, rectangular, polygonal or semicircular cross-sections when viewed along their longitudinal axes.

Description

TRAINING DEVICE

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to a training device by means of which an individual can improve aspects of playing skills. It is particularly concerned with games in which a player uses an implement to hit a ball to subsequently cause it to follow a desired path.

It is applicable to games where the ball being hit is static such as in golf. However it also capable of use in relation to a game where a ball is moving towards a player such as in cricket.

BACKGROUND ART

The purpose of the game of golf is to take the smallest number of strokes in the course of a round made up of a number of holes to move a ball from a tee to a green of a given hole and finally cause it to drop into the hole. Conventionally a putter is used by a player to complete a given stroke sequence for a hole and the number of putting strokes a player requires to complete a hole should be kept to a minimum. To this end a putting stroke made by a player with needs to be of sufficient strength to cause the ball to travel the distance required to reach, and to cause the ball to follow a path ending at, the hole. * 20

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A number of training devices or aids have been suggested for practising a putting stroke. 5.5 *

US Patent 5,011,153 (Watkins) provides a putting aid which is demountably secured to a head of a putter with a rubber band. The device visually teaches the golfer to keep the putter head at a right angle relative to sight line the golfer intends to putt the ball along. The putting aid is U-shaped bracket formed by a pair of spaced apart parallel fingers extending from a cross brace having a platform. The open ended rectangular cavity formed by the fingers and cross brace is large enough to surround a golf ball lying on the practice green and forms a guide way. Watkins observes that the transverse member is provided with notches and accepts putter heads of various kinds of shapes. It is observed that the Watkins aid is an elaborate device whose attachment to the putter head results in the appearance and the feel' of the putter with the device attached differing substantially from that of the putter on its own.

US Patent 6,450, 903 (Tate) provides a golf practice aid system' in which at least one, and preferably a pair of golf ball markers with magnets incorporated therein are employed in combination with a golf putter as a training aid. The golf ball markers may be placed a short distance apart on the ball-impact face of the putter for a golfer to practice putting. If the golfer correctly brings the putter face into contact with the ball, the ball will be impacted by the centre of the face directly between the markers. If the golfer's putting stroke is not correct one or other of the ball markers will strike the ball, thereby creating a tactile sensation transmitted through the putter shaft that informs the golfer of the error in execution of the putting stroke. * ** *. * * *e

Tate requires that the markers incorporate magnets by means of which the markers are S...

attached to the putter face. This would require the putter to be of, or incorporate, *:. 20 ferromagnetic material to provide for attachment of the markers. The use of such a * material in modern putters is not widespread and consequently the aid provided by :.:. Tate would not be widely applicable. In addition it is believed that the suggestion that **.

a tactile sensation is transmitted through the putter shaft that informs the golfer of an error in execution would not be born out in all cases.

US Patent 4,323,246 (Nehrbas) describes a golf practice putting aid' which preferably includes a pair of upright spaced parallel rails extending outward at 90° from the front surface of a backing member and terminating in spaced angular surfaces. When properly stroked with the putter the angular faces allow a golf ball to pass there between and strike the front surface of the backing member thereby causing the gold ball to roll straight in the direction of the intended target. When the golf ball is improperly struck it strikes one of the angular surfaces and is turned away from the target.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a training device comprising a backing member, an aperture in the backing member, a front side of the backing member serving to locate first and second parallel members to serve as vertical boundaries defining a target region of the aperture; a rear side of the backing member having means for demountable attachment to a working member; the device when demountably attached to the working member serving to position the device so that the target region exposes a striking region of the working member to provide that when the working member is manipulated to strike a ball by way of the striking region, but not the backing member, an impact in which the ball does not impinge on *:*::* one or other of the parallel members results in the ball being directed in a first, desirable, direction and with an impact in which the ball does impinge on one or other of the parallel members results in the ball being directed in a second, undesirable, :. 20 direction differing substantially from the first direction. * **

According to a first preferred version of the first aspect of the present invention the S..

training device is intended for use in the game of golf in which the working member is a face of a golf club, for example a putter, and the target region incorporates an optimum area of the face of the putter on which the ball should be struck in a correctly executed stroke to follow a given path and in the event the ball is struck by one or other of the parallel members the ball is caused to follow a deflected path differing to a significant extend from the given path..

A training device according to the first aspect or of the first preferred version thereof wherein each of the parallel first and second members has a cross sectional shape perpendicular to its length; the periphery of the shape including a backing section by means of which the member is attached to the backing member and the periphery, in whole or in part, is a shape selected from one of the following: a triangle, a square, a rectangle, a polygon or a semicircle.

According to a second aspect of the present invention the training device of the first aspect characterised in that the working member is an item of sporting equipment such as a cricket bat,

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

An exemplary embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings of a training device improving the putting action of a user of which: *:*::* Figure 1 is a front view; *::::* Figure 2 is a plan view; Figure 3 is a perspective view from above; and * :* 20 Figure 4is a plan view of the device when mounted on a putter with a golf ball in contact with the striking face of the putter.

MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Figures 1 to 4 variously show a training device 11 with a backing plate 12 of plastics material having a central aperture 13.

Back face 14 of the device 11 is coated with an adhesive layer 15 by means of which the device 11 is capable of being demountably attached to, and removed from, a putter head as will be described hereafter in connection with Figure 4..

Front face 18 of the device 11 is provided with a pair of parallel members P1, P2 which are square in section and are of a plastics material and spaced by a distance D. The distance D is chosen in dependence on the type of practice to be undertaken and the relative skill of the player.

Figure 4 shows the device 11 mounted on head 21 of a putter 22. In this case the distance D is a few millimetres wider than the perimeter S of a golf ball 20 in the vicinity of the outside edges of members P1, P2.

In use the device is attached to working face 23 of putter 22 so that centre C of the central aperture 13 is at the optimum striking point of the putter head 21. A user can then use the putter in a conventional way to putt ball 20 along a path X towards a target such as a hole. * * S...

Given that the ball 20 is struck by the putter 22 at the centre C the parallel members Fl, :. 20 P2 do not contact the ball 20 which consequently runs straight off the face of the club * towards the target along path X. This sounds and feels the same way to a user as when :.:. the e ball 20 is struck by the working face 23 of the head 21 in the course of actual play S..

when the device 11 is absent. The user consequently experiences in practice both visually and by feel a correctly co-ordinated stroke which he can recall and reproduce in actual play.

In the event that the user does not strike the ball 20 at the centre C but off to one side or the other then the ball will be hit by a corner of one or other of members P1, P2 and consequently the ball 20 is deflected at an angle which is both visually obvious but which is also detectable through the hands of the user since the ball is in effect being struck before the centre C reaches the ball. Typically when struck by an outer edge of member P1 the ball 20 tends to move along path Yl and when struck by art outer edge of member P2 the ball 20 tends to move along path Y2. These two features serve to emphasise to the user that the centre C has not struck the ball 20 as required and the user can then reflect on the required change before carrying out a further practice shot.

Repeated practice leads to an improved putting action due in the main to the use of a device which, while mounted on the club does not impose a change in the response of the club and by virtue of the aperture 13 the device is not interposed between the club 22 and the correct location on the club face with which the ball 20 is struck in a correctly executed stroke. Thus the device 11 only comes into operation to affect the path of ball 20 when a practice stroke is incorrectly executed.

In the exemplary embodiment the members P1, P21 are shown disposed symmetrically distant form point C (also the centre of aperture 13). However an experienced player or trainer can position the members in a non-symmetric manner when it is desired to * correct a faulty tendency of a user. For example if a user tend to play the ball from a position regarded as too close to the shaft of the putter then the member on the same *: 20 side of the aperture as the shaft can be set closer to C then the other member so that * any tendency of the user to position the intended shot too close to the shaft side will result in the member causing displacement of the ball than would arise from a uniform alignment of the members. The user will consequently tend to correct the tendency of initial baised alignment.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The invention provides a training device for use in the game of golf. However it is also envisaged that it would be applicable to other sports and games in which an implement is used to strike a ball and in which optimum performance is achieved by striking the ball in a particular region of the implement. Typically it can be used with a cricket bat to provide for a user to experience the effect of a good stroke off the front face of the bat by providing a pair of parallel members which, in the case of a well executed strike, do not impact on the ball. However in the event of a bad stroke one or other of the parallel members causes the ball to be deflected in a marked manner which causes the user to be emphatically reminded of the effect and to thereafter correct his batting action to a similar ball. * ** * * S * SS S... * S S... S. S. * S S * .

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Claims

CLAIMSI A training device comprising a backing member, an aperture in the backing member, a front side of the backing member serving to locate first and second parallel members to serve as vertical boundaries defining a target region of the aperture; a rear side of the backing member having means for demountable attachment to a working member; the device when demountably attached to the working member serving to position the device so that the target region exposes a striking region of the working member to provide that when the working member is manipulated to strike a ball by way of the striking region, but not the backing member, an impact in which the ball does not impinge on one or other of the parallel members results in the ball being directed in a first, desirable, direction and with an impact in which the ball does impinge on one or other of the parallel members results in the ball being directed in a second, undesirable, direction differing substantially from the first direction.
2 A training device as claimed in Claim 1 intended for use in the game of golf in * which the working member is a face of a golf club, for example a putter, and the * :* target region incorporates an optimum area of the face of the putter on which the *:. 20 ball should be struck in a correctly executed stroke to follow a given path and in * the event the ball is struck by one or other of the parallel members the ball is caused to follow a deflected path differing to a significant extend from the given *..path..
3 A training device as claimed in Claim I or Claim 2 wherein each of the parallel first and second members has a cross sectional shape perpendicular to its length; the periphery of the shape including a backing section by means of which the member is attached to the backing member and the periphery, in whole or in part, is a shape selected from one of the following: a triangle, a square, a rectangle, a polygon or a semicircle.
4 A training device as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 of the accompanying drawings.A training device as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the working member is an item of sporting equipment such as a cricket bat, * 0. * . 0 * S0 S... * . *. ** * S S 0 *00 * * *** *1 * *0* *I S..SAmended claims have been filed as follows:-CLAIMSA training device comprising: a backing member; an aperture in the backing member; a front side of the backing member serving to locate first and second parallel members on either side of the aperture to serve as vertical boundaries defining between them a target region of the aperture; a rear side of the backing member having means for demountable attachment of the device to a working member; the device when demountably attached to the working member serving to position the device so that the aperture exposes a strildng region of the working member such that when the working member is caused to impact a ball by way of the striking region exposed through the aperture and the ball does not impinge on one or other of the parallel members then the ball is directed in a first, desirable, direction and in the event the working member is caused to impact a ball in such a way that the ball does impinge on one or other of the parallel members then the impact results in the ball being directed in a second, undesirable, direction differing from the first direction. * S.2 A training device as claimed in Claim 1 for use in the game of golf in which the working member is a face of a golf club, for example a putter, and the aperture is located so that the target region incorporates an optimum area of the face of the putter on which the ball should be struck for a correctly executed stroke to follow a given path and in the event the ball is struck by one or other of the parallel members the ball is caused to follow a deflected path differing to a significant extend from the given path.. _t _\3 A training device as claimed in Claim I or Claim 2 wherein each of the parallel first and second members has a cross sectional shape perpendicular to its length; the periphery of the shape including a backing section by means of which the member is attached to the backing member and the periphery, in whole or in part, is a shape selected from one of the following: a triangle, a square, a rectangle, a polygon or a semicircle.4 A training device as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 of the accompanying drawings.A training device as claimed in Claim I wherein the working member is an item of sporting equipment such as a cricket bat, S.. * ** S. * "S. * * 0*S * S. S. * *5** * ..SE* S S. S. * *0