US20060281591A1

US20060281591A1 - Stick for practising sports

Info

Publication number: US20060281591A1
Application number: US11/406,526
Authority: US
Inventors: Jorgen Wikstrom; Esbjorn Berglund
Original assignee: Jorgen Wikstrom; Esbjorn Berglund
Current assignee: FAIRVISION
Priority date: 2005-04-19
Filing date: 2006-04-19
Publication date: 2006-12-14

Abstract

Stick for the practice of sport comprising a handle portion (2) having a first end (6) and second end (7), a shield portion (3) having a first end (8) and second end (9), the first end (8) of which shield portion (3) is connected to, and extends from, the second end (7) of said handle portions (2), a blade portion (4) having a first end (10) and second end (11), the first end (10) of which blade portion (4) is connected to, and extends from, the second end (9) of said shield portion (3). According to the invention, at least a first part of the stick (1) is detachably connected to the remaining part and/or parts.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a stick in accordance with the preamble of claim 1. In particular, the invention relates to an improved hockey stick for goal-keepers having replaceable parts.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The sticks available on the market today are mostly manufactured from a wooden core having reinforcements of composite or plastic. There are also sticks manufactured from aluminium, glass fibre, exclusively of graphite material, graphite material in combination with wood, or from a composite including fillings of different types, for instance foam, paper, etc.
Because greater and greater requirements are made to continuously elaborate as light sticks as possible having retained strength, in most cases the durability of the sticks has decreased. This, in turn, has entailed that a user has been forced to buy an entirely new stick when damage to the stick has arisen or when the user has been dissatisfied with the properties of the stick. This has involved substantial costs to the users.
Since previously, it has been possible to replace a damaged or destroyed blade of a stick for both outfield players and goalkeepers by a plastic blade. The stick is sawn off above the damaged area, and then the plastic blade is attached to the handle or shield by means of screws. A stick having such a plastic blade is not intended to be used in play in connections with contests but is intended to be used in play outdoors on asphalt with a ball, in for instance street-hockey, where no major requirements on the properties of the stick are made.
In order to obtain as cost-effective a stick as possible, it that is required the stick is composed of a plurality of parts, where a user can replace a possibly damaged part by a new and unbroken part. Furthermore, a stick made of a plurality of parts entails that the user can combine a stick according to his/her own desires, where each part may be manufactured from a material having properties according to each individual user's desire. The desires of the users vary, among other things, dependent on a user's size and style of playing, which entails that the properties of a stick, such as, among other things, the grip, weight, length, hardness and balance should be taken into consideration.

THE OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is to provide an improved stick for the practice of sport, which solves the above-mentioned problems. The stick in question allows parts of the stick to be replaced in a simple and fast way. Furthermore, the construction of the stick allows the parts thereof to be optimized for each individual person according to his/her desires on the properties of the stick.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The above object is attained by the present invention such as it is defined in the independent claim 1. Suitable embodiments of the invention are defined in the dependent claims.
Thus, according to the present invention, in claim 1 there is defined a stick for the practice of sport comprising a handle portion having a first end and second end, a shield portion having a first end and second end, the first end of which shield portion is connected to, and extends from, the second end of said handle portion, a blade portion having a first end and second end, the first end of which blade portion is connected to, and extends from, the second end of said shield portion, characterized in that at least a first part of the stick is detachably connected to the remaining part and/or parts.
In accordance with the invention, since the parts of the stick are detachably interconnected, the advantage is obtained that a user himself/herself may replace the parts of the stick that have been broken or that he/she desires to replace in order to form the properties of the stick according to his/her own desires, an entirely new stick not being needed to be purchased. Thereby, the user has the possibility of controlling, for instance, the dimensions, colours and materials of the included parts. The different parts of the stick may be composed of many different materials dependent on the desired property of the respective part. Examples of feasible materials are aluminium, wood, composite, plastic, foam, rubber, etc. Furthermore, since the stick is dividable, the trading will be more cost-effective for both manufacturers and sellers, because all complete variants do not need to be kept in stock. In this way, the determination of the variant of the final model takes place as close to the user as possible, which means that the user can create the desired variant as late as possible.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the handle portion may, with said second end thereof, be detachably connected to and extend from the first end of said shield portion. According to an alternative, said blade portion may, with said first end thereof, be detachably connected to and extend from the second end of said shield portion. According to an additional alternative, a part of the stick may be detachably connected to another part somewhere on at least one of the above-mentioned portions. Naturally, the parts of the stick may be detachably connected in a combination of the above-mentioned ways.
According to an alternative embodiment, said stick may comprise a gripping portion. The gripping portion allows a user to grab and control the movements of the stick easier.
According to an additional advantageous embodiment, said gripping portion may be detachably connected to the first end of the shield portion. In this way, a user can easily replace the gripping portion in order to obtain properties of a grip according to his/her desire. Naturally, the gripping portion may also be integrated in the handle portion.
According to another advantageous embodiment, one of the two adjacent portions may be formed with a male part that extends from an end thereof, and the other of said two adjacent portions may be formed with a female part, said male part and adjacent female part being arranged to be possible to be joined together. According to an additional alternative, two adjacent portions, comprising a male part and a female part, respectively, may be formed with an approximately equally large width. By means of this design, the advantage is obtained that a portion do not need to be brought over the end of an adjacent portion, forming a collar that projects from the external surface of the stick. Such a collar risks getting caught or in another way hitch in, for instance, other team mates or opponents, whereby a personal injury easily may arise.
According to an additional advantageous embodiment, said connection means may be a glue joint. The glue joint is suitably a hot melt adhesive, which upon disassembly of the stick is heated, upon which the parts of the stick can be separated in a fast and easy way. Of course, also other types of glue joints are feasible. According to an alternative, the connection means may be a screw joint or a snap-in connection of any type.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described closer by means of embodiment examples and reference being made to the accompanying drawings, where
FIG. 1 shows a view of an embodiment of an assembled stick according to the present invention, and
FIG. 2 shows a view of the stick according to the present invention, in a disassembled state.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In FIGS. 1 and 2, an embodiment is shown of the present invention, applied to a hockey stick for goalkeepers having replaceable parts. However, it should directly be emphasized that the invention is not, in any way, limited to solely hockey sticks for goalkeepers, but may also be applied to sticks for, for instance, field hockey, hockey-bockey, bandy, etc.
In FIGS. 1 and 2, a hockey stick for goalkeepers in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is indicated with the reference designation 1. The hockey stick 1 comprises a principally straight handle portion 2, having a first end 6 and a second end 7, a principally planar shield portion 3, having a first end 8 and a second end 9, a blade portion 4, having a first end 10 and a second end 11 and a gripping portion 5. The blade portion 4 in FIGS. 1 and 2 is straightly shaped, but of course, it is possible to form the blade portion 4 with an angle in some direction in order to be adaptable for both right-handed as well as left-handed users.
In FIG. 1, the first end 8 of the shield portion 3 is connected to, and extends from, the second end 7 of the handle portion 2. In a preferred embodiment example, the second end 7 of the handle portion 2 is attached principally in the middle of the first end 8 of the shield portion 3. Furthermore, the gripping portion 5 is connected to the first end 8 of the shield portion 3, either as a single part formed with a hole in order to be able to receive the second end 7 of the handle portion 2, or as two parts arranged on either side of the second end 7 of the handle portion 2, in order to improve the grip of the hockey stick 1 in use. Of course, the gripping portion 5 may be integrated in either the handle portion 2 or the shield portion 3.
In FIG. 1, the first end 10 of the blade portion 4 is connected to, and extends at an angle from the second end 9 of the shield portion 3. In this way, the 5 blade portion 4 can abut against the substrate along substantially the entire length of the blade portion 4, at the same time as the hand that a user is holding the stick 1 with can be held in a natural way.
In FIG. 2, the stick 1 has been split in the component parts thereof. In this embodiment example, the stick 1 is dividable in two positions, viz. between the second end 7 of the handle portion 2 and the first end 8 of the shield portion 3, and between the second end 9 of the shield portion 3 and the first end 10 of the blade portion 4. Of course, the stick 1 may be detachably connected in only one of these positions or in more than these positions, such as, for instance, anywhere on said portions 2, 3, 4. Furthermore, in FIG. 2, the handle portion 2 has been formed with a male part 12 at the second end 7 thereof, and the shield portion 3 has been formed with a female part 13 at the first end 8 thereof, which male and female parts 12, 13 can be joined together. In a similar way, the shield portion 3 has been formed with a female part 14 at the second end 9 thereof, and the blade portion 4 has been formed with a male part 15 at the first end 10 thereof, which male and female parts 14, 15 can be joined together. The male and female parts 12,13 and 14, 15 in FIG. 2 are intended to be joined by means of agglutination, but it is also possible to join the same by screws or a snap-in connection of any type.

Claims

1. A stick for the practice of sport comprising a handle portion (2) having a first end (6) and second end (7), a shield portion (3) having a first end (8) and second end (9), the first end (8) of which shield portion (3) is connected to, and extends from, the second end (7) of said handle portion (2), a blade portion (4) having a first end (10) and second end (11), the first end (10) of which blade portion (4) is connected to, and extends from, the second end (9) of said shield portion (3), characterized in that at least a first part of the stick (1) is detachably connected to the remaining part and/or parts.

2. Stick according to claim 1, characterized in that said handle portion (2), with said second end (7) thereof, is detachably connected to and extends from the first end (8) of said shield portion (3).

3. Stick according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said blade portion (4), with said first end (10) thereof, is detachably connected to and extends from the second end (9) of said shield portion (3).

4. Stick according to claim 1-3, characterized in that said stick comprises a gripping portion (5).

5. Stick according to claim 4, characterized in that said gripping portion (5) is detachably connected to the first end (8) of the shield portion (3).

6. Stick according to claim 4, characterized in that said gripping portion (5) is integrated in the handle portion (2).

7. Stick according to claim 2-6, characterized in that one of two adjacent portions (2, 3, 4) is formed with a male part (12, 15) extending from an end thereof, and the other one of said two adjacent portions (2, 3, 4) is formed with a female part (13, 14), said male part (12, 15) and adjacent female part (13, 14) being arranged to be possible to be joined together.

8. Stick according to claim 6, characterized in that said male part (12, 15) and female part (13, 14) are joined by means of a detachable connection means.

9. Stick according to claim 7, characterized in that said connection means is a glue joint.