US20130280972A1

US20130280972A1 - Swimming noodle

Info

Publication number: US20130280972A1
Application number: US13/506,472
Authority: US
Inventors: Loi Hui Cheung
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2012-04-19
Filing date: 2012-04-19
Publication date: 2013-10-24

Abstract

A noodle apparatus adapted for using as swimming noodle, toy and/or cushioning includes a first end portion, a second end portion, and at least one elongated main body integrally extended between the first end portion and the second end portion. The main body is made of deformable and floatable material so that the swimming noodle is capable of floating on water. The main body has a predetermined cross section and is twisted in a spirally extending manner, wherein the elongated main body is arranged to be selectively stretched to fit a desirable need of a user.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a noodle apparatus for swimming and cushioning, and more particularly to a noodle for swimming and cushioning which is twisted to form a spirally extending main body for allowing a user to flexibly accomplish a desirable purpose.
2. Description of Related Arts
A conventional swimming noodle usually comprises an elongated body which is made of deformable and floatable material for floating on a swimming pool or a beach. Conventional swimming noodles are usually required for partitioning a swimming pool into several lanes. Moreover, many conventional swimming noodles are designed for training beginners or for assisting persons with special needs. For example, some people with leg or back injury may need exercising in water in order to minimize strain imposed on his or her back. In these situations, the user may need to do some mild exercises in water and swimming noodles are needed for guiding or assisting them.
There are several disadvantages related to conventional swimming noodles. First, conventional swimming noodles are fixed in size and shape so that one swimming noodle is only suitable for one purpose. For example, a length of a conventional swimming noodle cannot be altered so that when a shorter or a longer length is required, another swimming noodle must be acquired. In other words, conventional swimming noodles do not provide any flexibility in length for facilitating different needs of an user.
Second, conventional swimming noodles such as the one described above are not usually bendable in the sense that when it is bent to a certain extent, the swimming noodle is vulnerable to break. As a result, when swimming noodles of curved shape are needed, the user has to purchase another swimming noodle having such a desirable shape. In other words, conventional swimming noodles can only perform one particular or designed function. A given swimming noodle is usually not capable of performing several functions. That is to say, conventional swimming noodles fails to provide flexibility for bending or twisting to performing several functions to fit the different needs of an user.
Third, conventional swimming noodles are rigid in shape and size and are bulky for storage or transportation. Since conventional swimming noodles lack flexibility for bending or twisting, it is not possible to alter its shape into a compact size for storage or transportation.
Fourth, conventional swimming noodles have a very limited utility, which is restricted to providing buoyancy through its elongated body which is fixed in length and shape. Accordingly, conventional swimming noodles are not suitable for defining a boundary in water, especially when the boundary required is irregular in shape, such as a circular boundary for water game.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

The invention is advantageous in that it provides a noodle apparatus adapted to be used as swimming noodle, toys and/or cushioning, which is twisted to form a spirally extending main body for allowing a user to flexibly accomplish a desirable purpose.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a noodle apparatus adapted to be used as swimming noodle, toys and/or cushioning, which is capable of substantially being stretched and bent so as to allow a user of the present invention to alter a shape of the main body for suiting different needs.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a noodle apparatus adapted to be used as swimming noodle, toys and/or cushioning, which is simple in structure and does not involve complicated manufacturing procedure. As a result, the manufacturing cost of the present invention can be minimized.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a noodle apparatus adapted to be used as swimming noodle, toys and/or cushioning, which has extensive utility through its flexibility in length and shape.
Another advantage of the invention is to provide a noodle apparatus which has a substantive flexible body and a length flexibility such that the noodle apparatus can be extended to be used as a self floating pool rope.
Additional advantages and features of the invention will become apparent from the description which follows, and may be realized by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particular point out in the appended claims.
According to the present invention, the foregoing and other objects and advantages are attained by providing a noodle apparatus, comprising:
a first end member;
a second end member; and
at least one elongated main body integrally extended between the first end member and the second end member, wherein the main body is made of deformable and floatable material so that the noodle apparatus is capable of floating on water, wherein the main body has a predetermined cross section and is twisted in a spirally extending manner, wherein the elongated main body is arranged to be selectively stretched to fit a desirable need of a user.
Still further objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the ensuing description and drawings.
These and other objectives, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, the accompanying drawings, and the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a noodle apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B are schematic views of the noodle apparatus according to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention, illustrating the noodle apparatus can be used in many situations.

FIG. 3A and FIG. 3C are schematic diagrams of the noodle apparatus according to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention, illustrating different cross sectional shapes of the noodle apparatus.

FIG. 4 is an alternative mode of the noodle apparatus according to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring FIG. 1, FIG. 2A to FIG. 2B, and FIG. 3A to FIG. 3C of the drawings, a noodle apparatus, adapted to be used as swimming noodle, toy and/or cushioning. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated, the present invention is embodied as a noodle apparatus which comprises a first end member 10, a second end member 20, and an elongated main body 30.
The elongated main body 30 is integrally extended between the first end member 10 and the second end portion 20, wherein the main body 30 is made of deformable and floatable material so that the noodle apparatus is capable of floating on water, wherein the main body 30 has a predetermined cross section and is twisted in a spirally extending manner, wherein the elongated main body 30 is arranged to be selectively stretched to fit a desirable need of a user.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first end member 10, the second end member 20 and the elongated main body 30 are preferably made of the same deformable and floatable material so that the entire noodle apparatus is able to float on water. Moreover, the first end member 10, the second end member 20, and the elongated main body 30 have a same predetermined cross sectional area for forming a uniform appearance along the entire noodle apparatus.
It is worth mentioning that the predetermined cross sectional shape mentioned above can be embodied as a wide variety of shapes, and preferably circular cross sectional shape. However, the first end member 10, the second end member 20, and the elongated main body 30 may have a triangular cross sectional shape (FIG. 3B), hexagonal cross sectional shape, elliptical cross sectional shape (FIG. 3C), quadrilateral cross sectional shape (FIG. 3A), or any other cross sectional shapes.
Moreover, the first end member 10, the second end member 20, and the elongated main body 30 are preferably solid. However, they can also be manufactured as forming a hollow structure so that each of the first end member 10, the second end member 20 and the elongated main body 30 has a through cavity 31 formed therein so as to form a loop or a ring-shaped cross section for each of these members (FIG. 4 of the drawings).
The elongated main body 30 is twisted during manufacturing so as to form a spirally extending main body 30 from the first end member 10 to the second end member 20, wherein the elongated main body 30 is arranged to be freely stretched or compressed for altering an overall length of the noodle apparatus.
As shown in FIG. 2A of the drawings, when the elongated main body 30 is longitudinally stretched, an overall length of the noodle apparatus can be substantially increased. Since the elongated main body 30 is made of deformable material, when it is stretched to such an extent, the noodle apparatus is not vulnerable to breakage and a user of the present invention can utilize the extended noodle apparatus for a desirable purpose. On the other hand, the elongated main body 30 can be fully compressed to shorten an overall length of the noodle apparatus, as shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings. As shown in FIG. 2B of the drawings, the noodle apparatus can also form a loop or boundary in a swimming pool so as to partition a predetermined area from the other parts of the swimming pool.
In other words, the elongated main body 30 of the noodle apparatus has a predetermined elasticity so as to allow a user to stretch or compress to a predetermined extent for accomplishing a desirable purpose without requiring another noodle apparatus.
Because of the elasticity possessed by the elongated main body 30, and because of the spirally extending nature thereof, the elongated main body 30 is also able to be flexibly bent to form a curved cross section so as to accomplish a desirable purpose. For example, the elongated main body 30 may be bent to form a circular area surrounded by the elongated main body 30, in which a user is able to swim or perform exercise within this circular area, as shown in FIG. 2A to FIG. 2B of the drawings.
Moreover, the noodle apparatus further has a receiving cavity 40 formed within the spirally extending elongated main body 30, wherein a user is able to insert an external object into the receiving cavity 40 for specific purposes. For example, a user may insert an elongated metallic bar into the receiving cavity 40 in such a manner that the noodle apparatus may act as a protector so that other people are prevented from accidentally hitting the metallic bar. From this perspective, one may appreciate that the noodle apparatus of the present invention may be used for a wide variety of purposes, and not just those related to swimming. Note that this receiving cavity 40 is formed irrespective of whether the main body portion 30 is solid or hollow in structure.
It is also worth mentioning that since the elongated main body 30 is spirally extending from the first end member 10 and the second end member 20, a visible surface 32 of the elongated main body 30 is substantially increased as compared with conventional swimming noodle. The reason is that for conventional swimming noodle, the main portions are not spirally extending, and they may immerse into the water and therefore become invisible to swimmers. However, since the elongated main body 30 of the noodle apparatus of the present invention is spirally extending, the visible surface area can be substantially increased and maximized. When the visible surface 32 is coated with a predetermined material having a predetermined color, such as florescent material, the noodle apparatus is maximally visible to swimmers and other people.
The first end member 10 and the second end member 20 can be made to have any shape in order to suit user's need or marketing circumstances. For example, each of the first end member 10 and the second end member 20 can also be shaped and crafted to have a spirally extending structure. However, the first end member 10 and the second end member 20 may be made to be elongated in structure for fastening to other objects.
Referring to FIG. 4 of the drawings, the noodle apparatus comprises an elongated body 30 extended between a first end member 10 and a second end member 20. In particular, the elongated body 30 is made of deformable and floatable material so that the noodle apparatus is capable of floating on water. The elongated body 30 has a circular cross-section having a diameter D1 and is twisted in a spirally extending manner such that a circular receiving cavity 40 having a diameter D2 is formed through the spirally extending elongated body 30. The diameter D2 is greater than the diameter D1 such that an enhanced buoyancy level is provided to the elongated body 30 by the provision of the receiving cavity 40. In other words, the floating ability of the noodle apparatus is increased dramatically through the spirally extending elongated body 30.
When the elongated body 30 is stretched to extend between towards the first and the second end member 10, 20, the diameter D2 is decreased until a minimum diameter is reached. In other words, the overall thickness of the elongated body 30 is at least increased by the minimum diameter and at least an additional floating ability is provided through the provision of the minimum diameter.
The noodle apparatus may further comprise a connector 50 at one or both of the first end member 10 and the second end member 20 for attaching the noodle apparatus into a supporting object to secure into position. For example, as shown in FIG. 4 of the drawings, the connector 50 is a clipping hook arranged for hooking the noodle apparatus onto a rod shaped supporting object. Accordingly, the noodle apparatus can be used for lane partition in the pool or the like.
It is worth mentioning that when two connectors 50 are provided at both the first end member 10 and the second end member 20 respectively, the two clipping hook at the first end member 10 and the second end member 20 can be interconnected to form a floating ring which is self supporting and floating on water to define a play area which is partitioned through the floating ring formed by the noodle apparatus.
The elongated body 30 of the noodle apparatus has a smooth exterior surface which is safe to touch and hold by an user. The deformable and floatable material which is used to manufacture the elongated body 30 can inherently provide the smooth exterior surface without any additional step of manufacture. In other words, when the noodle apparatus is used for lane partition, no rough surface will be exposed to the user and injury relating to scratching or cutting is eliminated. Compared to using regular rope with floater for lane partition, the noodle apparatus of the present invention provided a safe and convenience alternative.
In addition, the noodle apparatus may further comprises a coating 33 on the exterior surface of the elongated body 30 for providing color indication such that the lane partition is highlighted and appeared prominent to the user in the pool or in water.
It is worth mentioning that the noodle apparatus of the present invention can be used in other circumstances apart from swimming noodle, for example, the noodle apparatus can be used as a toy for children to play, a floating device by connecting multiple noodle apparatuses together, or used for packaging in which the noodle apparatus can be used for wrapping an object, such as a leg or a post of a furniture, to prevent the object from accidentally damaging because of external impact. In addition, the noodle apparatus of the present invention can be used to embed an object, such as a wooden or a metallic rod, so that it acts as a protective cushion for preventing others from hitting the object, that serves as a safety device for use in a wide variety of circumstances.
One skilled in the art will understand that the embodiment of the present invention as shown in the drawings and described above is exemplary only and not intended to be limiting.
It will thus be seen that the objects of the present invention have been fully and effectively accomplished. Its embodiments have been shown and described for the purposes of illustrating the functional and structural principles of the present invention and is subject to change without departure from such principles. Therefore, this invention includes all modifications encompassed within the spirit and scope of the following claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A noodle apparatus, comprising:

a first end member;

a second end member; and

at least one elongated main body integrally extended between said first end member and said second end member, wherein said main body is made of deformable and floatable material so that said noodle apparatus is capable of floating on water, wherein said main body has a predetermined cross section and is twisted in a spirally extending manner, wherein said elongated main body is arranged to be selectively stretched to fit a desirable need of a user.

2. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 1, wherein said first end member, said second end member and said elongated main body are made of deformable and floatable material so that said noodle apparatus is able to float on water.

3. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 2, wherein said first end member, said second end member, and said elongated main body have a same predetermined cross sectional area for forming a uniform appearance along said entire noodle apparatus.

4. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 3, wherein said first end member, said second end member, and said elongated main body has a triangular cross sectional shape.

5. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 3, wherein said first end member, said second end member, and said elongated main body has a quadrilateral cross sectional shape.

6. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 3, wherein said first end member, said second end member, and said elongated main body has an elliptical cross sectional shape.

7. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 4, wherein each of said first end member, said second end member and said elongated main body has a through cavity formed therein so as to form a ring-shaped cross section for each of said first end member, said second end member and said elongated main body.

8. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 5, wherein each of said first end member, said second end member and said elongated main body has a through cavity to formed therein so as to form a ring-shaped cross section for each of said first end member, said second end member and said elongated main body.

9. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 6, wherein each of said first end member, said second end member and said elongated main body has a through cavity formed therein so as to form a ring-shaped cross section for each of said first end member, said second end member and said elongated main body.

10. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 7, further having a receiving cavity formed within said spirally extending elongated main body, wherein a user is able to insert an external object into said through cavity for achieving a predetermined purpose.

11. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 8, further having a receiving cavity formed within said spirally extending elongated main body, wherein a user is able to insert an external object into said through cavity for achieving a predetermined purpose.

12. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 9, further having a receiving cavity formed within said spirally extending elongated main body, wherein a user is able to insert an external object into said through cavity for achieving a predetermined purpose.

13. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 10, further comprising a plurality of connectors provided on said first end member and said second end member respectively for attaching said noodle apparatus onto a supporting object.

14. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 11, further comprising a plurality of connectors provided on said first end member and said second end member respectively for attaching said noodle apparatus onto a supporting object.

15. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 12, further comprising a plurality of connectors provided on said first end member and said second end member respectively for attaching said noodle apparatus onto a supporting object.

16. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 13, further comprising a coating formed on an exterior surface of said elongated body for providing color indication.

17. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 14, further comprising a coating formed on an exterior surface of said elongated body for providing color indication.

18. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 15, further comprising a coating formed on an exterior surface of said elongated body for providing color indication.

19. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 16, wherein said elongated main body is spirally extending from said first end member and said second end member, wherein a visible surface of said elongated main body is substantially increased so as to increase a visible surface area of said noodle apparatus.

20. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 17, wherein said elongated main body is spirally extending from said first end member and said second end member, wherein a visible surface of said elongated main body is substantially increased so as to increase a visible surface area of said noodle apparatus.

21. The noodle apparatus, as recited in claim 18, wherein said elongated main body is spirally extending from said first end member and said second end member, wherein a visible surface of said elongated main body is substantially increased so as to increase a visible surface area of said noodle apparatus.