US3107371A - Swimming device - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 22, 1963 T. E. THOMPSON 3,107,371

SWIMMING DEVICE Filed July 16, 1962 United States Patent 3,107,371 SWIMMING DEVICE Thomas E. Thompson, P.0. Box 6, Morley, M0. Filed July 16, 1962, Ser. No. 210,026 5 Claims. (Cl. 9-303) This invention relates to a swimming device, and more particularly to a novel device adapted to be attached to the forearm of a swimmer for improving his efficiency.

Although swimming devices of various types have been developed for attachment to the hands and feet in order to assist the swimmer in developing more propulsion through the water, these devices, and particularly the devices adapted to be attached to the hands or forearms, have serious functional limitations.

'It is therefore an object of this invention to overcome these limitations by providing a novel swimming device adapted to be easily attached to the forearm of a swimmer and to give him freer and more efficient use of his arms and hands.

One object of this invention is to provide a swimming device which will not only increase the eflicienc-y of a swimmer but will also permit a maximum freedom and versatility of movement with a minimum of drag.

Another object of this invention is to provide a novel swimming device attachable to the forearm of the swimmer, having fins hinged in such a manner as to afford the swimmer maximum propulsion with a minimum of drag.

A further object of this invention is to provide a swimming device for attachment to the forearm of the swimmer comprising a minimum number of parts which may be easily and economically manufactured.

Another object of this invention is to provide a swimming device for attachment to the forearm of a swimmer, having hinged tins which are adapted to swing from a fully extended lateral position for maximum propulsion through substantially 180 degrees to a fully collapsed position beneath the forearm.

Another object of this invention is to provide a swimming device having means for securing the device to the forearm which may be easily fastened and unfastened, and which will provide a minimum of resistance to movement through the water.

Another object of this invention is to provide a swimming device for attachment to the forearm having fins flexibly secured on opposite sides of the forearm along hinged lines tapering inwardly toward the wrist to provide a substantially wedge-shaped swimming member.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the invention secured on the forearm of a swimmer with the fins laterally spread substantially in the position for obtaining maximum propulsion through the water;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the invention substantially in the same position as disclosed in FIG. 1, but not secured to the forearm; and

FIG. 3 is a section taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2, with the fins disclosed in phantom in various hinged positions.

Referring now to the drawings in more detail, FIG. 1 discloses a swimming device 10 as it appears properly mounted on the forearm 11 of a swimmer. It will be noted that the front end of the device 10 is positioned slightly behind the wrist in order to permit free flexible movement of the wrist and hand 12, while the rear end of the device 110 may terminate any-where below the elbow in order not to interfere with normal bending of the elbow. The device 10 essentially comprises three basic 3,107,371 Patented Oct. 22, 1963 ice parts, namely, the base or arm member 13, the fin member 14 and the arm securing means or cuff '15.

The arm member ;13 may be a single molded piece of substantially rigid material, such as plastic or rubber. The side edges 17 and 18 of the arm member 13 taper inwardly toward the front or wrist end of the device 10 so that the member 13 will have a wedge or trapezoidal shape. The upper surface 19' of the member 13 has substantially the same contour as the bottom of the forearm of a swimmer. On the other hand, the bottom surface 20 of the member #13 may be slightly curved, as shown, or substantially fiat. The curvature of the bottom surface 20 should not be as great as that of the upper surface 19.

The preferred form of the fin member 14 is disclosed in the drawings as a single piece of elastic material, such as rubber or plastic. The fin member 14 comprises a pair of fins 23 and 24, which may be slightly flexible, but must be sufficiently rigid to meet water resistance without collapsing or substantially becoming deformed during the swimming stroke of the swimmer when maximum propulsion is desired. The outer edges of the fins 23 and 24 may be suitably contoured, as shown in FIG. 2, to obtain a streamlining effect for the return stroke of the swimmer. The inner portion 25 of the fin member \14 has an upper surface which is adapted to fit the bottom surface 20 of the member .13 so that the entire inner portion may be fused or otherwise made an integral part of the bottom surface 20. In this manner, the fin member 14 is connected to the arm member 13. V

The fins 23 and 24 are connected to the inner portion 25 by means of binge sections or strips 27 and 28, respectively. Although the fins 23 and 24, the inner portion 25 and the hinge sections 27 and 28 may all form a part of the same fin member 14, and therefore consist of the same material, the hinge sections 27 and 28 are sufficiently reduced in cross section to afford complete flexibility between the fins 23 and 24 and the inner portion 25. The hinge sections 27 and 28 are adapted to swing about elongated hinge lines 29 and 30 (FIG. 2), which taper inwardly toward the front of the device 10, and are substantially parallel to and spaced inwardly of the side edges 17 and 1 8 which form stops or abutment flanges 3:1 and 32 for limiting the upward or forward swinging movement of the fins 23 and 24. The greater curvature of the upper surface 149, as opposed to the flatter contour of the bottom surface 20, produces side portions of the member 13 substantially thicker than its middle portion in order to reinforce the abutment flanges 3 1 and 32. The abutment flanges 31 and 32 have bottom srnfaces which are adapted to abut flush and firmly against the upper or front surfaces of the fins 23 and 24 to stop them in their fully extended lateral position for obtaining maximum propulsion when the swimmers forearm 1.1 is drawn downwardly and rearwardly through the water.

The cuff 15 comprises a single piece of flexible solid sheet material, such as rubber, elastic webbing or other similar material, having a length, preferably coextensive with the length of the arm member 13. As best disclosed in RIG. 3, the middle portion 34 of the cuff 15 is adapted to fit in and be fused, glued or otherwise firmly secured in the contoured upper surface 19 of the member 13. The outer portions of the cuff 15 are adapted to encircle and encase the forearm 11, and are provided with overlapping edges 35 and 36, which are suitably and detachably secured by any convenient type of fastening means, such as the female snap fastening elements 37 and the male snap fastening elements 38. It will noted in the drawings that a number of female snap fastening elements 37 are circumferentially spaced at different positions along the cuff 15 in order to permit the cuff to fit forearms of different sizes. It will also be noted that a plurality of elements 37 are used to provide the adjustable positions, rather than the elements 38, in order to reduce the number of exposed obstacles on the surface of the cuff and therefore reduce turbulence. It is also important that the cuff 15 be of a solid material, as opposed to a plurality of longitudinally spaced straps, in order to reduce turbulence.

The operation of the invention is as follows:

Assuming that the swimmers left arm 11 is fully extended forward in the water, the fins 23 and 24 will naturally depend downwardly by virtue of gravity to a position such as 23, disclosed in phantom in FIG. 3, as long as the arm 11 is not in motion. During the entire swimming stroke from the extreme forward position of the arm 11 to its extreme trailing position, the fins 23 and 24 will swing outwardly about the hinge lines 29' and 36 until they are stopped in their laterally spread position by the abutment flanges 31 and 32, as disclosed in solid lines in FIG. 3. Thus, the device 10 will present its maximum fin surface against the resistance of the water in order to develop maximum propulsion for the swimmer.

After the swimming stroke has been completed, any one of several return strokes may be employed, with a minimum of resistance from the swimming device 10. If the swimmer lifts his forearm 11 above the surface of the water on the return stroke, then the fins 23 and 24 will depend freely from the device 10 until the forearm 11 re-enters the water at its extreme forward position for the next swimming stroke. However, if the arm 11 is returned through the water, then the resistance of the water will force the fins 23 and 24 to swing rearwardly to positions similar to 23' of FIG. 3. For this reason, the fins 23 and 24 have cross-sections which are as nearly streamlined as practical, in order to reduce turbulent flow upon the return stroke through the water.

If the swimmer uses a return stroke which carries his arm 11 through a substantially horizontal or lateral plane through the water so that the front edge of his arm be comes the leading edge and the rear edge of his arm becomes the trailing edge, then the fin 24 will be forced by the resistance of the water to swing about the hinge line 30 almost 180 degrees until it assumes the phantom position 24 of FIG. 3. The trailing fin 23 would maintain its spread position in solid lines in FIG. 3. Here again, the return stroke of the device It) would present a minimum of resistance to the water. As a matter of fact, the device 10 would have a planing or sailing effect. It will be understood that the positions of the fins 23 and 24 will be reversed if the device 10 were secured on the right forearm.

In some instances, the latter half of the return stroke is effected by thrusting the hand 12 forward in substantially a longitudinal movement, in which case both fins 23 and 24 will depend into positions corresponding to 23 of FIG. 3, so that the device 10 will have a wedge-shape. As the arm 11 moves forward, the water will strike the outer surfaces of the depending fins 23 and 24 and tend to close the fins 23 and 24 toward each other. This effect is aided by the vacuum created toward the rear of the fins 23 and 24 by the water passing beneath the inner portion 25 and between the fins 23 and 24. This type of return stroke will produce a stabilizing effect upon the device 10.

The device 10 is also adapted for use by skin divers or scuba divers, as well as by a surface swimmer executing the conventional strokes such as the crawl, the back stroke or the side stroke. There are occasions in skin diving when the arms are permitted to trail by the sides of the swimmer, and only the feet are used for propulsion. In such event, the device 10 will be in a position upside down from those disclosed in the drawings, permitting gravity to spread the fins 23 and 24 to the solid line positions of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, resting upon the abutment flanges 31 and 32. Even though the device It] is in its fully spread position 'when the arms are trailing at the sides of the swimmer, they are aligned with the direction of movement and therefore will not create any obstructions, but will permit planing or sailing.

Another important feature of this invention is that the device it is firmly secured to the forearm 11 by the cuff 15 leaving the hand 12 completely free not only to swim, but to perform any desired normal operations of the hand in the water. For obvious reasons, a free hand in life saving work is of vital importance. In skin or scuba diving, the hand must be free to perform underwater work or for carrying a spear gun. Moreover, in normal surface swimming, if the hand had to be employed to hold some part of the swimming device, as in some prior art devices, the hand would be prevented from spreading to its maximum surface and therefore reduce the efliciency of the device.

It will be understood that the fins 23 and 24 may be made of thinner material by including laterally extending reinforcing ribs, molded or otherwise formed in the material in a conventional manner.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention without departing from the spririt and scope thereof, and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is shown in the drawings and described in the specification, but only as indicated in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A swimming device comprising:

(a) an elongated substantially rigid member having a front end and a rear end and extending substantially the full length of the forearm of a wearer,

(b) said member having an upper surface contoured to fit the forearm of the wearer, a bottom surface and tapering side edges converging inwardly toward the front end of said member,

(c) a pair of fins of substantially rigid material,

(d) flexible means for connecting each fin to said bottom surface along a tapering hinge line substantially parallel to a corresponding side edge,

(c) said side edges spaced outwardly in opposite direc tions from said hinge lines to provide flanges to limit the upward swinging movement of said fins to a laterally extending propelling position,

( each fin being adapted to swing about its hinge line through an arc of substantially from said corresponding flange to said bottom surface, and

(g) means for securing said member to the forearm of the wearer.

2. The invention according to claim 1 in which said forearm securing means comprises a cuff of solid flexible sheet material having separable elongated edges adapted to overlap, said cuff being longitudinally co-extensive with said member, means for fixing said cuff to said member, and means for detachably securing said edges in overlapping position.

3. A swimming device comprising:

(a) an elongated substantially rigid member having a front end and a rear end and extending substantially the length of the forearm of a wearer,

(b) said member having an upper surface contoured to fit the forearm of a wearer, a bottom surface and tapering side edges converging inwardly toward the front end of said member,

(0) a fin member comprising a pair of substantially rigid fins, an inner portion, and a hinge section connecting each fin to opposite sides of said inner portion,

(0!) means for fixing said inner portion to said bottom surface,

(e) said hinge sections being flexible and comprising hinge lines tapering inwardly toward said front end and being parallel to said corresponding side edges,

(1) said side edges being spaced outwardly of said hinge lines to form substantially co-planar lateral abutment flanges to limit the upward swinging movement of said fins,

6 (g) said flexible sections permitting said fins to swing said member, and detachable fasteners secured to said about said hinge lines in substantially 180 arcs beoverlapping edges for mating engagement.

tween said abutment flanges and the bottom of said inner portion, and References Cited in the file of this patent (/1) means for securing the upper surface of said 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS member to the forearm of the wearer. 967,144 Bailey Aug 9 1910 4. The invention according to claim 3 in which said 1,192,650 Leimer "July 25, 1916 fin member is a single piece of elastic material, said hinge 1,430,600 Snapp Oct 3, 1922 section havingreduced thicknesses to permit flexibility. 4,663,328 Arnold Man 20 1928 5. The invention according to claim 3 in which said 10 1,983,609 Hudson 11, 1934 forearm securing means comprises an elongated culf of 2,947,010 Rabin 2, 1960 solid flexible sheet material having overlapping edges, 7 said cufi being co-extensive with the length of said mem- FOREIGN PATENTS ber, means for securing said cuifto the upper surface of 1,230,073 France Mar. 28, 1960

Claims (1)

1. A SWIMMING DEVICE COMPRISING: (A) AN ELONGATED SUBSTANTIALLY RIGID MEMBER HAVING A FRONT END AND A REAR END AND EXTENDING SUBSTANTIALLY THE FULL LENGTH OF THE FOREARM OF A WEARER (B) SAID MEMBER HAVING AN UPPER SURFACE CONTOURED TO FIT THE FOREARM OF THE WEARER, A BOTTOM SURFACE AND TAPERING SIDE EDGES CONVERGING INWARDLY TOWARD THE FRONT END OF SAID MEMBER, (C) A PAIR OF FINS OF SUBSTANTIALLY RIGID MATERIAL, (D) FLEXIBLE MEANS FOR CONNECTING EACH FIN TO SAID BOTTOM SURFACE ALONG A TAPERING HINGE LINE SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO A CORRESPONDING SIDE EDGE, (E) SAID SIDE EDGES SPACED OUTWARDLY IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS FROM SAID HINGE LINES TO PROVIDE FLANGES TO LIMIT THE UPWARD SWINGING MOVEMENT OF SAID FINS TO A LATERALLY EXTENDING PROPELLING POSITION,

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