US3232618A

US3232618A - Batted projectile apparatus

Info

Publication number: US3232618A
Application number: US263177A
Authority: US
Inventors: Sr Luther B Anderson
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1963-03-06
Filing date: 1963-03-06
Publication date: 1966-02-01
Anticipated expiration: 1983-02-01

Description

Feb. 1, 1966 B. ANDERSON, SR 3,232,613

BATTED PROJECTILE APPARATUS Filed March 6, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig.

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United States Patent 3,232,618 BATTED PROJECTILE APPARATUS Luther B. Anderson, Sr., 30 Adams Hill Road, Asheville, N.C. Filed Mar. 6, 1963, Ser. No. 263,177 7 Claims. (Cl. 273-95) This invention primarily relates to top apparatus for use in a game of skill.

A primary object of this invention is to provide a toy game apparatus in which an elongated projectile is adapted to be placed in a vertically adjustable groove on a wooden lock and struck with a bat in such a manner as to cause the projectile to spin upward both vertically and 11011- zontally and, while spinning, to be hit with a bat to add further momentum to the flight of the projectile wherein the total flight distance of the projectile can be measured and compared with other competitors.

Another object of this invention is to provide apparatus for supporting the projectile so that it can be adjusted to various angles with respect to the player so that the initial upward flight of the projectile can be so varied so as to position the projectile adjacent the player so that he may again hit the projectile.

A still further object of this invention resides in the provision of a novel storage compartment for the projectiles used in the game comprising part of the apparatus.

Yet another object of this invention resides in means to firmly anchor the apparatus to the ground when in use.

A still further object of this invention resides in the fact that the apparatus is formed of material which is adapted to absorb shocks and vibrations imparted thereto and is of simple construction and operation.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the apparatus comprising the subject matter of the instant invention and shows a player utilizing said apparatus and game just prior to propelling the projectile.

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the game apparatus.

FIGURE 3 is a side view in elevation of the game apparatus illustrated in FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken substantially along the plane defined by line 44 of FIGURE 2 and illustrates certain details of construction of the game apparatus.

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken along plane 5-5 of FIGURE 3 and illustrates further details of the apparatus.

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of the projectile support of the game apparatus.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the game apparatus of the present invention comprises a projectile support generally designated by the numeral 10 formed of solid wood stock or the like including a horizontal portion 12 and an elongated inclined oriented launching pad or ramp section 14. The launching pad section 14 has a longitudinally extending and upwardly opening semi-cylindrical groove 16 cut therein for receiving a hard rubber projectile 18 having rubber fins or vanes 20 secured to the rear portion thereof. Said vanes 20 will tend to steady the flight of the projectile. The groove 16 formed in 14 has laterally offset

rectangular cutouts

22 and 24 which receive the vanes or fins 20 and stationarily correctly position the projectile 18 on the launching ramp 14.

It will be noted that forward end or the nose portion of the projectile 18 extends beyond the forward end portion of the launching ramp 14 so that a player 26 holding a club or bat 28 may impart a downward force to the nose of the projectile to cause the projectile to spin upward and forward through the air. While the projectile is spinning in the air above and forwardly of the ramp 14 the player 26 may again attempt to hit the projectile in a forward direction.

To control the height and forward distance of spin when a projectile 18 is struck by a downward blow of the club or bat 28 while resting in the groove 16 means have been provided to adjust the angular orientation of the launching ramp with respect to the ground surface. Said adjustment means comprises a Wooden base 30 to which the ramp 14 is hingedly connected by means of a metallic hinge 32 having one leaf or plate 34 movably fastened to the base 39 and the other leaf or plate 36 removably fastened to the launching pad 14, a suitable hinge pin 38 pivotally connecting the two

metallic plates

34, 36. In order to retain the launching pad 14 in a pre'adjusted angular position, a pair of

arcuate plates

40 and 42 are fastened to

side walls

44 and 46 of the base 30 and snugly and embracingly receive the ramp 14 therebetween. The

arcuate plates

40 and 42 have

arcuate slots

48 and 50 formed therein slidably guiding a suitable pivot bolt 52 slidably received in a bore 54 drilled through the launching pad 14. The bolt 52 has a threaded shank 56 adjacent one end which threadably receives a locking washer 58 and a wing nut 66 The plate 40 has suitable angularly spaced score lines 62 adjacent its arcuate edge which are adapted to cooperate with a suitable mark such as the arrow 64 on the launching pad for quick reference to a previously assumed angular position of the launching pad With reference to FIGURE 4 the angular adjustment of the projectile and launching pad with respect to the ground level should now be readily apparent. The player merely loosens the wing nut 60 and by grasping the knob 66 adjacent the horizontal portion 12 the launching pad may be pivoted about the pivot pin 38 while the bolt 52 lies in the

arcuate slots

48 and 50 of the

plates

40 and 42 respectively. When a suitable angular position has been reached the player merely retightens the wing nut to effectively clamp the launching pad between the

plates

40 and 42 in the desired adjusted position. The arrow 64 will then be disposed adjacent one of the graduations 62 whereby if a subsequent player changes the angle of orientation of the projectile, the former player will have a ready reference to readjust the angle of the projectile to his own particular play position. The foregoing operation is clearly illustrated in phantom lines in FIGURE 4.

It should also be noted that the base 30 is hollow to form a compartment 68 which may be used to store projectiles when the game apparatus is not in use or to store spare projectiles. The horizontal portion 12 and the launching pad 14 provide a convenient cover element.

To stabilize the structure and support the same upon the ground a suitable stabilizing pad 70 has been provided. The pad 70 has a plurality of

apertures

72, 74, 76, and '7 8 placed at the four corners of the pad to receive suitable spike members to anchor the pad 70, launching pad 14 and base 30 to the ground. The spikes 80 are conveniently stored between a pair of

strap members

82 and 84 having arcuate raised portions 86 mounted upon the horizontal portion 12 of the apparatus. The pad 70 is made of hard rubber or other suitable comparable material to absorb any shocks or vibrations transmitted thereto by the launching pad 14 and base member 30.

The rubber pad 70 also has a rear stabilizing portion 88 having an aperture 99 which also receives one of the spikes 80. The base 30 is connected to the rubber pad 70 by means of

suitable holding strips

92, 94, 96 and 98 which are positioned in recesses in the bottom of the rubber pad 70 so as to present as flat a surface as .possible to be placed on the ground and mount fasteners typically shown by the fastener 100 which extends through the pad 70 and into the lower portion of the base 30.

Summarizing the use of the apparatus for the specified gameflhe player imparts a downward force tothe projectile at its nose portion thus causing it to spin upwardly and forwardly into the air whereupon he then tries to propel it forwardly by means of the club or bat 28. Suitable reference marks or play areas have been delineated on the rubber pad 70 as shown at 102 for indicating a reference line for measuring the distance to which the projectile has been propelled. Furthermore, a game can be so played as to score points for propelling the projectile forwardly or into orbit as indicated by the markings 104 and points may be deducted from the players score by the player hitting a dud which comprises having the projectile instead of being forwardly propelled rearwardly propelled as indicated at 106 and utilizing the planar reference area or line 138 as the delineation point. It should be obvious that the uses of the apparatus comprising the subject matter of the instant invention are unlimited and that the game presented thereby can be played in many different ways. This is only limited by the users imagination.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A game apparatus comprising a base, an elongated inclined ramp, means pivotally securing one end of said ramp to said base for rotation about a horizontal axis extending transversely of said ramp, an elongated projectile, c'oacting means carried by said projectile and said ramp stationarily supporting said projectile on saidram-p with said projectile extending longitudinally of said ramp and having one end portion projecting upwardly and out wardly beyond said one end of said ramp, said axis being disposed beneath and in general vertical alignment with the upper terminal end of said ramp, and means operatively connected to said base and said ramp releasably securing said ramp in adjusted rotated positions relative to said base.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said base includes stabilizing and vibration dampening means adapted to anchor said launching pad to a supporting surface.

3. The structure of claim 2 wherein said stabilizing and vibration dampening means includes a rubber pad extending laterally and rearwardly beneath said launching ramp, means securing said rubber pad to said launching ramp and stake means removably inserted through said rubber pad at a plurality of locations adjacent the periphery thereof for anchoring said rubber pad to said supporting surface.

4. The structure of claim 1 wherein said means for releasably securing said ramp in adjusted position includes,'a pair of plates having arcuate guide slots rigidly joined to said base and extending upwardly therefrom in abutting engagement with the sides of said one end portion of said launching ramp, pin means extending through said launching ramp and arcuate slots and fastening means carried by said pin meansv for securing said pin means in a selected position in said arcuate slots.

5. The structure of claim 1 wherein said ramp includes a longitudinal semi-cylindrical groove in which said projectile is received.

6. The combination'of claim 1 wherein said coacting means stationarily supporting said projectile on said ramp comprise laterally outwardly projecting fins carried by said projectile and upwardly opening grooves formed in said ramp in which at least some of said fins are received.

7. The structure of claim 1 wherein registrable coacting means for indicating the angular orientation of the launching ramp are carried by said launching ramp and plates.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 712,634 11/1902 Aronstein 272-76 1,721,704 7/1929 Madaschi 46-74 X 1,935,370 11 1933 Nekuda 273-9s 2,279,857 4/1942 Bodnav 12 4 2,474,054 5/1949 Jones 124. 29 2,918,751 12/1959 Johnson 4674 2,992,005 7/1961 Lockhart 273-495 v FOREIGN PATENTS 589,556 12/1959 Canada.

RICHARDC. PINKHAM, Primary Examiner.

DELBERT B. LOWE, Examiner.

Claims

1. A GAME APPARATUS COMPRISING A BASE, AN ELONGATED INCLINED RAMP, MEANS PIVOTALLY SECURING ONE END OF SAID RAMP TO SAID BASE FOR ROTATION ABOUT A HORIZONTAL AXIS EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY OF SAID RAMP, AN ELONGATED PROJECTILE COACTING MEANS CARRIED BY SAID PROJECTILE AND SAID RAMP STATIONARILY SUPPORTING SAID PROJECTILE ON SAID RAMP WITH SAID PROJECTILE EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY OF SAID RAMP AND HAVING ONE END PORTION PROJECTING UPWARDLY AND OUTWARDLY BEYOND SAID ONE END OF SAID RAMP, SAID AXIS BEING DISPOSED BENEATH AND IN GENERAL VERTICAL ALIGNMENT WITH