Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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~oc~Y ~C~
Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the game of hockey and
in particular to a hockey puck for use primarily by
young and developing players of the game, but not
limited thereto.
Bac~ground of the Invention
A standard, regulation size hockey puck is fairly
heavy and unwieldly for young boys and girls trying to
develop their skills at the game and, indeed, for some
of the expanding numbers of senior citizens who want to
continue to play hockey at a less serious level. The
weight of a regulation puck can, to some extent, be a
limiting factor on a young player's ability to develop
stick handling and shooting skills. Most of the
equipment utilized by younger hockey players, skates,
pads, sticks and helmets are all available in sizes
specific to the physical stature of the younger
players, but they still have to deal with a hockey puck
of regulation size and weight. While the physical size
of the puck is not in itself a problem to the younger
and developing players, the weight of the regulation
puck often is a problem.
Several patents have been obtained on pucks that
have been altered in physical size or by adding other
materials to a puck to render them more easily handled
on supporting surfaces whether it be ice, asphalt,
concrete or the like. Examples of these patents can be
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found in Canadian Patent 935,453 White of October 16,
1973 in which a puck has been centre bored to receive a
carriage bolt-type of arrangement ~n a male and female
connection so as to provide additional, low friction
surfaces for gliding of the puck.
Canadian Patent 959,872 Beauchamp et al, December
24, 1974 shows a hockey puck having a portion of one
surface which has been relieved for the purpose of
inserting extra material on that surface.
A floor hockey puck is shown in Canadian Patent
1,209,165 of August 5, 1986 in which the apparatus is
formed of a wound or coiled substance.
Lastly, Canadian application 2,046,957 shows a
hockey puck having a series of rollers integrally
formed therein to provide an easy rolling surface to
the puck.
All of these prior art arrangements add weight and
complexity to a hockey puck whether it is of regulation
size and material or not.
8ummary of tbe Invent~on
The purpose of the present invention is to provide
a hockey puck of conventional physical dimensions with
a diameter and width of a regulation size puck but
having a substantial reduction in weight. While a
hockey puck according to the invention can be made of
various resilient materials, the use of vulcanized
rubber, similar to a regulation puck, is preferred so
that the NfeelN of the puck on the stick of a
developing player is not completely lost. The weight
reduction of the puck according to the invention
compared to a regulation puck is obtained by forming
the body of the puck with a central recess on at least
one side of the body or, in a preferred embodiment,
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with a central aperture, the diameter of which can vary
depending on the developmental needs, and ages of the
players using it. For example, the diameter of the
central aperture or recess can be approximately one
third of the diameter of the puck. The recesses or the
aperture has a specific form in that it tapers from
approximately the middle of the thickness of the puck
towards the upper and lower surfaces thereof. The
degree of the taper again can vary depending upon the
developmental needs of the players.
Because a puck according to the invention is
substantially lighter than a regulation puck, younger
players, for example between the ages of five and
eight, can realize substantial success in raising the
puck off the ice and shooting it faster than through
the use of a standard puck. Moreover, because it is
lighter the young player has fewer problems in
developing stick handling, passing and shooting skills.
The puck according to the invention travels
somewhat faster on the ice than a standard puck due to
the fact that the central aperture or recess reduces
surface contact between the lower surface of the puck
and the ice and this allows the younger player to skate
somewhat quicker, moving the puck along and reducing
situations where the player over-skates the puck.
Through the use of a lighter and more responsive
hockey puck, younger, developing players can begin to
enjoy the game at an earlier stage and they are thus
encouraged to try new movements with such a puck in
shooting, passing and stick handling. Increased
confidence of the player can be a result.
The aperture or recess in the puck can also be
used to develop skills necessary for puck control by
having the players turn their sticks upside down and
inserting the butt end of the stick into the central
aperture and rehearsing puck control movements in a
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manner similar to that used in the game of ringette.
It has been found in ceveral training teste using
a puck according to the invention that young player6
would choo~e to train with the puck of thie invention
rather than the standard puck and their enthusiasm in a
training or game ses6ion lasts noticeably longer as the
puck according to the invention is more reflective of
their developmental needs and skills and they do not
tire as quickly as when they are using a ~tandard puck.
A hockey puck according to the invention also has
some safety benefits when used with younger, developing
players and, to some extent, with senior players.
While it is within the realm of the invention to use a
softer more flexible material than the standard
vulcanized rubber used in a regulation puck, even the
use of the regulation material, if formed in a puck
according to the invention, provides a lighter object
from the point of view of being handled by goaltenders
or if a player is struck by the puck.
The recess or tapered aperture in the puck of the
invention noticeably reduces the diametrical stiffness
of a regulation puck. This stiffness reduction will
vary according to the diameter of the aperture or the
extent of the recess and this stiffness is most notable
when the puck is subjected to a radial load or impact,
for example when subjected to a slap shot by a player
or striking a goaltender either on the goaltender's
equipment or on a less protected part of the
goaltender's body.
In a regulation puck, deformation is typified by
very localized radial deflection and bulging at the
edges of the standard puck adjacent and normal to the
applied load. When subjected to the same load, a puck
according to the invention deflects substantially more
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s
in a radial direction to change its overall profile
from a circular to an elliptical shape. An increase in
the puck'~ ability to deflect and deform under a given
load or impact signifies that more energy is being
absorbed, deflected and dissipated by the puck
according to the invention rather than being
transmitted to an object or person such as a goaltender
or defender. Thus, an added margin of safety for
players and reduced harsh impacts on usual protective
gear and equipment is realized.
According to a broad aspect, the invention relates
to a hockey puck comprising a circular body formed of
resilient material with flat, parallel upper and lower
surfaces and a central aperture extending through the
body of the puck. In a preferred form, the central
aperture tapers outwardly from approximately the
midpoint of the thickness of the puck towards the upper
and lower surfaces.
Brief Description of the Drawin~s
The invention is illustrated by way of example in
the accompanying drawings in which:
FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a hockey puck according
to the invention;
FIGURE 2 is a sectional view of the puck taken
along the lines 2-2 of Figure 1;
FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the puck according to
the invention showing some deformation under impact;
and
FIGURES 4, 5 and 6 are sectional views of a
further embodiment of the invention.
Detailed DescriPt~on of t~e Drawings
Referring to Figures 1-3 of the drawings, a hockey
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puck 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the
invention is illustrated and is formed by a ~uitable
resilient material such as vulcanized rubber. The puck
has a circular body 12 with flat, parallel upper and
lower surfaces 14, 16 and a cylindrical outer wall 18
which is normal to the upper and lower surfaces. The
body can be of regulation size i.e. approximately 3 n in
diameter and lH in thickness.
A centrally located aperture 20 is provided in the
puck and extends completely through the body thereof as
shown in Figure 2. The configuration of the aperture
can be cylindrical, in which case the wall of the
aperture is straight and parallel with the outer rim or
wall of the puck. However, in a preferred form, the
wall of the aperture 20 tapers outwardly as at 22 from
the middle 24 of the thickness of the body of the puck
towards the upper surface 14 thereof and it also tapers
as at 26 from the middle thickness 24 towards the lower
surface 16 thereof. As shown in Figure 2, this results
in the upper and lower halves of the body each having a
frusto-conical recess joined to a similar recess on the
other half of the body.
The tapered wall aperture 20 provides a reduced
diametrical stiffness to the puck body when the puck is
subjected to radial impact. As shown in Figure 3, when
the puck 10 is struck by the blade 28 of a hockey
stick, the body of the puck tends to deform into an
oval or elliptical configuration as seen in plan view,
that portion of the body adjacent the stick absorbing a
substantial part of the load.
As described earlier, the diameter of the aperture
and the degree of the taper can be varied to suit the
age of the hockey players using the puck.
Figures 4, 5 and 6 are cross-sectional views of
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other forms which the present invention may take.
Figure 4 discloses an embodiment in which a puck
30 has the circular body 32 with the flat parallel
upper and lower surfaces 34 and 36 respectively and the
cylindrical outer wall 38. Instead of having two,
meeting frusto-conical apertures resulting in a clear
aperture through the puck as in Figures 1, 2 and 3, in
this embodiment a single recess 40 is formed in one
surface only and, while having an outwardly tapering
side wall 42, the recess does not continue through the
body of the puck but, instead, a thin portion 44
remains on the lower surface to render that surface
completely planar.
In the embodiment of Figure 5, the puck 46 has a
pair of frusto-conical recesses 48 and 50 in the upper
and lower surfaces respectively of the puck leaving a
thin central membrane 52 across the center of the body
instead of having a through aperture therein.
Lastly, in the embodiment of Figure 6, the puck 54
again has a pair of cylindrical recesses 56, 58 in the
upper and lower surfaces respectively thereof having
their wall surfaces parallel with the outer rim of the
puck and leaving a thin central membrane 60 in the
center of the body of the puck.
These embodiments of the invention utilizing one
or more recesses in the body of the puck rather than a
through aperture, provides a product of somewhat
increased stiffness with respect to the embodiment of
Figures 1, 2 and 3. ObViously, the thickness of the
membranes 52 or 60, would be a factor in determining
the thickness or impact resistance of the puck.
While the invention has been described in
connection with a specific embodiment thereof and in a
specific use, various modifications thereof will occur
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to those skilled in the art without departing from the
spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the
appended claims.
The terms and expressions which have been employed
in this specification are used as terms of description
and not of limitations, and there is no intention in
the use of such terms and expressions to exclude any
equivalents of the features shown and described or
portions thereof, but it is recognized that various
modifications are possible within the scope of the
invention claims.
