Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE: REPLACEABLE HOCKEY ~ICK BLADE WITH SHATTERPROOF
GRIP MATERIAL
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a hockey stick
i~ blade to be fitted with a reusable hockey stick shaft and
~^ more particularly, means on the blade to ease its removal
from the shaft after the blade has been broken.
~3 10
BACKGRQU~ OF THE INVENTIO~
i.l Hockey stick blades to be used with reusable shafts
and in particular, hollow aluminum reusable shafts have
been introduced over the last few years to the market and
are becoming more and more popular. These replacable
blades may have an all wood construction, a composite wood
and plastic construction, an all plastic construction or
composite plastic construction.
The conventional method of fitting a replaceable
blade to an aluminum shaft is to heat the shank of the
blade which is covered with a heat meltable glue and to
also heat the end of the shaft. The shank is then fitted
up into the shaft end where the glue, upon cooling sets to
hold the blade in the shaft.
The major difficulty encountered with this set up
is that once the blade has broken, there is often very
little left of the blade to provide a grip for pulling the
shank out of the shaft which is required to enable reuse of
the shaft.
SUMM~Y QF THF INVENTION
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, In accordance with the present invention, a hockey
stick blade has a shank to be removably secured in a
reusable shaft for the blade. The shank includes shatter
. resistant material which provides a grip for removing the
shank from the shaft in the event of breakage of the blade.
3 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The above as well as other advantages and features
of the present invention will be described in greater
detail according to the preferred embodiments of the
i present invention in which;
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a wooden hockey
stick blade to be fitted into a reusable shaft where the
shank of the blade is provided with shatter resistant
material in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the
present invention;
Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the
shank region of the blade from Figure l;
Figure 3 is a perspective view of the blade shank
of Figure 2 prior to receiving the shatter resistant
material.
Figure 4 is a side view of the shaft of Figure 1
with the blade broken and the shank of the blade remaining
in the shaft;
Figure 5 is a perspective view of the shank region
of a blade in accordance with a further preferred
embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 6 is a perspective view of the shank portion
of a blade in accordance with still a further preferred
embodiment of the present invention.
D~TAI~ED DESCRIPTION ACCORDING TO THE PREFERRED
EMBO~IMiENTS OF THE PRESENT I~VENTION
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igure 1 shows a hockey stick set up including a
reusable shaft 1 and a blade generally indicated at 3
replaceably fittable in the shaft. In accordance with -
presently available technology, the shaft has a hollow
., 5 aluminum construction. It is also known that wooden
ii replacement blades can be fitted with the reusable shaft.
,~ These blades, as earlier described, include shanks which
~ are held by heat meltable glue in the shaft.
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slade 3 shown in Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings,
~ has a novel construction in accordance with the present
}j inventlon. This replaceable hockey blade has a wooden or
composite construction and includes a horizontal blade
portion 5 which turns upwardly as indicated at area 9 and
terminates in an upper end shank 11. Shank 11 fits
directly inside of the hollow lower end of shaft 1 to
secure the blade with the shaft.
Quite often a blade will break by shattering in the
blade region 9 above the horizontal blade portion 5. This
then leaves only a small stump of wood sticking out from
the bottom of the shaft.
The blade may also break directly at the bottom of
the shaft with the shank stuck in the shaft.
In both of the above situations, there is very
little, if any, material from the broken blade on which to
get a grip for pulling the shank out of the shaft.
`~ 30
In accordance with the present invention, the
replaceable hockey stick blade is provided with shatter
~, resistant material secured to the shank of the blade which
~ remains with the shank after the blade has been shattered.
;;, 35 If the blade shatters leaving some of the horizontal blade
~ portion with the shank, there may be enough blade to grip
;~ and to pull the shank out of the shaft. If however the
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, blade shatters somewhere above the horizontal blade
3, portion, the shatter resistant material is exposed to
'3! provide a hand grip for pulling the shank from the shaft.
Figure 2 shows blade 3 as being provided with a
strand of shatter resistant material 15 provided on the
blade. This strand may be made from different shatter
proof materials such as nylon or the like.
In the Figure 2 arrangement, strand 15 is secured
over the top surface 13 of shank 11 and down along opposite
side surfaces of the shank. The shank is covered with a
heat meltable glue holding the strand to the shank and the
remainder of the blade is covered with FIBREGLAS ~
material as indicated at 17 and the strand is encased
within the FIBREGLAS ~.
Figure 3 shows blade 3 prior to receiving strand
15. AS seen the shank of the blade is provided with a
small recess 10 which runs up the opposite sides and across
the top of the shank. The strand then seats in the recess.
Recess 10 provides two benefits, firstly it enables
a countersinking of the strand in the shank so that the
shank mounts flushly to the inside of the shaft. For this
benefit the recess does not need to extend across the top
of the shank.
Secondly, the recess provides a positive locater
for the strand. To assist in locating the strand, it may
be provided with a self adhering glue or the like to
initially secure it in the recess. The hot melt glue
provides a final securing of the upper end of the strand on
the shank and the FIBREGLAS ~ secures the strand on the
blade below the shank.
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1 Figure 4 shows a situation in which the blade has
been snapped at the juncture between the shank and the
upward extension 9 of the blade. AS iS clearly shown, the
opposite ends of the strand 15 which were previously
secured on the opposite side faces of the blade, are not
shattered with the blade and hang down from the bottom of
; the shaft. They then provide a grip for pulling the shank
from the shaft.
~l 10 In the preferred embodiment, the length of the
strand on each side of the blade is sufficient to tie a
,~ knot in the strand ends forming a loop to enhance gripping
of the strand.
Figure 5 shows an arrangement similar to Figure 2
where a strand of shatter resistant material 19 is once
again secured over the top of the shank and then down along
the opposite side surfaces of the blade. However, in this
case, the strand has a preformed loop generally indicated
at 21 secured across the top of the blade portion covered
by the FIBREGLAS ~ over the blade. Once the blade breaks,
the loop 21 at the end of the strand, hangs down and once
again provides a hand grip for pulling the shank from the
shaft.
Figure 6 shows a modified replaceable hockey stick
blade generally indicated at 23. This blade includes a
horizontally extending blade portion 24 and a vertically
extending blade portion 25 terminating in an upper end
30 shank 29. In this particular case, shank 29 includes a ~ -
releasable interlock member 31 provided on one of the side
surfaces of the shank and used to secure the shank within
the shaft.
In the Figure 6 setup, case, a strand of shatter
resistant material generally indicated at 33 runs from
front to back rather than side to side across the top of
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, the shank. The strand continues down the front and back
;j surfaces of the shank and then the upper end of the blade
to a point where it divides into a pair of loops 35 on
~- opposite sides of the blade portlon. Strand 33 like the
earlier strands is trapped in recesses on the front and
back surface of the shank and once again encased in
FIBREGLAS ~ generally indicated at 37 covering the blade
below the shank.
The strand set up shown in Figure 5 of the drawings
does not in any way interfere with the side lock provided
on the shank of the blade.
As is the case with the earlier described
~ 15 embodiments, if the blade breaks somewhere along the upward
¦ extension of the blade either one or both of the loops 35
of the strand are exposed and provide a grip for removing
the shank from the shaft.
Although various preferred embodiments of the
present invention have been described herein in detail, it
will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, that
variations may be made thereto without departing from the
spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended
claims.
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