Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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"~PORT BALL FOR ROLLER HOCREY"
R~R~-~UND OF TU~ TNV~NTION
F;eld of ~-he Tnv~ntion
The present invention relates generally to a sport ball, and more
particularly to a sport ball for use in roller hockey or street
hockey.
Descriptio~ of the Related Art
The sport of roller hockey has grown considerably in recent
years. Instead of being played on ice, roller hockey is played on a
dry surface by players wearing roller skates. With the development
and increase in popularity of in-line skates, roller hockey may now be
played with the speed and excitement of ice hockey.
In-line skates permit roller hockey to be played not only on
smooth indoor surfaces, but also enable roller hockey to be played
outdoors on parking lots, basketball courts, streets, and other
concrete or asphalt surfaces, thus giving rise to the term street
hockey for this sport. The surfaces on which street hockey, or roller
hockey, is played are not particularly smooth, typically having bumps
and pits, and often having gravel and other debris scattered across
the playing area. The irregular surfaces cause the puck to bounce and
move erratically during play.
The puck used in roller hockey may be of a thickened disk shape
such as commonly used for ice hockey, although usually of a different
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material and weight. To achieve gliding of the puck over the playing
surface, it has been proposed to mount a number of spheres in the puck
which extend out of the upper and lower surfaces of the puck and on
which the puck rests for rolling movement. More commonly, however,
the disk shaped puck is replaced by a ball in street hockey or roller
hockey. When a ball is used as the puck on an irregular surface, the
ball has a tendency to bounce, both as it moves across the playing
surface and while it is being moved, or handled, by a player using a
hockey stick. The light weight of a hollow ball results in wind
having an effect on puck movement. Attempts to address this problem
have resulted in different street hockey balls being made available
with different densities and textures for different playing surfaces.
Different balls are also produced for play in different temperatures.
SUMMARY OF T~ lNv~~ ON
An object of the present invention is to substantially eliminate
bouncing of sport balls used as pucks in roller hockey.
Another object of the invention is to enable straight line
passing, whether in the air or on the ground, in roller hockey with
little or no effect from wind.
Yet another object of the invention is to encourage confident
stick handling and passing by players of roller hockey.
A further object of the invention is to provide a roller hockey
ball that is variable in weight and damping effect to accommodate
different playing surfaces and playing conditions with a single ball.
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These and other objects and advantages of the invention are
provided in a sport ball for use as a puck in roller hockey, wherein
the ball has a hollow interior containing a predetermined quantity of
liquid. The liquid, which is preferably water, is within the
preferably smooth interior surface of the ball to provide weight for
added momentum to the puck during play; yet the water dampens any
tendency to bouncing as the puck moves across a rough surface.
The quantity of liquid in the ball may be changed to accommodate
different playing conditions. When play is on an asphalt surface such
as a tennis court, parking lot, or on the street where the surface may
be cracked or pitted, or where stones, twigs, leaves or other debris
may be present, the quantity of water in the ball is increased. This
also decreases the effect of wind on the movement of the ball. On the
other hand, the quantity of liquid may be decreased when the ball is
used indoors and/or on a smooth surface, such as a gymnasium floor or
indoor roller rink.
BRIEF D~CRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a sport ball for use in
roller hockey according to the present invention;
Figure 2 is a cross section of the sport ball of Figure 1 along
line II-II; and
Figure 3 is an enlarged cross section of one embodiment of a fill
valve on the sport ball of the present invention.
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DT!TAIT~n DT'~CRIPTION OF T~ PREFERRED EMBODIrr~r-~
Referring first to Figure 1, the sport ball 10 of the present
invention is shown in side elevational view. It is spherical in shape
and is of an elastomeric material. An outer surface 12 of the ball is
preferably textured slightly. In one embodiment, the ball is
approximately 2.6 inches (6.6 cm) in diameter and weighs approximately
2 ounces (56.7 g). Street hockey balls may be of different sizes and
weights, however. For example, street hockey balls within a weight
range of 45 to 90 grams may be provided.
In Figure 2, the sport ball 10 of the present invention is shown
in cross section. The outer surface 12 and a substantially smooth
inner surface 14 define a wall thickness of a wall 16 of approximately
0.15 inches (0.38 cm). The elastomeric material of the wall 16 is
flexible and durable and may be any of the known materials from which
street hockey balls are made.
A liquid 18 is inside the hollow interior of the ball 10. The
liquid is preferably water, although other liquids may be used as
well. It is important that the quantity of liquid 18 in the ball 10
not fill the interior but be free to move about therewithin.
Approximately 10 to 50 % of the interior space of the ball 10 is
filled with the liquid, depending on surface and wind conditions.
During testing with one ball having of a fixed size and shell
material, it has been found that a range of 14 to 22% of the interior
volume is to be occupied by water for the best results. In other
words, the exemplary ball contains between 15 to 25 cc of water within
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a ball of approximately 101.8 cc interior volume.
In other street hockey balls, more or less liquid may be used.
Generally, it has been found that less than 10 grams of water in the
present ball results in the ball having excessive bounce so that the
beneficial effect of the invention is not present. On the other hand,
including more than 25 grams of water yields a ball that is too heavy.
As indicated above, a total weight of the ball should be in the range
of 45 to 90 grams, with 55 to 80 grams being a preferred range.
The interior surface 14 of the ball 10 is generally smooth to
permit the water or other liquid 18 to flow about unrestricted in the
interior. Thus, during slow rotation of the ball 10, the liquid flows
on the interior surface 14. During fast rotation of the ball 10, such
as during spirited play, the liquid will tend to adhere to the inner
surface 14. This enables the ball to behave much like a high density
ice hockey puck during passing as it is rolling quickly over the
surface. But when stopped, such as by a hockey stick, the liquid
moves to one side of the ball to stabilize the ball 10 and prevent it
from bouncing away from the hockey stick as a hollow, air-filled ball
would tend to do. The movement of the ball may be more easily
controlled so that handling of the "puck" with the hockey stick may be
performed with more confidence. The weight of the liquid 18 in the
ball 10 increases the momentum of the ball 10 during movement, such as
during passing, whether the pass is on the ground or in the air. This
greater weight lessens the effects of wind on the ball movement, as
well. When the ball strikes debris or surface irregularities, the
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damping effect of the liquid on the movement prevents bouncing and
misdirection of the ball.
The present street hockey ball 10 may be provided with a fixed
quantity of liquid in the interior cavity. Accordingly, different
balls may be made available for different playing conditions. For
instance, a ball 10 with 15 cc of water in the interior cavity is
provided for interior play on smooth surfaces, such as gymnasium
floors or skating rinks. A ball 10 with 20 to 25 cc of water is
provided for outdoor play on the street. The greater quantity of
water decreases the tendency to bounce and decreases the effect of
wind.
Alternately, one ball may be provided that has means for varying
the quantity of liquid within the ball. For example, a valve 20 shown
in Figure 3 in a wall 16 of the present sport ball is of flexible
material that has an opening 22 through which a filler needle 24 may
be inserted. By attaching the filler needle to a supply of liquid,
more liquid may be inserted into the interior cavity of the ball 10.
Similarly, by applying a low pressure to the filler needle 24, the
quantity of liquid in the interior may be decreased. Preferably, the
filler needle is connected to a syringe-type device for inserting and
removing liquid from the ball. A syringe-type device having markings
for determining the quantity of liquid inserted or removed is
preferred.
The valve 20 recloses after withdrawal of the needle 24 to seal
the ball 10 and prevent leakage. The needle 24 may be reinserted to
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change the quantity of water in the ball as desired.
Thus, there is shown and described a street hockey puck or ball
that overcomes the disadvantages of the known such pucks or balls and
enables play to proceed on irregular surfaces with little bouncing,
little effect of wind, and straighter passing.
Although other modifications and changes may be suggested by
those skilled in the art, it is the intention of the inventors to
embody within the patent warranted hereon all changes and
modifications as reasonably and properly come within the scope of
their contribution to the art.
