Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
A FISHING DEVICE AND A METHOD OF USE THEREOF
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] This
disclosure relates to fishing devices in general, and more
particularly, to ice fishing rods.
BACKGROUND
[0002]
Fishing devices that provide audible and visual alerts as to the presence of
a possible catch are well known in the art but have proven to be cumbersome in
setup time and do not easily disassemble or store well for travel. Therefore,
a need
exists for a fishing device with at least one alarm that requires minimum user
effort
for setup and easily disassembles for storage and travel.
SUMMARY
[0003] The
following presents a simplified summary of some embodiments of
the techniques described herein in order to provide a basic understanding of
the
invention. This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention. It is
not
intended to identify key/critical elements of the invention or to delineate
the scope
of the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some embodiments of the
invention
in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is
presented
below.
[0004] Some
aspects provide a fishing device, including: a rod including a first
rod portion and a second rod portion, wherein: each rod portion includes a
circular
cross-section; and a diameter of the circular cross-section of the second rod
portion
is smaller than a diameter of the circular cross-section of the first rod
portion; an
1
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-04-11
elastic element connected to a first end of the second rod portion, wherein:
the
second rod portion is attached to the first rod portion via a free end of the
elastic
element connected to the second rod portion and is detachable from the first
rod
portion; a longitudinal axis of the second rod portion is positioned at an
angle in
relation to a longitudinal axis of the first rod portion when the second rod
portion
is attached to the first rod portion and the elastic element is undeformed;
and the
elastic element deforms with movement of the second rod portion in relation to
the
first rod portion; a first component disposed on a first end of the first rod
portion
distal from an attachment point of the second rod portion to the first rod
portion for
fixing the first rod portion in an upright position; a second component for
hanging
a fishing line on at least one of the first rod portion and the second rod
portion; at
least one alarm; a battery; a bracket; and an electrical circuit including at
least the
battery and the at least one alann connected using electrical wiring, wherein:
the
elastic element deforms and contacts the bracket with at least a threshold
amount
of movement of the second rod portion in relation to the first rod portion,
the
movement of the second rod portion being towards the bracket; the electrical
circuit
is closed when the elastic element contacts the bracket; and closure of the
electrical
circuit causes the at least one alarm to activate.
[0005] Some
aspects include a method for operating a fishing device, including:
attaching a first rod portion of a rod and a second rod portion of the rod,
wherein:
each rod portion includes a circular cross-section; a diameter of the circular
cross-
section of the second rod portion is smaller than a diameter of the circular
cross-
section of the first rod portion; an elastic element is connected to a first
end of the
second rod portion, the second rod portion is attached to the first rod
portion via a
free end of the elastic element connected to the second rod portion and is
detachable
from the first rod portion; a longitudinal axis of the second rod portion is
positioned
at an angle in relation to a longitudinal axis of the first rod portion when
the second
rod portion is attached to the first rod portion and the elastic element is
undeformed;
and the elastic element deforms with movement of the second rod portion in
relation
2
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-04-11
to the first rod portion; fixing the first rod portion in an upright position
using a first
component disposed on a first end of the first rod portion distal from an
attachment
point of the second rod portion to the first rod portion; and hanging a
fishing line
on at least one of the first rod portion and the second rod portion using a
second
component, wherein: the elastic element deforms and contacts the bracket with
at
least a threshold amount of movement of the second rod portion in relation to
the
first rod portion, the movement of the second rod portion being towards the
bracket;
an electrical circuit including at least a battery and at least one alarm
connected
using electrical wiring is closed when the elastic element contacts the
bracket; and
closure of the electrical circuit causes the at least one alarm to activate.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0006] FIGS.
1 and 2 illustrate an example of a fishing device, according to some
embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS
[0007] The
present inventions will now be described in detail with reference to a
few embodiments thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the
following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to
provide a
thorough understanding of the present inventions. It will be apparent,
however, to
one skilled in the art, that the present invention may be practiced without
some or
all of these specific details. In other instances, well known process steps
and/or
structures have not been described in detail in order to not unnecessarily
obscure
the present invention. Further, it should be emphasized that several inventive
techniques are described, and embodiments are not limited to systems
implanting
all of those techniques, as various cost and engineering trade-offs may
warrant
3
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-04-11
systems that only afford a subset of the benefits described herein or that
will be
apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art.
[0008] Embodiments provide a fishing device comprising an ice fishing
rod. The
ice fishing rod is lightweight and requires minimum user effort for setup. The
fishing device includes a rod formed of a first rod portion and a second rod
portion.
In some embodiments, each rod portion has a circular cross-section. In some
embodiments, a diameter of the circular cross-section of the second rod
portion is
smaller than a diameter of the circular cross-section of the first rod
portion. A
conductive elastic element is connected to a first end of the second rod
portion,
wherein the second rod portion is attached to the first rod portion via a free
end of
the elastic element and is detachable from the first rod portion. The elastic
element
may comprise a coil spring and the coil spring may be tapered in some cases.
In
some embodiments, the second rod portion is attached to the first rod portion
by
clamping the free end of the elastic element connected to the second rod
portion to
the first rod portion. In some embodiments, the second rod portion is detached
from
the first rod portion for transportation.
[0009] A longitudinal axis of the second rod portion is positioned at
an angle in
relation to a longitudinal axis of the first rod portion when the second rod
portion
is attached to the first rod portion and the elastic element is undeformed.
The elastic
element deforms with movement of the second rod portion in relation to the
first
rod portion. For instance, the second rod portion may be caused to move upon a
fish biting bait on a fishing line hung from the second rod portion.
[0010] In some embodiments, the fishing device includes at least one
alarm and a
battery (e.g., a 9-volt battery). Electrical wiring is used to form an
electrical circuit
of the fishing device including at least the battery and the at least one
alarm. The at
least one alarm may include an audible alarm that generates a noise upon
activation
of the audible alarm and/or a visual alarm that illuminates a light source
upon
activation of the visual alarm. The at least one alarm and the battery are
mounted
4
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-04-11
on or are housed within the first rod portion. Components of the fishing
device,
such as the battery and the at least one alarm, may be replaced.
[0011] The fishing device further comprises a bracket fabricated from
conductive
material (e.g., metal). A first portion of the bracket is mounted on the first
rod
portion and a second portion of the bracket extends outwards at an angle to
the
longitudinal axis of the first rod portion. The elastic element deforms and
contacts
the second portion of the bracket with at least a threshold amount of movement
of
the second rod portion in relation to the first rod portion, the movement of
the
second rod portion being towards the bracket. For instance, the second rod
portion
may be caused to move at least the threshold amount when a fish bites bait on
a
fishing line hung from the second rod portion. The second portion of the
bracket is
free of contact with the elastic element when the second rod portion is
attached to
the first rod portion and the second rod portion moves less than the threshold
amount in relation to the first rod portion. The second portion of the bracket
contacts the elastic element when the second rod portion is attached to the
first rod
portion and the second rod portion moves at least the threshold amount in
relation
to the first rod portion. When the elastic element contacts the bracket, the
electrical
circuit is closed, causing the at least one alarm to activate. The at least
one alarm,
including, for example, the audio alarm and the visual alarm, is intended to
alert a
fisherman of a possible catch.
[0012] In some embodiments, the bracket is rotationally mounted to the
first rod
portion such that the bracket is rotatable about a transverse axis of the
first rod
portion. The bracket may be rotated by at least a predetermined amount to
avoid
contact between the bracket and the elastic element, and hence prevent
activation
of the at least one alarm, when the second rod portion moves at least the
threshold
amount in relation to the first rod portion. In some embodiments, the bracket
is
manufactured using a spring steel, such that the second portion of the bracket
is
deformable for spatial adjustment of the second portion of the bracket in
relation to
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-04-11
the elastic element. This allows for adjustment of the amount of movement
required
for contact between the second rod portion and the elastic element.
[0013] The fishing device further comprises a first component disposed
on a first
end of the first rod portion distal from an attachment point of the second rod
portion
to the first rod portion. The first component is used to fix the first rod
portion in an
upright position.
[0014] The fishing device further includes a second component for
hanging a
fishing line on at least one of the first rod portion and the second rod
portion. In
sone embodiments, the second component includes a hook mounted on a second
end of the second rod portion and/or at least one hook mounted on the first
rod
portion. In some embodiments, a hook is rotationally mounted to the second end
of
the second rod portion such that the hook rotates freely around the
longitudinal axis
of the second rod portion. A fishing line passes through an eyelet of the
hooks
mounted onto the first rod portion and the second rod portion. In some
embodiments, the fishing device includes a rattle reel, around which the
fishing line
is wound. The rattle reel facilitates rolling and unrolling of the fishing
line without
the fishing line becoming tangled.
[0015] In some embodiments, the first rod portion includes an access
hatch for
access to components housed within the first rod portion. In some embodiments,
a
removable cap is positioned at and covers an opening of a second end of the
first
rod portion for access to components housed within the first rod portion.
[0016] Embodiments include a method for operating the fishing device.
The
method includes attaching the first rod portion of the rod and the second rod
portion
of the rod by attaching the free end of the elastic element connected to the
first end
of the second rod portion to the first rod portion. The method further
includes fixing
the first rod portion in an upright position using the first component
disposed on
the first end of the first rod portion. The method further includes hanging
the fishing
line on at least one of the first rod portion and the second rod portion using
the
second component. In some instances, a fish biting bait on the fishing line
hung
6
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-04-11
from the second rod portion causes the second rod portion to moves in relation
to
the first rod portion and the elastic element to deform enough to contact the
bracket.
When the elastic element contacts the bracket, the electrical circuit
including the
battery and the at least one alarm is closed, causing the at least one alarm
to activate
and alert the fisherman of the possible catch.
[0017] FIGS.
1 and 2 illustrate an example of a fishing rod 100 including a first rod
portion 101, a second rod portion 102, a coil spring 103, a component 104 for
fixing
the first rod portion 101 in an upright position, hooks 105, a buzzer 106, a
LED
light 107, a battery 108, a bracket including a first portion 109 and a second
portion
110, electrical wiring 111, a fishing line 112, a rattle reel 113, a reel
bracket 114, a
reel handle 115, a line marker peg 116 for the reel 113, a drag knob 117 for
the reel
113, an access hatch 118, a cap 119, and screws 120. In FIG. 2, the second rod
portion 102 is detached from the first rod portion 101, while in FIG. 1, the
second
rod portion 102 is attached to the first rod portion 101. In FIG. 1, the coil
spring
103 is undeformed and is free of contact with the second portion 110 of the
bracket.
7
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-04-11
