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Field hockey stick with ball portionRelated Patent Categories: Games Using Tangible Projectile, Player Held And Powered, Nonmechanical Projector, Per Se, For Projecting Aerial Projectile By Striking; Part Thereof Or Accessory Therefor, Club, Having Elongated Blade (e.g., Hockey Stick, Etc.), Blade Construction Or AccessoryField hockey stick with ball portion description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20080026885, Field hockey stick with ball portion. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] The present application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/793,493, which was filed on Apr. 19, 2006, and is entitled "Field Hockey Sticks," and which his hereby incorporated by reference herein. TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] The present invention relates generally to sports equipment and more specifically to a field hockey stick. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Field hockey is a well-known sport that is played in many countries. In the game of field hockey, two teams play against one another with the object being to acquire as many points as possible by shooting a field hockey ball into the other player's goal. Players control the ball during play through the use of a field hockey stick. The rules stipulate that players cannot play the ball with the rounded back side, but do not specify which other parts of the stick may or may not be used. [0004] A known field hockey stick includes a shaft having a generally U-shaped head or toe for contacting a ball at one end and a handle for holding the stick at the opposite end of the shaft. The shaft has a generally flat front surface that extends between the handle and the toe. The shaft includes a backside or back surface opposing the front surface that is generally convexly curved or rounded. The toe of the stick includes a flat, ball-contacting portion that is adjacent to the front surface of the shaft and a convexly curved back portion that is adjacent to the back surface of the shaft. The design and dimensions of the stick are most commonly configured to conform to the requirements stated in the `Rules of Hockey` as published by the International Hockey Federation, also known as the FIH. [0005] Players use the stick during play to control the ball in a variety of positions. In one scenario, the stick can be used to push or hit the ball down the field using the ball-contacting portion of the toe or to control the ball while playing. In normal use, the player grasps the handle section holding the field hockey stick approximately perpendicular to the ground with the toe of the stick near or touching the ground in a position to contact the ball. [0006] In another scenario, the stick can be used to push the ball down the field using the front surface of the shaft. The player grasps the handle section holding the field hockey stick approximately parallel to and near or touching the ground. Current designs of field hockey sticks employ a flat front surface and make it difficult to hold or control the ball because the ball tends to easily slip away from the shaft's flat surface. The motion required by the player to keep the ball within the player's control with these current field hockey sticks is strenuous to the shoulders, arms and wrists. [0007] From the position where a player uses the front surface of the shaft to control the ball, a player may drag-flick the ball. Drag-flicking occurs when a player scoops the ball off of the ground onto the front surface of the shaft and shoots it toward a desired target all while holding the field hockey stick generally parallel with the ground. During this process, the field hockey ball is guided along the long axis of the stick extending from the upper end towards the lower end and toe section. The known design of a flat front surface is further problematic when drag flicking because it is hard to maintain the position of the ball (also known as seating the ball) on the center of a flat surface along its long axis while raising it off of the ground and accurately shooting, as the ball has a tendency to roll off the edges of the front surface as it moves towards the toe section on the long axis into a shooting position. [0008] In an attempt to alleviate the problem with flat front surfaces, some field hockey sticks have included a concave recess along the entire front face of the shaft and toe. The recess maintains the position of the ball on the center of the stick, however the curvature of the recessed portion tends to guide the ball off the major axis of the shaft and onto the toe as the ball is shot, which leads to inaccurate and unpredictable shooting and passing. [0009] Therefore, there is a need for a field hockey stick to allow a field hockey player to better control the ball and be less strenuous on the player's shoulders, arms and wrists. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0010] It is therefore an advantage of the present invention to provide a field hockey stick that allows a player to more easily control the ball during play. [0011] It is another advantage of the present invention to allow a player to more easily lift the ball off of the ground and control it with the front surface of the shaft. [0012] It is still another advantage of the present invention to allow a player to more easily accomplish drag flicking during play. [0013] It is a further advantage of the present invention to allow a player to more easily shoot or pass the ball with the front surface of the shaft. [0014] In accordance with the above and the other advantages of the present invention, a field hockey stick is provided that includes a shaft having an upper end, a lower end, a front surface extending between the upper end and the lower end, and a convexly curved back surface that is opposite from the front surface for retaining a field hockey ball. A ball possession area, or ball portion, is formed in at least a portion of the shaft front surface. A handle section is located near the upper end of the shaft and a toe section having a ball contacting surface adjacent to the shaft front surface is located near the lower end of the shaft. [0015] The ball possession area provides an area to maintain the position of the ball, or seat the ball, when the ball is being captured onto the front surface and raised off the ground to a shooting position and shot, otherwise known as drag flicking. Further, the ball possession area allows the player to shoot the ball more accurately off of the lower end of the stick in line with the major axis and with increased velocity when drag flicking. In other words, the ball possession area allows the field hockey ball to be channel guided along the major axis of the field hockey stick when shooting the field hockey ball using the drag flicking technique. [0016] Other advantages and features of the present invention will become apparent when viewed in light of the detailed description of the invention and taken in conjunction with the attached drawings and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0017] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a field hockey stick in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; [0018] FIG. 2 is a front view of the field hockey stick of FIG. 1; [0019] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the field hockey stick of FIG. 2 taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 2; Continue reading about Field hockey stick with ball portion... Full patent description for Field hockey stick with ball portion Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Field hockey stick with ball portion patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. Start now! - Receive info on patent apps like Field hockey stick with ball portion or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Lacrosse head with increased strength and playability characteristics Next Patent Application: Sports ball comprising automatic inflation means and method to manage the internal pressure of such a ball Industry Class: Games using tangible projectile ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Field hockey stick with ball portion patent info. IP-related news and info Results in 0.18772 seconds Other interesting Feshpatents.com categories: Electronics: Semiconductor , Audio , Illumination , Connectors , Crypto , 174 |
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