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Golf tees and accessoriesRelated Patent Categories: Games Using Tangible Projectile, Golf, TeeGolf tees and accessories description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20060100037, Golf tees and accessories. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] This invention relates to golf tees. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] Golf tees have little improved from the traditional wooden or plastic tees comprising a lower ground-engaging spike portion and an upper ball rest portion. The limitations of traditional tees include the fact that the club head, in contacting the tee in its flight, may propel the tee downrange, may fracture or break the tee, or may cause scoring or marking of the club face. [0003] One form of tee which has been proposed is the folding tee comprising a supporting base adapted to rest on the ground and having pivoted thereto a ball support member. The apparatus is designed to be oriented with the pivoting action being from a first position where the ball is supported as per a conventional tee and a second position where the ball support member is folded down in the downrange direction. Disadvantages of this type of tee are the reliance on a base resting on the ground, which may be uneven and thus form an unstable support, and the need to precisely orient the pivoting plane downrange. The hard stem of the ball support member may still score or mark the club face. [0004] U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,822 discloses a golf tee including a stem and an integrally formed head. The head includes a substantially flat upper portion with a bevelled shoulder defining the periphery of the flat upper portion. A plurality of spaced holes is provided in the bevelled shoulder. The axis of each hole generally follows the line of a retained group of bristles which extend above the upper surface of the head, forming a brush ring above the head of the tee. The brush ring extends upwardly and outwardly from the bevelled shoulder defining a soft golf ball lie: [0005] Disadvantages of this arrangement include that the open-centred ring of bristles is displaced outward by the weight of the ball. If the bristles are stiff enough to support the ball above the substantially flat upper portion, the peripherally supporting bristles are easily displaced by vibration of breeze, resulting in the ball moving about slightly in the lie. Further, the ground penetration qualities of the stem necessitate that the tee body be molded in a hard and stiff material. The relatively large size of the hard, bristle-bearing head provides a further tendency for propulsion of the tee downrange at speed and marking of the club head on impact. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0006] In one aspect the present invention resides in a golf tee (I) including a body member having a ground-engaging spike portion and an upper portion adapted to engage a resilient ball rest member, said ball rest member having an upper surface having mounted therein an annular array of bristle tufts, said upper portion extending through said ball rest member substantially centrally within said annular array and forming with said bristle tufts a support for a golf ball. [0007] The body member may be formed of any suitable material and is advantageously formed of one or more polymeric materials or light metals, or any combination thereof. The ground engaging spike portion may be formed with a plain point or may be configured to resist dislodgement. For example, the point may be an arrowhead point. The upper portion may have any suitable configuration that is consistent with engagement with the ball rest member. For example, the upper portion may be provided with a profile that is adapted to engage a corresponding profile formed in the resilient ball rest member, which is engaged with the upper portion by resilient deformation of the ball rest member until the complementary profiles snap together. [0008] The part of the upper portion that extends through the ball rest member may comprise an integrally formed ball rest portion or may comprise an assembly with the body member. For example, there may be provided a ball rest insert adapted to engage a bore provided in the head of the upper portion. The ball rest portion may be a solid ball rest portion. However, a soft lie may be provided by configuring the aforementioned insert as an insertable bristle tuft assembly. [0009] The ball rest member may be formed of any suitable material such as natural or synthetic rubber of other elastomeric polymer, resilient plastics materials or the like. In certain embodiments of the present invention the ball rest member comprises an annular body having an upper substantially planar surface having mounted therein the annular array of bristle tufts. The annular body may be configured to engage a corresponding annular groove provided at the upper portion, the engagement being against the resilient bias of the ball rest member. The annular body may be a firm fit in the annular groove. However, it is preferred that the annular body be a rotation fit in the groove. By this means a proportion of the impact energy of the club head hitting the annular body may be dissipated by causing the annular body to spin about the upper portion. [0010] In a conventional tee, the ball is located laterally by the curvature of the relatively large ball rest surface, but is still relatively insecure. In the foregoing embodiments, the ball is supported on a relatively much smaller ball rest portion or assembly and is located laterally by the bristles engaging the ball at a relatively higher point that the periphery of the ball rest surface of a conventional tee. [0011] The body member may have a passage therethrough above the spike portion and adapted to receive a connecting cord whereby the body member may be connected to an accessory. The accessory may be selected from drag-inducing devices (to limit travel down course), an anchoring device, a golfer's divot tool, another tee or the like. In one embodiment respective body members of tees in accordance with the invention may be connected by the cord in pairs. The connecting cord may be of a length which permits one of the pair of tees to be used as an anchor for the other, thus resisting the propulsion of the tee downrange when struck by the club head. [0012] The annulus will in most embodiments be round. However, it is envisaged that the annulus may be of a shape selected from substantially round, triangular, square, rectangular or octagonal. Where the shape is other than round, the annulus may have one or more apical regions. The axis of the substantially central upper portion is preferably coaxial with the axis of the body member. This axis may be displaced toward the apical region (while remaining substantially central). By this means the ball rest position may be oriented to a down-course direction. [0013] In a further aspect the present invention resides in a golf tee (II) including a body member having a ground-engaging spike portion and an upper ball rest portion, said ball rest portion having an upper surface having mounted therein a plurality of bristle tufts, said bristle tufts being distributed substantially evenly across said surface and each extending substantially parallel to the axis of said spike portion, said tufts being of lengths selected whereby the upper ends of said tufts define a substantially concave ball rest surface. [0014] The array of bristle tufts may be a round array or any other suitable shape including triangular, square, rectangular or octagonal. The bristles may be of synthetic material such as nylon, or a natural material such as pig bristle. Compared with the prior art so-called "bristle tees", it is preferred in the present invention to use many more of finer bristles, which is made possible by the use of distribution of tufts evenly over the upper surface, combined with their substantially vertical orientation is use, the ball rest surface being provided on the bristle ends rather than the bristle sides. [0015] The body member may have a passage therethrough above the spike portion and adapted to receive a connecting cord whereby respective body members may be connected thereby in pairs. The connecting cord may be of a length which permits one of the pair of tees to be used as an anchor for the other, thus resisting the propulsion of the tee downrange when struck by the club head. [0016] The ground engaging spike portion may be formed with a plain point or may be configured to resist dislodgement. For example, the point may be an arrowhead point. [0017] In a further aspect the present invention resides broadly in a golf tee (III) including a body member having an upper portion adapted to engage an elastomeric ball rest member having a ball rest surface thereon said upper portion extending downward to a ground-engaging portion, wherein said engagement between said upper portion and said elastomeric ball rest member comprises an arcuate tang of dovetail section in both its side and cross sections, and a complementary recess formed in said elastomeric ball rest member. [0018] The ground engaging portion may comprise a spike portion or a blade portion. Where the ground engaging portion is a blade, the arcuate tang may be disposed substantially in the plane of the ground-engaging blade portion. Otherwise, it is preferred that the tee have an indication thereon of a downrange direction, whereby the arcuate tang may be aligned with the direction of the stroke in use. In certain embodiments of the invention the elastomeric ball support extends down the upper portion to a greater extent on one side that another to enable the hidden tang to be so oriented in use. [0019] The blade portion may comprise a substantially foil-shaped blade with a chord profile that may be symmetrical or biased to a leading edge. The outer end remote from the ball rest surface may terminate in a point, a chisel point or a curved edge. Where a chisel point is used, this may advantageously be configured as a club face cleaning tool. [0020] The elastomeric ball rest member may be of natural or synthetic rubber, polyurethane or other elastomeric material. The ball rest member may be a separable article wherein the ball rest member may be elastically deformed to engage its recess with the tang. Alternatively, the ball rest member may be formed in situ with the tang such as by shooting the elastomieric precursor material into a mold containing the body member. [0021] The body member may have a passage therethrough above the spike portion and adapted to receive a connecting cord whereby respective body members may be connected thereby in pairs. The connecting cord may be of a length which permits one of the pair of tees to be used as an anchor for the other, thus resisting the propulsion of the tee downrange when struck by the club head. Continue reading about Golf tees and accessories... Full patent description for Golf tees and accessories Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Golf tees and accessories 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. 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