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Racket and method of stringing the racketRelated 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, Racket Or Paddle; Accessory Therefor (e.g., A Tennis Racket, Tennis Racket Press, Etc.), Elongated String-hole Liner (e.g., Grommet, Bushing, Etc.)Racket and method of stringing the racket description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20060293127, Racket and method of stringing the racket. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority on U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/692,782 filed Jun. 22, 2005. FIELD Embodiments of the invention relate to a racket and a method of stringing a racket. GENERAL BACKGROUND [0002] In general, all types of "rackets", such as tennis racquets, racketball rackets and squash rackets for example, have two major components: (1) a racket frame and (2) strings placed across a face of the racket frame. For the past forty years, a great amount of effort and technology has been devoted toward improving racket frames. However, relatively little effort has been devoted to the positioning of the strings and the method of stringing the face of the racket to form the "bed" which actually contacts the ball. [0003] Currently, rackets are designed and strung with an inadequate stringing pattern, which normally is formed using a conventional stringing technique where strings are wrapped sequentially from one grommet position to the next. Although the conventional stringing technique (similar stringing patterns have been predominantly used since the game of "lawn" tennis was first invented in the nineteenth century) is used by virtually every current racket manufacturer, this technique is not the most effective possible stringing design. The reason is that, upon striking a string bed formed by the conventional stringing technique, a ball will for example evenly impinge upon two strings, which will fight each other at their "shared" grommet feed holes. As a result, these two strings can only stretch by pulling on their outer neighboring strings. The effect is that conventionally strung rackets impart momentum change to the ball in a dramatically uneven fashion, and in varying directions, throughout the string bed. [0004] As an illustrative example, shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, when string 7 contacts a ball 1, it is almost instantaneously met with resistance from both of its adjacent strings 6 and 8. As a result, string 7 is prevented from stretching more than allowed by adjacent strings 6 and 8 because these strings further tug on their neighboring strings (e.g., strings 5 and 9 of FIG. 2). This means that strings 6-8 form a generally flat platform for striking ball 1, and the situation is further exacerbated when strings 5 and 9 come into play during the maximum compression/expansion of ball 1 as shown in FIG. 2. [0005] In FIG. 2, strings 5 and 9 can tug on their neighbors to allow perhaps more expansion than any of strings 6, 7 or 8 could attain. This means that strings 5 and 9 will have less tension than the three central strings 6-8, and thus, ball I will experience a condition where it is being pushed most in its center and least at the edges. As a result, there will be minimal or no "cupping effect," meaning that ball 1 will be forced (or "shot") outward from the center, away from whatever direction strings 5-9 happen to be applying the greatest resistant force against ball 1. Rather than being guided by the player, ball 1 proceeds along the path of least resistance, in other words traveling where it feels the least resistance, which is a random event coming most likely from the proximity of the ball's strike on the strings of the racket to the closest part(s) of the frame. [0006] This behavior of conventionally strung rackets has caused many advanced players to typically string their rackets at as high a tension as they can, so that the racket's string bed behaves more nearly like a solid bat than like a bed of strings. For instance, one famous tennis player is reputed to have had his rackets strung at around 90 pounds tension, at which there would be relatively little rebound effect. That higher tension causes a slight increase in uniformity of response off the string bed, but at the price of lost power and frequently broken strings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0007] The embodiments of the invention may best be understood by referring to the following description and accompanying drawings that are used to illustrate these embodiments. [0008] FIG. 1 illustrates resistance levels of strings of a racket strung according to a conventional stringing technique where the strings are wrapped sequentially from one grommet position to the next. [0009] FIG. 2 illustrates resistance levels of the strings of FIG. 1 during maximum compression/expansion of an incoming ball. [0010] FIG. 3 illustrates resistance levels of strings of a racket strung according to the general embodiment of the invention. [0011] FIG. 4 illustrates resistance levels of additional neighboring strings of a racket strung according to the general embodiment of the invention. [0012] FIG. 5 is a general descriptive diagram of the new stringing technique as applied to strings in one direction. [0013] FIG. 6 is a continuation of FIG. 5 showing how, in general, strings might wrap from one principal direction to another and further proceed when using the new stringing technique. [0014] FIG. 7 is an exemplary embodiment of the new stringing technique as applied to a specific, currently available, racket frame geometry. [0015] FIG. 8 is an exemplary embodiment of the new stringing technique of FIG. 7 inclusive of additional stringing features. [0016] FIG. 9 is another exemplary embodiment of the new stringing technique as applied to a currently available racket frame geometry, and inclusive of additional features. [0017] FIG. 10 is an exemplary embodiment of the new stringing technique of FIGS. 7-9 for a different racket frame geometry, and inclusive of additional stringing features. [0018] FIG. 11 is an exemplary embodiment of the new stringing technique including features like those of FIG. 10, but for a racket frame geometry that includes one additional string segment. [0019] FIG. 12 is an exemplary embodiment of the new stringing technique of FIGS. 7-11 for a different racket frame geometry, and inclusive of four additional stringing features. [0020] FIG. 13 is an exemplary embodiment of the new stringing technique for a currently existing racket frame of an unusual configuration called a "tweener". [0021] FIG. 14 is an exemplary embodiment of the new stringing technique for another currently existing racket frame geometry. Continue reading about Racket and method of stringing the racket... Full patent description for Racket and method of stringing the racket Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Racket and method of stringing the racket 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 Racket and method of stringing the racket or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Basketball return net mounting system Next Patent Application: Apparatus and method for repairing a hockey stick shaft Industry Class: Games using tangible projectile ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Racket and method of stringing the racket patent info. 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