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Sports impact point indicator

Sports impact point indicator description/claims

This invention comprises a sports impact point indicator particularly for use in golf but which may also be used in other sports or in training therefor, such as baseball or softball, or cricket for example.

In golf correctly hitting the ball with the club, such that the ball is impacted by the club at or near the intended point on the club face to maximise the probability that the ball will fly correctly, is very important. Devices have been proposed previously, for adhering to the face of a golf club, which are marked when the club is subsequently used to strike a ball and which thereby mark or indicate the impact point between the club face and the ball. After playing a stroke the golfer can examine the indicator on the club face to identify the impact point of the club face on the golf ball. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,033,746, 5,597,361, 5,779,556, 5,142,309 and 7,086,956 all disclose various forms of impact point indicators for use in golf. Some prior indicators can only be used once or a small number of times, because it is not possible to clear the mark indicating the impact point after each stroke, and before the next stroke is played with the golf club. On the other hand the golf club ball-impact marker of U.S. Pat. No. 5,033,746 does enable clearing of the mark indicating the impact point between shots by peeling back the top sheet of the indicator to clear the indicator, but to enable this the top sheet must be fixed along one edge only, and there is potential for the top sheet to become torn from the indicator without great difficulty on the golf course during play when a club carrying indicator is used a number of times to play a ball. The indicator may not last more than a few shots.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,450,539 discloses an erasable and rewritable label comprising a base layer of contrasting colour and a transparent or translucent upper sheet which can be adhered to the base layer under writing pressure and which label can be erased by wiping a users finger or thumb over the top surface of the upper sheet.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved form of sports impact point indicator.

In broad terms the invention in one aspect comprises a sports impact point indicator comprising a base layer, an upper sheet extending over the base layer and having a periphery fixed in relation to the base layer, the indicator being planar in form, longer than it is wide and comprising a rear surface comprising a contact adhesive for adhering the indicator to the face of a club or bat, the indicator being of a predetermined size in relation to the club or bat whereby the indicator can cover a major portion of the face of the club or bat, which upper sheet and base layer are in a first area releasably adhesive together under pressure on the upper sheet such that the upper sheet and the base layer will adhere together when a club or bat to a face of which the indicator is adhered is used to strike a ball, to indicate through the upper sheet the impact point between the ball and the club or bat face, but allow the upper sheet to move sufficiently relative to the base layer to separate the upper sheet from the base layer when a user's finger or thumb is wiped across a top surface of the upper sheet, the upper sheet also extending in a second area over a wipe-start region at or towards a longitudinal end of the indicator in which wipe-start region the upper sheet and base layer are not adhesive together and over which wipe-start region a user's finger or thumb may be placed from which to begin said movement to separate the upper sheet from the base layer.

In broad terms the invention in another aspect comprises a sports impact point indicator comprising a base layer, an upper sheet extending over the base layer and having a periphery fixed in relation to the base layer, the indicator being planar in form, longer than it is wide and comprising a rear surface comprising a contact adhesive for adhering the indicator to the face of a club or bat, the indicator being of a predetermined size in relation to the club or bat whereby the indicator can cover a major portion of the face of the club or bat, which upper sheet and base layer are releasably adhesive together under pressure on the upper sheet such that the upper sheet and the base layer will adhere together when a club or bat to a face of which the indicator is adhered is used to strike a ball, to indicate through the upper sheet the impact point between the ball and the club or bat face, but allow the upper sheet to move sufficiently relative to the base layer to separate the upper sheet from the base layer when a user's finger or thumb is wiped across a top surface of the upper sheet, the upper sheet also comprising at or towards a longitudinal end of the indicator a discontinuity in the upper sheet, the upper sheet otherwise providing a smooth and substantially wrinkle-free top surface to the indicator.

In broad terms the invention in a further aspect comprises a sports club or bat having affixed to a face thereof an impact point indicator comprising a base layer, an upper sheet extending over the base layer and having a periphery fixed in relation to the base layer, which upper sheet and base layer are releasably adhesive together under pressure on the upper sheet such that the upper sheet and the base layer will adhere together when the club or bat is used to strike a ball to indicate through the upper sheet the impact point between the ball and the club or bat face, but allow the upper sheet to move sufficiently relative to the base layer to separate the upper sheet from the base layer when a user's finger or thumb is wiped across a top surface of the upper sheet, the upper sheet also extending over a wipe-start region at or towards a longitudinal end of the indicator in which the wipe-start region, the upper sheet and base layer are not adhesive together and over which wipe-start region a user's finger or thumb may be placed from which to begin said movement to separate the upper sheet from the base layer, the upper sheet also comprising windows in the upper sheet which extend longitudinally of the club or bat face and at which the upper sheet is transparent or translucent, and one or more discontinuities in the upper sheet, in the wipe start region and at or towards one end of the indicator.

In broad terms in a further aspect the invention comprises a method of indicating an impact point between a sports club or bat and a ball comprising affixing to a face of the sports club or bat an impact point indicator comprising a base layer, an upper sheet extending over the base layer and having a periphery fixed in relation to the base layer, which upper sheet and base layer are releasably adhesive together under pressure on the upper sheet such that the upper sheet and the base layer will adhere together when the club or bat is used to strike a ball to indicate through the upper sheet the impact point between the ball and the club or bat face, but allow the upper sheet to move sufficiently relative to the base layer to separate the upper sheet from the base layer when a user's finger or thumb is wiped across a top surface of the upper sheet, the upper sheet also extending over a wipe-start region at or towards a longitudinal end of the indicator in which the wipe-start region, the upper sheet and base layer are not adhesive together and over which wipe-start region a user's finger or thumb may be placed from which to begin said movement to separate the upper sheet from the base layer, the upper sheet also comprising windows in the upper sheet which extend longitudinally of the club or bat face and at which the upper sheet is transparent or translucent, and one or more discontinuities in the upper sheet, in the wipe start region and at or towards one end of the indicator.

The term ‘comprising’ as used in this specification and claims means ‘consisting at least in part of’, that is to say when interrupting independent claims including that term, the features prefaced by that term in each claim will need to be present but other features can also be present.

Preferred forms of sports impact indicators of the invention are described by way of example and without intending to be limiting as to detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows one preferred form of golf impact point indicator, for a driver golf club, showing the front face thereof,

FIG. 2 shows fitting of the indicator of FIG. 1 to the face of a golf driver,

FIG. 3 shows the indicator of FIG. 1 adhered to the face of a driver, from a point directly in front of the face of the club,

FIGS. 4, 5, and 6 are views similar to FIG. 3, each showing the face of a driver with the indicator of FIG. 1 adhered thereto, after use of the driver to hit a golf ball, showing the point of impact between the ball and the face of the driver in each case,

FIGS. 7a to 7g schematically illustrate how the impact point mark on the indicator may be cleared after a shot has been played, for reuse of the indicator,

FIG. 8 shows another preferred form golf impact point indicator, for golf irons showing the front face thereof,

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• Utility Patent

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