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Tennis training deviceTennis training device description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070275796, Tennis training device. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001]1. Technical Field [0002]This invention generally relates to athletic training equipment and more specifically to an improved tennis stroke training device. [0003]2. Prior Art [0004]Various devices have been proposed for helping tennis players position a tennis racquet in the proper alignment. Many such devices can assist the player in positioning the racquet prior to the tennis stroke and maintaining the racquet in position during the tennis stroke. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,476,257 is such a device that attaches to the frame of a tennis racquet, specifically the end or tip of the tennis racquet farthest from the tennis player. This prior art device attaches to the frame of the tennis racquet, which can permanently scratch and damage the tennis racquet. Moreover, this prior art device is not as securely attached to the tennis racquet as may be desired. [0005]Another tennis-related training device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,150,821, which requires a glove and a fitting that attaches to frame of a tennis racquet. Still another tennis-related training device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,030,732, which requires a shoulder or chest harness and a ring that is fixed to the handle of a tennis racquet. Yet another tennis-related training device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,937,465, which requires a shoulder or neck harness and an actuated metal clamp that is clamped to the frame of a tennis racquet. Another tennis-related training device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,858,881, which also requires a clamp, the clamp being attached to the handle of a tennis racquet. [0006]A feature of the present invention is to provide an improved tennis training device. Another feature of the present invention to provide a tennis training device that is light in weight. A further feature of the present invention to provide a tennis training device that is easily adjustable to varying lengths and varying upper arm circumferences and, thus, is adjustable to varying human anatomies, for example arm lengths and bicep sizes. [0007]It is also a feature of the present invention to provide a tennis training device that can be easily connected and removed from any tennis racquet. It is still another feature of the present invention to provide a tennis training device that is more convenient than prior art tennis training devices and that is not as bulky or cumbersome as prior training devices so that the device can be conveniently packed away and transported and, thus, will be used more frequently. It is a further feature of the present invention to provide a tennis training device that is not unnecessarily restrictive or uncomfortable. [0008]These features, and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art when the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments is read in conjunction with the appended drawings in which like reference numerals represent like components throughout the several views. BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0009]The present invention provides an improved tennis training device that in one illustrative embodiment includes an adjustable cuff for securely yet releasably attaching about the bicep of the user, a means for restricting the motion of a tennis racquet, and an elastic cord connecting the cuff to the means for restricting the motion of the tennis racquet. More specifically, the present invention provides a device releasably attachable to a tennis racquet to maintain the tennis racquet in a desired position relative to the user's arm so as to assist in improving the user's tennis stroke. [0010]Briefly, the tennis training device comprises the following features. An attachment means such as an adjustable cuff that is sized and shaped so that it can be wrapped around the upper arm of a tennis player, preferably above the elbow of the tennis player's playing arm. A restricting means for releasably attaching the attachment means to the tennis racquet, such as a hook or clip that cooperates with the tennis racquet. A connecting means such as an elastic cord attached at a first end to the attachment means and at a second end to the restricting means. The hook or clip also can be a ball or other shaped device that can cooperate with the connecting means in connecting the attachment means to the tennis racquet. [0011]Thus, the present invention provides an improved tennis training device that in one illustrative embodiment includes an attachment means for attaching the tennis training device to an upper arm of a tennis player, a connecting means for connecting the attachment means to a tennis racquet, and a restricting means for attaching the connecting means and the attachment means to the tennis racquet so as to restrict the position of the tennis racquet in relation to the tennis player, wherein the restricting means is sized and adapted to restrict and position a face of the tennis racquet relative to the player and is positioned on the connecting means. Preferably, the attachment means is sized and shaped to wrap around the upper arm of the tennis player and includes an adjusting means, such as a hook portion and loop portion, that allows the attachment means to fit any of various sized tennis players. More preferably, the attachment means for is adjustable and may be a cuff, a band, a belt or the like, adjustable or not. The attachment means is connected to the connecting means, which may be a cord, a leash, a length of rubber tubing or the like, elastic or not. [0012]The working length of the connecting means, referred to herein variously also as a cord or leash, and thus the relative working length of the tennis training device, can be adjusted by tying a knot in the cord at different locations along the length of the cord. Alternatively, any of the commonly known or future developed devices for adjusting the length of a cord-like component can be used for this purpose. Thus, the tennis training device can be adjusted for use by various sized tennis players. Alternatively, the invention can be made in various sizes, namely, by having different sized cords and/or cuffs so as to be less adjustable and more tailored to individually sized tennis players. [0013]The tennis training device can be attached or otherwise positioned to a face of the tennis racquet by either threading the cuff through two adjacent strings on the head of the racquet and pulling the cord through the strings until the means for restricting the motion of the tennis racquet contacts the strings and prevents further movement of the tennis training device relative to the tennis racquet. [0014]The length of the cord between the cuff and the means for restricting can be adjusted by a tennis player or by a tennis instructor so that the head of the racquet is positioned in a proper tennis stroke position. The distance of the means for restricting relative to the cuff preferably is such that the tennis player is permitted to stroke the tennis racquet with relatively free arm and body movements but that the tennis player Is restricted from "breaking" the wrist and swinging the head of the racquet in front of the tennis player's wrist during use. [0015]The present invention also includes a method for assisting a tennis player in correctly stroking a tennis racquet. The method includes attaching an attachment means to an upper arm of a tennis player, attaching a means for restricting the motion of the tennis racquet to the tennis racquet, and selecting or adjusting the length of a connecting means connecting the attachment means and the means for restricting motion so that the tennis racquet is prevented from unwanted forward motion and therefore is swung by the tennis player in a preferred or correct tennis stroke. [0016]These features, and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art when the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments is read in conjunction with the appended drawings in which like reference numerals represent like components throughout the several views. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0017]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a tennis training device embodying the invention. [0018]FIG. 2 is a plan view of an attachment means suitable for the present invention. [0019]FIG. 3 is an axial view of the attachment means shown in FIG. 2. [0020]FIG. 4 is a plan view of a combination of a restricting means and a connecting means suitable for the present invention. [0021]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the training device of FIG. 1 as attached to a tennis racquet and a tennis player's arm. Continue reading about Tennis training device... Full patent description for Tennis training device Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Tennis training device 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. 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