Patent ID: 9114284
Filing Date: 2015-08-25
Classification: A63B

Abstract:
1. A streamer ball for use in bat and ball tennis-type games wherein the ball is required to bounce on a playing surface and wherein the games are played with a bat having an untensioned, rigid ball-striking surface, the streamer ball comprising: an impact body having a leading end and a trailing end and a central longitudinal axis extending between the leading and trailing ends and passing through the centre of mass of the impact body, the impact body including a generally convexly curved frontal impact zone defining the leading end, which includes a resiliently compressible impact member of a homogeneous polymeric foam material having a density of between 25 kg/m a tail comprising at least one elongate thin, flexible streamer configured to trail behind the impact body in flight; and a spacer stem comprising a resiliently flexible, elongate stem formation having two ends; an anchor formation at one end of the stem formation which is formed to provide for connection of the stem formation to the impact body; and an attachment formation at the other end of the stem formation providing for attachment of the tail to the stem formation, the spacer stem separating an attachment location of the tail from the trailing end of the impact body by at least 15 mm, the configuration of the impact body and the spacer stem attached thereto, being such that the frontal impact zone of the impact body compresses to a compression depth of between 3 mm and 10 mm when subjected to a drop test and the impact body bounces to a height of at least 50 cm when subjected to said drop test, the streamer ball including ballast comprising any components of the streamer ball which have a relatively higher density than the density of the impact member and which are disposed rearwardly of the impact member, but excluding the tail, the mass of the ballast being at least three times the mass of the impact member of the impact body, with the combined mass of the ballast and the impact member being less than 30 g, the streamer ball defining a separation plane which separates the impact member from the ballast, the separation plane extending substantially perpendicularly with respect to the longitudinal axis and intersecting the longitudinal axis at a point spaced at least 5 mm rearwardly of the leading end.