Patent ID: 6691759
Filing Date: 2004-02-17
Classification: A63B,B29C,B41M,B44C,Y10S,Y10T

Abstract:
An apparatus for decorating the outer surface of a bowling ball, comprising:at least two flexible transfer sheets adapted to conform to at least portions of opposite halves of the outer surface of the bowling ball and having heat-activated ink applied to at least portions thereof to create predetermined designs; frames mounting the transfer sheets therein in a generally planar shape; a mold having opposite halves which shift between open and closed positions, a spherical mold cavity sized to closely receive the bowling ball therein, and a mount which positions said frame and said transfer sheets on opposite sides of the bowling ball adjacent the outer surface thereof, such that when the mold is closed, the bowling ball and said transfer sheets are captured in said mold cavity, with said transfer sheets overlying the opposite halves of the outer surface of the bowling ball; and a heater which heats both of said mold halves to a predetermined temperature causing the bowling ball to expand radially through thermal expansion, which expansion is resisted by said mold halves to uniformly press said transfer sheets against the underlying outer surface of the bowling ball, and also causing said heat-activated ink to transfer from said transfer sheets onto the outer surface of the bowling ball to form the designs thereon.