Abstract:
A golf bag base assembly with snap features is disclosed herein. The assembly preferably comprises a base with pin holes extending through a bottom surface, a retaining ring with locking pin receptacles at locations designed to line up with the pin holes, and a plurality of locking pins with compressible slotted ends that engage corresponding pin holes and locking pin receptacles to securely attach the base to the retaining ring. The retaining ring may be attached to other golf bag parts, including a body, a top collar, and dividers.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/205,413, filed on Aug. 14, 2015, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety herein. 
     
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not applicable 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    Field of the Invention 
         [0004]    The present invention relates to a golf bag comprising a locking pin assembly that facilitates simple, fast, and secure assembly of the bag base. 
         [0005]    Description of the Related Art 
         [0006]    Golf bags of all kinds, including stand and cart bags, typically are assembled from a base, a top with multiple openings, and a body with structural support that connects the base and the top. The prior art includes certain golf bag products with locking mechanisms integrated with the base and/or top portions and that include “snap” mechanisms, such as those disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication Number 2014/0034527 to Anderson. These prior art mechanisms are not ideal, however, because during assembly the snap assembly is invisible to the operator, who has no confirmation that the locking mechanism has engaged with other parts of the bag. In order to address this concern, prior art systems often incorporate extra snap features in the top or the base, which increases the difficulty of assembling the bag as well as its overall weight. Therefore, there is a need for an improved assembly mechanism for golf bags, and bases in particular. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    The golf bag bases of the present invention are easily assembled from their component parts via a locking pin and receptacle mechanism, which provide visible and audible alignment during assembly. 
         [0008]    One aspect of the present invention is a golf bag comprising a body comprising a ring with a plurality of pin receptacles, each of the plurality of pin receptacles having a first bore and a second bore wherein a diameter of the second bore is larger than a diameter of the first bore, a base comprising a plurality of pin through holes, and a plurality of locking pins, each of the plurality of locking pins comprising a foundation section having a first diameter, an extension section having a second diameter, a slotted section having a third diameter, and a crown section having a fourth diameter, wherein the slotted section is compressible, wherein the first diameter is greater than the second diameter, wherein the second diameter is greater than the third diameter, wherein the fourth diameter is greater than the third diameter, wherein the first diameter is larger than a diameter of the plurality of pin through holes, wherein each of the plurality of locking pins is positioned through a corresponding pin through hole and a corresponding pin receptacle, wherein the slotted section of each of the plurality of locking pins expands once positioned within the corresponding pin receptacle to lock each of the plurality of locking pins in place and secure the base to the body. The ring may comprise a plurality of stay receptacles, and the plurality of locking pins may range from two to ten. 
         [0009]    In some embodiments, each of the plurality of locking pins may have from two to six slots in the slotted section, and each of the plurality of locking pins may have a length ranging from two inches to six inches. In other embodiments, the first diameter may range from 0.1 inch to 0.5 inch. Each of the plurality of pin through holes may further comprise a cylindrical body, which may cover more than 50%, or even 75%, of the extension section when a locking pin is engaged with the cylindrical body. In other embodiments, the fourth diameter may be the diameter of the crown section at a lowest edge, the crown section may comprise a fifth diameter at an upper edge of the crown section, and the fourth diameter may be greater than the fifth diameter. In a further embodiment, the crown section may decrease gradually in diameter from the fourth diameter to the fifth diameter. The golf bag may further comprise a top collar and a plurality of stays, the ring may comprise a plurality of stay receptacles, each stay may comprise a first end and a second end, each of the plurality of stay receptacles may be engaged with a first end, and the top collar may engage each second end. In a further embodiment, each of the plurality of stays may be permanently engaged with each of the top collar and the ring, and none of the plurality of stays may make contact with the base. 
         [0010]    Another aspect of the present invention is a golf bag base assembly comprising a ring comprising a plurality of pin receptacles and a plurality of stay receptacles, each of the plurality of pin receptacles having a first bore and a second bore, wherein a diameter of the second bore is larger than a diameter of the first bore, a base comprising a base surface, a side wall, and a plurality of pin through holes, and a plurality of locking pins, each locking pin comprising a foundation section, an extension section, a compressible slotted section, and a tapered crown section, wherein each of the plurality of pin through holes extends through the base surface and comprises a cylindrical body, wherein each of the plurality of locking pins is positioned through a corresponding pin through hole and a corresponding pin receptacle, wherein the slotted section of each of the plurality of locking pins expands once positioned within the corresponding pin receptacle to lock each of the plurality of locking pins in place and secure the base to the ring, and wherein each cylindrical body covers more than 50% of the extension section when a locking pin is engaged with the corresponding cylindrical body. In a further embodiment, each cylindrical body may cover more than 75% of the extension section when a locking pin is engaged with the corresponding cylindrical body. 
         [0011]    In other embodiments, the base surface may comprise an edge region proximate the side wall, and each of the plurality of pin through holes may be located in the edge region. In another embodiment, the compressible slotted section of each locking pin may comprise at least two slots and at least four prongs, and the plurality of locking pins may range from two to ten. In another embodiment, each of the plurality of locking pins may have a length ranging from two inches to six inches. 
         [0012]    Having briefly described the present invention, the above and further objects, features and advantages thereof will be recognized by those skilled in the pertinent art from the following detailed description of the invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]      FIG. 1  is a side elevation view of a golf bag of the present invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  is a top perspective view of a retention ring portion of the golf bag shown in  FIG. 1 . 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  is an enlarged, perspective view of the pin receptacle circled in  FIG. 2 . 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  is a side perspective view of a lock pin of the present invention. 
           [0017]      FIG. 5  is atop, plan view of the lock pin shown in  FIG. 4 . 
           [0018]      FIG. 6  is an enlarged view of the circled portion of the lock pin shown in  FIG. 4 . 
           [0019]      FIG. 7  is a bottom, plan view of the golf bag base of the present invention. 
           [0020]      FIG. 8  is a side elevation view of the lock pin shown in  FIG. 4  engaged with a pin through hole shown in  FIG. 7 . 
           [0021]      FIG. 9  is a top, perspective view of the pin receptacle shown in  FIG. 3  engaged with the lock pin and pin through hole shown in  FIG. 8 . 
           [0022]      FIG. 10  is a cross-sectional view of the assembly shown in  FIG. 9  along lines  10 - 10 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0023]    A preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown in  FIGS. 1-10 . The golf bag  10  of the present invention includes a top collar  20  with dividers  30 , a body  40  comprising a plurality of pockets  42 ,  44 ,  46 , and a base assembly  100 . The base assembly includes a retainer ring  110 , shown in  FIG. 2 , which comprises a wall  112 , a plurality of pin lock receptacles  114 , and a plurality of stay receptacles  116 . The stay receptacles  116  are sized to receive long, cylindrical stays  50  that provide the structural support for the body  40  of the golf bag  10  and connect the base assembly  100  with the top collar  20 . Examples of such stays can be found in, for example, U.S. Patent Application Publication Number 2015/0122678, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety herein. The pin lock receptacles  114  are cylindrical through bores with an upper bore  114   a  having a first diameter D 1  and a lower bore  114   b  having a second, smaller diameter D 2 . 
         [0024]    The pin lock receptacles  114  are sized to receive pin locks  120 , a preferred example of which is shown in  FIGS. 4-6 , with a compressible slotted section  122  having a crown section  123 , a cylindrical extension section  124  having a third diameter D 3  smaller than the first and second diameters, and a foundation section  126  having a fourth diameter D 4  that is greater than the first, second, and third diameters. The compressible slotted section  122  preferably comprises two slots  121   a ,  121   b  extending perpendicular to one another and dividing up the slotted section  122  and crown section  123  into four prongs  125   a ,  125   b ,  125   c ,  125   d . In an alternative embodiment, there may be four or six slots dividing the slotted section  122  and the crown section  123  into a greater number of prongs. The crown section  123  tapers, i.e., decreases, in diameter from its lowest edge  123   a  to its highest edge  123   b , but its greatest diameter D 5  is greater than that of the extension section  124  and of the lower bore  114   b.    
         [0025]    The base assembly  100  of the present invention also includes a bag base  130 , shown in  FIG. 7 , which has a base surface  132 , an edge region  134  at the outer edge of the base surface  132 , a side wall  135 , and a plurality of pin holes  136  extending through the edge region  134 . The pin holes  136  preferably are encircled by cylindrical bodies  137  that extend upwards from the base surface  132  and are long enough to cover more than 50% of the extension sections  124  of the pin locks  120  when the pin locks  120  are engaged with the pin holes  136 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 8 and 10 . Preferably, the bodies  137  cover more than 75% of the extension sections  124 . The pin holes  136  have a consistent diameter D 6  that is larger than that of the extension section  124  but smaller than that of the foundation section  126 . Each pin lock  120  is inserted, crown section  123  first, into a pin hole  136  via the base surface  132 . The taper on the crown section  123  causes the slotted section  122  to compress inwards, thus allowing the slotted section  122  to pass through the pin holes  136 . The foundation section  126  is too wide to pass through the pin holes  136 , and thus retains the pin locks  120  in the pin holes  136 . 
         [0026]    Once the pin locks  120  are secured within the pin holes  136 , they are captured there by the retainer ring  110 , as shown in  FIGS. 9 and 10 . The retainer ring  110  is placed on the upper edge  133  of the side wall  135  of the bag base  130  so that the pin lock receptacles  114  line up with the cylindrical pin hole bodies  137 . The compressible slotted section  122  of each pin lock  120  is compressed as it enters the lower bore  114   b  of a pin lock receptacle, but the crown section  123  expands once it enters the upper bore  114   a  such that its lowest edge  123   a  rests against the shelf  115  created by the upper and lower bores  114   a ,  114   b , and prevents the pin lock  120  from being dislodged from the pin lock receptacle  114 . 
         [0027]    The retainer ring  110  preferably is first assembled with other elements of the golf bag  10 , including the body  40  and the top collar  20 , before being affixed to the bag base  130 . The bag base  130  is easily snapped onto the retainer ring  110  once pin locks  120  are disposed within all of the available pin holes  136 , and the pin locks  120  prevent the bag base  130  from being removed due to the structural features described herein. The snapping sound made by the pin locks  120  when they engage the retainer ring  110  provides audible confirmation to an assembler that the base assembly  100  has been properly assembled, and that it cannot be readily disassembled by a golfer. 
         [0028]    Each of the parts of the base assembly  100  disclosed herein is preferably made from one or more structurally sound, lightweight materials, including but not limited to plastic, composite, and low density metal alloy. The stays, top collar  20 , and dividers  30  may also be made of this material, while the body  40  is preferably made from a fabric material. 
         [0029]    From the foregoing it is believed that those skilled in the pertinent art will recognize the meritorious advancement of this invention and will readily understand that while the present invention has been described in association with a preferred embodiment thereof, and other embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, numerous changes, modifications and substitutions of equivalents may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention which is intended to be unlimited by the foregoing except as may appear in the following appended claims. Therefore, the embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined in the following appended claims.