Abstract:
A friction coating for the gripping surface of drumsticks, guitar picks, hockey sticks, and other handheld equipment. The friction coating is comprised of a friction coating material and a method of application. The friction coating material is a translucent liquid comprising a volatile solvent that evaporates and leaves an unobtrusive coating of self-adhesive polyurethane of high coefficient of friction. In one embodiment the friction coating material includes a silica grit suspended in the liquid friction coating. In one embodiment the friction coating material is supplied in different versions with different sizes of grit suspended in each. The different versions are provided with distinguishing colors to differentiate the different sizes of grit provided therein. The friction coating is painted or daubed onto the gripping surface of a drumstick and allowed to air dry. The friction coating material can be applied by the user or can be applied by the manufacturer.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional application No. 60/180,018 filed Feb. 3, 2000, entitled Friction Coating for Drumsticks. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0003]    The present invention relates to handheld instruments and equipment and, in particular, to a substance and procedure for providing a friction coating for drumsticks, guitar picks, ball bats, and the like.  
           [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art  
           [0005]    Many live musical performances and studio recording sessions involve the use of drums. Drums provide the tempo for the music and an integral percussive portion of the music. Drummers employ accessories called drumsticks to provide the percussive impact on the drum heads, cymbals, etc. Drumsticks are typically cylindrical, approximately 1 foot in length, and are typically made out of smooth, finished wood. They are generally provided with either shaped wood or nylon tips.  
           [0006]    The impact of the drumstick onto the drum head, cymbal, etc. develops the sound that forms the music. Drummers can create a variety of sounds by striking different parts of the drum assembly and with different parts of the drumstick. They hold the drumstick in different manners. Hundreds of different drumsticks are available on the market and drummers typically experiment with different sticks and striking techniques to achieve the desired tonal qualities. Achieving a desired drum sound is a major concern to a professional drummer.  
           [0007]    Live performances are typically performed under artificial lighting. This lighting is often of such an intensity as to impart a fair degree of heating to the performers on stage. Drumming itself involves a fair amount of physical movement. Because of these factors, drummers often perspire to such a degree that their hands become damp. The typical wood finish on drumsticks is a smooth varnish. In combination with hands damp from sweat, the drumstick can easily fly out of the drummer&#39;s hands particularly when the drummer strikes the drum set with some force.  
           [0008]    As a drumstick is a rigid wood object, it can be appreciated that, as a projectile, an errant drumstick could cause injury to the drummer, other performers, or members of the audience. Also, when a drumstick flies out of the drummer&#39;s hands, it causes an unexpected and undesirable interruption to the performance. In addition, when a drumstick flies into the audience the drumstick is typically not returned thereby imposing a replacement cost on the drummer.  
           [0009]    In order to improve their grip on the drumstick, some drummers have employed gloves. These gloves are similar to gloves used for racquetball or golf to improve grip. However, using these gloves has some disadvantages. The gloves are rather obvious in use. As a live performance is a visual as well as an acoustic experience, many drummers find the obvious wearing of gloves to be a detriment to their performance. Also, the gloves provide a material barrier between the drummer&#39;s hands and the drumstick and add at least some additional bulk to the drummer&#39;s hands. This dulls their tactile feel for the drumstick itself and impairs their ability to deftly manipulate the drumsticks.  
           [0010]    A second method employed to improve grip on the drumstick is to wrap the drumstick with a friction tape, similar to what is done with baseball bats or tennis rackets. The tape however also has several disadvantages. A tape wrap is also somewhat obvious in use and is disfavored for the reasons mentioned above. A tape wrap is also fairly massive, especially in proportion to the overall weight of a drumstick. This significantly affects the weight balance of a drumstick. Also, as mentioned above, the interaction of the drumstick and the drumming surface produces the sounds that make up the music. The combination of the additional weight of the tape, the change to the balance of the drumstick, and changes to the stiffness modulus of the drumstick with the applied tape can significantly and negatively affect the tonal qualities for the drummer.  
           [0011]    Drummers can play both indoors and outside and in widely different conditions. One day a drummer may play in mild dry conditions indoors and the next outdoors during a rainstorm. Both the use of gloves and wrapping the drumsticks provide a single coefficient of friction which can be either greater or less than ideal for the playing conditions for the drummer. A drummer that plays in widely different conditions may wish to have some drumsticks with a high coefficient of friction at the gripping surface and some with a lower coefficient of friction. A drummer would want to be able to readily distinguish between drumsticks with different friction characteristics.  
           [0012]    Similar concerns are experienced by guitar players. Many guitar players employ a rigid plastic or bone device called a pick to pluck and strum the guitar strings. The pick is approximately 1-2 mm thick and is generally a rounded, equilateral triangle approximately 3 cm across. A pick is smooth and suffers similar gripping concerns as mentioned above for the drumsticks. They tend to get slippery as the player&#39;s hands sweat and loosing grip on the pick would interrupt a performance. Picks are not suited to wrapping with tape because of their small size and irregular shape. The small size of a pick also makes the use of gloves problematic.  
           [0013]    Sports equipment, such as ball bats and hockey sticks, are others items of common use that are subject to grasping concerns. Sports equipment is often used in varying weather conditions and the user&#39;s grasping hands often become wet with sweat developed through the exertion of the game. As mentioned above, people have employed gloves or tape wraps to increase the coefficient of friction to thereby improve their grip of the equipment. However, gloves are an additional piece of equipment that would need to be purchased, brought to the game, and worn to be effective. Tape wraps are time consuming to apply and have a tendency to become loose after extended use.  
           [0014]    From the foregoing, it can be appreciated that there is a continuing need for a method of improving the ability of a user to securely grasp slippery objects particularly with damp hands or in wet weather conditions. The method of improving the grip should be unobtrusive in use and not readily apparent to observers. The method of improving grip should not impair the user&#39;s feel of the object so equipped. The method should minimally affect the weight balance and stiffness of the object. The method should provide varying amounts of friction increase and the different degrees of friction increase should be readily apparent to the user. The method should be readily useable on different areas of an object so as to allow the user to customize the object for their individual desires. The method should also be readily employed by manufacturers of objects so as to be able to supply pretreated equipment.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0015]    The aforementioned needs are satisfied by the friction coating for gripping surfaces of the present invention which, in one aspect, comprises a method for increasing the frictional coefficient of a gripping surface. The method comprises a friction coating material and a method of application to the gripping surface.  
           [0016]    In one embodiment, the friction coating material is a viscous liquid with a volatile solvent. When exposed to air the friction coating material outgasses the volatile solvent leaving behind a tacky polyurethane. This polyurethane adheres to the surface it is applied to, for example, in one embodiment, a drumstick. The polyurethane has a high coefficient of friction. The friction coating material is, in one embodiment, a translucent material.  
           [0017]    Translucent herein should be understood to mean that the material allows light to readily pass through the material. Translucent should also be understood to mean that the material allows the inherent color of any underlying object to be generally apparent and relatively unchanged when the underlying object is covered with a thin layer of the translucent material.  
           [0018]    In one embodiment of the present invention, the friction coating also includes a silica grit suspended in the viscous liquid. The silica grit is embedded in the polyurethane after the volatile solvent outgasses. It can be appreciated that the silica grit would also act to improve the friction of the surface to which it is applied.  
           [0019]    In another embodiment of the present invention, the friction coating is provided with different sizes of silica grit. Larger grit would provide a more secure gripping surface. The smaller grit would provide a somewhat less secure gripping surface, but still more secure than an uncoated drumstick. The friction coatings would be provided with different colors to enable the user to distinguish between the larger and the smaller grit coating simply by looking at them. An additional color would be used to indicate a coating without grit.  
           [0020]    The method for increasing the frictional coefficient of a gripping surface also includes a method for applying the friction coating material described above. In one embodiment of the present invention, the friction coating material is supplied as a liquid in metal containers similar to the cans known in the art to contain PVC cement, for example. These containers include a dauber applicator. In order to apply the coating the user uses the dauber, wetted with the liquid friction coating material, and paints or daubs a thin layer of the material onto the desired location of a clean, dry object. The object can also be dipped into an open container of the liquid friction coating material and withdrawn, thereby coating the gripping surface. The freshly coated object is positioned such that the liquid coating is only in contact with air and allowed to air dry in a well ventilated area.  
           [0021]    It will be appreciated that by providing a tacky surface preparation the friction coating for gripping surfaces improves a user&#39;s ability to securely grip an object so coated. By comprising a generally translucent material of relatively thin thickness, the friction coating is unobtrusive and is only apparent upon close inspection of the object so coated. Thus, the visual aspect of the use of the object is unaffected by the use of the present invention. Since the friction coating is applied directly, the user grips the coated object directly and is able to maintain a desirable tactile feel. By comprising a relatively thin coating of relatively low mass the friction coating minimally affects the weight balance and stiffness qualities of an object so coated especially compared to a tape wrapping. These and other objects and advantages will become more fully apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0022]    [0022]FIG. 1 shows a typical drumstick with the friction coating of the present invention applied;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 2 illustrates a guitar pick provided with the friction coating;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 3 shows a hockey stick provided with the friction coating both on the handle and the blade;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 4 shows a closed container of the friction coating of the preferred embodiment;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 5A shows an open container of the friction coating of the preferred embodiment; and  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 5B shows a dauber applicator for the friction coating of the preferred embodiment.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0028]    Reference will now be made to the drawings wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout. Referring to FIG. 1, a drumstick  100  is shown in perspective view.  
         [0029]    Drumsticks  100  are elongate members generally constructed of wood. Drumsticks  100  are approximately 1′ in length and between ½″ and ¾″ in thickness. Drumsticks  100  are typically sanded and finished in a manner well known in the art so as to have a smooth surface. Drumsticks  100  are readily available on the market from a variety of sources. Drumsticks  100  are used by drummers to strike various drumming surfaces to create percussive musical sounds.  
         [0030]    Drumsticks  100  have a first lateral end  102  and a second lateral end  104  opposite the first lateral end  102 . In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first lateral end  102  is provided with a thin layer of a friction coating material  106  in a manner that will be described in greater detail below.  
         [0031]    The friction coating material  106  is, in one particular embodiment, a viscous liquid comprising toluol. The friction coating material  106  in this embodiment comprises a volatile solvent. The volatile solvent evaporates when the friction coating material  106  is exposed to air. When the volatile solvent is allowed to evaporate, a polyurethane is left that self-adheres to most surfaces. The polyurethane has a high coefficient of friction. Thus, the friction coating material  106  increases the coefficient of friction of surfaces to which the friction coating material  106  is applied. The friction coating material  106  of this embodiment is a translucent material.  
         [0032]    In another embodiment of the present invention, a silica grit is suspended in the friction coating material  106 . When the volatile solvent is allowed to evaporate, the silica grit is left embedded in the polyurethane. The silica grit is of such a size and nature as to provide a high coefficient of friction when it is held in place by the polyurethane.  
         [0033]    In yet another embodiment, a portion of the friction coating material  106 , comprising toluol, is evaporated in a known manner so as to create a solid, particulate residue. The residue is of such composition as to provide a gritty, granular substance. The residue is also of such composition that the solid residue will not redissolve when added back to a portion of the liquid friction coating material  106 . Thus, in this embodiment, the added step of drying a portion of the friction coating material  106  creates a insoluable grit that can be added to liquid friction material  106 . This embodiment has the advantage that the dried friction coating material  106  is of comparable density to the liquid friction coating material  106  and thus, when dried friction coating material  106  is added to liquid friction coating material  106 , the dried material  106  tends to remain in suspension and minimally settles out of the liquid material  106 . This facilitates applying the friction coating material  106  in a uniform manner with minimal variations in the amount of dried material  106  entrained in any given portion of liquid material  106  provided with the dried material  106 .  
         [0034]    In one aspect of the present invention, the friction coating material  106  is provided in different versions with different sizes of silica grit. The different versions of the friction coating material  106  are provided with a recognizable color to distinguish the different size of grit suspended in each version of the friction coating material  106 . A translucent version of friction coating material  106  has no grit suspended in it. A first colored version of friction coating material  106  has a relatively small size of grit suspended in it, while a second colored version of the friction coating material  106  has a larger size of grit suspended in it. The different versions of friction coating material  106  retain their distinguishing color after the volatile solvent evaporates and allow the user to readily determine whether the drumstick  100  is coated with friction coating material  106  without grit, with small grit, or with large grit.  
         [0035]    The friction coating material  106  of this embodiment is available from American Guardian Protection Incorporated of Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania under the product name Truck Bed Liner.  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a guitar pick  150 . The guitar pick  150  is a rounded equilateral triangle shaped piece of semi-rigid material, such as plastic or bone, approximately 3 cm on a side and 1-2 m thick. The guitar pick  150  is employed by guitar players to perturb guitar strings so as to produce musical sounds in a known manner. The guitar pick  150  comprises a gripping surface  152  adjacent one side of the guitar pick  150 . The gripping surface  152  provides a surface for a guitar player to grip the guitar pick  150 . The gripping surface  152  of the guitar pick  150  is provided with friction coating material  106  substantially similar to the friction coating material  106  previously described in a manner that will be described in greater detail below with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B.  
         [0037]    [0037]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a hockey stick  160 . The hockey stick  160  is an elongate member of semi-rigid material, such as wood, and is used in the game of hockey in a known manner. The hockey stick  160  has a gripping surface  162  adjacent a first end of the hockey stick  160  and a striking surface  164  adjacent an opposing second end of the hockey stick  160 . The gripping surface  162  and the striking surface  164  are provided with friction coating material  106  in a manner that will be described in greater detail below.  
         [0038]    The friction coating material  106  increases the coefficient of friction of the gripping surface  162  to improve a user&#39;s grasp of the hockey stick  160 . The friction coating material  106  also improves the contact between the striking surface  164  and a hockey puck. It is envisioned that, in one embodiment of the invention, a user will provide different versions of the friction coating material  106  to the gripping surface  162  and the striking surface  164  to achieve different coefficients of friction.  
         [0039]    Referring to FIG. 4, a container  110  of the friction coating material  106  is shown in an assembled condition in perspective view. The container  110  is generally cylindrical and is made of plated metal in a manner well known in the art. The container is approximately 3″ in diameter and approximately 4″ in height. The container  110  holds approximately 8 fluid ounces of the friction coating material  106 .  
         [0040]    Referring to FIGS. 5A and 5B, the container  110  of FIG. 4 is shown in an unassembled state. The container  110  of FIG. 4 comprises a can  112 . The can  112  is generally a closed, right-cylinder and is made of plated metal in a manner well known in the art. The can  112  is approximately 3″ in diameter and approximately 4″ in height. The can  112  holds approximately 8 fluid ounces of the friction coating material  106 . The can  112  is provided with a top end  114 . The top end  114  is circular and encompasses the diameter of the can  112 . The center of the top end  114 , and thereby the can  112 , is provided with an attachment provision  116 .  
         [0041]    The attachment provision  116  is an open cylinder, approximately 1″ in diameter. The attachment provision  116  extends approximately ¾″ in height from the surface of the top end  114 . The attachment provision  116  is materially part of and made of the same plated metal as the can  112 . The attachment provision  116  is externally threaded and serves as an attachment surface for an applicator assembly to be described in greater detail below. The attachment provision  116  also provides a circular opening  120  that provides access through the attachment provision  116  and into the interior of the can  112 .  
         [0042]    The container  110  also comprises an applicator assembly  122 . The applicator assembly  122  is assembled from several component pieces that will be described in greater detail below. The applicator assembly  122  serves as an applicator for the friction coating material  106  in a manner that will be described in greater detail below.  
         [0043]    The applicator assembly  122  comprises a lid  124 . The lid  124  is cylindrical and is open on one end and closed on the opposite end. The lid  124  is made of plated metal similar to that which makes up the can  112 . The lid  124  has an outer surface  126  and an inner surface  130 . The lid  124  is internally threaded so as to mate with the external threads on the attachment provision  116 , thereby allowing the lid  124  to attach to the attachment provision  116  with a screw motion. Thus, the lid  124  can enclose the can  112  to thereby limit spillage of the friction coating material  106  and evaporation of the volatile solvent of the friction coating material  106 . The outer surface  126  of the lid  124  is serrated and serves as a gripping surface for the lid  124  and thereby the applicator assembly  122 .  
         [0044]    The applicator assembly  122  also comprises an applicator shaft  132 . The applicator shaft  132  is a rigid, elongate member approximately 3″ in length. The applicator shaft has a first lateral end  134  and a second lateral end  136  opposite the first lateral end  134 . The first lateral end  134  of the applicator shaft  132  is affixed to the center of the inner surface  130  of the lid  124  in a manner well known in the art. The applicator shaft  132  interconnects and locates the lid  124  with a dauber  140 .  
         [0045]    The dauber  140  is generally spherical in shape and is made from a fibrous, absorbent material. The dauber  140  is made of a material such that the dauber  140  is not soluble in the volatile solvent of the friction coating material  106 . The dauber  140  is affixed to the second lateral end  136  of the applicator shaft  132  in a manner well known in the art.  
         [0046]    In one embodiment, the dauber  140  takes up friction coating material  106  from the interior of the can  112  and deposits the friction coating material  106  in the following manner. The outer surface  126  of the lid  124  of the applicator assembly  122  is grasped and the dauber  140  of the applicator assembly  122  is placed through the opening  120  of the attachment provision  116  and thus into the interior of the can  112 . The dauber  140  is allowed to absorb some friction coating material  106 , then the dauber  140  is withdrawn from the can  112 . The applicator assembly  122 , and thereby the dauber  140 , is manipulated so as to bring the dauber  140  into contact with the desired area of the object, such as a drumstick  100 , guitar pick  150 , or hockey stick  160 . The applicator assembly  122 , and thereby the dauber  140 , is swept over the region that the user wishes to be coated with the friction coating material  106  such that the dauber  140  stays in contact with the object. The dauber  140  and the friction coating material  106  are of such a nature that the friction coating material  106  will transfer from the dauber  140  to the surface of the object in a manner well known in the art.  
         [0047]    The dauber  140  can be reinserted into the can  112  in order to retrieve and apply more of the friction coating material  106 , however the friction coating material  106  is of such a nature that a thin layer of the material  106  will achieve the desired effect of increasing the coefficient of friction. When the friction coating material  106  is sufficiently applied to the object, the object is placed and held in such a position that the friction coating material  106  is held away from contact with other objects or materials and is exposed to a well ventilated air supply. The coated object is allowed to air dry for a period of time so as to allow the volatile solvent component of the friction coating material  106  to evaporate and leave the polyurethane behind.  
         [0048]    In another embodiment of the present invention, the friction coating material  106  is applied to an object, such as the drumstick  100 , guitar pick  150 , or hockey stick  160 , in the following manner. The first lateral end  102  of the object is placed into an open can  112  that is filled with friction coating material  106  to the depth that the user wishes to coat the object. The object is then withdrawn from the can  112  and the object is placed and held in such a position that the friction coating material  106  is held away from contact with other objects or materials and is exposed to a well ventilated air supply. The coated object is allowed to air dry for a period of time so as to allow the volatile solvent component of the friction coating material  106  to evaporate and leave the polyurethane behind.  
         [0049]    The friction coating material  106  leaves behind a polyurethane after the volatile solvent evaporates. The polyurethane has a high coefficient of friction and the friction coating material  106  self-adheres to surfaces. Thus, the friction coating material  106  improves the ability of a user to grasp an object coated with the friction coating material  106 . In one embodiment of the present invention, a silica grit is suspended in the friction coating material  106  such that the silica grit is imbedded in the polyurethane after the volatile solvent evaporates. The silica grit also has a high coefficient of friction and, since it is held in place by the polyurethane, the silica grit also improves the ability of a user to grasp an object coated with the friction coating material  106 .  
         [0050]    The friction coating material  106  is generally translucent in this embodiment. The friction coating material  106  and method of application are of such a nature that only a thin layer is needed to achieve the purpose of improving the ability of a user to grasp an object. Thus, the friction coating material  106  is unobtrusive and not readily apparent to observers.  
         [0051]    The friction coating material  106  is applied directly to an object. Only a thin layer of the friction coating material need be used thus allowing the user to maintain a good feel of the object. It will be appreciated that the user can apply the friction coating material  106  at any location where the user will grasp an object without departing from the spirit of the present invention.  
         [0052]    The polyurethane that adheres to the object after the volatile solvent evaporates from the friction coating material  106  is low in mass. The polyurethane of the friction coating material  106  is an elastic substance. A small amount of elastic material that covers a rigid body, such as a drumstick  100 , minimally changes the stiffness modulus of the rigid body. Thus, the friction coating material  106  and manner of application described herein will minimally affect the overall weight, the weight balance, and the stiffness modulus of a drumstick  100  so coated. Thus the weight balance and tonal qualities of a drumstick  100  coated with the friction coating material  106  of the present invention will be minimally affected.  
         [0053]    The friction coating material  106  can be applied by the user in a variety of places and manners as described above. Thus it can be seen that the friction coating material  106  and method of application described herein allow for user customization. The friction coating material  106  and method of application described herein can readily be adapted by those skilled in the art to a manufacturing environment. Thus, the friction coating material  106  can be readily used by a manufacturer to provide pre-coated objects.  
         [0054]    Although the foregoing description of the preferred embodiment of the present invention has shown, described, and pointed out the fundamental novel features of the invention, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form of the detail of the apparatus as illustrated as well as the uses thereof, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Consequently, the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the foregoing discussions, but should be defined by the appended claims.