Abstract:
The present invention solves several problems of the existing fishing rod holder systems by employing a fishing rod holder design which makes the rod holder structurally robust, fully and easily adjustable, and totally conducive to the setting of the hook right out of the rod holder. Furthermore, the present invention employs a t-bar design which makes the t-bar system strong, easy to transport and store, and more importantly, fully adaptable from a boat or pier fishing to bank fishing. In addition, the present invention, replaces the bobber with a more practical, more efficient and easier to use visual tool, the strike indicator.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Not Applicable 
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not Applicable 
       REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISC APPENDIX 
       [0003]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0005]    The present invention relates generally to fishing. 
         [0006]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0007]    With most of the fishing rod holders currently on the market, you have to take the rod out to set the hook. Also, most of the existing fishing rod holders come in fixed position or with limited, or difficult to set, adjustability. Furthermore, the existing fishing rod holders and their accompanying t-bar systems are either weak structurally, difficult to transport and store, or inadaptable to bank fishing. Moreover, the bobber system, which is currently widely used by fishermen, is not practical and efficient enough for less experienced fishermen or for kids learning how to fish. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    The present invention solves the above enumerated problems by employing a fishing rod holder design which makes the rod holder structurally robust, fully and easily adjustable, and totally conducive to the setting of the hook right out of the rod holder. Furthermore, the present invention employs a t-bar design which makes the t-bar system strong, easy to transport and store, and more importantly, fully adaptable from a boat or pier fishing to bank fishing. In addition, the present invention, replaces the bobber with a more practical, more efficient and easier to use visual tool, the strike indicator. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]    For exemplification purposes, and not for limitation purposes, embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which: 
           [0010]      FIG. 1  illustrates the perspective view of a prior art (Driftmasters) t-bar system with a base mounting plate welded  14  to the one piece t-bar  13 , the narrow and enclosed rear loop of the fishing rod holder  12 , and the difficult to access wing nut  11 . 
           [0011]      FIG. 2  illustrates the perspective view of a prior art (Driftmasters) fishing rod holder with the boat or pier mounting plate  21 . 
           [0012]      FIG. 3  illustrates the perspective view of a prior art (Titelok) t-bar system with a base mounting plate  32  welded to the t-bar, and a structurally week horizontal element  31  of the t-bar. 
           [0013]      FIG. 4  illustrates the exploded view of the present invention&#39;s t-bar system in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention.  FIG. 4  shows the wrench like handle  41 , fishing rod holder  42 , t-bar top plate (i.e., the horizontal element of the t-bar)  43 , bolt  44 , t-bar mounting plate  45 , washer  46 , wing nut  47 , ½ in bolt (i.e., vertical element of the t-bar)  48 , thread  49  at the lower end of the bolt  48 , ½ in wing nut  410 , base mounting plate  411  with holes  412  and nut  413 . 
           [0014]      FIG. 5  illustrates the front view of the fishing rod holder with its front cradle  51 , rear loop  52 , and its cylindrical base  53  which has the opening  54 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 6  illustrates the side view of the fishing rod holder with its front cradle  61 , rear loop  62 , and its cylindrical base  63  which has the opening  64 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0016]      FIG. 7  illustrates the perspective view of the rod holder cylindrical base  71  with its opening  72 , together with bolt  73 , washer  74  and wrench like handle  75 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0017]      FIG. 8  illustrates the side view of the lower and threaded end  82  of bolt  81  being screwed in the hex nut  84 , secured with the wing nut  83 , while the hex nut  84  is welded in the bank stake  85 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0018]      FIG. 9  illustrates the perspective view of rod holder assembly set for bank fishing, in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention.  FIG. 9  shows strike indicator ball  91 , strike indicator wire  92 , rod holder  93 , strike indicator mounting screw  94 , rod holder cylindrical base  95  with its opening  96 , bolt-wing nut assembly  97  and its detail view  98 , and bank fishing stake  99 . 
           [0019]      FIG. 10  illustrates the perspective view of an actual strike indicator with its ball element  101 , wire element  102  and mounting screw  103 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0020]      FIG. 11  illustrates a closer perspective view of the strike indicator&#39;s mounting screw  111 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0021]      FIG. 12  illustrates the perspective view of an actual bank fishing assembly in which  121  is the strike indicator,  122  is the fishing line,  123  is the rod handle, and  124  is the cylindrical rod holder base with its opening  125 , in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention. 
           [0022]      FIG. 13  illustrates the perspective view of an actual two rod holder t-bar system mounted on a pier by screwing bolt  131  into the mounting plate  132  and being secured with the wing nut  133 , in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention. 
           [0023]      FIG. 14  illustrates the location of magnet  141  in a two rod holder t-bar system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0024]      FIG. 15  illustrates the perspective view of an actual two rod holder t-bar system mounted on a bank stake  154  by screwing bolt  151  into the bank stake&#39;s hex nut  153  and being secured with the wing nut  152 , in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention. 
           [0025]      FIG. 16  illustrates the top view of an actual four rod holder t-bar system mounted on a pier in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention. In this figure,  161  shows different objects (knife, pliers, etc) attached to the t-bar system by two magnets. 
           [0026]      FIG. 17  illustrates the location of magnets  171  in a four rod holder t-bar system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0027]    What follows is a detailed description of specific embodiments of the invention in which the invention may be practiced. Reference will be made to the attached drawings, and the information included in the drawings is part of this detailed description. The specific embodiments of the invention, which will be described herein, are presented for exemplification purposes, and not for limitation purposes. It should be understood that structural and/or logical modifications could be made by someone of ordinary skills in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is defined only by the accompanying claims and their equivalents. 
         [0028]      FIG. 1  illustrates the perspective view of a prior art (Driftmasters) t-bar system with a base mounting plate  14  welded to the one-piece t-bar  13 , the narrow and enclosed rear loop of the fishing rod holder  12 , and the difficult to access wing nut  11 . Unlike the t-bar system of the present invention, this t-bar system has the base  14  welded to the t-bar. This design makes this-bar system usable only on a pier or a boat and not on a bank. The one-piece design, with the horizontal element and the vertical element being welded together  13 , makes the transport and storage of this t-bar system considerably difficult. The wing nut  11  design and location makes the wing nut  11  difficult to access when the fishing rod is on the rod holder, hence impeding upon an easy and quick adjustment of the rod holder&#39;s orientation. In addition, the narrow and enclosed rear loop of this fishing rod holder  12  makes this rod holder totally non-conducive to the setting of the hook right out of the rod holder. 
         [0029]      FIG. 2  illustrates the perspective view of a prior art (Driftmasters) fishing rod holder with the boat or pier mounting plate  21 . This design, with only an irreplaceable mounting plate for pier or both fishing, also makes this rod holder unusable for bank fishing. 
         [0030]      FIG. 3  illustrates the perspective view of a prior art (Titelok) t-bar system with a base mounting plate  32  welded to the t-bar, and a structurally week horizontal element  31  of the t-bar. Because of the relatively weak design of the horizontal element  31  of this t-bar system, the rod holder rotates when the fish pulls on the fishing line. In addition, because the mounting plate  32  is welded to the t-bar, this t-bar system also is unusable for bank fishing. 
         [0031]      FIG. 4  illustrates the exploded view of the present invention&#39;s t-bar system in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention.  FIG. 4  shows the wrench like handle  41 , fishing rod holder  42 , t-bar top plate (i.e., the horizontal element of the t-bar)  43 , bolt  44 , t-bar mounting plate  45 , washer  46 , wing nut  47 , ½ in bolt (i.e., vertical element of the t-bar)  48 , thread  49  at the lower end of the bolt  48 , ½ in wing nut  410 , base mounting plate  411  with holes  412  and nut  413 . Except for the magnets, the t-bar system is made preferably from stainless steel. Other materials with similar physical characteristics may be used. The wrench-like handle  41  has a nut welded to it and it is used to quickly and easily adjust the orientation of the rod holder  42 . The unique design and the location of the wrench-like handle  41 , under the horizontal element  43 , makes the adjusting of the orientation of the rod holder particularly convenient and fast, by allowing for a quick release and quick fastening of the rod holder  42  to the t-bar top plate  43 . The wrench-like handle  41  is ½ inch wide, 3½ inches long with a 5/16×1 inch nut welded to one end. The handle  41  can be coated with rubber or other similar materials in order to make it more comfortable to use and easier to grip. 
         [0032]    The bolt  48  is preferably 12 inches in length and ½ inch in diameter, and it has the upper end (i.e., the bolt&#39;s head) welded onto the mounting plate  45 . The assembly created by the mounting plate  45  and the bolt  48  is attached to the t-bar top plate  43  using two Phillips bolts ¼×¾ inches long  44 , and for each bolt  44 , a corresponding washer  46  and a corresponding wing nut  47 . The top plate  43  is approximately ¼ inch thick, 1 inch wide, and 12 inches long for the 2-rod holder system and 24 inches for the 4-rod holder system. This design creates a t-bar system which is strong and easy to transport and store: the joint between the horizontal element, the top plate  43 , and the vertical element, the bolt  48 , is in the same time strong and undoable in seconds. 
         [0033]    The base mounting plate  411  is preferably three inches long, two inches wide and ⅛ inch thick, and it has a ¾ inch  413  nut welded in its center. The two holes  412  on each end of the base mounting plate  411  allows for its attachment, by using two screws, onto a pier or boat. The bolt  48  is attached to the base mounting plate  411  by screwing the bolt into nut  413  and then securing the new joint with the wing nut  410 . This design allows the fisherman to leave the base mounting plate attached to the pier or boat for a later use, and to use the t-bar system for bank fishing as explained lower in this document. 
         [0034]      FIG. 5  illustrates the front view of the fishing rod holder with its front cradle  51 , rear loop  52 , and its cylindrical base  53  which has the opening  54 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 6  illustrates the side view of the fishing rod holder with its front cradle  61 , rear loop  62 , and its cylindrical base  63  which has the opening  64 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The rod holder  61  may be made of ¼ inch, or more, round steel. The rod holder&#39;s unique design, characterized by the bent away ends of the front cradle  51 , the relatively large rear loop  62 , and its cylindrical base  63 , makes possible the setting of the hook, with ease, and right out of the rod holder. The cylindrical base  63  is approximately 2 inches in outside diameter, 1½ inches long with a 3/16 inch wall thickness. The opening  64  of the cylindrical base  63  is 5/16×2½ inches long and allows for the easy adjustment of the orientation of the rod holder in both directions, horizontally or left-right, and vertically or up-down. 
         [0035]      FIG. 7  illustrates the perspective view of the rod holder cylindrical base  71  with its opening  72 , together with bolt  73 , washer  74  and wrench like handle  75 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The size of bolt  73  is preferably 5/16 inch by 1¼ inches. The wrench-like handle  75  has a nut of size 5/16 by 1 inch welded onto it. The wrench-like handle  75  is preferably 3½ inches long. 
         [0036]      FIG. 8  illustrates the side view of the lower and threaded end  82  of bolt  81  being screwed in the hex nut  84 , secured with the wing nut  83 , while the hex nut  84  is welded onto the bank stake  85 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The bank stake  85  is made out of flat steel, ¼ in thick, two inches wide, and approximately 19½ inches long. One of ordinary skills in the art would recognized that these dimensions, as well as the other dimensions specified in this disclosure, are given for exemplification purposes only, and that variations of these dimensions may be used without departing from the scope of the present invention. The hex nut  84  is welded onto the bank stake  85  and has the same size, ¾ inch, as the hex nut  41  from  FIG. 4 . Again, this allows for the use of the same t-bar system with the base mounting plate  411  ( FIG. 4 ) for pier or boat fishing, as well as, with the bank stake  85  for bank fishing. 
         [0037]      FIG. 9  illustrates the perspective view of a rod holder assembly set for bank fishing, in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention.  FIG. 9  shows strike indicator ball  91 , strike indicator wire  92 , rod holder  93 , strike indicator mounting screw  94 , rod holder cylindrical base  95  with its opening  96 , bolt-wing nut assembly  97  and its detail view  98 , and bank fishing stake  99 . The strike indicator can be used for bank, pier or boat fishing. The strike indicator&#39;s wire  92  is made of an elastic material, preferably 0.028 inch spring steel wire. Other materials with similar physical characteristics may be used. One of ordinary skills in the art would recognize that the thickness of the wire may vary according to the conditions under which fishing occurs. For example, thicker wire may be needed in turbulent water and thinner wire may be needed in calmer water. 
         [0038]    The strike indicator&#39;s ball  91  is made from a light-weight material like Styrofoam and it can be colored in yellow, orange or any other color that makes it easily observable by the fisherman. The ball  91  is preferably 1 inch in diameter, and may be attached to the wire  92  by pressing it into a small loop made in the wire  92 . One of ordinary skills in the art would recognize that the ball  91  may be substituted with any other object of various shapes, color, or material, which may fulfill a similar visual function. The strike indicator&#39;s wire  92  is secured to the rod holder&#39;s  93  cylindrical base  95  by the use of a self tapping screw  94  and an appropriate hole in the cylindrical base  95 . One of ordinary skills in the art would recognize that the wire  92  may be attached to other parts or elements of the t-bar and/or fishing rod, reel, or rod holder, and obtain similar results, hence, without departing from the scope of the present invention. The rod holder  93  and its cylindrical base  95  is attached to the bank stake  99  by employing the bolt-wing nut assembly  97  and a corresponding hole in the bank stake  99 . 
         [0039]      FIG. 10  illustrates the perspective view of an actual strike indicator with its ball element  101 , wire element  102  and mounting screw  103 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0040]      FIG. 11  illustrates a closer perspective view of the strike indicator&#39;s mounting screw  111 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0041]      FIG. 12  illustrates the perspective view of an actual bank fishing assembly in which  121  is the strike indicator,  122  is the fishing line,  123  is the rod handle, and  124  is the cylindrical rod holder base with its opening  125 , in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention. The strike indicator  121  works as follows: the line  122  has to be placed on the strike indicator  121  in neutral position as shown. When fish pulls the strike indicator approximately 8 to 10 inches, set the hook and reel in. When the hook is set, the line will be automatically released by the strike indicator. The strike indicator  121  is a better visual tool than a bobber because of its close proximity to fisherman which makes it easier to observe and determine with higher accuracy the right moment for setting the hook. This advantage of the strike indicator is of particular benefit to less experienced fishermen and children learning how to fish. Furthermore, as explained earlier, the unique design of the rod holder makes possible the setting of the hook right out of the rod holder. 
         [0042]      FIG. 13  illustrates the perspective view of an actual two rod holder t-bar system mounted on a pier by screwing bolt  131  into the mounting plate  132  and being secured with the wing nut  133 , in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention. 
         [0043]      FIG. 14  illustrates the location of magnet  141  in a two rod holder t-bar system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The magnet size is preferably 2 inches long, 1 inch wide and ⅜ thick. The magnet  141  is attached to the t-bar system using generic glue for metals. The magnet  141  is used to attach to the t-bar system jigs, pliers, hooks, line cutters or any other tools or objects the fisherman may need to access quickly and/or easily. 
         [0044]      FIG. 15  illustrates the perspective view of an actual two rod holder t-bar system mounted on a bank stake  154  by screwing bolt  151  into the bank stake&#39;s hex nut  153  and being secured with the wing nut  152 , in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention. 
         [0045]      FIG. 16  illustrates the top view of an actual four rod holder t-bar system mounted on a pier in accordance with several embodiments of the present invention. In this figure,  161  shows different objects (knife, pliers, etc) attached to the t-bar system by two magnets. 
         [0046]      FIG. 17  illustrates the location of magnets  171  in a four rod holder t-bar system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0047]    Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein for the purpose of disclosing the preferred embodiments, someone of ordinary skills in the art will easily detect alternate embodiments and/or equivalent variations, which may be capable of achieving the same results, and which may be substituted for the specific embodiments illustrated and described herein without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of this application is intended to cover alternate embodiments and/or equivalent variations of the specific embodiments illustrated and/or described herein. Hence, the scope of the present invention is defined only by the accompanying claims and their equivalents.