Abstract:
A lacrosse stick for reducing the rebound of a ball caught therein. The head of the lacrosse stick is affixed to a tubular shaft in which a portion of the shaft wall at the top end is omitted on the front side and another portion is omitted on the backside below the first omitted portion. A resilient member is inserted within the shaft extending past the lower omitted portion of the shaft wall. The resilient member fills the omitted areas to seat flush therein. A head having a socket and throat is affixed to top end of the shaft. The socket engages the resilient insert via the omitted portions. When a force is applied, for example, by a ball caught in the pocket, the socket compresses the resilient member from the front and the throat from the back allowing the head to rotate backward, dissipating some of the energy and reducing rebound.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application claims priority to U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/390,339 filed Oct. 6, 2010 which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to lacrosse sticks, and more particularly to an apparatus and method for dampening the rebound of a lacrosse stick head pocket after the pocket has had force applied to it by, for example, a caught lacrosse ball. 
     2. Description of the Background 
       FIG. 1  illustrates a conventional molded-head lacrosse stick. As shown, a typical lacrosse stick includes a handle or shaft  20  (dashed lines) and a double-wall synthetic head  10 . Head  10  includes a generally V-shaped frame having two sidewalls  14 A,  14 B joined by a stop member  18  at the end narrow end of the “V,” nearest the shaft  20 . A transverse wall (or “scoop”)  16  joins the sidewalls  14 A,  14 B at the open end of the “V.” Webbing is woven between the sidewalls, scoop and stop member to form a pocket as will be described. The “double-wall” descriptor applied to the head  10  refers to the fact that it has two sidewalls as opposed to the single sidewall found in traditional wooden lacrosse sticks in which the pocket is completed by a woven gut wall in place of a second, wooden sidewall. The shaft  20  joins the narrow end of the head and is received in a socket formed in the stop member  18 . The shaft  20  passes through a throat  12  before being received in the stop member  18 , the throat  12  being supported by extensions of the sidewalls. A screw or other fastener  22  placed through stop member secures shaft  20  to head  10 . The traditional double-wall head  10  is a monolithic structure that is injection-molded from synthetic materials such as nylon, urethane and polycarbonate which are known in the art. 
     The head of a lacrosse stick is strung in one of several ways with a series of strings and/or mesh to form a pocket for catching and throwing the lacrosse ball. Traditionally-strung pockets are required by the rules of the women&#39;s game and have four or five longitudinal leather and/or synthetic thongs, eight to twelve stitches of lateral cross-lacing and no more than two “shooting/throw” strings. To facilitate stringing of the thongs, a series of upper thong holes  32  are provided in transverse wall  16  and paired with corresponding thong holes  34  in stop member  18 . To complete the pocket web nylon strings are woven around the thongs and laced through string holes  36  in sidewalls  14 A and one or more throwing or shooting strings are woven through the thongs extending transversely between the throwing string holes  38  on the upper portions of sidewalls  14 A,  14 B. These typical features of a lacrosse stick are all shown generally in Tucker et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,507,495; Crawford et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,034,984; and Tucker et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,947, which are each incorporated by reference herein. In order to comply with the rules of the women&#39;s game, the pocket must be strung such that the top of a lacrosse ball (2.5 inches in diameter) placed in the pocket held horizontally extends above the top edge of the side walls  14 A,  14 B. The rules of the men&#39;s game allow traditional stringing but also permit mesh pockets that are significantly deeper and more forgiving. The pocket of a men&#39;s stick must be strung so that the top of a lacrosse ball placed in the pocket extends above the bottom edge of the side walls  14 A,  14 B. 
     Although the synthetic materials used in the construction of the head impart many performance advantages over traditional wooden heads, the synthetic, monolithic double-wall head fails to outperform the wooden heads in one critical aspect: pocket “give.” Specifically, whereas traditional unitary single walled wooden and gut sticks deflected under the force of a caught ball, the strength and rigidity of synthetics required for head durability combined with the rigid metal shaft is at odds with the desire for the pocket to “give” in order to facilitate catching the heavy, hard rubber lacrosse ball. Because the synthetic heads use substantially rigid materials to provide the structural integrity and durability of the head frame, the thong holes in the substantially rigid head provide little deflection against which the pocket strings can pull or stretch. In other words, the thong holes in a synthetic head do not deaden the tension of the pocket webbing, as occurs, for example, when a lacrosse ball hits the pocket. Similarly, the rigid connection between the head and the unyielding shaft provides no deadening or absorption of the force of the ball. 
     Notably, this pocket “give” is most critical in the women&#39;s game in which shallow pocket depth rules necessitate tightly strung pockets. As a result of the necessary tension, when a lacrosse ball hits the pocket the impact forces are returned to the ball, producing a rebounding or trampoline effect that can propel the ball out of the pocket. This makes it difficult to catch and control thrown balls, particularly balls thrown at high velocity. Indeed, for all but the most skilled players, a lacrosse ball can easily bounce out of a rebounding pocket. In essence, the pocket, strung on a rigid unforgiving frame, acts like the strings of a tennis racquet and rebounds the ball out of the pocket. Although this trampoline effect is more pronounced in the tightly strung women&#39;s lacrosse heads, the desire to absorb the impact of an incoming ball is equally applicable to men&#39;s lacrosse heads. Thus, there remains a need for a synthetic lacrosse head design that provides the pocket “give” of a traditional wooden head while maintaining the light weight, durability, and structural integrity of synthetic lacrosse heads. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for dampening the rebound of a lacrosse head pocket after the pocket has had force applied to it by, for example, a thrown lacrosse ball. 
     Unlike the substantially rigid lacrosse head frames of the prior art, which attach pocket thread to unforgiving, rigid structures, the present invention provides a flexible energy-absorbing material within or as part of the handle where the rigid head and handle meet. The material within or attached to the handle is part of an otherwise rigid handle. The flexibility of the material produces a “give” that minimizes the rebound of a pocket after being impacted by a ball. This pocket dampening limits the movement of the ball and makes the ball easier to control and to retain in the pocket. The precise location of the dampening material on the lacrosse handle may be varied to control the degree of pocket “give” in response to, for example, the force on the pocket created by a ball impacting the pocket during a catch or swinging in the pocket during cradling. 
     The head of the lacrosse stick is affixed to the top end of a tubular shaft in which a portion of the shaft wall at the top end of the shaft is omitted on the front side of said shaft and a portion of the shaft wall is omitted on the a back side of said shaft below the first omitted portion. A resilient member is inserted within the tubular member extending longitudinally at least to or slightly past the lower omitted portion of the shaft wall, the resilient member being contoured to fill the areas of omitted shaft wall so as to be flush with the outside surface of the shaft. A head having a socket for receiving the shaft is affixed to the top end of the shaft. A throat is aligned with the socket such that the shaft passes through or by the throat when received in said socket. The socket engages the resilient insert via the omitted portion on the front side of the shaft wall while the throat engages the resilient insert via omitted portion on the back side of the shaft wall when said top end of said shaft is seated in the socket. When a force is applied to the front side of the head by, for example, a ball being caught in the pocket, the socket compresses the resilient member from the front while the throat compresses the resilient member from the back allowing the head to rotate backward about an axis perpendicular to the shaft and thereby dissipate some of the energy of the thrown ball rather than returning that energy to the ball. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and certain modifications thereof when taken together with the accompanying drawings in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a conventional (prior art) molded-head lacrosse stick 
         FIG. 2  is a bottom view of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a side view of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a longitudinal section of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a side view of a resilient insert of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  is a three-quarters front perspective view of a resilient insert according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention from below. 
         FIG. 7  is a three-quarters back perspective view of a resilient insert according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention from above. 
         FIG. 8  is a three-quarters back perspective view of a shaft according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  is a three-quarters front perspective view of a shaft according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 10  is a three-quarters front perspective view of a shaft and resilient insert according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 11  is a three-quarters back perspective view of a shaft and resilient insert according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIGS. 12   a  and  12   b  are sectional views through the shaft at the notch with and without the resilient insert in place. 
         FIGS. 13   a  and  13   b  are sectional views through the shaft at the screw hole with and without the resilient insert in place. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The present invention is an apparatus and method for dampening the rebound of a lacrosse head after the head has had force applied to it by, for example, a lacrosse ball being caught in its pocket.  FIG. 2  is a bottom perspective view and  FIG. 3  is a side view of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, which generally includes a lacrosse head  10  defining a pocket  3  and a hollow lacrosse handle or shaft  200  extending from the head as described above. The shaft is received in a throat as will be described and is typically of a hollow, rounded hexagonal, octagonal, oval or circular cross section and made of metal or composite materials. The top end of the shaft (where the shaft meets the head) is shaped and contoured to receive a resilient insert  210  therein to achieve the purposes of the invention as will also be described. It should be noted that the relatives terms such as “top,” “bottom,” “front” and “back” are used herein to describe the invention as depicted in the accompanying figures are not intended to be limiting. It will be apparent to skilled practitioners that the orientation of a lacrosse stick varies wildly during play and the relative position of the elements of the present invention will similarly vary from those depicted. 
       FIG. 8  is a partial perspective detail view of the top end of the shaft  200  from the back. As can be seen from the figure, a portion of the tubular shaft wall on the back side of the shaft  200  is removed or omitted beginning preferably at approximately from ¾ to 1¼ inches (10 to 30 mm) along the length of the shaft and continuing longitudinally for approximately another 1½ to 2 inches (35 mm to 50 mm) therefrom to create a “notch”  203  in the shaft  200 . With reference to  FIGS. 12   a ,  12   b , cross-sectionally, the arc of the area of removed material forming the notch is preferably symmetrically positioned along the center line of the back side of the shaft and includes a sufficient angle such that the sagitta S 2  of the chord of the defined segment is of greater dimension than the anticipated deflection of the throat  12  under load of a caught lacrosse ball so as to prevent the distal portion of the throat  12  from directly engaging the shaft walls at the back of the shaft. This dimension will largely be a function of the material properties of the elastomeric insert  210  as will be described. The subtended angle α of the arc of the removed portion  203  of shaft wall material is preferably from 80-degrees to 190-degrees. 
       FIG. 9  is a partial perspective detail view of the top end of the shaft  200  from the front. As can likewise be seen from  FIG. 9 , material is also removed from the front portion of the tubular shaft wall. The area  201  of removed or omitted shaft wall preferably extends longitudinally from the top end of the shaft  20  to a point ¾ to 1 inch (20 mm to 25 mm) down the length of the shaft  200 . With reference to  FIGS. 13   a ,  13   b , cross-sectionally, the area  201  of removed or omitted shaft wall and is open to the end of the shaft. However, open area  201  need not necessarily continue to and be open to the top end of the shaft. The arc of the area of removed material is preferably symmetrically positioned along the center line of the front side of the shaft (diametrically opposed to the front side) and includes a sufficient angle such that the sagitta S 1  of the chord of the defined segment is of greater dimension than the anticipated deflection of the throat  12  under load of a caught lacrosse ball so that the portion of the throat  12  adjacent to the stop member  18  ( FIG. 2 ) does not directly engage the shaft walls at the front of the shaft  200 . This dimension will also be a function of the material properties of the elastomeric insert material  210 . The subtended angle α of the arc of the area  201  of removed material is preferably from 80-degrees to 180-degrees. It is permissible that the area  201  of removed shaft wall overlap longitudinally on the shaft  20  with the notch  203 . The area  201  of removed or omitted shaft wall may be tapered longitudinally where the areas of removed material  201  is adjacent to or overlaps with the notch  203  so that the areas do not intersect and there is sufficient shaft wall remaining to maintain the structural integrity of the shaft. 
     With reference to  FIGS. 5-7 ,  10  and  11 , an insert  210  of resilient material, more resilient than that of the shaft walls, is inserted into the hollow shaft  200 . The insert  210  is provided in overall size and shape to closely fill the internal void of the shaft  200  and extend down the shaft past the distal end of the notch, as seen in  FIG. 3  in which the distal end  221  of the insert  210  is visible. The insert  210  preferably extends past the distal end of the notch  203  a distance sufficient that the end condition of the insert  210  does not interact with or influence compression of the insert  210  during use. Preferably, the insert  210  extends at least ⅜ inch (10 mm) past the distal end of the notch  203 . The surface of the insert  210  is preferably raised or contoured in areas  204  to account for the shaft wall thickness in the areas in which material has been removed or omitted  201 ,  203  such that the outside surface of the insert  210  seats flush with the outside surface of the shaft  200  as seen in  FIGS. 10 and 11 . At the top end of the shaft  200 , the end of the insert  210  is flush with or just proud of the end of the shaft. 
     The insert  210  may comprise an elastomeric, flexible material in a generally cylindrical or other suitable shape (hexagonal, octagonal, oval, etc.) to conform to the interior shape of the shaft as described. The durometer hardness of the elastomeric material of the insert  210  can be selected from 20-95 A (ASTM D2240 type A durometer scale) to increase or decrease the relative amount of flexibility and “give” achieved by the overall assembly. A durometer hardness of from 35-50 A is preferred. The insert  210  may be of solid construction or may have on or more voids  205  or other perforations to control (increase) the degree of head flex or “give” as well as the overall weight of the lacrosse stick. An otherwise solid insert  210  may be provided with partial or complete vertical or horizontal holes or voids  205  to control weight and head flexibility and allow flexibility or forgiveness to be built in at different locations along the length of the shaft  200 . 
     The insert  210  may also comprise multiple discrete elements of differing materials having differing hardness or elasticity characteristics to tailor the feel of the stick. For example, one or more longitudinal voids  205  may be filled with a second resilient material (not shown) of a differing hardness value from that of the material of the insert itself such that overall resilient property of the insert  210  are modified. The second resilient material may be of greater or lesser hardness or resilience as compared to that of the inset  210  and may run the entire length of void  205  or may run only a portion of that length such that the resilient characteristics of the insert  210  vary along the length of the shaft. Similarly, insert  210  may itself be comprised of two or more regions or pieces of resilient material to create an insert having varying resilient properties at one end as compared to another. The two pieces of such a resilient member may be mechanically joined or unitarily formed to create a single insert  210  or may be separately inserted into and retained in the shaft  200  in alignment with the areas in which material has been removed or omitted  201 ,  203  from the shaft wall. 
     With reference to  FIGS. 2 through 4 , the rigid lacrosse head  10  is affixed to the shaft  200  by inserting the shaft through the throat  12  and into the socket of the stop member  18 , as shown. The throat  12  is preferably formed as a ring cooperatively shaped to engage and tightly encircle the exterior surface of the inserted shaft  200 . Similarly, the socket of the stop member  18  is preferably formed as a ring cooperatively shaped to engage and tightly encircle the exterior surface of the inserted shaft  200 , however, in certain embodiments both the throat and the socket may only partially encircle the shaft at, for example the back or front of the shaft. Although aligned with the socket such that the shaft will necessarily pass through the throat when inserted into the socket, the throat  12  is preferably a separate element from the socket and is spaced longitudinally a distance down the length of the shaft from the socket such that the socket and shaft engage the shaft in two discrete and discontinuous regions. It is preferred that no contact be made between the head and the shaft in the region between socket and throat to so as not to impede rotation as will be described. The throat  12  is preferably supported by the sidewalls  14   a ,  14   b  in order to create the desired separation from the socket. The space between the socket and throat is, however, not critical and may, in certain embodiments, be omitted such that the socket and throat are of unitary construction. 
     With the top of the shaft  200  fully inserted and seated in the socket of the stop member  18 , the distal throat  12  will be aligned with the notch  203  such that the inside surface of the throat engages only the insert  210  at the back of the shaft where the insert is accessible through the notch  203 . Similarly, with the shaft fully inserted and seated, the socket of the stop member  18  is aligned with the area  201  of removed material on the front of the shaft  200  such that the inside surface of socket engages only the insert  201  at the front of the shaft. A screw  206  or similar means of attachment is inserted through the back of the socket  18  and into a hole  207  in the back of the shaft to secure the head to the shaft. 
     In use, when force is applied to the head  10  such as from a thrown lacrosse ball received in the pocket from the front, the head  10  will rotate backwards by pushing into and compressing the resilient insert  210  inside the shaft  200  to dissipate some of the energy of the moving ball and allow for a softer, more forgiving catch of the thrown ball. Rotation, as depicted in  FIG. 4  is facilitated by engagement of the socket (and specifically the front portion of the inside of the socket) with the resilient insert via the omitted area  201  on the front side of the shaft, and by engagement of the throat  12  (and specifically the back portion of the inside of the throat) with the resilient insert  210  via the notch  203 . The resilient nature of the insert permits compression thereof at the front of the shaft thereby permitting the socket to move backward, and also permits compression of the insert at the back of the shaft thereby permitting the throat to move forward. The relative motion of the socket and throat (under the influence of the screw) results in a net rotation of the head and energy dissipation in the insert. The hardness and physical construction of the resilient insert (in terms of voids or holes  205 ) determines the amount of compression and thus resistance to rotation of the head provided by the insert  210  and thus the amount of rotation. 
     In this embodiment, the interaction of the inner surfaces of the socket and throat  12  not in contact with the resilient insert  210  are equally important. Because the inner throat  12  and socket surfaces fit tightly against the rigid material of the shaft  200  wall, as in a conventional lacrosse stick, the head  10  will not flex laterally or forward (i.e., in the direction that the lacrosse ball travels when it releases from a lacrosse stick) when a player cradles, shoots or passes the ball or is checked by an opponent. Unlike prior attempts in the art to create pocket “give” by altering the structure of the head  10 , the present invention facilitates head movement or flex in only one direction and does not facilitate head movement in the opposite direction, a flex that would be undesirable to many players since it adds variability and inconsistency to ball handling which requires considerable precision. Thus, the upper portion of the encircling throat  12  is flush to and in contact with the rigid composite or metal portion of the shaft  200 , as is the lower portion of the socket wall of the stop member  18 , so as to resist undesirable flexing of the head relative to the shaft. 
     It should now be apparent that the above-described method and apparatus effectively dampens the rebound of a lacrosse ball received in a head  10  pocket in which the webbing is strung taught according to the rules of the game. Having now fully set forth the preferred embodiment and certain modifications of the concept underlying the present invention, various other embodiments as well as certain variations and modifications of the embodiments herein shown and described will obviously occur to those skilled in the art upon becoming familiar with said underlying concept. It is to be understood, therefore, that the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically set forth in the appended claims.