Protective pad for the thumb hole of a bowling ball

A protective pad to be secured within the thumb hole of a bowling ball on the side opposite from that gripped tightly by the thumb, comprising a resilient synthetic resin foam member having a right parallelepiped configuration except for one tapered edge, and a relatively friction-free synethetic resin tape having a pressure sensitive adhesive on an entire surface thereof to which a major face of the foam member is secured, the tape having dimensions greater than the foam member on not more than three sides thereof. The foam member is placed within a thumb hole with the tapered edge spaced inwardly from the entrance to the hole, and the tape is secured to the wall of the thumb hole on the sides overlying the foam member.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to a resilient pad adapted to be inserted in the 
thumb hole of a bowling ball on the side opposite from that gripped by the 
thumb of a user. 
To the best of applicant's knowledge present protective pads are made of 
cork, plastic, and/or rubber and are secured in the thumb hole of a 
bowling ball at the position where it is gripped tightly by the bowler. 
Such pads have been for the purpose of permitting the bowler to squeeze or 
hold the ball more securely and thus avoid dropping it. The result of 
installing such grips is to increase pressure on the thumb, thus 
increasing the likelihood of creating blisters and/or chafing of the 
thumb. 
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a resilient 
pad for use in the thumb hole of a bowling ball which will be installed at 
the rear of the thumb hole, that is opposite the point where the ball is 
gripped tightly by the thumb, the pad providing a relatively friction-free 
surface which tightens the thumb hole but has sufficient resilience to 
allow the bowler's thumb to come out cleanly without danger of hanging. 
The resilient pad of the present invention permits a bowler to relax his 
hand and release the ball with more accuracy and consistency, and reduces 
or minimizes blisters, chafing, and/or cuts on the thumb or the bowler. 
According to the invention there is provided a protective pad which when 
secured within the thumb hole of a bowling ball on the side opposite from 
that gripped tightly by the thumb comprises a resilent synthetic resin 
foam member having a right parallelepiped configuration and positioned 
within the thumb hole with one edge thereof spaced inwardly from the 
entrance to the thumb hole, and a relatively friction-free synthetic resin 
tape having a pressure sensitive adhesive on one entire surface thereof to 
which a major face of said foam member is secured, the tape having 
dimensions greater than the foam member on at least two sides thereof. The 
synthetic resin tape is adhered to the wall of the thumb hole on at least 
two sides of the foam member in overlying relation thereto. 
A protective pad, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention, is 
secured within the thumb hole of a bowling ball on the side opposite from 
that gripped tightly by the thumb, the pad comprising a resilient 
synthetic resin foam member having a right parallelepiped configuration 
and positioned within said thumb hole with one edge thereof spaced 
inwardly from the entrance to said thumb hole, a synthetic resin film 
adhered to one major face of said foam member and interposed between said 
foam member and the wall of said thumb hole, and a relatively 
friction-free synthetic resin tape having a pressure sensitive adhesive on 
one entire surface thereof to which the other major face of said foam 
member is secured, said tape having dimensions greater than said foam 
member on three sides only thereof whereby said tape is secured to said 
wall of said thumb hole on said three sides of said foam member in 
overlying relation thereto, the fourth side of said foam member being 
remote from said entrance to said thumb hole. 
In accordance with another embodiment of the invention there is provided a 
protective pad which when secured within the thumb hole of a bowling ball 
on the side opposite from that gripped tightly by the thumb comprises a 
resilient synthetic resin foam member having a right parallelepiped 
configuration and positioned within said thumb hole with one edge thereof 
spaced only slightly inwardly from the entrance to said thumb hole, a 
pressure sensitive adhesive film on one major face of said foam member in 
contact with a wall of said thumb hole, and a relatively friction-free 
synthetic resin tape having a pressure sensitive adhesive on one entire 
surface thereof to which the other major face of said foam member is 
secured, said tape having dimensions greater than said foam member on two 
sides only thereof whereby said tape is adhesively secured to said wall of 
said thumb hole along said two sides of said foam member in overlying 
relation thereto.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
In preferred embodiments of the invention a resilient polyurethane foam 
member is provided having a right parallelepiped configuration. The size 
of the foam member may vary, ranging, e.g., from about one inch to about 2 
inches in length. The width of the foam member may range from about 3/4 
inch to about 11/4 inches. Regardless of variations in length and width 
the thickness of the foam member is maintained at about 1/4 inch since 
this has been found to provide adequate resilience, while variations in 
width permit the size of the thumb hole to be adjusted to any desired 
extent. 
In the embodiment of FIGS. 1-4, a rectangular synthetic resin film is 
adhered to one major face of the foam member, and is preferably of the 
same dimensions as this major face of the foam member. A resin film having 
a pressure sensitive adhesive on one surface thereof and sold under the 
registered trademark Scotch Tape, has been found to be entirely 
satisfactory. 
A rectangular synthetic resin tape having a pressure sensitive adhesive on 
one surface thereof is secured to the other major face of the foam member. 
Preferably this rectangular tape is a polyvinyl resin of about 3 mils 
thickness. This has been found to have a relatively friction-free surface 
which is impermeable to moisture, chalk, dust and the like. Preferably the 
rectangular tape is so dimensioned as to extend outwardly about 1/2 inch 
beyond each long edge of the foam member, about 3/16 inch beyond a short 
edge of the foam member and in substantial alignment with the other short 
edge of the foam member. The pressure sensitive adhesive covers an entire 
face of the polyvinyl resin tape. 
Preferably each corner of the polyvinyl tape is beveled in order to 
facilitate insertion into the thumb hole of a bowling ball. 
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawing, a protective pad in accordance 
with a preferred embodiment of the invention includes a resilient 
polyurethane foam member 10 having two rectangular major faces 10a and 
10b. A synthetic resin film such as Scotch Tape is indicated at 12 and is 
adhered to surface 10a of the foam member. It has the same dimensions as 
the major face 10a. 
A polyvinyl resin tape having a pressure sensitive adhesive covering an 
entire face thereof is indicated at 14 and is adhered to the major face 
10b of the foam member. As shown in FIG. 1 the polyvinyl resin tape 
extends outwardly beyond three edges of the foam member and is 
substantially aligned with the fourth edge thereof. Preferably each corner 
of the tape 14 is cut or beveled as indicated at 14'. 
When assembled in the manner illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the protective 
pad of the invention can readily be inserted and secured in the thumb hole 
of a bowling ball. More specifically, the thumb hole should first be 
cleaned so as to be free of moisture, oil, dust and the like. The pad is 
folded lengthwise with the pressure sensitive adhesive covering the 
polyvinyl resin tape facing outwardly, and the pad is slid into the thumb 
hole by keeping the foam member in contact with the surface of the thumb 
hole. The edge of the polyvinyl tape flush with a short edge of the foam 
member is inserted first into the thumb hole, and the entire pad is 
positioned therein deep enough to allow the short edge of the tape 
extending about 3/16 inch beyond the edge of the foam member to be adhered 
to the wall of the thumb hole adjacent or just below the entrance thereto. 
The pad and polyvinyl tape are then smoothed out and pressure is exerted 
on each edge of the polyvinyl tape 14. 
The desired positioning of the protective pad of the invention within a 
thumb hole is illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4. As will be apparent therefrom 
the tape 14 overlies the foam member 10, and the three margins of the tape 
extending beyond the edges of the foam member are adhered firmly to the 
wall of the thumb hole. The Scotch Tape 12 is interposed between the foam 
member and the wall of the thumb hole, so that the foam member is 
surrounded by the polyvinyl tape and Scotch Tape when positioned in the 
thumb hole on all but the one minor surface thereof which faces inwardly 
and is remote from the thumb hole entrance. Accordingly, the foam member 
is protected against deterioration by the polyvinyl tape and Scotch Tape. 
The protective pad is positioned in that portion of the thumb hole opposite 
to that which will be grasped firmly by the thumb of a bowler, i.e. the 
rear side. It is evident that the pad provides a resilient, relatively 
friction-free surface which protects the thumb of the bowler against 
chafing and/or blisters, but at the same time "sizes" the thumb hole 
opening without adversely affecting release of the ball. 
Any of the presently available conventional pressure sensitive adhesives, 
when applied to one face of the polyvinyl resin tape, provide a secure 
adhesive attachment to the clean surface of a thumb hole, so that the 
protective pad may be used repeatedly, since it is substantially 
impermeable to moisture, dirt, and the like after application. 
It will be understood that the relative thickness of the foam member 10, 
resin film 12 and resin tape 14 have been exaggerated in the drawing for 
clarity of illustration. FIGS. 3 and 4 are somewhat diagrammatic views, 
and the dimensions thereof should also not be considered as 
representative. 
While a Scotch Tape film 12 and a polyvinyl tape 14 of about 3 mil 
thickness have been indicated to be preferred elements of the invention, 
other synthetic resin materials having similar properties may be 
substituted. Other resilient foamed materials may also be substituted for 
the polyurethane foam. 
Another preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in FIGS. 5 through 8 
wherein like parts have been given like index numerals. In FIGS. 5-8 a 
resilient polyurethane foam member 10 having two rectangular major faces 
10a and 10b is coated over one major face 10a with a conventional pressure 
sensitive adhesive film 12'. A relatively friction-free polyvinyl resin 
tape 14 is provided having a conventional pressure sensitive adhesive 
covering one entire face thereof (FIG. 5). As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 the 
tape 14 is adhered to the other major face 10b of foam member 10. The tape 
is so dimensioned that it extends outwardly beyond only two edges of foam 
member 10, e.g. about 3/8 inch on each side. Preferably at least two 
corners of the tape are cut or beveled as indicated at 14'. 
In the embodiment of FIGS. 5-8 the length of the foam member 10 may be, 
e.g., 21/8 inches and the length of the tape 14 may be 2 inches. As will 
be apparent from FIGS. 5 and 8, one edge of the foam member 10 projects 
outwardly about 1/8 inch beyond an edge of the tape 14 while the opposite 
edges of foam member 10 and tape 14 are in substantial alignment. In 
addition, a tapered or chamfered surface is preferably provided as shown 
at 16 in FIG. 8 on the outwardly facing major face 10b of foam member 10, 
in order to ease entry of the thumb into the thumb hole. 
When the protective pad shown in FIGS. 5-8 is installed in the thumb hole 
of a bowling ball, it is so positioned that the tapered edge of foam 
member 10 is spaced only sligthly inwardly from the entrance to the thumb 
hole, i.e., where the bevel 18 (FIG. 8) of the thumb hole ends. 
In other respects the embodiment of FIGS. 5-8 is similar to that of FIGS. 
1-4 described above. 
It is therefore evident that the protective pad of the invention achieves 
the primary objective set forth above. Although preferred embodiments have 
been described, the invention is not so limited, and modifications are 
considered to be within the spirit and scope of the invention. 
Accordingly, no limitations are to be inferred except as set forth in the 
appended claims.