Collapsible blind and decoy apparatus

A collapsible blind and decoy apparatus (10) for attracting wild game wherein the apparatus (10) includes a blind/decoy unit (12) supported by a collapsible framework unit (11). The blind/decoy unit (12) includes a blind/decoy member (50) having a first sheet (51) of material (52) that is at least semi-transparent with a front surface (56) that is provided with an opaque decoy element (55) that is contoured, colored and configured to resemble a selected species of wild game for the purpose of attracting wild game towards the apparatus (10).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
 1. Field of the Invention
 The present invention relates to the field of collapsible blinds for
 hunting in general, and in particular to a collapsible blind whose primary
 function is to act as a decoy to attract wild game.
 2. Description of Related Art
 As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,590,699;
 5,214,872; 5,522,168; 5,572,823; and 5,787,632, the prior art is replete
 with myriad and diverse hunting blind constructions.
 While all of the aforementioned prior art constructions are more than
 adequate for the basic purpose and function for which they have been
 specifically designed, they are uniformly deficient with respect to their
 failure to provide a simple, efficient, and practical collapsible blind
 construction whose primary function is to provide a decoy for wild game.
 As most hunters are aware, the use of decoys for big game animals such as
 elk and deer is extremely effective; however, the transport of the decoy
 to a particular site or location can be so difficult and/or cumbersome as
 to make this task either impossible or impractical for most purposes.
 As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a
 longstanding need among hunters for a new and improved collapsible blind
 whose primary purpose and function is to serve as a decoy for wild game,
 and the provision of such an construction is the stated objective of the
 present invention.
 BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
 Briefly stated, the collapsible decoy and blind apparatus that forms the
 basis of the present invention comprises in general, a framework unit that
 is collapsible and supports a combined blind/decoy unit.
 As will be explained in greater detail further on in the specification, the
 most important aspect of this invention revolves around the blind/decoy
 unit which includes a first sheet of at least partially transparent
 material having a front surface which is provided with an opaque decoy
 element that is contoured, colored, and configured to resemble a selected
 species of wild game. The light transmissive properties of the first sheet
 of material gives a three dimensional appearance to the decoy element such
 that when transparent material is employed as the first sheet of material,
 the decoy element will acquire a stand alone visual appearance. When a
 partially transparent sheet of material is employed as the first sheet of
 material, any hunter movement that occurs behind the blind/decoy unit will
 be attributed by an approaching game animal as emanating from the decoy
 element.
 In addition, the framework unit includes a collapsible framework member
 mounted on a collapsible support shaft member, whereby the support shaft
 member folds in half and the framework member and the blind/decoy unit are
 collapsible in a quasi-folding umbrella fashion to facilitate the
 transport of the apparatus to a desired hunting location.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
 As can be seen by reference to the drawings, and in particular to FIG. 1,
 the combined blind and decoy apparatus that forms the basis of the present
 invention is designated generally by the reference number 10. The
 apparatus 10 comprises in general a framework unit 11, and a blind/decoy
 unit 12. These units will now be described in seriatim fashion.
 As can best be appreciated by reference to FIG. 7, the framework unit 11
 comprises a collapsible framework member 20 having a plurality of
 articulated support arms 21 that are pivotally connected to both the
 outboard end 31 of the upper portion 32 of a collapsible support shaft
 member 30 and the exterior periphery of a slidably collar element 40.
 In addition, each of the support arms 21 comprise a plurality of rib
 elements 22 through 25 that are pivotally and slidably associated with one
 another to form a quasi-umbrella style arrangement. Furthermore, each of
 the rib elements 21 include a first rib element 22 having an inboard end
 pivotally connected to the outboard end 31 of the upper portion 32 of the
 collapsible shaft member 30. A second rib element 23 has an inboard end
 pivotally connected to the slidable collar element 40 on the upper portion
 32 of the collapsible shaft member 30. The outboard end of the first rib
 element 22 is slidably disposed on the intermediate portion of the second
 rib element 23. A third rib element 24 having an inboard end pivotally and
 slidably connected to the intermediate portion of the first rib element 22
 and a fourth rib element 25 whose inboard end is pivotally connected to
 the outboard end of the third rib element and having an intermediate
 portion which is pivotally connected to the outboard end of the second rib
 element 23.
 As can be seen by reference to FIGS. 4 through 7, the collapsible support
 shaft member 30 is provided with a lower portion 33 that is pivotally
 connected as at 34 so that the support shaft member 30 will form a
 generally L-shaped support leg arrangement for the four armed framework
 member 20 when the framework member 20 is fully deployed.
 In addition, both the framework member 20 and the support shaft member 30
 are capable of being collapsed into a very compact configuration both for
 transport to and from the field, as well as for storage purposes.
 Turning now to FIGS. 1 through 3, 6 and 7, it can be seen that the
 decoy/blind unit 12 comprises a decoy/blind member 50 that includes a
 generally rectangular sheet 51 of camouflage material 52. The rear surface
 53 of the rectangular sheet 51 is provided with a plurality of pockets 54
 which are dimensioned to receive the outboard ends of each of the support
 arms 21 of the collapsible framework member 20.
 In addition, the decoy/blind member 50 further comprises a decoy element 55
 that is provided on the front surface 56 of the rectangular sheet 51. In
 the first version of the preferred embodiment in FIG. 2, the decoy element
 55 is fabricated from lightweight flexible foam rubber 57 or the like that
 will provide depth and contours to the decoy element 55. In the second
 version of the invention the decoy element 55 is fabricated from a thin
 sheet of opaque material 58. In both versions, the decoy element 55 has
 the outline, coloration and appearance of a selected species of wild game.
 At this juncture, it should be noted that in the preferred embodiment of
 the invention, the decoy element 55 is opaque while the camouflage
 material 52 is at least semi-transparent to provide depth perception to an
 animal observing the decoy element 55. Furthermore, when the apparatus 10
 is employed both as a blind and a decoy, this semi-transparency not only
 allows hunters hidden behind the apparatus 10 to observe an approaching
 animal, but also causes the animal to attribute any motion that occurs in
 an obscured fashion behind the decoy element to be animated movement
 caused by the decoy element 55. This feature is particularly helpful when
 a hunter begins to raise either a firearm or bow and arrow preparatory to
 taking a shot at an animal, and it also coincides exactly with that point
 in time when an animal would most likely be spooked by the movement, but
 for the presence of the decoy element 55.
 It should also be noted that this invention also contemplates fabricating
 sheet 51 from transparent material in those instances where the apparatus
 10 is only intended to function as a decoy and in this particular
 instance, the decoy element 55 will present a stand alone appearance with
 the background vegetation and landscape being clearly visible to the game
 animal.
 Although only an exemplary embodiment of the invention has been described
 in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that
 many modifications are possible without materially departing from the
 novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such
 modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this
 invention as defined in the following claims.
 Having thereby described the subject matter of the present invention, it
 should be apparent that many substitutions, modifications, and variations
 of the invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is
 therefore to be understood that the invention as taught and described
 herein is only to be limited to the extent of the breadth and scope of the
 appended claims.