Automatically setting fishing hook assembly

The automatically setting fishing hook assembly includes two hooks pivotally secured to a common shaft with their bends oriented opposite one another. The shanks of the hooks are offset from the shaft by short arms that pivot on the shaft. A coil spring is installed on the shaft between the hooks, with the opposite ends of the spring engaging the shanks of the hooks to urge the bends of the hooks outwardly from one another. A latch is affixed to the shank of one hook, and engages the shank of the other hook to hold the two hooks together. The latch is disengaged from the second hook when a fish strikes the assembly, with the bends of the two hooks springing apart to automatically set the two hooks in the mouth of the fish to reduce the chance of the fish slipping the hooks and escaping.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to fishing tackle, and more particularly to an automatically setting fishing hook assembly that has two separate hooks biased outwardly by a spring to facilitate setting the hook when a fish strikes.

2. Description of the Related Art

The experienced angler is well aware of the difficulty in setting a hook when catching a fish, and the ease with which a fish may sometimes slip the hook and escape after striking and taking the bait. It is for this reason that conventional hooks are provided with barbs, and that double and treble hooks are sometimes preferred for some types of fishing. Nevertheless, these hook improvements over the basic single, non-barbed hook still do not provide complete assurance of a successful catch after a strike.

As a result, various mechanical devices have been developed in the past to deploy multiple hooks when a fish strikes the hooks and bait. Most such devices aim to reduce the number of parts by forming the two hooks from a single length of wire, with a medial portion of the wire being coiled into a spring to urge the hooks outwardly from one another when a fish strikes and trips the device. Some others may use two separate lengths of wire to form the two hooks and a separate spring, but invariably the hook components must be manufactured with additional bends, intermediate eyes along their shanks, and/or some other non-standard configuration that complicates manufacture. Most of these automatically deploying hook assemblies also require relatively complex, multiple component mechanisms that are tripped when the fish strikes the hooks, thereby releasing the restrained hooks.

Thus, an automatically setting fishing hook assembly solving the aforementioned problems is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The automatically setting fishing hook assembly includes two separate hooks that are urged apart by a separate spring acting on the shanks of both hooks. Each of the hooks is secured to a short pivot arm, with the pivot arms in turn being pivotally secured to a shaft. The hooks and arms are disposed in mirror image to one another, i.e., the bends of the two hooks are oriented opposite one another. A coil spring is positioned on the shaft between the two arms, with opposite ends of the coil bearing against the shanks of the two hooks and urging the bends of the two hooks outwardly relative to one another. A small latch or catch is immovably affixed to the shank of one of the hooks, and catches the shank of the opposite hook to hold the hooks together prior to a fish strike. When a fish strikes the hook assembly, the latch is disengaged from the second hook and the bends of the two hooks spring apart from one another due to the pressure of the coil spring. This automatically sets the two hooks in the mouth of the fish and assures that the fish cannot slip the hook and escape.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1Aprovides an exploded perspective view of a first embodiment of an automatically setting fishing hook assembly10, illustrating its various components and their relationship. The assembly10includes a series of components that are movably or pivotally secured along a shaft. The shaft comprises an internally threaded first component12aand an opposite second component12bhaving an externally threaded shank that threads into the first component12a. Each shaft component12a,12bhas a relatively large diameter head, the first component12ahaving a first end or head14aand the opposite second component12bhaving a second end or head14b. The various components that are movably or pivotally secured on the shaft are captured between the two heads or ends14aand14b.

The shaft includes relatively short first and second arms16aand16b, which pivot thereon and extend radially therefrom. Each arm16a,16bincludes a hole or passage18aand18b, the passages18a,18bfitting over the larger external diameter of the first shaft component12a. Each arm16a,16bis formed of a relatively thin, flat piece of brass sheet material, or other suitable material.

The two arms16a,16bprovide pivotal attachment for the first and second hooks20a,20bof the automatically setting fishing hook assembly10. Each hook20a,20bincludes a shank22aand22b, a bend24aand24b, and an eye26aand26bopposite the respective bend. In the embodiment ofFIGS. 1A,2A, and2B, the shanks22a,22bof the hooks20a,20bare curved, but it will be seen that the shanks may be straight, as in the embodiment illustrated inFIG. 1B, discussed further below.

Each of the arms16a,16bhas a distal end28aand28bthat attaches to the respective hook20a,20bat a shaft attachment point, respectively30aand30b, as shown inFIGS. 2A and 2B. The sheet metal distal ends28a,28bof the two arms16a,16bare wrapped around the respective shanks22aand22bof the two hooks and soldered or otherwise affixed to the hook shanks22a,22bto secure the hooks20a,20bto their respective arms16a,16b, thus forming the shaft attachment for each hook. The two hooks20a,20bare thus radially offset from the shaft by the short lengths of the two arms16a,16b, but pivot on the shaft by means of the arms16aand16b.

The shaft attachment points30a,30bdefined by the attachments of the two arms16a,16bto the respective hook shanks22a,22bdivide each hook shank into a bend portion32aand32band an eye portion34a,34bopposite the bend portion32a,32b. It will be seen inFIGS. 2A and 2Bthat the bend portion32a,32bof each hook shank is longer than the eye portion34a,34b, and that the bends24aand24bof the two hooks20aand20bare oriented in mirror image to one another on the shaft of the assembly10.

The assembled first and second shaft components12aand12binclude a torsion coil or helical spring36installed thereon between the two arms16aand16band coaxial with the shaft. The spring36is preferably formed of corrosion-resistant steel, i.e., “stainless” steel, and has opposed first and second ends38aand38b, which engage the respective hook shanks22aand22band urge the shanks and hook bends24aand24bapart from one another. The first spring end38ahooks around the eye portion34aof the first hook shank22a, while the second spring end38bwraps around the bend portion32bof the second hook shank22b. The coil spring36is installed on the shaft with some pre-wind to the coil, i.e., the two ends38aand38bexert an unwinding force with the second end38bproducing a counter-clockwise force relative to the first end38a. Thus, the first spring end38apulls the eye portion34aof the first hook shank22atoward its counterpart second hook eye portion34b, while the second spring end38bexerts a pushing force on the bend portion32bof the second hook shank22b, thus applying a force to the second hook shank22band its bend24bto push it away from the opposite first hook shank22aand its bend24a.

A latch40formed of a small piece of brass sheet stock or other suitable material is permanently affixed (soldered, etc.) to the bend portion32aof the first hook20a. The latch40has a distal end with a small hook or catch42extending therefrom that hooks around the opposite bend portion32bof the shank of the second hook20bwhen the two hook shanks22aand22band their bends24aand24bare drawn together, as shown inFIG. 2A.

When a fish strikes the automatically setting hook assembly10ofFIG. 2A, the strike jars the distal end hook or catch42of the latch40loose from the bend portion32bof the second hook20b, thereby allowing the coil spring36to partially unwind and pivot the two hook shanks22aand22band bend portions24aand24bof the two hooks20aand20boutwardly from one another, thus automatically setting the two hooks generally as shown inFIG. 2B. Additional force spreading the two hook bends24aand24bapart from one another is applied by the single leader system shown in solid lines inFIGS. 2A and 2B. The single leader44terminates at and is secured to the eye26aof the first hook20a, and passes through the eye26bof the second hook20b. When tension is applied to the leader44, e.g., by a fish taking the hook assembly10, the single leader44draws the two hook eyes26aand26btogether, thus applying an opposite spreading force to the two bends24aand24bof the hooks20aand20bto the opposite side of the pivot point from the two hook eyes26aand26b. Alternatively, two leaders46aand46bmay be used if so desired, as indicated in broken lines inFIGS. 2A and 2B.

FIG. 1Bis an illustration of an alternative embodiment of the automatically setting fishing hook assembly, designated as hook assembly110. The fishing hook assembly110ofFIG. 1Bdiffers from the assembly10ofFIGS. 1A,2A, and2B only in the configurations of the two hooks120aand120b. It will be seen inFIG. 1Bthat the two hooks120a,120bhave straight shanks, respectively122aand122b, rather than the curved shanks22a,22bof the two hooks20aand20bof hook assembly embodiment10. All other components are identical to corresponding components of the hook assembly10, and are designated by like reference numerals and characters. The fishing hook assembly110ofFIG. 1Bfunctions essentially identically to the hook assembly10ofFIGS. 1A,2A, and2B, as explained in detail further above. Regardless of the specific shapes or configurations of the shanks of the hooks used in the automatically setting fishing hook assembly10or110, the device greatly facilitates setting the hook due to its fully automatic operation when a fish strikes, thus providing a greater likelihood of a catch for the angler.