SHUTTLECOCK

Abstract: A shuttlecock (1) comprising at least a cap (5, 10, 15) and a flared skirt (32, 25, 26), the flared skirt (32, 25, 26) incorporating an inflated device which may be a balloon (17, 22) or an expanded light moulded cone (13) with multiple connected cells made by a blowing agent. In one form the shuttlecock (1) is developed so that the said balloon (17) incorporates a plurality of extending fingers (18) arranged in a form which flares outwardly from the cap (15). In another form the shuttlecock comprises a cap (5, 10), an inner skirt (25) incorporating stems (6), an outer skirt (26) incorporating at least minor stems (7) and a balloon (22) adapted to support the stems (6, 7, 16, 35) and to fill in at least part of the spaces between the stems (6, 7, 16, 35) and to improve visibility. The balloon (17, 22) may be replaceable. The balloon inlet (21) incorporates a seal or a non-return valve and may pass through the cap (5, 10, 15) and/or the skirt connection.

Description: SHUTTLECOCK Technical Field. This invention is in the field of sports equipment and relates tc shuttlecocks which might be used in the game of badminton.. For the purposes of this specification all shuttlecocks have a cap, and a flared skirt; where necessary, the cap is divided into an outer cap and a skirt connector and the flared skirt is divided into an inner and an outer skirt; in a feather shuttlecock the cuter skirt would include the vane and the terms stem and quill are synonymous. Background Art. There are two main types of shuttlecocks, those having a flared skirt made of feathers and those having a flared skirt made of plastic material. Feather shuttlecocks have a cap usually made of cork, the inner skirt being the stems ( or quills of the feathers) and the outer skirt being made up of minor stems (or the quill extensions which spread into the vane). Plastic shuttleocks have an outer cap made either of cork or expanded material and, usually integral with each other, a skirt connector, inner skirt and outer skirt made of a plastic material, usually polythene or nylon. In the best feather shuttlecocks, the flared skirts are made of goose feathers which overlap in the outer skirt; such shuttlecocks have the following desirable characteristics: the turnover is good; the whole shuttlecock is rigid; it rotates in flight and the cuter skirt is very light; when struck severely there is a resounding 'crack',a noise pleasing to the player, the inner skirt does not collapse and the shuttlecock decelerates rapidly. Such shuttlecocks have two main disadvantages, they are expensive and, if mis-hit, for instance by the edge of the racket, a stem breaks and the flight becomes irregular so that the shuttlecock has to be discarded sometimes after only one or two minutes play. ∑ Q a plastic shuttlecock, the flared skirt has stems in the inner skirt (replacing quills in the feather); the stems become minor stems in the outer skirt and, to replace the vane in the feather, are connected by a series of ribs in turn connected by a plurality of intermediate stems. The design varies; cheaper models are made of a material such as polythene whilst the more expensive models are made of a material such as nylon. In models made according to the prior art, the deeper, stiffer and more numerous the stems, the more quickly the skirt recovers after collapsing when struck severely but the poorer the turnover. The turnover can be improved by reducing the number and/or cross-sectional area of stems, minor stems, ribs and intermediate stems. Spinning can be induced by inclining the stems and/or indenting parts of the outer skirt. The more the skirt is filled in by stems, minor stems, ribs and intermediate stems the better the 'crack' and the more visible the shuttlecock but the worse the turnover Manufacture is a matter of compromise between stiffness, 'crack', visibility and turnover. Such shuttlecocks are known from GB 387172, GB 907700, GB 908684, GB 1046708. Some of these specifications are known in other countries. Because of the rigidity of a new feather shuttlecock, when it is struck severely, the cap and feathers move together so that when the shuttlecock is in good condition collapsing is negligible but when a plastic shuttlecock, even a new one, is struck severely it can be shown by high speed photography that the skirt collapses until it is almost flat as shown in figure 1; the collapse is prolonged because the skirt is not strong enough to return to a substantially circular shape as it passes through the air with the result that when struck severely in a 'smash' the shot may become unplayable and when struck severely in a ' lob' the ' length' , as dictated by the laws of badminton, may become unpredictable. Technical problems to be overcome. The technical problems to be overcome in both the feather and the plastic shuttlecock are to provide a gradual support for the stems so that they are less likely to break when mis-hit and - in the plastic shuttlecock - 1) to support the stems to prevent the collapse of the skirt or make the recovery so quick as to make the collapse unimportant: 2) to fill in the spaces between the stems sufficiently to make the 'crack',3) to improve visibility and turnover. Disclosure of Invention. In accordance with the invention, these objects are accomplished in a shuttlecock having at least a cap, and a flared skirt, in that a blown up device is incorporated in the space partially enclosed by the flared skirt. In a shuttlecock having a cap, a flared skirt and a blown up device incorporated in the space partially enclosed by the flared skirt in that the blown up device is a single cell balloon having an inlet. The invention is developed in that the blown up device is a light moulded cone with multiple connected cells made by a blowing agent. In a shuttlecock having a cap, a flared skirt and a balloon, the said balloon incorporates a plurality of extending fingers integral with the main body of the balloon arranged in a form which flares outwardly from the cap. The invention is developed in in a shuttlecock having an outer cap, a skirt connector and a flared skirt comprising at least an inner skirt incorporating stems and an outer skirt incorporating at least minor stems and in that there is incorporated in the space partially enclosed by the said inner skirt a balloon adapted to support at least the said stems fill in at least part of the spaces adjacent the stems and improve visibility. A shuttlecock incorporating a balloon and an inner skirt and in which the said balloon is adapted to be inflated through a hole in the outer cap. A shuttlecock incorporating a balloon inlet retainer and in which the said balloon is inflated through an orifice in the said inlet retainer. A shuttlecock incorporating a balloon and in which the balloon inlet passes through an orifice in which the said inlet is compressed. A shuttlecock in which the said orifice is split before assembly and held together after assembly. A shuttlecock incorporating a balloon and in which a small bore tube is inserted in the balloon inlet and the equivalent of at least one '0' ring compresses the said inlet around the said small bore tube, the arrangemnet being such that a non-return val7β is made when the small bore tube is withdrawn. Advantageous Effects. The blown up device, particularly the balloon, supports the shape of the inner skirt both remote from and adjacent to the racket. Vhen -k- the shuttlecock is struck severely collapse is largely prevented and, because of the air pressure within the balloon any collapse is restored almost instantaneously to a substantially circular shape. The stems in the inner skirt in both feather and plastic shuttlecocks are given a flexible gradual support so that breakage of the stems is reduced. The stems may be reduced in number and, in plastic shuttlecocks. their cross-sectional area may be shaped to facilitate the flow αf material during injection thereby improving turnover and, because the spaces adjacent to the stems are filled by the balloon the visibility is improved and the shuttiecock makes a 'crack' when struck severely. The orifice may be split so that the balloon inlet is easily assembled Modes of Carrying Out The Invention. The invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of a shuttlecock with a plastic skirt approaching, striking and leaving a racket face. Figure 2 is a diagrammatic view of a plastic shuttlecock partly in half section showing the outer cap, the skirt connection, the inner skirt, a blown up device and the outer skirt. Figure 3 is an enlarged diagrammatic view of a cork cap incorporating a form αf the invention. Figure 4 is a diagrammatic view of a shuttlecock incorporating flared fingers which form at least part of the outer skirt. Figure 5 is a diagrammatic view in section of a shuttlecock incorporating a balloon. Figure 6 is a diagrammatic view of a balloon incorporating a non¬ return valve. Figure 7 is an enlarged diagrammatic view αf the surrounds αf orifice 31. Referring to figure 1, a plastic shuttlecock 1, moving in the direction cf the arrows 2 is struck by the racket face 3 moving in the direction of the arrow 4. Both sides of the skirt 32 flatten and remain flattened as the flight continues but will slowly recover unless intercepted in flight. Referring now to figure 2, a shuttlecock incorporating a flared skirt is shown diagramatically partly in half section. On the left of the figure 2 is the cap 5, the inner skirt incorporating stems 5 which continue into the outer skirt and become the minor stems 7, the said minor stems 7 spread into the ribs 8 and the intermediate stems 9. The flared skirt may be made up of feathers, the quills are then the stems and the extensions of the quills then become the minor stems which spread into the vane. On the right of figure 2 the shuttlecock is shown in half section; the inside αf the outer cap 10 made of moulded material which could be replaced by cork, surrounds the skirt connector 11. A blown up device 13 which has been expanded by a blowing agent is forced into the skirt connector and into the lower skirt where it supports the stems 16. Referring to Figures 3 and 5, a balloon inlet retainer split into two parts 33,34, is inserted into a plastic sleeve 24; the two parts 33,34 are shaped so that an orifice 20 is left into which the balloon inlet 39 will nest with 0' ring 14, if required. In the case of a plastic shuttlecock, the sleeve 24 could be a skirt connector; in the case of a feather shuttlecock the quill <s) 40 (one quill shown) goes directly into the cork cap 19 and the balloon inlet retainer 33,34 may be integral with the cork. The size αf the orifice 20 is such that the force created by the inflated balloon is unable to pull the outer part of the inlet through the orifice 20. A hole 21 through which inflation may take place is made in the bottom of the cap 19; a rod may be pushed through the hole 21 to eject the balloon retainer inlet 33,34 if it is necessary to replace the balloon.. If the inlet retainer 33,34 is made of cork it may be desirable to coat the surface of the orifice 20 with, for instance, epoxy, to strengthen it. The cork retainer 33,34 may be replaced by an equivalent design in another material. If very thin balloon material is used the balloon retainer may be in one piece. Referring now to figure 4 the shuttlecock comprises a cap 15 and moulded stems 35. In this case the balloon 17 incorporates a plurality αf inflated fingers 18 integral with the main body of the balloon 17 arranged in a form which flares outwards from the cap. The fingers 18 may be shaped to cause rotation. Referring to figures 2,5,6,7, an outer cap 28 surrounds a plastic skirt connector 29 which, in this case, is integral with the inner skirt skirt 25 and the outer skirt 26 of a plastic shuttlecock. Also (shown enlarged) is part of an inflated balloon 22 and integral with the skirt connector 29 is a conical part 30 with an orifice 31 which is just too small for the '0' rings 14 to pass through but large enough for the closed end of a deflated balloon 21 to be pulled through it. One end of a very small bore plastic tube 27 is inserted in the inlet end of the deflated balloon and pulled with the closed end of the deflated balloon through at least one '0' ring 14 and the orifice 31. The free end of the small bore tube 27 iε left protruding and is fed through the hole 36 in the end of the cap 28. The orifice 31 may be split as explained with reference to figure 3. When inflation iε required a pump is fitted to the free end of the small bore tube 27 and the balloon is inflated. The small bore tube 27 is then withdrawn quickly, the '0* ring ( s) 14 closes the inlet 39 and the balloon remains inflated. A sealing lubricant may be used to assist withdrawal; preferably also, whilst the inlet end of the balloon is held relative to the cap and/or skirt connector, after Inflation the balloon is slightly rotated relative to the inner skirt. The industrial use is in the manufacture of shuttlecocks.

Claims: Claims 1. A shuttlecock (1) comprising a cap (5,15,19,28) and a flared skirt (37) characterised in that a blown up device (13,17.22) is incorporated in the space partially enclosed by the flared skirt (37). 2. A shuttlecock as in claim 1 characterised in that the said blown up device (22) is a single cell balloon (22 ) incorporating an inlet (39). 3. A shuttlecock as in claim 1 characterised in that the blown up device (13) is a light moulded cone (13) with multiple connected cells made by a blowing agent. 4. A shuttlecock as in claims 1 and 2 characterised in that the said single cell balloon (17) incorporates a plurality of extending fingers (18) integral with the main body of the balloon (17) arranged in a form which flares outwardly from the cap (15). 5. A shuttlecock as in claim 1 in which the cap (28) comprises at least an outer cap (28) and a skirt connector (29) and a flared skirt (37) comprising at least an inner skirt (25) incorporating stems (25), and an outer skirt (26) incorporating at least minor stems (26) characterised in that in the space partially enclosed by the said inner skirt (25) there is incorporated a balloon (22) adapted to support at least the said stems (25), fill in at least the spaces (38) adjacent the stems (25) and improve visibility. 6. A shuttlecock as in any relevant claim characterised in that said balloon (22,17) is adapted to be inflated through a hole (21,36) in the outer cap (19,28). 7. A shuttlecock as in claims 1,2,4,5,6 incorporating a balloon inlet retainer (30,33 with 34), characterised in that the said balloon (22) is inflated through an orifice (31,20) in the said inlet retainer (30, 33 with 34).. 3. A shuttlecock as in claims 1,2,4,5,6,7 characterised in that the balloon inlet (39) passes through an orifice (14,20,31) in which the said inlet (39) is compressed. 9. A shuttlecock as in claims 1,2,4,5,6,7,8,9 characterised in that the said inlet retainers (30, 33 with 34) are split (23) before assembly and held together (24) after assembly. 10. A shuttlecock as in claims 1,2,4,5,6,7,8,9, and characterised in that a small bore tube (27) is inserted in the balloon inlet 39 and the equivalent to at least one '0' ring (14 ) compresses the balloon inlet (39) around the said small bore tube (27), the arrangement being such that a non-return valve is made when the said small bore tube (27) is withdrawn.

Inventors: CARLTON WILLIAM CHARLES, GAUCI CARLTON SARAH JANE, CARLTON, WILLIAM, CHARLES, GAUCI CARLTON, SARAH, JANE
Applicants: CARLTON WILLIAM CHARLES, GAUCI CARLTON SARAH JANE, CARLTON, WILLIAM, CHARLES, GAUCI CARLTON, SARAH, JANE
Application year: 1997
Main classification: A63B67
IPC codes: A63B67