Abstract:
An integrated duck decoy, anchor, and retrieval system. Decoy line passes through a vertical cavity in the decoy body, with an anchor attached to the end of decoy line emerging from the bottom of the decoy. The end of decoy line emerging from the top of the decoy terminates in a loop attached to a stopper, which prevents the loop from entering the decoy body. The decoy may be removed from the water by means of the loop. When the decoy line is pulled from the loop end, the anchor will become recessed into the bottom of the decoy body, facilitating easy storage and avoiding tangled anchors and lines.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates to the field of waterfowl decoys, namely decoys formed into a semblance of a duck and designed to attract wild ducks for hunting or other outdoor recreation. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Duck decoys, whether manufactured from hollow bodied plastic, cork, wood, stuffed canvas, or other materials, are routinely used by sportsmen to attract waterfowl, particularly to facilitate hunting, shooting, and photographing waterfowl. Typical configurations include a decoy body with either a permanent or removable head, decoy line attached to the keel or eyelets at the front or rear of the decoy body, and a decoy anchor or weight used to tether the decoy in place where it is deployed. 
     Some configurations include push-button or spring-activated “slides” used to hold the decoy anchor in place after it is pulled with decoy line to a position adjacent to the bottom or keel of the decoy body. Other configurations require winding or twisting the decoy line around the keel of the decoy body and tucking the anchor weight under the line or wrapping a flat strap lead weight around the decoy body neck/head. Still other configurations incorporate elastic cords or links to the decoy line near the anchor weight to assist in storing the anchor weight once the line is wrapped for storage. 
     Regardless of configuration, current retrieval of deployed decoys requires the individual to remove the decoy from the water directly and either pull or wrap the decoy line and decoy anchor weight around the decoy body or adjacent to the decoy body. These actions necessarily require some contact with water that can be extremely cold during the North American wildlife hunting seasons. 
     Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a duck decoy with an anchor that allows convenient storage of the anchor when the decoy is not in use. Another object of the present invention is to provide a duck decoy that is easy to deploy and retrieve. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     These objects are achieved in the present invention by incorporating a hollow cavity within the decoy body, preferably in the form of a vertical cylinder inserted slightly forward of the decoy&#39;s midline such that one opening of the cylinder is at the top of the decoy body and another opening of the cylinder is at the bottom of the decoy body. 
     This hollow cavity within the decoy body facilitates the placement of decoy line or string through the center of the decoy body. The end of the decoy line that emerges from the top of the decoy would be attached to a stopper, shaped so that when the decoy line is pulled from the bottom, the stopper will enter the top opening of the cavity, but not be able to pass fully into the cavity. The decoy line would be formed into a loop emerging from the top of the stopper to allow for retrieval of the decoy by grasping the loop with a finger or through the use of any hook, pole, catch-pole, or other mechanism. 
     Attached to the opposite end of the decoy line from the loop and stopper would be the decoy anchor. The decoy line could be made available in multiple lengths to facilitate various water depths or could be custom cut for the proper depth of any application. Regardless of length, at the end of the decoy line extending from the bottom of the decoy body would be a molded decoy anchor weight. In one configuration, the decoy anchor would be a flat disc, at the center of which would be a projection to which the decoy line would be attached. By pulling the decoy line from the top, the anchor would be pulled nearly flush to the bottom of the decoy and the projection would enter the bottom opening of the hollow cavity. The projection and cavity could be shaped so that the anchor would become fixed by means of tension or friction, much like a cork in a bottle. 
     This innovation of passing the decoy line through the decoy body and having the decoy anchor enter a cavity within the decoy body would help prevent anchors and decoy lines from becoming tangled with those of other decoys. Further, the retrieval of the deployed decoys by means of the loop emerging from the top of the floating decoys would allow the sportsman to pull multiple decoys through the retrieval process. By pulling the loop end of the decoy line, the anchor weight would be pulled into and “stoppered” into the bottom of each decoy. Thereafter the sportsman could pull multiple decoys to dry land where the decoys can be placed in storage bags or hung by means of the loops onto hooks, carabiner clips, or other devices. This retrieval mechanism helps the individual retrieiving decoys to avoid becoming wet, needing to remove gloves, or needing to drag a decoy sack or bag into the water for placement of each decoy after retrieval. 
     In addition to these advantages of the present invention, the vertical arrangement of the cavity within the decoy body ensures that the decoy anchor will fall to the appropriate depth and the decoy will float in an upright manner. Thus, by using this system, decoys can be thrown greater distances without concern that they will land sideways, upside down, or other than upright floating in the water. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a top plan view of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a bottom plan view of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a side sectional view of the present invention with the anchor deployed. 
         FIG. 4  is an exploded view of the cavity, decoy line, stopper, loop, and anchor of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a side sectional view of the present invention with the anchor recessed. 
         FIG. 6  is a side sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  is a side sectional view of another alternative embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     With reference to  FIG. 3 , the decoy system  10  includes a decoy body  12 , a decoy line  14 , a loop  16  or other retrieval means attached to one end of the decoy line  14 , and an anchor  18  attached to the opposite end of the decoy line  14 . While the preferred embodiment uses a loop  16  of decoy line  14  approximately 10 cm (4 in.) in diameter for retrieval, those skilled in the art will recognize that loops of various sizes may be used, in addition to a wide variety of other retrieval means, including hooks, loops, and handles made of plastic, metal, wood, or other materials. In one configuration, the decoy line  16  could be inserted into the anchor  18  through a drilled opening or tube and attached by a knot or crimp. 
     The decoy body  12  encloses a hollow cavity  20  such that the decoy line  14  passes through the cavity  20 . The cavity  20  extends between a first opening  22  in the decoy body  12  and a second opening  24  in the decoy body  12 . In the preferred embodiment the first opening  22  is located on the top of the decoy body  12  and the second opening  24  is located on the bottom of the decoy body  12  substantially opposite the first opening  22  such that the hollow cavity  20  forms a substantially vertical column.  FIGS. 1 and 2  further illustrate the first opening  22  on the top of the decoy body  12  and the second opening  24  on the bottom of the decoy body  12 . Also, in the preferred embodiment, the hollow cavity  20  is located slightly forward of the midline within the decoy body  12 . Finally, in this embodiment, the hollow cavity  20  could include a recess  26  tapering from the second opening  24 . 
     In case of a plastic decoy body  12 , the hollow cavity  20  would be molded or affixed to the interior of the decoy body  12  such that the decoy body  12  would remain water tight and maintain its floatation ability. While such a hollow cavity  20  could certainly be incorporated within a decoy body  12  made of cork, wood, or stuffed canvas, it would be necessary to seal the insertion points in order to ensure that water would not enter into the decoy body  12  and affect floatation. 
     To prevent the loop  16  from passing through the first opening  22  and entering the hollow cavity  20  a stopper  28  or other means, is attached to the decoy line  14  between the loop  16  and the first opening  22 . The stopper  28  could be made of plastic, wood, cork, rubber, or other material. With reference to  FIG. 4 , the stopper  28  may have a concave shape with a proximal end  30  that is smaller than the first opening  22  and a distal end  32  that is larger than the first opening  22 . With this concave shape, the stopper  28  is able to become fixed through tension or friction, much like a cork in a bottle, within the first opening  22 . In one embodiment, the decoy line  14  would pass through the stopper  28  and be molded or tied into a loop  16  protruding from the stopper  28 . In another embodiment, the stopper  28  could have a hole or ring at its top to which a loop  16  or other retrieval means could be attached. 
     Similarly, to prevent the anchor  18  from passing the second opening  24  and entering the hollow cavity  20  a second stopper means should be employed. In one embodiment, with reference to  FIG. 4 , the anchor  18  would be a flat disc of approximately 2.5 cm (1 in.) to 5 cm (2 in.) diameter and a thickness of approximately 0.65 cm (¼ in.) to 1.3 cm (½ in.), although other dimensions are possible. A projection  34  would extend from the center of the anchor  18  and attach to the decoy line  14 . Such a projection would have a concave shape such that the proximal end  36  of the projection  34  would be smaller than the second opening  24  while the distal end, or base  38  of the projection  34  would be larger than the second opening  24 . In this embodiment, a sportsman pulling the decoy line  14  by means of the loop  16  could pull the anchor  18  into a position nearly flush with the bottom of the decoy body  12  such that the projection  34  would extend into the second opening  24 , as shown in  FIG. 5 . 
     In one configuration, the decoy line  14  could be integrated into the anchor  18  through a drilled opening or tube and affixed by a knot or crimp. Likewise, the stopper  28  could be drilled in such a fashion to allow the decoy line  14  to pass through the center of the stopper  28  before being affixed into a loop  16  by means of a crimp or knot. Such a system would allow the sportsman to adjust the effective length of decoy line  14  needed for a particular water depth or hunting situation. 
     In one embodiment, the hollow cavity  20  could include a recess  26  that tapers from the second opening  24  and matches the contours of the projection  34  such that such that the anchor  18  would lie nearly flush against the bottom of the decoy body  12  when pulled into its recessed position, and the anchor  18  would be held in place through tension or friction, again, much like a cork in a bottle. To facilitate decoy deployment, however, the anchor  18  should not be completely flush, but should preferably protrude from the bottom of the decoy body  12  by approximately 1.3 cm (½ in.) or more, so that the anchor  18  can be easily loosened or removed, from the second opening  24 . 
     In an alternative embodiment, however, the anchor  18  could recess into the decoy body  12  such that it would be completely flush, or nearly so. However, in this embodiment, the shape of the projection  34  and recess  26  should preferably be modified such that the anchor  18  and projection  32  would not become stoppered and fixed due to friction. In this embodiment, the anchor  18  could be held in its recessed position by means of a swivel catch, or similar mechanism. 
     In another alternative embodiment, the tapered stopper  28  could be replaced by a simpler stop mechanism, such as the disc-shaped stop  40  shown in  FIG. 7 . Such a stop  40  could be made of plastic, rubber, wood, metal, or other material and should have a sufficient size to prevent it from entering the first opening  22 . Similarly, a simpler anchor  18  without a tapered projection  34  could be used if a second disc-shaped stop  40  is attached to the decoy line  14  above the anchor  18 . Again, this second stop  40  could be made of any of a variety of materials and should have a size sufficient to prevent it from entering the second opening  24 . Or in yet another embodiment, the second stop  40  could be omitted if the size of the anchor  18  is sufficiently large to prevent the anchor  18  from passing the second opening  24  and entering the hollow cavity  20 . In this last embodiment, the anchor  18  would itself function as the second stop means. 
     The decoy system  10  of this invention could be manufactured as a complete system, integrating the decoy body  12 , decoy line  14 , loop  16  or other retrieval means, anchor  18 , and stopper  28  or other stop means, as described in the above. In an alternative embodiment, however, the invention could be sold as a “kit” for modification of existing decoys. Such a “kit” could include decoy line  14  of one or more lengths; a stopper  28  or other stop  40  with a loop  16  or other retrieval means attached to the stopper  28  or stop  40 ; and an anchor  18 , possibly attached to a second stop  40 . 
     A sportsman using such a “kit” with a solid decoy body  12  would drill a vertical, hollow cavity  20  through the decoy body  12 . He would then pass the decoy line  14  through the cavity  20 ; attach the upper end of the decoy line  14  to the stopper  28  or stop  40 ; and attach the lower end of the decoy line  14  to the anchor  18  or second stop  40 . The anchor  18 , stopper  28 , and stop(s)  40 , as appropriate, would include an eyelet or other mechanism for attachment to the decoy line  14 . 
     A sportsman using such a “kit” with a hollow decoy body  12  would drill a first opening  22  into the top of the decoy body  12  and a second opening  24  into the bottom of the decoy body  12 . A hollow cylinder  42  would then be inserted into the decoy body  12  between the first opening,  22 , and the second opening  24 , as illustrated in  FIG. 6 . The cylinder  42  would include flanges  44  made of rubber or other material which would be affixed to the decoy body  12  at the first opening  22  and second opening  24  respectively, by glue, cement, or other adhesive means, to maintain the water tightness and buoyancy of the decoy body  12 . 
     These various embodiments are by no means exhaustive, but should allow those skilled in the art to recognize the wide range of variations and combinations possible within the range of this invention.