Patent Abstract:
An improved ball setting and tightening rack for creating a compact formation of playing balls on a playing surface that is used for playing billiards, pool, snooker, or any other game requiring a tight grouping of playing balls on a playing surface. The improved ball setting and tightening rack contains a mechanism for both creating a compact formation of playing balls and for aiding in the removal of the rack from the compacted formation of playing balls without disturbing the compacted balls. The improved ball setting and tightening rack uses horizontal compression to create a compact formation of playing balls, thus reducing wear on the playing surface. The improved ball setting and tightening rack also fits in a standard rack holder or rack slot such as the rack holders or rack slots found in billiard halls.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   This invention relates generally to the games of billiards, pool and snooker, and more particularly to an apparatus for tightly setting and arranging billiard, pool or snooker balls on the surface of a playing table. 
   2. Description of the Prior Art 
   In the games of billiards, pool, and snooker, the playing balls are arranged in a pre-determined pattern at the start of the game. In the game of pool, for example, fifteen balls are arranged in a triangular pattern using a triangular shaped frame known as a rack. The balls are placed in a triangular formation at a given spot on the playing surface, and the rack is removed. Once the rack is removed from the balls, the formation is broken by a player propelling a cue ball in such a manner as to disperse the formation of balls across the playing surface. The way in which the formation of balls is broken is of utmost importance to how the ensuing game progresses. It is very desirable to compact the formation of balls such that they are set tightly together. The act of compacting the formation of balls such that they are set tightly together is commonly known as “tightening”. This technique allows for the maximum transfer of energy from the cue ball to the balls in formation, and provides a disperse spread of balls across the playing surface. There are various techniques used to compact the formation of balls contained by the rack, the simplest being the use of a player&#39;s fingers to push the balls forward in the rack once the balls are contained by the rack. The problem with this technique is with the adhesion that occurs between a player&#39;s fingers and the playing balls. The surface adhesion that momentarily occurs when a player removes their fingers from the playing balls serves to disturb the compact formation of balls within the rack. Another problem occurs when the rack is removed from the formation of balls. Upon removal of the rack from a compact formation of balls, there exists the possibility that the rack inadvertently comes into contact with one or more of the playing balls and disturbs the previously compact formation of balls. Such a disturbance can negatively impact the breaking of the formation, or can further result in resetting and retightening the formation prior to the start of play. 
   The prior art has disclosed various techniques for creating a compact formation of playing balls using various means to tighten the playing balls. Reference may be had, e.g., to U.S. Pat. No. 3,672,671 that uses inclined walls within the rack to create downward pressure on the playing balls. Reference may also be had to U.S. Pat. No. 6,595,862 that uses similar inclined walls within the rack to create downward pressure on the playing balls, and further uses lifting levers to ensure that the compact formation of playing balls is not disturbed upon removal of the rack. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,601,495 and 5,735,750 further use inclined walls to create downward pressure on the playing balls, and use springs to push the rack upward and away from the playing balls once the formation is compacted. U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,341 uses angled packing bars to create downward pressure on the playing balls. There further exists U.S. Pat. No. 5,997,404 that discloses the use of individual pressure pins to create downward pressure on each individual playing ball. Each of these referenced United States Patents describe the use of downward pressure to press the playing balls into the felt of the playing surface. The use of downward pressure of the playing balls into the felt of the playing surface causes wear and fatigue of the playing surface felt, resulting in a playing surface with uneven ball rolling characteristics and premature failure and subsequent replacement of the felt playing surface. The present invention improves upon the attributes of the prior art compression racks by using horizontal pressure to compact the arrangement of playing balls, thus eliminating concerns over the wear and fatigue of the felt of the playing surface. 
   Reference may further be had to U.S. Pat. No. 3,992,005 that discloses a rack that uses horizontal pressure to compact the playing balls. The rack disclosed uses a ball and socket arrangement such that one corner of the rack triangle pops open upon insertion of the last ball. A problem with such a ball and socket release mechanism is one of vibration whereas the potential exists for the playing balls to be disturbed as the one corner of the rack triangle pops open automatically. Another problem with the use of horizontal compression from a single geometric plane, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,992,005 arises from the potential lack of size uniformity of the playing balls, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,997,404: “Unfortunately, the size of the pool balls often lacks uniformity, which makes it difficult to properly rack the balls into a tight formation.” The present invention solves the aforementioned problems by using slide mechanisms to reduce the length of the sides of the rack, and thus apply horizontal compression in both horizontal geometric planes, therefore compensating for any variation in ball size. The present invention further employs a hinge and slide mechanism to completely open one side of the rack, without any risk of disturbing the compacted playing ball formation. 
   The prior art references cited above use various mechanical means to compress the formation of balls within the rack. A further drawback to the prior art is the resulting shape of the rack. There are many devices in use today to retain and store a standard rack. These devices include retainers for securing racks in a commercial pool hall, holders for retaining accessories such as cue sticks, racks, chalk, and balls, carrying cases for racks, and the like. Many of the racks referenced in the prior art have a shape that does not conform to the shape of a typical rack. This precludes the use of such prior art racks with most rack retention and storage devices. The present invention conforms to the geometry of a typical rack, thus allowing the use of the present invention with most rack retention and storage devices. 
   It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved rack for compacting a formation of playing balls using horizontal pressure. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved rack for compacting a formation of playing balls and allowing for removal of said rack without disturbing the formation of playing balls. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved rack for compacting a formation of playing balls whereas the improved rack fits in a standard rack holder or rack slot such as the rack holders or rack slots found in billiard halls. 
   These and other objects of the invention will be apparent from the discussion appearing in the remainder of this specification. 
   BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In accordance with the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for arranging and compacting a plurality of balls into a predetermined pattern comprising a frame with a first side wall, a second side wall and a third side wall, and a slide mechanism attached to at least one side wall for changing the length of at least one side wall. 
   In using the present invention, one places a plurality of balls within the confines of said apparatus and reduces the length of at least one side wall by pushing at least one side wall toward the plurality of balls such that the plurality of balls are arranged and compacted into a predetermined pattern. The apparatus uses horizontal compression along both the x-axis and the y-axis to create a tight grouping of playing balls. The use of horizontal compression in place of the more common vertical compression racks provides a tighter grouping of playing balls and also reduces wear, fatigue and subsequent failure of the playing surface. 
   One embodiment of the present invention may include a slideable hinge mechanism pivotally attached to at least one side wall to allow at least one side wall to be raised above the height of said plurality of balls. By raising at least one side wall above the height of the plurality of balls, the apparatus may be slid away from the compact grouping of balls without disturbing the compact grouping of balls. 
   Another embodiment of the present invention may include tabs to facilitate hand retention of said apparatus. 
   Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following more detailed description provided with the accompanying drawings. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention will be described by reference to the following drawings, in which like numerals refer to like elements, and in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is an exploded view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2A  is an exploded broken-away view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to another embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2B  is another exploded view of the ball setting and tightening rack of  FIG. 2A ; 
       FIG. 3  illustrates the use of a ball setting and tightening rack according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 4  is a top plan view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 5  is a side elevation view of a ball setting and tightening rack shown in the open position for release of playing balls; 
       FIG. 6  is a rear elevation view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to another embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 8  is a top plan view of a ball setting and tightening rack of  FIG. 7  in use, according to another embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 9  is a side elevation view of a ball setting and tightening rack of  FIG. 7 , according to another embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 10  is an end elevation view of a ball setting and tightening rack of  FIG. 7 , according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
   

   The present invention will be described in connection with a preferred embodiment, however, it will be understood that there is no intent to limit the invention to the embodiment described. On the contrary, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. 
   DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   For a general understanding of the present invention, reference is made to the drawings. In the drawings, like reference numerals have been used throughout to designate identical elements. As shown in the drawings for purposes of illustration, the present invention is directed to a billiard ball rack for tightly setting and arranging a formation of billiard balls on a playing table. For the purposes of illustration, the drawings illustrate a 15 ball billiard rack, however the spirit and scope of the present invention includes variations of the game of billiards such as 9 ball, snooker, pool, and the like. 
     FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to one embodiment of the present invention. Referring to  FIG. 1 , a rack assembly  100  is shown. The rack assembly  100  is made of a plurality of side walls that form a geometric shape such as a triangle. A compound side wall  133  makes up the first side wall and the second side wall of the triangular shaped rack  100 . A first partial side wall  101  and a second partial side wall  103  are connected to form the third side wall of the triangular shaped rack  100 . The first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  further contain slide mechanisms to reduce the inner area of the rack assembly  100  and thus tighten the formation of playing balls placed within said rack assembly  100 . 
   Referring now to  FIG. 2 , an exploded view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown. The compound side wall  133  makes up two of the three sides of the rack assembly  100 . The compound side wall  133  is generally V-shaped, and the two terminating ends of the V are each bent obliquely at a slight angle of less than 45 degrees. The compound side wall  133  contains a first threaded insert  121  and a second threaded insert  127 . The compound side wall  133  also contains a first tab  129  and a second tab  131  to facilitate hand retention of the triangular shaped rack  100 . The first tab  129  and the second tab  131  may be cut away from the compound side wall  133  and bent perpendicular to the compound side wall, or the first tab  129  and the second tab  131  may be molded, mechanically, or chemically attached to the compound side wall  133 . 
   The compound side wall  133  makes up two of the three sides of the triangular shaped rack  100 , and the third side of the triangular shaped rack is made up of two partial side walls, a first partial side wall  101  and a second partial side wall  103 . The first partial side wall  101  is bent to form a right angle and contains two slots, a y-axis compression slot  117  and an x-axis compression slot  113 . The purpose of the y-axis compression slot  117  is to allow travel of the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  in the y-axis for compressing a formation of playing balls. The purpose of the x-axis compression slot  113  is to allow travel of the second partial side wall  103  in relation to the first partial side wall  101  in the x-axis for compressing a formation of playing balls in the x-axis. The first partial side wall  101  contains a bevel  115  to provide a smooth and continuous surface between the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  along the interior of the triangular shaped rack  100 . The second partial side wall  103  is also bent to form a right angle, but contains one slot, a y-axis compression slot  119 . The second partial side wall  103  contains two threaded inserts, an x-axis first threaded insert  105  and an x-axis second threaded insert  107 . 
   The first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  are connected using a first screw  109  and a second screw  111 . Washers  141  and  142  are optionally used with said first screw  109  and said second screw  111 . The first screw  109  and the second screw  111  are placed through the first partial side wall x-axis compression slot  113 , and fastened to the second partial side wall using the threaded inserts  105  and  107 . The clearance between the screws  109  and  111  and the threaded inserts  105  and  107  is such that the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  glide smoothly in the x-axis, and the screws  109  and  111  and the washers  141  and  142  travel freely along the length of the first partial side wall x-axis compression slot  113 . 
   The first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103 , once connected together, are further connected to the compound side wall  133 . The first partial side wall  101  is connected to the compound side wall  133  by placing a first partial side wall y-axis screw  125  through the first partial side wall y-axis compression slot  117 . The first partial side wall y-axis screw  125  is fastened to the compound side wall  133  using a compound side wall first threaded insert  127 . The first partial side wall y-axis screw  125  may optionally contain a first partial side wall y-axis washer  143 . The clearance between the first partial side wall y-axis screw  125  and the compound side wall second threaded insert  127  is such that the first partial side wall  101  and the compound side wall  133  glide smoothly in the y-axis, and the first partial side wall y-axis screw  125  and the first partial side wall y-axis washer  143  travel freely along the length of the first partial side wall y-axis compression slot  117 . 
   The second partial side wall  103  is connected in a similar manner to the compound side wall  133  by placing a second partial side wall y-axis screw  123  through a second partial side wall y-axis compression slot  119 , and fastened to the compound side wall  133  using the compound side wall first threaded insert  121 . The second partial side wall y-axis screw  123  may optionally contain a second partial side wall y-axis washer  140 . The clearance between the second partial side wall y-axis screw  123  and the compound side wall first threaded insert  121  is such that the second partial side wall  103  and the compound side wall  133  glide smoothly in the y-axis, and the second partial side wall y-axis screw  123  and the second partial side wall y-axis washer  140  travel freely along the length of the second partial side wall y-axis compression slot  119 . 
   The first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  may optionally contain handles, tabs, grips, or other such structures to assist in retaining the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  with one&#39;s fingers. 
   The compound side wall  133 , the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  are made of a rigid and durable material such as molded graphite, wood, lexan, polypropylene, polystyrene, Acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene, Polycarbonate, Nylon, Polyethylene-terephthalate, Acetal Resin (such as acetal polyoxymethylene (POM) resin, an example of which is the product manufactured by DUPONT™ under the trade name DELRIN®), Acrylic, metal, fiberglass, or another plastic material. 
   Referring now to  FIG. 2A , an exploded broken-away view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to another embodiment of the present invention is shown. The ball setting and tightening rack of  FIG. 2A  is similar to the ball setting and tightening rack shown in  FIG. 2 , except that the compound side wall  133 , the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  are connected without the use of external hardware. The compound side wall  133  contains a first y-axis flange  201  and a second y-axis flange  206 . The first y-axis flange  201  and the second y-axis flange  206  are integral to the compound side wall  133 . The first y-axis flange  201  is shaped as a circle with two truncated arcs and is oriented such that the second partial side wall y-axis compression slot  119  will fit over the first y-axis flange  201  when properly aligned with said first y-axis flange  201 , and will be securely retained on said first y-axis flange  201  when rotated. The second y-axis flange  206  is also shaped as a circle with two truncated arcs and is oriented such that the first partial side wall y-axis compression slot  117  will fit over the second y-axis flange  206  when properly aligned with said second y-axis flange  206 , and will be securely retained on said second y-axis flange  206  when rotated. 
   The first partial side wall  101  contains a first handle  205  and the second partial side wall  103  contains a second handle  202 . The first handle  205  and the second handle  202  are used to assist in raising the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  when removing the ball setting and tightening rack from the playing balls. 
   The first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  are connected by placing a first x-axis flange  204  and a second x-axis flange  207  through the key slot first partial side wall x-axis compression slot  203 . The compound side wall  133  is connected to the assembled first partial side wall  101  and second partial side wall  103  by placing the first y-axis flange  201  through the second partial side wall y-axis compression slot  119  and placing the second y-axis flange  206  through the first partial side wall y-axis compression slot  117 . 
     FIG. 2B  is another exploded view of the ball setting and tightening rack shown in  FIG. 2A .  FIG. 2B  clearly shows the first x-axis flange  204  which is shaped as a circle with two truncated arcs, and the second x-axis flange  207  which is shaped as a circle. To join the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103 , the first x-axis flange  204  is inserted in the key slot first partial side wall x-axis compression slot  203  at an angle that allows for insertion. The second partial side wall  103  is then rotated to allow the second x-axis flange  207  to be inserted into the rounded end of the key slot first partial side wall x-axis compression slot  203 . 
   Referring now to  FIG. 3 , a ball setting and tightening rack is shown in use. Playing balls  301  are placed within the confines of the ball setting and tightening rack. To tighten the formation of playing balls  301 , the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  are pushed toward the compound side wall  133 . Simultaneously, the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  are pushed toward each other along the x-axis. These two actions will compress the playing balls  301  tightly together. Once the compression action is complete, the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  are rotated upward, and the ball setting and tightening rack is slid forward, away from the formation of playing balls  301 .  FIG. 5  illustrates the upward rotation of the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103 . The first tab  129  and the second tab  131  can be used to hold the ball setting and tightening rack while compressing the playing ball formation and also while removing the ball setting and tightening rack from the formation of playing balls  301 . 
     FIG. 4  shows a top plan view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIG. 5  is a side elevation view of a ball setting and tightening rack shown in the open position for release of playing balls. Once playing balls are compressed, the first partial side wall  101  and the second partial side wall  103  are rotated upward, and the ball setting and tightening rack is slid forward, away from the formation of playing balls  301 . The direction of rotation is illustrated as  501 . 
     FIG. 6  is a rear elevation view of a ball setting and tightening rack according to one embodiment of the present invention. The partial side wall x-axis compression slot  113  is shown with the x-axis first screw  109  and the x-axis second screw  111  in position within the partial side wall x-axis compression slot  113 . 
   Referring now to  FIG. 7 , a ball setting and tightening rack according to another embodiment of the present invention is shown.  FIG. 7  shows a diamond shaped rack assembly  700  that may be used to accommodate a grouping of 9 playing balls, a grouping that is commonly used in variations of the game of billiards such as 9 ball and snooker. As shown, a first partial side wall  101  and a second partial side wall  103  are connected to a compound side wall  133  using a slideable hinge mechanism that, in one embodiment of the present invention, is comprised of a slot  119  and a fastener  123 . The assembly allows for the compaction of a grouping of playing balls, and subsequent horizontal removal of the assembly by raising the compound side wall  133  as shown by the direction of travel arrow  710 , and sliding the assembly away from the compacted grouping of balls.  FIG. 8  shows a plan view of the assembly in use.  FIG. 9  shows a side view of the assembly, and  FIG. 10  shows an end elevation view of the assembly. 
   It is, therefore, apparent that there has been provided, in accordance with the various objects of the present invention, an improved apparatus for creating a compact grouping of playing balls. While the various objects of this invention have been described in conjunction with preferred embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scope of the appended claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 0