Patent Abstract:
A wall-climbing accessory adapted for mounting onto a wall structure is described. The wall-climbing accessory comprises a resilient body that is flexible. The resilient body comprises an exterior surface and an edge. The exterior surface is configured to provide an engagement point capable of supporting a climber of the wall structure, whereby a climber may scale a wall structure by using the wall-climbing accessory. The edge is configured to substantially engage the wall structure such that, when affixed, the resilient body and edge impart a torsion force to the wall structure such that a flexible, friction fit is formed between the wall-climbing accessory and the wall structure. The wall-climbing accessory use only one primary fastener to attach to the wall structure and thus is less prone to rotation than prior art climbing holds. Furthermore, the resilient body is flexible and lighter when compared to prior art climbing holds.

Full Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention is directed to artificial climbing walls. More specifically, the present invention is directed to a wall-climbing accessory for an artificial climbing wall.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The sport of rock climbing is becoming more popular as a means of recreation. In order to develop the necessary skills to participate in this sport, many individuals practice on a simulation device that typically includes a climbing wall containing a plurality of man made climbing holds fastened thereto. Climbing of these man made walls has also become a sport of its own, with walls being designed to accommodate the various skill levels of climbers. In the United States, climbers use a standard rating system to describe the difficulty of different routes. There are six classes in this system, ranging from class one (normal walking) through hiking, scrambling and then climbing at class five. Everything known as “rock climbing” falls in class five. Class six are rock walls that are so smooth that there is no way to climb them without artificial aids (i.e. special climbing ladders or equipment). Within class five there are fourteen different levels that break down in the following manner: 5.0 through 5.4—beginner level which is easy to climb, like a ladder. 5.5 through 5.7—intermediate level which is climbable in normal shoes or boots but requiring more skill. 5.8 through 5.10—experienced level, which requires climbing shoes, experience and strength. 5.11 through 5.12—expert level that perhaps only the top 10% of climbers in the world can climb these routes. 5.13 through 5.14—elite level which can only be climbed by the best of the best.  
         [0003]     The basic premise behind rock climbing is extremely simple. The climber is trying to climb from the bottom to the top of something. If that was all there were to it, then the climber would need nothing but his or her body and a good pair of climbing shoes. However, safety issues arise in the sport if the climber slips anywhere along the way. Because of the possibility of falling, rock climbing involves a great deal of highly specialized equipment to catch climbers when they fall.  
         [0004]     Part of the specialized equipment includes climbing holds. Climbing holds are grabbed and stepped on by a climber in order to ascend the wall. It is important for the holds to be rigidly secured to the climbing wall in order to prevent the hold from moving under the weight of a climber. Also, climbing holds come in a variety of configurations in order to simulate movement patterns in climbing. Such holds are typically formed of synthetic material such as a polyester resin, which gives hold a rough texture.  
         [0005]     There are two conventional types of climbing walls that are used to simulate rock climbing activity. The first type of climbing wall includes a substantially vertical climbing surface that has a rock like texture (See e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 5,254,058 to Savigny, “Artificial climbing wall with modular rough surface”, Oct. 19, 1993). The shape or texture of the climbing wall determines the level of difficulty associated with maneuvering around this type of climbing wall. The second type of climbing wall includes rock-like hand and foot holds that are attached to a normal (i.e., substantially smooth) wall (See e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,877 to Brewer, “Simulated climbing wall,” Jun. 30, 1992). There are two ways to adjust the level of difficulty associated with maneuvering about this type of climbing wall. First, the location of the holds on the wall vary according the level of skill of a particular climber. Second, the shape of the individual holds can be modified in order to make them easier or more difficult to grasp.  
         [0006]     Using artificial climbing walls to simulate outdoor rock climbing activity is well known. Artificial climbing walls provide rock-climbing enthusiasts with the opportunity to simulate outdoor rock climbing activity at an easily accessible location. The climbing holds are normally attached to a wall using bolts or threaded rods. The climbing holds are typically of varying shapes and textures that affect the level of skill required to maneuver on the climbing wall. In particular, climbing walls that have a minimal number of holds are harder to grasp and make the wall harder to negotiate. Another factor affecting the level of skill required to maneuver on the climbing wall is the position of the climbing holds on the climbing wall. The closer the climbing holds are positioned relative to one another, the more climbing holds there are available for grasping by a climber as the climber maneuvers on the climbing wall.  
         [0007]     Prior art climbing holds present significant problems when attempting to properly secure them to a climbing wall. Climbing holds typically have an aperture extending therethrough in order to permit a bolt to extend and threadably engage the climbing wall. The bolt is tightened to secure the climbing hold to the wall and prevent the hold from either transitional or rotational movement. In order to ensure that the hold does not rotate, a bolt must be tightened to a certain torque such that the hold is tight against the wall and prevented from rotating by the frictional force existing between the planar mounting face of the hold and the opposing portion of the climbing wall. However, in attempting to prevent the climbing hold from moving, the bolt may be over tightened resulting in the molded body of the climbing hold to fracture. The head of the bolt upon engaging the upper body portion of the climbing hold creates an area of high stress concentration adjacent to the bolt head making the hold susceptible to cracking about this area. Accordingly, a narrowly acceptable range of torque results in order to ensure that the climbing hold is properly secured but not damaged. Fracture of the hold may lead to the hold falling from the wall upon being stressed by the weight of a climber. Since a climber may place all of their weight on a particular hold, its breaking may result in a fall that could injure the climber. Known climbing holds have some limits and drawbacks. In fact, when holds are applied to and integrated into the climbing wall, the same are substantially fixed as regards positions, number and conformation, and substantially do not enable the climbing situations and problems to be changed in order to modify the degree of technical difficulty in climbing, unless specialized interventions and/or rearrangements involving manipulations are carried out. In addition, it should be noted that known climbing holds are heavy and of difficult, expensive and unquick construction.  
         [0008]     Another problem associated with a climbing hold is that it has a tendency to loosen as climbers use it. Depending on how a climber grasps the climbing hold, the climber may generate a torque on the hold which could rotate (i.e., loosen) the hold from the climbing wall. The present invention overcomes this and other problems associated with the prior art.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0009]     A wall-climbing accessory adapted for mounting onto a wall structure is described. The wall-climbing accessory comprises a resilient body that is flexible such that the resilient body may deform when mounted to a wall structure. The resilient body comprises an exterior surface and an edge. The exterior surface is configured and arranged to provide an engagement point capable of supporting a climber of the wall structure, whereby a climber may scale a wall structure by using the wall-climbing accessory. The edge is configured to substantially engage the wall structure such that, when affixed, the resilient body and edge impart a torsion force to the wall structure such that a flexible, friction fit is formed between the wall-climbing accessory and the wall structure. The wall-climbing accessory uses only one primary fastener to attach to the wall structure and thus is less prone to rotation than prior art climbing holds. Additional screws may be added to a periphery of the wall-climbing accessories for extra protection against rotation. Furthermore, the resilient body is flexible and lighter when compared to prior art climbing holds. Additional advantages and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description that follows, and in part, will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned by practice of the invention.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]      FIG. 1  is a cross sectional view of a prior art climbing hold.  
         [0011]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of wall climbing accessories mounted on a wall structure and in use by a climber.  
         [0012]      FIG. 3  is a front-elevation view of the wall-climbing accessory.  
         [0013]      FIG. 4  is a section cut along line  4 - 4  of  FIG. 3  of the wall-climbing accessory.  
         [0014]      FIG. 5  is a section cut along line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 3  of the wall-climbing accessory.  
         [0015]      FIG. 5   a  is a section similar to  FIG. 5  of the wall-climbing accessory, in tension.  
         [0016]      FIG. 6  is a front elevation view of a second version of the wall-climbing accessory mounted and in use.  
         [0017]      FIG. 7  is a cross sectional view of the second version of the wall-climbing accessory taken along lines  7 - 7  of  FIG. 6 , mounted and in use.  
         [0018]      FIG. 8  is a front elevation view of the wall-climbing accessory, mounted, rotated 90 degrees from the original position in  FIG. 6 , and in use. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0019]      FIG. 1  is a cross-sectional view of a prior art climbing hold  101 . Prior art climbing holds  101  are heavier, take up more volume, and are more rigid than applicant&#39;s wall climbing accessory  100 . Furthermore, some prior art climbing holds  101  are solid. Therefore, those prior art climbing holds  101  are extremely heavy and rigid. In addition, it is worth noting that prior art climbing holds  101  often utilize more than one fastener to secure the hold to a wall. For purposes of this explanation, a wall-climbing accessory  100  is a type of climbing hold.  
         [0020]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of wall climbing accessories  100  mounted on a wall structure  102  in use by a climber C. Several wall-climbing accessories  100  are variably mounted to a wall structure  102 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that during construction, the wall structure  102  is made first, the wall climbing accessories  100  are mounted to the wall structure  102  second. In preferred embodiments, the wall structure  102  is made from plywood with a concrete coating. However, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the wall structure  102  may be made from a polymer such as roto-molded polyethylene panels, PVC, or PMA. It will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the wall structure  102  may be made from solid concrete. The wall structure  102  may also be made with a combination of polymer and concrete, or various materials known in the art. The problems associated with rotating prior art climbing holds  101  are more severe in polymer and solid concrete walls due to slippery and uneven surfaces. It will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that t-nuts  119  are installed or threaded through from the back of the wall structure  102 . The wall-climbing accessory  100  is installed onto the t-nut  119  via a fastener, or bolt  118 . One advantage of the wall-climbing accessory  100  is that it is easy to install and uninstall to provide a variety of grips on the wall structure  102  because only one fastener is necessary to hold the wall-climbing accessory  100  to the wall structure  102 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that route setters change the position of the wall climbing accessories  100  frequently. Prior art climbing holds  101  utilize multiple fasteners to affix to the wall structure  102 , making it difficult to change the position of the climbing hold quickly.  
         [0021]      FIG. 3  is a front-elevation view of the wall-climbing accessory  100 .  121  are phantom depictions of optional locations for recessed fastener openings  114 . A resilient body  104  of the wall-climbing accessory  100  has an exterior surface  106  and an edge  112 . It will be understood by those skilled in the art that a washer or other load distributing device may be embedded into the recessed fastener opening  114  during assembly of the wall climbing accessory  100  for stress concentration purposes. The wall-climbing accessory  100  is less brittle than the prior art  101  due to a different means of manufacturing the apparatus. Commonly, the prior art method uses a silicon mold that is filled with liquid material that cures and hardens into the final product. In some prior art methods, plugs are used during the casting process to make the climbing hold hollow for reducing weight. However, these climbing holds remain heavy and rigid. The new manufacturing process can utilize either a spray on technique or injection mold process. Plugs are no longer needed. It is important to note that in preferred alternative embodiments, the wall-climbing accessory  100  may also be made from overlaying patches of fiber-reinforced mesh. In the preferred embodiments of spray on technique or injection mold, a piece of equipment known as a chopper gun is used. The matrix material, generally polyester resin and glass fiber, is sprayed onto the mold at the same time. The matrix material covers the glass fibers while the material is being sprayed and the resulting composite is then consolidated by hand using rollers and paintbrushes. This process is inexpensive and requires no special tooling. The outer coat of the wall climbing accessory  100  consists of a colored material (gel coat) and the inner coat is random, discontinuous strands of fiberglass resin. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that any fiber-reinforced polymer can be substituted. However, in preferred embodiments fiberglass resin is used.  
         [0022]     There is a greater percentage of glass fibers in the wall climbing accessory  100  than in prior art climbing holds  101 . Prior art climbing holds  101 , which are not easily deformed (not flexible) typically have a ratio of 2% glass fibers to 98% polyester resin and fillers. This makes the prior art climbing holds  101  heavy, non-resilient, and stiff. The wall-climbing accessory  100  is composed of approximately 50% glass fibers and 50% fiber reinforced polymers or polyester resin. Consequently, the wall-climbing accessory  100  is less prone to breakage and is flexible. Moreover, the wall climbing accessory  100  is resilient and forgiving of the climber&#39;s C, grip during climbing.  
         [0023]      FIG. 4  is a section cut along line  4 - 4  of  FIG. 3  of the wall-climbing accessory  100 . A cavity  116 , which is defined by the resilient body  104 , is shown. The resilient body  104  has extra flexible properties as compared to the prior art holds  101 . Furthermore, cavity  116  in the resilient body  104  is larger than the cavities in prior art  101  thereby making the wall climbing accessory  100  lighter as compared to prior art climbing wall holds  101 . Another feature of the wall climbing accessory  100  is that due to its lighter weight than prior art handholds  101 , it is easier to carry up the wall structure  102  for installation purposes. This is safer for hauling climbing holds up and down wall structures  102 .  
         [0024]     Furthermore, the edge  112  that is formed along the resilient body  104  is capable of flexing and forming to a wall structure  102  that may be textured, contoured, or featured surface. The edge  112  is an engaging perimeter, which frictionally engages the wall structure  102 . The reverse sides of prior art climbing holds  101  are generally planar, causing more rotation and slippage.  
         [0025]      FIG. 5  is a section cut along line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 3  of the wall-climbing accessory  100 . The wall-climbing accessory  100  has a bolt  118  inserted through a recessed fastener opening  114 . The bolt  118  is inserted through the recessed fastener opening  114  as a means to attach the resilient body  104  to the t-nut  119  in the wall structure  102 . A washer helps prevent the bolt  118  from damaging or cracking the resilient body  104  during installation. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the recessed fastener opening  114  need not be recessed, it may be level to or protruding above the exterior surface  106 . In addition, it will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the t-nut  119  and bolt  118  may be interchanged with pop rivets, screws, nails, and standard nut and bolt arrangements. Some varieties of the standard nut and bolt arrangement include but are not limited to socket head cap-screws, hex head bolts, button head cap-screws, or flat head cap-screws.  
         [0026]      FIG. 5   a  is a section similar to  FIG. 5  of the wall-climbing accessory  100 , in tension. The bolt  118  is tightened to the t-nut  119 . The edge  112  frictionally engages the wall structure  102 , causing a torqued fit of the resilient body  104 . The wall-climbing accessory  100  will not shift if gripped by a climber C. Another advantage of the wall-climbing accessory  100  is that it does not have a tendency to rotate around the bolt  118 . More surface opening than prior art climbing holds  101  make the wall climbing accessory  100  more anti-rotation. Less surface area engages the wall structure  102 , thereby giving more force and grip to the wall. The prior art climbing holds  101  have smaller cavities and are thus less hollow. Therefore, more flat surface area engages the wall structure  102 , thereby increasing the likelihood of rotation. Prior art climbing holds  101  are stiff and unyielding and present a large, smooth area of contact against the wall surface which then lends itself to rotational motion of the hold due to its stiff and unyielding qualities. However, the wall-climbing accessory  100  has the ability to deform and thus “dig in” to the surface of wall structure  102 .  
         [0027]      FIG. 6  is a front elevation view of a second version of the wall-climbing accessory  100  mounted and in use. A hand  120  is shown in phantom to give an example of where a rock climber C may grip the exterior surface  106 . Furthermore, in preferred embodiments the resilient body  104  may have an additional modular accessory  122  protruding from the exterior surface  106  for purposes of providing variety of grip to the climber C. The additional modular accessory  122  is constructed from material similar to the wall-climbing accessory  100 . The additional modular accessory  122  is typically mounted on flat spots and cross sections of the wall-climbing accessory  100 . In preferred embodiments the additional modular accessory  122  is fastened to the exterior surface  106  via a fastener similar to the t-nut  119  and bolt  118  system that extends to the wall structure  102 . In alternative preferred embodiments the additional modular accessory  122  is mounted only to the exterior surface  106  via a fastener similar to the t-nut  119  and bolt  118  system. In the alternative preferred embodiment, the t-nut  119  and bolt  118  does not extend to the wall structure  102 .  
         [0028]      FIG. 7  is a cross sectional view of the second version of the wall-climbing accessory  100  taken along lines  7 - 7  of  FIG. 6 , mounted and in use.  
         [0029]      FIG. 8  is a front elevation view of the wall-climbing accessory  100   a , mounted, rotated 90 degrees from the original position in  FIG. 6 , and in use.  FIG. 8  shows the same wall-climbing accessory  100  of  FIG. 6  rotated 90 degrees and secured via the bolt  118  in the recessed fastener opening  114 . This provides a variety of grips for the climber C and also aids in increasing the challenge of a competition. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the wall climbing accessory  100  may be rotated greater than or less than 90 degrees.  
         [0030]     It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the wall-climbing accessory  100  may have a ridge, rib, or bridge that engage the wall structure  102  in addition to or alternative to the edge  112 . Also, the wall-climbing accessory  100  may be toroid shaped or be other shapes that have holes formed therethrough. Furthermore, the wall-climbing accessory  100  may have more than one recessed fastener opening  114  and bolt  118  affixing the apparatus to the wall structure  102 , as seen in phantom in  FIGS. 3 and 8 . However, in preferred embodiments only one central fastener is necessary to affix the apparatus to the wall structure  102  because of the friction fit formed by the resilient body  104  and edge  112 .  
         [0031]     Moreover, the wall-climbing accessory  100  may have an irregular exterior surface  106  for simulating a natural rock structure. The exterior surface  106  may also have identifying insignia or marks for aesthetic or competition purposes. In addition, an asymmetrical sidewall or walls may be included into the resilient body  104 . Another advantage of the wall-climbing accessory  100  is that each apparatus of the same shape has the same hollowed out portion, therefore the accessories may be stacked, or nested, together for ease in carrying and shipping.  
         [0032]     It is to be understood that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of various embodiments of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of various embodiments of the invention, this disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of structure and arrangement of parts within the principles of the present invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.

Technology Classification (CPC): 0