Abstract:
A fishing-lure enhanced rattle apparatus and method for use on a fishing line ahead of a fishing hook, having a resonant shell, resonant sleeve, and resonant beads making intermittent and repeating contact with each other and with the fishing line, generating sound patterns attractive to fish, optionally allowing for inclusion, exclusion, or partial exclusion of water from the interior of the resonant shell for modification of generated sound patterns or of buoyancy.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    This invention provides a fishing-lure enhanced rattle apparatus and method for use on a fishing line ahead of a fishing hook. 
         [0002]    Fish are found to be attracted to certain sounds, which are thought to be sounds mimicking natural sounds produced by creatures that fish feed upon. Fishing lures exist that “rattle” with sounds approximating natural sounds, but all such sounds suffer in some degree from a tendency to belie their mechanical means of sound generation, which in turn produces sounds that are less complex, less organic, and more mechanical than the desired natural sounds. 
         [0003]    Sound moves through water differently than it moves through air because water transmits sound differently than air does. Specifically, water transmits sound more effectively than air does, and the incorporation of water-tight compartments of air in existing fishing lures can have the effect of dampening either the total sound produced or dampening specific desired frequencies of sound produced. 
         [0004]    U.S. Pat. No. 4,995,189, issued Feb. 26, 1991 to Crihfield on a “Rattling Fish Lure,” discloses a noise making fishing lure including a two piece plastic shell assembly having two chambers therein. Each chamber contains a plurality of metal spheres which move as the lure is pulled through the water. 
         [0005]    A fishing lure with enhanced rattle sound production and transmission, producing more natural sound and transmitting such sound more effectively, is needed. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    The present invention provides a fishing-lure enhanced rattle apparatus and method for use on a fishing line ahead of a fishing hook, having a resonant shell, resonant sleeve, and resonant beads making intermittent and repeating contact with each other and with the fishing line, generating sound patterns attractive to fish, which optionally allows for inclusion, exclusion, or partial exclusion of water from the interior of the resonant shell for modification of generated sound patterns or of buoyancy. 
         [0007]    The present invention solves existing problems of non-optimal buoyancy and non-optimal sound-pattern generation and transmission through water seen in existing devices. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         [0008]    Reference will now be made to the drawings, wherein like parts are designated by like numerals, and wherein: 
           [0009]      FIG. 1  is a schematic view of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle invention; 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  is a schematic view of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle invention in use on fishing line ahead of a fishing hook; 
           [0011]      FIG. 3  is an illustration of possible shapes of embodiments of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle invention; 
           [0012]      FIG. 4  is a schematic cutaway view of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle invention in use on fishing line; 
           [0013]      FIG. 5  is a schematic view of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle invention in use, with fishing line making contact at the shell-sleeve joins; 
           [0014]      FIG. 6  is a schematic view of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle invention in use, with fishing line vibrating within the resonant sleeve; 
           [0015]      FIG. 7  is a schematic view of an embodiment of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle invention having no water ports to allow water into the resonant shell; and 
           [0016]      FIG. 8  is a schematic view of an embodiment of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle invention having an additional intermediate chamber. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0017]    Referring to  FIG. 1  and all figures generally, the fishing-lure enhanced rattle method  100  and apparatus  10  are shown schematically. The fishing-lure enhanced rattle  10  is meant to be placed on fishing line  201  near the fishing hook  202 , as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . Where the fishing hook is incorporated into a fishing lure, the fishing-lure enhanced rattle can be placed near the lure, or on or within the lure. 
         [0018]    The fishing-lure enhanced rattle provides a resonant shell  20  which defines a resonant chamber within the fishing-lure enhanced rattle  10 . A nominally forward hole and a nominally rearward hole in the resonant shell allow passage of the fishing line  201  through the fishing-lure enhanced rattle  10 . 
         [0019]    A resonant sleeve  30  is provided, which runs from the forward hole to the rearward hole, through the resonant chamber defined by the resonant shell  20 . This resonant sleeve isolates the path immediately around the fishing line from the resonant chamber. 
         [0020]    One or more resonant beads  40  are provided within the resonant chamber, contained between the resonant shell  20  and the resonant sleeve  30 , such that the beads can move, roll, and tumble around within the resonant chamber. In use, these resonant beads will intermittently and repeatedly strike against the resonant shell  20  and the resonant sleeve  30 , and, if more than one bead is provided, against other resonant beads  40 . 
         [0021]    Where more than one resonant bead  40  is provided, which is a preferred embodiment, the beads can be made of different resonant materials and can be made in different shapes and sizes from one another. The different masses of different resonant materials generate a variety of resulting sound frequencies, and therefore provide more complex, more lifelike, less mechanical sound frequencies overall. The different shapes and sizes cause the different beads to move, roll, and tumble in different patterns and at different rates, and therefore provide more complex, more lifelike, and less mechanical sound patterns overall. 
         [0022]    A variety of materials are suitable for making the resonant shell, sleeve, and beads of the invention. Plastics and non-rusting metals are suitable. The sound-resonant characteristics of the material or materials, in the sizes and shapes and for the purposes intended, is important. Additionally, the material for the resonant shell  20  should be rigid enough to function properly as an outer shell, the material for the resonant sleeve  30  should be flexible enough to respond to vibration of the fishing line and turbulence in the flow of water across the surface of the sleeve, and the material for the resonant beads should be of a sufficient density to promote movement of the beads and, if needed, to increase or decrease the overall buoyancy of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle  10 . 
         [0023]    Materials meeting the sound-resonance requirements are likely to be water-impermeable (because a soggy material would have little resonance) and consequently the assembled resonant shell  20  and resonant sleeve  30  would be likely to form a water-tight resonant chamber. Such a water-tight chamber might either present too much buoyancy, if permanently filled with air, or might fail to benefit from the flow of water in use, if permanently filled with water or liquid. An embodiment of this invention provides one or more water ports  22  into the resonant chamber in order to allow water into the chamber and to allow a flow of water through the chamber. Another embodiment of this invention, illustrated in  FIG. 7 , does not provide water ports, and is appropriate where exclusion of water from the resonant chamber is desired, where permanent filling with water or other substance is desired, or where the materials used for the resonant shell  20  or resonant sleeve  30  are water-permeable. 
         [0024]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , the overall shape and configuration of the fishing-lure enhanced rattle is basically that of a smooth capsule, but can vary, depending mostly upon considerations of whether it is desirable in any given embodiment to increase internal or external water-flow turbulence with convex or concave portions, to decrease stability of travel by equalizing the dimensions, or to increase stability of travel by adding fins. 
         [0025]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , illustrating a variety of resonant beads  40  in different materials, sizes, and shapes, in use, the resonant beads  40  move around within the resonant chamber defined by the resonant shell  20  and sealed by the resonant sleeve  30 . This movement of resonant beads is caused in part by small variations in movement of the overall fishing-lure enhanced rattle through the water on the fishing line. In embodiments having water ports  22  this movement of resonant beads is also influenced by the flow of water through the resonant chamber. The resonant beads intermittently and repeatedly strike the resonant shell  20 , the resonant sleeve  30 , and other resonant beads  40  when the invention is in use. Each such strike produces a sound according to the sound-resonance properties of the striking and stricken components. As disclosed above, the sound-resonance properties are chosen to provide varied specific sounds which combine into complex, more organic, less mechanical overall sounds. The varied movement of the invention through the water, enhanced by varied sizes and shapes of resonant beads  40 , provides a varied timing of the occurrences of specific sounds, which combine into complex, more organic, less mechanical overall sound patterns. 
         [0026]    Fishing line and guitar strings are made of similar materials—nylon or plastic monofilament or steel—and fishing line makes a sonic contribution to the fishing-lure enhanced rattle. Referring to  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 6 , the fishing line  201  passes through the resonant sleeve  30 . When the fishing line is perfectly aligned with the center of the sleeve, the line and the sleeve do not touch. But, in use, such a perfect alignment is infrequent and short-lived, and with very slight changes in relative alignment at least one part of the resonant sleeve will come into contact with the fishing line. When this contact occurs, the resonant sleeve both influences the sound-producing vibration present on the fishing line, analogous to fretting or producing a harmonic on a guitar string, and receives and resonates sound-producing vibration from the fishing line, analogous to a tin-can-on-a-string communication device or a resonator guitar. In use, water will flow through the resonant sleeve  30  around the fishing line  201 . Under favorable conditions, the resonant sleeve  30  and the fishing line  201  will function similarly to a vibrating reed in a musical instrument. This influence upon and transmission of sound waves adds to the fishing-lure enhanced rattle a variety of sounds all in a different category from the sounds generated by the resonant beads  40 . 
         [0027]    Referring to  FIG. 8 , in an embodiment, an intermediate chamber  50  can be provided by segregating part of the resonant chamber closest to the resonant sleeve  30 . Such an intermediate chamber can be used where it is desirable to constrain the resonant beads  40  closer to the sleeve, where it is desirable to have, for instance, an intermediate chamber containing air and no water and the remainder of the resonant chamber containing water, or vice versa, or where the intermediate chamber provides a desirable filtering or modification of the sound. 
         [0028]    Many changes and modifications can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit thereof. I therefore pray that my rights to the present invention be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.