Abstract:
A modularized fishing reel spool comprises a drag adjust knob, a brake device having two springs and washer stacks, a front lid, a core and a skirt. A turning support system of the spool comprises a two bearing system, a main shaft and a core shaft. Compared to conventional fishing reel spools, this invention provides a spool having advantages such as better structural design, wider adjustable brake range, superior line-loading force application, well-functioned water drainer system, low manufacturing cost and lower material usage.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is a continuation of International Patent Application No. PCT/CN2006/000327 with an international filing date of Mar. 6, 2006, designating the United States, now pending, and further claims priority benefits to Chinese Patent Application No. 200520041709.2, filed on May 20, 2005. The contents of the aforementioned specifications are incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     This invention relates to fishing reels, and more particularly to drag brake devices for use in fishing reels.  
         [0004]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0005]     A spool device is a part of a fishing reel. The main purpose of the spool is to store and release the fishing line. While the line winding device turns and winds the fishing line onto the spool neck, the spool device remains still. When the line is released, for example, being pulled by fish, the line winding device keeps still. While the fishing line is let out, the spool is turned by the line and continuously releases the line out. However, the line should not be released without tension. Specifically, it is beneficial to let fish feel certain resistance in order to prevent unhooking. The drag force will also exhaust the fish. However, the resistance cannot be too large; otherwise the line may fail. Accordingly, the spool has to provide an adjustable drag force.  
         [0006]     A conventional fishing reel spool device is shown in  FIG. 1 . The spool device consists of a brake device  2 , a turning support device, a drag adjust knob  1 , and a main shaft  5  which passes through the spool. The spool device also consists of lid  31 , core  32  and skirt  33 . A concave section of core  32  serves to store the line.  
         [0007]     Through central bore, the spool  3  is mounted at the front of the main shaft  5 . The spool is freely rotatable on main shaft  5 . The brake device  2  consists of a drag stack, a drag washer, a keyed washer, an eared washer all of which form multiple brake friction pairs in a cavity located at the front of the core  32 . The drag adjust knob  1  is screwed on the main shaft  5  to form drag adjustable mechanism.  
         [0008]     Referring to  FIG. 1 , when drag adjust knob  1  is turned clockwise, it is screwed into the main shaft. The more the knob is screwed in, the bigger the force applied through the coil spring to the drag stack will be. The force is converted into a brake torque acting on the drag stack. The brake torque is resisting the spool&#39;s  3  turning. While the above parts are utilized, the main shaft  5  remains still. When the knob  1  is screwed out of the main shaft, the spring becomes uncompressed, the drag force becomes zero, and so does the brake torque. The spool  3  is dragged out by fish without difficulty and the line is let out easily. The magnitude of the braking force depends mainly on the rigidity of the spring, the compress displacement of the spring, the material of the drag stacks, the friction coefficient, and the number of brake pairs.  
         [0009]     However, a conventional fishing reel spool described above has the following disadvantages:  
         [0010]     1) Due to the fact that spool  3  is made in one-piece, the fishing reel spool  3  can usually have only a relatively simple structure. Hence, the material consumption is large and the material cost high.  
         [0011]     2) A single spring action limits the magnitude of brake resistance to the spool. The drag adjustable range is also limited.  
         [0012]     3) The turning support mechanism, as shown in  FIG. 2 , has a cantilever support configuration since it needs to accommodate a cavity for installing a drag stack device. Therefore, the support length L 1  becomes relatively short, and this affects its supporting performance.  
         [0013]     4) The spool does not easily accommodate an outlet for water brought in with a wet line; water drains uncontrollably adversely affecting the fishing experience.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0014]     The modularized fishing reel spool of the invention is constructed with the goal of overcoming the above-described problems, i.e., to reduce the material cost, to enlarge the drag adjustable range, to improve the turning support mechanism, and to improve the draining function of fishing reels.  
         [0015]     In certain embodiments of the invention, provided is a modularized fishing reel spool comprising a drag adjust knob, a brake device, a spool, a turning support device, and a main shaft.  
         [0016]     In a class of this embodiment, the spool is formed by the front lid, the core having a cavity and skirt, which elements are connected to each other by a connecting element or a thread.  
         [0017]     In a class of this embodiment, the main shaft has pin, and the front part of the main shaft is threaded. This main shaft is set in the bore on core shaft. The pin is embedded in the key slot on the flange of the core shaft.  
         [0018]     In a class of this embodiment, the brake device is disposed in the middle of the cavity of the core and on the core shaft. From the back to the front, there are disposed a big spring, drag stacks, a small spring and a front lip.  
         [0019]     In a class of this embodiment, the rigidity of the big spring is larger than the rigidity of the small spring.  
         [0020]     In a class of this embodiment, the turning support device  4  comprises the second ball bearing between the skirt and the core shaft, the first ball bearing between the front lid and the front actuator. The turning support device keeps the spool constantly supported as a freely-supported beam.  
         [0021]     In a class of this embodiment, the main shaft passes through the core shaft, the brake device and the turning support device; the central thread of the brake adjustable knob screws onto or into the thread of the main shaft; and the adjustable knob presses upon the front actuator.  
         [0022]     In a class of this embodiment, the connecting element is a screw.  
         [0023]     In a class of this embodiment, the core has more than one elongated water drainer for draining water.  
         [0024]     In a class of this embodiment, at the end of the skirt disposed is one or more water drainers and/or through holes.  
         [0025]     In a class of this embodiment, spline slots are disposed axially at the concave inside of the core.  
         [0026]     In a class of this embodiment, the core shaft comprises a round hole; the shape of the core shaft is a regular polygon, and the back part of the core shaft expands to flanges. A pair of symmetrical flutes is disposed at the connecting area between the back side of the flange and the round hole.  
         [0027]     In a class of this embodiment, the drag washer stack is assembled in the following order: (1) the keyed washer; (2) the drag washer, (3) the eared washer, (4) the drag washer, (5) the keyed washer, and so on.  
         [0028]     In a class of this embodiment, the central hole of the keyed washer is a spline connected with the core shaft to form a non-rotating link.  
         [0029]     In a class of this embodiment, the centre holes of the eared washer and the drag washer are round and the diameters of the holes are larger than the maximum diameter of polygonal section of the core shaft.  
         [0030]     In a class of this embodiment, the ears of the eared washer are embedded into the spline slots inside of the core.  
         [0031]     In a class of this embodiment, there is shim between the flange and the skirt.  
         [0032]     In a class of this embodiment, the back part of the flange comprises a sound ratchet.  
         [0033]     In certain embodiments, the reel spool of the invention comprises individually manufactured components such as front lid, core, and skirt. The core can be made from a drawn pipe, and little further machining is required. The skirt and the front lid can be punch pressed or drawn to form their shape with little machining required, therefore the cost is relatively low.  
         [0034]     In certain embodiments, the reel spool of the invention comprises a two bearing turning support system. The support system allows for a wider bearing support span compared to conventional solutions. The working condition of the turning support is greatly improved, and it can achieve a higher line releasing speed.  
         [0035]     In certain embodiments, the brake mechanism of this invention has a double action spring. It delivers wider and better defined drag adjusting range, and a larger, and smoother braking force than conventional solutions.  
         [0036]     In certain embodiments, the reel spool of the invention comprises a water drainage structure on the core and the skirt of the spool. This structure allows for water brought back by wet fishing line to drain out.  
         [0037]     In certain embodiments, the reel spool of the invention comprises a core shaft allowing for a simple construction. The core shaft be easily machined and remains in better mechanical condition throughout the lifetime of the reel. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0038]      FIG. 1  shows a cross-sectional view of a fishing reel spool of prior art.  
         [0039]      FIG. 2  shows a cross-sectional view of a turning support structure for a fishing reel spool of prior art.  
         [0040]      FIG. 3  shows a perspective view of a modularized fishing reel spool according to the best mode of the invention.  
         [0041]      FIG. 4  shows a cross-sectional view of a modularized fishing reel spool according to the best mode of the invention.  
         [0042]      FIG. 5  shows an exploded view of a modularized fishing reel spool according to the best mode of the invention.  
         [0043]      FIG. 6  shows a perspective view of the core and skirt according to one embodiment of the invention.  
         [0044]      FIG. 7  shows a modularized fishing reel spool according to another embodiment of the invention.  
         [0045]      FIG. 8  shows a perspective view of the core shaft of the modularized fishing reel spool according to one embodiment of the invention.  
         [0046]      FIG. 9  shows a schematic view of a turning support structure of the spool according to one embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0047]     Hereinbelow is a further description of the embodiments of the invention with reference to drawings. The description is meant to be illustrative and not limiting.  
         [0048]      FIGS. 4 and 5  illustrate a cross-sectional and an exploded view of a modularized fishing reel spool. The modularized fishing reel spool comprises a drag adjust knob  1 , a brake device  2 , a spool  3 , a turning support device  4 , and a main shaft  5 .  
         [0049]     The spool  3  comprises a front lid  31 , a core  32  with a cavity  323 , and a skirt  33 . These parts are interconnected by means of several connecting elements  34 .  
         [0050]     A pin  51  is disposed on the main shaft. The front part of the main shaft comprises a thread  55 . The main shaft  5  is fitted in the bore  521  of the core shaft  52 . The pin  51  is embedded in the key slot  525  located at the flange  524  of the core shaft  52 .  
         [0051]     The brake device  2  is disposed between the cavity  323  of core  32  and core shaft  52 . It is formed by the following parts, counting from back to front: a large spring  21 , drag washer stacks  22 , a small spring  23 , and a front actuator  24 . The rigidity of the large spring  21  is larger than that of the small spring  23 .  
         [0052]     The turning support device comprises a second bearing  42  which sits between the skirt  33  and the flange  523  of core shaft  52 , and a first bearing  41  which sits between the front lid  31  and the front actuator  24 . This structure keeps the spool in constant support as a freely supported beam.  
         [0053]     The main shaft  5  passes through the core shaft  52 , the brake device  2 , and the turning support device  4 . Through the central thread of main shaft  5 , the drag adjust knob  1  screws on the thread  55  of the main shaft  5 . The drag adjust knob  1  presses upon the front actuator  24 .  
         [0054]     As shown in  FIG. 6 , at the outside surface of core  32 , disposed is more than one elongated water drainer  322 . At the end of the skirt  33 , disposed are several water drainers  331  for draining off water. Referring to  FIG. 7 , at the end of the skirt, there can be several holes  332  instead of water drainers  331 . There are spline slots  324  on the internal wall of the cavity  323  inside the core  32 .  
         [0055]     As shown in  FIG. 8 , the core shaft  52  has a bore  521 . The shape of the core shaft  52  is a symmetrical polygon  522 , such as a square or a rectangle. The back part of the core shaft  52  comprises a flange  523  and a flange  524 . There is a pair of symmetrical key slots  525  located at the junction area between the back side of the flange  524  and the bore  521 .  
         [0056]     The drag washer stacks  22  comprise a repeating arrangement of a keyed washer  221 , a drag washer  222 , an eared washer  223 , a drag washer  222 , a keyed washer  221 , and so on. The central hole of the keyed washer  221  sits on the symmetrical polygon  522  without rotating with respect to the core shaft  52 . The central holes of the drag washer  222  and the eared washer  223  are round in shape and their diameters are larger than the maximum diameter of the outside section of the core shaft. The ears of the eared washer are embedded into the key slots disposed at the inside diameter of the core  32 .  
         [0057]     A shim  54  is disposed between the flange  524  of core shaft  52  and the skirt  33 .  
         [0058]     The back part of the flange  524  comprises a sound ratchet  53 .  
         [0059]     Compared to conventional fishing reel spools, this invention features the following advantages.  
         [0060]     The turning support device keeps the spool constantly supported as a freely supported beam. As shown in  FIG. 9 , the width of the bearing support structure is the distance L 2 , which is much larger than the width of the conventional reel bearing support structure L 1 . The two bearing structure minimize the resistance during line release. This means that the reel of the invention can achieve maximum releasing efficiency.  
         [0061]     The brake mechanism of this invention employs two springs. The rigidity of the small spring  23  is smaller than the rigidity of the large spring  21 . The brake force of the reel according to the invention is controlled by turning the drag adjust knob  1  with thread  55  on the main shaft  5 .  
         [0062]     Before the drag adjust knob  1  compresses the small spring  23  and large spring  21 , the spool  3  including the core  32 , and the skirt  33  can rotate freely relative to main shaft  5 ; the drag resistance is nearly zero. When the drag adjust knob  1  is continuously screwed in, it will, through front actuator  24 , compress the small spring  23 . Due to the fact that the rigidity of the small spring  23  is smaller than that of the large spring  21 , only the small spring is compressed initially. The brake force mainly acts small spring  23 . Further turning of the drag adjust knob  1  causes the front actuator  24  to touch the adjacent keyed washer  221 . The front actuator  24  is then unable to compress the small spring  23  any further. As a result, through the drag washer stacks  22 , the force of drag adjust knob  1  starts to compress the large spring  21 . The brake force in this period is determined by a combined property of the small spring  23  and large spring  21 . The conclusion is the adjustable range of this invention is much wider than in conventional reels and the brake force can be controlled in separated stages.  
         [0063]     The spool  3  comprises a front lid  31 , a core  32 , and a skirt  33 . These parts are connected by mans of connecting element  34  and/or thread. The core  32  can be manufactured from a drawn pipe. The skirt  33  and front lid  31  can be punch pressed or drawn to form their shape with little machining required; therefore the manufacturing and material costs are relatively low.  
         [0064]     The spool  3 , the skirt  33 , and the core  32  of the reel according to this invention comprise water drainer slots and/or water drainer holes, which effectively improve the function of the fishing reel and make it more convenient to use.