Ball Gatherer or "Fielder" for Lawn Tennis and other Games.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 31st July, 1899 -Accepted, 9th Sept.,
1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Ball Gatherer or "Fielder" for Lawn Tennis and other Games.
I, ERICH HETTNER, of 104, Lützowstrasse, in the City of Bremen, Empire of
Germany, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement:―
The ball-gatherer is intended for the convenient gathering of the balls in the
game of lawn-tennis and other games. It form a receptacle by which the balls
may easily be picked up from the ground, in which the balls may be stored when
not in use, and from which they may be taken again with the greatest con-
venience.
The apparatus is formed of rods, which are held together by rings, the upper
ends of the rods forming a handle; the lower ends are capable of reassuming
their original form or position after being bent or expanded; these lower ends
are provided with suitable buttons knobs or eyes. The inner diameter of the
receptacle is a little larger, that between the knobs or eyes, a little smaller, than
the outer diameter of the ball.
"fielder."
In the accompanying drawing I have shown a ball gatherer or
The apparatus is mainly constituted by longitudinal rods u, surrounded by
as to constitute a
rings b. At the upper end, the rods may be formed, so
handle e, or a handle e may be formed individually and may be attached to the
rods a, where they meet at top.
At their lowest end the rods a are provided with buttons, knobs or eyes e; the
area between the four (or more or less) knobs e is a little smaller than the outer
diameter of the balls d, whereas the area between the four (more or less) rods a
is a little larger than the outer diameter of the balls.
In using the ball-gatherer, I place the lower end over the ball which is lying
on the ground, and press until the ball is inside the knobs. The next ball as
it is taken up in the same manner, simultaneously pushes the first one upwards
into the receptacle and so on, until the latter is full.
In taking out the balls, I begin by removing the lowest ene, upon which the
next one falls, until it is held only by the knobs or buttons, and is then ready
to be taken out.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is-
-
An apparatus to be used as a ball-gatherer or "fielder" for taking up balls
from the ground and storing them and from which the stored balls may easily
be removed, said apparatus consisting of a receptacle preferably in the form of a
cylindrical skeleton of rods, provided at one end with a handle, said rods being
provided at the open end with knobs buttons or eyes, this end of the cylindrical
Price 811

page_text: skeleton being capable of expanding, if pressed against a ball, the latter being
caught in the skeleton by the knobs buttons or eyes reassuming their initial
position.
Dated this 31st day of July 1899.
J. C. MEWBURN & ELLIS,
55 and 56, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.