GB2125303A - Improvements in and relating to shuttlecocks - Google Patents

Abstract

A shuttlecock (1) has a head (3), a skirt (2) secured to the head, and a weighting element (10) releasably securable to a part (8) of the shuttlecock at the rear of its head without disturbing the securement of the head to the skirt. A plurality of interchangeable weighting elements of different weights may be provided. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in and relating to shuttlecocks This invention relates to shuttlecocks for badminton.

The manufacture of shuttlecocks, especially those having a skirt formed of feathers, is a difficult and costly process. The head and skirt must be accurately assembled and weighted with care in order to avoid undesirable variations in the playing characteristics of the shuttlecock.

It has been the practice to weight the shuttlecock by enclosing balancing lead pellets in an opening formed in its head. This practice leaves much to be desired, especially when the head is made of cork because the cork contains cavities into which the loosely confined shot finds its way and thereby throws the unit out of balance. Apart from that, there is a tendency for the loose balancing pellets to be driven into the material of the head during play and when the shuttlecock is subjected to impacts by a racket. This also leads to the shuttlecock being thrown out of balance.

In an attempt to overcome these difficulties it has been proposed to place the pellets in a capsule which is inserted into the head of the shuttlecock. This does not succeed entirely in overcoming the difficulties and, moreover, produces a difficult and expensive assembly.

Another proposal uses a mouldable member of a suitable plastics material which is in the form of a crown secured to the flat or butt end of the head of the shuttlecock and a weighting device which is integrally formed as a unit with the crown prior to its assembly to the head. The weighting device, which can be in the form of a solid element or in the form of a container for receiving pellets projects from the crown and is arranged to be inserted into a bore in the head of the shuttlecock.

Because the crown carries the weighting device impacts by a racket cannot lead to the shuttlecock being thrown out of balance because the weighting means (even when in the form of pellets) cannot be driven into the material of the head.

Although, this proposal appears to overcome, therefore, the diffjculties referred to above it still has disadvantages. First the shuttlecock is, especially when pellets are used for weighting, difficult and expensive to assemble. Secondly, once assembled the shuttlecocks playing characteristics are fixed and cannot subsequently be varied.

It has also been proposed to use interlocking components for connecting together the head and skirt of a shuttlecock and to use a plug (e.g. of cork) to produce a rigid connection, the plug also serving as a weighting member. The plug is, however, intended to be a permanent fixture and is, as a result, difficult if not impossible to remove without permanent damage to it or to the shuttlecock.

In another proposal, similar to that just described, a retainer member is used as both a weighting member and also to hold the stems or quills of a plastics skirt in position within grooves provided in the head. The retainer member is securable to the head by screwthread or snap-in connection means but removal of the retainer member for replacement by one of different weight is not intended and if attempted wouid interfere and/or possibly deleteriously affect the way in which the head is secured to the skirt.

An object of the present invention is to facilitate and to reduce the cost of, the manufacture of shuttlecocks, to provide an improved mode of weighting the shuttlecock whilst preserving its balance and also to enable the playing characteristics of the shuttlecock to be varied.

The present invention provides shuttlecock equipment comprising a shuttlecock having a head and a skirt secured to the head and a plurality of weighting elements each of different weight, wherein each weighting element is releasably securable to a part of the shuttlecock at the rear of its head without disturbing the securement of the head to the skirt.

By using the construction accoridng to the invention it is possible to make one standard shuttlecock -- which is less expensive to produce than the shuttlecocks referred to earlier since there is no need to provide complex structures for receiving the weights -- the flight characteristics (for example, the speed) of which can be varied by selecting and attaching an appropriate weighting element. The flight characteristics of a shuttlecock can be affected by many influences for example the altitude at which play takes place or the size of the hall in which play takes place.By using the equipment according to the invention the player can always - by suitable selection of the weighting element -- obtain the playing characteristics he requires irrespective of any outside influences (such as altitude or hall size).

Preferably, a crown-like member is attached to the rear end of the head, each weighting member being releasably securable to the crown member.

Advantageously, the crown-like member and each weighting element are provided with interengageable means to effect releasable securement.

The crown member, which is preferably made of plastics material, is usually provided as an anchor for the skirt of the shuttlecock. In the case of a moulded plastics skirt, the crown member is formed integrally with the skirt, whilst in the case of a feather skirt the crown member is apertured to receive the shafts or quills of the feathers which are anchored therein.

Preferably, the crown member has a disc-like portion to which each weighting member is releasably securable. Many different means can be used to secure each weighting member to the crown member but the provision of a disc-like portion facilitates securement. For example, the disc-like portion can be slotted or apertured in its central region to receive the end of the weightirig member.

In this case, and if the rear end of the head is in the form of a flat face, to facilitate engagement of the weighting member it is preferred if the disclike portion, at least in the region of the aperture or slot is spaced from that face.

Another possibility is for the disc-like portion to have a centrally projecting pin or post to which the weighting member can be clipped or snap-fitted.

In one form of the invention each weighting member is preferably made of plastics material, is in the form of a 'T' having a notch or notches in the upright portion adjacent to the cross-bar, and is engageable in a slot in the disc-like portion of the crown member, the cross-bar of the 'T' member being insertable through the slot and then turnable to lock the weighting member against the underside of the disc-like portion, part(s) of the disc portion defining the slot engaging in the notch(es).

In another form, the weighting member is in the form of a pin having a split head which is engageable in a hole in the disc-like portion of the crown member, the size of the head being reducible by pressing its two halves together so that it is insertable into the hole, whereupon the two halves spring apart so that they engage the underside of the disc portion and lock the pin in position.

In yet another form of the invention, a centrally projecting post or pin is provided on the disc-like portion, the post or pin having a split head the halves of which can be brought together to receive the weighting member, which is in the form of a ring, and which spring apart to lock the ring on the pin or post below its head.

Various shuttlecock equipment constructed in accordance with the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a diagrammatic elevation of a first shuttlecock with a weighting element secured to it.

Figure 1 (a) is an enlarged diagrammatic elevation of the weighting element, Figure 2 is a diagrammatic plan view of the rear or non-striking end of the shuttlecock shown in Figure 1, and Figure 3 is a diagrammatic elevation of a second shuttlecock with another weighting element secured to it.

Referring to the accompanying drawings and first of all to Figures 1 and 2, a shuttlecock 1 has a skirt portion 2 and a head or striking cap 3, the skirt portion being secured to the head by a crown member 4.

The crown member 4 is preferably made of plastics material and acts as an anchor for the skirt portion 2. If the skirt portion 2 is a moulded plastics member the crown member 4 is formed integrally with it, whilst in the case of a feather skirt the crown member 4 is apertured to receive the shafts or quills of the feathers which are anchored therein.

The crown member 4 is formed with an anchor portion 5 for anchoring it in the head or cap 3. The head or cap 3 may, as is usual, be made from cork or any suitable plastics material and the anchor portion can be adhesively secured in the head and/or provided with a rib, flange or groove, etc.

for interlocking with complementarily shaped parts in the head.

The crown member is also formed with a disclike portion 6 which confronts the rear or nonstriking end 7 of the head. The central part 8 of the disc portion 6 is raised so that it is spaced from the end 7 and has a central rectangular slot 9 for receiving a weighting element 10.

The weighting element 10, which is preferably made of plastics material, is of substantially T-shaped configuration having an upright portion 11, a cross bar 12 and notches 13 formed in the portion 11 just below the cross bar 1 2. A plurality of such weighting elements are provided (only one of which is shown) which are substantially identical in form but each of which has a different weight.

The player selects the weighting element to suit the desired playing characteristics and inserts its cross-bar into the slot 10 and then turns it through 900 (as shown in broken lines in Figure 2) so that the edges defining the slot 10 engage in the notches 13 to hold the weighting element in place.

To facilitate locking of the weighting element in the slot that portion of the upright portion flanked by the notches may be in the form of a squat cylindrical boss 14. The diameter of the boss is substantially equal to the smaller dimension of the slot so that the boss serves properly to locate the weighting element in the slot prior to locking and to facilitate turning of that element into its locked position.

In a modified version, not shown, the weighting element is in the form of a resilient member having a split head which is engageable in a hole (which may be circular) in the disc-like portion of the crown member. The size of the head is reducible by pressing its two halves together so that it is insertable in the hole, whereupon those halves spring apart and engage the underside of the disc portion to lock the weighting element in position.

Figure 3 shows a shuttlecock which is similar in form to that shown in Figure 1 (and accordingly similar parts are identified by the same reference characters) but which has a different mechanism for securing the weighting element. In this case the disc-portion 6 of the crown member 4 is formed with a small rearwardly extending post or pin 20 and each weighting element is in the form of a ring 21.

The post or pin 20 (preferably made of a suitable plastics material) has a split resilient head, which enables the halves of the head to be brought together to receive a ring 22 and which then spring apart to lock the ring on the post.

The size of the weighting elements 10 and the pin 20 shown in Figures 1 to 3 has been exaggerated for purposes of illustration. Further, the shuttlecock and the weighting elements are shown purely diagrammatically.

The shuttlecocks and their associated weighting elements as described and illustrated may be modified in various ways. It is essential only that the weighting element can be simply attached and removed from the shuttlecock without disturbing securement of the head and its skirt and consequently the way in which the head and skirt are assembled together can be chosen from the various methods known in the art.

Further, the way in which the weighting element is secured to the head can be achieved in any suitable way the methods described and illustrated showing only a few possible examples.

Claims (14)

1. Shuttlecock equipment comprising a shuttlecock having a head and a skirt secured to the head and a plurality of weighting elements each of a different weight, wherein each weighting element is releasably securable to a part of the shuttlecock at the rear of its head without disturbing the securement of the head to the skirt.

2. Equipment as claimed in Claim 1, wherein a crown-like member is attached to the rear end of the head, each weighting element being releasably securable to the crown member.

3. Equipment as claimed in Claim 2, wherein the crown-like member and each weighting element are provided with interengageable means to effect releasabie securement.

4. Equipment as claimed in Claim 2 or Claim 3 wherein the crown member provides an anchor for the skirt of the shuttlecock.

5. Equipment as claimed in any one of Claims 2 to 4, wherein the crown member is made of plastics material.

6. Equipment as claimed in Claim 4 and Claim 5, wherein the skirt is a moulded member and the crown member is formed integrally with the skirt.

7. Equipment as claimed in any one of Claims 2 to 5, wherein the skirt is a feather skirt and the crown member is apertured to receive the shafts or quills of the feathers.

8. Equipment as claimed in any one of Claims 2 to 7, wherein the crown member has a disc-like portion to which each weighting member is releasably securable.

9. Equipment as claimed in Claim 8, wherein the disc-like portion is slotted or apertured in its central region to receive the end of the weighting member.

10. Equipment as claimed in Claim 9, wherein the rear end of the head is in the form of a flat face and the disc-like portion, at least in the region of the aperture or slot, is spaced from that face.

11. Equipment as claimed in Claim 8, wherein the disc-like portion has a centrally projecting pin or post to which the weighting member can be clipped or snap-fitted.

12. Equipment as claimed in Claim 9 or Claim 10, wherein each weighting element is in the form of a 'T' having a notch or notches in the upright portion adjacent to the cross-bar, and is engageable in the slot in the disc-like portion of the crown member, the cross-bar of the 'T' member being insertable through the slot and then turnable to lock the weighting member against the underside of the disc-like portion, part(s) of the disc portion defining the slot engaging in the notch(es).

13. Equipment as claimed in Claim 9 or Claim 10, wherein the weighting member is in the form of a pin having a split head which is engageable in the hole in the disc-like portion of the crown member, the size of the head being reducible by pressing its two halves together so that it is insertable into the hole, whereupon the two halves spring apart so that they engage the underside of the disc portion and lock the pin in position.

14. Equipment as claimed in Claim 1 1, wherein the centrally projecting post or pin provided on the disc-like portion has a split head the halves of which can be brought together to receive the weighting member, which is in the form of a ring, and which spring apart to lock the ring on the pin or post below its head.

1 5. Equipment as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 14, wherein each weighting member is made of plastics material.

1 6. Shuttlecock equipment substantially as herein before described with reference to, and as illustrated by, Fig. 1, Fig. 1(a), and Fig. 2 of the accompanying drawings.

1 7. Shuttlecock equipment substantially as herein before described with reference to, and as illustrated by Fig. 3 of the accompanying drawings.