GB2255289A - A catapult. - Google Patents

Abstract

A catapult comprising a handle 11 and a semi-circular bow 12. An elastic sling 13 extends freely through an internal channel in the bow 12 thus to contain therewithin approximately one half of the length of the elastic sling. The sling 13 is free to rotate about its own axis within the bow and is free to extend therewithin. The internal channel may extend down and through the handle along two parallel tracks therein (Figure 3), and the length of sling within the handle is adjustable by means of slider (23, Figure 4). The catapult may carry a bait cup on the elastic sling, and be of use to anglers. <IMAGE>

Description

A CATAPULT THIS INVENTION concerns a catapult, particularly though not exclusively, for use by anglers to project bait to a remote target area.

An angler's catapult typically comprises a handle, a semicircular or V-shaped bow, and an elastic sling. To ensure adequate projectile range, the sling must have a certain minimum elastic extension so that the length of the sling in its relaxed state is likely to be at least as great as the overall length of the catapult. Thus, the device may be inconvenient when stored, owing to the excessive length of free elastic which may become entangled with other objects, for example, in an angler's bag. Also, the elastic may become twisted and remain so when the catapult is used. This can cause the sling or a bait cup attached thereto, to become tangled thus losing valuable time before re-use is possible.

An object of the present invention is to provide a catapult having adequate elastic extension to provide the required range of use, whilst, in a relaxed or inoperative state the amount of free elastic extending between the ends of the bow is minimised, and the likelihood of twisting is substantially avoided.

According to the present invention there is provided a catapult comprising a handle, a bow attached to one end of the handle generally in a typical V-shaped or semi-circular configuration, and an elastic sling extending between the free ends of the bow, characterised in that the bow defines an internal channel; in that the elastic sling is partially housed within said internal channel but free to extend therewithin; and in that the elastic sling is free to rotate about its axis throughout that part of the length of the channel occupied thereby.

Preferably the internal channel is continuous such that the elastic sling may be threaded completely through the channel from one end thereof.

Several embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a catapult made in accordance with one embodiment of the invention; Fig. 2 is a cross-section taken on line II-II of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a similar cross-sectional view of a second embodiment; Fig. 3a is a fragmented view of part of a handle of a modified form of the second embodiment; Fig. 4 is a further cross-sectional view similar to Figs. 1 and 3, but of a third embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a cross-section similar to Fig. 2 but of a modified form of construction of the catapult.

and Fig. 6 illustrates a bait cup and the manner of attachment thereto of the elastic sling.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2 in a first embodiment the catapult consists of a 2-part plastics moulding or alloy casting, one half of which is indicated generally at 10 and of which the other half is opposite and identical.

The catapult consists of the handle 11, a bow 12 and an elastic sling 13. Since, in this example, the device is formed as two halves connected together, sleeves 14 are provided to support a pair of spaced fixing screws, whilst the free ends of the bow 12 are maintained in assembly by caps 15 of a hard-wearing material, which may be held in place by adhesive or by a forced fit on the tubular free ends of the bow. It will be appreciated also that a curved internal shape of the aperture in the caps 15 serves as a bearing surface for the elastic sling 13 where it emerges from the bow. The caps may be a friction fit but have sufficient freedom to allow them to be turned periodically as the bearing surface becomes worn. They may also be replaceable.

In accordance with the invention, and in this embodiment, the elastic sling 13 is housed within the bow 12 and passes right through the latter. It is contained within an internal channel 16 defined by two walls 17 each of which projects from one moulded half of the device into a recess 18 in the other half. In this way, there are no joint lines in the walls of the channel which could cause chafing of the elastic sling.

Latex tubing is preferred for the sling 13 as is typical in conventional designs of catapult. Alternatively, however, it can be a solid elastic rod of circular, rectilinear or polygonal cross-section, As will be described with reference to Fig. 6, the elastic sling is completed in the usual way by a perforated bait cup or pouch attached to the elastic sling between the ends of the bow 12, and having a part to be grasped by the user to draw back the sling.

For convenience, the latex tubing of the sling 13 may be joined in any convenient way either within the internal channel 16 or in the region of the cup or pouch. Since the sling 13 is free to pass through the channel 16, the cup or pouch is readily centralised for use.

It will be appreciated that since almost one half (or more) of the length of the sling 13 is housed within the bow 12 and is thus extendible within the bow when drawn, the length of sling outside of the bow may be approximately one half (or less) of that normally required for the same degree of extension in a conventional arrangement where the sling is attached to the ends of the bow.

Referring now to Fig. 3 it will be seen that a greater length of sling 13 may be contained by extending the channel 16 not just around the bow but also down and back up through the handle.

In this case, the walls 17 also extend throughout the length of the handle along two parallel tracks, to provide the guide channel for the enclosed part of the sling.

Preferably, in this embodiment, the bottom of the handle is left open at 19 to assist the user to re-thread the sling when it requires replacement. Again, to assist with replacement, the sling may be provided as two separate lengths each of which has one end located on one of a pair of rotatable lugs 20 (See Fig. 3c) accessible through the open end 19 of the handle. The remainder of each length may then pass upwardly through the handle and around the associated part of the bow.

Referring now to Fig. 4 in a further embodiment the device may be made adjustable. In this case, the sling 13 extends throughout the semi-circular form of the bow 12 and therein passes between guide projections 21 and 22 attached to a slider 23. A groove 24 in the wall of the handle 11 enables the slider 23 to be adjustably located at any position along substantially the entire length of the handle. As the slider 23 is pulled downwardly so the projections 21 draw the sling 13 downwardly, and a series of ratchet teeth (not shown) or a similar mechanism, is provided whereby any selected position of the slider 23 may be maintained. Thus, the length of sling housed within the device is adjustable between a minimum as depicted in Fig. 1 and a maximum substantially as depicted in Fig. 3.The adjustable slider 23 may be an advantage in providing the most suitable arrangement for a particular user, or to provide a difference in performance of the catapult according to its required use.

Referring now to Fig. 5 in an alternative form of construction the bow 12 may be formed simply from two generally semi-circular sectioned parts which are indicated at 25 in Fig. 5 with a stepped interface 26 to facilitate the joining of the two moulded halves. The resultant tubular body would then simply house the tubular elastic sling 13 without the need for walls 17 as in Fig. 1. In this case a simple guide rib should pass across the top of the handle 11, internally thereof, to prevent a re-threaded sling from jamming inside the internal space of the handle.

Referring now to Fig. 6, a flexible perforated bait cup 27 is provided having an open front to accept bait and a pull tab 28 attached to the rear. By passing the elastic sling 13 around the bait cup through a pair of tubular guide passages 29 attached along the sides of the cup 27, and through a hole in the tab 28, a further extensible length of sling is contained, again to minimise the amount of free elastic. If required the elastic may be joined in the region of tab 28 to a solid bowed or hinged rod or the like.

It is not intended that the invention should be limited to the examples described in relation to Figs. 1 to 6. For example, in Fig. 1 the bow 12 may be formed as a continuous tube much as Fig.

5, perhaps of metal, with the handle 11 welded or otherwise attached thereto. Further, if the bow and handle are formed with an open or skeletal structure, the entire device can be moulded in one piece instead of two separate halves to be joined.

If required, the sling 13 may carry graduated markings to provide an indication in use of its elastic extension and thus the length of throw to be expected.

Furthermore, the sling 13 may be locally enlarged in cross section at the two positions where it emerges from the bow 12 thus to present two bulges which lie against the open ends respectively of the bow. This feature maintains the bait cup or pouch in a central position ready for use and by resiliently closing the open ends of the bow, serves to minimise or prevent the ingress of dirt thereto. If the sling is made from a tubular material, solid plugs should be inserted to form the bulges, whilst in solid material its diameter may be locally enlarged. Alternatively, resilient sleeves may surround the sling at the appropriate positions to form the enlargements.

In all of the embodiments described, the elastic sling is free to rotate about its own axis throughout that part of the bow/handle occupied thereby. In this way the bait cup is free to turn over during retraction of the elastic, without the latter becoming twisted, thus ensuring that the catapult is always ready for use, in contrast to many fixed-sling catapults which become twisted during use or in storage.

An additional advantage derived from the present design is ths freedom to thread a replacement sling through the continuous internal channel of the bow/handle from one end thereof.

Claims (17)

1. A catapult comprising a handle, a bow attached to one end of the handle generally in a typical V-shaped or semi-circular configuration, and an elastic sling extending between the free ends of the bow; characterised in that the bow defines an internal channel; in that the elastic sling is partially housed within said internal channel but free to extend therewithin; and in that the elastic sling is free to rotate about its axis throughout that part of the length of the channel occupied thereby.

2. A catapult according to Claim 1, wherein the internal channel is continuous such that the elastic sling may be threaded completely through the channel from one end thereof.

3. A catapult according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein said internal channel extends down and through the handle along two parallel tracks therein.

4. A catapult according to any preceding claim, wherein the length of sling contained within the handle is adjustable.

5. A catapult according to Claim 4, including means to select and maintain the length of the sling contained within the handle.

6. A catapult according to any preceding claim, wherein the handle and bow are produced from two opposite and substantially identical moulded halves the adjoining edges of which are arranged such that no joint lines remain in the walls of the channel which could cause chafing of the elastic sling.

7. A catapult according to any preceding claim, wherein said elastic sling carries a bait cup or pouch the latter having a guide passage in which an extensible length of the elastic sling is contained.

8. A catapult according to Claim 1, wherein two free ends of the elastic sling are located within the bow/handle assembly and fixed therein to a pair of rotatable lugs thus to maintain free rotation of the sling about its own axis.

9. A catapult according to any preceding claim, wherein the free ends of the bow through which the elastic sling emerges are provided with separate caps defining a curved internal wall serving as a bearing surface for the elastic sling where it emerges from the bow.

10. A catapult according to Claim 9, wherein said caps are capable of rotation about their axes to allow them to be turned periodically to prevent excessive local wear of the bearing surface.

11. A catapult according to Claim 9 or Claim 10, wherein said caps are removable for replacement.

12. A catapult according to any preceding claim, wherein at least one half of the overall length of the elastic sling is housed within the bow/handle assembly.

13. A catapult according to Claim 1, wherein said internal channel is formed by a pair of parallel walls extending through the bow/handle assembly.

14. A catapult according to any preceding claim, wherein the bow/handle assembly is formed with an open or skeletal structure such that the entire device can be moulded in one piece.

15. A catapult according to any preceding claim, wherein the elastic sling carries graduated markings to provide an indication of its elastic extension when stretched.

16. A catapult according to any preceding claim, wherein the elastic sling is locally enlarged in cross-section at the two positions where it emerges from the bow thus to present two bulges which lie against the open ends respectively of the bow.

17. A catapult, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the various embodiments described in relation to the accompanying drawings.