A lacrosse stick head comprising a frame and netting attached to the frame. The frame has two sidewalls extending from a throat portion to a mouth portion thereof. Each sidewall includes an upper wall section and a lower section having an inner wall segment, that extends inwardly towards the central longitudinal axis of the frame, and an other wall segment that extends downwardly from the upper wall section. The inner wall segment is shorter than the outer wall segment and spaced a selected distance away from the mouth portion. Each outer wall segment has a bottom edge with holes therein, those holes being provided to attach the netting. In a preferred version, there are several side-by-side holes arranged in a row along one or both sides of a shank end portion of the head. These holes are used to secure and adjust several longitudinal thongs of the netting.
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12. A lacrosse stick head comprising a frame having a central longitudinal axis and netting attached to said frame, said frame comprising a throat portion, first and second side wall extending from said throat portion and diverging from each other, said first sidewall being substantially straight in the longitudinal direction at least along an upper edge thereof, said second sidewall forming a convex curve extending in the longitudinal direction of the sidewall at least along an upper edge thereof, said convex curve facing towards said longitudinal axis, and a lip portion joined to ends of said sidewalls remote from said throat portion, said portion being below said central longitudinal axis and a top edge plane of said sidewalls, wherein said frame is made of a strong rigid plastics plastic material.
1. A lacrosse stick head generally pear shaped comprising a frame having a central longitudinal axis and netting attached to said frame, said frame made of strong rigid plastics material and injection moulded, comprising sidewall means extending from a throat portion of said frame to a mouth portion thereof and located on two opposite sides of said frame, and a mouth portion, said mouth being below the central longitudinal axis of the frame, said sidewall means on each side including an upper wall section and a lower section having an inner wall segment, that extends inwardly towards said longitudinal axis, wherein each inner wall segment extends both inwardly towards central longitudinal axis and downwardly from said upper wall section and has an inner edge and holes therein proximate said inner edge, said holes in the inner edge being provided for optionally attaching said netting to the inner wall segments, and an outer wall segment that extends downwardly from said upper wall section, said inner wall segment being shorter than said outer wall segment and spaced a selected distance away from said mouth portion, each outer wall segment having a bottom edge and holes therein proximate said bottom edge, wherein said holes are provided for attaching said netting to said sidewall means.
2. A lacrosse stick head according to
3. A lacrosse stick head according to
4. A lacrosse stick head according to
0. 5. A lacrosse stick head comprising a frame having a central longitudinal axis and netting attached to said frame, said frame comprising a throat portion, first and second side walls extending from said throat portion and diverging from each other, said first sidewall being substantially straight in the longitudinal direction at least along an upper edge thereof, said second sidewall forming a convex curve extending in the longitudinal direction of the sidewall at least along an upper edge thereof, said convex curve facing towards said longitudinal axis, and a lip portion joined to ends of said sidewalls remote from said throat portion, wherein said frame is made of strong rigid plastics material.
0. 6. A lacrosse stick head according to
0. 7. A lacrosse stick head according to
0. 8. A lacrosse stick head according to
0. 9. A lacrosse stick head according to
0. 10. A lacrosse stick head according to
0. 11. A lacrosse stick head according to
13. A lacrosse stick head according to
14. A lacrosse stick head according to
15. A lacrosse stick head according to
16. A lacrosse stick head according to claim 17 wherein the outer wall segments have substantially straight bottom edges that are parallel to an upper edge plane defined by the upper edges of said sidewalls located in a region thereof adjacent and at said throat portion of said frame.
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This invention relates to lacrosse sticks and, in particular, lacrosse stick heads formed with netting.
Lacrosse sticks are used in the sport of lacrosse which has been played for quite some time. Originally and for many years, the sticks for this sport were made from a suitable wood while the netting in the stick head was made and continues to be made from leather thongs intertwined with and connected to smaller thongs, cords or laces or from a nylon mesh. The typical head frame includes a throat portion or shank end portion to which a stick handle is affixed, one or two sidewalls extending from the throat portion and a lip portion or transverse wall that is connected to the outer end of a single sidewall or both outer ends of two sidewalls. The head frame supports the flexible netting which defines a ball pocket, traditionally located in the midsection or mouth area of the head.
In the course of playing the sport of lacrosse, a player who has caught a ball with his stick typically carries the ball in the ball pocket. The throat area is relatively narrow compared to the rest of the head and thus is able to more securely retain the ball.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,270,756 issued Jun. 2, 1981 to Carl Ahlenfeld et al. describes a fairly typical lacrosse stick head having a pair of sidewalls diverging in a generally V-shaped manner from a throat area, a top portion joining the side walls, and a substantially transverse member extending between the sidewalls in the throat area. The conventional lacing used in this stick head comprises four longitudinally extending rawhide or leather thongs which are connected to the head by means of holes formed in the top or lip portion and holes in the region of the throat. Lacing or cord is intertwined between these thongs and is connected to the sidewall by holes formed therein.
Recent U.S. Pat. No. 5,035,434 issued Jul. 30, 1991 to Sports Licensing, Inc. describes a lacrosse stick head including a frame and netting attached thereto. There are two sidewalls that extend from the throat portion and diverge from one another. The opening formed by the frame can be described as generally pear-shaped. The preferred material for this frame is a substantially rigid, light weight plastic, such as nylon or polyurethane. The frame of this patent specification is shown with longitudinally extending ribs or ridges formed on the outside of the sidewalls.
Recent U.S. Pat. No. 5,080,372 issued Jan. 14, 1992 to Sports Licensing, Inc. describes a lacrosse stick head with inwardly extending side rib means on an interior surface of the sidewall. These ribs means are disposed, at least in part, proximate an upper edge of the sidewall and overlay the ball pocket. The preferred rib means are moulded integrally with the sidewalls and extend substantially normal to the interior surfaces of these walls. These known rib means are said to add rigidity to the sidewalls and to provide a ball retention aid because they overlay the netting in the vicinity of the ball pocket.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved lacrosse stick head having a frame and a netting wherein the two sidewalls each have a lower section having an inner wall segment, that extends inwardly, and an outer wall segment that extends downwardly. The inner wall segment acts to strengthen and reinforce the sidewall and can, in the preferred version of the stick head, provide other advantages state hereinafter.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved lacrosse stick head having an improved hole arrangement for securing and adjusting longitudinally extending thongs that form a major part of the netting, these holes being arranged side-by-side along one or both sides of the shank end.
As shown in
The construction of the sidewalls will now be described with reference to
Both of the sidewalls 16 and 18 are formed with holes indicated generally at 50 through which lacing or cords for the netting 14 can be run and connected. In particular, each of the outer wall segments which run the entire length of the side wall have holes 50 therein proximate their bottom edge 52. Preferably, not only the outer wall segment but also the inner wall segment 38 has holes indicated specifically at 54 proximate the inner edge 46, the holes 54 being provided for optionally attaching the netting to the inner wall segments. Thus, a player using a preferred form of the present lacrosse stick is able to string the stick head using one or the other of the wall segments 38 and 40 in the region where both of these wall segments extend. By choosing to string the inner wall segment, the player will obtain a narrow pocket and extreme ball control. If, on the other hand, he strings the outer wall segment, he will obtain a wider pocket with less ball control and have the advantage of a faster ball release. In one preferred embodiment, the horizontal distance D shown in the cross-section of
The head 10 has a shank end portion 62 to which the sidewalls 16 and 18 are connected as well as a tick handle (not shown). Located in the shank end portion is an octagonal aperture 64 for reception of the stick handle. This aperture has a central axis indicated at 66 in
In order to attach the longitudinally extending thongs 28 there is a first set of holes 24 distributed along the end wall or mouth portion 22 of the frame. In one preferred embodiment, these holes are spaced about ⅛ inch from the bottom edge of the lip portion. There is a second set of holes indicated generally at 70 formed in or by the shank end portion 62 for connecting inner ends of the thongs 28 to the shank end portion. This second set includes several side holes indicated at 72 in
A preferred shank end portion of the head 10 is formed with a centrally located, transversely extending flange 76 that projects rearwardly from the shank end portion. The second set of holes 70 includes at least two holes 80 in this flange which serve to space thongs 28 extending through them in the transverse direction of the frame. The shank portion further includes a transversely extending, rearwardly projecting lip at 82 which is an extension of the sidewalls 16 and 18. All of the longitudinal thongs 28 pass over this lip or through holes formed in this lip and then bend downwardly so as to pass through the holes 70 including the side-by-side holes 72 located on one or both sides. It will be appreciated that the lip 82 not only acts to provide the proper depth to the netting in the region of the throat but also, to some extent, protects the flange 76.
Also shown in
Although the sidewalls can be constructed and arranged so that they are substantially the same, in one preferred embodiment the sidewall 16 along its bottom edge 52 will be located a short distance outwardly, for example ½ inch, from a vertical plane defined by the upper edge 34 of the sidewall. This slight outward projection is indicated at 94 in FIG. 1. The other sidewall 18 has a bottom edge 52 that projects inwardly a short distance, for example, ½ inch, from the vertical plane defined by its upper edge 34 along a portion of the length of the sidewall. This slight inward projection is indicated at 96 in FIG. 1. Also, although not illustrated in the drawings, it is possible to form one of the sidewalls with large openings or open spaces while still having the sidewall continuous from the throat portion to the lip portion. Typically, these open spaces would be formed in the left sidewall when the head is being viewed from the front (the upper sidewall 16 in FIG. 1).
In a preferred embodiment of the stick head, the height of the rib 90 measured from the upper edge 34 is about ½ inch. Also, the overall height of the sidewall indicated by the letter H in
It will be apparent to one skilled in the construction of lacrosse stick heads that various modifications and changes to the described and illustrated lacrosse stick head can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications and changes as fall within the scope of the appended claims are intended to be part of this invention.
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Executed on | Assignor | Assignee | Conveyance | Frame | Reel | Doc |
Feb 25 1998 | Shamrock Lacrosse, Inc. | (assignment on the face of the patent) | / | |||
Apr 04 2006 | SHAMROCK LACROSSE, INC | WARRIOR LACROSSE, INC | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 019767 | /0198 | |
Aug 08 2007 | WARRIOR SPORTS, INC , FORMERLY KNOWN AS WARRIOR LACROSSE, INC | SHAMROCK LACROSSE, INC | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 019767 | /0200 |
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