GB2415880A

GB2415880A - Catapult

Info

Publication number: GB2415880A
Application number: GB0415116A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Kevin Robert Nash
Original assignee: Kevin Nash Tackle Ltd
Current assignee: Kevin Nash Tackle Ltd
Priority date: 2004-07-05
Filing date: 2004-07-05
Publication date: 2006-01-11
Also published as: GB0415116D0

Abstract

A catapult 10 having a forked handle 12, a pouch 18 for holding a projectile and two resilient bands 16 connecting the pouch 18 to the ends of the prongs 14 of the handle 12, is provided in the invention with a third resilient band 22 connecting the pouch 18 to a point on the handle 12 located symmetrically between the two prongs 14. The handle has a shield (24) and an attachment (30) connectable to the handle by the post (34).

Description

24 1 5880 - 1 -

CATAPULT

The present invention relates to a catapult and in particular one intended for use by anglers to cast bait into the water in order to attract fish to the vicinity of a fishing line.

The use of catapults to propel projectiles is of course very well known. A catapult normally comprises a sling and a forked handle. The sting is often made up of a pouch which is connected by two resilient bands, or elastics, to the two free ends of the prongs of the handle. In use, a projectile is held in the pouch and the pouch is manually pulled away from the forked handle to tension the two bands. On releasing the pouch, the elasticity of the bands moves the pouch towards the handle, which passes between the two prongs. The projectile is then released and is hurled towards its target.

According to the present invention, there is provided a catapult having a forked handle, a pouch for holding a projectile and two resilient bands connecting the pouch to the ends of the prongs of the handle, characterized by a third resilient band connecting the pouch to a point on the handle located symmetrically between the two prongs.

The present invention improves over a conventional catapult in several ways. Clearly, as more energy can be stored in three resilient bands than in two, a catapult of the invention should potentially be capable of an increased range. However, in angling, the need to increase the range is not particularly great and what is perhaps more important is that less energy needs to be stored in each band, thereby reducing the risk of a band snapping and improving the safety of the catapult. The use of a third band has also been found to improve the accuracy of the catapult and to avoid the pouch being turned inside out after every use.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the handle is provided with a shield to protect a hand gripping the handle from the recoil of the resilient bands.

s To steady the handle while the bands are being tensioned, it is preferred to form the handle as a hollow tube and to provide a stabiliser attachment in the form of an elongate shaft having an upstanding post at one end to fit within the handle and a curved saddle at the other end lo to rest over the forearm of the user.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which the single figure is a perspective view of a catapult of the invention together with a stabiliser attachment.

The catapult 10 in Figure 1 has a formed handle 12 with two upstanding spaced prongs 14. Two conventional resilient bands 16 are anchored to the free ends of the prongs 14 and their opposite ends are connected to a pouch 18. The components numbered 12 to 18 are those conventionally found in all catapults and they can all be of any known type. It is preferred for the resilient bands 16 to be formed as tubes of an elastomeric material and for them to be connected to the prongs 14 in a manner that allows them to be replaced simply when they are worn or damaged. The bands 16 may either be permanently connected to the pouch, so that the pouch and the bands are all replaceable as a single item or they may be releasably connected to the pouch 18 so that they may be replaced without the need to replace the pouch 18 at the same time. The illustrated pouch 18 is formed with a grip 20 which is required when the projectile is a soft material such as bait, but if the projectile is hard then the pouch can be gripped by squeezing on the projectile.

In the present invention, a third resilient band 22 extends between the pouch 18 and the handle 12. The point of 3 - attachment of the third band 22 to the handle 12 lies symmetrically between the two prongs 14 near the point of bifurcation. Similarly, the point of attachment of the third band 22 is connected to the pouch 18 at a point lying symmetrically between the points of attachment of the other two resilient bands 16.

When the three bands are tensioned by pulling on the grip 20 and then released, the pouch moves towards the gap lo between the two prongs 14 and then overshoots. The elasticity of the bands now acts to restrain the pouch but not the bait, with the result that the bait leaves the pouch and is hurled towards its desired target area. After retensioning of the bands 16 and 22 on the opposite side of the handle on account of the momentum of the pouch, the pouch once again recoils and returns towards the handle.

At this point, if the user's hand is unprotected, it can be hit by the recoiling pouch and though this is not dangerous it can prove painful. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, therefore, a shield 24 is placed over the handle 12 to protect the user's hand in the same manner as the hilt of a sword.

The three-band design of the present invention has been found in practice to result in greater aiming accuracy. This is believed to be because the central band 22 points in the direction of the trajectory of the projectile and the user does not have to aim by trying to line up the pouch with an imaginary point midway between the two prongs 14. Also, because the tension is now spread over three bands, the tension in the two lateral bands 16 is reduced and any imbalance in the tension between them will be correspondingly reduced. The third band 22 also assists in better judging the range of the projectile because it allows the pouch to be more consistently aligned with the handle in the vertical plane. - 4

An important advantage provided by the catapult of the invention results from the fact that, because the pouch is held at three points, it is not turned inside out on the opposite side of the handle after the projectile has been released. This allows he catapult to be recharged and reused quickly.

The figure also shows an attachment 30 designed to assist the user in maintaining the plane of the prongs 14 lo normal to the forearm. The handle 14 is formed as a hollow tube of rectangular cross section and the attachment is formed as a shaft 32 having at one end a post 34 of rectangular cross section to be received within the handle 14. The opposite end of the attachment 30 comprises a saddle 36 to fit over the user's forearm to maintain the shaft 32 parallel to the user's arm. In this way, the stabiliser attachment 30 fixes the plane of the prongs 14 in relation to the user's forearm to assist in judging both the azimuth and the elevation of the trajectory of the projectile with greater accuracy.

Claims

- - 5 CLAIMS

1. A catapult having a forked handle, a pouch for holding a projectile and two resilient bands connecting the pouch to the ends of the prongs of the handle, characterized by a third resilient band connecting the pouch to point on the handle located symmetrically between the two prongs.

2. A catapult as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lo handle is provided with a shield to protect a hand gripping the handle from the recoil of the resilient bands.

3. A catapult as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the handle is formed as a hollow tube and a stabiliser attachment is provided in the form of an elongate shaft having an upstanding post at one end to fit within the handle and a curved saddle at the other end to rest over the forearm of the user.

4. A catapult constructed substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.