GB2417996A

GB2417996A - Tee joint of tubular members formed from sheet material

Info

Publication number: GB2417996A
Application number: GB0510957A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Teng Yi Wang; Chang I Wu
Original assignee: SHEN TAI INDUSTRY CO Ltd
Current assignee: SHEN TAI INDUSTRY CO Ltd
Priority date: 2004-09-01
Filing date: 2005-05-27
Publication date: 2006-03-15
Anticipated expiration: 2025-05-27
Also published as: GB2417996B; GB0510957D0; AU2004100729A4

Abstract

A tee joint, e.g. for a trampoline, comprises a horizontal pipe or tubular member (20) and a vertical pipe or tubular member (30). The vertical pipe (30) is formed from sheet material and includes a sleeve portion (31) for engagement with the horizontal pipe (20) and first and second semicircular halves (32, 33). Each semicircular half has wing portions, the wing portions of one semicircular half (33) overlapping the wing portions of the other semicircular half (32) to join the semicircular halves (32, 33) to each other.

Description

24 1 7996

INTEGRALLY FORMED TEE JOINT FOR TRAMPOLINE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an integrally formed tee joint for trampoline, and more particularly to a tee joint having improved structural strength at a juncture of a vertical and a horizontal connecting pipe thereof to reliably bear a force applied thereto without the need of welding the juncture.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Conventional trampolines have an open jumping bed that tends to cause accidents when a child jumps thereon. Therefore, a protective net located around a space above the jumping bed has become a required item for a trampoline.

US Patent No. 6,261,207 Bl discloses a trampoline having a safety fence for enclosing a space immediately above a jumping bed. The jumping bed of the trampoline disclosed in US Patent No. 6,261,207 Bl is usually supported to a predetermined height by connecting to a legged frame via a plurality of radially extended elastic elements, such as springs. The elastic elements are fixedly conrrected at an inner end to an outer periphery of the jumping bed, and at an outer end to the legged frame, which is normally round or rectangular in shape.

To mount the safety fence around the space above the jumping bed, a plurality of spaced and upward extended posts are connected to the legged frame for holding a protective net thereto. When the legged frame is round or rectangular in shape, tee joints are needed to couple two adjacent horizontal sections of the legged frame and receive the vertical posts.

Figs. I and 2 are perspective and sectioned end views, respectively, of a conventional tee joint for the above-structured trampoline. As shown, the conventional tee joint generally includes a horizontal connecting pipe IO, and a vertical connecting pipe 11 connected to a central area of the horizontal connecting pipe 10. The horizontal and the vertical connecting pipe 10, 11 are separately formed and then welded together along a juncture 12 thereof. Since the vertical post for holding the protective net is inserted in the vertical connecting pipe 11, the welded juncture 12 forms a point directly bearing the force applied by the vertical post to the conventional tee joint of Fig. 1, and the juncture 12 has insufficient structural and bearing strength.

The vertical posts for holding the protective net as disclosed in US Patent No. 6,261,207 B I are flexible to absorb an impact produced at the time a jumping user elastically lands on the jumping bed and thereby protect the user against injury. The flexible vertical posts are also helpful in guiding the jumping user to more safely land on a central area of the jumping bed. The juncture 12 of the horizontal and the vertical connecting pipe 10, 11 of the above-described tee joint has apparently insufficient structural strength to bear the force applied thereto by the flexible vertical post holding the protective net, and therefore requires necessary improvements.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A primary object of the present invention is to provide an integrally formed tee joint for trampoline that has stable and reliable forcebearing strength even if the horizontal and the vertical connecting pipe thereof are not welded together.

To achieve the above and other objects, the integrally formed tee joint for trampoline according to the present invention includes a horizontal connecting pipe for coupling two adjacent segments of a jumping bed supporting frame of the trampoline, and a vertical connecting pipe for receiving a protective net post of the trampoline. The vertical connecting pipe is integrally formed from a sheet material that includes a main body for forming a lower sleeve portion and a first semicircular half of the vertical connecting pipe, and a width-expanded body for forming a second semicircular half of the vertical connecting pipe. The first and the second semicircular half have opposite first and second wing portions, respectively, and the second wing portions are wider than the first wing portions and bent to overlap and wrap the first wing portions, so as to Manly associate the first and the second semicircular half with one another.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The structure and the technical means adopted by the present invention to achieve the above and other objects can be best understood by refemng to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional tee joint for trampoline; Fig. 2 is a sectioned end view of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a tee joint for trampoline according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 4 is a sectioned end view of Fig. 3; and Figs. 5 through 8 shows steps of integrally forming a vertical connecting pipe on a horizontal connecting pipe of the tee joint of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Please refer to Figs. 3 and 4 that are perspective and sectioned end views, respectively, of a tee joint for trampoline according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the tee joint for trampoline includes a horizontal connecting pipe for coupling two adjacent segments of a frame of the trampoline for supporting a jumping bed thereon (not shown), and an integrally formed vertical connecting pipe 30 for supporting a post of the trampoline for holding a protective net thereto (not shown).

The vertical connecting pipe 30 includes a lower sleeve portion 31 for enclosing a central area of the horizontal connecting pipe 20, a first semicircular half 32, and a second semicircular half 33 opposite to the first semicircular half 32. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the lower sleeve portion 31 is easily fixed to the horizontal connecting pipe 20 by way of electrical welding.

Please refer to Figs. 5 to 8 that shows steps of integrally forming the vertical connecting pipe 30 using an integral piece of sheet material 300 and connecting the integrally formed vertical connecting pipe 30 to the horizontal connecting pipe 20.

As can be seen from Fig. 5, the integral piece of sheet material 300 includes a main body 301 for forming the lower sleeve portion 31 and the first semicircular half 32, and a width-expanded body 302 for forming the second semicircular half 33.

A partial length of the main body 301 is pressed to form the lower sleeve portion 31 and the first semicircular half 32 having two opposite first wing portions 321, 322, and the width-expanded body 302 is pressed to form the second semicircular half 33 having two opposite second wing portions 331, 332. The first and the second wing portions 321, 322 and 331, 332 have different widths. In the preferred embodiment of the present Invention, the second wing portions 331, 332 have a width larger than that of the first wing portions 321, 322, as shown in Fig. 6.

Portions of the second wing portions 331, 332 of the second semicircular half 33 wider than the first wing portions 321, 322 are then bent by I 80 degrees to overlap and wrap the narrower first wing portions 321, 322 in the bent second wing portions 331, 332, and thereby associate the second semicircular half 33 with the first semicircular half 32 to form a complete vertical pipe above the lower sleeve portion 31, as shown in Fig. 7.

Thereafter, as shown in Fig. 8, the first and the second semicircular half 32, 33 are firmly connected to one another by forming a series of alternately arranged recesses and lands 333 on the overlapped first and second wing portions 321, 331 and 322, 332 through compressing. When necessary, a Juncture 34 of the lower sleeve portion 31 and the horizontal connecting pipe 20 is electrically welded in a simple manner, as shown in Fig. 3.

Since the tee joint for coupling adjacent segments of the frame of the trampoline according to the present invention is formed from an integral sheet material, a force applied to the vertical connecting pipe 30 of the tee joint for receiving the protective net post is born by the integrally fommed lower sleeve portion 31 and first and second semicircular half 32, 33 of the vertical connecting pipe 30 to largely improve the structural strength at the juncture of the vertical and the horizontal connecting pipe 30, 20.

The present invention has been described with a preferred embodiment thereof and it is understood that many changes and modifications in the described embodiment can be carried out without departing from the scope and the spirit of the invention that is I O intended to be limited only by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An integrally formed tee joint for trampoline, comprising a horizontal connecting pipe for coupling two adjacent segments of a frame of the trampoline for supporting a jumping bed thereon, and a vertical connecting pipe for supporting a post of the trampoline for holding a protective net thereto; said vertical connecting pipe being integrally formed from a sheet material to include a lower sleeve portion for enclosing a central area of said horizontal connecting pipe, a first semicircular half, and a second semicircular half opposite to said first semicircular half; said sheet material for integrally forming said vertical connecting pipe including a main body for forming said lower sleeve portion and said first semicircular half, and a width-expanded body for forming said second semicircular half; and both said first and said second semicircular half having two opposite wing portions, and said wing portions of said second semicircular half being wider than said wing portions of said first semicircular half; and portions of said wing portions of said second semicircular half wider than said wing portions of said first semicircular half being bent to overlap and wrap said wing portions of said first semicircular half, and said overlapped wing portions of said first and said semicircular half being compressed to firmly connect to one another.

2. The integrally formed tee joint for trampoline as claimed in claim 1, wherein said lower sleeve portion of said vertical connecting pipe and said horizontal connecting pipe are welded at a juncture thereof.

3. The integrally formed tee joint for trampoline as claimed in claim 1, wherein said overlapped wing portions of said first and said second semicircular half are compressed to form a series of alternately arranged recesses and lands.