GB2612068A

GB2612068A - Grip for a sports racket

Info

Publication number: GB2612068A
Application number: GB2115065.1A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Gailani Andre
Original assignee: Wishlist Trading Ltd T/a Kestrel Tennis
Current assignee: Wishlist Trading Ltd T/a Kestrel Tennis
Priority date: 2021-10-21
Filing date: 2021-10-21
Publication date: 2023-04-26
Also published as: GB202115065D0

Abstract

A grip 12 for application to the shaft 16 of a sports racket comprises at least a first ply of material (22, figure 2) and a second ply of material 24 each having an adhesive side and a non-adhesive side, the first ply of material (22) being configured to adhere to a racket handle and the second ply of material 24 being configured to provide a primary grip surface, wherein the second ply of material 24 provides at least one removable region 26 that, when removed, exposes a secondary grip surface of the first ply of material (22) underneath. The removal of the regions 26 may enable a more efficient grip of the handle by virtue of anti-slip properties of the first ply of material (22). The first ply of material (22) may also comprise tactile features to guide the user to position their fingers and hands in the desired manner.

Description

GRIP FOR A SPORTS RACKET

FIELD

The present invention relates to a grip for a sports racket.

BACKGROUND

The way in which an athlete grips a sports racket can have a material impact on the way in which a ball or puc, for example, is struck. Taking tennis as an example, a player can exhibit more force by holding the racket towards the end of the handle whereas more control, but less power, may be exhibited by holding the handle nearer to the racket head for certain shots. It takes years of experience for a player to learn where to hold the handle for a variety of different shot types. Furthermore, in game variables such as sweat from high temperature and humidity, rain, injury, and fatigue, for example, can all have a significant effect on the way in which the player grips the handle. Some players use finger type to provide increased grip on a racket handle. This can require replacement during the game and contributes to non-recyclable waste.

The present invention seeks to address the aforementioned problems.

SUMMARY

The term "racket" as used herein should be interpreted to also refer to the following non-exhaustive equivalents: rackets, clubs, sticks, shafts, for example.

An aspect of the invention provides a grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket comprising at least a first ply of material and a second ply of material each having an adhesive side and a non-adhesive side, the first ply of material being configured to adhere to a racket handle and the second ply of material being configured to provide a primary grip surface, wherein the second ply of material provides at least one removable region that, when removed, exposes a secondary grip surface of the first ply of material underneath.

The present invention facilitates efficient grasping of sports racket in a variety of grip positions. For example, the way in which a player grasps a tennis racket is different depending on whether the player is in a forehand or backhand stance. The way in which the player grasps the racket can have a significant effect on the power and accuracy of a shot played in either stance. It is therefore advantageous for the player to be able to repeatedly grasp the racket in the same position so that he/she can learn how to play a certain shot with minimal variations in hand position on the racket. Furthermore, the present invention eliminates or reduces the need for finger tape for players to obtain a good grip on a racket handle.

The first ply of material may comprise a first side having adhesive properties and a second side defining a secondary grip surface.

For example, the secondary grip surface may comprise a plurality of projections or a roughened surface to: i) allow the user to identify grip position by feel; and H) provide a region of increased grip so that the user can better grasp the racket, particularly when the racket might be wet from sweat or weather conditions.

The second ply of material may comprise a first side having adhesive properties and a second side defining a primary grip surface.

The primary grip surface may be formed from a conventional rubber or silicone material. It may also comprise one or more projections configured to guide the user's fingers and/or hands towards the removable regions The grip may be in the form of a strip of material. Alternatively, the grip may be in form of a moulded over sleeve.

The primary grip surface may have a first coefficient of friction. The secondary grip surface may have a second coefficient of friction.

Removal of the removable areas of the second ply of material may expose an indentation configured to receive a user's fingers or hands, or parts thereof.

The second ply of material may be cushioned.

Grips according to some embodiments of the invention may further comprise a third ply of material having an adhesive side and a non-adhesive side, the third ply of material being cushioned.

The removable regions may comprise a perforated or scored outline that is configured to facilitate removal of said removable regions from the grip. Alternatively, the removable regions may comprise a cap or plug configured to be inserted into an indent formed in the second ply of material.

Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. The detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended to be given by way of example only.

FIGURES

Aspects and embodiments of the invention will be described by way of reference to the following figures.

FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional tennis racket comprising a handle grip.

FIG. 2 illustrates the construction of a grip for a tennis racket according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a strip of grip material according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a grip according to embodiments of the invention having secondary grip regions for a first grip position.

FIG. 5 illustrates a grip according to embodiments of the invention having secondary grip regions for a second grip position.

DESCRIPTION

The following description of the preferred embodiment(s) is merely exemplary in nature and is no way intended to limit the invention, its application, or uses.

The description of illustrative embodiments according to principles of the present invention is intended to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings, which are to be considered part of the entire written description. In the description of embodiments of the invention disclosed herein, any reference to direction or orientation is merely intended for convenience of description and is not intended in any way to limit the scope of the present invention. Relative terms such as "lower," "upper," "horizontal," "vertical," "above," "below," "up," "down," "top" and "bottom" as well as derivatives thereof (e.g., "horizontally," "downwardly," "upwardly,' etc.) should be construed to refer to the orientation as then described or as shown in the drawing under discussion. These relative terms are for convenience of description only and do not require that the apparatus be constructed or operated in a particular orientation unless explicitly indicated as such. Terms such as "attached," "affixed," "connected,", "adhered", "coupled,' "interconnected," and similar refer to a relationship wherein structures are secured or attached to one another either directly or indirectly through intervening structures, as well as both movable or rigid attachments or relationships, unless expressly described otherwise. Moreover, the features and benefits of the invention are illustrated by reference to the exemplified embodiments. Accordingly, the invention expressly should not be limited to such exemplary embodiments illustrating some possible non-limiting combination of features that may exist alone or in other combinations of features; the scope of the invention being defined by the claims appended hereto.

Referring to the figures, there is provided a grip (10) for a sports racket. The figures show a grip for a tennis racket, but it will be appreciated that a grip falling within the claims of the present invention will be equally suitable for use with other rackets, clubs or sticks. For example, embodiments of the invention may be used with baseball and rounders bats, hockey sticks, golf clubs, javelins, pole vault bars, squash rackets, table tennis bats, badminton rackets, for example. The aforementioned list is not intended to be limiting.

As shown in FIG. 1, a tennis racket (12) comprises a head (14) and a handle (16). The handle (16) has a first end (18) proximal to the racket head (14) and a second end (20) distal from the racket head. The grip (10) is applied to the handle (16) and extends from the second, distal end (20) of the handle (16) towards the first, proximal end (18) of the handle 16. In the figures, the grip (10) is shown as a strip of material that is wound around the handle (16) and adhered thereto. However, it would be appreciated that a moulded oversleeve may also be used in conjunction with the principles of the invention.

In one embodiment of the invention the grip (10) comprises at least two plies of material as shown in FIG. 2. A first ply of material (22) acts as a base layer and has an adhesive side and a non-adhesive side. Similarly, a second ply of material (24) has an adhesive side and a non-adhesive side. The second ply of material (24) is adhered to the first ply of material (22). While the invention is illustrated as comprising two plies of material (22, 24), it will be appreciated that further plies of material may be incorporated into the grip without departing from the principles of the invention. For example, an intermediate, or third, ply of material may be incorporated between the first ply of material (22) and second ply of material (24) to act as a cushioning layer, for example.

In an embodiment comprising just a first ply of material (22) and second ply of material (24), the non-adhesive side of the first ply of material (22) is coated or formed from a first anti slip material, for example a fabric mesh. Similarly, the non-adhesive side of the second ply of material (24) is coated or formed from a second anti slip material, for example a micro fibre material. In some embodiments the first anti slip material may have a greater coefficient of friction, or other measure of grip efficiency, than the second anti slip material. The second ply of material (24) comprises one or more regions (26) that can be removed to expose the anti-slip material of the first ply of material (22). In some embodiments, an indentation is formed by removal of the regions (26) to provide a defined guide for the user to place their fingers and/or hands, or parts thereof. In other embodiments, removal of the regions (26) enables more efficient grip of the handle (16) by virtue of the anti-slip properties of the first ply of material (24). The outer face of the second ply of material (24) therefore defines a primary grip surface and the exposed areas of the first ply of material (22) define a secondary grip surface. The secondary grip surface may have a different surface finish, i.e., roughness, than the primary grip surface. The secondary grip surface may also comprise tactile features, i.e., a pattern of projections, to guide the user to position their fingers and hands in the desired manner.

The removable regions (26) may be formed from a perforated or scored outline in the second ply of material (24) such that they may be permanently removed. The outline may be laser cut, for example. Alternatively, the removable regions (26) may be formed from a plug or cap that is insertable into an indent in the second ply of material (24).

As shown in FIG. 3, a strip of material is formed such that when wrapped around the handle (16) the regions (26) are positioned in pre-defined locations on the handle. This can be tailored for individual users by considering the size and shape of each user's hands and fingers and positioning the regions accordingly. Alternatively, the regions (26) can be located according to average positions required to grip the racket in a certain way. In association with a tennis racket, different regions (26) may be provided for forehand and backhand grip. In more complex embodiments, further regions (26) may be provided for other grip positions such as serve and overhead.

The locations of the removable regions (26) can be dependent on the size of the grip, size of racket handle (16) and a user's preferred grip position for example. In one embodiment, the user's grip position may be determined by using motion and performance analysis to identify an optimum grip position. The determined grip position may be mapped to locations of the grip (10) using computer aided design or computer aided manufacturing software, for example. The grip may be produced by curing the first and second plies of material (22, 24) in an autoclave and laser cutting the removable regions (26). Alternatively, the second ply of material (24) may be punched prior to curing with the first ply of material (22).

FIG. 4 shows the grip (10) applied to the handle (16) of a tennis racket such that the removed regions facilitate holding of the handle (16) in a first grip position. FIG. 5 shows the grip (10) applied to the handle (16) of a tennis racket (12) such that the removed regions (26) facilitate holding of the handle (16) in a second grip position.

The grip (10) and/or or the tennis racket (12) may comprise indicators for providing instructions for application of the grip (10) to the racket handle (16). For example, the racket handle (16) may comprise a series of lines for alignment of the grip (10) therewith. Alternatively, the grip (10) itself may comprise a series of markers to identify how the grip (10) should be overlapped and wrapped around the racket handle (16). The position of the markers differs depending on the size of grip, size of racket, or user defined grip position, for example.

The above embodiments are exemplary only, and other possibilities and alternatives within the scope of the appended claims will be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, reference to LEDs is not intended to be limiting and LEDs are given only as one example of light emitting or data display source that can be used in embodiments of the invention. It will be appreciated that electrophoretic display screens may be used to render a map, chart, or other information display source. Such display screens may be dynamically updated to record and indicate the real time position of one or more objects or persons and/or to update the map, chart or information display source as the object or person represented on the map, chart or information display changes location.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket comprising at least a first ply of material and a second ply of material each having an adhesive side and a nonadhesive side, the first ply of material being configured to adhere to a racket handle and the second ply of material being configured to provide a primary grip surface, wherein the second ply of material provides at least one removable region that, when removed, exposes a secondary grip surface of the first ply of material underneath.
2. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to claim 1, wherein the first ply of material comprises a first side having adhesive properties and a second side defining a secondary grip surface.
3. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to claim 1 or claim 2, where the second ply of material comprises a first side having adhesive properties and a second side defining a primary grip surface.
4. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the grip is in the form of a strip of material configured to be wound around the handle of the sports racket.
5. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the grip is in the form of a moulded over sleeve.
6. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any preceding claim, wherein the primary grip surface has a first coefficient of friction.
7. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any preceding claim, wherein the secondary grip surface has a second coefficient of friction.
8. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to claim 7, wherein the second coefficient of friction is greater than the first coefficient of friction.S
9. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any preceding claim, wherein removal of the removable regions of the second ply of material cause exposure of respective indentations configured to receive a user's fingers or hands, or parts thereof.
10. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any preceding claim, wherein the second ply of material is cushioned.
11. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any preceding claim further comprising a third ply of material having an adhesive side and a nonadhesive side, the third ply of material being cushioned.
12. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any preceding claim, wherein the secondary grip surface comprises tactile features.
13. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to claim 12, wherein the secondary grip surface has a different surface texture to the primary grip surface.
14. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any preceding claim, wherein the removable regions comprise a perforated or scored outline that is configured to facilitate removal of said removable regions from the grip.
15. A grip for application to the shaft of a sports racket according to any of claims 1 to 13, wherein the removable regions comprise a cap or plug configured to be inserted into an indent formed in the second ply of material.

16, A sports racket comprising a grip according to any of claims 1 to 15.