US20220204142A1

US20220204142A1 - Leash and Carrying Device for Body Boards

Info

Publication number: US20220204142A1
Application number: US17/697,857
Authority: US
Inventors: John L. LaProcido; Elizabeth LaProcido; Matthew LaProcido; John R. LaProcido; Marc LaProcido
Original assignee: Goliath Ip Stichting
Current assignee: Goliath Ip Stichting
Priority date: 2017-08-28
Filing date: 2022-03-17
Publication date: 2022-06-30

Abstract

The present invention is a sports board assembly with a wrist/ankle tether that can be converted into one or more shoulder straps. A first connector is anchored to the sports board along a center line. A second connector is anchored to the sports board offset from the center line. A tethering system is joined to the first connector and can be selectively connected to the second connector. When the tethering system and the second connector are interconnected, the tethering system forms a shoulder strap that extends from the first connector to the second connector. The shoulder strap can be used to carry the sports board. A third connector can also be used on the sports board. The tethering system can connect the first connector, to the second connect, to the third connector and back to the first connector to form a set of shoulder straps from the tethering system.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/688,034, filed Aug. 28, 2017.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field Of The Invention

In general, the present invention relates to sports boards, such as surfboards, body boards, paddle boards, kite boards, and the like, that use tethers to connect the sports board to the rider. More particularly, the present invention relates to the connections that join a tether to a sports board and the positions of those connections.

2. Prior Art Description

There are many types of sports and activities that involve a person standing or sitting on a board. Such sports include, but are not limited to, surfing, body surfing, paddle boarding, and the like. In many of these sports and activities, a tether is used to connect a board to the person using the board. The tether prevents the board from getting away from the user should the user fall or otherwise separate from the board. The tether is typically connected to the board using an anchored connector. The connector typically extends through the width of the board and provides a point for attaching a tether to the board. Such anchored connectors are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 5,137,483 to Nealy. Tethers that attach to such anchored connectors are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 3,931,656 to Thomson.
On a sports board, such as a surfboard or a body board, there are areas that are commonly in contact with the user's feet or body. This contact area tends to extend along the center of the sports board and at points where limbs overlap the sports board. When an anchored connector is attached to a sports board, the connection point tends to be outside the contact area. This is because when a tether connects to an anchored connector, a raised obstruction is created. The raised obstruction can cause pain and/or scratches if a person stands or lays on the raised obstruction. Furthermore, the anchored connector tends to be positioned along the center line of the sports board. Accordingly, for sports boards like surfboards, the anchored connector is most commonly set along the center of the board, near the bottom edge. For sport boards like body boards, the anchored connection is most commonly set along the center of the board, near the top of the board. Having a single anchored connector near the top of a sports board or near the bottom of a sports board may be convenient for connecting a tether, however, once connected, the tether is in a poor position for use in carrying the sports board.
Surfboards, body boards, and other sports boards must be large enough to support the weight of a person on water or snow. Accordingly, sports boards are large and bulky. Consequently, sports boards are notoriously difficult to carry. In the prior art, tethers and connections for tethers are ignored since they are poorly placed. Rather, to carry a sports board, a carrying assembly with two loops is often provided. One loop passes over the top of the sports board. A second loop passes over the bottom of the sports board. A handle connects the two loops and enables the sports board to be carried. Such prior art carrying devices are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 10,575,624 to Davis; U.S. Pat. No. 5,695,101 to Frietze; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0149259 to Proton.
A problem associated with such prior art carrying devices is that the carry device, itself, must be left behind or carried when not in use. That is, a person surfing, for example, must either leave the carrying device on the beach or carry the device with them when they are surfing. Both options are inconvenient.
A need therefore exists for a way to convert the tether system of a sports board into an efficient carrier for the sports board. In this manner, bulky sports boards become easier to transport and no extra carrying product is needed. This need is met by the present invention as described and claimed below.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a sports board assembly with a wrist/ankle tether that can be converted into one or more shoulder straps. The sports board has a center line. A first connector is anchored to the sports board along the center line. A second connector is anchored to the sports board that is offset from the center line.
A tethering system is provided that can be used to connect the sports board to a person using the sports board. The tethering system is joined to the first connector and can be selectively connected to the second connector. When the tethering system and the second connector are interconnected, the tethering system forms a shoulder strap that extends from the first connector to the second connector. The shoulder strap can be used to carry the sports board. A third connector can also be used on the sports board. The tethering system can connect the first connector, to the second connect, to the third connector and back to the first connector to form a set of shoulder straps from the tethering system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, reference is made to the following description of exemplary embodiments thereof, considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a sports board assembly;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a first anchoring connector used in the sports board assembly;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a second anchoring connector used in the sports board assembly;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the tethering system used in the sports board assembly;

FIG. 6 shows the exemplary sports board assembly configured to be worn on a person's back;

FIG. 7 shows an alternate embodiment of a sports board assembly; and

FIG. 8 shows the alternate embodiment of FIG. 7 configured to be worn on a person's back.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Although the present invention composition can be embodied in many ways, only two exemplary embodiments are illustrated. The exemplary embodiments are being shown for the purposes of explanation and description.
The exemplary embodiments are selected in order to set forth two of the best modes contemplated for the invention. The illustrated embodiments, however, are merely exemplary and should not be considered limitations when interpreting the scope of the appended claims.
Referring to FIG. 1 in conjunction with FIG. 2, an improved board assembly 10 is shown. The board assembly 10 includes a sports board 12 and a tethering system 14 that can be used to both tether a person to the sports board 12 and allow a person to conveniently carry the sports board. The sports board 12 can be any sports board that uses a tether. In the illustrated embodiment, the sports board 12 is a body board, which are sometimes referred to as boogie boards in the marketplace. The sports board 12 has a top surface 16, a bottom surface 18, a front edge 20, a rear edge 22 and two side edges 24, 25. The sports board 12 is shown with an imaginary center line 26 for positional reference, wherein the sports board 12 is symmetrically formed about the center line 26.
Common contact area 28 are shown on the top surface 16 of the sports board 12. The contact area 28 shows the points on the top surface 16 of the sports board 12 that most commonly come into contact with a person's body during use. The contact area 28 typically include the central region of the sports board 12 and points where the limbs overlap the sports board 12 when a user is prone on the sports board 12
At least two holes 30, 32 are formed in the sports board 12, wherein the holes 30, 32 extend from the top surface 16 to the bottom surface 18. The holes 30, 32 are formed outside the common contact areas 28. A first hole 30 is formed on the center line 26 near the front edge 20 of the sports board 12. The second hole 32 is formed in a location that is offset from the center line 26 near the rear edge 22 of the sports board 12. The distance between the first hole 30 and the second hole 32 is at least forty-five centimeters. The second hole 32 is offset from the center line 26 by at least eighteen centimeters. In the shown embodiment, the second hole 32 is formed to the left of the center line 26. Such an orientation is arbitrary, and it will be understood that the second hole 32 can be disposed to the right side of the center line 26 if preferred by a manufacturer.
Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 in conjunction with FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, it can be seen that the first hole 30 and the second hole 32 are sized to accommodate anchoring connectors 34, 36. Accordingly, the anchoring connectors 34, 36 are spaced in the same manners as the holes 30, 32. Two types of anchoring connectors 34, 36 are used. In the first hole 30, a first anchoring connector 34 is used that can receive and engage one end of the tethering system 14. The first anchoring connector 34 has a lateral post 38 or an equivalent structure around which one end of the tethering system 14 can be cinched or clipped. In the second hole 32, a second anchoring connector 36 is used that includes a first half of a mechanical fastener 40, such as a female snap fastener, a female keyhole fastener or a female slot fastener. The first half of the mechanical connector 40 is either flush with the top surface 16 of the sports board 12 or recessed below the top surface 16 of the sports board 12. In this manner, should a person's foot or body pass over the second anchoring connector 36, the second anchoring connector 36 will not cause discomfort.
Referring to FIG. 5 in conjunction with FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, it can be seen that the tethering system 14 includes a flexible tether 42 and a wrist/ankle strap 44. The flexible tether 42 can be a length of strap or a length of cordage. The flexible tether 42 can also be slightly elastic. The flexible tether 42 has a first end 46 and an opposite second end 48. The first end 46 of the flexible tether 42 is attached to the first anchoring connector 34. The first end 46 of the flexible tether 42 can be permanently sewn around the lateral post 38 of the first anchoring connector 34. However, the first end 46 preferably terminates with a clip 49 or a simple loop. This enables the first end 46 of the flexible tether 42 to selectively engage the first anchoring connector 34. The opposite second end 48 of the flexible tether 42 is either formed into or terminates with the wrist/ankle strap 44. The wrist/ankle strap 44 is an open length of material 52 having hook and loop material, or a similar closure, that enables the length of material 52 to be closed into a loop around an ankle or a wrist. A second half of a mechanical fastener 41 is attached to the length of material 52. The second half of the mechanical fastener 41 on the wrist/ankle strap 44 interconnects with the first half of the mechanical fastener 40 used on the second anchoring connector 36. Accordingly, if a female snap fastener is used in the second anchoring connector 36, the corresponding male snap fastener is used on the wrist/ankle strap 44. Accordingly, the wrist/ankle strap 44 can be selectively attached to, and detached from, the second anchoring connector 36.
Referring to FIG. 6 in combination with all previous figures, it can be seen that the tethering system 14 is long enough to extend from the first anchoring connector 34 to the second anchoring connector 36. The first end 46 of the flexible tether 42 is attached to the first anchoring connector 34. The wrist/ankle strap 44 can be selectively attached to the second anchoring connector 36. The result is that the tethering system 14 converts into a functional shoulder strap 60. The shoulder strap 60 can be used to carry the sports board 12 on a person's shoulders. With the sports board 12 flush against a person's back, the tethering system 14/shoulder strap 60 crosses the torso and enables the sports board 12 to be carried on the back in a hands-free manner.
Referring to FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, an alternate embodiment of a board assembly 70 is shown. In this embodiment, the sports board 72 is a traditional surfboard. When surfing, surfers tend to use long tethers to prevent the surfboard from colliding with the surfer in the chaos of a wave.
In the shown embodiment, there are three anchoring connectors 74, 76, 78 used on the sports board 72. The first anchoring connector 74 is positioned along the center line 80 of the sports board 72. The second anchoring connector 76 and the third anchoring connector 78 are offset from the center line 80 and are symmetrically disposed on opposite sides of the center line 80. The first anchoring connector 74 is equidistant from both the second anchoring connector 76 and the third anchoring connector 78.
A tethering system 82 is provided that includes a tether 84 with a first end 86 and an opposite second end 88. The first end 86 of the tether 84 is selectively attachable to the first anchoring connector 74 in the same manner as was previously described for the first embodiment. The opposite second end 88 of the tether 84 terminates with wrist/ankle strap 90. The wrist/ankle strap 90 can also connect to the first anchoring connector 74. Otherwise, the wrist/ankle strap 90 can be attached to the tether 84 near the first anchoring connector 74.
Mechanical fasteners 92, 94 are disposed on the tether 84 that enable the tether 84 to selectively attach to both the second anchoring connector 76 and the third anchoring connector 78, respectively. The mechanical fasteners 92, 94 can be snaps or any other low-profile connector that does not present a scratch hazard. The first mechanical fastener 92 is fastened to the second anchoring connector 76. This creates a first shoulder strap 96. The tether 84 is then crossed over the sports board 72 and attached to the third anchoring connector 78. The tether 84 is then extended from the third anchoring connector 78 back to the first anchoring connector 74. This produces a second shoulder strap 98. The first shoulder strap 96 and the second shoulder strap 98 are then used to lift and carry the sports board 72 on a person's back. Once the sports board 72 is carried to a selected destination, the tether 84 is detached from the second anchoring connector 76 and the third anchoring connector 78. The sports board 72 and the tethering system 82 can then be used in the traditional manner.
It will be understood that the embodiments of the present invention that are illustrated and described are merely exemplary and that a person skilled in the art can make many variations to those embodiments. For instance, the sports board can be any sports board that is used with a tethering system. Likewise, length of the tethering system and the material selected for the tether are a matter of design choice. All such embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention as defined by the claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A sports board assembly, comprising:

a sports board having a center line;

a first connector anchored to said sports board along said center line;

a second connector anchored to said sports board, wherein said second connector is offset from said center line; and

a tethering system that is joined to said first connector and selectively connects to said second connector, wherein said tethering system forms a shoulder strap that extends from said first connector to said second connector when said tethering system and said second connector are interconnected.

2. The assembly according to claim 1, wherein said tethering system includes a tether having a first end and a second end, wherein said first end connects to said first connector and said second end terminates with a wrist/ankle strap.

3. The assembly according to claim 2, wherein a fastener is disposed on said wrist/ankle strap that can selectively interconnect with said second connector.

4. The assembly according to claim 1, wherein said first connector and said second connector are spaced apart by a distance of at least 45 centimeters.

5. The assembly according to claim 1, wherein said second connector is offset from said center line by at least 18 centimeters.

6. The assembly according to claim 1, further including a third connector disposed on said sports board, wherein said third connector is offset from said center line.

7. The assembly according to claim 6, wherein said second connector and said third connector are symmetrically disposed on opposite sides of said center line.

8. The assembly according to claim 6, wherein a first fastener is disposed on said tether that can selectively interconnect with said second connector, and a second fastener is disposed on said tether that can selectively interconnect with said third connector.

9. The assembly according to claim 1, wherein said sports board is selected from a group consisting of surfboards and body boards.

10. A sports board assembly, comprising:

a sports board having a center line;

a first connector anchored to said sports board along said center line;

a second connector anchored to said sports board;

a shoulder strap that extends between said first connector and said second connector, wherein said shoulder strap is selectively detachable from said second connector, and wherein said shoulder strap contains a wrist/ankle connector for selectively connecting said shoulder strap to a person.

11. The assembly according to claim 10, further including a third connector anchored to said sports board wherein said shoulder strap that extends between said second connector to said third connector, and from said third connector back to said first connector.

12. The assembly according to claim 10, wherein said first connector and said second connector are spaced apart by a distance of at least 45 centimeters.

13. The assembly according to claim 12, wherein said second connector is offset from said center line by at least 18 centimeters.

14. The assembly according to claim 11, wherein said third connector is offset from said center line.

15. The assembly according to claim 14, wherein said second connector and said third connector are symmetrically disposed on opposite sides of said center line.

16. A sports board assembly, comprising:

a sports board having a top surface, a first connector and a second connector that are spaced apart by at least 45 centimeters along said top surface;

a tether having a first end and an opposite second end, wherein said first end is connected to said first connector and wherein a fastener is disposed on said tether that enables said tether to selectively connect to said second connector.

17. The assembly according to claim 16, wherein said second end of said tether terminates with a wrist/ankle strap.

18. The assembly according to claim 16, wherein said sports board has a center line, wherein said first connector is disposed on said center line and said second connector is offset from said center line.

19. The assembly according to claim 16, further including a third connector anchored to said sports board wherein said tether extends between said second connector to said third connector, and from said third connector back to said first connector.