WO2005082482A1 - Improvements to yo-yo recall means - Google Patents

Abstract

A yo-yo recall means associated with a yo-yo including a first rotatable yo-yo half (G); a second rotatable yo-yo half (H); an axle assembly (J) mechanically coupling said first and second yo-yo halves defining an axis of rotation about which said yo-yo halves can rotate; a tether (K) having one end connected to said axle assembly between said yo-yo halves; and a yo-yo opening means; wherein there is provided a removable and replaceable string-snaring disk (E) and associated recess (A) in the medial face of the at least one yo-yo half; said disk and recess extending a full 360 degrees about the said axis of rotation in the medial face adjacent the said tether and said axle assembly connection.

Description

Improvements to Yo-Yo Recall Means.

The Present Invention Claims Priority From:

Australian Provisional Patent application AU 2004901105 of March 1 2004 titled

" Improvements to Yo-Yo recall means".

Field of the invention:

The invention relates to yo-yos and in particular to high performance yo-yos requiring improved player control over the response quality of the yo-yo. The provision of an adjustable response system in which the effective string gap of the yo-yo is maintained constant during play at the setting determined by the player is one important element for player control addressed by the present invention. Another crucial element is the provision of effective snagging means which can be modified to suit by the player. Paradoxically, the most advanced players require a yo-yo in which string-drag is minimized or eliminated. It is also viewed as valuable that yo-yos can be packaged and marketed for beginners yet retain the capacity to be upgraded to meet the requirements of more advanced players.

Background of the invention:

Historically yo-yos have depended on the relationship of string tension to the axle to enable control of the return or recall function of the yo-yo. This required considerable skill and experience for the player to be able to advance to mastery of the art of playing the yo-yo as string tension is a function of play.

It was realized in the development of yo-yo technology during the twentieth century that assistance from the proximity of, raised geometric pattern on, or the surface coefficient of friction of the inner or medial faces of the two yoyo halves would help the player to return the yo-yo to the hand upon recall.

Yo-Yo prior art has devised many yo-yo response systems. ? aised starbursts or radial ribs on the yo-yo half medial faces, mechanically increasing the frictional properties of the string-snagging area thereof, are described in USA Patent No. 4,895,547 (Amaral ). Prior to the evolution of yo-yos that were able to be taken apart, Chua, in GB patent 2132100, teaches another method of increasing the frictional properties of the medial faces to facilitate the return of a yo-yo. A compression moulded rubber ring or washer, extending a full 360 degrees about the axle is inserted into the yo-yo medial faces and utilizes the increased surface coefficient of friction of the rubber material to snag the tether or yo-yo string. At the time, the pinnacle of yo-yo performance involved proficiency in loop-tbe-loop style of play, which required the yo-yo to grab on. the string at the apogee of the forward throw, thereby causing the yo-yo to snag and rewind on the string thereby returning to the player's hand and completing the loop. The traditional means at that time was for the player to induce tension in the final securing loop of the string over the axle by throwing a string-tensioning yo-yo trick. Chua was trying to improve on this method by providing rubber washers effectively in contact with the tether under tension. The player bad no access to this rubber ring as the yo-yo halves were immovably fixed to the axle.

Developments in the art of yo-yo manufacture Jed to yo-yos that were able to be disassembled by unscrewing one half by means of a threaded axle that joined the yo-yo halves together. By this means player access to the internal mechanisms became available and players could free up tangled or knotted yo-yo strings without having to insert a knife-like implement into the narrow string gap formed between the permanently press-fitted yo-yo halves.

With the advent of yo-yos able to be opened by the player it was soon realized that further advances in the art of yo-yo play could be made by varying the yo-yo string gap. Various manufacturing techniques were then employed to enable the setting of a variable yo-yo string gap. Early attempts at a variable string gap yo-yo utilized compressible rubber O Rings inserted in such a way that when the yo-yo was closed a range of gap settings became available by varying the pressure and effective width of this O Ring, positioned either in the yo-yo half or between the various components of the bearing seat and bearing assembly. The technology tended to suffer from an inability to maintain the setting chosen by the player as the set distance would move during play because it was dependent on screw adjustment, such screw adjustment being altered by resistance to the rotation of the yoyo during play causing the halves to unscrew.

This evolution of yo-yo manufacturing technology allowed developments in the art of yo-yo playing that utilized far wider string gaps or effective distances between the tether-snagging systems provided in association with the inner faces of the yo-yo halves. Yo-yo players have invented new yo-yo manoeuvres that require the effective string gap to be wide enough to allow simultaneous multiple lays of yo-yo string in this string gap without snaring the yo-yo string. It has become desirable and indeed necessary to avoid contact of the yo-yo halves or snagging systems with the yo-yo string such that the yo-yo does not suffer a reduction of speed as a result of the string dragging on the effective inner walls of the yo-yo halves, thus reducing the yo-yo spin time. Such contact inhibits the long sequences of play manoeuvres that have evolved and are accommodated by what is known as zero response yo-yos having smooth, low-friction medial faces. The yo-yo beginner while aspiring to be able to perform state of the art yoyo play would not be able to recall the yo-yo effectively as the string gap is too wide for the beginner's skill level.

To address this problem, some manufacturers have marketed cloth-supported silicon, rubber or polymer rings which have an adhesive backing for the player to stick on to the medial faces of the yo-yo about the axle. Of course, such disks sit proud of the yo-yo half medial face and must be used in conjunction with further means of string-gap adjustment to be effective.

Description Of The Invention:

The present invention provides an i ertable disk and an associated shaped recess in the inner face of a yo-yo half running 360 degrees concentrically about the axle. It also provides the capacity for a variable string gap yo-yo wherein the string-gap cannot be upset by play. The present invention also provides an insertable disk which is able to be positioned in the said recess with its obverse face exposed. This effectively enables different surface configurations to be applied to opposite sides of the disk, potentially enabling a variation of effective string gap without adjustment to the axle setting.

The present invention, further provides the capacity for a "zero response" yoyo whilst maintaining superior recall capacity on the player's command, thus making new school string tricks achievable by relative beginners. The present invention achieves this condition by providing a response disk string snaring surface which can be partially or completely rebated below the notional surface of the medial faces of the two yo-yo halves. The present invention utilises the discovery that yo-yo recall is dependent on the snaring of only a tiny part of the yo-yo string, being that part of the single lay of the loop of string around the axle or bearing which is deflected by the act of the recall jerk on the string by the player. These events occur at a micro level. By providing a disk rebate as small as 0.05mm. to 0.15mm. and preferably 0.1 mm. below the nominal surface of the medial face of the yo-yo half, the yo-yo string under tension in play is isolated, from, making contact with, the string-snaring disk. At its most subtle, it is the interplay of coefficient of frictio induced in the surface of the disk interacting with the microfϊbres in the yo-yo string that initiate yo-yo recall.

To be able to provide a beginner player with a manageable string-gap and associated adequate response means, the present invention may provide at least one disk surface which sits at least partially proud of the medial .face of the yo-yo half and so intrudes into the gap between the medial faces of the yo-yo halves. The invention optionally utilizes a combination of the variable factional qualities of a thermoplastic elastomer, the aid of injection moulding , the capacity for variable position in. relation to the yo-yo string and the ability to vary the mechanical surface snaring qualities of the effective surface of the string snaring medial faces of the two yo-yo halves.

The present invention addresses the issue of string snare and string avoidance in the associated string snaring zone where the parted threads of yo-yo string rejoin after dividing and. circling the yo-yo axle or bearing. The present invention not only enables a yo-yo to be provided with a variable string gap means by altering the effective reach of the disk into the string snaring zone between the medial faces of the yo-yo, it also enables a greater range of effective string gaps by increasing or decreasing the hardness and the surface tension, and thereby the snagging properties of the thermoplastic elastomer disk.

A thermoplastic elastomer is defined as a polymer that has the addition of a liquid optionally an oil or oil like substance to create a softness and flexibility factor. The resultant features are able to be modified by increasing or decreasing the proportion of oil. The film of oil which migrates to the polymer surface, and associated cling effect or superior surface tension quality, is not only instrumental for the superior string snagging qualities but it also valuable for combating the forces generated by the dragging effect and dislodgement capacity of contact with the yo-yo tether. The applicatio of elastomer chemistry enables the securing of a response disk by surface cling and the stretch quality inherent in a suitably constructed thermoplastic elastomer. This principal physical disk restraint is enhanced by the very high elongation-to-break qualities inherent in such a oil infused polymer enabling stretching of the disk ID over a marginally larger yo-yo half recess ID.

The present invention therefore allocs a dramatic increase in the range of yo-yo response values by allowing the yo-yo player to open the yo-yo and remove, replace or reverse one or both of the response disks.

This ability to secure a thermoplastic elastomer disk i the yo-yo half without additional adhesion means provided by the present invention enables the player to reverse or replace the response disk quickly and at will, without the further requirement of additional tools, materials or means. It also allows the disk to be double- sided, that is, to have different geometric or mechanical properties o either face.

This ability to replace or turn the disk over provided by the present invention effectively enables the utilization of injection moulding to create string contacting surfaces to be sculpted to create a range of contact heights, recess depths, patterns, or alterations of the effective proximity of the disk to the yo-yo string. This facility can then be readily used by the player to modify the performance qualities of the two yo-yo halves at will, by reversing or removing the disk or by substituting a new disk. The present invention addresses the need of a yo-yo manufacturer to be. able to offer the public a fully-customisable yo-yo.

The snaring capacity of this chemistry can. further be modified by the alteration of pattern, shape, disc thickness or height, and. the positioning of these features on the surface of the di.sk facing the string contact operational zone and on the spare reverse side.

To avoid string drag the most effective selection of disk height is below the effective surface of the medial faces of the two yo-yo halves. A raised or protruding surface or surface pattern, would conversely increase the string snaring capacity.

The present invention, includes the possibility of utilizing a replacement set of disks, including a string snaring neutral disc or "blank" disc or indeed the removal of either one disc or both and utilization of the yo-yo half disc recess of the disk shape design..

To facilitate reversibility of the response disc, utilization of a two-stage or many-stage recess in the yo-yo halves is envisioned. In the present invention, the back wall, that is, the face of the recess furthest from the medial face of the yo-yo half, can be provided with more than one surface depth, with respect to the medial face of the yo-yo half.

This enables the use of a partially raised surface on one side, plain or patterned, and a recessed surface on the other side , plain or patterned. This tether snaring, and the obverse, tether avoiding ring or recess is able to dramatically extend the range of settings of the effective yo-yo string gap width. In using a pair of identical disks, by setting the recess and raised portions 0.3rnm in height below or above the string-contacting surfaces of the discs, a range of 0.6mm is achievable in three graduations. The third graduation is created by reversing only one ring. By recessing the face of the discs 0.1mm. below the surface of the medial faces of the yo-yo halves, a reduced range of 0.4mm. is achieved, again in three graduations The invention further allows the introduction of a complete new range of response values by introducing other disks, not identical to the first pair, of varying shape, size, surface geometry and polymer chemical values and concomitant string interacting performance.

Brief description of the drawings:

Fig 1 is a sectional view of an auto return yo-yo incorporating a response disk (shown in black) in the corresponding recess of the present invention, in the two medial faces of the yo-yo halves.

Fig 2 is an enlarged localised sectional view of the same yo-yo showing a two stage response disk recess (A) in the two inner faces of the yo-yo halves.

Fig 3 shows a reversible dual height disk (B) in place with a raised section

(C) facing inward and a recessed section (D) facing the tether contacting zone in the left half of the drawing, and reversed in the right half of the drawing so that the raised section faces (C)the tether contacting zone.

Fig 4.is a perspective view of a elastomer response disc with a partially raised surface (C).

Fig 5 is a perspective view of a elastomer response disk with a starburst recessed pattern (D). Fig 6 is a detailed section showing the "zero response" embodiment wherein the disks (E) are recessed below the medial faces of the yo-yo halves. Detailed Description Of a Preferred Embodiment.

With reference to the drawings, in Figure 1 an embodiment of the yo-yo recall means of the present invention is shown, in section, as solid black hatching boused snugly in its associated recess, included in a yo-yo having a first rotatable yo-yo half (G); a second rotatable yo-yo half (H); an axle- assembly (J) mechanically coupling said first and second yo-yo halves and defining an axis of rotation about which said yo-yo halves can rotate; a string or tether (K) having one end connected to said axle assembly (J) between said yo-yo halves. Yo-yo opening means are enabled by the provision of at least one threaded axle end and thread receiving means in at least one yo-yo half, such that at least one yo-yo half can be unscrewed from the axle.

The yo-yo recall means comprises a modularly reversible and replaceable rubber or polymer based disk and associated recess into which it is inserted and operationally held in place by the interaction of the mechanical and chemical properties of these two said elements. Geometric relationships of the disk to the recess, and consequently to the space between the opposing medial faces of the yo-yo halves determine the effective string gap of the yoyo at a constant axle setting.

Details of a stepped embodiment of the recess (A) of the present invention are shown in the enlarged localized sectional drawing Figure 2. The portrayed recess (A) shown, which extends a full 360 degrees about the axis of rotation at a radial distance therefrom to correspond to the string- snaring region of the yo-yo, is a two stage embodiment so as to facilitate the reversibility of the disk when at least one side has a portion of the surface raised. This is shown in the right half of Figure 3. When facing the string- snaring region of the yo-yo, the raised portion (C), by intruding into the space between the medial faces of the yo-yo halves, effectively narrows the string gap and facilitates the easy recall by the player, an attribute especially prized by beginners. An advanced player requiring a wider string gap would simply open the yo-yo and reverse the disk so that the raised portion (C) would be accommodated in the stepped part of the recess (A) to create a stable wider string gap yo-yo by presenting a flatter or recessed disk surface (D) with respect to the medial faces of the yo-yo halves as shown in the left half of Figure 3. An advanced player may even choose to replace the supplied disks with other thinner disks that would become further recessed . The player may reverse one or both disks, may remove one or both disks or may utilize a modularly designed replacement disk of a different height, surface pattern or indeed chemical composition thus increasing or reducing the frictional properties of the tether releasing or gripping surface.

It can be seen from the above that at least a portion of the disk facing the string snaring zone may be recessed below the plane of the effective medial face of the yo-yo; may be flush with said plane; or may project above said plane. When creating a "zero response" situation as illustrated in Figure 6 for a string under tension, recessing the outer face of the disk by from 0.05mm. to 0.15mm, and preferably about 0.1mm. is found to be adequate using the present invention. Obviously, greater recess distances will also function in this manner, but the response disks of the present invention will have difficulty facilitating return on demand.

The invention requires the disk to be firmly held to counter the dislodging forces arising when contact with the yo-yo string or tether occurs. The physical attributes conferred by the choice of elastomer and its geometric configuration, in combination with that of the recess of the present invention are sufficient to provide secure placement of the disk.

The response disk of the present invention is chemically elaborated to provide a hardness and peel strength within a range of values so as to maintain a secure string-snaring operational position and provide stable functioning within, said recess. Thermoplastic elastomers provide the most effective materials, but other materials such as rubbers are also suitable. The high elongation-to-break qualities of the materials chosen in the present invention enable disk configurations wherein the annulus of the disk may have an internal radius smaller than the internal radius of the recess, which then acts as a hub or boss.

Figures 4 & 5 show two possible faces of response disks of the present invention, which may be incorporated into the same disk. Other configurations of surface geometry of the disks, either functional or decorative, may be employed and the back wall, that is, the part furthest from the medial faces, may also be provided with a variety of surface depths and configurations.

It is understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative and that other embodiments may be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

Claims

ClaimsWhat is claimed is:

1. A yo-yo recall means associated with a yo-yo including a first rotatable yo-yo half; a second rotatable yo-yo half; an axle-assembly mechanically coupling said first and second yo-yo halves and defining an axis of rotation, about which said yo-yo halves can rotate; a. tether having one end connected to said axle assembly between said yo-yo halves; and a yo-yo. opening means; wherein, there is provided a removable and replaceable string-snaring disk and associated recess in the medial face of at least one yo-yo half; said disk and recess extending a foil 360 degrees about the said axis of rotation in the medial face adjacent the said tether and said axle assembly connection.

2. The recall means of claim 1 wherein. at least a portion of the surface of the said disk facing the string contact zone is recessed below the plane of the effective medial face of the said at least one yo-yo half.

3. The yo-yo of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the surface of the said disk facing the string contact zone projects above the plane of the effective medial face of the said at least one yo-yo half.

4. The recall means of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the surface of the said disk facing the string contact zone is flush with, the plane of the effective medial face of the said at least one yoyo half.

5. The recall means of claim 2 wherein the surface of the said disk facing the string contact zone is recessed below the plane of the effective medial face of the said at least one yo-yo half by 0.05mm. to 0.1.5mm..

6. The recall means of claim 2 wherein the surface of the said disk facing the string contact zone is recessed below the plane of the effective medial face of the said at least one yo-yo half by more than 0.15mm.

7. Hie recall means of claim 1 wherein the said disk is chemically elaborated to provide a hardness and peel strength within a range of values so as to maintain, a secure string snaring operational position and provide stable functioning within said recess.

8. The recall means of claim 1 wherein the said disk is a thermoplastic elastomer disk.

9. The recall means of claim 8 wherein the said thermoplastic elastomer disk is provided, with a migratory liquid component which refreshes the disk's surface with a film to promote superior string snaring surface tension.

10. The recall means of claim 8 wherein the said disk , utilizing the very high elongation to break qualities of said thermoplastic elastomer, is provided with an internal radius smaller than tlae internal radius of the said recess in the said yo-yo half.

11. The recall means of claim 1 wherein the said disk is removable, reversible and replaceable.

12. The recall means of claim 1 wherein the back wall of said recess is provided with more than one surface depth with respect to the medial face of the yo-yo half.

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