WO2018178611A1

WO2018178611A1 - Fish bait dispenser

Info

Publication number: WO2018178611A1
Application number: PCT/GB2018/000048
Authority: WO
Inventors: David Leighton MEDWAY; Nicholas Vaughan REES
Original assignee: Bvg Group Ltd
Priority date: 2017-03-28
Filing date: 2018-03-27
Publication date: 2018-10-04
Also published as: GB2564173A; GB201714385D0; GB2564173B; GB201802577D0; GB201704927D0; GB2561033A

Abstract

A castable fish bait dispenser (1, 15, 25) comprising an openable hollow housing (16a, 16b) for containing fish bait to be dispensed, the housing being at least partially biased to an open position for receiving bait to be cast and subsequently released, the dispenser having a latch mechanism (4, 5 & 17, 19) for closing the housing against the opening bias, the bait dispenser including catch means (10, 11 or 22 or 26) including a fixed catch member or formation for temporarily connecting the casting line to the housing, either directly or indirectly, and being operable by a trigger (8, 20, 34) to release the bait upon release of the catch means, the latch trigger being operable via the casting line, directly or indirectly, after casting of the dispenser over or into a target area being fished.

Description

Fish Bait Dispenser

This invention relates to the well known concept of dispensing fish bait at a point in a fishing swim remote from an angler typically fishing by means of a fishing rod or pole and fishing line.

Various ways are known to dispense fish bait into areas of water being fished by an angler, such as by forming a bait-ball and throwing it to a target area, although there are obvious limitations as to how far the bait can be thrown, or by launching the bait using a catapult to achieve greater distance. For even greater distance and accuracy an alternative approach is described in EP2244564 in which a flying bomb-shaped bait dispenser has a two-part hollow housing for containing bait, the dispenser being castable via a fishing rod and line onto an area of water being fished whereafter, upon impact with the water, the dispenser splits open, thereby allowing the bait to sink into the water. The bait dispenser is then retrieved, allowing the angler to fish the baited area. Whilst this arrangement is a considerable improvement over the use of e.g. a catapult, in delivering the bait to a required area, which may typically be 30 metres from the angler, there is a disadvantage in that when the bait dispenser hits the water it scares away fish in that area, who may or may not return. The present invention is derived from the realisation that there is a need for a bait dispenser which does not significantly disturb the area being fished but which can still release the bait into that area.

According to the invention there is provided a castable fish bait dispenser comprising an openable hollow housing for containing fish bait to be dispensed, the housing being at least partially biased to an open position for receiving bait to be cast and subsequently released, the dispenser having a latch mechanism for closing the housing against the opening bias, the latch mechanism including catch means including a fixed catch member or formation for temporarily connecting the casting line to the housing, either directly or indirectly, and being operable by a trigger to release the bait upon release of the catch means, the latch trigger being operable via the casting line after casting of the dispenser over or into a target area being fished.

With this arrangement the bait dispenser, which is preferably aerodynamically shaped and in the form of an aerial bomb with stabilising fins at the rear, can be cast directly over an area being fished and the bait released in mid-air via the trigger, whereafter the dispenser can be immediately withdrawn from that area while still in mid-air before splashing down remote therefrom, to be thereafter retrieved by the angler. This has the considerable advantage of ensuring a wider spread of bait over the area being fished without otherwise disturbing the fish in that area. Alternatively, the bait dispenser may be cast over and beyond the chosen area being fished so that it splashes down beyond that area and can then be pulled or allowed to float until it reaches the area being fished. The bait is then released via the latch trigger by a tug on the fishing line before the bait dispenser is retrieved for re-use. In either event, the area being fished can remain largely undisturbed.

The temporary catch means may conveniently comprise or include a short leading piece of fishing line or other type of flexible line having a stop member at one end, the lead line slidably extending through a traiing part of the trigger mechanism, such as an eye, the other end of the lead line being secured to a common catch member, such as a ring, to which the free end of the casting line is also attached, the common catch member being temporarily connectable to the fixed catch member on the housing, which may conveniently be in the form of a barbless hook from which the common catch member can become easily detached during flight of the dispenser after casting. With this arrangement it has been found that the length and flexibility of the lead line can be chosen to ensure that after separation of the catch means sufficient time elapses for the dispenser to continue in flight for it to reach a desired position over the area being fished, whereafter the presence of the stop member re-establishes a direct connection between the casting line and the dispenser via the, now taught, lead line which allows the lead line to tug the trailing end of the trigger mechanism and open the housing to dispense bait.

Conveniently, the trigger mechanism includes a latch actuating rod and associated latch such that when the bait dispenser reaches a required position, either in the air over the area being fished or on or beyond the surface of the water being fished, the actuator rod can be tugged via the fishing line to release the latch and hence the bait contained within the dispenser housing. The latch mechanism may include a latch bolt and latch bolt keeper plate, or may instead comprise a slideable bolt for receiving an apertured latch biased to prevent opening of the dispenser until the bolt is withdrawn from its otherwise closed and latched position, such as by being tugged by the fishing line, either directly or via an actuator rod.

With this arrangement, the possibility of the dispenser being accidentally unlatched during casting can be avoided by the use of inter-engageable catch means such as hook formations, one connected by a short leader line or piece of fishing line to the forward end of the bait dispenser and the other to the casting line remote from the rearward end of the bait dispenser. When the hook formations are temporarily connected together they prevent accidental release of the latch during casting by preventing the forward end of the casting line from becoming taut and thereby accidentally pulling the actuator rod and associated latch when the hook formations become disengaged while the dispenser is airborne and tension in the casting line adjacent the actuator rod becomes loose. This allows the casting line immediately behind the rear of the bait dispenser to be pulled taut by the angler or pulled taut automatically if the line is fixed to e.g. a peg at the edge of the water, thereby releasing the latch and hence the bait.

In a refinement to the foregoing, and in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention the short lead line or piece of fishing line is threaded through an eye at or adjacent the trailing end of the actuator rod and includes a stop member at one end of the lead line preventing disengagement of the line from the eye, the other end of the lead line being connected to a common catch means, such as a ring cooperable with fixed catch means on the dispenser, such as an open hook on a stabiliser fin, the respective catch means cooperating to allow casting of the dispenser without imparting any tension to the trigger mechanism during the initial stages of the casting process such that initial tension from the casting line is transmitted directly to a fixed part of the dispenser whereafter, upon release of the tension in the casting line by cessation of movement of the casting device, typically a fishing rod or fishing pole, the respective catch means, being the common catch means attached to the lead line and the casting line and the fixed catch means on the dispenser become disengaged from each other, thereby allowing the bait dispenser to freely travel away from the end of the casting line to the extent permitted by the presence of the stop member at one end of the lead line, whereafter the stop member transfers tension directly between the trigger mechanism and the casting line via the lead line to thereby allow the trigger mechanism to be operated during flight by a manual tug on the casting line or, in the case of the casting line being unwound from a fishing reel with a line stop mechanisim, by the line being suddenly stopped, if desired, at a preset distance from the angler. The angler can therefor choose between releasing the trigger mechanism during flight of the bait dispenser and hence releasing the bait over a desired area of water, or may instead allow the bait dispenser to land in the water and drift to any desired position before the trigger mechanism is actuated by means of a sharp tug on the casting line.

The invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a sectional side view of a first embodiment of dispenser according to the invention in its closed condition,

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the invention in its open condition,

Figure 3 is a sectional side view of the second embodiment of the invention shown in Figure 2 in its closed condition,

Figure 4 is a sectional side view of the second embodiment of the invention shown in Figure 2 in its open condition,

Figure 5 is a sectional side view of a third embodiment of the invention in its open condition, and

Figures 6 to 10 show the casting sequence used for the bait dispenser of Figure 5.

Figure 1 shows a schematic view of a bait dispenser 1 according to a first embodiment of the invention, the bait dispenser 1 having a hollow housing 2 of two parts 2a, 2b biased to an open position (not shown) by a forked spring 3 and being closable to the position shown by means of a latch 4 and associated latch keeper plate 5 extending into the housing half 2a. The latch 4 is biased to the closed position shown by means of a compression spring 6 and associated thrust plate 7, the spring 6 being slideably mounted on a stiff wire actuator rod 8 connected at its forward end to the latch 4, and at its rearward end to a short lead casting line 9 connectable at its free end to the end of a main casting line (not shown).

When the lead line 9 is tugged by the main casting line in a direction away from the dispenser 1 the latch 4 is disconnected from the latch keeper plate 5 to allow each housing half 2a, 2b of the dispenser to spring open by virtue of the forked spring 3 to thereby dispense fish bait (not shown) at a required location. If this occurs in mid-air the bait is distributed over a wide area, as opposed to the smaller area made possible with prior art methods.

In order to prevent the latch 4 from becoming accidentally disengaged from the latch keeper plate 5 during casting of the bait dispenser 1 the forward end of the dispenser 1 is provided with a short length of fishing line 10 on the end of which is a barbless hook 11. The barbless hook 11 is temporarily attachable to a second barbless hook 12 attached to the lead line 9 so that when the hooks 11 ,12 are connected together and the bait dispenser 1 is cast by means of e.g. a fishing rod or pole, the tensional force of the casting is transferred directly between the hooks 11 ,12 to the front of the dispenser 1 and not to the actuator rod 8 until the hooks become disengaged during flight. The lead line 9 and the actuator rod 8 can then pull the latch 4 free from the keeper plate 5 to become disengaged from it, allowing the bait to be dispensed. This may be done in mid-air when a chosen position is reached during casting, by a rearward tug or flick of the casting rod or pole, or by an automatic stop-mechanism in the fishing or winding reel which may, for example, be set to stop after a certain point is reached, say 30 metres, thereby ensuring that the bait is released above or beyond the area being fished. Thereafter, the bait dispenser 1 can be pulled away from that area whilst still airborne above the water so that splash-down occurs when it is away from the area being fished.

In an alternative mode of operation, the bait dispenser 1 is cast beyond the area being fished and is allowed to splash-down away from that area, such as upstream where a river is being fished. This has the obvious advantage in that it will not scare fish away from the area being fished and in the event that splash-down occurs upstream of e.g. a flowing river the main casting line can be gradually reeled in until the bait dispenser 1 reaches the target area, whereafter the main casting line can be tugged to release the latch 4 and hence the bait contained within the housing 2.

In either mode of operation it will be appreciated that the invention can therefore provide minimal disturbance to the area being fished, in contrast to the bait or bait dispenser splashing down in that area to thereafter release bait.

Turning now to the second embodiment of the invention as shown with reference to Figures 2 to 4, the bait dispenser 15 again comprises a hollow housing having two housing halves 16a, 16b, for containing fish bait (not shown). In its closed condition shown in Figure 3 the upper housing half 16a is held in its closed position next to the lower housing half 16b against a spring bias (not shown) by means of an apertured latch 17 extending from the forward end of the upper housing half 16a into a correspondingly shaped latch-receiving socket 18 in the lower housing half 16b in which it may be releasably retained by a spring-loaded trigger or latch bolt 19 in the form of a hollow ferrule at least partly receivable within the aperture in the latch 17 and being removeable therefrom via an actuator rod 20 against the bias of an associated thrust spring 21. As described with reference to Figure 1 , the trailing end of the actuator rod 20 is attachable to a fishing line by which it may be tugged to release the latch pin 19 and allow the upper half 16a of the dispenser housing 16 to assume the position shown in Figures 2 and 4, in which bait can thereafter be automatically dispensed into an area being fished. As before, in order to cast the bait dispenser 15 to a required position, such as an aerial position above an area being fished or a water-borne position beyond an area being fished, a simple barbless hook 22 is provided at the forward end of the lower housing half 16b of the dispenser 15 and is loosely engageable with a casting hook 23 and associated fishing line end 24.

In the embodiment shown with reference to Figures 2 to 4 it has been found that the use of an apertured latch 17 and associated spring-baded latch bolt 21 reduces the possibility of the bait dispenser 15 accidentally opening during casting, or after splash-down or after hitting an object before splash-down, such as a tree or bush etc, such that the upper half 16a cannot become accidentally opened.

Turning now to the arrangement shown in Figure 5, representing a third and preferred embodiment of the invention, the bait dispenser 25 includes in this instance a catch member in the form of an open hook 26 extending from a tail fin 27 of the bait dispenser 25, the open hook 26 being engageable with detachable catch means in the form of a ring 28 to which is permanently attached one end of a leader line 29 which extends through a capture eye 30 at the trailing end of an actuator rod 31 by which the trigger mechanism (not shown) of the bait dispenser 25 can operate substantially in the same manner as shown with reference to the second embodiment of the invention. The other end of the leader line 29 includes a stop member 32 of greater diameter than that of the capture eye 30 such that when the ring 28 becomes detached from the open hook 26 in a manner to be described, it remains captured by the eye 30 to the limit imposed by the length of the leader line 29.

Also attached to the ring 28 is the otherwise free end of a casting line 33 secured by a conventional knot such that when the ring 28 is captured by the open hook 26 and the casting line 33, the casting line 33 can be used to cast the dispenser 25 before any tension is imparted to the actuator rod 31 , which can only be pulled or tugged once the ring 28 has become detached from the open hook 26 and pulled by the lead line 29 through the capture eye 32 to the extent imposed by the presence of the stop member 32 in the manner as shown with reference to Figures 6 to 10.

Figure 6 shows the initial stage of casting the bait dispenser 25 from a casting line 33 supported on a conventional fishing rod 34 and associated fishing reel 35. In this position the angler (shown in outline) is ready to swing the rod 34 in a clockwise direction, in which it will be seen that at this point the trailing end of the fish dispenser 25 is hanging from the free end of the casting line 33 and, in turn, the lead line 29 and associated stop member 32 is hanging from the side of the bait dispenser 25.

Figure 7 shows the angler violently swinging or casting the rod

34 such that the casting line 33 becomes taut as it pulls the bait dispenser 25 and associated lead line 29 in the direction arrowed.

Figure 8 shows an intermediate position towards the end of the cast in which the capture ring 28 has become detached from the open hook 26, therefore allowing the lead line 29 to begin its passage through the capture eye 30 while the bait dispenser 25 continues its flight unimpeded.

Figure 9 shows the almost completed cast in which the bait dispenser 25 has now assumed a horizontal flight which is effectively independent of the casting line 33 even though they are connected to each other via the lead line 29 and associated capture eye 30.

Figure 10 shows the final stage of the casting process in which the bait dispenser 25 has pulled the lead line 29 through the capture eye 32 to the maximum extent permitted by the stop member 32 such that both the casting line 33 and the lead line 29 are now in tension, thereby allowing the angler to prevent further release of the casting line 33 when the bait dispenser 25 is in a desired position, at which point the tension in the casting line 33 and hence the lead line 29 is sufficient to tug or pull the trailing end of the actuator rod 31 for releasing fish bait 36 in the manner as shown.

As will be appreciated, the desired position at which the fish bait is released can be pre-set by the angler adjusting the operation of the fishing reel 35 to prevent or limit the amount of fishing line being unwound such that the fish bait can be dispensed automatically as soon as a given length of fishing line has been dispensed from the fishing reel. Alternatively, the angler may choose not to pre-set the position where the bait dispenser is to dispense bait automatically but may instead choose to cast the bait dispenser as far as is physically possible, which may even be beyond the position where the bait is to be dispensed into the water, whereafter the angler can then, by means of a sharp tug or pull, operate the trigger mechanism even after the dispenser has splashed down and floated to or been pulled by the casting line to a desired location where the presence of fish is suspected. In a refinement to this concept of controlling where and when to release bait at a desired location the length of the lead line 29 and/or its physical characteristics, such as its thickness, pliability and surface smoothness may be chosen to suit particular circumstances, the general object being to control the flight time and hence distance travelled from when the bait dispenser becomes disengaged directly from the end of the casting line to when engagement is restored indirectly when the lead line 29 has reached the limit of its travel. In practice it has been found that standard fly-fishing line is suitable for use as the lead line and a physical length of about 1 m is sufficient to allow enough time for the bait dispenser to fly to its intended destination before tension between the actuator rod and the casting line is restored and the trigger mechanism can be activated by a tug or flick from the fishing rod or by the sudden stop of the casting line as it is unwound from the reel if a reel stop is being used. However, it will be understood that shorter or longer lengths of lead line may be used as required.

Although three embodiments of the invention have been described it will be apparent that they are illustrative only of arrangements by which bait can be cast and released while still airborne or after splash-down when it has moved to a desired release site and although the mechanism for achieving this is preferably through the use of a latch mechanisms operable by the tug of a fishing line, the latch mechanism could instead operate via a remote RF link to e.g. a battery-powered linear-motor such as a solenoid-operated latch actuator rod, although a fishing line is still preferably also used to ensure safe retrieval of the dispenser after use.

Claims

1. A castable fish bait dispenser (1 , 15 or 25) comprising an openable hollow housing (2a & 2b, 16, 16a or 16b, 25) for containing fish bait to be dispensed, the housing being at least partially biased to an open position by spring means (3) for receiving bait to be cast and subsequently released, the dispenser having a latch mechanism (4,5 or 17,19) for closing the housing against the opening bias, the dispenser including catch means (10, 11 & 12 or 22 & 23 or 26 & 28) for temporarily connecting a casting line to the housing during casting, either directly or indirectly, and trigger means (4, 5 & 8 or 17, 18 & 20 or 34) to release the bait upon release of the catch means, the latch mechanism being operable via the casting line, directly or indirectly, after casting of the dispenser over or into a target area being fished.

2. A fish bait dispenser according to Claim 1 FURTHER CHARACTERISED IN BEING aerodynamically shaped and in the form of an aerial bomb (1 , 15 or 25) with stabilising fins (27).

3. A fish bait dispenser according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 FURTHER CHARACTERISED IN THAT the temporary catch means (10, 11 & 12 or 22 & 23 or 26 & 28) comprises or includes a leading piece of fishing line (29) or other type of flexible line having a stop member (32) at one end, the lead line (29) slidably extending through a trailing part (30) of the trigger mechanism (34), and having a stop member (32) at one end, the other end of the lead line (29) being secured to a common catch member (28), to which the free end of the casting line (33) is also attached, the trailing part (30) of the trigger mechanism (34) and being temporarily connectable to a fixed catch member (26) on the housing, from which the common catch member (28) is freely detachable during flight of the dispenser after casting.

4. A fish bait dispenser according to Claim 3 FURTHER

CHARACTERISED IN THAT the trailing part of the trigger

mechanism includes an eye (30).

5. A fish bait dispenser according to Claim 3 FURTHER CHARACTERISED IN THAT the common catch member (26) is annular, such as a ring.

6. A fish bait dispenser according to any preceding Claim FURTHER CHARACTERISED IN THAT the fixed catch means is in the form of a barbless hook (26).

7. A fish bait dispenser according to any preceding Claim FURTHER CHARACTERISED IN THAT the trigger means includes a latch (4) actuating rod (8, 20 & 34) and associated latch (5) such that when the bait dispenser reaches a required position, either in the air over the area being fished or on or beyond the surface of the water being fished, the actuator rod can be tugged via the fishing line to release the latch and hence the bait contained within the

dispenser housing.

8. A fish bait dispenser according to any preceding Claim FURTHER CHARACTERISED IN THAT the latch means includes a latch bolt (4) and latch bolt keeper (5).

9. A fish bait dispenser according to Claim 8 FURTHER CHARACTERISED IN THAT the latch mechanism includes a slideable bolt (19) for receiving an apertured latch (17), the bolt being biased to prevent opening of the dispenser until the bolt is withdrawn from the latch (17).

10. A fish bait dispenser according to any preceding Claim FURTHER CHARACTERISED IN THAT the lead line (29) is threaded through an eye (30) at or adjacent the trailing end (34) of the actuator rod (8, 20) and includes a stop member (32) at one end of the lead line preventing disengagement of the line from the eye, the other end of the lead line being connected to a common catch means (28), such as a ring cooperable with fixed catch means (26) on the dispenser, such as an open hook on a stabiliser fin, the respective common and fixed catch means cooperating to allow casting of the dispenser without imparting any tension to the trigger mechanism during the initial stages of the casting process.