Other

Sport Fun, Inc.

Oddzon, Inc.

Playmonster LLC

Jose E Leal

Mark J Rappaport

John Barletta

Thomas H Grimm

Arne Lang-Ree

Ron LaRonge

Donald Ullman

Hans E Leal

Among other things, a game includes individual game pieces and an airborne vehicle (having a motor, a battery connected to the motor, a propulsion device connected to the motor, and a game piece support). A controller is configured to activate the motor when a first period of time has passed after one of the individual game pieces has been received at the game piece support and to deactivate the motor when a second period of time has passed after the motor has been activated.

Game including an airborne vehicle

A football throwing apparatus is described that utilizes air pressure to throw a football in a conventional spiral manner. How far the football can be thrown can be adjusted by an air pressure control. The football may be thrown immediately upon pressing a button, or it may be thrown after a predetermined period of time after the operation of a switch. The football throwing apparatus is initially charged with pressurized air in a first area and a second area. The button or switch causes the pressurized air in the first area to be immediately vented which creates a vacuum due to the pressurized air in the second area. The vacuum actuates a mechanical linkage that causes the pressurized air stored in the second area to be released and throw the football.

Football throwing apparatus

A transmitter in a member (e.g. bat) transmits signals when a switch on the bat is pressed. A pop-up apparatus receives the signals. A member in the apparatus prevents an element (e.g. ball) from being popped upwardly in a first positioning of the member and provides for the element pop-up in a second positioning of the member. Normally disposed in the first position, the member is operable to the second position by the received signals. The apparatus includes a housing and a bin pivotally coupled to the housing to hold the element. The bin provides for a substantially vertical element pop-up in a first pivotal position and for an element pop-up with a horizontal component in a second position. In the vertical pop-up, a player hits the ball with the bat. In the other pop-up, the player catches the ball.

System for, and method of popping upwardly an element on a T-ball mechanism

A propulsion member (e.g. a bat) has an external switch and an internally disposed transistor which transmits signals when the switch is manually closed. A receiver in a tee mechanism receives the signals and causes a tee in the mechanism to move upwardly from a rest position to an operative position. As the tee moves upwardly to the operative position, an element (e.g. a wiffle ball) moves on a ramp to a supportive position at the top of the tee. When the tee is in the operative position, a player holding the propulsion member swings the member against the ball. This is helpful to young children (e.g. eight (8) years old or younger) in learning how to hit a baseball.

Apparatus for, and method of, positioning movable elements on a T-ball mechanism for propulsion

A children's baseball bat with a pressurizable, external hitting zone to selectively control the trampoline effect when a ball is struck by the bat. The hitting zone is provided by expandable tubing wrapped spirally around the barrel of the bat and connected to a manual air pump built into the handle of the bat to increase air pressure in the tubing. A pressure relief valve connected to the tubing allows the user to decrease air pressure in the hitting zone to control the trampoline effect or to decrease the circumference of the barrel.

Adjustable power bat

A member (e.g. baseball bat) including a switch manually operable to obtain the transmission of signals by a transmitter in the member to an apparatus for propelling an element (e.g. ball) toward an individual holding the member. The element is propelled by a propulsion mechanism in the apparatus toward the individual holding the member so that the individual can practice receiving the element (e.g. hitting the ball). The apparatus propels the element upon the receipt of the transmitted signals and prepares for the next element in the apparatus to be propelled upon a receipt of subsequent signals from the transmitter.

Member for providing a controlled propulsion of elements toward the member by propulsion apparatus

A member (e.g. baseball bat) includes a switch manually operable to obtain the transmission of signals by a transmitter in the member to an apparatus for propelling an element (e.g. ball) toward an individual holding the member. The apparatus includes a receiver for receiving the transmitted signals and includes a housing with a hollow passage. A ramp supported on the housing holds a plurality of the elements for sequential movement into the passage. The element in the passage is supported on one of the fingers of a rotary detainer. The detainer is normally prevented from rotating by a release mechanism coupled to the detainer. The detainer is rotated by the weight of the element when the release mechanism is decoupled from the detainer upon the reception of the transmitted signals. The element then moves downwardly in the passage to a propulsion mechanism which may comprise a pair of rollers for gripping the opposite ends of the element. The rollers are actuated by motors connected in a circuit with a transportable energy source (e.g. battery) so that the motors are energized only when a ball is disposed on a finger in the detainer, thereby prolonging battery life. The element is propelled by the propulsion mechanism toward the individual holding the member so that the individual can practice receiving the element (e.g. hitting the ball). The trajectory of the propelled ball can be adjusted by pivoting the housing relative to a base member which supports the housing and which holds the battery.

Apparatus for providing a controlled propulsion of elements toward a receiving member

A throwing toy is provided that is configured to be held in a user's hand and thrown by the user with the user's hand imparting to the toy during release a spin about the toy's axis. The toy has a head portion and a tail portion adjacent the rear end of the head portion. The tail is configured to be selectively changeable by the user between an extended position wherein at least a part of the tail extends rearward of the head portion along the axis for a tail length and a retracted position wherein the tail length is reduced. The toy has a coupling connected to the head portion which includes a tail control mechanism supporting the tail portion. The control mechanism is configured to allow the user to change the tail between the extended and the retracted positions. The tail control mechanism includes a cylinder installed in the head portion and a piston movable in the cylinder. The tail portion is coupled to the piston and a biasing means urges the tail portion toward one of the extended or retracted positions. A latching mechanism is selectively operable by the user to fix the tail in one of the positions and operable by a user to unlatch the tail from the fixed position. The latching mechanism includes a latch coupled to the tail portion and a clasp coupled to the head portion, wherein the clasp is selectively operable by the user to hold the latch. The latching mechanism further includes a switch disposed within the head portion below an outer surface of the head portion, and the switch is operable by the user by depressing the outer surface of the head portion to release the clasp's hold on the latch.

Throwing toy with retractable tail

A throwing toy is provided which is adapted to be thrown by a user for a flight through the air along a flight path. The toy includes a football-shaped head portion, generally centered about a longitudinal axis, an elongate tail portion extending axially rearward the head portion along the longitudinal axis, and a coupling, which interconnects the head and tail portions and allows the portions to be movable relative to each other, particularly to be rotatably movable about the longitudinal axis. Because the head portion and tail portion can rotate relative to each other, the user can hold the head portion in the hand and throw the toy through the air, imparting a spin to head portion causing it to rotate about its longitudinal axis throughout the flight. At the same time, the tail portion remains substantially fixed throughout the flight with respect to the longitudinal axis because the spin imparted to the head portion is substantially isolated from the tail portion by the rotatable coupling. The coupling includes a shaft and a bearing tube which receives the shaft and substantially locks the shaft in place against movement along the longitudinal axis while allowing rotation about the longitudinal axis. The head portion is fixed about the bearing tube and the tail portion is fixed about the shaft. Head portion is formed of polyurethane foam directly around the bearing tube by holding the bearing tube in a mold and injecting and curing the foam around the bearing tube. The in-flight football realizes the benefits of spiraling, namely, accuracy and stability. Simultaneously, the non-spinning fins provide stabilizing and gliding effects, further augmenting the flight-enhancement provided by spiraling. The fins do so without the resistance or turbulence inherent in spinning fins.

Growing community of inventors

Maynard, MA, United States of America

Jose E Leal