Easton Sports, Inc.

Jas D. Easton, Inc.

Easton Diamond Sports, LLC

Easton Baseball/softball Inc.

William B Giannetti

Dewey Chauvin

Hsing-Yen Chuang

Ian Montgomery

Gary W Filice

James L Easton

Danny Tolentino

Hy Chuang

Enemecio Hernandez

A ball bat includes a barrel in which one or more stiffening elements or damping elements, or both, are located. The stiffening or damping elements may be positioned at a variety of locations, and may have a variety of configurations, for selectively reducing the barrel's performance without appreciably increasing the bat's moment of inertia.

Ball bat with governed performance

A ball bat includes a barrel having one or more integral features for selectively stiffening regions of the barrel. The barrel may include an indented region forming a rib projecting inwardly into the barrel. Alternatively, one or more inwardly projecting lips may be formed on adjoining barrel sections that are bonded, welded, or otherwise attached to each other, such that an integral, internal rib is formed in the barrel. The internal rib stiffens the barrel, thus reducing the barrel's BBCOR. One or more integral ribs may be provided at any desired barrel locations for selectively limiting the barrel's performance without appreciably increasing the moment of inertia of the ball bat. In another embodiment, a joint, to which two barrel sections are bonded, welded, or otherwise attached, includes an inwardly projecting member that stiffens the barrel, thus reducing the barrel's BBCOR.

Ball bat including integral barrel features for reducing BBCOR

A ball bat includes a barrel having a radially inner surface. Graphics, or an indicator layer including graphics, that provide a visual indication of whether tampering, such as shaving, has occurred to the radially inner surface of the barrel are affixed to, applied to, or integral with the radially inner surface of the barrel. A transparent or translucent cap, or a cap including a window, is optionally attached to an end of the barrel to provide visual inspection of the internal graphics. The cap itself may additionally or alternatively include internal observable features, or external engraved or etched features, that make the cap difficult to replicate or counterfeit.

Ball bat including visual indication of whether internal structural tampering with the ball bat has occurred

A ball bat exhibits improved barrel performance in regions located away from the 'sweet spot' of the bat barrel, as a result of strategic placement of interface shear control zones ('ISCZs') in the barrel. The ball bat includes a barrel having a first region adjacent to the tapered section of the ball bat, a second region adjacent to the free end of the barrel, and a third region located between the first and second regions, that includes the sweet spot of the barrel. The first and second regions each include at least one interface shear control zone. The third region includes at least one fewer interface shear control zone than at least one of the first and second regions. ISCZs may also be strategically placed in the bat handle and/or the tapered section of the ball bat to improve the compliance and overall performance of the ball bat.

Ball bat exhibiting optimized performance via selective placement of interlaminar shear control zones

A composite ball bat includes an exposed region of transparent or translucent material, which provides a visual indication of whether delamination has occurred in the ball bat. As a result, an observer can determine, via visual inspection, whether delamination has occurred, and, if it has, can remove the bat from regulated play.

Ball bat with exposed region for revealing delamination

A multi-piece ball bat includes a first section including a hitting portion, and a second section including a handle portion. A flexible joint connects the first section to the second section. The flexible joint may be a structural joint, such as a spring member, a mechanical locking joint, or a pneumatic or hydraulic joint, or it may be a non-uniform and/or non-continuous elastomeric joint.

Multi-piece ball bat connected via a flexible joint

A ball bat includes one or more focused flexure regions located predominantly or entirely in the transition section between the barrel and the handle of the ball bat. One or more of the focused flexure regions may additionally or alternatively be located partially or entirely in the barrel and/or the handle of the ball bat. The one or more focused flexure regions each include a radially inner structural region and a radially outer dampening region for reducing the local axial stiffness, and improving the flexure, of the ball bat at the location of the focused flexure region.

Ball bat including a focused flexure region

A ball bat includes multiple layers of one or more composite materials. One or more 'integral shock attenuation' ('ISA') regions, which have a substantially lower axial stiffness than neighboring regions in the bat, are provided to attenuate shock waves resulting from an &#x201c;off-center&#x201d; hit. ISA regions may be incorporated into the transition region, the handle, and/or the barrel of the ball bat to provide vibration damping, shock attenuation, stiffness control, increased flexure, and/or improved feel.

Ball bat including an integral shock attenuation region

A single-wall ball bat is made up of a series of layers or plies of unidirectional, two-dimensional, structural fibers having high strain energy properties. The plies are optionally layered upon each other in a lamina structure in which the fibers in one ply are oriented at opposing angles to the fibers in one or more neighboring plies. High purity quartz (SiO) fibers, which have very high strain energy properties, may be used to construct substantial portions of the barrel or other regions of the ball bat.

Single wall ball bat including quartz structural fiber

A ball bat exhibits improved barrel performance in regions located away from the 'sweet spot' of the bat barrel, as a result of discrete lamina tailoring in those regions. One or more layers, or laminae, in regions of the bat barrel away from the sweet spot, are tailored to increase the radial compliance, or reduce the radial stiffness, of the bat barrel in those regions, so that they perform more like the sweet spot of the barrel. Additionally, or alternatively, one or more laminae in the bat handle and/or the tapered section of the bat may be tailored to increase the radial compliance in those regions.

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Winnetka, CA, United States of America

William B Giannetti