Apparel – Guard or protector – Hand or arm
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-02
2001-02-06
Calvert, John J. (Department: 3741)
Apparel
Guard or protector
Hand or arm
C002S161100, C473S458000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06182289
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to baseball gloves, and in particular, to baseball gloves having enhanced flexibility.
As baseball players of all ages readily will appreciate, a great deal of time and effort is required to “break in” a glove once it has been purchased. A new glove tends to be quite stiff and inflexible, thereby making it difficult to use. In order to compensate for this problem, baseball players try many different tricks. For example, some players attempt to break in a glove by soaking it in water and/or treating it with a glove softening agent such as glove oil. Still other players physically force the glove back and forth in an effort to reduce the stiffness, while others fold a glove and put weight on top of the folded glove, in an effort to reduce the stiffness. However, these various methods are time consuming, frustrating, and sometimes ineffective. Moreover, having spent money on a glove, a player may very well have to spend more money just to make the glove playable. While glove stiffness and inflexibility present a problem for any player, the problem is especially severe for those with a hand-flexing strength which is relatively low or which is just beginning to develop.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes the above-mentioned drawbacks by providing a baseball glove having a hinge which includes a first hinge edge connected to a second hinge edge, thereby providing a glove with significantly enhanced flexibility, and which, for most users, is ready to use “out of the box”. As used herein, the term “baseball” refers not only to baseball, but also to softball, tee-ball, and any other similarly styled ball-catching sport, as will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art. Accordingly, the glove of the present invention may be used for any such sport. In addition to the hinge described above, the baseball glove includes: a glove shell having a front panel, a back panel, a thumb stall, a finger stall, and a hand-receiving opening; and a web positioned between the thumb stall and the finger stall.
In one aspect of the invention, the front panel includes a bottom edge, and the hinge extends along the front panel, between the web and the bottom edge, thereby significantly increasing the flexibility of the glove. In this aspect of the invention, if desired, the first hinge edge may be connected to the second hinge edge by a front flexible spanning member. In addition, the first and second hinge edges may taper toward the bottom edge. In further detail, the front panel of the baseball glove has a base region which is positioned between the finger stall and the bottom edge. If desired, the front panel hinge may extend between the web and this base region. Moreover, the front panel hinge may extend fully from the web to the bottom edge.
In another aspect of the invention, the web of the baseball glove has an upper region including a first section having a first overwrap piece. If desired, the upper region may further include a second section having a second overwrap piece. In such a version, the upper region may include a third section positioned between the first and second sections, with the third section being free of an overwrap piece.
In another aspect, the web has a front layer which includes an upper region and a lower region, with the front layer including a first pleat which extends between the upper region and the lower region. If desired, the web may further include a back layer, with the back layer having an upper region and a lower region, as well as a first pleat which extends between these upper and lower regions. These various pleats assist in providing a web with a pocket which may expand upon receiving a ball, thereby absorbing some of the force of the ball, as well as creating a slightly deeper, enlarged pocket, thereby making it easier for a ball player to catch and retain a ball within the pocket. In addition, if desired, the baseball glove may further include a ball-retention member adjacent the bottom edge of the front panel. This retention member assists a player by making it more difficult for a ball to roll across and off of the front panel of the glove.
In yet another aspect of the invention, a hinge is positioned along the back panel of the baseball glove. In further detail, the back panel of the glove shell includes a bottom edge, with the back panel hinge extending along the back panel between the web and this bottom edge. In further detail, the back panel hinge includes a first hinge edge connected to a second hinge edge. If desired, the first hinge edge may be connected to the second hinge edge by a back flexible spanning member.
In a further aspect of the invention, the baseball glove includes both a front panel hinge and a back panel hinge. If desired, the first and second hinge edges of each of the front and back panel hinges may be connected by a flexible spanning member. Moreover, the respective front and back flexible spanning members may be directly connected together. Alternatively, a single piece of flexible spanning member material may serve to form the front and back spanning members, with the material extending from the front panel to the back panel. This aspect of the invention, which includes both a front panel hinge and a back panel hinge, provides significantly enhanced flexibility, thereby making it even easier for a player to trap and retain a ball within the glove.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be made apparent from the accompanying drawings and the detailed description of the drawings.
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Calvert John J.
Moran Katherine
Wood Herron & Evans L.L.P.
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