Fishing – trapping – and vermin destroying – Fishing – Rod
Reexamination Certificate
2002-09-20
2003-08-05
Jordan, Charles T. (Department: 3644)
Fishing, trapping, and vermin destroying
Fishing
Rod
C242S322000, C242S580000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06601335
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Many types of fishing tackle exist for different fishing conditions. Also determinative of the type of tackle used is the preference of the angler. Two main types of rods exist, namely fly rods and conventional rods. Four main types of reels exist, namely fly reels, spinning reels, spin-casting reels, and bait-casting reels. Fly reels are used with fly rods and the later three types are normally paired with conventional rods.
In conventional fishing (hereinafter used to refer to all types of rod and reel fishing which is not fly-fishing), a line is used to connect the bait or lure to the reel. The bait or lure is cast by whipping the rod in a forward direction, thereby transferring energy to the bait or lure. The bait or lure then flies out over the water, carrying the line with it. In this situation, the bait or lure is the object to which energy is imparted through the rod and the line is passively carried out behind the bait or lure. Sometimes, a weight, typically lead, is added to increase the distance that the bait or lure can travel.
The physics of fly fishing, however, is quite different. In fly fishing, the “lure” which is offered to trigger a fish to strike is referred to as a “fly” and is typically comprised of a relatively small metal hook to which appropriately colored feathers are attached, typically with appropriately colored thread. The traditions behind fly fishing are historically deep rooted and the art arose when anglers emulated hatching aquatic insects (i.e., flies) in order to hook a fish.
Nowadays, however, thousands of materials exist for tying flies and many “flies” actually emulate swimming minnows or small baitfish. One aspect has remained relatively constant, however, and that is in regard to the weight (mass) of the fly. The fly is extremely light in weight and can not be cast with conventional tackle, because of this light weight. Adding weight, such as a lead sinker, is not an option as typically the fly is floated atop the water surface to simulate the hatching fly. Other factors prevent the use of weight, such as needing to “dead drift” the presentation in the natural stream currents, a challenging factor associated with fly fishing of which those skilled in the art are well aware.
In order to cast a fly having such little weight, fly fishing was developed. This type of fishing is different in that the terminal tackle (fly) is not the object of energy transfer from the rod, as is the lure discussed above in conventional casting. Rather, in fly casting, the fly line is the object of energy transfer from the fly rod and the line (as opposed to the terminal tackle) is what is cast. The fly is simply carried out with the line. In order to achieve this, fly lines have evolved into specially tapered lines, with mass and radial gradients along their lengths. The lines, generally, are relatively thick and have a great deal more mass per linear foot than a conventional fishing line, such as a conventional monofilament line.
Some fly lines have hollow inner cores to promote floating of the line as it lays on the water. Other lines have lead cores to promote sinking in the water, where it is the desire of the angler to sink his fly presentation, such as when a nymph, minnow, or other subsurface organism is emulated by the fly pattern used. These lines, therefore, are quite different from conventional fly lines.
Because of the thickness of these fly lines, the angler cannot simply tie a fly to the end of the fly line. The sight of such a large line connected to a light fly would spook a fish and discourage it from eating the fly. Thus, a leader, typically a monofilament similar to a conventional monofilament line, is attached to the end of the fly line. A typical leader length is 4 to 12 feet, sometimes approaching 16 feet depending upon the fishing conditions and species sought. The leader may have a constant diameter along its length, or may be tapered to aid in better presentation of the fly. Sometimes, the leader is knotless, which is a tapered leader having a decreasing diameter from its proximate end to its distal end (the proximate end being the end which is attached to the fly line). In order to achieve the same tapered affect without a knotless leader, anglers sometimes tie a series of monofilaments together, each progressive piece having a smaller diameter than its predecessor as one moves from the proximate end to the distal end. In any event, the distal end of a tapered leader has a smaller diameter than any other part of the leader.
To the distal end of the leader is attached either a tippet or a fly. Sometimes, a fly angler expects to change flies many times over the course of the day of fishing, for a variety of reasons. Sometimes, as the day progresses and temperatures rise, fishing activity on the surface diminishes. Sometimes, the rising sun puts fish down, or causes a decrease in aquatic insect hatching, which generally occurs at low light conditions. Sometimes, the angler experiments with different fly patterns to find the one that works best. All of these reasons, as well as many others (e.g., a fly being torn apart after repeatedly being bit by a fish) lead the angler to tie on and cut off a number of flies during the day. This means that each time a change is made, the leader gets shorter. In order to allow a series of flies to be attached to the leader over time without each fly being tied to a thicker piece of monofilament as one progresses up the leader, a tippet is often used.
A tippet is a thin piece of material which is tied to the end of the leader and has a constant diameter. Many flies can be tied on and cut off throughout the course of fishing without having to worry about the physical characteristics of the leader changing. Thus, a typical fly fishing line system is comprised of a fly line, a leader, and a tippet, in that order, as one moves along the system toward the distal end. Oftentimes, a backing line is also in place proximate the fly line, but a discussion of the backing line is not necessary for an understanding of the invention.
As discussed above, fishermen, especially fly fishermen, will often change their lure, bait, or fly repeatedly while out on the water and between bouts of fishing. Often, an angler will cut off a lure, bait, or fly and move to another spot and try a different lure, bait, or fly. During this move or change, the loose end of the fishing line often becomes tangled, becomes subject to abrasion (and thus weakening), or is lost in the reel as it is pulled into the spool with the spooled up line. This last aspect is especially problematic with spin casting reels and fly reels, but it is a problem present with all types of tackle.
Spin casting reels have their spools enclosed with a cover, such as that shown in FIG.
1
. If the end of the fishing line
100
is accidentally reeled past opening
110
of cover
120
and into the enclosed spool, the angler must open the reel and retrieve the distal end, rethread it through the opening, and replace the cover. This is especially problematic if it is windy or the angler is standing in moving water, such as a creek or river.
Fly fishing reels also present specific challenges in that, as discussed above, the fly line is particularly thick as compared to the monofilament leader or tippet.
FIG. 2
a
shows a fly reel
200
with the line components discussed above. Extending from reel
200
is fly line
210
, to which is attached leader
220
, to which is attached tippet
230
at knot
235
. Distal end
240
is also shown in FIG.
2
A.
FIG. 2
b
is the bottom view of fly reel
200
, with the fly line, leader, and tippet reeled all the way in to the spool. As is seen, the leader and tippet are easily lost within the large diameter fly line. This makes regaining tactile possession of the tippet very difficult, especially with wet or cold hands, as fly fishermen often have.
Furthermore, and as noted above, different fly lines are used for different conditions. An angler might start off the day with a floating line for fishing a dry
Jordan Charles T.
Lofdahl Jordan M.
RatnerPrestia
LandOfFree
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