Fishing – trapping – and vermin destroying – Fishing – Artificial bait
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-07
2001-06-19
Price, Thomas (Department: 3643)
Fishing, trapping, and vermin destroying
Fishing
Artificial bait
Reexamination Certificate
active
06247261
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to fishing lures, in particular to a fishing lure made of a cast of a natural bait which overcomes the limitations of the prior art and/or having a hook clip.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the past previous attempts have been made to provide a fishing lure which has been molded from an actual fish specimen. U.S. Pat. No. 4,108,955 ('955 Patent) issued to Thom, describes a process in which the necessary attachments have been incorporated for attaching the hooks and fishing line.
The fishing lure created resulting from utilizing this process, however, had disadvantages in actual practice and manufacture in that the fins and tail section of the fishing lure were too thin to be manufactured effectively by common manufacturing methods and most available materials without being too fragile or impractical in actual use.
Subsequently, the same inventor (Thom) later applied and received U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,444 ('444 Patent) in which the casting process was modified to overcome this disadvantage in order to make the fishing lure more durable and easier to manufacture.
The modification of the process described in the '444 Patent involves removing the fins and tail section from the original baitfish and replacing such with fins and a tail section that have been sculpted from clay or other modeling material to have the appearance and profile dimension of the natural baitfish; but being thicker in dimension so as to overcome the problems associated with the original casting process.
However, the lure described therein, while overcoming the problems associated with casting the razor thin fins and tail section of the natural baitfish described in the '955 Patent, has an inherent disadvantage in that the replacement fins and tail section which have been sculpted or modeled and then reattached to the fishing lure can never fully reproduce the original detail found in nature, as well as increasing the complexity of the process and time involved for casting the natural bait fishing lure.
The present invention provides an improved artificial fishing lure which overcomes these shortcomings. It is therefore to the effective resolution of the above shortcomings that the present invention is directed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is the object of the present invention to provide an improved process for casting a natural baitfish to be used in the manufacture of fishing lures which retains all of the detail of the original baitfish while providing a thickness in the fins and tail section so as to be durable and effective in use.
The present invention utilizes a multi-step casting process to achieve this result retaining all of the natural detail of the natural baitfish while adding dimension to the fins and tail. The present invention also offers another improvement over traditional fishing lures, in that the eyelets, rings, or other attachments to the lure body necessary for affixing the hooks and eyelets for the fishing line, are internally “wired through” or connected and inserted as a one-piece insert into the mold, and by giving consideration to the materials used for the eyelets, rings, or other attachments in respect to their ranking in the Galvanic series.
The Galvanic series is a system of ranking metals and other electrically conductive materials by their electrochemical potential to participate in galvanic reactions. A galvanic reaction occurs when two or more different metals are joined together or are in contact with each other in the presence of an electrolyte. Saltwater is a natural electrolyte. This is the reaction that takes place in an electric battery. As the galvanic reaction takes place, there is a flow of electrons between the two metals. The one metal gives up electrons to the other metal and undergoes corrosion while the other accepts the electrons and is protected against corrosion. This practice is commonly used by boat manufacturers where a zinc or magnesium plate is affixed to the hull of the boat to prevent corrosion of the metal parts of the boat that are exposed to the elements. This process is termed galvanic corrosion.
The metal that gives up the electrons and is corroded is called the anode and the metal that accepts the electrons and is protected from corrosion is termed the cathode. The “Galvanic Series” is a listing by what is called the nobility of metals. The nobility of a metal is its relative ranking or position, that is, whether a certain metal will act as the cathode or the anode when paired with another metal in the Galvanic Series. If care is taken in choosing the metals used for the attachments (i.e., eyelets, hooks, rings) to the lure, it is possible to create a galvanic reaction when the lure is placed in the water (especially saltwater). That is to say that the lure itself will exhibit an anodic and a cathodic end and there will be a flow of electrons or current generated between the ends of the fishing lure. The lure will behave as a battery electrically charging the water (acting as the electrolyte) immediately surrounding the fishing lure. Electrons are passing from the anodic metal being corroded to the cathodic metal being protected internally within the lure while at the same time an electromagnetic field is being generated as the electrons pass through the electrolyte, that is, the water, surrounding the fishing lure.
The advantages in this practice of fashioning or manufacturing a fishing lure in such a manner are twofold. The first advantage is that it would be possible by choosing the metals used for the attachments to the lure or for internally wiring through the lure, where the metals used would preferably be more anodic or less noble than the metals used in the manufacture of the fishing hooks. This would then protect the hooks (behaving as cathodes) from corrosion, i.e., rust and dulling hook points. A second advantage that is created by fashioning a lure to create a galvanic reaction (electrolysis) is that many species of fish are receptive to electromagnetic waves generated in the water. This is possible by nerve cells and organs fish possess known as electro-receptors. Different species of fish use this “sixth sense,” in different ways. Sharks and rays can sense the electric fields produced by hidden fish and will strike or attack an electrode placed in the water with an equivalent electrical output. Members of the salmon family use their receptors to orient themselves to the earth's electromagnetic field that guide their migration patterns. Many other species use electricity to orient themselves and communicate as well as locate prey. Catfish, sturgeon, paddlefish, and lampreys, among other species, possess an entirely separate lobe of the brain dedicated to sensing electricity.
Research has shown that a slightly positive charge between 0.5 and 1.0 volts attract fish while a negative charge repels them. If the lure used were one that is undergoing a galvanic reaction calculated to imitate, that is to generate an electrical field of the same voltage as a baitfish or prey of the targeted gamefish, it would follow that the lure would be more attractive to the targeted species. The larger fish are more receptive to electromagnetic fields since their longer length creates a larger potential difference across their bodies. Studies have shown that a voltage of 0.5V produces a strong response to the electrical stimulus.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a fishing lure comprising a body which has been cast in a method which has resulted in a widening of the fins and tail section of the baitfish while leaving the head and body sections of the fish in more or less their original dimensions.
It is another object of the invention to provide a fishing lure exhibiting a design which would create a galvanic reaction in the water (electrolysis).
It is yet another object of the present invention to protect the exposed metal attachments, hooks, and rings of a fishing lure from the effects of galvanic corrosion
Malin Haley & DiMaggio, P.A.
Price Thomas
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