Amusement devices – Surface for wheeled or gliding vehicle – For foot-attached gliding vehicle
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-09
2002-12-03
Nguyen, Kien T. (Department: 3712)
Amusement devices
Surface for wheeled or gliding vehicle
For foot-attached gliding vehicle
C472S061000, C434S247000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06488590
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to indoor skiing ground facilities having a ski slope indoors, and particularly to an indoor skiing ground having various kinds of lighting fixtures.
In recent years, attention has focused on an indoor skiing ground as facilities that enable skiers to enjoy skiing regardless of seasons. The indoor skiing ground provides an artificial ski slope in the interior of a house whose temperature and humidity are controlled at given values. According to such an indoor skiing ground, the skiing ground can be constructed at the cities with no mountains, and skiers can enjoy skiing regardless of seasons as mentioned above.
Generally, the indoor skiing ground has difficulties in that skiers can not have the same expansive feeling as given by the natural skiing ground. Namely, in the indoor skiing ground, the ski slope is surrounded with the weal and roof in order to maintain the environment of snow (temperature, humidity and the like) around the ski slope, and there is no denying the fact that such indoor ski ground causes skiers to have a fixed cooped-up feeling.
As means for solving such a drawback, the provision of a retractable roof can be proposed. However, in such a skiing ground, there is a case that a large amount of cost is required for the construction and management. In the case of the fine weather, the roof can be opened, but must be closed in the cloudy or rainy days. The management of the opening and closing the roof and that of the change in the indoor temperature and the quality of snow resulting from the opening and closing the roof increase the cost.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made with consideration given to the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide indoor skiing ground facilities that can implement a space where skiers can enjoy skiing more than the outdoor skiing ground.
Another object of the present invention is to provide indoor skiing ground facilities that enable skiers to have the same expansive feeling as given by the outdoor skiing ground by an inexpensive method.
In order to attain the above objects, according to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an indoor skiing ground comprising a ski slope with a predetermined inclination on which skiers go downhill;
a wall for surrounding the ski slope to cut off atmosphere on the ski slope from outer atmosphere; a plurality of spray nozzles, arranged at the inner side of the wall, for generating a plurality of screens of mist, each having a predetermined shape, at upper portions of the ski slope; and a plurality of projectors, arranged at the inner side of the wall, for projecting predetermined images on the screens of mist to be shown to the skiers.
According to the above structure, various images are projected on the screens of mist to produce a virtual space with many ideas to the skiing ground. This makes it possible to compensate for drawbacks of the indoor skiing ground in which the skiers cannot experience the same expansive feeling as given by the outdoor skiing ground, the change of weather, and so on, and to give more pleasant feelings to the skiers. Moreover, according to the above structure, since the images are projected on the screens of mist formed on the ski slope, it is possible to reduce occurrence of danger and give thrilling experience to the skiers appropriately.
According to one mode for carrying out this present invention, the plurality of spray nozzles may be continuously arranged along a predetermined direction to generate the curtain-like screens of mist. The spray nozzles are continuously arranged along a width direction of the ski slope to generate the curtain-like screens of mist extending along the width direction, and the spray nozzles are desirably arranged at given intervals in an inclination direction of the ski slope to form the curtain-like screens of mist in the inclination direction. In this case, the projectors are provided at given intervals along, the inclination direction of the ski slope to project the image on each of the plurality of screens of mist.
According to the above structure, since the images are projected on the curtain-like screens of mist formed, it is possible to show images with good viewability. This makes it possible to form the screens of mist at a plurality of positions and to project different images on the respective screens of mist.
According to the other mode for carrying out this present invention, the indoor skiing ground further comprises control means for selectively operating the plurality of spray nozzles and the plurality of the projectors wherein the control means controls the operation of the spray nozzles and the projectors in accordance with a control pattern prepared depending on a predetermined scene. At this time, the control means desirably operates the spray nozzles or the projectors, or both in synchronization with downhill speed of the skiers.
According to the above structure, the screens of mist can be concurrently generated at the different locations of the ski slope and they may be shifted and generated. Also, the decision of spray time makes it possible to minimize deterioration in the quality of snow caused by the spray. The operation of the spray nozzles or the projectors, or both is controlled in synchronization with downhill speed of the skiers, whereby making it possible to produce the scene where, for example, the skier chases the image of the helicopter.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an indoor skiing ground comprising a ski slope with a predetermined inclination on which skiers go downhill; and a wall for surrounding the ski slope to cut off atmosphere on the ski slope from outer atmosphere, wherein the inner surface of the wall that surrounds the ski slope is formed to have a semicircular shape extending from one side portion to the other side portion, and a landscape that imitates sky is painted on the inner surface.
According to the above structure, the semicircular wall that extends from one side portion to the other side portion makes it possible to prevent a shadow from being generated at the time of illuminating landscapes and to implement scenery with depth. This makes it possible to give the skiers virtual reality as if they were in the outdoor skiing ground though this is the low-cost method.
According to one mode for carrying out this invention, the indoor skiing ground further comprises illuminators for illuminating the landscape on the inner surface of the wall and illuminators for illuminating the surface of the ski slope, separately.
According to the above structure, the landscape can be more efficiently illuminated.
According to one mode for carrying out this present invention, the landscape painted on the inner surface of the wall includes objects painted with fluorescent paint, the illuminators for illuminating the landscape are provided such that normal light and near-ultraviolet light for emitting the objects painted with fluorescent paint are changeable.
According to the above structure, painting, e.g., stars with fluorescent paint, makes it possible to implement the scene of stars in the night sky.
According to the other mode for carrying out this present invention, the illuminators for illuminating the surface of the ski slope include illuminators for daytime, which are used together with normal light with which the landscape is illuminated at the time of representing daytime, and illuminators for night, which are used in a state in which the normal light is turned off or weakened at the time of representing night.
According to the above structure, the use of illuminators for night can give the skiers the virtual reality as if they were skiing downhill outdoors at night.
REFERENCES:
patent: 1505914 (1924-08-01), Witteborg
patent: 1782296 (1930-11-01), Goldstein
patent: 2114557 (1938-04-01), Davis
patent: 2136214 (1938-11-01), Keith
patent: 2234425 (1941-03-01), Brady
patent: 2322306 (1943-06-01), McLaren
patent:
Cummings & Lockwood
Kabushiki Kaisha Piste Snow Industries
Nguyen Kien T.
LandOfFree
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