Agitating – Method
Reexamination Certificate
1998-12-16
2001-02-27
Cooley, Charles E. (Department: 1723)
Agitating
Method
C366S213000, C366S227000, C366S605000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06193410
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
1. Background of the Invention
The invented apparatus and methods pertain to the sport of paint ball which has been receiving growing popularity. In most paint ball sports events, each player has a gun loaded with paint balls which the player shoots at opposing players. The paint balls splatter upon impact and can be used to easily determine whether a player has been eliminated or not from the game.
2. Description of the Related Art
Paint balls are essentially spheres with gelatin or other breakable outer material shells that encapsulate liquid paint or dye. After manufacture, paint balls often sit in storage boxes for extended periods of time. The inventor has been found that over time the heavier constituents of the paint balls' liquid contents will settle under gravity, causing the weight of the paint ball to become unevenly distributed. Also, the outer coatings of paint balls can develop dimples by sitting in the same position for substantial periods of time in storage boxes, for example. The uneven weight distribution and/or dimples of the paint balls cause them to fly erratically when shot from the gun, or to jam when feeding into the gun. In addition, uneven weight distribution or dimples in the paint balls can cause the paint balls to fly too fast or too slowly from the gun. Immediately before and after a paint ball game, the velocities at which the paint balls are shot from the players' guns are tested by referees using a chronograph, and if a player's gun fires at velocities over a specified limit, the player is disqualified from the game or penalized. Conversely, a paint ball which shoots too slowly from a gun can cause a player too miss opportunities to hit opposing players during the game. There is currently no device or method available for solving the settling or dimple problems that occur when storing paint balls. It would be desirable to provide an apparatus and method which can overcome these problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes the above-noted disadvantages. The invented apparatus includes a support member, a motor, and a container. The motor is mounted to the support member, and the container is coupled to and supported for rotation by the support member and the motor's drive shaft. Paint balls are placed in the container, and the apparatus is operated by activating the motor to rotate the container via the drive shaft, causing the paint balls to move with the container. As the paint balls move, their liquid contents are agitated and mixed so that the weights of the paint balls become evenly distributed. In addition, after moving the paint balls in the container, the paint balls are likely to be resting in different positions than before the container was rotated, a fact which helps to prevent the formation of dimples that would cause the paint ball to jam in a paint ball gun or to fly erratically when shot from the gun. Also, the rolling action of the paint balls as the apparatus' container moves helps to “work out” dimples in the paint balls by the centrifugal force of the paint ball's liquid contents which push the dimples in the paint balls' shells outwardly relative to the paint balls' center to cause the shells to assume dimple-free spherical shapes. The invented apparatus can therefore be used to extend the useful life of paint balls by repairing dimpled paint balls and by mixing the paint balls' liquid contents to become more evenly distributed so that the paint balls will fly in true trajectories at consistent velocities without jamming in paint ball guns.
In the preferred embodiments of the invented apparatus, the motor is driven by an electric power source such as a wall outlet or car battery. The apparatus can include a switch mounted to the support member, which can be operated by a user to electrically couple or decouple the motor from the power source to commence or stop rotation of the container, respectively. The apparatus can also include a timer unit electrically coupled between the motor and the power source, which can be set by a user to supply power from the source to the motor for a predetermined period of time, preferably from ten to fifteen minutes for relatively recently-manufactured paint balls, and from several hours to days for older paint balls. In addition, the timer unit can be set by a user to rotate the container for the predetermined time period repeatedly at a predetermined time interval, such as on a daily basis, for example. The apparatus can also include a transformer electrically coupled between the power source and the motor, that converts the voltage and current level of the power source (typically a wall outlet or a 12-volt car battery) to a voltage and current level that are compatible with the motor. In addition, if the power source generates an alternating-current (AC) electric power and the motor operates on direct current (DC) electric power, the apparatus can include a rectifier coupled between the power source and the motor, to convert the AC power to DC power appropriate for the DC motor. To avoid risk of damaging the paint balls, the motor preferably rotates the container at from one-quarter (¼) to twenty (20) revolutions per minute (RPM), the most preferred range being between six (6) and eight (8) RPMs.
In one preferred embodiment of the invented apparatus, the support member is approximately U-shaped cross-section and includes first and second rigid planar opposing side members, and a rigid planar base member extending between the first and second side members. The base member serves to support the apparatus on a surface such as a table top or floor, for example. The motor is mounted for support to the first side member. The apparatus further includes a support shaft that is rotatably mounted to the second side member, which engages with the container. The container is supported between the motor's drive shaft and the support shaft both for support and to permit rotation of the container relative to the support member. The container preferably has the shape of a rectangular box sized to receive a standard-size case of paint balls. The container can include a first part that has rigid planar first and second side, rear and bottom portions, with the first side portion being coupled to the drive shaft and with the second side portion coupled to the support shaft. The container can also include a second part that defines rigid planar top and front portions of the container. The container can further include a hinge attached between the first and second parts, to allow a user to rotate the second part relative to the first part to open or close the container. In addition, the container can include a securing device such as a latch to releasably secure the first and second parts together to secure the container in its closed position.
In a second embodiment of the invented apparatus, the support member is approximately U-shaped in cross-section and includes opposing rigid planar front and rear members, and a rigid planar base member extending between the front and rear members. The base member serves to support the apparatus on a surface. The motor is mounted to the rear member. The apparatus further includes first and second wheels rotatably mounted to the front member in a spaced relationship. In the second embodiment, the container includes a bucket for containing the paint balls, which has a cylindrical side surface and a planar bottom surface. The bottom surface defines a keyed recess that receives the drive shaft of the motor. The cylindrical surface contacts the first and second wheels to support the container, and is driven by the motor via the drive shaft in contact with the first and second wheels to rotate the bucket and the paint balls contained therein during operation of the apparatus. The bucket can include a lid which can be removably secured to the open top of the bucket to contain paint balls therein so that they will not be spilled out of the bucket during operation of the apparatu
Cooley Charles E.
Morris Manning & Martin LLP
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