Supports: racks – Special article – Recreational equipment
Reexamination Certificate
1998-01-06
2001-03-06
Stodola, Daniel P. (Department: 3634)
Supports: racks
Special article
Recreational equipment
C211S089010, C211S070500
Reexamination Certificate
active
06196397
ABSTRACT:
DESCRIPTION
1. Technical Field
The present application relates to a rack designed to hold and/or display a gliding board and, more particularly, a snowboard.
2. Description of the Art
Specifically configured boards for gliding along a terrain are known, such as snowboards, snow skis, water skis, wake boards, surfboards and the like. For purposes of this patent, “gliding board” will refer generally to any of the foregoing boards as well as to other board-type devices which allow a rider to traverse a surface. For ease of understanding, however, and without limiting the scope of the invention, the rack for holding a gliding board to which this patent is addressed is disclosed below particularly in connection with a snowboard.
A snowboard includes a generally flat base with a lower surface that glides along the snow and an upper surface (or face) on which a snowboard rider stands. The snowboard further includes a tip, a tail, and opposed heel and toe edges. A width of the board typically tapers inwardly from both the tip and tail towards the central region (or waist) of the board, facilitating turn initiation and exit, and edge grip. The snowboard is often provided with graphics or other decorative or customized markings on the upper and lower surfaces of the board.
When a snowboard is not in use, the snowboard is typically stored by simply leaning the board against a wall, or laying the board flat on a shelf or on the ground. However, storing a snowboard in this manner can damage the top or bottom surfaces and side edges of the board. When displaying a board for sale or at a trade show, clamps are often used to hold the snowboard upright so that the graphics are visible. The board is placed between the clamps, which must then be manually tightened. Such clamps may grip the lower and upper surface of the board and may also contact the board edges. This arrangement however, may block or obscure portions of the graphic design on the face of the board.
SUMMARY
The present invention is a rack designed to hold and/or display gliding boards, such as snowboards, without requiring adjustment of the rack and without causing damage to the board. The rack includes a base which mounts to a wall, or other support structure, and further includes at least one pair of engagement members, each engagement member including a shoulder defined by a side surface and a rear surface that grips the heel edge, toe edge, and top or bottom surface of the board to hold the board in place. The side surface may be cut at an acute angle to ensure that the shoulder wraps slightly around the top surface of the board to grip the board. The engagement members may be made of resilient, flexible material which facilitates gripping of the board, without damaging the board.
In one embodiment, the rack is configured to hold snowboards of various sizes and includes a series of stepped engagement members of varying dimensions. For example, the rack may include seven pairs of stepped shoulders with the distance between the first shoulder and the second shoulder of the first pair being about 7.5 inches, and the distance between the first and second shoulders of the seventh pair being about 10.75 inches. The distances between the first and second shoulders of the remaining pairs range between about 7.5 to 10.75 inches, to accommodate snowboards sized within the range.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a rack for holding one or more size snowboards without requiring adjustment of the rack.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a rack for holding one or more snowboards without damaging the top, bottom or side edges of the snowboard.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a rack for holding one or more snowboards which does not cover or block viewing of the graphics on the snowboard when inserted into the rack.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a rack which holds one or more snowboards in a secure manner, while simultaneously permitting easy removal of the snowboards from the rack.
REFERENCES:
patent: D. 248347 (1978-07-01), McCollum
patent: D. 308996 (1990-07-01), Katz
patent: D. 344868 (1994-03-01), Martinell
patent: D. 386236 (1997-11-01), Gervasoni
patent: 1210934 (1917-01-01), Hayes
patent: 1389984 (1921-09-01), Reed
patent: 1510978 (1924-10-01), Conklin
patent: 1608651 (1926-11-01), Farmer
patent: 1930656 (1933-10-01), Nave
patent: 2767854 (1956-10-01), Barrett
patent: 3049323 (1962-08-01), Peterka
patent: 3245645 (1966-04-01), Dupler
patent: 3347504 (1967-10-01), Goss
patent: 3394790 (1968-07-01), Braun
patent: 3424418 (1969-01-01), Freedman et al.
patent: 3586355 (1971-06-01), Magi
patent: 3756420 (1973-09-01), Brown
patent: 4312467 (1982-01-01), Kulwin
patent: 4345732 (1982-08-01), Gallegos
patent: 4391376 (1983-07-01), Finnegan
patent: 4438878 (1984-03-01), Heslop
patent: 4779180 (1988-10-01), Ruiz
patent: 4786025 (1988-11-01), Shuman
patent: 5120012 (1992-06-01), Rosenau
patent: 5139221 (1992-08-01), Lodrick
patent: 5183316 (1993-02-01), Heinzle
patent: 5371994 (1994-12-01), Waters
patent: 5390837 (1995-02-01), Ruffolo, Jr.
patent: 5417335 (1995-05-01), White
patent: 5477968 (1995-12-01), Largent et al.
patent: 5551728 (1996-09-01), Barthel et al.
patent: 5601196 (1997-02-01), Heer et al.
patent: 5782704 (1998-07-01), Tetler et al.
patent: 5788133 (1998-08-01), Mareno
patent: 5799915 (1998-09-01), Morey
patent: 619 125 (1980-09-01), None
patent: 1 455 162 (1976-11-01), None
patent: 4-115471 (1992-10-01), None
Burton Corporation
Harris Erica B.
Stodola Daniel P.
Wolf Greenfield & Sacks P.C.
LandOfFree
Rack for holding a gliding board does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Rack for holding a gliding board, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Rack for holding a gliding board will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2512732