Fishing – trapping – and vermin destroying – Decoys – Duck
Reexamination Certificate
2001-12-05
2003-06-10
Ark, Darren W. (Department: 3643)
Fishing, trapping, and vermin destroying
Decoys
Duck
Reexamination Certificate
active
06574904
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the sport of wildfowl hunting, and more specifically to a decoy having wind activated vanes or simulated wings. The wings are supported by low friction bearings which enable them to turn in extremely light breezes to simulate the appearance of the wing motion of a waterfowl (duck, goose, etc.) alighting on a body of water. The decoy is further supported by a generally vertical post, which allows the decoy to swivel into the prevailing wind in order to provide greater realism and proper airflow over the wings.
2. Description of the Related Art
Decoys, lures and the like have been used by hunters to attract game from the beginnings of the activity. Hunters have recognized that relatively crude decoys and the like are not particularly effective, but have employed such crude decoys as being better than nothing. More recently, relatively sophisticated decoys using audioanimatronic principles have been developed, with such decoys serving to attract and fool game animals to a much greater extent than earlier, relatively simple decoys and lures.
However, such relatively sophisticated decoys, with their electrically operated components, tend to be relatively fragile, particularly in the outdoor environment where they are subject to temperature extremes, moisture, etc. Such complex decoys are also relatively expensive to purchase initially, as well as to maintain. As a result, they have never found great favor among hunters and others who wish to use decoys to attract game animals.
Nonetheless, the provision of a decoy which employs some periodic movement, is desirable. Most animals are attuned to detect movement before detecting most other visual cues (color, contrast, etc.). While some aspects of movement may startle the game animals away, a movement which is relatively natural in its appearance is desirable, particularly if the movement can be achieved without complex and costly electromechanical mechanisms.
Accordingly, a need will be seen for a decoy employing simulated wings deployed laterally from the body of the device. The simulated wings extend laterally on rotary shafts or spars, which are in turn mounted through the decoy body on roller or ball bearings to provide an extremely low friction attachment. The slightest breeze causes the two wings and their rotationally mounted spars to rotate in their bearings through the body, with the result having an appearance from some distance away much like the wing beat of a bird alighting. The body of the decoy is mounted in a similar manner upon a generally vertical post, which allows the decoy to pivot to face into the wind in a realistic manner while also providing more efficient airflow to the wings.
A discussion of the related art of which the present inventors are aware, and its differences and distinctions from the present invention, is provided below.
U.S. Pat. No. 547,553 issued on Oct. 8, 1895 to Arthur H. Keller, titled “Toy,” describes a simulated bird having a wing flapping mechanism powered by a ratchet mechanism, which is in turn powered by a cord as it is unwound from a wheel within the device. The toy bird is mounted on a line which extends at an angle downwardly between two points, with the weight of the toy causing the first line to unwind to cause the wing mechanism to flap. The Keller device is not powered by the wind, and cannot operate when the body of the device is at rest upon a level surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,441,753 issued on May 18, 1948 to Gurdeon E. Carpenter, titled “Duck Decoy,” describes a silhouette or profile type decoy formed of a single relatively thin sheet of plywood or other suitable material. The decoy shape and markings generally present the appearance of a bird viewed from above, with wings outspread. The entire apparatus is pivotally balanced upon a stake which is in turn driven into the underlying surface to support the decoy and allow it to pivot into the wind. Movement of the decoy about its pivot simulates a gliding bird with outspread wings. However, the Carpenter decoy is a single monolithic unit with no relatively movable wings, whereas the present decoy with its wind activated rotary vanes serves to simulate the wing beat of an alighting bird, which cannot be accomplished with the fixed wings of the Carpenter decoy.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,638,705 issued on May 19, 1953 to Albert W. Petrasy, titled “Ornamental Bird Having Rotatable Wings,” describes a simulated bird having a profile body with a short wing support shaft rotatably installed laterally through the body. A wing attachment arm is affixed to each end of the lateral shaft, with a wing panel extending from each attachment arm. The wing panels are each twisted, so as to provide a pitch angle or angle of attack when presented to the wind. The resulting apparatus is related to a propeller, but with the blade attachments being longitudinally offset from one another on the propeller shaft, rather than being in the same plane. The apparatus thus does not resemble the present decoy with its rotary wing panels having their elongate axes disposed along a single lateral axis.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,707,798 issued on Jan. 2, 1973 to Ned A. Tryon, titled “Decoy,” describes a decoy formed of a pair of flat elements assembled in a cruciform configuration. The vertically disposed element resembles a silhouette of a goose body, while the horizontally disposed element represents the width of the body when viewed from above. The assembly is mounted atop a stake which is driven into the underlying surface to support the decoy. No relatively movable components are provided by Tryon for his decoy. No movable wing panels or pivoted mounting are provided by Tryon, in contrast to the pivoted mounting and rotating wing panels of the present wind activated decoy.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,385 issued on Nov. 4, 1986 to Thomas G. Carranza et al., titled “Rotatable Wings For Water Fowl Decoys,” describes a simulated wing assembly in which each wing comprises four rotary vanes extending from a common lateral shaft. The shaft is immovably affixed to the mounting harness, with the wing vane assemblies extending from tubes which in turn rotate independently relative to one another upon the shaft. In contrast, the present wind activated decoy attaches the wings to a single common shaft, with the shaft rotating within low friction bearings disposed within a lateral passage through the decoy silhouette. A major advantage of the present decoy in comparison to the Carranza et al. decoy, is that the opposite wings of the present decoy have a fixed relationship with their planes disposed at a fixed angle of forty five degrees from one another. This relationship assures that the wings will always have a synchronous relationship, just as the wings of a real waterfowl would likely have as the bird flapped its wings while alighting, and also precludes any singularity where air pressure on the wings equalizes to preclude rotation. The planform of the wings of the present decoy is also more realistic than the rectangular planform of the wings of the Carranza et al. decoy. Moreover, the Carranza et al. decoy requires a relatively thick body in order to support the wing attachment harness or frame, thus adding to the cost of the apparatus. The present wind activated decoy utilizes a silhouette or profile body, which greatly reduces the cost of the decoy while reducing realism only slightly when viewed from an oblique angle at some distance away.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,651,457 issued on Mar. 24, 1987 to Robert D. Nelson et al., titled “Decoy,” describes a silhouette head and neck portion with a pneumatically inflatable body portion extending therefrom. The head and neck portion is pivotally attached to a stake to allow the assembly to rotate in a breeze. However, the Nelson et al. decoy has no relatively movable wing panels to simulate the flight motion of a real bird, as does the present wind activated decoy. The Nelson et al. decoy only simulates a bird which is feeding, rather than one which is in flight
Baalman Matthew J.
Fencel Jeffery J.
Ark Darren W.
Litman Richard C.
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