Fishing – trapping – and vermin destroying – Fishing – Rod
Reexamination Certificate
1995-11-16
2002-06-25
Rowan, Kurt (Department: 3643)
Fishing, trapping, and vermin destroying
Fishing
Rod
C043S01810R
Reexamination Certificate
active
06408562
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
a) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an intra-line fishing rod having improved properties for passing the fishline therethrough. For the intra-line fishing rod, annular fishline guides or a spiral fishline guide are provided within a rod tube which is formed with an improved inner surface which reduces interior frictional resistance on the fishline. This invention also relates to an improved method by which a rod tube comprises a thermosetting resin or a thermoplastic resin as a matrix, and is reinforced by reinforced fibers, whereby the fishline guide member is formed on the inner surface of the rod tube.
b) Description of Related Art
Conventional intra-line fishing rods suffer from numerous drawbacks which reduce rod strength, hinder performance, and tend to damage the fishline.
Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 4-341133 discloses a fishing rod in which annular fishline guides for a fishline, made of a monofilament of fibers, are molded integrally on an inner peripheral surface of a rod tube so as to enhance the sliding movement of the fishline. Japanese Utility Model Unexamined Publication No. 5-88259 discloses a tubular member such as a rod tube in which a prepreg for constituting the rod tube is wound on a resin tape wound spirally on a metal core, so that a spiral protuberance (guide for a fishline) is integrally formed at the same time, using this prepreg.
However, when the guides are to be formed integrally on the inner surface of the rod tube, a prepreg is wound on a metal core, and is heated while being pressurized by a tightening tape. In the construction disclosed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 4-341133, because of the presence of the guides, the fibers are arranged in a generally meandering manner in the direction of the axis of the rod tube, or the flow of a resin of the prepreg becomes uneven. In the construction disclosed in the Japanese Utility Model Unexamined Publication No. 5-88259, the presence of the resin tape, likewise causes the fibers to be arranged in a generally meandering manner in the direction of the axis of the rod tube, and causes the flow of a resin of the prepreg to become uneven. As a result, the strength of the rod tube is reduced, and is liable to be broken.
Furthermore, the guides formed integrally on the inner surface of the rod tube exert a great influence on the strength of the rod tube when the rod tube is flexed, and the flexural strength of the rod tube is lowered by the concentration of stresses depending on the configuration, construction and material of the guides, which leads to a possibility that the rod tube is broken during the fishing operation. Namely, it is thought that in the conventional rod tubes, sufficient consideration has not been given to the details of the guides and those portions of the rod tubes in the vicinity of the guides.
Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 1-304836 discloses an intra-line fishing rod having a spiral fishline guide provided therein. This construction, in which the continuous spiral fishline guide is provided within a rod tube, is simpler as compared with a construction in which a plurality of annular fishline guides are provided within a rod tube.
However, the spiral guide has an end portion, and when the fishline is to be passed through the rod tube, the fishline is caught by this end portion and often damaged, and even if the fishline is not damaged or cut, the resistance to the passage of the fishline is increased. In such a case, the fishline guide causes reduced efficiency and performance of the intra-line fishing rod.
In an intra-line fishing rod, a fishline is passed through a narrow bore or space in a rod tube, and generally the fishline moves in contact with an inner surface of the rod tube. Therefore, if the inner surface is coarse or rough, a frictional resistance to the fishline is increased, so that the fishline is damaged by increased frictional heat, and also the inner surface of the rod tube is susceptible to damage. If the inner surface is thus damaged, the fishline is damaged by it.
Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 5-268858 discloses an intra-line fishing rod in which a resin layer containing fluoroplastic particles or a resin layer of ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene is formed on an inner surface of a rod tube so as to prevent a fishline from adhering to the inner surface of the rod tube and also to smoothly guide the fishline.
In the fishing rod disclosed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 5-268858, a material, having a good water repellency and a low friction coefficient, is used, and therefore water drops hardly deposit on the inner surface of the rod tube, and the resistance to the fishline is not increased by water drops. However, even with the use of fluoroplastic particles having a low friction coefficient, if the inner surface of the rod tube is coarse, this inner surface still remains coarse even when a mixture of such fluoroplastic particles and a resin coating is coated onto the inner surface of the rod tube, and as a result the resistance to the passage of the fishline is increased as described above.
In the case where a film of ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene is wound on a metal core, and then is baked together with a prepreg, the inner surface of the resultant rod tube is coarse depending on a coarse surface of the metal core. As a result, the frictional resistance on the fishline passing through the rod is increased.
With regard to prior art methods for forming intra-line fishing rods, Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 4-341133 discloses a method in which annular fishline guides each made of a monofilament of fibers, are formed integrally on an inner surface of a rod tube so as to enhance the sliding movement of the fishline and also to prevent the inner surface of the rod tube from being damaged by wear. More specifically, the monofilaments of fibers are wound on suitable portions of an outer peripheral surface of a mandrel, and then a prepreg is wound thereon to form the rod tube of an integral construction according to an ordinary method. There is also disclosed a method in which step portions are formed in a mandrel, and annular fishline guides are positioned at these step portions, respectively, and then a prepreg is wound thereon.
With this conventional method, however, the inner surfaces of the annular fishline guides are held in intimate contact with the surface of the mandrel, and therefore when the prepreg is wound thereon, the prepreg is radially outwardly convex in the vicinity of the annular fishline guides, and the other portions of the prepreg is held in contact with the mandrel along the surface of the mandrel. Namely, in the molding of the rod tube using the prepreg, the inner surface of the rod tube coincides with the inner surfaces of the annular fishline guides in the axial direction, and the annular fishline guides will not project from the inner surface of the rod tube. During the hot molding, resin flows from the prepreg into the surface of the mandrel, so that the annular fishline guides are embedded in the resin. As a result, the annular fishline guides are not exposed to the inner surface of the rod tube.
Even if the inner surface of the annular fishline guide is partly exposed, burrs of the resin are usually formed around the thus exposed portion. In this condition, if the fishline is guided through the rod, the fishline may be damaged by the burrs of the resin, thus the stable fishline guide function can not be performed.
Even in the case where the positioning step portions are provided on the mandrel, the annular fishline guides are similarly embedded in the resin since the monofilament of fibers has a relatively small diameter.
In addition to these problems, there is another problem that the prepreg is outwardly convex in the vicinity of the annular fishline guides as described above, so that the fibers meander, which reduces the strength of the rod tube.
The need therefore exists for an intra-line fishing r
Akiba Masaru
Koganei Shoichi
Kurano Yutaka
Kurokawa Toshihiro
Sunaga Shunji
Daiwa Seiko Inc.
Liniak Berenato Longacre & White
Rowan Kurt
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