SHEET-LIKE OBJECT FOR BALL AND BALL

• US 20100009792A1
• Filed: 07/24/2007
• Published: 01/14/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kuraray Company Limited, Mikasa Incorporated (Lifetime Brands Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Kuraray Company Limited, Mikasa Incorporated (Lifetime Brands Incorporated)
• Inventors: Ogata, Koki, Saeki, Taketoshi, Yasuda, Yoshiaki, Ashida, Tetsuya
• Granted Patent: US 8,092,324 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 473/604
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2243/0095 Volleyball
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 41/08 Ball covers; Closures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 43/00 Balls with special arrangements

Abstract

Provided are: a sheet-like ball material including a fibrous base material, and an elastic polymer cover layer that is laminated on a surface of the fibrous base material, in which continuous pebbles and discontinuous valleys are formed on a surface of the cover layer, the valleys discontinuously formed are formed at average intervals of 0.5 to 3 mm, the valley has a depth of 50 to 500 μm, a vertical projected area of each valley is 1 to 5 mm², and a total area of the vertical projected area of each valley accounts for 3 to 30% relative to a surface area of the elastic polymer cover layer; a ball used for volleyball or beach volleyball including the sheet-like ball material, which is excellent in the controllability for all types of ball plays such as tossing and serving in the smoothness of the attenuation degree in the ball speed of the ball during flight of the ball, and in the design, e.g., three-dimensional shape, which is not realized in a heretofore-existing ball, and also has a sufficient surface abrasion resistance; and a sheet-like ball material suitably used for such balls.

Claims

1. A sheet-like ball material, comprising:

a fibrous base material; and

an elastic polymer cover layer that is laminated on a surface of the fibrous base material, wherein;

continuous pebbles and discontinuous valleys are formed on a surface of the elastic polymer cover layer;

each valleys discontinuously formed are formed at average intervals of 0.5 to 3 mm;

the valley has a depth of 50 to 500 μ

m;

a vertical projected area of each valley is 1 to 5 mm²; and

a total area of the vertical projected area of each valley accounts for 3 to 30% relative to a surface area of the elastic polymer cover layer.

2. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 1, wherein secondary pebbles and valleys are formed on the surface of the elastic polymer cover layer, a depth of the secondary valleys being less than the depth of the discontinuous valleys and being within a range of 10 to 100 μ

m.

3. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 2, wherein the secondary pebbles and valleys are formed at portions other than the discontinuous valleys on the surface of the elastic polymer cover layer.

4. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 2, wherein the secondary pebbles and valleys are formed at upper surfaces of the continuous pebbles on the surface of the elastic polymer cover layer.

5. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 2, wherein:

the secondary valleys are discontinuous;

a vertical projected area is 0.01 to 1 mm²; and

a total area of the vertical projected area of each secondary valley accounts for 1 to 30% relative to a surface area of the elastic polymer cover layer.

6. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 1, wherein the fibrous base material is a leather-like fibrous base material formed of a fiber-entangled fabric and a polymer.

7. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 1, wherein the fibrous base material is a fabric in which a polymer is impregnated in a three-dimensionally entangled nonwoven fabric.

8. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 6, wherein the polymer is a polyurethane resin.

9. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 1, wherein the fibrous base material has a thickness of 0.4 to 3.0 mm.

10. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 1, wherein the elastic polymer is a polyurethane resin.

11. The sheet-like ball material according to claim 1, wherein the elastic polymer cover layer has a thickness of 0.1 to 3.0 mm.

13. A ball used for volleyball or beach volleyball comprising the sheet-like material according to claim 1.

12. A sheet-like ball material, wherein a sectional shape of the valley in a thickness direction is an arc shape, hemispherical shape, or a trapezoidal shape.