PEBBLE COVER FOR A SPORTS BALL

• US 20150045159A1
• Filed: 08/11/2014
• Published: 02/12/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/12/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Baden Sports Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Baden Sports Incorporated
• Inventors: Tompkins, Hugh
• Granted Patent: US 9,480,884 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 473/596
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2243/0037 Basketball
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2243/007 American football
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 41/08 Ball covers; Closures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 43/002 with special configuration, e.g. non-spherical discs for throwing A63B65/10
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 45/00 Apparatus or methods for manufacturing balls working of plastics or substances in a plastic state B29
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2317/08 Natural leather
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 37/12 characterised by using adhesives
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 38/06 Embossing
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 9/025 comprising leather
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 156/1039 Surface deformation only of sandwich or lamina [e.g., embossed panels]

Abstract

A leather-based cover material for an inflatable sports ball that consists of a composite of a thin external layer, a filler, and an internal liner. The thin external layer is dimpled by using positive/negative embossing plates to create pebble projections on an exterior side and voids on the other or interior side. The interior side is coated with a filler material that fills the voids. The cover material is completed by attaching a liner layer to the cured filler material.

Claims

1. A cover material for a ball, comprising:

an external layer having a dimpled pattern that includes a pebble pattern projecting outwardly from an exterior side and interior dimple spaces on an interior side;

another layer inward of the external layer for providing a backing layer for the cover material; and

a substrate filler material sandwiched between the external layer and the other inward layer, with the substrate material filling the interior dimple spaces, and with the external layer, the other inward layer, and the substrate filler material together creating the cover material for the ball.

2. A ball, comprising:

a cover material that includes;

an external layer having a dimpled pattern with interior dimple voids on an inside surface of the external layer;

another layer, inside of the external layer, for providing a backing layer for the interior dimple voids; and

a substrate filler material, sandwiched between the external layer and the other layer, with the substrate material filling the interior dimple voids, and with the external layer, the other layer, and the substrate filler material together creating the ball'"'"'s cover material; and

a ball carcass, underneath the cover material, the carcass including an inflatable bladder.

3. A method for making a thin leather based cover for a ball, including the following steps:

dimpling a thin sheet of a leather based material using positive and negative embossing plates on opposite sides of the leather based material, to create an exterior pebble pattern on one side and an interior pattern of voids on the opposite side;

coating the voids with a filler material that fills the voids and is curable into an elastically solid filler layer; and

applying an interior liner layer to the filler layer, to create the cover for the ball.