Oval ball, especially rugby ball or football

• US 8,506,430 B2
• Filed: 10/21/2009
• Issued: 08/13/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fraunhofer Gesellschaft Zur Foerderung Der Angewandten Forsching E.V.
• Original Assignee: Fraunhofer Gesellschaft Zur Foerderung Der Angewandten Forsching E.V.
• Inventors: Von Der Gruen, Thomas, Franke, Norbert, Retkowski, Reiner
• Primary Examiner(s): Hall, Arthur O.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chan, Allen
• Application Number:
  US12/582,993
• Publication Number:
  US 20100130314A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,392 Days
• Field of Search: 473/570, 473/599, 473/605, 473/594
• US Class Current: 473/570
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/80 Special sensors, transducers or devices therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/50 Wireless data transmission, e.g. by radio transmitters or telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/54 Transponders, e.g. RFID
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 43/00 Balls with special arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 63/00 Targets or goals for ball games golf cups A63B57/40

Abstract

An oval ball, in particular rugby ball or football with a casing and with at least one electronic component or module with a transmitter unit, which is arranged in the casing and is held in a defined position, wherein the at least one electronic module is fastened on or in a shape part with a positive and/or material fit, in the region of the tips or in the region of a valve of the casing. In a further embodiment, the module is suspended on nets which are connected to the tip region of the casing in a large-surfaced manner.

Claims

1. An oval ball, in particular rugby ball or football, comprising a casing and at least one electronic module which is arranged within the casing and is flexibly held at a predefined position, said electronic module comprising at least one transmitter,

wherein the electronic module is flexibly fastened in a freely suspended manner in the middle region of the ball on at least two separate nets or at least two parts of a single net which are provided with meshes and wherein a significant portion of each net or part of the net is attached to the casing, in each case in the regions of the tips of the ball;

and

at least one of electrical leads, at least one charging loop for a battery or at least one antenna element is integrated into the at least two nets or at least two parts of the net.

2. A ball according to claim 1, wherein a shape part or the net parts are bonded, laminated in, welded or vulcanised, in the region of the tip or the tips.

3. A ball according to claim 1, wherein the casing comprises at least one of a carcass-like outer casing and a bladder.

4. A ball according to claim 3, wherein the net parts are laminated-in in the region of the tips between the bladder and a layer.

5. A ball according to claim 1 or claim 4, wherein the net parts are firmly connected in each case to a housing part of the electronics module.

6. A ball according to claim 1, wherein the electronic module is an electronics module which is equipped with sensors for detecting ball parameters.

7. A ball according to claim 4, wherein a programming loop for contactless inductive programming is assigned to the electronic module.

8. A ball according to claim 4, wherein the layer is of the material of the bladder.

9. A ball according to claim 1, wherein the antenna element is woven into the net parts.

10. A ball according to claim 7, wherein the programming loop is also a charging loop.