Luminous ball

• US 10,159,874 B1
• Filed: 01/12/2018
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/12/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blackstar Corp.
• Original Assignee: Blackstar Corp.
• Inventors: Lin, Wei-Hung
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Steven
• Application Number:
  US15/870,772
• Time in Patent Office: 347 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2037/125 stitchings
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/62 Time or time measurement used for time reference, time stamp, master time or clock signal
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/801 Contact switches
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/803 Motion sensors
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/50 Wireless data transmission, e.g. by radio transmitters or telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/74 with powered illuminating means, e.g. lights
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/02 Special cores balls with finger holes A63B37/0001, golf ball cores A63B37/005
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/12 Special coverings , i.e. outer layer material balls with finger holes A63B37/0001, golf ball covers A63B37/0023
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 43/008 with means for improving visibility, e.g. special markings or colours illuminating or reflecting means A63B43/06
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 43/06 with illuminating devices ; with reflective surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/0002 for baseball
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/30 Driver circuits

Abstract

A luminous ball is provided, including a sphere, at least one covering spliced to wrap the sphere, at least one seam formed on an edge of the covering, a plurality of thread apertures disposed at two sides of the seam, at least one thread penetrating the plurality of thread apertures to stitch the edge of the covering between the two sides of the seam, and a light-emitting device disposed in the sphere. The light-emitting device includes a light-emitting unit, a power unit, and an electrical insulating unit breaking an electrical connection between the light-emitting unit and the power unit. The electrical insulating unit is removable. The electrical connection between the light-emitting unit and the power unit is provided when the electrical insulating unit is removed such that lights emitted by the light-emitting unit penetrate the sphere and are visible through the seam and the thread apertures.

Claims

1. A luminous ball, comprising:

a sphere made of a light-transmissive material;

at least one covering of which ends are spliced to wrap an external circumferential surface of the sphere, at least one seam formed on an edge of the covering, and a plurality of thread apertures disposed in pairs at two sides of the at least one seam;

at least one thread connected with the plurality of thread apertures between the two sides of the at least one seam; and

a light-emitting device disposed in the sphere and including a light-emitting unit, a power unit and an electrical insulating unit breaking an electrical connection between the light-emitting unit and the power unit, wherein the electrical insulating unit is removable throughout the covering, and the electrical connection between the light-emitting unit and the power unit is provided when the electrical insulating unit is removed such that lights emitted by the light-emitting unit penetrate the sphere and are visible through the at least one seam and the plurality of thread apertures,

wherein the light-emitting unit includes circuit boards connected together, each circuit board is provided with at least one light-emitting diode, the circuit boards amount to three, and the three circuit boards are connected to form a triangle.

2. The luminous ball according to claim 1, wherein the power unit is a battery container containing a battery and having a case, a positive electrode sheet and a negative electrode sheet respectively disposed in the case, and the positive electrode sheet and the negative electrode sheet are configured to contact a cathode and an anode of the battery, respectively.

3. The luminous ball according to claim 2, wherein the electrical insulating unit is a bolt-type insulator made of insulation material and having an insulated part and a pulling part connected to the insulated part which is made of a removable soft material and is placed between the positive electrode and the cathode of the battery, and the pulling part is left outside the covering.

4. The luminous ball according to claim 3, wherein the light-emitting device further includes a vibration timing switch electrically connected between the light-emitting unit and the power unit and configured to detect vibration of the sphere after the electrical insulating unit is removed, and the vibration timing switch is turned on upon detecting vibration of the sphere to make the light-emitting unit emit while the vibration timing switch is turned off to make the light-emitting unit blank when no vibration of the sphere is detected after a preset period of time.

5. The luminous ball according to claim 3, wherein the light-emitting device further includes a rolling-ball switch and a counter switch electrically connected to the rolling-ball switch which has a helical spring and a metal ball configured to roll back and forth inside the helical spring and to activate the counter switch to start counting a preset period of time when the metal ball contacts the positive electrode sheet, and the counter switch is turned off to make the light-emitting unit blank when the counter switch finishes counting the preset period of time.

6. The luminous ball according to claim 3, wherein the pulling part is left outside the covering through one of the plurality of thread apertures.

7. The luminous ball according to claim 1, wherein the sphere is made of a transparent elastic material.

8. The luminous ball according to claim 1, wherein the sphere has at least two elastic layers having different elastic coefficients, and the at least two elastic layers are concentrically covered with each other to wrap the sphere.

9. The luminous ball according to claim 1, wherein the sphere has a hollow part therein so as to adjust weight and elastic force of the sphere.

10. The luminous ball according to claim 1, wherein the covering of the luminous ball is made of a light-transmissive synthetic leather.

11. The luminous ball according to claim 1, wherein the seam, the thread and the plurality of thread apertures are simulated and are formed integrally on a surface of the covering.

12. The luminous ball according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the circuit boards of the light-emitting device is provided with an induction coil electrically connected to the power unit and capable of being wirelessly connected to a transmission coil of a wireless charger, such that the power unit is capable of being wirelessly replenished with power when the luminous ball is placed on the wireless charger.