Padel racquet and method of manufacture

Abstract

A racket 1 for playing padel tennis including a handle 2 and a head 3 which includes a bridge portion 4 connecting the head to the handle. The head includes first and second ball-striking faces 5 in m

Description

1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a padel racquet and its method of manufacture, and, more particularly, to a padel racquet with improved aerodynamics and improved strength and. lower weight. 2. Description of the Prior Art It is widely acknowledged that routine exercise is good for both the body and mind. Padel, or padel tennis as it is also known as, is a racquet game that combines the technical characteristics of tennis, squash, table tennis, badminton and so on. Existing padel tennis racquet structures are mostly divided into an elastomeric inner core and a rigid cover layer wrapped around the elastomeric inner core, and the elasticity of the racquet mainly depends on the design of the elastomeric inner core. In addition, a circular area formed by the centre of gravity of the bottom plate on the racquet is called the sweet spot. The sweet spot is the effecti ve hitting area of the racquet surface, and hitting the ball in this area can provide sufficient stability and speed. A further important characteristics of a padel racquet is its manageability, which is influenced by its weight, balance, and aerodynamics. Some padel tennis racquets are provided with through holes in the hitting surfaces to improve their aerodynamic behaviour, by reducing their air resistance. However, there are limits to the number of and. size of holes, without affecting the integrity of the racquet. On the other hand, some padel racquets have reliefs on the hitting surfaces to impart more effect to the ball when hitting it, such as the one disclosed, in document US2015024879AL Nowadays there is already a high level of competitiveness in padel tennis, both at an amateur and professional level, so a slight improvement in the aerodynamics of the padel racquet results in a desirable advantage for the players. For this reason, a padel racquet that lias more improved aerodynamics, strength and lower weight without affecting the consistency of the racquet is highly desirable. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a lighter weight padel racquet to reduce injuries, including repetitive strain injuries. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a lighter weight padel racquet which provides the user with a. greater degree of control over the racquet head which in turn leads to reduced injuries, including repetitive strain injuries. The present invention addresses this particular need, as explained in the following sections and as shown in the accompanying drawings. Summary of the Invention The invention concerns a racquet and a method of manufacturing a racquet for playing padel tennis or similar games including a handle and a head which head includes an intermediate bridge portion connecting the head to the handle, the head including first and. second ball-striking faces for striking resilient balls in mutually parallel planes, the handle and ball-striking head being moulded together from resin and including fibres forming a composite material in a single monocoque construction and. defining a centreline extending through the centre of the handle and the head and a central plane that extends centrally through the head parallel with the first and second striking faces; wherein first and second hollow channels are provided arranged on each side of the centreline in the head and each channel extending along a portion of an outside edge of the head and inwardly from a portion of the outside edge of the head towards the centre of the head and in between the first and second ball striking faces. Each of the first and second hollow channels extends circumferentially at the top shoulder portion of the head and preferably extend along a portion of the circumference of the head between an apex of the head and extending up to 90 degrees from the apex. Each of the first and second hollow channels may extend to a depth of between 1mm and 30 mm from the outsi de edge to the centre of the head with a thi ckness of between 5mm and 25 mm. Preferably each of the first and second hollow channels extends to an equal extent above and below the central plane and comprise channel walls which support the corresponding first and. second striking faces wherein the hollow walls are between 2mm and 10mm thickness. The first and second hollow channels may alternatively extend circumferentially at the lower bridge portion of the head. There may be two sets of first and second hollow7 channels provided being a first shoulder set in the upper shoulder portion of the head and second bridge set in the lower bridge portion of the head. Preferably the hollows of the second bridge set extend to a greater depth than the hollows of the first shoulder. The first and second hollow channels may meet to form a continuous hollow extending from a first edge portion, on one side of the head, to a second, edge portion on an opposition side of the head. Preferably the continuous hollow is formed in the lower bridge portion of the head. This unique hollow bridge achieves the objects of the invention in overcoming the identified problems of existing padel tennis racquets. The racquet is preferably formed as a monocoque moulding and the hollows are formed by mould inserts. These and other objectives of the present invention are defined in the appended claims or will become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings. Brief Description of the Drawings FIG. lisa perspective view of a racquet according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG.2 is a side view of the racquet of FIG. 1, FIG.3a and 3b are orthogonal cross-sectional views of the racquet in Fig. 1 at the lines shown in Fig. 2, FIG.4 is a view of the edge side view of the racquet of FIG. 1, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the racquet of Fig. 1 along the line A-A in Fig 2, FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the racquet of Fig. 1 along the line B-B in Fig. 2, FIG.7 is a perspective views of the moulds used in the manufacture of the racquet of Fig. 1, FIG. 7a shows views of the TPU strip, FIG.8 is a perspective view7 of a racquet according to a second embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 9 is a front side vi ew of a. racquet of a third embodiment of the invention, FIG. 10 is edge side view of the racquet of Fig. 9, and FIG. 11 is a top edge view of the racquet of Fig. 9. Detailed Description In FIGs. 1 to 6 is shown various view of a racquet 1 for playing padel tennis or similar games according to a first embodiment of the invention. The racquet 1 includes a handle 2 and a. head 3. The head 3 includes an intermediate bridge portion 4 connecting the head 3 to the handle 2, and the head 3 including first and second ball-staking faces 5, 6 for striking resilient balls, the striking faces 5, 6 being in mutually parallel planes. The handle 2 and head 3 being moulded together from resin and including fibres forming a composite material in a single monocoque construction and defining a centreline 2a. extending through the centre of the handl e 2 and the head 3 and a central plane that extends centrally through the head 3 parallel with the first and second striking faces. The racquet includes an inner core of an elastomeric polymer such as ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) in an already known manner. The upper part of the racquet head 3 shall be referred to as the shoulder portion 7 and the lower part of the head 2 as the bridge portion 4. First and second hollow shoulder channels 9, 10 are arranged on each si de of the centreline 2a in the head 2 and each shoulder channel 9, 10 extending along a portion of an outside edge of the shoulder portion 7 and inwardly from a portion of the outside edge 13 of the head towards the centre of the head and in between the first and second ball striking faces 5,. 6. Each of the first and second, hollow shoulder channels 9, 10 extend circumferentially at the upper shoulder portion of the head. As can best be seen in Fig. 2 the channels 9, 10 extend in an arc which spans approximately 20 degrees between and + / - 5 degrees to + / - 20 degrees when viewed as a circle from a centre point of the ball striking surface. It will be understood that the shoulder channels 9, 10 could extend further in alternative embodiments within the range of 0 (zero) degrees at the apex of the head 3 to + / - 90 degrees. In this embodiment each shoulder channel 9, 10 extends to the same length from the same start and end points on the outside edge of the head 3, which is advantageous from the point of view of balance of the racquet, however it could also be possible depending on the desired playing technique to provide channels 9, 10 which start or finish at different points along the edge 13 of the head 2 and which extend for different lengths from each other. Each of the first and second shoulder channels 9, 10 extend to a specified depth 12 as measured from the outside edge 13 inwardly along a line joining the centre of the head 3. In this embodiment the depth 12 is approximately 8 mm but it should be understood that the channels may extend to alternative depths. In this embodiment the depth 12 of the shoulder channels 9, 10 may be between 3mm and 12 mm to achieve sati sfactory results in terms of the performance and durability of the racquet during extended use. In other embodiments in which other factors are changed such as the length of the channels 9, 10 as descried above and also depending on the material chosen and the selected overall thickness of the head 3 the shoulder channel depth 12 may be between 1mm and 30mm measured from the outside edge 13 along a line to the centre of the head 3. Each of the first and second hollow shoulder channels 9, 10 extend s to channel thickness 11 of approximately 9mm in this embodiment. In other embodiments the channel thickness 11 could be between 5mm and 25 mm. Again this depends on a number of factors including the material and the length and depth of the channels. Clearly a main factor is the thickness of the channel walls 14 which support the outer perimeter part of the ball staking faces 5, 6. The channel wall thickness in this embodiment is 8mm combined with the channel thickness 11 of 9 mm giving an overall racquet head. 3 thickness of 25mm. In this embodiment the first and second hollow channels extend to an equal extent above and below the central plane which is equidistant between the channel walls 14 which support the corresponding first and second striking faces 5, 6. It can be envisioned however that it may be desirable to have the channel walls 14 with different thicknesses and a channel thickness 11 arranged off the central plane if for example it is desirable to have one striking surface behave in a different way to the other striking surface having more or less resilience, for example for forehand and backhand shots. Depending on other factors, in other embodiments the channel walls 14 could be between 2mm and 12mm thickness. The edge 13 includes a rounded portion 21 in cross section at the corners where the edge 13 meets the first and second striking faces. As shown in Fig. 7a, in a preferred embodiment, a thermoplastic polyurethane polymer (TPU) strip 28 is provided which is formed into a curved shape forming a curved TPU stop 29 that corresponds to the shape of the hollow channels 9, 10 and is permanently fixed in the hollow7 channels 9, 10 with adhesive. These curved TPU strips 29 provide a smooth surface to the entire edge 13 and provide durability in case the racquet 1 is impacted against a. hard surface during use. Referring now to the lower intermediate bridge portion 4 of the racquet head 3 the first and second hollow bridge channels 15, 16 having channel walls 20. Unlike the shoulder channels 9, 10 these bridge channels 15, 16 do not have a uniform depth in relation to the outer edge 13 but have a channel side walls 17, 17a that slope inwardly so that the depth increases towards the handle end of the racquet 1. The channel side walls 17, 17a of each side bridge channel 15, 16 meet each other forming an V shaped angle 18 and in this embodiment the slopes of the channel side walls 17, 17a are such that a though hole 19 is formed which extends between the bridge channel walls 20 formed by the tubular frame 8 and circumferentially along the channel side walls 17. 17a extending through from one edge 13 to the opposite edge 13. In addition, in this embodiment, as best shown in Fig. 1 a V-shaped hole 21 is formed from the first striking surface 5 to the second striking surface 6 with the V-shaped angle 18. It can be seen that in this embodiment the two sets of first and second, hollow channels 9, 10, 15, 16 are provided being a first shoulder set 9, 10 in the upper shoulder portion 7 of the head 3 and a second bridge set 15, 16 in the lower intermediate bridge portion 4 of the head 3. Whereas it can be imagined that the channels could be located in anv suitable location on the edge 13 of the racquet head 3 subject to the careful balance with the other variables to achieve an optimum racquet using experience. The bridge channel walls 20 are thus free standing for much of the frame portion 8 and a tubular in cross section with dual hollow portions 23 as shown in Fig 3a and 3b to provide additional strength . The hollow channels 9, 10, 15, 16 can have varying depths and in this embodiment the channels 15, 16 of the second bridge set extend to a greater depth than the channels 9, 10 of the first shoulder set. Thus the first and second hollow channels 15, 16 of the second bridge set meet to form a continuous hollow or though hole 19 extending from a. first edge portion 13, on one side of the head 3, to a second edge portion 13 on an opposition side of the head 3. This unique through hole or hollow bridge 19 achieves the objects of the invention in overcoming the identified problems of existing padel tennis racquets. As can be seen in Fig. 1, Fig. 2 and Fig. 5 head perforation holes 30 are provided extending transversely through the head 1 between a. first face 5 and the second face 6. Reference is now made to Fig. 7 in which two halves of a mould 24, 24a are shown in which the resin that forms the material is introduced together with fibres preferably in the form of sheets of fibre to ensure the correct direction and location of the fibres. The outer frame part 8 of the racquet is tubular, and as shown in Figs. 3A and 3B, which are cross sectional views of the outer frame part 8 at the hollow bridge portion of the racquet. In this embodiment, the outer frame part is formed as a double hollow tube 23. During manufacture this is achieved by a fibrous sheet polymer being formed as a tube, or double tube as shown, that is filled with a pressurised gas to maintain the desired internal shape during moulding. In order to achieve the through hollow 19 in the intermediate bridge part of the racquet as shown in Fig. 1, during manufacture the tubular frame parts 8 are arranged on each side of the plate extensions 27 as shown in Fig. 7. When the mould is set the plate extensions 27 are removed and the finished racquet includes the hollow’s 15, 16 forming the through hole 19, which is defined by the tabular frame parts 8. The plate extensions 27 are shaped with angled sides 27a, 27b, so they may be readily be removed when the moulding is complete, and the through hollows 15,16 in the racquet are formed by the correspondingly angled sides 17, 17a which are defined by the angled sides 27a, 27b of the plate extensions 27. Any suitable angle can be selected for the angled sides 27a, 27b, as long as the angled sides are non-parallel but are flared outwardly from the centre line 2a to the outer edge 13 of the racquet 1. An insert 25 is provided which includes inwardly protruding symmetrical sections 26 and 27 correspond to the hollow7 channels 9, 10, 15,16 in the racquet when moulded. These moulds are clamped together and the resin cured in an oven in a known maimer to form the racquet 1. The mould is dimensioned so that resulting racquet has the desired dimensions which can be with the first and second striking faces having a diameter of between 40mm and 90mm and the racquet a weight of between 7g and 80g. Reference is now made to Fig. 8 in which an alternative racquet 31 is shown in which hollow channels 35, 36 are provided on either side in the bridge portion 34 which extend further upwardly into the head 33 of the racquet 31 and which form a correspondingly larger through hole 39. The hollow channels 35, 36 on each side comprise angled side walls 37, 37a which are angled inwardly from each outside edge of the racquet towards the centre line 2a. The racquet 31 of this embodiment has a. greater thickness than that of the embodiment of Fig. 1. Reference is now made to Figs. 9 to 11 in which a further embodiment of the racquet invention is disclosed where the shoulder channels 49, 50 of the head 43 of racquet 41 are provided in the same way as with the embodiment of Fig, 1 but which are filled with a thermoplastic polyurethane polymer (TPU) 42 by co-moulding the TPU 42 with the resin of the main body portion of the racquet 41 providing a smooth surface to the entire edge 13. This TPU infill 42 provides durability in case the racquet 1 is impacted against a hard surface during use. Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device of the invention may be made while retaining the teachings and benefits of the invention. Component List 1. Racquet 2. Handle 2a. Centreline 3. Head 4. Intermediate bridge portion 5. Striking face 6. Striking face 7. Shoulder portion 8. Tubular frame portion 9. Shoulder channel 10. Shoulder channel 11. Channel thickness 12. Depth 13. Outer edge 14. Channel wall 15. Bridge channel 16. Bridge channel 17. Channel side wall 17a Channel side wall 18. V-shaped angle 19. Through hole, hollow’ bridge 20. Bridge channel walls 21. V-shaped hole 22. Rounded portion 23. Dual hollow portions 24. Mould half 24a. Mould half 25. Insert 26. Inward extension 27. Inward extension 27a Angled side 27b Angled side 28. TPU strip 29. Curved TPU strip 30. Head perforation holes 31. Racquet 32. Handle 33. Head 34. Bridge portion 35. Hollow channel 36. Hollow channel 37. Angled side wall 37a. Angled side wall 38. Tubular frame portion 39. Though hole 41. Racquet 42. TPU infill 43. Head 49. Shoulder channel 50. Shoulder channel

Claims

1. A racquet for playing padel tennis or similar games including a handle and a head which head includes an intermediate bridge portion connecting the head to the handle, the head including first and second ball-striking faces for striking resilient balls in mutually parallel planes, the handle and head being moulded together from resin and including fibres forming a composite material in a single monocoque construction and defining a centreline extending through the centre of the handle and the head and a central plane that extends centrally through the head parallel with the first and second striking faces; wherein first and second hollow channels are provided arranged on each side of the centreline in the head and each hollow channel extending along a portion of an outside edge of the head and inwardly from a portion of the outside edge of the head towards the centreline of the head and defining first and second side walls 17, 17a in between the first and second ball striking faces, characterised in that the first and second hollow channels are located at the intermediate bridge portion of the head and meet to form a continuous hollow, or through hole, extending from a first edge portion, on one side of the head, to a second edge portion on an opposition side of the head, and that the first and second side walls 17, 17a are flared outwardly with respect to each other.

2. A racquet according to claim 1, wherein a second set of first and second hollow channels extend circumferentially at the top shoulder portion of the head.

3. A racquet according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein each of the second set of first and second hollow channels extend along a portion of the circumference of the head between an apex of the head and extending up to 90 degrees from the apex.

4. A racquet according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein each of the second set of first and second hollow channels extend to a depth of between 1mm and 30mm from the outside edge to the centre of the head.

5. A racquet according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein each of the first and second hollow channels extends to thickness of between 5mm and 25 mm.

6. A racquet according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein each of the first and second hollow channels extends to an equal extent above and below the central plane and comprise channel walls which support the corresponding first and second striking faces.

7. A racquet according to claim 6, wherein the hollow walls are between 2mm and 10mm thickness.

8. A racquet according to claim 1, wherein the first and second hollow channels extend circumferentially at the lower bridge portion of the head.

9. A racquet according claim 1, wherein the two sets of first and second hollow channels are provided being a second shoulder set in the upper shoulder portion of the head and a first bridge set in the intermediate bridge portion 4 of the head.

10. A racquet accordion claim 9, wherein the channels of the first bridge set extend to a greater depth than the channels of the second shoulder set.

11. A racquet according to any preceding claim, wherein the racquet is formed as a monocoque moulding and the hollows are formed by mould inserts.

12. A racquet according to any preceding claim wherein the first and second striking faces have a diameter of between 40mm and 90mm and a weight of between 7g and 80g.

13. A racquet according to claim 1, characterised in that the hollow channels are at least partially filled with a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) material.

14. A racquet according to claim 13, wherein the TPU is in the form of a strip formed into a curved shape that corresponds to the shape of the hollow channels and fixed in the channel with adhesive.

15. A method of manufacturing a racquet of the type defined in claim 1, including the steps of providing upper and lower mould halves and upper and lower tubular fibrous frame parts of polymeric material, to form a tubular outer frame 8, completing the filling of the mould, curing the mould material, characterised in that plate extensions 27 are arranged between the upper and lower tubular fibrous frame parts, and when cured, removing the plate extensions to form a through hollow 19 in the intermediate bridge part of the racquet.

16. A method of claim 15, characterised in that the plate extensions 27 are shaped with angled sides 17, 19, so they may be readily be removed when the moulding is complete, and the through hollows 15,16 in the racquet are formed by the correspondingly angled sides 17, 19 which are defined by the angled sides 27a, 27b of the plate extensions 27.

17. A method of claim 16 characterised in that the angles of the angled sides 27a, 27b, are such that the angled sides 27a, 27b are non-parallel but are flared outwardly from the centre line 2a to the outer edge 13 of the racquet 1.

18. A method of claim 17, characterised in that the outer frame part 8 of the racquet is in the form of a double tube.T +44(0)30 0300 2000A

Images