Patents by Inventor James W. Sorenson

James W. Sorenson has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20240342573
    Abstract: An apparatus for and method of training a user's swing for sports. The user grasps a main shaft and positions the main shaft adjacent to a back shoulder when assuming a golf stance or batter's stance. The user supports a shape structure mounted to the main shaft in an orientation wherein the shape structure is facing upwards for golf swing training and faces downwards for baseball or softball swing training. The shape structure may be square in shape. The shape structure and main shaft have a center of mass that is offset from the longitudinal axis of the main shaft. The main shaft may have a segment of reduced diameter, e.g., a proximal shaft segment and a segment of shape diameter, e.g. a distal shaft segment. The proximal shaft segment may define grip features. The main shaft may be of solid construction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 20, 2024
    Publication date: October 17, 2024
    Inventor: JAMES W. SORENSON
  • Publication number: 20230082447
    Abstract: A roller assembly for smoothing an expanse of granular media such as golf bunker sand, snow, horse race track dirt, or other media. The assembly has one or more rollers having a longitudinal axis. Each roller includes wires spaced from the axis to define a roller surface. Each wire is resiliently flexible to distort inwardly in response to force of contact on, and to recover during release of force from, the granular media as the roller rotates about the axis on the granular media. A shaft extends along the axis of the roller assembly between the arms of a yoke with a handle extending therefrom. As the roller surface traverses the media, at least some of the media is flung outwardly of the roller, smoothing the expanse. The roller assembly may be manually operated or may be towed behind a towing apparatus.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 16, 2022
    Publication date: March 16, 2023
    Inventors: James W. Sorenson, Steven M. Tipton
  • Patent number: 11439052
    Abstract: A roller assembly for smoothing an expanse of granular media such as golf bunker sand, snow, horse race track dirt, or other media. The assembly has one or more rollers having a longitudinal axis. Each roller includes wires spaced from the axis to define a roller surface. Each wire is resiliently flexible to distort inwardly in response to force of contact on, and to recover during release of force from, the granular media as the roller rotates about the axis on the granular media. A shaft extends along the axis of the roller assembly between the arms of a yoke with a handle extending therefrom. As the roller surface traverses the media, at least some of the media is flung outwardly of the roller, smoothing the expanse. The roller assembly may be manually operated or may be towed behind a towing apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2022
    Assignee: Momentus Golf, Inc.
    Inventors: James W. Sorenson, Steven M. Tipton
  • Publication number: 20190254219
    Abstract: A roller assembly for smoothing an expanse of granular media such as golf bunker sand, snow, horse race track dirt, or other media. The assembly has one or more rollers having a longitudinal axis. Each roller includes wires spaced from the axis to define a roller surface. Each wire is resiliently flexible to distort inwardly in response to force of contact on, and to recover during release of force from, the granular media as the roller rotates about the axis on the granular media. A shaft extends along the axis of the roller assembly between the arms of a yoke with a handle extending therefrom. As the roller surface traverses the media, at least some of the media is flung outwardly of the roller, smoothing the expanse. The roller assembly may be manually operated or may be towed behind a towing apparatus.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2018
    Publication date: August 22, 2019
    Inventors: James W. Sorenson, Steven M. Tipton
  • Publication number: 20180304131
    Abstract: A grip for a shaft for a golf club, the golf club comprising a head provided at a first end of the shaft and a second end of the shaft corresponding to the hand placement area on which the grip is formed, and a method for forming such a grip are disclosed. A grip comprises a sleeve of heat-shrinkable material adapted to be inserted over the second end and an under listing positioned along the second end, wherein the sleeve is inserted over the second end and the under listing positioned thereon, and shrinks onto the second end upon heat application. A method for forming a grip comprises positioning an under listing along the second end, inserting a sleeve of heat-shrinkable material over the second end and the under listing positioned thereon, applying heat to the sleeve such that the sleeve shrinks onto the second end.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 25, 2017
    Publication date: October 25, 2018
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Patent number: 9757635
    Abstract: An athletic swing trainer permits an athlete to swing a trainer at speeds far in excess of the athlete's conventional swing speeds and to confirm to the athlete that the practice swings made with the trainer at these extremely high speeds have been technically properly executed. Armed with this experience, the athlete is then able to swing the athlete's own conventional club, bat or racquet at speeds which, though lower than the athlete's trainer swing speeds, are significantly higher than the athlete's conventional club swing speeds. After six or seven trainer swings, an athlete's swing speed at point of contact of a conventional golf club, bat or racquet with a corresponding ball is typically increased in a range of 5 to 15%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Patent number: 9687718
    Abstract: A tennis serve trainer mechanically encourages and causes the execution of a counter-intuitive hitting-up-on-the-ball service swing. The trainer has a straight shaft and a ball which can slide freely on the shaft between a tennis racquet grip on one end and a cap on the other. The ball is magnetically held against the grip until a threshold swing speed releases the ball. The magnetic force, the distance from the grip to the cap and the weight of the ball are coordinated so that the ball will strike the cap at the apex of the swing. At that moment, the arm is fully extended, the racquet head speed is accelerated to its maximum, the angle of attack is ideal, the ball and the racquet meet at the perfect impact point at the apex of the serve, and a snap in the racquet motion happens automatically at the top of the swing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Patent number: 8540584
    Abstract: An athletic swing trainer permits an athlete to swing a trainer at speeds far in excess of the athlete's conventional swing speeds and to confirm to the athlete that the practice swings made with the trainer at these extremely high speeds have been technically properly executed. Armed with this experience, the athlete is then able to swing the athlete's own conventional club, bat or racquet at speeds which, though lower than the athlete's trainer swing speeds, are significantly higher than the athlete's conventional club swing speeds. After six or seven trainer swings, an athlete's swing speed at point of contact of a conventional golf club, bat or racquet with a corresponding ball is typically increased in a range of 5 to 15%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 24, 2013
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Patent number: 7766763
    Abstract: A golf stroke training device includes a base that has a first section and a second section, and a vertical guide coupled to the base. The vertical guide is substantially perpendicular to the base. The first section has an arc extending from an approximate midpoint of the device to a first end of the device, and the second section comprises a substantially straight edge extending from the approximate midpoint of the device to a second end of the device. In another embodiment, the second section comprises a substantially straight edge extending from the approximate midpoint towards the target and an inside along an arc.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 3, 2010
    Assignee: Momentus Golf
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Patent number: 7666107
    Abstract: A golf stroke training device includes a base that has a first section and a second section, and a vertical guide coupled to the base. The vertical guide is substantially perpendicular to the base. The first section has an arc extending from an approximate midpoint of the device to a first end of the device, and the second section comprises a substantially straight edge extending from the approximate midpoint of the device to a second end of the device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2010
    Assignee: Momentus Golf
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Publication number: 20100035699
    Abstract: A golf training device includes a template. The template has a passageway in it to receive a golf ball, and at least one hole on each side of the template to receive a golf tee or similar structure. The golf tee on each side of the passageway creates a boundary through which a putter can pass and strike the golf ball in the passageway.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 8, 2008
    Publication date: February 11, 2010
    Applicant: Momentus Golf
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Publication number: 20090286614
    Abstract: A golf stroke training device includes a base that has a first section and a second section, and a vertical guide coupled to the base. The vertical guide is substantially perpendicular to the base. The first section has an arc extending from an approximate midpoint of the device to a first end of the device, and the second section comprises a substantially straight edge extending from the approximate midpoint of the device to a second end of the device. In another embodiment, the second section comprises a substantially straight edge extending from the approximate midpoint towards the target and an inside along an arc.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 20, 2008
    Publication date: November 19, 2009
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Publication number: 20090286613
    Abstract: A golf stroke training device includes a base that has a first section and a second section, and a vertical guide coupled to the base. The vertical guide is substantially perpendicular to the base. The first section has an arc extending from an approximate midpoint of the device to a first end of the device, and the second section comprises a substantially straight edge extending from the approximate midpoint of the device to a second end of the device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 14, 2008
    Publication date: November 19, 2009
    Applicant: Momentus Golf
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Patent number: 7607991
    Abstract: A putter club head has a longitudinal body and a means of attaching a shaft thereto. The body may be solid, hollow, or partially hollow or solid. If hollow or partially hollow, the body may have a weighted mass therein. Such a weighted mass may be located towards a front section of the club head near a ball striking surface. The means to attach a shaft is located in the rear section of said body in proximity to the distal end of the rear section of said body. The shaft may curve and bend so that it is oriented near the center of the body and towards a golfer addressing a golf ball.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2004
    Date of Patent: October 27, 2009
    Assignee: Momentus Golf
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Publication number: 20080032812
    Abstract: In an embodiment, a golf club driver includes a club head and a shaft attached to the club head. In a particular embodiment, the ratio of the weight of the club head to the weight of the shaft is within the range of approximately 1.2 to approximately 1.6.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 4, 2006
    Publication date: February 7, 2008
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Patent number: 6358157
    Abstract: A golf swing strength trainer has a shaft of length not greater than that of a standard golf club shaft. A golf grip is fixed to one end of the shaft. A golf club head is fixed to the other end of the shaft. A pair of substantially equal weights is fixed concentrically on the shaft, one on each end of the grip, the center of gravity of the weights taken together being located substantially at a lengthwise center of the grip. Preferably, the weights abut the opposite ends of the grip. In use, as the axis of the shaft comes into horizontal and vertical alignment, the horizontal distance of the weights from the center of gravity is maximized and minimized. This relationship seems to trigger rather than inhibit the transitional phases of the swing. Since the weights, regardless of their anglular position, are equally displaced from the center of the grip, they tend to enhance rather than inhibit flow and transition of primary movers in the proper swing plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2000
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2002
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson
  • Patent number: 5582407
    Abstract: A golf swing trainer employs a solid steel shaft homogeneously weighted throughout its entire length. One end of the shaft is fitted with a standard golf club grip and the other end of the shaft is fitted with a rubber tip to afford some protection for walls, floors and furnishings should the golfer elect to use the device indoors. A golf club head can be used instead of this tip for visual or psychological reasons. The top of the shaft bears a straight line indicia as a club face reference. The homogeneously weighted shaft so closely positions the center of gravity of the training device to the center of gravity of an actual golf club on a correct swing path as to break down incorrect muscle memory and simultaneously develop the muscle memory appropriate to the correct golf swing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 10, 1996
    Inventor: James W. Sorenson