Lacrosse net

Abstract

A modified form of a lacrosse net provides increased adherence, integrity, and “give” as a result of a coating applied to the fibers. In one form, the fibers are manually coated by brushing them with a natural latex mixture followed by evaporation of the volatile components, which gives the coated fibers a tacky and energy absorbent nature. The soft nature of the coating may also aid in dissipating energy during impact with the ball, and this could contribute to the sense of increased “feel.” There are many natural and synthetic polymers that might be capable of delivering similar benefits, including conventional synthetic elastomers, e.g., butyl rubber. Thermoplastic elastomers are a growing field of interest in coating technologies, and with the appropriate tuning, they can be made with all of the same properties as the natural rubber coating. A brush-on method delivers the desired coating thickness and properties, but other methods, such as dip coating and spray coating, may increase feasibility for scaling-up the process. In one arrangement, the entire fiber is composed of a rubbery material. The resulting properties may not be exactly what is desired, however, because the underlying integrity of the nylon fiber would be absent, and this might result in netting with a “springy” feel.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

N/A

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates generally to netting for lacrosse sticks and, in one of its aspects to material or a coating material for the netting.

2. Description of Related Art

Netting for lacrosse sticks are made of many materials, but typical materials are leather or nylon. The different materials give a different feel to the stick and netting during play.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A modified form of a lacrosse net provides increased adherence, integrity, and “give” as a result of a coating applied to the fibers. In one form, the fibers are manually coated by brushing them with a natural latex mixture followed by evaporation of the volatile components. Natural latex is essentially a mixture of small natural rubber particles suspended in water with the aid of a surfactant. When the aqueous media is evaporated after application, the remaining coating is composed largely of natural rubber, which in addition to providing the expected, albeit small (due to the integrity of the underlying nylon fibers), increase in elasticity, also yields a fiber finish with an increased coefficient of friction, giving rise to the “tacky” feeling that results in increased ball control. It is important to note, however, that the tacky nature of the coating does not cause it to be overly “sticky,” such that it would become quickly obscured by dirt or other foreign materials. Rather, a nice balance is present.

The tacky and energy absorbent nature of the modified fibers provides the greatest benefit over the conventional technology in which the netting is composed of either leather or uncoated nylon. The tackiness results from the rubber coating generally existing at a temperature above its glass transition temperature (T_g) during normal use. From an application point of view, this is the temperature above which a natural or synthetic polymer transforms from a hard, often brittle plastic, to a soft, malleable, and often tacky material. Because room temperature is well above the T_g of natural rubber, the fibers are coated with a material that provides the observed tackiness and elasticity even when wet. The soft nature of the coating may also aid in dissipating energy during impact with the ball, and this could contribute to the sense of increased “feel.”

There are many natural and synthetic polymers that have T_g values below room temperature and might be capable of delivering similar benefits. In general, conventional synthetic elastomers, e.g., butyl rubber, can offer some of the same advantages, provided there is an application method that is equally facile. Thermoplastic elastomers are a growing field of interest in coating technologies, and with the appropriate tuning, they can be made with all of the same properties as the natural rubber coating. The benefit of thermoplastic elastomers lies in that fact that they are completely synthetic, relatively inexpensive, easily-processed, and, most importantly, can be precisely tailored for specific properties through variation of composition. While the natural latex coating is inexpensive and can be applied easily, thermoplastic elastomers can be prepared with a finely-tuned balance of elasticity and tackiness in order to impart a combination of properties that approaches that of an ideal coating. More generally, a coating composed of any polymer that provides increased fiber integrity, elasticity, and tackiness, regardless of T_g or elasticity would be a candidate for the coating.

Regarding the method of application, a brush-on method certainly delivers the desired coating thickness and properties, but other methods may increase feasibility for scaling-up the process. Certainly dip coating and spray coating are attractive because they are fast and could be incorporated into a continuous industrial process. By varying the concentration and/or viscosity of the solution from which the coating is applied, it may be possible to control the thickness of the coating. To a limit, a thicker coating would dissipate impact energy more efficiently and give a better sense of feel.

In one arrangement, the entire fiber is composed of a rubbery material. The resulting properties may not be exactly what is desired, however, because the underlying integrity of the nylon fiber would be absent, and this might result in netting with a “springy” feel.

These and other objects, advantages and features of this invention will be apparent from the following description taken with reference to the accompanying drawing, wherein is shown a preferred embodiment of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a cross-section of a lacrosse net according to the present invention, with a brush applying a coating according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an alternative embodiment of a lacrosse net according to the present embodiment; and

FIG. 3 is yet another alternative embodiment of a lacrosse net according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the drawing, and in particular to FIG. 1, a modified form of a lacrosse net according to the present invention, referred to generally by reference numeral 10, provides increased adherence, integrity, and “give” as a result of a coating 12 applied to the fibers 14 on one side applied by brush 16. In one form, the fibers are manually coated by brushing them with a natural latex mixture followed by evaporation of the volatile components. Natural latex is essentially a mixture of small natural rubber particles suspended in water with the aid of a surfactant. When the aqueous media is evaporated after application, the remaining coating is composed largely of natural rubber, which in addition to providing the expected, albeit small (due to the integrity of the underlying nylon fibers), increase in elasticity, also yields a fiber finish with an increased coefficient of friction, giving rise to the “tacky” feeling that results in increased ball control. It is important to note, however, that the tacky nature of the coating does not cause it to be overly “sticky,” such that it would become quickly obscured by dirt or other foreign materials. Rather, a nice balance is present.

The tacky and energy absorbent nature of the modified fibers provides the greatest benefit over the conventional technology in which the netting is composed of either leather or uncoated nylon. The tackiness results from the rubber coating generally existing at a temperature above its glass transition temperature (T_g) during normal use. From a technical point of view, the T_g is the temperature at which sufficient kinetic energy is present to facilitate segmental motion of long chain molecules (polymers). From an application point of view, this is the temperature above which a natural or synthetic polymer transforms from a hard, often brittle plastic, to a soft, malleable, and often tacky material. Because room temperature is well above the T_g of natural rubber, the fibers are coated with a material that provides the observed tackiness and elasticity (though there are other considerations that factor into the latter) even when wet. The soft nature of the coating may also aid in dissipating energy during impact with the ball, and this could contribute to the sense of increased “feel.”

There are many natural and synthetic polymers that have T_g values below room temperature and might be capable of delivering similar benefits. In general, conventional synthetic elastomers (e.g., butyl rubber) can offer some of the same advantages, provided there is an application method that is equally facile. Thermoplastic elastomers are a growing field of interest in coating technologies, and with the appropriate tuning, they can be made with all of the same properties as the natural rubber coating. The benefit of thermoplastic elastomers lies in that fact that they are completely synthetic, relatively inexpensive, easily-processed, and, most importantly, can be precisely tailored for specific properties through variation of composition. While the natural rubber coating is inexpensive and can be applied easily, thermoplastic elastomers can be prepared with a finely-tuned balance of elasticity and tackiness in order to impart a combination of properties that approaches that of an ideal coating. More generally, a coating composed of any polymer that provides increased fiber integrity, elasticity, and tackiness, regardless of T_g or elasticity could be considered.

Regarding the method of application, a brush-on method employed so far certainly delivers the desired coating thickness and properties, but other methods may increase feasibility for scaling-up the process. Referring now to FIG. 2, an alternative embodiment of a lacrosse net according to the present invention is referred to generally by reference numeral 20. Certainly dip coating and spray coating 22 of fibers 24 are attractive because they are fast and could be incorporated into a continuous industrial process. By varying the concentration and/or viscosity of the solution from which the coating is applied, it may be possible to control the thickness 16 of the coating. A thicker coating (to a limit) would dissipate impact energy more efficiently and give a better sense of feel.

Referring now to FIG. 3, yet another embodiment of a lacrosse net according to the present invention is referred to generally by reference numeral 30. A coating 32 is applied to individual fibers 34 prior to their being made into a net. In this embodiment the fibers would have similar properties to the prior embodiments but could have some relative motion between the fibers.

In one embodiment, the entire fiber is composed of a rubbery material. The resulting properties may not be exactly what is desired, however, because the underlying integrity of the nylon fiber would be absent, and this might result in netting with a “springy” feel.

From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is well adapted to attain all of the ends and objectives hereinabove set forth, together with other advantages which are inherent to the apparatus.

It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims.

As many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the figures of the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

SEQUENCE LISTING

Not Applicable

Claims

1. A lacrosse net comprising netting material and a coating applied to the fibers, wherein the net provides increased adherence, integrity, and “give” as a result of a coating applied to the fibers.

2. A lacrosse net according to claim 1, wherein the fibers are manually coated by brushing them with a natural latex mixture followed by evaporation of the volatiles.

3. A lacrosse net according to claim 2, wherein the fibers of the net are substantially coated on only the inside of the net.

4. A lacrosse net according to claim 2, wherein the fibers of the net are substantially coated on both the inside and the outside of the net.

5. A lacrosse net according to claim 1, wherein the net materials are coated prior to making the net.

6. A lacrosse net according to claim 1, wherein the fibers of the net are substantially coated on only the inside of the net.

7. A lacrosse net according to claim 1, wherein the fibers of the net are substantially coated on both the inside and the outside of the net.

8. A lacrosse net according to claim 1, wherein the entire net is substantially coated.

9. A lacrosse net comprising fiber netting material and a substantially natural rubber coating applied to the fibers, wherein the net provides increased adherence, integrity, and “give” as a result of a coating applied to the fibers.

10. A lacrosse net according to claim 9, wherein the fibers are manually coated by brushing them with a natural latex mixture followed by evaporation of the volatiles.

11. A lacrosse net according to claim 10, wherein the fibers of the net are substantially coated on only the inside of the net.

12. A lacrosse net according to claim 10, wherein the fibers of the net are substantially coated on both the inside and the outside of the net.

13. A lacrosse net according to claim 9, wherein the net materials are coated prior to making the net.

14. A lacrosse net according to claim 9, wherein the fibers of the net are substantially coated on only the inside of the net.

15. A lacrosse net according to claim 9, wherein the fibers of the net are substantially coated on both the inside and the outside of the net.

16. A lacrosse net according to claim 9, wherein the entire net is substantially coated.

17. A lacrosse net composed entirely of a material wherein the net provides increased adherence, integrity, and “give” as a result of the material.

18. A lacrosse net according to claim 17, wherein the material is natural rubber.

19. A lacrosse net comprising leather or uncoated nylon netting material and a coating applied to the fibers, wherein the net provides increased adherence, integrity, and “give” as a result of a coating applied to the fibers.

20. A lacrosse net according to claim 19, wherein the coating comprises substantially natural rubber.