CATCHER'S LEG GUARD

A catcher's leg guard includes an upper knee cover, a lower knee cover and a shin cover. The upper knee cover has a kneepad attached securely to an inner surface of the upper knee cover. The lower knee cover is connected rotatably to the upper knee cover. The shin cover is mounted below the lower knee cover and has an inner surface and a shin pad. The shin pad is attached securely to the inner surface of the shin cover. When a catcher is in a standing position, the upper knee cover retracts relative to the lower knee cover. When the catcher is in a squatting position, the upper knee cover and the lower knee cover are open to fully cover a knee of the catcher. Therefore, the leg guard can be securely and comfortably worn on the catcher's leg.

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Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a leg guard, and more particularly to a leg guard that can be worn on a catcher's leg securely.

2. Description of the Prior Arts

Leg guards worn in front of legs are protective equipment commonly used by catchers in baseball or softball and serve to protect the legs from impact by a ball at high speed.

With reference to FIG. 5, a conventional catcher's leg guard generally comprises a knee cover 60, a shin cover 70 and multiple straps 80. The knee cover 60 includes an inner surface and a kneepad 61. The kneepad 61 is attached to the inner surface of the knee cover 60 and extends downward to connect to the shin cover 70. The shin cover 70 includes a shin pad 71 attached to an inner surface of the shin cover 70. The straps 80 are respectively mounted on two sides of the kneepad 61 and the shin cover 70. In use, the straps 80 are fastened around a shank 91 and a thigh 92 to make the knee cover 60 and the shin cover 70 positioned on a knee and the shank 91.

A catcher's knees act regularly because the catcher must be either in a squatting position to catch a ball delivered by a pitcher or in a standing position to throw a ball to another player. However, such one-piece hard knee cover 60 cannot bend in accordance with activity of the knee and thereby causes discomfort to the catcher. Besides, the knee cover 60 easily slips from the catcher's knee when the catcher changes positions and thereby the catcher must readjust the knee cover 60 to a normal position. Readjusting the knee cover 60 distracts the catcher's attention and a mistake may be made.

To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides a catcher's leg guard to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The main object of the present invention is to provide a catcher's leg guard having an upper knee cover and a lower knee cover that can rotate relative to each other in accordance with activity of a knee.

To achieve the foregoing objective, the catcher's leg guard in accordance with the present invention comprises an upper knee cover, a lower knee cover and a shin cover. The upper knee cover includes an inner surface, a shell and a kneepad. The kneepad is attached securely to the inner surface of the upper knee cover. The lower knee cover is connected rotatably to the upper knee cover. The shin cover is mounted below the lower knee cover and includes an inner surface and a shin pad. The shin pad is attached securely to the inner surface of the shin cover. When a catcher is in a standing position, the upper knee cover retracts relative to the lower knee cover. When the catcher is in a squatting position, the upper knee cover and the lower knee cover are open to fully cover a knee of the catcher. Therefore, the leg guard can be securely and comfortably worn on the catcher's leg.

Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a catcher's leg guard in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged exploded perspective view of the catcher's leg guard in FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are operational side views of the catcher's leg guard in FIG. 1 showing that the leg guard is worn on a leg; and

FIG. 5 is an operational side view of a conventional catcher's leg guard in accordance with the prior art.

 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

With reference to FIG. 1, a catcher's leg guard in accordance with the present invention comprises an upper knee cover 10, a lower knee cover 20 and a shin cover 30.

With further reference to FIG. 2, the upper knee cover 10 includes an inner surface, a curved shell 11, a connecting sheet 12 and a kneepad 13. The shell 11 has a curved outer surface, two sides, a top edge, two pivoting holes 111, two guiding blocks. 112, a connecting portion 113 and a barrier protrusion 114. The pivoting holes 111 are respectively formed through the sides of the shell 11. The guiding blocks 112 respectively protrude from the sides of the shell 11 and are respectively adjacent to the pivoting holes 111. The connecting portion 113 extends from the top edge of the shell 11. The barrier protrusion 114 is formed on and protrudes from a bottom edge of the connecting portion 113. The connecting sheet 12 is connected pivotally to the connecting portion 113 of the shell 11, is positioned above the connecting portion 113 of the shell 11 and has an upper elastic strap 121. The upper elastic strap 121 is connected to the connecting sheet 12 at a middle portion and has two ends and two fabric strips 122,123. One fabric strip 122 is mounted on one of the ends of the upper elastic strap 121 and has tiny hooks. The other fabric strip 123 is mounted on the other end of the upper elastic strap 121 and has tiny loops engaging the tiny hooks. The kneepad 13 is attached securely to the inner surface of the upper knee cover 10.

The lower knee cover 20 is connected rotatably to and covers the shell 11 of the upper knee cover 10, is a curved shell and includes a curved inner surface, two sides, a top edge, a bottom edge, two pivoting holes 21, two curved guiding slots 22 and two pins 23. The curved inner surface of the lower knee cover 20 corresponds to the curved outer surface of the shell 11 of the upper knee cover 10. The pivoting holes 21 are respectively formed through the sides of the lower knee cover 20 and respectively align with the pivoting holes 111 of the upper knee cover 10. The guiding slots 22 are respectively formed through the sides of the lower knee cover 20 and respectively adjacent to the pivoting holes 21 for receiving the guiding blocks 112 of the upper knee cover 10 and allowing the guiding blocks 112 of the upper knee cover 10 to move along the guiding slots 22. The pins 23 are respectively mounted through the pivoting holes 111 of the upper knee cover 10 and respectively extend through the pivoting holes 21 of the lower knee cover 20 to connect the upper knee cover 10 and the lower knee cover 20 pivotally.

The shin cover 30 is mounted below the lower knee cover 20, is an inverted triangle-shaped shell and includes two sides, a top end, a bottom end, an inner surface, two pairs of corresponding lower elastic straps 31,31A, a shin pad 32 and an instep pad 33. The two pairs of the lower elastic straps 31,31A are respectively mounted on the top end and the bottom end of the shin cover 30. One lower elastic strap 31 of each pair has a fixed end, a free end and a loop 311. The fixed end of the lower elastic strap 31 is mounted securely on one side of the shin cover 30. The loop 311 is connected to the free end of the lower elastic strap 31. The other lower elastic strap 31A of each pair has a fixed end, a free end, a hook 311A and an adjusting ring 312A. The fixed end of the lower elastic strap 31A is mounted securely on the other side of the shin cover 30. The hook 311A is connected to the free end of the lower elastic strap 31A and engages the loop 311. The adjusting ring 312A is mounted on the elastic strap 31A for adjusting a length of the lower elastic strap 31A. The shin pad 32 is attached securely to the inner surface of the shin cover 30 and has a top end and a bottom end. The top end of the shin pad 32 is securely mounted on the bottom edge of the lower knee cover 20. The instep pad 33 extends downward from the bottom end of the shin pad 32.

With reference to FIG. 3, when the leg guard in accordance with the present invention is worn by a catcher, the lower elastic straps 31,31A and the upper elastic strap 121 are respectively fastened around a shank 40 and a thigh 50 to make the upper and lower knee covers 10,20 and the shin cover 30 respectively positioned on a knee and the shank 40.

When the catcher is in a standing position, the upper knee cover 10 retracts relative to the lower knee cover 20, the top edge of the lower knee cover 20 abuts the barrier protrusion 114 of the upper knee cover 10 and the guiding blocks 112 of the upper knee cover 10 abut bottom hole surfaces of the guiding slots 22 of the lower knee cover 20. With reference to FIG. 4, when the catcher is in a squatting position, the thigh 50 and the shank 40 move and respectively drive the upper knee cover 10 and the lower knee cover 20 to open and to fully cover the knee of the catcher, and meanwhile the guiding blocks 112 of the upper knee cover 10 abut top hole surfaces of the guiding slots 22 of the lower knee cover 20. Therefore, the leg guard can be comfortably and securely worn on the catcher's leg because the upper and lower knee covers 10,20 can rotate relative to each other in accordance with activity of the catcher's knee.

Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and features of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.

Claims

1. A catcher's leg guard comprising:

an upper knee cover including an inner surface; a shell; and a kneepad attached securely to the inner surface of the upper knee cover;
a lower knee cover connected rotatably to the upper knee cover; and
a shin cover mounted below the lower knee cover and including a shin pad attached securely to an inner surface of the shin cover.

2. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has a curved outer surface; and
the lower knee cover. coven the shell of the upper knee cover and includes a curved inner surface corresponding to the curved outer surface of the shell of the upper knee cover.

3. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has two guiding blocks respectively protruding from two sides of the shell; and
the lower knee cover includes two guiding slots respectively formed through two sides of the lower knee cover for receiving the guiding blocks of the upper knee cover and allowing the guiding blocks of the upper knee cover to move along the guiding slots.

4. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 2, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has two guiding blocks respectively protruding from two sides of the shell; and
the lower knee cover includes two guiding holes respectively formed through two sides of the lower knee cover for receiving the guiding blocks of the upper knee cover and allowing the guiding blocks of the upper knee cover to move along the guiding holes.

5. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 3, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover further has two pivoting holes respectively formed through the sides of the shell; and
the lower knee cover further includes two pivoting holes respectively formed through the sides of the lower knee cover and respectively aligning with the pivoting holes of the upper knee cover; and two pins respectively mounted through the pivoting holes of the upper knee cover and respectively extending through the pivoting holes of the lower knee cover.

6. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 4, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover further has two pivoting holes respectively formed through the sides of the shell; and
the lower knee cover further includes two pivoting holes respectively formed through the sides of the lower knee cover and respectively aligning with the pivoting holes of the upper knee cover; and two pins respectively mounted through the pivoting holes of the upper knee cover and respectively extending through the pivoting holes of the lower knee cover.

7. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 1, wherein the shin pad of the shin cover has

a top end securely mounted on a bottom edge of the lower knee cover; and
a bottom end extending downward to form a shin pad.

8. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 2, wherein the shin pad of the shin cover has

a top end securely mounted on a bottom edge of the lower knee cover; and
a bottom end extending downward to form a shin pad.

9. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 3, wherein the shin pad of the shin cover has

a top end securely mounted on a bottom edge of the lower knee cover; and
a bottom end extending downward to form a shin pad.

10. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 4, wherein the shin pad of the shin cover has

a top end securely mounted on a bottom edge of the lower knee cover; and
a bottom end extending downward to form a shin pad.

11. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 5, wherein the shin pad of the shin cover has

a top end securely mounted on a bottom edge of the lower knee cover; and
a bottom end extending downward to form a shin pad.

12. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 6, wherein the shin pad of the shin cover has

a top end securely mounted on a bottom edge of the lower knee cover; and
a bottom end extending downward to form a shin pad.

13. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has a connecting portion extending from a top edge of the shell;
the upper knee cover further includes a connecting sheet connected pivotally to the connecting portion of the shell and having an upper elastic strap having two ends; and two fabric strips, one fabric strip mounted on one of the ends of the upper elastic strap and having tiny hooks and the other fabric strip mounted on the other end of the upper elastic strap and having tiny loops engaging the tiny hooks; and
the shin cover further includes two sides; a top end; a bottom end; and two pairs of corresponding lower elastic straps respectively mounted on the top end and the bottom end of the shin cover, one lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on one side of the shin cover and having a loop and the other lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on the other side of the shin cover and having a hook engaging the loop.

14. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 2, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has a connecting portion extending from a top edge of the shell;
the upper knee cover further includes a connecting sheet connected pivotally to the connecting portion of the shell and having an upper elastic strap having two ends; and two fabric strips, one fabric strip mounted on one of the ends of the upper elastic strap and having tiny hooks and the other fabric strip mounted on the other end of the upper elastic strap and having tiny loops engaging the tiny hooks; and
the shin cover further includes two sides; a top end; a bottom end; and two pairs of corresponding lower elastic straps respectively mounted on the top end and the bottom end of the shin cover, one lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on one side of the shin cover and having a loop and the other lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on the other side of the shin cover and having a hook engaging the loop.

15. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 3, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has a connecting portion extending from a top edge of the shell;
the upper knee cover further includes a connecting sheet connected pivotally to the connecting portion of the shell and having an upper elastic strap having two ends; and two fabric strips, one fabric strip mounted on one of the ends of the upper elastic strap and having tiny hooks and the other fabric strip mounted on the other end of the upper elastic strap and having tiny loops engaging the tiny hooks; and
the shin cover further includes two sides; a top end; a bottom end; and two pairs of corresponding lower elastic straps respectively mounted on the top end and the bottom end of the shin cover, one lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on one side of the shin cover and having a loop and the other lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on the other side of the shin cover and having a hook engaging the loop.

16. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 4, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has a connecting portion extending from a top edge of the shell;
the upper knee cover further includes a connecting sheet connected pivotally to the connecting portion of the shell and having an upper elastic strap having two ends; and two fabric strips, one fabric strip mounted on one of the ends of the upper elastic strap and having tiny hooks and the other fabric strip mounted on the other end of the upper elastic strap and having tiny loops engaging the tiny hooks; and
the shin cover further includes two sides; a top end; a bottom end; and
two pairs of corresponding lower elastic straps respectively mounted on the top end and the bottom end of the shin cover, one lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on one side of the shin cover and having a loop and the other lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on the other side of the shin cover and having a hook engaging the loop.

17. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 5 wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has a connecting portion extending from a top edge of the shell;
the upper knee cover further includes a connecting sheet connected pivotally to the connecting portion of the shell and having an upper elastic strap having two ends; and two fabric strips, one fabric strip mounted on one of the ends of the upper elastic strap and having tiny hooks and the other fabric strip mounted on the other end of the upper elastic strap and having tiny loops engaging the tiny hooks; and
the shin cover further includes two sides; a top end; a bottom end; and two pairs of corresponding lower elastic straps respectively mounted on the top end and the bottom end of the shin cover, one lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on one side of the shin cover and having a loop and the other lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on the other side of the shin cover and having a hook engaging the loop.

18. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 6, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has a connecting portion extending from a top edge of the shell;
the upper knee cover further includes a connecting sheet connected pivotally to the connecting portion of the shell and having an upper elastic strap having two ends; and two fabric strips, one fabric strip mounted on one of the ends of the upper elastic strap and having tiny hooks and the other fabric strip mounted on the other end of the upper elastic strap and having tiny loops engaging the tiny hooks; and
the shin cover further includes two sides; a top end; a bottom end; and two pairs of corresponding lower elastic straps respectively mounted on the top end and the bottom end of the shin cover, one lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on one side of the shin cover and having a loop and the other lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on the other side of the shin cover and having a hook engaging the loop.

19. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 7, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has a connecting portion extending from a top edge of the shell;
the upper knee cover further includes a connecting sheet connected pivotally to the connecting portion of the shell and having an upper elastic strap having two ends; and two fabric strips, one fabric strip mounted on one of the ends of the upper elastic strap and having tiny hooks and the other fabric strip mounted on the other end of the upper elastic strap and having tiny loops engaging the tiny hooks; and
the shin cover further includes two sides; a top end; a bottom end; and two pairs of corresponding lower elastic straps respectively mounted on the top end and the bottom end of the shin cover, one lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on one side of the shin cover and having a loop and the other lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on the other side of the shin cover and having a hook engaging the loop.

20. The catcher's leg guard as claimed in claim 8, wherein

the shell of the upper knee cover has a connecting portion extending from a top edge of the shell;
the upper knee cover further includes a connecting sheet connected pivotally to the connecting portion of the shell and having an upper elastic strap having two ends; and two fabric strips, one fabric strip mounted on one of the ends of the upper elastic strap and having tiny hooks and the other fabric strip mounted on the other end of the upper elastic strap and having tiny loops engaging the tiny hooks; and
the shin cover further includes two sides; a top end; a bottom end; and two pairs of two corresponding lower elastic straps respectively mounted on the top end and the bottom end of the shin cover, one lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on one side of the shin cover and having a loop and the other lower elastic strap of each pair mounted securely on the other side of the shin cover and having a hook engaging the loop.
Patent History
Publication number: 20130025017
Type: Application
Filed: Jul 28, 2011
Publication Date: Jan 31, 2013
Applicant: MINSON ENTERPRISES CO., LTD. (Taipei)
Inventor: TAI-HENG CHEN (Taipei)
Application Number: 13/193,526
Classifications
Current U.S. Class: Leg (2/22)
International Classification: A41D 13/06 (20060101);