US20020077010A1

US20020077010A1 - Swimming aid system

Info

Publication number: US20020077010A1
Application number: US09/740,311
Authority: US
Inventors: George Lukas
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2000-12-18
Filing date: 2000-12-18
Publication date: 2002-06-20

Abstract

Swimming Aid System with a pair of arm paddles, a pair of ankle paddles, each the paddle removably secured by adjustable nylon straps and associated snap closures, each the paddle capable of rotating about a central axial plane, each the paddle molded of high density polypropalyne plastic or the like, and each the paddle capable of remaining on the users arm or ankle without conscious holding effort on the part of the user. A preferred embodiment includes wherein said leg paddles are affixed to the users ankles, said paddles having a narrower portion where said paddle contacts said ankle and wider, paddle portions to each side of said narrow portion.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to the field of swimming accessories, and more particularly to an improved swimming aid system.

Swimming aids have been in existence for many years. They include various types of swim fins and also hand gloves and paddles that increase surface area of the swimmers feet and arms thereby increasing the possible forward propulsion of the swimmer.

In particular, G. B. Woods patented a swim fin device in his U.S. Pat. No. 2,950,487 that discloses a paddle that attaches to the users foot. Additionally, G. G. Robertson, in his U.S. Pat. No. 1,715,571 discloses a paddle that attaches to a users arm.

Although these two patents go a long way to disclose a method to enhance a persons ability to swim by using increased surface area, they are deficient in a number of aspects. The Woods patent discloses a method of attaching the fin device to the foot that is cumbersome, and difficult to easily adapt to the users foot size. Additionally the two part construction is expensive and the use of a discrete pivot point actually provides too much pivot ability for this particular application. Although a pivot action is desirable, too much pivot action will cause the paddle portion to pivot too easily and therefore not produce the desired water resistance action. The arm paddle disclosed in the Robertson patent also has some disadvantages. First, the user is required to manually hold onto the end of the paddle and if he or she accidentally lets go, the paddle will flop downwards in an undesirable way. Secondly, the retaining strap disclosed is located toward the bottom end of the paddle thereby making it impossible for the paddle to pivot in any way. My experiments have shown that if the strap is moved closer to the users hand, a pivoting action can take place that makes it possible for the user to bend his or her wrists which is a natural and desired action in the swimming process.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary object of the invention is To provide a swimming aid system that incorporates a pair of surface enhancing paddles that can removably attach to a users hand and arm as well as a pair of surface area enhancing paddles that can be removably attached to a persons ankles.

Another object of the invention is to provide a swimming aid system that does not interfere with the users ability to walk.

Another object of the invention is to provide a swimming aid system that is very easy to put on and take off.

A further object of the invention is to provide a swimming aid system that does not overly imping on or restrict the users arms, hands, legs or ankles.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a swimming aid system that provides a balanced thrust enhancement to both arms and legs thereby maximizing the swimmers entire swim stroke.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following descriptions, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed.

Swimming Aid System comprising: a pair of arm paddles, a pair of ankle paddles, each said paddle removably secured by adjustable nylon straps and associated snap closures, each said paddle capable of rotating about a central axial plane, each said paddle molded of high density polypropalyne plastic or the like, and each said paddle capable of remaining on the users arm or ankle without conscious holding effort on the part of the user.

The drawings constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments to the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. It is to be understood that in some instances various aspects of the invention may be shown exaggerated or enlarged to facilitate an understanding of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the foot paddle of the present invention [0013]
FIG. 2 is a side view of the foot paddle of the present invention in the neutral position [0014]
FIG. 3 is a side view of the foot paddle of the present invention in the forward thrust position [0015]
FIG. 4 is a side view of the foot paddle of the present invention in the rear thrust position [0016]
FIG. 5 is a top view of the hand paddle of the present invention [0017]
FIG. 6 is a side view of the hand paddle of the present invention [0018]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiment are provided herein. It is to be understood, however, that the present invention may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but rather as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed system, structure or manner. [0019]
Referring now to FIG. 1 we see a front perspective view of the foot paddle of the [0020] present invention 100. Paddle portions 13, 14 are connected by a thinner central strip 12. strip 12 is concave on its top and bottom to allow for the flexing of foot 42 as it joins leg 11 at the ankle. All outer corners of the paddle 13, 14, 12 are radiused to reduce the chance to the paddles to cause unwanted abrasion to adjacent skin. Retaining straps 29, 30 are held in place as they are threaded through retaining apertures 25, 27 and 26, 28. The added surface area provided by paddles 13, 14 helps increase the swimmers forward thrust without producing cramping in the foot, which is a common problem found when using swim fins. The foot paddle 100 of the present invention is manufactured from a high density polypropalene or polyethelyne. Both plastics are inexpensive to manufacture and are lighter than water, so if they accidentally fall off, they will float. FIG. 2 shows a side view of the foot paddle of the present invention. The paddle 14 is held onto the users leg 11 by nylon strap 31. The strap is easily adjustable by pulling the nylon strap end 35 through standard buckle 33 until tight. This method of attachment is quick and easy. The degree of pivot potential afforded by the retaining strap 30 has proved to be ideal in that there is some resistance to pivot yet the connection is loose enough that some pivot is allowable as shown by FIGS. 3 and 4. The pivot action reduces the tenancy of the users foot to cramp while still providing additional surface area needed for additional thrust to the swimmers legs. FIG. 5 shows a top view of the hand paddles of the present invention 200. The users four fingers 208 are inserted through a transverse hand rail 232. The users thumb 230 resides under the transverse hand rail 232. The user does not have to physically grip the hand rail 232 for the hand paddle to work. Ideally, the user keeps his hand in an extended position to further enhance the surface area of the swim stroke. However the user can grip the hand rail 232 if so desired. The main portion of the paddle 212 resides above the users wrist and arm and is held in place by retaining strap 240 as it passes through apertures 204, 206 in paddle 210. Buckle 210 retains nylon strap 240 and allows for tension adjustment in the standard way. The location of the nylon strap with relation to the paddle 212 is important in that it occurs at the users wrist point so that the paddle can pivot about the users wrist during use. This wrist strap location is essential for the natural wrist flex action that takes place during normal swimming. The use of both the hand paddles and the foot paddles and described above combine to create a balanced enhancement of thrust to both arms and legs of the swimmer thereby defining a complete system of swimming enhancement that can not be found by using either the hand paddles or foot paddles alone. However, it is obvious that a person could elect to use either the arm paddles or legs paddles independently. The arm and leg paddles of the present invention are easy and inexpensive to manufacture and are compact in design making them an ideal choice for swimmers to buy and take to swimming areas.
While the invention has been described in connection vAth a preferred embodiment, it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to the particular form set forth, but on the contrary, it is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. [0021]

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. Swimming Aid System comprising:

a pair of arm paddles;

a pair of ankle paddles;

each said paddle removably secured by adjustable nylon straps and associated snap closures;

each said paddle capable of rotating about a central axial plane;

each said paddle molded of high density polypropelyne plastic or the like; and

each said paddle capable of remaining on the users arm or ankle without conscious holding effort on the part of the user.

2. Swimming Aid System as claimed in claim 1 wherein said leg paddles are affixed to the users ankles, said paddles having a narrower portion where said paddle contacts said ankle and wider, paddle portions to each side of said narrow portion.

3. Swimming Aid System as claimed in claim 1 wherein said arm paddles include a forward hand gripping means.

4. Swimming Aid System as claimed in claim 1 wherein said arm paddle their said nylon strap is retained at a location that is approximately one third the distance from said hand grip portion in relation to the entire length of said arm paddle.

5. Swimming Aid System as claimed in claim 1 wherein said arm paddles and foot paddles or made of light weight plastic that floats in water.