FREE-STANDING SPORTS TRAINING WALL

Abstract

A free-standing sports training wall is provided, the free-standing sports training wall including a frame and a substantially smooth heat-strengthened glass panel attached to the frame. The glass panel forming at least part of a rebound surface of the free-standing sports training wall.

Claims

1. A free-standing tennis training wall, comprising: a frame; and a substantially smooth and planar heat-strengthened glass panel attached to the frame, the glass panel forming at least part of a rebound surface of the free-standing tennis training wall and wherein: the glass panel comprises markings configured to represent a tennis net.

2. The free-standing training wall as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat-strengthened glass panel is attached to the frame through attachment means, the attachment means being substantially flush with a front surface of the heat strengthened glass panel.

3. The free-standing training wall as claimed in claim 1, wherein the glass panel is configured to withstand tennis ball impacts.

4. The free-standing training wall as claimed in claim 1, wherein the glass panel has a thickness of at least approximately 12 mm.

5. The free-standing training wall as claimed in claim 1, wherein the glass panel comprises heat soaked thermally toughened soda lime silicate safety glass.

6. The free-standing training wall as claimed in claim 1, wherein the glass panel is substantially transparent.

7. The free-standing training wall as claimed in claim 1, wherein the frame comprises a plurality of mild steel posts, preferably a plurality of cold-formed mild steel posts.

8. The free-standing training wall as claimed in claim 1, wherein the free-standing sports training wall is for outdoor use.

9. A sports area comprising: a sports court; and the free-standing tennis training wall as claimed in claim 1 fixedly attached to the sports court.

10. The sports area as claimed in claim 9, wherein the sports area is a tennis court.

11. A method of providing a free-standing tennis training wall, the method comprising: assembling a free-standing frame of the free-standing tennis training wall; providing a heat treated and substantially smooth and planar glass panel to form a substantially smooth heat-strengthened glass panel of the free-standing sports training wall; applying markings configured to represent a tennis net on the glass panel; and attaching the substantially smooth and planar heat-strengthened glass panel to the free-standing frame to form at least part of a rebound surface of the free-standing sports training wall.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the markings are heat treatable markings, and the method comprises heat treating the markings such that the markings irreversibly bind to the glass panel.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the heat treating of the glass panel and the heat treating of the markings occurs simultaneously.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0050] Certain embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

[0051] FIG. 1 is a schematic front elevation of a free-standing tennis training wall;

[0052] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the free-standing tennis training wall of FIG. 1;

[0053] FIG. 3 is a partial rear elevation of the free-standing tennis training wall of FIG. 1 showing certain connection details;

[0054] FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of a sports area provided with the free-standing tennis training wall of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0055] FIG. 1 shows sports training wall 10 for practising tennis (which may also be referred to as a tennis training wall) according to an embodiment of the invention, which comprises a frame 12 and a glass panel 14 (shown in grey) as its main components. The frame 12 of the sports training wall 10 is a free-standing frame 12 formed of a plurality of posts 20, 22, 24 formed of rectangular-section steel tube.

[0056] As shown in FIG. 1, the frame 12 is formed of two vertical end posts 20, a vertical intermediate post 22, and two horizontal posts 24. The horizontal posts 24 are attached between the tops of the vertical posts 20, 22 to form the overall frame 12. The lowermost parts of the vertical posts 20, 22 set into the ground when the training wall is installed.

[0057] The glass panel 14 extends vertically from the top of the frame 12 to a point between the midpoint of the frame 12 and the bottom of the frame 12, which is above ground level when the wall is installed. It forms a smooth rebound surface of the sports training wall 10.

[0058] The glass panel 14 is attached to the frame 12 through attachment means 26. These attachment means 26 will be described in further detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.

[0059] FIG. 2 shows the attachment between the frame 12 and the glass panel 14 more clearly. As shown in FIG. 2, the glass panel 14 comprises a front surface 28 and a back surface 30. The front surface 28 faces in a forward direction A, whilst the back surface 30 faces in a backward direction B. It is the front surface 28 that forms the rebound surface of the sports training wall 10. As can be clearly seen from FIG. 2, the back surface 30 of the glass panel 14 is in contact with the vertical intermediate post 22 and the horizontal posts 24, whilst the two horizontal ends of the glass panel 14 abut the vertical end posts 20. In this way, the frame 12 supports the glass panel 14. Thus, the frame 12 provides support to the glass panel 14.

[0060] The attachment means 16 connect the frame 12 to the glass panel 14. In FIG. 2, the attachment means 16 can be seen to comprise L-shaped brackets 32 and nuts/bolts 34, 56. One leg of the L-shaped bracket 32 abuts the frame 12, whilst the other leg is spaced from the back surface 30 of the glass panel 14 by a resilient rubber spacer 52. The bolts 34 have countersunk heads received in countersunk apertures 36 in the glass panel 14 and extend through the panel and one leg of the L-shaped bracket 32 where they are secured with a nut 56. The other leg of the bracket 32 is bolted to the frame 12 by means of a bolt 34 received in a threaded aperture in the frame. Thus, the L-shaped bracket 32 and nuts/bolts 34, 56 form a secure attachment between the frame 12 and the glass panel 14. As will be seen from FIG. 1, a suitable number of attachment means is provided on each vertical post.

[0061] As noted, the forward-facing ends 38 of bolts 34 have countersunk heads, and these are substantially flush with the front surface 28 of the glass panel 14. Thus, the rebound surface of the sports training wall 10 is substantially smooth and substantially planar.

[0062] FIG. 2 further shows the position of the vertical intermediate post 22 relative to the two vertical end posts 20. As can be seen, the vertical intermediate post 22 has the same size and section as the other posts, but is offset from each of the vertical end posts 20 in the backward direction B. This offset is approximately equal to the thickness of the glass panel 14. The offset between the vertical posts 20, 22 therefore allows a snug fit between the glass panel 14 and the frame 12, and allows easy assembly between the glass panel 14 and the frame 12.

[0063] FIG. 3 shows a close-up view of part of the back of the sports training wall 10, in which the attachment means 26 between the frame 12 and the glass panel 14 can be clearly seen. In addition to the attachment means 26, FIG. 3 also shows frame attachment means 40, which are configured to attach the posts 20, 22, 24 to one another to form the overall frame 12. In FIG. 3, the frame attachment means 40 are shown to be similar to the attachment means 16, and thus also comprise L-shaped brackets 42 and bolts 44. The L-shaped brackets 42 of the frame attachment means 40 are in contact with given surfaces of the posts 20, 22, 24, and the bolts 44 extend through the L-shaped brackets 42 into threaded apertures in the posts 20, 22, 24 to form a secure attachment between the posts 20, 22, 24. Whilst only the attachment between the vertical intermediate post 22 and the horizontal posts 24 is shown in FIG. 3, such frame attachment means 40 will be similarly used to attach the vertical end posts 20 to the horizontal posts 24.

[0064] The rebound surface formed in part by the glass panel 14 is substantially smooth, such that players can practice tennis against the glass panel 14 without any unexpected deflections.

[0065] In order to ensure that the glass panel 14 can withstand impacts from tennis balls or other similar objects without breaking and/or shattering, the glass panel 14 is heat-strengthened to form a heat-strengthened glass panel 14. The glass panel 14 is therefore configured to withstand at least tennis ball impacts. Additionally, the glass panel 14 is configured to withstand impacts from players who may collide with the sports training wall 10 during practice. Thus, the glass panel 14 is configured to withstand impacts of up to 120 N/mm.sup.2. The glass panel 14 as shown in the Figures is formed of heat soaked thermally toughened soda lime silicate safety glass, and is 12 mm thick.

[0066] Although shown in grey in the Figures for illustrative purposes, the glass panel 14 is substantially transparent. As such, players are able to see through the sports training wall 10 when practicing. This may be advantageous for players who want to practice their aim with reference to features within an actual sports court, or who would like to retain a full view of the area around the sports training wall for training purposes.

[0067] The glass panel 14 of FIG. 1 comprises markings 16, 18. These markings 16, 18 are integral to the glass panel 14, and are formed of heat-treated ceramic paint. Thus, after their initial application to the glass panel 14, the markings 16, 18 are heat treated, causing them to irreversibly bind to the glass panel 14. In this way, it is ensured that the markings 16, 18 cannot be physically removed from the glass panel 14, and thus are resistant to general wear and tear. The heat treatment of the markings 16, 18 may occur simultaneously to the heat treatment of the glass panel 14, or may occur subsequently to the heat treatment of the glass panel 14. As shown in FIG. 1, the markings comprise a target 16, such that a player can practice their aim. Additionally, the markings have been made to resemble a tennis net 18, such that a player's training can emulate actual play of that sport as closely as possible.

[0068] The frame 12 is installed as discussed below and is free-standing; therefore, it does not require support from any other structures in order to stay upright. Consequently, the sports training wall 10 is also free-standing, and can be placed in any area without the need for any additional support structures. This is beneficial for users, as it allows users to choose freely where to place the sports training wall 10.

[0069] The sports training wall 10 is shown in use within a sports area 46 in FIG. 4. The sports area 46 comprises a small-sized tennis court 48 with smaller dimensions than that of a standard tennis court. The sports training wall 10 of FIG. 4 is located at the far end of the sports court 48 in FIG. 4.

[0070] The sports training wall 10 is installed in the tennis court 48 in FIG. 4 through fixing means 52. In this case, the fixing means comprises concrete blocks 54 cast around the lower parts of vertical posts 20, 22 in the well-known manner. However, it will be appreciated that other embodiments may use any suitable form of fixing means can be used, such as mechanical fixing means (e.g. the posts may have brackets that are bolted to secure fixing points). Further, alternative embodiments of the sports training wall 10 may comprise a base to which the frame 12 is attached, and the base, rather than the frame 12, may be fixedly attached to the sports court through suitable fixing means.

[0071] A player 50 may be present within the sports area 46 in order to train in their chosen sport (here tennis is illustrated) using the sports training wall 10.

[0072] The sports area 46 is shown as an outdoor sports area in FIG. 4. (The sports training wall 10 is, however, suitable for both indoor and outdoor use, subject to the use of suitable fixing means.) The illustrated sports training wall 10 is therefore configured to withstand typical outdoor weather conditions that are typical of the country within which the sports training wall 10 is used. It is therefore configured to withstand wind loads of up to 1200 N/m.sup.2. The sports training wall 10 will withstand temperatures of up to 250° C. and/or sub-zero temperatures.

[0073] Thus, a durable and reliable sports training wall 10 is provided, which utilises the smoothness and toughness of the glass panel 14 to provide a desirable rebound surface against which a player can meaningfully practice a given sport, whilst allowing the player to see through the wall and thus have a more realistic experience.