Apparatus for Playing Billiards Games

Abstract

The invention includes an apparatus and method for playing billiard games including a cue glove with an easily attachable cue pilot guide to slide the cue shaft providing control to the player's stroke. In addition, the invention presents a Y-shaped lanyard attachable to the glove base allowing the player to perform an “air bridge” stroke. The apparatus improves the movements of the la er in all directions.

Claims

1. An apparatus for playing billiard games comprising: (a) a glove covering at least a portion of a palm and a back of a player's hand and secured to the hand; (b) a cue pilot guide attachable to one or more places selected from at least one of: a top side of a thumb, an index finger, or a portion of the back of the hand.

2. An apparatus for playing billiard games as defined in claim 1, wherein the cue pilot guide is characterized as having a tapered structure of expandable elastic containing, at least, a boning reinforcement.

3. An apparatus for playing billiard games as defined in claim 1, wherein the cue pilot guide is characterized as having a tapered structure of expandable elastic containing, at least, two boning reinforcements.

4. An apparatus for playing billiard games as defined in claim 1, wherein the cue pilot guide is characterized as having a tapered structure of expandable elastic containing, at least, three boning reinforcements.

5. An apparatus for playing billiard games as defined in claim 1, wherein the cue pilot guide is attachable to the glove by a fastener material selected from the group of: hook and loop, magnet, removable adhesive, pine tar, a suction cup, a snap, or a combination of thereof.

6. An apparatus for playing billiard games as defined in claim 1, also including: (a) a loop and a detachable ring on the center of the button portion of the palm; and (b) a Y-shaped lanyard containing two scaffold hooks in a tip of the lanyard and one adjustable scaffold hook basted in the lanyard.

7. An apparatus for playing billiard games as defined in claim 6, wherein the tip of the lanyard attaches to a belt, trousers or clothing.

8. A cue pilot guide for playing billiard games as defined in claim 6, containing at least two boning reinforcements.

9. A cue pilot guide for playing billiard games as defined in claim 6, containing at least three boning reinforcements.

10. A cue pilot guide for playing billiard games as defined in claim 6, wherein the fastener material is selected from the group of: Velcro and magnet or a combination of thereof.

11. A cue pilot guide for playing billiard games containing a fastener panel on its surface easily attachable to another fastener surface wherein the cue pilot guide is characterized as having a tapered structure in expandable elastic containing at least a boning reinforcement.

12. A cue pilot guide for playing billiard games as defined in claim 11, containing at least two boning reinforcements.

13. A cue pilot guide for playing billiard games as defined in claim 11, containing at least three boning reinforcements.

14. A cue pilot guide for playing billiard games as defined in claim 11, wherein the fastener material is selected from the group of: Velcro and magnet or a combination of thereof.

15. A method of using an apparatus for playing billiard games comprising: obtaining an apparatus comprising: (a) a glove covering at least a portion of a palm and a back of a player's hand and secured to the hand; and (b) a cue pilot guide attachable to one or more places selected from at least one of: a top side of a thumb, an index finger, or a portion of the back of the hand; and controlling a movement of a pool cue by inserting the cue into the cue pilot guide that is attached to the glove thereby providing enhanced control over the pool cue in all directions.

16. The method for playing billiard games as defined in claim 15, wherein the cue pilot guide is characterized as having a tapered structure of expandable elastic containing, at least, a boning reinforcement.

17. The method for playing billiard games as defined in claim 15, wherein the cue pilot guide is characterized as having a tapered structure of expandable elastic containing, at least, two boning reinforcements.

18. The method for playing billiard games as defined in claim 15, wherein the cue pilot guide is characterized as having a tapered structure of expandable elastic containing, at least, three boning reinforcements.

19. The method for playing billiard games as defined in claim 15, wherein the cue pilot guide is attachable to the glove by a fastener material selected from the group of: hook and loop, magnet, removable adhesive, pine tar, a suction cup, a snap, or a combination of thereof.

20. The method for playing billiard games as defined in claim 15, wherein the apparatus further comprises (a) a loop and a detachable ring on the center of the button portion of the palm; and (b) a Y-shaped lanyard containing two scaffold hooks in the lanyard's tips and one adjustable scaffold hook basted in the lanyard.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into and form a part of the specification, illustrate several embodiments of the present invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. The drawings are only for the purpose of illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention and are not to be construed as limiting the invention. In the drawings:

[0021] FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the embodiment of the glove and the cue pilot guide according to the present invention.

[0022] FIG. 2 is a representative view of the embodiment of the cue pilot guide as it is used in different positions when it is attached to the thumb finger.

[0023] FIG. 3 is a representative view of the embodiment of the cue pilot guide when it is attached to the index finger as when the user performs elevated bridge.

[0024] FIG. 4 is a representative view of the embodiment of the cue pilot guide.

[0025] FIG. 5 is a representative view of the embodiment of the glove's back of the hand side.

[0026] FIG. 6 is a representative view of the embodiment of the glove's palm side.

[0027] FIG. 7 is a representative view of the cue pilot guide being used over the rail.

[0028] FIG. 8 is a representative view of the embodiment with the attached rings and Y-shaped lanyard used to perform an air bridge.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION AND PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0029] Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 1, the pool or billiard glove 2 is shown having attached to it a tapered cue pilot guide 1 inside of it the cue shaft 5 slides smoothly back and forth. The pool or billiard glove 2 incorporates a fastener material such as Velcro covering the upper surface of the thumb 3(a) and the index finger and the back of the hand 3(b) serving to attach the cue pilot guide 1 to the glove 2. Finally, FIG. 1 shows in 4 a top closure with adjustable Velcro tab.

[0030] The Velcro panels used in the upper surfaces of the thumb 3(a) and the index finger 3(b) holding the cue pilot guide Tare shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 respectively, allowing the player to place the cue pilot guide 1 in multiple positions as it is described in FIG. 2 depending on the stroke required during the pool or billiards game. FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 show 4 a top closure with adjustable Velcro tab.

[0031] FIG. 3 shows a player performing an elevated bridge to jump the cue ball attaching the pilot guide 1 on the hook and loop covering the upper surface of the index finger and the back of the hand 3(b). The cue shaft 5 goes through the cue pilot guide 1.

[0032] FIG. 4 shows three different perspectives of the cue pilot guide 1, showing 1 three boning reinforcements represented in 6(a), 6(b) and 6(c) and a Velcro® band 7 on the cue pilot guide 1. As used herein, the term “boning” refers to a reinforcement common in the clothing arts that is used for, e.g., shirts, bras, corsets, bustiers, swimsuits or strapless gowns, and that can be made from a wide variety of materials or composites, such as, steel boning, Featherlite boning, Flexicurve boning, or other equivalents known to the skilled artisan can include, e.g., metal (commonly steel), poylmers, or plastics, that are sewn directly into the glove or that can be placed into pockets formed in the cloth.

[0033] FIG. 5 shows the back of the hand (top side) having the Velcro panels covering the upper surface of the thumb 3(a) and over the upper surface of the index finger and a portion of the back of the hand 3(b). In addition, FIG. 5 shows a reinforcement band 8(a) covering the interior side of middle finger. Finally, it is shown on the index finger a flat felled seam on top side 9 so as to help the index finger and the glove 2 have a more comfortable contact with the table.

[0034] FIG. 6 shows the palm side of the glove 2 having three reinforcement portions represented by 8(a), 8(b) and 8(c). On the button center of the palm, the glove 2 has a loop 10 where a detachable ring 11 is placed. FIG. 7 shows the glove 2 and cue pilot guide 1 being used over the railing of the pool table showing the cue pilot guide 1 attached to the Velcro panel covering the upper side of the thumb 3(a) totally flat against the mentioned rail.

[0035] In an alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the apparatus contains a double Y-shaped lanyard 13 containing three scaffold hooks, e.g., magnesium oxide (MGO) scaffold hooks. Two scaffold hooks are placed in the lanyard tips 12(b) and 12(c) used to attach the Y-shaped lanyard to the player's trousers, belt or clothing, and a third adjustable scaffold hook 12(a) is basted and placed on the center of the Y-shaped lanyard 13 to hook onto the detachable ring 11 on the apparatus 1 to perform an air bridge. The air-bridge is a way to hold steady the bridge hand in the air without making contact with the table.

[0036] Although this invention has been described in detail with particular reference to the preferred embodiments, other embodiments can achieve almost the same results. Variations and modifications of the present invention will be considered obvious to those skilled in the art and it is intended to cover in the appended claims all such modifications and equivalents.

[0037] It is contemplated that any embodiment discussed in this specification can be implemented with respect to any method, kit, reagent, or composition of the invention, and vice versa. Furthermore, compositions of the invention can be used to achieve methods of the invention.

[0038] It will be understood that particular embodiments described herein are shown by way of illustration and not as limitations of the invention. The principal features of this invention can be employed in various embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention. Those skilled in the art will recognize, or be able to ascertain using no more than routine experimentation, numerous equivalents to the specific procedures described herein. Such equivalents are considered to be within the scope of this invention and are covered by the claims.

[0039] All publications and patent applications mentioned in the specification are indicative of the level of skill of those skilled in the art to which this invention pertains. All publications and patent applications are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference.

[0040] The use of the word “a” or “an” when used in conjunction with the term “comprising” in the claims and/or the specification may mean “one,” but it is also consistent with the meaning of “one or more,” “at least one,” and “one or more than one.” The use of the term “or” in the claims is used to mean “and/or” unless explicitly indicated to refer to alternatives only or the alternatives are mutually exclusive, although the disclosure supports a definition that refers to only alternatives and “and/or.” Throughout this application, the term “about” is used to indicate that a value includes the inherent variation of error for the device, the method being employed to determine the value, or the variation that exists among the study subjects.

[0041] As used in this specification and claim(s), the words “comprising” (and any form of comprising, such as “comprise” and “comprises”), “having” (and any form of having, such as “have” and “has”), “including” (and any form of including, such as “includes” and “include”) or “containing” (and any form of containing, such as “contains” and “contain”) are inclusive or open-ended and do not exclude additional, unrecited elements or method steps. In embodiments of any of the compositions and methods provided herein, “comprising” may be replaced with “consisting essentially of” or “consisting of”. As used herein, the phrase “consisting essentially of” requires the specified integer(s) or steps as well as those that do not materially affect the character or function of the claimed invention. As used herein, the term “consisting” is used to indicate the presence of the recited integer (e.g., a feature, an element, a characteristic, a property, a method/process step or a limitation) or group of integers (e.g., feature(s), element(s), characteristic(s), property(ies), method/process steps or limitation(s)) only.

[0042] The term “or combinations thereof” as used herein refers to all permutations and combinations of the listed items preceding the term. For example, “A, B, C, or combinations thereof” is intended to include at least one of: A, B, C, AB, AC, BC, or ABC, and if order is important in a particular context, also BA, CA, CB, CBA, BCA, ACB, BAC, or CAB. Continuing with this example, expressly included are combinations that contain repeats of one or more item or term, such as BB, AAA, AB, BBC, AAABCCCC, CBBAAA, CABABB, and so forth. The skilled artisan will understand that typically there is no limit on the number of items or terms in any combination, unless otherwise apparent from the context.

[0043] As used herein, words of approximation such as, without limitation, “about”, “substantial” or “substantially” refers to a condition that when so modified is understood to not necessarily be absolute or perfect but would be considered close enough to those of ordinary skill in the art to warrant designating the condition as being present. The extent to which the description may vary will depend on how great a change can be instituted and still have one of ordinary skill in the art recognize the modified feature as still having the required characteristics and capabilities of the unmodified feature. In general, but subject to the preceding discussion, a numerical value herein that is modified by a word of approximation such as “about” may vary from the stated value by at least ±1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 12 or 15%.

[0044] All of the compositions and/or methods disclosed and claimed herein can be made and executed without undue experimentation in light of the present disclosure. While the compositions and methods of this invention have been described in terms of preferred embodiments, it will be apparent to those of skill in the art that variations may be applied to the compositions and/or methods and in the steps or in the sequence of steps of the method described herein without departing from the concept, spirit and scope of the invention. All such similar substitutes and modifications apparent to those skilled in the art are deemed to be within the spirit, scope and concept of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

[0045] To aid the Patent Office, and any readers of any patent issued on this application in interpreting the claims appended hereto, applicants wish to note that they do not intend any of the appended claims to invoke paragraph 6 of 35 U.S.C. § 112 as it exists on the date of filing hereof unless the words “means for” or “step for” are explicitly used in the particular claim.

[0046] For each of the claims, each dependent claim can depend both from the independent claim and from each of the prior dependent claims for each and every claim so long as the prior claim provides a proper antecedent basis for a claim term or element.