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Modular athletic playing surface with tuned compliance
| Details |
Inventors: McMahon, Thomas A.; Greene, Peter R.;
Assignee:
Primary Examiner: Apley; Richard J.
Assistant Examiner: Kramer; Arnold W.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Kenway & Jenney
A closely spaced array of modules forms an athletic playing surface characterized by a high degree of vertical compliance, an extreme resistance to lateral shear, and a high degree of uniformity of response. Each module has a laminated construction that includes a pair of stiffly resilient plates in a generally parallel, spaced relationship. One or more spacer plates and a plurality of resilient members are "sandwiched" between the plates. The lower plate is supported on a frame that allows it to flex in response to an applied force, typically the impact of a runner's foot on the upper plate. The spacer plate is configured, positioned, and secured to the upper and lower plates to mechanically couple them in a manner that, to a large degree, compensates for a non-uniformity of the deflection response of the module introduced by the frame support. The resilient members are selected and positioned to provide a substantially uniform deflection response at the upper plate. In the preferred form, the module has a set of hold-down bolts that extend between the upper and lower plates at points remote from the spacer plate or plates. The bolts limit the maximum vertical spacing between the plates and provide a convenient adjustment of both the vertical compliance of the module and the level of the upper plate. Also, the edges of adjacent upper plates preferably carry a set of control tabs, each secured to one plate and extending under the adjacent plate, to control the maximum vertical displacement between the adjacent edges. |
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION A horizontally extending athletic playing surface characterized by a relatively large degree of vertical compliance is formed by a mosaic array of modules closely spaced apart from one another.
Each module includes an upper plate and a lower plate both formed of a stiffly resilient material and held in a mutually spaced and generally parallel relationship.
One or more spacer plates, typically a small section of the sheet material forming the plates, is secured to both the upper and lower plates in a face abutting relationship.
A plurality of resilient members, preferably secured only to the lower plate, also span the gap between the upper and lower plates and together with the spacer plate or plates support the upper plate.
The resilient members are formed of a highly resilient material such as a low durometer rubber or neoprene with a durometer value in the range of 15 to 25.
The upper and lower plates themselves and the resilient members are characterized by a high degree of resilience and therefore they transiently store and return energy to an athlene on the surface with a high degree of efficiency.
The lower plate is supported at or near its periphery to allow the center portion of the lower plate to flex vertically.
In one form the support structure is a wooden frame that engages the entire periphery of the lower plate.
The lower plate and the frame are typically square, generally rectangular or on occassion trapezoidal in configuration.
In another form, frame members extend continuously along two edges of the lower plate and for a short distance along the remaining two sides (facing C frames).
With a rectilinear plate and a fully enclosed supporting frame, the sandwich spacer plate preferably has the same general plan form configuration as the upper and lower plates and is substantially centered on them.
With the C frames and rectalinear plates, there are preferably two spacer plates, each trapezoidal in shape with their larger base adjacent and generally centered on the unsupported edge of the lower plate
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