Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B69/00—Training appliances or apparatus for special sports
  • A63B69/002—Training appliances or apparatus for special sports for football
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A43—FOOTWEAR
  • A43B—CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
  • A43B5/00—Footwear for sporting purposes
  • A43B5/02—Football boots or shoes, i.e. for soccer, football or rugby
  • A43B5/025—Football boots or shoes, i.e. for soccer, football or rugby characterised by an element which improves the contact between the ball and the footwear
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A43—FOOTWEAR
  • A43B—CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
  • A43B5/00—Footwear for sporting purposes
  • A43B5/18—Attachable overshoes for sporting purposes
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B43/00—Balls with special arrangements
  • A63B43/008—Balls with special arrangements with means for improving visibility, e.g. special markings or colours

Definitions

• the disclosed device relates to ball kicking practice for players of games such as soccer. More particularly, the disclosed device and method of employment thereof relate to placement of indica on a ball which will change in appearance in reaction to an accurate or correct kick by the user and targeting devices on the ball and shoe to encourage continuous eye contact by the user with the intended target of their foot.
• Soccer is a game played throughout the world by adults and children and takes a particularly high degree of foot and eye coordination for the player to accurately kick or strike the ball.
• players Much like other sports where a ball must be accurately struck to propel it toward the intended target, players must develop the ability to maintain their eye on the ball in order to pass the ball to other players or to attempt to propel the ball into a goal. Kicking the ball with the wrong portion of the foot will impart an unintended trajectory to the ball causing missed passes and goal attempts and is detrimental to good team play.
• varying game situations call for different ball trajectories that can only be imparted by accurate foot and ball contact to different areas of both the ball and foot.
• the player may simply kick the soccer ball as far as possible.
• accuracy and good control of the soccer ball flight trajectory is imperative for team play and scoring goals.
• Such a device and method should provide players with a foot contact point of reference where contact with the ball is preferable for each type of kick. Further, such a device should provide players with a ball point of contact reference which is ideal for placement of the foot contact point of reference during the kick. Combined these two points of contact reference also provide the player with a means to practice the art of maintaining eye contact on the ball throughout the strike of their foot. Failure to keep their eye on the ball is a constant complaint regarding player's performance by coaches.
• such a device should provide some means of visual feedback to the player, verifying that their contact with the ball was at the proper point on both the ball and foot to yield the intended trajectory of the ball.
• the visual reference should allow even very young users to ascertain they have struck the ball correctly.
• Such a means of feedback will allow players to practice by themselves, without a coach, and ascertain by themselves that they have hit the ball correctly with their foot, and whether or not they are employing the point of contact references on the ball and foot correctly. This will allow for practice by players of any age and without special equipment to ascertain correct form.
• An object of this invention is the provision a soccer practice device that provides visual references to the player of proper points of contact on both the foot and the ball to allow for practice with or without a coach present.
• a further object of this invention is to provide such a ball kicking practice device that encourages the continuous viewing of the ball throughout the strike to train the player to keep their eyes on the ball during a kick.
• An additional object of this invention in the most preferred mode is the provision of a kicking practice device that provides visual feedback to the user as to whether their foot and ball contact was sufficiently accurate to correctly project the ball without the need for a goal or target.
• a further object of this invention is the provision of such a device for ball kicking practice which even very young players who cannot read may use and receive visual feedback of correct kicking form to allow them to practice without a coach.
• the device and method of operation herein described and disclosed provides visual references to the player practicing kicking to aid the player in obtaining foot to eye coordination during the kicking of a ball such as a soccer ball to obtain the correct subsequent trajectory for the struck ball.
• Various components used singularly or in combination will allow players to practice their kicking form and to also practice and learn the delicate art of maintaining eye contact with the ball and foot, such that muscle and mental memories are formed resulting in better form throughout the kick which result in better overall play.
• the device features a foot targeting system that allows the player to ascertain the proper point of contact of a ball with their foot to yield the desired trajectory of the ball. Additionally provided is a ball targeting system for the ball which the user employs to practice the proper point of contact with the foot targeting system in order to yield the best form and subsequent kick. Combined, the foot targeting system and the ball targeting system provide a means for the player to practice maintaining eye contact with the ball before, during, and after the strike by their foot. This is a major skill that must be developed by soccer players to become better at playing the game.
• the device and method herein provides a means for visual feedback that is especially valuable to players. This visual feedback is accomplished by placing indica on the ball in the proper positions relative to the targeting component on the ball and thereafter provides the user with immediate visual feedback as to whether their foot contact with the ball was correct for the shot intended.
• Such a visual feedback system is a most important function since players have either had to have a coach watch and comment on their style and results, or, employ some sort of target to attempt to drive the ball toward. Since coaches or parents are not always available, feedback after each practice kick is inhibited. Attempting to drive the ball toward a target to ascertain correct contact will actually encourage the player to take their eye off the ball. Consequently, conventional practice systems and methods inhibit the acquisition of the skill of maintaining eye contact with the ball and foot throughout the strike since the player tends to look at the target too soon or throughout the strike rather than at the ball up to the contact by the foot.
• indicia types are included in the current preferred mode of the device which may be employed in combination with the foot and ball targets, or without them as the case may be, yet still provide valuable feedback immediately after the kick of a proper or improper kick.
• a dotted line is employed which is placed circumferentially on the exterior of the ball.
• the dotted line or lines are positioned inline with one or more targets which are positioned on the ball for the ball targeting system at which the user contacts with a foot. The line appears dotted when the ball is stationary, and blurs if the ball is struck incorrectly by the foot on the target.
• the dotted line will assume a solid look to the player.
• This simplest form of indica thereby yields immediate feedback as to proper contact with the ball to produce a proper trajectory.
• the dotted line can be formed of half tones or dots or lines of alternating colors which when combined will yield a third color. This may be done by either placing the indica in small dots or halftones of the alternating colors in a width of the ultimate stripe, or by making the dotted line in alternating colors which combine to display a third color.
• the halftones or alternating colors making up the stripe are for instance blue and yellow
• the colors will combine and appear to the eye of the user to show a green stripe. This is immediate visual feedback which even a small child, unable to read, can easily understand. If, however, the ball is struck on the ball target poorly, or with the wrong point on the foot, no stripe will appear as the ball moves away at an angle to the axis of the line and will appear as a blur of the dots or dotted line moving in the wrong spin and trajectory.
• Secondary indica may also be placed on the ball in the form of stripes or halftones or other color patterns in stipes that are at varying angles to the first stripe running through the target on the ball.
• These secondary stripes can be employed for the player to practice putting "English” or a spin on the ball as it concurrently rolls on the ground in its trajectory.
• a horizontally spinning ball which is concurrently rolling away from the player can yield a visually delectable form of indica of a horizontal line along the line of the spin to show that the player has achieved the desired spin to curve the ball as it rolls on the field.
• Indica forming the shoe or foot targeting system may be imparted directly upon the shoe surface or using an elastic planar ring of material that fits around the shoe along a line generally from the arch over the top of the laces to the outside edge of the shoe.
• Indica formed on the ball surface may likewise be imparted to the ball using silkscreen or other means of direct printing on the ball, or might be done with stickers for the targets and elongated film strips having indica for the stripes which only appear correctly with a correct hit on the target by the foot.
• Figure 1 depicts a view of the disclosed device employed in the method for ball kicking practice showing the shoe having at least one and preferably a plurality of shoe targets impacting a ball with appropriately positioned ball targeting positions.
• Figure 2 is a top view of a shoe showing indicia positioned at a plurality of targeting positions for contact with a ball.
• Figure 3 depicts another mode of the shoe wherein a band is engaged around the shoe to place targeting positions on the exterior of the shoe.
• Figure 4 depicts a side view of the shoe showing the inside surface and top surface with shoe targets thereon.
• Figure 5 depicts a side view of a ball having a ball targeting position thereon and broken line hemispherically aligned with the target.
• Figure 6 depicts a visual change occurring with a properly struck ball of figure 5.
• Figure 7 shows a plurality of ball targeting positions designated by indicia on the exterior surface of the ball and lines latirudinally and longitudinally thereon.
• Figure 8 depicts an embodiment of the ball herein wherein the line or stripe is formed of colored indica adapted to change color when correctly driven by a strike to the ball targeting position.
• Figure 9 depicts an enlarged section of the stripe of figure 8 in one mode of providing a color change for feedback to the user when the ball is correctly struck.
• Figure 10 depicts the ball of figure 8 wherein the stripe has changed color during movement along a proper trajectory.
• Figure 1 depicts a view of the device 10 for ball kicking practice disclosed herein showing the shoe 11 having at least one and preferably a plurality of shoe targets 12 positioned thereon moving toward impact with a ball 14 having at least one ball targeting position 16.
• the shoe 11 having at least one and preferably a plurality of shoe targets 12 positioned thereon moving toward impact with a ball 14 having at least one ball targeting position 16.
• one or a plurality of shoe targets 12 are positioned on the shoe 11 and at least one ball targeting position 16 is placed on the ball 14.
• the appropriate shoe target 12 is aligned for contact with the ball 14 during each strike or kick.
• the player during each kick maintains eye contact with the shoe target 12 of choice, to its contact with the ball targeting position 16 of choice continuously, until impact with the ball 14 occurs.
• indica on the ball 14 in the form of a stripe 18 will provide a visual means for verification of a correct kick of the ball 14.
• the ball 14 is placed in a position on the ground wherein the indica will be visibly changed during the subsequent roll of the ball 14 which as shown in figure 1, in one especially preferred mode, places the indica in the form of a stipe 18 hemispherically located on the ball perpendicular to the ground.
• the shoe targets shown in figures 1, 2, and 4 may be silkscreened or appliqued or glued or otherwise engaged directly to the exterior of the ball 14.
• the shoe targets 12 may be provided with adhesive on the rear side or hook and loop fabric or other means for the user to position the shoe targets 12 on their own shoes in the positions desired for their practice.
• the shoe targets 12 may be applied to the shoes in a permanent fashion at manufacture or afterwards using ink or paint or similar medium.
• the shoe targets 12 may be positioned upon a band 20 which engages around the shoe 11.
• the band 20 is preferably elastic such that it will expand over the circumference of the shoe and then retract to compressibly engage over the shoe positioning the shoe targets in the appropriate positions.
• This mode using the band 20 would allow for easy on and off of the shoe targets 12 and easy changing of their positions on the shoe 11 and would allow for some easy customization of the targets 12 themselves for instance using some type of team colors or logo.
• the elastic band 20 also helps keep the laces tied on the shoe 11 and provides a more planar even surface of contact with the ball than does the laces alone.
• the shoe targets 12 while pictured as bulls eyes, can be any target indica that the user considers easy to follow with the eye and as such, any design for the target that would occur to those skilled in the art is anticipated.
• the shoe targets 12 should be easy to see in any light and preferably should match the size or be slightly smaller than the ball target positions 16.
• the positions for the shoe targets 12 as shown in figure 2, Figure 2 and figure 4 can vary depending on the type of kick that is to be practiced and whether the foot is to impact the ball 14 with the inside 22 of the shoe or the outside 24 of the shoe or the top surface 26 of the shoe 11. At least one shoe target 12 is required when used in combination with the ball 14 with the ball targeting position 16 to practice eye contact with the ball 14 and shoe 11 during a strike by the user. However, the ball 14 by itself and without the shoe targets 12 may be employed if practice of eye contact is not desired but feedback of a proper strike is desired since the stripe 18 or other indica will provide validation or feedback of a proper kick trajectory and therefor proper contact. When used in combination, the shoe targets 12 and ball targeting position 16 are employed and the user follows the chosen shoe target 12 throughout the kicking motion until it strikes the ball 14 on the chosen ball targeting position 16. This action is depicted in Figure 4.
• the means for visual feedback of a correctly struck ball 14 which provides the user an immediate confirmation of a correctly struck ball 14.
• the means for visual feedback is provided by locating indica on the ball 14 in positions relative to the ball targeting position 16 such that visual feedback in the form of a change of color, or visual change of the indica, if the foot and ball contact was correct for the shot intended.
• One preferred mode of the indica employs a dotted line 28 forming a stripe 18 which is placed circumferentially on the exterior of the ball 14 in line with the ball targeting position 16. With the ball 14 stationary and positioned with the stripe 18 perpendicular to the ground as in figure 4, the stripe 18 appears broken.
• the stripe 18 will blur. However, if the player hits the ball 14 correctly on the ball target position 16, when the ball rolls, the dotted line 28 forming the stripe 18 will assume a solid line 29 look to the player. The player thus has immediate feedback of a correct strike without the need for a third party such as a coach attending.
• One or more dotted lines 28 may be employed placing them to form circumferential stripes 18 at appropriate positions on the ball to align with ball targeting positions 16. Or, if the player is especially advanced, the stripe 18 alone in dotted line 28 might be provided allowing the advance player practice striking the ball 14 at the exact point the stripe 18 crosses the side or bottom of the ball 14.
• the stripe 18 may be formed of graphics of multiple colors such as halftones 30 shown in figure 9. hi this mode of the device, the stripe 18 will change color to a third colored stripe 19 after a correct strike of the ball to roll it on the proper trajectory. In the kicking process similar to that shown in figure 4, subsequent to the ball being struck by the player, if properly struck, it will roll and the halftones 30 or other properly applied multi color indica will change color. For instance, this color change may be provided by applying the stripe 18 in a form of small dots such as the halftones 30 of figure 9 where the individual dots are formed of alternating colors in a width of the ultimate stripe 18. If the halftones 30 are of a first color 32 and second color 34 and appropriately positioned in the stripe 18, when correctly hit by the player, and the halftones 30 making up the stripe 18 move in a circular fashion, to the player the stripe will change color.
• the colors will combine and appear to the eye of the user to show a green stripe 18.
• This color change of indicia provides easy-to-view and immediate feedback of a proper strike of the ball 14 or an improper strike, since if the stripe 18 rolls off at an angle instead of circumferentially along the stripe 18, the color will not change.
• other halftone styles or more than two colors of half tones 30 or other strategically placed colored indica as would occur to those skilled in the art may be employed to yield a color change on a proper departing ball trajectory.

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• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Physical Education & Sports Medicine (AREA)
• Footwear And Its Accessory, Manufacturing Method And Apparatuses (AREA)
• Golf Clubs (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=40943438

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (7)

Families Citing this family (2)

Family Cites Families (4)

• 2007
  • 2007-12-20 MX MX2009006780A patent/MX2009006780A/es not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2007-12-20 CN CN200780051551A patent/CN101674865A/zh active Pending
  • 2007-12-20 EP EP07863210A patent/EP2101885A4/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2007-12-20 BR BRPI0721239-9A patent/BRPI0721239A2/pt not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2007-12-20 CA CA002674792A patent/CA2674792A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2007-12-20 AU AU2007338743A patent/AU2007338743A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2007-12-20 JP JP2009542934A patent/JP2010512954A/ja active Pending

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