US3025058A - Portable and adjustable basketball goal - Google Patents

Description

March 13, 1962 R. N, BRUMFIELD 3,

PORTABLE AND ADJUSTABLE BASKETBALL GOAL 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 7, 1960 INVENTOR. ROBERT N. BRUMFIELD ATTORNEYS March 13, 1962 R. N. BRUMFIELD PORTABLE AND ADJUSTABLE BASKETBALL GOAL 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

Filed March 7, 1960 FIG.4.

ug HIM \illllllnm mm F ttes atnt time 3,025,058 PORTABLE AND ADJUSTABLE BASKETBALL GOAL Robert N. Brumfield, RED. 2, Box 73, Tell City, Ind. Filed Mar. 7, 1960, Ser. No. 13,176 Claims. (Cl. 273-1.5)

This invention is a portable and adjustable basketball goal which may be readily moved from place to place and positioned for use by one person.

It is an object of this invention to provide a mobile basketball goal of the character described, the basket of which is pendently supported appreciably forward of a supporting base and upright.

Another object is to provide a basketball goal which is vertically adjustable to raise or lower the height of the basket and thereby accommodate the physical capacity of the players.

Further objects are to provide a portable basketball goal including a weighted mobile base having an upright connected near the aft end thereof, the mobile means being automatically raised to a point above the floor when the weighted base is permitted to gravitate into engagement with the floor; and to provide a portable basketball goal which is stable and requires no extraneous securing means to insure stationary engagement with the floor, the goal being readily wheeled from one place to another without dismantling or adjusting any portion thereof.

Other objects of the invention will be manifest from the following description of the present preferred form of the invention, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a basketball .court equipped with portable basketball goals constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the portable and adjustable basketball goal of the present invention, showing it in operating position;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the same showing the goal in mobile position;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged side elevational view of the present invention, a portion thereof being broken away to disclose details of construction;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 55 of FIG. 2, looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 6--6 of FIG. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary top plan view of the device of the present invention.

Referring now in greater detail to the drawings, the portable and adjustable basketball goal of the present invention includes a weighted base 10 preferably rounded at its upper edge, which base is of steel or other suitable heavy metal construction. Upstanding spaced plates 11 are welded or otherwise fixedly secured to the aft end of base 1% and extend beyond the peripheral limit thereof. Plates 11 serve as bearings for an axle 12 having wheels 13 rotatably mounted thereon. As shown in FIG. 4, the lower limit of wheels 13 lies in a horizontal plane above, and in a vertical plane beyond, base '10. Wheels 13 are thereby raised out of engagement with the floor when the goal is placed in operative position.

A vertical upright, generally designated 14, is fixed at its lower terminal to the aft end of base 10 intermediate plates 11 and is braced by members 15 at the front of the upright. Vertical upright 14 comprises a lower stationary section 16 and an upper movable section 17 telescopically engaged with the lower section. Referring again to FIG. 4, it will be seen that telescopic section 17 is provided with a seriw of vertically aligned openings 18 adapted to be selectively engaged by a retaining bolt 19, the latter also being engageable with a complement-a1 opening 18' in the stationary section 16.

A pair of spaced parallel horizontal supports 20 are fixed to the upper terminal of movable section 17, which supports extend forwardly appreciably in advance of upright 14 and base 10 where the terminals thereof are fixed to a backboard support 21. Horizontal support web braces are indicated at 22. A backboard 23 is fixed by suitable means 24 to the upper and lower extremities of backboard support 21. Conventional basket or hoop 25 having a right angular support member 26 is fixed to backboard 23 by means 27 which extend through both backboard 23 and backboard support 21. Basket braces are indicated at 2.8. It will be noted that backboard 23 is substantially fan-shaped in order to reduce the bulk and weight of the backboard and thereby lend greater stability to the pendently supported basket.

In actual use, the portable and adjustable basketball goal of the present invention is moved to mobile position by tilting upright 14 angularly, as shown in FIG. 3. By virtue of the arrangement of base 10, upright 14 and wheels 13, this effects an upward movement of base 10 out of engagement with the floor and a corresponding downward movement of wheels 13 into engagement with the floor. After the goal has been wheeled to the playing site, weighted base 10 is permitted to gravitate into engagement with the floor to return upright 14 to a vertical position and wheels 13 to the raised position shown in FIG. 4. Telescopic section 17 may be adjusted, if desired, to raise or lower basket 25 to the desired height. For this purpose, openings 18 are preferably arranged so that the height of the basket may be adjusted at 6-inch intervals from 7 feet to 10 feet.

In FIG. 1, there is illustrated one of the numerous ways in which the portable and adjustable basketball goal of the present invention may be employed. In the instance illustrated, the goals are placed on a conventional basketball court which includes foul circles 29, a center jump circle 30, and a center line 31. At each end of the court is a regulation height permanent basketball goal, one of which is shown at 32. The portable goals of the present invention are shown set up for use by young players whose physical capacity requires curtailment of the court length and height of the baskets. Therefore, in the depicted use of the present invention, the goals are set within foul circles 29 and the height of the basket is lowered from the regulation 10 feet to a height best adapted to suit the ability of the players. Due to the ease with which the portable basketball goal of the present invention may be moved, .it is of course no problem to move the goals closer together or farther apart at will.

Under actual playing conditions, it has been found that by locating the weighted base forwardly of the upright, the goal is well balanced, thereby affording a stable unit which obviates any need for extraneous means to secure the base to the floor. It is also readily apparent that by pendently supporting the backboard and basket appreciably forward of the supporting upright, any likelihood of players running into the latter is virtually eliminated. The arrangement of the mobile means of the present device further facilitates removal of the goal from one site to another without dismantling or adjusting any parts thereof.

While I have herein shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention, it is nevertheless to be understood that various changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A portable basketball goal including a base adapted to normally engage a playing surface, a vertical upright extending from the aft portion of the base, wheels secured to the base at a point aft thereof, the lower limit of said wheels lying in a plane above the lower limit of said base when the base is in operative position in engagement with the supporting surface, said wheels being lowered into engagement with the supporting surface and the base simultaneously raised off the supporting surface upon tilting the vertical upright rearwardly, support means secured to said vertical upright and extending to a point forward of the front edge of the base and upright, and a backboard and basket assembly fixed to the fore portion of said support means.

2. A portable basketball goal as set out in claim 1 wherein the base is weighted.

3. A portable basketball goal as set out in claim 1 wherein the vertical upright comprises telescopic sections in predetermined interengaged relation, to regulate the height of the basket.

4. A portable basketball goal including a weighted base, a single vertical upright extending from the aft edge of said base, upstanding spaced plates secured to the aft end of the base on each side of said vertical upright and extending beyond the peripheral limit of the base, an axle mounted between said spaced plates, wheels rotatably mounted on said axle, the lower limit of said wheels lying in a horizontal plane above, and in a vertical plane beyond, said base, when the base is in operative position in engagement with a supporting surface, basket support means fixed to the upper terminal of said vertical upright, the support means including spaced horizontal supports extending to a point fore of the leading edge of the base, the basket support means further including a backboard support secured to the free terminals of said horizontal supports, a backboard fixed to said backboard support, and a basket secured to the front face of said backboard, said wheels being lowered into engagement with the supporting surface and the base simultaneously raised off the supporting surface, upon tilting said upright rearwardly.

5. The portable basketball goal of claim 4 wherein the vertical upright comprises telescopic sections, and means for adjusting said telescopic sections in predetermined interengaged relation, to regulate the height of the basket.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,081,198 Bates Dec. 9, 1913 1,924,811 Schulz Aug. 29, 1933 1,933,382 Monroe Oct. 31, 1933 2,363,634 Albach et a1. Nov. 28, 1944 2,416,752 Hendrick Mar. 4, 1947 2,707,104 Killick Apr. 26, 1955 2,932,511 Bemis Apr. 12, 1960 2,939,705 McCall June 7, 1960 2,945,660 Slavsky et al. July 19, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 520,656 Great Britain Apr. 30, 1940

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