Articles for automotive, aerospace, manufacturing and defence industry applications including shafts or tubes used, for example, as golf club shafts, ski and hiking poles, fishing rods or bicycle frames, skate blades and snowboards are at least partially coated with an electrodeposited metal, metal alloy or metal matrix composite coating layer. The coating layer having a quasi-isotropic microstructure, a thickness of higher than 30µm and an average grain size between 0.004µm and 10µm. The coating layer provides articles of high resilience, high yield strength, scratch and wear resistance and hardness, and appealing appearance.

Fine-grained (average grain size 1nm to 1,000nm) metallic coatings optionally containing solid particulates dispersed therein are disclosed. The fine-grained metallic materials are significantly harder and stronger than conventional coatings of the same chemical composition due to Hall-Petch strengthening and have low linear coefficients of thermal expansion (CTEs). The invention provides means for matching the CTE of the fine-grained metallic coating to the one of the substrate by adjusting the composition of the alloy and/or by varying the chemistry and volume fraction of particulates embedded in the coating. The fine-grained metallic coatings are particularly suited for strong and lightweight articles, precision molds, sporting goods, automotive parts and components exposed to thermal cycling. The low CTEs and the ability to match the CTEs of the fine-grained metallic coatings with the CTEs of the substrate minimize dimensional changes during thermal cycling and prevent premature failure.

Lightweight articles comprising a polymeric material at least partially coated with a fine-grained metallic material are disclosed. The fine-grained metallic material has an average grain size of 2nm to 5,000nm, a thickness between 25 micron and 5cm, and a hardness between 200VHN and 3,000 VHN. The lightweight articles are strong and ductile and exhibit high coefficients of restitution and a high stiffness and are particularly suitable for a variety of applications including aerospace and automotive parts, sporting goods, and the like.

A system for tracking balls in sports in which players kick, pass, bounce, strike or carry a ball. The ball is equipped with two beacons pulsing in the 5-10 Hz range at a frequency which is not attenuated by the body of the players. one beacon has a very short range of 40 -120 cm and the other has a range of 1 - 5 metres. A data logger worn by the players includes a clock, location and speed sensors, a receiver for the beacon signals and a micro controller to record the data from all the sensors.

The micro controller is able to record whether the player is in possession of the ball or is contesting the ball. The path of the ball from player to player is tracked relative to the playing field. An impact or pressure sensor may be fitted to the players footwear, glove or a bat stick, club or racquet to register a kick or ball strike.

Cette canne de swin comporte un manche et une tête de frappe constituée par un corps inscrit dans un pentaèdre présentant, des arrêtes rectilignes et des arrêtes curvilignes. Le corps comporte au moins une face plane (4) destinée à venir en contact avec le sol et présente un plan de symétrie (S-S) perpendiculaire à ladite face et contenant le manche (11) définissant deux faces symétriques (5, 5'). Les faces symétriques sont constituées par des surfaces conoïdes séparées par une arrête curviligne (6), de manière qu'un joueur droitier ou gaucher puisse réaliser la première frappe, grand coup, avec l'une des faces et la seconde frappe, coup d'approche, avec la face symétrique ceci en faisant tourner la tête avec le manche de 180°. la troisième frappe, coup roulé. étant réalisée avec une face perpendiculaire audites faces symétriques.

A sporting rod member which is strong against flexure, which is improved in tough and balance when it is flexed, and which can be made finer in thickness and lighter in weight. The sporting rod member uses a solid rod (8) . The solid rod (8) is made up of a solid-state core member (10) and an outer layer (12) formed of fiber reinforced resin and disposed on the outside of the core member (10). In the solid rod (8), most of reinforcing fibers that are used in at least one of the solid-state core member and outer layer and that extend substantially in the axial direction thereof have a longitudinal elastic modulus of 40 ton/mm² or higher.

A fastening mechanism (10) for connecting a sports attachment (12) to a shaft (14) is provided. The fastening mechanism (10) comprises an aperture (40) formed in the shaft (14). A fastening member is mounted to the sports attachment with at least a portion of the fastening member receivable within the aperture. A biasing mechanism (29) biases at least a portion of the fastening member in the aperture wherein the fastening member is releasably maintained within the aperture thereby releasably connecting the sports attachment to the shaft.

A sporting rod member which is strong against flexure, which is improved in tough and balance when it is flexed, and which can be made finer in thickness and lighter in weight. The sporting rod member uses a solid rod (8) . The solid rod (8) is made up of a solid-state core member (10) and an outer layer (12) formed of fiber reinforced resin and disposed on the outside of the core member (10). In the solid rod (8), most of reinforcing fibers that are used in at least one of the solid-state core member and outer layer and that extend substantially in the axial direction thereof have a longitudinal elastic modulus of 40 ton/mm² or higher.

This invention relates to items of sporting equipment such as hockey sticks, bats, clubs, mallets and the like and a method of manufacturing an article of sporting equipment such as a bat, club, mallet, hockey stick or the like is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of forming a core (102) which may be of wood or of synthetic fibres, roughly in the shape of the article and encapsulating the core in a plastics material in a mould.