Bendable marker and method of marking

This invention relates to a bendable marker and to a method of marking, notably to a marker having a bendable portion to its stem, and to a method of using such markers on grass areas which allow a cylinder-type grass mower to cut grass around the marker without damaging the marker or requiring the removal of said marker prior to mowing.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION:

Markers are widely used on playing fields, earthen fields, and grassy areas to mark boundaries, mark locations, or provide information. They may be used on football fields, soccer fields, baseball fields, golf courses, running tracks and trails, public parks, and private lawns. While having substantial utility, markers do present an impediment to the mowing of the grass on said grassy areas and must be removed prior to mowing.

This often slows down the mowing operation, resulting in a loss of productive time and greater mowing expense. In addition, removed markers may be replaced in an incorrect location or orientation subsequent to mowing. The misplacing of markers is quite probable considering that most mower operators will often be pressed for time, concentrating upon the task at hand, rather than the exact location from which a marker has been removed.

We have devised a form of marker which can remain in situ during mowing operations and thus reduces the above problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention provides a bendable marker adapted to be supported in the ground so as to allow a cylinder-type mower to cut grass around the marker without removal of the marker, which marker is characterized in that it comprises:

a substantially rigid shaft member having a lower end which has a radial width exceeding its radial thickness;

a substantially rigid stake member for insertion into said ground, having an upper end which is adapted to be disposed substantially level with the surface of said ground when said stake is inserted therein and which has a radial width exceeding its radial thickness; and

a flexible elastomeric sleeve member having a radial width exceeding its radial thickness at its upper and lower ends and coupled at its upper end to said shaft and at its lower end to said stake and adapted to urge said stake and shaft into axial alignment with one another and adapted to permit said shaft to bend over at said elastomeric element in directions perpendicular to the width of the elastomeric member to adopt a position substantially parallel to the ground.

The marker of the invention enables the grass around a marker to be mowed with a cylinder-type grass mower while the marker remains in the selected location.

The present invention also provides a method of marking a selected location on a grass area allowing the grass to be mowed with a cylinder-type grass mower without affecting the making by marking the location with a marker of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

• Figure 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the bendable marker;
• Figure 2 is a front view of the bendable marker of Figure 1 anchored in the ground of a grassy area, with the flexible element shown in longitudinal section; and
• Figure 3 is perspective view of the bendable marker of Figure 1 with the sign member urged downward by the blades of a cylinder-type grass mower (shown in phantom) into substantially planar contact with the ground.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

As shown in Figure 1, the bendable marker of the present invention prefrably comprises a sign member 11 having a surface, which is preferably a thin, rigid, planar surface, adapted to receive qummed labels, engraving, or direct printing and the like. The side of sign member 11 depicted in Figure 1 is hereinafter referred to as the "face" of sign member 11. In the preferred embodiment, sign member 11 comprises a thin sign plate 13 having information 15 secured thereto. Sign plate 13 has a raised edge 17 around its outer periphery. Raised edge 17 provides structural strength to sign member 11. An eyelet 19 is integrally formed on the top region of raised edge 17 of sign member 11. This eyelet 19 is provided to allow one to pass a rope or cord through the marker, and is useful in the event one desires to rope off an a selected area to discourage passage therethrough.

Sign member 11 is coupled to a substantially rigid shaft 20, which has an upper end 21 and a lower end 47, shown in Figure 2 but obscured in Figure 1 by flexible elastomeric element 29. At least the foot and preferably substantially the whole length of shaft 20 has a substantially rectangular transverse cross-section, that is it has a radial shaft width that exceeds the radial shaft thickness.

Shaft 20 preferably has a central channel 27 axially disposed along its entire length from upper end 21 to lower end 47, as shown in Figure 1. In a particulalry preferred embodiment, the central channel 27 is approximately 1/2˝ wide and 1/4˝ deep. Central channel 27 is disposed between two ribs 23, 25 which are approximately 1/4˝ wide and 3/4˝ thick. Ribs 23, 25 run the entire length of substantially rigid shaft 20 from upper end 21 to lower end 47, as shown in Figure 1. Ribs 23, 25 and channel 27 serve to provide structural strength to shaft 20.

The foot of shaft 20 is connected to a substantially rigid stake 31 which is to be inserted into the ground and has a similar construction in many respects to shaft 20. Stake 21 has an upper end 45, shown in Figure 2, and a lower end 38 which forms a point 39, which is to be driven into the earth or ground of the grassy area or playing field to locate the marker. Upper end 45 is obscured in Figure 1 by flexible elastomeric element 29. Like shaft 20, stake 31 is substantially rectangular in traverse cross-section, having a stake width that exceeds stake thickness. In addition, stake 31 has a central channel 37 disposed between the two ribs 33, 35 which serve to add structural strength to the stake 31. The dimensions of the central channel 37, and ribs 33, 35 of stake 31 are preferably substantially identical to those of shaft 20, with the exception of lower end 38 of stake 31 in which ribs 33, 35 converge to form a point 39.

A flexible elastomeric element 29 is provided to couple shaft 20 and stake 31. In the preferred embodiment, flexible elastomeric element 29 is a flexible elastomeric tubular sleeve having an upper end 24 and a lower end 26 joined by an annular bore 28.

In the preferred embodiment, the lower end 47 of the shaft 20 is concentrically disposed within the upper end 24 of the flexible elastomeric element 29, while the upper end 45 of stake 31 is concentrically disposed within the lower end 26 of flexible elastomeric element 29. In the preferred embodiment, annular bore 28 of flexible elastomeric element 29 is of a suitable size to accommodate shaft 20 and stake 31. Specifically, the width of annular bore 28 exceeds the thickness of the annular bore 28, while annular bore 28 is of a size selected to firmly grasp both shaft 20 and stake 31 and inhibit the removal of said shaft 20 and stake 31. Lower end 47 and upper end 45 may be further secured within flexible elastomeric element 29 by any means for securing such as adhesives, staples, and fasteners.

As shown in Figure 2, stake 31 is disposed in ground 41, anchoring the marker in an area covered with grass 43. Flexible elastomeric element 29 is disposed in part in ground 41 along with stake 31. Lower end 47 of shaft 20 is concentrically disposed in flexible elastomeric element 29 in close physical proximity to upper end 45 of stake 31 which is concentrically disposed in lower end 26 of flexible elastomeric element 29. Upper end 45 of stake 31 and lower end 47 of shaft 20 are separated by a small clearance gap 49 which facilitates flexing of the elastomeric element at this point.

The adjustable elastomeric element 29 serves to urge shaft 20 and stake 31 into axial alignment. Thus, shaft 20 and stake 31 are held in an upright position substantially normal to the surface of the ground 41 into which stake 31 in anchored.

While shaft 20 and stake 31 are ordinarily in axial alignment, flexible elastomeric element 29, and gap 49 serve to allow shaft 20 to move into angular alignment with stake 31 in response to lateral forces. Specifically, flexible elastomeric element 29 urges shaft 20 into axial alignment with stake 31, but allows a cylinder-type grass mower 51 to bend said shaft 20 over at said elastomeric element 29 to a position substantially orthogonal to stake 31, as shown in Figure 3, placing sign member 11 and shaft 20 into contact with the surface of ground 41.

In the preferred embodiment, sign member 11 is in substantially the same plane as the shaft width and the stake width. Since the width of shaft 20 and stake 31 exceed the thickness of shaft 20 and stake 31, it is significantly easier to bend the marker at flexible elastomeric element 29 in a single plane. Specifically, shaft 20 is free to move in substantially only one plane defined by a 180o arc normal to the plane defined by sign member 11. At one extreme, sign member 11 is placed in substantially planar contact with the ground 41 with the face of the sign plate 13 downward. This configuration is designated hereinafter as the "forward" position. At the opposite extreme, sign member 11 is placed in substantial planar contact with ground 41 with the face of sign plate 13 upward. This position is hereinafter referred to as the "rearward" position.

In both "forward" and "rearward" positions, shaft 20 is in a substantially orthogonal relation to the stake 31. Since shaft 20 width and stake 31 width exceed thickness, it is significantly easier to bend the marker so that the shaft 20 width and stake 31 width are interfacing as discussed above. This feature restricts movement to a single plane and ensures that sign member 11 is urged into planar contact with ground 41 in response to lateral forces from cylinder-type grass mower 51. However, if the shaft 20 width equals the shaft 20 thickness and the stake 31 width equals the stake 31 thickness, the marker may be bent with equal ease in any direction from the upright position and this can lead to damage to the sign member, since the sign member must be disposed in substantially either the face-up or face-down position on the surface of the earth 41 if damage by the passage of the cylinder-type mower 51 over the marker is to be avaoided during the mowing process.

Figure 3 depicts the marker deflected in the "forward" position in response to the lateral force supplied by cylinder-type mower 51, which is shown in phantom. Cylinder-type grass mower 51 is of the conventional type having a plurality of slightly turned cutting blades substantially defining a cylindrical shape. As cylinder-type grass mower 51 is advanced in the direction of arrows 53, the blades are bought forward to cut grass 43. As shown in Figure 3, sign member 11 is shown urged downward into substantially parallel alignment with the ground 41. This forward movement is allowed by flexible elastomeric element 29 which bends in response to force from the cylinder-type mower 51. Arrow 55 shows the direction of movement of the sign member 11 in response to lateral force from mower 51. In this configuration, mower 51 may pass over the marker without damaging it, while effectively cutting the grass 43 around the marker.

For some uses, sign member 11 is not required, since information may be conveyed through the mere presence or location of shaft 20 on a grassy area. This is particularly true when the marker is employed as a boundary marker. The marker shaft 20 may be color coded to impart additional information.

The present invention also comprises a method of marking a selected location on a grass area, allowing said grass to be mowed with a cylinder-type grass mower 51 without affecting the marking by using a marker of the invention.

In operation, a selected location on a field, lawn or other grass area may be marked with the marker of the present invention. Stake 31 is anchored in ground 41, and a portion of flexible elastomeric element 29 is also disposed in the ground 41. Flexible elastomeric element 29 urges shaft 20 and integrally connected sign member 11 into axial alignment with stake 31. Thus, if sign member 11 is employed, it is visible from a distance on the yard, field, or grassy area. The shaft 20 or sign member 11 can serve as a tee marker, yardage marker, or location marker. In addition, the marker of the present invention may be used to provide certain selected information. For example, sign plate 13 may contain mileage information, maps, instructions, warnings, political messages, and the like.

Grass growing around the marker may be mowed with a cylinder-type grass mower without the removal of the marker, because the flexible elastomeric element 29 serves to allow the marker to bend so that the sign member 11 is in substantially planar contact with the surface of the ground 41.

The marker of the present invention offers the advantage that a grassy area containing one or more markers may be mowed without requiring the removal of the markers. Thus, a considerable inconvenience is eliminated, and time savings are realized. Second, the grassy area may be mowed without the risk of incorrect replacement of the marker after the mowing is accomplished. This is particularly helpful when the marker serves to measure distance, or set boundaries.

While the invention has been described in only one of its forms, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible to various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof.