Breakaway safety base
OwnerRoger E. Hallinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A breakaway safety base for use in playing baseball where the base is secured to a ground support by resilient deformable interengageable members carried on both the base and support which form a plurality of physical connections securing the base to the support. High-injury potential lateral loading forces on the base shear the connections to free the base for lateral movement across the support.
Claims17
A base assembly comprising:
- (a) a base member having a lower mounting surface with beveled edges extending out and downwardly, and
- (b) a resilient and laterally deformable upper element secured to said lower mounting surface and including a first engagement surface,
- (c) a lower ground support having an upper mounting surface with downwardly beveled edges, and
- (d) a resilient and laterally deformable lower element secured to said upper mounting surface and including an engagement surface, and
- wherein said base member is secured to said lower ground support with the engagement surface of said upper element engaged to said engagement surface of said lower element and with said beveled edges of said base member resting on said beveled edges of said lower ground support, said base member being held to said lower ground support when said base member is subject to low non-injury potential lateral force, but the engagement being severable when said base member is subject to high injury potential lateral force, said beveled edges of said base cooperating with said beveled edges of said lower ground support to enhance vertical separation between said upper element and said lower element when said base is subject to lateral force.
A base assembly comprising:
- (a) a base member having a lower mounting surface with beveled edges extending out and downwardly,
- (b) a resilient and laterally deformable upper element secured to said lower mounting surface and having an engagement surface,
- (c) a lower ground support having an upper mounting surface with downwardly beveled edges, and
- (d) a resilient and laterally deformable lower element secured to said upper mounting surface and including an engagement surface, and
- wherein said base member is secured to said lower ground support with the engagement surface of said upper element interlocked to the engagement surface of said lower element and with said beveled edges of said base member resting on said beveled edges of said lower ground support, said base member held to said lower ground support when said base member is subject to low non-injury potential lateral force, but the engagement is severable when said base member is subject to high injury potential lateral force, and wherein said upper element is a member of the group comprising:
- (i) a male element, and
- (ii) a female element, and said lower element is the other member of said group, and said beveled edges of said base cooperate with said beveled edges of said lower ground support to enhance vertical separation between said upper element and said lower element when said base is subject to lateral force.
A base assembly comprising a ground support having an upper mounting surface and a deformable and severable base member disposed thereon, said ground support having beveled peripheral edges downwardly extending from said upper mounting surface, said base member having a recessed lower mounting surface and downwardly and outwardly extending beveled edges, said base member disposed on said ground support such that said beveled edges of said base member rest on said beveled edges of said ground support, and lower means on said ground support for severably holding to an upper means on said base member and to allow separation of said base member from said ground support when said base member is subject to a lateral high injury potential force and wherein said upper means for holding comprises at least one resilient and laterally deformable upper element, and wherein said lower means for holding comprises at least one resilient and laterally deformable lower element interlocked to said upper element, and said beveled edges of said lower ground support cooperate with said beveled edges of said base to enhance vertical separation between said upper element and said lower element when said base is subject to lateral force.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.