Baseball base and anchor
OwnerCharles E. Studebaker, William Weiglinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The anchor utilizes a pair of horizontally-offset male/female connections between the base and the anchor, the outer one of which connections is adjacent the outer edges of the base so as to minimize the effects of torque applied as when a player slides into a base while attempting a "steal". The horizontal surface area of the anchor is relatively large to enable a dirt-covered anchor to be easily located. Important advantages of the design are to avoid anchor obstruction of dragging equipment when the bases are removed, protecting both the equipment and the anchors, and to minimize risk to a player stepping over an anchor which does not have a base covering it.
Claims18
A permanent anchor for a portable baseball base having an anchor plate fastened to its underside with a central female receptacle extending downwardly from said anchor plate and vertical edge surfaces encompassing said female receptacle, said anchor being firmly positionable in earth along a basepath of a baseball diamond and being entirely below grade of the basepath when so positioned so as not to obstruct performance of dragging equipment used to level the top surface of the basepath when the base is removed, said anchor comprising:
- a central, upwardly-extending male stake having an upper end for entering said female receptacle to comprise a first vertical male/female connection when said base and anchor plate are placed over said stake, said female receptacle and male stake overlapping vertically and each being provided with means for essentially restraining the base against relative rotation when the receptacle and stake are engaged;
- a vertically-extending housing attached to and surrounding said stake and having a central opening, said housing being open-ended at its upper edge and said upper edge terminating approximately in the same horizontal plane as said upper end of said stake;
- and
- said housing having vertical restraining edge surfaces encompassing its upper open end, said restraining surfaces mating with and closely interfitting said vertical edge surfaces of said anchor plate when said receptacle and stake are engaged so as to comprise a second vertical male/female connection located radially outward of said central stake and receptacle.
A permanent anchor for a portable basball base having an anchor plate fastened to its underside with a central female receptacle extending downwardly from said anchor plate and vertical edge surfaces encompassing said female receptacle, said anchor being firmly positionable in earth along a basepath of a baseball diamond and being entirely below grade of the basepath when so positioned so as not to obstruct performance of dragging equipment used to level the top surface of the basepath when the base is removed, said anchor comprising:
- a central, upwardly-extending male stake having an upper end for entering said female receptacle to comprise a first vertical male/female connection when said base and anchor plate are placed over said stake, said female receptacle and male stake overlapping vertically when the receptacle and stake are engaged;
- a vertically-extending housing attached to and surrounding said stake and having a central opening, said housing being open-ended at its upper edge and said upper edge terminating approximately in the same horizontal plane as said upper end of said stake;
- and
- said housing having vertical restraining edge surfaces encompassing its upper open end, said restraining surfaces mating with and interfitting said vertical edge surfaces of said anchor plate when said receptacle and stake are engaged so as to comprise a second vertical male/female connection located radially outward of said central stake and receptacle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.