US 5,397,018 AGranted

Tennis ball handling system

OwnerPaul-Joachim Maderinventor

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Abstract

A tennis ball handling system in which a first storage container (1) for many tennis balls (2) is filled at the tennis ball producer with new tennis balls suitable for play, is transported to an installation site, such as a sporting goods store, tennis facility, etc. and installed at the installation site, a second storage container for many tennis balls is filled at the installation site with used tennis balls that are no longer suitable for play and in which the used balls are transported back to the tennis ball producer or to a recycling operation and emptied there, and reusable player's storage containers that can be bought, rented, borrowed in a deposit system or acquired at no cost by the player, are filled with a small number of new tennis balls (2) that are removed from the first storage container (1) for use by the tennis player, and from which used tennis balls (2) that are no longer suitable for play are emptied by the player into the second storage container at the installation site. Preferably, the tennis balls are maintainable under an overpressure in the first storage container and the player's storage container.

Claims15

Dependent claims

Tennis ball handling system, comprising:

a) a first storage container for mass storage of tennis balls and which is filled, at a tennis ball producer, with new tennis balls suitable for play, which is transportable in filled condition to an installation site and which is installable at the installation site for dispensing of tennis balls thereat;
b) a second storage container for mass storage of tennis balls that is fillable at the installation site with used tennis balls that are no longer suitable for play, and which is transportable to a location where it may be emptied;
and
c) reusable player's storage containers for a small number of tennis balls for use by tennis players;
whereby used tennis balls no longer suitable for play may be emptied by the players out of respective player's storage containers into the second storage container at the installation site, and new tennis balls suitable for play may be removed from the first storage container and filled into the player's storage containers;
wherein at least the first said storage container is formed of a flexible-foldable material;
wherein the first storage container is pressure-sealable for enabling an internal overpressure to be maintained for at least a minimum period of time after being filled with new tennis balls, supplied with the internal overpressure and closed;
and wherein a tennis ball pressure lock is provided for connection to the opening of the first storage container as means by which tennis balls can be removed from the first storage container at the installation site with only a limited pressure loss therefrom.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.