US4098507A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Portable miniature golf game
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1977-02-07
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Granted: 1978-07-04
•
Expires: 1997-02-07
Abstract
Abstract A portable, table type miniature golf game consisting of a game board made of easily and quickly assembled sections to take up minimum room when not in use. The game board has the configuration of a cross with the end of the main leg remote from the cross leg defining the starting zone of the play. Upstanding side walls are fixed to the edges of the panel and confine the golf ball to the playing surface. There are three cups made in the cross leg. One cup is visible from the starting zone, while the two remaining cups are not visible, the side walls forming an obstacle. The cups can be selectively plugged so that only one is used at any one time. Various hazards of different shapes can be removably positioned from the playing surface and their positions can be changed. Ball deflectors are also removably attached to the walls. A fortune wheel is associated with the game and determined by chance the number of points to be scored if the player sinks the ball in the cup in the indicated number of strokes.
Inventors
- 👤 Jean-Paul Hudon
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-07 18:33
CPC Classifications
A; A63; A63F; A63F7/00; A63F7/06; A63F7/0604; A63F7/0628; A63B; A63B2210/00; A63B2210/50
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
240 words
A miniature golf game comprising a panel defining a flat playing surface having generally the shape of a cross, when seen in top plan view with a main leg and a cross leg intersecting said main leg intermediate the ends of the latter and nearer one end and substantially at right angles to said main leg, an upstanding side wall along the edges of said playing surface for confining a ball to said surface and said other end of said surface defining a starting zone of play, said cross leg defining a finishing zone of play and provided with at least two cups for receiving a ball, one of said cups located in the intersecting portion of said two legs, so that a straight path can be delineated from said starting zone to said one cup, and the other of said cups being located in a part of said cross leg, such that said wall constitutes an obstacle in any straight path from said starting zone to said second cup, means to removably plug one or the other of said cups, and pairs of blocks secured to the panel at the junction of the playing surface and the side walls and at a predetermined distance apart, and ball rises of different arcuate shape but each having a base width equal to said predetermined distance so as to make said arcuate ball rises interchangeable as to their position along the fairway.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
240 words
A miniature golf game comprising a panel defining a flat playing surface having generally the shape of a cross, when seen in top plan view with a main leg and a cross leg intersecting said main leg intermediate the ends of the latter and nearer one end and substantially at right angles to said main leg, an upstanding side wall along the edges of said playing surface for confining a ball to said surface and said other end of said surface defining a starting zone of play, said cross leg defining a finishing zone of play and provided with at least two cups for receiving a ball, one of said cups located in the intersecting portion of said two legs, so that a straight path can be delineated from said starting zone to said one cup, and the other of said cups being located in a part of said cross leg, such that said wall constitutes an obstacle in any straight path from said starting zone to said second cup, means to removably plug one or the other of said cups, and pairs of blocks secured to the panel at the junction of the playing surface and the side walls and at a predetermined distance apart, and ball rises of different arcuate shape but each having a base width equal to said predetermined distance so as to make said arcuate ball rises interchangeable as to their position along the fairway.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
82 words
A golf game as claimed in claim 1, wherein said cups are circular holes made in the panel and having equal diameters, and further including lugs secured to the underface of said panel and partially protruding within said holes, and said means to plug said cups including a flat disc of a diameter to slidably fit anyone of said holes and retained in said holes by means of said lugs with the top surface of the disc flush with said playing surface.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
93 words
A miniature golf game as claimed in claim 2, further including a double wall ball deflector consisting of two right angularly curved wall sections joined together at one end and having a T-shape configuration when seen in top plan view, a disc secured to said two curved wall sections, of the same diameter as said first-named discs and adapted to be positioned within anyone of said holes, and a lug protruding from said last-named disc and fitting between the lugs of the holes to maintain said double wall deflector in a given orientation.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
73 words
A miniature golf game as claimed in claim 1, wherein said cross leg protrudes equally from each side of said main leg and there are three cups aligned along the centerline of said cross leg, one of said cups being the central one lying also along the centerline of the main leg, while the remaining two cups are equally spaced from said center cup in the respective end zones of said cross leg.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
53 words
A miniature golf game as claimed in claim 1, further including quarter round ball deflectors consisting of a curved wall section provided with hooking means to removably engage said side walls at anyone of the reentrant corners at the ends of said cross leg and at the remote end of said main leg.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
89 words
A miniature golf game as claimed in claim 1, further including a ball obstacle consisting of a cylindrical block with two intersecting ball passages opening at the outer cylindrical surface of said cylindrical block and intersecting at the center of the block at right angles to each other, said block adapted to be positioned over one of said cups with the intersecting zone of the block passages immediately over said cup, so as to restrict to four the number of directions the ball can take to enter the cup.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
26 words
A miniature golf game as claimed in claim 1, further including weighted square posts adapted to be located anywhere on the playing surface in upright position.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
39 words
A miniature golf game as claimed in claim 1, further including pairs of ears projecting over said playing surface from the top edge of said side walls and upright baffles removably received and retained between said pairs of ears.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
28 words
A miniature golf game as claimed in claim 1, wherein said panel and side wall form a plurality of detachable sections and means to removably attach said sections.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
65 words
A miniature golf game as claimed in claim 1, further including a fortune wheel including an upright post removably secured to the panel and a disc rotatable on said post and bearing radial pairs of numbers, one number of each pair indicating a score and the other number of the pair indicating a number of strokes, said post carrying an arrow pointing towards said disc.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1981-07-03 | 1982-01-02 | 1982-07-04 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1985-07-03 | 1986-01-02 | 1986-07-04 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1989-07-03 | 1990-01-02 | 1990-07-04 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |