U.S. patent number 3,777,733 [Application Number 05/239,637] was granted by the patent office on 1973-12-11 for spring type ball projecting device with ball throwing time delay mechanism.
Invention is credited to Joseph H. Mitchell.
United States Patent |
3,777,733 |
Mitchell |
December 11, 1973 |
SPRING TYPE BALL PROJECTING DEVICE WITH BALL THROWING TIME DELAY
MECHANISM
Abstract
The apparatus has a ball throwing arm that is moved to a cocked
position by means of a line that is pulled by a user. When the ball
throwing arm reaches the cocked position it engages a retaining
member that is connected to a dampening device. After release of
the pull on the ball throwing arm by the user a spring immediately
acts on the ball throwing arm to project a ball. The retaining
member holds the ball throwing member for a certain period of time
before complete release, due to the action of the delaying device.
Also, when the line is released by the user a retracting member
acts on the line to force it inwardly toward the ball throwing
apparatus. The ball throwing arm may be oriented in different
positions so that the ball impacting member on the end thereof may
cause the projected ball to have preselected degree of spin. The
cocking of the ball throwing member causes a ball feeding device to
position a ball to be projected to be positioned in the path of the
ball throwing member. The ball throwing device is selectively and
pivotally adjustable to a support base.
Inventors: |
Mitchell; Joseph H. (Warner
Robins, GA) |
Family
ID: |
22903049 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/239,637 |
Filed: |
March 30, 1972 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
124/7; 124/16;
124/34; 124/36; 124/41.1; 124/50; 124/81 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F41B
3/03 (20130101); A63B 69/408 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A63B
69/40 (20060101); F41b 003/02 () |
Field of
Search: |
;124/34,36,8,7,41,16,49,3R ;273/26D,29A |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Pinkham; Richard C.
Assistant Examiner: Browne; William R.
Claims
I claim:
1. Apparatus for propelling an article, comprising:
article propelling member operative to move along a path;
first means operatively connected to urge said article propelling
member in a first direction along said path to propel an
article;
second means selectively operative to urge said article propelling
member in a second direction along said path in opposition to said
first means;
means operative in response to movement of said article propelling
member to a certain location in said second direction to retain
said member at said certain location in opposition to said first
means; and
release means for releasing the article propelling member, said
release means being operative in response to the force applied to
the release means by the article propelling member when the article
propelling member is urged in a first direction by said first means
to release said retaining means a certain period of time after
termination of a user's force on the second means.
2. Apparatus as in claim 1, wherein:
said second means is positionable at a remote location adjacent a
trajectory of an article propelled by said article propelling
member.
3. Apparatus as in claim 1, wherein:
said second means includes control means selectively operable to
urge said article propelling means in said second direction, said
control means extending from said apparatus to be positionable at a
location remote thereof and adjacent an expected path of an article
to be propelled by.
4. Apparatus as in claim 3, wherein:
said control means includes a pull member extending to said remote
location and operative upon being pulled a predetermined distance
beyond said remote location to urge said article propelling member
into said retaining means at said certain location; and
retracting means operatively associated with said pull member to
return said pull member said predetermined distance to said remote
location when said pull member is released after being pulled, so
that such return of said pull member occurs independently of the
subsequent release of said article propelling member.
5. Ball throwing apparatus comprising:
a frame structure;
a ball throwing member disposed on said frame structure for
movement along a path relative thereto;
resilient means connected to apply force urging said ball throwing
member in a first direction along said path to throw a ball;
means operatively connected to said ball throwing member to move
said ball throwing member in a second direction along said path in
opposition to the force applied by said resilient means;
retaining member disposed to selectively engage said ball throwing
member and operative in response to movement of the ball throwing
member in said second direction until a certain location is reached
where the ball throwing member is retained in a cocked position
and
delay means for causing the retaining member to delay complete
release of said ball throwing member for a certain period of time
after the application of a cocking force has been applied and the
ball throwing force is free to act on said ball throwing member,
said delay means being operative in opposition to the movement of
the ball throwing member in the first direction by the force
applied by said resilient means during the time the ball throwing
member is acted upon by the resilient means until the ball throwing
member is completely released by said retaining member.
6. Apparatus as in claim 5, wherein:
said retaining member is disposed in said path at said certain
location thereon to engage and retain said ball throwing member
thereat.
7. Apparatus as in claim 6, wherein:
said retaining member is disposed to be movable to a first position
for retaining engagement of said ball throwing member in a cocked
position and to a second position for complete disengagement of
said ball throwing member; and
said delay means is operatively connected with said retaining
member to enable said retaining member to move from said first
position to said second position only upon passage of said certain
period of time.
8. Apparatus as in claim 5, wherein:
said resilient means is operatively connected between said frame
structure and said ball throwing member means; and selectively
adjustable means interposed at the connection of said resilient
means and said frame structure to vary the amount of energy stored
in the resilient means, said stored energy being applied to urge
said ball throwing means in the first direction.
9. Apparatus as in claim 5, further comprising:
means operative to adjust the final position said ball throwing
member can assume in said first direction relative to a reference
surface on which said apparatus is disposed.
10. Apparatus as in claim 9, wherein:
said last-mentioned means includes a base structure disposed to
rest on the reference surface and operative to receive said frame
structure; and
adjustable means connected between said base structure and said
frame structure to selectively adjust the position of said frame
structure relative to said base structure.
11. Apparatus as in claim 5 wherein:
said means to move said ball throwing member in a second direction
includes a pull member extending to a location remotely positioned
from said frame structure, said pull member being operatively
connected to said ball throwing member to move said ball throwing
member in said second direction to said certain location after
being pulled a predetermined distance; and
retracting means operatively associated with said pull member to
return said pull member said predetermined distance when said pull
member is released after being pulled, so that such return of said
pull member occurs before the movement of said ball throwing member
in said first direction and before complete release of said
retaining member after said certain period of time.
12. Apparatus as in claim 5, further comprising:
ball receiving means for receiving a ball for projection, said ball
receiving means being disposed on said ball throwing member;
ball storing means disposed on said frame structure for receiving a
plurality of balls; and
ball feeding means operative in response to said ball throwing
member being moved to said second location to transfer one of said
plurality of balls from said ball storing means to said ball
receiving means.
13. Apparatus as in claim 5, further comprising:
ball striking member disposed on said ball propelling member to
move along a predetermined path and to project a ball;
means disposed on said frame structure for positioning a ball in
said predetermined path in position propelling impact by said ball
striking member; and
means adjustably mounting said ball striking member to selectively
vary the orientation of said ball striking member, so that a
predetermined angular motion is imparted to said ball after the
ball has been struck by said ball striking member.
14. Apparatus as in claim 13, further comprising:
means disposed on said frame structure for receiving a number of
balls and for supplying said balls sequentially to a location
adjacent said ball positioning means; and
ball feeding means operative in response to said ball striking
member being moved to said certain location to transfer one of said
balls from an adjacent location into position on said ball
positioning means so as to be impacted by said ball striking
member.
Description
This invention relates in general to ball throwing apparatus and in
particular to ball throwing apparatus which can be operated by a
person who is also the player of the balls and which affords
economies in construction.
In sporting games such as baseball and tennis, to name only two, a
substantial element of the game is based on the skill and ability
of a person to hit a ball. While different players of such games
actually possess ball-hitting capabilities which may vary
considerably, these abilities of both the mediocre player and the
excellent player are inevitably developed and refined by repetitive
ball-hitting practice. Since this practice requires balls to be
repetitively thrown or pitched to the hitter, it is apparent that
the services of a person in addition to the practicing hitter are
required for such practice.
The presence of another person to pitch or throw the ball for
batting or hitting practice is frequently inconvenient or simply
unavailable. In the case of professional ball teams, for example,
the practice pitcher is a paid individual whose time must be
considered as an element of cost for the batting practice. Lower
levels of sports, such as Little League baseball, may not have
enough capable pitchers to satisfy the requirements of batting
practice. Moreover, as nearly any parent can affirm, an
enthusiastic ball-playing youngster frequently may wish to practice
his hitting beyond the pitching endurance of his parents and in the
absence of any playmate who will pitch.
Prior art attempts to overcome the foregoing problems have resulted
in the development of various machines for pitching or throwing
objects such as baseballs, tennis balls, and the like. Such
machines frequently are used to provide pitching for such
commercial endeavors as major-league baseball teams, batting ranges
open to the public, tennis ball pitching machines installed in club
environments, and the like. However, such machines of the prior
art, however advantageous for such commercial and semi-commercial
applications, have simply been far too expensive for purchase and
use in non-commercial or casual situations such as Little League
ball or simply as a pitching machine for a youngster.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide
improved apparatus for throwing balls.
It is another object of the present invention to provide ball
throwing apparatus of relatively simplified and economical
construction.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide ball
throwing apparatus which can be operated by one person and which
does not require an external power source.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide ball
throwing apparatus which can be actuated by the person to whom the
ball is thrown and which allows a period of time for assuming a
desired ball-hitting stance before throwing the ball to the
person.
Other objects and many of the attendant advantages will become more
apparent from the following description of an embodiment of the
present invention, including the annexed drawing, in which:
FIG. 1 shows an isometric view of a ball throwing apparatus
according to a disclosed embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 shows a partial elevation view taken in the direction of
line 2--2 of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 shows a partial section view taken along line 3--3 of FIG.
2;
FIG. 4 shows a partial side elevation view of a modification of the
disclosed embodiment;
FIG. 5 shows a partial pictorial view showing a ball delivery
mechanism of the disclosed embodiments;
FIG. 6 shows a partial pictorial view of a curve-ball propelling
arm according to another modification of the disclosed embodiment;
and
FIG. 7 shows a partial pictorial view of a modified ball delivery
mechanism according to the present invention.
Stated in general terms, the apparatus of the present invention
includes a ball throwing member which is operatively connected to
be set or cocked by a cord extending from the apparatus to a
location occupied by the person, such as a batter, to whom a ball
will be thrown. When the person moves the throwing member into the
set or cocked position, the member is retained in such a position
by a delay mechanism so that the person may release the cord and
assume his desired batting or other hitting stance or position in
time to receive the ball thrown by the apparatus.
Stated more particularly and with reference to the disclosed
embodiments of the present invention, as shown in the Figures,
there is shown ball throwing apparatus indicated generally at 10
and including a frame structure 11 mounted for selectively variable
positioning with respect to a base structure 12. The base structure
12 includes a pair of elongated feet 13 and 14 connected together
at one end as at 15 and carrying a pair of upstanding members 16
and 17. A pivot member 18 extends between the upper ends of the
members 16 and 17, and this pivot member also extends through
openings formed in the side members 19 and 20 of the frame
structure 11. A plurality of holes 21 is provided in each of the
side members 19 and 20, and a locking rod 22 is positionable
through a selected one of the holes 21 and a single hole 23
disposed in the upper end of each upstanding member 16 and 17, so
that the relative angular position between the frame structure 11
and the base structure 12 can be adjusted.
A ball throwing member 27 is provided including an arm 28 extending
from a shaft 29 mounted as at 30 for rotation. A suitable ball
receptacle 31 is disposed adjacent the unattached end 32 of the arm
28, and an abutment member 33 is disposed to extend downwardly a
spaced distance from the arm 28 for a purpose described below.
A cord 34 is connected to the arm 28 at a suitable location, shown
in FIG. 1 to be generally beneath the ball receptacle 31, and
extends downwardly to pass around a pulley 35 and thence outwardly
to a pull handle 36. A sufficient amount of cord 34 preferably is
provided to permit the pull handle 36 to be placed at a position
remote of the apparatus 10 and corresponding, for example, to a
real or imagined "home plate" or other suitable ball-hitting
location.
The ball throwing member 27 is normally maintained in the position
shown in FIG. 1 under the influence of a suitable source of ball
throwing force such as the tension coil springs 40 and 41 connected
between the corresponding arms 42, extending from the shaft 29, and
a spring retaining member 43. The spring retaining member 43 may
preferably be selectively receivable in one of plural slots 44
provided in an adjustment member 45, as shown in detail in FIG. 3,
so that the tension of the springs 40 and 41 can be adjusted to
control the ball throwing force of the present apparatus. It will
be understood, of course, that a single tension spring of
appropriate characteristics can be provided in place of the two
springs 41 and 42, although construction of apparatus according to
the present invention may be more economically accomplished in
certain applications through the use of two (or more) as needed
readily available springs as an alternate to the procurement of a
more-expensive special purpose spring. It will also be apparent to
those skilled in the art that other sources of ball-throwing force
could be provided as a substitution of the tension springs; for
example, one or more spiral springs (not shown) may be fixedly or
adjustably provided between the shaft 29 and the frame 11 at the
mounting 30 to bias the ball throwing member 27. Whatever form of
ball throwing force is employed, the maximum forward motion of the
ball throwing member 27 is limited by an abutment device 46 mounted
to contact the arm 28 at a desired location of maximum forward
movement. The abutment member 46 preferably is fabricated from
sponge rubber or any other suitable resilient and shock-absorbing
material.
The arm 28 is retained in a reverse-movement or "cocked" position
through interaction with a retaining member 50 which is mounted as
at 51 for pivotal movement and which includes a slot 52 disposed in
the free end of the retaining member. Controlled movement of the
retaining member 50 is provided in the disclosed embodiment of FIG.
1 with a motion damping device 56 connected between an extension 65
of the retaining member and a support member 64 affixed to the
frame structure 11. The motion damping device 56 can be any
mechanism or apparatus which provides a controlled, limited rate of
movement in response to a predetermined applied force. Damping
devices of this type are well-known to those skilled in the art and
typically employ hydraulic and/or pneumatic damping mechanisms
utilizing piston-cylinder combinations, as exemplified by
conventional door closing mechanisms. A spring 55 is connected
between the extension 65 and the support member 64 to bias the
retaining member 50 to the position shown in FIG. 1. Alternatively,
a spring-driven or other type of mechanical timing device could be
substituted for the cylinder-piston damper used herein.
Considering the operation of the disclosed apparatus as described
thus far, it is assumed that a person desiring to receive a ball
thrown from the present apparatus is standing at a location
adjacent the pull handle 36. The person grasps and pulls the handle
36, applying force through the cord 34 to move the arm 28
downwardly against the force of the springs 40 and 41. Since the
distance along the arm 28 between the shaft 29 and the point of
attachment of the cord 34 is preferably chosen to be substantially
greater than the effective length of the arm 42, the arm 28 can
thus be lowered against the spring force by a youngster or another
person not having exceptionally great muscular strength. As the arm
28 is lowered, the end portion 32 moves downwardly to engage the
notch 52 defined in the free end of the retaining member 50.
Further downward movement of the arm 28 causes the retaining member
50 to be rotated in a counterclockwise direction (as viewed in FIG.
4) around the pivot 51 until the abutment member 33 and the arm 50
contact a suitable motion stop 57. It will be seen that this
counterclockwise movement of the retaining member 50 causes the
piston to be withdrawn from the motion damping device 56, and it
will be understood that the motion damping device is provided with
valving or other suitable expedients which permit substantially
unimpeded withdrawal of the piston.
When the handle 36 can be pulled no further, the person then
releases this handle and grasps his bat, tennis racket, or the like
to prepare for the imminent delivery of a ball from the present
apparatus, this ball having been loaded into the ball receptacle 31
by mechanism to be described below. Release of the handle 36
removes tension from the cord 34, and so the arm 28 is urged at the
force of the springs 40 and 41 to attempt to assume the broken-line
position shown in FIG. 4. The end 32 of the arm 28 remains engaged
in the notch 52 of the retaining member 50, however, and the
retaining member is permitted to rotate in a clockwise direction
(as viewed in FIG. 4) under the combined forces of the arm 28 and
the spring 55 at a relatively slow rate, resulting from the
resistance to inward movement of the piston by the motion damping
device 56. After the passage of a predetermined time, the retaining
member 50 will have rotated in a clockwise direction to the extent
necessary to permit the arm end 32 to escape from the notch 52, at
which time the arm 28 moves rapidly forward under the influence of
the springs 40 and 41 until the abutment member 46 is contacted. It
will be appreciated that this rapid forward movement of the arm 28
imparts corresponding movement to the ball 59, previously received
in the ball throwing member 27, so that this ball is projected
outwardly of the apparatus in a direction toward the person who had
previously cocked the apparatus by pulling the handle 36.
The period of time provided between release of the handle 36 and
the subsequent escape of the arm end 32 from the notch 52 is
controlled by the motion damping characteristics of the device 56
and also the force applied by the spring 55 and the arm 28.
Practically speaking, this period of time should be sufficient to
enable the bat or other hitting implement to be grasped and the
proper hitting stance assumed, and a time delay in the order of 5
to 10 seconds is appropriate although not limiting. To prevent the
handle 36 from being suddenly jerked toward the apparatus 10 by the
ball-throwing movement of the arm 28, a resilient member 62 such as
an elastic cord or the like may advantageously be connected between
the frame structure 11 and a suitable location 63 on the cord 34.
The resilient member 62 gently functions to retract the handle 36
as soon as released and before the arm 28 is released by the
retaining member 50.
As an alternate to the location of the motion damping device 56 as
depicted in FIG. 1, the motion damping device can be located as
shown on FIG. 4 to be positioned on the side of the pivot 51
opposite from the notch 52. The motion damping device 56 is
positioned to extend between the extension 53 of the retaining
member 50 and the location 54 on the frame structure 11. The spring
55 (not shown in FIG. 4) can also be positioned adjacent and in
parallel with the repositioned motion damping device 56, although
it will be understood that the spring 55 may be contained
internally as an integral part of the motion damping device 56, as
is typically provided with the conventional screen door closing
mechanism. As an additional alternative, the motion damping device
can be disposed below the retaining member 50 and to the left of
the pivot 51, as viewed in FIG. 4, although it will be understood
that the above-described unimpeded extension and impeded
contraction of the piston arm 58 of a motion damping device thus
located would have to be functionally reversed. In any event,
placing the motion damping device to the left or ball-throwing side
of the pivot 51 enables the overall length of the present apparatus
to be shortened.
Turning next to the apparatus of the present invention which stores
a quantity of balls and feeds these balls, one at a time, into the
ball receptacle 31, the apparatus as shown in FIG. 5 is provided
with a ball channel 68 which may be provided either by the discrete
members 69, FIG. 4, or alternatively by a unitary trough or like
member. The ball channel 68, of which only a portion is shown in
the Figures, may advantageously extend in a generally spiral manner
to have a ball-receiving opening adjacent the front 70 of the
apparatus, it being primarily important that the ball channel have
a downward slope which allows the balls 71 received therein to be
gravity-fed to the lower end of the channel for abutment against
the stop member 72.
A rocking member 73 pivotally mounted as at 74 to the frame
structure 11 includes a pair of upstanding fingers 75 disposed at a
first end thereof, and the second end 76 of the rocking member is
positioned to be in the downward path of travel traversed by the
abutment member 33 on the arm 28. The rocking member 73 is
appropriately biased to assume the position shown in FIG. 2, and it
can be seen that the fingers 75 are thus positioned below and
behind the stop member 72 a distance which is somewhat less than
the diameter of one of the balls 71 contained in the ball channel
68.
When the arm 28 is lowered under the force applied through the cord
34 to be cocked, as described previously herein, the abutment
member 33 is moved downwardly to contact the end 76 of the rocking
member 73 and thus to rotate the rocking member around the pivot 74
in a direction to move the fingers 75 upwardly. The fingers 75 thus
engage the initial ball in the ball channel 68 and displace this
ball over the stop member 72 and into the now-positioned ball
receptacle 31. At the same time, the fingers 75 remain positioned
in the ball channel 68 to prevent any of the other balls 71 from
entering the ball receptacle 31. As soon as the arm 28 is released
by the retaining member 50 to move upwardly, the rocking member 73
again moves to place the fingers 75 in a lowered position to permit
another one of the balls 71 to come to rest against the stop member
72, there to await transfer to the ball receptacle 31 upon the next
operative cycle of the apparatus.
Apparatus according to the present invention can be modified as
particularly shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 to impart a desired
characteristic of "spin" to the balls pitched or thrown by the
apparatus, and which can thus be selectively adjusted to pitch
curve balls to a batter. As seen in FIG. 6, for example, a modified
shaft 79 provided with journalled ends 80 or other suitable
rotation bearings has a ball propelling arm 81 rotatably extending
through an opening 82 in the shaft 79 and terminating at an end 83
below the shaft. A resilient member such as the spring 84 surrounds
the lower end of the arm 81 in compression between a retaining
member 85 and the underside of the shaft 79. A stop member 86
extends outwardly from the arm 81 and extends along the upper side
87 of the shaft 79 to lie between two of the several lugs 88
projecting upwardly therefrom. It can be seen that the arm 81 can
be lifted upwardly against the compression force of the spring 84
and then rotated to place the stop member 86 between any two of the
lugs 88 for a purpose set forth below.
Disposed at the upper end 92 of the arm 81 is a ball hitting member
93 preferably having a substantially flat ball hitting surface 94.
The arm 81 is shown in FIG. 6 in its fully-released position in
contact with the resilient abutment member 46.
Unlike the previous described embodiments of the present invention,
in which a ball was supplied to the receptacle 31 when the ball
throwing arm 28 was substantially completely retracted to a cocked
position, a ball 95 to be thrown according to the present
embodiment is positioned in the spring-powered release path of the
arm 81 to be struck by the surface 94 of the ball hitting member 93
immediately before the forward movement of the arm 81 is terminated
by the abutment member 46. It will be apparent to those skilled in
the art that the ball 95 will be propelled forwardly of the
apparatus along a certain trajectory, and that the angular relation
of the surface 94 relative to such trajectory controls the
direction and amount of spin, if any, imparted to the thrown ball.
If the surface 94 is substantially perpendicular to the ball
trajectory, the ball will be propelled with substantially no
imparted spin. However, if the surface 94 is adjusted by the
aforementioned rotation of the arm 81 in the opening 82, the
surface 94 assumes a non-perpendicular relationship relative to the
trajectory of the ball, and the ball as struck by the surface 94 is
propelled with a spin component the direction and magnitude of
which is determined by the direction and extent of the
nonperpendicularity relative to the ball trajectory.
The ball 95 is supported on a pair of guide members 96 and 97 which
are preferably inclined with a slight rearward pitch to roll the
ball backwardly to contact the stop member 99.
A plurality of balls may be disposed in a ball channel 102 inclined
to cause the lead ball in the channel to abut against the guide
member 96 and the stop 98. The lead ball 95 in the ball channel 102
is moved into position on the guide members 96 and 97, thus
occupying the position shown by the phantom ball in FIG. 6, by a
pair of fingers 103 disposed on an end of a rocking member 104
pivotally attached as at 105 to the support member 64. The other
end of the rocking member 104 is connected by a link 106 to the
extension member 65, which is attached to the retaining member 50.
It will be understood that lowering of the retaining member 50 and
the extension member 65, caused by engagement of the upper end 92
of the arm 81 in the notch 52 of the retaining member 50, also
lowers the link 106 and produces a corresponding upward movement of
the fingers 103 disposed on the rocking member 104. The fingers 103
thus lift the lead ball over the motion stop provided by the guide
member 96 to place this ball between the guide members 96 and 97,
in a position for impact and propulsion when the ball propelling
arm 81 is subsequently released.
The adjustable connection between the frame structure 11 and the
base structure 12 can be adjusted to provide the desired trajectory
of the balls 59 which are pitched or thrown by the present
apparatus, although it will be understood that trajectory control
can be accomplished by other expedients such as, for example,
adjusting the position of the abutment member 46. A receptacle
closed by the door 23 can be provided at the end 15 of the base
structure for storage of balls and for placement of weights as
needed to stabilize the present apparatus on uneven terrain. As
another alternative to the embodiment disclosed herein, the frame
structure 11 and the components associated therewith can be
provided without the base structure 12 and the feet 13 mounted on
the upstanding members 16. In this manner, the ball throwing
apparatus could be provided for mounting at a suitable elevated
location such as the top of a table or another support. The
function of the pulley 35 would, of course, be provided by a
suitable apparatus disposed within the frame structure 11.
Furthermore, it will be understood that the foregoing relates only
to preferred embodiments of the present invention, and that
numerous modifications and alterations may be made therein without
departing from the spirit and the scope of the present invention as
defined in the following claims.
* * * * *