CN111714857A

CN111714857A - Ball supply device

Info

Publication number: CN111714857A
Application number: CN201910204118.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 崔承焕
Original assignee: Alditane
Current assignee: Alditane; RD TEK CO Ltd
Priority date: 2019-03-18
Filing date: 2019-03-18
Publication date: 2020-09-29

Abstract

The present invention relates to a ball supply device capable of smoothly supplying a ball to a ball service position without fail, the ball supply device including: a ball supply assembly for supplying balls; a moving part connected with the side part of the ball supply assembly and used for moving the balls supplied by the ball supply assembly; a standby part connected with the moving part and used for making the received ball stand by; a conveying component which is arranged on the side surface of the standby part and supplies the balls which are in standby in the standby part to the upper part of the cushion through the swinging motion within a specified range; a detection part arranged at the side part of the moving part and used for detecting the ball moving to the moving part; and a control unit for controlling the operation state of the ball supply unit according to the detection of the detection unit.

Description

Ball supply device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a ball supply device for supplying a ball (golf ball) for a tee shot to a designated position, and more particularly, to a ball supply device capable of smoothly supplying a ball to a tee shot position without fail.

Background

Recently, as interest in golf has increased, a virtual golf simulation system called "screen golf" has appeared. Such a virtual golf simulation system provides a sense of realism that can be enjoyed indoors as if playing on a real golf course.

A well-known golf simulation system includes a screen golf booth for forming a space of a prescribed size.

The image provided by the golf simulation device is projected to a screen arranged on the front part of the golf room. Therefore, when the golfer hits the golf ball toward the screen, the image of the golf ball is projected onto the screen, so that the golfer feels the same sense of reality as the reality in viewing the image.

In order to facilitate golfers in a virtual golf simulation environment, the above-mentioned screen golf system generally employs an automatic golf ball feeding device. The automatic golf ball supply device can automatically supply golf balls to a designated hitting position. And the hit golf ball can be recovered to be supplied to the hitting area.

Existing automatic golf ball supply devices have been developed in various forms and put to practical use. Examples of the golf ball supply device include those disclosed in Korean laid-open patent publication No. 10-1996 and 0000264 and Korean granted invention publication No. 20-0447669. The plurality of golf ball feeding devices disclosed in the above prior art documents are formed of completely different structures. However, the same technical problem exists in realizing the device so that the collected golf balls can be supplied to the designated hitting position one by one.

As described above, the prior known automatic golf ball supply device realizes a device for supplying golf balls one by one to a designated hitting position. However, many other golf ball feeding devices known in the art, including the above-described prior art disclosed in the prior art documents, are mostly located around the ground on which a golf ball is placed in a structural characteristic.

This prior art uses a system in which an automatic feeding device is provided at the bottom of a hitting zone, an inclined surface is formed in front, so that hit golf balls are gathered to the front of the machine along the inclined surface, and the balls are re-fed to a ball discharging device.

However, the automatic golf ball supply device according to the related art has a problem in that the golf ball is positioned at a tee point by lifting and lowering the tee in a state where the golf ball is placed on the tee from the bottom of a hitting position, a wide space should be provided between the tee device and the mat, and a product is installed due to a space restriction, and a phenomenon of entanglement occurs when a plurality of golf balls are gathered, so that the golf ball cannot be smoothly supplied, and the product performance is deteriorated.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 0001: korean laid-open patent publication No. 10-1996-

Patent document No. 0002: korean granted invention publication No. 20-0447669

Disclosure of Invention

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a ball supply device which can prevent a ball from being tangled by rotating a rotary plate without being exposed to an upper portion of a golf course, can supply balls without fail, automatically, and smoothly, and can maximize product quality and a user's satisfaction.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a ball supply device that does not require a space between a mat and a ball seat because the ball seat lifts the ball in a state where the ball is placed on the mat by a swing motion of a transfer member, and that can minimize a space restriction by lowering an installation height of the mat.

A ball supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention to achieve the above object may include: a ball supply assembly for supplying balls; a moving part connected with the side part of the ball supply assembly and used for moving the balls supplied by the ball supply assembly; a standby part connected with the moving part and used for making the received ball stand by; a conveying component which is arranged on the side surface of the standby part and supplies the balls which are in standby in the standby part to the upper part of the cushion through the swinging motion within a specified range; a detection part arranged at the side part of the moving part and used for detecting the ball moving to the moving part; and a control unit for controlling the operation state of the ball supply unit according to the detection of the detection unit.

The ball supply assembly may include: a hopper part for placing balls; a rotating plate provided above the hopper portion so as to supply balls to the moving portion; a driving part connected to the rotating plate at a lower portion of the hopper part to rotate the rotating plate; and a ball input part which is arranged on the side surface of the hopper part and can supply balls to the hopper part.

The hopper part may include: the bottom plate is used for placing the balls and arranging the rotating plate; a closing plate which is arranged at the front and the back of the bottom plate in a mode of protruding upwards and is used for preventing the ball from separating; and a supply plate provided on a side surface of the closing plate to supply balls one by one to the moving portion by rotation of the rotating plate.

The base plate may be provided in an inclined manner so that the balls can be supplied one by rotation of the rotating plate.

A ball-dropping groove may be formed in the center of the supply plate so that one ball can drop into the moving part by the rotation of the rotation plate.

The rotating plate is in a disk shape, and a plurality of placing grooves are formed around the outer side of the rotating plate at predetermined intervals so that balls can be inserted and moved.

The driving part may include: a gear and a shaft connected with the rotating plate for rotating the rotating plate; and a driving motor electrically connected to the control unit and connected to the shaft to rotate the shaft.

The moving part may include: a bracket connected with the supply plate of the ball supply assembly and arranged on two sides of the moving part in a manner of keeping a specified interval; and a ball moving track provided at an upper portion of the support for moving the balls supplied from the ball supply assembly.

The holders are provided with a space smaller than the diameter of the balls to prevent the balls at both sides from falling down, and are provided obliquely so that the balls can smoothly roll along the ball moving rails.

The ball moving rail may take a "" -shape to prevent balls supplied from the ball supply assembly to the supporter from falling to the outside.

The standby part may include: a connecting frame connected with the tail end of the moving part; a ball supply member provided inside the link frame, for making the ball supplied from the moving part stand by, and reciprocating in left and right directions with the hinge as an axis to place the ball on the transfer member; and a spring disposed at a lower portion of the ball supply member.

The upper part of the end of the connecting frame can be provided with a clamping sheet, so that the ball moving on the ball supply component can be clamped and not separated.

The ball supply member may be curved such that the ball supplied from the moving part is caught in a standby state and placed on the transfer member while reciprocating about the hinge.

The detection part may include: a connecting plate provided on an outer side surface of the moving portion so as to protrude upward; and a position detection sensor provided on an inner side surface of the connection plate and detecting the moving ball.

As described above, the ball supply device according to the present invention has an effect that the balls introduced into the ball introduction part are supplied to the hopper part, the balls are placed in the placing groove of the rotating plate, the rotating plate rotates according to the activation of the driving part, the balls are supplied by the ball introduction part being dropped into the moving part, and the balls are automatically supplied according to the detection of the detecting part, thereby smoothly supplying the balls, and thus, the performance of the product and the satisfaction of the user can be maximized.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall structure of a ball supply device of the present invention including a mat.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a ball supply device of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a front view showing a ball supply device of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a plan view showing a ball supply device of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a ball supply assembly of the ball supply apparatus of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing a ball supply state of the ball supply device of the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a front view illustrating a process of supplying a ball by the ball supply device of the present invention.

Description of reference numerals

10: the cushion 100: ball supply assembly

110: hopper section 111: base plate

112: the closing plate 113: supply plate

113 a: ball-throwing into groove 120: rotary plate

121: the placement groove 130: driving part

131: gear 132: shaft

133: driving motor 140: ball input part

141: feeding groove 200: moving part

210: the bracket 220: ball moving rail

300: standby portion 310: connecting frame

311: locking piece 320: ball supply component

330: spring 340: hinge assembly

400: the transmitting part 410: movable arm

420: the transfer arm 421: placing surface

500: the detection unit 510: connecting plate

520: position detection sensor 600: control unit

B: ball with ball-shaped section

Detailed Description

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative embodiments, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described, but to include all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention.

In the drawings, the various embodiments of the invention are not limited to the specific forms shown, and have been shown exaggerated for clarity. Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being set forth in the following claims.

In the present specification, the expression "and/or" is used in a meaning including at least one of the structural elements listed in the front and rear. Also, the expression "connected/coupled" is used in a meaning including being directly connected to or indirectly connected through other structural elements. In this specification, the singular forms also include the plural forms unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Further, the structural elements, steps, operations, and devices referred to by "including" or "including" as used in the specification mean the presence or addition of one or more other structural elements, steps, operations, and devices.

In the description of the embodiments, the description that each layer (film), region, pattern, or structure is formed on "or" under "the substrate, each layer (film), region, plate, or pattern includes direct (direct) formation or formation with another layer provided in between. The upper and lower references of the respective layers will be described with reference to the drawings.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an overall structure of a ball supply apparatus of the present invention including a mat, fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the ball supply apparatus of the present invention, fig. 3 is a front view showing the ball supply apparatus of the present invention, fig. 4 is a plan view showing the ball supply apparatus of the present invention, fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing a ball supply assembly of the ball supply apparatus of the present invention, fig. 6 is a perspective view showing a ball supply state of the ball supply apparatus of the present invention, and fig. 7 is a front view showing a process of supplying balls by the ball supply apparatus of the present invention.

As shown in fig. 1 to 7, the ball supply device of the present invention includes a ball supply assembly 100, a moving part 200, a standby part 300, a transfer member 400, a detection part 500, and a control part 600.

In order to supply the ball B, the ball supply assembly 100 may supply the ball B by throwing the ball B and re-throwing the ball from the golf club.

The ball supply assembly 100 includes a hopper 110, a rotating plate 120, a driving part 130, and a ball loading part 140.

The hopper 110 may supply the balls B to the moving part 200 by placing the balls B.

The hopper 110 includes: a base plate 111 for placing the ball B and provided with a rotation plate 120 which allows the ball B to move toward the moving part 200; a closing plate 112 disposed at the front and rear of the bottom plate 111 for blocking the balls B placed on the bottom plate 111 from being separated outward; and a supply plate 113 provided on a side surface of the closing plate 112 to supply the balls B one by one to the moving part 200 by rotation of the rotating plate 120.

The bottom plate 111 is provided to be inclined along the supply direction of the balls B so that the balls B placed on the bottom can be supplied upward one by the rotation of the rotating plate 120.

That is, since the bottom plate 111 is inclined from the bottom surface, if the balls B are thrown into the bottom plate 111, the balls B are gathered toward the lower portion of the bottom plate 111, and among the balls B, the rotating plate 120 can supply only one ball B toward the upper portion.

The closing plate 112 protrudes above the bottom plate 111 to prevent the balls B put into the bottom plate 111 from being separated outward.

A ball input groove 113a is formed at the center of the supply plate 113 so that balls B placed on the bottom plate 111 can be dropped into the moving part 200 one by one when the balls B are moved by the rotation of the rotating plate 120.

The ball input groove 113a is larger than the diameter of one ball B so that the ball B can smoothly pass through it, and is smaller than the sum of the diameters of two balls B so that two balls B cannot pass through it but only one ball B can pass through it.

The rotating plate 120 is provided above the bottom plate 111 of the hopper 110, and thus the balls B put on the bottom plate 111 can be supplied to the moving part 200.

The rotating plate 120 has a disk shape, and a receiving groove 121 is formed around the outer side thereof so that the ball B inserted into the bottom plate 111 can be inserted and moved upward by the rotation of the rotating plate 120.

A plurality of the placement grooves 121 are formed around the outer side with a predetermined interval therebetween so as to continuously move the plurality of balls B put on the bottom plate.

Also, it is preferable that the size of the placing groove 121 is similar to the diameter of the ball B so that one ball B can be inserted.

The driving unit 130 may be connected to the rotating plate 120 at a lower portion of the bottom plate 111 of the hopper unit 110 so as to rotate the rotating plate 120.

The driving unit 130 includes: a gear 131 and a shaft 132 connected to the rotation plate 120 for rotating the rotation plate 120; and a driving motor 133 electrically connected to the control unit 600 so as to be connected to the shaft 132 to rotate the shaft 132.

In this case, it is preferable to use a forward/reverse rotation drive motor that can rotate forward and reverse for the drive motor 133.

The ball input part 140 is provided at a side surface of the hopper part 110 to supply the balls B to the hopper part 110.

The bottom surface of the ball input portion 140 is inclined so that the ball B can be smoothly input into the bottom plate 111.

That is, the bottom surface of the ball insertion part 140 is connected to the bottom plate 111 in a V shape.

A drop groove 141 is formed at an upper side of the ball drop part 140 so that a ball B generated by the golf club can be dropped again.

The moving unit 200 is provided at a side of the ball supply unit 100, and moves and supplies the ball B supplied from the ball supply unit 100.

The moving unit 200 includes: a bracket 210 connected to a side of the supply plate 113 of the ball supply unit 100; and a ball moving rail 220 provided at an upper portion of the supporter 210, for moving the ball B supplied from the ball supply unit 100.

The holders 210 are connected to the side portions of the supply plate 113 and are disposed at both sides with a predetermined interval.

In this case, the interval of the cradles 210 disposed at both sides is smaller than the diameter of the ball B to prevent the ball B from falling.

The holder 210 is inclined downward in the moving direction of the ball B so that the ball B supplied from the ball supply unit 100 can smoothly roll along the ball moving rail 220.

The ball moving rails 220 are provided in the respective cradles 210 in a "", shape to prevent the balls B, which are dropped from the ball supply assembly 100 and supplied to the cradles 210, from being dropped to the outside of the cradles 210.

The standby unit 300 is connected to the moving unit 200 and can be used to standby the ball B moving along the ball moving track 220.

The standby part 300 includes: a connection frame 310 connected to the end of the support 210 of the moving part 200; a ball supply member 320 provided inside the connecting frame 310, for making the ball B supplied from the moving part 200 stand by, and moving forward by reciprocating in the left-right direction with the hinge 340 as an axial direction; and a spring 330 disposed at a lower portion of the ball supply member 320.

A locking piece 311 is provided at an upper end of the connecting frame 310 so that the ball B moving on the ball supply member 320 can be locked without being separated to the outside.

In this case, the locking piece 311 is bent at a right angle and protrudes upward.

The ball supply member 320 is bent such that the ball B supplied from the moving part 200 is caught in a standby state and moves while reciprocating about the hinge 340.

The transfer member 400 is provided at a side surface of the standby part 300, and supplies the balls B, which are one by one standby in the standby part 300, to the upper portion of the mat 10 by a swing motion within a predetermined range.

The transfer unit 400 includes: a movable arm 410 that swings clockwise or counterclockwise within a predetermined range with reference to a hinge point H at one end of the movable arm; and a transfer arm 420 bent in a hook shape from the other end of the movable arm 410 and having a placing surface 421 for placing the ball B supplied from the standby part 300 through the blade.

In this case, the placing surface 421 of the transfer arm 420 is formed to be concave with a curvature radius corresponding to the radius of the ball B, so that the ball B is not dropped from the placing surface 421 and a stable loading state can be maintained when the ball B is placed on the placing surface 421 and the swing motion is performed.

The detection unit 500 is provided at a side portion of the moving unit 200, and detects a moving state of the ball B thrown from the ball supply unit 100 to the moving unit 200.

The detection unit 500 includes: a connection plate 510 connected to an outer side surface of the moving part 200 to protrude upward; and a position detection sensor 520 provided on an inner surface of the connection plate 510 to detect the ball B moving along the ball moving track 220.

The connection plate 510 is provided to each of the brackets 210 arranged along both sides.

The position detection sensors 520 are provided on the respective connection plates 510, and are electrically connected to the control unit 600.

The control unit 600 is electrically connected to the ball supply unit 100 and the detection unit 500, and controls the operation state of the ball supply unit 100 according to the detection of the detection unit 500.

The operation state of the ball supply device of the present invention having the above-described structure is observed as follows.

When the ball B is input into the input groove 141 of the ball input portion 140, the ball B is supplied to the hopper portion 110 through the bottom inclined surface of the ball input portion 141.

The balls B supplied to the hopper 110 are inserted into the placing grooves 121 of the rotating plate 120, and the rotating plate 120 rotates to raise the balls B inserted into the placing grooves 121 upward and drop into the moving unit 200 through the ball insertion grooves 113a as the driving unit 130 is driven.

On the other hand, since the placement groove 121 of the rotating plate 120 is formed to correspond to the diameter of one ball B and the ball input groove 113a has a size that allows only one ball B to pass through, one ball B is inserted into the placement groove 121 and the balls B are supplied one by one through the ball input groove 113a according to the rotation of the rotating plate 120.

The holder 210 is inclined toward the bottom in the advancing direction of the ball B, so that the ball B dropped from the ball supply unit 100 to the holder 210 rolls along the ball moving rail 220 and is caught by the ball supply member 320 of the standby part 300 to be maintained in the standby state (see parts (a) and (B) of fig. 7).

When the ball B is supplied to the moving part 200, if the position detection sensor 520 does not detect the ball B, the driving part 130 is driven according to the control of the control part 600 to start the rotation of the rotating plate 120, thereby supplying the ball B to the moving part 200, and if the position detection sensor 520 detects the ball B, the control part 600 stops the driving of the driving part 130.

This allows the holder 210 of the moving unit 200 to always maintain a state in which the balls B are supplied.

When the balls B are moved from the ball supply unit 320 and placed on the placement surface 421 of the transfer unit 400 to be in the standby position, the balls B are supplied to the upper portion of the mat 10 by a selective signal input by the user, for example, by the swing motion of the transfer unit 400 by the operation of pressing a switch or the like provided on the outside (see parts (B) and (c) of fig. 7).

As shown in fig. 7 (d), when the transfer member 400 is rotated to supply the ball B to the mat 10, the ball supply member 320 is rotated about the hinge 340 by the spring 330, so that the ball B is positioned at a concave portion formed at the center of the ball supply member 320.

On the other hand, the transfer member 400 that supplies the ball B to the mat 10 is returned to the initial position about the hinge point H, and at this time, the transfer arm 420 of the transfer member 400 presses the one end of the ball supply member 320, so that the ball B positioned at the center of the ball supply member 320 is moved to the position of the locking piece 311 and placed on the placement surface 421 of the transfer arm 420, thereby maintaining the standby state.

As described above, the ball B can be automatically supplied to the designated tee position according to the user's selection through an iterative process.

As described above, the present invention is not limited to the specific preferred embodiments described above, and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present invention claimed in the claims.

Claims

1. A ball supply apparatus, comprising:

a ball supply assembly for supplying balls;

a moving part connected with the side part of the ball supply assembly and used for moving the balls supplied by the ball supply assembly;

a standby part connected with the moving part and used for making the received ball stand by;

a conveying component which is arranged on the side surface of the standby part and supplies the balls which are in standby in the standby part to the upper part of the cushion through the swinging motion within a specified range;

a detection part arranged at the side part of the moving part and used for detecting the ball moving to the moving part; and

and a control unit for controlling the operation state of the ball supply unit according to the detection of the detection unit.

2. A ball supply assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein said ball supply assembly comprises:

a hopper part for placing balls;

a rotating plate provided above the hopper portion so as to supply balls to the moving portion;

a driving part connected to the rotating plate at a lower portion of the hopper part to rotate the rotating plate; and

and a ball input part which is arranged on the side surface of the hopper part and can supply balls to the hopper part.

3. The ball supply apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the hopper portion includes:

a bottom plate for placing the ball and arranging the rotating plate;

a closing plate which is arranged at the front and the back of the bottom plate in a mode of protruding upwards and is used for preventing the ball from separating; and

and a supply plate provided on a side surface of the closing plate to supply balls one by one to the moving portion by rotation of the rotating plate.

4. A ball supply device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the bottom plate is provided in an inclined manner so that balls can be supplied one by rotation of the rotating plate.

5. A ball supply device according to claim 3, wherein a ball receiving groove is formed in the center of the supply plate so that one ball can be dropped into the moving portion by rotation of the rotating plate.

6. The ball supply device according to claim 2, wherein the rotary plate has a disk shape, and a plurality of placement grooves are formed around an outer periphery thereof with a predetermined interval therebetween so that the ball can be inserted and moved.

7. A ball supply device according to claim 2, wherein the driving portion includes:

a gear and a shaft connected to the rotating plate for rotating the rotating plate; and

and a driving motor electrically connected to the control unit and capable of being connected to the shaft to rotate the shaft.

8. A ball supply device according to claim 1, wherein the moving portion includes:

a holder connected to the ball supply unit and disposed at both sides of the moving part with a predetermined interval; and

and a ball moving track arranged on the upper part of the bracket and used for moving the balls supplied by the ball supply assembly.

9. The ball supply apparatus of claim 8, wherein the supporter is provided with a space smaller than a diameter of the ball to prevent the balls at both sides from falling down, and the supporter is provided obliquely to allow the balls to smoothly roll along the ball moving rail.

10. The ball supply apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein the ball moving rail is in a "" -shape to prevent the balls supplied from the ball supply assembly to the supporter from falling to an outside.

11. A ball supply device according to claim 1, wherein said standby portion comprises:

a connecting frame connected with the tail end of the moving part;

a ball supply component which is arranged at the inner side of the connecting frame and is used for making the ball supplied by the moving part stand by and reciprocating in the left and right directions by taking a hinge as an axis to place the ball on the conveying component; and

and a spring disposed at a lower portion of the ball supply member.

12. A ball supply device as claimed in claim 11, wherein a locking piece is provided at an upper end of the connecting frame so that the ball moving on the ball supply member can be locked without being separated.

13. The ball supply device according to claim 11, wherein the ball supply member is curved so that the ball supplied from the moving part can be caught in a standby state and placed on the transfer member while reciprocating about the hinge as an axis.

14. The ball supply device according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit includes:

a connecting plate provided on an outer side surface of the moving portion so as to protrude upward; and

and a position detection sensor arranged on the inner side surface of the connecting plate and used for detecting the moving ball.