JP2016073327A - Pitching machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a pitching machine which throws out a ball given with spin, i.e., a sharp ball similar to a ball which a real pitcher throws.SOLUTION: In a pitching machine (1) which shoots a ball (2) in a non-rotation state by air pressure from ball shooting means (3), gives rotation to the ball (2) in a non-rotation state by ball control means (4), and throws out the ball (2) from the tip of ball passing passage means (46) formed on the ball control means (4), the ball control means (4) gives rotation to the ball (2) by providing in the ball passing passage means (46), rotation bodies (44 and 45) having different speeds and contacting the upper half part and the lower half part of the ball (2), and bringing the rotation bodies (44 and 45) into contact with the ball (2) passing the ball passing passage means (46).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a pitching machine that uses air pressure to throw a ball.

  Conventionally, pitching machines for throwing a ball with a rotating arm have been widely used as baseball practice equipment and playground equipment. A machine is being developed.

  For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, in a pneumatic pitching machine, a ball control unit that determines the rotation of the ball is connected to a ball launching unit that launches a ball with air pressure, and the ball passes through the ball control unit. A passage is formed, and the ball is thrown out from a throwing port at the tip of the ball passage passage.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-33157

  However, in the conventional pitching machine, a strong backspin is not given to the thrown ball, and unlike a ball thrown by an actual pitcher, a ball with little rotation is thrown. Therefore, in the conventional pitching machine, a friction body that contacts the ball passing through the ball passage and rotates the ball is provided in the middle of the ball passage.

  However, when a frictional body is provided in the middle of the ball passage, the ball passing at high speed comes into contact with the surface of the frictional body and the ball speed is reduced, so that a ball with a so-called sharp spin thrown by an actual pitcher is applied. It was difficult to throw.

  Therefore, in the present invention according to claim 1, a non-rotating ball is fired pneumatically from the ball launching means, the non-rotating ball is rotated by the ball control means, and from the tip of the ball passage passage formed in the ball control means. In a pitching machine that throws out a ball, the ball control means provides a rotating body with different speeds in contact with the upper half and lower half of the ball in the ball passage path, and makes the rotating body contact the ball passing through the ball passage path. I decided to give the ball a rotation.

  Further, in the present invention according to claim 2, in the present invention according to claim 1, the ball control means is configured such that the rotating body that contacts the lower half of the ball is directed toward the moving direction of the ball, and is faster than the moving speed of the ball. While rotating at a high speed, the rotating body in contact with the upper half of the ball was rotated at a speed slower than the moving speed of the ball in the moving direction of the ball, so that the backspin was applied to the ball.

  Further, in the present invention according to claim 3, in the present invention according to claim 1 or 2, the ball control means rotates left and right about the ball passage passage as a central axis.

  And in this invention, there exists an effect described below.

  That is, in the present invention, a pitching machine that fires a non-rotating ball by air pressure from the ball firing means, rotates the non-rotating ball by the ball control means, and throws the ball from the tip of the ball passage formed in the ball control means. In the ball control means, the ball passing means is provided with a rotating body having different speeds in contact with the upper half and the lower half of the ball in the ball passage passage, and the ball is rotated by contacting the rotating body with the ball passing through the ball passage passage. Therefore, the ball can be spun well, and a so-called sharp ball thrown by an actual pitcher can be thrown out.

  In particular, the rotating body that contacts the lower half of the ball is rotated at a speed faster than the moving speed of the ball in the moving direction of the ball, and the rotating body that contacts the upper half of the ball is directed in the moving direction of the ball. When the ball is rotated at a speed slower than the moving speed of the ball, the ball with backspin can be thrown out.

  In addition, when it is decided to turn left and right around the ball passage, the ball having a variety of changes such as a chute ball or a curve ball can be thrown out.

Side surface sectional drawing which shows a pitching machine. The same side expanded sectional view. The same plane expanded sectional view. The side surface expanded sectional view which shows a ball control means. The front expanded sectional view.

  Hereinafter, a specific configuration of the pitching machine according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the pitching machine 1 has a non-rotating ball fired from the ball firing means 3 at the front end of the ball firing means 3 for firing a non-rotating ball 2 by air pressure. 2 is connected to a ball-controlling means 4 for imparting rotation, and the ball 2 is thrown forward (front) from a pitching port 5 formed at the front end (tip) of the ball-controlling means 4. Further, the pitching machine 1 is connected to the front end portion of the ball control means 4 by a muffling means 6 for reducing the sound volume by absorbing a plosive sound generated when the ball 2 is fired from the ball launching means 3.

  The ball launching means 3 includes an air injection mechanism 7 that injects high-pressure compressed air and a ball supply mechanism 8 that supplies the ball 2.

  In the air injection mechanism 7, a tank 10 for storing compressed air is placed at the bottom of a hollow box-shaped casing 9, and an open / close valve 11 is connected to the tank 10. A driving device 12 is connected to the tank 10 and the opening / closing valve 11.

  The air injection mechanism 7 opens the open / close valve 11 to inject compressed air stored in the tank 10 from an injection pipe 13 provided at the front end of the open / close valve 11.

  The ball supply mechanism 8 includes a supply device 14 that supplies the balls 2 one by one and a setting device 15 that sets the balls 2 one by one.

  The supply device 14 connects the upper end portion of the supply pipe 17 extended vertically to a ball supply port 16 formed in the ceiling portion of the casing 9, and the partition plates 18 and 19 are connected to the supply pipe 17 in the vertical direction for approximately one ball. Attach the cylinders 18 and 19 with electric cylinders 22 and 23 supported by brackets 20 and 21 attached to the outer periphery of the supply pipe 17 while opening and closing them so that they can be opened and closed (movable forward and backward). Yes. The drive device 12 is connected to the electric cylinders 22 and 23.

  The supply device 14 supplies the balls 2 one by one from the lower end of the supply pipe 17 to the lower set device 15 by appropriately interlocking the upper and lower partition plates 18 and 19.

  The set device 15 is connected to the front end portion of the injection pipe 13 of the opening / closing valve 11 with the rear end portion of the outer cylinder 24 extended back and forth, and the inner cylinder 25 extended back and forth inside the outer cylinder 24 slides back and forth. It is housed freely. A communication port 26 that communicates with the lower end opening of the supply pipe 17 of the supply device 14 is formed in the front upper portion of the outer cylinder 24. In addition, a pair of left and right arms 28, 28 inserted through elongated holes 27, 27 extending in the front-rear direction formed in the outer cylinder 24 are connected to the left and right side portions of the inner cylinder 25. Are connected to electric cylinders 30, 30 supported by brackets 29, 29 attached to the outer periphery of the outer cylinder 24. A drive device 12 is connected to the electric cylinders 30 and 30.

  The set device 15 opens the communication port 26 by moving the inner cylinder 25 rearward with the electric cylinders 30 and 30 and receives the ball 2 supplied from the supply device 14 into the outer cylinder 24. By moving the inner cylinder 25 forward by the electric cylinders 30 and 30, the ball 2 is pushed out to the front end of the outer cylinder 24 at the front end of the inner cylinder 25, and a communication port 26 or a long hole formed in the outer cylinder 24 27 and 27 are closed and the inside is kept airtight.

  The ball launching means 3 is configured as described above, and the ball 2 is supplied from the supply device 14 to the setting device 15 and set at the front end portion of the outer cylinder 24 by the setting device 15. By injecting high-pressure compressed air from the air injection mechanism 7 toward the front, the ball 2 is fired forward from the front end portion of the outer cylinder 24 by air pressure. At that time, since the ball 2 is pushed out evenly by air pressure, the ball 2 is fired forward with almost no rotation. For this reason, since the non-rotating ball 2 is thrown out as it is, it changes in an unexpected direction. Therefore, in order to allow the ball 2 to rotate and to throw in the desired direction, the ball control means 4 is required.

  The ball control unit 4 includes a ball control mechanism 31 that determines the firing direction of the ball 2, a rotation mechanism 32 that contacts the ball 2 that is launched from the ball launching unit 3 and rotates the ball 2, and the rotation mechanism 32 is rotated left and right. And a turning mechanism 33 to be moved.

  The ball control mechanism 31 is connected to the front end portion of the outer cylinder 24 of the ball firing means 3 in a state where a hollow cylindrical ball control tube 34 having an inner diameter substantially the same as the outer diameter of the ball 2 is extended in the front-rear direction.

  The ball control mechanism 31 is configured such that when the ball 2 launched from the ball launching means 3 passes through the inside of the ball control tube 34, the outer peripheral portion of the ball 2 and the inner peripheral portion of the ball control tube 34 come into contact with each other. Is set to coincide with the extending direction of the control tube.

  The rotating mechanism 32 rotatably inserts a hollow cylindrical connecting tube 35 having an inner diameter larger than the outer diameter of the ball 2 into the front end portion of the ball control tube 34 and faces the upper and lower portions of the connecting tube 35. Through holes 36 and 37 are formed, and supports 38 and 39 that cover the through holes 36 and 37 are attached to the outer periphery of the connecting pipe 35. The support bodies 38 and 39 rotatably support the rotating shafts 40 and 41. Motors 42 and 43 attached to the outside of the support bodies 38 and 39 are connected to the rotation shafts 40 and 41, and rotating bodies 44 and 45 arranged inside the support bodies 38 and 39 are attached. The rotators 44 and 45 project from the through holes 36 and 37 to the inside of the connecting pipe 35 so that the outer periphery of the ball 2 passing through the connecting pipe 35 comes into contact.

  The rotating mechanism 32 is arranged so that the two rotating bodies 44 and 45 are opposed to each other. However, the rotating mechanism 32 is arranged so that at least one rotating body is in contact with the upper half and the lower half of the ball 2. What is necessary is just to be able to arrange | position three or more rotary bodies. Further, in the rotating mechanism 32, it is preferable that the rotating bodies 44 and 45 are arranged along the radial direction of the connecting pipe 35 so that the rotating bodies 44 and 45 are in uniform contact with the outer periphery of the ball 2.

  In the rotating mechanism 32, the rotating bodies 44 and 45 are forcibly rotated by the motors 42 and 43 so that the rotating bodies 44 and 45 come into contact with the outer periphery of the non-rotating ball 2 launched from the ball launching means 3. The ball 2 is rotated. At this time, the balls 2 are rotated by making the rotation speeds of the rotating bodies 44 and 45 different. Since the rotation mechanism 32 is provided at the front end of the ball control tube 34, the rotation mechanism 32 can rotate all the balls 2 to be fired from the ball launching means 3. In addition, since the rotating mechanism 32 projects the rotating bodies 44 and 45 from the inner periphery of the connecting pipe 35 having an inner diameter larger than the outer diameter of the ball 2, the ball 2 is attached to the rotating bodies 44 and 45. The ball 2 passes while contacting, and then the ball 2 passes through the substantial center of the connecting pipe 35. As a result, the compressed air injected from the ball launching means 3 flows over the ball 2 from the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the ball 2 and the inner peripheral surface of the connecting tube 35 inside the connecting tube 35. The compressed air can be discharged uniformly and smoothly, and the ball 2 can be passed along the center line of the connecting pipe 35. The ball 2 passes on the central axis of the control tube 34 and the connecting tube 35, thereby forming a passage (ball passing passage 46) through which the ball 2 passes by the control tube 34 and the connecting tube 35.

The rotation mechanism 33 has a motor 47 attached to the upper part of the ball control pipe 34 and a rack 48 attached to the motor 47. On the other hand, an annular pinion 49 is attached to the outer periphery of the rear end of the connecting pipe 35, and the rack 48 and the pinion 49 is engaged.
The rotation mechanism 33 rotates the connecting tube 35 to the left and right with respect to the ball control tube 34 by the motor 47, so that the rotation mechanism 32 rotates to the left and right in the circumferential direction around the ball passage passage 46. I am doing so.

  The ball control means 4 is configured as described above, and a ball passage passage 46 extending back and forth is formed inside the ball control pipe 34 of the ball control mechanism 31 and the connecting pipe 35 of the rotation mechanism 32. As the ball 2 fired from the ball firing means 3 passes along 46, the firing direction and rotation of the ball 2 are determined.

  In the pitching machine 1, each part such as the ball launching means 3 is controlled by a control device (computer). Therefore, the rotational speed of the rotating bodies 44 and 45 of the rotating mechanism 32 can be controlled according to the ball speed of the ball 2 thrown out from the ball launching means 3 by the control device, and when the ball 2 is thrown out from the ball launching means 3 The rotating mechanism 32 can be moved in the circumferential direction of the connecting pipe 35 by the rotating mechanism 33. For example, in the control device, the rotational speed of the rotating bodies 44 and 45 can be increased as the ball speed of the ball 2 increases, and the increasing rate of the rotating speed of the rotating bodies 44 and 45 is greater than the increasing speed of the ball speed. It can also be made larger.

  As described above, the pitching machine 1 is formed in the ball control unit 4 by firing the non-rotating ball 2 by air pressure from the ball launching unit 3 and rotating the non-rotating ball 2 by the ball control unit 4. The ball 2 is thrown out from the tip of the ball passage passage 46. The ball control means 4 is provided with rotators 44 and 45 having different speeds in contact with the upper half and the lower half of the ball 2 in the ball passage passage 46, and the balls 2 passing through the ball passage passage 46 are provided with the The ball 2 is configured to be rotated by contacting 45.

  Therefore, in the pitching machine 1 configured as described above, the ball 2 can be spun well, and the so-called sharp ball 2 thrown by the actual pitcher can be thrown out.

  In addition, the pitching machine 1 rotates the rotating body 45 that contacts the lower half of the ball 2 in the moving direction of the ball 2 at a speed faster than the moving speed of the ball 2, and The rotating body 44 that is in contact is rotated in the traveling direction of the ball 2 at a speed slower than the traveling speed of the ball 2.

  Therefore, in the pitching machine 1 configured as described above, the ball 2 with backspin can be thrown out.

The pitching machine 1 is configured to turn the ball control means 4 left and right around the ball passage 46 as a central axis.
Therefore, in the pitching machine 1 having the above-described configuration, it is possible to throw the ball 2 rich in changes such as a shoot ball or a curve ball.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pitching machine 2 Ball 3 Ball launching means 4 Ball control means 5 Throwing port 6 Silencer means 7 Air injection mechanism 8 Ball supply mechanism 9 Casing 10 Tank
11 Open / close valve 12 Drive unit
13 Injection pipe 14 Feeder
15 Set device 16 Ball supply port
17 Supply pipe 18,19 Partition plate
20,21 Bracket 22,23 Electric cylinder
24 outer cylinder 25 inner cylinder
26 Communication port 27 Long hole
28 Arm 29 Bracket
30 Electric cylinder 31 Ball control mechanism
32 Rotating mechanism 33 Rotating mechanism
34 Control tube 35 Connecting tube
36,37 Through hole 38,39 Support
40,41 Rotating shaft 42,43 Motor
44,45 Rotating body 46 Ball passage
47 motor 48 rack
49 Pinion

Claims (3)

In a pitching machine that fires a non-rotating ball with air pressure from the ball launching means, rotates the non-rotating ball with the ball controlling means, and throws the ball from the tip of the ball passage formed in the ball controlling means,
The ball control means is provided with a rotating body having different speeds in contact with the upper half and lower half of the ball in the ball passage passage, and rotating the ball by bringing the rotating body into contact with the ball passing through the ball passage passage. A characteristic pitching machine.   The ball control means rotates a rotating body that contacts the lower half of the ball in a moving direction of the ball at a speed faster than the moving speed of the ball and moves the rotating body that contacts the upper half of the ball 2. The pitching machine according to claim 1, wherein a backspin is applied to the ball by rotating the ball toward the direction at a speed slower than the moving speed of the ball.   The pitching machine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the ball control means rotates left and right about a ball passage passage as a central axis.

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