JP3215947U - Throwing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a pitcher capable of performing pitching linearly and smoothing acceleration at the time of pitching. A pitcher 1 includes a frame 3, a rail 33 provided in the frame 3 and extending in a front-rear direction with a ball throwing direction as a front, and extending in a lateral direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction and having an axis with respect to the frame 3 A rotation shaft provided rotatably around the rotation shaft, a base end arm 21 fixedly provided on the rotation shaft, an intermediate arm 23 connected to the base end arm 21 so as to be rotatable, A distal arm 25 rotatably connected to the arm 23; a pitching slider 40 connected to the distal arm 25, slidable on the rail 33 and configured to hold the ball; and a proximal end And a spring that biases the rotation shaft so that the arm 21 rotates forward. [Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a pitcher used for baseball and softball hitting practice.

  Conventionally, four types of pitching machines (pitching machines) are mainly known: a pneumatic type, a wheel type, an arm type, and a human type. For example, in Patent Document 1, two pairs of left and right wheels arranged opposite to each other are provided, and a wheel type that enables pitching of various types of balls by individually controlling the rotational speed of each wheel. Thrower technology is disclosed. Patent Document 2 discloses a technique of an arm-type pitcher in which a ball support portion is provided at the tip of an arm connected to a rotation shaft orthogonal to the traveling direction of the ball, and pitching is possible when the arm rotates. It is disclosed. Furthermore, Patent Document 3 discloses a technique of a human-powered pitcher that allows a pitching arm to move by stepping on a pedal with a foot.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 05-208059 JP 2009-022609 A JP 2008-259723 A

  The air type has high pitching accuracy and can perform high-speed pitching, but is expensive, and may require additional equipment such as a compressor, so that the installation location is limited. The wheel type (Patent Document 1) is easy to operate and continuous pitching is easy. However, since the time that the ball is in contact with the wheel is extremely short, the nip pressure may change due to variations in the ball diameter, the seam of the ball, dirt on the surface, and the like, which may adversely affect the control. In addition, there is a problem that the balls and wheels are heavily worn. The arm type (Patent Document 2) is also easy to handle and easy to handle, but it takes a circular arc trajectory, making it difficult to adjust the position of the ball. Finally, the human-powered type (Patent Document 3) has a problem that it is difficult to control the ball, although the stepping type is simple because it is a combination of a spring and an arm.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a pitcher that can perform pitching linearly and smoothes acceleration during pitching.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a frame, a rail provided in the frame, extending in the front-rear direction with respect to the direction in which the ball is thrown forward, and extending in a lateral direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction. A pivot shaft provided rotatably about an axis, a base arm fixedly provided on the rotary shaft, an intermediate arm connected to the base arm so as to be rotatable, and A distal arm that is pivotally connected to an intermediate arm, a pitching slider that is connected to the distal arm, is slidable on the rail, and is configured to hold a ball; and the proximal arm And a spring for urging the rotating shaft so as to rotate forward.

  Here, it is preferable to further include a pulling slider that is slidable on the rail and configured to be engaged with the pitching slider and pull the pitching slider.

  Moreover, it is preferable that an engagement release portion that releases engagement between the pitching slider and the pulling slider by contacting the pulling slider is provided at the rear of the frame.

  In addition, an auxiliary arm shorter than the base end arm is further provided, and the base end of the auxiliary arm is provided so as to be rotatable about a position in front and above the rotation axis of the base end arm as a rotation axis. It is preferable that the other end of the auxiliary arm is pivotally connected to a base end portion of the intermediate arm.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the said spring can adjust a compression degree.

  According to the pitcher of the present application, it is possible to throw a highly accurate straight ball with a simple operation. Further, since the ball advances in the horizontal direction while being lightly held by the pitching slider, the position adjustment is easy and the ball is hardly worn. Furthermore, since the structure is simple, not only can the manufacturing cost be kept relatively low, but also it can be easily transported anywhere.

  Further, by providing the pull slider, the pitching slider can be pulled backward more easily.

  Further, when the pitching slider reaches a predetermined rear position, the engagement between the pitching slider and the pulling slider is released.

  Further, the speed of the pitching slider released from the engagement with the pulling slider can be freely changed.

The schematic side view which shows the pitcher by embodiment of this invention. The front view which shows the pitcher by embodiment. The schematic side view which shows the position different from FIG. The conceptual diagram which shows the locus | trajectory of the arm of the pitcher of this invention. The side view which shows the pitching slider of the pitcher of this invention. The figure which shows the state which the pitching slider and the pulling slider engaged. The figure which shows the state which the engagement with the pitching slider and the pulling slider was cancelled | released. The schematic perspective view which shows the rotation structure of an upper side board and a lower side board.

  A pitcher 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6B.

  The pitcher 1 includes a frame 3, a rail 33 provided on the frame 3, a rotating shaft 10, a spring 12 that urges the rotating shaft 10, and a proximal end that is fixed to the rotating shaft 10. An arm 21, an intermediate arm 23 pivotally connected to the proximal arm, a distal arm 25 pivotally connected to the intermediate arm, and a rail connected to the other end of the distal arm 25 The pitching slider 40 is slidably provided on the slider 33, and the pulling slider 50 is engageable with the pitching slider 40.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the frame 3 is a structure that forms a skeleton of the structure of the pitcher 1. The frame 3 includes a first frame 30 (a fixed frame), a second frame 31 (a movable frame), and a third frame 32 (a movable frame).

  The first frame 30 is the lowermost frame and is placed on the ground. The legs of the first frame 30 may simply be placed on the ground, or may be configured to be easily moved by attaching a known caster (wheel).

  The second frame 31 is configured to be rotatable about the vertical axis with respect to the first frame 30. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, the lower base 36 constituting the first frame 30 and the upper base 37 constituting the second frame 31 are connected via a rotation shaft 38A. . A bracket 36A is fixed to the upper surface of the lower table 36, and a bracket 37A is fixed to the lower surface of the upper table 37.

  The tip of the rotating rod 38 is connected to the bracket 37A. The rotary rod 38 can rotate with respect to the bracket 37A, but cannot move in the axial direction. The rotary rod 38 is inserted through a screw hole provided in the bracket 36A. Since the thread groove is also cut in the peripheral surface of the rotating rod 38, when the rotating rod 38 is rotated, the rotating rod 38 moves in the axial direction with respect to the bracket 36A. As a result, the bracket 37A can be pushed or pulled, and as a result, the upper base 37 can be rotated in the direction of the arrow A7 with respect to the lower base 36. Thereby, the direction of the rail 33 can be changed to right and left, and the pitching direction (left direction, right direction) can be changed.

  The third frame 32 is provided to be tiltable up and down with respect to the second frame 31. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the third frame 32 is connected to the second frame 31 via a rotation shaft 30A extending in the left-right direction. Between the third frame 32 and the second frame 31, an adjustment mechanism 130 having the same structure as that shown in FIG. 7 is provided. Thereby, the third frame 32 can tilt in the direction of arrow A1 in FIG. The tiltable angle is, for example, about 5 to 7 degrees. Thereby, the pitch of the pitch 33 (upward or downward) can be changed by changing the inclination of the rail 33.

  The third frame 32 is provided with a rail 33 extending in the front-rear direction with the ball throwing direction in front. Since the rail 33 is provided on the third frame 32, the direction of the rail 33 can be changed as described above. Therefore, the direction in which the ball 90 is thrown out can be changed. For example, if the angle is raised forward, the ball 90 goes higher, and if the angle is lowered forward, the ball 90 goes lower. Further, as will be described later, the ball speed can be changed by changing the compression degree of the spring 12 to form a mountain-like ball or a straight ball.

  The rail 33 is provided with an engagement release member 39 (stopper). The disengagement member 39 is a U-shaped member (or a U-shape with the upper part opened) when viewed from the front-rear direction. The disengagement member 39 will be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the rotation shaft 10 extends in a lateral direction orthogonal to the front-rear direction, and is provided so as to be rotatable about an axis with respect to the upper base 37. As shown in FIG. 2, a pressure lever 14 is provided at a substantially central portion of the rotating shaft 10. The pressure lever 14 will be described later.

  The proximal arm 21 extends in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the rotating shaft 10 extends. The proximal arm 21 is fixedly (that is, cannot be rotated) with respect to the rotating shaft 10. For this reason, when the rotation shaft 10 rotates about the axis (counterclockwise in FIG. 1), the proximal arm 21 rotates forward about the rotation shaft 10 (FIGS. 3 to 1).

  The intermediate arm 23 is pivotally connected to the proximal arm 21. The rotation shaft 22 (FIG. 3) of the base end arm 21 and the intermediate arm 23 is not the base end portion of the intermediate arm 23, but is slightly on the front end side from the base end portion. The distal arm 25 is connected to the intermediate arm 23 so as to be rotatable. Therefore, the pitching slider 40 placed on the rail 33 is connected to the rotating shaft 10 via the proximal end arm 21, the intermediate arm 23, and the distal end arm 25. The relationship between the proximal arm 21 and the intermediate arm 23 is similar to the relationship between the upper arm and the lower arm of a human arm. The relationship between the intermediate arm 23 and the tip arm 25 is similar to the relationship between the lower arm and the hand.

  In the present embodiment, an auxiliary arm 27 is further provided as a part of the arm mechanism. The auxiliary arm 27 is shorter than the proximal arm 21 and the intermediate arm 23 and has substantially the same length as the distal arm 25. A base end portion 27 </ b> A of the auxiliary arm 27 is rotatably connected to an auxiliary arm support column 34 provided on the upper base 37. More specifically, the base end portion 27 </ b> A of the auxiliary arm 27 is provided so as to be rotatable about a position that is forward and above the rotation shaft 21 </ b> A of the base end arm 21. The other end 27 </ b> B of the auxiliary arm 27 is pivotally connected to the base end of the intermediate arm 23 (rotating shaft 24).

  Thus, the proximal arm 21 and the intermediate arm 23 are connected by the rotating shaft 22, and the auxiliary arm 27 and the intermediate arm 23 are connected by the rotating shaft 24.

  Next, the biasing mechanism 80 that biases the rotating shaft 10 will be described. The plurality of support columns 81 of the urging mechanism 80 are erected with respect to the upper table 37. A fixed plate 83 is provided at the upper ends of the plurality of columns 81. The fixed plate 83 is fixed to the plurality of support columns 81, and the position thereof does not move.

  A movable plate 85 is provided in the middle of the plurality of columns 81. Holes are formed at positions corresponding to the plurality of support columns 81 in the movable plate 85, and the movable plate 85 is movable up and down.

  A spring 12 is disposed on the lower surface of the movable plate 85. The spring 12 is a spiral spring, and is disposed around each support 81 so as to wrap it. The spring 12 is in a compressed state. As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of springs 12 are provided in parallel. The reason will be described. When the length of the spring is doubled (or even if two are connected in series), the spring constant is halved and the elastic force is halved. If two of these are provided in parallel, the elastic force is 1/2 × 2 = 1, and the same elastic force can be obtained. Therefore, if two springs having a double length are provided in parallel, the stroke (compression length) is doubled, so that the adjustment accuracy is improved. The length and number of the springs 12 may be determined as appropriate.

  A pressing plate 87 is provided at the lower end of the spring 12. The pressing plate 87 contacts the front end 14A of the pressure lever 14 and biases the front end 14A of the pressure lever 14 downward. For this reason, when the pressurizing lever 14 is urged in the direction of rotating downward, the rotating shaft 10 is also urged to rotate, and eventually the base end arm 21 is rotated in the forward direction. It is energized. The pressing plate 87 may not be directly in contact with the front end 14A of the pressure lever 14, but the pressure lever 14 may be biased through another mechanism.

  Although a detailed mechanism is omitted, a mechanism for adjusting the vertical position of the movable plate 85 and holding it at an appropriate position is provided. Thereby, since the compression degree of the spring 12 can be adjusted, the urging | biasing force with respect to the rotation shaft 10 or the base end arm 21 can be adjusted, and therefore pitching speed can be adjusted.

  Since the proximal arm 21 and the intermediate arm 23 are main members indispensable for moving the pitching slider 40 for a long distance in a short time, they are longer than the distal arm 25.

  A pitching slider 40 is provided on the rail 33 so as to be slidable back and forth along the rail 33. As shown in FIG. 5, the pitching slider 40 includes a base 41 provided with wheels for rolling the rail 33, a ball holder 43, an arm attachment portion 45, and a claw 47.

  The ball holder 43 is attached on the base 41. The ball holder 43 is a box that is open at the front and top, and is configured to hold the ball 90. In the present embodiment, wheels are provided on the base 41 so as to roll on the rail 33, but the base 41 may be configured to slide on the rail 33 without providing wheels. In this case, it is preferable to provide a slippery material at the contact portion with the rail 33.

  The arm attachment portion 45 is a portion that is provided on the lower surface of the base 41 and to which the other end of the distal arm 25 is rotatably connected. The claw 47 is fixed to the arm mounting portion 45 and can be engaged with the pull slider 50. The mechanism of engagement between the pitching slider 40 and the pulling slider 50 will be described in detail later.

  The pull slider 50 is provided to be slidable in the front-rear direction with respect to another rail (not shown) provided in parallel to the rail 33. The pull slider 50 is located behind the pitching slider 40.

  As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the pull slider 50 includes a pull slider main body 51 and a claw 53 for engaging with a claw 47 of the pitching slider 40. The claw 53 is rotatable with respect to the pulling slider main body 51.

  One end of a winding belt 63 for pulling the pull slider 50 rearward is attached to the rear end portion of the pull slider 50. The belt is not particularly limited, but preferably has a high tensile strength. The other end of the winding belt 63 is connected to a retractor 65 (winding machine) attached to the rear part of the pitcher 1.

  A rewind belt 67 used to pull the pull slider 50 forward is attached to the front end portion of the pull slider 50. The other end of the rewind belt 67 extends in the horizontal direction to the front end of the rail 33 of the pitcher 1, and hangs substantially vertically downward from there through a pulley 69 provided at the other end of the belt arm 68. The second frame 31 is fixed to the front end portion 35 of the upper member.

  Next, the operation of the pitcher 1 will be described.

  FIG. 3 shows a state before throwing. The pitching slider 40 is pulled to the rear slider to some extent by the pulling slider 50. Each of the arms 21, 23, 25 is in a state of being rotated backward. At this time, the pressure lever 14 rotates slightly upward, and is therefore strongly urged downward by the compression spring 12 (FIG. 2). At this time, as shown in FIG. 6A, the pawl 53 and the pawl 47 are in an engaged state, and the pitching slider 40 and the pulling slider 50 are engaged. For this reason, the pitching slider 40 is held against the urging force of the compression spring 12.

  Then, when the pitching slider 40 and the pulling slider 50 are further pulled backward by the retractor 65 from the state of FIG. 3, the claw 53 comes into contact with the front end of the bottom surface of the disengagement member 39 as shown in FIG. Rotates and the engagement between the claw 53 and the claw 47 is released. Then, the pitching slider 40 is separated from the pulling slider 50, and the pitching slider 40 is strongly thrown forward by the urging force of the spring 12. When the pitching slider 40 reaches the foremost position, the ball 90 leaves the ball holder 43 and is fired forward.

  At this time, the intermediate arm 23 hits the anti-vibration positioning pad 88 (FIG. 1), and the arm mechanism is restricted from rotating further. That is, the image stabilization positioning pad 88 has a function of positioning the arm mechanism at the origin position. Further, since the vibration proof positioning pad 88 is formed of a material having vibration proof properties, the impact is reduced. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the pressure lever 14 is provided with a shock absorber 15, and absorbs an impact when the pressure lever 14 rotates and stops.

  At this time, the pull slider 50 is temporarily left behind from the pitch slider 40, but the belt arm 68 and the pulley 69 are lowered by their own weight, and the rewind belt 67 is pulled forward. In addition, since the retractor 65 is released at the time of pitching, the winding belt 63 is pulled out freely. As a result, the pull slider 50 is pulled by the rewind belt 67 and slowly moves forward. Then, when the pulling slider 50 reaches the position of the throwing slider 40 thrown out, the claw 53 and the claw 47 are engaged again (state shown in FIGS. 1 and 6A).

  When the weight of the belt arm 68 and the pulley 69 is insufficient, a weight or a tension spring may be attached.

  When throwing again, the ball 90 is placed on the ball holder 43, and the engaged pitching slider 40 and pulling slider 50 are pulled backward by winding the belt with the retractor 65. When the pull slider 50 reaches the disengagement member 39, the engagement is released as described above, and the pitching operation is performed again.

  FIG. 4 schematically shows the movement of the arm mechanism in the pitching operation. As in the present embodiment, by connecting the base end arm 21, the intermediate arm 23, and the front end arm 25, the front end of the front end arm 25 moves linearly and smoothly.

  Further, since the auxiliary arm 27 is provided, not only can the base end arm 21 rotate more smoothly, but also the load on the base end arm 21 caused by the rapid rotation of the rotary shaft 10 can be reduced. In addition, the load on the proximal arm 21 can be suppressed.

  Moreover, according to the said structure, since the pitching slider 40 slides on the rail 33, pitching becomes linear and it is easy to control.

  In addition, since the proximal arm 21, the intermediate arm 23, and the distal arm 25 are provided, there are two joints. Thereby, acceleration of the pitching slider 40 becomes smooth. Further, since these arms are like a bow, the urging force of the spring 12 is efficiently transmitted to the pitching slider 40.

  Further, since the retractor 65 can be configured either electrically or manually, if it is manually operated, it can be used in a place where there is no electricity.

  Further, the pitching slider 40 is wound up by meshing the claws 53 of the pulling slider 50 with the claws 47 of the pitching slider 40. Thereby, winding is possible with a simple structure.

  Further, as described above, the second frame 31 can be turned to the left and right with respect to the first frame 30, and the third frame 32 can be turned up and down with respect to the second frame 31. This makes it easy to adjust the pitching direction in the left and right and up and down directions.

  The pitcher according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and improvements can be made within the scope described in the claims.

  For example, instead of winding the winding belt 63 with the retractor 65, the winding belt 63 may be wound manually.

  Further, an outrigger may be provided on the first frame 30 to enhance stability, for example, as a three-point support.

  In addition, by providing a controller and an actuator in this apparatus, it may be possible to pitch at a position designated at an arbitrary ball speed.

  The frame 3 is composed of the first frame 30, the second frame 31, and the third frame 32, but may be a single fixed frame.

1 thrower, 3 frame, 10 rotating shaft,
12 spring, 14 pressure lever, 15 shock absorber,
21 proximal arm, 22, 24 pivot axis, 23 intermediate arm,
25 tip arm, 27 auxiliary arm, 30 first frame,
30A rotation axis, 31 second frame, 32 third frame,
33 rails, 34 auxiliary arm support pillars,
35 Front end,
36 lower base, 36A bracket, 37 upper base, 37A bracket 38 rotating rod, 38A rotating shaft, 39 disengaging member,
40 pitching slider, 41 base, 43 ball holder,
45 Arm mounting part, 47 Claw,
50 slider, 51 slider body, 53 claw,
63 hoist belt, 65 retractor, 67 rewind belt,
68 belt arm, 69 pulley,
80 biasing mechanism, 81 strut, 83 fixing plate,
85 Movable plate, 87 Press plate, 88 Anti-vibration positioning pad,
90 balls, 130 adjustment mechanism.

Claims (5)

Frame,
A rail provided in the frame and extending in the front-rear direction with the ball throwing direction in front;
A rotating shaft that extends in a lateral direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction and is provided so as to be rotatable around an axis;
A proximal arm that extends in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the pivot shaft extends and is fixed to the pivot shaft;
An intermediate arm pivotably connected to the proximal arm;
A tip arm rotatably connected to the intermediate arm;
A pitching slider connected to the tip arm, slidable on the rail, and configured to hold a ball;
A spring that biases the pivot shaft so that the proximal arm pivots forward;
A pitcher characterized by comprising:   The pitcher according to claim 1, further comprising a pulling slider that is slidable on the rail and is configured to engage the pitching slider and pull the pitching slider.   3. The disengagement portion for releasing the engagement between the pitching slider and the pulling slider by contacting the pulling slider at a rear portion of the frame. Thrower. An auxiliary arm shorter than the proximal arm;
The base end of the auxiliary arm is provided so as to be rotatable about a position in front and above the rotation axis of the base end arm as a rotation axis.
The pitcher according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the other end of the auxiliary arm is rotatably connected to a base end portion of the intermediate arm. The pitcher according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the degree of compression of the spring is adjustable.

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