JP4442865B2 - Automatic pitching device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a pitching device used for practicing baseball, softball, tennis, and the like, and more particularly to an improvement of a linear track type pitching device using an elastic body.

  Conventionally, rotating disc type pitching devices and arm type pitching devices have been used for baseball practice. In this rotating disk type throwing device, a ball is thrown into a rotating disk rotating in a pair of upper and lower sides, and the ball is thrown by a frictional force with the disk. Hop type, straight ball type, and drop type ball types were thrown by making a difference in rotational speed between the upper and lower disks. The changing ball that bends sideways was throwing by tilting the stand supporting the rotating disk with respect to the throwing direction and giving the ball an oblique rotation.

The pitching device using the elastic body contraction restoration using a linear track is a ball throwing using the restoring force of the elastic body attached to the linear track, and it can launch the ball with a simple structure and good control, It was inferior to the rotating disc type throwing device and the arm type throwing device in controlling the speed and the changing ball.
In recent years, an improvement has been made by a device such as Japanese Patent Application Publication No. Sho 63-24387. However, in this device, since only a changing ball whose ball rotation depends on the firing speed can be thrown, further improvement is required.

44-9384 Patent No. 178756 Patent Application Notice Sho 63-24387 Patent No. 2977786

  In the conventional apparatus as described above, since only a vertical, diagonal, or horizontal rotation is given at the time of ball launch, a changing ball that changes rapidly at the batter's hand due to human pitching, American football It was impossible to throw a ball with low resistance by rotating in the circumferential direction like the throwing.

The present invention has been proposed in order to solve the above-mentioned problems. An active rotation driving device for a ball is attached to a ball support of a pitching device using a linear track, and the ball support itself is attached. An object of the present invention is to provide a pitching device that is equipped with an active drive device that rotates in the circumferential direction and that can deal with baseball and softball in recent years.

  In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides an active rotation driving means for moving the ball support in the moving direction of the ball support and the circumferential support of the ball support according to claim 1 of the present invention. It is characterized by having a rotation driving means.

Therefore, the ball supplied to the ball support is given rotation in the set traveling direction and circumferential direction from before the spring is compressed until the moment of firing, and the firing direction is determined by the upper, lower, left and right actuators, A predetermined amount of spring is wound by the wire winder, and by opening the wire winder, the ball can be thrown at a predetermined position at a predetermined speed and change.

  The throwing device according to claim 1 of the present invention has an active rotation driving means for moving the ball in the moving direction and an active rotation driving means for moving the ball support in the circumferential direction. In this way, it is easy to obtain a changed ball that was not obtained.

  As described in claim 2, the ball support and the spring attached to the straight track are compressed backward by a wire winder controlled by a control device such as a computer, and the ball is thrown using the restoring force. Therefore, it is possible to easily obtain a pitch of a predetermined strength and a pitch in a predetermined direction.

  As described in claim 3, since the ball is rotated by two motors and two sets of rollers while monitoring the state of the ball with a small camera, variation in the change of the ball depending on the direction of the seam of the ball is It can be suppressed to the minimum.

  As described in claim 4, since the actuator has upper, lower, left and right actuators, in combination with the apparatus of claims 1 and 2, it is possible to easily obtain a pitch of various speeds, directions and changes by a control device such as a computer. .

Since the wired or wireless remote control device is provided as described in claim 5, instructing the batting by the instructor and practicing the game format can be performed more easily and efficiently than the conventional device.

An embodiment of a pitching device of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in an example for a hard baseball.
FIG. 1 is a general view showing an outline of a hard baseball pitching device according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a wire guide device in which a cylindrical guide and a spring inside a hollow cylindrical portion as a linear track of the pitching device contain a ball support. FIG. 3 is an oblique front view of the driving portion of the ball support of the throwing device, FIG. 5 is an oblique rear view of the driving portion of the ball support of the throwing device, and FIG. It is an attachment figure of the drive part of the cylindrical guide and ball support of the throwing device.

  A predetermined portion is set by connecting the support portion at the rear of the hollow cylindrical body in FIG. 1 to an actuator that can move vertically and horizontally.

  In FIG. 2, the ball is held by a ball support in a cylindrical guide and is ready for launch by compression of a spring by a wire winding device. After the setting of the ball support is completed, the ball support is suddenly moved in the direction of the tip of the hollow cylindrical portion by restoring the spring by opening the wire winding device. Released.

  3 and 4, the ball is rotated in the traveling direction by the driving roller of the ball support, and the rotation in the rotation direction is given by the rotation of the ball support itself in the circumferential direction. The auxiliary roller is retracted by the opening device (electromagnet) installed on the support release arm when the ball is thrown in and just before the launch.

In FIG. 5, the driving portion of the ball support is installed inside the cylindrical guide.

  FIG. 1 is an overall view of one embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention, and a hollow cylindrical launch tube and 3 wire windings as 2 linear trajectories through 4 and 5 actuators on 7 installation bases. The device and the drive motor are installed, 8 computers are installed on the front left, 9 remote control devices are installed in any location, and 10 ball feeders are installed on the right side of the device. The throwing ball is thrown into the two hollow cylindrical launch tubes by the ten ball feeders.

  FIG. 2 is an internal view of the launch tube, in which 11 cylindrical guides, 12 springs, 13 wire take-up devices are connected as shown, and as the wire is taken up by 13 wire take-up devices, 12 The 11 springs are compressed and the 11 cylindrical guide moves to the opposite side of the launch port.

  FIG. 3 is a view of a ball support, in which a ball for throwing is held between 15 drive rollers and 4 auxiliary rollers, and 18 motors and 17 drive gears are rollers. Rotate. This rotation situation is sent to the computer of 8 in FIG. 1 by 20 small cameras, and the number of rotations of the motor is controlled. The 16 auxiliary rollers are spread and retracted to the left and right when the ball is thrown in and just before the launch by an opening device (electromagnet) installed on the 19 auxiliary roller support release arm.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram of a ball support and a circumferential rotation drive device, wherein 14 ball supports are 22 circumferential rotation drive motors installed in 25 circumferential rotation drive devices; The 23 driving gears rotate in the circumferential direction, and accordingly, 24 throwing balls rotate.

FIG. 5 is a view of a ball support, a driving device, and a cylindrical guide. 21 ball supports are installed as 29 on 26 cylindrical guides. A wire is attached to 28 take-up wire fittings, the spring is compressed as shown in FIG. 2, and the ball is launched in the direction of 30 when the spring is released.

Control and change balls that are close to human pitching are thrown, so even a small team can practice long-term practical batting practice without considering the fatigue of the batting pitcher.

Overall view showing the outline of the pitching device Cross-sectional view of the firing part of the hollow cylinder launcher Perspective view of ball support A perspective view of a ball support driving part Mounting diagram of ball support and cylindrical guide

Explanation of symbols

1 Entire device 2 Hollow cylindrical launch tube (straight orbit)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 Wire winding device 4 Vertical actuator 5 Left / right actuator 6 Vertical / horizontal rotation support 7 Installation stand 8 Computer 9 Remote control device 10 Ball supply device 11 Cylindrical guide 12 Spring (elastic body)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 13 Wire winding device 14 Whole ball support 15 Progression direction rotational drive roller 16 Auxiliary roller 17 Progression direction rotational drive gear 18 Progression direction rotational drive roller motor 19 Auxiliary roller support release arm 20 Rotation monitoring small camera 21 Ball support Overall circumferential rotating device 22 Circumferential rotational drive motor 23 Circumferential rotational drive gear 24 Throwing ball 25 Circumferential rotational drive device 26 Overall cylindrical guide 27 Cylindrical sliding roller 28 Winding wire mounting bracket 29 Ball Support mounting direction 30 Ball firing direction

Claims (5)

  In a linear track type pitching device using deformation and restoration of an elastic body, a ball support and an elastic body are installed on the linear track, and a plurality of rollers for preventing the balls from falling off in the ball firing direction side inside the ball support Equipped with a ball rotating device with a plurality of motor-driven rollers on the opposite side and a motor that rotates the ball rotating device in the circumferential direction around the axis of the firing direction, and launches by a control device such as a computer A throwing device that realizes the rotation of a ball in all directions that can be considered mechanically without depending on the speed, and launches the ball of rotation obtained from a straight track by deformation and release of an elastic body.   On a straight track, one end of the spring is attached to the opposite side of the firing direction and the other end is attached to the ball support. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a wire winder is mounted to move the body toward the rear end of the linear track to compress the spring, and the ball is fired from the linear track by compression and release of the spring by the wire winder.   A small camera is installed inside the ball support, and images of the seam of the ball are sequentially analyzed by a control device such as a computer. Based on this result, the number of rotations of the two motors attached to the ball support is controlled by the computer. 2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the ball is rotated while controlled by the device to keep the ball seam direction always set.   Equipped with an actuator that controls the position of the linear track in the vertical and horizontal directions by a control device such as a computer in the vicinity of the rear end of the linear track. 2. The device of claim 1 for realizing a firing direction in response to the rotation obtained in (1). The apparatus of claim 1 for remotely controlling the ball supply, throwing speed, ball change and direction from behind or far from the batter box via wired or wireless connection.

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