JP5485089B2 - Pitching machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a pitching machine.

  A conventional arm-type pitching machine is generally configured to drive and throw a 1-link or 2-link arm in a two-dimensional vertical plane facing a batter (for example, Patent Document 1 or 2). In addition, there is also a method in which a video shot by a pitcher is copied, and pitching is performed from an arm-type pitching machine in accordance with the pitching timing of the video and the position of the hand at the time of pitching (see, for example, Patent Document 3).

  In the past, the present inventors have conducted detailed research on the pitching operation of an actual pitcher (for example, see Non-Patent Documents 1, 2, 3, or 4).

JP-A-7-185056 JP 2006-51348 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-276467

Miyanishi Tomohisa, Fujii Norihisa, Ae Michiyoshi, Katsuo Ikuo, Okada Morihiko, “Three-dimensional comparative study of fast throwing and long throwing movements in university baseball players”, Physical Education Research, July 1995, Volume 40, No.2, p.89-103, 1995 Tomohisa Miyanishi, Norihisa Fujii, Michiyoshi Ae, Ikuo Kogatsu, Morihiko Okada, "Three-dimensional study on the contribution of the trunk and pitching arm to the ball speed in baseball throwing motion", Physical Education Research, May 1996 41, No.1, p.23-37, 1996 Tomohisa Miyanishi, Norihisa Fujii, Michiyoshi Ae, Ikuo Kogatsu, Morihiko Okada, "Three-dimensional analysis of the dynamic energy flow of the trunk and the throwing arm in baseball throwing motion", Physical Science, February 1997, No. 46, No. 1, p.55-68, 1997 Tomohisa Miyanishi, “Biomechanical study of pitching motion in baseball-Focusing on the movement of the upper torso and throwing arm of the acceleration phase”, November 2000, Doctoral dissertation, University of Tsukuba, 2000

  In the conventional arm-type pitching machine described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the one-link or two-link arm is driven in a two-dimensional vertical plane facing the batter, so it is possible to know when the ball is thrown. There was a problem that it was difficult for the batter to take the timing. In the pitching machine described in Patent Document 3, there is a problem that the video is projected on a flat screen, which is uncomfortable and not practical. Further, in the pitching machines of Patent Documents 1, 2, and 3, there is a problem that the rotation and the ball muscle are different from the ball thrown by the actual pitcher because the arm drives and throws in a two-dimensional vertical plane.

  The present invention has been made by paying attention to such a problem, and it is easy for the batter to take timing, can throw a ball close to a ball thrown by an actual pitcher, and can perform more practical batting practice. It aims to provide a pitching machine.

  In order to achieve the above object, a pitching machine according to the present invention is provided to extend upward with respect to a support base and the support base, and is configured to be rotatable about an axis in a vertical direction with respect to the support base. A body part, an upper arm part extending from the left upper part or right upper part of the body part to the side, a forearm part extending upward from a tip of the upper arm part, and a ball at a tip of the forearm part A gripping portion provided so as to be able to be thrown, and a driving portion for rotating the body portion about the vertical axis so that the upper arm portion moves forward with respect to the support base. , Feature. The pitching machine according to the present invention can throw the ball held by the gripping part by rotating the body part about the vertical axis and moving the upper arm part forward by the driving part.

  In the pitching machine according to the present invention, the body portion is further configured to be rotatable about a left-right axis with respect to the support base, and the drive portion is disposed on a diagonally forward lower side opposite to the extending direction of the upper arm portion. It is preferable to have a configuration in which the body portion is rotated around the left and right axis and the vertical axis so as to move. In this case, the body is held by the gripping part by rotating the body part about the horizontal axis and the vertical axis and moving the upper arm part diagonally forward and downward on the opposite side to the extension direction by the drive part. Can throw the ball.

  Particularly, a preferred pitching machine according to the present invention is provided so as to extend upward with respect to a support base and the support base, is movable in the front-rear direction with respect to the support base, and has a longitudinal axis relative to the support base. A body portion that is configured to be rotatable about an axis in the horizontal direction and a vertical axis, and a central axis that extends from the upper left side or the upper right side of the body portion to the side and extends in the lateral direction. An upper arm portion that is configured to be rotatable around, and can be rotated and extended between a position that extends upward from the tip of the upper arm portion and a position that opens outwardly about an axis in the front-rear direction with respect to the upper arm portion A forearm portion rotatably provided around a central axis along a direction, a grip portion provided so as to be able to hold a ball at the tip of the forearm portion, and an angle at which the forearm portion extends upward. Front upper arm A first elastic member for urging the body part; a second elastic member for urging the upper arm part to return the forearm part upward; and the body part against the support. The body is rotated about the front-rear axis, the left-right axis, and the vertical axis so that the upper arm is moved obliquely forward and downward on the opposite side to the extending direction. And a driving unit.

  In a preferred pitching machine according to the present invention, the body part is moved forward by the drive part, and the body part is rotated and tilted obliquely forward on the opposite side to the extending direction of the upper arm part. It is possible to generate a three-dimensional motion that is close to the actual movement of the pitcher at the forearm portion-gripping portion and throw the ball. An example of a specific operation in the case of a right-handed pitcher is shown below. In the case of a right-handed pitcher, the upper arm portion is provided on the upper right side of the body portion so as to extend rightward from the body portion. In the case of a left-handed pitcher, the upper arm portion is provided on the upper left side of the body portion so as to extend to the left side from the body portion, and performs an operation that is reversed from the right-handed pitcher.

  First, the drive unit moves the body part forward (backward-to-front) with respect to the support base, and at the final stage of movement, the body part is rotated forward about the left-right axis and tilted (backward bent). Rotation → forward bending), rotate the body part to the left about the vertical axis so that the upper arm pivots forward (right rotation → left rotation), the body part to the left about the longitudinal axis Rotate and tilt (upright position → left side bending). By the forward translation and the left-turning (twisting) operation of the body portion, the first elastic member is elastically extended, and the upper arm portion rotates forward to perform the internal turning operation. Further, the second elastic member is extended by the centripetal force moment generated by the left-turning operation of the trunk portion, and the forearm portion is rotated in the direction of opening outward (elbow bending position → extension). By the combination of the rotation of the upper arm corresponding to the internal rotation of the shoulder and the rotation of the forearm corresponding to the extension of the elbow, a motion from the prolapse of the forearm to the pronation is generated. By this operation, it is possible to throw the ball held on the grip portion.

  Thus, the pitching machine according to the present invention can throw a ball with an action close to the actual movement of the pitcher, and therefore can throw a ball close to the ball thrown by the actual pitcher. Moreover, it is easy for the batter to take the timing, and more practical batting practice can be performed.

  In the pitching machine according to the present invention, the upper arm portion is rotatable at least from a position where the forearm portion extends upward to a position where the forearm portion is leveled forward, and the angle between the upper arm portion and the upper arm portion is 110 degrees or more. It is preferable to be able to rotate in the range of 180 degrees (elbow bending position → extension range), and to be able to rotate in the range of 180 degrees to 270 degrees around the central axis along the extension direction from pronation to pronation. In this case, an operation closer to the actual movement of the pitcher can be performed.

  In the pitching machine according to the present invention, the gripping portion is provided so as to be able to rotate back and forth around a left-right axis with respect to the forearm portion, and a third elasticity that urges the gripping portion backward with respect to the forearm portion. You may have a member. In this case, the third elastic member is extended by the centripetal force moment generated by the operation of the trunk and the upper arm, and the gripping part is rotated forward to bend and bend (hand dorsal flexion → palm flexion). For this reason, a pitch can be thrown by the operation | movement using the motion of a wrist, and the ball nearer the ball which an actual pitcher throws can be thrown. The gripping part is preferably rotatable from a position of 40 degrees rearward (dorsiflexion) to a position of 90 degrees forward (palmflexion) from the extending direction of the forearm.

  In the pitching machine according to the present invention, the gripping portion has two finger portions and three joints that can bend each finger portion forward, and each finger portion can hold the ball by the gripping portion. You may have the 4th elastic member urged | biased in the direction which bends each joint of this to the front. In this case, the ball can be easily held with each joint of each finger portion bent forward. When throwing, the joint of each finger part extends against the urging force of the fourth elastic member due to the centripetal force moment generated by the action of the body part and upper arm part. Can do. In addition, instead of having a joint, the grip part may have two fingers corresponding to the middle finger and the index finger made of an elastic body such as rubber.

  In the pitching machine according to the present invention, the driving unit can rotate the ball released from the gripping unit to throw a straight ball and a changing ball, and the moving speed of the body unit with respect to the support base, the rotation direction, The rotation angle, the rotation speed, and the rotation start timing may be configured to be controllable. In this case, not only a straight ball but also a changing ball such as a curve, a slider, or a shoot can be thrown, and a more practical batting practice can be performed. A computer may be used for the control. Further, in order to more precisely control the rotation and change of the ball, the rotation of the gripping part and the movement of each joint of each finger part may be controllable.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a pitching machine in which a batter can easily take timing, can throw a ball close to a ball thrown by an actual pitcher, and can perform more practical batting practice.

It is the (a) perspective view which shows the pitching machine of embodiment of this invention, (b) The side view of a holding part. It is the (a) front view and (b) perspective view of the holding part of the pitching machine shown in FIG.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1 and 2 show a pitching machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the pitching machine 10 includes a support base 11, a body portion 12, an upper arm portion 13, a forearm portion 14, a grip portion 15, a first elastic member 16, a second elastic member 17, and a third elasticity. The member 18, the fourth elastic member 19, and the drive unit 20 are included. The pitching machine 10 is for a right-handed pitcher.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the support base 11 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape that is elongated in the front-rear direction. The support base 11 has a slide hole 11a extending in the front-rear direction on the upper surface.

  The body portion 12 is formed in a slightly thick rectangular plate shape, and is arranged so that the two surfaces are front and rear, the long side is in the vertical direction, and the short side is in the horizontal direction. The body portion 12 has a columnar mounting portion 12a provided extending downward from the lower end surface. The body portion 12 is provided to extend vertically upward on the support base 11 in a state where the attachment portion 12 a is inserted into the slide hole 11 a of the support base 11. The body portion 12 is movable in the front-rear direction with respect to the support base 11 along the slide hole 11a, and the front-rear axis, the left-right axis, and the vertical axis at the attachment position with the support base 11 And can be rotated around each other.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the upper arm portion 13 has an elongated rod shape, and is provided on the upper portion of the right side surface of the body portion 12 so as to extend from the body portion 12 to the right side. The upper arm portion 13 is configured to be rotatable in the front-rear direction around the central axis along the extending direction. The forearm portion 14 has an elongated rod shape and is provided to extend obliquely upward to the right from the tip of the upper arm portion 13. The forearm portion 14 is configured to be rotatable at a position where it is attached to the upper arm portion 13 so as to open outwardly about a longitudinal axis 14a. Further, the forearm portion 14 is configured to be rotatable around a central axis along the extending direction.

  The grip portion 15 is provided at the tip of the forearm portion 14 so as to hold the ball 1. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the grip portion 15 includes a rectangular plate-shaped palm portion 21, three finger portions 22 corresponding to the thumb, index finger, and middle finger, and each finger portion 22 corresponding to the index finger and middle finger. And three joints 23 that can be bent forward. The grip portion 15 is configured to be able to rotate back and forth around a left and right axis 15a at a position where it is attached to the forearm portion 14.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the upper arm portion 13 is configured to be rotatable from a position where the forearm portion 14 extends upward to a position where the front arm portion 14 becomes horizontal in the front. The forearm portion 14 is configured to be rotatable within an angle of 110 degrees to 180 degrees with the upper arm portion 13. Further, the forearm portion 14 is configured to be rotatable in the range of 180 degrees to 270 degrees from the pronation to the pronation around the central axis along the extending direction. The grip portion 15 is configured to be rotatable from a position of 30 degrees rearward from the extending direction of the forearm portion 14 to a position of 90 degrees forward.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the first elastic member 16 is composed of a coil spring, and is connected to the lower center portion of the back surface of the body portion 12 and the end portion of the upper arm portion 13 on the body portion 12 side in a slightly stretched state. Is provided. Accordingly, the first elastic member 16 is configured to elastically hold the upper arm portion 13 so that the forearm portion 14 extends upward with respect to the body portion 12.

  The second elastic member 17 is formed of a spring damper and is provided so as to connect the central portion of the upper arm portion 13 and the central portion of the forearm portion 14. As a result, the second elastic member 17 biases the forearm portion 14 with respect to the upper arm portion 13 in the direction of the position extending upward. The second elastic member 17 is provided so that the forearm portion 14 does not overextend with respect to the upper arm portion 13 by a damper function.

  The third elastic member 18 is formed of a spring damper and is provided so as to connect the center portion of the forearm portion 14 and the back side of the palm portion 21. As a result, the third elastic member 18 biases the grip portion 15 backward with respect to the forearm portion 14. Further, the third elastic member 18 is provided so that the grip portion 15 is not excessively bent with respect to the forearm portion 14 by a damper function.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the fourth elastic member 19 extends from the tip of the coil spring 24 to the inside of two fingers 22 corresponding to the index finger and the middle finger. And a wire 25 provided respectively. The wire 25 passes through each joint 23 and is fixed to the tip of each finger part 22. The fourth elastic member 19 is configured to bias the joints 23 of the two finger portions 22 corresponding to the index finger and the middle finger in a direction to bend forward by the elastic force of the coil spring 24 via the wire 25. ing. Thus, the fourth elastic member 19 can easily hold the ball 1 with the grip portion 15 in a state where the joints 23 of the finger portions 22 are bent forward.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the body part 12, the upper arm part 13, the forearm part 14 and the grip part 15 are mainly made of iron. The body part 12, the upper arm part 13 and the forearm part 14 are covered with a reinforced plastic body outer shell member 12b, an upper arm outer shell member 13b and a forearm outer shell member 14b, respectively. The grip 15 is covered with a resin outer shell member 15b in which all fingers are imitated. Further, the attachment positions of the body part 12, the upper arm part 13, the forearm part 14 and the grip part 15 are covered with a shoulder joint shell member 13c, an elbow joint shell member 14c and a wrist joint shell member 15c made of reinforced plastic. It has been broken. The outer shell members 12b, 13b, 13c, 14b, 14c, 15b, and 15c include the body portion 12, the upper arm portion 13, the forearm portion 14, the grip portion 15, the first elastic member 16, the second elastic member 17, and the third elastic member. The member 18 and the fourth elastic member 19 are provided so as not to hinder the movement.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the drive unit 20 is housed inside the support base 11. The drive unit 20 can be driven by a motor so as to move the body unit 12 forward with respect to the support base 11. Further, the drive unit 20 can rotate and drive the body unit 12 around the front-rear axis, the left-right axis, and the vertical axis at the attachment position with the support base 11 by a motor. As a result, the drive unit 20 moves the body unit 12 forward, and rotates the body unit 12 so as to incline left obliquely forward. Further, the drive unit 20 rotates the ball 1 emitted from the gripping unit 15 and can throw a straight ball and a changing ball, so that the moving speed, the rotation direction, the rotation angle, the rotation speed of the body unit 12 with respect to the support base 11 and The rotation start timing can be controlled. The drive unit 20 may perform operation control of the body unit 12 using a computer. Further, the drive unit 20 may be able to control the rotation of the gripping unit 15 and the movement of each joint 23 of each finger unit 22 in order to control the rotation and change of the ball 1 more precisely.

  The pitching machine 10 has a head 26 fixed so as to extend upward from the upper end surface of the body part 12 and a left part of the body part 12 on the left side of the body part 12 in order to balance the pitch. And a left upper arm portion 27 fixed to extend obliquely downward.

Next, the operation will be described.
The pitching machine 10 moves the body part 12 forward by the drive part 20 and rotates the body part 12 to tilt it to the left diagonally forward, so that the body part 12 -the upper arm part 13 -the forearm part 14 -the grip part 15 It is possible to throw the ball 1 held by the grip portion 15 by making the movement a three-dimensional movement close to the actual movement of the pitcher. Specifically, first, the drive unit 20 moves the body part 12 forward (backward-to-front) with respect to the support base 11, and at the final stage of movement, the body part 12 is moved around the horizontal axis. Rotate forward and tilt (backward bending → forward bending), rotate the body 12 leftward about the vertical axis so that the upper arm 13 turns forward (right rotation → left rotation), and forward / backward direction The body 12 is rotated to the left and tilted about the axis (upright position → leftward bending).

  By the forward translation and the left-turning (twisting) operation of the body portion 12, the first elastic member 16 is elastically extended, and the upper arm portion 13 rotates in the forward direction to perform an internal rotation operation. Further, the second elastic member 17 is extended by the centripetal force moment generated by the left-turning operation of the trunk portion 12, and the forearm portion 14 is rotated in the direction of opening outward (elbow bending position → extension). By the combination of the rotation of the upper arm portion 13 corresponding to the internal rotation of the shoulder and the rotation of the forearm portion 14 corresponding to the extension of the elbow, an operation from the prolapse of the forearm portion 14 to the pronation is generated. In addition, the third elastic member 18 is extended by the centripetal force moment generated by the operation of the body portion 12 and the upper arm portion 13, and the grip portion 15 is rotated forward to be extended and bent (hand dorsal flexion → palm flexion). The joints 23 of the finger portions 22 extend against the urging force of the fourth elastic member 19 and the ball 1 held by the grip portion 15 is released. By these operations, the ball 1 held by the grip portion 15 can be thrown.

  As described above, the pitching machine 10 according to the present invention performs pitching with an operation close to the actual movement of the pitcher by the operation of the forearm portion 14 from the prolapse to the pronation, the operation using the movement of the wrist, or the like. Can do. For this reason, it is possible to throw the ball 1 close to the ball thrown by the actual pitcher. In addition, since the movement of the pitching arm is three-dimensionally generated by driving the torso, it is easy for the batter to take the timing, and more practical batting practice can be performed. By controlling the movement and rotation of the body 12 with the drive unit 20, it is possible to throw not only a straight ball but also a changing ball such as a curve, slider, or chute, and more practical batting practice can be performed. .

  In a specific example, the pitching machine 10 is configured to match the approximate size and operation of each unit to the actual pitcher size and speed. The body part 12 has a height of 750 mm and a weight of 40 kg. The upper arm 13 has a length of 300 mm and a weight of 2.2 kg. The forearm portion 14 has a length of 275 mm and a weight of 1.5 kg. The gripping part 15 has a length of 200 mm and a weight of 0.5 kg. The head has a height of 400 mm and a weight of 9 kg. The left upper arm 13 has a length of 300 mm and a weight of 4.2 kg. The body 12 has a moving speed of 2.0 m / s and a left turning speed of 1200 ° / s. Thus, the internal rotation speed of the shoulder is 7000 ° / s, the extension speed of the elbow is 2500 ° / s, the wrist extension and the bending speed are 2500 ° / s, and a ball speed of 140 to 150 km / h is obtained.

As shown in FIG. 2, the grip portion 15 may have a falling ball prevention film 31 for preventing the held ball 1 from falling between the thumb and the index finger.
The pitching machine 10 has a configuration in which the left-handed pitcher is horizontally reversed with respect to the right-handed pitcher, and performs a left-right reversed operation.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Pitching machine 11 Support stand 11a Slide hole 12 Body part 12a Mounting part 13 Upper arm part 14 Forearm part 15 Grasping part 16 1st elastic member 17 2nd elastic member 18 3rd elastic member 19 4th elastic member 20 Drive part 21 Palm part 22 fingers 23 joints

Claims (6)

A support base;
A trunk portion provided to extend upward with respect to the support base and configured to be rotatable about an axis perpendicular to the support base;
An upper arm provided to extend laterally from the upper left side or upper right side of the body part;
A forearm provided to extend upward from the tip of the upper arm,
A gripping portion provided so as to be able to hold a ball at the tip of the forearm portion;
A drive unit that rotates the body part about the vertical axis so that the upper arm part moves forward with respect to the support base;
A characteristic pitching machine. The trunk portion is configured to be rotatable about a left-right axis with respect to the support base,
The drive unit has a configuration in which the body part is rotated around the left and right axis and the vertical axis so that the upper arm part moves obliquely forward and downward on the opposite side to the extending direction.
The pitching machine according to claim 1, wherein: A support base;
Provided to extend upward with respect to the support base, movable in the front-rear direction with respect to the support base, and rotated about the front-rear axis, the left-right axis, and the vertical axis with respect to the support base, respectively. A torso configured to be possible;
An upper arm portion provided to extend laterally from a left upper portion or a right upper portion of the body portion, and configured to be rotatable around a central axis along an extending direction;
Rotating between a position extending upward from the front end of the upper arm and a position opening outward with respect to the front and rear direction axis with respect to the upper arm, and rotatable about a central axis along the extending direction Forearm,
A gripping portion provided so as to be able to hold a ball at the tip of the forearm portion;
A first elastic member for urging the upper arm portion against the body portion so that the forearm portion returns to an angle extending upward;
A second elastic member that urges the upper arm part to return to the direction in which the forearm part extends upward;
The body part is moved forward with respect to the support base and the upper arm part is moved diagonally forward and downward on the opposite side to the extending direction. Having a drive unit that rotates about a vertical axis;
A characteristic pitching machine. The upper arm part is rotatable at least from a position where the forearm part extends upward to a position where the front arm part becomes horizontal.
The forearm can be rotated in the range of 110 to 180 degrees with the upper arm, and can be rotated in the range of 180 to 270 degrees from the outside to the inside around the central axis along the extending direction. That is possible,
The pitching machine according to claim 1, 2 or 3. The grip portion is provided so as to be able to rotate back and forth around a left-right axis with respect to the forearm portion,
Having a third elastic member for urging the gripping portion backward with respect to the forearm portion;
5. A pitching machine according to claim 1, 2, 3 or 4. The grip portion has two fingers and three joints that can bend each finger forward,
Having a fourth elastic member that urges each joint of each finger in a direction to bend forward so that the holding portion can hold the ball,
6. A pitching machine according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5.

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