KR960001554B1 - High capacity golf rall processing system and the method - Google Patents

Abstract

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Description

Golf ball processing device and method

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a golf ball processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a preferred configuration example of the water tank of FIG.

3 is a cross-sectional view of the golf ball processing apparatus of FIG.

4 is a partial cross-sectional view of the pump.

* Explanation of symbols for main parts of the drawings

1: golf ball 10: golf ball processing device

11: water tank 12, 47: water level

13: pump 13a: impeller

14: guide pipe 15: chute

16 transfer device 17 iron grate

17 ': bar 18: discharge tube

19: return tube 20: bucket

21: inclined network 22: conduit

23: reservoir 24: valve

25: drain pipe 31: cylinder pipe

32, 40: electric motor 36: agitator

41: mechanical drive 42: valve connection

43: return hole 46: fabric surface

[Field of Invention]

The present invention generally relates to an apparatus and method for treating a golf ball. More specifically, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for cleaning and / or transporting large quantities of golf balls at high speed.

[Background of invention]

Golf is a sport that is currently growing in popularity. In addition to golf game facilities, there are various golf practice facilities, such as putting green and golf practice grounds. The latter's golf practice range usually takes up a lot of space because the player is usually given enough space to hit the golf ball farthest. In some cases, obstacles such as nets are installed to intercept flying golf balls in the middle to reduce the area occupied by such facilities. In any type of practice facility, players typically buy return vessels that contain a lot of golf balls and hit the golf balls continuously in one position. It is also common for a large number of players to hit a golf ball in a generally parallel direction at several positions spaced along one side of the cage.

Therefore, a large amount of golf balls are usually used at any given time. It is common for golf balls to be collected periodically or continuously and then returned to a central location, usually called a clubhouse or driving range house, and put back in the return container for reuse. Mechanized equipment is generally used to quickly retrieve golf balls. Such equipment usually includes a tractor equipped with a device for sweeping golf balls into a basket. When the basket is full of golf balls, the golf balls are transported to the driving range house by a tractor for reuse.

This process has some obvious drawbacks. First, when the golf balls are recovered by the recovery machine, the stones are mixed and recovered, and the amount of dust or mud attached to the golf ball to be removed before reuse increases. Secondly, it is extremely inefficient to use such a complex and expensive machine and the skilled driver to carry the golf ball. This inefficiency is even greater due to safety reasons or the frequent use of detours to prevent golfer visitors from being disturbed.

Moreover, there is a problem that the golf ball recovered to the driving range house should be washed before being reused. Mechanisms for this purpose are known. One such cleaning device consists of two disk structures with fabric surfaces that are rotated in opposite directions and spaced about the diameter of the golf ball (1.62 inches). The golf ball is cleaned using a stream of water while the golf ball is rolling between the discs. Clean water should be used or more generally filtered and recycled. Still other known cleaning devices are characterized by a specific passageway through the device and the hoop hole being continuously cleaned. Therefore, these washing apparatuses are easy to block the passage, so that the operator almost always has to manage them, and when the input amount of the golf balls is small, the number of golf balls that are washed per minute is small. In addition, there is a strong disadvantage that dirt and mud tend to dry on the surface of the golf ball before cleaning, and there is a trade-off between the treatment capacity and the immersion time of the golf ball.

Golf driving ranges are usually relatively large facilities that can be practiced by multiple players at the same time, thus requiring relatively high manpower and money expenditures. Moreover, when the tank and redistribution work are concentrated in a central place, such as a cage house, there is a limit to the number of acceptable guests in the cage in the labor-intensive phase of these tasks. If these tasks are distributed in several cages, there may be shortages of golf balls due to irregularities in the distribution, or more golf balls may be needed to prevent such shortages, which may lead to funding expenses. Tends to increase.

Therefore, there is a need to increase the level of automation of golf driving range, in particular golf ball and transport operation of golf balls. There are also golf practice ranges where more than 60,000 golf balls are used every day, so there is a need to increase the processing capacity of the golf ball's cleaning and transporting device to handle the number of balls. Similarly, higher levels of automation are required to allow more players to use the practice range and to increase the size of the new practice ranges.

[Purpose of invention]

An object of the present invention is to provide a large-capacity processing method and apparatus for the treatment of golf balls.

Another object of the present invention is to increase the level of automation of the transport and cleaning of golf balls.

It is another object of the present invention to avoid using a golf ball recovery machine to carry a golf ball.

A further object of the present invention is to shorten the time between the recovery and cleaning of the golf ball, and to maximize the golf ball immersion time without reducing the processing capacity of the device or increasing the number of golf balls required for a certain time. will be.

According to one aspect of the present invention to achieve the above object, there is provided a golf ball processing method comprising the step of immersing golf balls in the fluid and accelerating the golf ball soaked fluid.

According to another feature of the invention, there is provided a method of cleaning and / or transporting a golf ball comprising mixing a fluid and a plurality of golf balls and pumping the mixture from a first position to a second position.

According to another feature of the invention, a tank containing fluid, a device for guiding golf balls into the fluid so that a mixture of fluid and golf balls is made, and a pump from a first position to a second position of the mixture Provided is a golf ball processing apparatus comprising a pump for exercising.

According to a further feature of the invention, there is provided a golf ball tank apparatus and method comprising a conduit for inducing the golf balls and an agitator means for agitating the golf balls on an inner surface of the conduit.

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

[Summary of invention]

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for carrying a golf ball, particularly in a golf practice range, comprising one or two or more tanks located at a point far from a golf course house and close to a drive target, wherein the golf in the tank The ball is separated from the foreign matter and mixed with the fluid, and then the mixture is pumped to a central location, during which the golf ball is washed in a state of being immersed in a high velocity fluid. If necessary, the golf ball may be further removed from the fluid to further clean the golf ball, and the fluid may be returned to the water tank which is substantially circulated in a closed loop. For a further golf ball tank, a large golf ball tank is specially adapted for use with the golf ball treatment device and method.

Detailed Description of the Invention According to Specific Examples

1, the overall configuration of the golf ball processing apparatus 10 is schematically shown. The device 10 circulates the fluid, preferably water, in a closed loop from the bath 11 where the golf ball is mixed with the fluid. The mixture of the golf ball and the fluid is led to the pump 13 through the induction pipe 14 by the suction force of the pump, for example, accelerated by an impeller 13a inside the pump, and discharged under pressure. It is released through the tube (18). The discharge tube 18 is preferably a nominal diameter 4 inch tube that is easy to obtain. The inner diameter of the tube is preferably about three times the diameter of the golf ball so as to maintain not only some turbulence but also the flow velocity in the tube without any significant drop in flow rate at any location inside the discharge tube 18. In addition, one particular brand of nominal diameter 4 inch F.C tube is known to have a diameter enough to pinch four golf balls inside the tube due to the slight bending of the side wall. Do. However, even such a tube can be used in the practice of the present invention if the curvature of the sidewalls is appropriately limited. In general, the jamming of the golf ball inside the tube does not occur unless the flow rate is largely limited while the golf ball is in the processing device 10 and usually occurs when the limited flow rate is increased again. .

The discharge tube 18 preferably releases the golf balls at a high position and preferably into the golf ball apparatus 31, which device, which will be described below, should be regarded as an option separate from the basic apparatus. The mixture of fluid and golf balls is then discharged into the bucket 20. Bucket 20 is advantageously installed on the roof of the cages. This is because it is not only convenient to give the height of the bucket 20, but also to make the room more comfortable by evaporative cooling in a clubhouse or the like. The golf balls are separated from the fluid by an inclined mesh 21 which allows the golf balls to stay on the mesh and pass only the fluid, and the fluid is preferably collected in the bucket 20. The golf ball descends along the inclined net 21 by gravity to be transported away into the conduit 22, and is preferably contained in the reservoir 23 by gravity, and is recovered by the worker and distributed to the players. .

The bottom of the reservoir 23 is preferably inclined downward in a direction in which the worker can easily recover the golf ball. Since the golf ball is slightly moistened when released through the conduit 22, it is advantageous to have a drain (not shown) configured at the lower end of the reservoir 23. Instead of the drain, the bottom of the reservoir 23 may have a net structure similar to the perforated plate or the inclined net 21. In order to minimize moisture inside the reservoir 23, the conduit 22 is preferably positioned significantly higher than the highest water level of the reservoir 20, the position of which can be easily determined empirically. In general, the position of the bucket 20 is at least 5 ft higher than the water level 12 or 47, the discharge pipe 18 is a nominal diameter 4 inch pipe, the return pipe 19 is a nominal diameter 6 inch pipe, and the discharge pressure of the pump is Not excessive, and if the area of the bucket 20 is greater than 20 ft ² , the conduit 22 positioned 6 inches above the bottom of the bucket 20 is sufficient to prevent fluid from entering the conduit 22 to an inappropriate level. Do. If the cross-sectional area of the bucket 20 is increased and the distance from the discharge point of the discharge tube 18 to the conduit 22 is increased (either or both of these are desirable to improve the evaporative refrigeration of the cage. In general, surface turbulence will be reduced and the distance that a satisfactory conduit 22 should be higher than the bottom of the reservoir 20 will be reduced. If it is necessary to reduce the distance that the conduit 22 should be higher than the bottom of the bucket 20 due to the installation, a baffle may be used.

A drain is provided from the bucket 20 toward the return pipe 19. The return tube 19 is preferably larger in diameter than the discharge tube 18. It has been found that a return tube 19 of nominal diameter 6 inches is sufficient for a flow rate of about 200 gallons per minute formed through the discharge tube 18 of nominal diameter 4 inches. The fluid is then returned to the bath 11, which is preferably sedimentable. Precipitation can be augmented by the addition of fluffy flocks or the like to the fluid, preferably water. In practice it is not known that this is necessary. The sediment 46 may be collected in the inclined portion of the bottom of the water tank 11, and may be removed from the treatment apparatus 10 through the drain pipe 24 by opening the valve 24. A separate sedimentation tank may be provided, which may be very useful when the height of the preferred height for installing the water tank 11 is high, so that the cleaning of the water tank 11 is difficult. After the sediment is removed, fluid replenishment will be required. The period of removal of the sediment depends in part on the volume and cross-sectional area of the oil tank 11, but in general is a few days apart for maximum use.

For a perfect configuration of the golf ball treatment apparatus 10, the water level 12 inside the water tank 11 is preferably installed about 6 inches higher than the ground 44. In this configuration considered to be most convenient for the maintenance of the processing apparatus 10, the discharge tube 18 and the return tube 19 are embedded near the water tank 11. Alternatively, in a small golf practice site with a wall for intercepting blown golf balls in the middle, the water tank 11 may be installed at the ground level or at a convenient location with respect to the conveyor slopes 45 and / or 15. . Whether or not such slopes 45 and / or 15 or other conveyors, such as mechanical conveyors, are provided, racks or traps may be used to separate the golf balls from foreign objects such as stones of different sizes. Preferably, a trap 17 is provided in the inclined portion. In general, foreign bodies smaller in size than golf balls fall through iron bars 17 in parallel strips spaced about 1.5 inches apart. Foreign bodies larger than this interval are not circular enough to remain in the grate 17 or are manually removed by being caught in a bar 17 '. The bar 17 'extends transversely to the lower end of the grate 17 and is spaced apart from the grate 17 by a distance slightly smaller than the diameter of the golf ball. Such a trap 17 may also include a chute 16 to help regulate the position at which the golf ball and fluid mix.

The water level 47 is usually somewhat above the water level 12 inside the water tank 11 while the processing device 10 is in operation. The water level 47 varies with the flow rate, and the diameter of the return tube 19 should be selected so that a flow rate is provided that will prevent substantially precipitation within the tube. In any case, as long as the majority of the return tube 19 is horizontally installed or slightly inclined so that the fluid flows well by gravity, the settling inside the return tube 19 will be limited on its own. However, due to the installation site environment, the return pump may be installed in the portion indicated by parentheses 39. In such a case, it may be desirable to reduce the diameter of the return tube 19 downstream of the return pump to increase the flow rate and reduce the settling.

2 shows a preferred form of the water tank 11.

The water tank 11 is generally rectangular, and a rectangular compartment for accommodating the discharge pipe 18, the pump 13, the electric motor 40, the mechanical drive 41 and the induction pipe 14 is formed therein. The remaining space is generally L-shaped. The return pipe 19 ends at the return hole 43. The rectangular compartment essentially forms a baffle to facilitate sedimentation inside the water tank 11 described above. The discharge tube 18 traverses the bath 11, which may comprise a joint tube (not shown) that can be used for maintenance. The valve 24 is preferably controlled by the valve connecting body 42 inside the water tank 11. The valve connecting body 42 is for opening the valve 24 to facilitate the removal of deposits from the water tank 11 through the drain pipe 25. As shown in FIG. 1, the outer portion of the water tank 11, which is indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 2, indicates parts installed underground.

The L-shaped portion of the relatively narrow tank 11 is configured to provide a relatively strong flow of fluid toward the guide tube 14 so that golf balls are easily collected near the guide tube 14. The chute 15 shown in FIG. 1 is also shown in the opposite direction as is currently used for convenience of illustration, and golf balls fall from the chute 15 or 16 near the guide tube 14. It is preferable. In practice, however, the water tank 11 is configured to allow fluid to flow so that the golf balls can be sucked into the induction pipe 14 wherever the ball falls within the water tank 11.

4 is a cross-sectional view of a preferred configuration of the pump 13. The pump 13 is preferably a centrifugal pump, but other known pumps such as diaphragm pumps can also be used. The pump 13 preferably comprises an impeller whose main configuration is one disk and a plurality of impeller blades 13a. The impeller disc including the collar 13a is preferably made of steel, and the impeller disk and the collar are shaped so that a phenomenon that a golf ball does not occur inside the pump housing. The configuration shown is commonly referred to as an open impeller. An elastic material may be coated on the impeller surface to prevent the golf balls from being damaged by colliding with the impeller while passing through the pump 13. In practice, however, it has been found that such a coating is unnecessary at all. That is, although the first coating portion of the impeller surface is completely peeled off by the golf balls passing through the pump, the experimental results show that the damage caused by the golf balls passing through the pump 13 did not increase significantly. In fact, only one of the ten golf balls passing through the pump is considered to actually impinge on the impeller, and it is observed that the number of golf balls actually damaged is extremely small.

The pump 13, the electric motor 40 and the drive 41 are preferably capable of providing a pressure and a flow rate of 3-5 ft / sec suitable for raising the fluid above the distance “B” shown in FIG. 1. Should be chosen. In practice, a 12-inch open impeller driven at 750 rpm by a single 7 1/2 horsepower motor was found to be suitable when the height "B" was approximately 123 feet in a generally horizontal installation.

3 shows the configuration of an optional additional golf ball bath. Even in the basic device described above, the golf balls are almost completely tanked while they pass through the predetermined distance of the conduit. This water bath can be enhanced by adding a material, such as a synthetic detergent, to the fluid or selecting the fluid itself. However, if it is determined that it is desirable or necessary to more thoroughly wash the golf ball, the configuration shown in FIG. 3 provides an additional bath with a treatment capacity comparable to that of the basic device.

The optional golf ball bath shown in FIG. 3 comprises a cylindrical tube arranged in an inclined direction by an angle "A" with respect to a vertical line in installation. The angle "A" is preferably limited to an angle small enough to allow the golf balls to receive the maximum effect of gravity and to pass through the outermost circumference of the cylindrical tube by the brush 37, but 0 ° (vertical) And any angle between and 90 ° (horizontal) is possible. It is desirable to limit the angle "A" to about 75 ° at a flow rate of 200 gallons per minute. This is because golf balls tend to concentrate at larger angles, reducing the ability of the golf ball tank to prevent clogging. It is also possible to allow golf balls to flow through the tank with the flow of fluid. The preferred flow rate of 200 gallons per minute will have to reduce the diameter of the cylindrical tube 31 of the golf ball tank device, thereby reducing the golf ball processing capacity and clogging prevention ability.

Preferably, the stirrer 36 driven by the electric motor 32 through a pulley and belts 33, 34, 35 has a diameter approximately equal to the diameter of the golf ball 1 than the inner diameter of the cylindrical tube 31. It is preferred that it is a small brush 36. This rotary brush 36 is preferably rotated at 15-50 rpm. The bristles 37 of the brush 36 allow the golf balls to stick toward the inner surface of the cylindrical tube 31. Brush 36 is supported by bracket 38 at the bottom. The inner face of the cylindrical tube 31 is preferably a woven surface 46, in which case the inner diameter of the cylindrical tube 31 will be defined by the surface 46. Although the device may be configured to rotate the cylinder tube 31 so that the entire inner surface of the cylinder tube 31 can be evenly washed by the fluid, it has been found that the apparatus is not necessarily required.

Using the apparatus of the present invention, the operator of the golf ball recovery machine simply moves the recovered golf balls to the grate portion 17 of the chute 15 and the golf balls are washed for reuse and at the same time as a driving range house. You will be quickly moved to the distribution site. By placing the water tank 11 near the golf ball recovery site, it is possible to make optimal use of the device and personnel. The processing capacity of golf balls by the apparatus and method according to the invention exceeds 20 per second or 72,000 per hour. Therefore, according to the apparatus and method of the present invention, it is possible to automatically transport and fish a large number of golf balls simultaneously, thereby reducing the number of personnel and management requirements, and the effect of the invention to more effectively use other facilities of the golf practice range. have.

While the invention has been described with respect to one embodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the invention may be modified within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (14)

A water tank 11 containing a fluid; Means for directing the golf ball into the water tank (11) to form a mixture of the fluid and the golf ball; A bucket 20 comprising means for separating the golf ball from the fluid; A discharge pipe 18 extending from the water tank 11 to a proximal position of the water tank 20; And means for pumping the mixture of the golf ball and the fluid from the water tank (11) to the water tank (20) via the discharge pipe (18); Golf ball processing apparatus comprising a. 2. A golf ball processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said means for guiding said golf ball into a fluid comprises a conveying means for inclined portions. 3. A golf ball processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said means for guiding said golf ball into said fluid comprises means for separating a golf ball from a foreign body. The golf ball processing device according to claim 1, wherein said means for pumping said mixture from a first position to a second position is a centrifugal pump (13). 5. The golf ball processing device according to claim 4, wherein the centrifugal pump (13) is an open impeller pump. The method of claim 1, extending between the bucket 20 and a position proximate to the bucket 20, to receive a mixture of the golf ball and the fluid from the discharge tube 18 and into the bucket 20. A cylindrical tube 31 installed to release a mixture of the golf ball and the fluid and having one inner surface; Stirring means for stirring the golf ball with respect to the inner surface; Golf ball processing apparatus further comprises a means for washing the golf ball made of. The golf ball processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the stirring means comprises a rotary brush disposed inside the cylindrical tube (31). The golf ball processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the inner surface of the cylindrical tube (31) is a fabric surface. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising means for separating the golf balls from the fluid. 10. A golf ball treating apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising means for returning said fluid to said water tank (11). 11. The golf ball processing device according to claim 10, wherein the means for returning the fluid to the water tank (11) comprises a conduit having a volume approximately equal to or greater than the water tank (11). The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the fluid comprises a cleaning agent. 11. The golf ball treating apparatus of claim 10, wherein said fluid comprises a cleaning agent. Forming a mixture of the fluid and the golf ball to essentially include an amount of fluid and the golf ball; Pumping the mixture of golf ball and the fluid from the first position to the second position through a discharge tube 18 of predetermined length extending from a first position to a second position; And separating the golf ball from the fluid at the second position. Wherein the golf ball is agitated in the discharge tube (18), washed by the fluid and conveyed from the first position to the second position at the same time.