US2034684A - Golf practice device - Google Patents

Description

March 17, 1936. N. WAGNER 2,034,684

GOLF PRACTICE DEVICE Filed Sept. 12, 1933 Jhveni r JEJQ /z, 72,. wa yner Patented Mar. 17, I936 UNITE D" STATES 4 Claims.

The invention :relates generally togames and more particularly to a golf practicezdevice adapted to measurethe force and indicate the direction of a golf drive.

The primary object of the inventionis to provide such a device which is simple and rugged in construction and accurate in operation.

Another object is toprovide' a device of this character which is. adapted for use in a relatively small space, as for instance, in the parlor or other room of a dwelling.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a device which may be: packed readily and easily in a small space so asto facilitate storage and transportation thereof.

Other objects and advantages of .therinvention will become apparent-from :the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective'view showing the forward side of a golf. practice. device embodying the features of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device.

Fig. 3 is .a central. .vertical sectionalview of the device.

Fig. 4 is a central sectional view of the ball.

While my invention is susceptible of embodiment in'many different forms,.I have shown in the drawing and..-will herein'describe inrdetail one such embodiment, with thezunderstanding that the present disclosure is'to. be considered.

as' an exemplification of the. principles of the invention and is not intended to: limit the invention to. the embodiment illustrated. The scope of the invention will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the embodiment chosen for disclosure herein the invention is particularly adapted for use within a room and it comprises a two part standard l0 supporting on its forward face a vertically positioned target II. The target H is relatively small and is so constructed that it is adapted to be hit by a golf ball 12 so as to register on an indicator l3 the relative power of the drive, as well as to indicate whether the drive has been sliced or hooked.

In accordance with the present invention, the relative force or distance of the drive is measured indirectly by measuring the force of the rebound of the ball I 2 from the target II, and to this end the ball is connected to the indicator l3 by a flexible cord I4 of suitable material such as leather.

If desired, a swivel joint I 4* may be incorporated in the cord adjacent to the ball l2 (Fig. 3)

so -as to avoid twisting of the cord. As shown in Fig. 4, the cord I4 is threaded through a bore I2 in the ball l2, and its end is knotted in the enlarged; end of the bore to retain the cord in position. A filler lZ and a bearing collar l2 may beusedto protect the knot and the projecting end of the cord from wear.

In theme of the device, the ball I2 is placed in front of the target I I at a distance of approximately four feet, and in order to prevent interference with the swing of the club (not shown). along a path A (Fig. 2) the two parts of the standard It are arranged at an angle so as to proect outwardly and rearwardly from the center line of the target. This construction also lends stability to the standard without the use of an additional base member.

To: support the target H and the indicator I3 on the standard Hl, a frame member I5 is mounted in the vertical space between the adjacent edges of the two parts of the standard, themember being located in a vertical position slightly rearwardly of the center of the standard. From the forward face of the frame member l5 two'vertically spaced brackets l5 project to support hinges l7 whereby the target II is movably supported. The target I l is constructed in two similar parts or back boards ll which project in opposite directions from the central axis defined by the hinges I l, and one leaf of each hinge is connected to each back board H The hinges- H are connected to the brackets by their pivot pins. The hinges are of the spring closed type which tend at all times to bring the back'boards I E to a common plane, and to position the back board in the desired angular location, a spring is projectsforwardly from. the frame member l5 and into a slot formed between the adjacent edges of the back board elements Il the spring i8 being positioned between the adjacent edges of the target ll acts to locate the target in a rest position wherein the target always lies in a plane perpendicular to the spring l8. With the foregoing construction it will be evident that the impact of a ball travelling as indicatcd by the dotted line B in Fig. 2 will cause rearward swinging of the right hand section of the target I! so as to indicate that the ball was sliced in the drive. As a further indication of the direction of the drive, the swinging of the target section will cause a marked increase in the angularity of the path of rebound of the ball.

To register the force of such rebound on the indicator l3, the cord I4 passes beneath the target I l and through a slot 20 in the lower end of the frame member 15 to a pulley 2|. From the pulley 2| the cord 14 passes upwardly to a pulley 22 fixed to the housing of the indicator I3, from which it extends downwardly and is attached to a vertically movable element or pointer 23 of the indicator. In its upward movement the pointer 23 compresses a spring 24 mounted within the indicator, while a ratchet (not specifically shown) rides upwardly over teeth or notches 25 in a vertically mounted rod 26.

Thus the pointer 23 of the indicator is retained by the notches 25 in the position to which it is raised by the pull of the rebounding ball [2, such position being shown by the position of the forward end of the pointer 23 on a scale 21 on the indicator !3. After the indicator has been read, the pointer is released by rotating the rod 26, a handle 28 being provided at its upper end for this purpose.

In the present embodiment of the invention, the force of the rebound of the ball 12 is increased by covering the forward face of the target II with two resilient pads 29 made of material such as rubber.

Preferably the device is constructed so as to be capable of being packed in a relatively small space. To this end the target ll may be detached by removal of the hinge pins, while the two parts of the standard l0 may be folded together by reason of hinged connections 30 therebetween. To permit the desired movement of the parts of the standard ill, the frame member I5 is mounted on the standard by means of two pairs of arcuate support members 3|, formed of relatively rigid material such as steel and fixed to the parts l0 so as to be slidable transversely around the rear side of the frame member I5. Screws 32 serve to clamp the frame member l5 to the arcuate support members 3| in any desired relation. It will be understood that when the parts [0 of the standard are to be adjusted or folded together, about their hinged connection, two or more of the clamping screws 32 are released or removed so as to permit free relative pivoting of the two parts [0.

It will be evident from the foregoing description that the device herein illustrated is of sturdy construction, is compact in use, and easily transported in unusually compact form. The mechanism is of simple construction, so as to withstand hard usage, yet the indications of strength and direction of the drive are accurate due to the simplicity of the principles involved.

Since the ball may be positioned relatively close to the target II, this target may be relatively small, thus decreasing the cost as well as the size and weight of the device. Moreover, the small target may be positioned relatively close to the floor thereby increasing the stability of the device as a whole.

In addition, it will be seen that since the measurement of the distance of the drive is accomplished by the momentum of the ball at the end of its rebound, a correction is automatically introduced for angularity of the drive.

I claim as my invention:

1. A device of the character described comprising a standard, a target mounted on said standard for swinging movement about a substantially vertical axis located adjacent to the center of the target, a ball adapted to be driven against the target, a force measuring device, and a. flexible cord attached at its opposite ends to the ball and to said force measuring device to operate said force measuring device in accordance with the force of the rebound of said ball from said target.

2. A golf practice device comprising a support, a target mounted on said support for swinging movement about a substantially vertical axis located substantially at the center of the target, a ball adapted to be driven against the target, a force measuring device, and a flexible cord connected at its opposite ends to said ball and to said force measuring device and passing from said force measuring device to the ball over a guide pulley located substantially on the central axis of the target so as to measure the force of rebound of the ball from the target.

3. A golf practice device comprising a standard, a target having two parts with adjacent vertical edges and mounted on said standard for independent rearward swinging movement of the two parts about axes located adjacent to the said vertical edges of the two parts, spring means to restore the two parts to a common plane, and a captive ball adapted to be driven against said target.

4. A device of the character described comprising a pair of flat elements having adjacent edges hinged together and adapted to be positioned in angular relation on the floor with the axis of their hinged connection substantially vertical, a frame member detachably connected to said elements substantially at said axis, a force measuring device mounted on said member, a ball having a flexible cord connection with said force measuring device, and a target located forwardly of the hinged axis of said flat elements and detachably associated with said frame member.

JOSEPHN. WAGNER.

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