WO2009084087A1

WO2009084087A1 - Tennis training machine

Info

Publication number: WO2009084087A1
Application number: PCT/JP2007/075146
Authority: WO
Inventors: Satoru Iwamura
Original assignee: Zaoba Corporation
Priority date: 2007-12-27
Filing date: 2007-12-27
Publication date: 2009-07-09

Abstract

Provided is a tennis training machine of a simple structure for hitting balls toward a user by hitting them with use of a racket. The tennis training machine (1) comprises a swing member (20) swinging around a rotary shaft, a cross arm (30) having one end fixed to the swing member (20) and extending from the swing member (20), a racket (40) fixed to the other end of the cross arm (30), a drive device (50) for swinging the swing member (20) around the rotary shaft, a ball supply device (60) for supplying balls (90) to the ball hitting position of the racket (40), and a control device (70) for controlling the operations of the drive device (50) and the ball supply device (60).

Description

Tennis training machine

The present invention relates to a tennis training machine for launching a ball for a user who practice tennis to hit, and more particularly to a tennis training machine suitable for practice of hitting a ball.

In the practice of tennis, the practice of hitting the ball is repeated. Thus, several tennis training machines that hit the trainer with balls have been proposed. However, many of these tennis training machines have a structure similar to that of a pitching machine, in which a ball is placed on one end of a rotating arm and the ball is sent out by a rotational force, or two rollers that rotate. It was sent out with a ball in between. On the other hand, when practicing tennis, it is more practical to practice the timing of hitting the ball while looking at how the opponent's racket swings. There is. In addition, there is also a problem that the tennis ball inflated with compressed air is easily damaged when it is sandwiched between rollers. Then, the tennis training machine which strikes a ball by hitting with a racket was proposed (refer to patent documents 1).
JP 54-106330 A (pages 3 to 4 and FIG. 3)

However, the proposed tennis practice machine performs each movement by a mechanical structure, and the structure is complicated to actually manufacture and use, and it is difficult to say that the structure can withstand long-term use. . On the other hand, intermediate and advanced tennis players can practice rebounding on the court with the opponent, and the tennis practicing machine is most often used by beginners who cannot repel the ball. In practice for beginners, it is not necessary to give the ball a high degree of rotation. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a tennis training machine that uses a simple structure to hit a ball to a user by hitting with a racket.

In order to achieve the above object, a tennis practice machine according to the first aspect of the present invention includes, for example, a swing member 20 that swings around a rotation shaft; Are fixed and projecting from the swinging member 20; a racket 40 fixed to the other end of the arm 30 different from the other end; a driving device 50 for swinging the swinging member 20 around the rotation axis; A ball supply device 60 for supplying a ball 90 to 40 hitting positions; a drive device 50 and a control device 70 for controlling the operation of the ball supply device 60.

With this configuration, the arm and the racket fixed to the end thereof are swung by the swinging member swung by the driving device, and the ball is supplied from the ball supply device to the hitting position of the racket by the control device. Therefore, it becomes a tennis training machine that hits the ball by hitting the ball with a racket. In addition, since the timing for supplying the ball to the racket hitting position by the ball supply device and the timing for swinging the racket, that is, the timing for operating the driving device can be controlled by the control device, the structure becomes simple.

Further, the tennis training machine according to the second aspect of the present invention has a servo motor 50 as a driving device in the tennis training machine 1 according to the first aspect as shown in FIG.

With this configuration, since the drive device is a servo motor, the drive device can withstand a high number of repetitions of operation and has a long life, and control of the operation of the swinging member, the arm and the racket fixed to the end thereof is possible. It becomes easy.

Moreover, in the tennis training machine according to the third aspect of the present invention, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, in the tennis training machine 1 of the first aspect or the second aspect, the racket 40 rotates around the axis of the racket 40. Is possible.

With this configuration, since the racket can be rotated around the axis of the racket, the racket can be rotated around the axis and the ball can be rotated. The “racket axis” refers to the major axis of the normal oval shape of the racket head, typically the axis connecting the grip end and the farthest point from the grip end of the racket head. Yes, the axis coincides with the center axis of the grip. Note that “rotation around the racket axis” does not have to be strictly “around the racket axis”, and may be substantially “around the racket axis”.

Moreover, the tennis practice machine according to the fourth aspect of the present invention is, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, in the tennis practice machine 1 of any one of the first to third aspects, the rotation axis X1 (X2). The angle with respect to the horizontal plane is variable.

If comprised in this way, since the angle with respect to the horizontal surface of a rotating shaft is variable, the angle which a rocking | fluctuation member rock | fluctuates can be changed, Therefore The surface on which a brace | hook and the racket fixed to the edge part are swung is changed. Can be changed. Then, the direction in which the ball is launched can be changed, and the tennis training machine can be launched by hitting the ball at various angles.

Moreover, the tennis practice machine according to the fifth aspect of the present invention is the same as the tennis practice machine according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, for example, as shown in FIG. The projection unit 68 is moved by the projection, and the projection unit 68 projects the ball 90 by the movement and supplies the ball 90 to the hitting position of the racket 40 (see FIG. 1).

With this configuration, the ball supply device includes a projection unit that is moved by a solenoid, and the projection unit supplies the ball to the hitting position of the racket by projecting the ball by movement, so the structure of the ball supply device is simple. In addition, it withstands a high number of repetitions and has a long life.

Moreover, in the tennis training machine according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, in the tennis training machine 2 of the fifth aspect, the projection unit 68 moves obliquely with respect to the horizontal plane, and the swing member The ball 90 is supplied to the striking position of the racket 40 from the front where the racket is moving by the swinging of the rack 20 obliquely upward.

Structuring in this way, the ball is supplied by hitting the ball flying from the front with a racket, and it becomes a tennis training machine that strikes the ball under conditions that are closer to reality.

In addition, in the tennis practice machine according to the seventh aspect of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 7, for example, in the tennis practice machine 3 according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, the control device 70 is a wireless receiver. A radio transmitter 80 that transmits a radio signal for operating the driving device 50 or the ball supply device 60 to the radio receiving unit 72.

With this configuration, the drive device or the ball supply device can be operated by transmitting a radio signal from the radio transmitter. Therefore, the tennis training machine is capable of instructing the ball launch while the user is away from the racket for hitting the ball.

This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2006-177202 filed on June 27, 2006 in Japan, the contents of which form part of the present application.
The present invention will be more fully understood from the following detailed description. Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, the detailed description and specific examples are preferred embodiments of the present invention and are provided for illustrative purposes only. From this detailed description, various changes and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art within the spirit and scope of the invention. The applicant does not intend to contribute any of the described embodiments to the public, and modifications and alternatives that may not be included in the scope of the claims within the scope of the claims are also subject to equivalence. As part of the invention.
In this description or in the claims, the use of nouns and similar directives should be understood to include both the singular and the plural unless specifically stated otherwise or clearly denied by context. The use of any examples or exemplary terms provided herein (eg, “etc.”) is merely intended to facilitate the description of the invention and is specifically recited in the claims. Unless otherwise specified, the scope of the present invention is not limited.

According to the present invention, a tennis training machine includes a swing member that swings around a rotation shaft, an arm that has one end fixed to the swing member and projects from the swing member, and another end that is different from one end of the arm tree. A fixed racket, a driving device that swings a swinging member about a rotation axis, a ball supply device that supplies a ball to the hitting position of the racket, and a control device that controls the operation of the driving device and the ball supply device; Since the arm and the racket fixed to the end thereof are swung by the swinging member swung by the driving device, the ball supplied to the hitting position of the racket from the ball supply device is controlled by the control device. It becomes a tennis training machine that hits the ball by hitting the ball. In addition, since the timing for supplying the ball to the racket hitting position by the ball supply device and the timing for swinging the racket, that is, the timing for operating the driving device can be controlled by the control device, the structure becomes simple. Therefore, it is possible to provide a tennis training machine that uses a simple structure to hit a ball to the user by hitting with a racket.

It is a perspective view explaining the tennis training machine as a 1st embodiment concerning the present invention. It is a fragmentary sectional view of a ball supply device for explaining a projection device. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the tennis training machine. It is a perspective view explaining the tennis training machine which can incline the rotating shaft of a rocking | swiveling member with respect to a horizontal surface. It is a perspective view explaining the tennis training machine in which a racket can rotate around the axis of a racket. The projection part moves diagonally with respect to a horizontal surface, and is a figure explaining the tennis training machine comprised so that it may supply a ball | bowl toward diagonally upward from the front which is the stroke of a racket, (a) is a perspective view, ( b) is a partial cross-sectional view of the ball supply device. It is a typical perspective view explaining the tennis training machine which is equipped with a wireless transmitter and operates a servo motor or a ball supply device by a wireless signal from the wireless transmitter.

Explanation of symbols

1 to 3 Tennis training machine 10 Base 12 Support column 14 Support column 16 Bracket 18 Wheel 20 Oscillating member 22 Head (of the oscillating member) 30 Arm 40 Racket 42 Grip 44 Racket head 50 Servo motor (drive device)
60 Ball supply device 62 Ball basket 64 Ball guide 66 Projection device 67 Case 68 Projection unit 69 Solenoid unit 70 Control device 72 Wireless reception unit 80 Wireless transmitter 90 Ball

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or corresponding devices are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view for explaining a tennis practice machine 1 as a first embodiment according to the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a tennis practice machine 1 placed on the ground or a court, and the top and bottom in the figure correspond to the top and bottom when the tennis practice machine 1 is placed on the ground or the court in order to use the tennis practice machine 1. In the figure, the alternate long and short dash line represents signal transmission and is typically connected by a signal cable, but the signal may be transmitted wirelessly.

The tennis practice machine 1 is supported by a base 10, a support base 12 fixed to the base 10, a support post 14 extending from the support base 12, a bracket 16 projecting from the support post 14, and a bracket 16. The swing member 20, the arm 30 having one end fixed to the upper head 22 of the swing member 20 and projecting horizontally from the swing member 20, and the end of the arm 30 opposite to the swing member 20 And a racket 40 fixed to the rack. Further, a servo motor 50 as a driving device is disposed on the opposite side of the swing member 20 with the bracket 16 interposed therebetween. The drive shaft of the servo motor 50 is connected to the swing member 20, and the servo motor 50 itself is fixed to the bracket 16. In addition, the tennis training machine 1 includes a ball supply device 60 on the base 10 for supplying a tennis ball 90 (hereinafter simply referred to as “ball 90”) to the hitting position of the racket 40. The tennis training machine 1 further includes a control device 70 on the base 10 for controlling the servo motor 50, the ball supply device 60, and the like.

The base 10 is typically a steel iron plate, which brings together the devices of the tennis practice machine 1 and facilitates movement. For this purpose, a plurality of wheels 18 are provided in the lower part of the base 10 in contact with the ground or the court. The wheel 18 rotates the axle as necessary to facilitate changing the moving direction. A handle (not shown) may be attached to the base 10 so that it can be easily pushed or pulled by hand when moving the tennis practice machine 1.

A column base 12 and a column 14 are provided vertically upward from the base 10. The column base 12 has a conical shape in which the lower part is widened, and has a hole that fits with the column 14 so as to stably support the column 14 in a direction directed vertically downward from a position where the apex of the cone should be, It is fixed to the base 10 at the bottom surface. The column 14 is a cylinder that fits into the hole of the column base 12 and extends upward. Note that the support post 12 and the support post 14 may have other shapes, for example, the support post 12 may be a quadrangular pyramid and the support post 14 may be a quadrangular prism. The support column 14 is fitted in a hole of the support column 12 so that it can slide vertically with the support column 12. The height of the racket 40 can be changed by sliding the column 14 up and down. From near the upper end of the column 14, the bracket 16 projects in the horizontal direction. The bracket 16 is a cylinder or a prism that is horizontally held by the support column 14, and a through-hole having a circular cross section through which the swinging member 20 passes is formed near the end on the opposite side of the support column 14.

The rocking member 20 is a columnar member, and its inclination and swinging are restrained by the through-hole of the bracket 16 and swings around a cylindrical axis. In other words, the columnar axis serves as the rotation axis and coincides with the axis of the through hole of the bracket 16. The upper portion of the swing member 20 is a head portion 22 having a large diameter. The arm 30 projects from the head 22 in the horizontal direction. By increasing the diameter of the head 22, the surface that supports the arm 30 can be made larger. The brace 30 is a bar formed of a material having strength and rigidity, such as steel, duralumin, or FRP. Steel is suitably used because it is excellent in strength and rigidity, is inexpensive, can be easily processed. Duralumin is preferred because it is lightweight, high in strength and free from corrosion problems. Moreover, FRP is lighter than duralumin, has excellent strength, and is suitably used without any problem of corrosion. The arm 30 is preferably formed of a material having a large attenuation in order to reduce a load applied to the servo motor 50 or the like due to vibration after hitting a ball. As shown). Alternatively, instead of a single bar, a combination of a plurality of bars or a plate may be used. However, it is preferable to use a rod because it is lightweight and air resistance is reduced, and the driving force required for the servomotor 50 is reduced.

A tennis racket 40 is fixed to the end of the arm 30 opposite to the swing member 20. Here, the racket 40 may be a commercially available tennis racket, and a jig (not shown) for fixing the grip 42 may be provided at the tip of the arm 30 to fix the arm 30 and the racket 40. Alternatively, a racket 40 for the tennis practice machine 1 is manufactured, a fixing part (not shown) is provided on the grip 42 of the racket 40, and a fixing part (not shown) matching the fixing part is provided at the tip of the arm 30. And the racket 40 may be fixed. By using a commercially available tennis racket, various rackets 40 can be easily introduced at low cost. On the other hand, by providing the fixing portions for the racket 40 and the brace 30, respectively, the racket 40 and the brace 30 can be easily fixed firmly, and the racket 40 can be easily replaced. In addition, when manufacturing the racket 40 for the tennis training machine 1, the grip 42 of the racket 40 may be extended and the grip 42 may be directly fixed to the swing member 22, but in this case, the extended racket 40 is extended. The grip 42 constitutes the arm 30. That is, the grip 42 longer than the commercially available tennis racket is regarded as the arm 30. The racket 40 is typically fixed to the arm 30 with the axis of the racket coinciding with the axis of the arm 30, but may be off-axis or inclined. Here, the axis of the racket refers to the major axis direction of the oval racket head 44 or is an axis connecting the grip end and the farthest point from the grip end of the racket head 44. The axis coincides with the central axis. The angle at which the racket 40 is fixed may be made variable by a jig or a fixing part for fixing the racket 40 to the arm 30. By making the fixed angle of the racket 40 variable, the ball can be launched in more ways as will be described later.

The servo motor 50 is installed on the opposite side of the bracket 16 from where the head 22 of the swing member 20 is formed. The servo motor 50 swings the racket 40 fixed to the tip of the arm 30 and quickly gives a driving force for hitting the ball and a signal from the control device 70 so that the ball supplied from the ball supply device 60 can be hit. However, a commercially available servo motor may be used. The servo motor 50 itself is fixed to the bracket 16, and the drive shaft of the servo motor 50 is connected to the swing member 20. The servo motor 50 is actuated by a control signal from the control device 70 and swings the swing member 20 within a predetermined swing angle. Note that a stopper (not shown) that stops further rotation may be provided on the servo motor 50, or on the swing member 20, the brace 30 and the like, so that the swing within a predetermined swing angle can be made more reliable. The predetermined swing angle is a swing angle of the drive shaft of the swing member 20 or the servo motor 50 corresponding to the swing angle of the racket 40.

The ball supply device 60 is a device that supplies the tennis ball 90 to the hitting surface of the racket 40, that is, a toss up device. The ball supply device 60 accommodates a large number of balls 90, a ball basket 62 for sequentially feeding out, a ball guide 64 for feeding the ball 90 from the ball basket 62 to a position where the ball 90 is tossed up, and a projection for tossing up by projecting the ball 90. Device 66. The ball basket 62 is a container having a wide upper portion and a recessed lower portion. The upper portion is opened, and a ball can be easily put through the upper opening. One through hole (see FIG. 2) is formed at the lower end of the ball basket 62, and the balls 90 are sent out one by one from the through hole. A ball guide 64 is connected to the through hole of the ball basket 62. The ball guide 64 is slightly inclined downward from the ball basket 62 side toward the tip side (the side opposite to the ball basket 62), and guides the ball 90 to the tip. The tip of the ball guide 64 is blocked by a wall so that the ball 90 does not advance any further, and a projection device 66 is disposed below the wall. The ball supply device 60 is operated by a control signal from the control device 70 and supplies the ball 90 to the hitting position of the racket 40. Here, the hitting position of the racket 40 is a position at which the racket 40 is swung and hits at a predetermined speed, and the hit ball 90 is hit in a predetermined direction, and the racket at that time This is the approximate center position of the 40 racket heads 44. Even if it is the approximate center position of the racket head 44, it may be a position where the ball 90 abuts against the gut of the racket 40.

Here, the projection device 66 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of the ball supply device 60 for explaining the projection device 66. The projection device 66 has a projection unit 68 inside a housing 67. The projecting portion 68 is an elongated member as a whole having a curved surface having an upper end substantially matching the outer shape of the ball 90 or having a slightly larger curvature. The projection unit 68 is basically formed of a magnetic material such as steel. The projection unit 68 is constrained by a guide (not shown) and can move only in the vertical direction, and the vertical movement is also limited to a predetermined range. A solenoid unit 69 that forms a magnetic field is disposed around the projection unit 68, and the projection unit 68 is moved up and down by applying a voltage to the solenoid unit 69. A hole is formed in the upper surface of the projection unit 68, that is, the bottom surface of the ball guide 64 that passes when the projection unit 68 moves upward. Therefore, when the projection unit 68 moves upward, the ball 90 at the tip of the ball guide 64 can be pushed upward from below. The operation of the ball supply device 60, that is, the vertical movement of the projection unit 68 due to application of a voltage to the solenoid unit 69 is controlled by a signal from the control device 70. Typically, when a voltage is applied to the solenoid unit 69, a magnetic field is generated that moves the projection unit 68 upward, and when the voltage application is stopped, the projection unit 68 moves downward due to its own weight. Apply voltage only when projecting. When the ball 90 is projected and tossed up, the next ball 90 rolls from the ball guide 64 above the projection device 66, abuts against the wall of the end of the ball guide 64, and stops above the projection device 66. To do.

Note that the ball supply device 60 may have other configurations. For example, the vertical movement of the projection unit 68 does not have to be performed by a solenoid. The string winding spring or the plate spring is bent or biased to be energized, locked by a stopper, and then unlocked by releasing the locking. The leaf spring may be released and the projection unit 68 may be moved by its restoring force. Also in this case, the control device 70 controls the biasing and releasing of the spring, in particular, the release of the stopper. This is because the timing of the drive device 50, that is, the movement of the racket 40 can be harmonized by controlling with the control device 70. Alternatively, the projection unit 68 may be moved up and down by fluid pressure instead of the solenoid. In addition, the projection unit 68 is not provided, but a device for ejecting an air flow is provided instead of the projection device 66, and the ball 90 is maintained at a predetermined height by the air flow even if the ball 90 is tossed up by the air flow. May be. Alternatively, the projection device 66 is not provided, the ball basket 62 is installed vertically above the racket 40, and a wall is provided at the tip of the ball guide 64 (on the side opposite to the ball basket 62) to prevent the ball 90 from proceeding further. Instead, the ball 90 traveling through the ball guide 64 may be dropped as it is, and the ball 90 dropped from the ball guide 64 may reach the hitting position of the racket 40. In this case, a gate that opens and closes in order to control the advance and stop of the ball 90 is provided on or at the front end or the ball guide 64 of the ball basket 62, and the opening and closing of the gate is controlled by the control device 70. As described above, when the ball basket 62 is disposed on the upper side and the ball 90 is supplied only by opening and closing the gate, the configuration becomes simple and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. In addition, when the solenoid is used, fluctuations in the operation of the projection unit 68 can be reduced, the ball projection, that is, the speed of the tossing ball 90 is stabilized, and the wear, fatigue, etc. due to the high repetition rate operation. There is little damage, and long life is achieved. Well-known conventional techniques can be used for energizing and releasing the string spring and leaf spring, moving the projection unit 68 up and down by fluid pressure, blowing out an air flow, or opening and closing the gate.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the explanation of the tennis training machine 1 is continued. The control device 70 controls the operation of the ball supply device 60 and the operation of the servo motor 50, and the swing member is driven by the timing at which the ball is supplied from the ball supply device 60 to the hitting position of the racket 40 and the drive device 50. 20 and a device that harmonizes the timing with which the racket 40 is swung through the brace 30. For this purpose, a ball can be hit at a predetermined portion of the racket 40. The control device 70 typically includes a CPU as a central operator, a storage unit that stores data, and an input / output unit that transmits and receives signals to and from other devices in the tennis practice machine 1. In the storage unit, a voltage is applied to the solenoid unit 69 (see FIG. 2) in order to activate the projection unit 68, more precisely, the timing at which the projection unit 68 (see FIG. 2) of the ball supply device 60 projects the ball 90. The time difference between the timing of application and the timing of shaking the racket 40, more precisely, the timing of starting to turn the servo motor 50 in the direction of shaking the racket 40 (from the back to the front in FIG. 1), the time difference and the racket 40 Are stored, such as the relationship with the speed at which the servomotor 50 is driven, strictly speaking, the speed with which the servomotor 50 is driven. Since the speed at which the racket 40 is swung is directly related to the speed of the ball 90 hit by the racket 40, that is, the speed of the ball 90 hit from the tennis training machine 1, it is preferable that the speed can be adjusted. . That is, a switch (not shown) for adjusting the speed at which the ball 90 is shot is provided on the tennis practice machine 1, and the speed at which the servo motor 50 is rotated by a signal from the switch is determined by the control device 70. . When a signal for launching the ball 90 is transmitted to the control device 70, the time difference between the timing for applying the voltage to the projection device 66 and the timing for driving the servo motor 50 is stored in the storage unit based on the speed at which the servo motor 50 is rotated. The CPU calculates the stored data and transmits an operation signal to the servo motor 50 and the ball supply device 60 with a time difference.

The control device 70 may perform other controls. For example, the ball 90 may be controlled to hit the ball 90 with the racket 40 while adjusting the speed and height at which the ball 90 is tossed up, or housed in the ball supply device 60. If the ball 90 is used up, the user may be provided with a function of notifying the user with light or sound, or a function of displaying the number of the accommodated balls 90 using, for example, a liquid crystal screen. In addition, a function of emitting a signal to strike the ball 90 at predetermined time intervals may be provided so that the ball 90 is launched from the tennis training device 1 at regular time intervals.

Next, the operation of the tennis practice machine 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the tennis practice machine 1. In addition, about the structure and code | symbol of each apparatus, FIG.1 and FIG.2 is also referred suitably. First, the ball 90 is placed in the ball basket 62 (step S10). The ball 90 passes through the ball guide 64 from the lower through-hole of the ball basket 62 and reaches above the projection device 66 at the tip. When a large number of balls 90 are placed in the ball basket 62, the balls 90 are aligned with the ball guide 64 and are accommodated in the ball basket 62.

Next, a signal for launching the ball is transmitted to the control device 70 (step S20). Alternatively, the control device 70 itself issues a signal for launching the ball. Then, the racket 40 and the projection unit 68 are moved to the initial positions (step S30). Here, in the case of the racket 40, the initial position is a position retreated from the hitting position to hit the ball 90 and is a so-called takeback position. Specifically, the drive shaft of the servo motor 50 is set to a position where driving is started in order to hit the ball. Further, in the case of the projection unit 68, the projection unit 68 is at a lowered position, and the projection unit 68 is lowered by its own weight by stopping the application of voltage to the solenoid unit 69. If the racket 40 and the projection unit 68 are in the initial position in advance, this step (step S30) may be omitted.

Next, as described above, the control device 70 calculates the time difference between the timing of driving the servo motor 50 and the timing of applying a voltage to the solenoid unit 69 of the ball supply device 60 (step S40). This time difference is calculated based on data stored in the storage unit of the control device 70 in advance. The data for calculating the time difference is generally collected as one of the design values of the tennis practice machine 1 by design or trial production, and is collected by analysis or experiment and stored in a storage unit. Based on the result of the user hitting the ball 90 with the tennis practice machine 1, for example, an evaluation that the timing of swinging the racket 40 is late or early, or the supply of the ball 90 from the ball supply device 60 is late or early is used. The controller 70 may be configured so that it can be input and adjusted / corrected by the user himself / herself. If comprised in this way, the timing which hits the ball | bowl 90 will become more exact. In addition, when hitting the ball 90 continuously from the tennis training machine 1, since the same time difference as that used when the ball 90 was hit immediately before can be used, the time difference is stored as data in the storage unit, By using the stored time difference data, the step of calculating the time difference (step S40) can be omitted.

Next, a voltage is applied to the solenoid unit 69 of the ball supply device 60 (step S50). When a voltage is applied to the solenoid unit 69, a magnetic field is formed around the projection unit 68, and the projection unit 68 moves upward by the magnetic force. When the projection unit 68 moves upward, the ball 90 stopped at the tip of the ball guide 64 is pushed up from below, and the pushed up ball 90 is tossed up.

Next, the servo motor 50 is driven with a delay by the time difference obtained in step S40 (step S60). By rotating the drive shaft of the servo motor 50, the swing member 20 rotates around the rotation shaft, and the swing member 20 swings the arm 30 and the racket 40 fixed to the tip thereof. That is, the racket 40 moves in a stroke from the takeback position. Since the brace 30 is provided between the pivot shaft of the swing member 20 and the racket 40, the racket 40 is swung with the same radius of rotation as a person swings the racket 40. While the ball 90 is tossed up and floated at the hitting position of the racket 40, the racket 40 is shaken at just the right timing. Therefore, the ball 90 is hit by the racket 40, and the ball 90 is thrown in a predetermined direction at a predetermined speed. In the tennis training machine 1, a user who is a beginner in tennis practices toss up and hits the ball 90 hit with the racket 40, and the speed of the hit ball 90 is often slow. That is, the stroke of the racket 40, that is, the drive required for the servo motor 50 is not so fast. For example, it may take 1 second or more until the racket 40 reaches the hitting position from the initial position, and it may be set to take about 2 seconds.

In this way, when the racket 40 strokes from the takeback position, the tennis practitioner who uses the tennis practice machine 1 has the racket 40 in the same manner as in the case where he / she hits the ball from his / her opponent or coach. It is possible to grasp the timing when the ball is launched while watching the movement, and more practical practice is possible. Further, since the ball 90 is hit by the racket 40, practice is performed using the ball 90 of the same rotation as the opponent or coach actually hit the ball with the racket, and practical practice can be performed.

When the ball 90 is hit and the racket 40 reaches a position where a so-called follow throw is made, a signal is transmitted from the controller 70 to the servomotor 50 to stop the movement of the racket 40 and return the racket 40 to the initial position. The racket 40 is returned to the initial position by driving in a direction opposite to that when the stroke 50 (step S70). Further, the application of voltage to the solenoid unit 69 is stopped, and the projection unit 68 is lowered to the initial position by its own weight (step S80).

Thus, the ball 90 is shot once with the tennis training machine 1. Next, when a signal for launching a ball is transmitted, or when it becomes time to launch the next ball and the control device 70 issues a signal for launching the ball, the processes from step S20 described above are repeated. As described above, the process of step S30 or step S40 can be omitted after the second time. Further, depending on the time difference between the timing of driving the servo motor 50 and the timing of applying the voltage to the solenoid unit 69 of the ball supply device 60, a step of applying a voltage to the solenoid unit 90 (step S50) and a step of driving the servo motor 50 The order of (Step S60) is switched.

As described above, the tennis training machine 1 has a simple structure as shown in FIG. 1 and can perform the same practice as hitting a ball with a racket from an actually facing opponent or coach. Therefore, it becomes a suitable tennis training machine for a user who preferably hits a ball slowly from a nearby place, such as a beginner tennis player.

In the above description, the servo motor 50 is used as the drive device. However, the drive device may not be the servo motor 50. For example, the swing member 20 may be swung within a predetermined swing angle by a combination of an ordinary motor, a gear train, and a switch. However, it is preferable to use the servo motor 50 because the configuration is simpler and the life is longer.

In the above description, the swing member 20 and the servo motor 50 are supported and restrained by the bracket 16 projecting from the support column 14. However, in the tennis training machine 1, the support platform 12 and the support column 14 are supported. The servo motor 50 is directly fixed on the base 10, the drive shaft of the servo motor 50 extends vertically upward, and the drive shaft of the servo motor 50 and the swing member 20 are fixed coaxially. May be. In this case, it is preferable to provide a guide for restraining the drive shaft of the servo motor 50 or the swinging member 20 from tilting or touching.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the swing member 20 and the servo motor 50 are supported by the bracket 16 protruding from the support column 14, by rotating the bracket 16 around the columnar axis of the bracket 16, The pivot shaft of the swing member 20 can be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane. FIG. 4 is a perspective view for explaining the tennis training machine 1 that can tilt the pivot shaft of the swing member 20 with respect to the horizontal plane. That is, if the pivot axis of the swing member 20 is X1 perpendicular to the horizontal plane, the brace 30 and the racket 40 are swung on the horizontal plane, but by using the pivot axis X2 inclined with respect to the horizontal plane, The racket 40 is shaken on the inclined surface. For example, the racket 40 is swung from diagonally downward to diagonally upward. By tilting the surface on which the racket 40 is swung in this manner, a slower so-called mountain-like ball can be launched, and a ball that is easy to strike can be launched for beginners. Alternatively, a ball that bounces greatly can be launched by swinging and hitting the racket 40 from diagonally upward to diagonally downward.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the portion of the head 22 that fixes the arm 30 may be configured to rotate in the axial direction of the arm (the direction in which the arm is twisted). FIG. 5 is a perspective view for explaining the tennis training machine 1 in which the racket 40 can rotate around the axis of the racket 40. If comprised in this way, the angle of the surface of the racket 40 which the racket 40 rotates around the axis | shaft of a racket (the surface in which the racket head 44 was stretched) can be changed. By changing the surface of the racket 40, the direction of hitting the ball 90 can be changed. Further, the rotation of the hit ball 90 can be adjusted. For example, a so-called slice ball can be hit by tilting in the upward direction, and a so-called top spin ball can be hit by tilting in the downward direction. . Typically, after the racket 40 is rotated around the axis of the racket 40, when the ball 90 is hit, the racket 40 is fixed so as not to rotate around the axis of the racket 40. The portion for fixing the arm 30 is rotated by, for example, a servo motor (not shown) installed on the head 22, and the drive is controlled by the control device 70. When tilted so as to rotate around the axis of the racket 40, the ball 90 is further rotated, and various practical and various types of balls can be launched. Thus, even if the portion for fixing the arm 30 is movable, the arm 30 is fixed to the swing member 20 (specifically, the head 22). Further, the portion where the arm 30 is fixed to the head portion 22 of the swinging member 20 may not be fixed, and a portion of the arm 30 may be provided with a torsion member (not shown) that rotates in the torsion direction. It is good also as a structure which the fixed part of the racket 40 rotates in the axial direction of the brace 30 or the racket 40. When the axis of the arm 30 and the axis of the racket 40 are inclined, the rotation around the axis of the arm 30 is substantially the rotation around the axis of the racket 40. Included in the concept of “rotate about axis”.

Next, with reference to FIG. 6, the tennis training machine 2 in which the direction of the ball 90 supplied from the ball supply device 60 is changed will be described. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the tennis training device 2 configured to supply the ball 90 obliquely upward from the front where the projection unit 68 moves obliquely with respect to the horizontal plane and strokes the racket 40. (A) is a perspective view, (b) is a partial cross-sectional view of the ball supply device 60. Since the tennis training machine 2 basically has the same configuration as the tennis training machine 1, overlapping explanation is omitted and only different points will be explained. In the tennis practice machine 2, the ball guide 64 of the ball supply device 60 is long and has a bend, and the front is moving when the racket 40 hits the ball by swinging the swing member 20, that is, The tip of the ball guide 64 is positioned in front of the stroke direction (the direction of the arrow Y1 in the figure). In the projection device 66 of the ball supply device 60, the projection unit 68 is installed obliquely, and the solenoid unit 69 is also installed obliquely. By applying a voltage to the solenoid unit 69, the projection unit 68 moves obliquely upward. The oblique direction in which the projection unit 68 and the solenoid unit 69 are installed is substantially the direction facing the hitting position of the racket 40. When the projection unit 68 moves obliquely upward and projects the ball 90, the ball 90 becomes a racket. It jumps out toward the striking position of 40 (in the direction of arrow Y2 in the figure). Thus, by supplying the ball 90 from the front of the stroke and hitting it, a more practical ball is launched as when hitting the ball against the opponent who faces the ball. Here, the term “oblique” refers to a state that is neither vertical nor horizontal to the horizontal plane, and is an angle that is not substantially vertical (for example, 85 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane) or less, and about 20 degrees or more. At a substantially vertical angle, it is difficult to obtain the effect of hitting the ball 90 supplied obliquely upward from the front of the racket 40. On the other hand, if the angle is 20 degrees or less, the horizontal distance from the ball supply device 60 to the hitting position becomes longer, depending on the height difference between the hitting position of the projection device 66 and the racket 40, and a large projection force is exerted on the projection device 66. This is because there is a problem such as an increase in size. In order to make it easier for the user to see where the ball 90 is hit with the racket 40, the projection device 66 is generally disposed below the racket 40 with a space therebetween.

In FIG. 6B, the casing 67 of the projection device 66 remains fixed to the ball guide 64 in the same manner as the tennis practice machine 1, and only the projection unit 68 and the solenoid unit 69 are tilted. However, the entire projection device 66 including the housing 67 may be inclined, or the projection device 66 may be moved together with the tip portion of the ball guide 64 by tilting the tip portion of the ball guide 64. It is good also as a structure which inclines. If only the projection unit 68 and the solenoid unit 69 are configured to be inclined, the number of members to be inclined can be reduced, which is structurally easy. On the other hand, when the entire projection device 66 is tilted, the casing 67, the projection unit 68, and the solenoid unit 69 are tilted as a single unit, so that the vertical movement of the projection unit 68 is unlikely to occur due to the tilt. In FIG. 6A, the ball supply device 60 is installed on the base 10, but the ball supply device 60 is separated from the base 10, and only the ball supply device 60 is moved to move the ball. It is good also as a structure which changes 90 supply directions. If comprised in this way, the supply direction of the ball | bowl 90 from the ball supply apparatus 60 can be changed freely. However, by installing the ball supply device 60 on the base 10 as shown in FIG. In the tennis training machine 2, in order to change the position at which the ball is projected by the ball supply device 60, for example, the ball guide 64 can be assembled, and the ball guide 64 of various shapes can be configured by changing the assembly members. You can do it. In addition, since the time difference which drives the servomotor 50 and the ball supply apparatus 60 will change if the projection position of the ball | bowl 90 changes, in the control apparatus 70, the position measurement apparatus which inputs a projection position or measures a projection position (Not shown), and the time difference is calculated according to the projection position of the ball supply device 60.

Next, with reference to FIG. 7, the tennis training machine 3 that transmits a signal to the control device 70 wirelessly will be described. FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view illustrating the tennis training machine 3 that includes the wireless transmitter 80 and operates the servo motor 50 or the ball supply device 60 by a wireless signal from the wireless transmitter 80. In the figure, a one-dot chain line represents signal transmission by radio. Since the tennis training machine 3 basically has the same configuration as the tennis training machine 1, overlapping explanation is omitted and only different points will be explained. The control device 70 of the tennis training machine 3 includes a wireless reception unit 72. The wireless receiving unit 72 includes an antenna and an amplifier (not shown) or a modulator (not shown) that amplifies the signal received by the antenna as necessary, and the signal received by the antenna is input / output unit (not shown). ). A radio signal received by the radio receiver 72 is transmitted from a handy type radio transmitter 80, and the radio transmitter 80 is used by a user who practices with a ball launched from the tennis practice machine 3 or a coach of the user. The A signal for launching a ball is transmitted from the wireless transmitter 80, and when the signal is received by the wireless receiver 72, a signal for launching the ball is transmitted to the control device 70. As a result, as described with reference to FIG. 3, the servo motor 50 and the ball supply device 60 are operated, and the ball 90 is launched from the tennis practice device 3 to the user. Therefore, it is possible to instruct the ball to be launched while being away from the racket 40 or the like for hitting the ball 90, and the ball 90 can be launched at a timing desired by the user. Therefore, the tennis training machine 3 is easy to use.

Claims

A rocking member that rocks about a pivot axis;
A brace that is fixed at one end to the swing member and projects from the swing member;
A racket fixed to the other end different from the one end of the arm;
A drive device for swinging the swing member around the rotation shaft;
A ball supply device for supplying a ball to the hitting position of the racket;
A drive device and a control device for controlling the operation of the ball supply device;
Tennis training machine.
The drive is a servo motor;
The tennis training machine according to claim 1.
The racket is rotatable about an axis of the racket;
The tennis training machine according to claim 1 or claim 2.
The angle of the pivot axis relative to the horizontal plane is variable;
The tennis practice machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3.
The ball supply device includes a projection unit that is moved by a solenoid, and the projection unit projects the ball by the movement and supplies the ball to a hitting position of a racket;
The tennis practice machine according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
Supplying the ball to the striking position of the racket obliquely upward from the front where the projection part moves obliquely with respect to a horizontal plane and the racket is moved by the swinging of the swinging member;
The tennis training machine according to claim 5.
The control device comprises a wireless receiver;
A wireless transmitter for transmitting a wireless signal for operating the driving device or the ball supply device to the wireless receiver;
The tennis practice machine according to any one of claims 1 to 6.