Ball practice machine

Abstract

To provide a batting practice machine capable of reducing a cost by a simple structure.SOLUTION: A batting practice machine 10 comprises a machine base 20, a rear shooter 50, a front shooter 40, and transfer means 60 for transferring a ball B from the rear shooter 50 to the front shooter 40. The transfer means 60 includes a motor 70 having a rotary shaft 71, a contact piece 80 disposed on the rotary shaft 71, an arm 90 pivotally supported by the machine base 20 and including a contact object part 91 coming into contact with the contact piece 80 and a holding part 92 capable of holding the ball B, and a coil spring 100 as an energizing member laid across the machine base 20 and the contact object part 91. The arm 90 is movable, by contact between the contact piece 80 and the contact object part 91 and release of the contact therebetween, between a receiving position where the arm can receive the ball B from the rear shooter 50, and a delivering position where the arm can deliver the ball B to the front shooter 40.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a ball-hitting training machine used for practicing baseball, softball, tennis, etc. [Background technology]

[0002] A conventional batting practice machine (batting machine) is described in Patent Document 1. According to this, the batting practice machine includes a ball supply source that sequentially supplies balls to a ball supply position, a ball transfer mechanism that transfers the balls one by one from the ball supply position to a ball delivery position set higher than the ball supply position, a horizontal passage that receives the balls at the ball delivery position, rolls them horizontally relative to the installation surface of the batting practice machine, and drops them through a drop hole at the tip, and a drive source that drives the ball transfer mechanism. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Utility Model Registration No. 3114187 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the ball-hitting training machine, the ball transport mechanism includes a motor-driven chain and multiple ball holders attached at intervals to the chain, each holding a ball at a ball supply position. The chain is hooked onto sprockets rotatably attached to the bottom and top of two support posts erected on a base frame, allowing it to move up and down.

[0005] For these reasons, the ball-hitting training machine has a problem in that the ball-transporting mechanism has a large number of parts, making the structure complicated and costly.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above circumstances, the present invention provides a ball hitting training machine that has a simple configuration and can reduce costs. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In the invention of claim 1, a ball hitting training machine is provided, which includes a machine base, a rear shooter disposed on the machine base and supplying balls, a front shooter disposed on the machine base and having a step in the vertical direction relative to the rear shooter and dropping the balls, and a transfer means for transferring the balls from the rear shooter to the front shooter, The transfer means is a motor having a rotating shaft; a contact piece disposed on the rotating shaft; an arm supported by the machine base and having a contacted portion capable of contacting the contact piece and a holding portion capable of holding the ball; and an urging member bridged between the machine base and the contacted portion, The arm is movable between a receiving position where it can receive the ball from the rear shooter and a delivery position where it can deliver the ball to the front shooter by the abutment and release of the abutment piece and the abutted portion.

[0008] According to this, the transport means can be made up of a small number of parts, namely a motor, a contact piece, an arm, and a biasing member, and by contacting and releasing the contact between the contact piece and the contacted portion, it can be moved between the receiving position and the delivery position with a simple configuration, thereby reducing costs with a simple configuration.

[0009] The machine base also includes a base plate on which the transfer means can be disposed, the base plate has an insertion hole through which the abutted portion can be inserted and which can abut against the abutted portion when the base plate is in the receiving position or the delivering position; The contacted portion is inserted into the insertion hole.

[0010] According to this, when the arm is in the receiving position or the delivery position, the arm is set to abut against the insertion hole, and the rotation of the arm is restricted, thereby preventing problems from occurring in the reception and delivery of balls. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a front view of a ball hitting training machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 2. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. [Figure 7] (a) is a front view of the base plate, (b) is a plan view, and (c) is a side view. [Figure 8] (a) is a front view of the abutment piece, (b) is a plan view, and (c) is a side view. [Figure 9] (a) is a front view of the arm, (b) is a plan view, and (c) is a side view. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing the arm at a receiving position. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing the arm at a delivery position. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] An embodiment of a ball hitting training machine according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, when arrows are used in the drawings, F stands for front, B stands for rear, R stands for right, L stands for left, U stands for up, and D stands for down. Note that Figures 7 to 9 are component drawings, and therefore the directions do not match those of other figures.

[0013] The ball hitting training machine 10 is used for baseball batting practice, and generally comprises, as shown in Figures 1 to 3, a machine base 20, a rear shooter 50 arranged on the machine base 20 and supplying balls B, a front shooter 40 arranged on the machine base 20 and positioned with a step in the vertical direction relative to the rear shooter 50, for dropping balls B, and a transfer means 60 for transferring balls B from the rear shooter 50 to the front shooter 40.

[0014] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the machine base 20 has a main frame 21, a front frame 23, a rear frame 24, and a base plate 30.

[0015] The main body frame 21 is formed into a rectangular parallelepiped frame shape using metal square pipes, and casters 22 are attached to the four corners in the front-rear and left-right directions of the lower part.

[0016] The front frame 23 is formed into an H-frame shape using a metal square pipe, and is attached to the front upper surface of the main body frame 21.

[0017] The rear frame 24 is made of a metal square pipe that extends in the vertical direction, and is attached to the left side of the rear upper surface of the main frame 21.

[0018] The base plate 30 is made of metal, and as shown in Figures 1 to 7, when assembled, it is formed into a T-shaped flat plate having a main body 31 formed in a rectangular shape that is long in the front-to-rear direction and a rectangular protrusion 35 that protrudes from the right side of the main body 31, and the left and right ends are bent downward.

[0019] An insertion hole 36 is formed in the protruding portion 35. When assembled, the insertion hole 36 penetrates the protruding portion 35 in the thickness direction and is formed as a long hole that is long in the left-right direction. The insertion hole 36 allows an abutment portion 91 of an arm 90 (described later) to be inserted therethrough and also restricts the movement of the arm 90.

[0020] The base plate 30 is attached to the upper end of the front frame 23 in the center in the front-rear direction so as to be rotatable about an axis in the left-right direction and inclined so that the front side is downward relative to the horizontal direction.

[0021] The front shooter 40 is made of metal, and has three semicircular arc-shaped guide plates 41 and three cylindrical rod members 42, as shown in FIGS.

[0022] The front shooter 40 is formed by arranging rod members 42 so that they are parallel to each other and fixing the rod members 42 at the front and rear ends and at the center front portion with guide plates 41. The front shooter 40 is fixed to the front portion of the main body 31 of the base plate 30 via mounting members 45.

[0023] The rear shooter 50 is made of metal, and has four semicircular arc-shaped guide plates 51 and three cylindrical rod members 52, as shown in FIGS.

[0024] The rear shooter 50 is formed by arranging rod members 52 parallel to each other and fixing the rod members 52 at four locations, including the front and rear ends, with guide plates 51. The rear shooter 50 is fixed to the rear portion of the main body 31 of the base plate 30 via mounting members 55, and is also attached to the upper end of the rear frame 24 so as to be rotatable about an axis in the left-right direction.

[0025] In this embodiment, the front shooter 40 and the rear shooter 50 are arranged so that the rear ends 40b, 50b are higher than the front ends 40a, 50a, in other words, so that they are aligned in the front-to-rear direction and are tilted so that the front side is downward relative to the horizontal. Also, the rear end 40b of the front shooter 40 is arranged so that there is a difference in height between it and the front end 50a of the rear shooter 50 in the vertical direction.

[0026] As shown in Figures 1 to 6, the transfer means 60 has a motor 70 having a rotating shaft 71, an abutment piece 80 arranged on the rotating shaft 71, an arm 90 pivotally supported on the machine base 20, and a coil spring 100 as a biasing member stretched between the machine base 20 and the abutted portion 91 described later.

[0027] 1 to 6, the motor 70 is an existing electric motor that is connected to a controller and power supply (not shown) and is attached to the underside of the base plate 30 via a motor bracket 72. A rotation shaft 71 is arranged so as to follow the path of the ball B moving through the front shooter 40 and rear shooter 50. In other words, the rotation shaft 71 is arranged so as to follow the front-to-rear direction and is tilted so that the front side is downward relative to the horizontal.

[0028] As shown in Figures 1 to 6 and 8, the abutment piece 80 is made of metal and, when assembled, is formed in the shape of a stepped rectangular pillar having a wide portion 81 that is formed to be wider in the front-to-rear direction and a narrow portion 82 that is formed to be narrower than the wide portion 81.

[0029] The wide portion 81 is formed with a split groove 81a, and the narrow portion 82 is formed with a long hole 82a that penetrates in the front-rear direction and is formed in a long hole shape when assembled.

[0030] The rotating shaft 71 of the motor 70 is attached to the split groove 81a.

[0031] A roller 83 is attached to the elongated hole 82a so as to be rotatable about the axis of the elongated hole 82a, and is capable of abutting against an abutted portion 91 of an arm 90, which will be described later.

[0032] The arm 90 is made of metal and is formed in a roughly L-shape as shown in Figures 1 to 6 and 9, and has an abutment portion 91 that can abut against the abutment piece 80, a holding portion 92 that can hold the ball B, and an axis portion 93 that can be supported by the mounting bracket 95.

[0033] In this embodiment, the holding portion 92 is formed using a channel steel having a U-shaped cross section.

[0034] The arm 90 is rotatably attached to the protruding portion 35 of the base plate 30 via a pair of mounting brackets 95 so that the rotation axis is parallel to the axis of the rotation axis 71 of the motor 70. The arm 90 is also arranged so that the abutment portion 91 is inserted into the insertion hole 36.

[0035] 1 to 6, one end (left end) of the coil spring 100 is fixed to the machine base 20 via a bolt (not shown), and the other end (right end) is fixed to the abutment portion 91 of the arm 90. In this embodiment, the coil spring 100 biases the arm 90 toward a delivery position, which will be described later.

[0036] The transfer means 60 is configured so that the arm 90 can move between a receiving position where the arm 90 can receive the ball B from the rear shooter 50 and a delivery position where the arm 90 can deliver the ball B to the front shooter 40 by the contact and release between the contact piece 80 and the contacted part 91.

[0037] The manner of use of the ball hitting training machine 10 having the above-described configuration will now be described.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 11, the arm 90 is placed in a delivery position where the contact between the contact piece 80 and the contacted portion 91 is released, and a plurality of balls B are lined up in the front shooter 40.

[0039] At this time, the leading ball B in the line-up comes into contact with the rear end surface of the holding portion 92 of the arm 90 and is stopped. In addition, the arm 90 comes into contact with the insertion hole 36, restricting the rotation of the arm 90 and preventing problems from occurring in receiving and transferring the ball B.

[0040] The motor 70 is driven to rotate the rotary shaft 71 clockwise, causing the abutment piece 80 attached to the rotary shaft 71 to rotate clockwise, and the abutment piece 80 pushes the abutted portion 91 to the right against the biasing force of the coil spring 100, causing the arm 90 to rotate downward.

[0041] As shown in FIG. 10, when the arm 90 rotates downward and moves to the receiving position, the holding portion 92 holds the leading ball B in the front shooter 40 therein.

[0042] After the ball B is held by the holding part 92, the contact between the contact piece 80 and the contacted part 91 is released, and the arm 90 rotates upward and moves to the delivery position, whereupon the ball B moves from the holding part 92 to the rear shooter 50 and drops from the lower end of the rear shooter 50.

[0043] The batter practices catching a falling ball B with the bat at the right timing.

[0044] The ball hitting training machine 10 of this embodiment is a ball hitting training machine comprising: a machine base 20; a rear shooter 50 disposed on the machine base 20 and supplying balls B; a front shooter 40 disposed on the machine base 20 and arranged with a step in the vertical direction relative to the rear shooter 50, for dropping balls B; and a transfer means 60 for transferring balls B from the rear shooter 50 to the front shooter 40. The transport means 60 is The motor 70 has a rotating shaft 71, a contact piece 80 disposed on the rotating shaft 71, an arm 90 pivotally supported on the machine base 20 and having a contacted portion 91 capable of contacting the contact piece 80 and a holding portion 92 capable of holding a ball B, and a coil spring 100 as a biasing member stretched between the machine base 20 and the contacted portion 91, The arm 90 is movable between a receiving position where it can receive the ball B from the rear shooter 50 and a delivery position where it can deliver the ball B to the front shooter 40 by contact and release between the contact piece 80 and the contacted part 91.

[0045] According to this, the transfer means 60 can be moved between the receiving position and the delivery position with a simple configuration by abutting and releasing the abutment between the abutment piece 80 and the abutted portion 91 with a small number of parts, namely the motor 70, the abutment piece 80, the arm 90, and the coil spring 100, and therefore the simple configuration can reduce costs.

[0046] The machine base 20 also includes a base plate 30 on which a transfer means 60 can be mounted. The base plate 30 has an insertion hole 36 through which the abutted portion 91 can be inserted and which can abut against the abutted portion 91 when the base plate 30 is in the delivery position. The contacted portion 91 is inserted into the insertion hole 36 .

[0047] According to this, when in the delivery position, the arm 90 is set to abut against the insertion hole 36, and the rotation of the arm 90 is restricted, thereby preventing problems from occurring in receiving and delivering the ball B.

[0048] The ball hitting training machine of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various design modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0049] For example, a coil spring 100 serving as a biasing member may be configured to bias the arm 90 toward the receiving position. Then, when the arm 90 is at the receiving position, the abutted portion 91 may be brought into contact with the insertion hole 36, the abutting piece 80 may be brought into contact with the abutted portion 91, the arm may be moved to the delivery position, and the abutment between the abutting piece 80 and the abutted portion 91 may be released, and the arm may be moved to the receiving position.

[0050] In addition to baseball batting practice, the ball can also be used for hitting practice in softball, tennis, table tennis, etc.

[0051] Furthermore, although an electric motor is used as the motor 70, a motor using other drive methods such as an air drive motor may also be used. [Explanation of symbols]

[0052] 10 Ball batting practice machine 20 machines 30 base plate 32 Insertion hole 40 Front Shooter 50 Rear Shooter 60 Means of transport 70 motor 71 Rotation axis 80 Contact piece 90 Arm 91 Abutted part 92 Holding part 100 coil spring B-ball

Claims

1. A ball hitting training machine comprising: a machine base; a rear shooter disposed on the machine base and supplying balls; a front shooter disposed on the machine base and arranged at a step in the vertical direction relative to the rear shooter and dropping the balls; and a transfer means for transferring the balls from the rear shooter to the front shooter, The transfer means is a motor having a rotating shaft; a contact piece disposed on the rotating shaft; an arm supported by the machine base and having a contacted portion capable of contacting the contact piece and a holding portion capable of holding the ball; and an urging member bridged between the machine base and the contacted portion, The arm the abutment piece is movable between a receiving position where the ball can be received from the rear shooter by the abutment between the abutment piece and the abutted portion, and a delivery position where the ball can be delivered to the front shooter by the abutment between the abutment piece and the abutted portion being released, Or, the ball can be moved between the receiving position where the ball can be received from the rear shooter by releasing the contact between the contact piece and the contacted portion, and the delivery position where the ball can be delivered to the front shooter by contact between the contact piece and the contacted portion, A ball-hitting training machine characterized by the following.

2. the machine base includes a base plate on which the transfer means can be disposed, the base plate has an insertion hole through which the abutted portion can be inserted and which can abut against the abutted portion when the base plate is in the receiving position or the delivering position; 2. The ball hitting training machine according to claim 1, wherein the contact portion is inserted through the insertion hole.

Images