Modular Pitching Mound Form with Tapered Walls

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Solution Overview

Problem

Non-professional maintenance of baseball pitching mounds often results in inconsistencies that can lead to player safety issues due to lack of knowledge and necessary equipment to meet exacting rules regarding dimensions and specifications.

Innovation Solution

A modular pitching mound form with a flange structure and wall structure that creates a rectangular cavity, featuring side rails with a tapered slope and a plateau portion, allowing for easy installation and filling with clay to ensure standardized dimensions, which can be adapted for different field sizes.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If professional grounds crews maintain the field, then the pitching mound specifications meet the exacting rules, but the cost and complexity of field maintenance increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepitching mound specification accuracyVSAvoidfield maintenance complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The pitching mound form is designed to be self-explanatory and self-aligning, with built-in visual indicators (colored surfaces, alignment marks) that guide volunteers to correctly position and assemble the form without requiring professional knowledge or complex measurement tools. The form itself serves as the specification guide.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The pitching mound form acts as an intermediary tool between the rules/specifications and the volunteer maintainers. It translates complex dimensional requirements into simple physical assembly tasks, where the form's pre-defined geometry ensures compliance without requiring the maintainers to understand or measure the specifications.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Device complexity

If volunteers maintain the field without professional training, then field maintenance cost decreases, but the pitching mound specifications become inconsistent

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefield maintenance complexityVSAvoidpitching mound specification accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The pitching mound form incorporates colored surfaces and visual indicators that provide immediate feedback to volunteers about correct positioning and assembly. Different colors indicate different functions or alignment requirements, making it intuitive for untrained persons to assemble the form correctly.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #32Color changes

Solution Approach 2:

The form includes built-in alignment features, pre-marked positions, and visual guides that enable volunteers to self-correct their assembly process without external supervision or measurement tools, ensuring consistent results regardless of the volunteer's skill level.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

3Adaptability or versatility

If the pitching mound specifications are inconsistent, then equipment and setup flexibility increases, but player safety decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefield dimension flexibilityVSAvoidpitcher injury risk

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The pitching mound form is designed as a universal solution that can be used across different field types and configurations. The standardized form ensures consistent pitching surface specifications regardless of the overall field dimensions, allowing the same form to be used for various league levels and field sizes while maintaining safety standards.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

4Reliability

If standardized pitching mound forms are used, then player safety and consistency improve, but the initial setup time and equipment requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepitching surface consistencyVSAvoidmound setup time

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The pitching mound form is divided into modular segments or components that can be easily assembled and disassembled. This segmentation allows for rapid setup by breaking down the construction into simple, repeatable steps, reducing the time required while maintaining specification accuracy.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The pitching mound form comes pre-assembled or pre-configured with all alignment marks, colored indicators, and structural elements already in place. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need for on-site measurement, calculation, or complex assembly procedures, allowing volunteers to quickly install the form and achieve compliant specifications immediately.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS10220295B2System, method and apparatus for preparing and maintaining a pitching mound

Publication Date: 2019.03.05 SEMERANO ROBERT A

AI summary

A pitching mound form having a flange structure and a wall structure coupled to the flange structure such that the wall structure extends substantially perpendicular from a plane of the flange, wherein the flange structure and the wall structure form a substantially rectangular cavity, wherein the wall structure has a first height at a first end of the rectangular cavity and a second height at a second end of the rectangular cavity, and wherein the wall structure has the first height for a predetermined length from the first end and then tapers at a predetermined slope to the second end.