Ball throwing device

[0002] Not Applicable.

[0003] Not Applicable.

[0004] 1. Field of Invention

[0005] This invention relates to the field of devices for throwing softballs, baseballs and balls of the like.

[0006] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0007] Ball throwing devices are used for batting practice to avoid overworking the arms of pitchers. Ball throwing devices are also far more consistent once set up to throw a particular pitch than a human pitcher. Different versions of ball throwing devices have been developed over the years. Typical of the art are those devices disclosed in the following U.S. Patents:

[0008] Re. 30,703 is a reissue of U.S. Pat. No. 4,080,950 and discloses a ball throwing device which includes a motor with an axle to which a tire is mounted. The device further includes a ball feeder assembly for directing the ball against the rotating tire. The speed of rotation of the tire and the ball feeder assembly are adjustable to control the height and speed of the thrown ball. A drawback with this device is that, once the device is set up, the batter gets into a “groove,” where he can expect the same pitch at the same height and speed. Although the speed at which the ball is thrown is adjustable, it can take several minutes to make these adjustments. More specifically, the ball feeder assembly must also be adjusted when the speed of rotation of the tire is increased or decreased.

[0009] U.S. Pat. No. 4,559,918 discloses a ball throwing device specifically designed for throwing table tennis balls or tennis balls. The device includes two pairs of rollers through which balls are thrown. The rotation of each roller is independently controlled via a motor. The device is not designed to project balls over a plate, it is designed to throw balls such that they bounce. Further, the device includes four motors which can be unwieldy when trying to set up the throwing device.

[0010] U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,384 discloses a multidirectional ball throwing system which includes three input tubes which correlate to three output tubes. The output tubes are positioned such that balls are propelled in three different directions at the same speed. This ball throwing system would be of no value for use during batting practice. The balls need to be thrown over the plate in the strike zone for effective baseball and softball batting practice.

[0011] Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a portable ball throwing device which is intended for use during batting practice and is capable of throwing softballs, baseballs, and balls of the into a hitting zone.

[0012] It is another object of the present invention to provide a ball throwing device which provides a choice of speeds at which a ball can be pitched without having to adjust the device in any way.

[0013] Other objects and advantages will be accomplished by the present invention which provides a ball throwing device capable of throwing or pitching balls at more than one speed without having to readjust the device. The ball throwing device generally includes a base, a motor and at least two ball throwing assemblies. The motor is supported on the base and includes a mounting flange, a drive motor and an output shaft driven to rotate by the drive motor. The output shaft includes at least two tire flanges carried thereon. Each of the ball throwing assemblies includes a feeder assembly and a wheel. Each wheel defines a ball gripping surface and is mounted to a tire flange. Each wheel defines a different diameter. Each feeder assembly is supported proximate the ball gripping surface of one of the wheels to guide the ball to be thrown against it. The feeder assemblies are supported via the mounting flange.

[0014] The above mentioned features of the invention will become more clearly understood from the following detailed description of the invention read together with the drawings in which:

[0015] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the ball throwing device constructed in accordance with several features of the present invention;

[0016] FIG. 2 illustrates an end view of the top portion of the ball throwing device of FIG. 1, shown partially in section; and,

[0017] FIG. 3 is an end view of an alternate embodiment of the ball throwing device of the present invention, shown partially in section.

[0018] A ball throwing device incorporating various features of the present invention is illustrated generally at 10 in the figures. In FIGS. 1-3, like elements are indicated by common reference numerals. In FIGS. 1 and 2, the elements of the larger wheel are indicated by appending the suffix “a” to the reference numeral and the elements of the smaller wheel are indicated by appending the suffix “b” to the reference numeral. Similarly, in FIG. 3, the elements of the larger wheel are indicated by appending the suffix “a′” to the reference numeral and the elements of the smaller wheel are indicated by appending the suffix “b′” to the reference numeral. The ball throwing device 10 is designed to be portable and pitch balls in a strike zone for batting practice. Moreover, in the preferred embodiment, the ball throwing device 10 is designed to provide a choice of at least two speeds at which the ball can be thrown.

[0019] A perspective view of one embodiment of the ball throwing device 10 is shown in FIG. 1 and generally includes a base 12, a motor 20 and at least two ball throwing assemblies 50 each of which includes a wheel 42a,42b.The base 12 supports the motor 20 and the motor 20 provides support for and drives the ball throwing assemblies 50.

[0020] The structure of the base 12 is well known in the art and shown clearly in FIG. 1. The base 12 includes a tripod leg assembly 14, an extension shaft 16 and a height adjusting means 18. The tripod legs 14 are foldable for storage. The extension shaft 16 is slidable within the height adjusting means 18.

[0021] The motor 20 is supported on the extension shaft 16 and includes a drive motor 22 which drives an output shaft 24 to rotate at selectable and variable speeds. In FIGS. 1 and 2, the output shaft 24 extends from one end of the motor 20, and in FIG. 3, the output shaft 24 extends from opposing ends of the motor 20. The motor 20 further includes at least two tire flanges 26a,26band at least one mounting flange 27. The tire flanges 26a,26bare securely mounted to the output shaft 24 in a spaced apart manner. The mounting flange 27 is mounted to the body of the motor 20 and does not rotate.

[0022] Each ball throwing assembly 50 includes a feeder assembly 28a,28band a wheel 42a,42bdefining a ball gripping surface 44a,44b.Each wheel [42] 42a,42bis secured to a respective tire flange 26a,26bwhich is mounted to the output shaft 24, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. Further, each wheel 42a,42bdefines a different diameter and by example, the smaller wheel 42bdefines a diameter approximately half the diameter of the larger wheel 42a.As the tangential velocity of each wheel 42a,42bis proportional to the diameter of the wheel 42a,42b,providing wheels 42a,42bof differing size allows the ball throwing device 10 to throw two differing pitches in the same strike zone without the need for adjustment. The ability to change between pitches in rapid succession is [an] invaluable in batting practice. The ball gripping surface is fabricated from a material which provides a high coefficient of friction such that the ball to be thrown is gripped by the wheel surface. It will be noted that a wheel with a ball gripping surface is depicted in the figures. A tire with a suitable surface would also be appropriate for use with the ball throwing device 10 of the present invention.

[0023] Each feeder assembly 28a,28bincludes a fixed pad 30a,30band a feeder chute 32a,32bwhich are supported proximate the wheel 42a,42b.In the preferred embodiment, the fixed pad 30a,30bdefines an arcuate shape and is preferably fabricated from hard rubber. The fixed pad 30a,30bis maintained in a position such that the space between the fixed pad 30a,30band the ball gripping surface 44a,44bdefines a distance which permits a selected ball to be frictionally gripped by the ball gripping surface 44a,44bof the wheel 42a,42b.More specifically, the distance between the fixed pad 30a,30band the ball gripping surface 44a,44bis slightly less than the diameter of the ball to be thrown such that the fixed pad 30a,30bforces the ball against the ball gripping surface 44a,44bof the wheel 42a,42b.In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the feeder assembly 28a,28bfor each wheel is supported by a separate support plate 34a,34bwhich is pivotable with respect to the motor 20 such that the location of the feeder chutes 32a,32band fixed pads 30a,30bare adjustable with respect to the corresponding wheel 42a,42b.Specifically, each support plate 34a,34bdefines an annular portion 36a,36bwhich is disposed between two base plates 38a,38bwhich are mounted to the mounting flange 27 of the motor 20, as shown in FIG. 2. Those skilled in the art will recognize that the second feeder assembly 28bwill normally be positioned behind the first feeder assembly 28afor any given motor speed so that each ball throwing assembly 50 will throw strikes. Accordingly, the second feeder assembly 28bwill be mounted such that the second extension plate 40 is rearward of the first feeder assembly 28a.It will be noted that any manner for supporting the feeder assembly 28a,28bproximate the wheel 42a,42bwill suffice. Further, it will be noted that, although two ball throwing assemblies 10 are illustrated, the present invention is not limited thereto. More specifically, a plurality of wheels defining varying diameters can be mounted to output shaft 24.

[0024] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the feeder assemblies 28a′, 28b′ for the wheels are independent from each other. Specifically, each feeder assembly 28a′, 28b′ includes a support plate 34a′, 34b′ which is rotatably mounted between two base plates 38a′, 38b′. The motor includes two mounting flanges 27a′, 27b′ mounted to opposing sides of the body of the motor 20. The base plates 38a′, 38b′ which support the support plate 34a′, 34b′ therebetween are secured to a respective mounting flange 27a′, 27b′ which is illustrated in the cutaway portions of FIG. 3.

[0025] The ball throwing device 10 of the present invention is capable of throwing balls at the minimum of two different speeds without having to readjust the device 10. More specifically, the device 10 operates on the principles of tangential velocity wherein every point on a rotating rigid body defines the same angular velocity, but the linear or tangential velocity of a point of the rotating body increases as it moves outward from the center of rotation toward the rim. Therefore, in the case of two or more wheels mounted to the same rotating axis, a larger wheel throws a ball at a faster speed than a smaller wheel. It will be noted that the relationship between the tangential and angular velocity is linear such that if the radius is doubled, the tangential velocity is doubled.

[0026] In the ball throwing operation, the feeder assembly 28a,28bserves to guide the ball and position it against the surface 44a,44bof the wheel 42a,42bin a frictional manner to throw the ball. The support plate 34a,34bwhich supports the feeder assembly 28a,28bis rotatable with respect to the wheel 42a,42bto permit aiming of the ball. The ball is fed through the feeder chute 32a,32band guided into the space between wheel surface 44a,44band the fixed pad 30a,30b.The space is such that the ball is compressed against the wheel surface 44a,44band gripped in a frictional manner by the rotating wheel surface 44a,44bto propel the ball therefrom at a selected velocity. The feeder assembly 28a,28bcan be rotated around the wheel 42a,42bto provide a variety of pitches as well as throwing balls for outfield practice.

[0027] The embodiment of the device 10 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 depicts the two wheels 42a,42bextending from the same side of the motor 20. Everything beyond the tire flange 26a,26bto which the first wheel 42ais mounted rotates such that the feeder assembly 28a,28bfor the second wheel 42bcan not be mounted to the motor 20 and must extend from the first feeder assembly which is mounted to the mounting flange 27. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the feeder assemblies 28a′, 28b′ are positionable in an independent manner for more control.

[0028] From the foregoing description, it will be recognized by those skilled in the art that a ball throwing device offering advantages over the prior art has been provided. Specifically, the ball throwing device is intended for use during batting practice and is capable of throwing softballs, baseballs, and balls of the like into a hitting zone. Further, the ball throwing device provides a choice of speeds at which a ball can be pitched without having to adjust the device in any way.

[0029] While a preferred embodiment has been shown and described, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the disclosure, but rather it is intended to cover all modifications and alternate methods falling within the spirit and the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.