Abstract:
What is provided is a football catching and throwing machine and method that includes an inclined upwardly angled path. The machine includes a collector configured to receive a football thrown into it; a ball translator configured to align the football and transport the football up the inclined path to a football accelerator that launches the football into the air; and a motor that operates the football accelerator.

Description:
[0001]    This application claims the benefit of PPA Ser. Nr. (Application Nr.) 62/230,939, filed on Jun. 19, 2015 by the present inventors, which is incorporated by reference. 
       TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0002]    The application relates generally to a machine that is designed to receive oval footballs that are thrown into it, orient them and to throw or launch them back to the user automatically. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0003]    What is provided is a football catching and throwing machine and method that includes an inclined upwardly angled path. The machine includes a collector that receives a football thrown into it; a ball translator the aligns the football and transports the football up the inclined path to a football accelerator that launches the football into the air; and a motor that operates the football accelerator. The machine may include one or more ball guides in proximity to the inclined path that adjust the orientation of the football as it travels along the inclined path to the ball accelerator, to reduce or prevent misalignment of the ball when entering the accelerator. It includes a spread support system configured to support the belly of the football as it travels up the inclined path that is configured to align the football. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0004]    Referring to the exemplary drawings wherein like elements are numbered alike in the accompanying Figures: 
           [0005]      FIG. 1  is a front-side perspective view of a first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine. 
           [0006]      FIG. 2  is a front-side perspective view of the first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to show the mechanical features underneath the cover. 
           [0007]      FIG. 3  is a front-top perspective view of the first example of the oval the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to show the mechanical features underneath the cover and a football squeezed between the launch wheels. 
           [0008]      FIG. 4  is a front-top perspective view of the first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to show the mechanical features underneath the cover. 
           [0009]      FIG. 5  is a top view of the first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to show the internal mechanical features. 
           [0010]      FIG. 6  is a side view of the first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with many of the components omitted to make a simpler view. 
           [0011]      FIG. 7  is simplified front view displaying narrow belt spacing relative to the football. 
           [0012]      FIG. 8  is simplified front view displaying wide belt spacing relative to the football. 
           [0013]      FIG. 9  is a side view of the first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to show the moments on a miss-aligned football in the machine. 
           [0014]      FIG. 10  is a top-front perspective view of the first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to show a miss-aligned football in the machine. 
           [0015]      FIG. 11  is a side perspective view of the first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to show a football in a first position on the belts. 
           [0016]      FIG. 12  is a front perspective view of the first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to show the moments on a miss-aligned football in the machine. 
           [0017]      FIG. 13  is a side view of the first example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to show the moments on a miss-aligned football in the machine. 
           [0018]      FIG. 14  is a front-top perspective view of a second example of the oval football receiving and launching machine with the cover omitted to enable a clear view of the mechanical features underneath the cover. 
           [0019]      FIG. 15  is a simplified front view of a cross-section through the top of the belt only of a third example of the oval football receiving and launching machine. 
           [0020]      FIG. 16  is a simplified front view of the belt portion of a fourth example of the oval football receiving and launching machine having two flat belts in a V-shape. 
           [0021]      FIG. 17  is a simplified side view of a fifth example of the oval football receiving and launching machine displaying a translator consisting of rollers. 
           [0022]      FIG. 18  is a simplified front view of the fifth example of the oval football receiving and launching machine displaying a translator consisting of rollers. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0023]    Referring now to  FIG. 1  which illustrates a first example as presently contemplated, a launcher  10  for receiving and launching an oval football  23 . As can be seen in  FIG. 1 , launcher  10  contains a collector  20  for receiving thrown footballs and guiding them into a translator  60 , best seen in  FIG. 3 , that advances the football forward between spinning wheels  80  that are part of a ball accelerator  81 , best seen in  FIG. 3 , to accelerate and launch oval footballs  23  into the air. Wheels  80  are preferably made from rubber or plastic material that has a relatively high coefficient of friction between the surfaces of the wheels and the football. However, metal wheels or rigid plastic wheels could also be used. The collector, the translator and the accelerator are supported by a base  102 . Translator  60  includes belts  62  strung over front pulleys  70 F and rear pulleys  70 R. The rear pulleys are integrated as part of rear shaft  69 , as shown in  FIG. 3 . The rear shaft and pulleys are contemplated as being made from molded polymer, as for example nylon. The rear shaft is connected to side brackets  68  through bearings (not shown) contained within the side brackets. The side brackets are mounted to base  102  using fasteners that pass through the base and thread into the side brackets. The side brackets are contemplated as being made from molded plastic, as for example nylon. The function of the side brackets is to support the rear shaft to enable the rear shaft to rotate to provide a linear velocity to the surface of belts  62 . The base is constructed from relatively rigid material as for example molded plastic or stamped sheet metal. Base  102  serves as a structural foundation on which other component are mounted. A stand  43  is connected to base  102  and provides for the elevation of the front of the base. The stand can be made from a variety of rigid materials and connected to the base in a variety of ways that are commonly used connection techniques. As contemplated in the first example, the base is generally relatively thin walled semi-rigid polymer structure. Many other variations to the geometry and material for the base are possible. As for example, base  102  could be replaced by a series of welded metal plates or beam members. It could be constructed from a wood structure. The base could be replaced by multiple bases or a support structure that would perform the same structural support function as base  102 . 
         [0024]    Collector  20 , shown in  FIG. 1 , includes a net  30  that is supported by rods  31  along the outer boundary of the net forming a net support structure. The net can be made from any type of netting material, as for example polyamide strands. The net is used to absorb the impact of a thrown football minimizing rebounding of the oval football and allowing the oval football to fall onto translator  60 . Rods  31  supports the net and are preferably made out of rigid material, as for example metal, plastic or fiberglass tubing, and can be made up of an assembly of several parts, such as short sections of tubes that fit together to make up the rods. The front rods are secured to ball accelerator  81  by inserting the ends of the rods into holes  82  in the ball accelerator, as shown best shown in  FIG. 3 . Ball accelerator  81  is secured to base  102  using fasteners that pass through the bottom of the base and into the components of the ball accelerator. The rear rod is secured to a bracket  18 , shown in  FIG. 4 , by inserting the rod into a rear bracket hole  83 , best seen in  FIG. 5 . Rods  31  slide into pockets sewn into the edges of the net. The sewn pockets are not described in detail since this practice is common in net manufacturing and can take on many different styles and designs. 
         [0025]    It is to be understood that other materials and constructions could be used instead of net  30  and rods  31  that would perform substantially the same function of absorbing a thrown football&#39;s energy and guiding the football to ball translator  60 . For example, the netting could be replaced by thin sheeting of material or flexible plastic. 
         [0026]    As shown in  FIG. 1 , collector  20  has a partially open front to allow the oval football to be thrown into the collector. The collector is shaped to guide the falling football down to belts  62 , shown in  FIG. 6 . The collector has sloped slides that converge toward each other guiding the football to an opening  75 , best shown in  FIG. 1 . Ball collector  20  is shown as a triangular structure, but it may have many different shapes that would work equally as well. When the oval football falls from the top of collector  20  and drops toward the bottom of the collector, it is guided to opening  75  by sidewalls  22  and travels through a chute  76  and falls on belts  62  of translator  60 , shown as a first position  61  in  FIG. 5 . Opening  75  is contemplated as being oval shaped in the first example, however, it should be understood that the opening can also be round or other shapes since it is not required to conform closely to the shape of the ball. The opening is made up of the bottom of net  30  and can be sewn into the desired shape. As shown best in  FIG. 11 , a net ring  32 , that is contemplated as being made of plastic or other rigid material, may be used to help shape the bottom of the net. Net  30  is attached to net ring  32  by sewing, which is a common connection means and therefore will not be described in detail. The ring has connection snaps  33 , best seen in  FIG. 11 , that engage snap holes  44  on a cover  41 , best shown in  FIG. 1 . In this way, the net ring can be sewn to the bottom of net  30  and the net ring can be quickly attached and detached onto and off of cover  41  to quickly setup and take down the net. Cover  41  is contemplated as being a thin-walled molded polymer structure that forms a shell, hood or cover over some of the mechanisms of launcher  10 . The cover is designed to prevent incidental contact with moving parts, provide side-to-side guide walls for the football while it is being transported from first position  61  to ball accelerator  81 . The cover also provides a structural member for the bottom portion of collector  20  to be attached. The cover is secured to base  102  using a plurality of fasteners  39  that pass through the cover and secure to base  102 , best seen in  FIG. 1 . There are many materials that would work for the cover including polypropylene, nylon and other thermoplastics. Alternatively, the cover could be made from stamped metal. 
         [0027]    Wheels  80  spin in the direction shown in  FIG. 3  and are supported by wheel shafts  79 . Shafts  79  extend from electric wheel motors  110 , best seen in  FIGS. 9 and 11 . The wheel motors are mounted to support blocks  86 , best seen in  FIGS. 3 and 9 . Motor brackets  111 , best seen in  FIG. 9 , are shaped to cup wheel motors  110  and secure them to support blocks  86  using bracket fasteners  112 . The motor brackets are contemplated to be made from stamped metal, however, other types of brackets could work as well. For example, the brackets could be molded plastic. The support blocks are fastened to base  102  using fasteners that pass through the base and connect to the support blocks. It is currently contemplated that support blocks  86  would be made from molded polymer, however, other materials and processes to make rigid support blocks could be used. As for example, the support blocks could be cast, stamped or welded metal. The wheels are fixed to the shafts so that the shafts and wheels rotate together. Bearings (not shown) are contained within the wheel motors allow for rotation of the shafts. Many other variations are possible for driving the wheels, as for example, one or both shafts  79  could be driven by a torque transfer cable that extends from an electric motor over to shafts  79 . Driving means for rotating wheels  80  is common in the art and will not be discussed in detail. Belts  62  are driven by a belt motor  105 , shown in  FIG. 3 . The belt motor is an electric motor that is gear reduced to enable it to spin rear shaft  69  at the desired speed so that belts  62  achieve the desired surface speed for translating football  23 . The belt motor is secured to side bracket  68  using a belt motor bracket  106 , best seen in  FIG. 9 . The motor bracket is contemplated as being made from stamped metal, however, molded plastic could be used as well. Belt motor bracket fasteners  107  can be used to secure the belt motor bracket to side bracket  68  and in this way securing belt motor  105  to the side bracket. Drive mechanism to drive shafts are common practice and will not be described in detail. Alternatively, wheel motor  110  can be used to drive wheels  80  and belts  62  by the use of pulleys and belts or other energy transferring means. Since driving these types of mechanisms is common practice among those skilled in the art, they will not be described in detail. It should be well understood that there exist many different methods that are commonly used to drive belts  62  and wheels  80 , therefore, the scope is not meant to be limited to the described of these common mechanical methods. 
         [0028]    It is well-known that oval footballs can be thrown more accurately and further when they are thrown with one end first and the football is rotating about its axis from point to point, commonly referred to as a spiral pass. It is also well-known in the sport of American football that learning to catch a football that is thrown to the receiver as a spiral pass is a skill that requires practice. Part of the utility of launcher  10  is to teach a player to catch this type of pass. Therefore, launcher  10  is configured to enable it to throw an oval football into the air as a spiral pass. This requires the football to be at least partially oriented end to end with one end substantially pointing in the direction of wheel  80 . Described in another way, in order for ball accelerator  81  to launch a spiral pass, the oval shaped football should be presented to ball accelerator  81  with one end of the football being pointed toward the wheels so that the football can be feed between the wheels to launch the football into the air. Therefore, launcher  10  needs to be capable of orienting footballs in the above described manner that are randomly thrown into collector  20 . Orienting oval football  23  into this described position to enable a spiral pass to be thrown from the accelerator while at the same time minimizing jams in launcher  10  is challenging due to the oval shaped of football. Therefore, the examples presently contemplated identify a plurality of approaches used to orient an oval shaped football with a minimum amount of jamming in the machine and providing a high percentage of good quality spiral passes and a target collector  20  net that is chest high to facilitate good passing practice. 
         [0029]    Referring again to the first example presently contemplated, the oval footballs coming from collector  20  will fall onto translator  60  in a number of different orientations. The translator is capable of receiving these footballs  23  and at least partially orienting them before they are presented to ball accelerator  81 . 
         [0030]    This first example includes one or more ball guides to assist alignment and orientation of the football as it is presented to the ball accelerator. As best shown in  FIG. 4 , drop assist guide walls  17  are integrated as part of bracket  18  to help orient oval footballs that fall with their end pointing downward onto the belt. The guide walls are contemplated as being made from a stiff material, as for example metal or semi-rigid molded plastic or plastic sheet. As shown in  FIG. 4 , guide walls  17  are shaped such that the end of the guide walls closest to the exit of chute  76  have a wider space between the walls than the opposite end. The space is sufficient to receive a football end as shown in  FIG. 5 . Typically, if a football falls onto translator  60  when it is substantially pointing downward it will contact guide walls  17 , however, not all footballs  23  will contact the guide walls. As belts  62  translate the football toward ball accelerator  81 , guide walls  17  contacts the footballs of certain miss-orientated alignments and moves it more toward the desired orientation. As can be seen in  FIG. 5 , the back portion of the football will contact guide  17  in certain orientations, which will facilitate the football being at least partially aligned as belts  62  of translator  60  moves the football toward ball accelerator  81 . In both cases described, as the football moves down and forward, the space between guide walls  17  decreases forcing the football to orient more as it moves toward ball accelerator  81  and into a position to be fully carried by the belts. Bracket  18  is mounted on base  102  using fasteners (not shown) that pass through the bottom of the base and into the bracket. Additional fasteners (not shown) connect bracket  18  to side brackets  68 . The bracket can be made of a molded polymer, as for example nylon  6 - 6 , or other materials that have sufficient rigidity and toughness to guide football  23  and are able to withstand falling footballs from collector  20  without damaging bracket  18  or guide walls  17 . 
         [0031]    Referring now to  FIGS. 4 and 6 , as the football moves from first position  61  toward ball accelerator  81 , if it is miss-aligned it may contact an up-down alignment feature  19  that is best seen in  FIG. 4 . The height of the alignment feature is sufficient so that it will contact footballs that have either their leading end too far down below the top surface of belts  62  or the trailing end too far below the top surface of the belts  62 . Described another way, if the football&#39;s front end, which is the end closest to ball accelerator  81 , is pointing far downward or upward, the up-down alignment feature  19  will contact either the front end region of the ball or rear end region of the football respectively as the football is translated on belts  62  toward the ball accelerator. Therefore, up-down alignment feature  19  prevents a football from passing it while it rides on the belts of translator  60  moving toward ball accelerator  81  if the football is pointing either too high or too low on this portion of the trip between first position  61  and past alignment feature  19 . This is achieved by the either the footballs leading end region contacting the top of alignment feature  19  or the trailing end region contacting the top of alignment feature  19  while it passes over the up-down alignment feature on the belts. When a ball contacts alignment feature  19 , the ball is rotated into a substantially more aligned position relative to how it is resting on the belts. The goal is to have the football with the plane between the front end and rear end of the football to be approximately parallel to the top surface of the belts. If the football is already within an acceptable plane tolerance of the top surface of the belts, the football will not touch up-down alignment feature  19 . It is contemplated that alignment feature  19  be integrated with base  102 . However, the alignment feature could be a separate part made from a variety of semi-rigid or fully rigid materials. In addition, the alignment feature could be formed from thin wall sheet metal, plastic or other type of structural materials and could be shaped in a variety of configurations to accomplish the function of partially orienting footballs that are too far out of plane with the top of translator belts  62  from continuing that way to ball accelerator  81 . 
         [0032]    Referring now to  FIG. 5 . As the oval shaped football is translated on belts  62  that are strung around rear pulleys  70 R and front pulleys  70 F. The football moves from first position  61  toward ball accelerator  81 . As the football travels forward, if it is miss-aligned so that the one end of the football is not pointing at a wheel gap  72 , it may contact a side-to-side ball director  21  if it is not side to side oriented within the acceptable limits of ball accelerator  81  to ensure a good spiral pass is thrown by the ball accelerator. As best seen in  FIG. 5 , the space between ball director walls  24  of side-to-side ball director  21  are wider on the end closer to first position  61  and narrow closer to the ball accelerator. This is to enable side-to-side ball director  21  to receive the front end portion of a miss-aligned football where the football&#39;s front end is pointing in a direction other than between wheels  80 . If the football is pointing in another direction, then ball director walls  24  of side-to-side ball director  21  may contact the front or rear portion of the football and direct the football into better alignment as it moves toward the ball accelerator. Therefore, side-to-side ball director  21  contacts side to side miss-aligned footballs in which the end to end orientation of the football is not pointing toward the space between wheels  80 . It is contemplated that ball director  21  and ball director walls  24  would be integrated as one molded polymer part, as for example injection molded nylon. Alternatively, the ball director walls could be integrated as part of base  102  or be made from a variety of rigid materials, as for example thermoplastics or metals. 
         [0033]    As shown best in  FIGS. 3 and 6 , ball translator  60  has belts  62  that are strung over rear pulleys  70 R and front pulleys  70 F and are spaced apart a distance less than the diameter of the football. A belt gap  71  between the belts allows a portion of the ball, referred to as a belly  25  of football  23  to rest between the belts without the football falling through the belts. Therefore, belts  62  form a type of spread support system for the football to be supported upon. This assists in aligning the side-to-side orientation of the football. The belt gap between belts  62  uses the weight of the football to urge the ball to alignment side to side and to maintain that alignment once achieved. As best shown in  FIG. 4 , belt gap  71  between the belts also provides access to the belly of the football for up-down alignment feature  19  and side-to-side ball director  21 . Belts  62  are contemplated to be made from rubber or stranded rubber or plastic material. However, a variety of flexible materials could be used for the belts. 
         [0034]    Referring now to  FIGS. 9 and 10 . Belt gap  71 , a belt angle  160  and a belt speed  165  combine to create a ball orientation method in which miss-aligned oval footballs can be aligned. In  FIG. 9 , the oval football is on belts  62 , however, in this figure, the front end of the oval football is too high above the belt for proper launching, forming ball angle  166  between the plane of the belts and the plane going through the two ends of the football. However, it is prevented from being transported all the way to wheels  80  in this position due to a combination of the effect on football  23  of belt angle  160 , belt speed  165  and belt gap  71  between the belts causing the football to roll over backward. The speed of the belts accelerates the bottom of the football that is in contact with the belts when the football lands on belts  62  from collector  20  since belts  62  contact the football below the centerline of the ball. This acceleration produces a moment  170 , shown in  FIG. 9 , that tends to cause the football to roll over backward. The amount of moment  170  required to cause the ball to roll over depends on belt angle  160  and belt gap  71 . A steeper belt angle  160  will allow the oval football to roll over backward with less belt speed  165  and less ball angle  166 . In addition, if belt gap  71  is wider and the football sits lower between the belts as shown in  FIG. 7 , either more belt speed  165 , belt angle  160  or the combination of them will be required to cause the football to roll over backward for a given oval football ball angle  166 . The opposite is true if belt gap  71  is narrower, as shown in  FIG. 8 . In this case, the narrower belt gap will cause the football to ride higher on belts  62  making it easier to roll over backward. After the oval football rolls over backward it will tend to land in first position  61 , shown in  FIGS. 6 and 11 , with more of the football&#39;s belly  25  aligned between belts  62  in belt gap  71 . This process may repeat a number of times with the oval football rolling over backward until ball angle  166  is small enough that it is an acceptable amount required to launch the oval football with the desired percentage of spiral passes. 
         [0035]      FIG. 12  illustrates that oval football  23  can also be miss-aligned off to a side forming distance  175  from a centerline  180  and the center of the front end of the football. The centerline represents the center location between wheels  80 . When the two ends of oval football  23  are not aligned with centerline  180 , the contact between the football belly  25  and belt  62  at a tangent point  185  causes the front end of the football to rise creating a ball angle  166 , shown in  FIG. 9 . This, combined with belt  62  accelerating the bottom portion of the oval football and ball angle  166  employing gravity effects cause a moment  170  which is a force acting on the ball that tends to roll the oval football backward, away from wheels  80 , on the belts. In addition, in this case, belt gap  71  between the belts has an impact since a smaller belt gap will cause the ball to ride higher on the belts and will tend to cause the football to roll backward with less moment force required. In addition, this miss-aligned position of the football both with ball angle  166  and distance  175  from centerline  180  causes another rotational force on the oval football called an axis moment  171 , shown in  FIGS. 12 and 13 . This moment is a force on the football that tends to rotate the oval football about its axis from end to end so that the football rolls down the belts, way from wheels  80 . The oval football is prevented from rolling off the belts by cover walls  42  on cover  41  shown in  FIG. 1 . The oval football may repeatedly roll down the belts until both the side to side orientation illustrated by distance  175  and ball angle  166  are small enough to prevent the ball from rolling backward. In this way, the football&#39;s alignment with center line  180  is improved to improve the quality of the football thrown by wheels  80 . 
         [0036]    It should be understood that careful selection of belt gap  71 , belt angle  160  and belt speed  165  can produce a football alignment orientation system that may not require the need for additional ball alignment features. However, additional alignment orientation mechanical features to assist in the alignment may be used. 
         [0037]    Optimization of belt gap  71 , belt angle  160  and belt speed  165  depend on the size and type of material of the oval shaped football that is desired to orient and launch in launcher  10 . However, experimentation shows that there are relationships between each of these parameters and the time to launch a football once it is thrown into the machine, the distance the oval football will fly and the quality of a spiral achieved. For example, the data in the table below was created by varying belt gap  71  using a football made of foam that was a junior sized oval football with an approximate length of 210 mm and a diameter round the middle of the football of 122 mm. The sample size was 26 cycles through the launcher as defined by throwing the football into the launcher and measuring the time for the launcher to throw the football, the distance it went before hitting the ground and if it was a spiral thrown football or not. For each of the belt gap settings, this cycle was repeated 26 times and the average of these 26 samples is shown below. The % belt gap of ball diameter is defined as equal to belt gap  71  divided by the oval football diameter times 100. For the following experiment, the linear surface belt speed set to 305 mm per every 3 second and the belt angle 17.9 degrees from the surface launcher  10  was resting upon. All other parameters were held constant. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                 Time to orient &amp; 
                 Avg. frequency of 
               
               
                   
                   
                 launch ball after 
                 spiral achieve: 
               
               
                 % belt gap of 
                 Avg. Distance 
                 throw into 
                 1.0 = spiral 
               
               
                 ball diameter 
                 ball travels (ft) 
                 collector (sec.) 
                 0 = not a spiral 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                 76 
                 28.3 
                 2.5 
                 .7 
               
               
                 66 
                 27.7 
                 3.0 
                 1.0 
               
               
                 56 
                 25.3 
                 3.3 
                 .6 
               
               
                 30 
                 17.6 
                 6.2 
                 .3 
               
               
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0038]    As can be seen from the data above, belt gap  71  has an impact on the distance thrown, the time to launch and the quality of the football that was thrown. As the belt gap gets smaller, less of belly  25  of oval football  23  can settle between the belts. Therefore, the belt gap has a reduced ability to align or orient miss-aligned oval footballs and less ability to maintain alignment during translation of the football from first position  61  to wheels  80 , therefore, the frequency of spiral passes reduces. These general relationships apply to other football sizes and non-foam footballs as well. However, for each type and size of football, these dimensions would need to be adjusted to produce the desired results. 
         [0039]    Another study focused on belt angle  160 . In the table below is displayed the average of 26 cycles for each of the belt angles. The data in the table below was created by varying the belt angle using the same football as used for the belt gap study above, the football was made of foam that was a junior sized oval football with an approximate length of 210 mm and a diameter of 122 mm. All other parameters were held constant. As shown in the data table, increasing the belt angle increases the distance the oval football is thrown up to approximately 23 degrees. After that belt angle, further increases have a diminishing effect on the distance, but add an amount of time waiting for the oval football to be launched out of the machine. This is due to the number of times oval football rolls backward on belts  62  due to the moment forces of moment  170  and axis moment  171 , shown in  FIGS. 9 and 12 . For this experiment the linear surface belt speed was set to 305 mm per every 3 seconds and the % belt gap of ball diameter was set to 76%. All other parameters were held constant. These general relationships apply to other football sizes and non-foam footballs as well. However, for each type and size of football, these dimensions would need to be adjusted to produce the desired results. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                 Time to orient &amp; 
                 Avg. frequency of 
               
               
                   
                   
                 launch ball after 
                 spiral achieve: 
               
               
                 Belt Angle 
                 Avg. Distance 
                 throw into 
                 1.0 = spiral 
               
               
                 160 (deg) 
                 ball travels (ft) 
                 collector (sec.) 
                 0 = not a spiral 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                 13.4 
                 21.9 
                 2.5 
                 0.7 
               
               
                 17.9 
                 28.3 
                 2.5 
                 0.7 
               
               
                 23.5 
                 31.1 
                 4.5 
                 0.9 
               
               
                 25.1 
                 31.8 
                 12.2 
                 0.9 
               
               
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0040]    The linear surface belt speed  165  was also studied as part of this work to determine the effect of a speed range. The higher the belt speed the larger moment  170  and axis moment  171  are when the football contacts the belts and starts accelerating up to the belt surface speed. Therefore, the belt speed needs to be lower as belt angle  160  increases causing the pull of gravity downward on the belts or the belt gap  71  decreases causing the ball to ride higher on belts  62 . If belt speed  165  is set too high for a given belt angle and belt gap the oval football will roll backward excessively on belts  62  and delay the launch of the oval football, making practice inefficient and slow. Some example belt speeds for a given belt gap  71  and belt angle  160  are provided using a junior size foam football that is 210 cm long and has a diameter of 122 mm. In these experiments the belt gap was set at 93 mm yielding a % belt gap of ball diameter of 76% and belt angle  160  is set at 23.5 degrees from the floor or surface launcher  10  was sitting upon. These general relationships apply to other football sizes and non-foam footballs as well. However, for each type and size of football, these dimensions would need to be adjusted to produce the desired results. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                 Time to orient &amp; 
                 Avg. frequency of 
               
               
                 Linear surface 
                   
                 launch ball after 
                 spiral achieve: 
               
               
                 speed of belt 
                 Avg. Distance 
                 throw into 
                 1.0 = spiral 
               
               
                 (belt speed 165) 
                 ball travels (ft) 
                 collector (sec.) 
                 0 = not a spiral 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                 305 mm/1.0 sec 
                 N/A 
                 Football rolled 
                 NA 
               
               
                   
                   
                 over backward 
               
               
                   
                   
                 excessively, 
               
               
                   
                   
                 not allowing 
               
               
                   
                   
                 sufficient 
               
               
                   
                   
                 launches. 
               
               
                 305 mm/2.0 sec 
                 28.2 
                 4.2 
                 0.7 
               
               
                 305 mm/4.0 sec 
                 28.8 
                 4.8 
                 0.8 
               
               
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0041]    Belt gap  71  and belt angle  160  combine to create a ball orientation method in which misaligned oval footballs can be aligned enabling launcher  10  to reduce jams, increase the distance a football is thrown, reduce the time required to orient the football and improve the percentage of spirals thrown. To illustrate these advantages over what was previously known, an additional experiment was completed with belt gap  71  being eliminated by replacing belts  62  with a single wide flat belt and setting belt angel  160  to zero degrees, making it parallel with the ground in the first case and setting it to 17.9 degrees in the second case. The same football was used as in the experiments above, a junior size foam football that is 210 cm long and has a diameter of 122 mm. As can be seen in the table of data below, the impact of not having belt gap  71  combined with belt angle  160  is significant, resulting in an average distance the football traveled that is much lower, the time to launch the football with a belt angle of 17.9 degrees being much longer and in both cases a much lower percentage of spiral passes due miss-oriented footballs being presented to throwing wheels  80 . The sample size was 26 cycles at each setting. These general relationships apply for other football sizes and non-foam footballs as well. However, for each type and size of football, these dimensions would need to be adjusted to produce the desired results. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                   
                 Time to orient &amp; 
                 Avg. frequency of 
               
               
                 % belt gap 
                   
                 Linear surface 
                   
                 launch ball after 
                 spiral achieve: 
               
               
                 of ball 
                 Belt Angle 
                 speed of belt 
                 Avg. Distance 
                 throw into 
                 1.0 = spiral 
               
               
                 diameter 
                 160 (deg) 
                 (belt speed 165) 
                 ball travels (ft) 
                 collector (sec.) 
                 0 = not a spiral 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                 0 - flat belt 
                 0 
                 305 mm/3.0 sec 
                 16.6 
                 2.9 
                 0.1 
               
               
                 without space 
               
               
                 0 - flat belt 
                 17.9 
                 305 mm/3.0 sec 
                 17.1 
                 32.1 
                 0.1 
               
               
                 without space 
               
               
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0042]    Referring now to  FIG. 3 , wheel gap  72  is sized smaller than the outside diameter of the oval football that is to be thrown by launcher  10 . This results in wheels  80  squeezing oval football  23  between the wheels while accelerating the football into the air. The amount of football diameter reduction or squeeze is defined by the following equation; % squeeze of ball diameter=1-wheel gap length/ball diameter×100. The amount of squeeze of the football diameter through wheel gap  72  impacts the average distance a football will fly and the quality of the pass thrown by the machine. The friction between wheels  80  and the amount of time the football is in contact with the wheels increases with the increase in squeeze on the football. Experimental data in the table below was completed using a foam junior size football with a length of 210 cm and a maximum diameter of 122 cm. For this size and type of oval football, the following data was collected showing the impact of the squeeze of the oval football on the average distance thrown and the quality of the pass thrown. The sample size was 26 cycles at each setting for wheel gap  72 . All other variables were held constant. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
               
               
                 % squeeze of ball diameter going 
                   
                   
               
               
                 through wheel gap 72. Mathe- 
                   
                 Avg. frequency of 
               
               
                 matically defined as: squeeze of 
                   
                 spiral achieve: 
               
               
                 ball = 1-wheel gap/ball 
                 Avg. Distance 
                 1.0 = perfect 
               
               
                 diameter × 100 
                 ball travels (ft) 
                 0 = not a spiral 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                 17% 
                 28.3 
                 0.7 
               
               
                 22% 
                 36.5 
                 0.9 
               
               
                 25% 
                 45.0 
                 1.0 
               
               
                 30% 
                 49.1 
                 1.0 
               
               
                 34% 
                 43.7 
                 0.8 
               
               
                 39% 
                 43.0 
                 0.5 
               
               
                 43% 
                 41.3 
                 0.4 
               
               
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0043]    In a second example presently contemplated, shown in  FIG. 14 , belts  62  are spaced apart by belt gap  71  and are used to support, transport and orient oval football  23  from the first position  61  to wheels  80 . Belts  62  and belt gap  71  form a spread support system for supporting the football. In this example, belt gap  71  is used to orient the oval football. The oval football can fall on the belt in any orientation at the first position  61  and be oriented by the belt gap  71  in combination with belt angle  160 , shown in  FIG. 9 , and belt speed  165 . Cover  41  is not shown to allow visibility to the internal mechanical features. However, cover  41  is included in this example and cover walls  42  prevent oval football  23  from falling off of the belts. 
         [0044]    In a third example as currently contemplated, belts  62  can be replaced by a shaped conveying system as for example a U-shaped belt  152  shown in  FIG. 15 . In this figure, the other features of launcher  10  have been hidden to emphasize the U-shaped belt that is shaped in a manner that helps orient and keep the orientation of the oval football  23  as it is moved toward the ball accelerator. As the football is translated on the U-shaped belt moving toward wheels  80 , gravity acts on the weight of the football to pull football belly  25  down toward the bottom of the U-shaped belt and in this way orients the football to be launched by wheels  80 . In addition, the U-shaped belt, when combined with belt angle  160  and belt speed  165  will also will generate moment  170  and axis moment  171  to cause significantly miss-aligned footballs to roll over backward down the belt to re-align and re-orient themselves. 
         [0045]    It should be understood that there exist many different configurations of shaped conveying systems that can be shaped in a manner to urge belly  25  of football  23  to align with the belt  152  to orient and maintain alignment of the oval football while it is being translated from first position  61  to the launching wheels  80 . 
         [0046]    In a fourth example as currently contemplated, shown in  FIG. 16 , two flat belts  153  that are arranged relative to each other forming a V-shape that also provides another type of spread support system for the belly  25  of the oval football. This provides line contact points  66  as shown and has the same oval football  23  orientation capability as spread apart belts  62 , functioning in the same manner as described for the spread apart belts  62  in the first example. This example also enables flat belts  153  to transport the oval football from first position  61  to launching wheels  80  and maintain the orientation of the football. 
         [0047]    In a fifth example as currently contemplated, shown in  FIGS. 17 and 18 , belts  62  are replaced by a plurality of small rotating roller wheels  90  that are aligned and spaced apart by a roller gap  92 , forming yet another spread support system for the belly  25  of football  23 . The roller wheels contact belly  25  of football  23  at line contact points  66 . Roller wheels  90  are driven by a motor to allow the football translate over rotating rollers up an inclined roller angle  93 . The connection of the motors and drive system to the rollers can take many forms and these type of mechanical rotational systems are common practice and therefore will not be described in detail. The roller wheels are inclined on the roller angle and rotate as shown in  FIG. 17  to assist in aligning miss-aligned oval footballs using the same principals as described in the spread apart belt system of example 1. 
         [0048]    While the above description contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope, but rather as an exemplification of several examples thereof. Many other variations are possible. Accordingly, the scope should be determined not by the examples illustrated, but by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.