Football place kicking apparatus and method

A football place kicking apparatus having a rotatable hopper for releasably retaining a plurality of footballs with a motor for rotating the hopper for presenting a football to a mechanism for grasping a football from the football supporting hopper, one at a time, and removing the football from the hopper and displacing it along a directed path of travel to a lowered position adjacent to the apparatus for place kicking the football while it is held by the grasping mechanism. After the football is kicked, a new cycle is begun by returning the grasping mechanism to its original position for grasping another football from the hopper. The new cycle is completed when the grasped football is moved to the place kicking position and kicked. An electrical circuit is energized by a foot-actuated switch to operate the hopper motor and to operate the football grasping mechanism.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
The game of football has experienced significant modifications through the 
years and the art of place kicking for field goals and extra points after 
touchdown has become highly specialized and plays a significant role in 
virtually every contest. Whether in precollege, collegiate or professional 
football games, place kicking has become highly specialized to the point 
where individual players concentrate solely upon this phase of the game. 
Individual players who specialize in place kicking normally require another 
person to assist during practice for holding the football while the place 
kicker kicks the held football. Practice sessions may last for hours and 
the place kicking specialist may become dependent upon having another 
person available always for holding the football during practice sessions. 
It is an objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus and 
method for storing a plurality of footballs in a conveniently located 
hopper and sequentially remove individual footballs and position them in a 
predetermined position adjacent to the ground readily accessible 
automatically for place kicking by a place kicker. 
Another objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus that 
is portable and may be readily moved by one individual who may load a 
number of footballs into a hopper and remotely actuate the hopper and a 
mechanism for removing a football from the hopper and positioning the 
football to a place kicking position without assistance from others. 
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a 
self-contained automated football place kicking apparatus in which a 
football may be withdrawn from a stored position and placed in a kicking 
position automatically and continuously enabling a place kicking 
specialist to function independently of others in practice sessions. 
Other objectives and many of the attendant advantages of this football 
place kicking apparatus and method will become readily apparent to 
football players, athletic directors and coaches from the following 
detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings 
and the appended claims in which mechanical equivalents and variations are 
contemplated therein. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
A football place kick positioning apparatus mounted on a mobile base frame 
in which a rotatable football-supporting hopper is mounted on the frame 
and will support a series of footballs in a predetermined position by 
releasably supporting them. A football grasping mechanism automatically 
removes a football from the football supporting hopper and displaces the 
football along a directed path of travel from the football supporting 
hopper to a lowered position on the ground spaced from the apparatus and 
held in a suitable position for place kicking. The football grasping means 
will be returned automatically to grasp another football for another cycle 
by actuating a mechanism for activating the football grasping means again 
for another cycle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION 
Referring to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 1, there is illustrated 
a mobile football place kicking apparatus 10 having a base frame 11 and a 
superstructure 12 for rotatably supporting a football-retaining hopper 13 
for releasably supporting a plurality of footballs for presentation to a 
football grasping and positioning mechanism 14 for removing a football 
from the football supporting ferris wheel or football retaining means 13 
and positioning the football 15 to the place kicking position shown in 
FIG. 1 as the football grasping and positioning means 14 travels from 
football removing and grasping position adjacent to the football retaining 
hopper through a predetermined directed path of travel to the place 
kicking position illustrated in FIG. 1. 
The base frame 11 is constructed of square tubing with an undercarriage 
longitudinally extending beam 16 at each side of the apparatus and an 
upper reinforcing beam 17 vertically spaced above the lower beam 16. A 
pair of laterally spaced and vertically extending members 18 is vertically 
supported on the base frame 16 at each side of the frame and supports a 
bearing pillow block 19 for cooperatively receiving and supporting shaft 
20 therein for rotation of the hopper 13. 
The forward section of the base frame 10 is provided with forwardly 
projecting wheel-supporting members 21 to which a wheel 22 is bearingly 
mounted for mobility of the apparatus by an individual. An upwardly 
converging pair of supporting arms 23 is secured to the upper rail 17 and 
converges at the apex 24 of the angle at which position a guiding and 
lifting handle 25 is secured enabling an individual to lift the rear end 
of the apparatus to push or pull the apparatus to the desired location. 
Alternatively, the apparatus may be hooked to a towing apparatus and moved 
from one location to another. 
The football retaining hopper 13 is provided with laterally spaced 
hexagonally shaped frame members 26 and 27 which are retained in position 
from the hub 28 and gear 29 by means of the radially projecting football 
retaining arms that are uniformly spaced from each other and each is 
provided with a terminal football-retaining hook member so that a football 
15 may be cradled in the spaced football-retaining hook members 31 during 
rotation of the ferris wheel football supporting member 13. A series of 
pivot arms 32 is associated with each football-retaining hook member 31 
and is urged to engage and retain a football in position by means of the 
helical spring 33 which urges each of the members 32 into engagement with 
a football when the football is positioned on the football engaging 
arcuate member 31 by displacing the spring urged members 32. 
A motorized gear drive mechanism 34 is mounted on the base frame 10 and is 
provided with a driving gear (not shown) for driving the hopper or ferris 
wheel gear 29 for rotation of the hopper 13. The electrical energy for 
driving the gear motor 34 is obtained from the storage battery 35 that is 
mounted on the battery frame 36 which is supported on the base frame 10 
permitting the apparatus to be self-contained and portable and capable of 
being operated on its own power supply. Upon rotation of the rotatable 
football-supporting hopper 13, footballs positioned in the hopper at the 
spaced locations will travel in a directed path of travel and may be 
stopped individually at a particular location, if preferable, so that a 
football may be removed readily by overcoming the biasing action of the 
spring actuated rod members 32. 
The football grasping and removing mechanism 14 is provided with a pair of 
spaced football-engaging arms 38 and 39, each of which may be adjusted by 
the telescoping sections 40 and 41 which may be suitably clamped in 
position for the desired orientation of the football. The arms 38 and 39 
extend from the crossbar or yoke 42 which is securely fastened to the 
actuating arm 43 which has its end 44 welded to the shaft 45 that is 
mounted in the bearings 46 and 47 that are supported on crossbars secured 
to the base frame and on which shaft 45 a gear segment 48 is secured to be 
driven by a gear motor 49 also mounted and supported on the base frame 10. 
An adjustable guide arm 50 is secured to a projecting link 51 extending 
from the cross arm 42 at one end and the other end 52 of the control arm 
50 being pivotally secured to a socket 53 on the base frame for 
controlling the displacement of the football grasping and displacing 
mechanism 14. A vertical post 54 is securely mounted on the base frame 
member 17 in spaced parallel relation to the vertical member 55 which is 
also supported on the base frame 17 for retaining thereon the arcuate cam 
guide rod 56 for controlling the guidance of the football grasping and 
displacing means 14 for a portion of its predetermined directed path of 
travel after grasping a football from the hopper from the horizontal 
football position to a rotating position by means of the rotation of shaft 
45 through gear 48 and gear motor 49 to pivot the football grasping and 
displacing mechanism 14 in a substantially vertical plane as shown in 
FIGS. 3 and 4 to place the football 15 in the place kicking position 
adjacent to the ground readily accessible to the kicker. A cam follower 57 
is mounted on the arm 38 for engaging the arcuate rod or cam 56 during 
initial guided displacement of the football grasping mechanism upon 
withdrawing a football from the football supporting hopper 13 which cam 
follower 57 will be disengaged when the rotation of shaft 45 occurs. 
The football 15 will be engaged by a top positioning pad 58 mounted on 
extension arm 40 and a ground engaging and positioning pad 59 will support 
the football on the ground at an appropriate angle and elevation depending 
upon the desired inclination and orientation of each individual kicker 
with the pad 59 being secured to the arm 41. A spring member 60 is 
connected to the arm 38 and cross arm member 42 through appropriate 
connecting members to urge the arm 40 and pad 58 into releasable 
engagement with the football and to provide needed displacement for arm 40 
to permit ease of release of the football 15 from engagement between pads 
58 and 59 when the football is kicked. 
A vertically extending guide rod 61 having a guide hook 62 thereon is 
secured to the base frame for engaging and retarding momentarily the 
return of the football grasping means from the lowered position as shown 
in FIG. 1 to its vertical and retracted position adjacent to the football 
supporting hopper 13 for commencement of another cycle. 
A foot operated switch 63 having pivotable foot-engaging pedals 64 and 65 
will control the actuation of the football supporting hopper rotation and 
the displacement of the football grasping and displacing mechanism 14 as 
illustrated in the electrical schematic diagram in FIG. 6 to be described 
hereafter. 
There is illustrated in FIG. 2 the football-retaining hopper in which 
several footballs 15 are releasably retained in position with three of the 
football-retaining positions having the footballs removed. The football 15 
at the left in the football-retaining hopper 13 is in a position for 
removal by the football grasping and displacing means 14 by having the 
pads 58 and 59 engage opposite ends of the football for removal by 
withdrawing the football laterally and pivoting the arm 32 against the 
biasing action of spring 33. The football positioning cycle of withdrawing 
the football 15 from the football retaining hopper 13 and displacing the 
football along a directed path of travel by means of the football grasping 
and displacing means 14 is illustrated in FIG. 3 in which the football is 
positioned adjacent to the ground preparatory for kicking by being 
supported between the pads 58 and 59 mounted on the movable arms 40 and 
41. An intermediate position for the displacement of the football 15 by 
the grasping and displacing means 14 is illustrated in FIG. 4. FIG. 5 
illustrates a portion of the mechanism, with sections removed, for the 
displacement of the football grasping and displacing means in which the 
oscillatable shaft 45 is supported in suitable bearing blocks 46 and 45 
(FIG. 1) with the spaced gear segments 68 and 69 being shown in the 
disengaged position below the portion of the removed section of shaft 45 
which shaft retains the arm 43 for pivoting the football grasping and 
displacing means 14. 
A micro-switch 70 is illustrated in FIG. 7 in which the sensing arm 71 is 
pivotally connected in the housing and has a contact roller 72 mounted at 
the terminal end for engaging the component to be engaged for actuating or 
deactuating a particular mechanism for depressing the plunger 73 mounted 
in the switch on which the common terminal and the normally open and 
normally closed terminals are illustrated. 
The schematic electrical system is shown in FIG. 6 with the micro-switches 
for the ferris wheel displacement and stoppage in the cycle to present a 
ball in the position shown in FIG. 2 at each partial rotation by engaging 
the micro-switches for start and stop through actuation of the foot 
operated switch and for actuating the ball placing arm motor which is the 
ball grasping and displacing means through its micro-switches. 
As will be readily apparent, in the method of automatically positioning a 
football for place kicking, the football is stored releasably in the 
football-supporting hopper 13 in which the football 15 is positioned for 
removal. The football is grasped by the grasping and displacing means 14 
from the hopper in the removal position and the football is displaced 
along a predetermined directed path of travel from the football removal 
position in the hopper to a ground place kicking position so that the 
football may be place kicked by a kicker.