Patent Publication Number: US-10315089-B2

Title: Basketball shooting training device

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a basketball shooting training device, and more specifically, to a basketball shooting training device for guiding a user&#39;s hand to complete a set shot along a vertical rail structure. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     In general, proper shooting techniques could help a basketball player shoot a basketball into a basket successfully. One important technique is proper wrist motion. During the basketball player shoots the basketball, the basketball player needs to cock his wrist and then propel the basketball through the air into the basket. However, proper wrist motion is not enough if the basketball player could not properly position his lower arm at the same vertical plane with his upper arm while shooting the basketball. Thus, how to design a device to train a basketball player to develop both proper wrist motion and proper arm motion is one important issue in basketball shooting training. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention discloses a basketball shooting training device. The basketball shooting training device includes a main frame, a first vertical rail structure, a first sliding base, and a first basketball imitation member. The main frame has a transverse frame portion and a standing frame portion for standing on a holding plane. The transverse frame portion is connected to the standing frame portion. The first vertical rail structure is disposed on the transverse frame portion. The first vertical rail structure has a vertical rail portion and an oblique rail portion connected to a top end of the vertical rail portion. The first sliding base has a first base portion and a first arm portion. The first base portion is slidably disposed on a first side of the first vertical rail structure for sliding along the first vertical rail structure. The first arm portion extends from the first base portion. The first basketball imitation member is connected to the first arm portion. When the first basketball imitation member is propped and then propelled upwardly by a user&#39;s hand, the first base portion slides from a first initial position on the vertical rail portion to a shooting position on the oblique rail portion for guiding the user&#39;s hand to complete a set shot along the first vertical rail structure. 
     These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a diagram of a basketball shooting training device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a side view of a user wearing a torso attachment member and propping a first basketball imitation member at a knee bending position. 
         FIG. 3  is a side view of the torso attachment member in  FIG. 2  guiding the user&#39;s torso to move vertically to a first initial position along a second vertical rail structure. 
         FIG. 4  is a side view of a first base portion in  FIG. 3  sliding to a shooting position on an oblique rail portion. 
         FIG. 5  is a side view of a braking device being disposed on a first sliding base according to another embodiment of the prevent invention. 
         FIG. 6  is a side view of the first sliding base pivoting relative to a first vertical rail structure to make the braking device separate from the first vertical rail structure. 
         FIG. 7  is a side view of the user&#39;s shooting hand propping a second basketball imitation member according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 8  is a side view of the user&#39;s shooting hand propelling the second basketball imitation member in  FIG. 7  upwardly to complete a hook shot. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Please refer to  FIG. 1 , which is a diagram of a basketball shooting training device  10  according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in  FIG. 1 , the basketball shooting training device  10  includes a main frame  12 , a first vertical rail structure  14 , a first sliding base  16 , a first basketball imitation member  18 , a second vertical rail structure  20 , and a torso attachment member  22 . The main frame  12  has a standing frame portion  24  and a transverse frame portion  26 . The transverse frame portion  26  is connected to the standing frame portion  24 , and the standing frame portion  24  is used for standing on a holding plane (such as a ground plane) so that the basketball shooting training device  10  could be placed steadily on the holding plane for a user (e.g. a basketball player) to operate conveniently. The first vertical rail structure  14  is disposed on the transverse frame portion  26  and has a vertical rail portion  28  and an oblique rail portion  30  connected to a top end P of the vertical rail portion  28 . In this embodiment, the oblique rail portion  30  is preferably pivoted to the top end P of the vertical rail portion  28  (e.g. by a hinge, but not limited thereto), so that the user could properly adjust his shooting angle by adjusting an oblique angle of the oblique rail portion  30  relative to the vertical rail portion  28 . 
     The first sliding base  16  has a first base portion  32  and a first arm portion  34 . The first base portion  32  is slidably disposed on a first side S 1  of the first vertical rail structure  14  for sliding along the first vertical rail structure  14 . The first arm portion  34  extends from the first base portion  32 . The first basketball imitation member  18  is connected to the first arm portion  34  so that the user could prop the first basketball imitation member  18  by his shooting hand for performing a shooting motion. In practical application, the weight of the first basketball imitation member  18  could be increased by adding fillers (e.g. water or sand) into the first basketball imitation member  18  for achieving the muscles training purpose. 
     Furthermore, the second vertical rail structure  20  is spaced apart from the main frame  12  and is connected to the standing frame portion  24 . The torso attachment member  22  is slidably disposed on the second vertical rail structure  20  for attaching to the user&#39;s torso so as to guide the user&#39;s torso to move vertically along the second vertical rail structure  20 , so as to improve the postural stability of the user during the user performs a shooting motion. In this embodiment, the torso attachment member  22  could be a wearable equipment (e.g. a wearable vest), but not limited thereto. That is, in another embodiment, the present invention could adopt other attachment equipment (e.g. a lap-shoulder harness) which could be attached to the user&#39;s torso. To be noted, the second vertical rail structure  20  and the torso attachment member  22  could be omissible components for simplifying the mechanical design of the basketball shooting training device  10 . 
     Furthermore, for ensuring that the user could properly position his lower arm at the same vertical plane with his upper arm while propping and then propelling the first basketball imitation member  18  upwardly by his shooting hand, as shown in  FIG. 1 , the basketball shooting training device  10  could further include an arm guide base  36 . The arm guide base  36  is disposed on the first side S 1  of the first vertical rail structure  14  and located under the first sliding base  16 . The arm guide base  36  has two guide sheets  38  spaced apart thereon for constraining the user&#39;s lower arm put therebetween at the same vertical plane with the user&#39;s upper arm. In practical application, the two guide sheets  38  could be movably disposed on the arm guide base  36  and the first vertical rail structure  14  could be movable leftward and rightward and pivotable forward and rearward relative to the transverse frame portion  26 , so that the user could conveniently adjust positions of the two guide sheets  38  relative to the user for aligning the user&#39;s lower arm with the user&#39;s upper arm at the same vertical plane. As for the related description for the mechanical designs for making the two guide sheets  38  movably disposed on the arm guide base  36  and making the first vertical rail structure  14  disposed on the transverse frame portion  26  movably and pivotably, it is commonly seen in the prior art and omitted herein. Moreover, in another embodiment, the vertical rail portion  28  could be an arc-shaped rail instead of a linear rail as shown in  FIG. 1 , for helping the user complete a set shot along the first vertical rail structure  14  more smoothly. 
     More detailed description for operating the basketball shooting training device  10  is provided as follows. Please refer to  FIG. 2 ,  FIG. 3 , and  FIG. 4 .  FIG. 2  is a side view of a user wearing the torso attachment member  22  and propping the first basketball imitation member  18  at a knee bending position.  FIG. 3  is a side view of the torso attachment member  22  in  FIG. 2  guiding the user&#39;s torso to move vertically to a first initial position along the second vertical rail structure  20 .  FIG. 4  is a side view of the first base portion  32  in  FIG. 3  sliding to a shooting position on the oblique rail portion  30 . After the user wears the torso attachment member  22 , the user could put his lower arm  40  between the two guide sheets  38 , prop the first basketball imitation member  18  by his shooting hand  42 , and then adjust positions of the two guide sheets  38  relative to the user by properly moving the first vertical rail structure  14  leftward and rightward and pivoting the first vertical rail structure  14  forward and rearward for aligning the user&#39;s lower arm  40  with the user&#39;s upper arm  44  at the same vertical plane (i.e. an XZ plane shown in  FIG. 2 ). After that, the user could bend his knee to perform a ready action at the knee bending position as shown in  FIG. 2  for basketball shooting. Subsequently, the torso attachment member  22  could guide the user&#39;s torso to move vertically from the knee bending position as shown in  FIG. 2  to the first initial position as shown in  FIG. 3  along the second vertical rail structure  20  during the user stretches his knee, and then the user could propel the first basketball imitation member  18  upwardly by his shooting hand  42  to make the first base portion  32  slides from the first initial position as shown in  FIG. 3  on the vertical rail portion  28  to the shooting position as shown in  FIG. 4  on the oblique rail portion  30 . 
     To be noted, in this embodiment, the first basketball imitation member  18  could be rotatably connected to the first arm portion  34  (e.g. by connecting the first basketball imitation member  18  to the first arm portion  34  via a torsional spring) for allowing the user&#39;s fingers to rotate the first basketball imitation member  18  counterclockwise at a specific angle (e.g. 30% but not limited thereto) when the first base portion  32  slides to the shooting position as shown in  FIG. 4  on the oblique rail portion  30 , so as to make the user&#39;s fingers complete a follow-through motion. 
     In such a manner, the basketball shooting training device  10  could guide the user&#39;s shooting hand  42  to complete a set shot along the first vertical rail structure  14  in the case of his lower arm  40  positioned at the same vertical plane with his upper arm  44 , so that the basketball shooting training device  10  could train the user to develop both proper wrist motion and proper arm motion for shooting a basketball into a basket successfully as well as achieve the motion restriction purpose as the user repeatedly performs the aforesaid basketball shooting training process. 
     Moreover, since the first base portion  32  could slide from the shooting position on the oblique rail portion  30  back to the first initial position on the vertical rail portion  28  due to the weight of the first basketball imitation member  18  while the first basketball imitation member is not propped by the user&#39;s shooting hand  42 , the present invention could further adopt a braking design for stopping the first base portion  32  at the first initial position, so as to efficiently prevent the first basketball imitation member  18  from dropping fast to accidentally cause damage to the user. That is, the basketball shooting training device  10  could further include a braking device  46  disposed on the first sliding base  16  for braking the first sliding base  16  during the first base portion  32  slides from the shooting position on the oblique rail portion  30  back to the first initial position on the vertical rail portion  28 . 
     For example, please refer to  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 6 .  FIG. 5  is a side view of the braking device  46  being disposed on the first sliding base  16  according to another embodiment of the prevent invention.  FIG. 6  is a side view of the first sliding base  16  pivoting relative to the first vertical rail structure  14  to make the braking device  46  separate from the first vertical rail structure  14 . Components both mentioned in this embodiment and the aforesaid embodiment represent components with similar structures or functions, and the related description is omitted herein. 
     As shown in  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 6 , in this embodiment, the first sliding base  16  could be pivoted to the first vertical rail structure  14 , and the braking device  46  could include a bending arm  48  and a braking pad  50 . The bending arm  48  extends from the first base portion  32 . The braking pad  50  is disposed at a bottom end of the bending arm  48 . Accordingly, as shown in  FIG. 5 , the first sliding base  16  could pivot relative to the first vertical rail structure  14  cooperatively with the bending arm  48  due to the weight of the first basketball imitation member to make the braking pad  50  contact with the first vertical rail structure  14  for stopping the first sliding base  16  at the first initial position when the first basketball imitation member  18  is not propped. On the other hand, as shown in  FIG. 6 , when the first basketball imitation member  18  is propelled upwardly by the user&#39;s shooting hand  42 , the first sliding base  16  could pivot relative to the first vertical rail structure  14  cooperatively with the bending arm  48  to make the braking pad  50  separate from the first vertical rail structure  14 , so that the user could continue propelling the first basketball imitation member  18  upwardly. Via the aforesaid braking design, the operational safety of the basketball shooting training device  10  could be greatly improved. 
     It should be mentioned that the basketball shooting training device  10  could further have a hook shot training function. Please refer to  FIG. 7  and  FIG. 8 .  FIG. 7  is a side view of the user&#39;s shooting hand  42  propping a second basketball imitation member  52  according to another embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 8  is a side view of the user&#39;s shooting hand  42  propelling the second basketball imitation member  52  in  FIG. 7  upwardly to complete a hook shot. Components both mentioned in this embodiment and the aforesaid embodiment represent components with similar structures or functions, and the related description is omitted herein. 
     As shown in  FIG. 7  and  FIG. 8 , in this embodiment, the basketball shooting training device  10  could further include the second basketball imitation member  52  and a second sliding base  54 . The second sliding base  54  has a second base portion  56  and a second arm portion  58 . The second base portion  56  is slidably disposed on a second side S 2  of the first vertical rail structure  14  opposite to the first base portion  32  for sliding along the first vertical rail structure  14 . The second arm portion  58  extends from the second base portion  56 . The second basketball imitation member  52  could be connected to the second arm portion  58  so that the user could prop the second basketball imitation member  52  with his shooting hand for performing a hooking motion. In practical application, the weight of the second basketball imitation member  52  could be increased by adding fillers (e.g. water or sand) into the second basketball imitation member  52  for achieving the muscles training purpose. 
     Furthermore, in this embodiment, the second basketball imitation member  52  could be rotatably connected to the second arm portion  34  (e.g. by connecting the second basketball imitation member  52  to the second arm portion  34  via a torsional spring) for allowing the user&#39;s fingers to rotate the second basketball imitation member  52  at a specific angle (e.g. 30°, but not limited thereto) when the second base portion  32  slides to a hooking position as shown in  FIG. 8  on the oblique rail portion  30 , so as to make the user&#39;s fingers complete a follow-through motion. 
     To be noted, the aforesaid arm positioning design could also be applied to this embodiment for positioning the user&#39;s lower arm at the same vertical plane with the user&#39;s upper arm while propping and then propelling the second basketball imitation member  52  upwardly by the user&#39;s shooting hand. The related description could be reasoned by analogy according to the aforesaid embodiment and be omitted herein. 
     In such a manner, the user could prop and then propel the second basketball imitation member  52  upwardly by his shooting hand  42  to make the second base portion  58  slide from a second initial position as shown in  FIG. 7  on the vertical rail portion  28  to the hooking position as shown in  FIG. 8  on the oblique rail portion  30 , so as to complete a hook shot along the first vertical rail structure  14 . Accordingly, the basketball shooting training device  10  could train the user to develop both proper wrist motion and proper arm motion for hooking a basketball into a basket successfully as well as achieve the motion restriction purpose as the user repeatedly performs the aforesaid basketball hooking training process. 
     Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims.