Abstract:
A member (e.g. baseball bat) including a switch manually operable to obtain the transmission of signals by a transmitter in the member to an apparatus for propelling an element (e.g. ball) toward an individual holding the member. The element is propelled by a propulsion mechanism in the apparatus toward the individual holding the member so that the individual can practice receiving the element (e.g. hitting the ball). The apparatus propels the element upon the receipt of the transmitted signals and prepares for the next element in the apparatus to be propelled upon a receipt of subsequent signals from the transmitter.

Description:
This application is a division of application Ser. No. 09/231,195 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,190,271 B1) filed in the U.S. Patent Office on Jan. 14, 1979. 
     This invention relates to apparatus for providing an individual with an opportunity to practice receiving an element. For example, the invention relates to apparatus which propels balls toward a batter so that the batter can practice hitting the propelled balls. The invention is particularly advantageous because the batter can control when the ball is propelled toward the hitter. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Many youngsters are interested in improving their skills in hitting a baseball. Because of this, machines have been provided on a commercial basis for pitching balls to a batter. The batter positions himself or herself in a batting cage and the machine then transmits a plurality of balls in sequence to the batter. The batter pays for this by inserting coins into a coin box or by paying a cashier. 
     There are at least three (3) problems with the arrangement described in the previous paragraph. One problem is that the batter cannot control when successive balls are propelled to the batter by the pitching machine. Another problem is that the batter has to travel to the site of the pitching machine, this being an inconvenience to the batter. A third disadvantage is that the pitching machines propel the balls at a high velocity toward the batter. This may be advantageous to teenagers and adults but it is not advantageous to pre-teenagers. 
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention provides an apparatus for overcoming the disadvantages discussed in the previous paragraph. The apparatus of this invention provides for control by an individual (e.g. a batter) at times when a machine propels an element (e.g. a ball) for operation of a member (e.g. a bat) by the individual (e.g. batter). The apparatus of this invention is portable even by pre-teenagers so that the individual operating the member (e.g. the bat) can practice anywhere including the individual&#39;s backyard or a friend&#39;s backyard. The apparatus of this invention is especially designed to be used by pre-teenagers. 
     Although a pitching machine is shown in the drawings to be a preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be appreciated by persons of ordinary skill in the art that other embodiments are within the scope of the invention. For example, the apparatus of this invention can be adapted to propel hockey pucks to a player holding a hockey stick or to propel lacrosse balls to a player holding a lacrosse stick. 
     In one embodiment of the invention, a member (e.g. baseball bat) includes a switch manually operable to obtain the transmission of signals by a transmitter in the member to an apparatus for propelling an element (e.g. ball) toward an individual holding the member. The apparatus propels the element upon the receipt of the transmitted signals and prepares for a next ball in the apparatus to be propelled upon a receipt of a subsequent signal from the transmitter. 
     The element is propelled by the propulsion mechanism in the apparatus toward the individual holding the member so that the individual can practice receiving the element (e.g. hitting the ball). 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the drawings: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of (1) a baseball bat and the hands of an individual swinging the bat to hit a ball propelled toward the bat, (2) pitching apparatus for propelling the ball toward the bat and (3) the movement of the ball from the pitching apparatus toward the bat; 
     FIG. 2 is a sectional view in elevation of the pitching apparatus shown in FIG. 1 as seen from a position in front of the apparatus; 
     FIG. 3 is an elevational view, partially in section, of the pitching apparatus as seen from a position to one side of the apparatus; 
     FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view in elevation of the bat and includes a switch manually operable to provide for a transmission of signals from the bat to the pitching apparatus; 
     FIG. 5 shows a block diagram of a transmitter in the bat for transmitting signals to the pitching apparatus and a block upon the closure of the switch in FIG. 4 and a block diagram of a receiver in the pitching apparatus for receiving the signals transmitted from the bat and for activating the pitching machine to propel a ball toward the bat; and 
     FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of an electrical circuit for energizing motors in the pitching apparatus when a ball is disposed in the pitching apparatus, thereby providing for the propulsion of the ball from the pitching apparatus when the receiver receives signals from the transmitter. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     In one embodiment of the invention, apparatus generally indicated at  10  (FIG. 1) is provided for propelling an element (e.g. a ball)  12  toward a member (e.g. a ball) generally indicated at  14 ., the force-imposing member (e.g. a bat)  14  having a first portion for manual grasping and movement by a player and a second portion for imposing a force on an element (e.g. a ball)  12  moving toward the member, wherein the first and second portions of the member are positioned in the direction of the elongation of the member, and the second portion of the member is wider than the first portion of the member. The ball  12  maybe a hard or a soft ball generally provided for baseball games. Preferably the ball is a hollow plastic ball having a light weight and constructed to limit the speed of the ball and the distance of travel of the ball. This ball is advantageous when the hitter is a child generally less than ten (10) years old. 
     A switch  16  (FIG. 4) is provided on the bat  14 , preferably at a position above the positions on the handle portion where the batter&#39;s hands  18  grip the bat when the batter is swinging at the ball  12 . The switch  16  is pressed by the batter when the batter desires to have the apparatus  10  propel the ball  12  toward the batter. The switch  16  is located between the first and second portions of the member in the direction of the elongation of the member. 
     A transmitter generally indicated at  20  in FIG. 5 is disposed in the bat  14  to transmit signals to the pitching apparatus  10  for obtaining the propulsion of the ball  12  by the pitching apparatus toward the bat  14 . In one embodiment, the transmitter  20  may include an oscillator  22  for producing signals at a particular frequency such as approximately thirty-two megahertz (32 MHz). The oscillator  22  may be crystal controlled. 
     The signals from the oscillator  22  may be amplified at  24  and the amplified signals may be introduced to an antenna  26  which may be provided with an impedance preferably matching the impedance of the amplifier  24 . An energy source such as a battery  28  (FIG. 4) may be removably disposed in the bottom  30  of the bat to energize the transmitter  20 . 
     A receiver generally indicated at  32  in FIG. 5 may be disposed in the pitching apparatus  10  to receive the signals transmitted from the bat  14 . The receiver  32  may include an antenna  34  which may be in the form of a coil. Amplifiers  36  may be provided to amplify the received signals. The amplified signals may then be mixed at  38  and the mixed signals may then be detected as at  40  to recover the signals at thirty-two megahertz (32 MHz). The detected signals may then be introduced to a driver  42 . 
     The apparatus  10  includes a base member  50  (FIGS. 1-3) and a housing  52  pivotably attached to the base member as at  54 . The base member is adapted to be supported on a support surface such as the ground. The base member  50  is adapted to hold a transportable energy source such as a battery  56 . 
     The housing  52  is provided with a hollow passage  58 . Holes  60  may be provided in the housing  52  at progressive positions along the passage  58 , primarily for aesthetic purposes. The ball  12  is adapted to be disposed in the hollow passage  58  against a plurality of annularly spaced fingers  62  in a rotatable detainer  64  having a shape such as a star wheel. The detainer  64  is normally engaged by a release mechanism  65  which is actuated to be withdrawn from engagement with the detainer when a solenoid  66  is energized. 
     The hollow passage  58  is initially disposed vertically and is progressively curved at progressive downward positions to have a horizontal disposition. A pair of pockets  70  are disposed in the housing  52  at the opposite sides of the housing at positions where the hollow passage  58  is substantially horizontal. Two (2) motors  74  are provided, one disposed in one of the pockets  70  and the other disposed in the other one of the pockets  70 . Two (2) actuators are provided, one disposed in one of the pockets  70  and the other disposed in the other one of the pockets  70 . 
     The motor  74  and the roller  76  in each pocket  72  are operatively coupled to each other to provide a rotation of the roller in accordance with the energizing of the motor. The rollers  76  are preferably made from a resilient material and are preferably extended into the hollow passage  58  to grip the opposite ends of the ball  12  in the passage and to propel the ball from the passage in accordance with the rotation of the rollers. The motors  74  and the rollers  76  may be considered as a propulsion mechanism. 
     The battery  56  and the motors  74  are disposed in a series circuit (FIG. 6) with a normally open switch  78 . The switch  78  becomes closed when the ball  12  is disposed on the finger  62  of the detainer  64 . The closure of the switch  78  at such time results from the fact that each finger  62  has some play in its positioning. This causes each finger  62  to be disposed upwardly, with no ball on the finger, from the position which it occupies when the ball  12  is disposed on the finger. In the upward position of the finger  62 , the switch  78  is open. 
     In this way, the motors  74  are energized only when the ball  12  is in the hollow passage  58  in a position to be propelled from the hollow passage when a signal from the transmitter  20  is received by the receiver  32 . Furthermore, energy is conserved in the battery  56  to prolong the life of the battery since the battery provides energy to the motors  74  only when the ball  12  is disposed in the hollow passage  58 . 
     The housing  52  is provided at its top end with a stanchion. A tube  82  forming a part of ramp generally indicated at  84  fits snugly on the stanchion in a removable relationship to the stanchion. The ramp  84  defines an inclined track  86  extending in a spiral path to a position at its bottom end above the hollow passage  58 . A plurality of the balls  12  are disposed on the track  86  for a movement of each ball in sequence into the hollow passage  58  when the ball previously in the hollow passage is propelled by the rollers  76  from the passage toward the batter holding the bat  14 . 
     Assume that the ramp  84  is disposed on the stanchion at the top of the housing  52  and that one of the balls  12  on the track  86  has dropped into the hollow passage  58  for disposition on the finger  62  extending into the hollow passage. This causes the finger  62  on the detainer  64  to be positioned to close the switch  78  in FIG.  6  and the motors  74  to be energized. The resultant rotation of the rollers  76  provides for the propulsion of the ball from the hollow passage  58  when the ball is released by the detainer  64 . 
     When the batter manually closes the switch  16  in FIG. 4, signals are transmitted by the transmitter  20  in FIG. 5 to the receiver  32  in FIG.  5 . This causes the solenoid  66  (FIG. 3) to be energized and the release mechanism  65  to be retracted from the detainer  64 . The detainer  64  is now free to be rotated in a counterclockwise direction by the ball  12  on the finger  62 . This rotation frees the ball  12  to move downwardly in the hollow passage  58  to a position between the rollers  76 . Since the rollers  76  are already being rotated by the motors  74 , the rollers propel the ball  12  from the hollow passage toward the batter when the ball reaches the rollers. When the ball  12  is dropping through the hollow passage  58 , the next ball on the track  86  drops into the hollow passage for disposition against one of the fingers  62 . 
     The apparatus described above has been disclosed with reference to a pitching machine for baseball. It is believed that a person of ordinary skill in the art will be able with little or no experimentation to adapt the apparatus for other uses. For example, it is believed that a person of ordinary skill in the art will be able to adapt the invention for use by a hockey player or for use by a lacrosse player. 
     Although this invention has been disclosed and illustrated with reference to particular embodiments, the principles involved are susceptible for use in numerous other embodiments which will be apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art. The invention is, therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the claims.