JP6472070B2 - 3-rotor pitching machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an improvement of a three-rotor pitching machine. More specifically, the present invention relates to a three-rotor that pitches at any ball type and speed by holding a ball between three rotors and controlling the rotation speed of these rotors. The present invention relates to a pitching machine.

  By placing the upper left rotor, upper right rotor and lower center rotor around the ball in a Y shape when viewed from the front, the ball is held by the three rotors, and the rotational speed of each of the rotors is controlled. And a pitching machine that throws a changing ball at an arbitrary ball speed has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In addition, a pitching machine having four rotors (wheels) in a pair of upper and lower sides has been proposed. This device has two pairs of shafts that are supported so that the inner shaft ends face each other so as to be able to rotate via a bearing on the machine frame, and the inner ends of the pairs of the shafts. A pair of two wheels attached in close proximity to each other, an elastically deformable tire attached along each outer peripheral surface of the wheels, and the four shafts in the same direction and in pairs The driving means is configured to individually rotate in the opposite direction so as to be capable of shifting, and the ball supply means is configured to supply a ball to a location adjacent to the four wheels. The two pairs of shafts are spaced apart from each other by a distance at which the tires can be pressed against each other in the vicinity of the four wheels. Therefore, by individually controlling the respective rotational speeds of a total of four wheels in a pair of left and right, which are arranged in parallel with each other, it is possible to perform a stepless subtle pitching from a straight ball to a changing ball that bends greatly. For this reason, simulation pitching assuming a famous pitcher and program control can be easily performed, making it possible to greatly improve the batting technique and in comparison with the conventional pair of left and right horizontal disks. Space saving in the width direction can be achieved (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

  The former has a pair of left and right rotors on the upper side of the ball, and the ball is held by three rotors with the lower rotor at the center while controlling the rotational speed of each rotor, so the upper side has two rotors and the lower side has A rotational force is given by one rotor, and the upper rotational force tends to increase. For this reason, especially when the ball speed is set to 110 km / h or more, the rotation speed increases, so that the lower rotor slips and the rotation force cannot be sufficiently applied to the ball, and the ball is repelled by gravity. This tendency is strong in the case of a straight ball, and becomes more pronounced as the ball speed increases. Also, since the lower rotor slides against the ball and the grip is poor, it is difficult to control.

  In the latter, the ball is sandwiched between a pair of upper and lower rotors. However, since the upper and lower rotors are horizontally disposed opposite to each other, it is difficult to sufficiently transmit the rotational force from each rotor to the ball. For this reason, only the structure becomes complicated, and the advantage by using four rotors is not exhibited.

JP 2010-57544 A JP-A-5-208059

The present invention has been made in view of the above, the structure is relatively simple three in-rotor pitching machine, for example, a ball that is pitched be faster ball speed fastball than 1 10 km / h our soon Therefore, the present invention is intended to provide a method for setting the rotor rotation speed in a pitching machine that allows the ball to hop-up, spins, and has a good pitch.

In order to achieve the above object, the rotor rotation speed setting method in the pitching machine according to the present invention is such that three rotors are arranged in an inverted Y shape around the ball throwing direction when viewed from the front, and each rotor rotates in its own direction. A rotor rotation speed setting method in a three-rotor pitching machine that throws a ball while being sandwiched between three rotors, and controls the rotor at the upper center regardless of whether it is a straight ball or a changing ball It is characterized in that it is set so that the rotational speeds of the lower left and right rotors are faster than the rotational speed.

  According to the three-rotor pitching machine having the above-described configuration, unlike the conventional Y-type rotor with two upper sides and one lower center, the lower rotor hardly slides with respect to the ball. That is, the rotational force of the lower left and right rotors is reliably transmitted to the ball, and the ball is thrown in a state in which the upward rotation (spin) from the lower side of the ball is sufficiently effective when viewed from the front. Therefore, even if the ball speed is increased to, for example, 120 km / h or more, the straight ball is not particularly reluctant on the home base, and the ball is stretched so as to hop up and can be thrown with a good spin.

  As described in claim 2, a urethane resin layer can be provided on the entire circumferential surface of each of the rotors.

  In this way, slipping between the ball and the rotor is prevented, and the rotational force of the rotor can be reliably applied to the ball.

  4. The rotor according to claim 3, wherein the rotors and their rotational drive devices are supported in a common support frame, and the support frame is installed on a support base so as to be horizontally rotatable, and the balls of the support frame It is desirable that the pitching direction can be adjusted vertically with respect to the support base.

  In this way, the pitching direction can be adjusted according to the ball type and speed, and the ball can be thrown into any course zone.

The method for setting the rotor rotational speed in the pitching machine according to the present invention has the following excellent effects. That is, when a pitcher throws, in order to throw a spiny ball, it is important to release the ball from the forefinger and middle fingertip, but in the pitching machine of the present invention, the pitcher's forefinger and middle fingertip are important. And correspond to the two lower rotors. In the case of a straight ball, the pitcher's index finger and middle finger are released to push it out, and the ball is rotated by placing the finger firmly on the ball, resulting in an elongated straight. After the ball is released from the fingertip, a downward force is generated due to gravity, so the ball falls down as it moves forward, but the spin straight will cause the ball to fall due to gravity There is power to resist. That is the force due to the Magnus effect produced by the upward rotation of the ball when viewed from the front . The Magnus effect is a phenomenon in which a vertical force acts on a rotating cylinder or sphere placed in a uniform flow in a direction perpendicular to the uniform flow. It is a phenomenon in which a force is applied that is perpendicular to both rotation axes and directed to the side where the flow is accelerated by rotation. By giving upward rotation to the ball, a force due to the Magnus effect works, and this force cancels out the downward force due to gravity. Because the force from the Magnus effect that can be generated by human power cannot cancel all the downward force, the ball will sink. In the Magnus effect, the higher the rotational speed and speed of the sphere, the greater the force generated. In other words, throwing a ball with a high rotation speed and a high ball speed can reduce the sinking distance . The Magnus effect is also closely related to the changing sphere, and it can be said that the force of the Magnus effect changes the ball. According to the pitching machine of the present invention, an upward force can be sufficiently applied to the ball, so that the Magnus effect can be effectively extracted. For this reason, it is possible to throw a straight ball with a particularly fast ball speed so as not to sink, that is, to hop up, and it is possible to stably throw a changing ball.

It is explanatory drawing which represented the inside by a cross section seeing the pitching machine which concerns on the Example of this invention from the front. It is explanatory drawing which represented the inside of the pitching machine which concerns on the Example of this invention with the cross section seeing from the left side surface. It is a front view which shows roughly the controller for ball speed and ball types in the pitching machine which concerns on the Example of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings illustrating examples.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, engaging Ru 3-rotor pitching machine 1 in this embodiment is provided with a support base 2 On the platform 3 provided with casters 4 on front and rear sides. A support frame 5 is provided on the support base 2. In this support frame 5, three rotors (wheels) 10, 11, and 12 are arranged in an inverted Y shape when viewed from the front. In this example, the central upper rotor 10, the lower right rotor 11, and the lower left rotor 12 are positioned in the inverted Y shape at an angle of approximately 120 ° when viewed from the front, with the ball throwing path 9 as the center. Each of the rotors 10 to 12 includes a rotation drive device 13 to 15, respectively. The rotation drive devices 13 to 15 are fixed to a frame (not shown) in the support frame 5, and each of the rotors 10 to 12 via the rotation drive shafts 10 a, 11 a, and 12 a. The rotors 10 to 12 are rotatably supported. Each of the rotors 10 to 12 has a urethane resin layer wound around the entire circumferential surface of a metal rotor body such as an aluminum alloy, and adjusts the amount of rotation of each of the dials 31 to 33 of the controller 40 shown in FIG. Thus, the rotation speed is controlled via the inverters 34 to 36. A ball supply cylinder 16 is provided on the rear side of the support frame 5 so as to face upward and the balls inserted from the upper end opening 16 a of the supply cylinder 16 are sequentially thrown into the pitching path 9.

The support base 2 is placed through a plurality of casters 17 so as to be able to turn in the horizontal direction around the rotation support shaft 18 at the front end center thereof. A turning geared motor 19 is installed on the gantry 3, and its rotating shaft (not shown) protrudes above the gantry 3 and is rotatably connected to one end of the crankshaft 20 a . On the other hand, the other end of the crank 20 is rotatably connected to a crankshaft 20 a supported near the center position of the support base 2, and the support base 2 is centered around the rotation support shaft 18 at the front end by the rotation of the turning geared motor 19. Swing and rotate left and right. An encoder 21 that measures the turning angle of the support base 2 is installed at the front end of the support base 2.

On the other hand, the lower part of the front end of the support frame 5 is pivotally attached to the upper end of the portal frame 22 of the support base 2 via a support shaft 23, and the support frame 5 is inclined in the vertical direction around the support shaft 23. The lower part of the rear end of the support frame 5 is supported on a deformation cam 25 on the support base 2 side via a roll 24. Modified cam 25 is rotatably supported on the elevating plate 26 which is vertically movably supported along the gate-shaped frame 22, rotated by the high and low for a geared motor 27 installed on the elevator plate 26, the support frame 5 up and down Inclined in the direction. Also. The elevating plate 26 is raised and lowered by the rotation of a bolt-shaped screw rod 28 that is screwed to the rear portion thereof. A manual handle 29 is fixed to the upper end of the screw rod 28 so as to be integrally rotatable. An encoder 30 for measuring the inclination angle of the support frame 5 is installed on one side of the lifting plate 26. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 37 denotes a stopper handle for securing the rotation of the support 2, 38 denotes a hand pusher, and 39 denotes a brake for fixing the caster 4.

  Then, the usage aspect of the 3 rotor type pitching machine 1 which concerns on the Example comprised as mentioned above is demonstrated.

  A ball inserted from the ball supply cylinder 16 is fed into a ball throwing path 9 constituted by three inverted Y-type rotors 10 to 12. The balls are applied with rotational force all at once while being sandwiched between the urethane resin layers of the three rotors 10 to 12. In the case of this example, the rotational speeds of the rotors 10 to 12 are 285 rpm per 10 Hz of the inverters 34 to 36, and the inverter 34 of the upper central rotor 10 is 80 Hz (about 2280 rpm) in the straight of 150 km / h, The 12 inverters 35 and 36 are set to 90 Hz (about 2560 rpm) by dials 31 to 33. As a result, the ball is thrown while rotating upward, and therefore an upward force is exerted by the Magnus effect, and this force cancels the downward force due to gravity and goes straight, resulting in a pitching with elongation. Even in the case of a changing ball, since the rotational speed of the lower rotors 11 and 12 is increased with respect to the rotational speed of the upper center rotor 10, the rotational speed difference between the left and right rotors 11 and 12 is changed. The Magnus effect works effectively, and a stable pitch can be made even with a changing ball. The pitching position including the course is adjusted while controlling the vertical tilt angle and the horizontal direction by the encoders 21 and 30. A controller 40 (see FIG. 3) for controlling the rotational speed of each rotor is housed in a box 41 (see FIG. 2) behind the gantry 3.

Although the embodiment of the three-rotor pitching machine of the present invention has been described above, it can also be implemented as follows.
・ Narrow the angle between the left and right lower rollers 11 and 12 to 110 ° or less, or conversely to 125 ° or more.
-It arrange | positions in the state inclined slightly from the state of the said Example which has arrange | positioned the three rollers 10-12 in parallel with respect to the center axis line of the ball throwing path 9. FIG.
In the above embodiment, the rotational speeds of the lower two rotors 11 and 12 are set to be faster than the rotational speed of the upper one rotor 10. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the rotational speed of the upper rotor 10 is not limited to this. May be set faster than the lower side. Also in this case, since the rotational force from the lower rotors 11 and 12 is reliably applied to the ball, the pitching is stabilized.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 3 rotor type pitching machine 2 support stand 3 mount frame 4 caster 5 support frame 9 ball throwing path 10 center upper rotor 11 lower right rotor 12 lower left rotor 13-15 rotary drive device 16 ball supply cylinder 17 caster 18 rotary support shaft 19 for turning Geared motor 19a Rotating shaft 20 Crank 20a Crankshaft 21/30 Encoder 22 Portal frame 23 Support shaft 24 Roll 25 Deformation cam 26 Elevating plate 27 Height geared motor 28 Bolt-shaped screw rod 29 Manual handle 31-33 For rotating speed adjustment Dial 34 to 36 Inverter 37 Stopper handle 38 Hand pusher 39 Caster 4 fixing brake 40 Controller

Claims (3)

Three rotors are arranged in an inverted Y shape around the ball throwing direction when viewed from the front, and each rotor is equipped with a rotational drive device that controls the rotation of each rotor, and the three rotors that are sandwiched by the three rotors and throw the ball A method for setting a rotor rotation speed in a pitching machine,
A method for setting a rotor rotational speed in a pitching machine, wherein the rotational speed of both the lower left and right rotors is set to be higher than the rotational speed of the upper center rotor regardless of whether the ball is a straight ball or a changing ball .   The method for setting the rotor rotational speed in the pitching machine according to claim 1, wherein a urethane resin layer is provided on the entire circumferential surface of each rotor.   The rotors and their rotational drive devices are supported in a common support frame, and the support frame is installed on a support base so as to be able to turn horizontally, and the ball throwing direction of the support frame is vertically moved with respect to the support base. The method for setting the rotor rotation speed in the pitching machine according to claim 1, wherein the rotor rotation speed is adjustable in the direction.

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