Mechanical guns and projectors – Fluid pressure – Applied to intermediate projectile-engaging member
Patent
1975-06-06
1977-01-25
Pinkham, Richard C.
Mechanical guns and projectors
Fluid pressure
Applied to intermediate projectile-engaging member
124 16, 124 41R, 124 50, 124 32, 251 48, 124 1, F41B 1100
Patent
active
040045676
ABSTRACT:
A compact pneumatically powered apparatus for automatically propelling game balls, especially tennis balls and the like intended to be stroked by a hand held racket or other implement, for training players in the proper return of the simulated ball action. Each ball is ejected from the apparatus with a combination of forward or straight-line acceleration together with a predetermined amount of ball spin to closely approximate the intentional spin placed on tennis balls when stroked obliquely by a tennis racket. This is achieved in the apparatus by a mechanism for flexing an elongate pliable member, such as a flexible belt, between an initial slackened looped condition and a straightened tensioned condition. The tennis balls are successively fed into a launching position contacting a surface portion of the slackened, looped belt that faces generally forwardly toward the direction of ball propulsion and is initially rearwardly of the final orientation of the tensioned belt. After positioning the ball, a tensioning arm connected to one end of the slackened belt is actuated to apply an abrupt tensioning force to the belt. The belt tensioning arm is powered by a pneumatic cylinder. The device is portable and is powered by reusable pressurized air storage tanks which may be hand carried onto the court, utilized indoors or outdoors and operated where electrical power is unavailable.
REFERENCES:
patent: 1156047 (1915-10-01), Behrend
patent: 2700379 (1955-01-01), Brigati
patent: 3111314 (1963-11-01), Topper
Browne William R.
Pinkham Richard C.
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