Communications: electrical – Visual indication – Switchboard or panel type
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-20
2001-02-27
Hofsass, Jeffery A. (Department: 2736)
Communications: electrical
Visual indication
Switchboard or panel type
C124S078000, C473S453000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06195017
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a system and method for pitching a ball, and more particularly to a system and method for controlling ball speed and angle.
Pitching systems have a mechanism for hurling a ball, in which the speed of the ball is variable by controlling the mechanism speed and the elevation of the ball at a given distance is controlled by the varying angle at which the mechanism launches the ball. In prior systems, these control features have been implemented mechanically.
More modem systems have motor controls that can be remotely actuated to change ball speed and height. U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,653 to Kovacs, incorporated by reference, describes a system that includes a microcomputer for calculation and control of speed and angle. Speed and angle are separately controlled. U.S. Pat. No. 5,359,986 to McGrath, incorporated by reference, discloses a pitching system with a control subsystem in which the user can select a ball speed and the controls set the angle so as to send the ball across a predetermined strike zone. In this system, the ball launch angle is set dependent upon the ball speed setting.
A drawback of these systems is their complexity, both to implement and to use. Kovac' system is designed for practicing tennis. It has a very complicated user interface that makes it difficult to learn and use for the ordinary casual user of batting cages. The McGrath system attempts to simplify the situation for the casual user by reducing the choices to only ball speed, but in doing so makes the system more complicated to implement, by tying control of ball angle (or tilt) to ball speed. McGrath's system is also harder for users to control. A short or tall batter has a different from average strike zone, but the McGrath system predetermines the ball angle as a function of ball speed. McGrath tries to overcome this deficiency by building a second, tilt-override controller, with UP and DOWN control buttons. This unduly adds to the complexity of the apparatus, and adds another layer of potential confusion for the customer.
Accordingly, a better way is needed to enable users to control both ball speed and angle, or height at a batting position, without being locked into a fixed height strike zone.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is a pitching system comprising a pitching mechanism which is separately controllable as to ball speed and ball angle or tilt, a speed controller which controls speed, an UP/DOWN controller for controlling tilt angle relative to a present position, and a user control panel. The control panel includes user-actuated selectors, preferably buttons, for selecting one of multiple ball speeds and selecting independently of selected ball speed whether to change ball angle UP or DOWN to position the strike zone of the ball. The control panel further includes means for displaying to the user an estimate of the height at which the ball will cross the plate at the selected speed and angle. The displaying means preferably includes a vertical row of lamps, one of which at a time is lit to indicate ball height relative to the plate.
The control panel can further include symbology to indicate a strike zone for one or more heights of batters. In the preferred embodiment, this symbology can include pictures of two different-sized batters positioned alongside the vertical row of lights.
Associated with the displaying means is a ball height-determination logic circuit which takes the selected speed and the present tilt angle and turns on an indicator that corresponds to an estimate of a height at which the ball, launched at the selected speed and tilt angle, will cross the plate.
The height determination circuit can be implemented by a micro-controller that is programmed to turn on the proper lamp based on where the selected speed and UP/DOWN position will produce a ball trajectory across the plate. Preferably, the height determination circuit is implemented in a simple, empirical manner. An input signal indicating the selected ball speed is combined logically with an input signal indicating tilt angle (e.g., the speed and UP/DOWN signal codes sent to the elevation and speed controllers), to produce a signal that selects the appropriate indicator element to turn on. In the preferred embodiment, this is accomplished by inputting offsets for changes in selected ball speed and then incremental steps for changes for elevation. Alternatively but less preferred, output signals from the position and speed controllers, which preferably include feedback encoders, can be sent to the display micro-controller for computing a strike zone height indication. Alternatively, a simple lookup table having inputs from the speed and UP/DOWN buttons could be used for selecting (or addressing) the height indicator element to be turned on as a logical function of the selected speed and tilt angle.
The preferred technique can be implemented using discrete logic but using a micro-controller is preferred because the micro-controller can also be programmed to control other functions not germane to the invention. In the preferred embodiment, codes can be sent on a common serial line from the user control panel to the micro-controller that controls the pitching mechanism to instruct it to move UP or DOWN, causing the mechanism to tilt up or down by a predetermined increment. The same codes can be input to the micro-controller running the height indicator display to turn on an indicator lamp spaced incrementally above or below the presently lit lamp. Ball speed codes can similarly be used to signal the pitching mechanism to shift to a different speed. These signals are simultaneously input to the micro-controller running the height indicator display to turn on a lamp in a higher or lower indicator range, e.g., three lamps above the currently lit lamp if speed is increased by one step.
The invention also includes a simplified method of user operation of a batting cage. The batter selects one of multiple speeds for the ball to cross a batting position, i.e., the plate, preferably as part of a startup sequence for the batting cage. The control panel displays an indication of the estimated height at which the ball will cross the plate for a given tilt angle at which the pitching apparatus is positioned (typically the last position it was in when used before, but alternatively a default, e.g., middle, position). The batter then presses the UP or DOWN button to reposition the tilt angle of the pitching apparatus independently of speed until the indication of ball height is at a desired level for that batter. Or, the batter can change the selected speed again, e.g., from fast to slow speed. The indicator lamps give a prompt feedback to the user of selected changes, even if the tilt and speed control coupled to the pitching mechanism requires a few seconds to reset. A procedure can also be provided to accelerate bringing the elevation indication quickly back into the indicator range when the user changes from one ball speed to another. Once the batter is satisfied with the speed and height settings, the batter can then actuate a control that starts the machine pitching balls. The batter need not waste balls, or an entire sequence of balls, to select a preferred choice of ball speed and height. The batter can also change ball height by pressing the UP or DOWN button during a pitching sequence, to alter the strike zone through which balls are pitched.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4197827 (1980-04-01), Smith
patent: 4461477 (1984-07-01), Stewart
patent: 4834060 (1989-05-01), Greene
patent: 5125653 (1992-06-01), Kovacs
patent: 5359986 (1994-11-01), Magrath, III
patent: 5460363 (1995-10-01), Tomer
patent: 5464208 (1995-11-01), Pierce
patent: 4021282A1 (1991-10-01), None
patent: 73 08342 (1973-03-01), None
Hall Richard E.
Smith Tommy L.
Automated Batting Cages
Hofsass Jeffery A.
Marger & Johnson & McCollom, P.C.
Tweel , Jr. John
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