Ball throwing machine
AssigneeCitizen Watch Co., Ltd.
InventorsTakatoshi Osaka, Katsuo Nishimura, Tadahiko Nakagiri
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A ball throwing machine for hitting out tennis balls or the like at predetermined time intervals, in which a lock cover is rotatable or slidable into engagement with a switch which is capable of making and breaking an electric current to a drive motor. Said lock cover is mounted in a position adjacent to a rotating trace of a hitting lever. In the event an object other than ball, for example, a hand, a finger or a rod, should be drawn into the interior of the machine together with the hitting lever while this lever is rotated by a motor to expand a biasing spring, the lock cover will rotate or slide to break the electric current to the motor and stop the motor immediately, thereby preventing the occurrence of injury.
Claims2
A ball throwing machine comprising:
- (a) a drive motor connected to a power source;
- (b) a reduction machanism for reducing the rotating speed of said drive motor;
- (c) a one-way clutch mechanism connected to said reduction mechanism;
- (d) a shaft for transmitting the rotating force of the motor through said clutch mechanism;
- (e) a ball hitting lever fixed to said shaft;
- (f) a spring mechanism for imparting a pivoting force to said hitting lever;
- (g) a switch for making and breaking an electric current to said motor;
- (h) a safe detecting member for detecting a foreign object;
- and
- (i) means for causing said safe detecting member to actuate said switch to break said power source upon detection of the foreign object, said safe detecting member being a lock cover which is movably positioned adjacent the rotation trace of said hitting lever.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.