EP0213195B1 - Process and device for the aimed shooting of soccer balls - Google Patents

Abstract

The device for the aimed shooting of soccer balls involves a striking arm (8) connected to a flywheel effect body (7), both being driven horizontally in rotary motion outside the starting position of the ball (20) by a drive motor (9). The striking arm (8) is moved in its rotating state into the shooting trajectory of the ball (20) shortly before the ball (20) is struck, and in this way the ball is accelerated.

Description

The invention relates to a method for the directional shooting of soccer balls according to the preamble of claim 1, and to an apparatus for performing such a method.

• eines Nockenantriebes
• zusammen mit einem Fußball längs einer Kreisbahn beschleunigt. Die Endstellung des Schlagarmes nach erfolgtem Schuß wird durch einen Dämpfer bestimmt, der gleichzeitig auch im Mechanismus und Schlagarm verbleibende Bewegungsenergie aufnimmt. Das bekannte Gerät arbeitet zwar genau und zuverlässig, erwies sich in der Praxis jedoch als relativ schwer (300 bis 400 kg), wodurch seine Einsatzmöglichkeiten deutlich eingeschränkt werden. Darüberhinaus konnte beim Einsatz des Geräts beim Spieler auch eine gewisse Monotonie aufkommen, da der Ball im wesentlichen immer in gleicher Art abgeschossen wurde bzw. beim Spieler ankam. Wollte die Person, die das Gerät betreute, die Richtung der Wurfbahn des Balles ändern, so konnte der Spieler durch die entsprechenden Manipulationen am Gerät die Änderung sofort erkennen, bevor der Ball überhaupt abgeschossen wurde, was die Nützlichkeit des Geräts zum Training stark herabsetzt.

Such prior art is described for example in DE-C-2 651 335. Each soccer ball is brought from a ball magazine into a starting position. Then a beating arm becomes after engagement

• a cam drive
• accelerated along a circular path with a soccer ball. The end position of the striking arm after the shot has been fired is determined by a damper which at the same time also absorbs kinetic energy remaining in the mechanism and striking arm. The known device works precisely and reliably, but has proven to be relatively heavy in practice (300 to 400 kg), which significantly limits its possible uses. In addition, a certain monotony could arise when using the device for the player, since the ball was essentially always shot in the same way or arrived at the player. If the person who was in charge of the device wanted to change the direction of the ball's trajectory, the player could use the corresponding manipulations to recognize the change immediately before the ball was even fired, which greatly reduces the usefulness of the device for training.

From the document FR-A-2 165 198 a device is known in which a ball is similarly accelerated from a holder along a guide by means of a striking arm moved along a circular path. The shooting direction of the ball can be adjusted automatically in this device, but this device also does not have sufficient variation options to enable use for realistic training.

Proceeding from this, the object of the invention is to develop an improved ball shooting method which allows such different game variations that the ball behavior is as realistic as possible without having to forego a precise, preselectable firing direction and firing range. The aim of the invention is also to create a new ball-shooting device with a particularly light construction, with which the caring person - who does not need to have any qualifications - can simulate the most realistic ball behavior possible.

This object is achieved in a generic method according to the characterizing features of claim 1 and / or claim 6. In a generic device, this object is achieved according to the characterizing part of claim 7. Advantageous developments of the invention are characterized in the subclaims.

According to the invention, a varied ball behavior is achieved in that the ball holder is adjusted or adjusted around a pivot point in order to produce a spin ball (ie a swirl-provided ball shot) that can be selected in its direction and / or width, the turning radius being essentially the turning radius corresponds to the circular path of the striking arm. The direction of the force normal of the striking arm, which runs through the center of the ball, coincides with the desired firing direction. When using this method, the ball can have a twist, i.e. a movement about its own axis, by only slightly moving the ball holder, which cannot be easily recognized by the intended player, but especially remains unnoticed at the time of the shot thereby embossing a curved (arc-shaped) throwing track and thereby ensuring surprises desired in a training. These surprises are fully under the control of the device operator.

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the ball holder is rotated or adjusted about a fulcrum in order to produce a spin ball that can be selected in the firing direction and which is made up of the sum of a ball radius and a radius of the corresponding ball shape of the racket (or the radius of a spherical striking head). is moved parallel and in the direction of launch.

This creates very precise physical and geometric boundary conditions that lead to an improvement in the method.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the height of the ball holder is adjusted in order to adjust the inclination of the firing direction (firing angle), so that the impact point on the ball can be selected accordingly. Since the invention allows a lightweight construction of the device, it is very expedient to determine the horizontal shot orientation by turning off the entire device. Thus, each shot can be selected and executed in a very simple manner, both in the direction, in the range and as a spin ball.

For the setting of the throwing distance, the rotational speed of the striking arm is within a range of 100 to 400 rpm. suitably chosen so that a corresponding acceleration is impressed on the ball.

A further, advantageous embodiment of the invention also consists in that, in order to produce an effet ball at a distance from the ball holder, swirl flaps are laterally brought into contact with the ball's trajectory, by touching which the passing ball receives the desired swirl.

The invention further relates to a device for the directional shooting of soccer balls, in which the ball accelerates from a starting position in a holder by means of a striking arm moving along a circular path is released from the bracket after the impact arm strikes the ball. According to the invention, it is provided that the striking arm forms a striking unit together with a flywheel mass and can be set into a rotary movement with the flywheel mass, in which it moves from a first, neutral position, in which it does not touch the football in the starting position, into a second active striking position is pivotable, in which it hits the ball as it passes and shoots it, after which it is folded back into its first neutral position before the end of the following round.

The striking arm and the flywheel now form a rotating unit, so the striking arm can be designed accordingly lightly. The striking arm must be pivoted into a striking position during the rotary movement, for which only a relatively small force is required. From the impact, an acceleration force directed through the center of the ball is impressed on the ball, which remains effective along an acceleration distance. In the event of an immediate impact, the ball, which is fully inflated with air, is locally pushed in a little by the striking arm, which immediately results in a reaction game between the elasticity of the ball and the movement of the striking arm. Because of its elasticity, the ball lifts off the striking arm after a certain common distance and flies freely in the preselected launch direction, while the striking arm immediately moves out of the direction of the shot.

The device according to the invention can e.g. designed in the manner of a large hand lawn mower and also handled accordingly. In this way, a light machine can be created that can be driven on wheels, possibly driven by a motor, and in particular has a very high degree of mobility. The drive can be either electrical (e.g. via a battery) or with a petrol engine.

In an advantageous development of the invention, the ball holder is designed to be pivotable about a vertical axis of rotation, as a result of which different points of impact of the striking arm on the ball can be brought about for the production of effet balls. The vertical axis of rotation is placed in the vicinity of the axis of rotation of the flywheel, i.e. in the middle of the whole device.

The striking arm preferably has a spherical section in the region of the striking head, which can also be designed in the form of a reduced detail of a car tire.

In a further advantageous further development idea, the beater arm, which is movable in a horizontal plane, can be rotated into a firing position by pivoting about an axis, such that a co-rotating cam attached to the axis, via a run-up curve firmly attached to the device, beats the beater arm into a horizontal plane immediately after each stroke pressed back and blocked against the flywheel by a releasable bolt.

Effet balls can also be produced with the device if, at a distance of 1 to 2 football diameters from the ball holder in the firing direction, a ball firing frame with sliding or swivel flaps that can be optionally switched on from at least two sides is used. The ball is knocked away from the ball holder by the striking arm; But before he leaves the machine, he flies through the ball-through frame and touches the flap protruding into his trajectory on the selected side. This gives the ball a twist due to the one-sided rubbing against the flap, which, depending on the strength of the rubbing, triggers a correspondingly strong twist and thus the effect of the spin ball. Although the generation of the shot and the spin ball are theoretically decoupled in this embodiment, it has nevertheless been shown that the joint interaction of the inventive generation of the blow in a space as small as possible, in combination with the use of a frame-like swirl generator, is a particularly successful solution of the Invention underlying object enables. This applies particularly to the small dimensions of the device. If the flywheel rotates around a horizontal axis, i.e. in a vertical plane, the device becomes particularly narrow and can even be moved in and out through normal doors.

• Fig. 1 eine perspektivische Prinzip-Darstellung einer erfindungsgemässen Vorrichtung mit teilweise unterbrochenem Gehäuse;
• Fig. 2 verschiedene Schusspositionen für einen Effet-Ball, sowie
• Fig. 3 ein zweites Ausführungsbeispiel einer erfindungsgemässen Vorrichtung in perspektivischer Prinzip-Darstellung.

In the following, the invention will now be explained in more detail with the aid of design ideas. Show it

• Figure 1 is a perspective schematic representation of a device according to the invention with a partially interrupted housing.
• Fig. 2 different shot positions for a spin ball, as well
• Fig. 3 shows a second embodiment of an inventive device in a perspective schematic representation.

First, reference is made to FIG. 1. The device shown there is constructed similar to a mobile lawnmower from a chassis 1, a set of two wheels 2, a drawbar 3 firmly connected to the chassis 1, two handles 4 and 4 ', a protective housing 5 and a ball magazine 6.

The two movable core kits of the device are highlighted for easier understanding of the mode of operation. For this purpose, a first core assembly, consisting of a flywheel 7, a blow bar 8 and a drive motor 9, is illustrated with dots, while the second core assembly (for a ball holder and ball positioning 10) is marked with a dashed line. The ball holder and positioning 10 has the following structure:

A pivot arm 11 is fixed via a pivot bearing 12 and a support 13 and a retaining bracket 14 to a frame 15, which is part of the chassis les 1 is connected. The pivot arm 11 is also attached via an extension tube 16 with a vertical adjustment support 17 via a pivot pin 18 and two tabs 19.

The ball holder and positioning 10 are assigned two basic functions: a height adjustment and a lateral adjustment. For the positioning of a soccer ball 20 in the vertical direction, a switching handle 21 is attached to the adjustment support 17, which can be inserted into corresponding bores 23 of a bracket 24 in direct connection with a locking bolt 22. A cable pull 25 is pulled or relaxed by a corresponding pivoting movement (arrow 26). By pulling and releasing the cable 25, a ball holder 27 on a slide support 28 is moved vertically upwards or downwards. The downward movement can also take place due to the weight of the ball holder 27 and the upward movement can be supported by a spring. The ball holder 27 also has three finger-like thin metal springs 29, which on the one hand hold the ball 20 in position with slight pressure and on the other hand are intended to prevent jumping when a new ball 20 'etc. falls into it.

A brake handle 31 is attached to a U-shaped leg 30 of the adjustment support 17 and is intended to prevent rotation of the pivot arm 11 via a cable pull (not shown) except after the brake handle 31 has been released intentionally. If the brake handle 31 is not released or tightened, the pivot arm 11 and also the ball holder 27 remain rigidly fixed with respect to the frame 15 or with respect to the chassis 1.

The lateral adjustment of the ball holder 10 serves to produce an effet ball and is described further below in connection with FIG. 2. A normal straight shot is created in the middle position. The direction change of the straight shot is achieved by turning the whole unit.

A switch button 32 or 33, which act directly on the corresponding control of a control box 34, is attached to the adjustment support 17 or to the leg 30. These switch buttons are therefore designed twice so that a ball shot is not triggered by unauthorized persons or unintentionally, because both buttons must be pressed for each shot.

The flywheel 7 is attached to a shaft 35 with an axis 36, which is arranged at a distance "X" to a corresponding axis 37 of the pivot bearing 12 on the frame 15. The flywheel 7 is thus rotated around a center offset to the movement of the ball holder 27, so that different positions of the ball 20 can be adjusted relative to the impact bar 8.

The striking bar 8 has a spherical section 38 on the outer striking end, on which the point of impact to the ball results. The blow bar 8 is firmly welded to an axis of rotation 39 at its inner end, so that the axis of rotation 39 and the blow bar 8 carry out a common rotary movement in accordance with arrow 40. In the position shown, the striking bar 8 is in its active striking position immediately before striking the ball 20, the flywheel 7 with the striking bar 8 in the direction of the arrow 41 at an infinitely variable speed from 0 to 500, preferably from 100 to 400 Revolutions per minute can be driven via the motor 9 (depending on the setting). The desired speed can be set on the control box 34; the overdrive takes place via a belt 42 and a pulley 43 which is wedged on the shaft 35.

The axis of rotation 39 is held on the flywheel 7 with the impact bar 8 via two bearing points 44 and has at the inner end a cam 45 which runs against a curve 46 which is welded to the chassis 1 in the region of the circle of rotation of the cam 45.

The distances between the cam 45 and the curve 46 on the one hand and between the ball section 38 of the blow bar 8 and the ball 20 on the other hand are selected such that the cam 45 only touches the curve 46 when the ball 20 is shot and is no longer in contact with the ball section 38 . Because with cam 45 and curve 46, the blow bar 8 is pressed into the rotating plane of the flywheel 7 and remains there until a command is given for a new shot.

The blocking of the blow bar 8 in the horizontal idle position is ensured by a nose of the cam 45 and a bolt 49 which is pulled into the holding position by a spring 50. As soon as the cam 45 has made a 90 ° rotation on the curve 46, the bolt 49 prevents the impact bar 8 from springing back. At the same time, a strong tension spring 51 is tensioned with the rotary movement of the cam 45. Via the control box 34, a trigger bolt 48 can be pressed down by means of an electromagnetic coil 47, so that after a corresponding time delay the latch 49 is pushed away, the tension force of the tension spring 51 is released and the blow bar is switched from its inactive, neutral freewheeling position to the active striking position. Approximately the time of half a circumferential movement of the flywheel 7 is available for the movement into the striking position.

It has been shown that the ball magazine with a track 52 corresponds to a ball track for children very useful. The balls move completely by gravity on the inclined path. So that the balls fall into the holder exactly the same in the position of the ball holder 27 shown, the last section 53 of the track is fastened to the pivot arm 11 and therefore moves with the movement of the ball holder 27. Rolling the ball 20 "" into the position of the ball 20 '"does not cause any problems due to the very small displacement of the last part 53 relative to the fixed track 52. A sufficiently large number of footballs can be stored and found in the ball magazine 6 in this way by itself Way into the ball holder 27. The second last ball in FIG. 1, the ball 20 ', is stopped by the ball 20, which is already in the ball holder 27. The firing movement of the ball 20 is so rapid that, due to the inertial and frictional forces of the balls stacked in front of it, the firing by the balls above it is not negatively influenced. The striking arm 8 or the ball section 38 remain on the ball over a certain distance, at least so long that the ball 20 is no longer in contact with the ball 20 'when flying away freely. The self-following ball does not disturb the direction or strength of the ball shot in any way.

FIG. 2 schematically shows the geometrical situation for a spin ball, parts which correspond to parts from FIG. 1 being provided with the same reference numerals as in FIG. 1.

2 shows a situation in which the ball 20 is in contact with the ball section 38. This is an idealized representation, which arises both when the striker 8 and the ball 20 are contacted for the first and last time. With the different ball positions 20, 20a, and 20b, different starting situations for different spin balls are shown. The ball 20 gives e.g. according to arrow 60 a spin ball to the right and the ball 20a a normal straight shot according to arrow 61.

A spin ball is created by simultaneously twisting and rotating the ball while it is accelerating around its own center. The main acceleration is, for example, for ball 20 in the direction of arrow 60, that is, it runs in the direction of the straight line through center or center of gravity M of ball 20 and point of impact B between ball 20 and ball section 38.

However, since the striking bar 8 follows the ball 20 on a certain acceleration path, in addition to the main direction of movement (arrow 60) there is also a change in path perpendicular thereto, which is designated by "X" in FIG. 2.

In the invention, the ball is free during acceleration, so that the movement component X, due to friction, is forced on the ball as a swirl component. It has been shown that a spherical shape or a shape corresponding to a reduced section from a car tire gives the best results both for a straight shot and for spin balls. In contrast, a sharp edge or surface would only allow a very limited variation of the shots.

In particular, the best conditions were created when the turning radius of the ball in relation to the point of impact B of the ball section 38 or the flywheel 7 corresponds to the adjustment radius between the axis 37 and the center of the ball 20, and also when the two axes 36 and 37 about that Dimension of a ball diameter and a ball section diameter are shifted together. Once this geometry has been determined, the optimal launch sector can easily be determined on the device itself. These measures allow in particular a shortening of the turning circle of the blow bar 8 or the flywheel 7, which also leads to a significant reduction in the dimension of the device and thus to a weight saving.

However, what seems to have been solved particularly well with the new invention is the surprisingly good accuracy of the spin balls, which do not fly anywhere, but fly in the same direction as a straight shot, the ball only making an unexpected turn in the last part of the trajectory or takes on a new arch shape.

In the following, reference is now made to FIG. 3. The structure of the device shown there corresponds in many parts to that of the device from FIG. 1, which is why only different parts have been given different reference numerals.

In Fig. 3, the flywheel 7 is mounted on a horizontal axis 70 so that it moves in a vertical plane.

All mechanical and electrical control elements correspond in their mode of operation to the example from FIG. 1.

A ball holder 71 is rotatably supported on a tilting frame 72 on the horizontal axis 70. The ball holder 71 is raised and lowered by means of a cable pull or a controllable cylinder 73, so that the ball 20 with the ball holder 71 can be adjusted to different heights in relation to the blow bar 8. The successful firing of a ball 20 is recorded with a lever mechanism 74 which can be actuated by the ball 20 to coordinate the entire movement sequence. Fundamentally different than in FIG. 1, however, spin balls are produced in FIG. 3. In the shooting direction (arrow 75) in front of the ball holder 71 there is a ball-through frame 76, which is equipped on two sides with an insertable, elastic flap 77 and 78, respectively. Depending on the side to which the effet ball is to be deflected, the corresponding door 77 or 78 is pushed in by moving an inlet frame 79 via a cable pull or a displacement motor 80 such that the ball travels the corresponding flap 77 or 78 grazes on the side and thus receives the desired twist. The insert frame 79 itself is mounted on a link 81 which, like the ball holder 71, is firmly connected to the tilting frame 72. This has the particular advantage that the free opening 82 of the insert frame 79 can be selected to be small because it is always moved in the direction of the shot and also pivoted. If you want to change the shot direction in the horizontal direction, the entire device on the wheels 2 is rotated accordingly. The wheels 2, like all other mechanical elements, are attached to a frame 15. The adjustment of the vertical firing direction is, as explained, over a cable or cylinder 73 and the tilting frame 72 enables and can be done for the operator exactly the same as in FIG. 1. For protection against environmental influences as well as for the safety of the caring persons, a covering hood 83 is indicated for the machine, which covers the entire upper side. The advantage of the solution according to FIG. 3 is that the machine can be built 70 to 80 cm wide, that is, it can be guided through all normal room doors. It makes sense to design the ball magazine as a track 52 as in FIG. 1. A movable track piece 84, which at the same time carries the ball holder 71, is connected to the tilting frame 72 via a tab 85 for free tilting movement, but is separated from the track 52, and is formed or bent so that those waiting on the track piece 84 Balls are not disturbed by the movement of the blow bar 8. It is of course possible that the solution according to FIG. 1 can also be equipped with a ball-through frame 76, in which case the pivot arm 11 can then be omitted.

Claims (13)

1. A method for the aimed shooting of footballs, wherein the ball is accelerated from an initial launching position in a holder over a distance of acceleration by means of a striking arm which is moved along a circular orbit, and then released, characterized in that at the end of the distance of acceleration, the direction of the force normal of the acceleration arm, which direction passes through the ball center and through the impact point, coincides with the desired launching direction, and in that to achieve a ball shot the launching direction of which is selectable and having a spin, the holder is adjusted around a center of rotation, the rotational radius of the holder substantially corresponding to the rotational radius of the circular orbit of the striking arm.

2. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the holder is displaced around a center of rotation which is parallelly displaced by the sum of one ball radius plus one radius of the spherical sector of the striking bar in the launching direction.

3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that for adjustment of the inclination of the launching direction, respectively of the launching elevation, the height of the ball holder is adjusted and thus, the point of impact upon the ball is correspondingly shifted.

4. A method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that for adjustment of the horizontal alignment of the shot, the entire device is twisted as an unit while supported on wheels.

5. A method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the throwing range is selected by adjusting the rotational speed of the striking arm within a range of 100 to 400 rotations per minute.

6. A method for the aimed shooting of footballs, wherein the ball is accelerated from an initial launching position in a holder over a distance of acceleration by means of a striking arm which is moved along a circular orbit, and then released, characterized in that at the end of the distance of acceleration, the direction of the force normal to the acceleration arm, which direction passes through the ball center and through the impact point, coincides with the desired launching direction, and in that to achieve a spinning ball shot, deflecting or twisting flaps are approached to the trajectory of the ball at a distance after the launching point thereof.

7. A device for the aimed shooting of footballs, wherein a ball (20) is capable of being accelerated from an initial launching position in a ball holder (27) over a distance of acceleration by means of a striking bar (8) which is moved along a circular orbit, and wherein said ball (20) is released from the ball holder (27) after the impact of the striking bar (8) thereupon, directed to carrying out the method according to one of the preceding claims, and characterized in that the striking bar (8) forms a striking unit together with a fly-mass (7) and is capable of being set into a rotational movement with said fly-mass, during which it is capable of being swiveled from a first neutral position wherein it does not touch the ball (20) in its initial launching position, to a second active striking position wherein it hits the ball (20) in its initial launching position while passing, and launches it, whereafter it is adapted to be returned to its first neutral position before the following cycle.

8. A device according to claim 7, characterized in that the fly-mass (7) is rotatably supported in a horizontal plane around a vertical axis (36).

9. A device according to claims 7 or 8, characterized in that the ball holder (27) is adapted to be swiveled around a vertical rotational axis (70).

10. A device according to claim 7, characterized in that the fly-mass (7) is rotatably supported in a vertical plane around a horizontal axis (70).

11. A device according to claims 7, 8, or 10, characterized in that a ball launching frame (76) having flaps (77 resp. 78) which may be inserted from at least two sides, is disposed at a distance from the ball holder (27).

12. A device according to claim 11, characterized in that the flaps are made of a resilient material.

13. A device according to claim 7, characterized in that the striking bar (8) is provided with a striking head which is shaped as a spherical sector (38) or in the form of a reduced scale car tyre.

Images