Practice device for a baseball pitcher

• US 20040180736A1
• Filed: 03/10/2003
• Published: 09/16/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ramendra Nath Majumdar
• Original Assignee: Ramendra Nath Majumdar
• Inventors: Majumdar, Ramendra Nath
• Granted Patent: US 6,837,809 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 473/454
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2069/0006 for pitching
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2210/50 Size reducing arrangements for stowing or transport
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/0002 for baseball

Abstract

A passive pitching target comprises a portable device including a resilient rectangular laminar backstop indentable by a baseball pitched at a velocity of 100 km/hr; the target is higher than it is wide, and rests with its base supported on the ground; one planar face of the backstop is fully covered with a laminar resilient pad of synthetic resinous material having a specified resilience to ensure that a pitched baseball striking the target'"'"'s planar surface is returned to the pitcher at a location of choice, either less than one-half the distance from where the pitch was thrown, to mimic a “bunt”, or, in the general vicinity of the location from where the ball was pitched; the pad is dimensioned for height and width the same as the backstop and is removably affixed in contact with the face of the backboard; the resilient pad, in turn is fully covered with a removably affixed synthetic resinous sheet of material overlying the resilient pad and in intimate contact therewith, the target forming an indentable laminate; a strike zone is visually identified on or through the overlying sheet depending upon whether the sheet is transparent.

Claims

1. A passive pitching device suitable for use by a pitcher pitching a baseball, comprising,

a portable target to which is hingedly connected a support member;

the target including a rectangular free-standing laminate including a pitch-indentable laminar backstop having front and rear faces, a resilient pad and a cover sheet;

the target having height and width dimensions at least 20% greater than corresponding dimensions of a chosen strike zone and angularly disposed relative to the ground, with the laminate'"'"'s lower edge in contact with the ground, and no dimension of the laminate greater than about 1.52 meters (60 ins);

the support member being pivotably secured to the rear of the target near the top thereof, including a pair of legs terminal portions of which, when folded against the backstop fail to extend beyond the lower edge thereof, the legs adapted to contact the ground at locations spaced apart from each other and spaced apart from each lower corner of the target;

the backstop being of a resilient flexible rectangle of man-made material, momentarily pitch-indentable by a baseball at a velocity of 100 km/hr;

the backstop'"'"'s exposed front face having removably secured thereto a resilient pad having the same height and width dimensions as the backstop, the pad'"'"'s resilience being measured as compressive pressure required to make an indentation 25% of the thickness of the pad, the pressure being in the range from 6.89-344.5 KPa (1-50 psi) and thickness in the range from about 0.2 cm to about 4 cm;

the resilient pad'"'"'s exposed face being covered with a synthetic resinous cover sheet having a thickness in the range from 254 μ

m to 1524 μ

m (10 mils to 60 mils), the cover sheet overlying the resilient pad in surface-to-surface contact with a predetermined tension so as to directly transfer force of the baseball impacting the cover sheet to the resilient pad and backstop;

the cover sheet having a visually identifiable strike zone thereon; and

,

the legs of the support member being adjusted to present the exposed face of the cover sheet of the target at an obtuse angle in the range from about 100°

to about 140°

;

whereby a baseball pitched against the target at a velocity of about 100 km/hr (62 mph) is returned to a desired location in the range from about 2 m (6.5 ft) to about 15 m (49 fit) from the target without the target being moved from its location on the ground.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the support member includes a pair of inextensible legs individually hinged to the backstop near the top thereof with hinges proximately disposed relative to each side of the backstop.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein the strike zone is defined by first and second pairs of elongate, flexible strips, one pair horizontal and substantially the same length, and one pair vertical and substantially the same length, the strips being adhesively secured to the face of the cover sheet to define a rectangular strike zone.

4. The device of claim 2 wherein the resilient pad is a composite pad comprising a central rectangular pad having the dimensions of a chosen strike zone, and a peripheral pad having a central opening into which the central pad is snugly fitted, the peripheral pad having a resilience different from that of the central pad.

5. The device of claim 4 wherein the peripheral pad has a resilience lower than that of the central pad.

6. The device of claim 2 wherein the backstop has a flexural modulus determined by ASTM D-790 in the range from about 60 to 11,000 MPa and a thickness less than 0.5 cm (0.2″

);

the resilient pad is a homogeneous closed cell or open cell foam of an elastomer and has a hardness in the range from about Shore OO 15 to 95 (ASTM D-2240).

7. The device of claim 6 wherein first and second strike zones are identified on the cover sheet, the upper portion of the second strike zone and the lower portion of the first strike zone overlapping one another, with strips defining the overlap, each strike zone being visually defined by different strips, one set of strips differentiating a first strike zone from a second, so as to easily distinguish a “

strike”

or a “

ball”

for batters of different heights.

8. The device of claim 1 having a weight in the range from 5-15 Kg (11-33 lb).

9. A method for making a portable target for use as a passive pitching device by a pitcher pitching a baseball, comprising,

removably securing a resilient pad to a resilient, flexible, pitch-indentable laminar backstop of man-made material having front and rear faces, having the same height and width dimensions as the backstop, the pad'"'"'s resilience being measured as compressive pressure required to make an indentation 25% of the thickness of the pad, the pressure being in the range from 6.89-344.5 KPa (1-50 psi) and thickness in the range from about 0.2 cm to about 4 cm, the backstop being momentarily pitch-indentable by a baseball at a velocity of 100 km/hr;

covering the resilient pad with a resilient synthetic resinous cover sheet and folding margins of the cover sheet around the backstop'"'"'s edges to form a rectangular free-standing laminate having height and width dimensions at least 20% greater than corresponding dimensions of a chosen strike zone and no dimension of the laminate greater than about 1.52 meters (60 ins), the cover sheet having a thickness in the range from 10 mils to 60 mils, the cover sheet overlying the resilient pad in surface-to-surface contact with a predetermined tension so as to directly, and the cover sheet having a visually identifiable strike zone thereon;

pivotably connecting a support member to the target near the top thereof, the support member including a pair of legs terminal portions of which, when folded against the backstop fail to extend beyond the lower edge thereof, the legs adapted to contact the ground at locations spaced apart from each other and spaced apart from each lower corner of the target;

disposing the target'"'"'s face at an angle relative to the ground, placing the laminate'"'"'s lower edge in contact with the ground and adjusting the legs to present the exposed face of the cover sheet of the target at an obtuse angle in the range from about 100°

to about 140°

;

whereby a baseball pitched against the target at a velocity of about 100 km/hr (62 mph) is returned to a desired location in the range from about 2 m (6.5 ft) to about 15 m (49 ft) from the target without the target being moved from its location on the ground.