User:Eric Paul
From Bill Goodwine's Wiki
US Patent - 24 January 2011
- US Patent 4784107: Ball Pitching System
- Issued on November 15, 1988
- This invention is a pneumatic baseball pitching device. The design is intended to benefit individuals who wish to practice baseball on their own out in an open field. It is intended for those who might not have access to batting cage facilities and do not have someone else who can help to load balls into the dispenser. It can be powered by either a 120 volt AC source or a 12 volt DC source. This allows the machine to operate in remote areas where no AC source is available. The example that the inventor recommends is a car battery. The pitching arm is controlled by air pressure. An air compressor is powered by the DC current to store air pressure. The device loads automatically after each throw. I chose this patent because I am an avid baseball player and fan. I have used a variety of different pitching machines in the past. This particular design appealed to me because it is different from the popular design today which uses rotating disks. The use of pneumatic power is an interesting concept. It will be interesting to compare this pitching machine with the many other devices invented in the 80s and today. There is a wide variety of types of pitching machines which all use different mechanisms to throw the ball. I found this patent browsing through patenstorm.com[1]
Patent Analysis - 28 January 2011
- Discussion of References
- US Patent 4784107, which was issued on 15 NOV 1988, describes the invention of a portable, pneumatically powered pitching machine. A small DC powered air compressor is used to supply compressed air to the throwing arm. After the air pressure builds up, it is discharged into the cylinder throwing arm causing the arm to rotate forward and jettison the ball. The arm is then pulled back to its original position by a spring where it presses down on a lever to release a baseball from the chute. The ball rolls down into a basket on the arm, and the machine is ready to throw another ball once the air pressure has reached its desired amount.
- US Patent 4995371, which was issued on 26 FEB 1991, describes a portable, mechanically powered pitching machine. A motor driven by a DC power source is used to crank the throwing arm down into the ready position. As the throwing arm goes down, it, also, presses on a lever which releases a ball from the chute and loads it into the basket on the arm. The arm is then released and it is rotated forward by two springs. The arm is then cranked back by the motor, readying it to throw another ball.
- US Patent 4995371: Ball Throwing Machine
- Issued: 26 FEB 1991
- The motor driven pitching machine bears many similarities to the pneumatically powered pitching machine, the pneumatic pitching machine having been designed first. Both machines are marketed as portable pieces of equipment which automatically reload and throw. This makes them easy to transport and operate as they do not require an additional person to control the machine. The first striking similarity is the ball chute which stores the baseballs before they are loaded into the throwing arm. Just like the pneumatic machine, the chute for the motorized machine operates on the principle of gravity. For both machines, as the lever is pressed, a ball is released and driven by gravity down into the basket of the throwing arm.
- The machines are also similar in their use of springs. The pneumatic machine uses springs to return the arm to its loaded position. The motorized machine uses the springs to power the arm forward. While the two machines use springs for opposite purposes, they both depend upon the force of the springs to operate the machinery. The two machines are also powered by the same source. The pneumatic device claimed to be novel in its use of DC power to control the air compressor. This enables the machine to be used anywhere and not just near an AC power source. The motorized machine also makes use of a DC power source to control the motor.
- Under the decision made in the Hotchkiss case, the motorized machine would not be a patentable device. It makes use of many of the similar mechanisms on the pneumatic devices including the ball chute, springs, the throwing arm, and the DC power source. The difference between the two machines is that one is controlled by air pressure while the other is driven by a motorized mechanism. The Hotchkiss case determined that an invention is only patentable if it requires, “more ingenuity and skill…than were possessed by an ordinary mechanic acquainted with the business.” While the mechanism is an interesting device for throwing the ball, it is nothing that a regular mechanical engineer could not develop himself.
- Additionally, under the A&P case the motorized machine patent would be invalid as it makes use of many similar parts from the pneumatic machine. The new device uses all of the same parts besides the air compressor, choosing to power it mechanically instead of pneumatically. In the A&P case, Justice Jackson stated, “two and two have been added together, and still they make only four.” Similarly, the parts from the pneumatic machine have been rearranged to accomplish the same goal as the mechanical device.
- This new machine, however, would satisfy the non-obvious requirement of the Lyon case. If the motorized machine is more capable than the pneumatic machine, and it was not previously designed by any other engineer in this field, then it was not an obvious discovery. Otherwise, different companies would have already created the device.
