US3000537A - Golf ball dispensing apparatus - Google Patents

Description

p 1961 D. SIMON 3,000,537

GOLF BALL DISPENSING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 1, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

Dave Simon ATTORNEY Sept. 19, 1961 D. SIMON 3,000,537

GOLF BALL DISPENSING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 1, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

Dave Simon AT TO RNE Y Sept. 19, 1961 Filed-Dec. 1, 1958 DL SIMON GOLF BALL DISPENSING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.

Dave Simon 'MW ATTORNEY 3,000,537 GOIE BALL DISPENSING APPARATUS Dave Super 74 Wensley Drive, Great Neck, N.Y. Filed Dec. 1, 1958, Ser. No. 777,414 10 Claims. 01. 221-7) This invention relates to dispensing apparatus and, more particularly, to novel coin-controlled apparatus for deliverymg a pre-set number of golf balls to a patron of a dllVlIlg range or the like.

Many golfers practice driving at driving ranges Where,

for a fixed fee, the golfer receives a pre-set number of balls to drive. Originally, a bucket of balls was furnished to a patron by an attendant but, with the sharp increase in labor costs, there is a demand for automatic apparatus for del1vering balls to the patron responsive to insertion of a com. However, the automatic devices so far proposed have been unsatisfactory from the standpoints of first cost, maintenance, and simplicity of operation. In accordance with the present invention, a simple and rnexpensive golf ball dispenser is provided including a housing having a side door for charging a supply of balls onto a gravity chute extending toward an end of the housing. When a coin is inserted in a coin control device, a motor is energized to drive an endless chain carrying two sets of buckets for picking up golf balls from the chute, the buckets riding along support rails. At the upper end of the conveyor, the balls are dumped by the buckets onto gravity feed chutes leading to a transversely extending gravity trough.

As each ball is discharged from a bucket, it operates a switch connected to a counter, so that the motor circuit is opened when a pre-set number of balls have been discharged into the trough. The trough delivers the balls through a side opening in the housing into a cage-type track comprising plural wires or rods secured to circumferentially spaced locations on the inner peripheries of wire or rod n'ngs having diameters in excess of that of the golf balls. This track is a gravity feed track on a side wall of the housing and delivers the balls against a stop where the patron may pick up one ball at a time.

For an understanding of the invention principles, reference is made to the following description of a typical embodiment thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawing. In the drawing:

FIGS. 1 and 2 are side elevation and top plan views,.

respectively, of the dispensing apparatus of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the coin control;

FIG. 4 is an end elevation View of the coin control at line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the coin control on the line 5--5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a transverse sectional view of the ball delivery track;

FIG. 7 is a view, similar to FIG. 1, partly broken away to illustrate internals of the apparatus;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the conveyor;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the counter switches;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the gravity feed chutes and troughs;

FIG. 11 is a somewhat schematic side elevation view of the conveyor; and

FIG. 12 is a schematic wiring diagram of the apparatus.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 7, the golf ball dispensing apparatus includes a housing 15 having side walls 16 and a peaked top wall 17. One side wall 16 has a door 18 therein by means of which golf balls 20 may be charged into the apparatus and onto the upper front end of a rearwardly and downwardly sloping chute 21 (FIG. 7). The balls 20 at the lower end of chute 21 are picked up by buckets on an endless conveyor 25 from which the balls are discharged onto a chute or slide which delivers the Patented Sept. 19, 1961 "ice balls laterally of housing 15 for discharge through an opening 22 in wall 16. The balls discharged through opening 22 fall onto a track 30 mounted on side wall 16 and sloping forwardly and downwardly. The patron picks balls 20 one at a time from a holding space 31 at the lower end of track 30.

Delivery of balls 20 to the patron is controlled by a coin device 35 shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 and 7. Coin device 35 includes side wall sections 36 and end wall section 37 hinged to one side wall 16 and overlapping the side walls 16 and rear end wall of housing 15. Internal partitions 38 in device 35 seat on peaked top wall 17 of housing 15. A side wall 41 of device 35 is hinged to the upper edge of one wall of section 36, and a combined side and top wall 42 is integral with the other side wall section 36. Elements 41 and 42 are normally locked to each other by a lock 40.

The top wall portion 43 of element 42 carries coin insertion means 44, and rear wall 45 of device 35 has a coin return 46. Side Wall 41 carries indicating lamps 47.

When a coin of the proper denomination is inserted in device 35, a motor 23 is energized to drive conveyor 25. As best seen in FIGS. 8 and 11, conveyor 25 comprises an endless chain 24 trained over sprockets 26, the upper one of which is drivingly connected to motor 23. The shafts of sprockets 26 are rotatably mounted in spaced partitions 27, 28 within casing 15.

At spaced intervals along its length, chain 24 has buckets 50 secured thereto. Each bucket 50 includes a channel section 51 embracing parallel vertical rails 52. Forked carriers 55 form part of buckets 50, arranged alternately on opposite sides of chain 24, and carriers 55 ride along vertical guide surfaces 53 having curved upper ends 54.

The balls on chute 21 roll onto a platform 56 having fingers 57 extending into the forks 55, the forks 55 straddling these fingers as buckets 50 begin their upward move-' ment. Thereby, the buckets 50, particularly carriers 55, pick up balls 20 from fingers 57.

At the upper end of conveyor 25, and as the carriers 55 begin their downward movement, the carriers straddle fingers 61 of a sloping transfer surface 60 mounted between partitions 27, 28. Transfer surface 60 has a depending vertical wall 62 (FIG. 10) secured to a flange 63 of a transversely extending trough 65 having a rear wall 64. The balls 20 are thus dumped onto ramp 60 and roll by gravity into trough 65.

As each ball 20 rolls down ramp 60, it kicks the operator 71 of a switch 70, one of which is mounted on each partition 27, 28 as best seen in FIGS. 8 and 9. Switches 70 are connected to a counter shown schematically (in FIG. 12) and, after the switches have been kicked or impulsed a pre-set number of times, motor 23 is deenergized. This results in delivery of the same pre-set number of balls 20 to track 30.

Trough 65 extends through an opening 66 in partition 28, where it connects to a second trough, which may be integral with trough 65, leading to opening 22.

The track 30, receiving balls 20 at opening 22, has a shape which may be termed an open tube. Thus, track 30 comprises elongated rods 32 extending through rings 33 (FIG. 6), having a diameter greater than that of balls 20. Rods 32 are welded or brazed to circumferentially spaced points on the coaxial rings 33. Thus, balls 20 are caged in track 30. An abutment or stop, 34, at the lower is engaged with a contact 76, connecting a green lamp 47A across conductors 77. Lamp 47A bears the legend Deposit Quarters Only.

The apparatus may be set to operate with any predetermined number of coins, for example four (4) coins. As each coin 100 is dropped into a coin chute 44 of 'device 35, it momentarily closes a switch 48. Each closure of switch 48 impulses the coil 86 of a coin meter 85 and the stepping coil 91 of an accumulator 90 having a re-set coil 92. After a pre-set number of coin engendered impulses, accumulator 90 closes switch 81 to energize re-set coil 82 of stepper 80. Stepper 8G is reset to zero to close switch 93 to energize re-set coil 92 of the accumulator (on closure of a switch 70), and to transfer switch arm 75 to engage contact 78.

Motor 23 and red lamp 47B are thus energized. Conveyor 25 starts, to lift the balls and deposit them onto ramp 65. Each time a ball trips a switch 70, a coil 96 of a ball count meter 95 is impulsed and a stepper counter coil 83 is impulsed. When the predetermined number of balls has thus been counted, stepper 80 transfers switch arm 25 to engage contact 76, deene-rgizing motor 23 and red lamp 478, and lighting green lamp 47A.

The described apparatus comprises a simple and inexpensive arrangement for delivering a pre-set number of balls 20 to space 31 each time a coin is inserted in device 35.

While a specific embodiment of the invention has been shown and described in detail to illustrate the application of the invention principles, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwise without departing from such principles.

What is claimed is:

1. Coin-controlled apparatus operable, responsive to insertion of a coin, to deliver a pre-set number of golf balls to a patron of a driving range or the like, said apparatus comprising, in combination, a relatively elongated ramp; an upwardly extending endless conveyor at the lower end of said ramp; buckets on said conveyor arranged to lift individual balls from said ramp; a driving motor for said conveyor having an energizing circuit; means operable responsive to insertion of a coin in the apparatus, to close said energizing circuit; gravity feed delivery means receiving balls from the upper end of said conveyor and extending to a ball delivery station longitudinally adjacent the upper end of said ramp; and counting means operable by balls travelling along said delivery means and effective to open the energizing circuit of said motor after a pre-set number of operations by such balls.

2. Coin-controlled apparatus operable, responsive to insertion of a coin, to deliver a pre-set number of golf balls to a patron of a driving range or the like, said apparatus comprising, in combination, a relatively elongated ramp extending longitudinally of the apparatus; an upwardly extending endless conveyor at the lower end of said ramp; buckets on said conveyor arranged to lift individual balls from said ramp; a driving motor for said conveyor having an energizing circuit; means operable, responsive to insertion of a coin in the apparatus, to close said energizing circuit; gravity feed delivery means receiving balls from the upper end of said conveyor and extending transversely and longitudinally of the apparatus to a ball delivery station longitudinally adjacent the upper end of said ramp; and counting means operable by balls travelling along said delivery means and effective to open the energizing circuit of said motor after a pre-set number of operations by such balls.

3. Coin-controlled apparatus operable, responsive to insertion of a coin, to deliver a pre-set number of golf balls to a patron of a driving range or the like, said apparatus comprising, in combination, a relatively elongated housing including opposite side walls interconnected by a top wall; a relatively elongated ramp Within said hous ing extending downwardly toward the rear end thereof; a ball charging opening in one side wall at the upper end of said ramp; an upwardly extending endless conveyor at the lower end of said ramp Within said housing; buckets on said conveyor arranged to lift individual balls from said ramp; a driving motor for said conveyor having an energizing circuit; means operable, responsive to insertion of a coin in the apparatus, to close said energizing circuit; gravity feed delivery means receiving balls from the upper end of said conveyor and extending to a ball delivery station, said delivery means including a trough extending laterally of said housing, adjacent the descending run of said conveyor, to an opening in said one side wall, and a track extending downwardly and forwardly along the outer surface of said one side wall to said delivery station; and counting means operable by balls travelling along said delivery means and effective to open the energizing circuit of said motor after a pre-set number of operations by such balls.

4. Golf ball delivery apparatus as claimed in claim 3 in which said buckets comprise outwardly projecting forked carriers, and the lower end of said ramp has finger means extending into the fork of said carriers.

5. Golf ball delivery apparatus as claimed in claim 3 in which said buckets comprise outwardly projecting forked carriers each mounted on a channel shape shoe secured to said conveyor; and guide rail means adjacent the ascending run of said carrier embraced by said shoes.

6. Golf ball delivery apparatus as claimed in claim 5 in which successive carriers are ofiset laterally in opposed directions from the associated shoes to provide two laterally spaced series of carriers; and lower end of said ramp has a pair of laterally spaced fingers each extending into the forks of a different series of carriers.

7. Golf ball delivery apparatus as claimed in claim 6 including a second ramp at the upper end of said conveyor extending rearwardly and downwardly into said trough, and having a pair of laterally spaced fingers each extending into the forks of a different series of carriers.

8. Golf ball delivery apparatus as claimed in claim 7 in which said counting means includes a pair of laterally spaced switches disposed above said second ramp and having operators tripped by balls passing down said second ramp.

9. Golf ball delivery apparatus as claimed in claim 3 in which said track comprises an elongated tubular cage.

10. Golf ball delivery apparatus as claimed in claim 3 in which said track comprises an elongated tubular cage including a plurality of elongated rods secured to circumferential spaced portions of a plurality of longitudinally spaced rings; and an abutment at the lowerend of said track.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,049,776 Staulfer et a1 Jan. 7, 1913 1,937,180 Young Nov. 28, 1933 1,946,371 Walker Feb. 6, 1934 1,952,244 Grim Mar. 27, 1934 2,159,905 M-oninger May 23, 1939 2,471,479 Coons May 31, 1949 2,520,952 -Mozel Sept. 5, 1950 2,639,919 Mozel May 26, 1953 2,649,214 Kirby et al. Aug. 18, 1953

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