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The present invention relates to a wearable appliance for training baseball players in executing the proper swing of the bat when batting.
The effective swing of a baseball bat requires coordination of the arms and the body in order to deliver maximum power with the bat as it meets the baseball. A proficient swing also positions the batter's head in a position where the batter is best able to visualize the ball as it passes from the pitcher to the batting zone keeping it in sight as the ball meets the bat. A large number of devices and machines have been developed to aid in the training of batters, but none of these purpose to discipline the batter's reflexes to coordinate movement of the arms with a power transferring rotation of the hips and upper body. Illustrative of the patents that teach body wearable apparatus for batting improvement are the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,704,856 to Morse discloses a batter's training device that elastically interconnects the leading leg with the leading wrist in order to teach the placing of the batter's weight on the back leg at the beginning of the swing and shifting the weight to the forward leg during the swing and while making contact with the baseball. However effective the device may be for its intended purpose, the Morse device is incapable of regimenting the cooperative movement of arms and hips that will deliver the benefits achievable with the appliance of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,938,548 to Upshaw discloses a pair of arm cuffs that encircle the arms above the elbow and are interconnected by a pair of elongate flexible tie straps. The purpose of the device is to positively limit the maximum space between the arm cuffs at the time that the batter's arms are in a raised and retracted position. Again, the function and object of the Upshaw arm cuffs and interconnecting strap is dissimilar to the object and the apparatus of the present invention.
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide a wearable appliance that will condition a baseball batter's swing for cooperative movement of the arms together with rotation of the hips and upper body to achieve maximum transfer of body power to the bat.
Other and further object, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent on a reading the following description of a preferred form of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
The apparatus of the invention includes a sturdy belt that is adapted to be worn around the waist of the batter with a buckle or other means of attachment to be positioned over the center of the abdomen. A wrist band provides an attachment to the wrist of the leading arm of the batter. The waist belt and the wrist band are interconnected with an adjustable length strap and is fastened to the belt at a point over or just above the buckle or central fastening device.
FIG. 1 is a prospective view of the batting training appliance of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a fragmentary frontal view of a batter in the ready position wearing the appliance of the present invention.
FIG. 3 illustrates the batter's position at the start of the coordinated swing.
FIG. 4 shows the batter's position immediately prior to or at the time of contact with the ball.
FIG. 5 illustrates the follow through portion of the batter's correct swing.
The training device of the present invention comprises an appliance to be worn by a baseball player during batting practice for the primary purpose of regimenting the batter's body movements. By using the training device of the present invention, the separation between the leading arm and the batter's body is constrained during the swing of the bat in order to inculcate that proper swing form. The appliance comprises a sturdy belt 3, similar to a weight lifting belt, to be worn around the batter's waist. A buckle 5 attached to one end of the circular belt acts to secure the other end of the belt in any number of traditional ways. The embodiment shown in the drawings utilizes a closed and open loop connector 6 to secure the free end 7 of the belt to the body of the belt after training the free end through the buckle 5. In use the buckle 5 is intended to be located over the median plane of the body. Proximate the buckle and positioned to its left side is a fastener eye 10 secured to the top edge of the belt 3 and adapted to receive and anchor the lower end of a connecting strap 12. For right hand batters, the fastener eye is located to the left of the buckle 5. For left hand batters, the fastener is preferably located slightly right of the buckle 5. The connecting strap is flexible and is not overtly elastic and contains one or more slip buckles 16 that are positioned on the strap 12 to adjust its length to accommodate different sized batters. The end of the strap 12, opposite to the end attached to the fastener eye 10, is attached to a second fastener eye 18 that is secured to a wrist cuff 20.
The wrist cuff 20 is made from a length of fabric or leather that is closed around the wrist and secured by any number of means, preferably an open and closed loop fastener, such as Velcro.
In operation, the connecting strap 12 is adjusted in its length to be taut when the leading forearm 30 of the batter 31 is drawn back over the chest and the bat 33 is in the ready position over the rear shoulder 37 of the batter, as shown in FIG. 2. As the arms of the batter start the swing, as shown in FIG. 3, the strap 12 that interconnects the wrist band 20 and the center portion of the belt 3 acts to unitize the swing of the arms with the necessary rotation of the hips and upper body in order to transfer the energy of the turning body to the bat as opposed to using only the arms to do so. Repeated training swings with this appliance will inculcate the preferred form of a power swing into a batter's habitual routine when at the plate.