Golf ball teeing device

Abstract

A golf ball teeing device ( 200 ) comprising, a platform ( 208 ) having an upper surface, an opening ( 213 ) in the platform, a tee ( 215 ) for a golf ball ( 212 ) the tee being arranged for reciprocal movement with respect to the opening between a lower position where the top of the tee is at a level below the upper surface of the platform to an upper position where the top of the tee is above upper surface of the platform, and golf ball delivery means ( 249 ) arranged to load a golf ball on top of the tee when it is in the lower position, wherein the golf ball is at a level below the upper surface of the platform when it is loaded onto the tee by the golf ball delivery means.

1 . A golf ball teeing device comprising, 
 a platform adapted to support a golfer the platform having an upper surface,    an opening in the platform,    manually movable actuation means projecting above the platform and extending beneath the platform, the actuation means having a rest configuration and a delivery configuration,    an elongate pivotable lever beneath the platform connected at a forward end to the actuation means and at a rearward end to a tee support, the arrangement being such that movement of the actuation means from the rest configuration to the delivery configuration results in depression of the forward end of the pivotable lever to pivot the rearward end upwards,    a tee guide assembly comprising an open walled tubular cage extending vertically beneath the opening,    a pneumatic cylinder connected to the pivotable lever offset from the connections between the pivotable lever and the actuation means and the pivotal lever and tee support, the pneumatic cylinder acting to bias the actuation means to the rest configuration,    a tee for a golf ball mounted within the tee guide assembly on the tee support the tee being arranged for reciprocal movement with respect to the opening between a lower position where the top of the tee is at a level below the upper surface of the platform to an upper position where the top of the-tee is above upper surface of the platform, and    golf ball delivery means for holding a row of golf balls on a trackway including ball control means arranged to load a single golf ball from the trackway on top of the tee when it is in the lower position,    wherein the height of the tee in the lower position is such that the golf ball is at a level below the upper surface of the platform when it is loaded onto the tee by the golf ball delivery means.    
     
     
         2 . A golf ball teeing device according to  claim 1  wherein, the actuation means are arranged so that downwards force on the actuation means forces the lever to a configuration in which the tee is in the lower position.  
     
     
         3 . A golf ball teeing device according to  claim 3  comprising height adjustment means for limiting upwards movement of the lever as it moves the tee to the upper position.  
     
     
         4 . A golf ball teeing device according to  claim 3  wherein the height adjustment means comprises a stop member limiting upward movement of the rearward end of the lever the stop member being moveable by a height adjustment lever to set the position of the stop member.  
     
     
         5 . A golf ball teeing device according to  claim 1  comprising, 
 a feeder tray for feeding balls single file to the trackway  
 golf ball stop means having a golf ball stop member arranged to stop golf balls moving beyond a predetermined position along the trackway when the tee is in the lower position, and  
 control means for moving the golf ball stop member out of stopping engagement with golf balls when the tee is in the upper position.  
 
     
     
         6 . A golf ball teeing device according to  claim 5  wherein the construction is such that the tee support is in line with the trackway when the tee is in the upper position and is separated from the position where the golf ball stop member is in stopping engagement by a distance chosen to provide that only one golf ball can fit between the support tee and the golf ball stop member,  
     
     
         7 . A feeder tray for balls comprising, 
 a hopper having an open mouth arranged to funnel balls dumped through the open mouth through a restricted outlet to drop into a ball entry area forming part of the floor of an alignment tray,    a tray floor for the alignment tray sloping downwardly from the ball entry area to a ball delivery area    ball flow control means on the tray floor between the ball entry area and ball delivery area,    a downwardly sloping exit chute at a lower level than the ball delivery area and abutting the ball delivery area arranged to receive balls from the ball delivery area over at least a portion of the length of the abutment between the ball delivery area and exit chute, and    an exit outlet provided at the lowermost end of the exit chute shaped so as to allow single file passage of balls coming down the exit chute through the exit outlet, wherein the ball flow control means are arranged to slow the rate of travel of a proportion of balls rolling down the tray floor into the exit chute.    
     
     
         8 . A feeder tray for balls according to  claim 7  wherein, 
 the exit chute has a forward end at which the exit outlet is located and a rearward end, and  
 the downward slope of the tray floor nearer the vicinity of the forward end is less than the downward slope at or near the rearward end.  
 
     
     
         9 . A feeder tray for balls according to  claim 8  wherein the ball flow control means comprises a plurality of ridges on the tray floor, the direction of the ridges generally making an acute angle with the direction of the chute.  
     
     
         10 . A golf ball teeing device according to  claim 1  including a feeder tray for balls according to  claim 7 , arranged to deliver golf balls single file to the trackway.