초록 ▼

A baseball/softball batting tee has a base, and one or more support post and ball holding assemblies mounted in a substantially vertical orientation on the base. A primary support post and ball holding assembly has an adjustable height provided by an upper tube that is telescopically received within

A baseball/softball batting tee has a base, and one or more support post and ball holding assemblies mounted in a substantially vertical orientation on the base. A primary support post and ball holding assembly has an adjustable height provided by an upper tube that is telescopically received within a lower tube and a ball supporting rod similarly telescopically received within the upper tube. Wiper seals and bushings are mounted in the upper ends of both tubes for sealing engagement with the respective telescopically received components, providing a friction fit sufficient to “lock” the relative positions of the tubes and rod to set the tee at a desired height while still allowing the tubes and the rod to be easily telescoped together. A secondary support post and ball holding assembly is also provided that can be readily interchanged with the primary.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A baseball/softball batting tee comprising: a base;a height adjustable support post mounted in a substantially vertical orientation on the base, said support post including an upper tube and a lower tube, a circumferential groove formed in an inner surface of the upper end of the lower tube, said

1. A baseball/softball batting tee comprising: a base;a height adjustable support post mounted in a substantially vertical orientation on the base, said support post including an upper tube and a lower tube, a circumferential groove formed in an inner surface of the upper end of the lower tube, said upper tube being received within said lower tube in a telescoping relationship for height adjustment, a lower end of said lower tube being secured to said base and a wiper seal formed as a flexible ring that is snap-fit into said groove formed in the upper end of the lower tube for sealing engagement with said upper tube, said wiper seal maintaining frictional engagement against the outer surface of the upper tube during height adjustment of said support post using said tube telescoping relationship and, when a desired height is obtained, said frictional engagement of said wiper seal maintaining a chosen support post height set by an insertion depth of the upper tube within the lower tube; anda rod with a ball-cup mounted to an upper end thereof, said rod being telescopically received within said support post. 2. The baseball/softball batting tee of claim 1, wherein said wiper seal is made of urethane and said upper tube includes a further urethane wiper seal for sealing engagement with an outer surface of said rod, said further wiper seal being a flexible ring that is snap-fit into a circumferential groove formed in the upper end of the upper tube, said further wiper seal maintaining frictional engagement against the outer surface of the rod during height adjustment of said rod using said telescoping relationship with said support post and, when a desired height is obtained, said frictional engagement being sufficient to secure the relative positions of the rod and the support post to maintain the tee at the desired height. 3. The baseball/softball batting tee of claim 1, wherein said base includes an upwardly extending boss that is received within the lower end of the lower tube and secured therein by a fastening mechanism. 4. The baseball/softball batting tee of claim 3, wherein opposing sides of the lower end of the lower tube each have an aperture therethrough, said apertures being horizontally aligned with one another, said fastening mechanism including a pin that extends transversely to said support post to pass through both apertures to lock the post to the upwardly extending boss. 5. The baseball/softball batting tee of claim 3, wherein said boss is substantially centered on said base, said base further including a stud positioned to one side of the boss, said stud sized to fit within a center hole of a weighted ring. 6. The baseball/softball batting tee of claim 3, wherein the fastening mechanism is configured to allow the support post to be easily coupled to and uncoupled from the base and also replaced with another support post. 7. The baseball/softball batting tee of claim 6, wherein said tee includes a plurality of support posts of different heights or height ranges, each support post being adapted to be interchangeably mounted to said base. 8. The baseball/softball batting tee of claim 7, wherein said plurality of support posts includes a tall post having an adjustable height range of from about 26 inches to about 53 inches, and a shorter post having an adjustable height range of from about 22 inches to about 41 inches. 9. A baseball/softball batting tee comprising: a base including a base plate and a base mounting element;a support post mounted in a substantially vertical orientation on the mounting element of said base, said support post including an upper tube and a lower tube, said upper tube being received within said lower tube in a telescoping relationship, a lower end of said lower tube being secured to said base mounting element and a circumferential groove formed in an inner surface of said lower tube's upper end, a wiper seal formed as a flexible ring being snap-fit into said groove for sealing engagement with an outer surface of said upper tube, said wiper seal maintaining frictional engagement against the outer surface of the upper tube during adjustment of a height of said support post using said tube telescoping relationship and, when a desired height is obtained, said frictional engagement being sufficient to secure the relative positions of the tubes to maintain the tee at the desired height;a quick release fastening mechanism for securing the support post to the base mounting element, said quick release fastening mechanism allowing for easy replacement of the support post with an alternate support post;a ball holding assembly mounted to an upper end of said support post;a weight stud mounted on said base plate, said weight stud sized to fit within a center hole of a weighted ring; andsaid base mounting element of said base including a flanged disc having an upwardly extending boss thereon that is received within the lower end of the support post, said support post being secured to said boss by said quick release fastening mechanism, an outer edge of said support post lower end being in abutment with an upper surface of said flanged disc when the support post is secured. 10. The batting tee as set forth in claim 9, wherein said ball holding assembly includes a rod with a ball-cup mounted to an upper end thereof, said rod being telescopically received within said upper tube of said support post. 11. The batting tee as set forth in claim 10, wherein an upper end of said upper tube includes a further circumferential groove formed in an inner surface of said upper tube's upper end and a further wiper seal formed as a flexible ring that is snap-fit into said further circumferential groove for sealing engagement with an outer surface of said rod. 12. The batting tee as set forth in claim 9, wherein opposing sides of the lower end of the support post each have an aperture therethrough, said apertures being horizontally aligned with one another, said fastening mechanism including a pin that extends transversely to said support post to pass through both apertures to lock the post to the boss. 13. The batting tee as set forth in claim 9, further comprising a bushing press-fit into said lower tube's upper end and inwardly past said groove to provide a snug fit between the outer surface of the upper tube and the inner surface of the lower tube. 14. The batting tee as set forth in claim 13, wherein said upper tube includes a further bushing fitted in the upper tube and past said further groove to provide a snug fit between an inner surface of said upper tube and an outer surface of said rod. 15. A baseball/softball batting tee assembly comprising: a base plate;an upwardly extending boss secured to said base plate, said boss having a radial bore formed therethrough that is substantially transverse to a height of said boss;a primary tee having an adjustable support post and ball holding assembly with telescoping members to allow a user to variably adjust a height of the tee over a height range dependent on a relationship between the telescoping members, said adjustable support post being configured to be mounted over said boss;a secondary tee having a fixed height support post and a fixed height ball holding assembly, said secondary tee support post being configured to be mounted over said boss;said adjustable support post including an upper tube and a lower tube, said upper tube being received within said lower tube in a telescoping relationship, a lower end of said lower tube being secured to said boss, and a wiper seal formed as a flexible ring that is snap-fit into a circumferential groove formed in an inner surface of said lower tube's upper end for sealing engagement with an outer surface of said upper tube, said wiper seal maintaining frictional engagement against the outer surface of the upper tube during adjustment of a height of said adjustable support post using said tube telescoping relationship and, when a desired height is set, said frictional engagement being sufficient to secure the relative positions of the tubes to maintain the primary tee at the desired height; anda quick connect/release fastening mechanism for interchangeably securing the primary and secondary tees at alternate times to the boss on the base plate, said fastening mechanism including a pin that extends transversely to each of said adjustable support post and said fixed height support post and passes through apertures formed in opposing sides of each of said adjustable support post and said fixed height support post and through said boss radial bore to lock either of said posts to the boss. 16. The batting tee assembly as set forth in claim 15, wherein said ball holding assembly includes a rod with a ball-cup mounted to an upper end thereof, said rod being telescopically received within said upper tube of said support post. 17. The batting tee assembly as set forth in claim 16, wherein an upper end of said upper tube includes a further circumferential groove formed in an inner surface of said upper tube's upper end and a further wiper seal formed as a flexible ring snap-fit into said further groove for sealing engagement with an outer surface of said rod. 18. The batting tee assembly as set forth in claim 17, further comprising a bushing press-fit into said lower tube's upper end and inwardly past said groove to provide a snug fit between the outer surface of the upper tube and the inner surface of the lower tube. 19. The batting tee assembly as set forth in claim 18, wherein said upper tube includes a further bushing fitted in the upper tube and past said further groove to provide a snug fit between an inner surface of said upper tube and an outer surface of said rod. 20. The batting tee assembly as set forth in claim 19, wherein said wiper seals are made of urethane.