Bowling ball speed measuring and indicating device

Claim 1

A DEVICE FOR IMPROVING A PERSON''S BOWLING SKILL COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A BOWLING LANE HAVING A FIRST END FROM WHICH A BALL IS DELIVERED BY A BOWLER TOWARD A SECOND END, A PLURALITY OF PINS UPON THE SECOND END TO BE STRUCK DOWN BY THE BALL, A FIRST TRIGGER MEANS ADJACENT THE FIRST END OF THE LANE, AND A SECOND TRIGGER MEANS ADJACENT THE SECOND END OF THE LANE, THE FIRST AND SECOND TRIGGER MEANS EACH HAVING A PHOTOBEAM PROJECTED ACROSS THE LANE AND POSITIONED A DISTANCE FROM THE SURFACE THEREOF TO BE INTERRUPTED BY THE PASSAGE OF A BALL ALONG THE LANE, EACH OF THE TRIGGER MEANS PRODUCING AN ELECTRICAL SIGNAL WHEN THE PHOTOBEAM IS INTERRUPTED BY THE PASSAGE OF A BALL, TIMING MEANS, A FIRST SWITCHING CIRCUIT MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE SIGNAL FROM SAID FIRST TRIGGER MEANS FOR STARTING SAID TIMING MEANS, A SECOND SWITCHING CIRCUIT MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE SIGNAL OF SAID SECOND TRIGGER MEANS FOR STOPPING THE TIMING MEANS, AND VISUAL INDICATOR MEANS CONNECTED TO THE TIMING MEANS FOR VISUALLY DISPLAYING AN ELAPSED TIME PROPORTIONAL TO THE TIME REQUIRED FOR A BALL TO TRAVEL ALONG THE LANE BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND PHOTOBEAMS AS TIMED BY SAID TIMING MEANS.