Ball return apparatus with selective direction of balls to accessible pick-up areas

Claim 1

A BOWLING BALL HANDLING APPARATUS ASSOCIATED WITH A PAIR OF ADJACENT BOWLING LANES EACH AHVING A PIT, COMPRISING A BOWLING BALL STORAGE MEANS LOCATED ADJACENT THE BOWLER''S END OF A PAIR OF ADJACENT BOWLING LANES INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF SEPARATE BOWLING BALL STORAGE STATIONS FROM WHICH BOWLING BALLS MAY BE SELECTED FROM BOWLING ON EITHER LANE, BALL RETURN MEANS INCLUDING A COMMON BALL RETURN TRACK FOR DELIVERING BALLS FROM THE PITS OF ADJACENT LANES TO THE STORAGE MEANS, A BALL RECEIVING POCKET AT ECH OF SAID SEPARATE STORAGE STATIONS ADAPTED TO RECEIVE A BALL AND HOLD THE BALL IN THE STORAGE STATION, MEANS FOR DIRECTING BALLS FROM SAID RETURN MEANS TO SAID SEPARATE STORAGE STATIONS, MANS FOR SELECTING A BALL STORAGE STATION FOR RELEASE OF A BALL THEREFROM, MEANS FOR EJECTING A BALL FROM SAID BALL RECEIVING POCKET, BALL DELIVERY PATH MEANS FOR EACH OF SAID ADJACENT LANES ADAPTED TO RECEIVE A BALL EJECTED FROM SID BALL STORAGE STATIONS FOR DELIVERY TO A BALL PICKUP STATION MORE ACCESSIBLE THAN SAID BALL STORAGE STATIONS, AND MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID BALL RETURN MEANS FOR DELAYING RETURN OF ONE OF TWO COINCIDENT OR IMMEDIATELY SUBSEQUENT BALLS SUFFICIENT TO PER-