Method and apparatus for location of objects, and application to real time display of the position of players, equipment and officials during a sporting event

• US 20030125138A1
• Filed: 12/27/2001
• Published: 07/03/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ThinkLogix, LLC (Ascend Innovation Management, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Eugene Britto John, Heinrich Daniel Foltz
• Inventors: Foltz, Heinrich Daniel, John, Eugene Britto
• Granted Patent: US 6,824,480 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 473/415
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0025 Tracking the path or location of one or more users, e.g. players of a game
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2208/12 specially adapted for children
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/836 Sensors arranged on the body of the user
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/50 Wireless data transmission, e.g. by radio transmitters or telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0021 Tracking a path or terminating locations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 71/0605 Decision makers and devices using detection means facilitating arbitration

Abstract

This application describes a method and apparatus for precisely locating moving or stationary objects, with specific application to the real time display of the position of balls and/or players in sporting events and/or monitoring of airplanes in runways, prisoners in prison, children in childcare, and basically subjects in any area with predetermined boundaries

Claims

1. ) A method and system to determine the coarse and fine location of objects in a radiolocation system, through the combined use of direction of arrival of signals at each of several widely spaced reception points, using closely spaced antennas at each point, with relative phase between the received signals at the widely spaced points.

3. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2, or any other radiolocation scheme, to providing a real time display of ball location or player location in sporting events.

4. ) The application of a radiolocation system as in claim 1 or 2, to provide a display of the ball location, player location, or other game piece location, in sporting events, in order to enhance spectators'"'"' enjoyment and to aid trainers, players, and officials in accurately determining the ball'"'"'s location and motion, and/or generation of game statistics.

5. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2, for airport surveillance or for monitoring the entry of airplanes to wrong runways.

6. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2, for childcare facility or prison surveillance.

7. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2, for accurate football game officiating.

8. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2 for golf player club selection assistance.

9. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2 for hockey puck location.

10. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2 for tennis ball location.

11. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2, for baseball game playing, and/or officiating and/or generation of statistics.

12. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2 for viewer enhancement.

13. ) The application of the radiolocation system in claim 1 or 2 for monitoring of subjects in an area with defined boundaries.

2. ) The implementation of a system as claimed in (1), through the use of the following elements:

(a) Four or more antennas, arranged in two or more closely spaced pairs dispersed in or around the area to be covered;

(b) Downconvertors or receivers attached to each of the antennas, with the local oscillators of the downconvertors in all the receivers derived from a single reference;

(c) Phase locked loops to stabilize and reject noise in the downconverted signals;

(d) Phase detectors to determine the phase difference between the received signal in each pair of antennas;

(e) Phase detectors to determine the phase difference between the received signal in antennas not in the same pair.

14. ) A system for three dimensional location of objects in a bounded area, the system comprising:

(a) a sensor, wherein a sensor is coupled to each object to be monitored;

(b) at least two or more antenna configured to monitor the sensors in a bounded area;

(b) a receiver for receiving signals from the sensors via the antennas;

(c) a computer with memory operating pursuant to software capable of receiving the signals from the receiver and determining the location of the sensors in the bounded area.

15. ) The system according to claim 14, wherein the sensor is capable of transmitting a RF signal.

16. ) The system according to claim 14, wherein the sensor is a passive device.

17. ) The system according to claim 14, wherein the device is a magnet generating a magnetic field.

18. ) The system according to claim 14, wherein the sensor comprises an R-L circuit or an R-C circuit or an R-L-C circuit.

19. ) The application of a radiolocation system as claimed in (14), to provide a real time display of the ball location, player location, or other game piece location, in sporting events, in order to enhance spectators'"'"' enjoyment and to aid trainers, players, and officials in accurately determining the ball'"'"'s location and motion.

20. ) A system for three dimensional location of objects in a bounded area, the system comprising:

(a) a device capable of being tracked, wherein a device capable of being tracked is coupled to each object to be monitored;

(b) at least two or more antenna configured to monitor the devices in a bounded area;

(c) a receiver for receiving signals from the devices via the antennas;

(d) a computer with memory operating pursuant to software capable of receiving the signals from the receiver and determining the location of the devices in the bounded area.

21. ) The application of a radiolocation system as claimed in (20), to provide a real time display of the ball location, player location, or other game piece location, in sporting events, in order to enhance spectators'"'"' enjoyment and to aid trainers, players, and officials in accurately determining the ball'"'"'s location and motion.