Concept for activating a game device

• US 20080090683A1
• Filed: 04/16/2007
• Published: 04/17/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cairos Technologies Ag
• Original Assignee: Cairos Technologies Ag
• Inventors: Englert, Walter, Bucher, Tilman
• Granted Patent: US 8,079,925 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 473/570
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0037 on a target surface or at impact on the ground
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/833 Sensors arranged on the exercise apparatus or sports implement
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/89 Field sensors, e.g. radar systems
• 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 43/00 Balls with special arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 63/00 Targets or goals for ball games golf cups A63B57/40

Abstract

A game ball wherein in the vicinity of a goal, or in a goal area, an electronic system is activated in the goal area by an activation signal, which may be a magnetic field or a radio signal, so as to subsequently facilitate, e.g., highly precise position measurement of the game device, or game ball.

Claims

1. A game ball comprising;

a magnetic-field sensor;

a reader of reading out the magnetic-field sensor;

an activation signal detector for detecting an activation signal; and

a controller for controlling the reader so that reading-out will be performed at a first sampling rate if an activation is detected on account of the activation signal, and reading-out will be performed at a second, smaller sampling rate if no activation is detected.

2. The game ball as claimed in claim 1, wherein the magnetic-field sensor is a three-dimensional magnetic-field sensor.

3. The game ball as claimed in claim 1, wherein the activation signal detector is further adapted to detect an alternating magnetic field as an activation signal.

4. The game ball as claimed in any of claim 1, wherein the activation signal detector comprises a comparer for comparing magnetic-field measurement values measured by the magnetic-field sensor as an activation signal to a first threshold value.

5. The game ball as claimed in claim 4, wherein the first threshold value is larger than a magnitude of the earth'"'"'s magnetic field at the earth'"'"'s surface at a location of the game ball.

6. The game ball as claimed in claim 4, wherein the activation signal detector comprises a comparer for comparing the magnetic-field measurement values to a second threshold value larger than the first threshold value, so as to prevent an activation in case the second threshold is exceeded.

7. The game ball as claimed in claim 1, wherein the activation signal detector comprises a receiver for receiving a radio signal as an activation signal.

8. The game ball as claimed in claim 7, wherein the activation signal detector comprises a comparer for comparing a radio power received by the receiver to a first threshold value.

9. The game ball as claimed in claim 8, wherein the activation signal detector comprises a comparer for comparing the radio power received by the receiver to a second threshold value larger than the first threshold value, so as to prevent an activation in case the second threshold is exceeded.

10. The game ball as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is adapted to set the first sampling rate to be 10 times larger than the second sampling rate.

11. The game ball as claimed in claim 1, the game ball further comprising a radio transmitter for transmitting the read-out magnetic-field values.

12. A method of activating a game ball comprising a magnetic-field sensor, the method comprising:

detecting a ball activation signal; and

controlling a reader for reading out the magnetic-field sensor, so that reading-out will be performed at a first sampling rate if an activation is detected on account of the activation signal, and reading-out will be performed at a second, smaller sampling rate if no activation is detected.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the ball activation signal is a radio signal.

14. The method as claimed in claim 12, further comprising:

measuring a magnetic field using the magnetic-field sensor; and

reading out measurement values from the magnetic-field sensor using the reader.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the ball activation signal is a magnetic field.

16. A computer program comprising a program code for performing a method of activating a game ball comprising a magnetic-field sensor, the method comprising:

detecting a ball activation signal; and

controlling a reader for reading out the magnetic-field sensor, so that reading-out will be performed at a first sampling rate if an activation is detected on account of the activation signal, and reading-out will be performed at a second, smaller sampling rate if no activation is detected,

when the program runs on a computer.