METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR LOCATING THE TRAJECTORY OF AN OBJECT IN MOTION

• US 20080201100A1
• Filed: 02/15/2008
• Published: 08/21/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/15/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Visual Sports Systems, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Dimitri Petrov Consultants Inc.
• Inventors: Petrov, Dimitri
• Granted Patent: US 7,650,256 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/149
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/16 using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves

Abstract

An object locating system detects the presence of an object as it passes through a planar fields of view. A pair of optical sensor arrays with multiple, directed, pixel detectors observe the object from two angles as the object passes through the field of view. The location of penetration of the field of view is calculated by triangulation. Using this data, the known location of the take-off point and/or the delay between the departure of an object from the known take-off point and the penetration of the field of view, the trajectory of the object in time and space is calculated. In an alternate embodiment, the take-off point is not known and a plurality of pairs of optical sensor arrays may measure the trajectory of an object as it travels between a launch location and a target location. Applications include projecting the range of a driven golf ball, measuring the respective arriving and departing velocities of a hit baseball, determining the trajectory of a baseball, and determining the trajectory and origin of an arriving projectile, as in the case of the threat to a military vehicle.

Claims

1. A system for locating and tracking a path of an object traveling in space originating from a known launch location comprising:

a) first and second linear sensor arrays operating in the visible or near-infrared spectrum and having respective lenses therein, each sensor array being separated from the other by a known baseline;

b) each sensor array having a plurality of directed pixel sensors positioned to provide individual pixel fields of view which collectively provide a planar field of view for each sensor array, said planar field of view being defined by the respective lens;

c) the respective sensor arrays being mounted at a known separation from the launch location so that the individual planar field of view of the first sensor array substantially overlaps with the planar field of the second sensor array to provide one shared, substantially common planar field of view, the common planar field of view having a known angle of inclination in space;

d) signal generation means associated with each sensor array to generate signals corresponding with the detected presence of the object passing through the planar field of view of each sensor array in terms of position, and at least one of said arrays also generating a signal corresponding with the detected time of the object passing through the planar field of view;

e) time sensing means for recording the time at which the object leaves the known launch location, and

f) electronic processing means connected to receive signals from said signal generation means for obtaining the time of penetration of the common field of view and for obtaining the positions of the object as it passes through the common field of view, and connected to receive a signal from the time sensing means as to the time at which the object has left the known launch location and, based thereon, the electronic processing means, and being provided with means for calculating a calculated extended path for the object as it passes immediately beyond the respective, common planar fields of view;

g) display means connected to the processing means to provide a display based upon the calculated extended path, and

wherein the electronic processing means uses the position of the known launch location with respect to the two sensing arrays, the point of penetration of the object through the substantially common planar field of view, and the delay between the time at which the object leaves the launch location and the time at which the object penetrates the common field of view to calculate the velocity of said object therebetween and, based upon the path between the known launch location and the common planar field of view being a generally parabolic path, to thereby determine the calculated extended path in space of the object as it passes immediately beyond the respective, common planar fields of view.

2. A system as in claim 1 wherein said electronic processing means comprises ballistics processing means to provide the calculated extended path in space of the object as a projected ballistic trajectory to provide said path display.

3. The system of claim 1 comprising mounting means whereby each of said first and second linear sensor arrays may be installed on a support surface with the fields of view of the sensor arrays positioned at fixed, known orientations with respect to the support surface.

4. The system as in claim 3 wherein said first and second linear sensor arrays are removably installable at a spaced separation from each other and at a known separation from the known launch location.

5. The system as in claim 3 wherein said first and second linear sensor arrays are irremovably installable at a spaced separation from each other at a known separation from the known launch location.

6. The system as in claim 4 wherein said known launch location consists of a golf tee, and wherein the time sensing means for recording the time at which the object leaves the launch location is selected from the group consisting of an optronic sensor, a capacitive sensor, and a sound-based sensor.

7. The system as in claim 5 wherein said known launch location consists of a golf tee, and wherein the time sensing means for recording the time at which the object leaves the launch location is selected from the group consisting of an optronic sensor, a capacitive sensor, and a sound-based sensor.

16. A system as in claim 1 wherein said known launch location is located at an equal distance from the first sensor array and the second sensor array.

17. A system as in claim 1 wherein said known launch location is asymmetrically located from the first sensor array and the second sensor array, being located closer to one of said sensor arrays than the other.

18. A system as in claim 1 wherein the first and second linear sensor arrays are located on opposite sides of the line extending from a pitcher'"'"'s throwing position to a batter strike zone, and wherein the electronic processing means is provided with means for defining the area of the batter'"'"'s strike zone and determining whether a object passes through the batter strike zone.

8. A system for locating and tracking a path of an object traveling in space comprising:

a) first and second linear sensor arrays operating in the visible or near-infrared spectrum and having respective lenses therein, each sensor array being separated from the other by a known baseline;

b) each sensor array having a plurality of directed pixel sensors positioned to provide individual pixel fields of view which collectively provide a planar field of view for each sensor array, said planar field of view being defined by the respective lens;

c) the respective sensor arrays being mounted so that the individual planar field of view of the first sensor array substantially overlaps with the planar field of the second sensor array to provide one shared, substantially common first planar field of view, the common first planar field of view having a known angle of inclination in space;

d) signal generation means associated with each sensor array to generate signals corresponding with the detected presence of the object passing through the planar field of view of each sensor array;

e) electronic processing means connected to receive signals from said signal generation means for calculating the position of the object as it passes through the common first field of view; and

f) display means connected to the processing means to provide a display based upon the position of the object as it passes through the first common field of view.

9. The system as in claim 8 wherein the electronic processing means further comprises means to define a target zone section in the common field of view, and whereby the display means provides a display indicating whether a projectile has penetrated the common field of view at the target zone.

10. The system as in claim 9 wherein the first and second linear sensor arrays are installable to provide a field of view that is oriented at a known angle to the field of view provided by the opposite sensor array and wherein said first and second linear sensor arrays are installed in proximity to a target area that is opposite to a launch area, and wherein said first and second linear sensor arrays are at a spaced separation from each other on either side of the line joining the target area to the launch area.

11. The system as in claim 10, further comprising:

a) at least second and third pairs of sensor arrays operating in the visible or near-infrared spectrum and having respective lenses therein, each sensor array being separated from the other by a known baseline, said second and third pairs of sensor arrays being located at a spaced separation between the first pair of sensor arrays and the known launch location”

b) each of said second and third pairs of sensor arrays having a plurality of directed pixel sensors positioned to provide individual pixel fields of view which collectively provide a planar field of view for each sensor array, said planar field of view being defined by the respective lens;

c) the respective second and third pairs of sensor arrays being mounted so that the individual planar field of view of each sensor array of a pair substantially overlaps with the planar field of the other sensor array of the pair to provide shared, substantially common second and third planar fields of view, the common second and third planar fields of view each having a known angle of inclination in space;

d) signal generation means associated with each of said second and third pairs of sensor arrays to generate signals corresponding with the detected presence of the object passing through the planar field of view of each sensor array;

e) electronic processing means connected to receive signals from said signal generation means of said second and third pairs of sensor arrays for calculating the position of the object as it passes through each of the common second and third fields of view; and

f) display means connected to the processing means to provide a display based upon the position of the object as it passes through the common second and third fields of view.

12. The system as in claim 10 wherein the launch area consists of the baseball pitcher'"'"'s mound and the target zone consists of the strike zone

13. The system as in claim 11 wherein the launch area consists of the baseball pitcher'"'"'s mound and the target area consists of the baseball home plate.

14. A system as in claim 11, further comprising signal generation means associated with at least two of said sensor arrays to generate signals corresponding with the detected times of the object passing through said at least two of planar fields of view, and wherein the speed of an object leaving the launch area is determined based on the detected time of the object passing through at said at least two of planar fields of view by measuring the distance between the penetration points respectively in the position sensor zone adjacent to the launch area and the next proximate position sensor zone in the direction of the target area, and by calculating the flight time between the two penetrations.

15. A system as in claim 11 further comprising signal generation means associated with at least two of said sensor arrays to generate signals corresponding with the detected times of the object passing through said at least two of planar fields of view, and wherein the speed of an object approaching a target area can be determined based on the detected time of the object passing through at said at least two of planar fields of view by measuring the distance between the penetration points respectively in the position sensor zone adjacent to the target area and the next proximate position sensor zone in the direction of the launch area, and by calculating flight time between the two penetrations.

19. A system as in claim 9 wherein the target zone section is adjustable to conform to a strike zone based on the height and stance of a baseball batter.