METHOD AND DEVICE FOR OPTIMIZING THE TRAINING OF ATHLETES

• US 20100317489A1
• Filed: 06/16/2009
• Published: 12/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Slyde Analytics LLC (Ascend Innovation Management, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Myotest SA
• Inventors: Flaction, Patrick
• Granted Patent: US 10,391,360 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 482/9
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2503/10 Athletes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/0219 Inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes, tilt switches
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/11 Measuring movement of the entire body or parts thereof, e.g. head or hand tremor, mobility of a limb for measuring pulse A61B5/02 ;A61B5/1038 takes precedence; motion detection to correct for motion artifacts in physiological signals A61B5/721
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1122 of movement trajectories
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/224 Measuring muscular strength
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/17 Counting, e.g. counting periodical movements, revolutions or cycles, or including further data processing to determine distances or speed
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/40 Acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0062 Monitoring athletic performances, e.g. for determining the work of a user on an exercise apparatus, the completed jogging or cycling distance
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0075 Means for generating exercise programs or schemes, e.g. computerized virtual trainer, e.g. using expert databases
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising

Abstract

A method for optimizing the training of athletes, including the steps of during a test, measuring with a portable device (1) a series of acceleration values during a series of N short movements performed by the athlete. Then, calculating with the device a plurality of muscular parameters based on the series of acceleration values. The device then determines a set of training exercises personalized for the athlete, based on the muscular parameters and presents the said set of training exercises to the athlete. The device then verifies the execution of the training exercises.

Claims

1. A method for optimizing the training of athletes, comprising the steps of:

during a test, measuring with a portable device a series of acceleration values during a series of N short movements performed by the athlete;

calculating with said device a plurality of muscular parameters based on said series of acceleration values;

determining with said device a set of training exercises personalized for said athlete, based on said muscular parameters;

presenting said set of training exercises to said athlete with said device;

verifying with said device the execution of said training exercises.

2. The method of claim 1, said short tests comprising jumps, said muscular parameters being parameters of legs musculature, said training parameters being intended for improving running performance.

3. The method of claim 1, said muscular parameters comprising the reactivity and the coordination;

wherein the reactivity increases with the time of flight during jumps, and decreases with the duration of ground contact between two jumps;

wherein the coordination increases with the regularity of the reactivity measured for all jumps within said series.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said reactivity depends on the square of time of flight divided by the time of ground contact, computed for each jump.

5. The method of claim 1, said muscular parameters including muscular stiffness.

6. The method of claim 1, said parameters including muscular force and the speed.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of retrieving from a manual a description of said training exercises.

8. The method of claim 1, said plurality of muscular parameters including at least four parameters, said set of training exercises being automatically selected in order to improve the M weakest muscular parameters of the athlete, M being a positive integer greater than 1.

9. The method of claim 1, each training exercise in said set of training exercises consisting of a predefined number of gymnastic exercises.

10. The method of claim 1, said set of training exercises comprising a personalized session of interval running, said session including periods of runs at various paces and short gymnastic exercises between said periods.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein audio and/or visual signals are given by said portable device during the execution of the test and during the execution of the training exercises, in order to suggest a given pace of execution and to inform the user when the device detects incorrect execution of any exercise based on accelerations values.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the acceleration values are measured during execution of said training exercises, in order to detect incorrect execution.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the acceleration values are measured during execution of said training exercises, and wherein future training programs are adapted based on said acceleration.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the acceleration values are measured during execution of said training exercises, and used for determining execution results.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the acceleration values are measured during execution of said training exercises, and used for adapting future sets of training exercises.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein said muscular parameters are displayed by said portable device after the execution of said test.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said muscular parameters are displayed in relative parameters, with reference to values reached by reference athletes.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein said test comprises a series of countermovement jumps and a series of rebounds,

wherein force is calculated based on acceleration values measured during said countermovements jumps,

wherein reactivity and coordination are calculated based on acceleration values measured during said rebounds.

19. A portable device for optimizing the training of athletes, comprising:

an accelerometer for measuring series of acceleration values;

a display;

computing means with a program, said program being arranged for causing the computing means to compute a plurality of muscular parameters based on said series of acceleration values, to determine a set of training exercises based on said muscular parameters, and to display said set of muscular parameters.

20. The device of claim 19, associated with a manual including a description of said exercises,

each exercise being identified on said display and in said manual by a common exercise identifier.

21. The device of claim 19, comprising a belt for fixation at the hip of the athlete.