APPARATUS, SYSTEMS, AND METHODS FOR GATHERING AND PROCESSING BIOMETRIC AND BIOMECHANICAL DATA
First Claim
1. A system for gathering body movement data related to sports activities, the system comprising:
- a first sensor associated with a first body portion, the first sensor being configured for sensing movement of the first body portion during a sports activity, which involves movement of the first body portion within a first range of speeds;
a second sensor associated with a second body portion, the second sensor being configured for sensing movement of the second body portion during the same sports activity, which involves movement of the second body portion within a second range of speeds, the average of which is faster than the first range of speeds;
a third sensor associated with a third body portion, the third sensor being configured for sensing movement of the third body portion during the same sports activity, which involves movement of the third body portion within a third range of speeds, the average of which is faster than the second range of speeds;
a control unit configured to receive data from at least the first, second and third sensors; and
a processor configured to communicate with the control unit and generate information related to the sensors;
wherein the first sensor is configured to sense body movement at a first sampling rate, the second sensor is configured to sense body movement at a second sampling rate, the third sensor is configured to sense body movement at a third sampling rate, the second sampling rate is faster than the first sampling rate such that the movement of the second body portion is recorded with higher resolution than the movement of the first body portion, and the third sampling rate is faster than the second sampling rate such that the movement of the third body portion is recorded with higher resolution than the movement of the second body portion.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Apparatus, systems, and methods are provided for measuring and analyzing movements of a body and for communicating information related to such body movements over a network. In certain embodiments, a system gathers biometric and biomechanical data relating to positions, orientations, and movements of various body parts of a user performed during sports activities, physical rehabilitation, or military or law enforcement activities. The biometric and biomechanical data can be communicated to a local and/or remote interface, which uses digital performance assessment tools to provide a performance evaluation to the user. The performance evaluation may include a graphical representation (e.g., a video), statistical information, and/or a comparison to another user and/or instructor. In some embodiments, the biometric and biomechanical data is communicated wirelessly to one or more devices including a processor, display, and/or data storage medium for further analysis, archiving, and data mining. In some embodiments, the device includes a cellular telephone.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A system for gathering body movement data related to sports activities, the system comprising:
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a first sensor associated with a first body portion, the first sensor being configured for sensing movement of the first body portion during a sports activity, which involves movement of the first body portion within a first range of speeds; a second sensor associated with a second body portion, the second sensor being configured for sensing movement of the second body portion during the same sports activity, which involves movement of the second body portion within a second range of speeds, the average of which is faster than the first range of speeds; a third sensor associated with a third body portion, the third sensor being configured for sensing movement of the third body portion during the same sports activity, which involves movement of the third body portion within a third range of speeds, the average of which is faster than the second range of speeds; a control unit configured to receive data from at least the first, second and third sensors; and a processor configured to communicate with the control unit and generate information related to the sensors; wherein the first sensor is configured to sense body movement at a first sampling rate, the second sensor is configured to sense body movement at a second sampling rate, the third sensor is configured to sense body movement at a third sampling rate, the second sampling rate is faster than the first sampling rate such that the movement of the second body portion is recorded with higher resolution than the movement of the first body portion, and the third sampling rate is faster than the second sampling rate such that the movement of the third body portion is recorded with higher resolution than the movement of the second body portion. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. A sports movement data apparatus comprising:
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a single first sensor having a first sampling rate that is associated with a first body portion of a user, the single first sensor being configured for sensing movement of the first body portion at the first sampling rate during activity that involves movement of the first body portion within a first range of speeds; a single second sensor having a second sampling rate that is associated with a second body portion of the user, the single second sensor being configured for sensing movement of the second body portion at the second sampling rate during activity that involves movement of the second body portion within a second range of speeds, the average of which is slower than the first range of speeds; a control unit configured to receive data from at least the first and second sensors; and a processor configured to communicate with the control unit and obtain information related to at least one of the first and second sensors; wherein the single first sensor is configured to sense body movement at the first sampling rate, the single second sensor is configured to sense body movement at the second sampling rate, and the first sampling rate is faster than the second sampling rate such that the movement of the first body portion is recorded with higher resolution than the movement of the second body portion. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of evaluating a user'"'"'s body movement, the method comprising:
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providing a plurality of sensors for association with portions of a user'"'"'s body, including providing at least a single first sensor having a first sampling rate and a single second sensor having a second sampling rate; associating a control unit with the user, the control unit being configured to receive data from the plurality of sensors; configuring a processor to communicate with the control unit and process information related to the movement of the sensors; associating the single first sensor with a first portion of the user'"'"'s body, the first portion being expected to move faster than a second portion of the user'"'"'s body during a planned activity for which movement is to be evaluated; associating the single second sensor with the second portion of the user'"'"'s body; and configuring the single first sensor to achieve a faster sampling rate than the single second sensor in order to allow sufficient data for evaluating the movement of the first and second body portions during the planned activity. - View Dependent Claims (15)
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16. A method of tracking body motion of a mover, the method comprising:
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providing multiple sensors, each of which comprises at least a multi-axis accelerometer for measurement of three-dimensional movement and a gyroscopic sensor for measurement of orientation; associating a single first one of the sensors with a first body portion of a mover and associating a single second one of the sensors with a second body portion of the mover; determining a sample rate for each of the sensors—
wherein the sample rate for the single first one of the sensors associated with a faster moving body portion is higher than the sample rate for the single second one of the other sensors associated with a slower moving body portion—
and causing each sensor to begin sampling at the determined sample rate;using the multiple sensors to collect biometric data showing movement of the mover'"'"'s body portions when the mover moves; providing a first processor; communicating the biometric data from the sensors to the first processor; communicating the biometric data to a second processor comprising a learning center configured as a web-connected computer system; providing for access by a user to the learning center; displaying a three-dimensional animation of the movement of the mover'"'"'s body portions resulting from the data; and storing the biometric data in a database for comparison and analysis. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification