Group Performance Monitoring System And Method

• US 20120254934A1
• Filed: 03/31/2011
• Published: 10/04/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adidas AG
• Original Assignee: Adidas AG
• Inventors: Hassonjee, Qaizar, Armitage, Roger, Diesterbeck, Hagen, Strecker, Markus, MCBREARTY, Michael, Wheeler, Brian Keith, Burich, Meg Susan
• Granted Patent: US 9,767,257 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/118
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0081 Coaching or training aspects related to a group of users
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

The present invention provides group performance monitoring systems and methods. In one exemplary embodiment, a system for monitoring a plurality of individuals engaged in an activity includes a base station, a plurality of individual monitors configured to communicate wirelessly with the base station, a plurality of sensors, each sensor in communication with an individual monitor, each configured to be coupled to an individual, and each configured to sense a characteristic of the individual and to transmit, during the activity, data indicative of the characteristic to the individual monitor, and a group monitoring device configured to communicate wirelessly with the base station, wherein each individual monitor is configured to transmit, during the activity, the data to the base station, wherein the base station is configured to receive the data and to transmit, during the activity, a metric based on the data to the group monitoring device, and wherein the group monitoring device is configured to display a representation of the metric.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring a plurality of individuals engaged in an activity, the system comprising:

a base station;

a plurality of individual monitors configured to communicate wirelessly with the base station;

a plurality of sensors, each sensor in communication with an individual monitor, each configured to be coupled to an individual, and each configured to sense a characteristic of the individual and to transmit, during the activity, data indicative of the characteristic to the individual monitor; and

a group monitoring device configured to communicate wirelessly with the base station,

wherein each individual monitor is configured to transmit, during the activity, the data to the base station,

wherein the base station is configured to receive the data and to transmit, during the activity, a metric based on the data to the group monitoring device, and

wherein the group monitoring device is configured to display a representation of the metric.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein each individual monitor is further configured to transmit, during the activity, a metric based on the data to the base station.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the base station is further configured to transmit, during the activity, the data to the group monitoring device.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the group monitoring device is further configured to display a representation of the data.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of individual monitors are configured to communicate bi-directionally with the base station.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the data is indicative of at least one selected from the group consisting of:

heart rate, speed, distance traveled, acceleration, location, orientation, and heading of the individual.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the metric represents at least one selected from the group consisting of:

heart rate, speed, distance traveled, acceleration, location, orientation, heading, energy expenditure, power output, and performance effectiveness of the individual.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a camera configured to obtain image information related to the individuals, and to transmit the image information to the base station during the activity, wherein the data comprises the image information.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the base station comprises a base station database, and is configured to store at least one of the data and a metric in the base station database.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the base station database includes a threshold value of a metric of a first individual.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the base station is configured to transmit a notification to the group monitoring device in response to a metric of the first individual crossing the threshold value.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the threshold value comprises a range, and wherein the base station is configured to transmit a notification to the group monitoring device in response to a metric of the first individual being outside the range.

13. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a web server system comprising a server database, the web server system being configured to receive the metric from the base station, and to store the metric in the server database;

wherein the web server system is configured to make the metric available to external analysis devices,

wherein the base station is further configured to transmit the metric to the web server.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the web server system is further configured to receive a video feed.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the base station is further configured to transmit the video feed to the web server system.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein an individual monitoring device of the plurality of individual monitoring devices is configured to calculate a metric based on the data.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the base station is further configured to calculate a metric based on the data.

18. The system of claim 3, wherein the group monitoring device is further configured to calculate a metric based on the data.

19. A system for monitoring a plurality of individuals engaged in an activity, the system comprising:

a base station;

a plurality of individual monitors configured to communicate wirelessly with the base station;

a plurality of sensors, each sensor in communication with an individual monitor, each configured to be coupled to the individual, and each configured to sense a characteristic of the individual; and

a group monitoring device configured to communicate wirelessly with the base station.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the base station is portable.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the base station comprises a pair of wheels disposed at a first end of the base station, and a handle disposed at a second end of the base station.

22. The system of claim 19, wherein the base station further comprises a plurality of docking stations configured to provide power to the individual monitors when coupled thereto.

23. The system of claim 19, wherein the base station further comprises a plurality of docking stations, and wherein the base station is configured to receive data from an individual monitor of the plurality of individual monitors via a wired connection when the individual monitor is coupled to a docking station of the plurality of docking stations.

24. The system of claim 19, wherein the base station further comprises a detachable battery.

25. The system of claim 19, wherein the base station further comprises antennas for wireless communications.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the antennas are extensible antennas configured for at least one of WLAN (wireless local area network) and ISM (industrial, scientific, and medical) band communications.

27. The system of claim 19, wherein the base station further comprises at least one of a GPS (global positioning system) sensor, a gyroscope, and a magnetometer.

28. The system of claim 19, wherein the base station further comprises at least one of a humidity sensor, a temperature sensor, and a wind sensor.

29. The system of claim 19, wherein the individual monitors are portable relative to the base station.

30. The system of claim 19, wherein the group monitoring device is portable with respect to the base station.

31. The system of claim 19, wherein each individual monitor is configured to be coupled to an individual.

32. A system for monitoring a plurality of individuals engaged in an activity, the system comprising:

a base station;

a plurality of individual monitors configured to communicate wirelessly with the base station, wherein each of the plurality of individual monitors includes a position sensor configured to determine a position of an associated individual monitor; and

a reference sensor configured to communicate with the base station and further configured to detect a deviation signal and to calculate a correction signal for received position data.

33. The system of claim 32, wherein the reference sensor is an independent positioning sensor located remote from the base station.

34. The system of claim 33, wherein the reference sensor is further configured to transmit the correction signal to the base station,

wherein the base station is configured to transmit the correction signal to each of the plurality of individual monitors, and

wherein each of the plurality of individual monitors is configured to correct its determined position using the correction signal.

35. The system of claim 32, wherein the base station comprises the reference sensor.

36. The system of claim 32, wherein the position sensors and the reference sensor are GPS (global positioning system) sensors.

37. A method for determining a position of a position sensor, the method comprising:

receiving a first position signal at a first position sensor;

receiving a deviation signal at a reference sensor;

determining a correction signal using the deviation signal;

transmitting the correction signal from the reference sensor to the first position sensor; and

determining a position of the first position sensor using the first position signal and the correction signal.

38. The method of claim 37, further comprising:

receiving a second position signal at a second position sensor;

transmitting the correction signal from the reference sensor to the second position sensor; and

determining a position of the second position sensor using the second position signal and the correction signal.

39. The method of claim 37, wherein the first position signal and the deviation signal are GPS (global positioning system) signals.

40. A method for facilitating monitoring of a plurality of individuals engaged in an athletic activity, the method comprising:

receiving, at a first individual monitoring device, first data indicative of a characteristic of a first individual during an athletic activity of the first individual and a second individual, wherein the first individual monitoring device is coupled to the first individual;

receiving, at a second individual monitoring device, second data indicative of a characteristic of the second individual during the athletic activity, wherein the second individual monitoring device is coupled to the second individual;

transmitting the first data and the second data wirelessly to a base station during the athletic activity;

determining, at the base station, a metric of the first individual and a metric of the second individual, based on the first data and the second data, respectively;

transmitting the metric of the first individual and the metric of the second individual wirelessly to a group monitoring device during the athletic activity; and

displaying a representation of the metrics on the group monitoring device,

wherein the group monitoring device is portable relative to the base station.

41. The method of claim 40, further comprising:

storing, at the base station, the metric of the first individual and the metric of the second individual.

42. The method of claim 40, further comprising:

determining, at the first individual monitoring device during the athletic activity, a metric of the first individual based on the first data;

determining, at the second individual monitoring device during the athletic activity, a metric of the second individual based on the second data; and

transmitting, during the athletic activity, the metric of the first individual determined at the first individual monitoring device and the metric of the second individual determined at the second individual monitoring device to the base station.

43. The method of claim 40, further comprising:

transmitting the first data and the second data wirelessly to the group monitoring device during the athletic activity.

44. The method of claim 40, further comprising:

displaying a representation of the data on the group monitoring device.

45. The method of claim 40, wherein the data is indicative of at least one selected from the group consisting of:

heart rate, speed, distance traveled, acceleration, location, orientation, and heading of the individual.

46. The method of claim 40, wherein the metrics represent at least one selected from the group consisting of:

heart rate, speed, distance traveled, acceleration, location, orientation, heading, energy expenditure, power output, and performance effectiveness of the individual.

47. The method of claim 40, further comprising:

Transmitting a notification to the group monitoring device in response to a metric of the first individual crossing a threshold value.

48. The method of claim 40, further comprising:

transmitting a notification to the group monitoring device in response to a metric of the first individual being outside a determined range.

49. The method of claim 40, further comprising:

transmitting the metric of the first individual and the metric of the second individual to a web server system.

50. The method of claim 49, further comprising:

transmitting a video feed of the athletic activity to the web server system.

51. A system for monitoring a plurality of individuals engaged in an activity at an activity site, the system comprising:

a portable base station;

a plurality of individual monitors configured to communicate with the base station, each individual monitor being portable with respect to the base station;

a plurality of sensors, each sensor in communication with an individual monitor, each configured to be coupled to the individual, and each configured to sense a characteristic of the individual and to transmit, during the activity, data indicative of the characteristic to the individual monitor; and

a group monitoring device in communication with the base station and portable with respect to the base station,

wherein each individual monitor is configured to transmit, during the activity, the data to the base station,

wherein the base station is configured to receive the data and to transmit, during the activity, a metric based on the data to the group monitoring device,

wherein the group monitoring device is configured to display a representation of the metric, and

wherein the base station is portable with respect to the activity site.