INTERACTION OF VIDEO PROJECTION AND EFFECTS LIGHTING WITH BOWLING SCORING SYSTEM AND METHODS OF USE

• US 20130324272A1
• Filed: 05/24/2013
• Published: 12/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Qubicaamf Europe S.P.A. (Daifuku Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Qubica Europe S.p.A.
• Inventors: Vaioli, Roberto, Namala, Samuel R., Baraldi, Massimo, Kovach, Frank G., Parisi, Tommaso, Wilbar, Kelly J., Pennington, Neil S.
• Application Number:
  US13/902,349
• Publication Number:
  US 20130324272A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 473/70
• CPC Class Codes: A63D 5/04 Indicating devices

Abstract

An interactive bowling system using scoring systems and/or other computer infrastructures which interact with visual and/or audio effects within the bowling center. The system includes a management system having stored therein instructions to provide special effects associated with one or more events to one or more special effects components. Upon an occurrence of an event, the management system: determines that the occurrence of the event is associated with one or more special effects; and provides the instructions to the one or more special effects components to effectuate the special effects associated with the one or more events

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a management system having stored therein instructions to provide special effects associated with one or more events to one or more special effects components,

wherein, upon an occurrence of an event, the management system;

determines that the occurrence of the event is associated with one or more special effects; and

provides the instructions to the one or more special effects components to effectuate the special effects associated with the one or more events.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more special effects components provide special effects comprising at least one of video projection, multi-colored lighting, laser effects, audio effects, and fog/haze.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the one or more special effects components provide the special effects within a bowling center.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the management system is a centralized management system of a bowling center that centrally controls bowling activities within the bowling center and is configured to associate a detected or determined event with the one or more special effects.

5. The system of claim 4, further comprising a scoring system which interacts with the centralized management system.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the scoring system provides game information to the centralized management system, which includes at least one bowling event which is determined by the centralized management system to be an event associated with the one or more special effects.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the scoring system is configured to permit a bowler to enter one or more programmed triggering events and associated special effects, which are provided to the centralized management system.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a detection system which interacts with the management system.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the detection system is configured to detect movement of an object or a person, and provide detected movement to the management system, which associates the detected movement with the one or more events.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the management system instructs the one or more special effects components to change special effects due to motion of a bowling ball or bowler.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more special effects components is a sound system which is integrated with the management system to create specific sounds in response to ball motion, bowler motion, or scoring events on a bowling lane.

12. The system of claim 1 is integrated to a network advertising server and system and is configured to display advertising messages and videos onto the bowling lane, approach, wall, or masking unit.

13. A system, comprising:

one or more special effects components configured to provide special effects in response to an occurrence of one or more events that occurred in a bowling center; and

a management system programmed to;

store one or more predefined events and associated special effects in a storage device;

upon an occurrence of a detected event, make a determination that the detected event is one of the predefined events; and

when it is determined that the detected event is one of the predefined events, provide instructions to the one or more special effects components to perform at least one of the predefined special effects associate with the detected event.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising a scoring system configured to provide at least one of:

provide data associated with the bowling game to the management system; and

provide an interface for a bowler to define the one or more predefined events and associated special effects and sending the defined one or more predefined events and associated special effects to the management system.

15. A method, comprising:

detecting an event at a bowling center;

associating the event with special effects; and

providing instructions to one or more special effects components in the bowling center to perform the special effects associated with the event.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the special effects includes at least one of video projection, multi-colored lighting, laser effects, audio effects, and fog/haze.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the event is determined by a scoring system and provided to a management system for providing the instructions.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the associating of the event with the special effects is predefined by a user at the scoring system.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein interaction with the management system is through a handheld mobile device.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising a computer program product comprising a computer usable storage medium having readable program code embodied in the storage medium the computer program product includes at least one component operable to perform at least the associating and the providing steps of claim 15.