Golf stroke analyzer

• US 4,223,891 A
• Filed: 08/07/1978
• Issued: 09/23/1980
• Est. Priority Date: 08/07/1978
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Richard Van Gaasbeek, Robert W. Britton
• Original Assignee: Richard Van Gaasbeek, Robert W. Britton
• Inventors: Britton, Robert W., Van Gaasbeek, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Marlo, George J.
• Application Number:
  US05/931,780
• Time in Patent Office: 778 Days
• Field of Search: 273/186 R, 273/186 B, 273/186 C
• US Class Current: 473/225
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/36 for golf
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3661 Mats for golf practice, e.g. mats having a simulated turf, a practice tee or a green area

Abstract

To analyze golf strokes, the disclosed device has a mat assembly and a console, the mat assembly preferably including an electrically conducting base plate, mat, artificial grass, tee and eight special switches. The switches are arranged one behind and another in front of the tee, with the other six forming an oblong rectangle extending along the path of the stroke from somewhat behind to well in front of the tee, with four of them at the corners of the rectangle and the other two half way along its long sides. The analysis includes a for evaluating a golf club swing, which method compares "I" with "II", "I" being the time it takes for a swung gold club head to travel from a first pair of the six switches (actuated just prior to passing the golf ball position) to a second pair of the six switches (actuated just past the golf ball position) and "II" being the time it takes for the golf club head to travel from the second pair of switches to the third pair of the six switches.

Each switch has an elastomeric feeler extending well up beyond the mat member, and a solid contact surface behind and spaced from the feeler and lower in height than the feeler, with a thin, flexible conducting strip of the same height as the solid contact surface attached to the back of the feeler and moving with it, and an insulating strip lower than the flexible conducting strip between the flexible conducting strip and the solid contact surface.

The console is actuated through a special electrical setup including the switches and has separate lights showing for a limited time a comprehensive analysis of the stroke, including whether its velocity accelerates in its further part, the general path it takes for an extending distance not limited to that close to the tee, whether or not it is a case of hitting "fat" or a divot shot, and whether the club face is angularly out of true in either horizontal direction or not.

Claims

1. A golf stroke analyzer comprising:

(a) A mat setup having artificial turf and a plurality of switches mounted in particular positions relative to the turf, each switch including an upwardly extending bendable feeler which extends upward at least as far as into the turf, an upwardly extending bendable metal strip against the feeler on the side of that feeler which is away from the direction from which the stroke is coming and the strip having its top located substantially lower than that of the feeler, insulation against the strip still further away from the feeler on that feeler'"'"'s above-mentioned side, the top of which insulation is substantially lower than that of the strip, and a solid conducting surface beyond the insulation on the side away from the feeler and the surface having its top at approximately the same level as that of the strip, the mat setup including at least eight such switches--six of which have feelers which extend upwardly into the path of a normal stroke which would not contact the ground and are respectively arranged in three pairs with each pair at a different place in the stroke and the two feelers of each pair located less than a clubhead'"'"' s length apart and symmetrically one on either side of the intended path of the stroke, the middle pair being located equidistant from the other two pairs, and the other two of the switches having their feelers with their tops below the tops of the feelers of the other six and located respectively one behind and one in front of the position in the stroke where contact with a ball if present would be intended,

(b) a console setup having lights to show an at least relatively comprehensive set of pertinent characteristics of the stroke, and

(c) an electrical circuit setup interrelating the above-mentioned switches and lights and including means to compare the time taken between the first and second above-mentioned pairs of switches on the stroke with the time taken between the second and third above-mentioned pairs of switches on the stroke, and light a light if the latter time is less.

2. (twice) A golf stroke analyzer comprising:

(a) an electrically conductive base plate,

(b) three separate compressible feet supporting the base plate,

(c) a compressible mat resting upon the base plate,

(d) an area of artificial grass on the mat which grass extends up to a particular height,

(e) a tee at a particular position relative to the grass to locate where the ball will be if used, relative to a golfer'"'"'s swing, and adapted to hold a golf ball at that position and at a level above the top of the grass,

(f) a plurality of elastomer feelers extending up from the base and each having a switch associated with it, which switch is adapted to be closed by substantial contact of the club head with the associated feeler in a given swing of a golf club, one of the feelers extending up to below the top of the grass directly in front of the tee relative to the swing, another extending up in similar amount directly in back of the tee relative to the swing, and six of the feelers extending up higher than the aforementioned feelers in pairs, each pair of feelers being abreast of each other relative to such a perfect swing, one on each side of the center line of a perfect swing at a distance apart from the other of the particular pair which is less than the length of a typical club head from shank to toe, with its particular ones on each side of the center line being respectively aligned parallel to that center line, and the pairs being one immediately behind the tee, a second pair in front of it in line with it relative to a perfect swing at a particular distance away from it, and the third pair in front of the second pair relative to a perfect swing at the same distance away from the second pair as is the second pair from the first,

(g) an electrical setup and console including lights, which setup is adapted to close suitable circuits with closure of respective switches, which circuits once closed will at least temporarily stay closed and in that closed state provide for the lighting and the retaining at least temporarily in lighting of certain lights, which lights are arranged on the console and function as follows;

(1) a first light in the center on the far right on the console, which will light to represent substantial contact of the club head with the feeler directly behind the tee and thus will represent hitting "fat";

(2) a vertical line of light immediately to the left of the first light, the second and fourth of which vertical line will represent substantial contact of the club respectively with the righthand and lefthand feelers of the rearmost pair, while the third represents such contact being substantially simultaneous, whereas the first and fifth represent respectively to which side of a perfect path the ball is likely to go as a result of which contact came first in a substantially non-simultaneous contact,

(3) a single light in the center to the left of the above vertical line, which single light represents contact with the feeler directly in front of the tee and thus hitting a "divot" shot,

(4) another line of lights located to the left of the above single light and like the first line but representing aspects of the second pair of feelers similar to those previously mentioned for the first line as to the first pair of feelers,

(5) a vertical line of two lights to the left of the immediately above-mentioned line and representing substantial contact with the third pair of feelers respectively,

(6) a central light toward the left on the console, and representing the comparative time as between the initial contact with one of the first and with one of the second pair of feelers on the one hand and as between the initial contact with one of the second pair and with one of the third pair of feelers on the other hand, and which will light when the latter time is less than the former, thus representing a stroke which accelerates in that latter part.

3. A golf stroke analyzer comprising:

(a) a mat having

(1) artificial turf extending upward,

(2) a real or merely indicated ball striking position for a golf swing, and

(b) a plurality of special switches each of which includes a vertically extending elastomeric feeler having a fixed end in the mat at the bottom and a free end at the top and a usual position extending up at least into the artificial turf, a solid electrically conducting surface spaced from that feeler and located beyond that feeler in the direction in which a golf swing properly through the ball striking position would proceed, a vertically extending flexible electrically conducting strip having a fixed end in the mat at the bottom and a free end at the top and which is attached to and moving with that feeler on the same side of the feeler but which in its usual position is also spaced from that surface, and a strip of solid electrical insulation between the flexible conducting strip and the solid conducting surface, and contacting both, the tops of the flexible strip and the solid conducting surface being both at approximately the same height as each other, which height is substantially below that of the top of the feeler, and the top of the strip of insulation being on a line substantially below the tops of the solid conducting surface and the flexible conducting strip, the switches being part of an electrical circuit setup in which setup there is above the aforementioned strip of electrical insulation in the usual position of the feeler an electrical gap between the solid conducting surface and the flexible conducting strip, which gap will be closed when the elastomeric feeler is bent in the way it would be by ordinary good contact by a golfing club head in a golfing stroke.

4. A golf stroke analyzer comprising a base, a plurality of electric switches mounted on the base each of which switches has a vertically extending elastomeric feeler having a bottom end fixed in the mat and a top end which is free and extends up into an area above the base where a golf club head could travel in a particular direction in a golf swing, a vertically extending flexible metal strip having a bottom end fixed relative to the mat and a top end which is free to move in accordance with the motion of the feeler and is mounted in a position where it extends upward on the feeler on the face of that feeler which is in the direction of such travel, said flexible strip being capable of substantial temporary deformation in that direction and its top being substantially below that of the feeler, a strip of solid insulation mounted where it extends upward and is located on the face of that metal strip which is in the direction of such travel but at a position in which its top is on a line substantially below that of the flexible metal strip, a flat solid surface of conducting material located to extend upward on and up beyond the top of the face of that insulation which is in the direction of travel and having its top approximately at the same height as the top of the metal strip, and electrical circuitry including the switches and having gaps interrupting particular circuits between the above-mentioned metal strip and the above-mentioned flat surface of conducting material except when started into activation by contact between them as a result of travel of a golf clubhead in a golf swing which causes the clubhead to strike the elastomeric feeler in its path and substantially bend it in the direction of its travel.

5. A golf stroke analyzer of claim 4 in which the thickness of the insulation is greater than the thickness of the metal strip.

6. A method for evaluating a golf stroke comprising:

(1) setting up three pairs of vertical sensors adapted to sense the physical contact of a club head as it travels in its swing without appreciable retardation thereof, the pairs being side by side in a row whose center line runs along the swing and the middle pair being equi-spaced from the two end pairs, with the individual sensors of each pair spaced apart more than the width of the ball and having a path for the ball between them, but spaced apart less than the length of the club head;

(2) providing electrical contacts closed by the movement of the sensors when physically contacted by the club head;

(3) providing an electrical setup to sense the time between contact with the first pair and contact with the second pair and the time between contact with the second pair and contact with the third pair and electrically compare the two times and light a light when the first said time is greater than the second said time; and

(4) the golfer swinging a golf club in a way to provide the above-indicated travel by its head across the six sensors and thereby lighting the light if the second said time is less than the first said time, thereby enabling the golfer to evaluate whether he is properly following through on his swing.

7. A golf stroke analyzer having pairs of activators located to be physically contacted by a golf club at three different positions of the stroke, with the intermediate position being equidistant from the first and last positions, the path of the stroke between the intermediate and last positions being beyond where contact with a ball would normally be made, whereas the path of the stroke between the first and intermediate position is at least more representative than the foregoing of the stroke at the time of contact with the ball, the two activators of each pair being located one on either side of the center of the path of the stroke of the golf clubhead, in position to physically contact that head toward the respective end thereof but with room for the path of the golf ball in between, comparator means receiving input from such activators for comparing the speed of the stroke in its path between the last two positions with the speed of the stroke in its path including at least one earlier position, and means governed by the comparator means, for indicating whether the average speed of the golf club between the intermediate and last position is greater than that in the path of the stroke between the first and intermediate position.