Hole-in-one detector
First Claim
1. A device for detecting the presence of a golf ball in a ball-receiving cup, said cup also receiving a lower portion of a flag pole, comprising a multiplicity of photoemitters and corresponding photodetectors mounted in or on said lower portion of said flag pole whereby detection beams are emitted from each photoemitter substantially radially from the flag pole lower portion into the cup to ensure that the detection beam from a photoemitter is reflected off a golf ball lodged in the cup and is received by one of the photodetectors irrespective of the position of the ball in the cup, and circuit means for causing a visual and/or audible display or alarm to be activated in response to the receipt of the reflected beam by said one of the photodetectors.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A device for detecting the presence of a golf ball G in a ball-receiving cup comprising a flag pole 1 having a tubular lower portion 2 dimensioned to be received within a standard ball-receiving cup C and supporting four photointerruptors each comprising an infrared emitter 5 and a corresponding photodetector 5A, with the beams from the emitters 5 passing through opening 6 in the tubular portion 2 and being spaced at 90° intervals around the periphery of the tubular portion 2 so that the four quadrants of the cup C are within the fields of the photointerruptors. When a golf ball G enters the cup C, the infrared beam from one of the emitters 5 is reflected from the surface of the golf ball G and i s received by the corresponding photodetector to cause a change in the state of the photodetector which in turn causes a display 3 to be illuminated to indicate that a golf ball G has ended the cup C.
27 Citations
7 Claims
- 1. A device for detecting the presence of a golf ball in a ball-receiving cup, said cup also receiving a lower portion of a flag pole, comprising a multiplicity of photoemitters and corresponding photodetectors mounted in or on said lower portion of said flag pole whereby detection beams are emitted from each photoemitter substantially radially from the flag pole lower portion into the cup to ensure that the detection beam from a photoemitter is reflected off a golf ball lodged in the cup and is received by one of the photodetectors irrespective of the position of the ball in the cup, and circuit means for causing a visual and/or audible display or alarm to be activated in response to the receipt of the reflected beam by said one of the photodetectors.
Specification