Method and system for physical motion analysis and training of a golf club swing motion using image analysis techniques

• US 7,283,647 B2
• Filed: 07/16/2003
• Issued: 10/16/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Michael J. Mcnitt
• Original Assignee: Michael J. Mcnitt
• Inventors: McNitt, Michael J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sherali; Ishrat
• Assistant Examiner(s): Akhavannik; Hadi
• Application Number:
  US10/620,677
• Publication Number:
  US 20050013467A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,553 Days
• Field of Search: 473/151, 382/107
• US Class Current: 382/107
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/806 Video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0003 Analysing the course of a movement or motion sequences during an exercise or trainings sequence, e.g. swing for golf or tennis
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3614 using electro-magnetic, magnetic or ultrasonic radiation emitted, reflected or interrupted by the golf club
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3676 for putting A63B69/3608, A63B69/3661, A63B69/3667 and A63B69/3697 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30221 Sports video; Sports image
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/20 Analysis of motion motion estimation for coding, decoding, compressing or decompressing digital video signals H04N19/43, H04N19/51

Abstract

The analysis tool is a system and method for providing athletic training and instruction as it pertains to a golf club swing motion, specially a golf putting stroke motion. The analysis tool provides analysis information to a user from the analysis of at least one video image recording device. The motion of the golf club during the swing or stroke is determined by processing the video image frame data collected by the video image recording device(s). The resulting measurements are displayed by the computer processing environment and presented to the user numerically or pictorially for the purposes of instruction and improvement.

Claims

1. An analysis tool for capturing and analyzing physical motion of a golf putter during a putting stroke, comprising:

(a) one or more video image recording devices;

(b) a computer processing environment for processing and storing video image data recorded by said video image recording devices;

(c) means for a calibration process to determine an exact trajectory a golf ball must roll along to reach a predetermined target zone and to determine measurement correction factors necessary to compensate for measurement errors caused by optical distortion, misalignment, or positional variance of said individual image recording devices;

(d) a light reflective element attached to a surface of said golf putter whereby providing a visual target to record using said video recording devices, detect, and measure position and angle of said light reflective element representing said putter, relative to said exact trajectory with respect to time;

(e) a computer readable media containing computer algorithms operable in said computer processing environment for processing said video image data as recorded from each single said video recording device containing recorded image representations of said light reflective element whereby determining a plurality of said position and angular measurements of said light reflective element relative to said exact trajectory, representing said golf putter to which said light reflective element is attached;

(f) a display device providing means for presenting said position and angular measurements relative to said exact trajectory;

(g) means for processing and correcting said position and angular measurements using said calibration correction factors relative to said exact trajectory;

whereby providing corrected, position and angular motion measurement information to aid in instruction and improvement of said putting stroke.

2. The analysis tool as defined in claim 1 further comprising a means for automatically starting a detection and analysis process as part of processing said video image data from an individual said video image recording device based on a predetermined amount of change within a user defined image region of same said video image data from the same individual said video image recording device as a function of time.

3. The analysis tool as defined in claim 1 further comprising a calibration fixture assembly to perform said calibration process, comprising:

(a) a physical golf ball guide with alignment feature;

(b) a visual calibration target,

whereby a recorded video image of aligned said visual calibration target is processed to perform said calibration process.

4. The calibration fixture assembly as defined in claim 3 wherein said physical golf ball guide is a groove of sufficient dimensions to physically guide a rolling golf ball to determine the initial direction vector said golf ball must travel along, and therefore said exact trajectory, to successfully reach a specified target zone.

5. The calibration fixture assembly as defined in claim 3 wherein said visual calibration target contains on its surface a uniform pattern of distinct features that can be manually aligned to the said physical golf ball guide alignment feature to facilitate the process of calibrating and aligning said analysis tool to said exact trajectory.

6. The analysis tool as defined in claim 1 wherein said computer readable media containing computer algorithms further comprising a detection process using digital image processing techniques to find a center location and edge boundaries of the representation of said reflective element in each frame of said video image data from a single said video recording device, thereby determining said position and angular measurements of said light reflective element relative to said exact trajectory.

7. The analysis tool as defined in claim 1 further comprising a means to calculate secondary motion data from said position and angular measurements of said light reflective element relative to said exact trajectory. This said secondary motion data is comprised of stroke tempo, back stroke distance, follow through distance, off-line distance, and variance from ideal path.