Sporting event statistics tracking and computation system and method

• US 7,620,466 B2
• Filed: 02/23/2004
• Issued: 11/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wellspring Software
• Original Assignee: Wellspring Software
• Inventors: Gilman, Benjamin C., Neale, Gregory, Neale, Stuart
• Primary Examiner(s): Suhol; Dmitry
• Assistant Examiner(s): Yoo; Jasson H
• Application Number:
  US10/784,635
• Publication Number:
  US 20050187644A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,094 Days
• Field of Search: 700/91, 700/92, 463/36
• US Class Current: 700/91
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3232 wherein the operator is informed

Abstract

A computerized tracking system including hardware, software and data collection devices used to deduce events and accumulate statistics about a sporting event. Events and statistics are accumulated based on tracking possession of the ball, or primary object of play. In addition to gathering statistics based on the possession of the ball, the system will also include a method of accumulating additional game statistics by logging specific game events.

Claims

1. A system for real-time tracking and recording events of a sports contest with a primary object of play, the sports contest including offensive and defensive competitive interaction between at least a first team and a second team in opposition therewith, each team having at least one player, comprising:

at least one computer including a processor portion, and a user interface portion, said computer interactively operable with a user under control of a computer program associated with said processor portion thereof,

a computerized database accessible through said computer program, said database including information therein indicative of recorded events of the sports contest,

said computer program including a game module for controlling entry by the user of information during the sports contest, said game module operable to interpret the information regarding sports contest activities selectably entered by the user,

said computer programmed for;

a. receiving from said user interface, one or more types of possession input related to a plurality of events of the sports contest, said possession input indicating the player in possession of the primary object of play, and said possession input identifying a particular player and being entered by the user each time a new player takes possession of the primary object of play,

b. interpreting said possession input from said user interface and determining an event indicative of a change of possession of the primary object of play between the player and the new player based on said possession input,

c. receiving from said user interface, one or more types of event input related to a plurality of events of the sports contest,

d. interpreting said event input from said user interface, and

e. storing data representative of said events based on possession input and said events based on event input in said database.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said user interface includes a mouse.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said user interface includes a touch sensitive screen.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said user interface includes a stylus.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein said user interface includes an audio input.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the system includes remotely accessible information regarding the sports contest and wherein said computer is programmed to obtain said remotely accessible information prior to commencement of the sports event and to store said information in said database.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the computer is programmed to send information regarding the sports contest to remote computers.

8. The system of claim 1 further comprising a reporting module operable to interact with a user through said user interface to interactively access information from said database to produce reports related to said sports contest.

9. The system of claim 8 further comprising a recording portion that stores a recording of the sports contest, said recording being time synchronized with the data stored in said database.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein the reports include a length of time each of the players had possession of the primary object of play.

11. The system of claim 8 wherein the reports include a result for every time each one of the players had possession of the primary object of play.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the result includes the events indicative of a change of possession of the primary object of play between the player and the new player.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the result further includes scoring events, and officiating events.

14. The system of claim 8 wherein the reports include statistics related to the events indicative of a change of possession of the primary object of play between the player and at least one additional player.

15. The system of claim 8 wherein the reports are producible at a point during the sports contest and the reports include information representative of the data stored in the database up to the point of the sports contest.

16. The system of claim 1 further comprising a location sensing portion and said computer program further comprising a motion module, said location sensing portion operable to relay spatial position information related to the sports contest to said motion module, said motion module operable to translate said spatial position information into data related to the sports contest storable in said database.

17. The system of claim 1 wherein a scoring event input includes indicating information representative of a location of the player performing the scoring event.

18. The system of claim 8 wherein the reports include information representative of a location of the player at when the player performs a scoring event.

19. A system for tracking and recording events of a fast paced or timed sports contest in real-time, the sports contest including a primary object of play and offensive and defensive competitive interaction between at least a first team and a second team in opposition therewith, each team having at least one player, comprising:

at least one computer user interface including a processor portion, a display portion, and an information entry portion, said computer user interface interactively operable with a user under control of a computer program,

a computerized database accessible through said computer program and said computer user interface,

said computer program including a game module operable for translating a series of user inputs into a series of sports contest events,

said computer user interface operable in accordance with said game module for;

a. accepting from the user at least one entry representative of information related to a plurality of events of the sports contest, the at least one entry representative of information including an officiating indication, a player in possession of the primary object of play entered when the player takes possession of the primary object of play, or an event,

b. interactively responding to the at least one entry of the user and communicating therewith to establish a particular event;

1. indicative of a change of possession of the primary object of play by deducing the particular event based on one entry or a series of entries representative of the player in possession of the primary object of play, or

2. by deducing the particular event based on at least one entry representative of the player in possession of the primary object of play and a different event,

c. displaying the particular event for verification by the user,

d. storing the particular event in said database.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein the computer user interface is further operable in accordance with said game module for interactively responding to the at least one entry of the user and communicating therewith to establish the particular event from a third set of events by interactively eliciting and responding to additional entries representative of information related to the plurality of events from the user by displaying, for selection by the user, additional choices based on the at least one entry until the particular event is determined, or from a fourth set of events by recognizing the at least one entry as the particular event.

21. A method for tracking and recording events of a fast paced or timed sports contest in real-time, the sports contest including a primary object of play and offensive and defensive competitive interaction between at least a first team and a second team in opposition therewith, each team having at least one player, comprising the steps of:

providing at least one computer user interface including a processor portion, a display portion, and an information entry portion, said computer user interface interactively operable with a user under control of a computer program,

providing a computerized database accessible through said computer program and said computer user interface,

said computer program including a game module operable for translating a series of user inputs into a series of sports contest events,

said computer user interface operable in accordance with said game module to perform the steps of;

a. accepting from the user at least one entry representative of information related to a plurality of events of the sports contest, the at least one entry representative of information including an officiating indication, a player in possession of the primary object of play entered when the player takes possession of the primary object of play, or an event,

b. interactively responding to the at least one entry of the user and communicating therewith to establish a particular event;

1. indicative of a change of possession of the primary object of play by deducing the particular event based on one entry or a series of entries representative of the player in possession of the primary object of play, or

2. by deducing the particular event based on at least one entry representative of the player in possession of the primary object of play and a different event,

c. displaying the particular event for verification by the user,

d. storing the particular event in said database.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein the computer user interface is further operable in accordance with said game module for interactively responding to the at least one entry of the user and communicating therewith to establish the particular event from a third set of events by interactively eliciting and responding to additional entries representative of information related to the plurality of events from the user by displaying, for selection by the user, additional choices based on the at least one entry until the particular event is determined, or from a fourth set of events by recognizing the at least one entry as the particular event.