Feedback apparatus and method for improving weight shift

• US 8,864,597 B2
• Filed: 11/23/2012
• Issued: 10/21/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/23/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
• Original Assignee: Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
• Inventors: Kim, Jin Wook, Park, An Jin, Choi, Hyeong Rae, Chun, Sung Kuk, Kang, Dong Hoon
• Primary Examiner(s): Brewster, William M.
• Application Number:
  US13/684,334
• Publication Number:
  US 20140148265A1
• Time in Patent Office: 697 Days
• Field of Search: 473/199, 473/217, 473/269
• US Class Current: 473/199
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1036 Measuring load distribution, e.g. podologic studies
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1114 Tracking parts of the body
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2069/367 Detection of balance between both feet, i.e. weight distribution
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/56 Pressure
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3667 Golf stance aids, e.g. means for positioning a golfer's feet
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/23 Recognition of whole body movements, e.g. for sport training

Abstract

A weight shift feedback apparatus senses a weight shift in a golf swing motion of the user, collects, synchronizes and stores the sensed weight shift information, analyzes a weight value applied to each foot of the user with respect to time based on the stored data, and extracts important points of a swing. The weight shift of the user may be evaluated based on an address point, a backswing top point, an impact point, and a point where the weight value applied to each foot has a maximum value, and the feedback information for the evaluation may be provided to the user.

Claims

1. A weight shift feedback apparatus comprising:

a sensing unit configured to sense a weight shift applied to each foot of a user in a golf swing motion of the user;

an analyzing unit configured to analyze a weight value applied to each foot of the user with respect to time;

a time section determining unit configured to divide each interval between an address point, a middle-of-back swing point, a backswing top point and an impact point of the swing motion into a plurality of equivalent time sections and to determine, for each foot, a time section containing a point where the weight value applied to the foot has the maximum value; and

an output unit configured to provide feedback information to the user based on the determined time sections, wherein

the time section determining unit determines whether a point where the maximum weight value applied to the right foot is between the middle-of-backswing point and the backswing top point and whether a point where the maximum weight value applied to the left foot is between the backswing top point and the impact point.

2. The weight shift feedback apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sensing unit includes a pressure sensor configured to measure a ground reaction value of each foot of the user.

3. The weight shift feedback apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sensing unit includes a vision sensor for sensing a weight shift of the user by detecting a swing motion of the user and observing a shift of the center of gravity of the user.

4. The weight shift feedback apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the analyzing unit includes:

a calculating unit configured to calculate the change of a relative angle of a golf club in the swing motion based on a change of the ground reaction value according to time and a location of the golf club at an address posture; and

a point extracting unit configured to extract the point where the weight value applied to each foot has the maximum value, from the address point, the middle-of-back swing point, the backswing top point and the impact point, based on the calculation result.

5. The weight shift feedback apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

the output unit provides the user with the feedback information about whether a maximum ground reaction of the left foot occurs at an 8^th time section from the backswing top point, when the time section from the backswing top point to the impact point is divided into equivalent ten sections, and whether a maximum ground reaction of the right foot occurs at a time section between the middle-of-back swing point and the backswing top point,

when the back swing is in progress after the address, the middle-of-back swing point is defined as a point where a direction of the golf club is perpendicular to the direction of the golf club at an address posture, and

the feedback information is provided to the user based on a relation table relating to a feedback comment and score for each time section previously stored.

6. The weight shift feedback apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a data storing unit configured to collect, synchronize, and store the sensed weight shift information, wherein

the analyzing unit analyses a weight value applied to each foot of the user based on the stored data with respect to time.

7. The weight shift feedback apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the output unit provides the feedback information to the user by using a display device or sound device having a graphic-based interface or a voice-based interface.

8. A weight shift feedback method comprising:

sensing a weight shift applied to each foot of a user in a golf swing motion of the user;

analyzing a weight value applied to each foot of the user with respect to time;

dividing each interval between an address point, a middle-of-back swing point, a backswing top point and an impact point of the swing motion into a plurality of equivalent time sections;

determining, for each foot, a time section containing a point where the weight value applied to the foot has the maximum value, from the plurality of equivalent time sections; and

providing feedback information to the user based on the determined time sections, wherein

said determining the time section containing the point where the weight value applied to each foot has the maximum value comprises determining whether a point where the maximum weight value applied to the right foot is between the middle-of-backswing point and the backswing top point and whether a point where the maximum weight value applied to the left foot is between the backswing top point and the impact point.

9. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 8, wherein said sensing of a weight shift applied to each foot of a user in a golf swing motion of the user includes measuring a ground reaction value of each foot of the user.

10. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 8, wherein said sensing of a weight shift applied to each foot of a user in a golf swing motion of the user includes sensing a weight shift applied to each foot by detecting a swing motion of the user and then observing a shift of the center of gravity of the user.

11. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 9, wherein said analyzing of a weight value applied to each foot of the user with respect to time includes:

calculating a change of a relative angle of a golf club in the swing motion based on a change of the ground reaction value according to time and a location of the golf club at an address posture; and

extracting a point where the weight value applied to each foot has the maximum value, from the address point, the middle-of-back swing point, the backswing top point and the impact point, based on the calculation result.

12. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 10, wherein said analyzing of a weight value applied to each foot of the user with respect to time includes:

calculating a change of the weight value applied to each foot of the user with respect to time based on the sensed weight shift;

extracting the address point, the middle-of-back swing point, the backswing top point, and the impact point according to a change of a relative angle of a golf club in the swing motion based on the location of the golf club at the address posture; and

extracting a point where the weight value applied to each foot has the maximum value, based on the calculation result.

13. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 8, wherein said providing of feedback information to the user includes:

providing the user with feedback information about whether a maximum ground reaction of the left foot occurs at an 8^th time section from the backswing top point, when the time section from the backswing top point to the impact point is divided into equivalent ten sections, wherein

the feedback information is provided based on a relation table relating to a feedback comment and score for each time section previously stored.

14. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 8, wherein said providing of feedback information to the user includes:

providing the user with a feedback comment on whether a maximum ground reaction of the right foot occurs at a time section between the middle-of-back swing point and the backswing top point, wherein;

the middle-of-back swing point is defined as a point where the direction of the golf club, when the back swing is performed after the address, becomes perpendicular to the direction of the golf club at an address posture, and

the feedback comment is provided based on a relation table relating to a feedback comment and score for each time section previously stored.

15. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 8, wherein said providing of feedback information to the user includes:

providing the user with the feedback information about whether a maximum ground reaction of the left foot occurs at an 8^th time section from the backswing top point, when the time section from the backswing top point to the impact point is divided into equivalent ten sections; and

providing the user with a feedback comment on whether a maximum ground reaction of the right foot occurs at a time section between the middle-of-back swing point and the backswing top point, wherein;

the middle-of-back swing point is defined as a point where the direction of the golf club, when the back swing is performed after the address, becomes perpendicular to the direction of the golf club at an address posture, and

the feedback comment is provided based on a relation table relating to a feedback comment and score for each time section previously stored.

16. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 12, wherein, in said extracting of the address point, the middle-of-back swing point, the backswing top point, and the impact point according to a change of a relative angle of a golf club in the swing motion based on the location of the golf club at the address posture, a relative angular speed of the golf club is 0 at the address point and the backswing top point, and the impact point is a point where a relative angular speed of the golf club changes from a negative value to a positive value.

17. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 8, further comprising:

collecting, synchronizing and storing the sensed weight shift information, wherein

in said analyzing of a weight value applied to each foot of the user with respect to time, the weight value is analyzed with respect to time based on the stored data.

18. The weight shift feedback method according to claim 8, wherein said providing of feedback information to the user includes providing the feedback information to the user by using a display device or a sound device having a graphic-based interface or a voice-based interface.