Golf swing analysis apparatus and method

• US 10,338,212 B2
• Filed: 02/17/2015
• Issued: 07/02/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/20/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: VC Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Ucomm Technology Co.,Ltd
• Inventors: Kim, Juno, Jin, Sangil, Lee, Hohyeong, Nam, Hansu, Lee, Choongjin
• Primary Examiner(s): Magloire, Vladimir
• Assistant Examiner(s): Braswell, Donald H B
• Application Number:
  US15/120,152
• Publication Number:
  US 20170072261A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,596 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/31 Relative speed
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 60/46 Measurement devices associated with golf clubs, bats, rackets or the like for measuring physical parameters relating to sporting activity, e.g. baseball bats with impact indicators or bracelets for measuring the golf swing
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3658 Means associated with the ball for indicating or measuring, e.g. speed, direction
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/536 using transmission of continuous unmodulated waves, amplitude-, frequency-, or phase-modulated waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/583 using transmission of continuous unmodulated waves, amplitude-, frequency-, or phase-modulated waves and based upon the Doppler effect resulting from movement of targets
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/88 Radar or analogous systems specially adapted for specific applications electromagnetic prospecting or detecting of objects, e.g. near-field detection, G01V3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/04 Display arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2218/08 Feature extraction
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/23 Recognition of whole body movements, e.g. for sport training
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/0038 Sports

Abstract

An apparatus for analyzing a golf swing according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes: a signal detecting unit including a Doppler radar sensor which radiates a transmission wave to a golf club and a golf ball and detects a reflected wave, in which a first reflected wave of the golf club and a second reflected wave of the golf ball are mixed, and detects a frequency deviation between the transmission wave and the mixed reflected wave and generates an output signal; and a swing analysis information calculating unit configured to calculate a speed of the golf club and a speed of the golf ball by using the output signal.

Claims

1. An apparatus for analyzing a golf swing, comprising:

a signal detecting unit including a Doppler radar sensor which radiates a transmission wave to a golf club and a golf ball and detects a reflected wave, in which a first reflected wave of the golf club and a second reflected wave of the golf ball are mixed, and detects a frequency deviation between the transmission wave and the mixed reflected wave and generates an output signal; and

a swing analysis information calculating unit configured to calculate a speed of the golf club and a speed of the golf ball by using the output signal,

wherein;

the swing analysis information calculating unit calculates the speed of the golf ball based on a signal, which is obtained by converting the output signal into a frequency domain, and calculates the speed of the golf club based on a signal, which is generated from the output signal in a time domain, and

wherein;

the swing analysis information calculating unit further includes a practice swing determining unit, which determines a swing as a hitting swing when the candidate speed of the golf ball has a predetermined value or more, and determines a swing as a practice swing when the candidate speed of the golf ball has less than the predetermined value, and

wherein;

the practice swing determining unit differently applies the predetermined value based on the kind of golf club.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the number of Doppler radar sensors is one.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the swing analysis information calculating unit includes;

a ball speed calculating unit configured to calculate a candidate speed of the golf ball based on a frequency component obtained by converting the output signal into the frequency domain, and

a club speed calculating unit configured to calculate the speed of the golf club based on a zero-crossing frequency of the output signal.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein:

the ball speed calculating unit converts the output signal into the frequency domain by performing fast Fourier transform.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein:

the ball speed calculating unit calculates the candidate speed of the golf ball based on the highest frequency value among frequency values of the obtained frequency components.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein:

the highest frequency value is the largest frequency value of the obtained frequency component, of which the size value has a predetermined value or more.

7. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein:

the club speed calculating unit filters a signal for the zero-crossing frequency, and calculates the speed of the golf club based on a frequency value corresponding to a peak of the filtered signal.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein:

the peak is a point having the largest frequency value in the filtered signal.

9. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein:

the swing analysis information calculating unit further includes

an accuracy calculating unit configured to calculate a smash factor based on a ratio of the speed of the golf club and the candidate speed of the golf ball.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein:

the swing analysis information calculating unit further includes

a carry distance calculating unit configured to calculate a carry distance of the golf ball based on the candidate speed of the golf ball, the kind of golf club, and the smash factor.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein:

the swing analysis information calculating unit further includes

a score managing unit configured to calculate a result score based on an error value between a preset target driving distance and the carry distance, and calculate a score sum by summing the calculated result score.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a signal pre-processing unit configured to remove noise of the output signal, convert an analog signal that is an output signal, in which the noise is removed, into a digital signal, and provide the swing analysis information calculating unit with the converted digital signal.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising:

a display unit configured to display swing analysis information calculated by the swing analysis information calculating unit;

a memory unit configured to store the swing analysis information; and

an input unit configured to receive a control signal including a signal setting the kind of golf club from a user.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, further comprising:

a remote control unit configured to remotely transmit the control signal,

wherein the remote control unit includes;

a club selecting unit configured to set the kind of golf club;

a display selecting unit configured to set swing analysis information displayed on the display unit;

a target distance selecting unit configured to increase or decrease a target driving distance of the golf ball;

a power-saving selecting unit configured to control power-saving of a main body of the golf swing analysis apparatus; and

a mode selecting unit configured to convert a mode of the main body into an analysis mode.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein:

the analysis mode includes a practice mode measuring a driving distance of the golf ball, a target mode setting a target driving distance of the golf ball and analyzing a swing, and a random mode randomly setting a target driving distance of the golf ball and analyzing a swing.

16. A method of analyzing a golf swing, comprising:

radiating a transmission wave to a golf club and a golf ball and detecting a reflected wave, in which a first reflected wave of the golf club and a second reflected wave of the golf ball are mixed, and detecting a frequency deviation between the transmission wave and the mixed reflected wave and generating an output signal;

calculating a speed of the golf club based on a signal, which is generated from the output signal in a time domain; and

calculating a speed of the golf ball hit by the golf club, based on a signal, which is obtained by converting the output signal into a frequency domain, and

wherein;

the swing analysis information calculating unit further includes a practice swing determining unit, which determines a swing as a hitting swing when the candidate speed of the golf ball has a predetermined value or more, and determines a swing as a practice swing when the candidate speed of the golf ball has less than the predetermined value, and

wherein;

the practice swing determining unit differently applies the predetermined value based on the kind of golf club.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein:

the calculating of the speed of the golf club includes;

generating a signal for a zero-crossing frequency of the output signal;

filtering a signal for the zero-crossing frequency;

detecting a peak of the filtered signal; and

calculating the speed of the golf club based on a frequency value corresponding to the peak.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein:

a point having the largest frequency value in the filtered signal is detected as the peak.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein:

the calculating of the speed of the golf ball includes;

converting the output signal into a frequency domain and obtaining a frequency component;

extracting a first frequency component having the highest frequency value from the frequency components;

calculating a candidate speed of the golf ball based on a frequency value of the first frequency component.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein:

the frequency component having the largest frequency value among the frequency components, of which size values are a predetermined value or more, is extracted as the first frequency component.