MONITORING OF PHYSICAL TRAINING EVENTS

• US 20140081436A1
• Filed: 08/07/2013
• Published: 03/20/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Russell Brands LLC (Berkshire Hathaway Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Information Sports Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Crowley, Michael James, King, Kevin
• Granted Patent: US 8,951,106 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/91
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1124 Determining motor skills
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6895 Sport equipment
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0012 Comparing movements or motion sequences with a registered reference
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0068 Comparison to target or threshold, previous performance or not real time comparison to other individuals
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0096 using performance related parameters for controlling electronic or video games or avatars
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2071/0625 Emitting sound, noise or music
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2071/0655 Tactile feedback
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/17 Counting, e.g. counting periodical movements, revolutions or cycles, or including further data processing to determine distances or speed
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/22 Stride length
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/35 Spin
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/40 Acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/51 Force
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/53 Force of an impact, e.g. blow or punch
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/56 Pressure
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/803 Motion sensors
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/833 Sensors arranged on the exercise apparatus or sports implement
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/89 Field sensors, e.g. radar systems
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/20 with means for remote communication, e.g. internet or the like
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/50 Wireless data transmission, e.g. by radio transmitters or telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0006 Computerised comparison for qualitative assessment of motion sequences or the course of a movement
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0062 : Monitoring athletic performances, e.g. for determining the work of a user on an exercise apparatus, the completed jogging or cycling distance
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0084 : Exercising apparatus with means for competitions, e.g. virtual races
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 41/00 : Hollow inflatable balls
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 43/00 : Balls with special arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/002 : for football American-football dummies A63B69/34
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/0071 : for basketball
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 71/03 : Athletic drills or obstacles for sport training, other than foot obstacles for skipping
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 71/06 : Indicating or scoring devices for games or players , or for other sports activities
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/65 : automatically by game devices or servers from real world data, e.g. measurement in live racing competition
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/812 : Ball games, e.g. soccer or baseball
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2218/12 : Classification; Matching
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06393 : Score-carding, benchmarking or key performance indicator [KPI] analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/23 : Recognition of whole body movements, e.g. for sport training
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/0038 : Sports
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 : relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising

Abstract

A computer-implemented method is disclosed that includes instructing a human player to perform a plurality of different actions in a determined order with a physical basketball, including actions of bouncing the physical basketball, and obtaining, with one or more electronic sensors, data that characterizes motion of the physical basketball being handled by the human player who is performing the instructed actions at a location. The method also includes communicating the data from the sensors to a console videogame system that is proximate to the location, and graphically representing, in a videogame displayed on a display device, performance by the human player, the performance being affected by the captured data, the representation of performance by the human player being compared against a standard of performance.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented athletic performance analysis method, comprising:

obtaining, at a computer system, first motion data generated by a test subject moving a test ball containing motion sensors through a predetermined exercise;

analyzing in the first motion data, with the computer system, the data from the inertial sensors; and

providing to a remote computer at a location of the subject a report regarding the first motion data, the report reflecting a comparison of the first motion data with corresponding motion data of other users who have performed the predetermined exercise.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined exercise comprises repeatedly performing a common motion, and the report reflects the subject'"'"'s stamina during repeated performance of the common motion as compare to other test subjects.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined exercise comprises throwing a ball in the air, and analysis of the data comprises analyzing flight time of the ball and time in hand time of the ball.

4. A computer-implemented method of capturing data indicative of athletic performance, comprising:

creating an event in a computer system;

assigning a package of athletic drills to the event;

registering an athlete with the computer system;

correlating the athlete to the event;

receiving data generated by motion sensors that are attached to the athlete or an object manipulated by the athlete during execution of he exercises;

processing the received data to generate summary information that is descriptive of the athlete'"'"'s performance; and

making the summary information available over a network for review to users of the computer system who are authorized to see information about the athlete.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein creating the event comprises first creating the event on a client computing device and then transmitting the event to a computer server system.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising testing authenticity of the received data by comparing an identifier that is received with the received data to an identifier that is associated with the event.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein processing the received data comprises scoring the data, wherein a higher score represents more superior athletic performance by the athlete in executing a drill.

8. An electronic sporting measurement method, comprising:

measuring motion of a sports ball using one or more motion detectors of an electronics assembly mounted inside the sports ball;

forming a data communication link between the electronics assembly and a consumer electronics device;

transmitting data that represents motion of the ball from the electronics assemble to the consumer electronics device; and

analyzing the transmitted data or further transmitting the data with the consumer electronics device for producing data that reflects a skill level of a person who handled the sports ball while motion of the sports ball was measured.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein measuring motion of the sports ball comprises measuring motion through a plurality of discrete sporting performance drills by the person.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising storing the data in the electronics assembly in coordination with each of the discrete sporting performance drills.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein transmitting the data that represents motion of the ball comprises wirelessly transmitting the data through an outer cover of the sports ball.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the data is transmitted by a public wireless standard.

13. The method of claim 8, further comprising uploading data concerning motion of the sports ball from the consumer electronics device to a central server system over the internet, for comparison of the uploaded data to uploaded data for other people.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the consumer electronics device is selected from a group consisting of a personal computer, a console gaming machine, and a wireless telephone computing device.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising operating a videogame on the consumer electronics device using skills for a player in the videogame that reflect skills determined from the transmitted data.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising presenting to a user of the consumer electronics device information that compares athletic performance of a first user who moved the sports ball to one or more other users who moved other sports balls.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising comparing athletic performance of two users in close proximity to each other who both performed athletic drills with the one or more sports balls and captured motion data while performing the athletic drills.

18. The method of claim 8, further comprising measuring motion of the sports ball using sensors in a floor surface on which the sports ball is being handled or using optical sensors aimed at the sports ball.