Method, system, and non-transitory computer-readable recording medium for providing information about target direction applied to golf ball or golf swing

Abstract

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for providing information on a target direction applied to a golf ball or a golf swing, the method comprising the steps of: acquiring position information of at least one ball; and determining a target direction of a golf ball or a golf swing applied to the user by referring to the acquired position information of the at least one ball.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a method, system, and non-transitory computer-readable recording medium for providing information about a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing. Background Art

[0002] In recent years, as the development of digital technology has brought more leisure time to modern people's daily lives, the number of people who choose golf as a hobby or sports activity has increased rapidly. As a result, golf novices have been doing a lot of swing practice on screen golf courses or driving ranges.

[0003] However, even if novice golfers practice their swings a lot, during an actual round they often find that they do not hit the ball as well as they did in practice, or that the ball does not go where they wanted it to go. This is most likely due to neglecting the importance of aiming the ball in the target direction and aligning the body in the target direction.

[0004] That is, if the direction of aiming at the target and the alignment of the body to the direction of aiming are not correct, then no matter how good the swing is, it will be meaningless, so in order to improve golf skills, it is necessary to perform swing exercises involving correct aiming and alignment.

[0005] To this end, the inventors have proposed a technology for acquiring position information of at least one ball, and determining a target direction to be applied to a user's golf shot or golf swing with reference to the acquired position information of at least one ball, thereby helping the user to perform swing exercises involving aiming and alignment, and improving the user's golf skills. Summary of the invention

[0006] An object of the present invention is to solve all the above-mentioned problems in the prior art.

[0007] Another object of the present invention is to determine the direction of an imaginary straight line connecting the positions of a plurality of balls as a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing, thereby easily assisting the user's aiming and alignment without a special tool.

[0008] Still another object of the present invention is to provide visual feedback regarding a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing, thereby allowing a user to intuitively recognize whether the target direction is determined.

[0009] A representative configuration of the present invention for achieving the above-mentioned object is described below.

[0010] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for providing information about a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing, the method comprising the steps of: acquiring position information of at least one ball; and determining a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing of a user by referring to the acquired position information of at least one ball.

[0011] According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for providing information about a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing, the system comprising: an information acquisition unit configured to acquire position information of at least one ball; and an information determination unit configured to determine the target direction applied to the user's golf shot or golf swing by referring to the acquired position information of at least one ball.

[0012] In addition, other methods and systems for implementing the present invention, and a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having a computer program for executing the method stored thereon are also provided.

[0013] According to the present invention, the direction of an imaginary straight line connecting the positions of a plurality of balls can be determined as a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing, thereby easily assisting the user's aiming and alignment without a dedicated tool.

[0014] According to the present invention, visual feedback regarding a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing can be provided, thereby allowing a user to intuitively recognize whether the target direction is determined. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Figure 1 The internal configuration of the information providing system according to one embodiment of the present invention is specifically shown.

[0016] Figure 2 A case where the information providing system according to the present invention is used in a virtual golf simulation system according to one embodiment of the present invention is illustratively shown.

[0017] Figures 3 to 5 It is illustratively shown how to provide signal information based on the ball position according to one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] In the following detailed description of the present invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate specific embodiments in which the present invention can be practiced by way of illustration. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the present invention. It should be understood that the various embodiments of the present invention, although different from each other, are not necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, the specific shapes, structures and features described herein may be implemented as modifications from one embodiment to another. In addition, it should be understood that the position or arrangement of the various elements in each embodiment may also be modified without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the following detailed description should not be considered restrictive, and the scope of the present invention should be considered to cover the scope of the attached claims and all equivalents thereof. In the accompanying drawings, the same reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements throughout several views.

[0019] Hereinafter, various preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily implement the present invention.

[0020] The sensing module according to one embodiment of the present invention can acquire information about hitting data (e.g., launch angle, side angle, ball speed, backspin, and side spin) or the time of impact, and transmit the acquired information to the main module.

[0021] The main module according to one embodiment of the present invention may provide the user with information obtained by combining or analyzing information received from the sensing module.

[0022] Configuration of information provision system

[0023] Figure 1 Specifically shown is the internal configuration of the information providing system 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] refer to Figure 1According to an embodiment of the present invention, the information providing system 100 may include an information acquisition unit 110, an information determination unit 120, a communication unit 130 and a control unit 140. According to an embodiment of the present invention, at least some of the information acquisition unit 110, the information determination unit 120, the communication unit 130 and the control unit 140 may be program modules for communicating with an external system (not shown). The program modules may be included in the information providing system 100 in the form of an operating system, an application program module and other program modules, and they may be physically stored in various well-known storage devices. In addition, the program modules may also be stored in a remote storage device that can communicate with the information providing system 100. At the same time, such program modules may include, but are not limited to, routines, subroutines, programs, objects, components and data structures according to the present invention for performing specific tasks or executing specific abstract data types as described below.

[0025] Meanwhile, although the information providing system 100 has been described above, the above description is illustrative, and it is obvious to those skilled in the art that at least some of the components or functions of the information providing system 100 can be implemented or included in a known virtual golf simulation system as needed. In addition, in some cases, all functions and components of the information providing system 100 can be implemented or included in the virtual golf simulation system 210.

[0026] First, the information acquisition unit 110 according to one embodiment of the present invention may acquire the position information of at least one ball. For example, the at least one ball according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a ball to be hit by the user (e.g., a first ball) and at least one ball for target direction setting (e.g., a second ball and / or a third ball). As another example, the at least one ball according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a single ball for target direction setting (e.g., a fourth ball).

[0027] Specifically, the position information of multiple balls according to one embodiment of the present invention may include the coordinate information of the ball to be hit by the user (e.g., the center coordinates of the first ball) and the coordinate information of at least one ball used for target direction setting (e.g., the center coordinates of the second ball and / or the third ball). In addition, the position information of a single ball according to one embodiment of the present invention may include the coordinate information of a single ball used for target direction setting (e.g., the center coordinates of the fourth ball).

[0028] Furthermore, the information acquisition unit 110 may acquire information on the trajectory of a hit ball from a golf shot or a golf swing of the user.

[0029] Specifically, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the information acquisition unit 110 can use an imaging module to acquire multiple images of a ball, and based on the relationship between the position where the imaging module is set and each of the multiple positions determined by the projection from the viewpoint of the imaging module to the ball on the background, obtain information about the movement trajectory of the ball in the reference space defined in the three-dimensional coordinate system by referring to the acquired multiple images.

[0030] Meanwhile, it should be noted that for further details on obtaining information about the trajectory of the ball according to one embodiment of the present invention, reference may be made to the disclosure of Korean patent application number 10-2018-0130225 filed by the applicant, the entire contents of which are deemed to be incorporated herein by reference.

[0031] Next, the information determination unit 120 according to one embodiment of the present invention may determine a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing of the user by referring to the acquired position information of at least one ball.

[0032] For example, the direction of the imaginary straight line connecting the positions of multiple balls according to one embodiment of the present invention may be determined as the target direction applied to the user's golf shot or golf swing. As another example, when multiple imaginary straight lines are formed by connecting the positions of multiple balls according to one embodiment of the present invention, the direction of the imaginary straight line determined by the user's selection may be determined as the target direction applied to the user's golf shot or golf swing.

[0033] Specifically, the direction of a virtual straight line formed by referring to a ball to be hit by a user and coordinate information of at least one ball for target direction setting according to one embodiment of the present invention may be determined as a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing.

[0034] More specifically, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the direction of a virtual straight line formed by connecting the center coordinates of a first ball to be hit by a user and the center coordinates of a second ball for target direction setting may be determined as a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing.

[0035] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, when a virtual straight line is formed by connecting the center coordinates of a first ball to be hit by the user and the center coordinates of the second and third balls for target direction setting, the direction of the formed virtual straight line may be determined as the target direction applied to the user's golf shot or golf swing. Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, when two virtual straight lines are formed by connecting the center coordinates of a first ball to be hit by the user and the center coordinates of the second and third balls for target direction setting, the direction of the virtual straight line determined by the user's selection may be determined as the target direction applied to the user's golf shot or golf swing.

[0036] However, the number of balls for target direction setting according to one embodiment of the present invention is not limited and may be variously changed as long as the object of the present invention can be achieved.

[0037] As another example, the direction of the imaginary straight line connecting the position of the indication point and the position of a single ball according to an embodiment of the present invention can be determined as the target direction applied to the user's golf shot or golf swing. The indication point according to an embodiment of the present invention refers to a fixed position, or a position fixed relative to an instrument (e.g., a shot monitor) including the information providing system 100, and can be visually displayed to the user using a laser or the like.

[0038] Specifically, the direction of a virtual straight line formed by referring to the indication point and the coordinate information of a single ball for target direction setting may be determined as a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing.

[0039] More specifically, the direction of a virtual straight line formed by connecting the coordinates of an indication point visualized with laser and the center coordinates of a fourth ball for target direction setting according to an embodiment of the present invention may be determined as a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing.

[0040] At the same time, according to one embodiment of the present invention, signal information dynamically determined based on the positions of multiple balls may be provided to the user. The signal information according to one embodiment of the present invention refers to sensory information provided to the user to enable the user to recognize whether the target direction is determined based on the positions of multiple balls, and may include, for example, visual feedback (e.g., a visual signal dynamically determined based on the positions of multiple balls) and auditory feedback (e.g., an audio signal dynamically determined based on the positions of multiple balls).

[0041] Specifically, according to one embodiment of the present invention, in response to a virtual straight line being formed by connecting the positions of a plurality of balls, first visual feedback may be provided to the user, the first visual feedback indicating that a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing is determined.

[0042] For example, according to one embodiment of the present invention, when there is a ball for target direction setting, the direction of a virtual straight line formed by connecting the center coordinates of a first ball to be hit by the user and the center coordinates of a second ball for target direction setting can be determined as the target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing. Then, a green signal (e.g., light) can be provided to the user, indicating that the target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing according to one embodiment of the present invention is determined.

[0043] As another example, a green signal (e.g., light) indicating that a target direction applied to a golf shot or golf swing according to one embodiment of the present invention is determined may be provided to the user along with an audio signal (e.g., a beep or voice prompt).

[0044] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, in response to a plurality of imaginary straight lines formed by connecting the positions of a plurality of balls, second visual feedback may be provided to the user, the second visual feedback indicating that a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing is not determined.

[0045] For example, according to one embodiment of the present invention, when there are multiple balls (e.g., a second ball and a third ball) for target direction setting, the direction of the virtual straight line formed by connecting the center coordinates of the first ball to be hit by the user with the center coordinates of the second ball and the third ball for target direction setting can be determined as the target direction applied to the golf shot or the golf swing. However, when the first ball, the second ball, and the third ball according to one embodiment of the present invention are not on a line, a plurality of virtual straight lines are inevitably formed between the first ball, the second ball, and the third ball, which may indicate that the target direction applied to the golf shot or the golf swing has not been determined.

[0046] In other words, when the ball to be hit and two or more balls used for target direction setting according to an embodiment of the present invention are not in one line, an orange signal or a yellow signal (e.g., light) may be provided to the user, indicating that the target direction applied to the golf shot or golf swing has not been determined unless there are special circumstances (e.g., a situation in which the direction of a straight line is determined based on a user's selection).

[0047] As another example, an orange signal or a yellow signal (e.g., light) indicating that a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing has not been determined may be provided to the user along with an audio signal (e.g., a beep or voice prompt) according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0048] This allows the user to easily and conveniently perform aiming and alignment without carrying a tool (eg, an alignment stick), and to intuitively recognize whether the target direction is determined.

[0049] At the same time, according to one embodiment of the present invention, feedback information generated by referring to the relationship between the direction of the imaginary straight line connecting the positions of multiple balls and the trajectory of the hit ball can be provided. The feedback information according to one embodiment of the present invention can refer to information used to assist in swing posture correction based on whether the swing according to the user's aiming and alignment matches the trajectory of the ball according to the user's swing. For example, voice, text, graphics, subtitles, etc. can be provided to the user to remind the user that the direction, position or distance of the user's body, head, shoulders or gaze needs to be changed so that the user's swing can be optimized for aiming and alignment.

[0050] This allows the user to practice a swing that is optimized for the user's aim and alignment, thereby improving shot accuracy even if the target point changes.

[0051] Next, the communication unit 130 according to one embodiment of the present invention may function to enable data transmission / reception from / to the information acquisition unit 110 and the information determination unit 120 .

[0052] Finally, the control unit 140 according to one embodiment of the present invention may function to control the data flow between the information acquisition unit 110, the information determination unit 120, and the communication unit 130. That is, the control unit 140 according to one embodiment of the present invention may control the data flow into / out of the information providing system 100 or between the various components of the information providing system 100, so that the information acquisition unit 110, the information determination unit 120, and the communication unit 130 may respectively perform their specific functions.

[0053] Figure 2 A case where the information providing system according to the present invention is used in a virtual golf simulation system according to one embodiment of the present invention is illustratively shown.

[0054] like Figure 2 As shown, a virtual golf simulation system 210 on an actual golf course (or outdoor driving range) may function to implement a virtual golf simulation using information obtained by sensing a golf ball, and may include at least a portion of the information providing system 100 according to the present invention.

[0055] Specifically, the virtual golf simulation system 210 according to one embodiment of the present invention may include at least one sensor module and function to acquire multiple images related to the hitting information and direction information of the ball. The virtual golf simulation system 210 may be placed in a position to look down at the moving golf club head, while it may be placed in other positions. Meanwhile, the virtual golf simulation system 210 according to one embodiment of the present invention may function similarly to a high-speed camera by sequentially acquiring multiple images using at least two cameras with different shooting speeds, or may function similarly to a three-dimensional camera by simultaneously acquiring multiple images using two two-dimensional cameras.

[0056] In addition, the virtual golf simulation system 210 according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a main module and function to provide the user with information obtained by combining or analyzing information received from the sensor module (e.g., feedback information generated by referring to the relationship between the direction of the imaginary straight line connecting the positions of the plurality of balls and the trajectory of the hit ball). Meanwhile, the virtual golf simulation system 210 according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a dedicated processor. The dedicated processor may be provided with a memory device and may have capabilities for numerical calculations and graphic processing.

[0057] In addition, the virtual golf simulation system 210 according to one embodiment of the present invention may function to visualize and display signal information (e.g., visual signals and audio signals dynamically determined based on the positions of a plurality of balls) and information generated by the analysis of the virtual golf simulation system 210 (e.g., feedback information generated by referring to the relationship between the direction of an imaginary straight line connecting the positions of a plurality of balls and the trajectory of the hit ball). The virtual golf simulation system 210 may display an image via a display device.

[0058] However, it should be noted that the information providing system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is not limited to operating in conjunction with the virtual golf simulation system 210, but can also operate independently without limitation.

[0059] Meanwhile, it should be noted that the information providing system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is not limited to being used in an actual golf course (or outdoor driving range), but can also be used in an indoor golf course.

[0060] In this way, the information providing system 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention can help to enhance the golf skills of the user both indoors and outdoors.

[0061] Figures 3 to 5 It is illustratively shown how to provide signal information based on the ball position according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0062] refer to Figure 3 , showing that the first ball 301 to be hit by the user is placed on the ball hitting unit 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a red signal and / or an audio signal may be provided to the user, indicating that a dotted line cannot be formed when the first ball 301 to be hit exists alone.

[0063] refer to Figure 4 , showing that a first ball 401 to be hit by a user and a second ball 402 for target direction setting are placed on the ball hitting unit 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, according to one embodiment of the present invention, when there is a single second ball 402 for target direction setting, the direction of a virtual straight line formed by connecting the center coordinates of the first ball 401 to be hit by the user and the center coordinates of the second ball 402 for target direction setting may be determined as the target direction applied to the first ball 401 to be hit. Here, a green signal and / or an audio signal may be provided to the user, indicating that the target direction applied to the first ball 401 to be hit according to one embodiment of the present invention is determined.

[0064] Reference now Figure 5 , showing that a first ball 501 to be hit by a user and a second ball 502 and a third ball 503 for target direction setting are placed on the ball hitting unit 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, according to one embodiment of the present invention, when there are the second ball 502 and the third ball 503 for target direction setting, an orange signal or a yellow signal and / or an audio signal may be provided to the user, indicating that the target direction applied to the first ball 501 to be hit is not determined because a plurality of virtual straight lines are formed by connecting the center coordinates of the first ball 501 to be hit by the user with the center coordinates of the second ball 502 and the third ball 503 for target direction setting.

[0065] Meanwhile, when first ball 501, second ball 502, and third ball 503 according to one embodiment of the present invention are positioned on a line and form a single virtual straight line, a green signal and / or an audio signal may be provided to the user indicating that a target direction applied to first ball 501 to be hit is determined.

[0066] According to the embodiment of the present invention as described above, it can be implemented in the form of program instructions that can be executed by various computer components and can be stored on a computer-readable recording medium. The computer-readable recording medium can include program instructions, data files and data structures alone or in combination. The program instructions stored on the computer-readable recording medium can be specially designed and configured for the present invention, or can also be known and available to technicians in the field of computer software. Examples of computer-readable recording media include the following: magnetic media, such as hard disks, floppy disks and tapes; optical media, such as compact disk read-only memories (CD-ROMs) and digital versatile disks (DVDs); magneto-optical media, such as floppy disks; and hardware devices, such as read-only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs) and flash memories, which are specially configured to store and execute program instructions. Examples of program instructions include not only machine language codes created by compilers, but also high-level language codes that can be executed by computers using interpreters. The above-mentioned hardware devices can be changed into one or more software modules to perform the process of the present invention, and vice versa.

[0067] Although the present invention has been described above from specific items such as detailed elements and limited embodiments and drawings, they are provided only to help a more general understanding of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes can be made from the above description.

Claims

1. A method for providing information about a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing, the method comprising the steps of: Obtaining position information of at least one ball; as well as A target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing of the user is determined by referring to the acquired position information of at least one ball.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: In the determining step, the direction of an imaginary straight line connecting the positions of a plurality of balls is determined as the target direction applied to the golf shot or the golf swing.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein: In the determining step, the direction of a virtual straight line connecting the position of the instruction point and the position of the single ball is determined as the target direction applied to the golf shot or the golf swing.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein: In the determining step, signal information dynamically determined based on the positions of a plurality of balls is provided to the user.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein: In the determining step, in response to a virtual straight line being formed by connecting the positions of the plurality of balls, first visual feedback is provided to the user, the first visual feedback indicating that the target direction applied to the golf shot or golf swing is determined.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein: In the determining step, in response to a plurality of imaginary straight lines being formed by connecting the positions of the plurality of balls, second visual feedback is provided to the user, the second visual feedback indicating that the target direction applied to the golf shot or golf swing is not determined. 7 . A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having stored thereon a computer program for executing the method according to claim 1 .

8. A system for providing information regarding a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing, the system comprising: an information acquisition unit, the information acquisition unit being configured to acquire position information of at least one ball; as well as An information determination unit is configured to determine a target direction applied to a golf shot or a golf swing of a user by referring to the acquired position information of at least one ball.

9. The system according to claim 8, wherein: The direction of the imaginary straight line connecting the positions of a plurality of balls is determined as the target direction applied to the golf shot or golf swing.

10. The system according to claim 8, wherein: The direction of the imaginary straight line connecting the position of the indication point and the position of the single ball is determined as the target direction applied to the golf shot or golf swing.

11. The system according to claim 8, wherein: Signal information dynamically determined based on the positions of the plurality of balls is provided to the user.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein: In response to forming an imaginary straight line by connecting the positions of the plurality of balls, first visual feedback is provided to the user, the first visual feedback indicating that the target direction applied to the golf shot or golf swing is determined.

13. The system according to claim 11, wherein: In response to forming a plurality of imaginary straight lines by connecting the positions of the plurality of balls, second visual feedback is provided to the user, the second visual feedback indicating that the target direction applied to the golf shot or golf swing is not determined.

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