Camera-Based Sports Timing Using Depth Maps and Virtual Finish Planes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vision-based sports timing systems face challenges in accurately and reliably identifying multiple participants passing a finish line due to high costs, complexity, and susceptibility to environmental interference, making them unsuitable for mass events.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing 3D camera systems with depth mapping and machine learning algorithms to detect and identify objects, determining passing times based on virtual planes and time-stamped video frames, and employing feature analysis for object identification.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If RFID transponders are used for timing, then reliability and accuracy of timing are improved, but device complexity and cost increase due to requiring transponders for each participant
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the identification function from physical transponders and implements it through vision-based object detection and tracking. The system detects participants using their visual features (clothing colors, body shapes, movement patterns) without requiring any additional hardware on participants, thus eliminating transponder distribution and management complexity while maintaining reliable identification
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the electromagnetic RFID system with an optical vision-based system. Instead of using radio frequency transponders and readers, the system uses cameras to capture video frames and algorithms to detect, track, and identify participants, substituting a mechanical/optical approach for an electromagnetic one to reduce hardware complexity
2Measurement precision
If UHF tags are used for timing, then timing accuracy is improved, but susceptibility to environmental interference worsens due to signal reflection, absorption, and collision
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the electromagnetic signal-based RFID system with an optical vision-based system that is not susceptible to electromagnetic interference, signal reflection, or absorption issues. The camera-based approach uses light to detect participants, which is not affected by the same environmental factors that plague UHF tags
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the operating parameter from radio frequency (UHF tags) to optical frequency (camera vision). This parameter change fundamentally alters how the system interacts with the environment, moving from electromagnetic waves that are easily reflected and absorbed to optical imaging that can penetrate various conditions and is not subject to the same interference mechanisms
3Measurement precision
If photo-finish cameras are used for mass events, then timing precision is improved, but device complexity and cost worsen due to inability to identify multiple participants simultaneously
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the timing task into multiple independent tracking streams, with each camera or camera region handling specific participants or zones. The system divides the complex task of tracking all participants into manageable segments that can be processed independently and then combined, enabling mass event timing without requiring an impossibly complex single-camera system
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from 2D image analysis to 3D spatial-temporal tracking by incorporating depth information and temporal sequences. This adds dimensions of depth and time to the analysis, allowing the system to distinguish and track multiple participants in three-dimensional space across multiple time frames, thereby handling mass events effectively
4Ease of manufacture
If vision-based timing is used for mass events, then cost is reduced, but reliability and accuracy worsen due to difficulty in identifying multiple participants
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the system continuously monitors tracking quality and adjusts detection parameters in real-time. The object detection algorithms receive feedback from previous frames and adjust their search parameters, and the system can request additional views or slow-motion playback when identification is uncertain, thereby maintaining high reliability without requiring expensive hardware
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines multiple detection methods and data sources into a composite identification system. It integrates object detection from video frames, depth information, temporal tracking data, and feature analysis into a unified identification approach, creating a robust multi-layered system that maintains high reliability through the combination of multiple complementary techniques
Data Source
AI summary
A method for determining a passing time of an object passing a timing line across a sports track comprises receiving a sequence of time-stamped video frames captured by at least one camera representing pictures of a scene of one or more objects moving along a track; determining depth maps for the sequence of frames comprising information regarding the distance between the one or more objects in the picture of a frame and the camera system; detecting one or more objects using an object detection algorithm; determining a detected object in the frames passing a timing line across a track, the timing line being defined by a virtual plane at a predetermined distance from the camera, the determination of the passing being based on the coordinates of the virtual plane and the depth maps; determining a passing time based on a time stamp of a frame comprising a detected object passing the timing line.