Modified Soccer Ball with Truncated Back for Natural Kicking Motion
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional sports training devices are cumbersome, expensive, and lack compactness and verisimilitude, particularly in sports that require foot skills like soccer, as they do not provide a full range of motion or natural ball position, and existing solutions with augmented reality capabilities are costly and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
A ball training device featuring a modified ball with a truncated back half and a motion transfer member recessed within, allowing for a natural kicking motion and coupled to a base for stability, along with sensors and computing devices for virtual, augmented, or mixed reality gaming, providing a compact, affordable, and realistic training experience.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a large room is utilized to accommodate running for soccer training, then a high degree of verisimilitude is achieved, but cost and device complexity increase while compactness decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a simplified copy of the soccer ball interaction experience through a modified ball device that replicates the essential kicking motion and ball dynamics without requiring a full-scale soccer field or complex simulation environment. The modified ball with its truncated back half and motion transfer member captures the core mechanics of soccer ball interaction in a compact form.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the essential elements of soccer training (ball kicking motion, ball dynamics, foot-ball interaction) from the complex environment of a full soccer field and isolates them into a standalone modified ball device. This extraction allows the core training function to be separated from the cumbersome infrastructure of a large training facility.
2Device complexity
If conventional stationary ball training devices are used, then cost and compactness are improved, but verisimilitude and range of motion decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The modified ball device incorporates dynamic elements through the motion transfer member that allows the ball to move naturally in response to kicking forces. The ball can rotate, translate, and return to its initial position, creating a dynamic interaction that mimics real soccer ball behavior rather than a static, constrained experience.
Solution Approach 2:
The ball is deliberately modified with an asymmetric shape by truncating the back half, creating different surface geometries that affect how the ball responds to kicks. This asymmetry, combined with the motion transfer member positioning, enables more realistic ball dynamics and kicking motion compared to a conventional symmetric stationary device.
3Reliability
If conventional ball training devices are used, then a natural ball position is achieved, but full range of motion during kicking is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The modified ball is segmented into a front half and a truncated back half, with the motion transfer member positioned within the ball structure. This segmentation allows the ball to rotate and move through a larger arc during kicking while maintaining a natural resting position, as the truncated back provides clearance for follow-through motion.
4Reliability
If augmented reality capabilities are added to sports ball training devices, then verisimilitude and engagement are improved, but cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The modified ball device creates a simplified physical copy of the soccer ball experience that captures essential dynamics without requiring complex augmented reality systems. The truncated back half and motion transfer member physically replicate ball behavior, providing verisimilitude through mechanical fidelity rather than digital simulation.
Data Source
AI summary
A ball training or simulating device is provided. The ball training or simulating device comprises a modified ball coupled to a base by a motion transfer member. The modified ball allows for a lower, more natural, ball position, while the shape, position, and configuration of the motion transfer member provide for a verisimilar kicking experience. The ball training and/or simulating device can be coupled to a computing device to allow input from the modified ball to be used in a simulated or augmented reality game. A computer-implemented method for conducting a virtual, augmented, or mixed reality game is also provided.