Wearable 3D Ball Tracking From 2D Sports Event Images
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing devices for characterizing ball motion in sports are often expensive, require specialized setup, and are not accessible to the average person, limiting the availability of quantifiable motion information for participants and spectators.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus using a digital camera to determine a spherical object's 3-D trajectory from 2-D image data, leveraging sensors like accelerometers to calculate the object's position and orientation in 3-D space, applicable on mobile devices, allowing for 3-D ball tracking in sports like basketball, baseball, and tennis.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If existing devices are used to characterize ball motion, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a digital camera to capture 2-D images of the ball, creating a visual copy of the ball's position and trajectory. This optical copy is then processed through image analysis algorithms to extract motion data, replacing the need for complex physical measurement devices while maintaining measurement capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical measurement systems with an optical system consisting of a digital camera and image processing software. The mechanical complexity of specialized sensors and calibration equipment is substituted by capturing images and analyzing pixel data computationally to determine ball position and trajectory
2Measurement precision
If existing devices are used to characterize ball motion, then measurement precision is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a digital camera, which is a universal device already owned by most people for other purposes (photography, video). This single device serves multiple functions including ball tracking, making the system accessible to average consumers without requiring specialized equipment
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the computational resources and processing capabilities already present in common digital cameras and connected computers. The image analysis algorithms automatically process the captured images to extract ball motion data without requiring manual intervention or specialized operational knowledge
Data Source
AI summary
A method for monitoring user performance in launching objects at sporting events includes capturing, with an image sensor on glasses worn by a user at a sporting event, two-dimensional (2-D) images of an object launched by a player participating in the sporting event. The launched object and a stationary object at the sporting event are identified. An orientation of the image sensor is determined based on a shape of the stationary object within the 2D images, and locations of the launched object in 3D space are determined based on the 2D images and the determined orientation of the image sensor. The trajectory of the launched object in 3D space is then determined, and the trajectory is used to determine a parameter indicative of a performance of the player for the sporting event. Feedback indicative of the performance of the player is then provided based on the determined parameter.