CA2900377A1

CA2900377A1 - Self-propelled curling stone driver

Info

Publication number: CA2900377A1
Application number: CA2900377A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Randall Ewen Park
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2015-08-11
Filing date: 2015-08-11
Publication date: 2017-02-11
Anticipated expiration: 2035-08-11
Also published as: CA2900377C

Abstract

A self-propelled curling stone driver comprises a support frame, a stone receptacle formed in the support frame for receiving a curling stone, a drive mechanism carried by the support frame for propelling the support frame along an ice surface, and a controller coupled to the drive mechanism for accelerating and decelerating the support frame. In a preferred embodiment, a force sensor extends into the stone receptacle to capture force data representing friction encountered by the stone, and a force communicator is coupled to the force sensor for communicating force data captured by the force sensor. Also preferably, a rotator mechanism is carried by the support frame and extends into the stone receptacle to rotate a stone received therein. A method for evaluating sweeping effectiveness is also described.

Description

SELF-PROPELLED CURLING STONE DRIVER
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present disclosure relates to curling, and more particularly to curling stone drivers for driving curling stones on an ice surface.
BACKGROUND

[0002] In curling, players launch polished granite curling stones across an ice surface toward a circular target area. One aspect of curling involves the "sweepers", players who use brooms to sweep the ice ahead of the stone so as to alter the ice surface and thereby influence the path of the stone.
SUMMARY

[0003] A self-propelled curling stone driver comprises a support frame, a stone receptacle formed in the support frame for receiving a curling stone, a drive mechanism carried by the support frame for propelling the support frame along an ice surface, and a controller coupled to the drive mechanism for accelerating and decelerating the support frame.

[0004] In a preferred embodiment, a force sensor extends into the stone receptacle to capture force data representing friction encountered by the stone, and a force communicator is coupled to the force sensor for communicating force data captured by the force sensor.

[0005] Also preferably, a rotator mechanism is carried by the support frame and extends into the stone receptacle to rotate a stone received therein.

[0006] A method for evaluating sweeping effectiveness is also described.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] These and other features will become more apparent from the following description in which reference is made to the appended drawings wherein:
FIGURE 1 is a top perspective view of an exemplary curling stone driver; and , FIGURE 2 is a top perspective view showing the curling stone driver of Figure 1 in use with a curling stone.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0008] Reference is now made to Figures 1 and 2, where an exemplary self-propelled curling stone driver is denoted generally by reference 100. The curling stone driver 100 comprises a support frame 102 which carries the various components described further below. The support frame 102 is shown in the drawings with dashed lines so as to provide visibility to the internal components, and electrical interconnections among components are omitted from the drawings for simplicity of illustration. As can be seen in the drawings, the support frame 102 is generally U-shaped, having spaced-apart parallel arms connected by a crossbar, and a stone receptacle 104 is formed in the support frame for receiving a curling stone 105 (see Figure 2).
The stone receptacle 104 is formed in the open counter of the "U" formed by the arms and the crossbar of the support frame 102.

[0009] A drive mechanism is carried by the support frame 102 for propelling the support frame 102 at least linearly along an ice surface; in the illustrated embodiment the drive mechanism comprises a pair of independently-driven opposed drive wheels 106 each driven by a respective drive motor 108. In the illustrated embodiment, the drive wheels 106 and drive motors 108 are located on the opposed spaced-apart arms of the support frame 102. A
pair of trailing arms 110 extends from the crossbar of the support frame opposite the spaced-apart arms of the support frame 102; each trailing arm carries a freely rotatable trailing wheel 112 to improve stability. The drive wheels 106 and trailing wheels 112 have treads adapted to engage and grip an ice surface, and the support frame 102 may be weighted to enhance traction. A controller is coupled to the drive mechanism for accelerating and decelerating the support frame 102; in the illustrated embodiment the controller takes the form of electronic circuitry 114 coupled to the drive motors 108. For simplicity of illustration, the power source (typically a battery) and the interconnections between the electronic circuitry 114 and the drive motors 108 are not shown in the drawings.

[0010] In preferred embodiments, the drive motors 108 are adjustable-speed drive motors, which enables controlled acceleration and deceleration, and allows sweeping efficiency to be evaluated at different speeds. Optionally, the support frame 102 can be steered by driving the drive wheels 106 at different speeds. Alternatively, the trailing arms 110 and/or trailing wheels 112 may be configured so that their angle relative to the support frame 102 can be adjusted to steer the support frame 102. In either case, the steering can be of a "fixed adjustable" type, where the steering can be adjusted before the curling stone driver 100 begins moving but is in a fixed position thereafter, or of a "dynamically adjustable"
type where the steering can be adjusted during motion of the curling stone driver 100. This can be achieved, for example, by having the controller (e.g. electronic circuitry 114) coupled to the steering mechanism and also in communication with an external device, such as a computer or smartphone. Moreover, the exemplary drive wheels 106 and drive motors 108 represent merely one exemplary implementation of a drive mechanism. In other embodiments, the drive mechanism may comprise opposed drive wheels on a common axle driven by a single motor, or the drive mechanism may comprise opposed tracks instead of wheels.
Additionally, in further alternate embodiments the drive mechanism may comprise more than two drive wheels, or may comprise a single elongate drive wheel similar in shape to a rolling pin.

[0011] An optional rotator mechanism is carried by the support frame 102 and extends into the stone receptacle 104 for engaging and rotating a curling stone 105. In the illustrated embodiment, the rotator mechanism comprises a drive roller 116 driven by a roller motor 132 and two opposed non-driven guide rollers 118; the drive roller 116 and the guide rollers 118 each protrude into the stone receptacle 104. The drive motor 132 may be controlled, for example, by the controller (e.g. electronic circuitry 114). The guide rollers 118 are disposed on the inside of the spaced-apart arms of the support frame 102 and the drive roller 116 is disposed on the inside of the crossbar connecting the spaced-apart arms of the support frame 102. The guide rollers 118 are movably carried by the support frame 102 so that they can move inwardly and outwardly relative to the stone receptacle 104. In the illustrated embodiment, the guide rollers 118 are rotatably mounted on respective positioning arms 120 which can pivot about a pivot pin 122 carried by the support frame 102. The pivotal position of the positioning arms 120, and hence the lateral position of the guide rollers 118, can be adjusted by way of tensioners 124 coupled to the positioning arms 120. For example, the tensioners 124 may be threaded and be received in a corresponding threaded aperture in the support frame 102. By threading the tensioners 124 inwardly toward the stone receptacle 104 and against the ends of the positioning arms 120 opposite the guide rollers 118, the positioning arms 120 can be pivoted to move the guide rollers 118 inwardly and outwardly relative to the stone receptacle 104. Thus, with threaded tensioners the positioning arms 120 and hence the lateral position of the guide rollers 118 may be adjusted through a range of fixed positions. Alternatively, the tensioners may be spring-loaded to bias the positioning arms to pivot the guide rollers inwardly toward the stone receptacle. In further alternate embodiments the positioning arms may be linearly movable rather than pivotable, and may have an adjustable fixed position or be spring-loaded. Where a spring-loaded arrangement is used, lateral force sensors can be coupled to the positioning arms.

[0012] The exemplary self-propelled curling stone driver 100 further comprises a force sensor for measuring the friction experienced by a curling stone (e.g. curling stone 105) driven by the curling stone driver 100, and a force data communicator is coupled to the force sensor for communicating force data captured by the force sensor. In the illustrated embodiment, the force sensor comprises a spring-loaded pivot arm 126 and an optical sensor 128, and the force data communicator comprises electronic circuitry 130 coupled to the optical sensor 128.
More particularly, the drive roller 116 and its motor 132 are mounted on the pivot arm 126, which is pivotally coupled to a pivot shaft 134 at one end and to a spring 136 at the other end.
In other embodiments, a drive track (i.e. endless belt) may be used instead of the drive roller.
The spring 136 acts between the pivot arm 126 and the support frame 102. The tension of the spring 136 is selected so that it approximately balances the frictional force acting between a stone (e.g. curling stone 105) and the ice surface. Any change in this frictional force, for example resulting from sweeping in front of the stone, will result in a change in the angle of the pivot arm 126 relative to the support frame 102 that can be detected by the optical sensor 128. For simplicity of illustration, the power source (typically a battery) and the interconnection between the electronic circuitry 130 and the optical sensor 128 are not shown in the drawings. The force communicator (e.g. electronic circuitry 130) may take a variety of forms to support the provision of real-time feedback to the operator and/or storage of force data for later analysis. For example, the force communicator may comprise one or more of a recorder for recording force data, a transmitter for transmitting force data (or data derived therefrom) to another device (e.g. a computer or smartphone), an audio device for encoding the force data (or data derived therefrom) as an audio signal and a video device for providing visual information based on the force data (or data derived therefrom). In the latter case, an on-board display (not shown) may be carried by the support frame 102 and coupled to the electronic circuitry 130.

[0013] The use of a spring-loaded pivot arm and optical sensor represents merely one exemplary embodiment of a force sensor. In the illustrated embodiment, the spring-loaded pivot arm 126 is arranged so that the pivot axis (defined by pivot shaft 134) is substantially normal to the direction in which the pivot arm 126 generally extends. In other embodiments the pivot arm may have spacer arms extending therefrom and coupled to one or more pivot shafts spaced from the pivot arm so that the pivot axis is substantially parallel to the direction in which the pivot arm generally extends. In still further embodiments, a spring-loaded linearly movable arm may be used. Furthermore, in alternate embodiments the force sensor may comprise other types of sensor besides an optical sensor, such as (for example) a potentiometer or an electromagnetic sensor. Where lateral force sensors are provided, these may also be coupled to the force communicator.

[0014] In the illustrated embodiment, the controller and force communicator take the form of electronic circuitry 114, 130 illustrated as purpose-built circuit boards, but this is merely one exemplary embodiment. The controller and force communicator may comprise any suitable hardware or any suitable combination of hardware or software. For example, the controller and force communicator may comprise a programmable logic controller, a suitably configured microcontroller (e.g. an Arduino microcontroller), or a suitably programmed general purpose computer or smartphone. Moreover, the controller and force communicator may communicate with one another. For example, the force communicator may receive acceleration data and/or speed data from the controller and use the acceleration data and/or speed data to perform calculations on the force data. To this end, the controller and the force communicator may be coupled to one another or may be integrated into a single unit.

Alternatively, whether the controller and force communicator are separate or integrated, both functions may be coupled to another supervisory device such as a computer or smartphone which may be carried by the support frame or communicate wirelessly with the controller and force communicator. For example, in one embodiment, a small touchscreen tablet computer may be mounted on the support frame and coupled to the controller and force communicator.
The tablet computer functions as a control interface for an operator and sends commands to the controller, and interprets force data from the force communicator and presents a display based on the force data.

[0015] The exemplary self-propelled curling stone drivers described herein enable evaluation of sweeping effectiveness in curling. According to an exemplary method for evaluating sweeping effectiveness in curling, a curling stone is propelled along an ice surface (e.g. by a curling stone driver as described above). While the curling stone is being propelled along the ice surface, the method senses data representing swept friction encountered by the curling stone during sweeping ahead thereof, and also senses data representing unswept friction encountered by the curling stone absent sweeping ahead thereof. The data representing the swept friction and the unswept friction may be sensed in any order, and may be sensed during a single "run" (i.e. data representing both swept friction and unswept friction is sensed during a single traverse of a curling rink by the self-propelled curling stone driver) or during separate "runs" (i.e. data representing swept friction is sensed during one traverse of a curling rink by the self-propelled curling stone driver and data representing unswept friction is sensed during another traverse of the curling rink by the self-propelled curling stone driver). The data representing the swept friction and the unswept friction are electronically encoded. This encoding may take the form of recording, transmitting or displaying the sensed data (or data derived therefrom), or presenting an audible signal representing the data (or data derived therefrom). The swept friction and unswept friction may be calculated based on the sensed data, and the swept friction can be compared to the unswept friction to evaluate sweeping effectiveness. Data based on the comparison may also be encoded.

[0016] The self-propelled curling stone drivers described herein may also be used to repeatedly launch curling stones to compare the curling stones so that they may be appropriately paired, or to launch a curling stone for solo sweeping practice.

[0017] One or more currently preferred embodiments have been described by way of example. It will be apparent to persons skilled in the art that a number of variations and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the claims.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. Any invention substantially as herein shown or described.