Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B71/00—Games or sports accessories not covered in groups A63B1/00 - A63B69/00
  • A63B71/06—Indicating or scoring devices for games or players, or for other sports activities
  • A63B71/0619—Displays, user interfaces and indicating devices, specially adapted for sport equipment, e.g. display mounted on treadmills
  • A63B71/0669—Score-keepers or score display devices
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
  • G01S19/00—Satellite radio beacon positioning systems; Determining position, velocity or attitude using signals transmitted by such systems
  • G01S19/01—Satellite radio beacon positioning systems transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
  • G01S19/03—Cooperating elements; Interaction or communication between different cooperating elements or between cooperating elements and receivers
  • G01S19/07—Cooperating elements; Interaction or communication between different cooperating elements or between cooperating elements and receivers providing data for correcting measured positioning data, e.g. DGPS [differential GPS] or ionosphere corrections
  • G01S19/071—DGPS corrections
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B24/00—Electric or electronic controls for exercising apparatus of preceding groups; Controlling or monitoring of exercises, sportive games, training or athletic performances
  • A63B24/0021—Tracking a path or terminating locations
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B71/00—Games or sports accessories not covered in groups A63B1/00 - A63B69/00
  • A63B71/06—Indicating or scoring devices for games or players, or for other sports activities
  • A63B71/0619—Displays, user interfaces and indicating devices, specially adapted for sport equipment, e.g. display mounted on treadmills
  • A63B71/0622—Visual, audio or audio-visual systems for entertaining, instructing or motivating the user
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
  • G01S19/00—Satellite radio beacon positioning systems; Determining position, velocity or attitude using signals transmitted by such systems
  • G01S19/01—Satellite radio beacon positioning systems transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
  • G01S19/13—Receivers
  • G01S19/14—Receivers specially adapted for specific applications
  • G01S19/19—Sporting applications
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
  • G01S19/00—Satellite radio beacon positioning systems; Determining position, velocity or attitude using signals transmitted by such systems
  • G01S19/38—Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system
  • G01S19/39—Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system the satellite radio beacon positioning system transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
  • G01S19/40—Correcting position, velocity or attitude
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
  • G01S19/00—Satellite radio beacon positioning systems; Determining position, velocity or attitude using signals transmitted by such systems
  • G01S19/38—Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system
  • G01S19/39—Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system the satellite radio beacon positioning system transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
  • G01S19/40—Correcting position, velocity or attitude
  • G01S19/41—Differential correction, e.g. DGPS [differential GPS]
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
  • G01S19/00—Satellite radio beacon positioning systems; Determining position, velocity or attitude using signals transmitted by such systems
  • G01S19/38—Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system
  • G01S19/39—Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system the satellite radio beacon positioning system transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
  • G01S19/42—Determining position
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
  • G01S19/00—Satellite radio beacon positioning systems; Determining position, velocity or attitude using signals transmitted by such systems
  • G01S19/38—Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system
  • G01S19/39—Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system the satellite radio beacon positioning system transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
  • G01S19/42—Determining position
  • G01S19/51—Relative positioning
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
  • G01S5/00—Position-fixing by co-ordinating two or more direction or position line determinations; Position-fixing by co-ordinating two or more distance determinations
  • G01S5/0009—Transmission of position information to remote stations
  • G01S5/0018—Transmission from mobile station to base station
  • G01S5/0027—Transmission from mobile station to base station of actual mobile position, i.e. position determined on mobile
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B24/00—Electric or electronic controls for exercising apparatus of preceding groups; Controlling or monitoring of exercises, sportive games, training or athletic performances
  • A63B24/0021—Tracking a path or terminating locations
  • A63B2024/0025—Tracking the path or location of one or more users, e.g. players of a game
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B71/00—Games or sports accessories not covered in groups A63B1/00 - A63B69/00
  • A63B71/06—Indicating or scoring devices for games or players, or for other sports activities
  • A63B2071/0691—Maps, e.g. yardage maps or electronic maps
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B71/00—Games or sports accessories not covered in groups A63B1/00 - A63B69/00
  • A63B71/06—Indicating or scoring devices for games or players, or for other sports activities
  • A63B2071/0694—Visual indication, e.g. Indicia
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B2102/00—Application of clubs, bats, rackets or the like to the sporting activity ; particular sports involving the use of balls and clubs, bats, rackets, or the like
  • A63B2102/32—Golf
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B2220/00—Measuring of physical parameters relating to sporting activity
  • A63B2220/10—Positions
  • A63B2220/12—Absolute positions, e.g. by using GPS
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B2220/00—Measuring of physical parameters relating to sporting activity
  • A63B2220/10—Positions
  • A63B2220/13—Relative positions
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B2220/00—Measuring of physical parameters relating to sporting activity
  • A63B2220/10—Positions
  • A63B2220/14—Geo-tagging, e.g. for correlating route or track location data with specific information related to that specific location
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B2220/00—Measuring of physical parameters relating to sporting activity
  • A63B2220/20—Distances or displacements
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B2220/00—Measuring of physical parameters relating to sporting activity
  • A63B2220/80—Special sensors, transducers or devices therefor
  • A63B2220/83—Special sensors, transducers or devices therefor characterised by the position of the sensor
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
  • A63B2225/00—Miscellaneous features of sport apparatus, devices or equipment
  • A63B2225/50—Wireless data transmission, e.g. by radio transmitters or telemetry

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for displaying advertising, promotion, and other types of messages on a screen used by a golfer on a golf course.
• the method and apparatus displays advertising messages to golfers based on the position or current activity of the golfer.
• U.S. Pat. No. 5,364,093 describes a method and system for using a Global Positioning Satellite sytem (GPS) for determing the position of a golfer on a golf hole and calculating the distance to a feature, green center, or pin placement on the hole.
• GPS Global Positioning Satellite sytem
• Other systems have been devised for determining distances on a golf course. For example see, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,056,106; 5,086,390; 5,326,095; and EP App. No. 93900126.
• Related U.S. Pat. App. Ser. No. 08/313,718 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,364,093 incorporated by reference.
• the displays on such golf position determing systems range from simple 3 segment LED's to graphical high resolution screens.
• the problems outlined above are generally solved by the method and system of the present invention which, at convenient opportunities, uses a display accompanying a golfer for advertising, promotion, service, and other types of messages.
• the display is typically mounted on a golf cart and the position of the display is known (e.g. using GPS).
• the present method and system uses the position information to display advertising messages at predetermined convenient locations. For example, convenient locations may be prior to the first tee, after the last green, between holes, or when the golf cart is moving.
• Another convenient opportunity for displaying advertising messages is based on activity of the golfer. For example, if the golfer is inputting scores adverstinsing may be associated with celebrate events such as a low score.
• "advertising messages” is sometimes used to denote advertising, promotion, service, and other types of messages without implication of specifice content of the message.
• the system includes a visual display of the golf hole being played, including the location of the pin on the green, the bunkers protecting the green, the hazards on the hole, as well as a digital readout of the distance from the ball to the golf cup.
• the display includes a light pen or pointing device (finger or pen for pressure sensitive screen) allowing the player to mark positions on the hole layout. This gives the player the ability to determine distance between the ball and a marked position (a water hazard for example) or distance between a mark and the cup.
• the method of the present invention includes the steps of positioning a global positioning satellite system (GPS) receiver on the hole being played, determining a position of the remote receiver using the global positioning satellite system, and displaying a message based on the position of the remote receiver or the activity of the golfer.
• GPS global positioning satellite system
• the receiver is positioned proximate the golf ball, but alternatively a mark may be made at the ball's approximate location.
• the apparatus generally includes a GPS receiver that is positionable on the golf hole.
• the apparatus might be mounted on a golf cart and the cart may be driven close to the ball.
• the apparatus also includes a position determining means and a display.
• the determining means is a microprocessor associated with the GPS receiver that calculates an apparent position of the receiver. Based on the position of the apparatus or activity of the golfer (such as scorecard input), the determining means places a message on the display.
• the determining means may be a microprocessor at a base station and the GPS receiver simply relays or repeats the GPS signals to the base station.
• the display preferably shows a graphic representation of the hole layout, and in a preferred form is pressure sensitive, such as a pen input or touch sensitive display.
• a distance grid is preferably displayed with its origin at the GPS receiver or alternatively, a mark location.
• the graphics display shows a graphic advertisment at opportune positions on the golf course or appropriate activity of the golfer.
• the apparent location of the GPS remote receiver is adjusted with an error correction to achieve a corrected location.
• the difference between the corrected location and the stored location of a feature such as the golf cup is calculated to determine the approximate distance between the ball and the cup.
• the location of the golf cup is preferably close to the actual location of the current placement of the cup on the green, but may be a nominal location, such as "middle" of the green or "front” of the green.
• the error correction is determined by positioning a GPS receiver at a reference location having a known position.
• the GPS receiver determines an apparent position using the available global positioning satellites in view.
• the error correction is calculated based on the difference between the apparent position and the known position.
• the error correction is preferably broadcast periodically for use by the remote GPS receivers used by the golf players.
• the position of the golf cups on the greens are determined by placing a GPS receiver in or near the cup (e.g. before play by the greens keeper), determining an apparent position, and applying the error correction to obtain the golf cup position stored for use during play.
• a base station is placed at the known position to continuously calculate and transmit the error correction.
• the remote receivers are optionally configured to periodically transmit their position to the base station so that the course marshal can continuously monitor the progress of play.
• the remote receiver is used to calculate an error correction for its own use.
• a remote receiver mounted on a golf cart would be driven onto a placard designating a known location on each hole.
• the apparent GPS position of the remote receiver over the placard is compared with the known position to calculate an error correction for use during play.
• Figure 1 schematically illustrates the display of the preferred embodiment of the remote unit
• FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a remote unit including a GPS receiver in accordance with the present invention
• FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the base station in accordance with the present invention.
• Figure 4 is a schematic of the packet radio network used to transmit the error correction
• Figure 5 schematically illustrates the display of Fig. 1 at an opportune location on the golf course where an advertising message is depicted;
• Figure 6 is a diagram of the display of Fig. l where a scorecard module with an advertising message is appended;
• Figure 7 depicts the layout of an alternative embodiment of the control panel and display of the remote unit
• Figure 8 is a block diagram describing an alternative embodiment of the remote unit which includes an internal calibration mechanism
• Figure 9 illustrates the pro shop monitor of the preferred embodiment
• Figure 10 is a block diagram depicting an alternative system where the remote units act as repeaters.
• Figure 1 1 schematically illustrates the display of Figure 1 v/here directions and an advertising message are depicted.
• the present invention utilizes a global positioning satellite system, such as Navstar or Glonass (GPS) to determine the approximate distance from a golf ball to hole features, such as the cup or pin on the green of the golf hole being played.
• GPS is a space based system of satellites which can provide, to an infinite number of receivers, accurate three dimensional position (i.e. horizontal location and altitude), velocity, and time.
• a general understanding of GPS is useful to appreciate the operation of the present invention. Numerous books and articles are available on GPS operation and theory. See e.g., GPS - A Guide to the Next Utility, Trimble Navigation (incorporated by reference for background).
• the GPS system is an umbrella of satellites circling the earth passively transmitting signals. Each satellite has a very accurate atomic clock which is periodically updated.
• a GPS receiver with an accurate clock can identify a satellite and determine the transit time of the signal from the satellite to the receiver. Knowing the transit time and knowing that the speed of light is 186,000 miles per second enables a calculation of the distance from the satellite to the receiver.
• the signal carries with it data which discloses satellite position and time of transmission, and synchronizes the GPS system with satellite clocks.
• a GPS receiver can locate 3 or 4 satellites it can determine its distance from each satellite. The intersection of these 3 or 4 spheres enables a precise location of the receiver (and some compensation for timing errors in the receiver's internal clock).
• the GPS system should have 21 satellites and 3 spares once the system is fully deployed. Currently about 14 satellites are deployed, giving reasonable satellite coverage worldwide for most of the day.
• P code is generally for government use and requires specialized equipment.
• C/A code receivers are becoming widely available with the continuing deployment of GPS satellites.
• One difficulty with C/A code receivers is that the government from time to time intentionally degrades the satellite signals - so called "selective availability.” With selective availability turned on, horizontal accuracy is on the order of 50 - 100 meters. With selective availability disabled horizontal accuracy can improve to around 15 meters.
• the system of the present invention includes a remote unit 10, base station 12, and cup locator 14.
• a remote unit 10 accompanies the golfer during the round - for example mounted on the golf cart.
• the remote unit 10 includes a packet radio system 20, a GPS antenna 21 and receiver 22, a CPU 24, storage 25, a display 26, and a control device 28.
• the GPS receiver 22 is preferably a multi-channel receiver such as the SV-6 Model made by Trimble Navigation of Sunnyvale, California. Other commercially available substitutes are acceptable such as made by Magellan or Rockwell/Collins.
• the antenna 21 is either remote or internal to the receiver 22, but in any event is mounted on the golf cart for an upward look angle for optimum GPS signal reception.
• the remote unit 10 includes a CPU 24, control device 28, nonvolatile memory storage 25, as well as the radio interface 20 and GPS engine and antenna 22, 21.
• the CPU 24, memory storage 25, and display 26 are integral, such as the PDA or pen tablet referenced above, and are collectively referred to as the display 26.
• the memory storage 25 includes the internal RAM and the PCMCIA cards incorporated with such a PDA or pen tablet.
• the advertising messages e.g. Figs. 5, 6) are stored ont he PCMCIA cards (memory 25) so that large data graphic advertising messages can be easily stored and replaced.
• the display 26 of the preferred embodiment, illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 is a pen input display.
• the pen input display 26 is mounted on the golf cart and permits the user to directly input commands with the control device or pen 28.
• the pen display 26 is a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) such as the Apple Newton.
• PDA Personal Digital Assistant
• the pen display 26 may comprise a pen tablet computer, either monochrome or color, such as made by Fujitsu, IBM, Toshiba, and others.
• the display 26 includes: a depiction (i.e., graphic representation) of the layout of the hole 111 ; option buttons 112-114; and indicators 115-1 17.
• An icon 1 18 represents the location of the remote unit (cart) 10 on the hole being played.
• a grid 119 comprising distance arcs and distance symbols (50- 300 yards in Fig. 1) is overlaid on the hole layout 111.
• the option buttons 112 -114 allow access to other functions and the indicators 115 - 117 display as labeled.
• the packet radio system 20 is conventional, and includes modem 34, radio interface 36, and radio 38 (including an antenna, not shown).
• the radio system 20 is bi-directional in that it can receive error correction and other information as well as transmit present position and messages back to the base station 12.
• a PAC-COM, Inc. (Orlando , Florida) packet radio modem 2400 baud for use with any commercial half duplex radio is believed preferable for the modem 34.
• the radio system 20 may be uni-directional for simply receiving an error correction (or other message) broadcast to all remote units 10, e.g. over FM frequencies.
• the ACTT receiver chip set made by Seiko is believed preferably.
• the ACTT chip combines most of the components of the radio system 20 on a single, low cost, low power chip which is currently only a receiver. This alternative is particularly suited for hand-held remote units 10 (vice cart mounted).
• FIG. 3 illustrates the base station 12, which is desirably placed in or near the pro shop.
• the base station 12 includes a calibration section 40 which comprises a GPS receiver 42 and antenna 44.
• the calibration section 40 continuously determines apparent position of the antenna 44 and feeds this information to CPU 46.
• the CPU is conventional, such as a 486 type personal computer operating a 66 MHz.
• the control device 47 preferably includes a mouse and a standard keyboard.
• the course geography database 48 is similarly connected to the CPU 46 and stores course information such as hole layout and the present position of the cups on the greens for the day.
• a monitor 50 is coupled to CPU 46 and is useful not only for initialization, but also is selectable to display the present position of all the remote receiver units 10 on the course.
• the base station 12 includes a packet radio system similar to Figure 2 coupled to the CPU 46, and comprises modem 52, interface 54, radio 56 and radio antenna 58.
• the monitor 50 is capable of displaying the golf course 130 as shown in Figure 1 1.
• the remote units (carts) 10 are shown on the various holes and represented as "plus” icons in Figure 11 color coded as shown.
• the "$" symbol represents a service request as shown, such as a cart requesting beverage service.
• a Cup Locator may be used to precisely locate daily cup location (i.e., pin placement) nearly identical to the remote unit of Figure 2.
• a CPU is coupled to a GPS receiver and includes an antenna for receiving GPS signals.
• Memory (such as RAM and a PCMCIA card) is coupled to the CPU and stores the location of each cup as the cup locator is moved from green to green. The location of each cup may alternatively be transmitted to the base station 12 using a modem, radio interface, and radio 72.
• FIG 4 illustrates schematically the operation of the system of the present invention.
• the cup locator unit is transported from green to green when the location of the cups are changed.
• the greens keeper positions the cup locator unit near the new cup and allows a few seconds for the GPS receiver to determine an apparent cup location. The longer the greens keeper permits acquisition the more samples are obtained and accuracy is increased.
• the first cup might take several minutes while the GPS receiver consults its almanac and locates the satellites in view, a so-called "cold start.” Determining the location of the cups should take only a few seconds to determine an apparent location once the GPS receiver has operated for several minutes. Because the GPS receiver of in the cup locator is a C/A code receiver, its accuracy is about 15 meters (selective availability disabled) with a worst accuracy of about 100 meters.
• the greens keeper turns on the cup locator and the position of the cup locator is sampled for as longs as it takes for the greens keeper to change cups.
• the timing signals from the 4 - 10 satellites in view are stored in a memory of the cup locator. Accuracy is improved by letting the cup locator acquire multiple samples of each satellite timing signal.
• the apparent cup locations are downloaded and stored in a course geography database in the storage 48 of Figure 3. Additionally, the course layout is stored in the database 48. After the cup apparent locations are downloaded an error correction is applied to obtain a corrected position for each cup.
• the corrected position is preferably transmitted over the packet radio system to update the memory 25 of each remote unit 10 before play.
• the uncorrected or apparent cup locations are loaded into the base station computer 46 for so- called "post processing" error correction. That is, using conventional differential techniques, the timing signal for each satellite for each apparent location is compared with the same satellite timing signal for the apparent position of the base station. In this fashion, a very accurate correction for each timing signal for each satellite can be computed at the base station for the time the apparent cup locations were acquired.
• Each apparent cup location may have associated with it many (e.g. 4-10) satellite timing signals. Correcting these timing signals gives very accurate cup locations.
• Conventional surveying differential correction can achieve cup locations with an accuracy of several centimeters by looking at carrier phase and other known parameters. It is believed that simple position correction of the timing signals will achieve accuracies on the order of .25 meter which is believed sufficiently accurate for the present application. See e.g., Differential Correction, by Trimble Navigation (incorporated by reference for background).
• the apparent position of the respective cup may be transmitted to the base station and also stored in memory.
• Figure 4 shows schematically the passage of the radio transmission over the packet network to the base station 12.
• the greens keeper would return to the base station after the cups are changed and verify that the cup information had been transmitted correctly - if not, the cup information stored in memory 66 would be downloaded to the base station 12.
• the calibration system 40 operates to calculate and apply an error correction to the cup apparent locations as they are received over the packet radio system at the base station 12. These corrected cup locations are stored in the course geography database for later use.
• the error is minimized by minimizing the time between acquisition and application of the error correction.
• the base station 12 performs continuous calibration.
• the GPS receiver 42 continuously calculates its apparent position.
• the antenna 44 is placed at a known location.
• the difference between the apparent position and the known location is the current error correction.
• This technique is known as "differential GPS” and has been applied in land surveying techniques. Because the satellites are so high compared to the distance between the cup locator receiver 62 and the calibration receiver 44, this differential error correction accounts for most of the possible errors in the system.
• the error correction may comprise a vector or position correction which is reasonably accurate if the remote units are using the same satellites as the base station to find apparent position.
• the error correction comprises a timing correction or "delta" for the timing signals of the satellites in view. With an uncorrected accuracy of 10-15 meters, the calibrated or corrected accuracy is less than 5 meters in all cases, and normally approaches 1 meter accuracy.
• the current error correction is transmitted periodically to all remote units 10 on the packet radio network (Fig. 4).
• a small time window e.g. .5 second is opened on each remote unit 10 for reception of the current error correction.
• the remote unit is preferably mounted on a golf cart.
• Current hardware technology dictates a size, weight, and power requirement that makes golf cart mounting the most feasible.
• miniaturization should enable an embodiment that is hand held in the near future.
• the remote unit 10 preferably continuously operates to calculate the distance from the unit 10 to the cup on the hole being played.
• the GPS receiver 22 determines an apparent position and then reads the current error correction stored in memory 25.
• the CPU 24 applies the current error correction to the apparent position to calculate a corrected position.
• the corrected position is compared to the corrected cup location retrieved from memory 25 and the difference is determined and shown as the distance to the pin on display 26.
• the error correction comprises a number of timing signal corrections for particular satellites useful during the 15 second calibration loop. The CPU 24 applies these timing signal corrections to its apparent position timing signals.
• the grid 119 is displayed every time the cart (i.e. remote unit) 10 stops and has its origin at the cart.
• both indicators 116 and 117 display the same number which is the distance from the cart to the cup location.
• the cart symbol 118 is always present and shows the position of the cart on the hole layout 111. When the position of the remote unit approaches the tee of the next hole, the display automatically switches to the next hole.
• the player may touch the arrows of the "Hole" indicator 115 with the pen 28 to increment (or decrement) the hole being played - i.e. when hole 17 is complete the player touches the top arrow of indicator 115 to increment and display hole 18.
• the preferred embodiment employs a method to determine if the cart is stopped. If the cart is stopped, the grid 119 snaps onto the display and the cart (remote unit 10) does not re-transmit its location to the base station 12 (to reduce bandwidth requirements). Additionally, when stopped, the GPS receiver 22 may begin averaging apparent position measurements to obtain a more accurate "apparent position.” The method to determine if the cart is stopped compares the apparent positions of the cart (typically 2 samples) to a predetermined error (Derror) (for this application 1.5 meters is used). If both samples are within Derror, then the cart is assumed to be stopped.
• Derror predetermined error
• Derror Selective availability error
• the player chooses to use the expanded features, more options are available. If the player touches the hole layout 111 with the pen 28 the grid snaps to the location touched and the indicator 116 indicates the yardage to the pin from the apex or origin of the grid. In Figure 1, the player has touched the middle tee box (where the player will place the ball) to more accurately judge distances to hazards. This feature is particularly useful for hole, shot planning, or estimating driving distance. For example, the player might touch the hole layout 111 between the 150 and 200 yard grid arcs to determine a target 1 10 yards from the pin for hitting the player's next shot.
• Another feature is the icon 120 depicting the nearest cart of the group playing ahead.
• the icon 120 is about 230 yards ahead, so tee-off can safely be made if no club is expected to approach the 230 yard distance.
• This ability to determine distance to the cart ahead speeds up play while preserving game etiquette, and is particularly useful where the cart ahead cannot be seen, so-called blind holes.
• the preferred embodiment simply shows all carts (remote units) 10 on the hole being played.
• the option buttons 112 - 114 allow the player to access "tips” (e.g. caddie hints), "drinks," and “more” respectively.
• the tips are just that - memory storage 25 contains caddie hints for the current location of the cart. For example, here the hint might state “aim between the far trap and the green and carry the trap".
• the "more” menu allows the player to access other options, such as a scorecard where the player can enter scores for the round for each player or food service. Such a scorecard is shown if Figure 6 where the pen input shows the score numerals as digital ink. If desired, the scores can be transmitted over the radio network and downloaded to the base station 12 for handicap input and is particular useful during tournaments.
• the "drink button allows the player to order drinks, either for immediate delivery. As shown in Figure 9, if a player requests immediate food or beverage, the monitor 130 reflects the request and the delivery person can be dispatched.
• the remote unit 10 calculates and displays a distance from the unit 10 to the cup (or an arbitrary green location), it receives a current error correction every 5 - 15 seconds, and additionally, transmits a current position to the base station every 5 - 15 seconds. This allows the course marshal or pro to view the monitor in Figs. 3 and 9 to consider the position of every remote unit on the course.
• a graphic advertising message 121 is displayed at convenient or opportune times.
• the remote unit 10 shows advertising at convenient times based on the location of the remote unit 10 on the golf course. For example, an advertising message 121 may displayed while the carts are awaiting players loading clubs onto the cart and prior to the first tee box. The advertising message 121 may also be displayed after the 18th green. Additionally, the advertising message 121 may also be displayed at nonintrusive times such as when the remote unit 10 is between the green of a hole and the next tee.
• different messages can be stored in memory 25 (e.g. PCMCIA card) for display at different locations.
• the remote receiver 10 e.g. golf cart
• the golfer is not likely to need all of the information on the display 26.
• the golfer will not be interested in exact distance from the cart to the pin 117 or grid center to pin 116 while the remote receiver is moving.
• This screen area could be used for advertizing or other messages while the cart is moving, such as in Figure 5.
• Figure 11 shows an ad that gives directions to the 16th tee, knowing that the golfers will soon be finished their round and that it is after 4:00 PM so they will be looking for a place to eat.
• a "services" and “products” menu is displayed at the request of the user.
• Services could include advertizing for course amenities, local restaurants, shops, etc. as shown in Figure 11.
• Products could include specific advertisments for products available in the local area.
• Figure 6 shows the display of an advertising message based on the activity of the golfer.
• the golfer's activity is keeping score and a static message is displayed on the display 26.
• Such activity might be scorecard input, refreshment ordering, bet tracking, etc.
• a dynamic message can be displayed - e.g. a message reacting to a good score (or bad!) on the hole.
• Figure 8 illustrates an alternative embodiment remote unit 80 which is preferably mounted on a golf cart or hand carried.
• the remote unit 80 includes a GPS receiver 82, GPS antenna 84, CPU 86, display 88, control device 90, storage 92 and calibration 94.
• the hardware may be the same as in the preferred embodiment but for the hand carried remote unit power requirements is a factor in hardware selection.
• the storage 92 similarly contains a course geography database and advertising messages, but in addition contains the location of a calibration location for each hole.
• a calibration location is preferably a placard on the ground in the cart path adjacent the tee box for the hole being played.
• a control device like Figures 1 or 7 is used with keypad "6" being additionally labeled with the notation "Calibrate.”
• the calibration box 94 in Figure 8 is preferably EEPROM and contains the calibration routine. Of course the calibration routine could alternatively be stored in Storage 92.
• the present position of the cups for each hole is loaded in the course geography database in storage 92.
• the cup locator is used with the packet radio system eliminated.
• the cup locations are stored in memory 66 and transferred to the remote unit 80. Without calibration and with a C/A code receiver 82, the remote unit 80 will give distance accuracies within 100 meters (S/A enabled) and within 20 meters (S/A disabled). Of course technical improvements in GPS technology might improve on this accuracy to some degree.
• a calibration procedure is utilized.
• the golfer places the remote unit 80 over a placard in the cart path, calls up the display for the hole being played, and presses "Calibrate" pad 6.
• a calibration routine is initiated, and an error correction is determined by comparing the current apparent GPS position with the GPS position stored for the hole placard. This calibrate procedure gives a reasonably accurate error correction for the duration of play for the hole. If a player forgets to calibrate for a hole the previous error correction is simply carried over and applied.
• Figure 7 illustrates another embodiment of the control device 28 and display 26.
• the twelve function keys 112 operate to function as labeled.
• the display is a simple, low cost LED or LCD alphanumeric screen.
• Player information such as distance to pins or caddy tips can be displayed based on current location of the remote unit 10. Additionally, at convenient times (location or activity) an advertising message may be displayed such as shown in Figure 7. While a pen based control system might be preferable functionally to the device 28 illustrated in Fig. 7, the cost of the device 28 and display 26 may be considerably less.
• each remote unit 10 comprises a GPS repeater, such as a Tidget GPS sensor made by Navsys Corp. of Edinburgh, Scotland.
• the repeater 120 operates to receive the GPS raw data timing signals from the GPS satellites, digitize and compress the timing signals.
• the repeater 120 can be set to look at a certain number of satellites, e.g. 5 satellites.
• the satellite timing signals are not processed. Instead, the signals are amplified and periodically relayed to the base station 12. Different signal processing techniques may be employed if desired, such as filtering and compressing.
• the base station collects each timing signal from the repeaters and processes the timing signals to determine a location of the repeater.
• the base station 10 can employ the amount of processing desired to the timing signals to improve the accuracy estimation of the repeater - commensurate with the time available, the processing load, accuracy desired, etc. If desired, a distance to the green cup for the repeater can be transmitted and displayed on the cart of the repeater.
• Each repeater 120 includes an identification.
• Each repeater 120 is allocated, for example, an 80 millisecond transmit and a 20 millisecond receive time window. Because the base station 12 and all of the repeaters 120 have accurate GPS timing signals, such a time window allocation is possible.
• a repeater 120 receives timing signals from 4 satellites and stores the signals in a temporary memory buffer (compressing if desired) for transmission in its allocated time window.
• the timing signals include an identification of the satellite.
• the base station 12 receives the timing signals from a certain repeater 120 in the repeater's allocated timing window.
• the base station has already coprocessed a timing correction for each satellite timing signal, and therefore can apply the correction upon receipt of the repeater timing signal.
• the repeaters 120 are receiving the timing signals from predominantly the same satellites, so the base station needs to only keep a current correction for a limited number of satellites. Using the corrected timing signals, the base station can accurately process the repeater timing signals to derive a location of the repeater on the golf course.
• This embodiment uses the repeater location and compares the location with a database of golf cup locations (or an arbitrary location on the green such as center of the green). The difference is the distance from the repeater 120 to the cup location. This distance is transmitted to the repeater 120 in the 20 millisecond time window allocated for that repeater. The distance is displayed on the cart to give the golfer a distance to the pin estimation.
• This embodiment contemplates the use of time windows to avoid the communication overhead associated with hand shake protocols.
• repeaters on 50 carts may transmit their timing signals and receive a distance to the pin estimation with an update rate every 5 seconds. From the golfers perspective, a new distance to the cup estimation is displayed every 5 seconds. In the pro shop, the position of the carts on the course is refreshed every 5 seconds.
• the repeater may take the form factor of a digital pager and even be hand carried.
• the repeater 120 may include a query button which upon activation by the golfer transmits the latest satellite timing signals which are immediately processed and the distance estimation returned.
• a primary advantage of this embodiment is reduced cost of the remote receiver hardware.
• a repeater with a communications link and a simple LED display is all that is required as the remote unit.
• Another advantage is the small size possible and reduced power requirements. Disadvantages are the processing load required at the base station, a heavy communications load, and the dependence on the communications link.
• this embodiment contemplates distance estimations from the remote unit to the golf cup location without the use of GPS or other location identifier (e.g. Loran or radio triangulation) in the remote unit.
• a pen display such as shown in Figure 1 is used, preferably with a resolution greater than 1020 x 680 pixels. For a 500 yard golf hole length, this gives about 2 pixels per yard; for a 200 yard golf hole there are about 5 pixels per yard.
• the golfer is about 200 yards from the green and accordingly touches the display with the pen at the approximate location of the ball on the display.
• the display immediately zooms to include the portion of the golf hole from the green to the designated location plus about 10%.
• the portion of the golf hole display after the zoom is approximately 220 yards.
• the golfer can redesignate the location of the ball on the display with the pen 28. The redesignation is obviously more accurate because there are now about 5 pixels per yard. Golfers can be expected to designate their position on a display within 20 pixels, so the error in designation is within 4 yards.
• the location of the golf cup on the green is preferably loaded into a database in the remote unit. That is, a GPS unit is used to survey the location of the golf cup on the green within 1 yard and this database is loaded whenever the location of the cups are changed. If center of the green locations are used as nominal cup locations, accuracy is degraded.
• the display 26 can be replaced with a simple LED which only displays distance from the remote unit to the cup.
• the cup locator unit 14 can be eliminated with the greens keeper simply manually entering the approximate grid coordinates of each cup into the base station 12.
• a nominal grid coordinate e.g. center or front of the green
• the term "cup position” or "cup location” should be understood to include a measured location or a static grid location, such as nominally the center of the green.
• the terms "cup” and “pin” are often used interchangeably in this application.
• “Global Positioning Satellite System” includes the U.S. Navstar system, the Russian Glonass, and future analogous systems, such as the proposed system of the European Community.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
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• Remote Sensing (AREA)
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• 1994
  • 1994-12-30 AU AU15957/95A patent/AU1595795A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1994-12-30 EP EP95907943A patent/EP0748453A4/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 1994-12-30 JP JP8520911A patent/JPH10500883A/ja active Pending
  • 1994-12-30 CA CA002184497A patent/CA2184497A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1994-12-30 WO PCT/US1994/014439 patent/WO1996021161A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation

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