EP1651317A1 - Method and apparatus to locate lost golf balls - Google Patents
Method and apparatus to locate lost golf ballsInfo
- Publication number
- EP1651317A1 EP1651317A1 EP04710929A EP04710929A EP1651317A1 EP 1651317 A1 EP1651317 A1 EP 1651317A1 EP 04710929 A EP04710929 A EP 04710929A EP 04710929 A EP04710929 A EP 04710929A EP 1651317 A1 EP1651317 A1 EP 1651317A1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- light
- signal
- detector
- ball
- wavelength
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Granted
Links
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B57/00—Golfing accessories
-
- 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
- A63B37/00—Solid balls; Rigid hollow balls; Marbles
- A63B37/0003—Golf balls
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B37/00—Solid balls; Rigid hollow balls; Marbles
- A63B37/0003—Golf balls
- A63B37/0022—Coatings, e.g. paint films; Markings
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B43/00—Balls with special arrangements
- A63B43/06—Balls with special arrangements with illuminating devices ; with reflective surfaces
-
- 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
-
- 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
- A63B2024/0053—Tracking a path or terminating locations for locating an object, e.g. a lost ball
-
- 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
- A63B2220/80—Special sensors, transducers or devices therefor
- A63B2220/805—Optical or opto-electronic sensors
-
- 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
- A63B2225/74—Miscellaneous features of sport apparatus, devices or equipment with powered illuminating means, e.g. lights
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B37/00—Solid balls; Rigid hollow balls; Marbles
- A63B37/0003—Golf balls
- A63B37/007—Characteristics of the ball as a whole
- A63B37/0077—Physical properties
- A63B37/0088—Frequency
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B43/00—Balls with special arrangements
Definitions
- the present invention relates to the location of lost objects, particularly though not exclusively lost golf balls.
- Another method uses the fact that many golf balls are coated with whiteners that absorb light in the near-UV and fluoresce at a longer wavelength, generally in the blue part of the spectrum.
- U light By shining UN light on the golf balls, they can be made to fluoresce and should be easier to detect.
- Devices are available commercially, which produce the relevant UN light. However, these devices are generally intended for use at night in order is discriminate the fluorescent emission from surrounding background light present during the day. In addition, as the light must shine directly onto the golf ball, the device must be operated in close proximity to the ball for any effect to be seen.
- the object of the present invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for locating lost objects.
- apparatus for detecting an object comprising: • a light source adapted to emit a beam of light at wavelengths absorbed by the object or a coating thereon; • a detector adapted to detect light at wavelengths fluoresced by the object or coating thereon; and • a processor adapted to determine the presence of an object from the light detected by the detector.
- the apparatus further includes an oscillator to modulate the light source.
- an oscillator to modulate the light source.
- this will be via a driver circuit.
- the processor includes a mixer, which receives the modulation signal from the oscillator, and a signal from the detector.
- the processor further includes a low-pass filter which is adapted to pass signals of a significant magnitude if a coherent signal averaged over time is present.
- the processor will further include a threshold detector, which compares the signal from the low-pass filter with a predetermined threshold, and sends a signal to an indicator is the signal exceeds the threshold, to indicate the presence of a ball.
- a threshold detector which compares the signal from the low-pass filter with a predetermined threshold, and sends a signal to an indicator is the signal exceeds the threshold, to indicate the presence of a ball.
- the modulation will be in the frequency range 10 Hz to 100 MHz.
- Figure 1 is a plan view of apparatus for detecting lost golf balls according to the invention
- Figure 2 is a block diagram of the electrical components of Figure 1.
- the apparatus thereshown includes an oscillator 101 which is adapted to produce a signal 102 that is used to modulate a light source 103.
- the light source is a light-emitting diode (LED) although other sources could be used.
- the modulation may be sinusoidal or of other type, such as a square wave, and may be an amplitude or phase modulation.
- the light source 103 produces a light beam 106 with emission in the blue or ultra violet (UN) part of the spectrum.
- the light beam is directed essentially forward of the light source at a wide angle.
- a lens or other optical system 104 may be used to direct, and widen the beam, and produce a desirable emission pattern.
- the balls Due to the coating applied to golf balls, the balls absorb light in the UN and blue range and re-emits (fluoresces) at a longer wavelength.
- the exact wavelength of the fluorescence depends upon the particularly coating applied to the ball, but generally a wavelength shift of several tens of nanometers is found.
- the apparatus also includes a detector 109.
- the detector 109 is provided with a lens 108 that enables light from a wide angle to be collected by the detector.
- filters 110 are positioned in front of the detector in order to remove light of wavelengths other than that of the fluorescence anticipated from golf balls, and to allow as much of this light as possible to be received by the detector 109.
- light shields 111, 112 are placed around the light source 103 and/or detector 109.
- the detector 109 sends the photo-current 114 to a processor 116 for determining when a golf ball is present.
- a copy of the oscillator signal 113 may also be input to the processor. If a ball is detected, a signal 115 is sent to an indicator 117 to alert a user to the presence of the ball.
- the detector is sensitive to, and receives, only a small fraction of the light propagating in the direction of the detector. When detectors are not specifically designed to reject unwanted light, sunlight can easily overwhelm a detector rendering the device almost useless. For this reason, previous detectors have generally been for use at night and are effective only in very low ambient light levels. However, even with the use of filters 110, sunlight can be strong enough in the relevant wavelengths, to overwhelm a weak fluorescent signal.
- synchronous detection is used to detect the week fluorescent signals from the golf balls, from the strong ambient light.
- Modulation is applied to the light source and to the detection circuit.
- the signal is integrated coherently over the period of the modulation, T.
- Background light however, has no specific phase relationship with the modulation.
- the contribution of such light, or noise, to the signal detection does not build up linearly with time, but builds up as the square root of the period T.
- the true signal will eventually outgrow the noise contribution and provide unambiguous detection.
- An oscillator 201 applies a modulation 202 to a driver circuit 203 that in turn provides a drive signal to LED 204 and simultaneously sends the modulation signal 205 to a mixer 206.
- the frequency of the modulating signal is not critically import and may lie in the range from 10 Hz to 100 MHz.
- Output light 207 is converted to fluorescence 208 by a golf ball or the like that is received by detector 209, sent (210) to amplifier 211 and from then sent 212 to the other input port of mixer 206.
- the output 213 of mixer 206 is send to low-pass filter (LPF) 214.
- LPF low-pass filter
- the output 215 of the LPF is passed to a threshold detector 216 that compares the LPF signal to a predetermined threshold. If the signal exceeds the predetermined threshold then a signal 217 is sent to an indicator 218 to indicate the presence of a ball.
- the invention is not intended to be restricted to the details of the above- described embodiment. For instance, multiple light sources may be used, or example arranged in a hexagonal pattern, to increase the light power applied to the golf ball.
- the light source may be modulated at high frequency such as 10-lOOMHz so that detection of the received signal phase relative to the applied modulation phase can be used to also determine the distance to the ball.
- the device can be constructed using plastic lenses for the options, including plastic Fresnel lenses.
Landscapes
- Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
- General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
- Physical Education & Sports Medicine (AREA)
- Length Measuring Devices By Optical Means (AREA)
- Geophysics And Detection Of Objects (AREA)
- Investigating, Analyzing Materials By Fluorescence Or Luminescence (AREA)
- Casting Or Compression Moulding Of Plastics Or The Like (AREA)
Abstract
Description
Claims
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US49301303P | 2003-08-05 | 2003-08-05 | |
PCT/GB2004/000581 WO2005016463A1 (en) | 2003-08-05 | 2004-02-13 | Method and apparatus to locate lost golf balls |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP1651317A1 true EP1651317A1 (en) | 2006-05-03 |
EP1651317B1 EP1651317B1 (en) | 2007-04-04 |
Family
ID=34193160
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP04710929A Expired - Lifetime EP1651317B1 (en) | 2003-08-05 | 2004-02-13 | Method and apparatus to locate lost golf balls |
Country Status (11)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US20060281584A1 (en) |
EP (1) | EP1651317B1 (en) |
JP (1) | JP2007501042A (en) |
CN (1) | CN1845772A (en) |
AT (1) | ATE358515T1 (en) |
AU (1) | AU2004264697A1 (en) |
DE (1) | DE602004005716T2 (en) |
ES (1) | ES2285428T3 (en) |
PT (1) | PT1651317E (en) |
WO (1) | WO2005016463A1 (en) |
ZA (1) | ZA200600965B (en) |
Families Citing this family (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
WO2006017910A2 (en) * | 2004-08-20 | 2006-02-23 | Track 'n' Find Pty Ltd | Device for assisting in finding an article using fluorescence |
WO2006104593A2 (en) * | 2005-02-18 | 2006-10-05 | Blue Marlin Llc | Method and system for locating a lost golf ball |
US8746914B2 (en) | 2010-02-15 | 2014-06-10 | Webb T. Nelson | Sports set that utilize stereoscopic illumination and retroreflective materials |
US8550649B2 (en) * | 2010-02-15 | 2013-10-08 | Webb T. Nelson | Stereoscopic illumination system for retroreflective materials |
US9416959B2 (en) | 2012-05-17 | 2016-08-16 | Donald Spinner | Illuminated golf |
Family Cites Families (11)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US662057A (en) * | 1900-04-30 | 1900-11-20 | William J Cowan | Street-sweeper. |
US3895366A (en) * | 1974-03-18 | 1975-07-15 | Francis E Morris | Golf swing sensing device |
AT374596B (en) * | 1979-04-20 | 1984-05-10 | Enander Bengt | TO FIND AVALANCHE VICTIMS, ANSWERS TO BE WEARED ON THE BODY |
US5370387A (en) * | 1993-06-14 | 1994-12-06 | Baker; Gene G. | Golf ball/fluorescent object locator |
US5662533A (en) * | 1994-11-21 | 1997-09-02 | Chadwell; Donald | Golf ball locator apparatus |
US6482108B1 (en) * | 1999-01-21 | 2002-11-19 | Lost Item Retrieval System Inc | Infra-red laser device and method for searching for lost item |
US6620057B1 (en) * | 1999-04-15 | 2003-09-16 | Flite Traxx, Inc. | System for locating golf balls |
SE0002842L (en) * | 2000-08-08 | 2002-02-09 | Kraftuttryck Bml Ab | Device in connection with golf |
CA2365428C (en) * | 2000-12-21 | 2008-10-21 | Brasscorp Limited | Method of producing an ultra-violet or near ultra-violet light source for non-destructive inspection or testing |
US6353386B1 (en) * | 2001-03-12 | 2002-03-05 | Roger Castonguay | Method and apparatus for retrieving lost golf balls |
US20040142766A1 (en) * | 2003-01-17 | 2004-07-22 | Chris Savarese | Apparatuses, methods and systems relating to findable golf balls |
-
2004
- 2004-02-13 AU AU2004264697A patent/AU2004264697A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2004-02-13 EP EP04710929A patent/EP1651317B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 2004-02-13 WO PCT/GB2004/000581 patent/WO2005016463A1/en active IP Right Grant
- 2004-02-13 ES ES04710929T patent/ES2285428T3/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 2004-02-13 CN CNA200480025251XA patent/CN1845772A/en active Pending
- 2004-02-13 DE DE602004005716T patent/DE602004005716T2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 2004-02-13 JP JP2006522385A patent/JP2007501042A/en active Pending
- 2004-02-13 AT AT04710929T patent/ATE358515T1/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 2004-02-13 PT PT04710929T patent/PT1651317E/en unknown
- 2004-02-13 US US10/567,188 patent/US20060281584A1/en not_active Abandoned
-
2006
- 2006-02-02 ZA ZA200600965A patent/ZA200600965B/en unknown
Non-Patent Citations (1)
Title |
---|
See references of WO2005016463A1 * |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
EP1651317B1 (en) | 2007-04-04 |
AU2004264697A1 (en) | 2005-02-24 |
CN1845772A (en) | 2006-10-11 |
ES2285428T3 (en) | 2007-11-16 |
DE602004005716T2 (en) | 2007-12-27 |
WO2005016463A1 (en) | 2005-02-24 |
JP2007501042A (en) | 2007-01-25 |
ZA200600965B (en) | 2007-05-30 |
ATE358515T1 (en) | 2007-04-15 |
US20060281584A1 (en) | 2006-12-14 |
PT1651317E (en) | 2007-07-03 |
DE602004005716D1 (en) | 2007-05-16 |
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