GB2169112A - A visual training aid for athletes - Google Patents

Abstract

A visual training aid for athletes such as swimmers comprised of a circle of spaced lights which can be selectively actuated such that a point of light moves clockwise around the circle at a particular speed to enable an athlete to pace his performance during a training sequence. In one mode of operation the lights are extinguished one by one at a predetermined speed until all the lights in the circle have been extinguished whereupon the circle is re-illuminated and the cycle can continue as desired, each cycle being incremented on a display counter to indicate distance travelled by the athlete. In the second mode of operation at the start of a training sequence, all the lights in the ring are illuminated with the exception of a group of five consecutive lights which provide "a black hole" in the circle. At the start of a training sequence the "black hole" is moved clockwise around the circle, the leading edge of the black hole providing the observable movement required. The aid provides inter alia excellent psychological effects in terms of improving an athletes performance, and obviates the attention of a trainer, or the use of a pace swimmer or runner as the case may be. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION A visual training aid for athletes FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a visual training aid for athletes, particularly swimmers, against which the swimmer can pace his performance. The aid is of considerable assistance to swimming coaches in that the pupil may be left alone if desired to pace himself against the aid, whilst the coach is able to conserve his energies for other closer instructive duties. The aid also obviates the need to employ a pacing swimmer.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The traditional and conventional method by which a swimming coach trains his pupil, is by means of a stopwatch and physical coaxing and encouragement. This is a time consuming and generally energy sapping operation, and does not necessarily result in optimizing or maximising the improvement which is desired in the swimmer's capabilities, probably due to the inability to fully harness that necessary sense of urgency in the swimmer's input effort, because the target to which the swimmer is aiming, is not an immediate observable entity. In other words the swimmer might know that he or she has a certain amount of time in which to complete a number of lengths of the swimming pool, but the only datum point which can be used to gauge performance is the urgings and exhortations of the coach, who alone is watching the time on his stopwatch.

This method of training is not, it would appear, the most psychologically motivating or challenging in terms of producing the best results. A training system whereby a swimmer or like athlete, is able to train for competition without the aid of a coach or a pace swimmer, is disclosed in UK Patent 2078116. This involves the use of a flexible tube which may be laid alongside the edge of a pool, the tube having a series of internally arranged lamps which can be sequentially operated at a variable time frequency up and down the tube according to the speed at which a swimmer wishes to complete a length of the pool or a series of lengths.

Movement of light from one lamp to another down the tube, provides a moving target against which the swimmer can race and at a speed according to his own choosing, thus providing the required pacing.

This arrangement has disadvantages in that it lacks versatility because it is not as workably convenient as it should be for all modes of swimming, lacks all-round visuality, and is cumbersome requiring special facilities to erect it for operational use.

Accordingly it is an object of the invention to provide means for overall improvement in the training of athletes in contrast to those presently available.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the invention there is provided, a visual training aid for athletes comprising an illuminable indicator ring for observation by an athlete during training, and means for controlling illumination of the indicator ring to provide an observable indication means moving at a preset speed in the path of the ring and against which an athlete can pace his performance during a training sequence.

The above device is advantageous in that as a separate self-contained device, requiring no special means for erection on site, it may simply be positioned at either or both ends of a swimming pool, when the latter connected to operate in synchronisation, and be visualiy observable by the swimmer, irrespective of the swimming motion being performed.

Moreover and importantly, the fact that the arrangement is clocklike in appearance, with the moving light being representative of the moving hands of the clock the psychological effects of the training aid on the swimmer are much enhanced.

The illumination means is preferably provided by a circular array of individual lights, for example, light emitting diodes (LEDs).

In this arrangement the lights can be sequentially illuminated or extinguished at a speed preset by the athlete or his coach over one cycle of the ring.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device of the invention for training an athlete; Figure 2 is an enlarged view of the indicator face of the device of Figure, and Figure 3 is a typical electronic circuit diagram for operating the device of Figure 1.

The device shown in Figure 1 comprises a box housing 1 provided on one face 2 with a circular array of spaced indicator lights 3, for example a series of light emitting diodes (LEDs) on one face thereof, the number of lights being typically of the order of 60.

Positioned within the circle of lights 3, more particularly shown in Figure 2, are the control and display elements of the device and include a lap counter display 4 for the number of laps of a circuit completed by an athlete, for example pool lengths in the case of a swimmer, a keyboard 5 for input date, an eight digit LED display 6 for the input data, mode and delay interval switches 7 and 8, and a reset button 9.

A suitable electronic circuit as shown in Fig 3 for operating the controls of the device may be mounted in the box housing 1.

Typically the circuit shown in Fig 3 comprises two sections consisting of a programmable clock generator and a 60 way counter/display driver. The counter driver is a 60 bit shift register which can be set in one of two modes by means of the switch 7 whereby on reset, using button 9, all the lights 3 in the circular array are illuminated and extinguished one at a time at every clock pulse in a clockwise direction beginning from the "twelve O'clock" position on the indicator ring of lights 3. When all the bulbs are extinguished, the succeeding clock pulse causes all the bulbs to be illuminated and increments the lap counter display 4.

Upon actuation of the reset button 9 when in the other operating mode using switch 7, all the lights 3 in the circular ring are arranged to illuminate except a group of 5 consecutive lights on the left hand side of the top dead centre or twelve o'clock position as viewed in Figure 2, thus creating a black hole in the ring.

On the next clock pulse the hole will move clockwise around the circle of light, successive clock pulses continuing this sequence until the hole' has moved completely around the ring at which point the lap counter is incremented and displayed in lap counter display 4.

The duration between the clock pulses and hence the speed of revolution at which the lights 3 are extinguished one by one around the circular ring, are entered via the keyboard 5.

The design is such that the times of up to 99 laps may be stored in the machine's memory and "played" back in sequence which can be repeated restarted or reset if required.

The information keyed in, is displayed on the LED display 6 to enable it to be visually scanned and edited or changed if necessary.

When the device is used to train a swimmer in the first mode of operation as described, the time taken to extinguish the who!e circle of lights 3, may be set via the keyboard 5 to equal the speed at which a swimmer intends to complete one length of the training pool, or to extinguish half the lights 3 in sequence, the speed at which one length of a 50 m pool is to be accomplished in a 100 metre swim, or a quarter of the lights 3 in sequence, the speed at which one length of a 25 m pool is to be covered in a 100 metre swim, and so on.

For added visuality, the circle of lights 3 may have coloured sections corresponding to completion of laps for example, a green, orange, blue and red section, each representing say one lap of a 25 metre pool, such that when the whole ring of lights 3 has been extinguished the lap counter display 4 is incremented accordingly and the swimmer knows he has completed 100 metres; the variety and versatility of such an arrangement and the combinations of presettable training sequences possible, will be clearly evident without further explanation.

The second mode of operation is useful where more than one swimmer is swimming in one lane and the need to stagger the start of each swimmer arises.

A coloured segment, one for each swimmer, is then provided in the circle of lights 3, to indicate the swimmer's position as the 'black hole moves around the circle. The coloured segments may be provided by means of coloured plastics strips movable to cover a predetermined number of coloured lights in the circle.

As an additional visual aid the circuit includes means for operating an observable increase speed lamp L to cause same to blink for approximately 5 seconds at the start of a lap, the speed of completion of which has increased compared with the previous lap.

The circuit also includes a count down generator G connected to a speaker S through amp A, and piezo electric acoustic element P.

This operates to produce three short tones followed by a long tone which is generated when delay is selected using switch 8. Timing commences at the start of the long tone.

Instead of the complexity of installation necessary with the known visual training aid and its limitations as aforementioned, the device of the present invention may be readily installed in a free-standing position at one or both ends of a swimming lane clearly visible to the swimmer in any swimming attitude which he may adopt, both modes of the device being usable for direct pacing or interval pacing.

Moreover the clock-like appearance of the aid has been shown to be most conducive to generating enhanced motivation and challenge on the part of the trainee, than heretofore encountered.

Claims (9)

1. A visual training aid for athletes comprising an illuminable indicator ring for observation by the athlete during training, and means for controlling illumination of the indicator ring to provide an observable indication means moving at a preset speed in the path of the ring and against which an athlete can pace his performance during a training sequence.

2. A visual training aid as claimed in claim 1 wherein the ring is composed of a circular array of spaced lights illuminably operable in a predetermined manner by said control means.

3. A visual training aid as claimed in claim 2 wherein said control means is adapted to extinguish the lights one by one from a predetermined position in the ring, corresponding to the start of the training sequence, to provide said moving point of light.

4. A visual training aid as claimed in claim 2 wherein said control means includes means for illuminating the circle of light at the start of a training sequence with the exception of a predetermined group of consecutive lights in the circle to provide a dark space therein, said control means operating to extinguish the lights from the leading extinguished light in the dark space, such that a said dark space moves around the circle at a said preset speed.

5. A visual training aid as claimed in claim 3 or 4 wherein lap counter display means is provided observable by the athlete to increment as soon as each light in the ring has been extinguished once.

6. A visual training aid as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 5 wherein said control means includes means for effecting automatic re-illumination of the ring when the last light in the ring has been extinguished.

7. A method of training athletes comprising providing an illuminable indicator ring for observation by an athlete during training, and effecting an observable indication of movement of light around the illuminable ring at a preset speed against which the athlete can pace his performance.

8. A visual training aid for athletes substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

9. A method of training athletes substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.