JP2012011106A - Method for determining order in virtual participation in actual running race or the like using momentum measuring device, and scenery image display method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To participate almost in real time in an actual marathon race or the like and to accurately determine the order while reducing a load concentrated on a communication network, and moreover to display realistic images in a system for carrying out a virtual race by connecting a momentum measuring system for detecting momentum performed in a fixed position to compute virtual moving speed and moving distance, to a communication line by each of a plurality of users.SOLUTION: Each momentum measuring system (hereinafter referred to as a terminal) individually displays a start signal at a start scheduled time of the actual race, then computes a virtual accumulated moving distance from the momentum performed by the user, and transmits time required to reach a goal point, as a required time to a server. The server totals the required time and transmits it to the terminal. The terminal computes the order of the user from the totaled required time and displays it. Scenery on a course photographed beforehand is transmitted from the server before the start scheduled time and stored in the terminal. The stored scenery on the course is displayed according to the accumulated moving distance and moving speed.

Description

  The present invention relates to a method of virtually participating in an actual walking / running competition such as a marathon competition through a communication line such as the Internet by measuring the amount of walking or running exercise performed at a fixed position.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an apparatus has been invented that displays a landscape image in accordance with the amount of walking or running exercise performed at a fixed position so that the user can easily maintain the willingness to continue the exercise.
For example, Patent Document 1 includes an exercise device that has a function of detecting a forward speed when a user performs forward movement at a fixed position by connecting a plurality of terminal devices to a server via a communication line. The scenery image information of the selected course is transmitted to the terminal device in correspondence with the forward speed of the user, and this is displayed, so that the user can easily enjoy the scenery of various courses while staying at home. An apparatus capable of performing the above is disclosed.

  Furthermore, in Patent Document 1, a game start date and time is notified in advance to a plurality of users, a start signal is transmitted from the server to each terminal device at a predetermined game start time, and the terminal device receives a start signal. Alternatively, a method is disclosed in which a competition start is notified by a speaker, the distance traveled from this start time is calculated, and the ranking of the participants is determined in the order in which the goals are reached.

  Patent Document 2 discloses an apparatus that calculates a momentum based on a measurement result of a biological information measurement unit that detects a user's movement, and displays an image according to the amount of exercise. The biological information measurement unit uses an acceleration sensor, and acceleration is performed. A method for calculating the momentum by time integration of the waveform is described.

  In addition, the present inventor disclosed in Patent Document 3 that an air chamber for adjusting cushioning and resilience is provided inside a rubber or similar elastic mat-like main body, and a stepping motion or By measuring the fluctuation of air pressure generated during running exercise with a pressure sensor and calculating and displaying the number and intensity of exercises from this pressure fluctuation data, walking or running exercise suitable for each individual is continued.・ We proposed a momentum measurement device that can be implemented systematically.

  However, since the conventional virtual competition ranking determination method described in Patent Document 1 transmits a start signal from the server to each terminal, when there are a large number of participants, the start signal is sent at the same time. In addition, there is a problem that the load on the communication line increases at one time and the communication becomes unstable, and as a result, the user cannot receive a start signal at the same time. there were.

  In addition, since the video distributed by Patent Document 1 or Patent Document 2 is not associated with the time of the actual marathon competition or the like, there is a problem that the displayed video is not realistic. However, a method for distributing image data, which tends to be large, to many users without overloading the communication line has not been studied.

  Further, in the structure of Patent Document 3, since the volume of the air chamber becomes relatively large, there is a problem that pressure fluctuation generated when moving on the mat is small and high-precision momentum measurement cannot be performed.

JP 2002-263232 A JP 2002-346013 A JP 2007-61581 A

The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems of the prior art. A momentum measurement system that detects a momentum performed at a fixed position and calculates a virtual movement speed and a movement distance is obtained by a plurality of users on the Internet. In a system for performing virtual competitions by connecting to each other's communication line, it is possible to participate in real-time marathon competitions, etc. in near real-time, accurately determining the ranking while reducing the load concentrated on the communication network, and displaying realistic video The purpose is to display.
At the same time, an inexpensive, safe and accurate momentum measuring device is provided.

A means for detecting a walking or running motion performed at a fixed position by a user to calculate a virtual moving speed and a cumulative moving distance, and a server on a communication line such as the Internet, and transmitting and receiving data, and storing necessary data. A momentum measurement system comprising: means; means for displaying visual information; and means for setting an accurate time and measuring time.
The user information is registered in advance in the server as a person who virtually participates in a walking or running competition such as an actual marathon competition, and the scheduled start time of the actual competition is transmitted from the server to the user in advance. When the scheduled start time is reached, a start signal is displayed, and after the scheduled start time, a virtual cumulative travel distance is calculated according to the walking or running motion performed by the user at a fixed position, and the cumulative travel distance is calculated. Is recognized as the goal time when the course distance from the starting point of the walking or running competition to the goal point is reached, and the difference between the scheduled start time and the goal time is transmitted as a required time to the server via the communication line. Collects the time required for the plurality of received users and transmits it to the momentum measurement system. Recognizing the user ranking based on time, a rank determining method of the virtual game played in competition with approximately the same time the actual notifying the user of the position that order.

  In addition to the above-described virtual game ranking determination method, the scenery on the course, which has been taken or created in advance in association with the distance on the course, is transmitted from the server before the scheduled start time to the momentum measurement system. The scenery on the course stored and stored in the exercise amount measurement system is displayed as an image in accordance with the calculated cumulative movement distance and movement speed.

  Furthermore, immediately after that, an image taken by a person participating in a real competition or a person moving at the same speed as the participant is distributed to the participants of the virtual competition to provide a realistic image. In order to display, the server notifies the user of the scheduled start time of the virtual competition, which is delayed by a predetermined time from the scheduled start time of the actual competition, and signals the start when the scheduled start time of the virtual competition is reached. A virtual cumulative movement distance is calculated according to the walking or running movement performed by the user at a fixed position after the scheduled start time of the virtual competition, and a plurality of participants participating in the actual competition are displayed. Each of the landscape images taken by the person or the like is sent to the server together with the position information on the course and the time information of the shooting, and the server sends the image to the distance on the course where the image was taken. Along with the elapsed time after the start of the actual competition and the information on the moving speed of the photographer, the image data is divided into appropriate lengths and stored, and the stored data estimated to approximate the relationship between the calculated cumulative moving distance and moving speed The image is transmitted to the user's exercise amount measurement system through a communication line, and the exercise amount measurement system displays the image according to a virtual cumulative movement distance and movement speed.

  The detection method of the walking or running motion performed by the user at a fixed position includes two treads for stepping on the left and right feet, and the two treads below the two treads in an airtight manner. The supporting air chamber is provided with a separated or separable supporting air chamber, and the supporting air chamber separated or separable on the left and right sides supports the tread plate from below at least in the vicinity of four corners of the tread plate. The pressure in each supporting air chamber is arbitrarily set within a predetermined range while measuring the pressure in each supporting air chamber, and when the user applies a load to the treading plate, The load applied to each of the treads is estimated and calculated by measuring the position change amount in the vicinity of the center of each.

Instead of measuring the position change amount in the vicinity of the center of each of the treads, a measurement air chamber for supporting the treads from below is provided at the approximate center of the treads, and the support air chamber and the measurement air chamber are provided. A valve capable of selectively switching between a communication state and a closed state is provided on the connecting passage, and after setting the support air chamber and the measurement air chamber to the same pressure, the switching valve is closed and the measurement is performed. The load applied to the tread was estimated and calculated by measuring the pressure change in the air chamber.

According to the invention of claim 1, it is possible to participate in famous citizen marathons performed in each country in almost real time, and the time of the participant's terminal (corresponding to the momentum measurement system in this application) is accurately adjusted in advance to the standard time. Therefore, it is possible to maintain the same time for a large number of participants without causing an excessive load on the communication line at a time by allowing each terminal to process subsequent start cues and calculation of the required time after the start. However, an accurate ranking calculation process can be performed.
In famous marathon competitions, it is common to start accurately at the scheduled time, so it is actually more timely than the method of notifying each participant of the start signal of the actual competition through a communication line. Can be kept more accurate.

According to the invention of claim 2, in addition to the above effects, the scenery on the course previously taken or created by CG is transmitted and stored in advance to each terminal before the start time, and the movement distance calculated by the momentum measurement system after the start Depending on the movement speed, the scenery image saved on the terminal is played back to display the (previous) scenery on the course where the competition is held at the same time as the actual competition. be able to.
Even in this case, it is possible to prevent a temporary high load on the communication line by sequentially transmitting the image data containing the landscape to the participant side by shifting the time zone before the start time. Smooth communication and operation are possible.
The scenery photographed here may be a scene just before the competition is held, or may be an image taken by a participant or a leading vehicle of the competition held one year ago, for example.

According to the invention of claim 3, the start time of the virtual competition is delayed by a predetermined time (for example, one hour) from the actual competition, and the movement is performed at the same speed as a plurality of participants or participants participating in the actual competition. For example, images on a course taken by multiple persons are sent to a server using a communication line together with GPS position information and shooting time, and the server divides these images for each distance on the course and stores them. In addition, the images on the course are displayed with the eyes of the real competitors by sequentially transmitting and displaying the most appropriate images, estimated from the target time of each virtual competitor and the moving speed data after the start. be able to.
As a result, it is possible to relive the actual participants while viewing the scenery with high reality.
By determining the time to delay the start with a margin according to the number of participants and the data processing capacity of the server and communication line, and distributing the image distribution time according to the variation in the moving speed of the virtual competition participants, communication Smooth communication and image display are possible without placing a temporary high load on the line.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a method for measuring momentum is provided below the two footboards for stepping on the left and right feet, respectively, by providing support air chambers separated or separable on the left and right, respectively. By setting the chamber pressure arbitrarily and measuring the position change in the vicinity of the center of each of the treads, it absorbs vibration while ensuring adequate cushioning for the user's knee joint etc. In addition, by adjusting the pressure of the support air chamber, it is possible to ensure measurement resolution suitable for weight reduction.

According to the invention of claim 5, instead of measuring the amount of change in position near the center of the tread, a measurement air chamber is provided to support the tread from below at the approximate center of the tread. After setting the measurement air chamber to the same pressure, by measuring the pressure change in the measurement air chamber, the load applied to the tread is estimated and calculated, so that the above can be achieved without using a position sensor. The same effect can be obtained.
Further, since the volume of the measurement air chamber can be set small, the amount of change in pressure in the measurement air chamber relative to the amount of change in the vertical position of the tread plate is increased, and high-precision measurement is possible.

Configuration diagram of a momentum measurement system according to the present invention Explanatory diagram showing how to determine the order of virtual competition Explanatory drawing which shows the scenery image distribution method of virtual competition (corresponding to claim 2) Flow chart showing the virtual game order determination method and landscape image display method processing procedure (corresponding to claims 1 and 2) Explanatory drawing which shows the scenery image distribution method of virtual competition (corresponding to claim 3) Explanatory drawing which shows the selection method of the scenery image of virtual competition (corresponding to claim 3) Flow chart showing the virtual game order determination method and landscape image display method processing procedure (corresponding to claim 3) The top view of the momentum measuring device according to claim 4 of the present invention Operation explanatory drawing of the momentum measuring device shown in FIG. 8 (AA sectional view of FIG. 8) The top view of the momentum measuring device according to claim 5 of the present invention Operational explanatory diagram of the momentum measuring device shown in FIG. 10 (cross-sectional view along BB in FIG. 10) Results of measuring the relationship between the vertical load W, the tread plate displacement Z, the pressure change ΔP of the measurement air chamber, and the set air pressure Po (example)

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a network system that enables virtual participation in an actual marathon competition or the like by connecting an exercise amount measuring system 100a according to the present invention to a server 110 via a communication line.
Here, the structure described in claim 4 of the present application is shown as the momentum measuring apparatus 1.
Although the details of the momentum measuring device 1 will be described later, if the outline is described, when the user performs a stepping exercise on the tread board 3, the vertical load W fluctuates, and the tread board supported by the supporting air chambers 4a and 4b. Since 3 moves up and down, the applied load W can be calculated based on the set pressure value of the support air chamber by measuring the amount of movement in the vicinity of the center of the tread plate 3 with the position sensor 12.

  The output voltages of the pressure sensor 8 and the position sensor 12 provided in the momentum measuring device 1 are sent to the data processing device 20 by the signal transmission means 42, AD converted by the data processing device, and these digital values are calculated. Then, the strength and amount of the exercise performed on the tread board 3 are estimated, the virtual moving speed (walking speed or running speed) and moving distance are calculated, and the result is displayed on the display screen 21.

  The data processing device 20 includes a biometric authentication data input device 22 for identifying a user by a biometric feature such as a fingerprint, a removable personal memory 23 in which personal information and exercise history are recorded, and a start signal. It is preferable to include a speaker 27 for generating alarms and alarms, and a biological information collecting sensor 30 for measuring heart rate and electrocardiogram during exercise.

The data processing device 20 is connected to the server 110 via a communication line by the network connection means 45, and many similar exercise amount measuring systems 100b, 100c,.
For example, when a running competition of 10 km is performed between these many exercise amount measurement systems, as shown in FIG. 2, a user (a, b, c, d, e) has performed on the exercise amount measurement system from the start time. The movement speed is calculated from the momentum, and the cumulative movement distance is calculated based on the movement speed. The time when the cumulative movement distance reaches 10 km is defined as the goal time, and the difference between the goal time and the start time is calculated as the required time (Ta, Tb, Tc, Td, Te). First, second, third, etc ...
Here, even if the start time is slightly different between the data processing apparatuses, the ranking is not affected. That is, if each data processing apparatus can accurately measure the elapsed time from the start time and the amount of exercise performed after the start time, the required time can be accurately calculated.
Although the elapsed time is measured with a clock built in each data processing device, the error is generally less than a few seconds in 24 hours, so it can be said that the accuracy is acceptable for virtual competition.

On the other hand, in famous citizen marathons that are held all over the world and in Japan, the start time is well known in advance and usually starts on time.
Therefore, in such a virtual competition that is performed at almost the same time as the actual competition, there is no need to communicate the actual start signal to each terminal, but rather a start signal according to the time of the clock provided at each terminal at the scheduled start time. Those who have performed can start all at once without increasing the communication load of the communication line. Moreover, even if the actual start time of the competition is slightly delayed due to circumstances, the fairness of the virtual competition is not impaired at all.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of claim 2, and shows a state in which an image 200 obtained by photographing a landscape on an actual competition course in advance (or created by CG) is divided into distances and stored in a server. Yes.
This image 200 is downloaded in advance to each user's terminal (exercise amount measurement system) 100a, 100b, 100c before the virtual competition starts, and after the virtual competition starts, the amount of exercise is measured and the accumulated movement distance is calculated. Then, by opening the corresponding image file and controlling the playback speed in accordance with the calculated moving speed, it is possible to display the scenery on the actual competition course on the display screen 21 of the data processing device 20.
In the case of a full marathon, even if it is shot at the speed of the top runner, it will be a large image file that will exceed 2 hours, but each user will be distributed during the period up to the previous day of the virtual competition, and by dividing the file and downloading it Communication load can be distributed.

FIG. 4 shows the procedure for realizing the virtual game ranking determination method according to claim 1 and the landscape display method according to claim 2 on the server side (left side) and the momentum measurement system (right side). It is described separately.
Hereinafter, description will be made using the numbers given at the upper left of each processing content.
First, the organizer of the virtual competition announces the date / time, course, participation fee, etc. of the virtual competition through a server on the communication line and recruits participants (S1).

Participants who wish to participate make an application by contacting the participant's personal information and the identification number of the momentum measurement system via the communication line (U1), and the server will start with the participant number (corresponding to the bib number) The time is notified (S2), and on the momentum measurement system side, the scheduled start time is set by accurately matching the time (U2).
Further, a landscape image taken on the course in advance from the server is transmitted to the momentum measurement system 100a (S3) and stored in the storage device of the momentum measurement system (U3).
The processes of U1 to U3, S2, and S3 are executed as a series of operations while connecting the momentum measurement system 100a to the communication line and confirming whether the model is suitable before the virtual competition date. It is preferable to do.

After that, it is processing on the date of virtual competition.
After starting the momentum measurement system, the resistance value of the sensors for measuring the momentum is checked and a failure diagnosis is performed (U4). This is for the purpose of finding a failure and at the same time preventing unauthorized data from being mixed in by connecting an unauthorized sensor or data generator.

Next, input of biometric information such as a user's fingerprint is requested, and authentication with personal information registered in the personal memory 23 in advance is performed (U5). This is for correctly writing the personal results of participation in the virtual competition in the personal memory, and at the same time, it has the purpose of preventing the credibility of the data from being lowered due to the act of running a plurality of people in turn. Therefore, it is possible to prevent unauthorized data from being mixed in by requesting personal authentication again during the virtual competition or monitoring whether the relationship between the moving speed and the number of steps suddenly changes.
If the personal authentication does not match or the relationship between the moving speed and the number of steps changes suddenly, it is not treated as regular data but is processed as reference data.

When the scheduled start time is reached according to the clock incorporated in each momentum measurement system, a start signal is transmitted to the user (U6), and the user starts running exercise at a fixed position.
Since the exercise targeted by the present invention is an individual competition competing for the required time, it is not necessary to feed back the operation of another person, for example, unlike a battle game using a communication line. Therefore, it is only necessary to start the competition independently according to the time on the clock of the terminal as described above.
By accurately adjusting the time on the clock in advance, a virtual competition can actually be started at the same time as an actual competition in the world.

The strength and number of times the user is exercising is detected, the virtual moving speed and the cumulative moving distance are calculated, and the result is displayed (U7).
A landscape image file on the course is opened according to the accumulated movement distance, and the image file is reproduced according to the movement speed (U8), so that the scenery that the actual participant will see can be seen.
If there is an uphill or downhill course, the information is stored in advance in the terminal, and when the cumulative travel distance reaches that point, the speed is calculated with respect to the momentum, and the hill is run. The reality can be further increased by approximating the energy required for the above.
Furthermore, by measuring the wind direction and wind speed according to the actual time and place on the course and notifying the terminal via the server, the influence of wind can be reflected in the moving speed.

It is preferable to display the checkpoint passing order when the accumulated moving distance reaches 5 km, 10 km, etc., which are well separated. For this purpose, the time when the accumulated travel distance reaches the checkpoint distance is transmitted to the server together with the participant number, and the server aggregates and discloses these data (S4).
Each exercise amount measurement system downloads the aggregated data from the server as necessary or periodically, calculates the rank of the required time corresponding to the participant number of the user, and uses it as a checkpoint passing rank. (U10).
Here, on the server side, the server load can be reduced by simply counting the data transmitted from each terminal without releasing the ranking of the individual participants and publishing the sequentially updated tabulated data. .

  After U11, it is the same as U7 and below, but in the goal ranking calculation, the aggregated data of goal times published on the server may not necessarily be updated according to the ranking due to the communication delay from each terminal. Therefore, it is considered that a certain amount of time is required after the goal to determine the final order. Therefore, each momentum measurement system needs to download the server total data and check the user's ranking even after the user finishes the goal.

  5 to 7 correspond to the contents described in claim 3 of the present application, FIG. 5 is a system configuration diagram showing a landscape display method on the course of the virtual competition, and FIG. 6 is suitable for the user from a plurality of image data. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a method for selecting an image, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing processing procedures of a ranking determination method and a landscape image display method.

In recent years, with improvements in the functions of mobile phones and the like, anyone can easily shoot videos and have an environment in which videos can be distributed almost in real time.
The image display method according to claim 3 of the present application is made corresponding to the above environment.
In other words, images taken by photographers (such as participants in a real competition or passengers in a companion vehicle) whose movement speed varies moderately and sent to the server through a communication line are used to determine the movement distance and movement speed of the participants in the virtual competition. It is related with the method of displaying according to.

  As shown in FIG. 5, a person (A, B, C, D,...) Participating in an actual competition can take a course with a photographing device (120a, 120b, 120c, 120d,...) The above landscape is photographed, and at the same time, the position information and the time information are transmitted together with the image to the server 110 on the communication line via the mobile phone line or the wireless LAN, and the server classifies the information by the distance (210a). , 210b, 210c, 210d,..., And the terminal of the participant side of the virtual competition has a time required similar to that of the image (210a etc.) depending on the time required for each user. Select and download the captured images and play them back at a speed that matches the moving speed.

  By playing the image in the above way, for example, if you run slowly, you may be able to play images while the surrounding runners are enjoying it slowly, and if you run fast and move fast, There is a high possibility that the video that overtakes the runner will be played, increasing the sense of presence in the actual competition.

In the present invention, the image delivery as described above is made possible by delaying the virtual competition start time by, for example, one hour from the actual competition start time.
That is, as shown in FIG. 6, landscape images on the course taken by actual participants A, B, C, D,... Are based on the positional information (for example, GPS positioning information) sent simultaneously. In addition, it is divided for each distance in relation to the distance on the course, stored on the server together with the required time and average speed, predicted from the running speed of the participant of the virtual competition, and the image to be reproduced in the next section, Select from a number of saved images and download.

Since the video played immediately after the start has no time to calculate and reflect the traveling speed, the target time is declared at the time of application for participation, and an image close to this is downloaded. In FIG. 6, for the first 0 to 2 km, an image taken by a participant D of a real sport is adopted, and for an image of 2 to 4 km, the image is estimated from a speed of about 0 to 1 km of a virtual sport participant. An example of selecting an image of a real competition participant D and selecting an image of a real competition participant F by estimating from a speed of about 2 to 3 km of a virtual competition participant for a 4-6 km image. Show.
In FIG. 6, the movement speed of the participants in the real competition is plotted as constant, but since it actually fluctuates, the average speed for each section is calculated and used as a reference for image selection.

  FIG. 7 shows the processing procedure in the case where a virtual competition is started with a predetermined time later than the actual competition and the landscape image on the course taken by the participants of the real competition is displayed as described above. It is the figure divided and described in the competition participant, the server, and the terminal (exercise amount measurement system).

First, before the competition date, the organizer of the virtual competition announces the date and time of the virtual competition, the course, the participation fee, etc. through the server on the communication line and recruits participants (S1).
Participants wish to apply through the communication line (U1). In response to this, the server notifies the participant number (corresponding to the bib number) and the scheduled start time (S2). Set the scheduled start time according to (U2).
Here, as a point different from the process shown in FIG. 4, there is a case where the target time of the participant is declared at the time of application for participation. This is necessary to select an image to be displayed in the first section immediately after the start of the virtual competition (U5).
In addition, the scheduled start time of the virtual competition needs to be delayed by a predetermined time from the scheduled start time of the real competition. Within this delayed time, the server side arranges the images (R2) sent from the participants of the real competition for each distance category, and arranges it so that it can be delivered together with the average speed data in that section (S3). For the second and subsequent sections, the video of the next section is selected and distributed based on information on the moving speed of the user from the terminal side (S4).

Although it is preferable that the time difference for delaying the virtual competition start time with respect to the real competition start time is as short as possible, it is preferable to transmit and receive a large amount of data using this time difference as described above. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the processing capacity of the server and communication line and the number of participants in the virtual competition.
Also, if the data processing capacity is insufficient to cover all the display images with the images taken by the participants in the real competition, some display images were captured in advance and downloaded by the day before the virtual competition. A method of substituting with an image (that is, a method described in claim 2) may be used in combination.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 8 to 12, a specific structure of the movement measuring method performed by the user in a fixed position according to claims 4 and 5 will be described.
FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the structure of the momentum measuring apparatus 1 according to claim 4 of the present invention, and FIG. 9 is an operation explanatory view shown in the section AA.
On the upper surface of the momentum measuring device main body 2, the right foot tread board 3a and the left foot tread board 3b are respectively fitted and provided with openings that slide up and down, and at positions where the four corners of each tread board 3a, 3b are supported from below. Supporting air chambers 4 a and 4 b are installed, and the supporting air chambers 4 a-4 a and 4 a-4 b are connected by a passage 5.

The supporting air chamber for supporting the right foot tread 3a and the supporting air chamber for supporting the left foot tread 3b are respectively provided with a pressure sensor 8 (preferably a gauge pressure sensor), a check valve 9 and a cutoff valve via electromagnetic valves 7a and 7b. 10 is connected to a diaphragm 11 connected to 10.
While both solenoid valves 7a and 7b are open, air is charged from an external air pump (not shown) through the check valve 9 while monitoring the output value of the pressure sensor 8, and the support air chamber Set the pressure to the desired value. Then, if the solenoid valves 7a and 7b are closed, the pressures of the left and right support air chambers are maintained at the same known pressure.
If the pressure in the right support air chamber is to be lowered, only the solenoid valve 7a is opened, the shutoff valve 10 is opened to gradually leak air, and the shutoff valve 10 is closed when the desired pressure is reached, Thereafter, the electromagnetic valve 7a may be closed. At this time, the detected pressure of the pressure sensor 8 immediately before closing the electromagnetic valve 7a is adopted as the set pressure of the right support air chamber.

  Of course, a pressure sensor may be attached to each of the right and left support air chambers. The layout of these air circuits may be determined in consideration of the cost of the pressure sensor, the solenoid valve, the check valve, etc., and the convenience of the user.

As shown in FIG. 9 (a), the position sensor 12 is installed substantially at the lower center of the treads 3a and 3b, and the vertical displacement near the center of each tread is detected.
As shown in FIG. 9 (b), when the load W is applied substantially to the center of the footboard 3a, the supporting air chamber is uniformly deformed, and the footboard 3a moves downward in parallel. Can be calculated based on the set air pressure of the support air chamber at that time, and the applied load W can be estimated.

As shown in FIG. 9 (c), when the load W acts on the front side of the tread plate 3a, the deformation amount of the front support air chamber 4a is larger than the deformation amount of the rear support air chamber 4b. The tread board 3a is inclined forward.
At this time, in general, even if the load W is the same, the average pressure in the support air chamber is higher in FIG. 9C than in FIG. 9B (the reason for this is described in paragraph 0057). .
However, the position change amount at the center of the tread is not significantly different between FIG. 9B and FIG. 9C, and therefore the user calculates the load W based on the displacement near the center of the tread so that the user can It is possible to estimate the load applied to the tread plate almost accurately without stepping on the center of the tread.

  As described above, the structure of FIG. 9 allows the tread plate to tilt, and therefore does not require high mechanical accuracy of the sliding surface. In other words, the side surface shape of the footboard is an arc whose radius is the distance from the center of the footboard to the side surface, and the side surface is coated with a material with a low coefficient of friction to prevent the phenomenon of locking the footboard and to obtain sufficient durability. it can.

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing the structure of the momentum measuring apparatus 1 according to claim 5 of the present invention, and FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory view shown in the section BB.
A measurement air chamber 14 that supports the vicinity of the center of the footboard from below is provided, a pressure sensor 8 (preferably a gauge pressure sensor) is attached to the measurement air chamber, and the support air chambers 4a and 4b and the measurement air chamber 14 are connected. An electromagnetic valve 16 is provided in the connecting passage 15.
Here, the pressure sensor 8 is preferably attached directly to the measurement air chamber 14. If the pressure sensor and the measurement air chamber are connected by a long and narrow passage, the response of the detected pressure will deteriorate, and even if the load W stops working, it will not return to the set pressure instantaneously. The reference pressure value cannot be determined, which is inconvenient.

  While the solenoid valve 16 is open, the output value of the pressure sensor 8 is monitored and air is filled from an external air pump (not shown) via the check valve 9 to set the pressure in the measurement air chamber to a desired value. Set to value. If the solenoid valve 16 is closed after the pump operation is stopped, the pressures of the support air chamber and the measurement air chamber are kept at the same known pressure.

When the momentum is measured, the electromagnetic valve 16 is closed.
As shown in FIG. 11 (b), when the load W is applied substantially to the center of the step board 3a, the support air chamber and the measurement air chamber are uniformly deformed, and the step board 3a is translated downward. To do. At this time, the pressure in the measurement air chamber rises according to the position change amount in the center of the tread board, so measure the change amount of this pressure and calculate based on the set pressure of the previous support air chamber and measurement air chamber The applied load W can be estimated.

As shown in FIG. 11C, when the load W acts on the front side of the footboard 3a, the deformation amount of the front support air chamber 4a is larger than the deformation amount of the rear support air chamber 4b. The tread board 3a is inclined forward.
At this time, in general, even if the load W is the same, the average pressure in the support air chamber is higher in FIG. 11C than in FIG. 11B (this reason is described in paragraph 0057). .
However, the position change amount at the center of the tread board is not greatly different between FIG. 11B and FIG. 11C, and therefore, the user can calculate the load W applied based on the pressure change amount of the measurement air chamber. Even if the center of the tread is not stepped on, the load applied to the tread can be estimated almost accurately.

FIG. 12 shows the pressure change ΔP (kPa) of the measurement air chamber and the position change Z (mm) of the tread when the load W (kgf) is applied at the center in the structure approximate to FIGS. This is an example of measuring the relationship.
The set pressure Po of the support air chamber and the measurement air chamber is set to 50 kPa, 100 kPa, and 200 kPa as gauge pressures, and the electromagnetic valve 16 is closed during measurement.

From FIG. 12, it can be seen that the lower the set pressure Po, the larger the pressure change amount ΔP and the position change amount Z even when the same load W is applied. That is, it can be seen that the measurement accuracy increases for a lighter person when the set pressure is lowered.
Further, it can be seen that in a range where the load W is small (for example, 10 kgf or less), the pressure change amount ΔP is small and the sensitivity is low. This is because in order to deform the air chamber by applying an external force, the air chamber will not be deformed unless a surface pressure that exceeds the set pressure Po is applied locally.
Therefore, in general, when deforming an air chamber by applying the same load, the amount of deformation of the air chamber becomes larger when the load is concentrated on a small area than when the load is uniformly applied to a large area. The amount of change in pressure also increases.

In the structure shown in FIGS. 8 to 11, the above phenomenon is caused when the load is biased to one of the front, rear, left and right rather than when the load is applied to the center of the tread plate. This is the reason why the amount increases (described in paragraphs 0049 and 0054).
In the invention described in claim 4 or claim 5, even if the load on the tread is measured by measuring the amount of change in the position near the center of the tread, or measuring the amount of change in pressure in the measurement air chamber that supports the vicinity of the center of the tread. Even if the treadle is tilted and moved, the value of the applied load W can be estimated almost accurately.

In the structure shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the relationship between the load W and the displacement Z of the footboard is measured in advance using the set pressure Po as a parameter, and the result is stored in the data processing device 20 as map data. The applied load can be calculated from Po and the measured displacement Z.
Similarly, in the structure shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the relationship between the load W and the pressure change amount ΔP of the measurement air chamber is measured in advance using the set pressure Po as a parameter, and the result is stored in the data processing device 20 as map data. Thus, the applied load can be calculated from the set pressure Po and the measured pressure change amount ΔP.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Momentum measuring device 2 Momentum measuring device main body 3 Footboard 3a Footboard (for right foot)
3b Footboard (for left foot)
4a Support air chamber (front side)
4b Support air chamber (rear side)
5 Passage between support air chambers 6 Passage 7a connecting left and right support air chambers Solenoid valve 7b for connecting / separating support air chamber (right) and air inlet / outlet Communicating between support air chamber (left) and air inlet / outlet Solenoid valve 8 Pressure sensor 9 Check valve 10 Shut-off valve 11 Throttle 12 Position sensor 13a Right foot air circuit 13b Left foot air circuit 14 Measurement air chamber 15 Passage 16 connecting the support air chamber and the measurement air chamber 16 For support Electromagnetic valve 20 provided between the air chamber and the measurement air chamber 20 Data processing device 21 Display screen 22 Data input device 23 for biometric authentication Removable personal memory 24 Select button 25 Yes button 26 No button 27 Speaker 30 Biometric information Collecting sensor 41 Power supply line 42 Signal transmission means 43 from the momentum measuring device to the data processing device 43 From the biological information collecting sensor to the data processing device Signal transmitting means 44 control signal transmitting means 45 network connecting section 100a momentum measurement system from the data processing device to the exercise amount measuring device (user a)
100b Momentum measurement system (user b)
100c Momentum measurement system (user c)
110 Server 120a Image providing device 120b carried by a participant A in a real event Image providing device 120c carried by a participant B in a real event An image providing device 120d carried by a participant C in a real event Image providing apparatus 200 carried by a participant D of a landscape image 210a taken in advance on a course landscape image 210b taken by a participant A in a real event landscape image 210c taken by a participant B in a real event Scenery image 210d taken by participant C Scenery image taken by participant D of a real sport

R Radius of curvature of the front and back sides of the footboard W Load (kgf)
Z Treadle displacement (mm)
Po Set air pressure (kPa)
ΔP Pressure change in the air chamber for measurement (kPa)

Claims (5)

Means for detecting a walking or running motion performed by a user at a fixed position and calculating a virtual moving speed and a cumulative moving distance;
Means for transmitting / receiving data to / from a server on a communication line and storing necessary data;
Means for displaying visual information;
In the momentum measurement system having an accurate time setting and means for measuring time,
Registering the user information in advance in the server as a person who virtually participates in a walking or running competition such as an actual marathon competition,
Transmitting the actual scheduled start time of the competition from the server to the user in advance,
Display a start signal when the scheduled start time is reached,
After the scheduled start time, calculate the virtual cumulative travel distance according to the walking or running movement performed by the user at a fixed position,
Recognizing the time when the cumulative travel distance has reached the course distance from the start point of walking or running competition to the goal point as the goal time,
The difference between the scheduled start time and the goal time is transmitted as a required time to the server through a communication line,
The server totals the time required for the plurality of users received and sends it to the exercise amount measurement system,
The momentum measurement system recognizes a user's rank based on the total time required and notifies the user of the rank, and determines the rank of a virtual competition performed at almost the same time as a real competition. Method. In addition to the virtual game ranking determination method according to claim 1,
Before the scheduled start time, the scene on the course that was previously photographed or created in association with the distance on the course of the actual competition is transmitted from the server and stored in the exercise amount measurement system,
Depending on the calculated cumulative travel distance and travel speed,
A method for determining a ranking of a virtual competition performed at approximately the same time as a real competition and a scenery display method on a course, wherein the scenery on the course stored in the exercise amount measurement system is displayed as an image. Means for detecting a walking or running motion performed by a user at a fixed position and calculating a virtual moving speed and a cumulative moving distance;
Means for transmitting / receiving data to / from a server on a communication line and storing necessary data;
Means for displaying an image;
In the momentum measurement system having an accurate time setting and means for measuring time,
Registering the user information in advance in the server as a person who virtually participates in a walking or running competition such as an actual marathon competition,
From the server, the scheduled start time of the virtual competition delayed by a predetermined time from the scheduled start time of the actual competition is transmitted to the user in advance.
When the scheduled start time of the virtual competition is reached, a start signal is displayed,
After the scheduled start time of the virtual competition, the virtual cumulative movement distance is calculated according to the walking or running movement performed by the user at a fixed position,
Scenery images on the course taken by multiple participants participating in actual competition or multiple people moving at the same speed as the participants,
Send to the server along with location information on the course and time information
The server divides and stores the image into image data of an appropriate length together with the distance on the course where the image was taken, the elapsed time after the start, and the movement speed of the photographer,
The stored image estimated to approximate the relationship between the calculated cumulative moving distance and moving speed is transmitted to the user's momentum measuring system through a communication line, and the momentum measuring system transmits a virtual cumulative moving distance. And displaying the image according to the moving speed, and a landscape display method on the course of the virtual competition performed after a predetermined time from the actual competition. A method of detecting a walking or running motion performed by a user at a fixed position is performed by two tread boards for stepping on the left and right feet,
A support air chamber that is airtightly separated or separable corresponding to each of the left and right footboards is provided below the two footboards,
The support air chambers separated or separable on the left and right sides support the tread plate from below at least near the four corners of the tread plate for each tread plate, and measure the pressure of the respective support air chambers. By arbitrarily setting the pressure in each support air chamber within a predetermined range, when a user applies a load to the tread, by measuring the amount of change in the vicinity of the center of each tread, 4. The virtual game ranking determination method or the scenery display method on a course according to claim 1, wherein the load is applied to each tread. A method of detecting a walking or running motion performed by a user at a fixed position is performed by two tread boards for stepping on the left and right feet,
Under the two footboards, airtightly separated or separable air circuits corresponding to the left and right footboards respectively,
The air circuit separated or separable on the left and right is a supporting air chamber that supports the tread plate from below at least in the vicinity of the four corners of the tread plate for each tread plate,
An air chamber for measurement that supports the tread from below at approximately the center of the tread;
A passage connecting the support air chamber and the measurement air chamber;
It is composed of a valve capable of selectively switching between the communication state and the closed state of the passage,
While setting the valve in a communicating state and measuring the pressure of the measurement air chamber, arbitrarily set the pressures of the left and right support air chambers and the measurement air chamber within a predetermined range,
Then, when the valve is closed and the user applies a load to the tread,
4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the load applied to each of the treads is estimated and calculated by measuring a pressure change in the measurement air chamber. 5. A method for determining the ranking of virtual competitions or a method for displaying scenery on a course.