Patent ID: 6496141
Filing Date: 2002-12-17
Classification: A63B,G01S

Abstract:
A system for receiving position data from GPS satellites and for determining distances to a plurality of selected points of interest on a golf course, the system comprising:a central base station unit, the base station unit comprising: a base station RF transceiver adapted to communicate via a wireless communications link; and a base station controller adapted to control the base station RF transceiver; a hand-held unit, the hand-held unit comprising: a hand-held unit GPS receiver adapted to receive and process navigation signals from GPS satellites and to thereby provide GPS-derived hand-held unit location data; a hand-held unit display for displaying graphics, distance information, location information, and other information to users of the system; a hand-held unit memory for storing a plurality of stored location data; a transceiver means adapted to communicate via a wireless communications link; and a hand-held unit controller adapted to control the hand-held unit GPS receiver, the hand-held unit display, the hand-held unit transceiver means and the hand-held unit memory; wherein the hand-held unit is still further adapted to calculate a distance between the hand-held unit and a selected one of the points of interest on the golf course by comparing the hand-held unit location information with the stored location data for the selected point of interest; a cart-based unit, the cart-based unit comprising: a cart-based unit battery; a cart-based unit RF transceiver adapted to communicate with the base station RF transceiver and the hand-held unit transceiver means via the wireless communications link; a cart-based unit display for displaying graphics, distance information, location information, and other information to users of the system; and a cart-based unit controller adapted to control the cart-based unit RF transceiver, the cart-based unit display, and communications between the cart-based unit and the hand-held unit; wherein the base station controller is adapted to manage communication between the central base station unit and the cart-based unit.