Abstract:
The invention proposes a system comprising:
       a plurality of pieces of equipment, each of them being able to receive a group of participants, each piece of equipment defining a position for a participant and each piece of equipment being provided with a digital processing unit,   a central server,   network communications means between the central server and the plurality of pieces of equipment,   a plurality of participants&#39; terminals capable of network communications with the central server and of interacting with the processing unit of the piece of equipment,   means for managing sessions on the piece of equipment, implemented by cooperation between the central server and the processing units of the pieces of equipment via the communications means, and   control and identification means implemented by cooperation between the central server, the processing units of the pieces of equipment and the terminals and allowing, on the one hand, the access to sessions on the equipment by a group of participants and their identification and, on the other hand, an allocation of each identified participant to a position at the piece of equipment.       
 
     Application in particular to game equipment such as football tables.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    This invention relates to a system and a method for controlling joint access by a plurality of participants to common pieces of equipment, each piece of equipment being provided with a set of positions or posts, and for managing such pieces of equipment. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Physical access control systems are used in daily life: a mechanical gate opened upon insertion of a metro ticket or on presentation of a badge equipped with a RFID chip, contractual authorization of access to a train or to a bus by ticket stamping, table football or electronic game with coin acceptor. 
         [0003]    Some of the approaches among the most recent will be mentioned below. 
         [0004]    NFC Electronic Key 
         [0005]    Near Field Communication (NFC) technologies that allow completing a mutual authentication of a terminal and an electronic socket are nowadays integrated into smartphones. This allows using a smartphone as an electronic key, for example to gain access to a campus: The Arizona State University® students gain access to their residence hall and selected rooms by presenting the phones to their door readers. 
         [0006]    NFC Electronic Ticket 
         [0007]    When this system is associated with temporary rights, it allows an access as e-ticket, for example:
       Japan Airlines® uses mobile tools for automated entry with integrated Circuit boarding passes, in security areas and at boarding gates. The process is simple as the passenger touching their mobile phone to a scanner that reads the NFC signal.   Blue Label Telecoms® uses a paperless ticketing system that allows supporters to purchase their tickets on their mobile phones or from the Web site, and tap their NFC cards to gain access to the stadium.       
 
         [0010]    Electronic Key Via QR-Code 
         [0011]    In some cases, NFC technology is not adapted when the user is not equipped with a NFC terminal or when it would be costly to integrate a NFC electronic socket at the accessed service. An optical code, for example a QR-code, is then appropriate. In particular:
       Virgin America&#39;s® travelers can reserve a Silvercar™ via the Silvercar App™. Upon arrival at the destination airport, they scan a QR-code located on the windshield of the Silvercar™ to unlock the vehicle—and drive to their final destination.   Amadeus (US20130059603) discloses an access system to a hotel room by scanning a QR-code printed on the door.       
 
         [0014]    Electronic Ticket Via QR-Code 
         [0015]    Eventbrite® allows issuing electronic tickets printable on paper comprising a Q-code. The user presents this ticket to a hostess at the reception desk of an event, who scans the QR-code with her smartphone. 
         [0016]    NCR Corporation® (EP2587421) discloses an airport boarding gate that can be opened by presentation of a QR-code displayed on the screen of the user&#39;s smartphone. 
         [0017]    As alternatives:
       When the cell phones of the users are not equipped with QR-code display means, a text reader can be integrated into the electronic socket: Having recognized that just 35% of Australians possess a smartphone the airline company Jestar® developed the SMS boarding pass and reader, which allows phones that do not display QR-codes or graphics to perform automated entry with a unique text code.   Depending on the selected safety level, the access control process may require additional steps, for example the entry of a code on the electronic socket: As an example, Diebold® preregistered bank customers scan the ATM&#39;s QR-code using their smartphones. When the devices sync, a transaction screen appears on the smartphone and then the user selects a withdrawal amount. A one-time code then is sent to the smartphone, which the customer enters on the ATM screen to authenticate the transaction and receives cash.       
 
         [0020]    The choice of an access system thus defines the type of access (key, ticket), the type of required hardware (NFC smartphone, QR-code printed or displayed) and a certain safety level. 
         [0021]    Additional Services Authorized by the Selected Access Control 
         [0022]    This choice is also decisive for the additional services that can be associated therewith:
       ScootNetworks® is a service of shared scooters, accessible with a smartphone as an electronic key. These scooters are equipped with a dock to maintain the user&#39;s smartphone on the tiller. By means of the geolocation means integrated into this smartphone, the operator is informed of the location of each scooter. The operator can thus offer to the users the choice of the location where to drop off the scooter, which is not necessarily that where it has been picked up.   ShareKey® allows for any smartphone to be granted access to the doors for a specified amount of time, be it a few hours or a few weeks. This can be useful for house guests, dog walkers or plant waterers. The system can send these “electronic keys” directly to the recipient&#39;s smartphone as a QR-code via email.   Eventbrite® allows an organizer to define an event, to issue invitations by electronic mail, to sell tickets on-line, to report statistics or to check the subscribers list.   Xerox Corporation® (EP2444924) discloses an access system to parking spaces, a car presence sensor being integrated in each of them. The user makes the reservation of a parking space with his smartphone. He can thus see the free spaces nearby, those that will soon be available and reserve a particular space or a space nearby.       
 
         [0027]    However, none of these systems allows a simultaneous access with an individualized and controlled use to several users of a same service on a piece of equipment:
       In the case of an electronic ticket, for example, the access gate opens when the ticket is recognized but it does not control if the user occupies the reserved seat (train, airplane) or goes to the reserved seating area (stadium). The individual character of the use of the service is thus not controlled at the time of delivery of this service. The later checking by a train controller, a stewardess or a control agent is thus still necessary. But it might be interesting to make sure that a passenger occupies the right seat and to tell him/her his/her error, as the case may be.   According to another example, a game or sports tournament, for example a table football or table soccer tournament, requires a complex organization in view of the number of referees to be involved. For a game to be homologated, a particular requirement is that the referee must be able to check the identity and the position occupied by the four players. It might be interesting to automatically control the position of the players to assist the competition refereeing and even to replace it by electronic refereeing.       
 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0030]    Consequently, one object of the invention is to propose a solution for controlling the joint access to a piece of equipment with an individualized use. An additional object is to grant a use depending on this control. An auxiliary object is to grant additional services made possible by this access control solution. 
         [0031]    To this end, according to a first aspect of the invention, a system is proposed that comprises:
       a plurality of pieces of equipment, each of them being able to receive a group of participants, each piece of equipment defining a position or a post for a participant and each piece of equipment being provided with a digital processing unit,   a central server,   network communications means between the central server and the plurality of pieces of equipment,   a plurality of participants&#39; terminals capable of network communications with the central server and of interacting with the processing unit of the piece of equipment,   means for managing sessions on the piece of equipment implemented in cooperation between the central server and the processing units of the pieces of equipment via the communications means, and   control and identification means implemented by cooperation between the central server, the processing units of the pieces of equipment and the terminals and allowing, on the one hand, the access to sessions on the equipment by a group of participants and their identification and, on the other hand, an allocation of each identified participant to a position or post in the equipment.       
 
         [0038]    Some preferred but non-restrictive aspects of this system comprise the following features, taken individually and in any technically compatible combinations:
       the control and identification means comprise means for reading a position(s) code at the equipment among a set of such codes by a participant&#39;s terminal, means for communicating from said terminal to the central server a participant&#39;s identifier and information representative of the read code.   the position codes at the piece of equipment are selected among optical codes and codes readable by near-field communications interrogation.   the position codes at the piece of equipment also encode an identifier of a piece of equipment or of a group of pieces of equipment.   the control and identification means further comprise means for enabling a functionality of the piece of equipment from the central server when conditions required for the participants and the pieces of equipment and/or their positions have been determined as being fulfilled by the central server.   each piece of equipment is identified by the central server by means of a unique identifier associated with the piece of equipment.   each piece of equipment is identified by the central server by means of an identifier combined with a geolocation information of the piece of equipment.   the geolocation information is obtained from a user&#39;s terminal communicating with the central server.   the system further comprises means provided in a participant&#39;s terminal and/or at the processing unit of a piece of equipment for modifying, via a communication with the central server, associations between participants and positions stored in said central server.   a required condition is a required number of participants.   a required condition is an association between each position at the equipment and an identified participant.   the piece of equipment is a physical game apparatus.   the physical game apparatus comprises a set of sensors for providing information relating to the progress of the game to the central server via the communications means.   the physical game apparatus comprises devices capable of being controlled from the central server.       
 
         [0052]    According to a second aspect, a method is proposed for managing the use of a piece of equipment by participants, wherein the piece of equipment is capable of implementing sessions involving a group of participants and defines for each participant a position, and wherein the piece of equipment is provided with a digital processing unit and with a set of wireless-readable codes that identify positions at the equipment, the method comprising the following steps:
       reading, by terminals associated with a group of participants, a set of wireless-readable codes provided at a same piece of equipment,   transmitting to a central server requests for participation for the considered piece of equipment, said requests containing information representative of the read codes and of the identifiers of the respective participants,   verification at the central server of conditions required for the participants and the position codes,   in case the conditions are fulfilled, transmitting by the central server to the processing unit of the piece of equipment session authorization information,   processing said session authorization information at the processing unit to start a session at the piece of equipment.       
 
         [0058]    In another implementation, a method is proposed for managing the use of a piece of equipment by participants, wherein the equipment is capable of implementing sessions involving a group of participants and defines a position for each participant and wherein the equipment is provided with a digital processing unit and with a device for reading wireless-readable codes capable of identifying participants to sessions at the equipment, the method comprising the following steps:
       reading by the reader of a set of wireless-readable codes associated with a plurality of participants,   transmitting requests for participation for the considered piece of equipment to a central server, said requests containing information representative of the read codes and of positions at the equipment,   verification at the central server of conditions required for the participants and the position codes,   in case the conditions are fulfilled, transmitting by the central server to the processing unit of the piece of equipment session authorization information,   processing said session authorization information at the processing unit to start a session at the piece of equipment.       
 
         [0064]    Moreover, an intelligent terminal is proposed for the participation of participants to sessions at a piece of equipment for the implementation of the first above-mentioned method, comprising:
       means for wireless reading of a position code at a piece of equipment,   network communications means for communicating to a central server for equipment management information representative of the position code and a participant&#39;s identifier.       
 
         [0067]    An intelligent terminal is also proposed or the participation of participants to sessions at a piece of equipment for the implementation of the second above-mentioned method, comprising:
       means for selectively displaying a wireless-readable code identifying a participant owning the terminal       
 
         [0069]    Advantageously, such a terminal further comprises means for communicating with a processing unit of a piece of equipment so that said processing unit can communicate with the central server via the terminal communicating means. 
         [0070]    Finally, the invention proposes a software package capable of being executed on a communicating terminal in order to obtain a terminal as defined above. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0071]    Other features, aims and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, made with reference to the appended drawings provided as non-limiting examples and in which: 
           [0072]      FIG. 1  illustrates a computer system adapted for the implementation of this invention; 
           [0073]      FIG. 2  illustrates the main steps of the method for simultaneous access control with individualized use; 
           [0074]      FIG. 3  illustrates the steps of the individualization method when the mobile terminal of only one of the four players has captured and decoded a QR-code, and 
           [0075]      FIG. 4  illustrates an example of an instrumented table football apparatus that can be used within the scope of this invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0076]    A simultaneous access control with individualized use applied to a playing session (game) of instrumented table football will now be described. A real table football apparatus is thus equipped with electronic sensors such as infrared beams placed in goal cages that allow, for example, recording the game score. By means of data processing means with which the apparatus is equipped and which are connected to the internet, this score can be recorded at a web server and made available to the participants (players) within the scope of the organization of a tournament. 
         [0077]    To go further and to allow an electronic refereeing level that can be accepted by the table football federations, not only the identification of each of the four players is provided but also the control of the position allocated to each of them. 
         [0078]    The invention thus includes a simultaneous access control system with individualized use as described hereunder. 
         [0079]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , a computer system  100  comprises services  110  implemented in a physical apparatus constituted here by the table football apparatus, administrator terminals  120 , a server  130 , user terminals  170 , all of them linked by a communications network  140 . 
       Electronic Football Table  110   
       [0080]    In this embodiment, a service  110  is implemented in a table football game apparatus equipped with a communications module  111 , sensors  112 , elements that can be controlled (or actuators)  113 , electric generators  114 , representations of identifiers  115  and bases  116 . 
         [0081]    A communications module  111  is a computer subsystem of the apparatus that can transfer the values measured by the sensors  112  to the server  130  via the network  140  and transmit display or control information coming from server  130  to the actuators  113  via network  140 . As an alternative, a wired, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection  117  enables the communications module  111  to establish a communication with network  140  by means of the communications module  176  of a user terminal  170 . 
         [0082]    The sensors  112  allow measuring the table football game parameters. The list of these sensors comprises in particular all or part of the following elements:
       an optical beam, in particular an infrared beam, in the goal cages,   an optical beam, in particular an infrared beam, in the ball retrieval channel  118 ,   a shock sensor at the back of the goal cage and on each playing figure (“foos man”)  119  of the apparatus,   an tilt sensor to sense when the apparatus is lifted,   a sensor for detecting the lifting of the playing rods, to which the playing figures are mounted,   an action sensor on the ball launching pull tab,   a skycam-type camera in an elevated position allowing filming the game, the players&#39; hands and the players themselves,   a camera placed in the goal cage allowing filming the decisive shots,   a microphone allowing recording the players&#39; voice or their messages to spectators users,   a camera and video camera  175 , as well as a microphone—not shown—, for example that of a smartphone  170 , possibly fixed on the base  116 , used as sensors  112  via the communications modules  176  and  111 ,   a wattmeter for measuring the power produced by an electric generator  114 ,   a biometric sensor such as a capacitive sensor placed on the game handles for measuring the contact of the players&#39; hands on the rods, the pressure exerted by the hands, the player&#39;s stress level by electrical conductivity and the player&#39;s heart rate,   a capacitive pad for measuring the spatial position of each playing figure as well as that of the ball. This allows the determination during the shoot of the position of the player figure with respect to the ball as well as to virtually reconstitute the game in its entirety.       
 
         [0096]    As an alternative, the position of the ball can be measured by means of the combination of a RFID chip integrated into the ball and of a set of sensors able to measure the distance between the ball and them, for example of six distance sensors situated in the four corners of the pitch and half the distance between the longer sides of the pitch. 
         [0097]    The actuators  113  allow converting information into displays for the players or into animation of the mechanisms of the table football apparatus. This information relates to:
       the game in progress (scoring, trophies),   the referreeing (report of a spin move, of a fall, of a decision of the referee that differs from that of the electronic refereeing),   the operation of the football table (serving of a ball, access control error, stuck ball),   the animation of the game (music, light animation, video animation, mechanical vibrations),   the participation of the spectators users (tweets, animations, acoustic messages, photos),   the participation of the sponsors users (advertising).       
 
         [0104]    The list of these actuators  113  comprises in particular all or part of the following elements:
       A LED display for displaying the score and messages,   a computer screen,   a laser scanning display,   a LED placed on a player figure and turning on when contacting the ball,   a LED placed on the goal and changing color depending on the validity of the goal,   a LED lighting the tabletop during the game,   a projector for displaying animations on the inner walls of the table football apparatus,   a loudspeaker for broadcasting music, applause, sports comments, refereeing messages, messages from on-line spectators,   a vibrator for vibrating a handle of the football table,   a camera positioning motor for modifying the view angle of the camera,   a motor-driven basket for serving the balls,   a force feedback controller of a generator  114 ,   a flexible screen placed on the chest of a player figure for personalizing its appearance,   the screen  172  and the loudspeaker, not shown, of a smartphone  170 , possibly fixed on a base  116 , used as actuators  113  via the communications modules  111  et  176 .       
 
         [0119]    The electric generators  114  allow recovering part of the mechanical energy produced by the players onto the rods of the football table and by the shock of the ball onto the playing figures. These electric generators  114  feed the elements of the table football apparatus such as the communications module  111 , the sensors  112  and the actuators  113  with electricity. These generators  114  are dynamos with rotational or translational motion or piezoelectric generators. They are controlled, i.e. the force feedback for the player is adjustable by an actuator controlled by the actuator control module  135 . Moreover, the generators  114  recharge a battery—not shown—allowing the table football apparatus to have an energy reserve when the users are not playing. 
       QR-codes  115   
       [0120]    The identifier representations  115  are preferably two or four QR-codes that are distributed on both sides or at the four corners of the football table. Each QR-code encodes both a table football identifier  1312  and a position identifier  1151 . If there are two QR-codes, a position identifier  1151  may take two values, for example values associated with the blue or red color traditionally representing the two teams on a commonly available table football apparatus. If there are four QR-codes, a position identifier  1151  may take four values, namely values associated with the positions red forward, red back, blue forward and blue back. 
         [0121]    The bases  116  are constituted by a group of physical supports provided on the table football apparatus (preferably four bases) allowing the users to place and, if need be, to recharge their smartphone. These supports are placed next to the goal cages and each allow retaining a respective smartphone by means of a suitable mechanical system (clipping-on, clamping, insertion). 
         [0122]    The administrator terminal  120  is a computer system, for example based on the architecture of a PC, a smartphone or a tablet, provided with a browser such as Chrome® or Explorer®. Furthermore, this terminal  120  is equipped with communications means adapted to connect to a computer server  130  via a network  140 . Application software  121  executed by means of the browser allows the administrator to fully manage the computer system  100 . 
         [0123]    This administrator thus defines by means of a man/machine interface of the terminal:
       the organization of the database of module  131 ,   the import of external data by module  131  from other servers  150 , not shown, connected to the network  140 . These data are relational links coming from social networks such as Facebook® or Twitter®, or players&#39; ratings coming from servers  160 , not shown, of table football federations,   the web pages of module  132 ,   the rules for controlling access to the football tables of module  133 ,   the rights of the users of module  134 ,   the actuator control rules of module  135 ,   the refereeing rules of module  136  such as the penalties or the calculation mode of the players&#39; ratings.       
 
         [0131]    The computer server  130  contains software applications among which a database module  131 , a website management module  132 , a module for managing access controls to the football tables  133 , a module for management the users&#39; rights  134 , an actuator management module  135 , an refereeing module  136  and a communications module  137 . 
       Database  131   
       [0132]    The database module  131  contains a database relating to the users, the teams, the subscriptions, the football tables, the games, the tournaments, the challenges and the advertisements. The administrator defines the organization of this database  131  by means of its terminal  120 . 
         [0133]    The users are each characterized by a unique identifier  1311 , determined or calculated by the module  131  at his/her first registration. They are also characterized by a status, for example:
       tournament manager,   player,   team leader,   table football apparatus owner,   referee,   advertiser,   sponsor,   spectator,   visitor.       
 
         [0143]    The table football apparatuses are each characterized by a unique identifier  1312 . 
         [0144]    The games are each characterized by a unique identifier  1313 . 
         [0145]    A position  1314  establishes and stores a link between a user identifier  1311  and a game  1313 . This link can take 2 or 4 possible values, i.e. either a color (red jersey or blue jersey), either the combination of a place and of a color (red forward, red back, blue forward, blue back). 
       Website  132   
       [0146]    The website management module  132  contains software applications able to:
       develop applications and interfaces intended for users ( 171 ,  173 ) and administrator ( 121 , 122 ),   manage the interaction between these interfaces and the server  130  via the communications module  137 ,   manage the download of these applications  171  and  121 ,   manage the interactions with websites and social networks  150 , not shown, such as Facebook® or Twitter®, connected to network  140 .       
 
         [0151]    The module for controlling access to the football tables  133  contains software applications able, in interaction with the other modules of server  130 , to:
       calculate rights of access  1331  each associated with a user identifier  1311 ,   manage the access rights database  1331 ,   calculate the individualized access authorizations  1332 , each associated with a user identifier  1311 ,   manage the database of the individualized accesses  1332 ,   calculate the collective access authorizations  1333 , each associated with a game identifier  1313 ,   manage the database of the collective accesses  1333 ,   calculate a game request  1334  to be transmitted by server  130  by means of communications modules  137  and  111  to a football table  110  via network  140 . This game request  1334  comprises four individualized access authorizations  1332  and one collective access authorization  1333 .       
 
       Access Rights  1331   
       [0159]    In more detail, a player&#39;s access right  1331  typically depends on the following arguments or parameters:
       his prior application for registration to a tournament,   the acceptation of this application by a team leader,   the prior constitution of a duo,   the prior reservation of a football table at a set time, corresponding to a planned game  1313 ,   the payment of a subscription,   the absence of ban from refereeing.       
 
         [0166]    The individualized access authorization  1332  characterizes an individualized game profile including in particular the following possibilities:
       the force feedback in the rods of the football table is more difficult for a player having received by refereeing a penalty,   the possibility to transmit messages to or to receive messages from spectators depends on the subscription level or on the player&#39;s rating,   more generally, the access to a set of services by a player on his smartphone  170  during the game  1313  by means of application software  171 .       
 
       Individualized Access Authorization  1332   
       [0170]    The individualized access authorization  1332  typically depends on the following arguments:
       the access right  1331 ,   the reception by the server  130  of four access requests  1711  corresponding to a prior reservation for a planned game  1313 , the rating of each player,   the penalties given by refereeing in the course of the game.       
 
         [0174]    The collective access authorization  1333  characterizes a game profile of a game  1313  and allows in particular controlling:
       the serving of the balls of the table football  110 ,   the insertion of advertisements before serving a ball, with more or less long duration of the advertising announcement depending on the subscription of the players registered for a game  1313 ,   the force feedback in the rods of the football table with, for example, a stronger feedback as the tournament progresses,   the animation times (video, music, projector, messages exchanged with spectators) that are preferably longer and longer as the tournament progresses.       
 
       Interaction Rights of the Users  134   
       [0179]    The module for controlling the interaction rights of the users  134  comprises software applications able to manage these rights for each user depending on several parameters, among which his status. These rights allow each user to interact with the computer system  100  by means of a man/machine interface  173 . Examples of interactions depending on the status are described below. 
         [0180]    Thus, a tournament manager may:
       create a new tournament and enter it into the database  131 ,   invite team leaders to sign up for a tournament,   characterize a tournament by a set of games  1313 ,   plan a game  1313  in a calendar,   distribute the duets and solos in a tournament table depending on the rating of the players,   characterize a game  1313  by two or four identifiers of players grouped in two duets or two solos,   assign a player to a position  1314  in a game  1313 ,   characterize a game  1313  by a table football identifier  1312 , advertisers, sponsors,   create trophies (medals, cups, subsidized subscriptions),   define the rules of attribution of these trophies to the players, duets or teams.       
 
         [0191]    Furthermore, a player may:
       create his profile by indicating his name and address,   declare his rating in different table football federations,   apply for a registration in a tournament or in a team,   invite another player to form a duet; a duet is characterized by an own name and rating,   buy or freely get a subscription.       
 
         [0197]    A player can also access a set of services accessible by application software  171  of his terminal  170  depending on his individualized access authorizations  1332 :
       invite other players to form a relational network of friends within the database  131 ,   invite friends on a social network  150  such as Facebook®, via network  140 , to join this relational network,   challenge another player,   organize an friendly game, invite other players, get information on the football tables nearby and reserve an available football table,   access a football table for playing,   display the score of the game in progress, in which he participates, display refereeing information, the game rules, information on the organization of the tournament, on other players,   display statistics about the game, the players and the playing figures (skill rate, kicking power, generated energy),   display the players&#39; biometric statistics: pressure onto the handles, electrical conductivity, heart rate as well as derived calculations (stress, nervousness, concentration),   display the players ranking according to their rating,   receive messages from spectators, personalized animations (music, video, replay),   receive virtual presents or trophies,   view a game event log, a virtual replay of the game, a calculation of ball trajectory or a photo gallery of the game,   view or record a replay, i.e. the last seconds of a particular action such as a goal. Furthermore, this enables the players to examine the points of shooting, the angles used as well as the placement of the playing figures on the ball at the time of shooting, by means of the display of these data by video inlaying,   obtain personalized playing advice.       
 
         [0212]    A team leader can:
       create a team (a team is characterized by an own name and rating),   invite players to constitute this team,   accept the application for registration of a player in a team or in a tournament, register a team for a tournament.       
 
         [0216]    An owner or a lessee of a table football apparatus may:
       register a new football table into the database  131 ; a football table is characterized by its identifier  1312 , its brand, its options, the list of its sensors  112  and actuators  113  and its address,   define a calendar of availabilities for his football tables,   provide information relating to the reception of the players or spectators on site (parking spaces, catering, photo gallery).       
 
         [0220]    A referee may:
       correct the decisions of the electronic refereeing, among which the score of a game or a player&#39;s rating.       
 
         [0222]    An advertiser may:
       enter an advertisement and the distribution rules of this advertisement into the database  131 ,   design scenarios for the animation of a game that are edited by the actuator control module  135 , allowing him to animate the games by means of the multiple actuators  113  and screens  172  depending on the evolution of the score, the players&#39; profiles, the biometric sensors  112  or the geolocation of the football table,   provide information relating to his merchandising products (balls, T-shirts, personalized football table, advertising signage).       
 
         [0226]    A sponsor may:
       enter subsidized subscriptions and coupons into the database  131  and the allocation rules for these subsidized subscriptions.       
 
         [0228]    A spectator may:
       register to attend a game in person or on-line,   send messages or tweets, use the social network tools.       
 
         [0231]    A visitor may:
       download an application software  171  on his terminal  170  from the server  130  or from a specialized application server such as Apple App Store® or Amazon App Store®,   register himself into the database  131  by means of application software  171 .       
 
         [0234]    When registering for the first time, a user identifier value  1311  is calculated and entered into the database  131 , and copied into the user identifier memory  1713  of the smartphone  170 ,
       define his status (player, spectator, sponsor, advertiser, referee).       
 
         [0236]    Control of the Actuators  135  of the Football Table 
         [0237]    The actuator control module  135  contains software applications that allow:
       reading the access authorizations  1332  and  1333  in module  133 .   reading the values of sensors  112  via the communications modules  111  and  137 ,   developing and edit automatic actions from the administrator terminal  120 ; these automatic actions control the actuators  113  depending on the access authorizations  1332  and  1333  and on the values of sensors  112 ,   developing and editing animation scenarios from the advertiser user terminal; with these scenarios, it can be defined, for example, which type of advertisement is played when a goal is scored or at the end of the game,   individually controlling each actuator  113  via the communications modules  111  and  137 .       
 
         [0243]    The refereeing module  136  contains software applications that allow in particular:
       reading the values of the sensors  112  via the communications modules  111  and  137 , in real-time or quasi-real-time,   calculating the score, the refereeing information (goal, fall, spin move, midfield), the penalties for each game  1313 ,   transmitting this information to the actuator control module  135  for displaying and to the access control module  133  for updating the access rights  1331 ,   outputting the rules to have them modified by the administrator terminal  120 ,   calculating the initial rating of each player at the time of his registration depending on his declaration and/or by reading his rating in servers  160 , not shown, of other table football federations,   calculating the rate of each player depending on the score of the games  1313  in which he has played as well as the ratings of his teammates and opponents.       
 
         [0250]    The communications module  137  contains software applications that allow the server  130  to exchange information with the football tables  110  and the terminals  120  and  170  via network  140 . This module  137  further contains time-stamping means for a request transmitted to the server  130  via network  140 . 
         [0251]    The computer network  140  is a network such as the Internet. 
         [0252]    Smartphone  170   
         [0253]    The user terminal or smartphone  170  is a computer system such as a PC, a smartphone or a tablet. This terminal  170  is preferably equipped with a screen  172  and with a touch pad  174  or a keyboard allowing to the user to interact with the computer system  100  by means of application software  171 . This terminal  170  is further equipped with communications means  176  adapted to connect the terminal to a computer server  130  via a network  140  or directly to a football table by means of a connection  117  such as a Wi-Fi, a Bluetooth or a wired connection on one of the ports of terminal  170 . This terminal  170  is also advantageously equipped with a camera  175 . 
         [0254]    Application Software  171   
         [0255]    The application software  171  can calculate a request for access  1711  to a football table on the basis of the following elements:
       image-capture means for recording the image of a QR-code  115  by means of a camera  175 ,   means for extraction of an identifier  1312  of a football table  110  from this image of a QR-code  115 ,   means for recording a user identifier  1713  by copying the value of the user identifier  1311  of the database  131  when first registering the user in the database  131 ,   means for calculating a request for access  1711  to a football table using this football table identifier  1312  and this user identifier  1713  as arguments.       
 
         [0260]    This application software  171  further comprises means allowing a user to assign a value to a playing position declaration  1714 , in particular:
       means for diagrammatic representation on interface  173  of a football table as seen from above on which four areas are superimposed: forward red  1731 , back red  1732 , forward blue  1733  and back blue  1734 ,   means for selecting one particular area among these four areas depending on the value of a playing position identifier  1151 ,   means for registering a player&#39;s name in each of these areas,   means allowing a user, be means of the touch pad  174 , to drag with his finger the player&#39;s name to another area,   means for checking of the compatibility of this change with predefined conditions and for calculating the positioning of the other names of players in the remaining areas,   means allowing to a user to validate and register the declaration of playing position  1714 ,   means for reading in the database  131 .       
 
         [0268]    This application software  171  further allows the calculation of information on playing position individualization  1712  on the basis of the following elements:
       means for extracting a playing position identifier  1151  from this image of a QR-code  115 ,   means for calculating information on playing position individualization  1712  with a declaration of playing position  1714  and/or at least one playing position identifier  1151  and a user identifier  1713  as arguments.       
 
         [0271]    Moreover, this application software  171  allows providing a set of services  1715  available to the user depending on his individualized access authorizations  1332  that allow him to interact with the computer system  100  as detailed above. 
         [0272]    Method for Access Control  200   
         [0273]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , a method  200  for control of simultaneous access with an individualized use to a table football apparatus implementing the service  110  of the invention is implemented by a computer system  100  associated with the table football apparatus  110  that is equipped with sensors  112 , a server  130  and at least one terminal  170  which can communicate with this server  130 , and comprises the following steps:
       step  210 : reception by server  130  of at least one access request  1711  from the smartphones  170  of at least one user, each having an identifier  1312  associated with a football table  110  and an identifier  1713  associated with a user as arguments,   step  220 : reception by server  130  of at least one information on playing position individualization  1712  from at least one smartphone  170 ,   step  230 : comparison by server  130  of the access requests  1711  and individualization information  1712  with the access rights  1331 ,   step  240 : transmission of a game request  1334  by server  130  to the football table  110  and to the four smartphones  170 .       
 
         [0278]    These different steps are detailed below. 
         [0279]    Step  210 : Access Request from the Smartphones to the Server 
         [0280]    Step  210  is detailed according to the following sub-steps:
       step  211 : each of the four players is provided with a smartphone  170 ; by means of the camera  175 , each of them records the image of one of the four QR-codes  115  placed on the football table  110 ,   step  212 : the application software  171  of each of the four smartphones  170  extracts the football table identifier  1312  from each image of QR-code  115 ,   step  213 : the application software  171  of each of the four smartphones  170  calculates a request for access to the football table  1711  with this football table identifier  1312  and the previously entered user identifier  1713  as arguments,   step  214 : each of the four smartphones  170  transmits this request for access to the football table  1711  to the server  130  via network  140  and communications modules  176  and  137 ,   step  215 : reception of this request  1711  by server  130  and time stamping by module  137 .       
 
         [0286]    Step  220 : Individualization of the Playing Positions 
         [0287]    Step  220  is detailed according to the following sub-steps:
       step  221 : the application software  171  of each of the four smartphones  170  extracts the playing position identifier  1151  from each image of QR-code  115 ,   step  222 : the application software  171  of each of the four smartphones  170  calculates information on playing position individualization  1712  with this playing position identifier  1151  and the previously entered user identifier  1713  as arguments   step  223 : each of the four smartphones  170  transmits this playing position individualization information  1712  to the server  130  via network  140  and communications module  176 ,   step  224 : reception of this playing position individualization information  1712  by the server  130  via communications module  137 .       
 
         [0292]    Step  230 : Verification of the Access Rights 
         [0293]    Step  230  is detailed according to the following sub-steps:
       step  231 : the server  130  transmits the four requests for access to the football table  1711  to the access control module  133 , each request having the identifier of this football table  1312  and the user identifier  1713  as arguments,   step  232 : the access control module  133  verifies in the database  131  that there does exist a game  1313  planned by the tournament manager and that corresponds to the football table identifier  1312  and to the time stamping of the requests  1711  by module  137 ,   step  233 : the access control module  133  checks in the database  131  that the four players&#39; identifiers  1311  associated with this game  1313  correspond to the four user identifiers  1713 ,   step  234 : the server  130  transmits to the access control module  133  the four pieces of information on playing position individualization  1712 , each of them together with the playing position identifier  1151  and the user identifier  1713 ,   step  235 : the access control module  133  verifies in the database  131  that the combination of playing position identifiers  1151  and user identifiers  1713  corresponds to the combination of playing position identifiers  1314  and user identifiers  1311  associated with this game  1313 ,   step  236 : the access control module  133  calculates the access rights  1331  of each of these users  1311  depending on the verifications made at steps  232 ,  233  and  235 ,   step  237 : the access control module  133  compares the requests  1711  and the individualization information  1712  with the access rights  1331 .       
 
         [0301]    Step  240 : Access Authorization by Server 
         [0302]    Step  240  is detailed according to the following sub-steps:
       step  241 : the access control module  133  calculates four individualized access authorizations  1332  corresponding to these user identifiers  1311 ,   step  242 : the access control module  133  calculates a game request  1334 ,   step  243 : by means of the communications module  137 , the server  130  transmits this game request  1334  to the football table  110  and to the smartphones  170  via network  140 .       
 
         [0306]    Method  300 : Declaration of the Playing Positions by the User 
         [0307]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , the method for playing position declaration  300 , implemented by a computer system  100  comprising a table football apparatus  110  equipped with QR-codes, a server  130  and at least one terminal  170  capable of communicating with this server  130  is an alternative to step  220 . If, in step  211 , only one of the four users captured his QR-code  115 , the steps  212  and following are consequently carried out by one single smartphone. This method  300  comprises the following steps:
       step  310 : the application software  171  displays on interface  173  the diagrammatic representation of one area per playing position,   step  320 : the application software  171  writes the player&#39;s name  1713  in the area corresponding to the playing position identifier  1151 ,   step  330 : the application software  171  writes the name of the other players in the remaining areas depending on the data relating to game  1313 ,   step  340 : by means of touch pad  174 , the user can reallocate the playing positions by dragging the names of the players to other areas,   step  350 : the smartphone  170  transmits information on playing position individualization  1712  to the server  130 .       
 
         [0313]    Step  310  is detailed according to the following sub-steps:
       step  311 : the application software  171  displays on interface  173  the diagrammatic representation of a football table as seen from above,   step  312 : the application software  171  displays on the interface  173 , superimposed with this diagrammatic representation, four areas i.e. forward red  1731 , back red  1732 , forward blue  1733  and back blue  1734 .       
 
         [0316]    Step  320  is detailed according to the following sub-steps:
       step  321 : the application software  171  of the smartphone  170  extracts the playing position identifier  1151  from the image of the captured QR-code  115 ,   step  322 : the application software  171  selects a first particular area corresponding to the value of the playing position identifier  1151 ,   step  323 : by means of communications modules  176  and  137 , the application software  171  reads the name of the player associated with the value of the user identifier  1713  in database  131 ,   step  324 : the application software  171  writes this player name associated with the value of the user identifier  1713  in this first area.       
 
         [0321]    Step  330  is detailed according to the following sub-steps:
       step  331 : the application software  171  reads in database  131  the identifier of the planned game  1313  corresponding to the identifier of the football table  1312  identified in step  212  and to the time stamping of the request  1711  marked by module  137 ,   step  332 : the application software  171  reads in database  131  the name of the player teaming up as a duo with player  1713  in this game  1313 ,   step  333 : the application software  171  writes the name of this player teaming up as a duo with the player  1713  in a second area of the same team color as this first area,   step  334 : the application software  171  reads in database  131  the name of the two opponents in this game  1313 ,   step  335 : the application software  171  randomly writes the names of these two opponents in the two remaining areas.       
 
         [0327]    Step  340  is detailed according to the following sub-steps:
       step  341 : if the user drags by means of the touch pad  174  one of the four names to another area, the application software  171  updates the registration of the name of the team mate and of the two opponents&#39; names according to the following rules:   a drag from area  1731  to  1732  causes the exchange of the playing positions (forward, back) of the two red teammates,   a drag from area  1731  to  1733  causes jersey permutation (red or blue) of the two teams without changing places,   a drag from area  1731  to  1734  causes both jersey permutation of the two teams and exchange of the places of the two teammates who became blue,   the other rules are set out by symmetry of the three rules above.   step  342 : the application software  171  checks in the database  131  and the refereeing module  136  if the dragging is compatible with the organization of the tournament and with the refereeing rules,   step  343 : the user validates the declaration of playing position  1714 .       
 
         [0335]    Step  350  is detailed according to the following sub-steps:
       step  351 : the application software  171  calculates playing position individualization information  172  with the declaration of playing position  1714  and the user identifier  1713  as arguments,   step  352 : by means of communications modules  176  and  137 , the smartphone  170  transmits this playing position individualization information  1712  to server  130 .       
 
       Extensions 
       [0338]    Many other embodiments or alternatives of this invention are possible. 
         [0339]    In particular, when in step  211  two terminals of opponent players captured and decoded their respective QR-codes, the application software  171  selects in step  322  two first particular areas corresponding to the two playing position identifiers  1511 . The application reads in step  323  the names of the two corresponding players in the database  131  and writes them in these two first areas in step  305 . The method will be adapted similarly if the two users are teammates or if three players captured their QR-code. In this way, the method allows an individualized identification of players by keeping flexibility between the number of captured QR-codes and the additional playing position declarations made by the players. 
         [0340]    Moreover, for economical reasons, the number of different QR-codes printed on the football tables may be reduced. It may in fact be interesting to produce a series of ten absolutely identical football tables, including their QR-codes. Then the application software  171  cooperates with the geolocation module of the smartphone, not shown, to calculate a request  1711  having the geolocation coordinates as additional argument. The database  131  can then establish the list of the football tables corresponding to the received QR-code. The database  31  then compares these geolocation coordinates with the addresses of these listed football tables. The address corresponding to these geolocation coordinates allows identifying a unique football table  1312 . It is even possible to locate the football tables or other pieces of equipment only by geolocation of the smartphones of participant users which have been involved in the identification process. 
         [0341]    The colors red and blue of the playing figures may be different, including patterns such as stripes. In this case, the table football apparatuses are advantageously characterized in the database  131  by additional parameters associated with these colors. The color of their diagrammatic representation on interface  173  is calculated accordingly. 
         [0342]    The invention can be adapted to different types of physical game apparatuses such as table shuffleboard game, American billiard, table tennis, football field or any other collective sports comprising accredited playing positions. The adaptations are, for example, as follows:
       in case of American billiard, a RFID chip is integrated into each ball and a RFID sensor in each hole to identify which ball has fallen into which hole,   in case of a table tennis or ping pong tabletop, each racquet, the table and the net are equipped with shock sensors  112  allowing server  130  to calculate the points by applying rules  136 ; for example, if the ball successively hit the bat A, the table half B but not the racquet B within one second, the point is scored for the player A.   in case of a football pitch, 34 QR-codes corresponding to the 22 playing positions and 12 substitutes are printed on a panel fixed in the vicinity of the pitch. During the game, the change of a player by a substitute is declared by a user on his smartphone by dragging the substitute&#39;s name to the area corresponding to the playing position at which this player has to play. The ball is equipped with a GPS geolocation radio transmitter. GPS receivers are placed around the pitch, at ground level and at a raised positions to trace the trajectory of the ball in three dimensions.       
 
         [0346]    The invention can also be adapted to the placing of passengers in an airplane, a train or any public transportation with dedicated seats. The participants can thus be players, passengers etc. and the pieces of equipment can be game or sports apparatuses or facilities, public transportation vehicles etc. 
         [0347]    The invention can implement different identification mode, in particular:
       a protocol of inverted QR-code; in this case, the table football apparatus  110  is equipped with a QR-code reader. When a user wants to play, a QR-code is displayed on his screen  172 . The user presents his screen in front of this QR-code reader. The football table  110  transmits an access request to the server  130 , which returns to the user&#39;s smartphone  170  the list and the playing positions of the players of the game  1313  that is prerecorded in database  131 . The application software  171  displays a representation of the football table like in step  302 . The application software  171  then writes the names of these players in the areas corresponding to these playing positions for game  1313 . The method continues with steps  341  and following.   a NFC protocol implementing four NFC sensors instead of four QR-codes,   a code recognition sensor fixed on a football table, this code being displayed by SMS on a smartphone  170 .       
 
         [0351]    The computing resources of the system  100  can be organized differently, for example:
       the interaction mode between the application software  171  and the server  130  can operate in push mode; thus, the application software  171  does not read information in the database  131  but conversely the database  131  updates an image database in each smartphone  170  each time one of its data is changed.   the standard software technologies vs. cloud allow shifting the material and software resources onto the terminals vs. the servers. Thus, the application software  121  and  171  can be more or less sophisticated or light in addition to the resources placed in the server  130 . Similarly, modules  131 ,  132 ,  133 ,  134 ,  135  and  136  may be distributed in full or in part in separate servers.       
 
         [0354]    Of course, this invention is in no way limited to the foregoing but the skilled person will be able to make many other changes thereto.