Patent Publication Number: US-2020289887-A1

Title: System and method for officiating in a game of sport

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is related to, and claims priority to, U.S. application Ser. No. 29/681,780 filed on Mar. 18, 2019 the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference, and to U.S. application Ser. No. 29/683,196 filed on Mar. 12, 2019 the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     This disclosure relates to methods and systems for officiating in a sport game played on a field with an object of play. 
     2. Background Art 
     Many sporting events are played on a field or an area with boundaries and use an object of play, such as football, soccer, basketball, hockey, and others. The sporting events often are played for entertainment for fans of the game. A common frustration of fans of the game is the officiating results from officials who are determining play results including scoring, fouls, penalties and other officiating results. A system and method is need to improve the accuracy, consistency and efficiency of determining officiating results in spectator sports. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY 
     A method and system of officiating a sporting event with a player on a field of play with a play boundary is disclosed. A ball sensor in a ball of sport and a player sensor in player equipment may be detected when breaking a detection field generated by a field generator along a play boundary. Play data and participant data may be sent to a processor to determine an officiating result, and the officiating result may be sent to an official&#39;s mobile device for confirmation. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1 a    is a top view of an embodiment of a ball of sport with sensors. 
         FIG. 1 b    is a front view of an embodiment of a ball of sport with sensors. 
         FIG. 1 c    is a bottom view of an embodiment of a ball of sport with sensors. 
         FIG. 1 d    is a rear view of an embodiment of a ball of sport with sensors. 
         FIG. 2  is an end perspective view of an embodiment of a field of play. 
         FIG. 3  is a side perspective view of an embodiment of a field of play. 
         FIG. 4  is a top view of an embodiment of a field of play. 
         FIG. 5  is an illustrative front view of player&#39;s equipment with sensors placed throughout the equipment. 
         FIG. 6  is an illustrative side view of player&#39;s equipment with sensors placed throughout the equipment. 
         FIG. 7  is an illustrative rear view of player&#39;s equipment with sensors placed throughout the equipment. 
         FIG. 8  is an illustrative system for assisting in officiating in a sporting event. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 1  shows example views of a ball of sport  120  with a ball sensor  122 . The ball of sport  120  shown is a football in this example, but it may be any type of object of play including, but not limited to a ball, a football (American, Australian or other rules), a soccer ball (association football), a basketball, a lacrosse ball, a hockey puck, a field hockey ball, a baseball, a cricket ball, a tennis ball, a volley ball, a table tennis (ping pong) ball, a golf ball, a rugby ball, a water polo ball, a croquet ball, a billiard ball, a racquet ball, a hand ball, a bocce ball, a squash ball, a softball, a bowling ball, a dodge ball, a kick ball, a Whiffle™ ball, a marble, a water balloon, a Frisbee™, a hurling ball (sliotar) or a curling stone. 
     The example embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1 a -1 d    show example positions of multiple ball sensors  122  on the exterior of a ball of sport. In some embodiments the ball sensors  122  are between a bladder and a skin of the ball, and are placed at locations to determine the location of the ball. The sensors may be placed in multiple parts of the ball so that when a part of the ball with a sensor crosses a boundary with a detection field, or breaks the detection field, the detection field will be able to determine that the ball of sport has crossed the game boundary on the field of play. In the example embodiment of  FIGS. 1 a -1 d    sensors are placed at the long ends of the football and in multiple locations around the circumference of the center of the football, so that when one of the multiple sensors breaks the detection field, data will be sent that the ball of sport has broken the boundary. In other balls of sport where a ball is round or near round, ball sensors  122  may be placed near the edge of the ball, or on the exterior of the ball, in multiple locations such as multiple circumferences. In a soccer ball, a sensor may be placed in each of the patches that make up the soccer ball, or on the underside of each of the patches. 
     In some embodiments there are multiple types of sensors in the ball of sport  120 . A ball of sport  120  may have a position sensor, or multiple position sensors, to determine position on the field of play. A ball of sport  120  may have an accelerometer sensor to determine impacts, direction of travel and acceleration. A ball of sport  120  may have an attitude sensor that can determine pitch, roll and yaw (azimuth) angles and may determine a spin or rate of rotation of the ball of sport  120 . A ball of sport  120  may have an altimeter sensor that can determine the altitude of the ball of sport. A ball of sport may include a vibration sensor, a tilt sensor, a magnetometer, a proximity sensor, a global positioning system (GPS) sensor, and or other sensors. While some embodiments have multiple ball sensors  122  in a ball of sport  120 , other embodiments may have a single ball sensor  122  in a ball of sport  120 . 
     In some embodiments a manufacturer of the ball of sport  120  may insert as many sensors as needed, potentially of different types, into a specific ball of sport  120 , so they become detectable by a sensor field, and utilized to assist in the officiating of sporting events. When a ball sensor  122  in a ball of sport  120  breaks a sensor detection field  110  a processor  140  may receive indication that the ball of sport  120  has crossed the sensor detection field  110 . The processor may determine an officiating result and may use the officiating result to assist in officiating in a sporting event. 
       FIG. 2  shows an illustrative view depicting a full length playing field with two sensor detection fields  110 , two sets of sensor arrays  112  that are each part of a field generator, and indicator lights aligned at the front of the end zones, which are play boundaries. The field generators create a sensor detection field  110  overlapping the front edge of both end zone goal lines. The sensor arrays  112  may be outside of the field of play for player safety and so that they do not interfere with the play on the field of play. In the example illustration of  FIG. 2  the sensor arrays  112  are set back from the side lines by ten feet. 
       FIG. 3  shows an illustrative side view, depicting a full-length field of play with two sensor detection fields  110 , two sets of sensor arrays  112  and indicator lights aligned at the front of both end zones along a play boundary, overlapping the front edge of both goal lines. In the example illustration the sensors arrays are recessed from the field of play as discussed above. In some embodiments the sensor arrays  112  include visual indicators which indicate when an officiating result occurs. For example, if the game of sport is American football, and a player breaks the boundary of the endzone, the officiating result may be reflected by lights, or a light display on the sensor arrays  112 . Providing lights on the sensor arrays  112  may enhance the entertainment experience for fans of the game. In some embodiments lights indicate the officiating result after an official confirms the officiating result. In other embodiments the lights may automatically indicate an officiating result when a processor determines the data received indicates the officiating result. 
       FIG. 4  shows an illustrative aerial view, depicting a full-length playing field, with two sensor detection fields  110 , two sets of sensor arrays  112  and indicator lights aligned at the front edge of both goal lines. The illustrated detection fields in  FIGS. 2-4  are shown as ten feet high by way of example. In some embodiments the sensor detection fields are thirty feet high. In some embodiments the sensor arrays are movable to create a detection field over different parts of the field, such as a first down line that may be in different locations during a game. In some embodiments a detection field may be along the lines that determine whether a player  130  or a ball of sport  120  is out of bounds. 
     In some embodiments sensors are placed throughout sports equipment and may be used in conjunction with other data gathering electronics to gather data, such as impact data, velocity data, location data, whether the sensors compromised sensor array fields, temperature data. Data may be captured and analyzed so it can be utilized to develop safer player equipment, determine a player&#39;s global positioning, assist athletes with improving their training regimens, assist in evaluating an athlete&#39;s physical traits and capabilities and assist in the officiating of sporting events. 
     An system may detect and track player  130  and equipment movement that is captured from sensors placed throughout a player&#39;s equipment that may generate data that can be captured, analyzed and utilized to develop safer player equipment, determine a player&#39;s global positioning, assist athletes with improving their training regimens, assist in evaluating an athlete&#39;s physical traits and capabilities and/or assist in the officiating of sporting events. 
       FIG. 5  shows an illustrative front view of a player  130  wearing equipment with player sensors  132  placed throughout the equipment.  FIG. 6  shows and illustrative side view of player&#39;s equipment with player sensors  132  placed throughout the equipment.  FIG. 7  shows an illustrative rear view of player&#39;s equipment with player sensors  132  placed throughout the equipment. Player sensors  132  may be placed in shoes, clothing, pads, helmets, sticks such as hockey sticks (ice or field hockey), lacrosse sticks, hurling stick (hurl or hurley) or a billiard stick; bats such as cricket bats, baseball bats, rackets or paddles such as tennis rackets, racquetball rackets, or squash rackets; or clubs such as a hurling club or a croquet mallet. 
     In the example illustrations multiple player sensors  132  are used for each player  130 . In some embodiments each player may have a single player sensor  132 . The player sensor  132  may be used in conjunction with the ball sensor  122  to determine officiating results. The ball sensor  122  may determine if the ball is moving in the same direction and at the same speed with approximately the same location as a player  130 , to determine that the player  130  has control of the ball of sport. The ball sensor  122  may determine rotation of the ball, or lack of rotation to determine if a ball of sport  120  is being held or controlled by a player  130 , or if the ball of sport is being passed, kicked, thrown, hit or otherwise out of the direct control of a single player. When a ball of sport  120  is determined by analysis of a ball sensor  122  and a player sensor  132  to be in control by a single control player, the player sensors  132  may be detected by the field generator if the player crosses or breaks the sensor detection field  110 . An officiating result may be determined by a processor when a player sensor crosses or breaks a sensor detection field, for example when a player in control of a ball of sport crosses a boundary line, and the player, or part of the player&#39;s body is out of bounds. Player sensors may also be used to determine the boundaries of a detection field, such as a strike zone in baseball, which is based on the size of the player. 
       FIG. 8  is an illustrative system for assisting in officiating in a sporting event. The sensor detection field  110  may include a first and second sensor array or field generator  112  that create the sensor detection field. The sensor detection field  110  may communicate with a wireless communication system  190 , and may send and receive data from the wireless communication system  190 . A ball of sport  120  may include ball sensors that communicate wirelessly with the wireless communication system  190 . The wireless communication system  190  may include a location detection system to determine the location of individual ball sensors  122  and player sensors  132 . The wireless communication system  190  may receive data regarding the location of the ball of sport  120  and a player  130 . In some embodiments the wireless communication system  190  may send data to the ball of sport  120  or the player  130 . The wireless communication system may also communicate with a processor  140 . The processor may include nonvolatile memory, and the play data may be stored in the nonvolatile memory. The field generators  112  may send play data to the processor  140  through the wireless communication system when a ball sensor  122  or a player sensor  132  breaks the detection field. The processor may determine an officiating result based on the play data and send the officiating result to an official&#39;s mobile device  150  to assist an official in officiating in the sporting event. 
     In some embodiments the processor  140  receives a confirmation from the official&#39;s mobile device that indicates whether the official agrees with the officiating result and may be a confirmation of the officiating result. The player sensor  132  may be a participant sensor, and may send participant data to the processor  140  through the wireless communication system  190 . 
     While the principles of the invention have been made clear in illustrative embodiments, there will be immediately obvious to those skilled in the art many modifications of structure, arrangement, proportions, and methods, the elements, materials, and components used in the practice of the invention, and otherwise, which are particularly adapted to specific environments and operative requirements without departing from those principles.