US5489886A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Automatic line officiating system and method thereof
Assignee: ALOS-OFFICIATING TENNIS SYSTEM Ltd
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Filing: 1993-08-04
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Granted: 1996-02-06
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Expires: 2013-08-04
Abstract
Abstract An automatic line officiating system including a video camera and associated optics and electronics disposed adjacent to a line to be officiated and arranged with the longitudinal axis of its field of view concentric with the line and adapted to provide image data representing the vicinity of the line and a central processing system coupled to the video camera and arranged to receive the image data from the camera, to process the data to determine the path of the ball before, during and after a bounce, and to provide an indication whether the ball has bounced on or within the line, or outside the line.
Inventors
- 👤 Gil Wexler
- 👤 Alexander Steinberg
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 19:35
CPC Classifications
A; A63; A63B; A63B71/00; A63B71/06; A63B71/0605; A63B2220/00; A63B2220/80; A63B2220/806
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 12
Claim 1
Independent Claim
168 words
An automatic line officiating system comprising: a video camera disposed adjacent to a line to be officiated and arranged with the longitudinal axis of a field of view of said video camera concentric with said line to provide image data representing the vicinity of said line; an image processing system coupled to said video camera and arranged to receive said image data from said video camera, to process said data to determine the path of a ball in said field of view of said video camera, and to provide a determination whether said ball has bounced on or within said line, or outside said line; and cuing apparatus coupled to said video camera for activating the transfer of image data from said camera to said image processing system when said ball is within said field of view of said video camera, wherein said cuing apparatus comprises at least one cuing camera disposed adjacent to said video camera and sharing the same field of view with the video camera.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
168 words
An automatic line officiating system comprising: a video camera disposed adjacent to a line to be officiated and arranged with the longitudinal axis of a field of view of said video camera concentric with said line to provide image data representing the vicinity of said line; an image processing system coupled to said video camera and arranged to receive said image data from said video camera, to process said data to determine the path of a ball in said field of view of said video camera, and to provide a determination whether said ball has bounced on or within said line, or outside said line; and cuing apparatus coupled to said video camera for activating the transfer of image data from said camera to said image processing system when said ball is within said field of view of said video camera, wherein said cuing apparatus comprises at least one cuing camera disposed adjacent to said video camera and sharing the same field of view with the video camera.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
43 words
An automatic line officiating system as claimed in claim 1 and wherein said cuing apparatus comprises said at least one camera with frame rates which are at least half an order of magnitude higher than the frame rate of a conventional video camera.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
29 words
An automatic line officiating system as claimed in claim 1 and wherein said cuing apparatus comprises said at least one camera having a shutter modulated with a variable duty-cycle.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
37 words
An automatic line officiating system as claimed in claim 1 and wherein said cuing apparatus comprises at least one line-scan camera disposed so as to view a line parallel to and a few centimeters above the ground.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
163 words
An automatic line officiating system comprising: a video camera disposed adjacent to a line to be officiated and arranged with the longitudinal axis of a field of view of said video camera concentric with said line to provide image data representing the vicinity of said line; an image processing system coupled to said video camera and arranged to receive said image data from said video camera, to process said data to determine the path of a ball in said field of view of said video camera, and to provide a determination whether said ball has bounced on or within said line, or outside said line; and cuing apparatus coupled to said video camera for activating the transfer of image data from said camera to said image processing system when said ball is within said field of view of said video camera, wherein said cuing apparatus comprise at least one camera disposed above a court to be officiated and coupled to said video camera.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
163 words
An automatic line officiating system comprising: a video camera disposed adjacent to a line to be officiated and arranged with the longitudinal axis of a field of view of said video camera concentric with said line to provide image data representing the vicinity of said line; an image processing system coupled to said video camera and arranged to receive said image data from said video camera, to process said data to determine the path of a ball in said field of view of said video camera, and to provide a determination whether said ball has bounced on or within said line, or outside said line; and cuing apparatus coupled to said video camera for activating the transfer of image data from said camera to said image processing system when said ball is within said field of view of said video camera, wherein said cuing apparatus comprise at least one camera disposed above a court to be officiated and coupled to said video camera.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
125 words
An automatic line officiating system comprising: a video camera disposed adjacent to a line to be officiated and arranged with the longitudinal axis of a field of view of said video camera concentric with said line to provide image data representing the vicinity of said line; an image processing system coupled to said video camera and arranged to receive said image data from said video camera, to process said data to determine the path of a ball in said field of view of said video camera, and to provide a determination whether said ball has bounced on or within said line, or outside said line; and a display for displaying an output picture of the path of the ball in the vicinity of said line.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
125 words
An automatic line officiating system comprising: a video camera disposed adjacent to a line to be officiated and arranged with the longitudinal axis of a field of view of said video camera concentric with said line to provide image data representing the vicinity of said line; an image processing system coupled to said video camera and arranged to receive said image data from said video camera, to process said data to determine the path of a ball in said field of view of said video camera, and to provide a determination whether said ball has bounced on or within said line, or outside said line; and a display for displaying an output picture of the path of the ball in the vicinity of said line.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
179 words
A method for automatic line officiating comprising the steps of: mounting a video camera adjacent to a line to be officiated with the longitudinal axis of a field of view of said video camera concentric with said line; determining the existence of a ball within the field of view of said camera, said determining step comprising the steps of: mounting a cuing camera adjacent to said video camera wherein said cuing camera shares the same field of view with said video camera; viewing said line with said cuing camera; and processing the images originating from said cuing camera to determine whether a ball is within the field of view of said cuing camera; said method for automatic line officiating also comprises: providing image data from said video camera to an image processing system coupled to said video camera; processing said image data to provide data corresponding to a path of a ball in the vicinity of said line; and providing in response thereto, a determination whether the ball has bounced on or within said line, or outside said line.
Claim 11
Independent Claim
179 words
A method for automatic line officiating comprising the steps of: mounting a video camera adjacent to a line to be officiated with the longitudinal axis of a field of view of said video camera concentric with said line; determining the existence of a ball within the field of view of said camera, said determining step comprising the steps of: mounting a cuing camera adjacent to said video camera wherein said cuing camera shares the same field of view with said video camera; viewing said line with said cuing camera; and processing the images originating from said cuing camera to determine whether a ball is within the field of view of said cuing camera; said method for automatic line officiating also comprises: providing image data from said video camera to an image processing system coupled to said video camera; processing said image data to provide data corresponding to a path of a ball in the vicinity of said line; and providing in response thereto, a determination whether the ball has bounced on or within said line, or outside said line.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
29 words
A method as claimed in claim 7 and further comprising the step of providing an output picture of the path of the ball in the vicinity of said line.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1999-02-05 | 1999-08-07 | 2000-02-06 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2003-02-05 | 2003-08-07 | 2004-02-06 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2007-02-05 | 2007-08-07 | 2008-02-06 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |