Basketball launching device with player height compensation
AssigneeShoot-A-Way, Inc.
InventorJohn G. Joseph
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A basketball launching device and related systems and methods which compensate for player height are provided. A controller in electronic communication with a user interface and a launching mechanism causes a player information prompt to be generated at the user interface, receives data from the user interface in response to the player information prompt which includes an indication of player height, and causes the launching mechanism to launch the basketballs with a level of force or speed where the level of force or speed is selected, and varies, based on the player height indicated.
Claims19
A basketball launching system which compensates for player height, said basketball launching system comprising:
- a user interface;
- a launching mechanism for launching basketballs;
- a controller in electronic communication with the user interface and the launching mechanism, said controller comprising one or more non-transitory electronic storage devices comprising a database of player heights, each associated with a respective one of a plurality of levels of force or speed, and software instructions, which when executed, configure one or more processors of the controller to:
- cause a player information prompt to be generated at the user interface;
- receive data from the user interface in response to the player information prompt, where said data comprises an indication of player height;
- automatically and electronically query the database with the indicated player height to return a respective one of the plurality of levels of force or speed (“level of force or speed”);
- and
- command the launching mechanism to launch the basketballs with the level of force or speed such that the level of force or speed is adjustably selected based, at least in part, on the indicated player height.
A method of compensating for player height during a basketball practice session using a basketball launching machine, said method comprising:
- generating, at a user interface associated with the basketball launching machine, a player information prompt;
- receiving, at a controller associated with the basketball launching machine and from the user interface in response to the player information prompt, data comprising an indication of player height;
- querying, by way of the controller, a database comprising levels of force or speed and associated with player heights with a respective player height in accordance with the player height indicated to return a respective one of the levels of force or speed;
- and
- commanding, by way of the controller, a launching mechanism of the basketball launching machine to adjust a level of force or speed for the basketball practice session to the respective one of the levels of force or speed.
A basketball launching device which compensates for player height, said basketball launching device comprising:
- a structural framework;
- a user interface comprising a touch screen connected to the structural framework;
- a launching mechanism for launching basketballs connected to the structural framework, said launching mechanism comprising one or more motors which are operable to adjust launching force of the basketballs;
- a controller in electronic connection with the user interface and the launching mechanism, said controller comprising one or more non-transitory electronic storage devices comprising a first database with login information and player heights and a second database with launching parameters and indicated player heights as well as software instructions, which when executed, configure one or more processors of the controller to:
- cause a player login prompt to be generated at the user interface for a practice session;
- where login information is received and successfully authenticated, query the first database with at least part of the login information to retrieve an associated player height;
- where no login information is received, or login information is received by not successfully authenticated, prompt manual entry of player height;
- receive data from the user interface in response to the player information prompt, where said data comprises an indicated player height from the associated player height or the manual entry of player height;
- query the second database with the indicated player height to retrieve an associated one of the launching parameters associated with the indicated player height;
- and
- cause the launching mechanism to launch the basketballs with the associated one of the launching parameters for the practice session by adjusting operation of said one or more motors.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.