US 5,689,431 A · Golf course yardage and information system

Abstract

A player position determining and course management system for a golf course having a plurality of roving units for use by players in playing the course is disclosed. Each roving unit includes a central processing unit (CPU) including a data processor for executing various tasks ranging from fastest execution of a task to slowest execution of a task on a schedule of priorities of task completion, a real-time means for controlling the processor to give the tasks priority ranging from fastest execution of a task with highest priority to slowest execution of a task with lowest priority, and a means for precisely timing functions of the system including modulating means utilizing a common digital modulation technique for digitally modulating data transmitted to and from all of the roving units. Each of the roving units include a monitor for displaying the golf course including each of the holes with its tee box, fairway, green, cup and hazards, as well as the position of the roving unit on the course in real time. Additionally, the system includes a course management base station for transmitting and receiving information to the roving units and a monitor for displaying the the location of each roving unit on the golf course in real time.

Claims48

Dependent claims

A method for creating a digital map of a golf course, comprising the steps of:

collecting survey data around the outline of each object to be surveyed on the course by collecting Global Positioning System (GPS) position data around the perimeter of each object;
post processing said survey data including the substeps of:
low pass filtering said survey data to reduce noise in said survey data and smooth the outline of each object for which survey data was collected;
removing overlapping segments comprising the outline of each object;
removing crossing segments comprising the outline of each object;
and
compressing said survey data by discarding at least some data points collected among the survey data for the outline of an object selected to be surveyed which are within a predetermined permissible error for display of the outline of the selected object.

4 more elements

A method for creating a digital map as a realistic approximation of the layout of a golf course including each hole of the course and selected features of each hole affecting play thereof, for use in viewing the real-time position of a roving unit used by golfers playing the course as a symbol whose movement corresponds to that of the roving unit on selected portions of said map when displayed on a display monitor, said method comprising the steps of:

using a Global Positioning System (GPS) to obtain survey data for each hole and features thereof selected for the map, including:
collecting a plurality of spaced-apart data points about the perimeter of selected features of each hole with a mobile GPS receiver to loosely define the outline of each such selected feature, and
creating a vector list representing successive substantially straight line segments connecting adjacent selected pairs of the collected data points for each such selected feature to better define the outline thereof;
and
processing the survey data for display on said monitor.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Golf course yardage and information system

Life of this patent

Golf course yardage and information system

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims48