Communications: electrical – Systems – Game reporting
Patent
1995-03-03
1998-04-28
Hofsass, Jeffrey
Communications: electrical
Systems
Game reporting
340539, 340691, 273433, 273435, 273439, 364410, 364411, G08B 2300
Patent
active
057450293
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a refereeing aid system for ball games "referee", regardless of the particular terminology, e.g. "umpire", that may be conventional) for the game concerned! with assistance from auxiliary judges.
2. Description of Related Art
At present, in team games, as in numerous individual sports, refereeing is performed by individuals who are present on the playing field and who must, throughout the duration of the match, be fully aware of what the various protagonists are doing on the field. This requires a level of vigilance at all times that it is often difficult to achieve, particularly during fast action sequences of the game. This gives rise to refereeing errors which can be most prejudicial to the parties concerned, and indeed sometimes to the referee himself.
An approach to the solution is given in patent application DE 3 120 584 soccer! referees and including firstly a transmitter placed in the flag of each of the linesmen and secondly a receiver made available to the referee. Pressing a pushbutton on the linesmen's flag causes the referee's receiver to emit a sound signal, so the referee can interrupt the game and go and speak with the calling linesmen.
Nevertheless, that solution is not entirely satisfactory since firstly it does not locate the caller and secondly it does not enable the referee to find out quickly the reason for the call and therefore decide whether or not to continue the game. In addition, such a system does nothing to solve other refereeing problems due to human error or even dishonest maneuvers by certain people on or around the playing field.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Thus, an object of the present invention is to mitigate the above drawbacks and to propose a refereeing aid system that makes refereeing fairer and more reliable by keeping the referee rapidly informed about actions of the game that may be taking place outside his field of view, and also enabling him to input and to access refereeing data necessary for running the match.
Another object of the invention is to transmit information collected by the referee during a match to a computer terminal for handling the data, tabulating it, and reproducing the tabulated data for use as soon as the match is over.
These objects are achieved by a refereeing aid system for ball games, the system comprising communications means held by the referee and provided with transmitter means enabling refereeing data previously input via input means to be communicated to management means disposed close to the playing field and connected to computer means that centralize refereeing data coming from a plurality of management means present at different playing fields.
The input means enable the referee to note down throughout the match numerous kinds of information necessary for refereeing purposes (e.g. goals, sendings off of players, other punishments, . . . ).
Because the referee has transmitter means, it is possible within minutes from the end of a match to forward all of the data relating to the match, and in particular the results or any punishments handed out to such or such a player. It is then possible, on the basis of this data and of data coming from other playing fields to draw up league tables very quickly and at several levels: local, regional, national, or even international.
The input means made available to the referee include a first set of keys comprising alphanumeric keys for inputting coordinates of the participants, a second set of keys comprising symbol keys for inputting parameters specific to the game in question, a third set of keys comprising function keys and including, in particular, an "enter" key for confirming preceding inputs, and a set of indicator means for verifying operations performed and for giving information to the referee.
Advantageously, the set of indicator means comprises a luminous display and a series of audible and visible indicator means.
Each auxiliary judge's transmitter means includes a voice transmission circuit
REFERENCES:
patent: 5083271 (1992-01-01), Thacher et al.
patent: 5109228 (1992-04-01), Banaszak
patent: 5283733 (1994-02-01), Colley
Garcia Manuel
Hofsass Jeffrey
Pope Daryl C.
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