Measuring tool for assessing golf ball alignment

Abstract

An alignment system is configured to measure the orientation of a golf ball relative to a target point based on the positioning of an alignment aid on the golf ball with respect to a target point. The alignment system has a camera configured to capture at least one image of a golf ball placed at a placement position on a surface. The alignment system also has a computing system having at least one processing unit and memory storing instructions configured to be executed by the at least one processing unit to determine an aimed direction based on an orientation of the alignment aid in the at least one image, calculate an alignment value based on the aimed direction, and provide the alignment value to a user interface.

1 . An alignment system for measuring an orientation of a golf ball relative to a target point, the alignment system comprising:
 a camera configured to capture at least one image of a golf ball placed at a placement position on a surface, the golf ball comprising an alignment aid; and   a computing system comprising at least one processing unit and memory storing instructions configured to be executed by the at least one processing unit to:
 determine an aimed direction based on an orientation of the alignment aid in the at least one image; 
 calculate an alignment value based on the aimed direction; and 
 provide the alignment value to a user interface. 
   
     
     
         2 . The alignment system of  claim 1 , wherein calculating the alignment value comprises comparing the aimed direction to a target direction, wherein the target direction is a straight line connecting the placement position to the target point. 
     
     
         3 . The alignment system of  claim 2 , wherein the at least one processing unit is further configured to determine the target direction based on one or more images captured by the camera. 
     
     
         4 . The alignment system of  claim 3 , wherein the at least one processing unit is configured to determine the target direction and the aimed direction based on the same image. 
     
     
         5 . The alignment system of  claim 3 , wherein the at least one processing unit is configured to determine the target direction based on one or more calibration images captured by the camera separate from the at least one image of the golf ball. 
     
     
         6 . The alignment system of  claim 5 , wherein the one or more calibration images comprise a calibration line placed in a field of view of the camera. 
     
     
         7 . The alignment system of  claim 6 , wherein the calibration line is a linear marking placed on the surface. 
     
     
         8 . The alignment system of  claim 7 , wherein the linear marking is a rod, string, or tape. 
     
     
         9 . A computer-implemented method for measuring an orientation of a golf ball relative to a target point, comprising:
 capturing, by a camera, at least one image of a golf ball placed at a placement position on a surface, the golf ball comprising an alignment aid;   determining, by at least one processing unit, an aimed direction based on an orientation of the alignment aid in the at least one image;   calculating, by the at least one processing unit, an alignment value based on the aimed direction; and   providing the alignment value to a user interface.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein calculating the alignment value comprises comparing the aimed direction to a target direction, wherein the target direction is a straight line connecting the placement position to the target point. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the method further comprises capturing, by the camera, one or more calibration images having at least one calibration line in the one or more calibration images. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising determining the target direction based on the at least one calibration line in the one or more calibration images captured by the camera. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein at least one calibration image and at least one image of the golf ball placed at the placement position are the same image. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein at least one calibration image and at least one image of the golf ball placed at the placement position are different images. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the alignment value is an offset angle between the aimed direction and the target direction. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein determining the aimed direction comprises determining a predominant axis of the alignment aid and finding a best fit line matching the predominant axis. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein determining the predominant axis comprises matching the alignment aid in the image to a stored alignment aid. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein finding the best fit line matching the predominant axis comprises identifying a contour within the at least one image based on intensity of pixels. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein identifying the contour comprises finding pixels having matching intensity and direction on the same line. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein determining the aimed direction comprises selecting two or more pixels having matching intensity on the same line.