JP7510164B2 - Virtual golf device and method of operating the virtual golf device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a virtual golf device and an operating method of the virtual golf device. More specifically, the present invention relates to a virtual golf device and an operating method of the virtual golf device that can calculate the trajectory of a virtual golf ball on a virtual golf course based on a golf ball hit by a user and additionally adjust the flight distance based on the trajectory.

Recently, simulation devices have been developed that use 3D images and computer simulation technology to allow people to enjoy sports games without going to the actual venue, and virtual indoor sports such as golf and baseball have become widespread. In particular, in the case of indoor screen golf, an image of a golf course is displayed on a screen, giving the feeling of playing a real golf game outdoors, while saving time and money compared to playing on an outdoor field, making it very popular among modern people who find it difficult to play golf due to time or financial reasons.

On an actual golf course, there are areas with various attributes such as fairways, roughs, bunkers, water hazards, etc., and the hitting feeling and difficulty level when a user hits a golf ball varies depending on these areas. For example, in a fairway area where the grass is short, it is easy to hit and the hitting difficulty level is low, whereas in a rough area where the grass is longer than the fairway area, the hitting difficulty level is relatively high. However, in the case of screen golf, various areas such as fairways and roughs are displayed on a virtual golf course displayed on a screen to correspond to an actual golf course, but in actual play, a user only hits a golf ball placed on a hitting mat indoors, and from the user's perspective, the difference in hitting difficulty level depending on the area cannot be experienced, so screen golf lacks realism compared to playing on an actual golf course. In addition, if an attempt is made to improve the realism of screen golf, the difficulty level of play may increase, raising the barrier for beginners to enter screen golf.

The present invention was invented in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a virtual golf device that uses a hitting mat with multiple areas to allow users to experience the sensation of hitting in various areas of a golf course, and is configured so that even beginners can easily enjoy screen golf by appropriately adjusting the flight distance calculated after hitting, taking into account the user's ability.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for operating the virtual golf device.

Furthermore, other objects of the present invention can be clearly understood from the following description and the attached drawings.

In order to achieve the above object, a virtual golf device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a hitting mat on which an actual golf ball hit by a user is placed, a sensing unit that senses the state of the actual golf ball hit by the user, a control unit that calculates the movement of the virtual golf ball on a virtual golf course based on the sensing result of the sensing unit, and a display unit that displays an image of the virtual golf course and the virtual golf ball. The hitting mat includes a first hitting area and a second hitting area, and the virtual golf course includes a first virtual area corresponding to the first hitting area and a second virtual area corresponding to the second hitting area, and the control unit performs a calculation process of calculating the movement of the virtual golf ball based on the state of the actual golf ball hit by the user, and then further performs an adjustment process of adjusting the flight distance according to the calculated trajectory.

In the virtual golf device, the control unit further performs the adjustment process when the actual golf ball and the virtual golf ball are located in areas that do not correspond to each other when the user hits the ball.

In the virtual golf device, the control unit reduces or increases the flight distance according to the calculated trajectory during the adjustment process. During the adjustment process, whether or not to reduce/increase the flight distance and the amount of reduction/increase in the flight distance are determined according to the user's level. Alternatively, the user can set whether or not to reduce/increase the flight distance and the amount of reduction/increase in the flight distance during the adjustment process.

In the virtual golf device, the first hitting area is a fairway area, the second hitting area is a non-fairway area, the first virtual area is a virtual fairway area, and the second virtual area is a virtual non-fairway area. The control unit further performs the adjustment process when the virtual golf ball is located in the virtual non-fairway area and the actual golf ball is located in the fairway area when the user hits the ball.

The operating method of the virtual golf device according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a hitting mat on which an actual golf ball hit by a user is placed, a sensing unit that senses the state of the actual golf ball hit by the user, a control unit that calculates the movement of the virtual golf ball on the virtual golf course based on the sensing result of the sensing unit, and a display unit that displays images of the virtual golf course and the virtual golf ball, and the hitting mat includes a first hitting area and a second hitting area, and the virtual golf course includes a first virtual area corresponding to the first hitting area and a second virtual area corresponding to the second hitting area, and includes a step of sensing whether the actual golf ball and the virtual golf ball are located in corresponding areas when the user hits the ball, and a step of performing a calculation process of calculating the movement of the virtual golf ball based on the state of the actual golf ball hit by the user and further performing an adjustment process of adjusting the non-distance according to the calculated trajectory.

The virtual golf device and operating method of the virtual golf device of the present invention allows users to experience the sensation of hitting in various areas of a golf course by using a hitting mat with multiple areas, and by appropriately adjusting the flight distance calculated after hitting in consideration of the user's ability, even beginners can easily enjoy screen golf.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic structure of a virtual golf device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the main components of the virtual golf device shown in FIG. 1; FIG. 2 is a detailed view of a hitting mat in the virtual golf device of FIG. 1; 2 illustrates a virtual golf course that can be displayed on the screen of the virtual golf device of FIG. 1; 2 is a flow chart illustrating a method of operation that can be applied to the virtual goal device of FIG. 1; FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the calculation process of FIG. 5 . FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the calculation process of FIG. 5 . FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the adjustment process of FIG. 5 . FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the adjustment process of FIG. 5 . FIG. 3 shows various detailed structures of the database of FIG. 2; FIG. 3 shows various detailed structures of the database of FIG. 2; FIG. 3 shows various detailed structures of the database of FIG. 2; FIG. 3 shows various detailed structures of the database of FIG. 2; FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a schematic structure of a virtual golf device according to another embodiment of the present invention. 15 is a flow chart illustrating a method of operation that can be applied to the virtual golf device of FIG. 14 . 15 is a flow chart illustrating a method of operation that can be applied to the virtual golf device of FIG. 14 . FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the screen of the virtual golf device of FIG. 14.

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to examples. The objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be readily understood from the following examples. The present invention is not limited to the examples described herein, and may be embodied in other forms. The examples presented herein are provided so that the disclosed content will be thorough and complete, and so that the concept of the present invention will be fully conveyed to those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Therefore, the present invention should not be limited by the following examples.

In this specification, terms such as first, second, etc. are used to describe various elements, but the elements should not be limited by such terms. These terms are used merely to distinguish the elements from one another. Also, when a layer (film) is referred to as being on another layer (film) or substrate, it means that it can be formed directly on the other layer (film) or substrate, or that a third layer (film) can be interposed between them.

In the drawings, the size of elements or the relative size between elements may be somewhat exaggerated to provide a clearer understanding of the present invention. In addition, the shapes of the illustrated elements may be somewhat changed due to variations in the manufacturing process. Therefore, unless otherwise specified, the embodiments disclosed in this specification should not be limited to the shapes illustrated, and should be understood to include a certain degree of modification.

Figure 1 is a diagram showing the general structure of a virtual golf device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the main components of the virtual golf device of Figure 1.

1 and 2, the virtual golf device includes a striking plate (P), a sensing unit (10), an input unit (20), a simulator (30), and a display unit (40). The striking plate (P) is provided with a striking mat (M) on which a golf ball for hitting is placed, and the golf ball can be automatically provided on the striking mat (M) by another means such as an auto tee.

The sensing unit (10) is for sensing the movement of the golf ball hit by the user and grasping the overall status information of the hit golf ball, and may use sensing means such as a camera capable of photographing the movement of the golf ball or a sensing sensor capable of sensing the movement of the golf ball. The sensing means may use various sensing methods such as image sensing, light emission/reception sensing, and laser sensing, and such sensing methods may be used to grasp the status information of the golf ball hit by the user. The camera and the sensing sensor may be used alone or together. Also, only one or more may be used.

The input unit (20) is for receiving various information from the user, and may be a keyboard, mouse, or the like. In screen golf, there may be cases where the user needs to input information, such as when the user inputs his or her own ID or password, or when the user selects the golf course or difficulty level he or she wants to play, and the input unit (20) is provided for such cases.

The input data from the input unit (20) is transmitted to the simulator (30) for processing. For example, when a user inputs a golf course that he or she wants to play, the simulator (30) operates so that the input virtual golf course is displayed to the user through the display unit (40). In this way, the simulator (30) processes various requests from the user while controlling the overall operation of the virtual golf device. As shown in FIG. 2, the simulator (30) includes a control unit (31), an image unit (32), and a database (33). The control unit (31) performs various control operations and calculates the movement of the golf ball hit by the user, the image unit (32) generates images to be displayed to the user, and the database (33) stores data necessary for the operation of the control unit (31) and the image unit (32).

The display unit (40) includes a beam projector (41) and a screen (42). The beam projector (41) projects golf-related image data onto the screen (42), which displays the projected image and provides it to the user. The golf ball and golf course displayed on the screen (42) are virtual golf balls and virtual golf courses in the image. In this specification, they are named with the term "virtual". In order to avoid confusion between the actual golf ball (Real Ball) that the user actually places on the striking plate (P) and hits, and the virtual golf ball (Virtual Ball) displayed in the image, the golf ball displayed in the image is named a "virtual golf ball". As with the "virtual golf ball", the modifier "virtual" is added to an object to indicate that it is an object in the image. For example, a "virtual golf course" does not refer to a golf course on an actual golf course, but rather means that the golf course on a golf course is represented as an image on a screen. The actual golf ball being hit may also be named an "actual golf ball" if necessary, to prevent confusion with the virtual golf ball in the video.

The virtual golf device according to the present embodiment is a device that is installed in a screen golf course to allow a user to play screen golf, and the general operation when a user plays screen golf is as follows. When a user hits a golf ball, the sensor unit (10) senses the physical state of the golf ball hit by the user, such as the speed and moving direction. The sensing data sensed by the sensor unit (10) is transmitted to the simulator (30), and the simulator (30) performs a calculation process based on the transmitted sensing data to calculate the trajectory of the golf ball when the user hits the golf ball on an actual outdoor golf course. The calculation process is performed by the control unit (31), and for this purpose, the control unit (31) may include a calculation program and the like installed in the simulator (30). After the calculation process is completed, the image unit (32) generates image data in which the virtual golf ball moves according to the calculated result, and the image data is transmitted to the display unit (40) and displayed.

Figure 3 is a detailed view of a hitting mat in the virtual golf device of Figure 1, and Figure 4 is a view of a virtual golf course that can be displayed on the screen of the virtual golf device of Figure 1.

Referring to FIG. 3, the hitting mat (M) used in the virtual golf device according to this embodiment is divided into a plurality of regions. Specifically, the hitting mat (M) is divided into a first hitting region (1) and a second hitting region (2), and the hitting difficulty and/or hitting feel in the first and second hitting regions (1, 2) are different from each other. In addition, the second region (2) is divided into two sub-regions (2a, 2b) having different hitting difficulty and/or hitting feel. Therefore, overall, the hitting mat (M) is divided into three regions having different hitting difficulty and/or hitting feel. The plurality of divided regions of the hitting mat (M) can be formed to correspond to various attributes and terrains having various hitting difficulty on an actual golf course.

In an actual golf course, there are various types of landforms such as fairways, roughs, bunkers, and water hazards. The rough is an area where the grass is longer than that of a fairway, and it is more difficult to hit a ball in the rough where the grass is longer than that of a fairway where the grass is shorter, and the hitting feeling is different and the hitting difficulty is high. In addition, the bunker is an area where it is more difficult to hit a ball because of the sand, and the hitting feeling is different and the hitting difficulty is high compared to the grass areas (fairways, roughs). The first hitting area (1) of the hitting mat (M) corresponds to a fairway, which has the lowest hitting difficulty in actual golf, and the second hitting area (2) corresponds to a non-fairway, which has a higher hitting difficulty than a fairway (in this specification, an area where the hitting difficulty is higher than a fairway, such as roughs and bunkers, is referred to as "non-fairways"), and the two sub-areas (2a, 2b) of the second hitting area (2) can be formed to correspond to the rough and bunker, which have different hitting difficulty from each other. For example, one sub-area (2a) of the first hitting area (1) and the second hitting area (2) of the hitting mat (M) can be made of artificial turf of different lengths to correspond to the fairway and the rough, and the other sub-area (2b) of the second hitting area (2) of the hitting mat (M) can be made of a material that can give a hitting sensation similar to hitting sand.

In actual golf, there are other landforms besides the fairway, rough, and bunkers, such as water hazards, and the rough and bunkers are also subdivided into light rough, heavy rough, fairway bunkers, and green bunkers, so the hitting mat (M) can be formed in various structures to reflect the various landform attributes of an actual golf course, and is not necessarily limited to the structure shown in FIG. 3. However, in an actual golf course, the rough and bunkers generally occupy a larger area than other areas in the non-fairway, so in the following, the two sub-areas (2a, 2b) of the second hitting area (2) are named the rough area and the bunker area, respectively, and the first and second hitting areas (1, 2) are named the fairway area and the non-fairway area, respectively.

Referring to FIG. 4, a virtual golf course is displayed on the screen (42), and the virtual golf course is provided as an image that directly represents an actual golf course. Therefore, just as an actual golf course has terrains with various attributes such as fairways, rough, bunkers, etc., the virtual golf course on the screen (42) also displays terrains with various attributes such as virtual fairways, virtual rough, virtual bunkers, etc.

When a user hits a golf ball, the user actually hits an actual golf ball on a hitting mat (M), but in the setting for playing screen golf, it is assumed that the user hits the golf ball at the point where the virtual golf ball on the screen (42) is placed. For example, if the virtual golf ball in the screen (42) is placed on a virtual fairway, it is assumed that the user hits a golf ball placed in the fairway area, and if the virtual golf ball in the screen (42) is placed on a virtual rough, it is assumed that the user hits a golf ball placed in the rough. In real golf, the difficulty of hitting and the feeling of hitting differ when hitting on a fairway and a non-fairway (rough, bunker, etc.), and in order to reproduce the difference in difficulty of hitting and the feeling of hitting in real golf in screen golf, the hitting mat (M) of the virtual golf device according to this embodiment is divided into multiple areas. Therefore, in order to experience the difference in hitting difficulty and hitting feeling depending on the area in real golf, the user needs to place and hit the golf ball in the fairway area (first area (1)) of the hitting mat (M) when the virtual golf ball in the screen (42) is placed on the virtual fairway, and to place and hit the golf ball in the area (second area (2)) of the hitting mat (M) corresponding to the non-fairway when the virtual golf ball in the screen (42) is placed on the virtual non-fairway. In short, the user needs to play after placing the actual golf ball so that the area where the virtual golf ball in the screen (42) is placed corresponds to the area where the actual golf ball is placed on the hitting mat (M). However, the user may place the actual golf ball in the wrong position on the hitting mat (M) intentionally or by mistake. In the present invention, a specific operation method that takes such a case into consideration can be applied.

Figure 5 is a flow chart showing an operating method that can be applied to the virtual goal device of Figure 1, Figures 6 and 7 are diagrams for explaining the calculation process of Figure 5, Figures 8 and 9 are diagrams for explaining the adjustment process of Figure 5, and Figures 10 to 13 are diagrams showing various detailed structures of the database of Figure 2.

Referring to FIG. 5, an operating method applicable to the virtual golf device includes a sensing step (S10), a calculating step (S20), and a display step (S30). Since this operating method can be applied to the virtual golf device of FIG. 1, the following description uses the drawing reference numbers used in FIG. 1 to FIG. 4 for the virtual golf device.

In the sensing step (S10), the sensing unit (10) senses where the actual golf ball to be hit by the user is located on the hitting mat (M) and the physical state of the golf ball hit by the user. In the calculation step (S20), the control unit (31) calculates the movement of the virtual golf ball on the virtual golf course based on the sensing result in the sensing step (S10). In the display step (S30), the display unit (40) displays an image of the virtual golf course and the virtual golf ball based on the calculation result in the calculation step (S20).

In the above steps, the calculation step (S20) includes a number of sub-steps. Specifically, the calculation step (S20) checks in a first sub-step (S21) whether the area on the hitting mat (M) where the actual golf ball is placed corresponds to the area on the virtual golf course on the screen (42) where the virtual golf ball is placed. If the result of the check is YES, the calculation process is performed in a second sub-step (S22). If the result is NO, the calculation process and adjustment process are performed in a third and fourth sub-step (S23, S24), respectively.

Figure 6 shows an example where the area where the real golf ball (RB) is placed on the hitting mat corresponds to the area where the virtual golf ball (VB) is placed on the virtual golf course of the screen as a result of the check in the first substep (S21). Referring to (a) of Figure 6, when the virtual golf ball (VB) is located on the virtual fairway on the virtual golf course of the screen, if the real golf ball (RB) is placed on the fairway area of the hitting mat, the virtual golf ball (VB) and the real golf ball (RB) are located in the corresponding areas. Also, when the virtual golf ball (VB) is located on the virtual rough on the virtual golf course of the screen and the real golf ball (RB) is placed in the rough area of the hitting mat ((b) of Figure 6), and when the virtual golf ball (VB) is located in the virtual bunker on the virtual golf course of the screen and the real golf ball (RB) is placed in the bunker area of the hitting mat ((c) of Figure 6), the virtual golf ball (VB) and the real golf ball (RB) are located in the corresponding areas. In other words, the three cases shown in FIG. 6 show cases where an actual golf ball (RB) is placed in a corresponding area of the hitting mat and hit in accordance with the attributes and hitting difficulty of the terrain where the virtual golf ball (VB) is located on the virtual golf course on the screen.

As described above, when the area where the real golf ball (RB) is placed on the hitting mat corresponds to the area where the virtual golf ball (VB) is located on the virtual golf course of the screen, a normal calculation process is performed. In the normal calculation process, the movement of the virtual golf ball is calculated based on the state of the real golf ball hit by the user. Specifically, referring to FIG. 7, the real golf ball hit by the user is checked and parameters indicating the physical state of the ball (B1) after hitting are sensed. The parameters include the velocity (V1) of the ball (B1), the spin (S1) indicating the rotation of the ball (B1), the azimuth angle (φ1) indicating the direction on the horizontal plane of the ball (B1) flying due to the hit, and the vertical angle (θ1) indicating the angle at which the ball (B1) is tilted with respect to the horizontal plane. By applying a calculation model that uses the laws of physics based on parameters such as speed (V1), spin (S1), azimuth angle (φ1), and elevation angle (θ1), the trajectory (T1) of the ball (B1) can be calculated. This process of calculating the trajectory (T1) of the virtual golf ball from the physical state of the ball (B1) is the normal calculation process.

In the above calculation process, the parameters such as the speed (V1), spin (S1), azimuth angle (φ1), and elevation angle (θ1) are merely examples and are not limited to those described here. In other words, other parameters can be added to calculate the trajectory (T1) more precisely, or some parameters can be omitted to perform the calculation process simply and quickly.

Figure 8 shows an example where the area where the real golf ball (RB) is placed on the hitting mat does not correspond to the area where the virtual golf ball (VB) is placed on the virtual golf course of the screen as a result of the check in the first substep (S21). As shown in (a) and (b) of Figure 8, when the virtual golf ball (VB) is placed in the virtual rough or virtual bunker on the virtual golf course of the screen, if the real golf ball (RB) is placed in the fairway area of the hitting mat, the virtual golf ball (VB) and the real golf ball (RB) are located in areas that do not correspond to each other. Also, as shown in (c) of Figure 8, when the virtual golf ball (VB) is placed in the virtual bunker on the virtual course of the screen and the real golf ball (RB) is placed in the rough area of the hitting mat, the virtual golf ball (VB) and the real golf ball (RB) are located in areas that do not correspond to each other.

Since the feeling of hitting and the difficulty of hitting are different in the fairway, the rough, and the bunker, it can be considered as a fair play for the user to place and hit the actual golf ball (RB) in an area on the hitting mat that has a hitting difficulty corresponding to the hitting difficulty of the area where the virtual golf ball (VB) is placed on the virtual golf course. For example, referring to the case illustrated in (a) of FIG. 8, since the virtual golf ball (VB) is placed in the virtual rough on the screen, the user must place and hit the actual golf ball (RB) in the rough area of the hitting mat corresponding to this. However, since the actual golf ball (RB) is actually placed in the fairway area, which has a lower hitting difficulty than the rough area, it is hit in a state of hitting difficulty lower than when the virtual golf course is used as a reference, which can be considered as unfair. When a user plays alone, there is no problem with playing in any way according to his/her wishes, but when multiple users play together, there may be a problem if some users play in an unfair way. There are various positions on such unfair playing methods. For example, it may be considered unacceptable for a particular user to obtain an unfair advantage by playing with a lower hitting difficulty level in a different way than other users, and in such a case, it may be necessary to impose a penalty on that user. Alternatively, if the user is a beginner, it may be considered acceptable to give the user a certain degree of advantage in consideration of the fact that he or she is a beginner. In order to reflect the above various viewpoints, in this operating method, after performing a normal calculation process in the third step (S23), an additional adjustment process can be performed in the fourth step (S24).

9(I), in the calculation process in the third step (S23), the actual golf ball hit by the user is checked to detect parameters (speed (V1), spin (S1), azimuth angle (φ1), vertical angle (θ1), etc.) indicating the physical state of the ball (B1) after the hit, and the trajectory (T1) of the ball (B1) is calculated based on the detection result, and as a result, the landing position of the ball (B1) according to the trajectory becomes the first position (P1). In the adjustment process in the fourth step (S24), the flight distance of the trajectory (T1) according to the calculation process can be reduced by a predetermined distance (Δ1). As a result, the landing position of the ball (B1) after the adjustment process becomes the second position (P2), and the trajectory (T2) of the ball (B1) can be changed accordingly. Alternatively, referring to FIG. 9 (III), in the adjustment process in the fourth step (S24), the flight distance of the trajectory (T1) calculated in the above calculation process can be increased by a predetermined distance (Δ2). As a result, the landing position of the ball (B1) after the adjustment process becomes the third position (P3), and the trajectory (T3) of the ball (B1) can be changed accordingly.

As described above, in the adjustment process, the flying distance calculated in the calculation process can be decreased or increased. In the adjustment process, decreasing the flying distance can be a penalty for the user, and increasing the flying distance can be an advantage for the user. Golf is a sport in which the golfer who takes the fewest total strokes to get the golf ball into the hole cup wins, and as the flying distance increases, the golf ball approaches the hole cup, so the possibility of reducing the number of strokes increases. Therefore, the more the flying distance is decreased, the more disadvantageous it is to the user, which is a penalty, and the more the flying distance is increased, the more advantageous it is to the user, which is an advantage. According to this operation method, when the area on the hitting mat where the actual golf ball is located and the topography on the virtual golf course where the virtual golf ball lands do not correspond to each other, hitting in such a state can be considered as unfair play, and as a countermeasure against unfair play, the user is given a penalty to decrease the flying distance or an advantage to increase the flying distance through the adjustment process. Here, the adjustment process can be omitted, which does not decrease or increase the flying distance, but is a kind of advantage. This is because, if the terrain on the virtual golf course where the virtual golf ball lands is rough or a bunker, placing the golf ball on the fairway area of the hitting mat, which is less difficult to hit than the rough or a bunker, is already advantageous to the user.

There are various methods for determining whether to increase/decrease the flying distance, how much to increase/decrease the flying distance, or whether to skip the flying distance adjustment process. As an example, the above items can be determined according to the level of the user. Here, the level of the user can be calculated based on the playing information of the user. Since screen golf courses are usually operated on a membership basis, a login process is performed to confirm the identity of the member before providing the screen golf service. After the login process, the screen golf service is provided with the user's identity confirmed, and while the confirmed user plays screen golf, the play record of the user can be stored in the database (33). The level of the user can be determined by utilizing the play record stored in the database (33). User information can be stored in the database (33) in various ways, and some examples will be described with reference to the drawings.

Referring to FIG. 10, the database assigns different storages to a plurality of users, and various information is stored in the storages assigned to each user. For example, if there are users A and B, the database is divided into a storage (P1) for storing information of user A and a storage (P2) for storing information of user B, and the area for each user includes a user personal information DB, a user play information DB, a user level information DB, and the like. The user personal information DB stores the user's personal information and can be used for login processes, etc. The user play information DB stores the user's play records and can be provided for the user to view. The user level information DB records the level evaluated for the user and can be provided for the user to view. The user's level is not fixed, but can be changed accordingly when the user's play records are updated.

The user's level can be calculated based on data stored in the user's play information DB. The user's play information DB may include the number of plays, play time, play records, etc. The greater the number of plays or play time, the more the user plays, and generally the more the user plays, the more the user's skill improves and the higher the level can be. In addition, in relation to the user's play records, for example, the average number of strokes, driver distance, fairway landing rate, green accuracy, average number of puttings, etc. may be calculated and stored from the user's past records, and at least any of these may be used to calculate the level.

Stroke average refers to the average number of strokes recorded by the user, divided by the number of holes. On a golf course that generally consists of 18 holes, the total number of strokes required is 72, and professional golfers record strokes in their late 60s or early 70s, while average golfers are considered advanced if they record within 80 strokes. Stroke average can be seen as an indication of a golfer's ability from a comprehensive perspective.

In addition to the average number of strokes, driver distance, fairway landing rate, green accuracy, average number of putts, etc. can be used to calculate the level. Driver distance indicates the distance that the golf ball flies with a driver shot. In golf, the ultimate goal is to reduce the number of strokes, so if the driving distance is longer than others, the possibility of reducing the number of strokes increases. The driving distance is not increased simply by having good power, but is influenced by technical aspects such as the swing posture and the swing accuracy at the time of impact with the golf ball, so the longer the driving distance, the higher the user level can be seen. Fairway landing rate is a numerical value that indicates the percentage of tee shots with a driver that land on the fairway (without falling into the rough or bunker). Green accuracy is a percentage that indicates the number of times the golf ball landed on the green within the specified number of strokes. Average number of putts indicates the average number of times the ball was putted from the on-green state until it was in the hole. The driver distance indicates the driver's ability to hit long shots, the fairway landing rate and green accuracy indicate the accuracy of the shots, and the average number of puttings indicates the accuracy of the putting, so at least one of these can be used to calculate the user's level.

The average number of strokes indicates the golfer's ability from an overall perspective, while the driver distance, fairway landing rate, green accuracy, average number of puttings, etc. indicate the golfer's ability in specific, detailed aspects, so by appropriately combining these, the user's level can be accurately calculated.

As described above, if the user's level is calculated, it can be stored in the user level information DB. In addition, the user level information DB can store data on how to handle the adjustment process based on the user's level. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, if it is determined that a specific user (user A) has a low level and needs to be given an advantage, data on how much the flying distance should be increased in the adjustment process can be stored in the user level information DB (for example, 20% increase in flying distance as shown in FIG. 10). In addition, if it is determined that a specific user (user B) has a high level and does not need to be given an advantage, and a penalty should be given for unfair play, data on how much the flying distance should be reduced in the adjustment process can be stored in the user level information DB (for example, 10% reduction in flying distance as shown in FIG. 10). In addition, although not shown in FIG. 10, data on the omission of the adjustment process for a specific user can be stored in the user level information DB as an example of a method of giving an advantage. In the third and/or fourth steps (S23, S24), the control unit (31) refers to the user level information DB in the database to determine whether to increase/decrease the non-distance for a particular user, and can apply a predetermined distance increase/decrease to calculate the final distance for a particular hit.

Referring to FIG. 11, the database can store user information in a different manner from the above-mentioned manner. That is, instead of forming a separate user level information DB as shown in FIG. 10, the storage can be divided according to the user level. For example, if there are users A, B, C, and D, and users A and B belong to level 1 and users C and D belong to level 2, the database is divided into an area (N1) for users belonging to level 1 and an area (N2) for users belonging to level 2, and an area (P1) for storing information on user A and an area (P2) for storing information on user B are formed together in the level 1 area (N1), and an area (P3) for storing information on user C and an area (P4) for storing information on user D are formed together in the level 2 area (N2). If level 1 is the lowest level and the higher the number, the higher the level, the setting can be made so that users belonging to levels 1 and 2 can have their flying distance increased during the adjustment process. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, an area (N1) for users belonging to level 1 stores information on the maximum extent to which the flying distance can be increased for users of that level, and an area (N2) for users belonging to level 2 stores information on the extent to which the flying distance can be increased for users of that level under conditions where the increase in flying distance is smaller than that of users of level 1.

It can also be configured so that the user can set whether or not to increase/decrease the flight distance, the extent to which the flight distance is increased/decreased, or whether or not to skip the flight distance adjustment process. Referring to FIG. 12, the database is assigned a separate storage for each user for multiple users. Various information is stored in the area assigned to each user. For example, if there are users A and B, the database is divided into an area (P1) for storing information on user A and an area (P2) for storing information on user B, and the area for each user is provided with a user's personal information DB, a user's play information DB, a flight distance setting information DB, etc. Compared to the database structure described with reference to FIG. 10, the user's personal information DB and the user's play information DB are the same, but there is a difference in that a flight distance setting information DB is provided instead of a user's level information DB. In the flight distance setting information DB, the user can input whether or not to increase/decrease the flight distance in the adjustment process and the amount of increase/decrease in the flight distance due to the increase/decrease through the input unit (20), and the input data is stored in the flight distance setting information DB. In this case, a user level information DB for evaluating the user's level is not necessary, and in the third and/or fourth steps (S23, S24), the control unit (31) refers to the flight distance setting information DB and increases/decreases the flight distance according to the increase/decrease amount input by the corresponding user to calculate the final flight distance.

The user can set whether to increase/decrease the flight distance, the extent to which the flight distance is increased/decreased, or whether to skip the flight distance adjustment process, or it can be determined according to the user's level. Referring to FIG. 13, a storage is assigned to each user in the database, and various information is stored in the storage assigned to each user. That is, the area for each user includes a user's personal information DB, a user's play information DB, a user's level information DB, a flight distance setting information DB, etc. Compared with the database structure described with reference to FIG. 10, the user's personal information DB, the user's play information DB, and the user's level information DB are the same, and the difference is that a flight distance setting information DB is further included. In the flight distance setting information DB, the user can input whether to increase/decrease the flight distance during the adjustment process and the amount of increase/decrease in the flight distance due to the increase/decrease through the input unit (20), and the input data is stored in the flight distance setting information DB. In this case, in the third and/or fourth steps (S23, S24), the control unit (31) can refer to the contents of the flight distance setting information DB and increase/decrease the flight distance according to the increase/decrease amount input by the corresponding user to calculate the final flight distance. Also, when the user does not separately input whether or not to increase/decrease the flight distance in the adjustment process and the increase/decrease amount of the flight distance, the control unit (31) can refer to the user level information DB to determine whether to increase/decrease the flight distance for the user, and apply a predetermined increase/decrease amount of the flight distance to calculate the final flight distance for a specific hit.

As described above, this operation method applies a penalty of reducing the flying distance for unfair play to high-level users through an adjustment process according to the user's level, and applies an advantage of not reducing the flying distance or even increasing the flying distance for low-level users even in unfair play, thereby inducing fair play for advanced players and lowering the barrier to entry for beginners to enjoy playing golf even if there are unfair aspects. In addition, by allowing users to set the adjustment method themselves, it provides an opportunity for users to play in any way they like.

Figure 14 shows a schematic structure of a virtual golf device according to another embodiment of the present invention, Figures 15 and 16 are flowcharts showing an operating method that can be applied to the virtual golf device of Figure 14, and Figure 17 shows an example of a screen displayed on the screen of the virtual golf device of Figure 14.

Referring to FIG. 14, the virtual golf device according to this embodiment includes a plurality of screen golf courses (100), a central server (200), and a database (210) provided in the central server (200). The screen golf courses (100) are connected to the central server (200) via a wired or wireless communication network. Inside the screen golf course (100), a hitting plate (P), a hitting mat (M), a sensing unit (110), an input unit (120), a simulator (130), and a display unit (140). The simulator (130) includes a control unit and an image unit, and the display unit (140) includes a beam projector (141) and a screen (142). These components operate similarly to the components of the virtual golf device in the above-described embodiment described with reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, so detailed description of these will be omitted. In the above embodiment, the simulator includes a database, but in this embodiment, the database may be provided in the simulator (130), but this may be replaced by a database (210) provided in the central server (200). The central server (200) is used by a service provider that operates a plurality of screen golf courses (100) to efficiently manage the plurality of screen golf courses (100). A user who wishes to use a screen golf service first logs in to receive the service. When logging in, the central server (200) plays a role in confirming the identity of the user and determining whether or not to approve the login. The database (210) of the central server (200) stores information for confirming the identity of the user during the login process. In this way, if various information is stored in the database (210) of the central server (200), the user can use the information stored in the database (210) through the central server (200) regardless of which of the plurality of screen golf courses (100) the user uses.

The above-mentioned operation method (see FIG. 5) can be applied to the virtual golf device according to the present embodiment. That is, if the terrain on the screen where the virtual golf ball is placed corresponds to the area on the hitting mat where the actual golf ball is placed, a normal calculation process is performed, and if they do not correspond to each other, an adjustment process can be added after the normal calculation process. Whether or not the above adjustment process is performed and the reduction/increase in the flying distance during the adjustment process can be determined according to the level of the user. Alternatively, an operation method that is a slight modification of the above-mentioned operation method can be applied to the virtual golf device according to the present embodiment (this modified operation method can also be applied to the above-mentioned virtual golf device). In this modified operation method, the user selects in advance either a play method in which the actual golf ball is always placed in the non-fairway area of the hitting mat and hit when the virtual golf ball lands in the virtual non-fairway area (this is called the "first mode") or a play method in which the actual golf ball is always placed in the fairway area of the hitting mat and hit (this is called the "second mode"), and then plays according to the selected method.

The gist of the first mode is to see what virtual area a virtual golf ball is placed in on a virtual golf course, place the golf ball in the area on the striking mat (M) that corresponds to the virtual area where the virtual golf ball is placed, and then hit the golf ball. Referring to FIG. 15, in the first mode, the control unit of the simulator (130) first checks the area (for convenience, this is called "A") on the virtual golf course where the virtual golf ball is currently placed (S110). The sensing unit (110) also senses the area (for convenience, this is called "B") on the striking mat (M) where the actual golf ball is placed (S120) and transmits this to the control unit. The control unit checks whether A and B correspond (S130).

Here, examples of where A and B correspond include a case where the actual golf ball is located in a fairway area on the hitting mat (M) and the virtual golf ball is located in a virtual fairway on the virtual golf course (see FIG. 6(a)), a case where the actual golf ball is located in a rough area on the hitting mat (M) and the virtual golf ball is located in virtual rough on the virtual golf course (see FIG. 6(b)), and a case where the actual golf ball is located in a bunker area on the hitting mat (M) and the virtual golf ball is located in a virtual bunker on the virtual golf course (see FIG. 6(c)).

In the first mode, when A and B correspond as described above, when the user hits a golf ball (S141), the control unit grasps the physical state of the hit golf ball and calculates the trajectory of the virtual golf ball on the virtual golf course based on this (S142), and displays an image of the calculated result on the display unit (130) (S143).

When A and B are not compatible, the control unit advises the user to change the position of the golf ball on the hitting mat (M) to guide A and B to be compatible. For example, if the virtual golf ball is in the virtual bunker and the real golf ball is placed in the fairway area of the hitting mat (M), the display unit (140) displays the advice "Please move the golf ball to the bunker area of the hitting mat before hitting it" or displays a warning message "If you do not hit the golf ball after moving it to the bunker area of the hitting mat, your hit will be invalid" (S151). The control unit displays such advice once or several times, and after displaying the advice, it continues to check whether A and B are compatible (S130). However, if the user hits the golf ball when A and B are not compatible despite the above advice (S152), the control unit invalidates the user's hit (S153). Therefore, even though the user has hit the ball, the trajectory of the virtual golf ball is not calculated based on the hitting result, and the display unit (140) does not display an image of the moving virtual golf ball.

The gist of the second mode is that a golf ball is always placed in the fairway area on the hitting mat and hit, regardless of what virtual area the virtual golf ball is placed in on the virtual golf course. Generally, an auto tee is provided in the fairway area of the hitting mat (M), through which a golf ball to be hit is automatically provided to the fairway area. Therefore, in order for a user to place a golf ball in a non-fairway area and hit it, the user must directly move the golf ball that is automatically provided in the fairway area to the non-fairway area. From the user's perspective, there may be cases where the user thinks that moving the golf ball is a tedious task and wants to always hit only in the fairway area without moving the golf ball. Or, there may be cases where the user thinks that the non-fairway area is difficult to hit and does not feel good to hit, and wants to always hit only in the fairway area. For such users, the present invention provides a second mode separately from the first mode. In the second mode, even if the area on the virtual golf course where the virtual golf ball is placed does not match the area on the hitting mat (M) where the actual golf ball is placed, the hit is recognized as valid, and instead of being recognized in this way, the flight distance can be adjusted to be different from the original flight distance when calculating the trajectory of the virtual golf ball.

Referring to FIG. 16, in the second mode, the control unit of the simulator (130) first checks (2110) the area (for convenience, referred to as "A") on the virtual golf course where the virtual golf ball is currently placed. The sensing unit (110) also senses (S220) the area (for convenience, referred to as "B") on the hitting mat (M) where the actual golf ball is placed and transmits this to the control unit. Next, the control unit checks whether the actual golf ball is located in the fairway area of the hitting mat (M) (S230).

Here, when the actual golf ball is located in the fairway area of the hitting mat (M), there are three possible cases in which the virtual golf ball can be located. That is, [1] the actual golf ball is located in the fairway area on the hitting mat (M) and the virtual golf ball is located in the virtual fairway on the virtual golf course (see FIG. 6(a)), [2] the actual golf ball is located in the fairway area on the hitting mat (M) and the virtual golf ball is located in the virtual rough on the virtual golf course (see FIG. 8(a)), and [3] the actual golf ball is located in the fairway area on the hitting mat (M) and the virtual golf ball is located in the virtual bunker on the virtual golf course (see FIG. 8(b)). In [1], the actual golf ball is hit in an area of the hitting mat (M) that matches the attributes of the area (fairway) in which the virtual golf ball is placed on the virtual golf course, and that has the same attributes. In comparison, in [2] and [3], the actual golf ball is hit in an area of the hitting mat (M) that does not match the attributes of the area (non-fairway) in which the virtual golf ball is placed on the virtual golf course, and that has a different attribute. Considering that non-fairways are more difficult to hit than fairways, [1] can be considered fair play, and [2] and [3] can be considered unfair play.

In the second mode, if the actual golf ball is not located in the fairway area of the hitting mat (M), the control unit advises the user to move the actual golf ball to the fairway area of the hitting mat (M) (S251). However, since the actual golf ball is generally provided in the fairway area when the auto tee is installed, if the user does not move the actual golf ball, the actual golf ball is unlikely to be located in an area other than the fairway area. However, due to user error (for example, a user who first selects the second mode mistakenly thinks that he or she is playing in the first mode and changes the position of the golf ball provided by the auto tee), the golf ball may be located in an area other than the fairway area.

In any case, when the golf ball is not located in the fairway area of the hitting mat (M), the display unit (140) displays the advice "Please move the golf ball to the fairway area of the hitting mat before hitting it," or displays a warning message "If you do not hit the golf ball after moving it to the fairway area of the hitting mat, your hit will be invalid" (S251). The control unit displays such advice once or several times, and if the user hits the golf ball despite the advice (S252), the control unit invalidates the user's hit (S253). When invalidating the hit, the trajectory of the virtual golf ball is not calculated based on the hitting result, even though the user has hit the ball, and the display unit (140) does not display an image of the moving virtual golf ball.

When a user hits a real golf ball placed on a fairway area (S241), the control unit grasps the physical state of the hit golf ball and calculates the trajectory of the virtual golf ball on the virtual golf course based on the physical state, and can adjust the flight distance of the calculated trajectory (S242), and then displays the virtual golf ball moving along the calculated trajectory or the calculated adjusted trajectory on the display unit (140) (S243).

In the process of adjusting the flying distance, the calculated flying distance can be decreased, or the calculated flying distance can be maintained as it is, or the calculated flying distance can be increased. When A and B correspond to each other as in [1] above, the calculated flying distance of the trajectory can be maintained as it is, and when A and B do not correspond to each other as in [2] and [3] above, the calculated flying distance of the trajectory can be decreased as a kind of penalty for the user's unfair play. Alternatively, if the user is a beginner, the flying distance can be increased in the adjustment process. There are various methods for determining whether to increase/decrease the flying distance, how much to increase/decrease the flying distance, or whether to skip the flying distance adjustment process. For example, the above items can be determined according to the level of the user, or the user can determine and set the processing for the above items by himself. In this case, the method described with reference to FIG. 10 to FIG. 13 can be applied.

Referring to FIG. 17, when a plurality of users play in various play modes selected by themselves, images of a virtual golf course and a virtual golf ball are displayed on the screen of the display unit (140), and windows (W1, W2) for each of the plurality of users are displayed separately. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 17(a), the windows (W1, W2) for the plurality of users can be displayed on the screen together. Or, as shown in FIG. 17(b), only the windows of a particular user among the plurality of users can be displayed alternately. For example, when a user with a nickname "Kim Pro" and a user with a nickname "Lee Pro" play together, only the window (W1) for the user with the nickname "Kim Pro" can be displayed in the order in which the user with the nickname "Kim Pro" must hit, and only the window (W2) for the user with the nickname "Lee Pro" can be displayed in the order in which the user with the nickname "Lee Pro" must hit. The user windows (W1, W2) display simple information for each user (ID, nickname, personal record, etc.), and also display the play mode selected by each user. Therefore, each user can check the mode they are playing at any time by referring to their own window (W1, W2), and can play without violating the rules established for each mode.

According to this embodiment, the user can select the play mode by himself/herself, so that the user can enjoy playing screen golf in various ways in the play mode that he/she desires.

Specific examples of the present invention have been discussed above. Those skilled in the art will understand that the present invention can be embodied in modified forms without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the disclosed embodiments should be considered in an illustrative rather than restrictive sense. The scope of the present invention is defined in the claims, not in the above description, and all differences within the scope of the equivalents should be interpreted as being included in the present invention.
The claims as originally filed are as follows:
Claim 1:
a hitting mat on which an actual golf ball is placed for the user to hit;
a sensor unit for sensing a state of the actual golf ball hit by a user;
a control unit that calculates a movement of a virtual golf ball on a virtual golf course based on a result of the detection by the detection unit;
a display unit that displays an image of the virtual golf course and the virtual golf ball;
Including,
The striking mat includes a first striking area and a second striking area;
the virtual golf course includes a first virtual area corresponding to the first hitting area and a second virtual area corresponding to the second hitting area;
The control unit may perform a calculation process of calculating the movement of the virtual golf ball based on the state of the actual golf ball hit by the user, and then may perform an adjustment process of adjusting the flight distance according to the calculated trajectory.
Virtual golf equipment.
Claim 2:
The virtual golf device of claim 1 , wherein the control unit further performs the adjustment process when the real golf ball and the virtual golf ball are located in areas not corresponding to each other when the user hits the real golf ball.
Claim 3:
The virtual golf device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit decreases or increases a flying distance according to the calculated trajectory in the adjustment process.
Claim 4:
The virtual golf device according to claim 3, wherein in the adjustment process, whether or not to decrease/increase the flying distance and the amount of decrease/increase in the flying distance are determined according to the user's level.
Claim 5:
4. The virtual golf device according to claim 3, wherein the user can set whether or not the flying distance is to be decreased/increased and the amount of decrease/increase in the flying distance during the adjustment process.
Claim 6:
the first hitting area is a fairway area, the second hitting area is a non-fairway area, the first virtual area is a virtual fairway area, and the second virtual area is a virtual non-fairway area;
6. The virtual golf device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit further performs the adjustment process when the virtual golf ball is located in the virtual non-fairway area and the actual golf ball is located in the fairway area when the user hits the ball.
Claim 7:
1. A method of operating a virtual golf device, comprising:
The virtual golf device includes:
a hitting mat on which an actual golf ball is placed for the user to hit;
a sensing unit for sensing a state of the actual golf ball hit by a user;
a control unit that calculates a movement of a virtual golf ball on a virtual golf course based on a detection result of the detection unit;
a display unit that displays an image of the virtual golf course and the virtual golf ball;
Including,
The hitting mat includes a first hitting area and a second hitting area, and the virtual golf course includes a first virtual area corresponding to the first hitting area and a second virtual area corresponding to the second hitting area,
Detecting whether the real golf ball and the virtual golf ball are located in corresponding areas when a user hits the real golf ball;
performing a calculation process of calculating a motion of the virtual golf ball based on a state of the actual golf ball hit by the user when the actual golf ball and the virtual golf ball are located in a non-corresponding area when the actual golf ball and the virtual golf ball are hit by the user, and performing an adjustment process of adjusting a non-distance according to the calculated trajectory;
including
A method of operation of a virtual golf device.

10: Sensor
20: Input section
30: Simulator
40: Display unit
100: Screen golf course
200: Central Server M: Striking Mat P: Striking Plate

Claims (5)

a hitting mat on which an actual golf ball is placed for the user to hit;
a sensor unit for sensing a state of the actual golf ball hit by a user;
a control unit that calculates a movement of a virtual golf ball on a virtual golf course based on a result of the detection by the detection unit;
a display unit that displays an image of the virtual golf course and the virtual golf ball ;
Including,
The striking mat includes a first striking area and a second striking area;
the virtual golf course includes a first virtual area corresponding to the first hitting area and a second virtual area corresponding to the second hitting area;
The control unit may perform a calculation process of calculating a movement of the virtual golf ball based on a state of an actual golf ball hit by a user, and then may further perform an adjustment process of adjusting a flight distance according to the calculated trajectory ,
The control unit decreases or increases the flight distance according to the calculated trajectory in the adjustment process,
In the adjustment process, whether or not the flight distance can be decreased/increased and the amount of decrease/increase in flight distance are determined according to the user's level.
Virtual golf equipment. The virtual golf device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit further performs the adjustment process when the actual golf ball and the virtual golf ball are located in areas that do not correspond to each other when the user hits the ball. The virtual golf device according to claim 1 , wherein the level of the user is calculated based on at least one of the number of times the user has played, the playing time, and the playing record of the user . the first hitting area is a fairway area, the second hitting area is a non-fairway area, the first virtual area is a virtual fairway area, and the second virtual area is a virtual non-fairway area;
4. The virtual golf device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit further performs the adjustment process when the virtual golf ball is located in the virtual non-fairway area and the actual golf ball is located in the fairway area when the user hits the ball. 1. A method of operating a virtual golf device, comprising:
The virtual golf device includes:
a hitting mat on which an actual golf ball is placed for the user to hit;
a sensor unit for sensing a state of the actual golf ball hit by a user ;
a control unit that calculates a movement of a virtual golf ball on a virtual golf course based on a result of the detection by the detection unit;
a display unit that displays an image of the virtual golf course and the virtual golf ball ;
Including,
The hitting mat includes a first hitting area and a second hitting area, and the virtual golf course includes a first virtual area corresponding to the first hitting area and a second virtual area corresponding to the second hitting area,
Detecting whether the real golf ball and the virtual golf ball are located in corresponding areas when a user hits the real golf ball;
performing a calculation process of calculating a movement of the virtual golf ball based on a state of the actual golf ball hit by the user when the actual golf ball and the virtual golf ball are located in a non-corresponding area when the actual golf ball and the virtual golf ball are hit by the user, and further performing an adjustment process of adjusting a flight distance according to the calculated trajectory ;
Including,
The control unit decreases or increases the flight distance according to the calculated trajectory in the adjustment process,
In the adjustment process, whether or not the flight distance can be decreased/increased and the amount of decrease/increase in flight distance are determined according to the user's level.
A method of operation of a virtual golf device.