Obviousness

Obviousness Analysis under 35 U.S.C. § 103 for US Patent 8781610

This analysis identifies combinations of prior art references that would render the claims of US Patent 8781610 obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art (PHOSITA) as of its priority date of April 29, 2011 [cite: The full patent text, under "Priority date"]. The primary aspects of US8781610's method and apparatus, as described in its Summary, revolve around:

1. Obtaining motion parameters over time.
2. Extracting specific types of feature points (power-assisting path early stage, motion top point, and ball hitting time) using predetermined recognition tactics.
3. Recognizing a predetermined ball game type if the extracted feature points satisfy certain requirements.

The prior art references cited within US8781610 itself provide foundational technologies for motion parameter acquisition.

Prior Art References:

1. US Patent Publication No. US2008/0119269A1 ("GAME SYSTEM AND STORAGE MEDIUM STORING GAME PROGRAM"): Discloses a MEMS sensor device comprising IRDA arrays and a tri-axial accelerometer, which samples acceleration and uses infrared generators to calculate position on a two-dimensional surface. [cite: The full patent text, under "The first approach"]
2. US Patent Publication No. US2008/0049102A1 ("MOTION DETECTION SYSTEM AND METHOD"): Discloses a MEMS sensor device formed by an accelerometer and a gyroscope (or two accelerometers), capable of obtaining "full six-dimensional motion parameters (three-dimensional motion and three-dimensional rotation)." [cite: The full patent text, under "The second approach"]

Combination of US2008/0049102A1 and General Knowledge in Sports Motion Analysis

A PHOSITA in the field of motion recognition for sports, as of April 29, 2011, would find the core concepts of US8781610 obvious by combining the teachings of US2008/0049102A1 with common general knowledge in sports motion analysis and pattern recognition.

1. Obtaining Motion Parameters (Step A of the method claim):
US2008/0049102A1 explicitly teaches a "MOTION DETECTION SYSTEM AND METHOD" that "utilizes the MEMS sensor device formed by an accelerometer and a gyroscope... to obtain full six-dimensional motion parameters (three-dimensional motion and three-dimensional rotation)." [cite: The full patent text, under "The second approach"] This directly addresses the requirement of obtaining comprehensive motion parameters over time. Similarly, US2008/0119269A1 describes obtaining acceleration and position data. Therefore, the acquisition of motion parameters was well-established prior art.

2. Motivation for Combining and Analyzing Sports Motions:
The background section of US8781610 itself articulates a clear motivation for analyzing sports motions: "The technique of path and stance recognition for the spatial accelerated motion can be widely applicable in combination to human body action for detection of human body action in areas such as sports, games, movie technology, medical surgery simulation or action skill training." [cite: The full patent text, under "BACKGROUND"] It further states, "When motion parameters such as information of acceleration, velocity and position of a moving object are obtained, it is generally required to extract a section of integrated motion and to perform path display or expert evaluation based on the motion parameters of the integrated motion section." [cite: The full patent text, under "BACKGROUND"] Specifically for golf, the patent notes that "either professional golfers or amateur golfers would hope to obtain the motion parameters of the integrated motions of their swings to know the quality of the motions and to further obtain evaluation of the motions." [cite: The full patent text, under "BACKGROUND"] This pervasive need for sports motion analysis and evaluation would motivate a PHOSITA to apply motion detection systems like that taught in US2008/0049102A1 to sports activities.

3. Extracting Feature Points for Ball Games (Step B of the method claim):
Given the motivation to analyze sports motions, a PHOSITA would naturally proceed to identify characteristic phases or "feature points" within the acquired motion data. The three feature points claimed in US8781610—"power-assisting path early stage," "motion top point," and "ball hitting time"—are generalized descriptions of fundamental phases common to many ball games:

• Power-assisting path early stage: Represents the initial wind-up or preparation (e.g., golf "take back," soccer "lifting the leg backwards," badminton "raising the racket"). [cite: The full patent text, under "The recognition tactics of the power-assisting path early stage corresponding feature point", "Taking soccer as an example, the motion to kick the soccer ball has the components of lifting the leg backwards, reaching the top point, and kicking the ball", "Taking badminton as another example, the motion also has the components of raising the racket, reaching the top point, and swinging the racket"] A PHOSITA would readily understand that this involves initial movement, often with dominant velocity components in certain directions.
• Motion top point: Corresponds to the apex of the backswing or preparation, often characterized by a temporary change in direction or minimal velocity in a key dimension (e.g., golf "top swing," soccer "reaching the top point"). [cite: The full patent text, under "The recognition tactics of the motion top point corresponding feature point", "Taking soccer as an example, the motion to kick the soccer ball has the components of lifting the leg backwards, reaching the top point, and kicking the ball", "Taking badminton as another example, the motion also has the components of raising the racket, reaching the top point, and swinging the racket"] This is a standard concept in motion analysis.
• Ball hitting time: Corresponds to the impact or final action of the swing/kick (e.g., golf "impact," soccer "kicking the ball," badminton "swinging the racket"). [cite: The full patent text, under "The recognition tactics of the ball hitting time corresponding feature point", "Taking soccer as an example, the motion to kick the soccer ball has the components of lifting the leg backwards, reaching the top point, and kicking the ball", "Taking badminton as another example, the motion also has the components of raising the racket, reaching the top point, and swinging the racket"] A PHOSITA would be aware that impacts are characterized by sharp changes in acceleration or angular velocity.

The "recognition tactics" described in US8781610, such as using ratios of velocities in different dimensions, velocity thresholds, height, acceleration, and changes in position or stance, are all directly derivable from the six-dimensional motion parameters provided by a system like US2008/0049102A1. Developing algorithms based on these readily available kinematic and dynamic metrics to identify specific phases of a known sports motion falls within the realm of routine engineering and optimization for a PHOSITA engaged in sports performance analysis.

4. Recognizing the Motion as a Predetermined Ball Game Type (Step C of the method claim):
Once these characteristic feature points are extracted, recognizing the motion as a "predetermined ball game type" by evaluating "feature point requirements" (e.g., predetermined sequence, number, or graded weight values) is a conventional application of pattern recognition techniques. [cite: The full patent text, under "The feature point requirements of the predetermined ball game type"] Classifying human activities based on patterns of detected sub-events or features from sensor data was a well-known methodology in 2011. For example, if a specific sequence of the "power-assisting path early stage," "motion top point," and "ball hitting time" is detected, a system could logically classify it as a golf swing, soccer kick, or badminton smash, depending on the characteristics of the detected features.

Conclusion of Obviousness

The combination of US2008/0049102A1 (or US2008/0119269A1, or any similar system for obtaining comprehensive motion parameters) with the well-established need for sports motion analysis and the routine application of pattern recognition principles for activity classification would render the claims of US8781610 obvious under 35 U.S.C. § 103. A PHOSITA would have been motivated to combine these elements to develop systems for sports training and evaluation, as explicitly acknowledged by US8781610's own background. The identification of the specific "feature points" and their associated "recognition tactics" represents a predictable application of known analytical techniques to readily available motion data, rather than an inventive step.