Smartphone motion tracking system
A system for processing video of a sporting activity is disclosed. The system comprises: a plurality of portable electronic devices, each of which comprises at least one camera for capturing video of the sporting activity; and one or more aggregated data processing devices. Each portable electronic device is configured to: generate, using its camera(s), video data representative of the sporting activity; perform processing of the video data to generate video analysis data; and transfer the video analysis data to the aggregated data processing device(s). The aggregated data processing device(s) are configured to perform processing of the video analysis data, so as to generate activity analysis data. Apparatus for holding a portable electronic device is also disclosed, which comprises a housing, within which the portable electronic device can be mounted and enclosed, and an active cooling system for cooling the portable electronic device.
1 . A system for processing video of a sporting activity, the system comprising:
a plurality of portable electronic devices, each of which comprises at least one camera for capturing video of the sporting activity from a viewpoint of the electronic device; and
one or more aggregated data processing devices, which are, in use, in data communication with the plurality of portable electronic devices,
wherein each portable electronic device is configured to:
generate, using the at least one camera, video data representative of the sporting activity;
perform processing of the video data to generate video analysis data; and
transfer the video analysis data to the one or more aggregated data processing devices,
wherein the one or more aggregated data processing devices are configured to perform processing of the video analysis data from the plurality of portable electronic devices, so as to generate activity analysis data, and
wherein the system is configured, in use, to dynamically shift the processing of the video analysis data to one or more of the plurality of portable electronic devices that are not presently capturing video of the sporting activity so that the one or more portable electronic devices that are not presently capturing video of the sporting activity are used as one or more of the one or more aggregated data processing devices by:
receiving video analysis data from one or more of the plurality of portable electronic devices that are presently capturing video of the sporting activity; and
processing part or all of the video analysis data.
2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the processing of the video data by each portable electronic device comprises using at least one neural network.
3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the processing of the video data by each portable electronic device comprises using an object identification algorithm.
4 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the processing of the video data by each portable electronic device comprises using a spatiotemporal pattern recognition algorithm.
5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the processing of the video data by each portable electronic device comprises using a feature extraction algorithm.
6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the video analysis data generated by each portable electronic device comprises motion data representative of the motion, as viewed from the portable electronic device, of at least one of:
one or more sporting objects used by participants in the sporting activity;
one or more participants in the sporting activity; and
one or more body parts of participants in the sporting activity.
7 . The system of claim 6 , wherein the processing of the video analysis data comprises determining three-dimensional motion data based on the motion data received from the plurality of portable electronic devices.
8 . The system of claim 7 , wherein determining the three-dimensional motion data comprises using a triangulation algorithm.
9 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the video analysis data comprises participant identification data, which indicates the identity of one or more participants in the sporting activity.
10 . The system of claim 1 , wherein each portable electronic device is additionally configured to transfer to the one or more aggregated data processing devices reduced bitrate video data, which has a lower bitrate than the video data representative of the sporting activity generated by the at least one camera.
11 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of portable electronic devices are configured such that they do not transmit any data that is representative of video of the sporting activity to the one or more aggregated data processing devices.
12 . The system of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the one or more aggregated data processing devices are servers.
13 . The system of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the portable devices are smartphones.
14 . The system of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the portable electronic devices receive power, and are in data communication with the one or more aggregated data processing devices, using respective Power over Ethernet connections.
15 . The system of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the portable devices are in data communication with the one or more aggregated data processing devices using 5G.
16 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of portable electronic devices comprises at least 5 portable electronic devices.
17 . A method for processing video of a sporting activity, the method being performed by a system comprising:
a plurality of portable electronic devices, each of which comprises at least one camera for capturing video of the sporting activity from a viewpoint of the electronic device; and
one or more aggregated data processing devices, which are, in use, in data communication with the plurality of portable electronic devices,
the method comprising:
performing, by each portable electronic device:
generating, using the at least one camera, video data representative of the sporting activity;
performing processing of the video data to generate video analysis data; and
transferring the video analysis data to the one or more aggregated data processing devices;
processing, by the one or more aggregated data processing devices, the video analysis data from the plurality of portable electronic devices, so as to generate activity analysis data; and
dynamically shifting the processing of the video analysis data to one or more of the plurality of portable electronic devices that are not presently capturing video of the sporting activity so that the one or more portable electronic devices that are not presently capturing video of the sporting activity are used as one or more of the one or more aggregated data processing devices by:
receiving video analysis data from one or more of the plurality of portable electronic devices that are presently capturing video of the sporting activity; and
processing part or all of the video analysis data.
18 . A first portable electronic device for use as one of a plurality of portable electronic devices in a system for processing video of a sporting activity, the system comprising:
the plurality of portable electronic devices, each portable electronic device comprising at least one camera for capturing video of the sporting activity from a viewpoint of the electronic device; and
one or more aggregated data processing devices, which are, in use, in data communication with the plurality of portable electronic devices,
wherein each portable electronic device is configured to:
generate, using the at least one camera, video data representative of the sporting activity;
perform processing of the video data to generate video analysis data; and
transfer the video analysis data to the one or more aggregated data processing devices,
wherein the one or more aggregated data processing devices are configured to perform processing of the video analysis data from the plurality of portable electronic devices, so as to generate activity analysis data, and
wherein the system is configured to dynamically shift the processing of the video analysis data to one or more of the plurality of portable electronic devices that are not presently capturing video of the sporting activity so that the one or more portable electronic devices that are not presently capturing video of the sporting activity are used as one or more of the one or more aggregated data processing devices by:
receiving video analysis data from one or more of the plurality of portable electronic devices that are presently capturing video of the sporting activity; and
processing part or all of the video analysis data,
the first portable electronic device being configured to be used as one of the one or more aggregated data processing devices.