Patent Application
20150148139
The modern sport of fencing is hundreds of years old. Historically, referees and bout directors awarded points (or touches—where one opponent's weapon blade or tip makes contact with the target area of the other opponent) by visually observing two opponents and determining whether a touch occurred and whether the fencer scoring the touch should be awarded a point based on existing rules. The object of saber fencing, based on cavalry fencing on horseback, is to score touches by contacting a blade or tip of a fencer's weapon with an opponent's target area (above that opponent's waist including his arms and head). The object of foil fencing is to score touches by contacting the tip of a fencer's weapon with an opponent's target area (the opponent's torso). The object of epee fencing, based on first-blood duels, is to score touches by contacting the tip of a fencer's weapon with an opponent's target area (any part of the opponent's body). Each form of modern sport of fencing is very rapid. Often actions, contacts, and target areas are difficult to visually see. Modern fencing weapons are so light that skilled fencers can manipulate them with extreme speed in flurries of action. This speed renders it difficult to determine when touches are scored. Even where several officials are employed to judge a match, visual identification of scoring maneuvers is difficult. Disagreement between officials often occurs, due to the inconsistency in the quality of perspective enjoyed by the various officials. Moreover, judgment by visual observation is a subjective criterion, and the acuity of vision may vary among officials, and even in the same official.
In the 1970s electronic circuits were used to aid in awarding touches.
Foil fencing includes a similar configuration to the saber configuration of
Epee fencing includes a similar configuration to the saber configuration of
A problem associated with the state of the art fencing system is that electrical scoring apparatuses are often difficult to see for fencers and referees who must rapidly turn their attention from the fencing action to observe indicator lights on the apparatus. They can be confusing to spectators who have to associate one color light with each fencer and often are unsure which light represents which fencer. One way to combat this to include indicator lights in a fencer's mask. When a touch is scored, lights or LED arrays situated in a fencers mask illuminate based on control signals from electrical scoring apparatus 10. Control signals can be sent wirelessly or via a wired connection. Illuminating masks are helpful in that they allow easy viewing when touches are scored by fencers, referees, and observers. However, they are often costly and may require after market electronics and batteries in order to function properly. Also, each fencer is only able to see the mask of the other which indicates a touch scored. They are unable to see the indicator contained in their own mask or may not have a mask that contains indicators. Thus they may have to look to an external scoring apparatus 10 to determine whether they also scored a touch which requires altering a field of view away from the fencing action.
Alternatively an external device situated either on the fencers' garments or connected to the fencer's weapon may emit a signal indicator such as a light or sound. These devices are often less costly, however, they are of limited use in that they can easily be misheard and do not offer a convenient vantage for fencers, referees, and observers.
The invention overcomes the problems of the prior art by providing at least one indicator light or an array of lights within the guard of a fencer's weapon. Such a light or array of lights visibly makes clear indication of which fencer made contact and can easily be observed in the course of action during a fencing match.
The invention achieves this in a first aspect by a fencing weapon which includes a blade portion; a handle; and a guard portion having an integrated indicator device.
In one embodiment the integrated indicator device further can be an indicator light and in another embodiment it can be an array of indicator lights.
In one embodiment, the indicator light receives a signal from an electrical scoring apparatus and in other embodiments the electrical scoring apparatus is contained within the fencing weapon itself or is located remotely from the fencing weapon.
Indicator lights can be light emitting diodes and can be recessed below an outer surface of said guard portion to prevent that contacting it with an opponent's weapon or weapon tip will register a valid touch.
In one embodiment, the fencing weapon includes a power source for providing power to the integrated indicator device. In another embodiment, the fencing weapon comprises a counter for outputting a count of indicator signals and a memory for storing the count. The integrated indicator device can include a display for displaying the count. The fencing weapon can also include a wireless communication device for receiving at least one indicator signal from at least one other device.
By way of one non-limiting example, when the bearer of saber 12 completes a valid touch, processor 40 and signal device 43 direct power from power supply 42 to illuminate light 50. Light 50 can be any color of light, for example green. When the opponent of the fencer bearing saber 12 completes a valid touch processor 40 instructs signal device 43 to direct power from power supply 42 to illuminate light 51. Light 51 can be any color of light that is distinguishable from the color of light 50. For example, light 51 can be red. When the bearer of saber 12 contacts a ground state (indicating a meeting of blades or a failed electrical connection) processor 41 instructs signal device 43 to direct power from power supply 42 to illuminate light 52. Light 52 can be any color of light that is distinguishable from the colors of lights 50 and 51. For example, light 52 can be yellow.
Since two fencers compete simultaneously to score touches, signal device 43 can also emit a signal or signals via wireline or wirelessly to an opponent's saber 12 or an electrical scoring apparatus not contained in either fencers' saber. If, for example, both fencers' hold a saber 12, they will be able to detect valid and invalid touches within their field of view during competition without having to alter their viewpoint to seek an external scoring indicator.
Generally, guard 46 is electrically grounded. Indicator array 44 can, for example, have a relatively small area such that it would not represent a large enough surface area to allow scoring of invalid touches when an opponent's weapon or weapon tip contacts a grounded guard (i.e., what should not be scored as a valid touch). Indicator array 44 can be recessed within guard 46 so that it protects lights 50, 51, 52 from being struck during fencing and prevents them from being damaged.
Additionally, processor 40 can signal wireless device 43 to transmit a signal indicating a valid touch to an electrical scoring device which will then cause a respective appropriate indicator light to illuminate. Wireless device 43 can be any wireless device known to one of skill in the art, such as an IEEE 802.11 compliant device, or a Bluetooth device. Further processor 40 can signal wireless device 43 to transmit a signal intended for receipt by an opponent's saber. This information can be used to signal an indicator on the opponent's weapon. It can also be transmitted with the output of a motion sensor 42 and a timing device 39 such that electric scoring equipment and/or an opponent's saber can collect adequate information to determine not only which weapon sensed contact with a target area, but also which fencer should be awarded a touch based on the rules of the sport (i.e., under the current rules of saber fencing, if both fencers initiate an attack and neither fencer's blade contacts the other's blade, if one fencer initiated the action by advancing their saber forward first he or she is awarded a touch. If however both fencers advance their weapons relatively simultaneously, no touch is awarded.
Transmitting the information that a touch is scored and information on timing and motion of the saber 12 can be very useful in aiding a director in awarding a touch or to render an automated touch award). Motion sensor 42 can be an accelerometer, a gyroscopic sensor, or any other motion sensor presently known to one of skill in the motion sensing art. Timing device 39 can be any timing device known to one of skill in the art. This information when received can be used to determine whether to illuminate a light 50, 51, 52 and when to illuminate it.
Power supply 41 supplies power for operation of processor 40, indicators 44, motion sensor 42, timing device 39, sensor blade 16 and wireless device 43. Saber 12 may also include a display 60 for displaying information from a counter 61, an electrical scoring system, or an opponent's weapon. For example, display 60 can display the number of touches scored by the bearer of saber 12 during a bout and can be reset anew for each new bout. In
While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.
