Abstract
Despite the significant influence of ice conditions on results in the sport of curling, players and ice technicians lack a measurement device that would objectively measure ice quality during a curling competition. This paper presents such a new measurement method by using a device consisting an inertial measurement unit (IMU) attached to the handle of the curling stone and data processing software. IMU is used to measure the vibration of curling stone during its movement on the surface of the ice. The acceleration signal is recorded, and then the software calculates the value of so-called R parameter in frequency domain. The value of R allows one to determine if an ice sheet had been pebbled and if the shape of pebbles is suitable for the game of curling. The presented system was tested in various ice conditions—on both freshly prepared and used ice. Ice technicians and players may use the proposed system to decide whether the ice surface is suitable for play or if it should be remade.
Highlights
Curling is a worldwide popular winter Olympic team sport, in which athletes slide20-kilogram granite stones over the flat surface of ice
Measurements were taken at Curling Łódź, a state-of-the-art four-sheet curling rink located in Łódź, Poland
Signal acquired during a curling shot must be compared to the sensor’s noise
Summary
Curling is a worldwide popular winter Olympic team sport, in which athletes slide20-kilogram granite stones over the flat surface of ice. The field of play (sheet) is 45-meters long and 5-meters wide On both ends of the sheet, colored rings called the house are the targets for players. After each end (which features 16 stones and 8 per team), a point is awarded for each stone that is closer to the center of the house (called tee) than any stone of the opposition [1]. Rotation makes the stone follow a curved trajectory, and the lateral displacement in the stone’s path is called the curl. Kameda has shown that the amount of curl mostly depends on the roughness of the curling stone’s running band [2]. This fact is widely used by icemakers, who often scratch running surfaces of stones before major events
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