Patents by Inventor Kousuke OKAZAKI

Kousuke OKAZAKI has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11819749
    Abstract: Provided is a fitting apparatus configured to acquire measurement data obtained by measuring a swing action of a test club by a golfer, calculate one or more first indices representing an amount of change in an openness of a face surface of a head included in the test club at a time of the swing action based on the measurement data, calculate one or more second indices representing a characteristic of the swing action based on the measurement data, select a balance of a golf club suitable for the golfer, according to the one or more first indices, select at least one of a weight and a moment of inertia of a golf club suitable for the golfer, according to the one or more second indices, and select a golf club having the balance and the at least one of the weight and the moment of inertia.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2023
    Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke Okazaki, Masahiko Ueda, Yuto Nakamura
  • Patent number: 11648451
    Abstract: Provided is a fitting apparatus configured to acquire measurement data obtained by measuring a swing action of a test club by a golfer with a measurement device, calculate an amount of change in an attitude of a face surface of a head included in the test club in a period before impact at a time of the swing action, based on the measurement data, and select a balance of a golf club suitable for the golfer, according to the amount of change.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke Okazaki, Masahiko Ueda, Yuto Nakamura
  • Patent number: 11007415
    Abstract: Provided is a sensitive golf club with a sensor unit. The sensor unit includes a battery, a sensor module configured to measure sensor data indicating a state of the golf club using power from the battery, a communications unit configured to wirelessly transmit the sensor data to an external device using power from the battery, and a control unit configured to control operation of the sensor module and the communications unit using power from the battery. The sensor unit has an A mode, and a B mode in which operation of the communications unit is suppressed compared to the A mode. The control unit is configured to judge whether or not the golf club is prepared for a shot based on the sensor data, and switch between the A mode and B mode based on whether or not the golf club is prepared for a shot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Masahide Onuki, Masahiko Ueda, Kousuke Okazaki, Yuto Nakamura, Yuki Nagano
  • Publication number: 20210110398
    Abstract: A fraud detection system that converts personal identification information into an irreversible code, acquires transaction information that includes transaction terminal identification information, stores the acquired transaction information in a transaction information storage unit, and calculates a respective transaction estimation value for a future transaction for each transaction terminal and each irreversible code, on the basis of the transaction information stored in the transaction information storage unit. When new transaction information is acquired the fraud detection system calculates a degree of deviation for the new transaction information on the basis of the transaction estimation value for the irreversible code and the transaction estimation value for the transaction terminal which are in accordance with the transaction terminal identification information included in the new transaction information, and outputs alert information when the degree of deviation is large.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 30, 2018
    Publication date: April 15, 2021
    Inventors: Kousuke OKAZAKI, Keiko HASHIZUME, Masanobu MIWA, Mitsuhiro YAMAZAKI, Masaki FUKUI
  • Publication number: 20210101066
    Abstract: Provided is a fitting apparatus configured to acquire measurement data obtained by measuring a swing action of a test club by a golfer, calculate one or more first indices representing an amount of change in an openness of a face surface of a head included in the test club at a time of the swing action based on the measurement data, calculate one or more second indices representing a characteristic of the swing action based on the measurement data, select a balance of a golf club suitable for the golfer, according to the one or more first indices, select at least one of a weight and a moment of inertia of a golf club suitable for the golfer, according to the one or more second indices, and select a golf club having the balance and the at least one of the weight and the moment of inertia.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 21, 2020
    Publication date: April 8, 2021
    Applicant: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke OKAZAKI, Masahiko UEDA, Yuto NAKAMURA
  • Publication number: 20210101065
    Abstract: Provided is a fitting apparatus configured to acquire measurement data obtained by measuring a swing action of a test club by a golfer with a measurement device, calculate an amount of change in an attitude of a face surface of a head included in the test club in a period before impact at a time of the swing action, based on the measurement data, and select a balance of a golf club suitable for the golfer, according to the amount of change.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 21, 2020
    Publication date: April 8, 2021
    Applicant: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke OKAZAKI, Masahiko UEDA, Yuto NAKAMURA
  • Patent number: 10786717
    Abstract: Provided is an impact point estimation apparatus that is capable of estimating, easily and with high accuracy, an impact point on a face surface of a golf club head at the time of a golf swing. The impact point estimation apparatus includes an acquisition part configured to acquire time-series sensor data that is output from at least one of an angular velocity sensor and an acceleration sensor attached to at least one of a grip and a shaft of a golf club and an estimation part configured to estimate the impact point, according to a shaft characteristic which is a characteristic of the shaft, based on the sensor data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2020
    Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Satoru Hanamitsu, Masahiko Ueda, Kousuke Okazaki, Yuto Nakamura
  • Patent number: 10773147
    Abstract: Provided is a virtual golf simulation apparatus including a processor. The processor is connected to an output device and is configured to acquire measurement data obtained by using a measurement device to measure an actual shot performed by a golfer, analyze a shot characteristic of the golfer based on the measurement data, virtually generate a virtual golfer having a shot characteristic corresponding to the shot characteristic of the golfer, receive, from the golfer, an instruction instructing the virtual golfer to perform an action in a virtual space, simulate a shot of the virtual golfer in the virtual space in accordance with the instruction, and output a result of the simulation to the output device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2020
    Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke Okazaki, Yuto Nakamura, Masahiko Ueda
  • Patent number: 10773143
    Abstract: Provided is a fitting apparatus for selecting a golf club suited to a golfer, including: an acquisition unit configured to acquire a measurement value obtained by measuring a swing action of a test club by the golfer, with a measurement device; a calculation unit configured to calculate a first swing index and a second swing index related to the swing action, based on the measurement value; a determination unit configured to determine an optimal swingability index, which is a swingability index of the golf club suited to the golfer, according to a magnitude of the first swing index, and determine an optimal stiffness index representing stiffness of a shaft suited to the golfer, according to a magnitude of the second swing index; and a selection unit configured to select at least one of a golf club and a shaft matching the optimal swingability index and the optimal stiffness index.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 2, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2020
    Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke Okazaki, Masahiko Ueda
  • Publication number: 20190314703
    Abstract: Provided is a sensitive golf club with a sensor unit. The sensor unit includes a battery, a sensor module configured to measure sensor data indicating a state of the golf club using power from the battery, a communications unit configured to wirelessly transmit the sensor data to an external device using power from the battery, and a control unit configured to control operation of the sensor module and the communications unit using power from the battery. The sensor unit has an A mode, and a B mode in which operation of the communications unit is suppressed compared to the A mode. The control unit is configured to judge whether or not the golf club is prepared for a shot based on the sensor data, and switch between the A mode and B mode based on whether or not the golf club is prepared for a shot.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 12, 2019
    Publication date: October 17, 2019
    Applicant: Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masahide ONUKI, Masahiko UEDA, Kousuke OKAZAKI, Yuto NAKAMURA, Yuki NAGANO
  • Publication number: 20190269994
    Abstract: Provided is a virtual golf simulation apparatus including a processor. The processor is connected to an output device and is configured to acquire measurement data obtained by using a measurement device to measure an actual shot performed by a golfer, analyze a shot characteristic of the golfer based on the measurement data, virtually generate a virtual golfer having a shot characteristic corresponding to the shot characteristic of the golfer, receive, from the golfer, an instruction instructing the virtual golfer to perform an action in a virtual space, simulate a shot of the virtual golfer in the virtual space in accordance with the instruction, and output a result of the simulation to the output device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2019
    Publication date: September 5, 2019
    Applicant: Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Kousuke OKAZAKI, Yuto NAKAMURA, Masahiko UEDA
  • Patent number: 10384115
    Abstract: Provided is a GUI display device that is able to explain the movement for holding the wrist cock and the movement for releasing the wrist cock during a golf swing visually in easily understandable manner. The GUI display device includes a display control part. The display control part simultaneously displays, on the GUI screen, a first graphic G1(i) representing a strength with which a wrist cock is held at an i-th timing during a swing motion of a golf club, and a second graphic G2(i) representing the strength with which the wrist cock is released at the i-th timing, where i=1, 2, . . . , N (N being an integer of 2 or more).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 20, 2019
    Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke Okazaki, Masahiko Ueda, Yuto Nakamura, Satoru Hanamitsu
  • Patent number: 10252106
    Abstract: A golf swing analysis apparatus for analyzing a swing action of a golf club is provided. The golf swing analysis apparatus comprises an acquisition unit configured to acquire a measurement value obtained by measuring the swing action using a measurement device; a grip behavior derivation unit configured to derive a behavior of a grip of the golf club that occurs during the swing action, based on the measurement value; and a shoulder behavior derivation unit configured to derive a behavior of a pseudo shoulder of a golfer that occurs during the swing action, based on the behavior of the grip.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2019
    Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke Okazaki, Masahiko Ueda, Masatoshi Kato, Yuki Nagano
  • Patent number: 9881137
    Abstract: Provided is a fitting apparatus that accurately and objectively determines an optimal swingability index, which is a swingability index of a golf club suited to a golfer. The fitting apparatus is provided with an acquisition unit, a calculation unit, and a determination unit. The acquisition unit acquires a measurement value obtained by measuring a swing action of a test club by the golfer with a measurement device. The calculation unit calculates a swing index indicating a feature amount of the swing action, based on the measurement value. The determination unit determines the optimal swingability index, according to a magnitude of the swing index.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2018
    Assignees: DUNLOP SPORTS CO. LTD., SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke Okazaki, Masatoshi Kato, Masahiko Ueda, Naoyoshi Ueda, Shimpei Oyama
  • Publication number: 20170354859
    Abstract: Provided is a GUI display device that is able to explain the movement for holding the wrist cock and the movement for releasing the wrist cock during a golf swing visually in easily understandable manner. The GUI display device includes a display control part. The display control part simultaneously displays, on the GUI screen, a first graphic G1(i) representing a strength with which a wrist cock is held at an i-th timing during a swing motion of a golf club, and a second graphic G2(i) representing the strength with which the wrist cock is released at the i-th timing, where i=1, 2, . . . , N (N being an integer of 2 or more).
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 9, 2017
    Publication date: December 14, 2017
    Applicants: DUNLOP SPORTS CO. LTD., SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke OKAZAKI, Masahiko UEDA, Yuto NAKAMURA, Satoru HANAMITSU
  • Publication number: 20170340936
    Abstract: Provided is an impact point estimation apparatus that is capable of estimating, easily and with high accuracy, an impact point on a face surface of a golf club head at the time of a golf swing. The impact point estimation apparatus includes an acquisition part configured to acquire time-series sensor data that is output from at least one of an angular velocity sensor and an acceleration sensor attached to at least one of a grip and a shaft of a golf club and an estimation part configured to estimate the impact point, according to a shaft characteristic which is a characteristic of the shaft, based on the sensor data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 24, 2017
    Publication date: November 30, 2017
    Applicants: DUNLOP SPORTS CO. LTD., SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Satoru HANAMITSU, Masahiko UEDA, Kousuke OKAZAKI, Yuto NAKAMURA
  • Patent number: 9821209
    Abstract: A golf swing analysis apparatus capable of estimating the strike point of the ball on the face in a simple manner when a golf club is swung is provided. The apparatus is provided with a derivation unit, a calculation unit, and an estimation unit to analyze a swing using a golf club having a grip, a shaft and a head. The derivation unit derives analytical data including at least one of time-series angular velocity data and time-series acceleration data in an analysis time interval near impact, from sensor data output from at least one of an angular velocity sensor and an acceleration sensor attached to at least one of the grip and the shaft. The calculation unit calculates a feature amount of a waveform of the analytical data. The estimation unit estimates an impact position of a ball on a face of the head, according to the feature amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2017
    Assignees: DUNLOP SPORTS CO. LTD., SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD
    Inventors: Masahiko Ueda, Kousuke Okazaki, Yuto Nakamura
  • Publication number: 20170065866
    Abstract: Provided is a fitting apparatus for selecting a golf club suited to a golfer, including: an acquisition unit configured to acquire a measurement value obtained by measuring a swing action of a test club by the golfer, with a measurement device; a calculation unit configured to calculate a first swing index and a second swing index related to the swing action, based on the measurement value; a determination unit configured to determine an optimal swingability index, which is a swingability index of the golf club suited to the golfer, according to a magnitude of the first swing index, and determine an optimal stiffness index representing stiffness of a shaft suited to the golfer, according to a magnitude of the second swing index; and a selection unit configured to select at least one of a golf club and a shaft matching the optimal swingability index and the optimal stiffness index.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 2, 2016
    Publication date: March 9, 2017
    Applicants: DUNLOP SPORTS CO. LTD., SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke OKAZAKI, Masahiko UEDA
  • Patent number: 9452331
    Abstract: A fitting method of a shaft of a golf club for selecting a shaft matching a golfer based on a swing of the golfer. The method includes the steps of obtaining measurement values from a sensor attached to a grip of a golf club; determining address, top, and impact of a swing from the measurement values; and selecting a shaft that matches a golfer through a usage of the swing characteristic amounts and values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 27, 2016
    Assignees: DUNLOP SPORTS CO. LTD., SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kousuke Okazaki, Masahiko Ueda, Masatoshi Kato
  • Publication number: 20160184632
    Abstract: A golf swing analysis apparatus capable of estimating the strike point of the ball on the face in a simple manner when a golf club is swung is provided. The apparatus is provided with a derivation unit, a calculation unit, and an estimation unit to analyze a swing using a golf club having a grip, a shaft and a head. The derivation unit derives analytical data including at least one of time-series angular velocity data and time-series acceleration data in an analysis time interval near impact, from sensor data output from at least one of an angular velocity sensor and an acceleration sensor attached to at least one of the grip and the shaft. The calculation unit calculates a feature amount of a waveform of the analytical data. The estimation unit estimates an impact position of a ball on a face of the head, according to the feature amount.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2015
    Publication date: June 30, 2016
    Applicants: DUNLOP SPORTS CO., LTD., SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Masahiko Ueda, Kousuke Okazaki, Yuto Nakamura