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This was in Business Week. I can't wait to see it at our next clave!
Leland.
http://www.businessweek.com/premium/content/03_10/c3823096_mz019.htm#B3823097
A Sensor Runs Through It
Fly fishermen can spend years perfecting the rhythmic motion needed to cast a fly far enough yet gently enough to convince a fish that dinner has just landed. Noel C. Perkins, a mechanical engineer at the University of Michigan, turned to science instead: He built a high-tech sensor to debug his casting technique.
Perkins' gizmo is both inexpensive and light and uses the same sort of chip-based motion sensor that triggers car air bags. These microelectromechanical systems, or MEMS, chips cost a few dollars each. And at under 1 ounce, the prototype device doesn't impair movement. Attached to a rod, the MEMS unit tracks casting speed and acceleration. Software running on a linked handheld computer then points out weaknesses by comparing the user's motion with that of an expert fly fisherman.
With his casting much improved and a patent pending, Perkins now hopes to develop a multisensor device capable of analyzing more complex movements. "Golf, tennis, baseball--they all demand finely tuned technique," he says. In the meantime, a consumer version of the casting aid is in the works.
By Adam Aston
Leland.
http://www.businessweek.com/premium/content/03_10/c3823096_mz019.htm#B3823097
A Sensor Runs Through It
Fly fishermen can spend years perfecting the rhythmic motion needed to cast a fly far enough yet gently enough to convince a fish that dinner has just landed. Noel C. Perkins, a mechanical engineer at the University of Michigan, turned to science instead: He built a high-tech sensor to debug his casting technique.
Perkins' gizmo is both inexpensive and light and uses the same sort of chip-based motion sensor that triggers car air bags. These microelectromechanical systems, or MEMS, chips cost a few dollars each. And at under 1 ounce, the prototype device doesn't impair movement. Attached to a rod, the MEMS unit tracks casting speed and acceleration. Software running on a linked handheld computer then points out weaknesses by comparing the user's motion with that of an expert fly fisherman.
With his casting much improved and a patent pending, Perkins now hopes to develop a multisensor device capable of analyzing more complex movements. "Golf, tennis, baseball--they all demand finely tuned technique," he says. In the meantime, a consumer version of the casting aid is in the works.
By Adam Aston
