Event sensor

摘要

An automatic timing measurement system provides a measure of time of passage of a watercraft through a prescribed course. Inertial or other estimates augmented by GPS speed/position measurements are used to track position of a watercraft. Position estimates are used to allow the locations of prescribed courses to be mapped and memorized. The passage of a watercraft through mapped courses is automatically detected for the purpose of measuring and reporting time of passage of the watercraft past key points in the course, and the speed of the apparatus may be modified if necessary at certain points in the mapped course. A measure of accuracy of driver steering can be provided along with the ability to automatically steer the watercraft through the course if “steer-by-wire” mechanism is available. GPS speed control is augmented with a secondary velocity measurement device that measures speed over water to provide real-time compensation for water current.

主权项

1. A system for determining a path through a water course, comprising:
a position observer subsystem located on a watercraft; a computing device in communication with the position observer subsystem; a user input device coupled to the computing device; and a non-volatile storage coupled to the computing device; wherein the computing device is configured to:
receive a first user input from the user input device and, in response, determine a first observed position of a watercraft using the position observer subsystem;receive a second user input subsequent to the first user input and, in response, determine a second observed position of the watercraft using the position observer subsystem, wherein the second observed position is different from the first observed position due to movement of the watercraft;associate the first observed position and the second observed position with points of interest on a water course in the non-volatile storage; anduse the first observed position and the second observed position to determine a preferred path through the water course.