US 12,324,971 B1
Basketball practice machine, system, and method with multi-machine performance tracking
John G. Joseph, Upper Sandusky, OH (US)
Assigned to Shoot-A-Way, Inc., Upper Sandusky, OH (US)
Filed by Shoot-A-Way, Inc., Upper Sandusky, OH (US)
Filed on Aug. 28, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/817,705.
Application 18/817,705 is a continuation of application No. 18/081,118, filed on Dec. 14, 2022, granted, now 12,172,064.
Application 18/081,118 is a continuation in part of application No. 17/160,929, filed on Jan. 28, 2021, granted, now 11,577,146, issued on Feb. 14, 2023.
Application 17/160,929 is a continuation in part of application No. 16/894,005, filed on Jun. 5, 2020, granted, now 11,400,355, issued on Aug. 2, 2022.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/858,524, filed on Jun. 7, 2019.
Int. Cl. A63B 69/00 (2006.01); A63B 24/00 (2006.01); A63B 63/08 (2006.01); A63B 69/40 (2006.01); A63B 71/06 (2006.01)
CPC A63B 69/0071 (2013.01) [A63B 24/0021 (2013.01); A63B 24/0062 (2013.01); A63B 24/0075 (2013.01); A63B 63/083 (2013.01); A63B 69/40 (2013.01); A63B 71/0622 (2013.01); A63B 2024/0028 (2013.01); A63B 2220/833 (2013.01); A63B 2243/0037 (2013.01)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A basketball practice system with multi-machine performance tracking, said basketball practice system comprising:
basketball passing machines each comprising:
a launching device for passing basketballs to pass locations for a practice session;
a user interface for programming the practice session;
a detector for detecting made basketball shots; and
a local controller; in electronic communication with the user interface, the launching device, and the detector, said local controller comprising one or more non-transitory electronic storage devices comprising software instructions, which when executed, configure one or more processors to:
receive data from the user interface indicating user selections defining user-selected pass locations for the practice session and player identification information;
command the launching device to pass at least one basketball to each of the pass locations corresponding to the user-selected pass locations; and
based, at least in part, on the data received from the user interface and the detector for the practice session, generate a respective portion of shooting statistics data;
a central database in electronic communication with the local controllers of the basketball passing machines, said central database configured to receive the portions of the shooting statistics data and the player identification information from the basketball passing machines, and where said portions of said shooting statistics data with matching player identification information are received from different ones of the basketball passing machines, combine said portions of said shooting statistics data; and
a central electronic display in electronic communication with the central database and configured to generate a shooting performance display from said shooting statistics data stored at said central database comprising statistical summaries of said shooting statistics data and said associated player identification information for each of said statistical summaries.