Tracking the Translational and Rotational Movement of the Ball Using High Speed Camera Movies

Skills to spin the ball are important for athletes in many sports such as baseball, soccer and tennis. Recently, researchers in aerodynamics and sports science started to analyze the correlation of the rotation and the trajectory of the ball; high speed cameras are used to analyze the rotation of the ball. However, the analysis had to be done either manually, or under special lighting condition. In this paper, we propose a new algorithm to track the translation and rotation of the ball shot by high speed cameras under outdoor ambient light condition. Using our system, the athletes can analyze their skills by shooting their motion and the resultant rotation of the ball. It can also be used as a tool to enhance sports TV programs by providing further scientific information to the audience.