A spatiotemporal approach to extract the 3D trajectory of the baseball from a single view video sequence

Abstract

In this paper, we propose a new method to extract and calculate the 3D trajectory of a pitched baseball in a video clip. Comparing to previous methods, which require video clips from multiple view points, only a single-view, television clip is required for our method. Since global search methods based on dynamic programming is used to find the trajectory of the ball, the system is more robust than previous incremental methods. Therefore, our technique can be used to analyze the pitches not only in live TV programs, but also in previous games by famous pitchers. It is also possible to display the 3D trajectory of the baseball in a virtual environment from the viewpoint of the hitter. Pitchers can improve their skills by viewing the trajectory of their balls, and the hitters can view the pitches of various pitchers. As a result, our system can be used for baseball training, as well as for entertainment such as video games. The method to extract the ball from the scene is also applicable to sports such as tennis, volleyball, and soccer.