Hi Guys,
I have an idea that I would like to implement but am not sure how to attack it. For those who don't know, beer pong is where you throw a ping pong ball into a cup at the opposite end of a table but your elbow is not allowed to cross your end of the table. I would like to come up with a system to detect when this occurs and set off a buzzer or some kind of alarm when it happens.
One idea I had was to have a strap that you put around your elbow with a small ultrasound module on it. Using three other ultrasound modules create some kind of indoor positioning system using the three modules or beacons to triangulate where your elbow is. The problem is after searching the internet is I don't believe it will have the accuracy required to tell if the moving object has gone over the edge of the table.
My other thoughts were to have some kind of metalic/reflective tape to use for the strap on the elbow and use a system similar to those in an automatic supermarket door, i.e. reflect infrared light until the beam is broken by an object (although the opposite way around). When there is a reflection sensed then raise the alarm.
I haven't seen this implemented in any of the beer pong tables found on the net so it will probably be quite difficult to implement.
Any thoughts or ideas would be appreciated!
Cheers.