Predict the next innovation!

[aardvarkious]

If you have any snow on the ground, you don't want the discs to be warm because then the snow sticks, your hands get wet, and you end up even colder.

 

[jtreadwell]

This, but with a pressure sensor on the top and recievers to detect if you cross any of the lines, or maybe just a little camera.

Or a motion sensor that whistles if you move the mini after setting it. That way you know if you hit it with your foot.

 

[jtreadwell]

The place for this invention wouldn't be Highbridge where you have a bunch of courses already butin major metro areas like NYC where they don't have any space for courses. Great add-on for indoor golf driving ranges. You would be able to play the Highbridge, Idlewild, Flip City, Blue Ribbon and other prominent courses on the system. Although I think programming this capability into video gaming systems like Wii, PS3 and Xbox would be a first step.

Excellent call! It would be tough to do it right with the current consoles available but if they sold the screen with the hardware already installed it could be done.

 

[GordEzo]

Discs in snow

Not really an innovention but

I saw this somewhere in this forum but can't find it now , but I've played straight thru winter here in Whistler . Played every sunny day , few snowy days and I'm sure it's not PDGA approved but all I did was tape a small Xmas present ribbon to the top of my disc . Ez to see when the disc is buried


Found a lot of discs this winter that didn't have them.

 

[hiflyer]

I found an instructions sheet on the course today for a "helium filled disc" It had multiple warnings "do not play with hover disc outside or it might blow away"

I bet a hover disc has mad glide.

Care to share with the rest of the class? You have sparked my curiosity:clap:

Oh yeah, (to avoid derailment), My innovation would be a device which would (through x-ray maybe?) determine whether a disc has passed the OB line or is still on it. Would definitely increase the rate of play.

 

[tarel]

Care to share with the rest of the class? You have sparked my curiosity:clap:

Oh yeah, (to avoid derailment), My innovation would be a device which would (through x-ray maybe?) determine whether a disc has passed the OB line or is still on it. Would definitely increase the rate of play.

You want to shower radiation to find discs?

 

[chris deitzel]

water-filled flight plates on discs, where the water moves to the edge while spinning, making the disc faster??

 

[ian1]

That would make the disc slower because it would increase the moment of inertia.

 

[jtreadwell]

water-filled flight plates on discs, where the water moves to the edge while spinning, making the disc faster??

It would definitely be cool to see how that would work. You'd need a lightweight disc before adding the water.

 

[jenb]

Discs made out of much denser (and heavier) material, and partially filled with helium to make them legal weight, even though they have more mass and will handle wind better and have more momentum.

 

[Mr. America]

How about a "reverse innovation"? Just as the PGA has not approved for play golf balls that travel too far, the PDGA will restrict even further the discs allowed for play to keep the sport from outgrowing its courses. This restriction could be for certain higher divisions, and would keep, say, a 400 foot open hole more challenging that it would be in about 10 years when anyone with a 900 rating or higher can throw that far.

I'm not reading this whole, inevitably a trainwreck of a thread, but I disagree a little with you. I don't believe that people are really throwing that much further, or scoring any better with newer, "further flying" discs. It's not huge jumps in distance like going from a real wooded driver or fairway wood to a super sized jumbo driver or fairway metal.

 

[jtreadwell]

I'm not reading this whole, inevitably a trainwreck of a thread, but I disagree a little with you. I don't believe that people are really throwing that much further, or scoring any better with newer, "further flying" discs. It's not huge jumps in distance like going from a real wooded driver or fairway wood to a super sized jumbo driver or fairway metal.

What could possibly be a trainwreck in such a lighthearted thread? You should read it! It's mostly fun and idealistic ideas that might work but would be fun to see. I certainly agree that the longer distance records and technology isn't going to make a huge difference. A tree will stop a blizzard disc just as easily as it will a teebird, and those distance lines don't help as much when you need to land near the basket. Two 300ft drives and a putt get the same score as a 500ft drive, a 100ft approach, and a putt.

Edit - I don't mean this as a criticism, but I'm amused by the fact that your name is Mr. America and you throw mostly Swedish plastic. Shouldn't you be hucking red white and blue teebirds and aviars or something =)

 

[811rv]

One of possible great innovation to come out for disc golf is robotic thrower like we see in ball golf where there is robotic machine that swings the same all day long and all nighter too.

I would suppose that robotic thrower would emulate the human arm and hand and one can dial in the spin rate, grip pressure and launch speed along with various angles. That way the disc mfg can test and determine the optimal spin rate/launch speed/angles to achieve desired flight for a given disc. That machine would be great for testing mfg consistency between runs.

 

[Mr. America]

What could possibly be a trainwreck in such a lighthearted thread? You should read it! It's mostly fun and idealistic ideas that might work but would be fun to see. I certainly agree that the longer distance records and technology isn't going to make a huge difference. A tree will stop a blizzard disc just as easily as it will a teebird, and those distance lines don't help as much when you need to land near the basket. Two 300ft drives and a putt get the same score as a 500ft drive, a 100ft approach, and a putt.

With this site, when I seen threads this long, I just assume it's a train wreck , but, maybe I'll give it a chance!

 

[jtreadwell]

One of possible great innovation to come out for disc golf is robotic thrower like we see in ball golf where there is robotic machine that swings the same all day long and all nighter too.

I would suppose that robotic thrower would emulate the human arm and hand and one can dial in the spin rate, grip pressure and launch speed along with various angles. That way the disc mfg can test and determine the optimal spin rate/launch speed/angles to achieve desired flight for a given disc. That machine would be great for testing mfg consistency between runs.

Innova needs to get on that!

 

[tarel]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KVK8svZzbI&feature=related

this?

or

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=581CLlBj8qM&feature=related

this one has actual putters being thrown

 

[Mulligan McGee]

I would say a light weight beeper that could be taped to the bottom of the flight plate so you can find your disc in deep brush.

 

[mashnut]

I would say a light weight beeper that could be taped to the bottom of the flight plate so you can find your disc in deep brush.

http://discbeeper.com

 

[jeverett]

One of possible great innovation to come out for disc golf is robotic thrower like we see in ball golf where there is robotic machine that swings the same all day long and all nighter too.

I would suppose that robotic thrower would emulate the human arm and hand and one can dial in the spin rate, grip pressure and launch speed along with various angles. That way the disc mfg can test and determine the optimal spin rate/launch speed/angles to achieve desired flight for a given disc. That machine would be great for testing mfg consistency between runs.

Various companies (including Innova) and researchers have in the past done that, and ultimately found the result is that a machine is 'too perfect'. Real players, even top pros, are never as consistent with release, angle, power, spin, etc. as a machine is going to be, and so 'good' discs for a machine thrower are not necessarily 'good' discs for real throwers. Many of the most-popular molds are popular because of just how 'forgiving' they are.. they travel in a predictable way at a fairly wide range of speed, spin, release angle, wind, etc.

I'm not saying that I'm opposed to more R&D on disc golf equipment using scientific techniques, it's just that in this case the robotic arms have already been tried.

Personally, I'm most-interested in seeing innovation on skin surface friction reduction on golf discs. There's been a fair amount of research on the topic in aviation, and of course golf balls have been designed using dimples for a while now (fun fact: golf ball makers actually don't know which dimple shapes 'work' better than others, or really understand the mechanics at work). The basic idea, though, is to design skin surface microstructures that detach the airflow hitting the disc at precisely the right point so as to reduce friction without impacting lift.

 

[jtreadwell]

Various companies (including Innova) and researchers have in the past done that, and ultimately found the result is that a machine is 'too perfect'. Real players, even top pros, are never as consistent with release, angle, power, spin, etc. as a machine is going to be, and so 'good' discs for a machine thrower are not necessarily 'good' discs for real throwers. Many of the most-popular molds are popular because of just how 'forgiving' they are.. they travel in a predictable way at a fairly wide range of speed, spin, release angle, wind, etc.

I'm not saying that I'm opposed to more R&D on disc golf equipment using scientific techniques, it's just that in this case the robotic arms have already been tried.

Personally, I'm most-interested in seeing innovation on skin surface friction reduction on golf discs. There's been a fair amount of research on the topic in aviation, and of course golf balls have been designed using dimples for a while now (fun fact: golf ball makers actually don't know which dimple shapes 'work' better than others, or really understand the mechanics at work). The basic idea, though, is to design skin surface microstructures that detach the airflow hitting the disc at precisely the right point so as to reduce friction without impacting lift.

Fascinating. I wonder if we'll ever get a specially textured disc that flies further as a result.