Dear Arduino users... I'm new here... and I write from Genova (ITALY)
I write here for an advice to you.
I would like to install a movements controlling system on a table tennis paddle.
My idea would be to insert on the blade handle a 3 axis accelerometer and beyond the rubber a touch sensor to register the spin and the impact points of the ball on the blade.
Do you know the best suitable 3D sensor and if exists a touch sensor that can be inserted between the wood of the blade and the rubber?
Firstly an accelerometer on its own is useful for dynamic movements, you need 6DoF or even 9DoF
to track attitude in space, and attitude is needed to decipher accelerometer output. These days
6DoF or 9DoF IMU's are cheap and easy to find.
The pressure sensor is an interesting one since an array is really whats needed. The standard
resistive touch screen sensor is cheap and available in various screen sizes, but is invariable
rectangular in shape. It would need frequent scanning to capture an impact that lasts perhaps 1ms
or of that order.
Other techniques are triangulation using accoustic sensors, which might be feasible (but rather
experimental.
Dear Mark
thanks for your kind suggestion.
For the accelerometer I will look for what you proposed.
As for the touch sensor, being the touch screen under a rubber, I fear that even a thin glass (apart from the rectangular shape..) would change the playing quality of the paddle.
On BARE Conductive I've seen some electric paints (http://www.bareconductive.com/)
I've seen that they are used for funny things like playing piano or music on a paper.. I wonder if I can use that electric imputs to translate into touch-imput of the movemente of the ball spinning through the rubber.