An Indoor Golf Simulator for Continuous Golf Games

An indoor golf simulator is an augmented game simulator. Because an indoor golf simulator can be easily installed in indoor golf centers, fitness centers, offices, and residential houses, it has become one of the hottest products on the market, allowing golfers to enjoy their games indoors. However, the existing indoor golf simulators require that a player finish his game without a break. This paper proposes an indoor golf simulator that allows a player to pause a game at any time and resume it at any place. The proposed simulator applies data synchronization techniques in ubiquitous environments. The simulator consists of PC consoles, a proxy server, and a player data server. The PC console client uses a XML-based communication protocol to send information about the game to the player data server via the proxy server. The communication protocol supports DS (Data Synchronization) operations between the PC console client and the player data server. Located between the PC console client and the player data server, the proxy server receives game information from the PC console client and sends the information to the player data server, and vice versa. When the player data server authenticates the player, the proxy server establishes a new communication session and manages the session until the game is either terminated or suspended. The player data server authenticates the player and keeps his or her latest game information for later use (e.g., to resume the game). Each component of the simulator is designed and explained in detail. By applying DS protocols, the proposed simulator allows a player to pause his or her game at any time and resume it at any place.