Power hitting : finding the right implement
Name
1057123173-MIT.pdf
Description
Full printable version
Size
5.38 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
d230ddebc712bfd8bafdfe9c628a7df0
Author(s)
Fay, Sarah Claire
Advisor(s)
A. E. (Peko) Hosoi.
Date Issued
2018
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
Striking a ball with an implement occurs often in sports. Athletes are given a large variety of options to choose from when they select their implements. The motivation for this study was the need for a simple method that athletes can use to choose the implement that will allow them to perform their best. The specific focus of this work is identifying the weight properties an implement should have in order to have the most "powerful" shot. The "power" of a shot is measured by how fast the athlete is able to make the ball move after hitting it (the outgoing ball speed). The particular weight property of interest is the implement's mass moment of inertia about an axis through its handle. Five simple models for how the implement's moment of inertia affect the outgoing ball speed are developed and compared, primarily in a field hockey case study. A new model based on the physiology of muscles proves to be more successful in capturing the behavior observed in real striking of sports balls and is the primary contribution of this study. Overall, the models predict that heavier implements than are currently used would produce more powerful shots. This result is reasonable, as implement's are rarely selected with the sole purpose of hitting power shots. Additional objectives should be incorporated into the model to more broadly aid in an athlete's implement selection process.
Description
Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 2018.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 69-71).
Subjects
Mechanical Engineering.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
Terms of Use
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