Athletes are seeing tech advancements for wearables that are geared towards training and gathering data. Kaaya Tech’s HoloSuit is a fully tracked wireless bodysuit that can be used for augmented, virtual, and mixed reality devices. The smart clothing acts as a device to help golfers get accurate swing data, can be used to make a robot dance, will track yoga poses, and has tracked karate moves.

Golfers are even seeing VR and 2D training apps like Rickie Fowler’s Success Series VR Player pop up to help them train on their smartphone or VR headset. Advanced golfers and novice players who are just learning the game can use the Success Series app to learn lessons about golf swings, putting, and other tips from the PGA pro.

Now, vSports has designed a pair of augmented reality glasses that are used for sports simulation and athletic training. Wearers can view the backyard, field or course they are standing on and clearly see the world around them through the special lenses just like any other glasses. What makes these glasses different from your everyday glasses are the mixed reality overlays (also considered augmented reality) of a golf course and baseball field that athletes can use during practice or for collecting and visualizing training data.

Training With vSports

Athletes, especially pitchers and golfers, that want extra insight into the numbers behind their throw, hit, or swing will want to check out the vGolf and vBaseball simulation and training system. Trainers and coaches looking to gain an edge on the competition and level up their athletes or clients with training sessions that are on and off the field or course can do so with the vSports glasses overlay training games and heads-up display (HUD).

Watch the vSports trailer below!

Sports and Training Potential

Although the vSports glasses aren’t released right now, in the near future, golfers can stand in their own yard, with a trainer at a park or gym, or even visit the driving range and experience the data HUD and entertaining training games like Alien Invasion and Zombie Wars to improve their accuracy. Using the vGolf sim at home, golfers can ditch stuffy golf shoes and go barefoot to train on a full 360-degree golf course like Pebble Beach as they use the HUD to read their swing data and get teleported as soon as they finish a shot.

While golfers make their way around an AR golf course that’s miles away they can get better shot data with the GENiUS Ball, a golf ball that’s paired to their Virtual Caddy program. This system automatically sends info like ball speed, angle, spin rate and other helpful data to the sports glasses HUD where it can be viewed right then and there or it can be saved onto the player’s profile to be viewed later.

For baseball players, the idea is the same — wear the vSports glasses, use the vBaseball sim, and get taken to a 360-degree baseball field to practice your pitch. Pitchers wear the AR glasses and can read their pitch’s speed and increase their chances of getting a strike with information on spin rate, exit speed, launch angle, zone command, and even get a trail of the ball path by viewing the HUD. Batters can get data about their exit speed, carry distance, launch angle, zone performance, patterns in location trends, and other game-changing data points.

Curious Unknowns

• Are the AR glasses paired with a smartphone app or is data viewed on a computer post-training?
• Are there customizable features that allow golfers to input the range type (short or long distance) you’ll be practicing?
• Is every input, option, or command given through an app, a tap or button push on the glasses, or through voice command?
• How long is the battery life?

Where to Find Them

Professional athletes, casual golfers and baseball players, and committed coaches and trainers will want to stay in the know about vSports AR glasses as they progress towards their final product. vSports looks like they’ll be adding vFootball, vSoccer, vBasketball, vHockey, and vTennis to their simulation and training system in the future, but a beta testing phase and full release date are unknown at this time.