The implementation of the radar gun to measure baseball speed
has created
a profusion of awe and interest in and around the game of baseball. Thus
far, the advent of the radar gun has been in use in major league ballparks
around the nation to measure the speed, or linear velocity, of a baseball
as released from a pitcher’s hand. Whereas the differences between the
transmitted frequency of a signal and the return frequency determine the
linear velocity, it is proposed that the addition of reflectors on the
baseball will help determine the spin rate, or angular velocity, of the
baseball. Through the use of a baseball pitching machine, a baseball with
aluminum foil reflectors, a radar gun (The Stalker ATS), a data
acquisition system (LabVIEW), and a simulation program (MATLAB), baseball
spin will be considered.