Lithuanian Company Creates New Bowling Sensor That Turns Feel Into Data
This project first came to me during a recent tournament - one of those eventswhere it’s not just the lanes that are buzzing with action.
Tournaments are unique spaces.
Coaches, athletes, and innovators cometogether, exchanging ideas, sharing insights, and sparking collaborations thatoften last far beyond the competition itself.
As a coach, I have always searched for new, innovative ways to help athletesrefine their game.
Over the years, I’ve experimented with everything - fromsingle-use tools and cameras to handmade devices, and even collaborativeresearch projects like StayinBowling initiative with Aristotle University.Each step brought me closer to understanding what really happens during adelivery, but there was still a gap.
This new in-ball sensor may finally bridge that gap.
Offering insights intoball motion we’ve only been able to estimate before, it has the potential toredefine coaching, training, and performance analysis.
Today, I’m thrilled to sit down with the Witsee founder and the investor ofthe idea Vytautas Grigoraitis to explore how this technology works, what itcan reveal, and why it could change the way we understand bowling - from theinside out.
Personal Background & Origin Story Before we dive into the technology, can you walk us through your careerjourney? How did your experiences in engineering, sports science, orbowling itself lead you to this point? My professional journey began with physics.
I graduated from VilniusUniversity in 1990 with a five-year university diploma equivalent to an MScin Physics, and since then I have been fortunate to work on a wide range ofscientific and engineering projects where precision measurement was alwaysat the center.
Early in my career, at the Institute of Physics, I worked on the Gardismercury vapor analyzer, an instrument capable of detecting as little as 0.5picograms of mercury in the air.
It was used in many research projects,including studies of prehistoric atmosphere samples from Antarctica.
Later,I worked with the Finnish company Dekati on fine-particle measurementtechnology, developing instruments able to count individual airborneparticles as small as three nanometers.
I also collaborated withthe Lithuanian laser company Ekspla on the construction of a petawatt lasersystem in the Czech Republic — a laser with power measured in thousands oftrillions of watts.
Today, through my company Glosendas Ltd, I continueworking with advanced technology as the developer and manufacturer ofwildlife trackers for birds and mammals.
So, my background has always been connected with measuring things that arevery difficult to measure — tiny particles, extremely small traces ofmercury, very high-power laser systems, or the movement of animals in thewild.
That experience naturally shaped the way I look at problems: I tend toask how something can be measured more accurately, more reliably, and in away that helps people make better decisions.
Sport has also been an important part of my life.
I was involved inparagliding for about 15 years, which taught me a lot about discipline,physics, body control, and respect for small technical details.
Three yearsago, together with my teenage son Emilijus, I met coach AndriusGasparavičius, who introduced us to what sporting bowling really is.
Westarted taking lessons, and I quickly realized that bowling is much deeperthan it may appear from the outside.
It is a sport of technique, timing,physics, and repeatability.
Wanting to understand more, I read Bowling Beyond the Basics by JamesFreeman and Ron Hatfield.
The book answered many questions, but it alsoraised new ones.
Around the same time, I sponsored the installation of theSpecto tracking system in our local bowling center.
I was impressed by howaccurately it measured distance and speed, but I had some doubts about theRPM measurement.
That was the spark.
At first, the idea was simply to build a small tool that could measure abowling ball’s revolutions per minute more accurately.
But as developmentprogressed, it became clear that the tool could do much more.
Conversationswith bowlers both at home and abroad confirmed that this was not just my owncuriosity — there was real interest in better, more accessible measurementand feedback.
So, we hired a development team, rolled up our sleeves, and got to work.
Ayear later, we are proud to introduce what we like to call our newborn baby:a tool born from physics, engineering, curiosity, and a growing love for thesport of bowling.
Was there a specific moment or problem you encountered, either as abowler, coach, or designer, that sparked the idea of creating an in-balltracking sensor? Bowling is fundamentally a psychological game.
After several years as anactive player, I kept encountering performance-related questions thatneither coaches nor existing technologies could answer with full accuracy orobjectivity.
Many critical aspects of ball motion, releaseconsistency, and decision-making were still interpreted subjectively ratherthan measured precisely.
Coming from a professional background in tracking and sensor development, Irealized that this gap was not due to a lack of expertise - but rather alack of the right tools.
That realization became the turning point.
Ifaccurate, real-time data could be captured directly from inside the bowlingball, we could finally answer the most important questions bowlers andcoaches face: questions of cause and effect, consistency, and repeatability.That insight ultimately led to the idea of creating an in-balltracking sensor — one capable of turning subjective assumptions intomeasurable, actionable data.
Innovation in sports often comes from frustration.
What was the biggestlimitation you were seeing in current coaching tools that convinced yousomething completely new was needed? The first major limitation was the lack of truly detailed analysis of anindividual release.
From the bowler’s perspective, every shot can feelidentical at the moment of release, yet the results often varysignificantly.
Existing coaching tools simply couldn’t explain why.
Athleteswere left relying on perception rather than precise data.
Thislimitation became even more apparent under competitive pressure.
Tournamentconditions highlighted how essential it is to “polish” a release to thepoint where it becomes repeatable, regardless of stress or external factors.However, without objective measurements, achieving that level of consistencybecomes largely guesswork.
At the same time, there was a clear gap in the market.
No tools couldaccurately measure true RPM throughout the entire motion — especially fromrelease to impact.
For many players, this is a critical parameter, yet itremains inaccessible with existing technologies.
These limitations made itclear that a fundamentally new approach to coaching and performance analysiswas needed.
Birth of the Idea & Development Process Can you describe the early stages of development? What were the biggesttechnical or conceptual challenges you and your team faced when youfirst attempted to place a sensor inside a bowling ball? In the early stages of development, we believed the biggest challenge wouldbe computational - ensuring the sensor could process data accurately anddeliver highly precise measurements.
However, as development progressed, werealized that the real challenge was not the calculations themselves, butthe physical integration.
Designing a sensor that could beeasily inserted and removed, remain completely unnoticeable to the player,and - most importantly - not affect the ball’s balance or performance turnedout to be far more complex than expected.
Solving this required a deep understanding of both bowling equipmentdynamics and hardware design.
I am proud that we developed a solution thatcan be used in virtually any bowling ball without altering its inherentproperties.
The sensor can be seamlessly installed or removed, allowingplayers to switch between balls while maintaining a fully authentic playingexperience.
At the same time, we did not compromise on data quality.
In addition to theease of installation and removal, our solution delivers exceptionallyaccurate and reliable measurements, ensuring that the data is not only easyto access, but truly meaningful for performance analysis.
Product Presentation & Technical Explanation For those hearing about it for the first time, how would you describewhat this sensor actually does inside the ball, and what kind of data ittracks during delivery? At its core, our sensor bridges the gap between intuition and results.
Inbowling, many critical decisions are still based on feel and experience.
Ourgoal is to transform that intuition into measurable insight.
The device itself is a small, removable sensor that can be inserted into abowling ball without affecting its performance.
Once inside, it tracks keydelivery parameters such as RPM, axis tilt, swing height, release speed, andother motion dynamics throughout the shot.
All data is transmitted to a mobile app, where each delivery is visualizedin 3D environment.
Players and coaches can replay, analyse, and compareshots - making it easier to identify patterns, inconsistencies, and areasfor improvement.
In essence, the sensor turns any bowling ball into a smart training device,giving athletes greater control over their performance and helping thembuild a more consistent, repeatable release.
Unique metrics and insights the sensor provides beyond what existing externalcameras, motion-tracking systems, or apps can accurately measure.
A closer look at how this technology can change the way we understand abowler’s motion, using a real example from approach, to release, to impact.
Benefits, Features & Impact on Coaching/Athlete Performance To explore that side of the project, I also spoke with Lithuanian bowlingcoach Andrius Gasparavičius, whose coaching experience offers a practical lookat how this technology could be used on the lanes.
His insightshelp explain how the sensor may support players and coaches in areas such asrelease consistency, rotation, timing, swing analysis, and long-term playerdevelopment.
How do you envision athletes and coaches using this device in realtraining sessions? What practical improvements can it bring to timing,rotation, consistency, ball motion comprehension, and performanceanalysis? First of all, it is important to emphasize that this device is designed tobe equally useful for players analysing their own game and for coachesworking with athletes.
The data is both accurate and clearly presented.For example, when measuring ball revs, there is no longer a needto record the ball motion with a camera, review the footage in slow motion,manually calculate results - a process that is both time-consuming and proneto error.
The sensor does this automatically, delivering precise resultsalmost instantly.
But it goes far beyond that.
Whether youwant to understand your swing height, axis rotation, or axis tilt, youreceive that information after every shot — consistently and objectively.
What long-term impact do you believe this technology will have onplayer development, coaching methodology, and even ball design in thebowling industry? Compared to all the existing solutions on the market, I believe thistechnology represents a significant step forward in accessing data that iscurrently either estimated or requires considerable time and effort tomeasure.
Many modern bowling centres are equipped with thewidely popular Specto system.
In my view, this device will complement it byproviding much-needed data of the shot before and after the foul line -including free swing dynamics, axis tilt, axis rotation, swing height,revolutions, and other key parameters.
By combining these datapoints, players and coaches can gain a much more complete understanding ofthe entire shot.
For coaches who may feel overwhelmed by data, how does your system makeinformation readable, accessible, and useful on the lanes? The system is designed not only to provide numerical values, but also tomake those values easy to understand.
In addition to raw data, it visualizesthe ball’s motion throughout the swing, the axis of rotation, and how itevolves up to the moment of release.
This means that users who prefer a more visual approach - rather than purelynumerical analysis - can still fully understand what is happening duringeach shot.
Our goal is to present complex information in a simple, intuitive way, sothat it becomes immediately useful during training, not something thatrequires additional interpretation later.
As a coach, how would you assess whether this device is best suitedonly for professional players, or also for beginners? One of the key advantages of this device is its versatility — it can be usedby beginners, advanced players, and coaches alike.
Beginners usually focuson developing fundamental skills such as a free swing (for one-handedplayers), the ability to generate rotation, make it consistent, or adjust itas needed.
With this tool, they can immediately see whether they areachieving those goals.
More advanced players, for example those working on changing axis rotation,can track their progress after every throw and objectively evaluate how wellthey are executing adjustments.
For coaches, the value lies in identifying areas that need improvement andthen monitoring how effectively those changes are being implemented overtime.
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Subscribe Now Closing & Subtle Affirmation In every major technical leap there are collaborators who quietlyaccelerate progress, who would you think was unexpectedly important togetting this product over the line, and why? We are deeply grateful to a wide group of contributors whose expertisequietly but significantly accelerated the development of this product.Coaches, players, and bowling experts played a crucial role in helping usask the right questions and validate our assumptions throughout the process.Without their real-world insight, achieving meaningful results would havebeen far more difficult.
In particular, experienced coaches such as Michael Bai, AndriusGasparavicius, and Ron Hatfield had an unexpectedly strong impact.
Theirdeep understanding of the game helped us identify which data points trulymatter - both for athletes striving to improve and for coaches guiding thatprocess.
They were instrumental in transforming raw sensor data intoinsights that are relevant, practical, and actionable.
Additionally, our collaboration with the USBC played a key role in bringingthe product to completion.
It allowed us to test and validate the deviceunder real bowling conditions, ensuring that the data is accurate andaligned with industry standards.
This combination of expert insight and formal validation was essential inturning a promising concept into a reliable, performance-ready solution.
More Articles From Coach Vardakis The Hidden Timing Mistakes That Might Be Ruining Your Shots Spares Are a Feeling, Not a Formula – Why You Might Miss Spares? How to Read Oil Patterns and Build a Smart Line Play Final Statement from the Interviewer As a coach who has spent many years searching for tools that reveal theinvisible parts of a bowler’s game, this sensor represents a breakthrough I’vebeen waiting for.
The ability to see what truly happens inside theball - not just on video or on the lane surface, but within the motion itself- has the potential to redefine how we train, teach, and understandperformance.
I’m genuinely excited to bring this technology intomy own coaching sessions and integrate it into the development of the athletesI work with.
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