>In an effort to further the athleticism of my children, so they can
>someday be filthy rich and support their kindly old father, I am
>building a wooden target for them to throw a ball at.
>
>I want to count the number of times the ball hits the target.  A PIC
>will count the number of hits and handle an LED display.  But I'm
>hoping for suggestions on how to detect the hits.  Two things come to
>mind: An accelerometer responding to the vibration of a hit, or a
>microphone that picks up the sound of a hit.

A strain gauge connected to an op-amp, and a comparator to give a hit/no
hit indication to the PIC.

Stephen.