USA Today recently reported that each player will don two small sensors that will be located underneath their shoulder pads. These sensors will track the players’ movements during an entire game.

As we mentioned before, Zebra Technologies is working on this tracking system and has implemented similar technologies in other industries. This system in particular will go live in 17 stadiums, which include Atlanta, Baltimore, Carolina, Chicago, Cincinnati, Denver, Detroit, Green Bay, Houston, Jacksonville, Miami, New England, New Orleans, Oakland, San Francisco, St. Louis and Washington.

The installation of this technology at the 17 NFL stadiums will include receivers that are connected with cables to a hub and a server that will then record players’ locations in real time.

A great feature of this invention is that in less than one second, the data can be enhanced and used for presentation on TV. In the future, this tracking system can be used as part of second-screen experience or an app.

Could have, would have, should have… that’s usually what comes out of the mouths of those “couch coaches” that watch their favorite team each weekend from the comfort of their own home. This invention will eventually be able to know the exact closing distance of a defender and an offensive player to see whether or not a hit would have occurred or whether he really could have made the big play, thus, either egging on or silencing that “couch coach” in your life.

Not only is this invention useful for those at home, it also could potentially be used in games for coaches to gain an edge on their competitors. However, as of late, the NFL will not allow teams to use data that is gathered for competitive purposes.

In recent years, TV networks have experimented with route maps, among other visual enhancements, to track players’ movements. But, a league-wide use of the sensors and the data that they would collect could perhaps be the biggest piece of innovation since the yellow first-down line that we see on our television screens.

Additionally, this type of technology could potentially be used in order to track a player’s in-game heart rate and could be used in the ball to decide whether it has crossed the goal line.

The possibilities for this invention are endless and only time and big decisions made by those in powerful positions will determine how his innovative invention could be used in the future.

Copyright Inventionland 2014

Sources:

https://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/nfl-will-roll-out-new-player-tracking-system-for-real-time-on-field-stats-130425708.html

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2014/07/30/metrics-sensor-shoulder-pads-zebra-speed-tracking/13382443/

Images:

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/478956593820618752/kvqPokJj.jpeg

https://a.espncdn.com/photo/2014/0731/nfl_device_d1_600x400.jpg

The post Tracking Innovation with the NFL appeared first on Inventionland.

If you aren’t familiar with what we are talking about, during the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil, referees would use the magic spray to keep the defensive wall 10 yards from the ball during free kicks. However, the inventor of this curious spray was more concerned with enhancing the game than enhancing his bank account.

Inventor Heine Allemagne currently holds an international patent for this invention and gave FIFA the free use of it at the World Cup. You read that correctly, this inventor let FIFA use his invention for free. But, why? Because he was driven by his love of the game and helping referees instill discipline.

The invention at its core is very simple. It allows a referee to spray a line of biodegradable foam that comes from vegetable oil in a line on the field. This line then indicates where the players must stand during a free kick. You might be thinking that by the end of a game the field would be covered in foam lines. However, once the line is sprayed, it disappears within a minute or two.

The idea for Allemagne’s invention originated when he became more and more irritated with the time-wasting that occurred during every free kick as players encroached towards the ball. 

So, he took matters into his own hands, or for the sake of this soccer blog, his own feet, when he developed the first prototype that was used during the minor Copa Belo Horizonte in 2000.

As time went on, this invention slowly but surely made its way into higher levels of soccer and two years later, the Brazilian FA (CBF) gave permission for the spray to be used after it was given a 100 percent approval  rating from the referees who had previously used it.

By 2012, the magic spray had already undergone a slew of technical modifications along the way and was tested in 18,000 professional games. Finally, it was approved by the International Football Association Board (IFAB).

Most inventions come out of necessity or as a solution to an ongoing problem. The problem that the invention of the magic spray solved was keeping defenders behind a certain line during free kicks. With its popularity and ability to keep players in line, literally, we think that this won’t be the last time that we see the magic spray during a soccer match!

Copyright Inventionland 2014

Sources:

https://in.reuters.com/article/2014/07/07/soccer-world-spray-idINKBN0FC2AM20140707

Media:

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTcUMlY0dk4S-XTEu2Z_JsXg14juTSTOTTUanFZrHRR53H_4IST

https://news.softpedia.com/images/news2/Vanishing-Spray-Used-at-the-2014-FIFA-World-Cup-to-Prevent-Cheating-446674-2.jpg

The post Learn More About the World Cup’s Magic Spray! appeared first on Inventionland.