Imagine a fumble, a dropped ball—but wait, was it caught?—and the wide receiver runs it all the way for a touchdown.
Leave it to
Carnegie Mellon University to develop a high tech gadget that gives referees and coaches a proof positive way to determine a play when the cameras and refs aren’t in the right place at the right time.
Using a combination of sensors, embedded devices and wireless protocols, Priya Narasimhan and her students are developing a smart football and glove that can track the balls movement in real time 3D space, providing crucial information during football games such as did the ball hit the ground?
“I’m really excited about this,” says Narasimham, director of Carnegie Mellon’s mobility center. “The dream for me is to work with a team like the Steelers.”
Narasimham believes the technology will help high school and college coaches and trainers with scouting as well. She hopes to test it in actual game situations for the next six months before developing it for game day play.
This isn’t the first time Narasimham and her team have wrapped technology around a sport. The researchers are working with the
Penguins to develop the
Yinz Cam, a live video broadcast that allows fans to watch the best angles of the hockey game on their cell phone.
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Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Priya Narasimham, Carnegie Mellon University