autox
[Top] [All Lists]

Re: Wireless autocross timing equipment?

To: autox@autox.team.net
Subject: Re: Wireless autocross timing equipment?
From: Matthew Carson <mcars@vt.edu>
Date: Tue, 11 Jun 2002 22:23:43 -0400
>In the future, there will probably be time signals over the airwaves (does
>GPS do that?) so you could have multiple wireless timers spread throughout
>the course and get accurate start/split/finish readings.  Now that will be
>cool.  How do they calculate split and gap times at race tracks that F1,
>CART, and IRL use?

GPS works by sending out extremely accurate time signals from an onboard 
atomic clock.  (I don't know the definition of "extremely accurate", but I 
imagine much better than 0.001 s)  Perhaps a standard light based trigger 
could be used in conjunction with an onboard GPS receiver.  When the car 
breaks the beam, the receiver records the time from GPS and transmits it to 
the receiver.  Since both start and finish triggers would be based on the 
same GPS time signals, accuracy could perhaps be accomplished.  I have no 
idea how expensive that system would be though.

-Matt

///  unsubscribe/change address requests to majordomo@autox.team.net  or try
///  http://www.team.net/mailman/listinfo
///  Partial archives at http://www.team.net/archive


<Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread>