Looking for appropriate transmitter/ receiver technology to use for project

[Pclarkeirl]

I am helping my son with a project. He is looking to design a system whereby by a soccor coach could replay a match on a PC screen showing each player as a graphic. This would enable the coach to look at team formations, missed plays etc.

The idea is as follows:
• The field would be marked out with 4 transmitters at each corner which would transmit a signals identifying themselves as markers.
• Each of the 22 players would wear a transmitter which would identify their team and name
• The Ball would have a transmitter identifying it as a ball.
• A receiver at the sideline would receive each of these signals (possibly 1 signal from each transmitter every second) and store them in a file representing the game
• This stored file could then be deciphered by a program which would display each player on the field and the ball and track their movements.

He is hoping to do this as a school project and the idea is that it has to be functional and affordable.

QUESTION
Obviously the transmittors and receiver(s) are the critical elements. Are there transmittors/receivers out there that are capable of providing this type of functionality ? - Without costing the earth. Appreciate any advise you can give us on this subject.

Pat

 

[Dr_Doggy]

I once seen software that uses a web cam and pinpoints light signatures on your head and follows it, to simulate a mouse,

I'd suggest doing something like that to track the players, from a cam over top the field, then you can track anything not green

this would be the simplest i think, and most cost effective, but you may need to know some coding!

 

[Pclarkeirl]

Thanks doggy,
I'm looking for something that will not require the setting up of overhead cameras. Something that can be used almost anywhere. If I can get a signal every second from each tag and each tage has a unique identifier then I can use some simple coding to re-create the positions on the field. I'm just hoping that there is a transmitter/receiver out there that would be suitable.

 

[MikeMl]

Measuring distance by time of flight of a radio wave is no easy feat. Radio waves propagate at about 0.3m/ns, or about 1ft/ns. Because conventional receivers have narrow IF bandwidth, which means it takes 100s of usec for them to decide if they are hearing something, they do not have sufficient resolution to measure time of flight. It would take Radar type of receivers to do that.

You'd be better off using ultrasonics. The velocity of propagation of sound waves is 1100 feet/sec, which is something you can work with.

How about putting a GPS receiver/low power VHF transmitter on each player?

 

[Pclarkeirl]

Thanks Mike,
Is there somewhere that I can learn more about Ultrasonics and the GPS options. Which of these would be the most cost effective ?

Pat