October 24, 2007 A wireless, multi-lane sports measurement and training system designed to assess critical aspects of sports performance including speed, endurance, race-pacing, reaction time and decision making in all land-based sports has reached U.S shores.
Based in Queensland, Australia, Fusion Sport specializes in applying sports science to developing education and technology products for use in a wide range of sports. Their current product offerings are SMARTSPEED and SMARTJUMP, both commercially available in Australia and now in the US.
SMARTSPEED is a reactive training and testing system incorporating basic wireless timing through to advanced tactical drills. The world's only timing light system that is easily configurable for multiple lane wireless timing of any combination of splits and distances (maximum of 4 lanes with 6 gates per lane), the system works via electronic gates that sense the movement of the athlete and send information to Pocket PC software. The software comes pre-programmed with a wide range of protocols, which can then be diversified to create an unlimited variety of drills, fitness tests and research protocols. The system can be used to train and assess critical aspects of sports performance - speed, endurance, race-pacing, reaction time and decision making across a wide range of land-based sports.
The system is designed to give coaches greater control over the training environment, and provides a new world of challenges and feedback for athletes. The wireless multi-lane timing straight to a PC makes recording data easy for coaches of more than one athlete. SMARTSPEED aims to enhance training, testing or research environments beyond the scope of measurement-only sports technology.
The newly developed SMARTJUMP system is designed for testing and training athletes in power exercises. Vertical jump testing remains one of the most widely used methods for testing and training power and strength in a wide range of sports and SMARTJUMP allows coaches to test power on all jumping exercises, simply and quickly. Every jump is individually measured and a range of variables generated automatically.
The system works using a contact mat and sensors to detect the performance of athletes. It monitors details such as contact time, flight time, Reactive Strength Index (RSI) average power and impulse (net), recovery, training response and power gains. The system is easily movable and can be used on the field or in a gym and can be operated in real time mode providing immediate feedback to coaches and athletes on every jump. The SMARTJUMP system incorporates the SMARTSPEED electronic gate which can be used to monitor starts, or wall mounted as a target for shooting and passing drills.
The SMARTSPEED system recently took to the airwaves as part of a new US TV show, Sport Science. The show takes many of America's top athletes and puts them against the latest sport science has to offer.
