Miniaturizing a GNSS Device for Real Time Match Analysis

A Feasibility Study over the Integration of GNSS Device for Real Time Match

Analysis

Corrado Cervellati

, Alessandro Di Felice

and Stefano D’Ottavio

SpaceEXE Srl, Via Giacomo Peroni 130, Roma, Italy

Sport Science Department, Università Roma 2, Tor Vergata, Roma, Italy

Keywords: GNSS Navigation, Real-time Performance Tracking.

Abstract: The GNSS devices for monitoring athletic performances are becoming more and more a common tool for

football team, in order to better shape athletic training and have a more complete view of individual

performances.

However, technological limits, but also legal ones, restricted the use of these devices only to training

sessions and post-processing analysis.

This study wants to demonstrate the benefits and the change in match analysis with the introduction of a non-

invasive GNSS device integrated into a shin-guard.

1 OBJECTIVES

1.1 Premises

The GNSS devices for monitoring athletic

performances are becoming more and more a

common tool for football team, in order to better

shape athletic training and have a more complete

view of individual performances.

However, technological limits, but also legal

ones, restricted the use of these devices only to

training sessions and post-processing analysis.

Match analysis instead have been done until now

with video analysis and video tracking systems,

which still present issues over data accuracy and

have a limited set of data offered to the team.

Therefor there is a need to find a system capable

of bringing the capacity of GNSS devices to give

quantitative data in real- time and during official

matches and integrate them with systems capable

of, instead produce qualitative data.

The goal is to give a complete spectrum of

players and team performances and enhance the

possibilities of a more scientific and analytical

approach to performance and training analysis in

football.

The GNSS device have been installed inside a

shin-guard (mandatory equipment for a football

player) and delivers data to a receiving station

installed at the border of the field Recently FIFA,

through its official board committee the IFAB,

issued an amendment (SEC/2015-C049/bru) over

the use of GNSS technology during official matches,

for health and performance monitoring purpose.

This news make this research even more

important.

1.2 Goals

The overall goal of this study is to demonstrate the

feasibility of a GNSS monitoring device, able to

measure in real time players’ athletic performances,

and team.

Overall tactical results, during league official

matches.

In order to achieve this overall goal some

intermediate one have been set:

1. Miniaturizing a GNSS device to fit inside a shin-

guard

2. Reaching a consistency and reliability in wireless

transmission

3. Creating algorithms for high-precision in position

4. Real-time data processing

5. Consistency in data processed

6. Accuracy in speed measurement of a 10hz GPS

compared to other systems with a faster update

rate

Cervellati, C., Felice, A. and D’Ottavio, S..

Miniaturizing a GNSS Device for Real Time Match Analysis - A Feasibility Study over the Integration of GNSS Device for Real Time Match Analysis.

2 METHOD

The method used by the author for reaching this

goals have been different

In order to research and developed the system

SpaceEXE took advantage of the expertise in

aerospace industries of the authors of this abstract,

especially related to satellite navigation and hardware

engineering.

The first major challenge was to harmonize a

GNSS receiver with the current rules over player’s

equipment.

In this case, the shin-guard proved to be the only

gear in which, it was possible to achieve a satisfying

quality in signal reception and overcoming any

ground-effect issues.

For implementing a correct wireless transmission,

the position of the antenna and the frequencies of

transmission proved to be the crucial point in order

to respect quality standards, especially in order to not

be overwhelmed by more powerful devices such as

television cameras.

For the consistency of data, it have been

necessary to implement an extended round of test

which used a number of other device, of already

stated accuracy, in order to understand the

consistency of the data produced by MESSI system.

For example for speed, testers used photocells and

an HD camera and then applied some business

analysis tools in order to understand the differences in

measured speed.

3 RESULTS

The result of this development proved encouraging,

especially related to the viability of the system and

the consistency of data produced.

The photos below show the shin-guard with the

GNSS integrated in it (figure 1), the second one

shows instead how the shin-guard is seen by its user

(figure 2).

Figure 1.

Figure 2.

In the next pics instead to screenshot of the system at

work are showed, with an example of real time

tactical feature and a real time athletic performance

feature (figure 3 and 4).

Figure 3.

Figure 4.

This graph instead shows the results obtained by

the test over speed, with an indication of the speed

measured by photocell and cameras.

The blue graph shows the speed of the foot

registered by the camera, while the orange line shows

the movement of the chest, recorded from the camera

too; finally, the red line instead shows the speed

recorded by the shin-guard.

4 DISCUSSION

The system have been tested and implemented with

different Italian teams, like the young team of Lazio

(figure 5) and proved its reliability and its impact on

the possibility of managing tactics during a match and

correct the positions of the player in order to achieve

better results and a better efficiency in team

management.

The capacity of the system of recording and storage

data allows coaches and athletic trainers to have a

ready- made path of players performance) and better

shape training programs, but also to have a constant

monitoring over the footballers’ health in the scope of

prevention.

Figure 5.

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