Transponder Systems
Generically, there are two types of transponder timing systems; active and passive. An active transponder consists of a battery-powered transceiver, connected to the athlete, that emits its unique code when it is interrogated.
A passive transponder does not contain a power source inside the transponder. Instead, the transponder captures electromagnetic energy produced by a near-by exciter and utilizes that energy to emit a unique code.
In both systems, an antenna is placed at the start, finish, and in some cases, intermediate time points and is connected to a decoder. This decoder identifies the unique transponder code and calculates the exact time when the transponder passes a timing point. Some implementations of timing systems require the use of a mat on the ground at the timing points while other systems implement the timing points with vertically oriented portals.
Read more about this topic: Transponder Timing
Famous quotes containing the word systems:
“What is most original in a man’s nature is often that which is most desperate. Thus new systems are forced on the world by men who simply cannot bear the pain of living with what is. Creators care nothing for their systems except that they be unique. If Hitler had been born in Nazi Germany he wouldn’t have been content to enjoy the atmosphere.”
—Leonard Cohen (b. 1934)