A new player has emerged in the timing and tracking sector: The Longines Positioning System (LPS) was revealed at Friday’s Pan American Conference by executives from Swiss watchmaker Longines and the clocking and data handling firm Swiss Timing.
The technology was tested under race conditions in Australia in April at Royal Randwick during the running of the Longines Queen Elizabeth S., said Alain Zobrist, chief executive officer of Swiss Timing.
Similar to the Trakus system employed at tracks worldwide, LPS uses radio frequency transceivers with rechargeable batteries that weigh 60 grams and are located in a small pocket within a horse’s saddle towel.
During the running of a race, an integrated antenna on the transceiver communicates up to 1,000 data points per second, including positional and speed data, to 20 receiving antennas positioned around the racecourse.
“It enables us to evaluate the speeds, the gaps, and the intermediate times of every single horse anywhere on the racetrack,” said Zobrist.
“And to share it to a multitude of tablets, such as additional data on the video boards, enhanced graphics on TV, real-time data to journalists, or a very detailed post-race analysis.
Zobrist continued: “The interesting thing now is that we can play around with that data. For example, 3-D models that can be used for second-screen applications. We might include performance ratings or comparisons of an individual horse, or reviewing the performance and behavior of a horse in specific race phases
