[Markymark1 (OP)]

DETAILS
A wireless three-dimensional target is on the playing field. A player kicks a ball at the target.

OPERATION
When the ball contacts the wireless target the target logs a score. The score is wirelessly communicated to an electronic scoreboard.

QUESTIONS
1. What wireless technology will log a point only when the ball contacts the target. (If a foot, and not the ball, contacts the target it does not score a point).

Thanks ahead of time!!

   

      

[RD]

QUESTIONS
1. What wireless technology will log a point only when the ball contacts the target. (If a foot, and not the ball, contacts the target it does not score a point).

RFID tag(s) in the ball ? ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio-frequency_identification

[Markymark1 (OP)]

Yes, RFID, great insight. I just researched RFID, accelerometers, near field communication, magnetic paint, Bluetooth and arduino. And, its possible the solution is there but, I'm not smart enough to extract it .... 

The complexity of this application is equipping the target to differentiate between contact by a ball and contact by a foot. It's been very challenging for me; especially since I am not an scientist or engineer by trade. Thanks for any insights you may wish to share.

[evan_au]

The simplest method is physical vibration when the ball strikes the target. But as you say, something apart from the ball could hit the target, which would also set off a vibration sensor.

You could validate that indeed it is the ball adjacent to the target by using something like RFID. These are available with various ranges, and you could select one that is detected within the radius of the target+diameter of the ball.

Putting electronics (and perhaps a power supply) inside a ball is challenging - the vibration would be pretty severe, so it would need to be rugged. The advantage of RFID is that it is passive, and externally powered, so you don't need to worry about charging batteries. You would also need an RFID tag that can be read very quickly, as the ball will bounce away from the target very quickly.

How big is the target area? The size of goalposts, or the size of another ball? This may affect your choices.

If you were willing to put active electronics inside the ball, you could put a short-range transmitter in there; an antenna in the target would detect the signal getting stronger and then weaker, with an impact in between.

Note that the use of radio spectrum is carefully controlled, devices often need to be licensed. Devices need to be fairly accurate frequency to avoid interference with other services. This is a tough requirement for a device which is literally going to be kicked around in an environment which is often wet and muddy. But if the transmitter had a range of (say) 1 meter, that is unlikely to cause interference to other services.

You also need to be wary of interference from nearby transmitters - some people carry their mobile phones with them everywhere, transmitting their location on mobile cellular networks, and always searching for familiar Bluetooth and WiFi networks.

[CPUdon]

I need to know too.