Jul 25, 2011Leveraging the increasing prevalence of smartphones and other electronics, as well as an existing infrastructure of RFID technology, organizers of the ING New York City Marathon will offer new services at this year's event, being held on Nov. 6, 2011, that will employ both radio frequency identification and Global Positioning System (GPS) technologies, in order to bring spectators closer to the runners they've come to watch. Thanks to RFID readers installed along the racecourse, tags on the participants' bibs, and GPS functionality in runners' smartphones, visitors will be able to see exactly where each runner is located throughout the entire race, and view data about the run.
To make this possible, the race's organizer, New York Road Runners (NYRR), is teaming with MapMyFitness, located in Austin, Texas, which provides the MapMyRun server software to combine information from the existing RFID system provided by ChronoTrack Systems—in place since 2009—with GPS data provided by participants' and spectators' phones. By combining the two technologies, the marathon can provide an application designed by MapMyFitness and sold to users of Apple iPhone and Android smartphones. This app will allow runners to view their own progress during the race, and also enable friends, family members and others to ascertain not only a particular runner's track location at any given time during the race, but also where that participant is located in relation to the spectators. Attendees can also view pictures and videos of the course at the points passed by that participant.
The marathon has used RFID technology during its past two races, for tracking the specific moment that runners pass particular points along the course (see UHF Solution Tracks 42,000 Runners at the New York City Marathon). Each of the race's approximately 46,000 runners receives a bib upon arriving for the event. The bib includes a built-in ChronoTrack B-Tag containing an EPC Gen 2 passive ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID inlay that transmits a unique ID number to approximately 85 Impinj RFID readers stationed along the racecourse, as well as at entrances and exits to the race area. Impinj manufactured the chip and designed the tag antenna.
In previous years, NYRR provided a ChronoTrack D-Tag, which could be attached to a runner's shoelaces. For a number of reasons, the organization opted this year for the B-Tag, designed to be embedded in the bib worn on a runner's chest. In this eay, says Kenneth Winell, the organization's VP, the tag provides a more accurate account of the time at which each runner passes the finish line. What's more, he adds, runners find the B-Tag easier to attach, and it creates less environmental impact, since it is recyclable and is smaller than the D-tag.
According to Robin Thurston, MapMyFitness' CEO and founder, each time that a runner passes through one of the read points set up along the course, that individual's ID number is read and then forwarded to MapMyFitness' cloud-based server. This server then provides information regarding that runner's location and time on its MapMyRun Web site.
In 2010, NYRR built additional functionality into the system, in order to enhance the experience for runners, as well as for their friends and families. For example, the technology was also used last year to provide personalized messages on an LED screen (see ASICS Uses RFID to Inspire Marathon Runners). That solution, known as Support Your Marathoner, was provided by ASICS, a manufacturer of running shoes and clothing. This year, ASICS will provide the same solution.
For the upcoming race on Nov. 6, each runner can opt to purchase an app for his or her smartphone, allowing that participant to stay in closer touch with spectators while the race takes place. If a runner does not carry a smartphone during the event, the system will utilize updates from the RFID reads taken each time that individual passes over a reader antenna, to provide information and images to the smartphones of his or her fans. For participants who do carry a smartphone, the system takes advantage of that phone's GPS functionality, to display the runner's exact track location at all times, as well as his or her location in relation to that of the spectator.
In addition, a map can show a phone user where he or she is located in relation to the runner, based on the last interrogator that particpant passed over, as well as when this occurred, and thereby enable the spectator to know, for example, if and when the runner will pass his or her location. The attendee can also view the runner's place in the race—for example, how that individual's ranks compares with those of other runners.
If a runner is carrying his or her own smartphone, the app is further enhanced. For example, the runner can look at the phone's screen and see where he or she is located at any point during the event. The phone's GPS function will also make it possible for spectators to ascertain that individual's location in real time, while the RFID technology is used to serve as an additional source of location data, and to ensure that the GPS coordinates are accurate each time the runner passes an RFID antenna. What's more, the MapMyRun software enables the user to access data from the run, sent to his or her Twitter, Facebook or Flickr pages, indicating at what point he or she is in the race, and sending pictures of that individual as he or she proceeds along the track.
Over the past two years, Winell says, NYRR has been experimenting with what RFID alone could provide to participants and spectators. "Based on our previous experiment," he states, "we're building out a full-blown participant-spectator application that blends the real world with the digital world."
Thurston says he expects the initial number of phone-using participants to be between 5 percent and 10 percent, though he hopes, in the coming years, that the marathon would have 100 percent participation in the program among spectators, as smartphones become more commonplace. In the meantime, he notes, runners are not encouraged to run with electronic devices in hand, since the use of headsets can prove distracting enough to constitute a safety hazard for runners, and detract from the real-world entertainment and information provided during the race. However, Winell says, the reality is that a growing number of participants carry electronic devices—between 10 percent and 30 percent, he estimates. Approximately half of those devices, he says, are smartphones that can be strapped to a runner's arm, enabling that person to listen to music while running.
Beyond applications designed to enhance the marathon experience for runners and spectators, the existing RFID system has been providing NYRR with other tools since it was first installed in 2009, such as an automated record of when each runner completed the race, while also ensuring that points are not missed along the track. The technology also provides information that can be useful for crowd control, allowing NYRR to identify when a bottleneck of runners occurs, and to address the problem—or, in some cases, to alert the city or police that, for instance, a large number of people have completed the race and are exiting the area simultaneously. The solution can also be used to determine if a large number of participants are awaiting attention at the medical area.
