A sailing tracking solution based on CAT-M technology has arrived

Thanks to Vodafone's recently introduced CAT-M network, MobileGap's competitive sports support system can open up new horizons in the support of sailing and other competitive and mass sports through high reliability, low consumption on the sensor side and faster response times than ever before. With the help of real-time, cloud-based communication and the sensors placed on the ships, Race&Trace makes it possible to follow the state of sailing races live: the solution makes sailing races even more exciting with position tracking, continuous speed measurement, the possibility of live video broadcasts, and showing partial results. In addition to the above, Race&Trace is extremely important from a safety point of view: thanks to the real-time data, it can be detected much faster if a sailboat is in trouble, and thanks to the accurate location data, the rescue teams can find those in trouble more easily.

Vodafone Hungary has been successfully cooperating with Mobilegap Hungary Zrt for more than 12 years, and the latter's Race&Trace system has been supporting the domestic sailing community for a year. Now Mobilegap's Digital Service Platform (M-DSP) is opening new doors in the field of digitalization of shipping by connecting to Vodafone's CAT-M IoT network. The CAT-M network is able to handle the movement between base stations without interruptions, so that participants in mass and competitive sports can be tracked more precisely, and data and statistics on speed, partial results, among others, become available even during the competition.

About the Race&Trace solution

With the help of the real-time, cloud-based system and the communication of the sensors placed on the ships, Race&Trace enables spectators to follow the state of sailing races live, and for competitors to make their preparation even more effective by analyzing the races afterwards.

The information from the sensors is sent to the central server with the help of mobile data transfer technology (CAT-M), where the data is processed, and then on the website

display. The main features of the sustainability-minded sensor include low consumption, water resistance, built-in GPS, casing made of recycled material, and compatibility with 2G, 3G and LTE mobile networks. The central element of the solution is the web interface, which is available on PC, tablet and phone. On the displayed map interface, the participants in the competition can see their partial results online, in real time, as well as various statistics and prognoses regarding the final result of the competition. Fans who support the teams can select their favorites, filter by ship class, captain, crew or ship names, following the ships continuously and live, even displaying their routes. A spectacular element is the continuous banner-like display of the results during the races, as well as the list-like availability of the final results at the end of the race, as we can even see during various motorsport broadcasts.

Race&Trace can also be extremely important from a safety-technical point of view: thanks to the data arriving in real time, it can be detected much faster if a sailboat might be in trouble, and thanks to the precise location data, the rescue teams can also find those in trouble more easily.

"It is always a great pleasure for Vodafone to work with partners who come up with forward-looking digital solutions for which Vodafone can provide the appropriate technological background. Thanks to MobileGap and the Race&Trace system developed by them, our technological solutions, including our range of CAT-M based services, are now enriched with a really interesting color spot, sailing - and hopefully, in the long term, competitive and mass sports as well. The solution is a good example of how technologies similar to CAT-M, which are considered relatively new, but all the more innovative, can be integrated into everyday life. - said Mátyás Dobó, deputy general manager of Vodafone Hungary's corporate services business.

"In the past year, we have gained a lot of experience with the Race&Trace solution, we have received a lot of positive feedback related to practical use, but at the same time, Vodafone's CAT-M network can open new doors for us. The development of the sensor network and the central system connected to Vodafone's CAT-M IoT network opens up common perspectives in the field of the spread of IoT solutions. According to our plans, in the future, Race&Trace can also make other sports, such as cycling, cross-country running, triathlon, or even paragliding, visible and form an experience, thereby popularizing them for viewers or followers." - said Katalin Magos, MobileGap's head of digital product development.

(Source: sekseksceg.co.hu, autokalauz.co.hu; Vodafone Hungary/Photo: pixabay.com)