Intel drones, bat sensors to enhance Champions Trophy experience

New Delhi, May 31: As cricket lovers get ready for the ICC Champions Trophy starting in Britain from June 1, Intel Technologies has announced advanced pitch analysis by an Intel drone, profiling the bat swing using a bat sensor and a virtual reality (VR) packed experience for the fans at the stadiums.

The Intel Falcon 8 Drone, equipped with HD and infrared cameras, will be used for advanced pitch analysis before every match.

Images captured by the drone will offer rich visual data on pitch conditions such as grass cover, grass health, and topology, which will be used to generate daily pitch reports leveraged by commentators during broadcasts.

"We couldn't be more excited to have Intel as our 'Official Innovation Partner' of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017," said David Richardson, CEO, ICC, on Tuesday.

"The innovations Intel is bringing to the game promise to transform how cricket is experienced and enjoyed around the world, and we look forward to partnering with Intel in this effort," Richardson added in a statement.

The bat sensor powered by the Intel Curie technology can be mounted on any cricket bat to generate data for every stroke that the batsman plays.

With this technology, parameters like back-lift, bat speed, and follow-through can be tracked for every cricket stroke.

Several batsmen will use these bat sensors in the games, enabling new insights on stroke play and rich story-telling in the broadcast.



"Our goal is to lead the way forward into the digitization and personalisation of sports, transforming the way fans and athletes experience sports," said Sandra Lopez, Vice President, Intel Sports Group.

Intel will also showcase VR experience zones at The Oval and Edgbaston, to allow fans to experience facing a virtual bowler in an immersive cricketing environment.

Using a head-mounted display (HMD), the player will be able to test his or her batting skill against a virtual bowler.

Using the Intel Curie technology-enabled cricket bat, the player will be able to see data from their swing such as bat speed and back-lift angle as well as a simulated score from the VR session.

"Speculur BatSense with Intel Inside has the potential to transform cricket across a varied audience from coaches to aspiring self-taught cricketers," said Atul Srivastava, Managing Director, Speculur which is a Bengaluru-based smart wearable and cognitive computing company.

With "Speculur BatSense", aspiring cricketers can measure, track and improve their batting skills.

The company plans to make 'Speculur BatSense' available in Australia, India, the United States and Britain in the second half of this year.