IoT (Internet of things) technology is changing the world big time. Various IoT solutions have transformed a million lives personally, professionally, off the field and now on the field too.
Yes, you read it right! Gone are the days where people were focusing on player performances in the game. IT IS NOT JUST ABOUT THE GAME ANYMORE.
Digitization leveraging IoT app development and IoT solutions have forced Sports Industry to adapt to the change. It helps in real-time analysis of player performances in training sessions and matches along with unprecedented statistics on various aspects of the game.
Encouraging signs for Investors and Sports Equipment Organizations
Smart sports equipment help players of any kind, professionals and amateurs, to monitor, track, analyze and improve their performances. According to reports from Fund Global and Retail Technologies, Smart sports equipment is predicted to account for 7.5% of total sports equipment market by 2020 compared to 2.9% in 2015.
This shows a huge opportunity for sports equipment manufacturers and retailers along with sports organizations who are in contract.
Let us have a look at some majestic sports equipment powered by the Internet of Things.
IoT Powered Sports Equipments – a Magnificent Upgrade for Athletes
Smart Cricket Bats
Team India’s former legendary spin bowler Anil Kumble owns a sports technology company named Spektacom for whom Microsoft team is developing IoT based Smart bats.
It will be officially known as a ‘Power Bat’ which includes IoT sensors on bats which will help in delivering useful insights on players batting style.
Real-time data on various parameters like impact, angle, distance, thrust and bat speed can be gathered, monitored and saved for post-match analysis for team meetings.
Adidas miCoach Smart Football
German-based sports equipment manufacturers giant, Adidas, has developed IoT powered smart football for German national football team. The IoT sensor(s) inside the ball has the ability to detect speed, spin, strike, and flight path.
The app users can see the diagnostics via IoT based Smart ball app which helps in analyzing player performance and carry our scope of improvement discussion during team briefings. The battery is rechargeable which leads to 2000 kicks of playing time with complete power capacity.
We have seen technologies like IoT and wearable app development integrated into the Goal-line technology system introduced by FIFA over a couple of years too. Football is known to be ‘A Beautiful Game’, IoT is making it even more interesting and most importantly ‘A Fair Game’.
Wilson’s X Connected
American giants, Wilson Sporting Goods developed a smart basketball which has functionality similar to Adidas’ smart soccer ball.
As discussed above it gives data for overall game performance tracking with analytics for smart coaching.
However, like football, it’s battery cannot be recharged due to ball design limitations and will turn itself into a regular basketball when the battery of the IoT sensor dies.
Smart Helmets
Perhaps, this is the biggest innovation pertinent to player safety. No other sports injury has received greater attention during the game as concussions or head injuries. Unfortunately, the world of sports has seen many players losing lives on the field due to severe head injuries over the years. This is one area where IoT based ‘Smart Helmets’ play a leading role.
Smart Helmets contain impact sensors in-built which help in determining the severity of impact and if the player is exposed to a potential brain injury immediately. So if that is the case, the player can be withdrawn and sent for immediate treatment or diagnosis rather than on-field treatments.
Sports Gears with IoT Sensors
A lot of wearable devices have been used recently but only a few of them have succeeded. For example, chest bands can be uncomfortable for football players while controlling the ball through the chest and considered not safe. Instead, smart vest with IoT sensors came in which can be worn over the team shirt with no hardware on the front.
Smart vests read players heart rate and record GPS data via IoT sensors and send real-time data for analytics. Spanish footballing giants Real Madrid and English giants Arsenal have started using connected vests during live matches.
Win-Win Situation for Amateurs, Athletes & Marketers
Smart sports equipment has shown encouraging signs and dynamism for sustainable market growth. It is widely expected that as IoT based sports equipment will become mainstream, multiple competitors will arise. This will cause a price drop in these smart sports goods and make them more affordable to buy. This will lead to increased sales in smart sports equipment, what else could be better for marketers!
Athletes are loving it and they will stick to such IoT powered smart sports equipment. Consumer adoption shall increase as more and more athletes are joining the party to use smart equipment to track their own progress. Smart Sports Equipment also creates a huge opportunity for virtual coaching programs based on access to real-time data.
Wintergreen Research predicts that the global market for sports coaching platform will be around $861 million in 2021, compared to $49 million in 2014.
Why choose Let’s Nurture to develop Smart Sports Equipment?
Let’s Nurture is an ISO 9001:2015 certified IoT solutions providing company having a pool of expert embedded engineers for product design, IoT based custom PCB design, embedded systems design, open hardware implementation, etc. Pioneering mobile app development for 10+ years, we can serve with top-notch IoT app development services with integration with hardware system for seamless communication and real-time data analysis.
We love all kinds of sports and our developers are huge sports enthusiasts which makes it easy for us to understand the similar requirements of our clients.
Have a similar idea in developing IoT powered sports equipment? Free expert consultationwith our Sports Tech Specialists is just a Click away!
Jignesh Thanki 