The Sprint Stopper Fully Automatic Timing App

The last article on a Fully Automatic Timing app is available for iOS devices such as iPhones and iPads. This app is for Android phones. This guest blog was written by Quincy Neal, developer and founder of the Sprint Stopper app.

Fully Automatic Timing Now For Everyone?

Sprint Stopper is a new app in the Android market (and soon to be Apple market), that turns mobile devices such as cell phones into a fully automatic Timing System. That’s right, a fully automatic as it works just like professional timing equipment used in sporting events like track meets and has a timing accuracy of 0.009. It works very simply, just place the mobile device at the finish line on the ground or mounted on a tripod and after three (3) beeps simulating (on your marks, get set, and go) the athlete begins Sprinting. As the athlete crosses the finish line, the camera detects them in the center of a cross-hair and stops the timer.

It can take Time any distance from 0 to 800 meters and even automatically records split times when running distances like 600 and 800 meters that require multiple passes through the finish line. There is a repeat function that repeats the start process after a run is finished such a workout of 10 x 30 meter starts can be completed with the times of each sprint listed from newest to oldest.

While that all seems amazing, Sprint Stopper also can time up to 8 athletes at once over all distances just like a real track meet with a list of results from first to last place. All of the above is done with no individual holding or operating the mobile device at all during the timing process. In fact, the only time the user touches the device is when setting it up before and pressing start.

To run any distance 0 to 800 meters only two things need to happen:

1. the sound needs to reach the starting line
2. the athlete needs enough time to walk to the line before starting

There are three options to get the sound from your device placed at the finish line to the starting line. One option is your devices built in speakers if your only running 10 to 20 meters. Another option is placing a speaker at the starting line and using an audio cable to connect your device to the speaker. The last method is connecting your device wirelessly to a speaker at the starting line via a Bluetooth connection. For running distances where the starting line and the finish line are far away from each other like 100 or 200 meters a very long range Bluetooth speaker or long audio cable is needed. Before the “beep” sounds play, you will need sufficient time to walk to the starting line. Thus the sprint stopper allows the user to enter any amount of time in seconds that they want it to wait before playing the sounds after pressing start.

Sprint Stopper was designed to give commoners in the athletic community an inexpensive method of fully automatic timing that could be used alone as well as provide professional-style performance analysis. It was built strictly based on the principle that we cannot improve what we can’t measure. Sprint Stopper’s ultimate goal is to get rid all stopwatches once and for all among speed athletes and coaches. It is currently being used by college and pro athletes in USA, UK, and Australia. Even though it’s very new in the app market, it already seems very promising in doing so.

Downloads are from Google Play Store.  Here is the link for the Free Version and the link for the Full Version.