Animation Research Ltd

Thursday May 14, 2009

State of the art tracking technology and 3-D animations will bring to life real time action from the Audi MedCup Circuit race course.

Virtual Eye is one of the world’s leading real time 3D animation companies, utilised by some of the most important sports events throughout the world, including the America’s Cup, Formula One motor racing, Round the World Race and, now, the Audi MedCup Circuit.

For the first time in the history of the MedCup Circuit, Virtual Eye will make it possible to follow the races just by visiting www.medcup.org or, at the regatta sites, on screens set up for the occasion in the village, as well as in different facilities of the port of Alicante.

A team of five people and one tonne of specialist equipment has been brought to Alicante, the first venue of this fifth edition of the Audi MedCup Circuit.

3D images of the city of Alicante, its port and the fleet have been generated using satellite photographs and topographic maps. Each boat (both GP42 Series and TP52 Series) will carry a transmitter unit with GPS and GPRS and radio on its aft deck, which collects and relays the boat’s performance data to the committee boat which transmits it to the roof of the hotel Meliá Alicante, and from there to the virtual animation room in the regatta village.
The GPS and radio transmission systems on the boats transmit simultaneously as a failsafe if either system should go down.

This raw data allows Virtual Eye to create the animations which will be shown at the big screens of the village, in the media and guest boats, and in different buildings of the regatta complex.

Live Sailing will be charged with the live broadcasting of the races over the Internet.

Visit www.medcup.org, click on the ‘follow live sailing’ icon, and enjoy!

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Article courtesy of Audi Med Cup © 2009