Abstract: The invention relates to method for calculating a position of a transponder within an area of interest, by means of a local positioning system comprising a set of directive antennae located in the vicinity of the area of interest, each antenna having a coverage area, the method comprising the following steps: assessing an approximate position of the transponder selecting at least one antenna of the set of antennae that is such that the transponder is within range but not in the effective coverage area of said antenna, according to the approximated position of the transponder and the positions and orientations of the antennae redirecting the focus of the selected antenna so that the transponder is in the effective coverage area of said antenna, according to the approximated position of the transponder performing time-of-arrival or time-difference-of-arrival measurements with respect to the transponder, by the set of antennae calculating the effective position of the transponder by using said timing measurem

Abstract: The competitor starting device in a sports competition is a starting block device. It includes one rear base for holding the device on a competition surface, a force detection sensor connected to a processing circuit, and two starting blocks for competitor's feet. Each block is adjustably mounted on a longitudinal bar, which is connected to the base and activates the sensor to determine a response time at the competition start. The longitudinal bar is connected to an H-shaped structure having two strips, spaced apart. The strip ends are rigidly connected to an immobile portion of the rear base, while a central bar connecting the strips is secured to the rear end of the longitudinal bar. When a force is applied to the block(s), the central bar is pushed in one direction via the bending of the strips to activate the sensor to determine a response time at the competition start.

Abstract: The system for timing a sports competition includes a main timing device having a first time base, and a secondary timing device having a second time base (5). The two timing devices are capable of operating in parallel when the timing system is enabled. The two timing devices are arranged such that the second time base (5) is synchronized by using a reference timer signal (CLKref) generated by the first time base. The second time base (5) includes a phase lock loop (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17) for adapting the frequency of the second timer signal (CLK_T2) according to the frequency of the reference timer signal (CLKref).