Casting Doubt On the Hawkeye Ball-Calling System

Human judgment by referees is increasingly being supplemented (and sometimes overridden) by computerized observation systems. nuke-alwin writes "It is obvious that any model is only as accurate as the data in it, and technologies such as Hawkeye can never remove all doubt about the position of a ball. Wimbledon appears to accept the Hawkeye prediction as absolute, but researchers at Cardiff University will soon publish a paper disputing the accuracy of the system."

Comments

The only solution

[Anonymous Coward]

And ultra-accurate GPS like system that tracks the position of balls in nanosecond detail. They can call it Your Object Universal Remote Movement Observance Mechanism, or YOUR MOM for short.

Re:Why not, it works for shopping carts

[Anonymous Coward]

So if one of the players tries to steal a tennis ball, they won't get very far?

Re:Other applications?

[InfoHighwayRoadkill]

Yes, some people also want to use Hawkeye for some decisions in cricket, the sport that first used it. However the margin of error is far greater (approximately +- 2 inches) in cricket as the cameras have to be a lot further away due to the size of the pitch.

Also Hawkeye finds it hard to pick up swinging, seaming and spinning balls. Basically anything that deviates off its theoretical trajectory either in the air or off the playing surface. Both of which are vital in the LBW decisions where the TV companies and doubtless the Hawkeye people would want to see it used.

Obviously cricket is a far more useful game than tennis so does this answer your question?

Re:It doesn't have to be perfect

[Fred_A]

This assumes there is another method, such as post-analysis of videotape, that can find almost all uncorrected errors or at least give some good indication of the uncorrected error rate.

Another method would be to use Radar instead of Hawkeye. Probably faster and more efficient as well.
(obscure reference).

Re:Why not, it works for shopping carts

[b4dc0d3r]

That's compatibility for legacy (analog) shopping carts with the one wheel stuck sideways.

O RLY?

[davidwr]

You Pierce me with your wit! It Burns! When you finally drag out your Winchester and kill me, you'll have to bury me in a field fit for a Potter because I can't afford anything better.