Tennis coach hopes his new camera robot will serve millions
As professional tennis players prepare for battle in the Australian Open this week, a furloughed tennis coach has put his time away from the court to good use by developing a robot for use with mobile phone cameras.
The device, developed by Paul Jessop, from Bloxwich, is able to lock onto its subject and follow it around, moving the phone to ensure the subject stays in focus.
Paul, who as a teenager took part in a scholarship alongside former world No. 4 Tim Henman, came up with the idea while on furlough from his work.
The 45-year-old thought it would be useful to help him video his pupils as they played the game. But while he was developing the gadget as a free app, he found it could also be used for business meetings, family Zoom calls and even TikTok videos.
The Automated Videoing Assistant (AVA) is a small tracking robot, with a holster to connect any mobile phone. Totally hands free and controlled by a free app, AVA can rotate smoothly 360 degrees on its lightweight base and using the mobile’s capabilities, recordings can be made, or videos can be live streamed.
It means that selfie and TikTok fans can run about, jump about, even sprint around in circles, with the device following them around. It can also be used to track several people at once, ensuring everyone is included in important decision making.
The robot's motor allows it to rotate 360 degrees in just 2.5 seconds, which Paul says is quick enough to keep up with even the fastest of sports, allowing coaches, players, and parents to make recordings hands free.
He said: “I am a self-confessed techie and love to see how the latest gadgets work or don’t.
"With a little bit more time on my hands I came up initially with the idea of a tracking robot to help in the sports environment, to record players on the move who might not otherwise be able to capture their performance.
"As I coach, I am convinced it will be an essential tool in enabling sports players to play back their recordings, for personal use or to share with others, perhaps for the purposes of online coaching.
"But as I progressed, I identified multiple usage ideas and applications and when I showed friends and family, they all chipped in situations AVA could be used."
Paul said he developed the machine with the help of experts in artificial intelligence.
He said he was now seeking investment through a crowd-funding page.
"I’ve got so many ideas of how to use AVA and the fun people can have with it," he added.
"It would be amazing to see AVAs on tennis courts, in offices, living rooms, anywhere AVA can bring people’s videos to life.”
Paul's crowd-funding page can be viewed at kickstarter.com/projects/pauljessop/the-sports-tracking-robot-ava
