| Infrared Engagement System (IrES) |
|
|
|
Find out what the Infrared Engagement System is and how it enhances RealSport products. Q: What is IrES? A: IrES is short for the Infrared Engagement System, RealSport's unique set of features that form the heart of our pursuit gaming system. IrES offers players a range of realism-enhancing functions never before available on infrared systems. All RealSport gear comes equipped with IrEs features, such as high-quality infrared transmitters, removable ammo clips, an anti-cheat timer mechanism, durable, bright targets, and a suite of customizable software features. Q: Are RealSport's products compatible with Lazer Tag equipment? A. Yes. RealSport gear is compatible with any Worlds of Wonder(TM) compatible system such as Laser Tag Team Ops Master Blaster(TM) and IRT-2X(TM), the original Worlds of Wonder Lazer Tag(TM), Battlefield Sports(TM) gear, and any other system that uses a WoW format. Q: Have you used RealSport guns with with other "Worlds of Wonder"-based weapons? If so, how well did they interact? A. RealSport's IrES system is fully "Worlds of Wonder" compatible. The software ensures that the transmitted signal and receiving algorithm is within standard frequency tolerances for the WoW signal format (56Khz carrier modulated by a 1.8Khz tone). Because our signal format meets the standard transmission critera for WoW-based systems, we can guarantee it will not have any compatibility issues with other standard WoW-based systems, such as Laser Tag Team Ops Master Blaster(TM) and IRT-2X(TM), the original Worlds of Wonder Lazer Tag(TM), and Battlefield Sports(TM) gear. Q: How do the ammo clips work? Can you set a total ammo limit with the S-M8 clips? A. Two basic types of clip are supported: single-use and reuseable. The single-use clips can only be used once per game, and the player carries up to 10 clips on them for use throughout a game. Once one of those clips has been emptied, it can no longer be used again at any time during the remainder of that game. The S-M8 kits are sold with two reuseable clips preset with 30 shots per clip. These allow the player to alternate between the two clips for the entire game, with no total ammo limit. The clips will continually be regenerated after they are emptied. For example, the player empties all of Clip A. Then, Clip B is inserted and at least one shot must be fired before re-loading the empty Clip A again for reuse. "Reuseable clips" is the default mode and is recommended for beginners. Consumers can order the clips with various default shots per clip, but that number can't later be changed. Once it's set in the software, it's set. Q: How does the "anti-cheat timer" work? A. The anti-cheat timer feature is really quite simple. The anti-cheat timer mechanism is reset any time power on either the gun or receiver is cycled, targets are disconnected ,or lives remaining are altered. When the system is reset, the timer starts a count-up from zero. Everyone at the beginning of the game turns their equipment on within a minute of each other. After a minute or two is on the timer, players are ready to play. If someone tampers with his or her equipment, the timer resets as well. At the end of the game, the judge walks through and compares timers. Anyone whose time doesn?t match up with everyone else?s has tampered with their equipment. You can?t stop cheating from happening, but you can catch the cheater with this system. In the key system offered by other manufacturers, cheaters could still have an extra key hidden on their person and get off scot-free. With our system, they would get caught. Q: How does a player get reset at the end of a game? A. To reset the system, you simply turn it off, and then back on. Q: How does the two-digit display work? Is there a display on both the receiver and the transmitter gun? A. Yes, there is a two-digit display on the receiver and one on the gun. The gun display will indicate the amount of ammunition left on the clip. When no clip is inserted, it displays the anti-cheat timer. The two-digit display on the receiver shows the player's remaining number of lives. There is also a push button on the receiver that, when held down, displays the anti-cheat timer on the receiver. Q: Currently, our field uses a system with a hit delay that gives you about a second of invulnerability. How long dies it take for a hit to register on RealSport equipment? Is it adjustable? A. There are no noticeable hit delays on RealSport targets and receivers. In theory, hit registration is only limited by the shot pulse length of the transmitter and the time it takes to process the interrupt request on the receiver -- a matter of microseconds. Of course, in practice it doesn't quite happen that fast, and the flashes and sounds will not be able to keep up with this kind of hit rate. Since receiving hits is interrupt-based, it is designed to take sequential hits as well as processing hits while still firing. Thus, our system does not suffer the infamous "Rambo effect" either. In this example case, our system would have no trouble processing three hits within one second if the fire rate of the gun permitted it. Currently, there is no mechanism to adjust this, but since the IrES system is entirely software-based, we can customize hit delays if desired by specific customers. Q: Can you use some kind of "utility box" as a medkit? A. Not with the current RealSport V.1 tournament or standard systems. Follow-on electrical upgrades will most likely have this feature available. Check our online store for updates on the latest RealSport product and upgrade launches. Q: What kind of global control do you have over a game played with S-M8 equipment? For example, can you set a time limit on the game, after which the guns won't fire? A. The current system is not global. The S-M8 is designed to be an entry-level system. It is, however, modular. RealSport's follow-on upgrade electronic kits will surpass most top-end indoor and outdoor equipment. All of our future electrical systems will be designed to be backwards compatible and will be designed to a standard mechanical size to ensure they can be dropped into older cases. Future software features will be also be modular. You will be able to buy the feature that you think make sense for you, not the features you don?t want. Check www.realsportgames.com/store for updates on the latest RealSport product and upgrade launches. Q: Is there a decrease in range when playing in direct sunlight? A. Yes, there is a loss of range in direct sunlight on all commercial outdoor infrared systems. Unfortunately, this is part and parcel of trying to compete with a light source (the sun) millions of times more powerful than our tiny IR transmitters. Loss of range in direct sunlight is in the order of 30-40%, depending on the conditions. Many manufacturers are currently working on a solution to this problem by separating the IR receiver into parts and biasing the actual photodiode front end differently. However, it is not quite that simple, as most IR receivers will always be suseptible to some sunlight interference. RealSport does use IR filters on its sensors, but this only serves to block visible light. All IR-wavelength light produced by the sun can still pass through and swamp the sensor, causing a reduction in range. |