Timing system

Apparatus for sequentially starting and timing a plurality of participants around a special course, said apparatus comprising:

• sensing means for detecting the presence of a participant at a start position, a finish position and a preselected intermediate position;
• means coupled to said sensing means for timing each of the participants from the start position to the intermediate position;
• staging control means for delaying starting of participants following a first participant, including means for signaling the participants to start at times determined in part from the times of corresponding immediately preceding participants to reach the intermediate position;
• timing and storage means for accumulating time counts corresponding to elapsed times for all participants simultaneously on the course;
• and
• display means connected to said timing and storage means, for displaying the elapsed time of each participant reaching the finish position.

Electronic timing and control apparatus for use in timed motor vehicle racing over a special course, comprising:

• sensing means at a start position, a finish position, and an intermediate sample position;
• a plurality of lights at the start position to provide a starting signal to the drivers of the vehicles;
• first timing means for performing a sequence of timing steps including measuring a selectably fixed time delay after each vehicle leaves the start position, measuring the remaining time taken by each vehicle to reach the intermediate position, and then measuring a further delay directly proportional to said remaining time;
• first control means for switching said first timing means through its sequence of timing steps and generating a control signal when the sequence is complete;
• second control means coupled with said sensing means at the start position, for controlling operation of said lights to start a vehicle on receiving said control signal from said first control means;
• second timing means for measuring elapsed times for a plurality of vehicles on the course simultaneously, including storage means for holding the elapsed times;
• storage control means for initiating and terminating timing operations in said storage means and for retrieving stored elapsed times from said storage means;
• storage selection means for selecting an appropriate segment of said storage means for control by said storage control means;
• and
• display means for displaying the times retrieved from said storage means by said storage control means as vehicles complete the course and reach the finish position.

For use in a vehicle timing system having at least one vehicle sensor, apparatus for filtering signals from the sensor to eliminate spurious signals below a threshold duration, said apparatus comprising:

• a clock pulse generator;
• a first counter enabled by the presence of a sensor signal to count pulses from said clock pulse generator and to generate a first output signal if the sensor signal persists for a first preselected time;
• a second counter enabled by the absence of a sensor signal to count pulses from said clock pulse generator and to generate a second output signal if the sensor signal is absent for a second preselected time;
• first counter control means for stopping said first counter in response to said first output signal and resetting said first counter in response to said second output signal;
• and
• second counter control means for stopping said second counter in response to said second control signal and resetting said second counter in response to said first output signal;
• whereby presence of the sensor signal for the first preselected time will produce the first output signal, until the sensor signal is absent for the second preselected time and the second output signal is thereby generated.

A method of controlling the initial spacing between sequentially started racing vehicles on a designated course, comprising the steps of:

• timing a vehicle over a selected portion of the course to obtain a measure of its speed;
• delaying starting of a next vehicle by a time interval derived in part from the speed of the preceding vehicle and in part from at least one adjustable time delay;
• and
• repeating said timing step and said delaying step for successively started vehicles, whereby the initial spacing between any two consecutively started vehicles is controlled by said timing and delaying steps to obtain minimum spacing without subsequent interference between the vehicles.

A method of timing and controlling the initial spacing between racing vehicles started one by one on a special course, comprising the sequential steps of:

• starting a first vehicle;
• waiting for an adjustable time delay to elapse;
• measuring a sample time taken for the first vehicle to reach an intermediate position in the course;
• then waiting for a further period proportional to the sample time to elapse;
• and then
• initiating a starting sequence for a second vehicle, whereby the initial spacing between the first and second vehicles is controlled to obtain minimum spacing without subsequent interference between the vehicles.