It's All About Timing

Explore the challenges and solutions in designing a custom millisecond-accurate timing system for motorsport events using open-source software and tools. Learn about the unique requirements, including remote timing points, difficult terrain, quick setup, and integrated safety systems. Discover how Beaglebones, custom hardware capes, and software interfaces were utilized to create a cost-effective alternative to expensive off-the-shelf solutions. Delve into the technical aspects involving Python, C, MQTT, wide area networking, and distributed time synchronization. Gain insights into the system architecture, hardware design iterations, software development challenges, and real-world performance in high-speed racing environments.

Intro
Overview
What is a Hillclimb event?
Bulahdelah Hillclimb
How is the event run?
Unique Challenges
Safety Considerations
Knowledge Constraints
Additional Requirements
System Architecture
What makes up a node?
Node Hardware
Custom Cape Design
First Prototype
Version 2
External Hardware
Software prototyping
Python!
Oh Noes!
Dead Pythons!
Application V2.0
Timing node modules
Control Logic Modules
Comms module
Timing Event Example
Network configuration
Timing Control UI
Results Processing
Event Performance
Future Improvements