How does the AI ​​that detects advanced positions in the Qatar 2022 World Cup work?

The FIFA will use artificial intelligence to indicate advanced positions. This technology is a semi-automated system that will be implemented in the Qatar 2022 World Cup, in order to make the matches fairer and try to avoid controversy. How will it work?

“In collaboration with Adidas and various partners, especially the Innovation Excellence Task Force and their corresponding technology providers, FIFA has perfected the video refereeing system, which includes the use of semi-automated technology for offside detection”, indicates the highest entity of world football.

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Namely, It is a complementary tool to VAR, which will help arbitration, but it will not be the final decision of the system to mark an offside or not. After all, the referees will be the ones who decide to whistle the action.

This type of system has already been used in other official competitions, as a way of preparing for this event. “Semi-automated technology processes for offside detection and associated ball technology have been tested in numerous tests and have been used live in FIFA competitions such as the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup and the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup“, Add.

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How will the AI ​​that will detect advanced positions work in the Qatar 2022 World Cup?

According to the FIFA statement, the system uses various data to mark an offside. “Twelve cameras installed under the stadium roof capture the movements of the ball and up to 29 data points from each player, 50 times per second, to calculate their exact positions on the pitch. The 29 data sets collected include the limbs and parts of the body that are taken into account to signal an offside”, he assures.

The ball that will be used in the World Cup is also part of this system. “The official ball of Qatar 2022, Al Rihla, will include inside a decisive element for the detection of doubtful illegal positions: an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU). This sensor, located in the center of the ball, sends a data packet 500 times per second to the video roomwhich allows to detect with absolute precision the exact moment in which the ball is hit”, he adds.

The FIFA system will analyze 29 points on the players’ bodies. | (Photo: FIFA)

In this way, both information complement each other to mark the advanced position. “With the mix of player limb and ball tracking data, and through artificial intelligence, the new technology provides an automatic warning to the video room whenever an attacker who was in an illegal position when his teammate played the ball receives a ball”, indicates.

“To check your proposal before reporting it to the main arbitrator, the video refereeing team manually checks the exact moment of the shot provided by the dataas well as the offside line also created automatically and based on the positions of the player’s limbs that the system has calculated. As it only takes a few seconds, the process allows faster and more accurate decisions to be made”, he asserts.

Upon confirmation of the decision, a recreation of the forward position is broadcast to the spectators. “Once the video refereeing team and the main referee confirm the decision, the same position data used to adopt it generates a 3D animation that perfectly details the position of the player’s body parts at the moment of contact with the ball. Showing an off-law position from the best angles, this animation is broadcast on video scoreboards and distributed to FIFA’s broadcast partners to inform all viewers in the clearest and most transparent way possible.”, he assures.

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Does this AI that detects advanced positions in the Qatar 2022 World Cup work correctly?

According to FIFA, in addition to the tests at other events, the information has also been taken to be analyzed. “The Sports Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology analyzed and corroborated data collected during online and offline trials., and TRACK experts from the University of Victoria scientifically accredited the limb detection technology. A research team from ETH Zurich University is providing more information on the technological capabilities of these electronic multi-camera tracking systems.“, it states.

In other words, the data collected did verify the effectiveness of the system, but tests are still being carried out to refine details. “More tests will be carried out in the coming months to refine the system.before implementing a standard for the use of this new tool throughout the world”, indicates.

Source: Elcomercio