Playing sports in a Tron gym

(via ASB Systembau GMBH)

Looks like our living in a Tron world fantasy might be closer to reality that I thought. German company ASB Systembau GMBH has built fully customizable flooring, which illuminates from underneath, presenting athletes, students, audiences and other crowds with a floor that glows and can change designs. This concept is being tested at a school’s gymnasium in Germany where one gym can now comfortably accommodate for six sports, Basketball, Volleyball, Tennis, Badminton, Soccer and Handball, with no confusion about boundary lines painted on the floor. Rather, this floor has touchscreen-controlled boundaries, which are made through lines of illuminated LEDs.

This gymnasium, or the Lucio glass court, is made up of 160 glass panels, each measuring 2mx2m or larger, totaling 485 square meters. It made with help from the Kinon Porz glass manufacturer. Each glass panel is actually composed of two laminated glass panels joined by a 2 mm layer of PVB. A special coating is applied to each panel that hides scratches and decreases reflection or glare, giving it a marble-like shine. The floor is also coated with the right amount of ceramic dots, which provide necessary grip without hurting the players when they dive or fall. Of course, the real bounce test happens when balls hit the floor. Compared to regular wood flooring, the ASB floor has a slightly higher coefficient of restitution so balls bounce a little higher and it is supposedly much more durable.

Each panel is supported at every corner using aluminum supports, which hoist it, 20 cm above the ground and provide shock absorbance along with the elastic flooring. Each giant glass tile is then joined using tear proof foil. The floor was tested in long-term outdoor conditions suffering no damage, it is also ISO, and EN approved.

The Tron-like lines are illuminated by LEDs filling 850 m of channels. Color is given to the panels by foil applied underneath, which is not permanent and could be changed to any color, along with the LEDs, to produce a completely new color scheme after the first instillation. The LEDs could also be arranged densely to turn the surface into a huge screen showing advertisements or highlights during halftime shows. Not the greatest of uses, in my opinion, but it’s there.

The wide range of customizable options means the floors can be used in a wide range of settings. Ballrooms and dance clubs could host parties with custom floor lighting. Museums or stores could use these floors to guide tours, present maps or highlight areas of importance. Theatrical or musical acts could incorporate custom flooring into the show to create a one-of-a-kind futuristic scene.

Even in sports, the possibilities are many. Incorporating pressure sensors, the floor could show or detect where the ball bounced or if a player stepped out of bounds. Collecting player position data could help coaches construct plays or find ways to beat teams. ASB flooring could also give rise to new sports or games in which boundaries change after time or depending on special rules.

Expect to see them in performances, gymnasiums or hotel lobbies and many more places in the not so distant future. I’m convinced, we will be living in a Tron world sooner than expected.

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