# Multi-Sensor System for Analysis of Maneuver Performance in Olympic Sailing
## 4 Discussion
The field testing in the Trondheim Fjord involved both harsh saltwater spray and periods of complete submersion for the rudder sensor. The efficient, non-intrusive mounting process for the sensors allows athletes to use the measurement system in training,remove the system with ease, and proceed straight to competition without worrying about illegal modifications to the boat. The sailor reports the system to be \"non-intrusive and small enough to not interfere with the sailing experience\". The proposed sensor setup also has the advantage of being low-cost. This has been a criterion followed consistently through the component selection and development process to ensure rapid development and to avoid fixation on specific solutions due to large investments. One consequence of this design choice has been some sacrifice in accuracy in the potentiometers used for angle measurement. The current potentiometers are slightly affected by temperature. For the next iteration of the system, we propose to implement high-precision encoders to ensure even better data quality. The usability of the current system has two main limitations: form factor and threshold for post-sailing analysis. The physical sensor system is currently a proof of concept, consisting of several 3D printed parts and bulky components such as the waterproof mechatronics hub. An important part of our plan for further development is to optimize the electronics for a smaller form factor while maintaining the current advantages of robustness and long battery life for practical use in the field. The data analysis is currently performed in post, with Python 3.11.9 tools and several manual steps. The next step in our development process will involve streamlining the analysis to efficiently allow coaches to analyze field data with athletes. We also plan to implement automatic anomaly detection for GNSS data loss caused by submersion or other factors, and to improve the fixed-time maneuver completion definition by accounting for varying sailing conditions. Another point for system improvement is to enhance the mast rotation measurement by also measuring the angle between the mast and the boom. Looking at our study in the broad context of existing research, we can see three main tracks in Olympic sailing research. The first track involves analyses of large datasets to acquire a better understanding of general trends in ILCA sailing [1; 4]. The second track involves simulated environments, which currently has limited transferable value to on-water sailing due to challenges in properly recreating environmental conditions [10; 13; 19]. The third track revolves around field tests with data collection and analysis of some physical properties measured, such as orientation and position-velocity with a GNSS [2; 21]. Following the conclusions of [22], in situ data collection and analysis have the highest value for athletes and coaches. We aimed our research towards the third main track, and expanded the possibilities within on-water sailing analysis through new measurement systems for onboard logging combined with existing tools like GNSS for position-velocity tracking. We aimed to build on existing research on in situ measurements and provide new data to enable coaches and athletes to train and perform better by applying detailed maneuver analysis to their training in a continuous feedback loop. The presented system architecture can be expanded with additional sensors and has the potential to improve sailing performance at the top level by providing detailed measurements previously unseen in Olympic ILCA sailing.