Fan Safety Technology for

Baseball Stadiums

by: Aaron Wilson

1.Introduction

“Fan safety is paramount” - MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred

Anti-reflective curved glass will be installed to replace the current netting and extend down each foul line.

▣Curved glass can be molded to fit the unique designs of MLB stadiums.

▣Anti-reflective coating is effective for outside use.▣HoloPro technology allows for interactive images

to be displayed on the glass.

2.Statement of the Problem

“It’s the age of the selfie” - M. Delatorre

Tonya CarpenterSuffered life-threatening injuries after being struck in the head by a broken bat on June 8th, 2015. She was sitting between home plate and third base where the protective netting ends. (ESPN.com, 2015)

About 1,750 spectators get hurt each year by batted balls at MLB games (Glovin, 2013).

While the average person’s response to a ball still allows them more than adequate time to react if they are paying attention, the increased use of cell phones at the ballpark create a dangerous atmosphere for fans.

3.Purpose

StatementTo give fans one less thing to worry about when enjoying a game.

▣Installation and maintenance cost of the glass will be covered by advertisements.

▣Enhanced fan interaction through the use of a touch screen on the glass.

▣Glass will glow with light to warn players chasing a foul ball.

▣Padding lies on top of glass to prevent injuries to players/fans.

Protective glass will solve the issue of fan safety while still allowing for a clear view of the game.

4.Brief Review

of the Competition

“We have lots of fans who are very vocal about the fact that they don’t like to sit behind nets.” - MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred

The glass will be competing with the expanded netting going into effect for the

2016 season.

5.Design

Summary

▣Anti-reflective curved glass will be used in MLB stadiums to improve the safety of fans from objects leaving the field of play.

▣Glass replaces current netting and extends down both foul lines.

▣High enough to protect fans, low enough to preserve fan interaction.

▣HoloPro and chroma keying used to generate ad revenue, enhance fan interaction.

▣Padding on top of glass and HoloPro gesture control used for player safety.

Appendix

In future developments of this concept, glasses with high elastic moduli may be used to enhance the strength of the glass.

Operational Terms

Chroma Keying: Otherwise known as green screen technology, chroma keying is the

process by which a specific color element (chroma) is removed from a video scene and replaced

(keyed) with a different element. It is essentially the way video producers remove one

background and replace it with another (Malone, 2010).

Silbrade: Soft, silicone tubing that was designed for medical purposes. Silbrade is

able to resist extreme temperature variation from -80°F to 350°F, making it ideal for use in all

outdoor conditions (United States Plastics Corporation, 2015).

Trajectory: The curved path along which something moves through the air

(Trajectory, 2015).

Velocity: The quickness of motion, or speed (Velocity, 2015).

Exit Velocity: Measures a player’s bat head speed in miles per hour (MPH) as well as

the efficiency and power of their swing mechanics. (Reida, 2014)

Operational Terms Cont.

4G LTE: The term 4G LTE is really two terms. 4G means the fourth generation of data

technology for cellular networks ̶ following 3G, the third generation. LTE stands for Long Term

Evolution and is short for a very technical process for high-speed data for cell phones and other

mobile devices. Together, they make 4G LTE ̶ the fastest 4G service available today (Pica, 2012).

Curved laminated glass: Laminated glass is a type of safety glass that holds

together if it is shattered. Designed by the company Curved Glass Solutions, laminated glass is

normally used when there is a possibility of human impact. Each piece of curved glass has to be

custom made depending on the measurements (Curved Glass Creations, 2015).

Luxar anti-reflective coating: Prevents disturbing reflections on glass surfaces

from sunlight. This optical thin-film coating can be applied to all types of glass, including the

laminated glass used in this concept (Hy-Tech-Glass, n.d.)

Operational Terms Cont.

HoloPro: Enables projection onto glass in daylight while maintaining transparency. This is

made possible by the patented HoloPro technology: holographic optical elements are beamed

onto a highly transparent film by laser. This is then embedded in glass. There is no darkening

necessary, it is an eye-catcher, displays brilliant colors, has a sharp picture, and is extremely

durable. HoloPro will be used as an information system for fans and players in combination with

touch or gesture control (HoloPro, n.d.).

Holographic Optical Elements (HOE’s): is a hologram of a point source and acts

as a lens or a mirror having optical power, i.e., the ability to focus light. (Gentry, 2013).

High elastic moduli: Also known as Young's modulus, measures the resistance of a

material such as glass to elastic (recoverable) deformation under load (Rosales-Sosa et al.,

2015).

References

Hagen, Paul. (2015, November 19). Expanded Safety Nets, in-Market Streaming Coming in '16.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/157696528/mlb-to-expand-safety-nets-in-market-streaming

ESPN.com news services. (2015, June 8). Woman Injured by Broken Bat at Fenway Park Remains in Serious

Condition.

http://espn.go.com/boston/mlb/story/_/id/13024139/woman-injured-boston-red-sox-game-serious-condition

Glovin, David. (2014, September 9). Baseball Caught Looking as Fouls Injure 1,750 Fans a Year.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-09-09/baseball-caught-looking-as-fouls-injure-1-750-fans-a-

year

Muret, Don. (2011, February 7). Virtual Ads Gain Traction in NHL.

http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2011/02/20110207/Media/NHL-virtual-ads.aspx

Malone, Simon. (2010, August 20). What is Chroma Keying and How Do Green Screens Work?

http://www.virtualstudio.tv/blog/post/14-what-is-chroma-keying-and-how-do-green-screens-work

Trajectory. 2015. In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved November 23, 2015, from

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trajectory

References Cont.

Velocity. 2015. In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved November 23, 2015, from

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/velocity

Ulanoff, Lance. (2015, November 5). Japanese Scientists Create Super-Strong Glass, But Don't Call it

'Unbreakable'. http://mashable.com/2015/11/05/smartphones-ultra-hard-glass/#siayzEv4Mkqf

Reida, Tad. (2014, January 31). Hitting Exit Velocity: What is it and Why Does it Matter?

http://www.checkswing.com/profiles/blogs/hitting-exit-velocity-what-is-it-and-why-does-it-matter

FoulBallzAdmin. (2015, September 1). No Netting Needed for Foul Balls: Baseball Fan Reaction Times Are

Sufficient When Paying Attention.

http://foulballz.com/foul-ball/no-netting-needed-contrary-to-popular-belief-baseball-fan-reaction-times-are-s

ufficient-when-paying-attention/

Qualcomm Technologies. (2013, August 15). MLB And The Connected Fan.

https://www.qualcomm.com/news/spark/2013/08/15/mlb-and-connected-fan

Pica, Tom. (2012, April 30). What is 4G LTE and Why it Matters.

http://www.verizonwireless.com/news/article/2012/05/what-is-4GLTE-and-why-it-matters.html

References Cont.

Delatorre, M. (2015, October 1). Let Me Take a Selfie: Baseball Announcers Commentate on Girls’ Selfie Session.

http://kfor.com/2015/10/01/let-me-take-a-selfie-baseball-announcers-commentate-on-girls-selfie-session/

Gentry, Bruce. (2013, February 13). Holographic Optical Elements (HOEs).

http://web.archive.org/web/20130215114430/http://harlie.gsfc.nasa.gov/HOES/HOEs.htm

United States Plastic Corporation. (2015). Silbrade® Medical Tubing. Retrived from

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=104746&catid=799

Curved Glass Creations. (2015). Retrived from http://curvedglasscreations.com/about-curved-glass.html

Rosales-Sosa, G., Masuno, A., Higo, Y., Inoue, H., Yanaba, Y., Mizoguchi, T.,… Watanabe, Y. (15 October 2015). High

Elastic Moduli of a 54Al2O3-46Ta2O5 Glass Fabricated via Containerless Processing.

http://www.nature.com/articles/srep15233

MLB Advanced Media. (2015). Statcast Leaderboard. http://m.mlb.com/statcast/leaderboard#exit-velo

Hy-Tech-Glass. LUXAR anti-reflective glass. http://www.luxar.ch/en/products/anti-reflective-glass/luxar.html

HoloPro. HoloPro™ the patented solution for living projections on glass.

http://www.holopro.com/en/products/holoprotm.html

Thanks!Any questions?