Arcade Basketball using infrared Scoreboard HELP!!

Thread Starter

siratfus

Joined Dec 29, 2010
5
Not sure where to begin or what to ask since I know nothing about electronics, infrared, circuit boards, etc. However, I've found my way here all because of an indoor arcade basketball game. This system is based on infrared. There are sensors near the rim, two to be exact. One is just above the rim, and the other below. When the ball drops through, the scoreboard tallies two points. You have 30 seconds, the last 10 seconds, all your baskets are worth 3 points. If you get 30 points total, you get an extra 15 seconds, you reach another certain amount and you earn more time.

Basically, my issue is that it's very inaccurate. Sometimes it will not tally the baskets you've made. I've sent the scoreboard back twice already and the replacements are all alike, very inaccurate. I thought to myself, "If I only I knew about electronics, this is probably a simple fix."

So I guess I'm here to ask, would this be a simple fix to some of you guys? Could you break open the scoreboard unit and install higher quality "things" in it to make it more accurate? Notice I said THINGS, I don't know any lingo. Is it easy to make the sensors better?

Can someone like me who know nothing about electronics follow your instructions and make it work? I go into my PC all the time, and I'm pretty good at following instructions.

Please advise, thank you in advance!
 

R!f@@

Joined Apr 2, 2009
9,918
OK. Two emitters and two receivers.
Both aimed at each other. One pair above the loop and one pair below the loop
am I getting the Idea?

So u are saying the original design is having hiccups.
 
Last edited:

Thread Starter

siratfus

Joined Dec 29, 2010
5
OK. Two emitters and two receivers.
Both aimed at each other. One pair above the loop and one pair below the loop
am I getting the Idea?

So u are saying the original design is having hiccups.
I think you got it. Each rim gets a white and a black. The white goes above the rim, the black goes below. At first I thought the white was the sensor, and the black were speakers. Realize they are both sensors. So the ball falls through the rim and has to go through two sensors.

Yep, the hiccup is that It's inaccurate. Sometimes it doesn't pick up the fact that a basket was just made. Not sometimes, many times. I figure this is do to cheap components?
 

Thread Starter

siratfus

Joined Dec 29, 2010
5
Here's a picture of the rim. BTW, I call them sensors cause I don't know any better. But I guess you're saying one is a receiver and one is an emitter? What does that mean? Is it something like the white one above the rim senses the basket, the emitter below is what sends the info to the scoreboard?

 

R!f@@

Joined Apr 2, 2009
9,918
You are way over your head buddy...

I get it.
The score board has two IR emitters and two IR receivers.
To increment the count the ball should pass through both the sensors.

The ball will cut the first beam and then cut the second beam.
How far is the beams placed. Will the ball cut both beams. or one after the other

See the pic



I need to look closer at these to know whether they are IR emitters and photo transistors.
Ur pics are too low res. mate :(
 
Last edited:
Top