Optik Sensors: Play High Noon or Midnight

Battlefield Sports advanced optoelectronics, in particular, its Optik Sensors enable gameplay both indoors or outdoors, both at high noon or in the dark. In all light levels from arctic tundra to tropical rainforest.

If you can see ‘em/you can shoot ‘em with Optik Sensors 

 A key element of live gaming is the Battlefield Sports' sensor system.

The sensors play a crucial role in creating an enjoyable gaming experience. At its heart, Battlefield LIVE is a shooting game, so gamers want to see they have made hits.

Optik sensors make for immersive and engaging active entertainment, especially when combined with SATR's real-time hit feedback. 

Each Battlefield Sports laser tagger & accessory includes an integrated Optik sensor system. The system has three sensor domes: one placed on the forehead, one on the center of the back of the head, and one on the gun barrel. When the sensor system receives a digital signal, the gaming gun takes a “hit,” and the health reduces by one “hit point.”

 Years of commercial experience have shown that the most important element of live gaming is that the participants think the game is fair, and with Battlefield Sports’ Optik sensors, performance is reliable.

Our focus on simplicity and fairness is well-suited for high-traffic attractions. Some of the factors that have influenced our Optik sensor development are: The sensor system must be as non-intrusive as possible, to support appropriate or themed costumes. The location and design of the sensors must afford genuine 360-degree "hit-ability." 

While in play, the sensor system must make it challenging for a gamer to try and hide their sensors—a minimum number of sensors is used for gaming guns to ensure simplicity and maintainability. The sensor system must perform reliably in various lighting and weather conditions. Maintaining hygiene is a must. The Optik Sensor supports high-speed digital data transmission, which underpins the SATR system.

The head sensor features a heavy-duty 6-core cable (that can also come with an adapter for our older 4-core plug), which increases the average life span of the cable. It also supports SATR’s ability to configure the sensor hit-light color.

Optik Sensors: A Keystone of live-action gaming in software

 The sensor comes with a smokey grey dome that looks very attractive and discreet. Our team has designed a surface-mount PCB, which has enabled us to keep the compact size of the sensor.      

Our sensors are approximately the size of a silver dollar. These sensors simply attach to any hat, cap, or headband using Velcro. This is particularly useful if you are using a particular style of costume as part of your attraction’s theme. The Optik Sensor also has more varnish on the board surface, therefore, increasing its water resistance. The dome polycarbonate covers are tough as nails, but easily maintainable.

Long-range Outdoor / Short-range Indoor 

With the SATR software, the range of the sensors is easily configurable depending on where you plan to play. 

There are four software range settings in SATR (indoor, short, medium, and long), allowing for quick adjustments to find the ideal game balance. 

Optik-Sensors deliver excellent long-range, reliable performance at the baud rate needed by SATR. For example, a field test of a Cobra can hit up to 850 feet (250 meters)! Of course, when you are playing a laser tag game, your opposition is trying not to get hit, ducking, and weaving as well as hiding, and you might come under fire, so in a live mission, this range will be reduced.

The range is also affected by the brightness of direct sunlight on a particular day. It is also affected by how well-zeroed the scope is and how clean the lens is. All these factors can mitigate the maximum gaming range.

Hiding Sensors?

One of the primary issues with traditional indoor laser tag vests is that players can easily spot the enemy without exposing themselves to fire.

Players, for example, could look around corners to watch for an enemy without any risk of being hit, even if an enemy spotted them. Battlefield Sports has elegantly solved this problem with our three-sensor system. 

All Battlefield Sports laser tag equipment has integrated Optik sensors. Usually, two head sensors are placed, one at the center of the forehead and one at the back of the head. There is also a sensor on the gun barrel. Part of our solution also lies in the way our gaming guns are designed to shoot. 

Traditional laser tag has a very wide beam of infrared light.

Our gaming guns, on the other hand, have a narrow, tightly focused beam, so gamers must aim (either with a red dot or a telescopic scope) to hit an opponent. Of course, to aim, gamers need to look with their eyes; our front head sensor is mounted directly over their eyes, so to aim, the gamers must expose their head sensor. Blind firing is dangerous given the gun barrel sensor.

Live-Action Gaming (Almost) Anywhere - Arctic Tundra to Tropical Rainforest 

Live-action gaming is played worldwide. Battlefields span the globe, ranging from near the Arctic Circle to the tropics, and from dedicated indoor facilities to the scorching desert terrain. Traditional laser tag sensor systems were designed for a controlled (temperature & lighting) indoor environment. The sun emits a huge amount of ambient infrared light, so our sensors must detect only our signals and ignore the rest.

Battlefield Sports gives you a robust and reliable solution.

The system was initially designed for the tropics, making hygiene a vital consideration. Helmets and vests with permanently installed sensors inevitably become soaked with perspiration over a busy day. Additionally, when children play Battlefield, operators must consider the risk of head lice. With our system, every gamer gets a clean hat to wear for the duration of their session. Furthermore, we can identify the teams by the one clan wearing army hats and the other wearing caps.

Integrated Sensors as Standard

The Battlefield Sports SATR live-action gaming system includes integrated sensors as standard.

As seen in the picture [above], players wear a head wrap and then place a headband over it. (This is for hygiene; you will be switching between players throughout the day.)

Each tagger has an integrated sensor in the barrel. You can order red head wraps and red headbands. As well as blue head wraps and blue headbands. Alternatively, you can opt for camo head wraps paired with black headbands. Once you have the head-worn, then the player places the sensors in the center of their forehead and a second sensor in the center of the back of their head.

In Summary

We are entertainers.

We want to leave people with the best experience possible. Gamers have been brought up on ever-more realistic combat simulation games. Gamers are remarkably knowledgeable about the history of weapons and infantry combat. Our system is flexible. You can configure it to be family-friendly or go "milsim."

They appreciate well-thought-out, authentic live-action role plays. And the sensor that goes along with our games, therefore, must also be authentic.

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Our friendly Battlefield Gurus are happy to help with your project.