Technical overview - System components

Ariadne has evolved from a competition administration system (just a database and forms) into a real time processing system. During timing and scoring operations it has to simultaneously process a number of event streams. And it has to do so in a reliable way.

A local webserver was added for real time publication of results and for communication with browser based scoring terminals for penalty collection. COM objects have been added for event forwarding (timing events, penalty events, publication events.) Live internet publication was added in 2009. In 2010 the scoring terminals for penalty entry were added, as the runtime display.

Ariadne runs on Windows, MS-Access, .NET, Apache webserver, PHP.

The diagram below shows the different components of the Ariadne system.

The system components of the Ariadne system

Component description

A530-Run processing

A530-Run processing is the central process for timing operations. On the A530 form you relate starts and finishes to competitors and calculate the runtime. A530 is part of the MS-Access Ariadne application.

A425 Penalty processing

A425 Processes the penalty scores received from gate sections via the Ariadne scoring terminals. A425 polls the T660-Gate judgment table for new penalties and processes these to the participant results. A425 is part of the MS-Access Ariadne application.

CurrentCompetition database

The CurrentCompetition database stores the events, participants, clubs and results. CurrentCompetition is a separate MS Access database linked to Ariadne.

StartpostDriver

The StartpostDriver provides the communication between Ariadne A530 and the serial port to the startpost controller. The startpost driver processes the startnumber request communication of the startpost controller, and forwards the timing messages from AriadneTimy to Ariadne A530. The StartpostDriver is a Windows COM object that comes live with the A530 form. It requires registration in the Windows Registry.

AriadneTimy

AriadneTimy is a separate .NET program that interfaces between the Alge Timy clock and the AriadneTimEvents event dispatcher. AriadneTimy listens on the serial port to Timy messages. It displays the running time from the Timy, and forwards timing messages via the AriadneTimEvents event dispatcher to A530.

Timy

The Timy is the electronic timing device from Alge-Timing.In the first instance Ariadne interfaced to the Timy via the USB interface. This appeared not to be reliable. We left the USB interface in favor of the serial interface. For the interfacing to Ariadne, AriadneTimy was developed (2009).

S/F junction box

The Start/Finish junction box splits and combines signals from and to the start and finish controllers.

Start and Finish controllers

The start and finish controllers control the photocell beams. They filter the photo beam signals from minor interruptions. The startpost controller is also a terminal to request the bib to start. The start and finish controllers are electronic devices developed by the GM team.

Scoring manager

The Scoring manager consists of two php programs that run on the webserver. The scoring manager forwards the gate judgements (penalty scores) from the Ariadne Scoring terminals to the T660 table, and informs the Scoring terminals about new started competitors to be judged.

Scoring terminals

The scoring terminals are browser based entry tablets for penalty entry at the gate section. The scoring terminals can run on PC's or PDA's and communicate via wifi to the Scoring manager on the TimePC. The scoring terminals are based on xml-http browser technology.

AriadneTimEvents

Ariadne Timing Events is a Windows COM component that forwards timing events from Ariadne Timy to A530. It requires registration in the Windows Registry.

AriadnePenEvents

Ariadne Penalty Events is a Windows COM component that forwards events for bibs to be judged from Ariadne to the Scoring manager. It requires registration in the Windows Registry.

AriadnePubEvents

Ariadne Publication Events is a Windows COM component that forwards publication events from Ariadne to the Publication manager. It requires registration in the Windows Registry.

Publication manager

The Publication manager consists of two php programs that run on the webserver. The one program generates a new results list on request of the publication screen. The other program informs the publication screen via xm-http technology that a publication event has occurred, and that it must refresh its results list. With this technology the publication screen is actualized right after a finish.

Publication screen

The publication screen runs in a browser and displays the last 20 results.

Ariadne Admin

AriadneAdmin is a Ariadne instance that runs on the AdminPC and links to the current competition database. With AriadneAdmin the event results are produced. Also with AriadneAdmin changes to the events, participants etc, and corrections on run results can be effected.

Ariadne AIR

Ariadne AIR is a separate .NET component that listens to publication events from AriadnePubEvent, then queries the CurrentCompetiton database for the last result, and forwards the result to the Ariadne internet server.

Ariadne Internet server

Via the Ariadne Internet server (www.timingteam.nl/air) people can watch the progress of the events and results on a near real time basis.Both on PC browser and smartphone browser.

Ariadne RTD

Ariadne RTD is a separate .NET component that listens to publication events from AriadnePubEvent, then queries the CurrentCompetiton database for the last result, and displays the result to the runtime display (an Alge display or a Microgate display).

For detailed description of the system components, see the technical documentation.