Racquet maker Babolat and motion technology specialist Movea are teaming up to give tennis players racquets with integrated motion sensing technology. The “Play & Connect” racquet will be sold as the first-ever racquet featuring MEMS motion sensing technology that allows users to acquire and analyze game data and obtain information that could only be manually estimated until now.

 

The new racquet contains sensors enabling the measurement and analysis of game play factors such as stroke qualification, ball spin, ball position on the string bed, power during play, and service speed. The acquired data is transmitted over a Wi-Fi link to a laptop, tablet or smart phone so that players and coaches can set goals and follow progress on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. The instrumented racquet also lets players post their game-play data on social networks to encourage themselves, challenge their friends, and seek tips and advice from other users.