Is This New GPS Robot Coming To Clarence School District?

Every school is always looking for a way to cut costs and make life better for their students, both in the classroom and on the field.

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Over the weekend, Clarence Athletics tweeted out a video of a robot doing something that would take humans hours longer to complete.  Does this mean they're going to be getting this new piece of technology?  Or were they just showing us that it exists?

How important are lines at a sporting event?

Depending on the event, lines are very important.  They determine what is in-bounds and out-of-bounds and of course, the difference between a goal and no goal. So they have to be precise.  Lines can't curve or bend.  They have to be straight.  Circles should be perfect too.

Drawing those lines takes a lot of time.

How long does it take a crew to paint lines on a field?

If lines haven't been drawn on a field before, it can take a very long time to make sure they're right.  According to their post, it can take a crew of 2-3 grounds personnel 2 hours to measure, string, and line one field.  Now multiply that by the number of sports happening that weekend and it can take a crew a very long time to prepare.

But there may be a solution that could take a whole lot less time.

What is the GPS Robot?

A GPS Robot could be the answer to help cut down on that work for grounds crews by a lot.  It's a robot that doesn't need strings and measurements.  It uses GPS coordinates instead to mark and paint lines in a hurry.  According to the post from Clarence Athletics, the same job that would take a crew 2 hours to do will now take just 20 minutes with this robot.

And when it comes to perfect circles, you'll get them with this robot.

Are there any cons to the GPS Robot?

With any technology, there is normally a con that comes with it.  There's always a concern when a robot is being brought in to replace human labor.  You never want to see someone lose a job to something like this.  However, one would assume that whoever is on that crew has multiple jobs that they do in a week and this might just be able to take something off their plate for a day.

Cost is always a factor too.  Technology like this doesn't always come cheap.  But if it saves you time and money in the long run, is it worth it?

How often will it have to be repaired?  The other problem with technology is that it breaks...and then has to be repaired.  Then instead of saving time, you're wasting it trying to fix a machine that does a job that a person can already do by hand.

It doesn't say in the post whether or not these things are coming to Clarence any time soon or if they have them already, but it is an interesting thought.  And we have to admit, it is pretty satisfying to watch.