The US Olympic Swim Team has received help from an unexpected party. According to Autoblog, Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, better known as BMW, assisted in the training of the swimmers with the use of their technology.
BMW is using the technology that it originally created for their autonomous driving systems or smart cars, in order to help the American swimmers to monitor their training. The technology uses LED lights in order to identify pedestrians and vehicles on the road. Those lights are placed on the body of the swimmer to help in monitoring the form and movement.
The monitoring helps to determine if there are any changes that need to be made on the form and the way that the body moves. With this monitoring technology, coaches are able to provide feedback to their athletes immediately.
Bloomberg reports that the LED light is not the only technology that BMW is providing to athletes. Another innovation that they are offering is the racing wheelchair that will be used in the Paralympics. These developments are being provided by BMW to showcase the company's technological development.
The effort to provide technology to the Olympians is not cheap. The money that was spent in using the technology for training swimmers cost the same as several primetime TV spots. Instead of aiming for a direct way of promotion, BMW opted to showcase the technology that they have developed.
BMW has also helped in the Sochi Olympics. The company designed the two-man bobsled used by the US in the last Winter Games. The team won the bronze medal there, the first for the US in 62 years. It is a lot more difficult to claim credit for success when the technology is used for training, but BMW is hoping that their LED technology will be a game-changer.
