What is a Pixellot Camera?
Two Pixellot Cameras were installed at Dover-Eyota in the summer of 2021. One is installed on on the Crow’s Nest/Press Box at the Soccer/Football Field. The other is located on the south wall (above the D-EVN table) in the Varsity Gym in the HSMS. They were installed as a part of a program from the NFHS Network that provided the cameras and their systems free of charge for schools. The NFHS Network also is providing tech support/repair/replacement for the systems free of charge on a 5-year agreement with the school. The NFHS Network is a subscription-based platform, but the school – hopefully with the help of sponsorships – will be covering that cost so that all Dover-Eyota produced events will be free to watch once again during the 2022-2023 School Year.
The Pixellot camera systems themselves use a specially developed artificial intelligence software to automatically track the movement of players and the ball, and also sync with the scoreboard operation so that camera-work and basic graphics (showing the clock (if used) and the score and some additional info specific to the game/match being covered) are fully automated. Even scheduling can be done so that the Pixellot camera turns on and turns off automatically.
What that means for Dover-Eyota is that all football and soccer events that take place on the Turf Field, as well as all volleyball, basketball and wrestling events can be shown without the need for volunteers. The Pixellot systems have built-in microphones that can pick up the PA announcements and fan noise. All that would be needed are volunteer announcers whenever they can be available! What’s also exciting is that Varsity level teams aren’t the only ones that can be covered. It includes JV football, JV soccer, 9th grade and JV volleyball, 9th grade and JV basketball, JV wrestling and even Youth (5th & 6th grade) Football. As long as the game/match takes place in the locations where the Pixellot is installed, the game/match can be scheduled and shown.
The Pixellot Technology allows D-EVN to virtually guarantee that games and matches in the Fall and Winter s
easons can be shown. In comparison, for the seasons prior (dating back to the 2015 Winter Season) we have produced livestreams that needed volunteers to run the cameras, and we sometimes weren’t able to get those volunteers. And even when we could get a camera operator, we didn’t have someone that could update the graphics: the score, game clock, etc. Those two pieces are now covered by the Pixellot systems with their automated technologies.
Some info about the Pixellot technologies are available online here: How Athletic Directors use Pixellot with the NFHS Network – YouTube
If you have any questions, please contact Bryan Berg at bryanberg@deschools.org
