A Climbing Hold With an Integrated Three Dimensional Force Measurement and Wireless Data Acquisition

A three dimensional force measurement system was integrated in a climbing hold. The force measurement system consisted of three orthogonally mounted platform load cells. Data acquisition and power supply of the load cells was performed by a wireless data acquisition system ViFDAQ. Data was transferred by ViFDAQ to a nearby laptop by a wireless Bluetooth connection. Measurements were done during a regional climbing competition. The instrumented climbing hold was mounted in one of the climbing routes. The forces the athletes exerted on the climbing hold to reach the top were measured. Force data was analyzed and compared to the actual ranking of the athlete in this competition.